The Museum

Since going through our art books, Ainsley has been asking to go to the museum. We have a wonderful one downtown and so our first rainy day, we went. I think Ainsley would have stayed all day. Andrew, however, made the trip enjoyable for about an hour and a half.

From Andrew Tyndale Rankin

All of it was exciting but Ainsley was on a mission to see the Egyptian gallery and the knight.

A stone tablet complete with hieroglyphics. We managed to join in on a high school group's tour to hear more about the egyptian artifact's. The tour guide asked some questions and Ainsley piped up. She let everyone know the writing was hieroglyphics.

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A real sarcophagus and a mummy! The concept of the mummy was exciting to her and a bit frightening. We have discussed this in length since our visit.

From Andrew Tyndale Rankin

From Andrew Tyndale Rankin

Could this be Saint George's armor?

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Memorial Day

We had a quiet weekend and had a good time just frolicking in the back yard. The pools came out and the kids really enjoyed each other. We got some great pictures of them enjoying life!

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Getting ready for fun. "What do you want to do?"

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"Ring Around the Rosy" brought big splashes and big smiles. Ainsley played in the small pool with Andrew and had so much fun with him. You would have never guessed that a few inches of water in a small baby pool would have brought so many smiles.

From Andrew Tyndale Rankin

From Andrew Tyndale Rankin

From Andrew Tyndale Rankin

"Again, again. More, more!" Was Andrew's response to this new game.

Ainsley enjoying the outdoors!

From Andrew Tyndale Rankin

From Andrew Tyndale Rankin

From Andrew Tyndale Rankin

Andrew enjoying his snack! This boy can eat and drink all day. I am having a hard time imagining what this will be like when he's older.

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Definitely a Boy!

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Need we say more.

Deanna Rose Farmstead

We had company in from out of town, a special treat for the kids. Their Great Aunt was in town and Gigi took some time off of work. We were able to spend some extra time with our company and we went to Deanna Rose, one of our favorite activities. This was Andrew's first time, truly enjoying it!

He loved the ducks. I think the goats were a little to aggressive for the little guy. He enjoyed the fish and some of the larger animals, but he really loved the ducks.

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Of course, Ainsley's favorite is the pony ride. She has loved animals for as long as I can remember but her passion is really heading toward farm creatures and gardening.

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It's hot and it's snack time. As the day wore on we took frequent breaks!

From Andrew Tyndale Rankin

From Andrew Tyndale Rankin

Everything Ainsley does, Andrew tries to get in on the action. Ainsley is usually very helpful and will often get right in with him to help him out. Here they are milking a cow together. (It's a water filled utter on a cow replica, thankfully.)

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We had a blast and are looking forward to our next trip there. Andrew is definitely ready to get out and explore!

1st Trip to the Zoo

We made our first visit to the Zoo with Andrew!

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We went with some friends that we made through soccer. It wasn't the prettiest day, in fact we got rained on the whole time. The kids loved it and the mom's stuck it out.

From Andrew Tyndale Rankin

From Andrew Tyndale Rankin

From Andrew Tyndale Rankin

We went through all of Africa and saw so many different animals up close. I think they prefer the rainy weather to the heat and sunshine. Our zoo also has train rides, tram rides, and carousel rides. We did all three. Andrew didn't make it on to the carousel, but he sure thought it looked neat. He especially liked it when Ainsley came around. Here he is waiting for the train, he was pretty excited.

From Andrew Tyndale Rankin

From Andrew Tyndale Rankin

Craft Time

We've been exploring different art books from the library this summer. We are looking for good arts and crafts books to use throughout the school year. Right now, we really like the Usborne Art Treasury and First Book of Art. Ainsley picked out one craft to try out to see if she could do it on her own. Here's her rendition of Saint George and the Dragon.

From Andrew Tyndale Rankin

The book was great, it had the actual artwork with information about both the painting and the artist. It also had the craft instructions detailed enough that she could mostly do the art on her own. We followed it up with a book from the library retelling the legend of Saint George and the Dragon. It's one of her favorite's this spring!

Quick Visit

We had the opportunity to take a quick trip down to Nana and Granddad's. I thought I would have captured more pictures of our fun; we had golf cart rides, duck feedings, fish feedings, time with a dog, and fun toys. However, all I seem to have are a few good ones of Andrew sporting his pink shirt.

From Andrew Tyndale Rankin

He's gotten some more teeth finally. He's teething pattern is so different than Ainsley's was. He now has his top two and bottom two teeth. Teething has started again, but it's his molars! I guess he's trying to get all of the big teeth out of the way first. The next picture is one of my favorites. One of the few that captured the twinkle I see in his eyes everyday. That twinkle is part joy, part mischief, and part love.

From Andrew Tyndale Rankin

He loves be tickled and laugh. I think I could tickle him all day and he would never say "Uncle".

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Sand, Sporks, and Smiles

Well, it's June and I'm just now updating April....where has the time gone. A good friend of mine mentioned that I was good at marathon blog posting, I'm hoping to not disappoint.

