Coolest. Ladybug. Ever.

Super Boy wishes you a Merry Christmas!

Belated 7 Month Comparison

7 Month Old Amelia (about 18 lbs)

7 Month Old Marley (about 15 lbs)

Amelia's 7 Month Photo Shoot

Crackin' Up

Yes, they do this often. Yes, it's just as cute in real life.

Amelia Videos

Amelia Playing with Toys

Grandma and Amelia

My Baby is Three!

Thank you to everyone who helped make Marley's birthday celebration a success. Even though some of our friends were unable to join us (hope you're feeling better!), we still had a great time! Special thanks to Denise Huson for making Marley's amazing digger cake.

Bon Appetit

At Reid's recent birthday party, delicious curried pumpkin soup was served.  I believe Marley was the only one of the kids to have some.  I'm sure he was the only one who asked for seconds.  And thirds.

Anyone who's ever dined with him knows that he's an eater.  He has a broad palate, and is always willing to try new things.  Oh sure, he loves him some mac and cheese.  But he also scarfs down broccoli and green beans, gobbles up salmon and cod, and devours everything we order at Dim Sum.  Plus a whole slew of other things that I don't think I had even heard of as a child, much less eaten.  He does turn his nose up at things occasionally, but he's usually willing to give them another try again later.  And he's been like this since he was a baby!

Now that Amelia's beginning to eat with us, we want to do everything in our power to replicate Marley's adventurous eating habits.  In the couple weeks since she's officially started solids, she has already proven herself to be a champion eater.

With Marley, I made all my own purees and lovingly spoon fed him every bite.  And I have all kinds of time to do the same for Amelia.  NOT!  (Does anyone still say "NOT", or was that just an early 90's thing?)  This time around we're mostly skipping the whole spoon feeding thing and going straight to self feeding.  Things are going pretty well.  Amelia seems to be enjoying herself, and we all get to eat together! 

Snow Day!

Okay, so for me and the kids, everyday is kind of like a snow day, now.  Except usually without the snow.  And actually, it wasn't much of a snow day for Jeff.  Even though he desperately wanted to stay home, he forced himself to hop on the bus this morning.  He did wait for Marley to wake up, though, so he could see his reaction to the snow.  I wish I would have gotten video of that - it was so cute!  The snow continued falling throughout the day and it got really windy.  Jeff finally decided to head home - ON FOOT - since the traffic was so bad.  It took him 3 hours to get here!  However, his sister, Jill left the UW two hours before him.  She was heading home to Steilacoom.  But, since traffic was barely moving, she threw in the towel and decided to head to our house instead.  She got here about an hour after Jeff (a whopping 6 hour commute!). 

Sorry about the lack of videos lately.  I've been running out of space on Blogger, so I haven't been posting as many.  So, I'm going to do what my brother, Matt does (and I should have been doing all along - duh!) and just post links to the videos.

Our first trip out into the snow this morning. 

Ten minutes into our first trip out in the snow this morning.  Yes, Marley had mittens, but he wanted to take them off so he could feel the snow.

Amelia getting ready for trip #2 of the day.  We bundled up better and Marley kept his mittens on.  Trip #2 lasted much longer.

Me trying to teach (very poorly) Marley how to make a snow angel. 

Look what I made Marley for his birthday!

Click here to view this photo book larger

6 months

Marley at 6 Months
13lbs 13oz (3rd percentile), 24.75 inches (5th percentile)

Amelia at 6 Months
16.5 lbs (65th percentile), 26 inches (50th percentile)

Amelia at 6 Months:
*Can push up onto her hands and knees and rock back and forth
*Scoots backwards, often ending up in a corner somewhere or under the couch
*Loves to grab (and eat) her toes
*Is very ticklish, especially on her neck, thighs, and chest
*Babbles: Da Da, Ga Ga, and Ba Ba
*Has one tiny tooth (on the bottom)
*Still has a runny nose and has still not gone back to sucking her thumb (it's been a month, now!)
*Wakes up several times throughout the night to breastfeed
*Thinks her brother is hilarious
*Likes broccoli, green beans, pears, and pizza crust
*Isn't so sure about sweet potatoes, avocados, and bell peppers
*Favorite color is green (according to Marley)

Alki Bakery

It is a very sad day for the residents of West Seattle.  Alki Bakery unexpectedly announced last night that they are permanently closing their doors.  It has been an almost weekly tradition for us to go there for coffee, smoothies, sandwiches, clam chowder, cookies, cinnamon rolls, and a warm dry spot to gaze out at beautiful Alki Beach.  My only small consolation is that we just went there for lunch on Sunday with Nai Nai.  I really hope that there's a way this closure can be avoided.  The Beach will never, ever be the same without you, Alki Bakery!

