Fingerpaint Fun and Feeding the Ducks

We have enjoyed the beautiful weather this week, and had a few fun activities as well.

First up, fingerpaint! Meredith is a little picky about things on her hands. She doesn't mind getting dirty, but she doesn't want to stay dirty. So, she would do a couple of swishes of paint, and then ask for her hands to be cleaned. However, she did have a good time and we'll have to pull it out again for a rainy day.



We've spent a lot of time outside this week. The sandbox is getting quite the workout! Meredith has helped mommy clear out the dead hydrangia plant stems (yep -- I'm a little late pruning them. I blame it on having a baby), watering the spinach and lettuce, and helping to destroy the aphids that have decided to lay their eggs on the spinach. We're hoping the yellow sticky tape does its work to trap the aphids!

We went to the lake and Old Mill yesterday to feed some ducks. For you NLRHS readers, I ran into Jordan A. working out at the lake looking as cute as a button. We also ran into blog reader Ms. Margaret, who always has a smile on her face. It's so fun to run into old friends.


Hope ya'll have enjoyed some good weather in your worlds!

Easter Pictures

It's been another busy week for the Lipsey's, and a wonderful Easter was had by all. Meredith and Russ are doing well, but I can't think of really anything new and exciting they are doing. I've got a couple of things on the camcorder, but I can't seem to transfer them over -- so you'll just have to wait a little while longer to see them in action:)

Sitting Around Before the Egg Hunt at Church

Russ ready to go home

Bright-eyed and Bushy tailed at 6:45 going to church
(Mom had orchestra practice)

Egg Hunt Easter Afternoon

The Boys, the Bunny, and the Birthday Party

It has again been a busy week for the Lipsey clan. Wednesday, we met the Nantze's at the Zoo for a little animal looking on a beautiful 70 degree day. The weather was perfect, the kids were pretty good, and it was so nice to catch up again with Mauree.



Thursday was lunch with the Mulhearn's. We went to see the easter bunny, but as expected Meredith really didn't want to get too close to the tall, furry, strange looking rabbit. She did a little better than I expected and actually walked into the bunny area, but was always a good 5 feet away from the bunny. Laid back Russell sat quite nicely, and we have a picture with the bunny for him. Susan and I had a nice lunch, and got to catch up a little.

Today was Meredith's birthday party, and we had it at the park. Thank you to those of you who threw on your coats and enjoyed a brisk mid-morning outside. Meredith really just wanted to stay at the slide, but she did enjoy her toys after mommy opened them for her. One of these days she'll enjoy getting presents.....

Happy 2nd Birthday, Meredith

Meredith turned 2 yesterday! She had an excellent day playing with her friends at playgroup and a nice dinner out with Dee Dee and Big Daddy. They got her two of her most favorite things: a helium balloon and bubbles. She held on to those tight the whole night!

Meredith, we are so proud of the sweet little girl you are becoming. You weigh 22 1/2 lbs, and are 34 1/2 inches long. You enjoy reading books like Cordoroy, Goodnight Moon, and I See a Monster. You are a big fan of Little Einsteins, and you love to dance with June. You have moved from your crib to a big girl bed, and have been an excellent big sister to Russ. You can speak in whole sentences, and like to talk! You have even learned to call the hogs (yes, Daddy will need to work extra hard to get Boomer Sooner started, or you may be a lost cause for him). We love you so much, and are anxious to watch you grow!

Snow Day #2

I felt really silly on Friday morning with the lack of snow on the ground because I had gone out and bought lots of groceries on Thursday for us to hunker down and ride out the impending winter storm. However, by about 12:30 we had another round of snow come in the area, and we had a little bit more snow fun. Here are some pictures:

7 Random Facts

Stephanie tagged me for this little game. I've read quite a few of these from some of you bloggers out there, so I'm not going to tag anybody. But feel free to put your 7 random facts up on your blog as well:)

1. Hammer toes and thumbs. If you ever get close to my hands and feet, you'll notice that my big toes and thumbs are quite a bit smaller than everyone else's. As a child and teenager, this was of quite a bit concern to me. I always thought "What if my child has one hammer toe and one regular toe?" Now I realize its not a huge deal, and I rarely jam my big toe:)

2. Presidential History Lover. I always try to land on the yellow (history) trivial pursuit spaces because of this interest. I think it stems from my enjoyment of biographies, but I've always enjoyed learning more things about the Presidents. From Washington's military days, to Jackson's "Petticoat Affair," and to today's presidential primaries -- it all interests me.

