Miss Independent

Emery has definitely entered the independent phase. We hear "I Do It!" a thousand times a day. She wants to dress herself, change her own diaper, cook her own food, and basically be her own boss. :-)

Bringing a newborn into the house has been interesting so far because she wants to "help out" by bringing Ethan a blanket, shoving a pacifier into his mouth, letting him sleep with her Mickey Mouse, etc..... Even though we have to keep a close eye on her, she's been really good with him (Gavin has also been good), and it's been pretty cute to watch.

But this morning took the cake....... I was feeding (nursing) Ethan in the recliner in our bedroom when Emery climbed up and sat next to us. She pulled up her shirt and started screaming "I feed Ethan. I Do It! I Do It!" She was going into a full on meltdown until I bribed her with an M&M if she would be good until I finished feeding him.

At least this time around, I have toddlers to entertain me in my sleep deprived state. :-)

Ethan is here!

Ethan Samuel is here!
Born last Monday, December 14th at 10:59am
9 lbs. 5 oz.
22 inches

We've been home from the hospital since Friday and are doing well!

A BIG boy!

Waiting under the Christmas tree before the car ride home.........

Proud big sister!

At home, just hanging out.........

Thanksgiving

Some of my favorite pictures of Thanksgiving spent with family (at my mom and step dad's house).................

Hanging out with Aunt Miranda and her dog Elle. Gavin LOVES Elle.

Playing in the leaves. Yes, those TINY things at the bottom left of the picture are leaves......a little different than the piles of leaves they played in when we lived in Indiana! :-)

Looking for butterflies.......

Emery and my Aunt Linda, Emery's Great Aunt.

This swing was in my grandparent's backyard when I grew up and maybe even when my mom was little. I'll have to ask my mom just how old it is, but it's been part of the family for a LONG time!

Emery and her Great Grandpa Sam. She spent lots of time sitting in his lap watching cartoons.

It was a fun week and the kids got LOTS of attention. We can't wait to see everyone again!

Nap time!

Lately, Gavin and Emery have been playing "nap time" in the guest bedroom. It makes me laugh every time I find them like this.......It's usually when I'm nervous because it's WAY too quiet all of a sudden!



Now if I could just get them to play nap time when it's REALLY nap time!

Too Cool for School

Watching cartoons in style. Yes, those are Robin pajamas (from Batman and Robin). I think she wears it well...........

Piggy Back Rides

Piggy back ride in the mid 1970's.........This was my Dad giving me a piggy back ride at my Grandparent's house when I was about 2 years old.

Piggy back ride in 2009..........This is my Dad (Vandaddy) giving Emery a piggy back ride at our house today.

His hair color is a little lighter, his face was turning red, and I guarantee he'll be sore tomorrow, but it's still just as much fun for the passenger 33 years later!

Christmas List

Gavin has been looking through the toy catalogs almost every day. When I explained to him that Santa Claus will bring him presents, he quickly came up with a Christmas list......... "a combine, Lightening McQueen, a jeep, a big truck, and a tractor". Wow, they learn fast.

Halloween #3!

Since we're almost 1/2 way through November, I thought I should FINALLY post some Halloween pictures.......

We live out in the country (sort of), so there aren't many trick-or-treaters in our neighborhood and it's a long walk between houses, especially for little guys (and girls). We started out in the wagon and visited a few of our neighbors. Gavin and Emery quickly got the hang of it. Gavin was confident, standing up front, saying his "trick-or-treats" and "thank yous". Emery on the other hand was pretty shy and hid behind my leg most of the time waiting for the candy. Towards the end, she picked up confidence and tried to swipe an extra handful from a couple of candy bowls. Emery quickly ditched the wagon and insisted on walking. Gavin loaded his bag of candy into the wagon, climbed in, and said "Next house! Hurry!". After visiting a few houses, we headed to the downtown area of our tiny town, where the business owners were giving out candy. This was a lot less walking for a lot more candy. We stopped at a few more houses in our neighborhood on our way home. By this time, the kids were pros and were on a mission for more candy. They also loved using their flashlights after dark. Overall, Halloween #3 was a lot of fun and Pete and I enjoyed eating most of their candy! :-)

Getting their flashlights ready for the night out.......Emery likes to use hers as a microphone.

