Mr. President

Playing Outside: A Progression

With the beautiful weather we've been having here this fall, Eleanor has continued to play outside often. It is getting much colder, however... and she dislikes the idea of wearing winter clothes since it isn't snowing. So, here's an example of the progression that happens any given afternoon. There is approximately 5 minutes between each step.

Step 1: long pants over tights and a "tutu" (leotard), shoes and a lightweight jacket

Step 2: a plastic bag - for collecting rotting plums, of course!

Step 3: glubs

Step 4: a hat

Step 5: staying inside because "it's too cold!"

Big Pants

A friend of mine let me borrow a whole tub full of "tweener" clothes... and I tried them on one recent evening. Eleanor decided she really needed to get in on the action, too!
I think they are still a bit big for her... but they fit me just right. It is really nice to have some clothes that I can return when I'm through with them, are slightly bigger than my "normal" clothes and aren't my maternity clothes. They help me feel slightly more put together these days. :)

Leabs!

Enjoy!

Feeling Better, Rolling Over and Smiles

Today we are all feeling better, although we're tired. Because of the illness around here, we skipped out on Bible study yesterday and MOPS today. Yesterday ended up kind of busy because I felt like there was a lot of cleaning to catch up on, but today the fatigue set in and all of us have pretty much just hung out and enjoyed each other. Benjamin seems to be getting so much bigger (older) all of a sudden.

During a forced bout of tummy time, Benjamin rolled over 4 times in succession - he really dislikes being on his tummy! - so I grabbed the camera and lucky for you he did it one last time:

Then we finally captured one of his adorable little smiles:

And one from Ella, too:

Icky, Icky Sicky

So I officially got 1 1/2 hours of sleep... then much later another hour... then much later another 2 hours - but only because Seth was able to head into work a little bit late. Between Eleanor throwing up and Benjamin needing to nurse, it was a wakeful night. This is the kind of sickness I don't handle very well... especially when it means changing all the blankets and sheets on the bed multiple times in the night. We have finally mastered the concept of the "barf bucket," however, and the second half of the night Ella puked there. Tremendous!

So, if you're feeling in the mood, we'd love prayers for Ella getting better, the rest of us not getting sick (especially Benjamin) and me having patience today as I'm functioning on little sleep. Thanks!

Big Blue Eyes

It seems Benjamin will have bright blue eyes like his sister - although his are currently a slightly more steely blue - and he's using them more and more each day. This little critter just loves lounging on the floor, kicking, looking around and occassionally rolling over. So far he's still only been successful with the rolling from front to back (10 times, maybe), but he's sure trying from time to time to get himself from back to front.

He's growing fast! These days we love to check out his lovely, chubby thigh rolls. :) And he's making his way out of his 3 month clothes - I expect a day in the next few weeks when I'll realize I can no longer button his onesies or fit him from shoulder to feet in his pajamas. I'd forgotten just how quickly they grow...

The Back Log

Here's where you can check out what we've been doing lately (if you're interested). I'll keep updating the list as I get time.

Halloween!

A Visit with Grandma and Grandpa Sargent

Kayli's Birthday

Autumn Leaves

A Visit with Grandma and Grandpa Tippin

Corny Jokes

Our Big Girl

Benjamin Meets Avery

The Pumpkin Patch

Painting Downtown

Just Because...

It's Been a Long Time.

Here are today's pics of Benjamin:

He continues to be a happy baby. We're enjoying him thoroughly.

Our lives are busy with 2 little ones, sickness and recent grandparent visits. I have hopes of getting many more posts put up here on the blog very soon. We hope you all are well - and that we haven't lost all our faithful readers. :)

Just Chillin'

Grandma and Grandpa (Sargent) came to visit us October 29th through November 1st. Eleanor was so excited they were coming that we learned about calendars and how they mark days/dates. She knew exactly which day on the calendar G&G were coming and I would show her each morning which day was Today. Then we would count how many days we still had to wait until they came.

On Friday she woke up to G&G here, sleeping in our basement. She was VERY excited.

Unfortunately, Ella came down with a nasty bug on Saturday. This meant we didn't do much while G&G visited except visiting. We enjoyed the babies, talked amongst ourselves, watched football and baseball, played Munchkin, baked and experimented with venision and antelope recipes. And Ella got a chance to go shopping with Grandma for cowboy boots and a cowboy hat! She also got in a trip to the park - where there happened to be a dog dress up contest going on for Halloween - before coming down with the worst of her sickness.

Even though our activities were fairly low-key, it was a good visit. Thank you Mom and Dad for taking the time to come and see us!

Happy Halloween!

Ms. Ella - The Cat

(This was the only picture of the two kids we got - the only one of Benjamin - because our camera died mid-photo session.)

Eleanor was sick on Halloween, so we didn't do many of the activities we'd planned. Grandma and Grandpa (Sargent) were here, so Benjamin stayed with them while they handed out candy and Seth, Ella and I headed out for some quick Trick or Treating in our neighborhood.

The pumpkin carving actually happened the evening of November 1st. Ella was still talking about carving the pumpkins (actually, asking to cut them open and scoop out the seeds) and she was feeling slightly better, so Seth decided it should be done. They had a great time.