Swim lessons

Here are some pictures from our most recent swim lessons - she was happy most of the time! Some of the frowny-faces are due to the sun being excruciatingly bright.


This is her sweet little buddy named Lily. To give you an idea about how high on the 'height' end of the growth chart Kate is (97th percentile!) - she is approximately 5 weeks older than Lily but stands a whole head above her. She is much taller than most of her friends close in age.

A true Katie-boo moment - her favorite skill that she acquired at the pool seemed to be the high five. Now she demands them from strangers at the grocery store, throwing her hand in the air exclaiming "FIVE!" with a bright smile. ;)

She loved learning to get out of the pool, but wasn't happy that I wouldn't let her run away - the point was for her to get back in w/ mommy. That was less fun than running away!

Practicing her back float - her least favorite skill & the only one I'm good at!

July update

Sorry it has been so long since I have updated - it has been a busy summer and as I get closer to our due date my enthusiasm for blogging is less than usual. Here are a few new photos to keep y'all satiated. :)

Came in to Kate's bedroom first thing in the morning - guess she had been awake longer than I had known! She is wearing not one, but TWO of her red dresses like tube tops around her waist. She is also surrounded by various clothing items and hair accessories out of her chest of drawers. She is a busy little bee and if I don't catch her immediately after she wakes up I often find something from her dresser in bed with her. :)

Hanging out w/ Daddy before church - I love this dress on her!

Yes, she is into fashion! This is the Easter hat & ski goggles ensemble. It is so fashion-forward!

My, mommy! What big feet you have!

Good thing I have my mom's big feet & can still manage her size 11's!

Better late than never! Christmas photos of Kate

Back in December our good friends (the Shelton family) came to visit us & we took our kiddos down to the Fort Worth Stock Yards. We all had a great time and they took some pictures of Kate w/ 'Cowboy' Santa, but I just got them in the email this week! Better late than never, these were 2 of the cutest ones. He was a sweet man & gave her a little candy cane after so she was happy. :)

Hats, beans, and striking a pose

Kate pretty much refuses to wear a hat when we go outside and she is very fair-skinned - bad combo! Apparently, wearing hats is much more hip inside, since it's no longer mom's idea but her own. Here she is hamming it up...

Kate vs. the black beans - never declared a winner. She is much like her cousin Rusty - they both are beany-eaters!

Here she is wearing Momma's new maternity swimsuit around her neck (yards & yards of fabric I might point out!) She is walking the runway w/ some real attitude here. Guess she is a girlie girl!

Fierce!

Splashing w/ friends

We visited our good friends the Shelton's in Houston this past weekend & Kate got to enjoy some time at the splash park w/ their 3 boys. She adores Miss Ashleigh, and even though she wasn't too sure about the water at first, Ashleigh coaxed her in gently & before we knew it she was laughing & splashing w/ the rest of the boys. Here are some pictures - enjoy!

Ashleigh showing Kate the water

Kate and Joseph (almost 3)

My big girl - 18 months old today!

Kate's been so silly lately playing dress-up - caught her with my purse, apron & high heels so thought we'd snap a few photos...

Here she is pulling my shirt over her head - she has been practicing putting on & taking off shirts a lot lately, and a bib is lately out of the question. Too bad we still haven't mastered the spoon and fork with self-feeding - I've been doing a lot of laundry lately!

Here she pulled out as many stuffed animals as she can hold - 6 to be precise, and schlepped them down the hallway to throw them on the ground to lay upon them. I guess she's telling me it's time for bed?

Speaking of bed, here she is sitting in her new big girl bed, and another of her napping in it. We took down the crib today since she hasn't been in it for 5 days. A victory, but bittersweet for me. I can't believe she's such a big girl!

Finally, just a few cute shots. We had a bird (we don't know what kind) build a nest on our back porch and the eggs hatched just the other day. They are the noisiest little rascals you've ever heard! Here is a picture I snapped - you can see three little golden beaks crying for food.

Kate with her buddy Curt, eating apples together. They get along great - loved this picture! :)

Kate's last morning in her crib - she pulled her t-shirt up over her head like a muscle-man - so hilarious!

New toy & playing ball-ball

Kate loves to play with Daddy & Duffy in the backyard - here are a few shots of her playing with a baseball that was lost over the fence from the boy next door.
Hey Ma - look at this!

Kate has her first babydoll, and along with it we purchased her a small stroller. She loves to push it around with anything and everything in it... including her kissing Elmo! Here are a few shots...

You can't really see in this shot but she has a huge smile! :)