After visiting a couple of houses in our neighborhood........

Ready for more!


Lighting the pumpkins at the end of the night. Tired, but on a sugar high!

And a couple more pieces of candy before bedtime!

A look back at Halloweens #1 and 2:

Gavin and Emery's first Halloween, almost 3 months old (Gavin still on oxygen). I was home alone because Pete was travelling for work, so we kept it pretty low key.

Halloween #2......... Excuse my crazy looking face in this picture. The kids were almost 15 months old. We cruised the neighborhood in their wagon. We didn't do much trick-or-treating, but they loved checking out the Halloween decorations and all of the other kids. This was the first year in the Pebbles and Bam Bam costumes. We used them again this year and they still fit great!

More pumpkins!

This year, the kids got to help with the pumpkin carving. The knives and markers made me a little nervous, but it was a success. Of course, we didn't let them handle the knives, but we did trust Emery with a marker, which she LOVED and wouldn't let go of.



Helping to dig out the "guts"..........



Gavin with the pumpkin's eye. He kept trying to put it back in the hole, saying "fix it, fix it".



The finished product: Emery has her shirt on backwards (independence phase) and marker all over her face. Gavin fell down the stairs just before this picture was taken (He was fine and learned a lesson about hanging on to the railing!). Group pictures are usually a disaster these days.........



Getting crazier by the minute...........

Attempt at a picture on the front porch. Emery is still drawing on the pumpkin with her marker.........

This was the best we could do after bribing them with fruit snacks.........

On Halloween night, they helped (watched) us light candles in the pumpkins. They loved it and nobody burned themselves or set the house on fire, which was a bonus. :-)

Then and Now- 33 weeks

Then: June 30, 2007........about 33 weeks pregnant with Gavin and Emery.


Now: October 30, 2009..........about 33 weeks pregnant with one baby.

It's just fun to do a comparison every once in a while!

Halloween Party

Last Sunday was my twin's club Halloween party. We recycled last year's Pebbles and Bam Bam costumes that Grandma Penny made. Still a perfect fit!



Gavin loved the bounce house and Emery had fun decorating her pumpkin. I hesitate to say this, but parties are starting to get easier! Pete and I are noticing a little more standing around socializing and a little less kid wrangling. It was a low key and fun party!

The group (Emery and Gavin on the far left).........

Another change.......they stood still (for a split second) for the group picture. They were the first ones to bolt out of the picture so it didn't last long, but I think they're getting the hang of "look at the camera and say cheese". At least we put our kids on the end so they can easily be cropped out if they dart off or make crazy faces. :-)

Pumpkin Farm

We had a couple of nice (but windy) days in the middle of the WEEKS of continuous rain we've had lately, so we decided to visit a local pumpkin farm. We made the trip on a Monday to beat the crowds.......Yeah, right! There were 6 busloads of school kids there! Apparently their field trips were all postponed to the same day that we decided to visit. There was plenty of room to run around, so we still had a great time.

SIDE NOTE: For those of you in Indiana or anywhere up north, I know that you're laughing at our pumpkin patch. After living in Indy for almost 4 years and visiting a REAL pumpkin patch, I am laughing too.

First we got to feed the animals......



That's Pete and Gavin in the background checking out the goat on the "goat bridge".



Then, there were the crazy longhorns.........



Feeding the longhorn was the grossest thing I've done in a long time. Plus, you had to be sure to duck to avoid being hit in the face by his horns!



I like this picture, which I took from a safer, less disgusting distance.........



After checking out the animals, Gavin kicked the tires on the old red truck........

We went on a hayride.............

Picked out pumpkins from the pumpkin patch........

And ran through the tunnel in the hay bale maze for 30 minutes straight........

Emery was a little shy that day, but Gavin was loving it!

And finally, an attempt at a group picture with Dad........

We are expecting rain AGAIN tomorrow, but we've been squeezing in some fun fall activities!