Back from Visiting Grandma and Grandpa

We are back home from visiting Grandma and Grandpa. We had a great time hanging out around the house, even though we did all get sick. There were still a few moments of health when we were able to enjoy ourselves.

Erin and Jeffrey had a great time playing with their cousin Rylie. We hadn't seen her since Thanksgiving and then she wasn't walking yet. Now she is walking all over the place. She and Erin spent many hours simply walking in circles around Grandma's foyer, diningroom and kitchen. They even decided to play ring-around-the-rosie together. That was one of the cutest things I have EVER seen. Once they took break together and settled in for a viewing of "Finding Nemo," Erin's current favorite movie.



Jeffrey was amazed with all the things Rylie could do. She's a little slower than Erin so she's easier to keep up with. She helped teach him how to drink from a sippy cup (he's much better at this, but still needs practice) and encouraged him to take a few steps. While we were there, Jeffrey took a few wobbly steps in trying to keep up with his big sister and cousin. Look out world, here he comes.

Jeffrey also decided that all of Rylie's food looked much more appetizing than his pureed chicken and pears. So while at Grandma's Jeffrey got to try filet mignon, sweet potato fries, diced apples, chicken, raviolis, peas -- anything that someone else was eating. When Rylie was eating we had to watch Jeffrey very carefully as he was pretty sneaky at stealing her food.



Of course it wouldn't have been a vacation if someone hadn't gotten sick -- but did it have to be all of us? Tom had a bug as soon as we got there. Erin picked it up and had a high fever for 2 days that developed into a runny nose and nasty cough. She didn't want to really do anything. Then I got the cough and fever in time for Tom to return. All the while Jeffrey maintained his usual stuffy head associated with his teething.

But it wasn't all miserable. Erin, Rylie and Grandma made peanut butter cookies. And on Friday we all went to Chuck E. Cheese. It was chaos there, but the kids loved the rides and Erin played a lot in the big climbing zone.



We also got to spend some time with Aunt Katie and Uncle Bill who we hadn't seen since last July. They were so surprised to see how much both the kids had grown.

Thanks Grandma, Grandpa, Aunt Katie and Uncle Bill, Aunt Robyn and Cousin Rylie for making our trip so much fun.

It Snowed!!!!!

Well the annual Charlottesville blizzard hit yesterday afternoon and last night. Erin was obsessed with watching the snow falling out the windows. She took her little stool to every window in the house to capture a different perspective on the snow. She was literally fascinated. When we went to be there were 3-4 inches of snow on the ground and it was still falling.

We woke up this morning to a blanket of white. Erin looked out the window and shrieked - it's snowing. Although it had actually stopped snowing she was still so excited to see that it was still there.

So after breakfast we bundled her up (2 sweatsuits layered on each other since she doesn't have any snowpants) in her good winter coat, her Dora hat, mittens from Nana and her boots. I was afraid she'd think it was too cold, but she got right into it. Jeffrey's got a cold and runny nose again, along with the fact the we have no real outside winter clothes for him, so he and I went outside for only a few minutes and I held him the whole time.

This was perfect snowman snow. Fluffy and wet at the same time. Tom and Erin stayed outside for a long time making a whole family of snowman. Erin helped smooth the large snowballs and find sticks for arms. Her snowmen were almost twice as tall as she is.

She and Tom did try to go sledding down the hill but our little serving tray in the house had too much of a lip to really work well. I guess next year we will invest in a real sled. Then she and Tom walked down to the stream to look at the water.

This is the first year Erin has actually played in the snow. She stayed out for almost an hour and literally had a blast. I'm so excited she had fun. Maybe next year we will be able to find some snowpants that will last her a couple of years.

Times when I wish I was permanantly attached to the video camera

...when Erin takes Jeffrey's hands and sings "The Wheels on the Bus" while rolling his hands in a circle.

...when Jeffrey is splashing up a storm in the bathtub.

...when Erin sees that it is snowing outside and moves her stool to every window in the house for a different perspective.

...when Erin is trying to take a nap on the couch and Jeffrey is pulling her hair.

...When Erin wakes up on a Sunday morning and rather than coming in to get Tom and I she goes in to get Jeffrey and sits in the chair next to his crib singing him songs and reading him stories.

...when Jeffrey is so focused on eating a snack or bite of food he stands on his own for 30-45 seconds without realizing it.

...when Jeffrey decides to run across the living room behind his walking toy.

...when Erin is at gymnastics class and works with the teacher on holding herself up on the parallel bars or swinging from the high bar (remember these are toddler sized).

...after Erin finishes her homemade rocky road chocolate dessert and is covered in chocolate.

...every time Jeffrey sees a kitty and squeels with delight while charging after him/her.

...nearly every second of every day because these are two of the cutest kiddos on the planet (just my humble opinion though).

9-month stats

Jeffrey had his 9-month appointment yesterday. Everything is looking great. Dr. Q. is thrilled with all of his physical progress.

Jeff's stats are:
Length - 29 1/8 inches -- 75th percentile
Weight - 18 1/4 pounds -- 10th to 25th percentile

Here's a bunch of his recent achievements:
Crawling on hands an knees
Pulling up on furniture
Cruising furniture
Standing on his own for short periods of time
Walking behind desk chairs
Snacking on Puffs or Cheerios
Saying "Baa Baa" and squealing
Getting into all of Erin's toys

I've also discovered he is fully capable of falling down the stairs, putting entire toys into his mouth, emptying the DVD shelf onto the floor, pulling Erin's hair, getting tangled into cords, flipping out of the bouncy chair....need I go on?

He is simply into everything and explores most anything with his mouth -- if he can get his mouth on it or put it into his mouth he does. I am hoping that this stage passes soon, but I don't have any expectations that it will.

Sometimes I'm amazed that we've both survived the past 9 months alive.