Crawlin' Fool

Marie can crawl!!!!
For those of you who have seen Marie lately, you know that she has been getting herself into a lot of yoga poses, bouncing, and even trying to pull herself up; but she just couldn't get the crawling down. Suddenly, on a cold January day, Marie decided to move her hands and wah - lah - she was crawling! Now, we can't stop her. We have officially covered the outlets, moved furniture around, and even hid cords because she is on the move. She really likes to go to the kitchen entryway to feel the difference between the tile floor and carpet. I think she is just enjoying the sense of freedom and independence that comes with mobility :)

Other than that, things are pretty much the same. Andy is busy with school, Kelly has had MORE snow days, (she is now working until June 8), and Charlie is figuring out how to balance brother-hood and his nap schedule.

Sledding Day

This weekend started with a trip to urgent care - Marie has another double ear infection. But we couldn't let the Saturday 40 degree weather go to waste...a perfect day for sledding! After a few doses of meds, Marie was ready to roll. At first she seemed a little concerned, but it didn't take long to get a smile on her face...however I couldn't get her to smile for the camera. She was too busy feeling the zipper with her tongue...

Little Fish

This past weekend when it was -20 outside, we were in the pool, soaking in the hot tub, and racing down slides in a hotel in Des Moines. The Van Beek Clan came down to Des Moines and the whole family stayed together for a few days. This was Marie's first time in a swimming pool! We figured she would be a little cautious, but she actually loved it...we even took her on a little slide.

Daddy, Abby, & Marie

Daddy & Marie

another snow day?

Well here we are again...it's seems as though we are on a broken record this winter. I am pretty confident that I will be working until Mid June the way things are going! Anyway, this day has given me some time to play on the floor with Marie and stay in my sweats so who is complaining? Marie needed a day away from daycare as well - she has developed the dreaded and goopy problem of conjunctivitis, "pink eye." One trip to the doctor and 3 drops a day = fussy Marie and fussy Mommy...but we are on the way to clear eyes once again. Here are some pictures of our latest adventures on Francis Avenue:

G & G Mueting found a very cute sled for Marie. We are planning on using it as soon as we can be outside for more than 3 minutes...next week looks like a good opportunity with highs in the upper 20's.

Here is Marie with "Fritz" her sock monkey and new best friend (no offense Char). She loves to cuddle him and sleep with him at night too.
big hug for Fritz
Sitting up like a big girl. This is old news, but she is just so good at it now!
Trying sooo hard to crawl!!! She is very strong and tries to stand up. Marie is always in crazy positions and can kind of crawl backwards, but still working on the front crawl. You're close MarieB, so close.

Exhausted from the posing I guess....she was falling asleep on the ground.

Home For the Holidays

What a week! On Tuesday, Dec. 22nd, we loaded everything up and headed to Northwest Iowa to start our Christmas. We spent a few days in Spencer with Andy's family and a few days in Sheldon with Kelly's family. Not only did we have our Christmas events, but also 22 inches of snow! It was definitely a white and crazy Christmas. Marie's first Christmas was eventful, exciting, and exhausting to say the least. We are back in DesMoines as of Tuesday, the 29th. Time to unpack and relax for the rest of the break. Here are some photos of the week:

All of Grandma Van Beek's Grandkids

Sitting in front of the tree at Grandma & Grandpa Mueting's house.

And here is how our little MarieB is spending her evening - sound asleep in her own bed :)

SANTA TIME

We took the plunge and went to see Santa on Saturday. There were several places to go, but we chose to visit Bass Pro Shops because we heard their winter wonderland was quite special. The Santa is even featured in an article at www.desmoinesregister.com.

Limited standing in line + happy baby = happy mom & dad! When it was Marie's turn, she sat on Santa's lap (real beard, good guy), took a picture, and then he was talking to her and she grabbed his beard and gave a hug...very sweet. Several "awwwws" were heard from the other parents waiting. All in all a good experience. Here is a picture from the day. No smile, but still adorable.

Snow Day

Iowa was hit with a huge blizzard this week leaving us all trapped in our house. No school, no test, no daycare...just fun family time and lots and lots of shoveling! Here are some pictures of our snow day adventures:

Who is this masked man? Andy was sinking into the snow it was so high.

One of our many trips outside to shovel.

Our little girlie sitting by the tree.

A bath had to be interjected in the middle of cookie decorating due to an explosive
you know what....

This is how Charlie spent the day.

Mommy and Marie decorating her first cookie.

Marie was definitely wanting a taste of that frosting...
Finished product - delicious!!! All in all this was a very fulfilling snow day. It was nice knowing that we had nowhere that we had to be and we could relax with some family time.
Happy Holidays everyone!!!