I forgot to add this video.
Tuesday, April 29, 2008
Monday, April 28, 2008
Thanks for donating and HAPPY BIRTHDAY!
My mom celebrated her birthday yesterday. The girls got to talk to her on the phone and then we took these videos of them showing off their new skills.
Impressive, eh?!
Also, we sent out an email to everyone about donating to the March of Dimes. Thanks to those who have donated! It's a great cause so feel free to pass this on to your family and friends. We are a little over 1/4 the way to our goal with 3 weeks to go!
Impressive, eh?!
Also, we sent out an email to everyone about donating to the March of Dimes. Thanks to those who have donated! It's a great cause so feel free to pass this on to your family and friends. We are a little over 1/4 the way to our goal with 3 weeks to go!
So...it finally stopped snowing
We ended up with 20.2 inches of snow! Even for Anchorage, that's a ton of snow. The third highest single day total and this year is now the snowiest April on record. I've definitely learned to expect the unexpected in Alaska but even this threw me for a loop.
We went out first thing Saturday morning. We didn't want to but the girls had their annual check up so we had to make an attempt. When we backed out of the driveway, I spun the tires. Put in reverse and the tires kept spinning. I said something like, "well that didn't take long". Lisa leaned over and switched it in to 4-wheel drive...problem solved. I kinda felt stupid thinking we were in 4-wheel drive the whole time. After that, not much difficulty getting around.
I'll fill you in on the doctors appointment later. Afterward, we drove around to take in the sites and let the girls have their nap. We got some more good photos. I like this first one, it makes my Bronco look like it has an afro.
Good thing we drove around that morning because by noon the snow started melting and falling off the trees. We're up to 16 hours of daylight so it doesn't have to be too warm or even sunny to melt the snow. It's going fast. Before, I was getting excited about biking to work...guess that's going to have to wait another week until we can dry out again.
We went out first thing Saturday morning. We didn't want to but the girls had their annual check up so we had to make an attempt. When we backed out of the driveway, I spun the tires. Put in reverse and the tires kept spinning. I said something like, "well that didn't take long". Lisa leaned over and switched it in to 4-wheel drive...problem solved. I kinda felt stupid thinking we were in 4-wheel drive the whole time. After that, not much difficulty getting around.
I'll fill you in on the doctors appointment later. Afterward, we drove around to take in the sites and let the girls have their nap. We got some more good photos. I like this first one, it makes my Bronco look like it has an afro.
Good thing we drove around that morning because by noon the snow started melting and falling off the trees. We're up to 16 hours of daylight so it doesn't have to be too warm or even sunny to melt the snow. It's going fast. Before, I was getting excited about biking to work...guess that's going to have to wait another week until we can dry out again.
Friday, April 25, 2008
Still snowing!
Talk about record snowfall! The meteorologist in me has to share some amazing numbers. I got home from a meeting at work and measured 2.1 inches on the snowboard at 1pm. I've measured every hour...here's what I measured.
1pm... 2.1 inches
2pm... 3.7
3pm... 6.0
4pm... 8.2
5pm... 10.6
6pm... 12.6
7pm... 13.5
8pm... 14.6
9pm... 15.9
10pm.. 16.8!!
AND IT'S STILL SNOWING!!!!
What's funny about that picture is 24 hours ago I was standing there, holding a beer in one hand and flipping chicken on the bbq with the other. It was 55 degrees. Today, we started at 48 degrees at midnight and the temperature dropped to 31.5 degrees by noon. It held between 31 and 32 degrees all day. Perfect for heavy snow.
I ran down to Madison's trail real fast this evening and took a few pictures.
Hard to tell but the trees are bent down over the trail.
This last one is Lisa's truck. It's not real high off the ground but it's not low either. Anyway, you can see that the license plate was actually hitting the top of the snow.
1pm... 2.1 inches
2pm... 3.7
3pm... 6.0
4pm... 8.2
5pm... 10.6
6pm... 12.6
7pm... 13.5
8pm... 14.6
9pm... 15.9
10pm.. 16.8!!
