Atticus Loring

This sweet little man graced us with his presence on March 25th and as could be expected, life hasn't been the same since.

I was so happy to be done with labor I forgot at first to care whether he was a boy or a girl. 

I just wanted to snuggle.

Not so for this guy, however.

I've never seen a prouder (and more hysterical) dad.  Seriously, even the nurses were entertained.  He was so sure he was going to be outnumbered 4:1.  

I don't think there is anything sweeter than sibling love.  The genuine excitement and love Fiona and Evie exuded when they came to meet him was overwhelming.  They both ran straight to little Atticus, touching him softly, giving gentle kisses.  The first thing Fiona asked was to hold him.  

And it's been only love ever since. 

He timed his entry into this world perfectly arriving less than 12 hours after picking Nanny up from the airport.  What a blessing it was to have her here to watch the girls and get to meet him while he's still so small.  

Atticus, we sure are smitten. 

 Turns out baby boys are just a wonderful and lovable as baby girls.  

Our family of 5.

Evangeline is 2!

So before this blog turns into "All About Atticus," I think it's only fair to give sweet Evie her due.

It already seems like a lifetime ago, but just a few short weeks ago we celebrated Evie's second birthday.  We started the day with some presents (LEGOS!!) and then headed out to Waffle Way for a special breakfast treat of strawberry waffles.  They stuck a candle in her waffles and sang her Happy Birthday...and then she kept talking about her "cake"as she was eating.  Their waffles ARE that delicious.  She was pretty stinking cute.

That night we had a nice quiet family celebration with Aunt Mara.  All Evie talked about in the weeks leading up to her birthday was a Cinderella cake.  Not sure where she got the idea, but she was definitely adamant about that.  I don't think she even wanted any presents.

She was SO excited.

And then she kept saying "Hi Cinderella!" and shaking her hand.

Not quite what I was hoping for, but she was happy.

Fiona, however, REALLY wanted to get her a doctor kit.  (Not so surprisingly, it's the one thing Fiona wanted for Christmas that she didn't get.)

I can't believe this little girl is already two!  Her personality radiates sweetness and joy and has me laughing out loud on a daily basis.  She definitely keeps us on our toes, but I wouldn't trade her spunky personality for anything.  I so vividly remember being scared when I found out she was going to be joining this family.  She is living proof that God knows what he's doing.  I can't imagine life without her.

Evangeline Elizabeth, we love you to pieces.

A Bedtime Story

Evie's been asking to read me books lately.  It's pretty stinking cute.

Can't believe my littlest is getting so darn big.

I Love Texas in January!

Not this Saturday (which was dismal and cold and grey) but last Saturday, we had the most beautiful weather!  Fiona's been talking about wanting a bike (?!), so I figured before we moved to that level, we should probably practice steering, pedaling, etc. on something that wouldn't fall over.  She's not the most coordinated three year old you've ever met...

It was nice to put the girls on some dirty nasty dust off some outside toys and enjoy the unseasonably warm January weather.

Steering is hard.

Evie's got it made.

 After about 3 blocks, Fiona started saying her legs were too tired.  Baby steps, I guess.  So we turned around and headed home.

Where Jon decided to show her how it's done.

Lots and lots of Christmas-time.

I had so much fun this year doing Christmas-y things with the girls.  I remember being shocked at Fiona's patience when she decorated cookies diligently at 19 months for 2+ hours.  I was definitely prepared for Evie to be bored with any decorating activities within 15 minutes.  Much to my delight, that was not the case, and I have a feeling these little girls and I will get along swimmingly for years to come when it comes to crafty things.  Yipee!

Anyhow, Mara and Bess and Jacob came over one night and decorated gingerbread houses with us.  (For future reference, if you're trying to save time I don't recommend cutting out the step where you attach the gingerbread to cardboard.)

I also thoroughly enjoyed this cuteness in the clam before the storm:

Sometimes I can't stand how sweet they are together, and how much they love each other.  

Jesse made a stop in Dallas on his long leave trek.  The girls loved playing with him, and I had lots of fun hanging out with my siblings around Christmas-time.

Somehow we didn't manage a sibling picture.  Oops.  At least I got these.

Nanny, Papa, Steve, Cindy and Abby arrived and we had so much fun with our visitors!  We had a great night heading down to Main Street to see the decorations and lights.

This kids had a blast dancing to the music at the gazebo.  Later that night the Bird boys and Nanny had a blast singing karaoke.

We had a lovely morning decorating cookies with Steve, Cindy and Abby.

Fiona would have kept going all morning, but eventually we ran out of cookies.

I must admit, I was pretty impressed with the results.

Everyone got dressed up for Christmas Eve Mass.

This kid is a trip.

She literally cracks herself up.

And then we came home and had a good old Bird Family Christmas Eve bash.  Unfortunately, I think my picture taking was directly linked to how many people were around.  Lots of people (stupidly) = no pictures.  :(

Of course Christmas morning was a hit.  The girls came out and just stared at Santa's gifts for a bit before Fiona just ran over and gave me a hug. Pure excitement, happiness and joy.  

Becca and Joe had everyone over for a delicious Christmas brunch (which of course I forgot my camera for too!), and our way home it started snowing!

By the time our very necessary naps were over, there was enough to actually play in!  

We had such a happy Christmas and are so so blessed.  Thank you to all the Birds who traveled so far to spend such a wonderful week with us!  Next time, I'll try to get my camera out amid the chaos!

Christkindl Market

Jon's been kind of obsessed with Germany since Oktoberfest.  Mostly authentic German sausages on authentic German rolls with authentic German beer.  He found a German deli not too far away in October and was SO excited to to find they sold imported Haufbrau beer.  They were also supposed to be having a Christkindl Market one weekend in December.  He was really looking forward to pretending he was in Germany and sipping some nice warm Gluewein.  Unfortunately, he forgot about it and missed the weekend.

Luckily, I'd remembered hearing advertisements for a Chritkindl Market in Arlington on the radio, and after some internet searching found this:




Not sure if it was just the day we chose to go or what, but it looked like this:

Not quite the same atmosphere.  But the girls sure enjoyed the hot cider.

And brats.

And Jon got his Gluewein and beer.  So not a total fail.