Hello few readers we have! Hope everyone's April has been going well. I know you Minnesotans are a bit discouraged with the snow that came today. Boo. Sorry bout that! Here it was a crazy 84 degrees! It seemed very hot! A bit unusually hot for this time of year. I'll take it over snow though!

We have still been doing well despite a nasty cold we all got after our Easter festivities. We are almost over it. We had a couple rainy days too, so we were stuck in the house, but being sick it wasn't too bad. All we wanted to do was lay around anyway. Logan is still really enjoying his swimming lessons and he is starting his gymnastics class on Saturday. He is excited about it! 

Evelyn had her 15 month check up today. She is getting 3 teeth right now, so not the happiest camper. She is 19.5 lbs (6th%) and 30 in in height (31%), so she's a petite little thing. She has a belly though. 

We are really missing Sean but get to talk to him almost everyday. We do a quick skype call so he can see the kids and then sometimes he calls me so we can talk a little better. So far since he's been gone I've mowed the lawn with Evelyn strapped to my back, weed whipping,  changed the bulbs on our high hanging light out front, and figured out (with dad's help on the phone) how to use a huge air compressor. Doesn't seem to be much of an accomplishment, but when those things aren't usually my job, it is to me! We've also been picking lots of weeds and planting a few things (avocado tree and carrots). 

My neighbors have been really sweet and checking in a little on us. One across the street came over and dropped off two "kid sized" gardener kits. Logan loved his and walked around with it all day. Evelyn liked hers too. 

 Here is Evelyn with pig tails and a silly face!

 The kids wearing their "team Noah" t-shirts!

So, again, if anyone wants to escape the snow and come visit us in sunny California, by all means, give me a call! We would love company!

March Madness...wait, it's April

Hello all,
  As usual, it's been a while since the last blog post. Sorry, but as usual, thinks have been a bit hectic. As most of you know, Sean has left on his deployment, and we are trying to get into a normal routine. Things are going pretty well so far. The weather here has been fabulous so the kids get outside to play a lot. Logan got a pedal bike with training wheels, so he is learning to ride that. Today we went for a run/bike ride in the vineyards and he rode his bike 2 miles! He also started swimming lessons, which he really enjoys. He passed his first class (preschool 1) which mainly tests if they can put their face in the water, do a front float with help, and have water poured over their heads. I am debating putting him in a gymnastics class too. I think he would really enjoy it, and keeping busy will be the best for us until Sean gets home, I think.

Evelyn is getting so big! She will be 15 months soon and is an energetic little sweetheart. She loves watching Logan, following him around, and doing the same things as him. She loves animal books and making the animal noises. Most of all, she loves being outside and exploring. If she hears a door open, she bee-lines it to try to escape outside.

I have been trying to get a good start on my paper. I found a good babysitter that I have coming a few times a week while I get away to the library to do some work. So far it's going well, but we are only a week into it. We made a long chain of construction paper, one chain for everyday Sean will be gone. I think Logan can visualize when daddy is coming home. It's a long chain =(. I know it could be much longer, so trying to count our blessings. He should be back at the beginning of June, and we are planning to make a trip to MN after he gets back sometimes. Possibly over the fourth of July.

Soooooo, if anyone wants to come out and hang out with us, we would love some company!!!! We have a spare room!
Here are some cute pics and vids of the kiddos.

 Easter Egg hunting in the neighborhood.

 An avocado tree the kids and I planted in the back yard.

 Evelyn and Mommy

 Evelyn and Logan playing out back

Short video of Logan at swimming lessons

YAY its almost Spring

Hello Everyone,

Well, what can I say other than it has been a really long time since I have written anything on here and see it's been awhile since we posted any pictures or videos. Well everyone, we are all in luck.... we finally splurged on a new mini digital camera with plenty of both to show all.

So, the kids are going like a pair of weeds lately. Literally...
Evelyn is walking everywhere nowadays. She loves to be on the move until she climbs up into your lap  to collapse and snuggle for a few minutes. She knows quite a few words now too. Up, Momma, Dadda and dog are her favorites. Apple is right up there too though.

Logan has been waiting all winter for the rain and cold to finally go away. It's hard to get too enthused about playing in a wet sand box in the cold. He's been going to Tot-drop a couple times a week for a few hours which he thoroughly enjoys. With the weather finally changing, its been sunny and mid 60's this week, hopefully he will get back into leading Toulie around the backyard exploring again and crushing things with his sandbox machinery soon.

Katie has had her hands full all winter long with trying to find productive things for them to do. It's hard to force yourself out of the house everyday to go do something "fun for the kids" but she has managed as best she could. It's that or turn em loose to eat crayons and tear all the cushions off the furnitures for forts and nerf gun wars.... I dont know who taught him that... hmm

Well I figured I needed to get at least one blog post in before I head back overseas the middle of next month. I'm sure Katie will try to update the site as much as possible. She's gonna solo it this time around for the most part unless they can get back to see the extended fams for a couple weeks.

