Happy Birthday Caroline!!!

Caroline's birthday was September 23rd! She is now two years old! She is really turning into a 'big girl' before our very eyes...talking so much and understanding so many things. (Example: One night this week, after staying with Mimi and Pappaw for a little while, she told me that Pappaw made her some peas. 'I ate peas' she proceded to say. When I said, 'Oh that's great Caroline...You ate some peas!', she looked at me with a very knowing look. She squinted up her face at me and said, 'Not real peas, Mommy...just pretend peas.' Jonathan and I looked at each other in disbelief! It took so much understanding to tell me that...the difference between pretend and real, and the knowledge that I was thinking she had really eaten peas, and the willingness to correct me on that! So funny! And, sure enough, as I was cleaning up later that night, I found the pretend peas plated up there in her little kitchen. What a smart girl!)

Ok, so back to birthday stuff. On her actual birthday, Jonathan and Caroline and I spent the whole day together. Jon took a vacation day and we headed to the Knoxville Zoo. It had been a few months since we visited, so to Caroline, everything was practically brand new. We especially enjoyed seeing the baby orangutan, George. He was learning to crawl, just like a human baby! The mother kept picking him up and sitting him down in a crawling position. Then she would give him a nudge, and he would try to go forward a little bit, then he would fall down. It was pretty interesting stuff.

After heading home for a nap, we decided to eat dinner at one of Caroline's favorite spots...Mr. Gatti's pizza!! It was a special treat! We really had fun just hanging out together and relaxing all day.

Happy Birthday little bird! We love you!





Gimmee some more pizza!

A Princess is Awakened!

When Caroline put on this Snow White gown for the first time, a Princess was awakened in her heart. We all had to hold back our giggles as she glided about the room, moving regally and answering to the name 'Snow White'. We had never seen her pretend quite like this! Magic was in her eyes...



beth

HSM 3!!!!!

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Sprout Studio

For Caroline's Birthday, Grandma and Grandpa got us some passes to Sprout Studio here in Knoxville. It's kind of like a big interactive/learning/fun place for little ones. We had a blast on our first visit! Grandma, Mommy, and Caroline spent several hours exploring all the things to do. We can't wait to go back and take Daddy!

Splashing in the water zone


Who's that cutie peeking out of there?



-Beth

The Fair

So, ok, I grew up going to the fair. I know, I know...what with the mixed smell of farm animals, vomit, and corn dogs, it's not an appealing place for many of you! Anyway, you have to understand that when you're 7, you care little about all that stuff. What you do care about is bragging rights about going on the 'kamikaze' (basically a large ride in which you are trapped in a cage spinning upside down over and over again) or the fun of hitting 'alarm' speed with music blasting on the 'himalaya'. (Wendy, what were we thinking???!!!) I guess Wendy and I have gotten older, and my inner-ear/dizziness problems have gotten the better of me, because those rides are no longer a big draw. Shocker, I know! Hmmm...in fact, now that i think about it, perhaps those rides are the cause of my inner ear/dizziness problems!!

But here's my point, and a sweet story. Jonathan is amongst those of you who would normally not like to touch the fair with a 10 foot pole. But he did something sweet...he called in to Love 89 and won tickets so that we could take Caroline to see the farm animals. She absolutely loved it! We saw goats, cows (and a baby cow born that very day), turkeys, rabbits, and tons of other animals. She will tell you her favorite things...and I quote..."Saw big punkin' Fair. Saw bees makin' honey Fair."

Here's a little video of Caroline watching the baby chicks sliding down this big metal slide. I'm pretty sure this is in some sort of animal cruelty realm (not sure how the chicks ever eat the food which dangles out over the edge of the slide, enticing them to come up), but it's been at the fair since I can remember, and it was neat to see her reaction to those silly chicks!



-Beth

Dollywood with the Engles!

Many of you know that my Aunt Pam and her husband, Ed, are missionaries in Venezuela. They have three kids...Rachel is in her sophomore year at ETSU, while Benjamin and Rebecca (aka, the twins) are in their freshman year at ETSU!! We're really excited that they will be spending at least the next few years in Tennessee! And, bonus, this is Ed and Pam's furlough year, which means they will not be going back to Venezuela until next summer. So we'll be trying to squeeze in as much time with the Engle clan as possible in the coming months! A few weeks ago, we hung out at Dollywood with them. Here are a few pictures...

Mom's two sisters, Wendy and Pam, enjoying a shady spot


All the cousins on my Mom's side (the Higgins family)...we have quite an age range!


Thanks Catherine for riding the busy bees with Caroline! She loves you and Mike-Mike so much!


-Beth

Welcome Home OE!

Although she has now been home for nearly two months, we want to officially give a blog-welcome to Caroline's new friend, Olivia Eyerusalem!! Our sweet sweet friends Nathan and Karey traveled in August to Ethiopia to receive the fourth child in their family, but the first little girl! In Karey's words, 'this house needed some pink'! :) We are so excited for them, and we are praying for them every step of the way. This is a fantastic family, and we look forward to watching the boys and their new sister grow together!

The girls' first playdate.


Yum! Amy B. and I threw a shower/party at a local park for our friends before they left. What an exciting time!


The boys waiting to meet their new sister at the Knoxville airport


Check out the smiles on this proud mom and dad's faces! And check out those shades on Rusie!


We love you Nathan, Karey, Logan, Connor, Riley, and Rusie!!

-Beth