Its Beginning to Look a lot Like….

Christmas is just right around the corner and the anticipation is building in the house.  The kids helped decorate the tree and just love to sit and stare at it.  Burke is amazed at the lights.  And when he first went to touch the tree he got pricked.  For the next few days afterwards, he shied away from touching the tree and would just look.  Unfortunately, those shiny ornaments and bright lights got the best of him and he went in after them.  Which means instead of just gazing at the tree every night, we are constantly yelling “Burke, NO TOUCH”.  Well at least he has not brought the tree down, YET.  Brynn loves to check the water every day to make sure the tree is not thirsty but unfortunately she still reminds me that she wants a “snowy” (or flocked) tree next year.  She says the snowy tree is like South Dakota where we celebrate Christmas.    

No holiday season is complete without a trip to visit Santa Clause.  Luckily for us it did not entail long lines or impatient Santas’.  There was no line so we got to sit back and check him out before building up enough courage to sit on his lap.  Burke was stiff as a board and very unsure of the situation.  I think another few seconds and we would have lost him.  But once Brynn warmed up to Santa, she did not want to leave.  She kept chatting with him and went through her entire Christmas list item by item. 

1. Play-doh cake
2. Doll
3. Dora bracelet
4. Lunch box

Happy Thanksgiving

We had a very quiet Thanksgiving this year.  We spent the long weekend relaxing and getting ready for Christmas.  The weather was beautiful so we spent the morning at the beach walking and playing hide-and-go-seek.  We later spent the day at our close friends’ house playing with the kids and eating a nice meal. 

This year we are most Thankful for:

• Two healthy and happy children
• The love and support of our family and friends
• The chance to spend so much time with our loved ones this year
• The hours between 10pm and 7am when the kids are sleeping

10 Months Old

10 months old and our little crazy man is walking and climbing.  We are going to have our work cut out for us as he gets older.  He is 10 months going on 2 years old.  He nearly runs everywhere so he can keep up with everyone.  He only wants to eat what we are eating – no baby food.  He is already picking on the other kids at daycare.   Just the other day he was trying to sit on the babies who were in the little bouncers and if he did not sit on them he pulled their socks off.  And the older ones he just would laugh and stick his finger in their ear.  He also has figured out how to use other objects so he can climb on top of things.   What!?  I am not sure if I should laugh or cry at this point.    

Burke 10 Months Old

Using Brynn's lunchbox as a step stool. 

Burke Loves

• Playing with toys, especially Brynn's princess castle
• Picking on his friends at daycare
• Climbing on everything
• High-fiving and clapping

Burke is working on :

• Running
• Eating more table food
• Curly hair

Halloween 2014

I know this is nearly a month late but I will soon accept the fact that every event/holiday is going to be a little more hectic now that I have two kids.  Halloween was a little bit of a blur.  Cameron and I had just gotten back from a mini-vacation, Brynn had numerous activities going on at school that week and everyone in the house was playing catch up.  Brynn and I did a great job of painting the pumpkins the weekend before so we did not have to worry about trying to get them done after school during the week.  The last pumpkin got carved the night before Halloween - but at least we go to enjoy it for one night.

Brynn started her Halloween off at school with a Halloween “fashion show”, as she would call it.  She surprisingly was the only Elsa in the entire preschool.  They played games, colored, and had a creepy crawly lunch that they all helped prepare.  After school we stuck around for the Harvest Festival where Brynn enjoyed more games and the bounce houses.  She was happy to show us all of her friends and teachers, which we have met thousands of times.  Afterwards it was trick or treating time. 

Trick or treating was a blast.  Burke just sat in the stroller checking out all of the kids while Brynn went from house to house knocking on the doors herself, saying trick or treat and please and thank you.  This was the first year she understood what to do and wanted to participate.  She loved showing off her princess dress and taking in all of the complements.  A true princess at heart.  Poor Burke was just along for the ride, dressed up in his hand-me-down costume MOO!  It did not take long, and Brynn was ready to head home.  She was so tired from all of the excitement of the day and all of the walking.  A few pieces of candy later and Brynn was sleeping like a princess!!  And like always, Burke was wide awake ready for more MOO!      

