Happy Birthday Daddy!!!

New outfit....cute guy!

Crazy hat lady!

My 2 favorite guys!!!

Somerset LOVES drawing.

Our blanket fort.
It stayed up all weekend.

Almost walking!

Joe turned 35 on a very special day, 11-11-11. He took the day off and we had some quality family time. Joe did what he wanted to, which included much needed napping and a trip to a local burger joint. We planned to go out and have some fun with a few of Joe's friends at night, but babysitting plans fell through, so Joe went alone. I tried to make the most of my night, so I built a blanket fort with Leo. Joe received some $ for his b-day and plans to add to his sneaker collection. I also bought him a new outfit and had the kids make his framed art using their hand prints.

Somerset is sooooo close to walking. She cruisers confidently and can pull herself into a standing position without the aid of furniture. She can also stand for up to a minute without sitting, so I am sure she will be walking very soon.

She is down to one nap a day and I am also trying to ween her. I remove a feeding here and there, but the next big step will be to stop the night time feedings. Yikes!!!

I started a class with Somerset called Tots and Tunes, which features singing, instruments and general play with kids ages 12-18 months. We had so much fun!!! Leo was always a challenge in these settings because he was into mischief, but she was super engaged in the class and loving every minute of it.

She has recently become obsessed with books. She often comes to me or Joe with a book and requests for us to read it. Her attention span is quite short, but I love that she has so much interest in books. She also pretends to read books on her own, which really surprised me and Joe.

Leo loves playing a game in which we pretend like we are animals. We are dogs, beavers, foxes or mice. I am always the mommy and Leo and Somerset are the babies. Daddy is usually the pet owner. He gives us names too. He has been Coconut Pie, Zumba or Mickey. Somerset is almost always Zoey and I am Skateboard Ice Cream. He likes to play this game in my bed and burrow under the covers to sleep and then wake up for snacks. It is amongst the cutest thing he does.

He has also become so much better behaved. The last 6 months have brought about a dramatically more mature Leo. He is so much more reasonable and Joe and I love it!

He is also getting a more refined sense of humor. The other day, when I was cuddling him for a nap, I accidentally said, "I love you Summer." He responded with, "I love you Daddy," with a gleam in his eye. He then said, "Daddy, can I play with your phone?" knowing darn well that I don't have a phone for him to play with. He was clearly teasing me and it was so much fun.

Leo is also really interested in numbers. He is always asking what number combos are called, Mommy, what's and eight and a seven?" I think he will have 1-100 down soon enough.

Halloween!

My little Spiderman and lady bug had a great Halloween. Our little Summy was sick leading up to Halloween, so she missed the trick or treating, but she was able to greet the the trick or treaters with Joe.

The day before, we took the kids to Bridgeport Plaza (an outdoor mall), where they went from store to store gathering candy. The treats were great and the kids had so much fun. Leo was able to practice using his good manners and we got even more candy (oh know!).

Halloween was fun! I got into the spirit by carving a kitty bat pumpkin and making orange, skull sugar cookies with Leo. I love these holiday themed activities. I also LOVED taking Leo around our neighborhood, which is small enough to hit up most of the houses. Leo loves collecting the candy and showing off. Since he is so outgoing, it is fun for him to meet new people as we cruise the neighborhood.

The candy has been a great incentive to get Leo to eat. If he eats all the content of his meals, breakfast excluded, he gets to choose a candy.

Now, I am getting excited about Christmas...my favorite holiday of them all!

My teenage son Leo

Joe's Angry Bird creation.
We all had a good laugh!

Yep, it's happened!

Gaining confidence and showing off her new Naartjie outfit.

I'll start by saying that the day I have dreaded has come: Leo has discovered video games. I knew this would happen someday, but not this early. He first discovered Angry Birds, a game he plays on Joe's i-Phone. Harmless enough. However, I thought that if he is so engaged, we should buy him his own educational gaming unit. Thus, the Leapster was purchased.

Leo loves his Leapster, although both the i-Phone and Leapster can be a source of frustration and annoyance (Leo gets frustrated if he can't reach a certain level and we get annoyed with his subsequent whining) . It is a great tool for keeping him occupied in boring situations such as long car rides, appointments etc. Leo is exceptionally good at these games and as far as I see it, this is the way kids will learn in the future. The kids will probably learn far more from computers than books and it's good for him to be technologically proficient. I just want him to get too lost in his own gaming world.

Somerset is close to walking. She cruises with ease, so I predict that she will walk in about a month. I am a bit tired of people asking if she is walking yet. I know they mean well, but it is just a constant reminder that she's not.

Her fine motor skills are exceptional. She can feed herself, she claps, drums, draws and points all the time. She is much more precise with movement that Leo was at this age. She also loves music and sings when her favorite songs are playing. Her favorite song is LMFAO's Party Anthem: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KQ6zr6kCPj8

Pumpkin Patch

Leo took home the cutest, most perfect little pumpkin

Mommy and Leo - Self Portrait

My baby girl

Leo went head first on accident, but just went with it and had even more fun!

Summy's favorite part: the wagon ride!