AND IT'S STILL SNOWING!!!!
What's funny about that picture is 24 hours ago I was standing there, holding a beer in one hand and flipping chicken on the bbq with the other. It was 55 degrees. Today, we started at 48 degrees at midnight and the temperature dropped to 31.5 degrees by noon. It held between 31 and 32 degrees all day. Perfect for heavy snow.
I ran down to Madison's trail real fast this evening and took a few pictures.
Hard to tell but the trees are bent down over the trail.
This last one is Lisa's truck. It's not real high off the ground but it's not low either. Anyway, you can see that the license plate was actually hitting the top of the snow.
SNOW!!!!
It is snowing cats and dogs!! Or is it...snowing moose and polar bears?! Whatever...it's coming down. Last year we didn't have any measurable snow in April. This year we're working on our 3rd April snow storm and this one is the most impressive. As of 3:30pm, we've received 7 inches of snow (1.5 to 2 inches an hour) and it's STILL SNOWING!!!! We could get a foot out of this! So cool.
I took a couple quick pictures to prove that it's snowing. I'll take some more when it slows down so you can get a better feel for how much snow this really is.
And a fun video to boot. We just took this video an hour ago. Alyssa learned a fun new trick.
I took a couple quick pictures to prove that it's snowing. I'll take some more when it slows down so you can get a better feel for how much snow this really is.
And a fun video to boot. We just took this video an hour ago. Alyssa learned a fun new trick.
Tuesday, April 22, 2008
Monday, April 21, 2008
it's been a week?
Sorry for the delay. This week has flown by. The girls enjoyed a spring visit from their Granny. We all didn't get out too much but Lisa and I did manage to sneak away from the house a couple times. Thanks Grannie for all the hard work you put in this week.
We are back to the grind. Katy seems to be adjusting a little slower...she's been throwing some fits during feeding time. We think she got used to not having to wait for the next bite. Kinda funny.
Otherwise, we got our new toy! Our new bike trailer/jogger arrived!! It is SWEEEET!! Anyone with young kids out there, go get yourself a trailer/jogger! We are going to have so much fun this summer. Spring has arrived here in Anchorage...we've hit 50 degrees now 2 days in a row! We've been able to take walks all weekend and today. The nice weather is going to continue this week so the girls are getting to get plenty of vitamin D. This is not our new trailer/jogger...we still need to get that out of the garage.
A quick side not is this was the first time since Madison died that we went down to the trail. I tried not to think about it too much but it was pretty emotional for Lisa. To think that we were on that trail at least once a day from summer of 05 to February 25, 2008 and in the last month and a half, we hadn't been down there once. It really was emotional. That section of the trail will always belong to Madison.
I love this last one of the two of them. It was hard to tell because we couldn't see their eyes...but they wouldn't smile. They looked like little grouches in their sunglasses.
These last photos are of Katy trying on her bear hoodie. If you can't tell (haha) she loves it. We've joked that they should wear it to bed because they seem to bang their head against the rails of the crib. They like to look at each other across the room and laugh. When they lift their heads up, sometimes they bang their forehead against the rails. So this would be a perfect helmet...nice and fuzzy. Andy Katy seems to like it.
The girls are doing fantastic at naps and better at night time. I would say about 50%of the time they can get themselves to sleep at night and 95% of the time during naps. I would say 100% of the time but apparently Katy needed some help this afternoon...otherwise they've gone more than a week without any help. It is so nice!! Finally, we're less stressed during nap and night time because we know it's not going to take too long and Lisa and I are spending more time together......NIIIIIICE!!!
Some of the latest developments (and there seems to be a new one every day)...Alyssa can easily pull herself up to kneeling position and then standing depending on what she's leaning against. Katy did that for the first time tonight. Katy does great about sleeping through the night. Alyssa is usually the one that will wake up but has been great about getting back to sleep.
