Aunt Siggy Cute

She has cats! Yeah! (Unless you're Kirstin, then Boo!)

Sleepy in Pittsburgh Cute

With Greta, Wyatt, and Max (I think Gavin was still at work):

Anchorwoman Cute

From the children's museum in St. Louis

Please Don't Throw Up Cute

Apparently they both have good stomachs:

Beach Cute

From the Jersey Shore:

Visiting Cape Cod Cute

From Tick Point, one of Kirstin's favorite spots on the planet.

Visting Boston Cute

Here are the girls (yes, that's Abby in the back) with Kira and Owen, some old friends from Houston who've moved up to NH.

Camel Cute

Not from New Orleans, here they are at the end of year picnic at pre-school. I wish I could impress on you all how nasty a camel smells.

Mom Cute

All the ladies in the house say "whoop whoop"!

Wedding Cute

From the actual ceremony:

Cafe du Monde Cute

We were in New Orleans last weekend for Jason Lee's wedding. Let's just say that some people enjoyed dressing up, riding in a carriage, eating donuts for breakfast, and swimming in the hotel pool.  Here's a few shots of the girls first beignets:

Dog-sitting Cute

To atone for the lack of pictures lately, here's a bonus from when we dog-sat Bucho.

Overdue Cute

Been too long since I posted one of these:

Christmas Cute

Here are the dorks wearing their new stripey outfits and striking a "Hannah Montana" pose (their words, not mine).  Notice Abby's lovely silver arm sling - very fashionable.

Nutcracker Cute

Long overdue, but here are the girls at the ballet.  We went to see the Nutcracker.  They (thanks to some timely M&Ms and gum) made it through the whole performance without complaint.  (I was more fidgety than they were. Seriously, how long can they just jump around?)

Good News

Abby had her orthopedic appointment yesterday.  She's got a classic clavicle break, and in a little kid like her there is nothing to be worried about.  She'll only need her arm sling for another week (Merry Christmas), and should be able to have full motion of the shoulder around then as well.

Over the next week, she'll develop a bump/bruise on her shoulder as the blood clot forms around the break to close it up.  As she grows, the bone will smooth itself out and become straight again (right now it looks like a really shallow inverted V).  But in another 3 weeks she should be clear to do swimming, ballet, etc.. without a problem. 

As a side note, we realized that Madeline is the only one to make it through (almost all) of 2008 without a serious injury (Kirstin - twisted tube, Me - ribs, Abby - shoulder).  There are two possible conclusions:
1) She's due
2) She's responsible

Vegas has #2 as a 5-1 favorite.

Ugh

Abby and Madeline have Hannah Montana toothbrushes.  They play music. 

I shall now insert a fork into my eye socket.

Brittle Bones

Apparently the Vollrath family is prone to breakage. Last night Abby "fell" off of the Smart Cycle (stationary bike thing that attaches to the TV as a video game).  She broke her clavicle.  It's not severe, and she'll heal up just fine in a few weeks.  She's got a sling to wear, but that's about all we can do.  Lot's of pain, lots of crying, but she's held up like a trooper so far.

I said "fell" because sources have informed us that foul play may be involved.  We're still waiting for CSI:Bellaire to clear the scene, but we have one primary suspect, a 3' 1" blond female caucasian.

Halloween Cute

The princesses are ready for a Halloween party:

Bicycle cute

Seriously, can you beat this?