Somerset is great at pulling herself up nowFamily Portrait, kind of
Another thrift store find
BEFORE

AFTER

Joe bought these and then sold them for a huge profit

I love fall and I love going to the pumpkin patch. For the past 4 years, we have been going to the same local patch and we always have fun. The biggest surprise for us was how much fun Somerset had. In fact, she has more fun than any of us. The patch added a few new features and Leo was able to road test the new hay slide. He had a blast.

I continue home improvement projects. I really just mess around with decor, but I find it so satifying. I love to find a bargain at a thrift store, even if it requires a coat of paint. I love my little owl I found. He was pretty tacky before, but I could tell that a coat of white paint could transform him. Everyone in the family loves him too.

Joe was lucky enough to be able to purchase some super limited shoes off the internet. He bought them and sold them within a few hours for a HUGE profit. We were able to take the profit and buy a storage ottoman/coffee table (thanks honey), and he is using the rest for a few new pairs of shoes.

So, Somerset can crawl. We caught her in the act the other day when she was stuck between the couch and the ottoman. Joe and I think it is hilarious that she has made the choice to scoot around instead. She is also very proficient at pulling herself up and standing for extended periods of time. I think she will probably walk in a month or 2 because she is now so good at cruising.

She has been super grumpy. We hope that teething is the reason, but no new teeth have appeared. She is also at the age where she knows what she wants and is quite strong willed, but doesn't know how to communicate through words her exact needs to us. Poor thing! I wish I could read her mind.

She still remains the center of attention when we go out. All the checkers at our local grocery store know and love Somerset.

Leo is also very popular. When I went to pick him up from preschool the other day, the mother of twin girls said how much her girls love Leo and then when the kids were called out, one of the girls was trying to kiss him. Today, the same girls were trying to hug him. He said, "no thanks." Leo's preschool teacher, Mrs. Kepner says that all the kids like playing with Leo.

The Dentist and the Artist!

Leo and his buddy Beo the Bear

Cool new Adidas track suit!

Cool new kicks! Nike Kobe's.

Leo made us very proud when he went to the dentist for his first visit. He was well behaved, charming, brave and very mature and Dr. Morrissey declared that Leo was his best patient of the day. Plus, his teeth looked perfect. A+++++++!

Leo has been showing a big interest in how words are spelled, so it maybe time to teach him some simple reading/writing skills.

He also is currently obsessed with a sea life children's encyclopedia that we purchased through his school. I love how much I am learning too. I never new the sea was so deadly. It sure makes me rethink going into the ocean. Anyhow, his curiosity and thirst for knowledge is inspiring.


Somerset now confidently pulls herself up and cruises around. She also took 1-2 steps to get herself from one side of the couch to the other. Her mobility has increased drastically and I think she is well on her way to walking in a month or two.

She LOVES drawing. We caught her drawing on Leo's easel with chalk and she can't get enough of it! I moved the easel to the play room so she can draw whenever she wants. It has also been a great way for her to pull herself up and then stand for extended periods of time. Those legs are getting strong!

Beach fun and a whole lot more!

Happily standing!

This is a great way to see their height difference.

I LOVE these guys!

Grandma Paula and Leo

Uncle Aaron and Leo - Best bros

One of my favorite photos ever!

My happy beach boy!

Joe Sr. and Joe Jr. ...looking more and more alike!

Joe's parents came to town for Somerset's birthday and to help Aaron move into a new apartment for his second year at OSU. Luckily for us, they rented a great beach house in Lincoln City and invited us to join in on the fun. Leo and Somerset were in Heaven! Leo LOVES his family so much and can't get enough of them. Somerset really seemed at home at the beach and had a great time getting her body all sandy.

We had planned to stay 2 nights, but the kiddos wouldn't sleep, so one night suited us just fine. We all had a blast and it was so good to see our family.

Leo continues to thrive in preschool. It was Leo's turn to bring a snack for the kids in his class yesterday and with this responsibility comes special priveledges. He was so excited to pass out water to the snackers and he led the line of his classmates for the day. It is so sweet to watch him become such a responsible and capable young man.

Leo has been making up many stories recently. He often starts stories with, "when I was sixteen," or "once when I was ten." He has quite the imagination. When I try to tell him that he has never been six or ten or whatever advanced age he conjures up, he corrects me by explaining it is just a story.

Somerset continues to scoot, but she can crawl (but chooses not to) and she also pulls herself up to a standing position. Over the past week, she has taken great strides in her mobility (no pun intended). Language seems to be taking a backseat as her mobility increases. She refers to almost everything as "ba-ba" as she points to whatever is of interest to her. This can be frustrating for both of us. She now knows what she wants and expresses her needs in an emotional way. She sometimes throws mini-tantrums if you take something away from her.

She is starting to look more and more like a little girl. Her hair is thickening up and getting longer and her toothy grin is changing the look for her face. I didn't think it was possible, but she is getting even cuter. I know I am her mom, but she really is the cutest!

She is the sweetest little girl. She will take time out of her day to give me or Joe a hug when we request it. She also loves to be held almost all the time. She is definitely a mommy's girl right now. I am just trying to enjoy the last bit of her babyhood, but she'll always be my baby, regardless of age.