Walking!

Finn has been taking some experimental steps lately, and loves walking around with the help of his push toy, and tonight he finally decided to take the plunge!  We are all so excited for him - yay Finn!

Happy Birthday, Finn!

Finn turned one on Sunday!  What a big year.  He is such a sweet, smiley baby, and we are so thankful to have him.  He eats like a bottomless pit and has turned into a pretty good sleeper now, hooray!  He is still doing his one-arm, one-toe variation of the army crawl, but he is a fast little booger.

He has started pulling up and cruising now, so he is into everything.  He is so tall!  It took him a while to practice and get strong enough to pull all that weight up - and it was a big surprise when he finally did it!  I was in the kitchen when I heard Elijah yelling frantically, "Mom!  Mom, come quick!  We've got a real problem here!"  I raced into the powder room to find Finn standing up, chewing on the toilet seat and grinning at me!  Elijah was horrified.  I was horrified, and laughing at the same time.  Nothing is safe now!

Standing tall!  The ottoman is just perfect for cruising.

Loving his table toy!

Too much fun to be still!

Today we had a birthday party at Patrick's parents' house for Finn and Aunt Lorrie and Uncle Bill.  It was a fun day, and extra fun that Nana got to be there, too!  We chose Goodnight Moon as the theme for Finn's cake and decorations.  Yesterday, Maiah came and spent the whole afternoon helping me make and decorate the cake.  She was such a big help!

Surprised, and hoping to grab the candle.

Goodnight Moon cake

My baking assistant, Maiah, with her first fondant cake!

Um, yeah.

Elijah: Daddy, do you know what purloined means?

Daddy: What?

Elijah: It means stolen.

Daddy: Um, yeah.

{The look on Patrick's face was priceless.  Mine, too, I'm sure.  After the first moment of shock, I laughed so hard I almost cried.  I don't know why we continue to be surprised by this kid, but it sure is funny!}

Daddy's been travelling

Patrick was away for a conference in Phoenix for a week. He travels for work periodically, but most of the trips are short ones.  He is only gone this long once or twice a year.  This time, we tried to plan ahead some ways to make things easier.

Molly got to go have a sleepover/girls' weekend with Rylee and Brynn at Aunt Diane and Uncle Bill's house.  While she was gone, Elijah and Finn and I had a Mama and the boys weekend.  I think both Elijah and Molly had lots of fun!

Molly's girls' weekend started with a trip to the nail salon for a mani/pedi - she picked out a bright orange color and got little flowers on a couple of toes.  Wow - what a treat!  She had a great time doing lots of "girly" things with her cousins, and playing together, especially with their bitty babies.  On Saturday, they went to Build-a-Bear so that Molly and Brynn could make a friend.  (Rylee, Elijah and Evan made theirs last year.)  Molly just LOVES her new bear, Kate.

Of course, Kate is very pink and frilly. =)

love.

 Elijah got to have a play date with Evan, and we got to stay for a fun dinner.  Elijah and I also went to Target to exchange a Lego set that he received two of - and he picked out this new fire truck/rescue set.  On Saturday, Elijah built his new Legos and we played a couple of games of Sorry! during Finn's nap.  Elijah loves to play games, and Sorry! is one of several that he can play, but is too old for Molly.  It was fun to get to do those "big kid" things for a day! 

He's getting so grown up - his favorite Transformers t-shirt, Legos, and Sorry!

We also went to the park and the library, and went on a special lunch date.  After dinner, we made ice cream sundaes and watched Cars 2, again.  Does life get any better than that?

On Sunday, we went to Bobbi & Papa's house to meet Aunt Diane and get Molly.  We stayed for naps and then went out to the Olive Garden for dinner.  Wow, what a fun treat!  We were all glad to see Bobbi, who just got home from a long trip to Florida.

On Monday, Elijah had a day off of school, and Bobbi and Papa came and spent the afternoon and evening with us.  I got to go out for a little while by myself during nap time, and had lots of help with all the bedtime chaos.  Plus, we just had a lot of fun!

Jumping, and talking to Papa

Building car towers with Papa

 

So much fun!

We are so glad to have Daddy home again, and I am so thankful for the extra help to get through this week, and even make some special memories!

Sneezey giggles

Elijah is pretty creative when it comes to entertaining Finn - and he'll do anything that gets a laugh over and over again.  They never get tired of being silly together!

So funny

Finn and Daddy playing around last night.  Love those baby laughs!

Finn laughs

This one is from last night - Finn laughing at Daddy.  So far, Daddy is magic - I haven't gotten even a little giggle out of him! =)

Finn's baptism

On Saturday, we were so blessed to have lots of family here for Finn's baptism. Nana was here all month, and Grandpa came out for the weekend. My Aunt Louise also came out from western PA, and Bobbi & Papa and Danny & Lorrie's family were able to come as well.

with Aunt Louise

with Maiah

so cute!

Yes Finn, Bobbi is laughing at you!

the five of us

with Nana & Grandpa

with Patrick's side of the family

with Bobbi & Papa

all the grandparents

with my side of the family

Mama & Daddy and our little man.

Tickling

Just a little Shmuffin baby laughter to brighten your day!

Eight months old!