Meals are getting messy. The girls love to help feed themselves and it usually involves food on the floor...probably pretty common for one year olds. Lisa doing all the work on her own is a pretty big production from preparation to feeding to cleaning up. By the time they're done eating, it's time for the next nap. Okay, maybe not but still, it's a production. Kudos to Lisa when I'm working and she's on her own. She is quite a Mom, wife, woman. I am a lucky, lucky man.
We are back to the grind. Katy seems to be adjusting a little slower...she's been throwing some fits during feeding time. We think she got used to not having to wait for the next bite. Kinda funny.
Otherwise, we got our new toy! Our new bike trailer/jogger arrived!! It is SWEEEET!! Anyone with young kids out there, go get yourself a trailer/jogger! We are going to have so much fun this summer. Spring has arrived here in Anchorage...we've hit 50 degrees now 2 days in a row! We've been able to take walks all weekend and today. The nice weather is going to continue this week so the girls are getting to get plenty of vitamin D. This is not our new trailer/jogger...we still need to get that out of the garage.
A quick side not is this was the first time since Madison died that we went down to the trail. I tried not to think about it too much but it was pretty emotional for Lisa. To think that we were on that trail at least once a day from summer of 05 to February 25, 2008 and in the last month and a half, we hadn't been down there once. It really was emotional. That section of the trail will always belong to Madison.
I love this last one of the two of them. It was hard to tell because we couldn't see their eyes...but they wouldn't smile. They looked like little grouches in their sunglasses.
These last photos are of Katy trying on her bear hoodie. If you can't tell (haha) she loves it. We've joked that they should wear it to bed because they seem to bang their head against the rails of the crib. They like to look at each other across the room and laugh. When they lift their heads up, sometimes they bang their forehead against the rails. So this would be a perfect helmet...nice and fuzzy. Andy Katy seems to like it.
The girls are doing fantastic at naps and better at night time. I would say about 50%of the time they can get themselves to sleep at night and 95% of the time during naps. I would say 100% of the time but apparently Katy needed some help this afternoon...otherwise they've gone more than a week without any help. It is so nice!! Finally, we're less stressed during nap and night time because we know it's not going to take too long and Lisa and I are spending more time together......NIIIIIICE!!!
Some of the latest developments (and there seems to be a new one every day)...Alyssa can easily pull herself up to kneeling position and then standing depending on what she's leaning against. Katy did that for the first time tonight. Katy does great about sleeping through the night. Alyssa is usually the one that will wake up but has been great about getting back to sleep.
Meals are getting messy. The girls love to help feed themselves and it usually involves food on the floor...probably pretty common for one year olds. Lisa doing all the work on her own is a pretty big production from preparation to feeding to cleaning up. By the time they're done eating, it's time for the next nap. Okay, maybe not but still, it's a production. Kudos to Lisa when I'm working and she's on her own. She is quite a Mom, wife, woman. I am a lucky, lucky man.
Sunday, April 13, 2008
Never shake a baby
A little game we've been playing with the girls...never never NEVER shake a baby. Not sure how it started but all we have to do is ask if we can shake a baby and they start shaking their head no.
Saturday, April 12, 2008
Super Saturday
Lots of fun on a Saturday afternoon. The girls are growing up so fast. Today Alyssa was mimicking everything we did. She's getting more vocal and yesterday I finally got a "Dah" out of her. They also exploring more. Today they both commando crawled all the way into our bedroom. Alyssa ended up doing it another 2 times in the evening. We're thinking they'll be pretty warn out tonight. We'll see.
Speaking of night...they've been doing great as of late. Going to bed sometimes is a little traumatic but once they're asleep, they stay asleep for the most part. Only 1 out of 4 nights will someone get up in the middle of the night (and most of the time it's Alyssa). Katy has a pretty good string of something like 7 or 8 nights in a row that she hasn't got up in the middle of the night.
Here are some recent shots of the girls sharing some laughs in the laundry basket.
My blue eyed girls eating some teething biscuits.
Today Katy went into the kitchen, opened the pantry and pulled out all of the hundred calorie packs. She was very proud of this mess.
