Announcing Baby Dueck #3 @ 13 weeks

Yeah!! We're so exciting to announce that we're having another baby! Baby Dueck is due the day after Grayson's second birthday, on November 8, 2009. We are so excited and grateful to God for this major blessing in our lives! Though Gray doesn't really understand the concept that he's going to be an older brother, Ella is so excited that "Mommy is having another little-real-little baby in her belly". We all can't wait to meet you baby Dueck!!!!! We love you so much!

New Castle Beach on the Ocean in April

The forecast last weekend called for temps in the high 80ºs to low 90ºs. The beach! Any sane person might have thought. Bathing suits, beach towels, sand toys, kites, coolers packed with yummy food. So we arrived at the seacoast around 10 a.m. The temperature read 72º outside. A beautiful sunny day with clear blue skies as far as the eye could see. "Okay kids! We're here! Let's run to the beach!" We opened our car doors and to our surprise........the ocean breeze! Sounds right. But no; this was no typical ocean summer breeze. It was a wind chill that pierced to the bone with icy chills. Frigid! We ended up skipping the beach (too cold down by the shore) but played on the playground and flew a kite with our good buddies. It's so much fun to watch Ella & Abbie together; they really are best little buddies! Gray loves to chase them around and laugh at their silliness. We eventually left the beach and headed for Portsmouth, a fun, artistic city in NH just minutes away, where temps reached in the high 70ºs low 80ºs and the where the ocean breeze could no longer give us goose bumps! When we got back home, the temperature was a scorching 90ºs with no breeze. Yes. We experienced some sweet, springtime menopausal weather! What a fun day!!

Springtime Fun (Summer weather in April)

Well, the tail end of April has disguised itself to be a lovely summer month. We reached temps in the 70ºs, 80ºs & 90ºs! It's been so beautiful! Everything is in bloom and the summer toys are out to stay for play. The sandbox, sprinklers, kites, and more......yes, including sunscreen that every kid hates to put on! Welcome Spring! And thank you April, for pretending to be July!

Ella Writes Her Name in Chalk for the First Time!

Yeppers. That's an "E"- "l"-"l"- and an "a". Or as Ella would say, " E-L-L-A spells Ella". She did it! I wrote "Ella" on the driveway and Ella copied my letters to spell her own name! So cool. Then I had a so-called really great idea: "Hey Ella! (I exclaimed with much enthusiasm) Can you lay down on the driveway next to your name so that I can take your picture?" Never mind the blinding sun and the uncomfortably hard surface that you'll be laying on! Sorry Ell!