Chase has been really trying to walk lately! He takes 4-5 steps pretty regularly, now. We caught some of them on video. (You'll have to ignore the outfits...or lack thereof. We were somewhere between bathtime and princess dress-up time.)

Chase walking

After family pictures last Sunday, we spent some time at Chuck E Cheese's. The kids LOVED it! Maia went down the slide about 30 times. Chase had fun on the Marry-Go-Round, and enjoyed watching all the kids.

"Happy to you, Mommy!"

Here are some random pictures of Maia and her best friend, Carson. Our friends, Jen, Ryan & Carson arrived in France today, where they will be living for the next year!

Jen, Ryan & Carson, we'll miss you!!

Ooey Goey Night & Chase's new trick

Kearney's Parents as Teachers put on an Ooey Goey Night for the kids last night. It is meant for the kids to explore different textures. Maia had a blast! She loved playing in the flour and shaving cream the best. I didn't let her play in the plastic swimming pool of cooked spaghetti...GROSS!! Maia took a nice, long bath when we got home.Easing her way into ita mess

Chase has a new stunt...he's quite the little dare-devil these days. He climbs up onto the arm of their recliner to look out the window. "Look what I'm doing, Mom!""Oooooo"

VACATION!

The weather forecast for today is saying temperatures in the 40s...that's just a little change from the weather we were enjoying last week in the Caribbean! Bart and I went on a cruise for our 5th wedding anniversary. First, we drove from Kansas City to St. Louis, where Maia and Chase spent their vacation with Grandma, Grandpa, Uncle Matt and Aunt Laura. They were busy almost everyday, going to the Zoo, Chuck E Cheese, the Pumpkin Patch, and Halloween parties. Grandma gave us a journal from their vacation telling us what the kiddos did each day of their vacation, and gave us a huge stack of pictures! From St. Louis, Bart and I flew to Orlando, Florida. We spent one night there, then we were off to Port Canaveral. Our first stop was Coco Cay, Bahamas, then St. Thomas, and finally St. Maarten (where Bart proposed 6 years ago!) We had such an amazing time! We took about 500 pictures while we were there...Here are a few of the highlights.

The Bahamas Parasailing in the Bahamas Our HUGE ship, Mariner of the SeasAfter one of the formal dinners on the shipOne section of the upper deck of the ship, looking towards the 2 pool bars, and stage The Royal Promenade, in the middle of the ship

Laying out on the upper deck with nothing but ocean for over one hundred miles in all directions.

Before dinner, outside of our dining room

Sunset in St. Thomas

We went snorkeling in St. Thomas, where we saw a ship wreck (a little spooky), jelly fish (really spooky), sea turtles, and tons of beautiful fish.

When we were in St. Maarten, we visited the same jeweler that sold us our engagement ring, and bought a new wedding set! Bart and a beer after buying the rings!

We arrived back to Florida at 6:30am Sunday morning, and our flight wasn't until 5:30pm. Needless to say, we had a little time to spare. So, we went to The Kennedy Space Center. This is one of the 3 remaining Saturn V Rockets in the world. Orlando International Airport, waiting for our flight to go home and see the kids.

9 Month Update

Chase had his 9 month well-baby visit today

Height: 28.5in, 60%

Weight 21.4lbs, 60%

Chase has really be on the move lately. He loves pushing his walker, or anything that he's strong enough to move. His new favorite thing is climbing. He climbs up on anything he's able to hike his little knees onto. Maia's princess chair is usually the first thing he goes for. He is starting to find out that he can stand without holding onto anything...walking is just around the corner.

We went to visit Bart's parent's last weekend. The kids had so much fun! Maia played outside most of the time. She loved the cows!

Our darling daughter

Aunt Laura made a trip to Kansas City this weekend! It was so good to have her here...I know the kids had a blast with their Aunt!SISTERS! BART'S FIRST PONYTAIL! Bart put Maia's hair up in a ponytail for school last week...I'm pretty impressed!