First Bites

Last night we officially began solids with Miss Caroline. She was a little unsure of the first few bites, but before we were done she was about to fall out of her seat trying to get some more. It came as no surprise to us that the kid likes her food!

Fun at Avans Farm

This weekend we had the opportunity to head out to Avans Farm with some friends for a fun 3-day weekend away from the big city. They have a beautiful cabin/retreat house - the same place we stayed over Thanksgiving when Dan's family came to visit. And they have horses and 4WD golf carts and fishing and hiking and...it's just wonderful. We were SO excited to head back out there after our fabulous time over Thanksgiving.

I didn't do a very good job of remembering to take pictures, but Mr. & Mrs. Avans are the best hosts and actually take pictures for you and give you a disc with everything before you leave - it's a brilliant idea. So here are a few snapshots of our time there:

Mr. Avans giving Dan & Justin a few tips before they embark on a ride across the countryside.

A little family outing in one of the golf carts. Caroline really like to wear camo.
Our sweet friends, Justin & Hannah, out for a stroll. Hannah was digging that air force jacket (a gift to Dan from Tommy a few years back).
Caroline checking out the kitty-cat...from a safe distance.She wasn't quite ready for horseback riding this time, but she really did seem to enjoy being outside. There was lots to see!
Dan collecting worms for a little fishing excursion. He seems pretty grossed out by this one...he really should have let me show him how it's done.

The weather was not the greatest - it rained a lot and became quite damp & chilly. But a little weather never stops me! I'm hardy. I really am a farm-girl at heart.

Midnight & me, ready to head out.
Daddy & Caroline about to do a little exploring.

The weather really was a bit of a bummer, but as you can see, we still made the most of our time. We enjoyed plenty of chill time indoors, too, which made it a very restful weekend and allowed for lots of hang time with Justin & Hannah, which was wonderful. Fratts, thanks for being brave enough to come on a little Johnston family adventure! We had a blast :-)

P.S. Unfortunately I don't have a picture to document this, but Caroline rolled over for the first time while we were at the cabin on Friday night! I think she just knew she had an audience - she acted like it was no big deal at all. The little bug just flipped right over!

a few more

More pictures from Aunt Kelsey: http://kelseylynae.blogspot.com/2010/03/wordless-wednesdays-rest-of-caroline.html

like this one...

I don't know how she ever captured a picture of my sweet girl looking like this.

How about this instead:

That's more like it.

Either way, you can check out more pics over at her blog today. Enjoy!

Wonderful Weekend

We had a fabulous weekend with my sister & her husband (Dan's brother, as we like to call him), who were able to come down from Louisville for a quick visit. The weather was GORGEOUS and we took advantage of the opportunity to get outside. Saturday morning we packed up some food (including some homemade tortilla chips Kelsey whipped up and some fresh guacamole I made...and we all ate ourselves sick) and headed out to our favorite park. The boys had lots of time to play, throwing the football and running down hills...which resulted in this:

But he's tough, so don't worry about it.

We went on a good long walk enjoying the weather,

Grilled some brats & pineapple (YUM!),And just chilled :)

Aunt Kelsey took in lots of snuggles with Caroline,

and Uncle Brent even did a bit of serenading...which Caroline LOVED.Even Mommy snuck in some snuggles in between the smitten Aunt & Uncle.

On Saturday evening, they gave Dan & I a chance to sneak away for a date (which I don't have pictures of at the moment) which was wonderful! Sunday morning we headed out to church and took in another beautiful day. Kels & I made lunch together - which took entirely too long and was a bit disappointing (my fault - it was a new recipe and sounded much easier than it was), but we still were able to share a meal together and laugh at a naked baby for awhile.

It was a wonderful weekend, all in all, and I'm so thankful once again that they made the trip down. I love having them close enough to do little weekend trips like this - what a blessing. And Caroline doesn't mind either :-) They brought this adorable little spring dress for her this time:

Caroline thought bubble: "I can't believe I'm related to these crazy people..."

"But at least they know how darn cute I am!"

More pictures to come...but I didn't want to steal all of Kelsey's thunder since she was the one who took most of them. Thanks for more beautiful pictures, Kels! And thanks again for making the trip - we love you and miss you both already.

New Walker

Caroline is loving her new walker! And so are Mom & Dad as it's a great new place for her to hang out. Mostly she just loves to suck on everything she can reach, which is pretty funny to watch sometimes.
"This is good stuff Mom! You should try it sometime!"
Of course, it might be a little more fun when her feet touch the ground :-)

Happy Birthday Jewel!

Happy Birthday Jewel! 21 years old, huh? We're so proud of the beautiful woman of God that you are becoming. We love your crazy personality and sensitive spirit, and we know that God has big things in store for you. We miss you so much and wish you lived much closer than the frozen tundra of Minnesota!

In honor of your birthday, I decided to share this priceless video with the world. Caroline has so much to learn from her Aunt Jewel :-)

*Note - this is from Thanksgiving, when Caroline was just 8 weeks old.

Dear Grandma,

So my Mommy & Daddy told me that today is your birthday. So I thought to myself...

hmmm...what can I do to make Grandma feel special today? I wish they would have given me a little more time to come up with something! So I sat and thought about it for awhile.

Wait a second...Mommy's trying to pull a fast one on me! Man I wish I could read. But I think that piece of paper is going to get in the way of what I'm trying to do here.

Anyway, back to you Grandma. I love you! And I'm sending smiles & hugs & kisses all the way to California today!

Wait a second...I think Mommy is at it again. I think I need to investigate.

Just what do you think you're doing, Mommy? I'm trying to wish Grandma a Happy Birthday here.

Oh man...you've got a water glass! I'm suddenly VERY thirsty! I can almost....reeeeaaaach.....come on!

I've about had it with you, Mommy. Put that thing down and give me the water glass.

Sigh. Mommy isn't cooperating, so I guess I'll just have to tell you Happy Birthday without her help.

Happy Birthday Grandma!! I love you and miss you sooooo much! Can't wait to see you again.

love,

Caroline (your favorite granddaughter ever!)