Express Yourself

Just yesterday I jumped in the shower while the baby took a little snooze in the morning. More often that not Cadence likes to join me while I bathe, which I usually don't mind since this not only gets both of us clean but also allows me to see exactly what she's up to. Yesterday she however did not want to come in. A part of me was relieved...finally, a shower alone! But as I heard her wander out of the bathroom while I got lathered up, I couldn't help but doubt this scenario. A small but growing panic began deep in my gut, increasing with intensity the longer she stayed out of the bathroom. What could she be up to? Taking out all our DVD's, throwing things behind the couch, jumping on her napping baby brother, unlocking the front door to make a run for it....the list of possibilities zipped through my mind.

"Cadence?" I called out in a sing-song tone. No response.

"Cadence?" I again called out, with perhaps a bit more urgency. No response.

No wait! I breathed a sigh of relief as I heard the soft thuds of her return into the bathroom and saw her silhouette appear on the other side of the shower doors. I then shivered a little as a blast of cool air rushed into my otherwise cozy showering space when Cadence slid open one of the shower doors.

"Mommy?" she replied with a smile. I smiled back and quickly asked her to shut the shower door as it was letting the water out (not to mention the cold air in!). As I continued my shower I began to hear a repetitive tapping sound on the tub outside. I dismissed it, realizing on some unconscious level Cadence was doing something, but really not caring at the moment so long as it was in the bathroom where I could easily respond should something go awry. I finished my shower and with a very content feeling stepped onto the bathmat to grab a towel. You might imagine my surprise to step out and see this:

I was a little surprised and then chuckled. Apparently Cadence had decided the tub needed a makeover. The fortunate thing is she used her specially designed bath markers, that wipe right off with water. She easily and gladly cleaned it all up once I snapped a few shots of her artwork. A very small price to pay for solace in the shower.

The Kiddos

One morning I had the baby laying on my bed ( I really do try to make it...honest) and Cadence decided to jump right in with baby "bubba". That's what she calls him these days. She then decided to share a book with him. She really loves her books and has a set of Disney Princess books she rarely parts with. We read them over, and over, and over, and...well...you get it.

My little guy seems so strong already at just two months. He holds his head better than Cadence did at that age...of course she had a much bigger head. He's such a happy little guy, smiles and talks with anyone who gives him a little attention.

Daddy and son bonding with the PlayStation, even Cadence likes to watch!

Swim time

Our kids are getting their first swim lessons in the same pool I learned to swim in....there's really no better way to beat the summer heat, unless of course you follow up a swim with some ice cream! Can you tell my dad loves being a grandpa?

Been awhile...

Man the weeks get away from me sometime! We all survived daddy being away for awhile pretty well....no major meltdowns from any of us! I did get a little sick the last couple days and called for reinforcements one night (my mom!). Over all the time flew by but we were all so happy to greet daddy at the airport when it was time. That night we returned home to find a large group of suspicious looking young men in the parking lot next to our house and in the alley behind us. We noticed some fresh graffiti on the doctor's office next door and the young men were playing loud music and appeared to be enjoying some alcohol. First time we've encountered a scene like that...so we decided to call the police to check things out since it was already after 10 PM that day. I told Eric I was glad that incident happened the night he returned home rather than while he was gone. The group dispersed shortly after our call and then we got to continue our evening with a quick visit with Eric's dad. It was good to see him too. We have no pix from Venezuela to share. Eric did take our video camera, but we forgot to put a card in it to capture stills. It's the type that uses mini-cassettes and I honestly haven't figured out how to upload the videos to the computer...I'm guessing there is a way! Eric really enjoyed himself and came back from the trip with a new energy for everyday life. Maybe next time the kids and I will get to go too!