Speaking of night...they've been doing great as of late. Going to bed sometimes is a little traumatic but once they're asleep, they stay asleep for the most part. Only 1 out of 4 nights will someone get up in the middle of the night (and most of the time it's Alyssa). Katy has a pretty good string of something like 7 or 8 nights in a row that she hasn't got up in the middle of the night.
Here are some recent shots of the girls sharing some laughs in the laundry basket.
My blue eyed girls eating some teething biscuits.
Today Katy went into the kitchen, opened the pantry and pulled out all of the hundred calorie packs. She was very proud of this mess.
Friday, April 11, 2008
Birthday celebrations continue
Lisa celebrated her 30-something'ish birthday today. No we didn't end up doing anything exciting but we will. That's why we celebrate birthdays for a week...to make sure we get in as much fun as possible.
In the mean time, I'll finish up the girls' birthday week with some pictures from the cake eating. They were both very tentative at first. It took them a while to start getting messy. Lisa had to show them both that they could eat it...then they seemed to just play in the cake and wait for Lisa to feed them again. Still pretty funny when Alyssa got bored and threw her cake off the side then looked over at Katy's and realized she wanted some more. We decided we might try this again around their due date. They might enjoy it more then (ie get messier).
Actually....I'm sorry to say that either my internet or blogger is having some trouble tonight. I've tried to download more pictures 4 times now and it won't do it. So I'm going to bed. Pretty pathetic post, I know. More tomorrow.
A side note...thanks to everyone that has contributed so far. If we haven't personally thanked you yet, we will. We still have a long way to go so open up your wallets and contribute to a great cause.
In the mean time, I'll finish up the girls' birthday week with some pictures from the cake eating. They were both very tentative at first. It took them a while to start getting messy. Lisa had to show them both that they could eat it...then they seemed to just play in the cake and wait for Lisa to feed them again. Still pretty funny when Alyssa got bored and threw her cake off the side then looked over at Katy's and realized she wanted some more. We decided we might try this again around their due date. They might enjoy it more then (ie get messier).
Actually....I'm sorry to say that either my internet or blogger is having some trouble tonight. I've tried to download more pictures 4 times now and it won't do it. So I'm going to bed. Pretty pathetic post, I know. More tomorrow.
A side note...thanks to everyone that has contributed so far. If we haven't personally thanked you yet, we will. We still have a long way to go so open up your wallets and contribute to a great cause.
Thursday, April 10, 2008
A night out
Well, maybe not a full night...but we got dinner and a movie. We had our first night out in...maybe 6 months or so. I can't remember the last time we went out.
Anyway, Lisa's mom is here visiting for the girls' birthday. It also happens to be Lisa's birthday tomorrow so our Alaska family (Lisa R and Ben) took us out for the evening. It was an awesome escape.
We had Moose's Tooth (MMmmmMMMM) and saw Leatherheads (meh). We wished we could have stayed out longer but knew the girls might be looking for their bedtime feeding soon so we had to cut the night a little short. Thank you Ben and Lisa! We had a wonderful time. Can't wait to play some ping pong!!
The girls did pretty good. It was the first time someone other than one of us had put the girls to bed. From what I've gathered, it wasn't too bad at all. A good first step in us going out more often I think?!
Happy Birthday to my perfect wife!
Anyway, Lisa's mom is here visiting for the girls' birthday. It also happens to be Lisa's birthday tomorrow so our Alaska family (Lisa R and Ben) took us out for the evening. It was an awesome escape.
We had Moose's Tooth (MMmmmMMMM) and saw Leatherheads (meh). We wished we could have stayed out longer but knew the girls might be looking for their bedtime feeding soon so we had to cut the night a little short. Thank you Ben and Lisa! We had a wonderful time. Can't wait to play some ping pong!!
The girls did pretty good. It was the first time someone other than one of us had put the girls to bed. From what I've gathered, it wasn't too bad at all. A good first step in us going out more often I think?!
Happy Birthday to my perfect wife!
