Erik

I love being married to my wonderful husband. In our time together I have only known him to be a mature, caring, generous and compassionate man. I love him because he makes me happy and strives, in every thing he does, to give me the life I want. Erik listens to my complaints at the difficulty of life as a stay at home mother, but still works every day so I can care for our child.

It is wonderful to know him as an adult, but looking at photos of Erik as a child makes me love him even more. I hope you see how wonderfully sweet he was (and is) through these pictures.

Mmmm...ice cream!
Erik (age 2 1/2) as tall as the counter!

DC Days

Karl ventured into DC for the first time today! We had an appointment to see my old office on the hill. Karl was a hit; even the Congressman gave him a pat and said hello.

Karl with Anna & LuAnn

Then we headed to lunch at Cosi,

walked through the botanical gardens (where Karl became the subject of a little girl's admiration),





and went to the Native American Museum (where a group of foreigners asked to take a picture with Karl in his sunglasses). All around an excellent day.

Karl was still bright eyed and bushy tailed this evening. I hope he sleeps well tonight!

5 months!

Little Karl turned 5 months on the 10th of March. He is getting so big and interacting with us more and more. Here are some milestones for Karl:

1- I love to talk! Especially in the morning when I have both Mom and Dad's undivided attention. I am really good at saying "goo" and "Ahh". Sometimes I even say "ah goo".

(Lately, Karl has also been trying to talk back when we say things to him. He forms his mouth like he is about to 'goo', but mostly just decides to smile and twinkle his little eyes).

2- I am really interested in food. I love watching my parents eat and grabbing for things on their plate. Yesterday, I grabbed Mom's fork- thank goodness Dad was there to whip to out of my hand. I will try to stick with spoons.

3- I fit just perfectly in my 6 month clothing. This is my favorite outfit to poop on.

4- When I play with toys or look at books I really concentrate. I purse my lips together and Mom says I look like a little monkey when I do this. She also thinks I remind her of my second cousin Adam when he was a baby and was always working on projects.

5- I have started giggling! I laugh mostly when Mom "neighs" at me or rubs her nose in my belly. Dad got a good chuckle from me last night when he made a funny sounds.

6- My exersaucer is a lot of fun when I have too much energy for Mom and Dad at 10pm. I'm not in there too often as Mom read that since it prevents me from seeing my feet it can hinder my learning from my own movements.

7- My trunk support is getting much better. I can sit up on my own, but when I go to grab something I topple over. I think it's kind of fun.

8- Feet are neat! I finally figured out those things are attached to me and I like to grab them- especially when I wear red and white stripped socks.

9- I am not afraid of people yet- though I still smile more for Mommy and Daddy. When I met Uncle Dave I warmed right to him and tried to take his nose home as a souvenir.

In this one, I had just woken up:

10- Mom and Dad think I must weigh close to 17 pounds now. We'll find out in early April how much I weigh and how tall I am.

So sunny!

What does a baby do when the sun shines in his eyes? Closes them, of course! Not anymore, Mr. Karl! Your amazing mother purchased some shades for your eyeball comfort.

Check out this little stud!

Progression of a smile

hmmm....what are those things on that thing? Let's see if I can get it!

Hey! It's flashing! That's neat.




Oh, look! There's Mama! She's nice.