February and March have kept us pretty busy, as usual. Work has been nice and busy, the kids are growing like crazy, Jonah is walking, and Zachary is playing t-ball.

T-ball is a little interesting. Zachary has good days and bad. When he’s good, he’s really good. When he’s bad, T.V. and video games get taken away (which does happen ;)). This past Saturday he went 3 for 3 (2 of which were coach-pitch), played “pitcher” and stopped all but one ball that came his way. Unfortunately, last night, he had to constantly be reminded to focus, pay attention, and stop throwing dirt. That’s life at 4 1/2.

Jonah

Jonah is getting bigger everyday. He started to do the Frankenstein walk–hands straight out and all stiff-legged. He gets about 5 or 6 steps then drops back down to his hands and knees. And why wouldn’t he? He moves like the speed of light on all fours! He’s sneaky, too. You’ve got to worry when you can’t hear him–he’s like a ninja. Much of his time is spent:

• trying to keep mommy from working;
• making his big brother laugh;
• climbing on, in, or over, anything in his path.

Right now his vocabulary consists of turtle, uh-oh, cracker, cookie, pretty and juice. These are the words I know he understands and speaks back. He definitely mimics and jabbers incessantly (he has to, to get a word in edgewise with this family.
Zachary

Zachary continues to be his wonderful 4-year-old self. His vocabulary never ceases to amaze me and we’re working on his “sight” words. He has twelve words he knows and can read (STAR WARS not included) and we’re adding more every week. It is the most amazing thing to see your child begin to read.

Zach has started at the pre-school program offered by the elementary school he might be attending in the fall. Of course I’m biased, but I think he’s way ahead of the other kids. We may be sending him to private school with his cousins Amanda and Megan–it’s sad that private school is one of the only alternatives to a good education in this country.

As you can see from the pictures, it’s not all schoolwork for Zach. He has become quite the little builder with daddy. Over the last month they’ve built a rocket and an “earth mover” from tinker toys, and a real birdhouse in the garage. Mom is even working in the garage, refinishing an old dresser.

Wildlife

With spring approaching it’s not unusual to see a variety of wildlife out my office window. The lizards are always in abundance and entertaining, but lately we’ve had some furry friends explore our yard as well. With the cat that chases birds on the roof of our garage, the raccoons that are out in the afternoon, the owl that hoots as loudly as possible at night, and a myriad of other wildlife, our yard has become quite the hot spot!

Chris’s Birthday

Chris celebrated his 38th birthday (I know, can you believe it’s 38 years??) over last weekend and this one. Last weekend Mary was in town and we had a great dinner at Vincent’s with Mary, Pam, Dave, Ivonne, Amanda, Megan, the boys and me. Tonight we’re going on a dinner cruise on the St. John’s River. I’m really looking forward to it. It should be a nice night. The weather’s cleared up nicely.
Heading into March

As we head into March, Zachary continues to love T-ball. We had opening ceremonies this morning, but they were shortened due to rain and his first game was postponed. That’s not a bad thing–the beginning teams need all the practice they can get!

Work is still keeping me and Chris busy. Thank you eCollege–I love my job!

That’s about it for the first two months of the year. Look for updates after Zachary’s first T-ball game.

Love to you all!

“Here is a test to find out whether your mission in life is complete. If you’re alive, it isn’t.” – Richard Bach