9 Months Old

Burke is the quickest little devil.  We recently had to purchase a baby gate to keep him out of the kitchen, which we never had to do for Brynn.  Everything in our house is now placed on shelves or in cupboards so it is out of reach.  And let’s not forget the front screen door that he pushed through to get to the outside.  Oh man!!  What have we gotten ourselves into.  Burke is the craziest little boy with the sweetest heart.  He still loves to snuggle and be rocked while drinking a bottle or going to sleep.  But heaven forbid something else is going on anywhere in the house.  This little boy will spring into action the second he thinks something is going on around him.  He always needs to be a part of the action.     

 

Stats:

• Weight - 20 pounds 5.6 ounces (60th percentile)
• Height - 30 inches (97th percentile)
• Head Circumference - 45 cm (50th percentile)

Burke Loves

• Being outside
• Helping with the dishes
• Being around all the action

Burke is working on:

• Walking
• His two front teeth
• Clapping

Girls Weekend

You would think since my mom, sister, and me are so close that we would do girls trips all the time.  But we don’t.  The last girls’ trip we did was when my sister lived in Chicago, over 5 years ago.  Well we changed that and headed to Colorado for a concert.

We had always wanted to go to a concert at Red Rocks and the perfect opportunity presented itself.  Tom Petty…at Red Rocks…. 14^th Row.  We could not pass it up!  We all met at the Denver airport to start our adventure.  A quick drive later and we found ourselves in downtown Golden, taking in the scenery, breathing in the fresh air, and taste testing at the Coors brewery.  That night we bundled up and went to amazing concert at the Red Rocks Amphitheatre.  Tom was in prime form.  He was happy go lucky, chatting with the audience and just as excited as we were to be at Red Rocks.  The sound was amazing, the play list perfect, and the sky was beautiful. 

Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers

Coors Brewery

The next day we added some adventure to our lives and went zip lining.  Now we see where we get our sense of adventure from….our Mom.  Every zip line got better and better and we each wanted to go faster and faster.  Too bad the other group with us did not agree.  A free fall later and the three of us were off to Boulder for shopping and great food.  Thanks girls for a wonderful weekend.  Let’s not wait so long before we do it again!

Best Staycation Ever

I know we only live a few blocks from the beach, but we recently rented a beach house on the sand with some friends for a few days.  Those few days made me want to never move away from the beach and actually move even closer to the water.  Best Staycation Ever!!

It happened to work out that two of my close high school friends just happened to be planning trips to California at nearly the same time.  These plans and a couple of cocktails later, all three families were going to come together and rent a house on the sand.  Even though we were only a few miles away from home, it felt like we were 100 miles away.  It was wonderful to catch up with friends and watch our children have so much fun together.  We walked the boardwalk, took the ferry and just relaxed at the beach.  One of the days a friend of ours came down from LA and joined our relaxing chaos.  We were even able to hide out from the husbands and kids for a few hours while we all sat around a kitchen table catching up and laughing like old times.   What a wonderful few days.  I cannot wait to do it again soon!!  I don't think the husbands or kids would mind, either.  

Even the babies had fun!

8 Months Old

Burke has been 8 months old for a couple of weeks now.  Over the past month we have given him a new nickname “HANDS”. This little boy is so crazy and has these gigantic hands that are always reaching and grabbing everything.  He has crazy curly hair that is always sticking up with these arms that are always waving in the air.  CRAZY BOY!!  He does not sit still for a moment.

