fun with the camera's macro feature.

some people accuse us of only putting smiling babies on the blog. so here you go - squalling infant and sulking toddler. sometimes it happens.

riley catches up on a little email.

contemplative kale.

riley is getting to be an expert at gentle touches.

sometimes it's easier to just get in the bath with them.

riley likes kale's vibrating baby chair quite a bit more than kale does.

kaycee's awesome onesie inspires another baby to fight the power.

six weeks old

for the past several days i have been trying (rather unsuccessfully) to capture kale's sweet sweet smile. since none of these photos really do it justice, i'm putting up a selection - plus one sneezing shot because it's funny.

slingtime in the springtime.

riley is the biggest kid of ever. (much like lightning mcqueen is the fastest race car of ever and vanilla ice cream is the best flavor of ever)

mommy helps kale swing the bat at his first piñata party.

cuteness overload for sure.

anton is pretty much the best fire engine pusher ever. seriously.

all the spades plus kate - not an easy bunch to capture.

uncle jp wonders how best to hold a squirming infant.

holding hands while enjoying the baby play gym.

kale is not sure how he feels about this lofty perch.

practicing gentle touches under mama's watchful eye.

look into my eyes. look deep into my eyes.

riley and kale engage in a little brotherly love fest.

down by the riverside with elliot and oliver.

their tiny nimble fingers help them to get the car extra clean.

some people are more awake than other people at 6am.

nothing more refreshing than running through the sprinkler on a hot hot day.

relatively speaking, there is a very short period of your life when you can wear a giant bug on your butt and have people think it's cute.

as promised, a picture of the hippo sculpture for francis.

riley loves 'swimming' with a little adult help.

kale sports his first pair of shorts.

rye and big da share a moment at the floating bridge.

no more snowblowing - now the john deere is strictly for mowing.

big da came to visit and he brought a whole sack full of presents.

4 weeks old today!

robot baby shows off his neck strength and his awesome bald patch.

can you believe he used to fit in that baby bath? what?

what a color coordinated bunch of spades.

sometimes when he's really messy we just throw him in the washer.

uncle dean showing off his baby skills again.

kale is a blue ribbon napper.

dean is also an excellent pond wader and player with big kids.

uncle dean is a straight-up baby whisperer. no one is better at relaxing baby kale during his evening fussy period.

riley and brianna sip a little tea at her birthday party.

smiling siblings slay me.

a real country mom can do it all while looking stylish in her mud boots.

it's not easy to catch this one with his eyes open.

when you're a little afraid of getting in the pond it helps to have a friend who will hold your hand.

riley and brianna couldn't have more fun together if they tried.

sometimes we call him turtle baby.

we can't get enough of these big kid kissing baby shots. and truthfully riley is such a sweet big brother - only once has he asked if we can put the baby back in the belly.