Roadtrip

Grandpa and Violet drove us back from State College after Autumn's bridal shower. Grandpa worked the pedals while Violet did the steering, shifting, and windshield-wiping. It was a pretty nice ride with scenic views and a stop at Luray Caverns along the way. Lots of firsts for Violet!

Bluebird Update

This is the most recent photo of our bluebird house complete with nest! We have not looked inside in a few weeks because we think there may be eggs and we don't want to scare them away. From what we have read online, bluebirds will often hatch 2-3 broods per season, so we can look forward to having them around for a while! It took some time for the bluebirds to assert their dominance over the nestbox as there were some tree swallows and house finches who were also interested. There were many arial battles with dramatic swooping and diving that we witnessed and it wasn't clear from our vantage point exactly who had the uppper hand (wing?). In the end, it is the bluebirds who won out and we are glad.

Autumn's Bridal Shower

Lovely Bride
Bride with her Maids
Bride with her Mothers

Autumn's bridal shower was so nice! Sky, Violet and Laurel travelled to State College on Saturday to get there for the 3pm event. 35 people RSVP'd! It was a great time with the ladies from church and friends from RUF at Penn State. We developed the photos at a one-hour photo place and were able to get the scrap book 99% finished that weekend...what a fun time it was!

Violet in Video!

Cloth Diapers

We've begun using cloth diapers which we feel is much better for the environment. Violet seems to have adjusted to the change, though her appearance is much more chunky. She looks a lot like a Tellytubbie with the extra bulk of the cloth! The cloth diaper process is much easier these days...no pins, no rinsing, no rubber pants. There are velcro diaper covers that you put over the cloth diaper that hold it in place. We have a diaper service here in Charlottesville that picks up the dirties and leaves a stack of clean ones for the week. It is a bit more challenging to carry around the big cotton diapers, but we are getting used to it and so far there have been no leaks!

Laurel's New 'Do

So, we visited Arizona during the UVA spring break this year (had a GREAT time!) and I got a new 'do while we were there. Many people have commented that it looks really nice and that has been encouraging. Well, it must have been time for a change because just the other day I met some of the neighborhood elementary students getting off the schoolbus and they said, "Wow Mrs. Chruma, what happened to your hair? Did you get it cut? It looks so good!" It must have looked pretty bad before if even the kids are noticing. Here's to change!

Bluebird Haven

Last year around this time we noticed several bluebirds scouting out our yard and we thought it would be neat to set up a bluebird house out back. We ordered the house from the Audobon Society and it came about a week ago. This slightly grainy photo was taken the morning after we put up the house and once the light got better, we confirmed that it was indeed a blue bird sitting on top! Each morning this week, he has returned and even brought his mate with him. So far they have not built a nest, but they enthusiastically go in and out of the house and sit on top of it. Bluebirds are cavity dwellers who naturally live in abandoned woodpecker holes, but there are special houses you can put in your yard that will attract them. The North American Bluebird Society has a great webpage with more information on this beautiful bird.