Pure joy

The baby swing at our neighborhood park is new. Katie loves it and laughs almost the entire time she's swinging. (Her pants and jacket are hand-me-downs from Cooper. I love the associated memories.)

Thankful for fall

Before church this morning

The weather is cooler today -- cool enough for a mid-afternoon walk/bike ride to the park. It was our first visit to the park since Katie started walking. She loved exploring the tunnel and even slid down a big slide in her brother's lap. Her favorite activity was the new baby swing, especially when Cooper was swinging next to her.

Where's the fire?

Cooper's class studied community helpers this week, and today they were asked to come to school dressed as who they want to be when they grow up. Cooper didn't hesitate to choose a firefighter. (Thankfully he already had all the gear, as part of a treasure chest of costumes from Grandma and Papa.)

Sleeping beauty

Katie loves to sleep -- 11 or so hours each night plus two or three naps during the day. Yesterday she was wiped out from a late night before (soccer practice and school family night at Gattitown), and I was able to take this photo without rousing her. (The bruises on her arm are from blood tests two weeks ago. The technician didn't seem very comfortable with a child.)

Damm briefs

Welcome home, Sydney!

Katie and I met baby Sydney last Friday. She is gorgeous! I resisted the urge to scoop her up right away and let her observe us for a few minutes. She is one cuddly, sweet baby girl. Jackie has eased right into motherhood, as any of you who know Jackie would expect.

Katie before church Sunday

Katie has recovered from a high fever that started just after her ear surgery. We had a scary few days, but she is healthy and bubbly again. She's discovered that she can walk about as fast as she can crawl. It is so fun to watch her toddle, gaining confidence each day. The ladies in the church nursery hadn't seen her in two weeks, and they were shocked to see how much she was walking yesterday.

The Dolphins huddle before Saturday's game.

Cooper's soccer team has played two games so far, and we've got two this week. He scored a goal Saturday! The past two seasons he was content to hang out by the goal, more worried about the opposing team scoring. This year he's showing off his improved dribbling skills and moving down the field.

We enjoyed dinner with the Pry-Beckas a couple of weeks ago. Conor is looking more like a little boy. He and Cooper have a great time playing together. If we lived a bit closer, we'd get them together every night -- it would guarantee them both a good night's sleep as much as they wear each other out.

Teachers Notice Things

Cooper and friend Cade before the assembly

Cooper received a TNT (Teachers Notice Things) award this week and was recognized in front of his entire school at this morning's assembly.

Mrs. D referred him:
"Cooper, while sitting during a big book lesson, noticed a friend who answered a question correctly. He politely patted that friend on the back and said, 'Good job, friend. That was a great answer!' Way to encourage your fellow student!"

That's Cooper, standing amid a sea of students and teachers.

We are so proud, of course, and Cooper was proud of himself. Earlier this week he was escorted to the assistant principal's office, where he was able to choose a toy from the treasure chest. Plus, his name will be in the main hallway all school year.

Two tubes and two firsts

Katie is resting peacefully tonight after her ear tube surgery at Children's this morning. She wasn't as fussy as I expected she'd be after fasting from about 7 p.m. yesterday to 11 a.m. today. She charmed many of the nurses and doctors with her toddling, clapping and talking (mostly "Hi" and "Bye").

When I visited her in the recovery room, she was drowsily chomping on a rainbow popsicle -- her first ever. Within the next 30 minutes, she devoured two more. Then she ate strawberry gelatin -- another first.

She slept at home most of the afternoon, woke up for dinner and some playtime, and is asleep again. If she's like her brother, we're done with ear infections for a while.

I love you, you love me

The four of us attended the Barney Live! show this morning, courtesy of our PBS/NPR affiliate. Before the show, we were able to go backstage and meet and greet the friendly purple dinosaur.

Steve and I thought Cooper had outgrown his fondness for Barney, as we hadn't heard about him in at least two years. But Katie discovered and fell in love with Barney last week, and he regained his interest. He then noticed an ad in the paper for the show and asked to go. "Oh, no, we don't need to go," I said, reluctant to drive 30 miles and spend more than $100. A few days later, we received an invitation for free tickets (but, alas, no limo or taxi ride).

Cooper danced for at least half the show. Katie clapped, flapped, smiled, bobbed and shrieked. They both enjoyed the 90 minutes, which meant we enjoyed it, too.

We stopped at Babe's for lunch on the way home -- it's a special treat kind of place and perfect for tired kids. They serve the food quickly and no one notices if you're rowdy or noisy.

I think Katie was hoping the nice man in a nearby row would give her a French fry.

Cooper devoured more than half a package of blue cotton candy. We did not purchase the $15 glow-in-the-dark Barney stick.