It's All Good!

So I've hijacked Carter's blog again. I know, I know. You would to prefer to hear from the kid, but let's be real. His activity level is a little much for blogging. "Mama do it" as Carter says.



We've had a pretty great week so far. On Saturday the whole family made the trek to Northwest Iowa to Albert City for Jess's high school graduation. As I reflect back, I can't believe that he is old enough to graduate and go to college! He plans on attending Morningside College next year and major in Graphic Design. We all know that he will be a great graphic designer. He's always been an artist and a bit of a computer "nerd". :-) Don't worry. I'm not poking fun--I took that term straight from his Facebook page. The graduation went great and the party afterward was filled with friends, family, and wonderful food! I only wish that I would have been a little more helpful with the graduation preparation. I really did little more than kid duty. Carter was a big hit during the party. He was constantly saying "Shoot hoop!" and playing basketball for the masses. He is becoming such a little ham. Addy was a hit as well, but clearly much less interactive. She did a lot of eating and sleeing and looking cute.




Yesterday was another first for Carter. He had a conversation with his dad on the phone! His vocabulary and understanding of language has really been blossoming recently. Chris had a call shift yesterday and called to check on us during lunch. Carter was able to tell Chris that he was eating and even what he was eating. It is so amazing to watch him to grow and develop.

Finally, this morning we found out that Chris passed Step 3! Not that we had any doubt, but he did take it when Addy was only 1 week old and he didn't really get to study much. We would both like to thank Colin for his extraordinary help to Chris with study questions to and from Chicago. (Yes, even though we've been making fun of his pronunciation of the medical--and some non-medical terms.)

Well, I'd better keep this kind of short. As you can see, it is all good here in southeast Iowa. Here are a few recent photos mostly of the kids in their "I'm the Big Brother" and "Little Sister" shirts. Of course, there are none of the graduation because I left the data card in my netbook at home. Oooooops. :-( I also apologize for the sideways picture. I couldn't get it to flip and I ran out of time. Sorry.




Love to all...

Amy

Mama's Day

Today I've decided to hijack Carter's blog to write about my unbelievably tremendous Mother's Day. Chris, Carter, and Addy made it so special and I wanted to share it with our readers.

First of all, I got to sleep in a bit--which as many of you know, is quite wonderful with a 13 day old child. Then I got a wonderful "secret" bag from my mom that is brown and has pink and blue dots. It folds up small, but then when you unsnap it, it turns into a very large and practical bag as a mother of 2 young childre. I love it! Then I got my gifts from Chris and the kids. First I got a Willow Tree figure that displays a mother holding a toddler. It, of course, made me cry--I love those figures! And then, as if that wasn't enough, I got an envelope with package information for Flash Photography in the mall. Chris had made an appointment for us to have family portraits on Mother's Day! It was sooooooo sweet, unexpected, and special.

My mom and I promptly jumped in the car with Addy and went to go get outfits for myself and the kids. While we were shopping, Chris made us a fantastic brunch! I told him the good news was that the food was fantastic, but the bad news is that he's now officially in charge of brunch at our house. :-)

The photo session went really well considering that Carter is an unbelievably curious and active 21 month old and Addy was only 13 days old. Below are some of the photos.

Finally, Chris made us supper too! All in all, it was the most perfect mother's day I could have asked for. I hope that all of you mother's had a day that was as wonderful as mine. Most importantly, I thank my blessed family for making my day so wonderful.

Hugs,

Amy

I'm a big brother!

And boy is she cute!

Let me introduce my sister to my faithful blog followers:

Addyson Renae Hogrefe was born at 1:28 p.m. on April 26th at the University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics. She weighed a whopping 8 pounds 10.8 ounces and was 19 3/4 inches long. She was pretty quiet for the first couple of minutes of life, but then someone really ticked her off, by golly. She screamed and screamed and screamed until she got wrapped up nice and warm and Papa got to hold her.

I wanted to go visit her right away, but had to wait 'cause Mama kept getting sick to her stomach. I finally got to go visit around 7 pm. My first reaction was apparently funny. Everyone was laughing. I absolutely couldn't contain my excitement! I saw her and started giggling and then ran away. Soon after my arrival, I was ready to hold her. I held for a few minutes a couple of times, smothered her with lots of smooches and gave her a squeeze several times. I love this girl already!

Since her arrival home, things have gone well. I am always very concerned that Addy's needs get taken care of. I make sure that she has her warm pink blanket and her pink Minnie Mouse at all times. Whenever she cries, I suggest "ni-night". :-) Mama and Papa say I'm a great big brother already. I gotta say, I love it.

Miss Addy, I love you very much. Thank you for being a great little sister.

Hugs and loves.

Carter