Nor Nor

We had a special day last month with Norahs baptism at church. We were so thankful to have all of my family there including my grandparents and Leslie and Landon. We were blessed to have Travs parents with us for Zions dedication. Uncle Jordan wins the prize though because he was with us for Zion's and Norah's! Norah just smiled and smiled at our pastor even when he put the water on her head despite the fact that it was her nap time. We asked Tim and Rachel to be her godparents and they commited to investing in her life and raising her up to know Christ along with us.

As for other Norah updates she is officially on the move. She is doing the army crawl and is getting really fast at it. She follows Zion around and she seems to have xray vision that allows her to see fuzz, dust, marbles, pennies etc... that our eyes cannot see. She army crawls to it and then puts it in her mouth as quick as lightning. She has also started the phase where she finds something to put in her mouth and then when you take it away she cries like the world is ending. Zion you used to be able to distract with an alternative when she had something you did not want her to have but Norah can not be diverted from her object or dust bunny of choice.

I am just now actually realizing what it is like to have two kids. Today Zion was building with blocks and Norah was on the floor on her belly. Norah reached up to grab a block and knocked it over. She was very proud of her self but Z got very upset and started lecturing Norah about why she should not have done that and how it was not nice. Norah just smiled at her and then put one of the blocks in her mouth....Z then takes the block from her hand and Norah starts screaming. I think it was their first conflict but I suppose their are many more to come. I am not prepared for this. It did not cross my mind that I was going to become a mediator until today. Ahhh! Parenting is never boring.

Norah loves to eat. Travis was eating pizza yesterday while holding her and she leaned every which way trying to chase his pizza with her mouth while we laughed at her. (:

Our Garden

I am so excited about our sunflowers shining over our fence on our lonley back street. Would you believe Travis took this picture with his iphone? Check out the bee on the upper left and the top middle. We are also eating okra, basil, and carrots from our garden and we have learned a lot about what to do and what not to do for next year.

OOOOklahoma

Well we just returned from a week log whirlwind trip to Oklahoma. Oh yeah, we drove there with the girls. It was an adventure for sure but we were so surprised by how patient and great both of the girls were. We found out that Travis's Grandpa passed away on a last Saturday night and Sunday morning at 6:00 a.m. we were in the car on our way there. We packed really fast that night. It was an 18 hour drive. On the way there we stopped in Nashville and stayed with Travs sister Bethany and her husband Erin and we got to see their awesome new house. Jordan met us there and then we caravaned to Oklahoma the next day. Travs brother Shawn and his wife Jill very graciously let us stay at their home. We SO enjoyed getting to spend time with our nephew Calvin and our brand new other nephew precious Clark. Calvin and Clark are both so adorable and Calvin is still cracking us up even now. He has the best little personality. We were so glad to be there to celebrate the life of Travis's Grandpa and to spend time with his extended family. His Grandpa has left us such an amazing godly legacy of hard work, dedication, and love. It was 104-107 degrees while we were there so we were thankful for air conditioning. Most of all we were thankful that we were able to make this special trip. On the way home we spent the night in Saint Louis thanks to a free hotel room I had saved up from work and squeezed in a few sites that evening. We are now glad to be home!




On the way home, the arch!


One of the 10 best streets in the country according to the American Planning Association.



The City Museum. Probably the most unique man made place/thing we have ever seen. Really neat. If you are ever anywhere near Saint Louis you should check it out if you have kids or not.
http://www.citymuseum.org/home.asp







Taken by Zion!




The ball pit with full size bouncy balls!



Making clay pots.







The WHALE




Road trip break...sweet sisters (check out Norahs thighs!)



Sweet cuz Calvin!



Calvin and Zion in Jail!!! (we visited a little museum near their house, jail seemed to be their favorite part).



Our new nephew sweet baby Clark! Zion was so excited to meet him.



All of the Schenk siblings and family.



Travs siblings: Shawn, Bethany, and Jordan.



Sweet girls in matching dresses thanks to Aunt Trish.




In front of Travs Grandparents house (such a special place) after the funeral.



Travis and Shawn with the babies and Grandma.



The cousins created their own play area at the funeral home. Calvin nicely shared his snacks.



The spray park. I am not sure who had more fun the kids or the grownups?



I have been to a lot of states but it was my first time in Arkansas so I had to prove it.



Lots of time in the car....Norah catching up on some reading.


Zion creating art!