Lunch With My Favorite Kindergartener!

I got to bring Emily McDonald's for lunch today. Of course now she wants me to bring this or pizza everyday. Don't think our budget can afford that compared to the PB&J she usually gets.

We're Having A Boy!!!

Easter Eggs 2010

Easter Eggs 2010 from Jason Peck on Vimeo.

Let's Dye Some Eggs

Emily and Callie love getting to make the eggs for our Easter egg hunt. It is amazing how much fun comes in such a little box.

Moving On Up

Over the weekend I was able to finish painting the girls' new room. That means Emily now gets to sleep in our daybed and Callie will be sleeping in Emily's toddler bed. It is amazing how fast they have both grown up.

Spring Break Zoo Trip

In honor of Emily being on Spring Break, today we headed to the zoo for a little family fun. Who knew that half of the families in Oklahoma City would also have the same idea. We heard that today was the most people that have ever had at the zoo on one day.

That's How You Communicate

Today when I went to pick up Emily from school, she had this sticker stuck to her shirt. It was a reminder about a school fundraiser tonight at a local restaurant.

Think I could get with doing this for my youth when I need to communicate a message to their parents? I can just picture them all lining up to leave and me putting their reminder sticker on them!

Hello Mr. Sun

The girls just had to take advantage of the sunshine while it lasted.

Emily Playing In The Snow

Winter Snow 2010 from Jason Peck on Vimeo.

Emily enjoying some of the snow in our backyard.

Orr Family Farm Field Trip

This was Emily's first class field trip and she and I got to go to the Orr Family Farm. Even though I have passed by the farm for years now, I had never been inside. I was very impressed with all that they had to offer and Emily just loved the entire atmosphere. We will definitely have to go back and bring Callie and Theresa with us.

Fall Festival at Schwartz

The girls, I mean Tinker Bell and Ladybug, really enjoyed their first Fall Festival at Emily's school. Once they saw how everything worked they both really got into the games and activities. Of course getting candy at every stop helped a little. I just want to know when adults get to get that much candy in one night.

Meeting Emily's Teacher

It’s official. Emily starts school this Thursday and I still can’t believe it. Today we went to meet her teacher, see her classroom, and go over some basic orientation information. When we talk to Emily about going to school, we get two sides to the story. Some times she is extremely excited about being in preschool. Other times she says that she is not going to school and that mommy is her teacher. Today she finally said that she has two schools and two teachers. Hey, if this works for her then it works for me. We shall see what actually happens on Thursday.

I think today was really good for her because she got a quick peek into all of the fun and new things she will get to experience. At one point she asked me if she could go back to her class and play. That was a good sign. Everything we have heard about her teacher has been very positive. I think once Emily gets to know her, she will really thrive under her teaching. It may take a few days or weeks to get her adjusted to the routine of having to go every day, but I’m pretty sure that is normal.

Here are a few pictures of her checking out her classroom and with some friends from church that already go to her new school. We will keep you posted on this new adventure called preschool!

Jasmine Moran Children's Museum

Yesterday, our Children's Ministry took a trip to the Jasmine Moran Children's Museum for our Fabulous Friday. This was my first trip to the museum even though the rest of my family had already been. I can see why Emily really liked it. There were so many cool things for her to experience and do. We will definitely go back when we aren't in charge of 37 kids! Here are a few pictures from our trip.

I'm in trouble because both of my girls like to shop!

Here is Callie showing us what her big sister will look like in a few weeks.

Emily's Birthday Pool

Emily is Three!

On Friday, Emily turned three! It still doesn't seem possible that we now have a three year old along with a soon-to-be four month old. All that Emily really wanted to do was play on the playground at McDonalds. We did this last year and it is quickly becoming a tradition for her birthday. It was an overall fun day celebrating life. Here are some pictures of Emily's day. It beings with a trip to the beauty shop for her second haircut.

We will soon be posting more pictures of the girls in our online Web gallery. There is a link on the right side of this page. 

Sisters

Here are some recently pictures of the girls.  They sure are growing up fast!  This Friday Emily will be three.  It doesn't seem possible that she will be starting school in a little over a year.

Emily sharing her "iPod" with Callie.  

Callie sitting up with a little bit of help.

Let's Go To The Movies!

