Whitney at almost Two Months

Well, wouldn't 'ya know it? With two little munchkins it's a wee bit harder to update the blog. In fact, it's a wee bit harder to accomplish most daily tasks around the Marcis household lately. But the upside is the two precious beings that we are delightfully distracted by. Lyell and Whitney, whom I can already tell will be two very different people, have taken to each other from the start. Lyell calls her "Bee," as he likes to be economical with language and shortens all words and phrases down to one syllable. So Baby Whitney has become Bee, and we all think it fits. He takes momentary breaks from his adventures with cars, blocks and balls to give Bee big hugs. And Bee somehow seems not to mind Lyell's overly enthusiastic head crushing her tummy.

Little Whitney is very quickly becoming bigger Whitney, as she has put on a whopping 4+ pounds since birth! Thus far (and believe me I am knocking loudly on wood right now) she has been a very mellow and easygoing baby. She sleeps right through Lyell's blood curdling screams as he chases Nariz through the house. She makes the sweetest little cooing noises and gives you just the tiniest smile that makes your heart all melty. She happily lets mommy cart her around all day to play dates, the gym, errands and doctor appointments. And she is not self conscious at all about her receding hairline, as she quickly shakes off any hats that I try to stick on her head.

Big brother Lyell has exploded into the world of language. Everywhere he goes or every book we read, he points and asks, "What's that?" It is no longer acceptable for all insects to fall under the umbrella word "bug." Now we need to differentiate the ladybugs from the spiders and the centipedes from the worms. He is very much interested in the world of the small, and spends his time in the garden looking for tiny creatures. Speaking of the garden, Matthew is off to his most ambitious start ever, and if the weather cooperates we will have garlic, beets and tomatoes for the entire county.

This weekend we are headed to a huge RV show which will hopefully propel us into our new lifestyle as the "family with small children that continues to travel and camp all over California- and hopefully the rest of the US." We are in the market for a light travel trailer that we can pull with our minivan. If anyone out there has experience in this realm (as we have none) let us know what your experience was.

And now the part you have all been waiting for, a few pictures of the little ones:

Lyell holds his little sister for the first time. Whitney is wearing an outfit that I wore as a newborn 35 years ago.

Whitney lays on the couch with a blanket, Lyell wants to lay on the couch with his blanket :)

Whitney in the garden after her first bath.

Guess who wants to be in the picture too??

Lyell at a community play event. He took it very seriously :)

Whitney and I playing dress up.

It has snowed at our house in March, April and May! Matthew just keeps chopping more wood.

Lyell has spent lots of time with cousin Georgia. All they need is a pail of water and they are entertained for hours.

Georgia makes the sign for baby as she gets to know Whitney.

Lyell and Georgia spend a quiet moment at our community lake.

Lyell at his first Easter Egg hunt.

Lyell and Whitney fit into our double stroller quite well. Here they are watching the Butterfly Parade at the Mariposa Butterfly Festival.

Lyell loves to dig and help Matthew plant in the garden. Here they are putting in a new grape plant. After four years we may have our first grape harvest this fall.

Whitney and I provide the moral support to our planting boys in the garden.

Pretty in Pink! Whitney is dressed up in a few of her gifts from the Mariposa Girl Scouts. She was the Girl Scout baby of the year! The Mariposa Troop presented her with a lovely gift basket, and she only has five more years before she can sign up.

Patty, Whitney and I had an impromptu photo session after a yoga class and it turned out quite well...