Spring is here

Spring is definitely here in Baltimore. As it is almost in the 80's already, I guess spring probably lasted about a week and a half. Anyway, we are really enjoying the weather and trying to get out as much as we have time for. This weekend Julie, Aiden, and I went to the Ladew Topiary Garden. First, before we left, I had to google what "topiary" meant. Just in case there are others out there that are far removed from their SAT vocab words, topiary refers to the art of trimming and training shrubs or trees into unnatural ornamental shapes. Sort of like the movie Edward Scissorhands.

The Ladew Gardens is 22 acres of flower and sculpture gardens started in 1929 by Harvey Ladew. It is a really neat place and only a short 30 minute drive north. Aiden seemed to have a good time too. He and Julie fed "Kix" to the giant goldfish in a little pond which seemed to really delight him. Check out our pictures below.

I also added a couple of pictures of us around our back yard. We put a swing up in the tree which Aiden seems to like. Click on any of the pics below to check out the whole album.

Kennedy's 1st Birthday

You may remember that we are in the nanny share with the Grams, Kennedy, Rick, and Brooke. Kennedy turned one last weekend and they threw a big party. Here are some pictures from Kennedy's first birthday party. It was a "duck" theme as that was one of her first words. We all had a nice time meeting their friends and family and took a bunch of pictures. AnnMarie, our new nanny, was also in attendance (the kids really seem to like her). Aiden was so tired by the end that he passed out on the two minute ride to our house and we just took him straight to bed. Note that we even have a couple of pictures of Julie and I in this set. As always click on any of the pictures to get to the rest of the album

Uncle Bob at the Virginia General Assembly

I wanted to share this video from Youtube of Julie's great Uncle Bob, a minister, leading the Virginia General Assembly in prayer. I will try to add more details when I figure out the story behind all this.

Update: I just have scant details on this, but apparently Bob was a last minute stand in for another minister to give the opening prayer at the General Assembly. I am not sure how you get to be the second in line for this job, but I think we can all agree that he did a great job. I believe they even awarded him a framed version of his prayer for posterity. I think Spencer did a very nice job with the video editing as well.

No haircuts I swear!

So many people are asking, I have to post my promise that I have not taken scissors to Aiden's hair! It's just growing in like that, perfectly straight in the front. It's hard to believe looking at the pictures from just last month that he was almost bald so recently. It's coming in mostly straight, but the long parts around the ears are getting wavy (Daddy, Grandma Orr, and Granddaddy Markham all have curly hair). For now, it's Mommy's color (brown with red and gold highlights) but Grandma Orr is betting that some time in the sun is going to turn him into a toehead (apparently Brent was blond at that age!). Can't wait for summer to see if she's right!

Trip to Danvers

I had a week vacation, so Julie, Aiden, and I decided to take a few days and fly to Danvers to see Grandma Orr. Aiden traveled very nicely despite 6 A.M. flights (He always makes so many new friends on flights). Grandma is feeling much better and Aiden and she had a great time playing. Aiden and Grandma would play for an hour, get tired, take a nap, and then get up and do it all over again. We also had a nice visit from my aunt Barb and her kids Ben and Kelly. We all had a good time relaxing, enjoying the NCAA basketball tournament, taking walks around Danvers,and eating some home cooked meals (Thanks Aunt Connie!). We also wanted to thank Megan Whitecotten for bringing over some toys and a car seat. We regret that we didn't have more time to see people while in Illinois, but we planned this trip at the last minute. Also, we thought grandma had earned some extra time. Maybe next time she will just ask us to visit instead of coming down with a major medical emergency (just kidding!).

Piglet

These are some pictures that we had around with Aiden and a stuffed Piglet that his great Aunt Elaine and Uncle Carl gave him, taken a couple weeks before Easter. I have also added some pictures from a visit that Paula & Steve made to Baltimore to help us with childcare while we were nanny-less (week before Easter). Julie wanted me to be sure to point out that the blue and white knitted sweater that Aiden is wearing in some of the photos was made by his late great-grandmother Oni (Iona Bartman) for me when I was born. Don't forget to click on the pics below to view the whole album (we went a little crazy with the picture taking :)