Sunday, December 23, 2007

Two things...


When I attempt to put the Girl in her car seat she prefers to stand. Every single time. The other day I decided to give her a second and I leaned over to pick something up, upon looking up I noticed she was between the two seats, feet in the air. I frantically picked her up, though no harm was done. She isn't crawling, but is definitely trying things out. Jacob said, "Mom you have to be more careful with her, like I am."

This second topic is for a good friend of mine, Emily. Chloe should have been your child...she is not averse to having her nose suctioned. She had a runny nose about a week ago and didn't mind this, she did however dislike the tissue.

I hope all your noses are dry this holiday season.


Merry Christmas!

Monday, December 3, 2007

Gabe has a bright idea

Gabe thought it would be fun to get the faces Chloe was making on video. If she sees you with the camera she tends to stop. I believe she thinks this camera is part of the family, when it is on a ride with her, she acts as she normally does. Enjoy!

The Mailbox

Our mailbox has been falling apart for some time and I was determined to fix it myself. I mean, how hard could it be? After two hours of chiseling away at the surrounding concrete I was able to free the box. It was a very satisfying feeling. I really enjoyed the physical labor of it.

Here is the rusted heap, which could have caused mail to be lost (I had suspected such but I was unable to locate any mail in the brick).


And the almost-finished product. I still need to fill in the gaps around the box, but already it is wonderful to have a properly functioning mailbox. Matthew is able to check the mail again without fear of losing anything. Relief.



Sunday, December 2, 2007

Pictures...

Gabe is kind of overdoing it in this picture, but most of his other pictures are quite silly. So, here we have Gabe and Chloe. He has a special voice that he does when he talks to Chloe (it kind of reminds me of Betty Boop) and he claims it is now hard to talk to her in his normal voice. She enjoys it though.


Jacob, looking very handsome.


Here we have Matthew. I'll have to dig out some pictures from last year to show the contrast, but he really is growing up and losing that baby look...in fact I think it's gone completely. He does this smile exclusively for pictures it seems.

Chloe has been snorting a lot lately. Mostly I write it off as something new she has learned to do, but part of me wonders, 'Is there something stuck up there?'. You never can tell. She has a check-up tomorrow, I may just ask the doc to take a look.

Here she is in her dress for church, she is seven months old this day (Dec. 2). I didn't think her eyes could look any more blue, but with this dress on and her complexion, she looks wonderful.

Thursday, November 15, 2007

six and a half




twenty-three pounds, twelve ounces

Friday, November 9, 2007

6:45 am

Matthew was awake early again this morning and decided to continue work on a 300-piece puzzle. As he worked he sang, "We don't need no invitation". Repeatedly. I had to correct him that it was 'education' not 'invitation'. It took him a few reminders but he got it right...just in time for school.




This picture was taken a couple of weeks ago, he was sorting his m&ms by color, a fun hobby he enjoys.
Well, when mom shares.

New York








Louis took me out for apple donuts at the cider mill. These donuts were amazing! The place has a waterfall in the back that used to power the mill. This has the potential to become a favorite place. We also had some apple salsa which was pretty tasty.

I had been nervous about how Chloe would react to Dad since it had been about a month and a half since they had last seen each other. She didn't miss a beat though and they had a blast together. The way she looked at him...







She kept laughing and would put her head down before I could get the shot. Although, this one is pretty cute anyway. We had a fabulous time. We miss him already.

Thursday, October 18, 2007

No more training wheels



Several times in the past I had tried to persuade Matthew to give it a go without the training wheels and he refused. The other night on a walk Matthew noticed a boy from church, E, riding without the training wheels. E is a little younger than Mr. Matthew and Matthew just couldn't have that going on...Go, Matthew! Now we probably need a bigger bike. You would think with two older brothers we would have something lying around, waiting to be passed on. Not the case, my boys know how to tear up a bike. They also know how to look 'stylin'.


Who comes to mind when you look at his expression? I'm thinking Napoleon.

I love this girl




Wednesday, October 17, 2007

Snowball

Snowball

Snowball entered our family quiet, and small.
After, I, naming him he begun to grow and begun to like us.
He was fat, and he always messed with other cats, Thats when he disappeared.
We love you Snowball!!! <33>



Friday, October 12, 2007

Laughter

Chloe loves her brothers and finds them to be highly entertaining.




The reason for her amusement? Jacob and his fancy feet.

Thursday, October 11, 2007

morning and Uncle Aaron

This picture isn't the best, but this was a beautiful sight early Tuesday morning.

And here is a shot of Chloe with Uncle Aaron, Monday morning.

A walk

The other night we went on a walk and those with children know what can come of that. Toad pick up...Monday night's catch. The boys love to chase them down. I wonder if Chloe will chase with them or squeal in fear.

Sleep like a baby...

Whoever coined that phrase did not have a baby. Or at least not this baby. There are some who know of my sleep troubles with little lady (not trouble so much as big inconvenience). Well, I decided to give her some floor time this morning and after squirming and squealing for fifteen minutes I behold this sight. Beautiful...
Sweet dreams little girl.

Monday, October 8, 2007

some fun pictures





Matthew...

loves his dad and misses him. Here is a picture he made for Dad. He is very proud of it and told Louis all about it. Almost every detail.




Jacob

Jacob is ten. And for a ten year-old he is still very capable of being 'himself' without much concern for who is looking. I believe this is a wonderful characteristic and I hope it stays a part of his personality. Introducing his 'other half':


Marshmallow Man

His nemesis, in case your curious, hot chocolate.



Louis and I really enjoy music and I must say, we are somewhat snobbish when it comes to music. Jacob though has great taste in music...he likes what we like. This is Jacob listening to the i pod in the dark.
And Jacob loves to skate. No rollerblades for him though. He enjoys the classic four-wheelers.
Jacob...you rock!


Chloe is a big girl


Gone are the days of lying back in her stroller. She now must sit upright...because she can.

Sunday, October 7, 2007

Matthew scores!

The clip is pretty short but for now it will do. It's not easy doing things with a nearly 22 pound girl hanging on. Matthew really seems to love soccer and it is wonderful to have a child excited about something other than video games. This was from his game on 9/29. (Matthew is in the yellow jersey kicking the ball.)

Monday, October 1, 2007

Looking back...





She is five months old today...