It is hard to believe that I am the dad of an amazing two year old. It's true. Evelyn had her birthday on the 19th- and what a birthday it was. She had a party with a bunch of her friends and they decorated cupcakes and played games and everything. Rachel went all out with the cupcakes and baked them in ice-cream cones, so that when they were decorated they looked like ice cream. Pretty cute!

That night we gave her presents. It is so much fun giving things to kids who actually get excited about them! We gave her a play kitchen, complete with refrigerator, oven, dishwasher, etc. She loves it and we have a hard time dragging her away from it when it is time to go anywhere.

Also, it is finally time for her to move into a big-girl bed. She slept in it for the first time on her birthday night, and she did great! Every once in a while she seems to miss the crib, but for the most part she is excited to be able to put herself to bed. It is also fun to lay down with her and read bedtime stories in bed. She is growing up!

Jackson and Addy are both doing great. They routinely sleep through the night now, and if they do wake up they are able to put themselves back to sleep. No more night time feedings- hooray! Jackson is teething (if it's not one thing it's another for this poor boy) and that causes a fair share of misery, but as long as he is kept on Tylenol and teething tabs he does alright. Also, both babies can sit up on their own now and are almost always happy- a nice change from previous weeks and one that we hope stays for good.

As for us, Rach and I went to our first dance class on Tuesday. It was so much fun and reminded me why I fell in love with her on the dance floor. No, I can't dance- just in case you were wondering- but that's sort of part of the fun. The studio that offers the classes is fun and friendly and we are looking forward to more classes down the road. In fact, we have been talking about enrolling in more once this 6 week swing dance class is over.

Here's Evelyn getting ready for the party...

And here is during her party...

And her presents...

And here's her "kayak." We teach them young!

Here we are at our dance class.

And here I am practicing at home with Adalie.

Here are just a few random pictures that we took throughout the week of our cute babies. I realized that it's been a while since some good pictures of Jack and Addy were posted, so I thought I'd throw these in.

Today, being Valentine's Day, I thought it would be appropriate to express my love to my family:

Rachel is an amazing person, wife, mother, and friend. As I write this she is organizing crayons, stamps, markers, and finger paints for Evelyn to play with. She has fed the twins who are sleeping soundly and there is a delicious smell coming from the kitchen. Earlier today she surprised me with my Valentine's day present- she has enrolled us in dance classes for the next six weeks! This is very appropriate since we fell in love while dancing in each other's arms and these classes will be a fun way to remember those days while simultaneously creating new memories. I am so excited to see what the upcoming years bring and to know that she will be there with me every step of the way. I truly love her and want her to know how much her love and friendship means to me.

Evelyn will always be Daddy's Little Girl. I look forward to her big smile and squeal of "Daddy!" every day when I come home from school. And her hugs. She can give some good hugs. It is so much fun to watch her amazement and delight as she discovers the world around her. It is enlightening to see things from her point of view and helps me to appreciate the little things even more. It's not even been two years and I can't even remember what it was like without her. How did I ever live without my little Bugaboo?

Adalie is my blue-eyed angel. She has started to interact in fun new ways and it melts my heart when she looks up at me and her chubby little cheeks curl up into a grin that causes her whole face to light up. I love feeding her bottles; she just cuddles into my arms and makes herself comfortable and drinks away. Often, when she is just about done drinking she will give this sly little thin-lipped smile. And then she spits. What a little lady.

And then there's Jack, my little man. Jackson impresses me with his good attitude. He has sort of had a hard introduction to life with sickness and allergies and stuff, but he takes it all in stride and will grin at anyone who will give him attention. He has become a little talker lately and it is so much fun to just listen to him jabber away at the world. He is also a very affectionate cuddler and I love having him fall asleep in my arms. Sometimes I feel like I could hold him forever.

Needless to say, I am a very lucky guy to have such a perfect little family. It is amazing how I can love them each so fully and how, as I learn more and more about them, that love continues to grow stronger.

Happy Valentine's day to my family.
From Logan/Dad

We're free at last...for a while

Rachel has decided to write a book on weight loss. Her secret? Have a baby who is allergic to both milk and soy. You never really think about how reliant we are on these two staples until you have to go without. Only then do you realize that your food options are pretty much limited to Special K with rice milk. At first glance you might think that we'd save money on groceries with this diet. But when you look at the $8/gallon for rice milk, and $30/can for Jackson's formula (lasts about a week) it just doesn't work out that way. Add to it the fact that he is still constantly scratching his head and it just makes you want to throw your hands in the air and scream.

And then there is Addy. Watch out for this girl. This week her waking hours were all spent either eating (16 oz. at one sitting the other night) or crying, and her sleeping hours were very limited. I think we have an insomniac on our hands. Seriously, she is the cutest little baby girl in the whole wide world when she decided to be happy, but that just hasn't happened this week. Rachel just called her a "little brat."

And Evelyn has pink eye and is a grouch. Enough said.

We love our children.

But we wanted to get away from them for a while.

That is why Rachel surprised me with an afternoon date on Saturday. We dropped the kids off at the baby-sitter's house (a very brave friend of ours) and drove to this great little ski lodge in Kirtland. There, we rented x-country skis and spent the next several hours exploring the winding trails in the Ohio woodlands. When we were through we sat by the fire at the lodge and sipped hot cider and enjoyed each other's company. It was a very nice, much needed break.

I love my wife. She is amazing.

Evelyn wants to be treated like the babies. She wants to be swaddled, drink through a bottle, use a pacifier, and sit in their car seats. Here she is trying out the jumper.

She also loves to be treated like an adult. Before she reaches that stage, however, she needs to realize that it is not acceptable to run around naked. Here she is modeling my jacket, glasses, and hat.

We had a fantastic time being "just us."