Tyson, in his natural habitat :)
We've been taking to nature a lot lately to observe birds and all the beautiful lands around us. We are so fortunate to live where there is much to see and do wherever you.
These girls love being outdoors and find ways to play and explore together. This walk we took around the backside of Huntley Meadows was a long one but the girls did great. Here they were finding rocks to chuck over or at the green fence.
Bed time stories are 99.9% by Tyson. It's his chance to spend time with the girls after a long day at work. Tyson is a wonderful Dad.
Though it's blurry, I love how this photo captures a perfect moment of a 3 year old. Carrying a toy, noticing the world around her while sporting a twirly skirt.
Walks to school can be quite the affair. Haddie loves to pull this suitcase along with her and fill it with the most important toys for the journey. She even brings the suitcase up around the play equipment at Taryn's school, never wanting to let it go.
These sassy but adorable girls :)
Mornings you will find the girls with their breakfast, staring out the windows and looking at the bird feeders and what birds have come for the morning seeds.
Taryn is reading our National Geographic's guide to birds, the same one our friends sent us a few months ago. I love that the girls have really taken to our bird watching family hobby.
Tyson and the girls love using our Budda Board to sketch birds. Taryn is really good at coping the pictures from the book and practices writing their names.
Working on her bird sketches.
Those princess shoes!!!!
Family Home Evening:
Trying to teach love in our family (playing nicely with our sisters!!) and treating others kindly.
We've figured out how to FaceTime with family and not have the girls bouncing around like crazy!
If we distract them with a board game, everyone can join in with the discussions but they are also calm and focused, meaning Tyson and I can enjoy our conversations with family!
Another round of Gymnastics complete!
I was sad when this session ended for Taryn. I knew that she would be taking a break from gymnastics and that made me a little anxious- should i push her to continue through another round (like I had the previous terms?) or let her choose a different sport and move on!? I loved gymnastics and how it gave her the body strength, courage and so much more!
In the middle of class, Taryn hurt her foot. I was a little surprised that she was trying to stay off it so much. That was my first tip that this was not just another tweek of her ankle. She was supposed to do her final performance and she hobbled through the whole thing, totally unlike herself. Then I really started worrying. I carried her out to the car on the back because she couldn't walk.
We waited for the morning to see how her foot was doing and it was definitely bruised and she still wouldn't put pressure on it. So off to the doctors we went, per her Gymnastics instructors request.
No fracture, said the X-Ray, but a really bad sprain. Her doctor was surprised how much Taryn was affected by the sprain, that's why she wanted to do an x-ray to be sure. I'm happy it was more than a really bad sprain but it was so so so hard to keep Taryn down for a few days. She cried when the doctor told her she couldn't run on it and had to just rest. Taryn doesn't let things hold her back so this was very hard for her.
But she made it through and it took weeks until she was able to run on her foot again and get back to full activity. I was surprised to see how much she limped on it, telling me this was the first of MANY sport injuries in her life.
Taryn was a cutest little performer in her school's, "A Night to Remember." The kids sang the songs they have been learning in Music and after she showed us the art she made in Art class. Such a fun night. This is where I learned that Taryn is a performer! She was smiling the whole time, doing the actions, and loving it all. I was surprised and totally excited about her confidence on stage.
The wildflower bouquet Taryn made for me after her performance. I hope to remember these simply beautiful moments.
And sisters. What better way to help each other out than to give one another a good all massage :)
Love these girls.