The Newbie

Well there is a new little Pace in the family! Jason's brother Mike and his wife Melissa had a beautiful baby boy they named Beckam. We were able to go and see him on Friday, then again on Saturday. He is a real little cutie, but I haven't posted photographic evidence of this because I forgot to bring my camera into the hospital. Hooray for sweet new babies-- I can't believe they are so little and so lovely. Katy isn't even a year old yet but I can't even remember her being so tiny. Hard to believe that when we brought her home she was less than six pounds, especially considering she is at what Jason likes to call "critical mass."

As an added bonus Beckham's arrival brought Grandma and Grandpa up for a short visit and we got to go have some lunch together on Saturday. The boys and Katy were thrilled to get to see them, even if only for a couple hours. We had a great time, as always, and look forward to seeing them again soon!!

It's All Happening at the Zoo!

We went to the zoo this week and had lots of fun. The day was a little cold, but it was nice that we weren't too hot walking along the trails. Grammy came with us and of course the boys had a great time. Katy did too and was very amazed by the underwater viewing of the walruses. They would swim in circles and press up against the glass on their way around. She was just staring at them, they undoubtedly looked so huge to her. I don't know how any of you feel, but to me the walrus is about the ugliest creature out there. Yikes!!!

Noah loved this show that we saw there. It was different animals, and birds flying to perches around the outdoor theater. He loved this one big bird, they called her Stella, they had her running off with the binoculars and the host chasing her off stage several times to catch them. He cracked up every time.



The only bad thing was that the polar bears were just lounging on the rocks and not swimming. We love the polar bears, so were kinda disappointed that they weren't putting on much of a show for us. At the end we went over to the playground there and the boys went to the petting zoo and fed the goats a little. I was surprised that Addie wasn't too nervous about letting the goat eat out of his hand. He really thought it was funny. The goat didn't pay any mind to Katy even though she was trying to touch him. I guess he knew she was too little to have any food in her hand for him. And let's face it, if she did have any goat food in her hand she would eat it herself!!!

Addie Boy

So this is Addie after some chocolate ice cream. The next picture is Addie at around four when he has gotten up early and hasn't had a nap. He is such a handsome little devil. He is in trouble a lot of the time but he has such a sweet side. It is hard to resist his smile and his big blue eyes. Half the time he is busy bringing Katy everything she wants and sharing with Noah, but the other half he is taking toys away from her and trying his hardest to bug his brother. He loves trains and is always talking about going to see them but is terrified to be around when they are going by. He loves our neighbor girl, Cora, and makes cards for her that he signs from Adam with a scribble. He can't wait to see Grammy but sometimes when we get to her house he is shy and hangs back. He likes treats and sweets and carrots from the garden. He loves to make cookies with me, and he hates losing at games. When I am alone with Addie he holds my hand and says, "I love you Mom." He has been changing so much lately and he is doing lots of things he never used to. He likes to pretend to read to me because he sees Noah doing it. Today we were doing a puzzle and he really didn't need a lot of my help and I looked over and saw my little boy who will soon be four and couldn't believe it.

The Name Game

We have been thinking about calling our little girl Kate instead of Kitty. I am just not as crazy about the nickname "Kitty" as I thought I would be. It's hard though now that she is almost 10 months old. I told the boys the other morning that we were going to call her Kate and they were confused. When we were heading downstairs for breakfast Noah said,

"Don't forget...uh, what's her name again?"

At the doctor's office when they were checking her eyes and the nurse was calling her Katherine, Addie whispered to me,

"Her name is Kitty, right?"

I am thinking it might be too late to make this change.

Aunt Meagan

This week we had a visit from Aunt Meagan, Jason's little sister. The weather hasn't been that great but we just spent alot of time hanging out with the kids, running errands, and watching movies while eating lots of junk food. I think I gained five pounds, but it was fun. This kids loved it and Noah challenged her to some Mario racing, but she will need to go home and practice with Uncle Nathan so she can beat him next time.

Kitty had pink eye this week and the poor little thing could barely open her peepers in the morning. I felt so bad. I'm sure you can imagine how much she LOVES having the drops put in her eyes four times a day. It is really challenging for a drama queen like herself to manage. Last week Addie swallowed a penny and let's just say that between these two kiddos the doctor's office is probably pretty sick of hearing from us. Our big campout for this weekend was cancelled due to rain, but we will have to think of something to appease the boys. They were so heartbroken. We will have to make smores around the BBQ out in the rain!!!

Stars and Stripes

We had a great fourth this year! The sunshine was out, and there were plenty of fireworks and delicious BBQ. We started the day by heading out to the boy scouts' pancake breakfast, the head chef being our own dear Scout Master Pace!! After pancakes we were over to Dupont's little carnival and it was great. The boys enjoyed the big bounce house, pony rides, dunk tank, and the little train ride. Next, Mom and Dad's for Grampa's 90th birthday BBQ. The food was great and so was the company, as all of our relatives on Mom's side were there. After some volleyball we went over to our friends where we just hung out and had dessert (yum cheesecake!) and when it was dark enough we had quite a nice fireworks show. Noah loved it, but Addie wasn't quite so sure. I took him and Kitty home before they were finished and he couldn't keep his eyes open although he was begging me to let him stay up until he was asleep in his carseat.

Swimming with the fishes

The boys have started swim lessons. Noah has taken them before, when we lived in California, but not for the last couple of years. Addie was a rookie swimmer this year, but he seems to enjoy it. He won't put his face in the water yet. Hopefully by the end of the session he will. Noah doesn't mind getting his face wet, and he is so funny to watch because he kicks his legs all crazy. They are trying to teach him to keep them straight.

Their favorite part of the lesson is when the their teachers tie a noodle floaty thing (?) around their waists and they get to play tag. They love it. Kitty and I just hang out watching in the very steamy pool room. She gets pretty hot, but she likes watching all the kids in the water.

On a side note Jason tivo'd a National Geographic movie about volcanos and lava for Noah. He LOVES it! He watches it all the time and can't get enough.