Molly turned 8 months old on Friday. Wow, she is growing up so fast! We are enjoying getting to know her growing personality and watching her learn and develop every day. Miss Molly sure has changed a lot in the past eight months! All that dark hair fell out, rubbed off, or lightened up so that it is now light brown, fuzzy, and just starting to grow a little longer! (Even her bald spot in the back is starting to fill in again now that she is sleeping on her tummy most of the time.) Her eyes are still dark gray or dark army green, depending on the day. It looks like they may stay a dark hazel permanently. She does take after Elijah quite a bit, both in looks and in the things she is doing at this age. They both loved to be swaddled and had to be weaned from it (rather sadly) when they got too big. Both have been pacifier babies and they both loved Cheerios from the very first try. Molly has been eating well, and (like Elijah did) likes pretty much anything you give her. She even loved the plain cereal from the very first day! I have been stripping her down to her diaper for most meals lately, though, because she just can't seem to keep her hands out of her mouth (and is therefore soon completely covered in drool and whatever she is eating). She must be ready for more finger foods!

The chubby cheeks and fuzzy hair in all their baby glory.

Molly is generally a very smiley baby who loves to laugh, and likes to be surprised. She is very ticklish! She especially likes to laugh along with Elijah (even if she has no idea why they're laughing), and she usually plays well by herself for a while. Her favorite games are peek-a-boo, tummy kisses, and horsey rides on my knee. Molly loves to cuddle, and even patiently enjoys clumsy love and kisses from big brother. Her favorite time of the day is her bath. She just laughs and is so excited that she kicks and flails around like crazy when I get her undressed at night - you really have to hang on to that little naked spaz-attack! It makes me laugh every time. Our little Missy is very impatient, though, and very vocal about it. In general, I think she's a much louder, more vocal baby than Elijah was - happy or sad. In the past couple of weeks she has stepped up from what I called "squawking" when she was bored or tired or wanted some attention, to a constant tattoo of screechy screaming when she doesn't get what she wants immediately. Lovely - I hope we outgrow that one soon! She isn't crawling yet, but she is trying to figure out how to get up onto all fours from her belly, and she has amazing balance when she is sitting up - she reaches and lunges all over the place, and even kicks her feet up without falling over.

Here's a little video of Molly playing with Daddy and making Elijah laugh.

Baby laughs

Here are some fun baby laughs for your enjoyment!

Eating

I've been trying to get some video of Elijah in real life so you all can see and hear what he's doing these days. Here he is eating, practicing using a fork, talking a bit about eating, and generally being silly. Lately, he spends a lot of meal time doing goofy things to get a laugh, or just laughing at himself. I don't mind that a bit - I know he's still eating a lot, and it's fun!

Catching up

Hi! The past six weeks or so have been really busy for us, with people visiting us and us going away, and lots of stuff generally going on ... so I thought I would just try and fill you all in on some of the stuff happening around here.

Elijah is growing up so quickly now. He is quite a pro at walking and likes to try to carry all sorts of things with him as he travels. He attempts to pick up and carry lots of things that are large, awkward or heavy - he just wants to do it himself. He is saying quite a few words, some more clearly than others, and tries new words all the time. Some of his favorites right now are: cheese, shoe, "tah" (which means hat), "dadda" (can mean either Daddy or dog, depending on the context), "nana" (which can mean either banana or his grandma), and "peas" (can be either peas or please). His new favorite sound is a firetruck, and he laughs and laughs when Daddy or Mama make the sound for him. One of his favorite toys is his tool bench, especially the nails, bolts and wrench. He is so much fun most of the time! On a less fun note, Elijah has been experimenting with temper tantrums, especially at diaper changes. The joys of parenthood continue! =)

Last month, my mom and I threw a bridal shower for my cousin Johanna. It was a great day and everything went well. Lots of people came, and a lot of people helped in so many ways. It was fun, but mostly I was glad that it was a blessing to Johanna as she gets ready to start a new life. Congratulations, babe!

I had a really nice time on my trip to Pittsburgh and got to visit lots of people there who I haven't seen in a while. I got to meet lots of babies and spent some time with my grandma. I stayed with Erin, John and baby Caleb - so fun!

I finally got to meet little Caleb!

After I got home from Pittsburgh, Patrick went to a conference in Flagstaff, Arizona which he enjoyed. But we've been glad to all be home and get back into a normal routine this week. Of course, next week is Thanksgiving and Johanna's wedding, so we'll have another crazy week! It's going to be really fun though, and we are excited that so many friends and family will be in town. Hopefully there will also be lots of fun pictures to post.

We've had some wonderful and exciting news from friends lately, too. Congratulations to Dave, Erin and Ella on the birth of baby Lucy! We are so thankful for a healthy mom and baby and excited for your new little love! We were also rejoicing with our friends Mike and Tori, who are finally in the last stage of an adoption process that has been so terribly long. Congratulations, and we are so excited to meet the little guy! Elijah thinks that the boys are going to be great friends.

Little reader

Elijah loves to read books. He will sit and read book after book (I think 12 in a row is our current record) and fusses when we stop. He is learning to turn the pages as we read, and laughes at some parts ("I am not your mother. I am a dog," said the dog.) His favorite books right now are Are You My Mother?, But Not The Hippopotamus, The Very Lonely Firefly, Goodnight Moon, and I LoveYou, Goodnight.

Photo Shoot

Elijah was just so cute today, I had to take a few pictures. It's been a while since we've had portraits done, but I think these turned out just as well! Despite the onset of teething, E continues to be such a happy baby most of the time - smiling and laughing a lot.

Tired, but still laughing!

Despite a very rough day, Elijah had a ball playing with Daddy this evening.