MERRY CHRISTMAS!
Whoah! These kids are growing like weeds! Photos below are both kids in January, then November.
They both say and do things every day that make us laugh, including Ivy making early morning demands from her bed – “I want play! I want water! Ivy Wakey!”
Ivy’s nickname “Tao” (rhymes with “now”) should be a textbook study case of nicknames, as it made quite an evolution from her middle name “Pearl”, to “squirrel” to the word Vinny chose for her early on, which we was assume was his closest guess to the word “squirrel” which turned out to be “Tao”.
We are still living on our quiet little street in Moline, it’s a great location for us with the kids at this age, as we are pretty tucked away from street traffic, and we had some fun backyard hangouts with family and friends this year.
The kids both enjoy singing, including writing their own songs about chicken nuggets.
They also enjoy coloring and painting, here’s one by Vincent Van Knudsen. Alexey asked him what it was called and he said “Nothing”. Whoahhh deep.
This year Lewis continued a couple steady live music gigs, including the Celebration Belle dinner boat in Moline, as well as Beef and Bourbon steakhouse in Bettendorf. Among other things this has allowed Lewis to still continue music full time while staying close to home for extra family time, and almost no late nights, which is a dream come true. When kids’ bedtime aligns, Lewis and Alexey have gone to bed as early as 8pm and there ain’t no shame in that game.
Lewis also started a rock band with a few buddies, as a for fun, but also serious side project, with an album release in August. Check out the music HERE as well as a companion podcast interviewing different people, including Alexey, which you can find HERE.
Alexey is working full time + as a mom and showers Vinny and Ivy with love, care, affection, and a plethora of life lessons each day. During the holiday season she is also working part-time in the gift wrapping department of Von Maur department store in Moline.
Alexey started taking both kids to a weekly dance class in Bettendorf which they are enjoying. In the warm months we took the kids to the playground as often as we could, so dance class is a great way to still get out of the house while we weather the midwest cold.
We continue to enjoy church fellowship at Community Christian Fellowship in Moline and are thankful for our church family there.
Alexey always keeps great music playing in the house. Songs like “Sweet Caroline” and “How Great Thou Art” remain consistent household bangers. The kids also enjoy some of their dad’s songs. It’s hilarious to hear a toddler sing “All My Sins”!
Vinny’s favorite food changes too quickly to keep track of. Ivy’s favorite food tends to be whatever someone else is eating and she looks at you and smiles and says “a bite?” or “a bitey”. Impossible to resist.
This year was not without some grief, as we lost our boy cat, Simon, in June. He unexpectedly passed away in his sleep, at the age of 14, and we miss him and his antics every day.
Life is a miracle, every day is a blessing, we thank God for his goodness and provision.
May your Holiday Season be full of truth, growth, and hard-earned joy.
Love, Lewis, Alexey, Vinny and Ivy