Anyway, without further ado, here are some great pics of the west coast clan

S

A New Year!

Hello Everyone! Happy New Year!! We hope the start to your new year has been great! Time really does fly when you are having fun! We just recently got home from our Christmas trip to Minnesota. We were there for 10 days, and boy, did it go fast! We had a wonderful time seeing family and the kids had so much fun playing with their cousins. It really breaks my heart to think that they could play together like that all the time if we just lived closer. Sadly we didn't really take many pictures. Our point and shoot camera died a long time ago, so we only had our phones. We really need to get a new camera.

We had three Christmas gatherings that we hung out with family, ate great food, and gave and opened awesome gifts. Below is a pic of my Christmas Eve cuties.

Christmas morning we opened gifts and had delicious eggs benedict, made by my dad (and Adam helped). Eggs benedict is a tradition now =). 

Logan got to go to Cabela's with daddy and his cousins. He loves to go look at all the animals and nature scenes. 

Logan also got his first experience with Pink Eye. Poor kid. It was nasty, but he managed to keep his spirits up and nobody else got it, so that was great! 

There was snow! It snowed a few times while we were there and we got to go sledding numerous times! Even Evelyn got in on the action! It was fun to watch the kids sledding on the hill that I grew up sledding on with my brother and sister. They really had a great time!

A special "Thanks" to my parents for hosting us for those 10 days. I know it wasn't easy to have our crazy, messy family in your place. We had a wonderful time! Also a special "Thanks" to the Harts for watching Toulie for us. We couldn't have done it without you either! 

Next up for the Kirsch fam is getting settled back at home for a few weeks. It is Evelyn's birthday next week, so we will probably have a small little celebration for her. Then we will get geared up to go down to SoCal for a wedding weekend extravaganza! One of our friends is getting married down by the beach, so I'm sure we will have a great time! Stay tuned!
P.S. Today is Sean and my FIVE year anniversary! Whahoo! Happy Anniversary to US!

November?

Geesh, time is flying, as usual. Can't believe it's been over a month since we've posted. Sean has been gone a lot, so that doesn't leave me much time to blog. His last trip for a little while was a conference in Lake Tahoe, so I drove up there with the kids to visit. We had a nice time and there was a little snow up there. Logan got to go sledding and hot tubbing.
Logan had a great birthday. His party was a Chuck E Cheese, which he loves. He wants to go there ALL the time. He loves to play the games. He really enjoyed getting all the presents and playing with them. Thank you all.
Evelyn is growing so fast! She's got quite the personality too. Dramatic and demanding, just what a girl should be, right? She stands up on everything and eats everything too. She is hilarious. If she catches a glimpse or whiff of anyone eating anything, she crawls right up to them and demands some of it. Pretty funny stuff.
Now we are awaiting Sean's Mom and Bob out here tomorrow. Finally! Someone to spend Thanksgiving with! We have never had visitors for Thanksgiving nor have we gone anywhere since we have been out here. Yay! Here are a couple pics of the kiddos.

 One of Logan's birthday presents, a big train track!

 Evelyn, getting so big!

 Bathtime together!!!

 Who doesn't love swinging with a view of Lake Tahoe?

 Brother and sister love!

Logan and daddy on a rock they climbed many times!!

An update on E.

So Evelyn had her 9 month appointment yesterday. She was 16 lbs 10 oz (10th %), 28.5 in long (77%) and head 50%. We continue to have long, skinny kids.
(At Logan's 9 month appt., he was 16 lbs 13 oz and 30 inches tall, very similar!).
She is doing everything a 9 month old should be doing and more! Being a preemie has not held her back much at all! She was a couple months later when it came to eating pureed fruits and veggies, but now she gobbles them up with no problems. She loves to eat now!!
She babbles a lot and crawls all over and pulls up to stand on anything. As most of you know from facebook that she likes to climb the stairs like crazy too. Geeze.
She is extremely dramatic though. No one but Sean and I can hold her, touch her, talk to her, etc. She cries a lot!! It is frustrating but hopefully only a phase! Mommy needs a break!

Here is a video of her being goofy. This was about a week and a half ago when she started pulling up and now she does it quickly with no problems at all!!

Check out some new pictures of us

Hawaii Pics!

 Mai Tai's at the Luau

 Logan with Grandma Lynda and Grandpa Bob

 Balcony of our room

 Logan running on the beach

 Mommy and Evelyn having umbrella time

 Logan could have stayed in the pool all day

 Riding the aquacycles...Evelyn wasn't a fan of her life jacket but was a trooper!

 The Nance family on the aquacyles!!

Of course this monkey found trees to climb!

Last but not least, check out this little fish!! I think he will be swimming very soon!

Hello Everyone!!
So I realize that we have not posted many Hawaii pictures. To be honest, we didn't really take that many. I was holding a baby the whole time, which isn't very conducive to picture taking! I'll use that as an excuse...yeah. But, there are some pictures, and most are on Sean's computer, so I will have to talk him into posting them.

