Hilton Head, part II: Duck!

Arguably, Calvin's first word was "duck". He made friends with the one on the fridge in Galena and called out to him several times. It came and went, though, and Dad never heard it. Grammy did, and his daycare teachers, but not dad; hence the 'arguably'.

Regardless, Calvin is still fond of ducks. He made friends with another duck at the Piggly Wiggly in Hilton Head. Finding a bin of inflatable pool floats, he spotted the duck (among fish, dolphins, etc.) wiggled into it, and toured the store.

Naturally, no one could stand to separate the two, so Mr. Duck joined Calvin in the bathtub and pool throughout the week.

Cal returned from Hilton Head having fully mastered the word "duck" and the accompanying "quack quack". This time I think it will stick.

Hilton Head, part I: Road Trip

A week after his plane trip with the Caldwells, Calvin was back on the road with the Andersons; this time in a car headed east to Hilton Head. Calvin's first trip to South Carolina was his Dad's first trip, too. And Mom has yet to go!

How would Calvin fare on a sixteen hour road trip? Time would tell.

Equipped with books, games, snacks, and videos, Grammy, Papa, Dad, and Calvin hit the road.

Calvin slept less than expected (a car ride often knocks him out) but, with his trusted friend, Pooh Bear, he got the rest he needed. In fact he did so well that we think he is destined for a life on the road as a traveling salesman.

The travelers stopped half-way to sleep horizontally, and hit the road fresh the next morning.

SLC, part IV: Park and Pool

Calvin can't go more than a few days without a trip to a park; Chloe took him to her favorite. They found the swings and Chloe pushed Calvin, like the big sister that she is.

And if that wasn't cool enough, we went to the neighborhood pool, too. That's an understatement; this was an indoor water park, with bubblies and slides and fountains galore!

We splashed and played, cruised the lazy river, had an amazing time together!

For more pictures of the visit, click here: http://share.shutterfly.com/action/welcome?sid=8AYtHDlu4btmGb

SLC, part III: Meeting Storey

It wasn't all about Chloe and Calvin. We flew to Salt Lake City to meet the newest member of our family, Storey Estelle.

Storey lived a whole eight weeks before we got to meet her, but she was worth the wait. She's quiet (like her aunt was), and a sweet smile lights up her bright eyes.

Calvin was quite taken with her, but his chest rattle returned as we landed in SLC, so we kept the two of them apart as much as we could. There's time for their relationship to develop, and in the meantime, Chloe can tell Storey all about Calvin.

SLC, part II: Chloe's birthday

The timing of this trip was due, in part, to Chloe-belle's second birthday. The party started before Calvin and I got there but continued throughout the weekend. There were balloons around the house, gifts opened periodically, and one terrific cake!

Jenifer used her mom's recipe for a daisy cake the size of St. Louis! Actually, it was just two 9-inch round cakes cut to perfection. It was so cute and absolutely delicious! Even Calvin, who hasn't been big on sweets, ate and ate and ate ... along with the rest of us.

At two, Chloe is a delightful little girl, able to communicate her toddler thoughts and embrace life around her. It was so fun to be there to celebrate this next step in her life.

Salt Lake City, part I: Calvin and Chloe

Calvin's first trip to Utah was his mother's first trip, too. Dad still hasn't been there! But with family in Salt Lake City, we're sure to go again.

Cal and Mom joined Grandma and Grandpa at Uncle Chris and Aunt Jenifer's house for a long weekend. (Did you follow that?) And while the adults were all happy for time together, it was the cousins, Calvin and Chloe, who were overjoyed.

These two haven't seen each other face-to-face in eight months, but their greeting knew of no time apart. After her nap, Chloe came down the stairs to find Calvin waiting for her. "Give Calvin a hug" she repeated as she descended; from across the room, Calvin slithered off of my lap and toddled toward her to comply. They embraced, setting the tone for the visit. These two were inseparable.

Chloe was at Calvin's door each morning, "Calvin get up?", wandered the house calling for him, "Cousin!", fed him snacks as he signed for more, and literally steered him in the right direction by holding his shoulders and walking him forward.

Calvin adored every minute the attention, finding joy in Chloe's humor and astonishment in her wit.

The rest of us tried to carry on adult conversation but were overwhelmed by these two kids. Truly, two peas in a pod.

Easter Celebrations

Easter weekend was full of activity this year. Cherith's Uncle Fred and Aunt Shari were in town from Arizona, so we took advantage of their visit to celebrate the risen Christ in each other's home towns.

We started the weekend at Grandma and Grandpa's house, romping at a nearby playground and painting a picnic table.

On Saturday, we found our way to Chicago to collect the Arizona contingency from the train. After lunch at Navy Pier, we were off the the Museum of Science and Industry. Cal loved the incubator of chicks, and the amazing train room -- especially the train carrying John Deere tractors! A dinner of Giordano's pizza capped a great day, and Cal went home with Grandma and Grandpa, Fred, and Shari while Mom and Dad attended an Easter vigil with Uncle Shane.

Bright and early on Easter morning, the gang reconvened in Calvin's neighborhood for church and Easter dinner. He didn't really get into the Easter egg hunt after church, but did enjoy hosting his family ... and so did his mom.

He is risen! He is risen, indeed!

Calvin is no longer cutesy when he goes to bed; he's all business. He does permit me to hold him while we say "night-night" to the world outside his windows and pull the shades. But when Pooh Bear beckons from the crib, Cal leans his weight forward until I have to let him go. Such a big boy. Fortunately for me, he's still cute when he wakes up.

The morning light reveals a child with renewed energy, ready for the day. But nap time is a different story. Waking from his nap, Calvin is calm, he wants to be held. He excitedly points to things hidden from his eyes during sleep, but it's too much to take in at first, and he rests his head against mine. Once again we dance cheek to cheek.

On a good day, I can hold him while he has his afternoon snack, too. But let's be honest, no matter what his energy level, every day that Calvin wakes up is a good day.

Spring Break

Julie, Peter, and Wil stopped by to celebrate Spring Break, and celebrate we did -- kiddie style.

We're always tickled to see the boys get along so well. Not even five minutes into the visit they found Cal's tricycle and managed to get on it together.

And then we hit the parks. Both neighborhood schools are celebrating Spring Break, too, which means that we had the run of the land.

Cal showed Wil his favorite slide ... and even managed to sit down like a big boy. Look at that mirror image!

While the boys napped, Dads golfed and Moms chatted (and baked a cake for Peter's birthday). We all had fun with our playmates and, most importantly, Julie and I managed to get a picture together with our boys!