It has been awhile since I have blogged, mostly because I hate blogging without pictures.  I just keep forgetting the camera, which is unlike me.  Here is just a few little tid-bits from the Troxel World:

• Toot and Puddle, our guinea pigs, are doing great.  The girls adore them and hold them at least three times a day, playing with them and cuddling them.  They are quite lovable little guys with their own personalities.  Toot is the small, sweet one.  He likes to snuggle against you and purr.  Puddle is our adventurer.  He loves to "talk" to us.  We are amazed at how much they eat (and poop for that matter!).  One of our favorite things to do is feed them fresh veggies and herbs, especially parsley.  The girls want to grow carrots and parsley in their gardens this year for their special friends.
• Avery recently asked us when she could get baptized.  We were not expecting this question but it gave us a wonderful opportunity to sit down with both Avery and Mia and talk about our faith.  I believe God is working in Avery's little heart.  We let her know that baptism was appropriate after accepting Jesus as her Savior.  She has always been inquisitive and I pray that she will continue to ask these kinds of questions.  As part of our discussion, we agreed to read the Bible every day so that we could get to know more about God and Jesus so that we would know how to be a Christian.  I am reminded of the verses in Matthew where Jesus says that we should come to him like children.  Watching Avery take those first steps of her faith refreshes and renews our own faith. 
• The girls are both doing well in school and we are already working on next school year.  We have enrolled Mia in preschool twice a week, while continuing to go to the developmental preschool once a week.    And yes, it has suddenly dawned on me that Avery will be in kindergarten next year and I am trying to savor the moments we have left now.  Two in school next year is almost too much for me to think about.  Avery is starting to read and is very excited about it.  We have promised her own computer (really it is an old one we have) if she memorizes 40 sight words.  She is doing great with them.  She is also starting to sound out most words. 
• Olivia is doing great and can sit up on her own for longer and longer each day.  She recently started sleeping through the night, so hopefully that will continue.  She is eating more table food and growing a little more each day.  She has become quite the momma's girl so getting anything done around the house has been tough because she wants to be held all the time.  She is so sweet that most of the time I simply can't resist anyway (does that make me an enabler - haha!)

Anyway, thanks for reading this picture-less blog.