Burke Loves:

• Food - especially fruits.  Blueberries and pears are his favorite
• His big sister - he lights up when he hears her name and giggles hysterically when she plays with him
• Remote controls
• Saying Ma-Ma
• Walking along furniture

Burke is Working On:

• Eating his peas
• Trying to walk - wants to, but is not quite ready
• How to bust through the baby gate

California Living

We had been trying to find a time when Cameron’s oldest brother and his family could come out and visit.  It took us multiple tries but we finally found a date we were both available - and I hope we did not disappoint.  For having nothing planned when they first arrived, we quickly filled the week with lots of fun activities.  We enjoyed sharing with them all the great things Huntington Beach has to offer: great beach, fun waves, sand castles, bon fires, baseball game and close proximity to Sea World and Legoland.

Cousin Fun!

I love the waves!

Go Angels!

Fun at the stadium!

I love uncle Chad!

LEGOLAND Celebration

What a birthday celebration for two little girls!!  Instead of a birthday party this year we celebrated Brynn’s birthday with a trip to LEGOLAND.  Her cousin flew out to celebrate her birthday too!!  Both girls had a wonderful time.  They enjoyed the amusement park and the water park but most of all just loved being together.  They spent hours building Legos, dressing up like princesses, and just playing.  I don’t think it would have matter where we were, they would have had a great time together.  Happy Birthday Girls!!

Princesses in their castle

LEGOLAND 2014

Let the fun begin!

Shooting water cannons

Lazy River

Sleepy River

4 Years Old and the Start of Pre-K

It has been a big week for Brynn – she started Pre-K and turned 4!  The week began with Brynn starting Pre-K in Ms. Jenny’s class.  Going into the day she was very excited.  She was skipping a classroom and was going to get to play on the “big kids” playground now.  But by the time we arrived at school the nerves kicked in.  After a hug from her previous teacher she was ready to venture into her new classroom.  In the end, Brynn was happy and Ms. Jenny is now her ‘favorite’ teacher.  Every day when I pick her up from school she gives me a tour of her classroom and tells me about all the cool things she learned.  Too cute.

Yesterday, Brynn turned 4!!!  She had a wonderful day.  She celebrated at school with her friends by bring treats and wearing a birthday crown.  They played a fun birthday game and sang songs.  On our way home we picked up her favorite dinner and a birthday cake.  The day was complete when she got to blow out the candles on her ‘Frozen’ cake and try on her Elsa dress.  I am sure there will be some singing to come next.    

Next we are capping off our week with a trip to LEGOLAND to celebrate the fact we made it through the week!!   Stay tuned….

7 Months Old

Burke is all boy.  He likes cars, trucks, balls, and getting into everything.  He is a quick little guy who can manage his way across the room without you noticing.  We can no longer have anything in sight.  He has mastered crawling, pulling himself up and grabbing for items.  We have to keep all doors shut and put up a barricade to keep Burke out of trouble.  He remains our sweet little snuggle bunny who loves to cuddle.  But the poor little guy has been waking up at night because he cut two teeth this past week with one more trying to break through.

That book must be really funny.

Burke loves:

• Books
• Cars, trucks, and balls
• To play
• Pulling himself up

Burke is working on:

• Cutting more teeth
• Trying to walk

Cannonball!!

As most people know, Brynn is a fish.  She loves the water and goes swimming every chance she gets.  She has been begging us to take Burke swimming in the pool (most days he just hangs poolside with Mom).  So this past weekend Brynn was so happy that Burke got to go swimming with her and loved it!!  Of course he did, his big sister loves it!!  At first Cam tried to ease him into the water until a big splash came from Brynn.  A wet face and a delightful smile from Burke and the three of them were cruising around the pool.  Not long after that Brynn was asking Burke if he wanted to learn how to do “Cannonballs”.  What a good big sister, making sure her brother gets to experience the finer things in life.  She held his hand tightly and counted down until she yelled “Cannonball” at the top of her lungs.  The two jumped in.  Brynn barely made it up above the water and she was asking Burke if he wanted to do it again.  Burke squealed with delight and the two of them would be setting up to do it AGAIN and AGAIN and AGAIN.  I think we might have another water baby on our hands.          

