March Update

March has been quite a fun, busy month. The lack of blog posts accurately reflects the amount of "down time" I've had. But I am so grateful for visitors! It has meant so much to have family and friends come see us in our new life here in Spokane.

After my parents left, my friend Dipti Parekh came to see us for a couple of days--all the way from Toronto, Canada! When I was eight, my family moved to Toronto for two years for my dad's radiology fellowship. Dipti and I were in the same third-grade class and became friends. That was 24 years ago, and we have been pen pals ever since! We have seen each other about five times over the years, and she was one of my bridesmaids. Other than that, we've just stayed friends through letters, calls, and e-mails. She is a wonderful person and has been one of my very most loyal friends throughout my life. It was SO fun to see her and to introduce her to Abby and Katie! Here is a picture of Dipti with Abby at the park. We had camera problems (i.e. our camera fell in the pond while we were feeding the ducks!) while she was here, so I'm hoping to get more pictures (copies) of her visit later.

The following week, my sisters Martha and Jennie, with Martha's daughter, Marian, came to visit! It was awesome to see them and to show them around Spokane. Marian is one week older than Katie, and those two were hilarious together! We spent most of our time laughing at their antics and at Abby's "supervision" of them. Here are a few pictures of our adventures:

Martha, Jennie, Marian, and Katie at Riverfront Park downtown.

Katie and Marian giving kisses.

Marian and Katie at the children's museum.

Martha, Jennie, and me by the Spokane River.

The official tour guides: Abby, Carrie, Luke, and Katie.

Visitors!

It was SO fun to have my parents, Richard and Lori, visit us last week! We had a great time together.





Here we are (shivering and windblown!) in front of the Spokane Temple, which is about 25 minutes away from us in a beautiful, wooded setting.

We also got to celebrate Luke's birthday together. (The big 29 . . . that guy keeps trying to catch up to me!)




Here is Grannie at the mall play area with Abby and Katie, at the end of a fun shopping spree. My mom got to stay three days longer than my dad, so we had time to hang out together while Luke was at work. We took some fun outings, including brunch at the charming Rockwood Bakery, Wednesday music class, a quick tour of Abby's preschool, dinner at the Spaghetti Factory, and of course---McDonald's playland!

Who needs toys . . .

. . . when you have laundry baskets?!

Abby and Katie entertained themselves this way for a good, long time on Sunday, pretending the carpet was water and the laundry basket was a boat. I got to take a ride in the boat too, which might have been pretty comfortable if I were three feet shorter! Abby is constantly in "let's pretend" mode these days, so I'm never quite sure which character I'm supposed to be at any given moment: Strawberry Shortcake? Cinderella? Big Sister? Those are my most common assignments, with Abby as Gingersnap, Princess Jasmine, or The Mother. She sure keeps us on our toes!

Katie's First Steps

Little Katie has begun toddling around, and it's adorable! Here's my first attempt at posting a video on our blog; I hope it goes well . . .

I LOVE her little giggle at the end!

Snow . . . and More Snow!

Apparently, last week's snowstorm was the storm of the decade for Spokane. School was closed for the whole week, church was canceled . . . the town basically shut down. Things are back up and running now, but many of the roads are still ice sheets full of icy potholes! I've gained a new appreciation for the snow removal crews in Salt Lake. Here they don't use any salt on the roads, so I think these potholey ice sheets are here to stay until spring.

Here is a snow bank in our parking lot . . . almost as tall as Luke:Here is another one that towers over Abby.While we've been "snowbound" inside . . . . . . Katie has enjoyed hiding in this little spot between her crib and the rocking chair to read books.

. . . Abby has spent hours and hours drawing, writing, and coloring. (She's getting so good at writing the letters of the alphabet! It's fun to see her excitement about writing.)

. . . there have been moments of war and moments of peace alike.

. . . I've tried to keep up with the laundry, but have often been foiled in my attempts. (I've got a little more help than I can handle!)