Pictures, but no hair cut pic, sorry

Our preschool group teamed up with another for a tour at the wildlife refuge.  I love living near this place.  It's so pretty.  Behind us is a life-size replica of a bald eagle's nest.  Some are even bigger, one worker was telling me.  There is an eagle pair at the refuge and another eaglet hatched this spring. 

These two are the best of buddies.  No one can make Bell laugh like Moo does.  Here, Moo is reading "Brown Bear, Brown Bear" to the baby. 

My cute girls in their matching night gowns that came with nightgowns for their dollies.  Thanks Grandma!

Oh man, this girl is so cute!!!  People compliment her all the time: her rosy cheeks, her pretty skin, her easy temperament.  One dad I run into frequently at parks said her eyes are mesmerizing.  Another mom said she should be a model baby.  Everyday I am amazed at how cute my chunky little baby is.  I took some bum pictures too, but won't post those.  They are for her eyes only. :)  But trust me, it is a BIG bum.

And our little man is growing up.  He talks really well and people also comment on how funny it is to hear a little person speak so well.  He is very expressive in his face and actions.  And very stubborn too. 

Yesterday was a windy day and our blossom-filled trees were spreading beauty all around (and consequently into my house).  The kids LOVE to throw up the blossoms like snow.  Moo was pretending to be Elsa, of course, and sang "Let it Go" quite loudly while throwing snow.  She has the actions to that song memorized.  

I feel like I don't talk about Kj very much, so here's an update on her.  She appears to be at the top of her class in most subjects, definitely reading and writing, but definitely not PE. :)  Following the rules has always been very important to Kj, so she is the first to get to the highest level of a prize system the teacher has going, though a couple of students are not far behind her.  Her grade just learned about penguins, and it was fun for Kj to teach her family what she learned.  Kj loves to talk about her worries, her thoughts, her realizations, and I am very grateful for that as a mother.  It's nice to not have to prod .  She is quite insightful and already an abstract thinker.  I think we are going to have many good, deep conversations in the years to come.  Yelling is a challenge for Kj, in that it is a major form of communication.  I must yell too much.  Any yelling is too much, really.  Sigh.  It comes so easily.  Lecturing and scolding do too.  (This is me now, not Kj.) 

Kj also loves her beautiful golden hair.  She is really quite vain about it.  She does not like it to be pulled back or anything done to it, just wants it down and flowing. 

A worrier!  The more she learns about, the more she has to worry over.  Right now it's natural disasters, like volcanoes and such.  I remember worrying about things like that when I was around her age. But she worries about other things as well.  These past two weeks of school, a fundraiser was held.  To earn money, the kids could pay a small amount each day and dress up for the theme of the day, but Kj hardly participated because she is so self conscious and didn't want people laughing at her.  And she cried a lot at her first day of art class.  She's one that needs to ease into things and doesn't do well with abrupt changes. 

But she is a delightful story teller and reads like me, voraciously and almost unaware of the world around her.  She loves to write and illustrate her own stories.  She is constantly drawing pictures for her cousins and grandparents, which is so cute.  I need to do better about getting them in the mail. 

So there's our oldest in a nutshell.  She's a keeper.