Alex is Four!

It's hard to believe that Alex has come from this.....

to this in just four short years!

I can't help but get a little emotional just thinking about how he's grown and changed over the years -- from the little 6 pounder when he was born to an active, talkative 4-year old! I enjoyed cruising down memory lane (which in my world is looking back through all the digital pictures on my computer that I have of Alex from the last four years) and seeing how much he's grown! We spent Alex's first birthday in Texas. Roger, Alex and I were living in Salt Lake and we flew down because my Aunt was getting remarried the day after his first birthday. So we enjoyed celebrating with the family here in Texas. Of course, Alex was a little sick on his first birthday. And you can see in his eyes that he wasn't feeling his best. By his first birthday, he was already walking -- he'd started walking about a month before his birthday. He was always ahead on the physical milestones. He was an active boy: he used to love walking our neighborhood in Salt Lake! And he was working on talking, eating and drinking from a sippy cup.

What a difference a year makes! By Alex's second birthday, we had moved to Arlington. Roger had accepted a job with the Arlington Police Department and was in the academy. We had moved into our new home just about a week before his second birthday. We were very new to our ward in church and hadn't made a lot of friends here yet. So we celebrated his second birthday with our close friends, the Lucas family, and of course the family in Texas. And Nana visited from Utah for the day, so that was fun too! Alex was still an active 2-year old. And still very sweet.

Alex's third birthday was so fun because we had a big party with all our friends from play group and a couple friends outside of play group. We had a party at the bowling alley, so all the kids bowled, ate pizza, and enjoyed cake and helping Alex open presents. I think last year was another year of tremendous growth for Alex, including a growth in the family. Alex is still a very sweet little boy. He is full of energy from the time his eyes open in the morning until he finally settles down at night. He loves to talk...wonder where he got that from (McNiel gift of gab)! Any chance he gets, he loves to be outside playing. And I think from being pregnant and needing a more comfortable place to burn off energy, Alex also enjoys the mall.

Alex becomes more aware of the world around him every day. And one of his greatest qualities is compassion. He genuinely is concerned about anyone unhappy or hurt. While he keeps me on my toes (and exhausted sometimes), Alex is a sweet and caring kid. And nothing melts my heart more than hearing, "Mom, I love you" or "You're my best girl!" Now if only I could be his only girl for the next 20 years or so... Happy Birthday Alex and looking forward to this last year before you head off to kindergarten!

Such A Handy Man!

Roger and I have wanted to work on our front flower bed since we moved into this house two years ago. Roger really wanted to build a rock border around the flower bed last spring. We had picked out the rock we liked and figured out the price. But something, or should I say some one, had other plans for us last spring. Of course, we knew Addison was coming in May. I guess we both just thought we were some kind of super parents and could have a new born and work on our yard, too. Clearly, we were a little ambitious in that thinking. Our life was pretty much on hold last spring and summer while we adjusted to our newest addition. (Not that I'm complaining...newborns are a joy!) So this spring, our number one goal was to get that flower bed done! Roger is so talented at these types of projects. He can think about what he wants to do and then just gets out there and does it. And it always looks great! He's so handy!





Roger and Alex getting the edge of the flower bed ready for the rock and cement.






Alex loves to help Roger with his projects. Notice Alex's "work" accessories..I guess rain boots can double as work boots!



Here is a little picture of the rock. Roger is making sure it's sitting level in the concrete.

Alex is so happy to be outside helping! He loves working with Dad! Now if we can just get out there and get some flowers in the beds. It will look so great!

Happy Birthday Roger -- Again!

Now for someone who really isn't excited about celebrating his birthday, he sure looks happy here! In all fairness, Roger really didn't know what he was marrying into when he married a McNiel/Whittenberg. We celebrate birthdays. And more often than not, we celebrate numerous times. Unfortunately for Roger, he's no exception. So here we are again, celebrating Roger's birthday. This is his actual birthday on March 26th. We were lucky this year that his birthday fell on one of his days off. This is probably the way he'd prefer to celebrate: quietly, with just Alex, Addison and me. We really had a great day together. We ate lunch at one of our favorite places, Kincaids. Then we headed out to buy Roger a birthday present. I wanted to buy him a new pair of flip flops, because he hasn't bought a new pair in years. So we bought him a nice pair from the Walking Company, which will probably last another five years or so. Then we headed home for cake. Alex, Addison and I picked up an ice cream cake for him. No surprise here because we do it every year. Then Friday, our sweet neighbor Lindsey watched Alex and Addison so Roger and I could go out on a date. We went to a movie and dinner. It was so fun! We very rarely go out, so when we do we really enjoy ourselves. I think he had a pretty good birthday this year. Happy 3oish Birthday Roger!

The World Through Alex's Eyes

...or at least through the lens of a camera. Alex has taken an interest in photography, using my camera. The only problem with this is that I just barely got this camera for Christmas. So it's still very new to me and I'm not too excited about Alex using it! However, I thought these pictures were funny, yet insightful into the world at his level. And everyone tried to accommodate him by ducking and scrunching down as he took their pictures! Like my mom...

And my dad!

And Roger

And what's a learning experience without at least one picture of your feet?

And he didn't quite get all of Uncle Pat! Ha! At least he enjoyed himself and maybe he has a yet-to-be developed talent as a photographer. And maybe it's time I invested in one of those kid digital cameras. Seriously, Alex is really growing and changing more and more each day. It's fun to see him develop different interests. Even at the expense of one of mine!

Happy Happy Birthday Daddy Dear!

In my family, we celebrate birthdays. It's just what we do. Unfortunately, some people don't like to be reminded that they are getting older, much less celebrate it. Like Roger. But he's always a good sport about appeasing my mother, who insists on a birthday get-together. And since he so enjoys celebrating, he was lucky enough to celebrate twice this year! The first time was with the extended family. Fortunately for him, it was pretty low key: we just had dinner at our house, which we ordered in from Spring Creek. No singing and dancing in a restaurant! Then we did cake and presents. I think he really enjoyed his gifts and Alex really enjoyed taking pictures. Those to follow in another post. Happy Birthday Roger!

Pictures from the Dallas Arboretum

All of these pictures were take by my Aunt Mary at the Dallas Arboretum. Addison with her Great Grandma Whittenberg.

Why go to an arboretum if you can't enjoy the green grass and take a good roll down the hill?

Alex playing in one of the little houses.

This is Alex in his new Dallas Stars helmet. He had been wanting one for months! Aunt Mary bought the helmet and then made sure it looked just like the real thing! He wears it daily!

Addison taking it easy with Great Grandma.

Alex playing in the covered wagon. By the look on his face, this is so fun!

Aren't the tulips amazing? Who knew Texas could have such a beautiful garden of tulips and daffadils!

Alex said these flowers smelled like chocolate chips. Yummy!

Alex was dying to splash in the water after I told him there was some water to play in -- we were at a reflecting pool, which I'm sure was never meant to be a splash pool. But we dipped our toes until we could move on to the water spraying frogs.

Ah, finally! Water to splash and play in! This was one of the highlights of the day (after the Stars helmet).

Alex laughed so hard when I got wet too! I couldn't help but laugh with him!

Addison laughing in the tulips.

Addison hammed it up for Aunt Mary while Alex played.

Addison still posing for Aunt Mary. Wonder where she gets that from?

Alex and I playing in the pirate ship, which is full of sand. We played here until we were "escorted" out of the arboretum (or kicked out because it was closing...details, details).

Addison still striking a pose. We had so much fun there! Highly recommend it!