This past Saturday I got to take Emily to see her first movie. Technically this was her second try at watching a movie in a movie theater. When The Chronicles of Narnia came out, our church in New Mexico rented out the theater and we took her to see how she would do. We figured it would be a good time since the theater was filled with people from our own church. Let's just say that she lasted about 10 minutes before we had to take her home. Emily has just always been a loud baby. Either by crying or now by talking, she is constantly making some kind of noise.

Now that she is older and is more used to watching movies at home, we wanted to see how she would do. It worked out perfectly because the movie, The Pirates Who Don't Do Anything came out right after Callie was born. Theresa thought this would be a good father-daughter date since Emily is no longer the only star of the show. It was such a fun experience. She couldn't wait to get popcorn and a cherry coke to drink. As we were walking to our seats, a preview for another movie was already playing and is completely amazed her. She kept turning her head to stare at the big screen. Then she looked around to see all of the other people in the theater and asked who they were.

They only negative/difficult part was me having to put my leg over her seat so she it wouldn't fold her like a pancake! Every time I barely moved my leg I could feel her seat want to return to it's up-right position. (Next time I'll have to bring a brick to weigh her down.) As soon as we had finished sharing the popcorn, I put her in my lap because my leg was starting to fall asleep.

The movie was just the right length because I could tell the other little kids were getting restless toward the end. As we were leaving, she couldn't wait to go again. This will definitely be a movie we have to buy. Not only was it our first movie to watch together, but it was a good family movie. I expected nothing less from the VeggieTales creators. I have a feeling that last Saturday was only the beginning of my movie experiences with Emily.

Gotta Love My Girls!

Sometimes I still feel like I'm dreaming when I think about being the father of two beautiful girls. Callie went in yesterday for her two week check-up and she is doing great. She was 7 pounds 9 ounces and already over 20 inches long. Fortunately she didn't have to get any shots this time.

Overall Emily is doing so well as the big sister (even though she insists that she is the little sister). There are still times when she will try and hug her too tightly or forget that Callie is so fragile. For the most part she really likes having a sister and is constantly talking about us all being a family. I think she still doesn't understand why Callie can't do everything she can, but she is getting better. I am beginning to realize how a parent can love more than one child. I find myself loving so many qualities about Emily while cherishing Callie being so little and innocent. They are both already so different from each other and I love that too. As my love for Callie will increase as she gets older, I see my love for Emily being on such a different level because she has been a part of my life longer. It is great being the dad to two girls!

Don't you like my pretty pink hat?

Emily just had to bring her own camera to take pictures of her sister.

Callie's first bath at home.

Unhindered Worship

Wednesday night I took our students to a See You At The Pole rally to celebrate that morning's activities. We had a great turnout and got to spend time hearing all that God did in our area. Part of the event included a worship band to lead us in singing. Theresa and Emily were there during the singing time and I was fortunate enough to be next to Emily. She never ceases to amaze me. For those of you who do not know her, she just loves music. Whether it is listening to it or making it, music is her thing. Before she could even walk, she would rock back and forth on her knees to the beat of music playing in our living room. Now that she is a little older, she is really getting into singing and playing.

Almost every Wednesday night when I am setting up for MidWeek, she will grab a microphone and start dancing and singing to the music I have playing. Of course we always have to listen to Blessed Be The Name at least once or twice. This is her favorite song right now and she constantly ask to hear it. A couple of weeks ago she and Theresa were in the back of the room when our students were singing. Theresa said that when the song we were singing said, "we stand and lift up our hands" that Emily did just that. Then she turned to Theresa and said "come on mommy, lift up your hands." We will be in the car and if a song says anything about lifting your hands or just has a good beat, she will lift her hands or start to dance in her car seat.

Having said all that, back to our See You At The Pole rally. During our worship, Emily was just doing her thing. She listens so closely to the words we sing and tries to do exactly what they say. One song even talked about falling face down and she did that! It really humbled me to watch my two year old daughter do what I would probably be embarrassed to do in church. Where did we become so stiff and rigid that lifting our hands or closing our eyes brings funny looks? I am a very private person and often have a hard time letting my emotions show. My daughter is teaching me that when it comes to my expressions about God, it doesn't matter what anyone else thinks but Him. I did see a couple of students look at Emily during the rally and laugh or say "how cute." If we all were as unhindered as her during our worship, I know that God would be more blessed that our routine singing, standing, and sitting down. I am grateful that I serve a God who uses two year olds to teach lessons to us grownups.