one month

Sara Leonetta celebrated her first month birthday. Thanks Aunt Amy for the stickers. I can't help but wonder if little Sara Lee Lee is thinking, "really mom, this is a bit unnecessary, if not ridiculous." :) Did the stuffed animal elephant picture too as a point of reference ... but at this point it's a bit bigger than the kiddo, and sort of hard to fit in the bouncy chair.

Little Mary Susan has been a wonderful Big sister and loves her little "Bab-E!" 

And of course, we feel so fortunate to have Great-Grandma Ginny (Grandma Darlin') here with us.

Gifts Galore, and Gifts for four! While very unnecessary  I have been so touched by the thoughtfulness of so many who have given gifts for baby Sara Lee Lee. 

 Aunt Fran and Uncle Rick sent matching pink tu-tus, "Aunt" Debbie sent her signature Janie and Jack coordinating gifts, and Jen Jacobson sent matching pajamas. 

Cold Play

It has been an unusually cold January - school was even canceled on Friday, and the walkway outside our front door is more like an ice-field than patio.








For indoor fun, we all went to Kangaroo Zoo. The bigger the slide the better for Ella and Anne. Mary likes trying to keep up with the older girls, but mostly she wants "Dada" to do everything with her.

Dress-Up

Obviously, whenever a new baby comes into a family there is a bit of an adjustment ... mostly that mom's time is now pre-occupied with feeding and sleeping. Fortunately, the girls are used to self-entertaining, and dress-up is a daily activity that occupies a few hours. And yes, Mary can be so persuasive that even "Prince Daddy" joins in the fun.

 

Father of the Year!

I admit, it seems a bit presumptuous to nominate Benj for Father of the Year 2013 since it is just January. But I'm so confident his involvement with home, the baby, and the girl's schools over the last couple of weeks has sealed the deal that I'm calling the nomination now:  Benj Becker Father of the Year 2013!

In addition to making all the meals (delicious!) he's made a dozen freezer meals so I won't have to cook when he goes back to work - and that many frozen deserts I can cook off at pleasure too! 

He sings primary songs to Mary each evening until she falls asleep, and then gets up with her at 1 a.m. to help her find her water, or fix her blankets, or whatever her need is at the moment. He takes little Sara Leonetta during her 4-6:30 a.m. shift so I can sleep. He's done all the carpool for Ella and Anne so I won't have to drive until March! And yes, he's chaperoned field-trips for both Anne and Ella. 

 Anne's preschool outing to Dick's Market (grocery store) and Papa Murphy's pizza place.

 Ella's kindergarten outing to Gateway Discovery Museum in Salt Lake.

Sara Lee Lee and Sisters

Sara Leonetta's birth announcement picture.

On Sara "Lee Lee's" 10-day birthday we took some casual sister pictures ... 

The girls appropriately wore their "Big Sister" t-shirts, 

and Baby Sara had a "I'm a little sister" shirt on.