Spring flew by, but not without it's fair share of new activities, accomplishments, and plenty of fun. Andrew discovered the small sandbox we have on our back patio. It's his favorite outdoor activity by far. He loves just playing and picking out the tiny stones. He's also become quite accomplished at filling in holes in our yard with sand.

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Ainsley has continued a tremendous love for nature. We now have a "critter shack" which houses caterpillars, ladybugs, and other interesting finds. We need to become better at nurturing our bugs, we haven't had any long term tenants. She has also enjoyed the dandelions we have had in our lawn. Mom and dad pull them and she blows them. It's been a vicious cycle as we see new ones sprout up daily.

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Andrew started using silverware on his own this month. This has been particularly challenging for me. The mess is everywhere! He is becoming more efficient with the utensils. His independent streak shows more and more each day with eating. It has been interesting to see him decline any help from mom, when Ainsley is still so willing to accept help in this area.

From Andrew Tyndale Rankin

From Andrew Tyndale Rankin

We are so blessed to see both Ainsley and Andrew beginning to really enjoy each other. The smiles are always on when the two of them are together. It seems as though they just love to get each other to laugh and make silly faces.

From Andrew Tyndale Rankin

From Andrew Tyndale Rankin

From Andrew Tyndale Rankin

March Madness

March Madness, Rankin Style!


I never thought I would witness shooting hoops inside! But alas, with the boys there seems to be no avoiding it. Andrew loves dunking it. He is by far the most improved player since receiving the net for his birthday.

Is it Spring?

Today marked the first day of spring and we awoke to about 6 inches of snow! Somehow it just doesn't seem right. Yesterday it was in the 60's and we were walking the neighborhood.

The birds were wondering if they migrated a little too soon. Ainsley and Andrew love watching the birds at the feeder and today there was no shortage of feathered friends.

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We filled the feeder twice and we had the whole flock out our window. Andrew loved banging the window and scattering them. It was a fun game for him to watch them fly away and then come back. Ainsley loved pointing out the cardinals. We had 3 females and 2 males. I can see a bird unit for school in our future.

New do!

Today, Ainsley got a new do. We went to a friend of mine for a hair cut and Ainsley decided she wanted short hair. Though I am sad that the pig tails are gone for the most part, I'm enjoying the wash, dry, and ready to go style. Bed head is even a good look. I was concerned that the curl in her hair would be cut off, but it looks like the natural wave has remained. Not onle does her hair look really healthy, she looks like she has a ton more hair!

From The Rankin Family

From The Rankin Family

First Soccer Practice!

We are trying out our first organized sport, soccer! We registered in a league that a lot of our play group friends are in and we will be playing until May. Ainsley has been practicing fundamentals at our church soccer camp, but now she is excited to play in a real soccer game! She looks so cute out there with her little shin guards and soccer cleats.

Making new friends. How old are you?

From The Rankin Family

Practicing throwing in. She did a great job despite the cold temps and the gloves!

From The Rankin Family

From The Rankin Family

Dribbling thru the cones.

From The Rankin Family

From The Rankin Family

Her first game will be in a few weeks. I am sure she will have her own cheering section.

Big Man

Today was the first ride in the big boy car seat.

From Andrew Tyndale Rankin

Being upright, looking out the window, trying for the door lock, he seemed to be a happy boy. However, when the car got rolling, he wasn't sure what to think. Surprisingly, the first ride wasn't as exciting as I thought it would be. Having Ainsley there eased the transition. They held hands until he fell asleep.

From Andrew Tyndale Rankin

We are used to it now, and I'm looking forward to pointing out all the fun things we drive by just like I did with Ainsley. Ainsley is enjoying being mom's big helper as she shares snacks with Andrew and hands him toys. This is just one more sign that time keeps going and they grow up so fast. I almost shed a tear as the infant car seat got stored away.

Faux Hawk

It's not often that I style Andrew's hair. But we had a little bit of fun this morning with the product.

From Andrew Tyndale Rankin

From Andrew Tyndale Rankin

It's long on the top and on the bottom. If you look hard enough you'll see the hawk but you'll also see the mullet. A hair cut is scheduled, again. This will make it number 3 in the first year of life or so.

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Cuddle Bugs

Doesn't this just warm your heart? Andrew is getting more and more involved with Ainsley every day. He enjoys doing everything that she is doing and she's been a good sport about it.

From Andrew Tyndale Rankin

We are a two manny, lamb blanket family. Matthew and I just smile as we watch them with their luvies. Believe it or not, despite not knowing his colors, Andrew knows which one is his. Ainsley will try to play switch-a-roo every once in awhile and he always gets it right.

From Andrew Tyndale Rankin

It's not often there is downtime when they are both awake. Andrew is starting to like watching PBS with Ainsley for the rare treat. There favorite is Word World. They both exhibit a love for animals that is amazing.