Party Girl

Kate received her first party invitation!

We had so much fun helping Chase celebrate his second birthday!

First, we shopped.

We went to Toys-R-Us and Kate picked out a dump truck to give Chase.

(Notice that she is sitting IN the shopping cart - like a big girl. Oh my!)

Then, Kate presided while Daddy wrapped the present.
Then, Kate got all dressed up in a pink party dress...

To watch Chase blow out the candles on his very cool Thomas the Train birthday cake!

We had lots of fun at the party!

The bubbles were especially entertaining.

Thanks for inviting us, Chase!

A Couple of Important Firsts

Kate celebrated two important milestones last week.

First, we celebrated the appearance of her first two teeth.
Then, we celebrated Kate's first pair of red shoes!
(Kate likes them! She and Mommy are kindred spirits!)

Cousin Barrett

Cousin Barrett came to visit this week while Uncle Ted, Aunt Annie and Cousin Abby went to visit Disney World. Kate thought Barrett was pretty neat... she likes to touch him and laughes at every noise he makes. She's looking to many more playdates in the future!

Inauguration Day

Even though the Inauguration of our country's first African American president was taking place just a few miles from our house, we decided that it wasn't a good idea to brave the cold and crowds with Kate. So, we watched from the warmth and comfort of our TV room! We hope that Kate will learn to love the democratic process in our country, that her generation will know peace and equality, and that she will never take our country's tradition of the peaceful transfer of power for granted. But today she enjoyed her Mickey Mouse doll more than the swearing in ceremony!

Our City Prepares for the Inauguration

Tim and I attended an inauguration party this afternoon organized by Harvard Law School to celebrate the accomplishments of two distinguished alumni, Barack and Michelle Obama. It was at the Willard Hotel and was tons of fun! While we were downtown, we took the opportunity to take some pictures of the city decorated for the big event.

It was freezing cold!

The famous Willard Hotel

Weekend Activities

We've had a pretty typical weekend. Here are some of the highlights:

Friday night play time with Daddy

Working with Mommy

Exploring new things -

this time it's running water from the kitchen faucet

Trying out the fancy new convertible car seat

(I can't believe how quickly Kate outgrew the infant seat!)

Kate's Baptism

Our family had a special occasion today! Kate was baptized during this morning's church service by her Pop (my Dad) and we enjoyed a family celebration at lunch afterwards. We were blessed to be surrounded by family as we dedicated Kate's life to God and claimed His promises for her. Gran and Pop were here from Mississippi and Aunt Loren drove down from Philadelphia. Grandma and Pappa and most of the NoVA Gleasons were able to join us as well. Very fun!

Here are some of the highlights:

As always, Kate was fascinated by TJ.

The family and Pastor Brian at lunch
Once again, Kate slept through most of her own party!

Happy Birthday, Daddy!

Happy Birthday, Daddy!

Tim is a New Year's baby,

which means he always gets to watch football on his birthday!

After celebrating the Bulldogs' big win over Michigan State,

we headed over to Chuck and Rebecca's house for a delicious birthday dinner.

Kate shared her Christmas toy from Great Uncle Junior with Daddy.

It was his birthday after all.

Kate with both sets of grandparents.