3. Never been to Disneyworld. Yes -- I have never been to the most magical place on earth. However, we are planning on going when Russ is 3 or so. I shouldn't be deprived for too much longer:)

4. My lazy eye. When I failed my vision test for my driver's license, I found out that I am practically blind in my left eye. I'm pretty sure that during my cheerleading days I hit my head hard enough to cause this to happen, because I always passed my eye tests in grade school, and the optometrist said that people usually catch this much earlier than 16. Anyways -- what I didn't know in college is that people with only one working eye have little depth perception. This would have made my frustration with Statics (its an engineering course) a whole lot easier to understand:)

5. Why my hair is either short or long in pictures. I am on my 3rd round of Locks of Love. While I do really enjoy my hair up in a pony tail, the main reason I never get more than a trim is because I just love to be able to give my hair away to someone who would like it/need it.

6. Lists, Lists, Lists. Now I'm not quite a list oriented as one of my college roommates’, Ms. Jenny, but boy would I not function without my lists. The grocery list is probably the big one. I start with a menu for the week, then write down all the ingredients on a list, and then mark off things that I have and usually re-write the list in grocery store order (from walking in the store to checkout order). These days I seem to be making several separate store lists so that I can get the sales and double coupon deals. Yep -- I'm a little compulsive about the list thing.

7. Coin Collector. I started back in elementary school with a penny coin collection, and now I've got my pennies, quarters and nickels going. We usually throw all of our spare change in a jar, and then every once and a while I'll go through it and pick out the coins I don't have. It's a fun little hobby to keep.

OK -- that was kind of hard to think of 7 unique things. If something comes to your mind that I didn't put down, please leave a comment about it.

Snow Bunnies

So, I've gotta post some fun pictures after the post about Sam.

It finally snowed in central Arkansas last night! I decided to take the kids out early this morning before it all melts away. Here are some pictures of the fun:

In Memoriam

The beloved Davis family pet, Sam, passed away peacefully in his sleep this morning. He lived a full 91 years of life, in dog years anyways; but gave his family a wonderful 13 years. Sam loved his walks around the lake, riding in the car, leftovers from his family going out to eat, burrowing under the blanket, and laying out in the afternoon sun in the bedroom. He absolutely despised the vacuum cleaner and was not a big fan of the bath tub.


Sam was the first, and really only, pet I've ever had. As all pets, he was there for so many good times, and snuggled up next to me when I was feeling sad. So, while its a sad day for us I am so thankful to have had a pet that was so good to us these past 13 years.


Meredith really enjoyed Sam as well. Sam taught her that we don't touch tails, and anytime she sees a tail (on any animal) she says "No no." So please be in prayer for our family as we adjust to life without our faithful pal.




I am comforted by Paul's letter to the Romans today:

I consider that our present sufferings are not worth comparing with the glory that will be revealed in us. The creation waits in eager expectation for the sons of God to be revealed. For the creation was subjected to frustration, not by its own choice, but by the will of the one who subjected it, in hope that the creation itself will be liberated from its bondage to decay and brought into the glorious freedom of the children of God. Romans 8:18-21

Pa Paw's Birthday and Boxing Russ

One more week has just flown by for us. As Meredith would say "Let's see".....

Russ has been a very active boy this week. He is gaining more head control, and has really enjoyed his little bouncer toy. As you can see in these pictures, Russ really likes to touch the toys and make them move. This is a big difference from Meredith, who never actually played with the toys until she was too big for the bouncer. It's been fun to watch him "play" by himself, and it keeps him occupied for a few minutes for mom and dad to do other things.


Last night was Pa Paw's birthday party, and the whole family had a good time. Meredith especially liked cousin Hannah last night, and started doing everything that she would do. Hannah was an excellent big helper cousin and played with lots of toys with Meredith. I think that a good time was had by all.


Finally, next Sunday is Friend Day at Park Hill Baptist in North Little Rock. Last week, we just installed our new pastor, Ken Shaddox, and he has challenged us to bring our friends to church with us next week. The church website is at http://www.parkhillbaptist.org. If you live in the central Arkansas area and would like to come send me a comment, and I'll give you directions.