We had a nice time in Hawaii. It was not by any means relaxing, but it was fun. Lynda and Bob were there, so we got to spend quality time with them. We hung out at the beach and pool with them, had some great meals, watched fireworks, and they also took Logan on a submarine adventure! He loved that! Our good friends Chris and Elise and their son Eli were also on the trip. Logan had tons of fun playing with Eli, running around on the sandy beach, falling on purpose. There were many great meals had and Mai tai's drank between the adults ;0).  We went to a Luau with fun entertainment and food. The mommies got a nice massage one day....lots of fun. Chris and Elise visited Pearl Harbor and we rented paddle boards and aquacycles. You'll have to see the pics.

We got home a week ago and decided we needed a vacation from our vacation. Ha. Both the kids got sick after we got home. Probably from the airplane and lack of naps! Logan actually doesn't nap anymore, but after playing so hard in Hawaii I'm sure his system was run down.

New in the Kirsch household: Logan got a big boy bed!! We got rid of the crib and got Logan a full-sized bed, complete with a truck comforter. He loves it. I think he would have liked Thomas the train too, but they didn't have any full-sized comforters.
Evelyn is crawling a little and pulling herself up to stand on her music table, crib, and whatever else she can get her little hands on. She is very vocal, loves her daddy now (finally!) and is beginning to eat solids better!  See the pics of how stinkin' cute she is!

That's all for now folks, hopefully we can get some Hawaii pics and videos up soon! Adios!

Hello Everyone!
Wow, it has been a long time since we have updated!!! I must admit I post most pics on facebook, but I will try to do a better job on the blog.
So, all is well in the new house in Livermore. Still continue to do little things here and there. We just got Logan's play structure set up, fresh with new mulch. He likes it a lot but it is still a bit big for him. We got it from a friend that didn't need it.
Evelyn is getting big! And she has two teeth now. She gets up a lot at night still and mommy is very tired. She still isn't very interested in eating much food, but she has started to enjoy gumming on puffs. Logan loved eating purees but she really isn't into it yet. She loves being outside and watching her brother play.
Logan is doing well and continues to blow me away with how smart he is and how well he talks. He started going to "Tot Drop," a daycare type place that I can drop him off anytime I like for a few hours. He really only goes once a week for a few hours, but he loves it. He makes lots of art projects and plays with a lot of toys. Of course he loves that!
Mommy had a night out with friends on Saturday to see Les Miserables at the San Francisco Orpheum. It was a fabulous show however I think I still like the Phantom more =). It was great to get out of the house with no kids for a change!
We are heading for Hawaii in a few weeks here, really excited about that!! The kids are going to have a blast swimming all day. They both LOVE the water. We are staying at the Hale Koa, a very kid friendly hotel on Waikiki Beach. That's about it for now though. Enjoy some pics of the kiddos!


We took a trip to Oakland Zoo last week, here is Evelyn chilling in her stroller.

                   Logan the turtle!

 Logan insisted on holding the map and trying to figure out where to go, it was pretty cute.

 Logan's "Tot Drop" attire. His new (hand-me-down) Thomas the Train backpack and Lunch Box.

 Miss Evelyn's usual activities: playing with all her toys in her basket!

Six months old!!

Here is a special post for our special 6 month old baby girl!! Time has flown by so fast! It seems like yesterday she was an itty bitty thing that we were dying to take home from the NICU. She came home and was barely 5 pounds, and now I'd say she's about 15! We will get official stats on Tues from her doctor appt.

What can we say about miss Evelyn?? She is a happy, sweet little girl that has a lot of determination and zeal! She loves watching her big brother play and has to put EVERYTHING in her mouth. I mean EVERYTHING. She absolutely loves to take a drink of water from my glass. Maybe it makes her feel like she is a big girl. ;0)  We have dabbled in rice cereal and some bananas and sweet potatoes. Mostly she is frustrated that I won't let her keep chewing on the spoon, we will work on that. Hehe. She can roll both ways now, front to back and back to front! We are working on sitting but she has not mastered that yet. She usually goes to sleep around 9 and sleeps until 4:30, and will then go back to sleep until about 7. Can't complain too much about that! I fear for when the teeth come in though! She smiles all the time, which is something I remember I loved when Logan was around 6 months. Check her out in action!

She is such a special little girl and makes our family complete! We are so excited to watch her grow and learn new things!

holiday weekend fun

Hello,

Well after another fun filled holiday week up in Tahoe, we came back home to have some fun with a little bit of work too. I finally finished the backyard. After new sprinklers, landscaping and laying sod I am finally done with one portion of the back yard. Uffda.... This ground is hard out here. It's been a project since we moved in and this morning I finally finished with the help of Logan and Katie.
Unfortunately, we don't have any pics of this weekend's events. We did a freefall jump into Lake Tahoe which the kids and crowds loved, but here are some pics of yesterday and today.