J.J. and Jen's New House!

Some siblings have requested updates on the siblings who don't have blogs yet. We will start with J.J. and Jennifer, who are going through some major life changes right now. Most of you know they are expecting a Baby Boy around May 13.... but did you know that they recently moved away from Washington, D.C. too?

Just last week J.J., Jennifer, Baby Boy, Jango, Yoda, and Lizzy packed up the car and drove down to Charlotte, North Carolina--although technically they will be living just over the state line in Tega Cay, South Carolina. Mom and Dad are already asking, "Wait...which state are J.J. and Jen living in??". Hahah.

They will be living in an extended-stay hotel until their brand new custom-built home is completed and ready to move in! J.J. has been great at sending us pictures to document the construction progress. Mom and Dad are totally blown away at how fast the house is being built. At this rate, the house will be ready in time for Baby Boy to arrive!

First--the foundation and driveway

foundation

first walls going up

first walls going up

A nice panoramic shot...bedroom, bathroom, and to the right is the "catwalk" view down into the greatroom below

Master Bedroom

Kitchen
Hallway
Bedroom/Office
Bedroom
The "catwalk" looking down into the greatroom below
Bathroom
And this is what the house looks like as of last week!
Here's a good video of how the house looks....ignore the construction guy bragging. ;)

We are SO impressed with the progress of the house! We can't wait to come and visit J.J. and Jennifer in July for the baby blessing and to see the finished product. Congratulations on your new home in South Carolina....or North Carolina....wait..... South Carolina is where Jen's parents live, right? But.... isn't Charlotte in North Carolina?? But their mailing address is in South Carolina. But J.J.'s work address is in North Carolina....

Congratulations either way! We love you guys! Send more pics as the house (and the baby) grow!

Happy Birthday Heather and Mary!

March 15th is a special day in the Phillips Family because not one but TWO Phillips women share this birthday! Happy birthday to Mary and Heather! We love you both. There must be something about March birthdays, because both Mary and Heather are very strong, brave, assertive, confident, talented and of course beautiful! See the following photos for proof of that last statement.

Mary...

...is a "ham". She likes to be the center of attention and performing.

...She also loves to play outside, even if it means being cold or getting dirty.

Mary loves to read books, even if she's heard the story lots of times before. If thats the case, she'll help you flip past the boring parts and get to the good stuff.

...loves her brothers. Even since she was small she has always been a great little sister!

...and a GREAT big sister! Baby Lea loves to play with Mary.

Mary is also a great helper for Mommy with cooking, washing dishes and projects.

You'd think with all these people to love that Mary might run out... but she still has enough left over for Daddy too!

Heather...

Since she joined our family over 10 years ago, I have had the opportunity to really get to know Heather by living with her. Some of my favorite things about Heather are...

that she is so easy to talk to. No matter what craziness she is dealing with from school, work or the kids, she always makes time to talk. She likes to talk about light stuff like celebrities or intense stuff like conspiracy theories and politics. No matter what you're in the mood for, Heather is ready! Not only is she a great talker, but she's a great listener too. I always look forward to my talks with her for this reason. She makes it easy to talk!

I also like that Heather "keeps it real". She has a good sense of humor and doesn't seem to take things too seriously. She is very down-to-earth and that makes her fun to be around too.

Heather is a dang hard worker. I've only recently learned that not only does she do a ton of things like FDA registrations, testing, and being the dental authority during our grueling trade shows for Baby Banana Brush (the flexible silicone toothbrush that she invented), but she also works for her Dad's company, does real-estate, and has ambitions to start her very own company too! I'm impressed by how much she has already accomplished, and I'm excited to see where she goes from here.

Heather has a beautiful voice, and she has always been skilled at playing the piano. She has recently been taking guitar lessons from Ryan, and they performed this duet for us at Christmastime.

And, last but not least, Heather is an excellent Mom. She is extremely patient with her kids, and she handles everything that the kids need like a pro. She makes even the most difficult situations seem easy, and I'm impressed with how she is able to do it all. We know that #4 will be a lucky baby to be joining this family.

We love both of you! Happy birthday Mary and happy birthday Heather!

Happy Birthday Nathan!

Happy 3rd Birthday to Nathan!

Nathan has always been an excellent model for the Baby Banana Brush.

Grandpa Tutu always has fun doing "gardening" when Nathan comes to visit. Even though this means digging up the dirt in Tutu's potted plants in the entry--Nathan just wants to help!

Grandma Tutu had lots of fun visiting Nathan and his sisters this year for Christmas. Nathan liked to wear the cool Santa hat.

"Nathan loves to run and play hide ‘n seek. One evening I was tending him, and he would speed through the house at top speed trying to catch me. I’d hide in a closet, and when he discovered my whereabouts, he’d giggle uncontrollably with delight. He’s learning his abc’s and shouts out the letters when he sees them. Nathan is smart, cute, and spunky. How lucky to have him in our family".---Grandma Tutu

Nathan is a sweet, playful, and very curious little boy. He has two older sisters--Marissa and Mallory who love him, play with him, and are always looking out for him.

Heather had the following to say about this cute little birthday boy:

In a sentence I would say Nathan keeps me on my toes. A typical day is spent going from one room to the next cleaning up the next disaster he's made. While I'm cleaning up one mess he's usually making another. I don't usually get frustrated unless I have someone coming over. I think it's funny most of the time. One of my favorite memories of him was one day I heard water swishing and I went in search of Nathan and found him butt naked trying to take a bath in the toilet. Took a picture so when Ryan came home and asked how my day was I could just show him the picture. Another thing that sticks out is Nathan has gone through a lot of medical pain and physical discomfort and through it all I've been truly amazed at how good he is. Not super fussy or angry he just kind of takes it and can still have fun everyday. A very enjoyable child!

We all love you Nathan and can't believe you're already 3 years old!! Happy Birthday!