Tuesday, April 08, 2008
The birthday week continues
In this house, we celebrate birthdays for a week so here's some more fun from their big day.
I'll post the cake pictures tomorrow night. Here's a short video of the girls toward the end of the cake festivities.
This is another funny progression of facial expressions from Alyssa. The bunny that they are looking at sings a song and while it's singing, it's ears are flapping up and down. The first time or two, they just stared at it, but then Alyssa goes from curious...to not sure...to NOOOO!!!
We quickly opened the next presents and found hats. The girls LOVED their new sun hats!
Here, the girls are sporting some new nighties.
Of all the pictures we took of the girls that day, these two are my favorite. I'm not sure how they got into this position but Katy was still curious about a bear that sings happy birthday. Alyssa strategically positioned herself behind Katy. You can see the fear in her eyes in that second picture..."No. Katy, what are you DOING? WAIT! DON'T TOUCH IT!! KATY BE CAREFUL!!!! Oh, THE HUMANITY!!!"
I'll post the cake pictures tomorrow night. Here's a short video of the girls toward the end of the cake festivities.
This is another funny progression of facial expressions from Alyssa. The bunny that they are looking at sings a song and while it's singing, it's ears are flapping up and down. The first time or two, they just stared at it, but then Alyssa goes from curious...to not sure...to NOOOO!!!
We quickly opened the next presents and found hats. The girls LOVED their new sun hats!
Here, the girls are sporting some new nighties.
Of all the pictures we took of the girls that day, these two are my favorite. I'm not sure how they got into this position but Katy was still curious about a bear that sings happy birthday. Alyssa strategically positioned herself behind Katy. You can see the fear in her eyes in that second picture..."No. Katy, what are you DOING? WAIT! DON'T TOUCH IT!! KATY BE CAREFUL!!!! Oh, THE HUMANITY!!!"
Monday, April 07, 2008
More birthday fun
Lots and lots of birthday pictures and videos to go through. I don't want to leave anyone out so I won't go into details about who got the girls what...just know that we appreciate and love everything the girls received. Thank you for taking the time to pick something out for them. You all are too good to us. As you can see, they are two HAPPY little girls.
These are two bracelets that the girls received. THANK YOU!! (wink, wink) Katy didn't mind wearing hers but Alyssa immediately took it off, looked at it, and threw it to the side so she could play with the box.
These outfits will get lots of wear...in another year or so. We put the hats on and again, Katy didn't seem to mind but Alyssa had to think about whether or not she was going to like it. After thinking for a minute, she decided that she loved it. The progression of these pictures is pretty funny.
You can see her waving her arms in this one. VERY excited.
We opened presents off and on all day. We took time in the evening for the girls to enjoy their birthday cake. This was not their birthday cake...this was the adults birthday cake. What's funny is Lisa asked at the bakery to put "Alyssa and Kaitlyn" on the cake not thinking that they would still try and squeeze "Happy Birthday" on it. Soooo....they kinda ran out of room for Kaitlyn at the end. Brilliant. There are a couple dozen pictures from the girls eating their cakes...I'll save that for another day.
These are two bracelets that the girls received. THANK YOU!! (wink, wink) Katy didn't mind wearing hers but Alyssa immediately took it off, looked at it, and threw it to the side so she could play with the box.
These outfits will get lots of wear...in another year or so. We put the hats on and again, Katy didn't seem to mind but Alyssa had to think about whether or not she was going to like it. After thinking for a minute, she decided that she loved it. The progression of these pictures is pretty funny.
You can see her waving her arms in this one. VERY excited.
We opened presents off and on all day. We took time in the evening for the girls to enjoy their birthday cake. This was not their birthday cake...this was the adults birthday cake. What's funny is Lisa asked at the bakery to put "Alyssa and Kaitlyn" on the cake not thinking that they would still try and squeeze "Happy Birthday" on it. Soooo....they kinda ran out of room for Kaitlyn at the end. Brilliant. There are a couple dozen pictures from the girls eating their cakes...I'll save that for another day.
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