Poor, little Rosalie was so tired by the time we got home from church this afternoon, she just couldn't wait for me to get Joseph out of the car and take his shoes off. This is how I found our sleepy angel when I came back in the room!

Last night for Family Home Evening, we talked about memorial day, our country, and colored these American flags. It is obvious whose is whose? I think they all look great!

While I had the camera out, I decided to finally take a picture of these Mother's Day cards Daddy helped the kiddos make for me. I think they're perfect! Tim even asked them what they wanted to say to me on Mother's Day and jotted down their responses. Joseph said "Happy Mother's Day!" and "I love you, Mommy!" and Rosalie said "Mama!" and "Bop!" What a fun idea, even if I am reporting on it rather late!

Just like last year, we decided to come to the zoo for Memorial Day today. This is actually one of the last chances we have to get in free using the family membership we bought last year, and the kids really do love coming! Joseph said he wanted to see a lion today, so here we are trying to point out the two motionless, sleepy lumps sitting back way back in the shade.

After the zoo, we headed over to Ft Sam to visit Grandpa Hugh's grave. The signs said the grass had to be removed to dredge for oak wilt, a fungal tree disease we have to take pretty seriously here in San Antonio. Still, all the graves here look so clean and neat, and especially impressive today with flags decorating every one. It's just a coincidence that Joseph is wearing his tractor shirt today, but quite fitting as I have so many memories of Grandpa riding his tractor around the Ranch. We sure miss him and look forward to seeing him again someday!

Rosalie is still doing a great job walking short distances between things. Up until now, she has still needed help getting going...

but here she is a few minutes later sauntering into the kitchen all by herself! I think we officially have a walker on our hands! Way to go, little lovebug!

This afternoon we headed off through the rain to Cascade Caverns up near Boerne. Although we had a lot of fun at the Children's Museum, this is an outing Tim and I can get excited about for our own sakes, too! Here's a view of the entrance as we're getting ready to head inside. The gal with the green umbrella is our tour guide, and she has already impressed us with her interesting stories about the history of the cave. Here we go!

The cave is pretty open in most parts...

although there are a few narrow corridors...

and some low spots, too. I had to really bend at the knees instead of just the waist to make sure Rosalie's head didn't bonk the roof! Actually, the comfort of Rosalie's noggin aside, we've all been asked not to touch anything, as this cave is highly active, and apparently oils from our skin can damage the living formations.

This is the one spot in the cave we're allowed to touch, I think because the formation is already dead. Joseph is really enjoying being here!

Here we are now in the last room of the cave, where the advertised 100-foot waterfall is located. It really is fascinating and beautiful, as has been our entire tour. Our guide has been doing a great job filling us in on the colorful history of the cave, and it hasn't been too long for Joseph and Rosalie. Now it's time to head back out!

Since Tim has the day off, we decided to beat the crowds and kick off our Memorial Day celebrations a little early with a trip to the San Antonio Children's Museum. We just arrived a few minutes ago, and we're already having a lot of fun! There's a play area just for wee ones...

lots of pretty fish in a tall, wide aquarium...

plenty of wheels, buttons, and levers...

boats to float down a Plinko-style river...

a mock airplane with accessible cockpit...

old-school telephones to dial, push...

and pretend to talk on...

big bubble windows to look through...

little chairs to push around...

a cave just right for exploring...



and practicing climbing and walking, too...

thousands of smooth pins to push and mold...



a little hen house complete with puppet chickens...





milk stool, bucket, and cow with water-spurting udder...



money dispatching ATM with bank card attached...

push-button operated front loader...

and last, but certainly not least, a mini grocery store! Both Joseph and Rosalie absolutely loved this part. It's got everything, including kid-sized shopping carts...

and baskets...

full-sized boxes of lots of favorite foods...

a meat counter, produce section, freezer aisles and bakery...

and even a checkout counter with working touch screen and scanner, of course!







While Joseph was busy scanning everything in his cart, Rosalie decided to give a cart of her own a try. What a big girl she's getting to be! It's just about time for us to head home now, but we sure have enjoyed our visit here this morning!

This little guy just amazes me! Once again, this is not something we've practiced with him or really even encouraged, but at not quite three and a half, he's already learning to spell words!

Today Rosalie took her first steps! It was actually during a visit with her physical therapist, who has simply been waiting for Rosalie to learn to walk to "graduate" her from the program. She's been right on the cusp for several weeks now, and I think the only thing stopping her was just that she hadn't really thought of doing it yet! Today she almost did it without thinking, and she was so proud of herself when she realized what had happened! She took three or four solid steps, and later did it again, but this is the best I could get with the camera, of course! I'll have to try again with Tim's help tomorrow!

Since Tim is out of town engaging in mock helicopter crashes, I decided to bring the kiddos down to Heritage Duck Pond this afternoon to feed the ducks and play on the playground a bit. Joseph and Rosalie are both stoked about the ducks, although some of the pushy ones do make them a bit nervous. Luckily, the ducks seem to recognize that I, at least, am someone to reckoned with! Joseph is in charge of throwing bread and spotting ducklings, while Rosalie is busy pointing, kicking, and saying "Hi!" Most of the ducks are clearly domestic, but there was also a pair of Black-bellied Whistling Ducks here for a while, which I always get so excited about seeing since they were so rare in Austin. In any case, it's a fun spot we'll have to visit again when Daddy can come with us!

Aren't these kiddos sweet? We sure do love them!

Out back on the porch this afternoon, here's Joseph blowing some bubbles from the party last Sat. He can do it all by himself and is definitely feeling proud!

On the line nearby, here's my recently completed first set of cloth diapers for Rosalie. I learned so much making them, including a few things I should have done differently! There are some fitteds (not waterproof and need a separate cover), which I've been using successfully for about a week now, and some all-in-ones (waterproof), which I'll be trying out tomorrow. They sure look cute all hanging up to dry!

It's Mother's Day today, but I can't use that as an excuse for sleeping in while Tim woke up with the kids, because that's what happens just about every Sun! Aren't I a lucky Mom? In any case, here they are being silly together here in Joseph's room this morning while I snoozed away!

Joseph must be pretty tuckered out from the party this morning. We normally try to keep him from napping during the day, or else he stays up way too late at night. When we noticed he had fallen asleep in his room this afternoon, we went in, woke him up, and brought him out to where we were working in our bedroom, thinking that would help him wake up. A few minutes later, this is what we found instead! What a cute sleepyhead!

This morning Joseph went to his first birthday party! Tim took him and snapped a few shots along the way. Here he is getting his party hat on...

giving his gift to the birthday girl...

playing "parachute"...

eating popcorn with other party guests...



hitting the pinata...

and checking out the treats inside! He also apparently spent a lot of time checking out the Pattersons' fridge and closets. I hope they didn't mind too much! In any case he had a great time and we're glad he got to go!