Can I Get Down?

Andy's favorite words at dinner time are "Can I get down?" Here is a video of Andy entertaining us around the dinner table.

New Family Members

Recently my mom came to town to visit me. Having last seen Andy when he was 2 weeks old and never having met Renee, she was due. More about that later.

Turns out, a benefit to our move here is our close proximity to Cincinnati. "Who cares about Cincinnati?" you may ask. Well, now I do. You see, the cousins my mom told stories about throughout my childhood are real. Until recently I wasn't at all sure they weren't figments of her rather active imagination. How do I know this? I've seen them with my own eyes- hugged them, even. They are truly generous and kind people who I am proud to call my family. I took pictures...I hope you can see them, too.

My Grandmother's family tree


































My Mother's cousin, Mary Clare, on Grandpa's side




















Mama at her parents' graves


















Mama and her cousin, Margaret

















Mama and her cousin, Lois


















The cousins: Lois, Mary Clare, Barbara and Margaret


















Me with Mama's cousins: Bob, Bob's wife Sharon, Mama, Margaret, Lois and Me and the bust of my Great Grandfather Schaible sculpted by Mama's late cousin, Dorothea

Renee's First Birthday

Well, I know it sounds cliche', but it seems like just yesterday Renee was born. This past year just flew by. It was quite a busy year for our family. Getting a house ready for the market, house-hunting, buying, selling and moving cross-country is all very exhausting. Add to that a broken arm and 6 weeks in a cast for the primary care giver and you've got yourself a whirlwind of a year. No wonder she seems to have grown up so fast.

Aside from all the craziness, Renee's first year was delightful. Never was there an easier baby. She was simply a joy to be around from the day she was born. She started sleeping through the night at 6 weeks, God love 'er. She ate everything we ever fed her with nary a complaint, who could blame her for rejecting baby food meat- ugh! She smiles and laughs so easily and has a high threshold for pain, an unusual trait for a baby, to be sure, probably developed by her older sister and brother playing with her too hard.

Renee's favorite thing is probably dancing, as witnessed in the video posted earlier. She will dance to even the faintest music. With her enthusiastic wiggling, she can persuade me from even the grumpiest of moods. She is a ray of sunshine in our hearts. Her Daddy and I love her so much, it almost hurts. Happy birthday, our sweet, darling ReRe-CoCo-Cups.