Visit From the Soldiers

Today we had a great visit from my brother and his wife who are home from Iraq for a short two week leave. Jay and Amy arrived on US soil sometime around labor day (no, I don't think it's "classified" I just can't remember) and they'll be in town for just a couple more days.

Today we had a little party for them and it was a lot of fun. Quite a few friends and family from Massena came over to see them and wish them well.

Here are some pictures from the great party...
















Sergeant First Class Jason Lehman and his lovely wife Sergeant Amy Lehman with Allie Grace Lincoln. They are currently deployed to Iraq with the US Army. Amy's a natural....

















Allie Grace with her Aunt Jennifer.


















Kellon and Robbie in their very brief moments of rest. They watched about 15 minutes of "Bob the Builder" and the rest of the time was spent screaming, running, and other general boy behavior. Like....
















Driving the Gator that Grandma Cindy and John brought! They had a blast in that thing...















They had only a few mishaps with running into a few things....
















The ladies "chatted"...and Kellon and Robby....
















Did what boys do!
















They jumped...
















And screamed....
















And had a blast! It was a great day to see some great people. We didn't get any pictures of the 20 or so folks at our house today, but it was a great time.

















"Uncle" Jay and "Aunt" Amy: we love you guys and we wish you a safe and secure finish to your deployment. Regardless of your actual job descriptions (I don't even know what they are), you are still putting yourselves in harms way for our country. We're grateful to you both and look forward to your safe return. Love you both and HAPPY ANNIVERSARY!

A Sleeping Child

Bedtime...it's such a special thing. We don't have a routine with Allie yet...she sleeps whenever she wants, and often! With Kellon, we have a fairly regular routine that includes running from the bathroom "all the way to his bed" after brushing his teeth, a story (often repeated...), prayer, and brief time of back-rubbing. Each night, I can't go to sleep until I check on him and touch his head. There's just something about a sleeping child!

Thought you might enjoy a few of these pics...





















Allie enjoying some "siesta"...

















This picture was taken in the pitch black with the flash. Kellon never even moved...He's cuddling with "Puppy" - his favorite.

















Another picture taken in the dark. She didn't move either! She's not actually sucking her thumb...

Brother and Sister

It has been so amazing to see Kellon and Allie together. We tried our best to prepare Kellon for a baby sister and it seems like he is adapting so well. He is already looking out for her and very concerned if she ever cries or even whimpers. He loves to cuddle with Allie and "give her squeezes" which is a term that we've long used with him. To watch him kiss her is a special thing - he's so gentle and something so very "big brotherish" about it. It's going to be fun to watch them as they both grow! Here are some more pictures....
















Kellon loves to get close to Allie...
















Kellon is so kind and compassionate towards Allie...He's even sharing! Here he's telling Allie that he wants her to have his new favorite car! (It's "Doc" from the movie "Cars".)
















I think Allie really enjoyed the car...