Kacey and Eric

Eric sure misses his Kacey and keeps asking for her.

Beth

Here is our happy smiling Beth. She loves to sit up and play with things but still regularly falls over backwards. She continues to work on her second tooth that is still under a very swollen gum. She has been a great teether so far, not a bit of fever and while there has definitely been grumpy days and a few bad nights she has been a real trooper.
Here is a little video of her playing on the floor.

Our Kids

Behold! Eric’s first tattoo. Can you believe it, it’s a train. I know, who would have thought. This was a gift from Aunt Kacey for Eric’s birthday. He loves it and thinks it’s a sticker that doesn’t wash off.

Joker beware. The Dark Knight is staying with the Allemans. Oh my gosh, I think it’s hereditary. What next?
Our pretty girl is teething but still so happy. She is working on her two lower front teeth and you can just start to feel them under the surface. The gums are just barely starting to swell up and she is starting to develop a love for Ora-gel.
Work that body, work that body, make sure you don’t hurt nobody! This is Beth doing her “baby crunches” getting ready to keep up with Lela.

Beth's Sitting Up

Our little Beth is sitting up! She has started catching herself when she falls over and pushing back up to a sitting position. I love it but it also is sad that she is getting so big so fast. Sigh. Sorry that there is no sound to the video.

Family Update

I thought that an update on what each of us are doing right now might be nice. Ryan is making some great progress on his thesis. Now that things are better under control with my health and also that Beth and Eric are going to bed at a good hour he has more time in the evenings to write. A special thank you to all of you who are reading his stuff and giving feedback about it. That feedback is so important and helpful in the writing process. Ryan is taking more thesis hours this coming semester and getting his board put together. It has taken us four years to get to this point and I have loved the time. I have been blessed that Ryan has been home for dinner and to play with the kids every night. We don’t really want to stay in Utah but BYU has been really good to us.

As for me, I am wondering how on earth you get anything done (and have it stay done) with two kids. Talk about a humbling experience. When we were back in Texas for Mary’s wedding, my sister-in-law Coren reminded me of when, after nanny-ing for a year, I said something like: “I want 9 kids and I know I can do it because I was a nanny.” She asked me if I remembered that and the only response I had was, “I said that when I was young and stupid.” Now, I don’t know how many kids we will end up with but I am sure thankful that they come one at a time and only every few years (at least in our case). As frustrating as it is, I wouldn’t trade it for the world. I love my crazy life.

Eric is speaking better everyday. We are trying to work with him on his pronunciation. He is starting to repeat prayers back and also copying what we say. This is something bothersome for me because the other day I sat down at the table and stepped on some crumbs on the floor and said, “There is so much crap on this floor!” He then proceeded to say: “Crap on floor.” I never realized how that word sounded till he said it. So begins the years of the kid repeating everything you say. Sigh. He is still obsessed with trains and loves anything and everything to do with them. He also loves playing on the computer and is getting really good at using the mouse and starting the program he wants. Not bad for a kid who just turned three. Here he is playing his favorite game of Disney’s Mickey Mouse Toddler.

Beth is so determined and stubborn. It’s a good thing she is so sweet and happy. She does not like to lie down but prefers to stand or be held. This does pose a problem when I need to get anything done. So this inspired us to invest in a baby-walker. She loves it! It will keep her busy for an hour or so between every nap. She is also making raspberries now and growls like no other baby I’ve ever seen. Yes, she growls, like a bear or something. I will try to get it on video and post it here later. Ryan’s started calling her our “attack baby.”

Horses

Mary and Sam came through this last week on their way to and from Texas. They went down to pick up some horses for the ranch. Eric and Beth were both thrilled with the animals! When it was time for them to leave we had to drag Eric away crying. He has even been asking for Mary, Sam and the horses for the last two days.

Eric thinks that he can pull himself through the bars by sheer desire.
Hola.
This is Mary introducing Beth to Fancy for the first time.

Broken?

Do you think it’s broken? For all the ways for mom to break her toe, I didn’t think it would be doing laundry.

Eric's Birthday

Can you tell that Beth is sleeping and Ryan took Eric to the Library? I am desperately trying to catch up on the blogging for the last 2 months. In July we celebrated Eric’s third birthday. Three? When on earth did that happen? We kept things low key and had a small celebration with the four of us and Zach, Allison and Kacey. Out of all the gifts Eric liked the train ones best and didn’t even want to look at any of the others puzzles or toys for a few days. Here he is looking at a Mr. Potato Head and wondering “what do I want this for?”

He did like the car from Zach and Allison and actually played with it. (Playing with something that’s not a train? I don’t know if I can handle that!)
We did a homemade confetti cake with raspberry filing that Eric loved. But he loves anything to do with cakes. If fact, now when ever he sees one he starts singing happy birthday.

Family Pictures

While we were in Dallas for the wedding we were also able to get the whole Clines crew together for a family picture. These aren’t so easy anymore with so many kids. How do you get them to all look in the same direction at the same time? But Grandpa and Grandma sure are having fun. Now Ryan and I just need to live closer so that Eric and Beth can get to know their cousins.

Mary Got Married

Yeah, I know that this is 2 months late but, my little sister got married! I am also happy to say that I really like my new brother-in-law, Sam Neff. The wedding was in Dallas and it was so hot, but that’s like saying I went swimming and got wet, the two just go hand in hand.

The two of them sure do look happy.
This could be a glimpse of the future but for now its Sam and Mary with all the current grandkids. Eric was so mad because he wanted to hold Mary’s hand and couldn’t. The colors Mary picked and all the work that my sister-in-laws Coren and Suzi put in made everything wonderful. The girls’ dresses and the flower arrangements were done by Suzi and the cakes by Coren. They also both acted as wedding consultants. Thanks so much for the gifts of your expertise!
This was the wedding favor table where you could fill up a bag of candy to take home with you. Sam and Mary had a Candy “Bar” that had enough candy to make you sick. This table was very popular with the kids.