What we've been up to

Greetings!  Yes, sorry it's been a while.  We've been busy people, you know.  Do you wonder what we've been doing?  Here's a peek...

Did you see that?  Two wheels!  No training wheels!  My baby is riding a two-wheeler!

Of course, that's not all we've been doing.  In fact, it was just four days ago that we took the training wheels off Rachel's bike at all!  She's been working on her balance all week, and as soon as I reattached the pedals this afternoon, she was off.  And by speeding up and down the block, she's inspired Nathan to hustle his little bustle on the trike.  We've been wheeling all over the place.  Summer, we are READY!

Some other little updates:

• Rachel has been out of school for a week--she is thrilled to be done with preschool and very excited for kindergarten. 
• Nathan is obsessed with numbers.  He can count very high, and he has graduated from reading us every speed-limit sign (fortunately for Daddy, he can't see the speedometer from his seat) to reading us gasoline prices.  In fact, when I passed a gas station the other day that seemed to have a good price, I asked him what the price had been at the station closer to home (which we'd passed half an hour before) and he knew.  He's very handy to have along for comparison shopping!  He also delights with the numbers on his calendar and diligently crosses off each day as it passes.
• Both of our children have, rather simultaneously, developed an odd habit of sleeping with multiple dolls and stuffed animals stuffed into their pajama shirts.  I don't think they've ever seen each other do it, and I doubt they've discussed it.  It's kind of funny, and definitely odd.  But cute, too.  I wish I had a good photo, but I don't.  You'll just have to believe me that it's cute.
• Our garden is growing, helped along by some very enthusiastic waterers.  We have some raspberries due to turn red any day now, as long as the old watched-pot adage does not apply to ripening.  (If it does, we may be out of luck, because watching the berries has become quite a pastime around here.)  
• This is our summer for water play.  Last year, Nathan was still pretty shy around sprinklers.  But already this year, he's done some very daring sprinkler-running, with appropriately wonderful shrieks.  We are going to have a lot of fun in the sprinkler this year!