Perfect "Angels"

For Father’s Day the kids had gotten Cameron tickets to an Angels baseball game for the entire family.  Brynn looked forward to going to the game and had been counting down the days till we got to go.  The day of the game finally arrived but she had gotten sick and had to go to urgent care instead.  She was bummed and was doing everything she could to convince us she felt fine.  You could just see it in her eyes – she felt terrible. 

From that day forward, Brynn was constantly asking when we were going to get to go to a game.  After rearranging some schedules we found a home game that would work.  It was a Friday night game against the Detroit Tigers.  Brynn was thrilled.  She made sure everyone had their Angels shirts and a jacket so they would not get cold.  It was a great game!!  The kids were perfect “Angels” and had a blast.  Brynn intently watched the game while Burke giggled at everyone in the stands.  The kids surprisingly made it through the entire game and the game concluded with fireworks as the Angels beat the Tigers 1-2.  A victory for all!!

Family Fun

Angels Biggest Fan

6 Months Old

Burke is six months old going on 10 months.  He never ceases to amaze me.  He is growing up so quickly and progressing faster than I remember with Brynn.  Since last month he is now crawling.  The army crawl still comes out every once in awhile but for the most part is full on crawling.  He is sitting up tall like a big boy.  And can get to the seated position all by himself.  He is pulling himself up.  And just the other day when we went to get him out of his crib in the morning he was standing up giggling and bouncing.  He was pretty much looking at me saying “mommy look at me”. Let’s just say we were very quick to drop his crib down after that.  More importantly after a break-through at Grandmas, Burke is eating solid foods.  It started off a little rough but now he is eating it with no problems.  He loves it all!!  But he does like to do it himself.  Luckily he will now eat from a spoon and let me guide him.

Stats:

• Weight – 17 pounds 14 ounces (30^th percentile)
• Height – 28 inches (95^th percentile)  
• Head Circumference – 43 cm (50^th percentile)

 

Burke loves:

• His big sister
• Cars and trucks
• Pears
• Holding his own bottle

 

Burke is working on:

• Getting a tooth
• Growing into 12 month clothes
• Keeping up with his big sister

4th of July

The 4^th of July was bitter sweet for us this year.  We had to suddenly go home to say goodbye to Cameron’s grandmother.  She had been ill for a little while.  We did not know how much time we would have with her so we had been trying to make a point to see her the past few times we had been home.  The service was beautiful everything from the flowers, the weather, the service, and the burial.  People traveled from everywhere to say goodbye to a lovely woman.  

Cameron’s entire family came together in Mitchell for the service.  The kids’ spent hours together laughing, playing and swimming.  Brynn shocked me when she even went down the big water slide at the hotel.  I think I have a little daredevil on my hands.  Next, we headed to Sioux Falls for the night to spend time with Grandma Sharon.  After a quick stop at the fireworks stand, Brynn was grinning from ear to ear.  Hours later, after snaps, smoke balls, parachutes, and ladybugs, Brynn was tuckered out.  Here we learned that Burke likes solid foods but wants to feed himself.  He had no problem eating avocado and bananas as long as we put it on the end of a toy that was large enough for him to hold himself.  What a silly boy!    

Lastly we headed to Lake Madison to spend the 4^th of July with Cameron’s family.  Here Brynn spent 2 days following Aiden and Cooper around, playing with Kinley and getting love from Grandma Nancy.  It was cute to watch Brynn develop relationships with her cousins.  She idolizes Aiden and wants to do everything he does.  Kinley and her played so well together.  They rarely fought over toys and were always right next to each other.  During nap time we could hear them talk and giggle – it was so cute.  The weather was beautiful and not too hot.   Burke enjoyed the fresh air and took long naps.

Despite having to say goodbye to a wonderful women, it was great to be together and spend the weekend celebrating Grandma Weber’s life and the 4^th of July with family.