Jonathan & Jenelle » jonathan

Photo Caption Contest #1

jonathan — Sun, 18 Jul 2010 17:00:02 +0000

The Vances are pleased to announce the first round of their website’s Photo Caption Contest. If you have a caption for the picture shown below, please enter it using the comments link for this post. This round is open until August 15, 2010. The winner will receive a fabulous prize (okay, marginally fabulous).

The Little Women Go to Switzerland

jonathan — Wed, 14 Jul 2010 03:59:24 +0000

The Vance family is moving to Switzerland. Jonathan has accepted a position with a company near Luzern.

Why? They have great chocolate in Switzerland. The bread is really good, too. The mountains are a bonus. And Jenelle and Jonathan think it would be fun to live in Europe again for a few years.

The Vances will miss the many wonderful people and experiences they have had in Oregon, but they are excited for this new adventure. They currently plan to move in mid-August.

The Road Warrior Princess

jonathan — Mon, 12 Jul 2010 03:18:51 +0000

As any almost-three-year-old can tell you, international travel is not to be taken lightly. That’s why the Road Warrior Princess makes no compromises, as seen in her recent trip to Switzerland and Germany.

Annika left the comforts of Oregon prepared:

princess crown — check;
DVD player — check;
pink princess roller bag that Annika insisted on pulling through the airports herself — check.

Her efforts were rewarded with a great trip that included:

first flying the whole family to Houston so the twin babies could stay with Nana and Grandpa Dell (or, as the twins call them, “Mommy and Daddy 2.0″);
flying to Zurich, Switzerland with Mommy and Daddy, then driving to Munich;
during the drive to Munich, repeatedly asking when she could see a castle (an important topic for any princess, of course);
visiting two castles (the Residenz in Munich and Linderhof Palace in southern Germany);
celebrating Mommy and Daddy’s 5th anniversary by dining at one of Munich’s hottest vegetarian restaurants (no, you don’t need to adjust your computer);
Daddy spending a Saturday morning in Mike’s Wunderbarer Waschsalon (free wi-fi included), which reminded him of the last time that he went to a laundromat in Germany and obtained change by taking his mother to her first Turkish grocery store;
driving through Germany, Austria, Liechtenstein and Switzerland in one day;
staying at a lovely hotel in Luzern, Swizterland, where Annika could run up and down the halls and eat delicious waffles every morning for breakfast; and
renting bikes on their last day in Luzern and taking a lovely afternoon ride.

Stop Toying with Me

jonathan — Sun, 30 May 2010 17:00:13 +0000

You Think Sew?

jonathan — Sat, 22 May 2010 19:29:39 +0000

Avid Jonathan & Jenelle blog readers will easily recall that Jenelle has showed her sewing talents on a number of occasions. But they may not realize that Jenelle doesn’t limit herself to Halloween costumes — in fact, she recently turned out a hip new ironing board cover (well, as hip as an ironing board cover can be) and a cute blouse.

On the Runway at Age One

jonathan — Sat, 22 May 2010 19:13:34 +0000

Clara and Nicolyn celebrated their first birthday in late April. The entire family is very relived to have reached this milestone with everyone’s sanity more-or-less intact. Among some very exciting birthday presents from Nana and Grandpa Dell was a large selection of dress-up clothes that any little girl would be excited to have (including a magic wand from Aunt Autumn). The girls quickly realized how to make the most of these.

Nana and Grandpa Dell in Oregon

jonathan — Sat, 22 May 2010 18:51:45 +0000

In late April the Vance family was fortunate enough to have as their guests Nana and Grandpa Dell — or, as Annika sometimes calls them, “Jonathan’s parents.” Grandpa Dell did all of the home repair projects that Jonathan had left undone. Nana brought wonderful birthday presents for the girls. Together, everyone went to the zoo on a beautiful Saturday.

To All Those People Who, Before the Babies Were Born, Told Us, “I’ve Always Wanted Twins”

jonathan — Sat, 22 May 2010 17:15:39 +0000

What were you smoking? Can I have some?

Two-In-One

jonathan — Mon, 29 Mar 2010 02:54:52 +0000

For Annika, picking out the right pajamas for the evening is a big deal: she won’t wear Big Sister jammies or cow jammies if she thinks that it should be a monkey jammies night. So, she was very excited when she one day decided that her brown polka-dot nightgown was reversible: ballet slippers on one side, polka dots on the other. Of course, now she faces the additional agony of trying to decide which front side should be the front on any given night.

Annika’s First Self-Portraits

jonathan — Mon, 15 Mar 2010 02:41:25 +0000

Annika recently discovered that Daddy’s camera has a remote release. So, she tried her hand at some self-portraiture. Some day, her composition skills will catch up with her cuteness.