ETA: Just in case you haven't been following the story as closely as I have, The West Seattle Blog posted an update.  We're still feeling really bummed about the whole thing.  I have a feeling we'll be avoiding the beach for a while until we can figure out a way to tell Marley.  (He's still having a hard time coming to terms with our neighbors moving over a month ago!  "Why did Paul get a new job?")

The Snot Thickens

Just as Amelia and her thumb were beginning to make amends - she'd recently thumbed herself back to sleep once during a nap and twice during the night - her cold got worse.  Much worse.  Or maybe she got a new cold, I'm not sure.  Either way, her poor little head is completely filled with snot.  And on top of that - she's got a TOOTH!  It's just barely poking through her lower gums, but it's definitely there.  Stay tuned for an update after her 6 month check up on Tuesday!

They just keep coming!

Here are some more gems that I've been transcribing over the last month or so.  Enjoy!

Marley overheard me talking with Sarah about planning a family vacation to Florida next year where I mentioned flying into Miami, and asked, "Mommy, why are you going to fly to your Ami?"

To his spoonful of breakfast cereal one morning: "Hold on tight! I'm gonna eat you really fast!"

When helping Jeff out in the yard: "I'm not very good at raking, but I'll try!"

Upon entering Curious Kids Stuff, our local toy store: "It's SO beautiful in here!"

Waitress (jokingly, to Amelia): "Are you gonna have some chips and salsa, too?"
Marley (matter-of-factly, to waitress): "Amelia only eats boobies."

Marley (in elephant costume): "Why does Chris have spikes on his head?"
Liz (in pig costume): "Because he is dressed up as the Statue of Liberty for Halloween."
Marley: "Oh!  And I can be the Elephant of Liberty, and you can be the Pig of Liberty!"

Me: "You can either walk, or you can ride in the stroller."
Marley: "I don't want to do any of the choices!"

Me: "Those people are the dog's owners."
Marley: "Are we Amelia's owners?"

And a couple other deep thoughts that I just want to remember:

"Sometimes I feel scared when you leave and my room is very dark."

"What does it look like in the mirror when I go away?"

Just a couple of random pictures

Dawn promoted me from comment-maker to assistant to the co-editor. I was going through some of our recent pictures and found these two that I thought were worth sharing.

Where is Thumbkin?

As Amelia's cold slowly winds down, I'm starting to feel desperate about her return to thumb-sucking. She used to sleep 8-10, and even up to 12(!), hours at a stretch when she and her thumb were getting along. I'd hear her stir, maybe even give a cry or two, but then she'd get her thumb and be back asleep in no time. Oh, how I miss those days! Now, when I hear her begin to stir in the night, I hold my breath and cross my fingers, silently urging her to find her thumb. But, by the time her cry reaches a wail and she's groping around for me, I know it's time to give up hope she's going to soothe herself back to sleep.

But, I refuse to give up hope entirely. I deserve this. I've paid my dues with one child who, essentially, breastfed continuously throughout the night for well over a year. Maybe I should try getting her a blankie.

Sweet Spot

In the morning, Marley's usually up before Amelia. He has a really hard time waiting for her to wake up. One of his first requests of the day is to go and get her. When she does awaken, he's in there in a flash smothering her with hugs and kisses. She, too, acts as if they've been separated for weeks, beaming her big, gummy grin up at him. Even if this only lasts for a short while, I'm totally loving this sweet spot we're in right now where they absolutely adore each other!

Ps. I know I've been totally lacking in the video department lately. I have a few that need editing and a few that I just haven't gotten around to posting. I'll get working on that.

Amelia's first trip to the pool

Every week Jeff and Marley meet Troy, Jada, and Miles at the Tukwila Community Center pool.  Never having taken a formal swim lesson, Jada and Marley (and now, Miles and Amelia) are learning how to swim simply by having regular opportunities to practice in a relaxed environment with plenty of support from their Daddies.  Last week, Amelia, Sarah, and I decided to join them. Sarah did a great job capturing the action for us!

