The Schippers come to town

Little did Anja know that the arrival of her grandma and grandpa would result in such homework. Yes, this is Anja's summer reading list, brought to her courtesy of her grandma. We could tell from the gleam in Anja's eye that she was looking forward to multiple readings of each and every one of her newly acquired books. I think mom and dad will be a little hoarse come September. As with most kids, Anja felt the need to surround herself with her books -- thankfully, her crib was able to support the additional weight. We have not counted them, but we hope (errr...fear) there could be well over 30 books from which we will be reading at all hours of the day and night.

Honestly, we are thrilled with the opportunity to reaquaint ourselves with Dr. Seuss and become aficionados of children's books. As an added bonus, Anja is now the proud owner of a "Speak & Spell" that her dad played with as a child. If you need to ask what the heck a "Speak & Spell" is, then you are too young to understand the joys of such a toy!

The Colorado crew is moving East!

Anja met her Aunt Leslie, Uncle John, cousins. She is tickled pink about having Jessica, Joshua, and Hawkins close enough for weekend visits and the eventual slumber parties. In fact, we are working on a joint trip to celebrate at the Gualey Festival in WV. Now Anja is quite keen on rafting down a class V rapids, but her parents are a tad concerned at the prospect of rushing water and sharp rocks. In other words, Anja is going to have to wait a few more years and attend numerous swimming lessons before she is allowed to attempt the rapids on the Gualey River.