Isn't he cute?

This picture just made me smile - had to share our little native American. Hope you all had a fabulous holiday weekend!

"Thankful for our Daily Fred"

Today we celebrated Thanksgiving with my family. Big sis said grace and she always states that she is "thankful for our daily Fred". We all love that part!

It was a great day and everyone enjoyed the meal and family time. We slipped away at sundown to take advantage of the country with some rural roadside pictures. Enjoy the pics below. Happy Thanksgiving to you all!

Top Negotiator

This little girl is developing her negotiating skills lately, and challenging ours! I am running out of creative reasons for why it is important to do ANYTHING we ask her to do. I keep pulling the parent standby card at the end of difficult battles, "because I said so and I am the mommy". Sigh . . . parenting at its best!

A scheming big sis

Add to preschooler negotiations the chaos of our house lately and you will find two tired parents. Our dog was STANDING ON TOP OF THE TABLE one night this week while we were trying to get two crying kiddos into bath and bed. The dog jumped down before I could grab a camera to capture the moment. And all I could think was "please don't repeat last fall's need for a knee replacement right before Christmas". I am so glad our crazy life makes me laugh and appreciate how much more fun life is with kiddos and dogs!

Sigh . . . little man

He is just so cute these days! And I don't want to miss any of his mischievous fun. His top 10 favorite activities are:


10) Standing on the coffee table/bench


9) Running after big sis

8) Dumping his dinner plate on the table/floor when his is finished eating


7) LIVING OUTSIDE (many a complaints when we have to force him to go inside)

6) Eating sand


5) Searching for mom and dad in the middle of the night (think creepy child in horror flick standing by your bed)


4) HELPING stew in the kitchen

3) Making bubble beards in the bathtub

2) Eating crayons

1) Throwing anything away in the trash can (we mean ANYTHING!) and then clapping about his accomplishment

Little Man's Bedtime Book Choice

Just as bad as retail stores . . .

Yes, I know - these are extremely early. But it takes us a while to capture the picture for our Christmas cards. Disco also likes to dust off the homemade photo studio equipment every once in a while. I thought it was one of our happier sessions - the kiddos were both in GREAT moods. We were trying to capture the innocence or true smiles of TWO kids. I could have emphasized true in that sentence as well - both kiddos think funny faces and smiling so wide that you see nothing but teeth are funny. And so do we! But for Christmas cards I was hoping for something a little more peaceful. But who am I kidding - the silly pictures make better memories.

These were actually pretty tame this time - I'll post some livelier shots in a future post. Enjoy!

Santa Baby

A Sweet Smile

The only decent shot of both kiddos this time . . .

Who's number 1?

Where's Little Man's Nose?

I can't hear you!

CHEESE!!!!!!!!

Every time little man sees the camera lately he yells "CHEESE" and plasters on the biggest grin! Obviously we take a lot of pictures around here - and he is a little mischievous ham. Which is a good thing because our battles at bedtime lately are huge and seeing his cheesy grin keeps us sane.

Peein' in the Woods

We took our first real hike up our local "mountain" today. Disco was eager to try out our new pack for little man (and by "new" I mean a used pack I bought from my work's classified ads - great deal!). Big sis was more interested in whining about the playground until we ran into one of her buddies. Then she didn't want to head back to the base until he did, even when she HAD TO PEE. So today also marks the first time big sis peed in the woods. Such an important milestone.

We made it as far as the really difficult part of steep rocks just before the summit. Pretty proud of big sis and her buddy! And Disco was a trooper for trying out the new pack on a steep trail instead of flat terrain.

It was a BEAUTIFUL fall day, we ran into other friends on the playground, and the rest of the day was filled with fun as well. Today was a jumble of random unplanned activities and discovery with no real agenda. Loving November!

Meet the Wean Team

That's right - it is November and little man is 17 months old. November is bliss compared to October. Our schedule is better, the kiddos are well, and it is time to seriously attempt weaning again.

I have to admit I was a big contributor to our stall in weaning over these last few months. I just didn't give the process the attention it needed and I gave into toddler demands - all part of my daily mommy guilt.

Obviously I will miss the special bond of breastfeeding. I remember the process of weaning big sis was bittersweet. We all survived though and it actually helped build her relationship with Disco. Little man is so interested in other things lately and daddy is the cool parent right now. So here we go wean team - it may take some time but we will get there!

Field Trip

We were rained out for the pumpkin patch last week - we got to make it up today, though. Lots of 3-4 year olds, pig races, a hay ride, goats and chickens, a big slide, oh - and pumpkins. Big sis and her class had a great time. And it was worth a day off of work for sure!

Silly Faces

Do you know how hard it is to get both pals smiling in the same picture????

Just hangin'

The Whole Gang!

I Want You!

Little man is getting over his ear infections - we think. It is hard to tell because he would still prefer to be held by mommy. He really loves playing in the sandbox and running around the yard or park. And it is hard to lose him in the house because he is a bit mischievous and likes to make a lot of noise (i.e. destroy things). Those activities occupy his time while he is out of mommy's arms. But only in short amounts of time.

Little Man with one of his Accomplices

Little man is starting to say some words very clearly lately - yesterday I could have sworn he said "I want you". Mommy is the one word which melts my heart. He says Daddy very clearly as well and when he is in a great mood he runs up to Disco for lots of snuggles.

Big sis is definitely becoming a daddy's girl these days. I know I will miss the "mommy days" at some point - but not today. After 17 months of two momma's kids I could use the break and just have one kiddo yelling mommy all the time. And it is really sweet to see her digging daddy time. I know Disco enjoys their new discoveries together like exploring the world of spiders, rocks, the moon, and mummies.

Exploring the Park