Wearing the life vest helps Marley build confidence and independence

He is learning how to move forward, backward, and spin around in the water

Miles loves floating around, and the occasional dip in the water, while Jada,  at age 4, is able to swim quite well independently

Jada swims over to see what Amelia thinks of the water

We saw neither tears, nor smiles.  I guess we can count that as a success

Already Amelia is learning about the properties of water

Remember when Sarah was here...

The day after Sarah headed back to the East Coast, Marley remarked during dinner, "Remember when Sarah was here?" We went on to relive Sarah's visit, and talk about how much fun we all had, and that Sarah's favorite color is brown:) Here are some of my favorite photos from her stay.

Happy Hallo-weekend!

For weeks before Halloween, Marley insisted that he was going to be Spiderman.  I kept telling him that we would have to look and see what they had at Goodwill, and that they may not have Spiderman.  We went shopping for the kids' costumes with Sarah, and she was able to find the one and only Spiderman costume - and it was in Marley's size.   We bought that and the "strawberry", which turned out to actually be a chili pepper:)  Later, Sarah and I spotted the elephant costume in a consignment shop window for $2.  Surprisingly, Marley chose the elephant for all four of our Halloween outings. 

Two parties, two rounds of trick-or-treating, and one carnival later, I think we are finally Halloweened out. We did an embarrassingly bad job this year of photographing/videoing our Halloween experience. Sorry, Grandparents.  In fact, I'm tempted to put Amelia back into her costume and take a couple more shots.

Getting ready for round one of trick-or-treating at Admiral Junction businesses

The Elephant and the Chili Pepper

Amelia was really difficult to hold in her uni-leg costume

Hiawatha Community Center Carnival

Marley was thrilled to be invited to Reid's Halloween-Birthday Party

Super fun Halloween party with the Huson's

Double Ear Infection

Just when it seemed like things were starting to improve, we had our worst night yet on Sunday night. Marley woke up crying around midnight and pretty much stayed that way until about 7 am. Amelia's congestion was still bad enough that she couldn't suck her thumb, so she woke up every hour or so. Jeff took Monday off work and we brought Marley to the doctor - double ear infection.

He started antibiotics and began feeling better right away. His last two nights of sleep were 14 hours (!) and 12 hours long. Unfortunately Amelia didn't get the "we're sleeping now" memo, and she's been up a lot during the night. She's still a little congested, so I'm hoping when that goes away she'll go back to sucking her thumb at night.

Despite the sleep deprivation, we enjoyed a lovely sunny Seattle day today. We traveled on foot to the post office, bank, toy store, library, and grocery store.

Yes, it is. No, it's snot.

My poor babies are sick. Marley is so congested that he can't even blow his nose. Amelia is just confused and angry that she can't suck her thumb at night. So, she wakes up crying every half hour. Maybe tonight will be better...

Oct 23rd Update: Things seem to be improving. Marley is not coughing as much, though he is still producing lots of snot. He's been sleeping pretty well, too. Amelia has still been waking up throughout the night, but can be suctioned and, fairly quickly, soothed back to sleep. Both of them are in good spirits during the day.

The Pumpkin Patch = Cute

This year we decided to go up to Edmonds to Fairbank Animal Farm, and I'm SO glad we did! For $2.50, we each got a cup of animal food to feed the birds, and a gigantic helping of CUTENESS! We started off by petting the pygmy goats. Anything with pygmy in front of it's name, is automatically adorable.

Cute little boy, cute little goats

Aren't they cute?

Marley loved feeding the ducks, chickens, geese, and turkeys. He did get his finger snapped by a goose, which he will probably never forget, but he recovered:)

Chickens aren't that cute, but Sarah and Marley are, so we're still okay

Piglets - CUTE!

Bunny rabbits - SUPER CUTE!

So stinkin' cute!

Aww!  How cute!

Freakin' Adorable!!

Other cute things of note: Marley petting a fluffy little duckling and a young calf, six tiny kittens sleeping in a pile with their Mommy, a little piglet sleeping on his Mommy's back, and the incubator where you could watch chicks hatching out of their eggs.

Other things that were fun, but not necessarily cute: a giant tee pee to play in, wagons to ride, a hay tunnel to crawl through, and a mini corn maze. Oh, and we even came home with a pumpkin!