Jonathan & Jenelle » Annika

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 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.

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.

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.

Bed Time: The Bare Essentials

jonathan — Sat, 05 Sep 2009 04:45:05 +0000

Here are some examples of what Annika regularly gathers into her arms before she deems herself ready to go off to bed. Typical items include bears and blankets (both plural), a doll, and her bouncy ball.

Who says men can’t multi-task?

jenelle — Fri, 24 Jul 2009 03:03:23 +0000

Women get a lot of hype about being “Supermoms”, but I’m pretty sure I’m married to a “Superdad”. This is what I saw when I came back from cleaning up Annika’s bath paraphernalia. And yes, Jonathan was reading a story out loud to Annika, not just looking at the book with her. . .

Hail to the Chief

jonathan — Mon, 06 Jul 2009 01:14:09 +0000

Sometimes people ask how Annika is handling her new role as Munchkin-in-Chief. The answer is, she has slowly become more comfortable. A few days after the babies came home from the hospital, this conversation occurred:

Jenelle: Annika, do you like the babies?

Annika: No. All done. Babies go home.

Since then, things have improved dramatically. Now, Annika gives the babies hugs and kisses, stands an inch from their faces and says hello, and is always eager to help. Sometimes her help is even helpful.

Hopefully, they can maintain this relationship for at least the next 17 years or so.

Burritos and Ravioli

jonathan — Mon, 23 Mar 2009 03:54:20 +0000

This is mostly for the grandparents who can’t get enough of Annika.

Annika’s First Blackeye

jonathan — Sun, 22 Mar 2009 05:33:27 +0000

Annika got her first shiner this week. It happened in her karate class. I guess when you have a half-dozen toddlers wielding nunchuks, something is bound to happen. You should see the other kid.

In an unrelated event, Annika moved into her first “big-girl” bed this week. No more nights in the Pack-n-Play. Her first night in the new bed, she reminded her parents that she has a tendancy, while sleeping, to sit up and then fall forward. This tendancy did not fit well with the hard wooden frame of her new bed. So, now her big-girl bed features extra padding, too.