Kind-Of Snow Day

The weather has been freezing here in Arkansas and there were warnings of "winter weather" last night. My girls' dinner in Little Rock was postponed (boo!) but we did wake up this morning to a light dusting of snow. Definitely the most snow our kids have seen!

Kendal had the idea to try sledding on these crazy Bilibo toys the kids just love. I was skeptical, but it worked pretty well! Jackson absolutely loved it and went down the hill at least five times. Carlisle had a pretty good run, but was fairly terrified and called it a day. Kendal and I were even good sports and - in response to the kids' cheering - went on our own sled rides. Unfortunately we did not fit into the "sleds" quite as well as the kids, but it was still fun!




Kendal spent the rest of the day brewing with some buddies - in this weather, I think they are crazy but they seemed to have a great time. Our friend Nathan brought over some fresh duck, they all chowed down and in two weeks we'll get to taste the newest Land brew!

Celebrating Evie's Baptism

This last weekend was extraordinarily special for our family as we were able to celebrate Evie's baptism. We asked our good friend and local Presbyterian minister Claire Rhodes to baptize Evie and were so happy when she agreed. Kendal and I both felt it would be meaningful to have a woman baptize our sweet girl, especially one who is a member of our local community and can help raise her in the faith.

My aunt Gwen gave Evie a beautiful, hand-made white gown when she was born and we were excited to use the dress for her baptism - it was perfect, she looked as precious as can be. Our parents both came in for the service and it was such a gift to look out and have them be an important part of the worship service. We were able to get a few family pics after the service, though getting Jackson Camper to take a break from playing with his best buddy Will was nearly impossible! Special thanks to Mary Elizabeth and Conner who took the photos (Note that Will starts out in our family photos but ends up on Mary E's back as she tries to take a few shots for us! That I wish I had a picture of!)




The most special part of the service, I think, was having the children of our church in the front to help welcome Evie into our church family. Kendal brought the kids in for the "time for young disciples" and talked to them about baptism, then asked each of them to be a friend and a guide for Evie as she grows and learns about her Lord. He even showed them the font and let them dip their hands in the water. The kids did a great job and we are so excited they could each be part of the service. The twins sat with their buddies at first, then made their way into their grandparents' laps - we hope they absorbed a little bit of the experience and can hopefully tell Evie about her baptism when she gets a little older.

From Collages

Smiling Evie!

What a happy girl! Evie is just growing and smiling and happy as can be :) She is really liking her Bumbo chair and can sit up for stretches of about 15 minutes at a time. Tonight, I came home from work to find Evie sitting up and Jackson and Carlisle sweeping and dust-busting the floor - WOW! They even let Kendal brew a little on the kitchen stove - he's fixing up some New Orleans-style "Dixie Brew" to get ready for the Superbowl. WHO DAT?!

They were good sports while I took a few pictures of the developing "sister love" here in the Land house. Wonder how long this will last!

A little bit of Evie Claire

Just a few recent pics of our littlest Land, Miss Evie Claire Bess Land. She is really starting to smile (though I couldn't get one of her big ones in these pics). She loves to sit up and look all around, especially if the twins are nearby. She loves to soak it all in, smile and play with her hands. She is the best baby in the world, just a sweetheart. She is also generous with her love - she'll let just about anyone hold her, which is really nice when we're chasing after the twins and need and extra hand! She has been a champ about daycare - this was her first week and it broke my heart to drop her off, but she has been great and seems happy and for that we are so grateful.

She is also a great sleeper! She only wakes up once each night to eat, and then for only about 10 minutes. I absolutely love taking naps with her on the weekends (and hope our pediatrician does not read this, because I know that's a terrible habit!) - she snuggles beside me (on her back, of course) and it's just a perfect time to chill together.

Happy 2010!

We had the perfect New Year's Eve with the kiddos and some Arkadelphia friends. Our friends Hilary and Nathan (who have a 18 month old, River) invited us to their house for pizza and festivities. The Hills also came over with their two kids and the Ross's, who are expecting a baby boy in May. We just let the kids run wild, playing with River's Christmas toys (sorry, River!). They also had a great time watching "Thomas the Train" - that occupied them for about 5 minutes, which is an eternity in kid time :) The kids had a great time - Jackson learned to "fist pound" from the guys and the kids watched some fireworks outside while the ladies talked all about kids, daycare, shopping, husbands - all the things you'd expect! The funniest part (to Kendal and me at least) was when Jackson Camper hit (well, that was bad) the oldest boy - who is nearly 5 - and he exclaimed "She hit me! I don't want to play with her anymore!" talking about Jackson... Kendal gave him a little haircut the next day.

Carlisle wishes you a Happy 2010!!!!

From Collages