Pictures at the Park

We finally took our "Easter" pictures!  Every spring I have bought cute matching dresses from the girls and coordinated outfits for Robby and me a few weeks before Easter.  We have the girls wear them the first time some day before Easter for formal pictures, and then they can wear the dresses to church on Easter.

Well April 2012 was quite hectic for us. We spent a week in D.C. sightseeing.  Catherine had a bladder operation followed by an ER visit a week later.  So, we did not do the pictures for Easter.  And then May passed.  June.  July.  And most of August.

So we were so excited when some friends suggested we take some pictures of our families today.  I love to alter the pictures to black and white:

 Me and Sabrina:

 The girls on a bridge:

 Catherine is such a deep thinker (should I start calling her Socrates?):

I love this pose!  Unfortunately, there are tons of distractions at the park and so Catherine's attention wavered:

 Kisses from Catherine:

 Me and Robby:

 Sabrina gets so silly during picture taking sessions:

 Catherine is so "over" this picture session:

Alright, so Catherine has decided she is willing to continue to participate:

I love this shot of us on the bridge.  It is actually a fairly short bridge, even though it looks long in the shot:

 I like this pose, but of course it is so hard to have four people smile simultaneously:

 Catherine making silly faces:

This pose makes Sabrina look shy, which she is anything but!

Playhouse Construction

We decided to build the girls a playhouse in the backyard for this Christmas.  They are still young, so we wanted them to have it for as long as they could enjoy it.  My father is an architect, so of course he designed it.  We wanted it to be able to convert to a tool shed when the girls outgrow it. So the back has a full size door and it will be wired for electricity.

So, my father drew up some plans, which neither Robby or I really understood.  We have started to construct it and will have it completed by Christmas.  Originally I wanted the playhouse to be a surprise.  I suggested my Dad build it in modular pieces at his house and we assemble it on Christmas Eve, after the girls went to bed.  My Dad thought I was nuts and rejected my idea.

So, we began construction.  We have told the kids that Mommy, Daddy and Grandpa are building it and Santa might bring them the key to it.  There is no way we could keep it a secret, as my Dad has been here several days a week, all day, building it.  Plus, it is huge.  I had no idea it would be as large or as fancy as it is.  Both Robby and I are in shock at how fancy it is.

Here are some construction shots:

I love the above shot because it shows the windows and shutters.  Plus, it shows all the trim which my Dad has added.  I had to leave one afternoon during construction to go handle a court case.  When I came back, my Dad had put trim on the top and bottom of the columns!

This shot shows the size. We have since put a step between the side of the porch and the swingset/slide area.  Of course I took these pictures while it was still under construction, so there are tools and supplies everywhere in the pictures.

My dad painted the front door pastel pink.  It is so cute.  Adults have to bend over so much, it feels like you are Alice entering Wonderland.

Family Shots

Here are some family shots from the Brain Tumor Foundation for Children's photo session:

I think the photographer got us all laughing:

 I am particularly grateful that they took some couple shots of us:

 Photo sessions with little kids can not take long, because the giggling will commence:

 Me and Sabrina (do you see the resemblence?):

I think Catherine was "side choking" Sabrina here:

Robby

There are lots of traits in Robby which I love, but one is that he is mega involved with the children.  He never hesitates to participate in whatever we are doing.

One of my favorite pictures of Robby is this one:

I always chuckle looking at this picture.  Doesn't Robby look like a giant?  It makes me think of the movie Big.  Look how far down his legs dangle.  That blonde bump next to Robby is the top of Sabrina's head. 

I took this picture at a theme park called Wild Adventures.  They had a silly rule that really short children needed an adult to accompany them on the ride.  Unfortunately, the ride was not built for adults and Robby barely fit in the seat, as this picture demonstrates:

That is one dedicated Daddy!

Field Pictures

Recently we went to a field near our house and took some great pictures. Here is Catherine dancing (sort of) with Robby:

Here is the best shot of all of us:

At the end of the photo shoot, Catherine started picking field flowers:

Sabrina and Daddy trying to dance:

Sabrina came over and hugged my leg - it was so cute:

Catherine flying over head (she decided to flap her arms like she was a bird):

We tried to get a picture of the girls about to hug. It was hard to do, and we were unable to get their faces in the shot.

With Daddy:

Sabrina on Robby's shoulders:

Sabrina flying over head:

I am not sure why I love the pictures of people walking away, but I do love them!!

Catherine is looking so big now:

I have no idea what Sabrina is doing here. But, it is funny to me that Catherine also looks puzzled:

Toy Story 3 - On Ice!

Recently we went to see Toy Story 3 On Ice at Philips Arena. It was fabulous!

Mickey and Minnie were not part of the show, but skated at the beginning and the end:

The grand finale: