Change is Here!

What a week last week was! I was driving home from La Crosse, WI when I heard the news that Obama will be our next President. I whooped so loud I startled myself! And as the week went on, I found myself thinking 'Yes we can' on several occasions. I feel some hope now for some healing and changes coming to Washington. I don't think there will be any miracles, but change, oh yes, change.

I've got some catching up to do with pictures. Here are some from Halloween and pumpkin carving. The kids were fascinated by jack-o-lanterns.


Here is our little monster:

On Halloween we went over to our friends' house and J got to trick-or-treat with her pal A. If you can't tell, J is tinker bell and F was a dog - though he didn't have much patience for an outfit.

Last weekend our leaves finally fell out of our maple. We decided to rake some and of course everyone had to have their own rake. F is so funny. He thinks he's just as big as everyone else so he picked up the big rake because the small one just wasn't enough. Here are some pics from that fun:


And now, some movies. One of J dressed up as a pegasus in her storybook ballet class. The other of little F walking up a storm. Enjoy!

The Next Step

Yesterday F decided to start walking on his own. We were at a festival at his daycare and he must have needed an audience because he picked a spot where a number of people were watching and just stood up and walked. It was great! And he smiled from ear to ear. I think he realizes he's a ham.

Thought we'd share one of his performances from today:


Here are some more fun pics of the kids today. They were feeling silly.


That's all for now!

Fall Fun

We've been enjoying some of the most beautiful Fall weather. Sunny and in the 70s. It will probably be freezing by Halloween so we're enjoying the Indian summer.

We had to try out some photos with our new camera. Here is J reading to F in her bed. They shared a room when Gma and Gpa were here visiting and helped work on the basement. That lasted 2 nights before F kept us all up because he knew someone else was in the room with him (and he was under the weather). He sleeps so much better on his own. Thank goodness for a house big enough for them to have their own rooms. I feel very fortunate.

We also went camping for the first time with all 4 of us. The last camping episode ended at 3 AM when we packed up a vomit-filled tent to take J home after she got the flu. This time was better...we made it through. Though we were up from about midnight to 3 AM trying to get F to fall back asleep. Wow, how a screaming child echos in a quiet campground. Next year will be so much better when F is walking and fully in toddlerhood.

Here's the bean, amazing how dirty a little crawling fellow can get while camping:

And the J snuggling her Papa:

For some reason both kids loved our new double sleeping bag when it was all rolled up. It was like a bouncy tent:



Today it was gorgeous - actually kinda hot. In Wisconsin in October? We had to get out of town. We went to a pumpkin patch and had a great time. F loved all the pumpkins and wanted to touch them all:

J was just happy to prance around the field pointing out the ones that had bugs and were squished:


Once we picked out our pumpkins, we had a rest:


Then J wanted to pull F in the wagon - using her 'strong muscles' as she likes to say. She did a fabulous job, but I'm not sure F liked the idea:


The kids found this huge pumpkin and all F wanted to do was sit on it:


Well, or maybe eat it:



Cheers!

Change Coming

I love this time of year. It's crisp and cool at night and most days are gorgeous and sunny. Reminds us that change is coming - and especially this year with the election. I worry what might happen to the future of this country and for our kids if Obama-Biden don't make it into the White House. It keeps me up at night sometimes, hoping that our kids will have the opportunities and choices that we had when we were growing up and becoming adults. Maybe the change in weather isn't the only change we'll be seeing this Fall.

We took a trip to Gma and Gpa's in Michigan. We took the ferry across Lake Michigan and had a blast. The kids absolutely loved it, so much to watch and experience:

We had a great time w/ Gma and Gpa and uncles and aunts. The kids love to spend time with their grandparents. They are so fortunate to have all four around! G and I even got away for a night and went to Ann Arbor where we relished in having to take care of only ourselves with no diapers to change for 24 hours! Thank you so much Gma J and Gpa M!

Other happenings have been J's newfound love for dress-up and 'princesses'. Here she is with her pal G giving us a show:


And F's newfound love for tomatoes from the garden:


For some reason the kids love sitting in the laundry basket naked. They call it their boat :-) Sometimes J pushes F around in it, sometimes to his dismay. But this time they were just hangin' out:


This weekend we bought a bookshelf for J's room and of course J had to help poppa out with it. She put on her toolbelt and safety glasses, and we caught her on camera:



J's first storybook ballet class was this weekend. She was so excited about it and had a blast picking out her outfit:

They stretch out, do a few things across the floor (this week it was tiptoing and galluping sideways), then read a book and act out the book. They even get to put on costumes:



J loved it until the last part of the class when the parents came in to watch. Once she realized we were watching, she became very shy and barreled into my lap. Luckily the parents don't get to come into the class again until the end of the semester. So maybe by then her performance anxiety won't be present as much. She did love it though and oh, boy, was she ever cute galloping across the room in her pink ballet shoes.

F has moved up to the toddler room at his daycare. He's just starting to try to stand up on his own and take steps. He's been our cruising maniac for a while now. But to keep up with the others in his class he's realized that he needs to walk. I bet in the next 2 weeks he'll be taking steps on his own. He has been working on his language too - he's got very clear words like "dog", "up", "out", "duck". He adores dogs and cats and goes crazy whenever he sees them on our walks. He's still our little blondie!

Well, happy September everyone! Love to you all.

Summer Fun & Firsts

Wow, is it really August already? This summer has been so full of fun and eventful times. Since I haven't posted pics for a while, this is going to be a big one. So enjoy!

We got a hammock this year with our 'stimulus' check. What great fun it has been! When the
mosquitos aren't out in droves, you can find the family in it swinging, relaxing and looking at the sky.

We also ventured to the Brat Fest (the world's largest supposedly), right here in Wisconsin. J got her first ferris wheel ride!

In June we went up to a house on Lake Michigan in Two Rivers, Wisconsin with both sets of gparents. F and J were in heaven. And we all had a wonderful time together. We celebrated F's 1st bday, did some bike riding, kite flying, reading and relaxing. We had unusually rainy weather which ended up in some flooding...luckily not in the house, but the driveway was completely washed out by the 'creek' that used to run under the road. Check out the pics!




Here are just some random pics that I like from the summer. The kids have been quite rambunctious and F is definitely getting more vocal. You know when he wants something and he hasn't gotten it. He also likes to yell just because he can, and he adores playing piano. Maybe he'll be the musician of the two! And J has gotten into coloring a lot. Plus she comes home telling us the various things she's learned at Montessori school. Just yesterday she explained to me that bugs are insects and some have a head, abdomen and thorax. Her brain is a sponge! Oh, and F wants to do EVERYTHING his sister is doing. Including helping make dinner or wash dishes.





We also just went to the Wisconsin State Fair for the first time. F loves dogs and got to pet a husky. J had her very first pony ride and she LOVED it! And of course, we enjoyed the famous cream puffs for which they have a drive-through pick-up window if you ordered them ahead of time. Only in Wisconsin. Not sure who enjoyed the cream puffs the most - F, J or me!



I hope everyone is enjoying their summer as much as we have been!