Family Trivia

A big high five goes out to anyone who can tell me the name of this dog:

Happy Thanksgiving!

Happy Thanksgiving! We celebrated this day giving thanks for our family. Aunts Sarah and Brett came to our home, and thanks to Aunt Sarah we had a delicious feast. Aunt Brett's car broke down shortly into her journey, so I spent the day going to get her and bringing her back to our home. When we got back into town it was dinner time and Aunt Sarah had taken care of the feast with daddy's help. We don't have any traditional pictures of the family at the table. But, as the following days ensued Aunt Brett helped keep us on task with our photography - mainly photographing her with our babies. We had a fun weekend, shopping, playing, rearranging our furniture, putting up our Christmas tree, and trying trying trying to stay warm. Throughout our days together, coming and going and playing and relaxing, Brett remembers to get out the camera at times that I would often forget. So, here are the results of her quick thinking at various times over the past few days.

Fun at Home

Aunt Brett and Aunt Sarah came to spend the weekend with us. Aunt Sarah and daddy worked on Thanksgiving dinner and mama noticed Libby had convinced Aunt Brett to do some building (it probably didn't take much arm twisting), and our adoring little pup Barns wanted to sit and watch construction.

Last night at bedtime Libby asked if she could hold Xander. As we were getting ready to take a picture I saw Libby carefully and seriously giving Xander his binkie. She's always so concerned about him.

Look how big he looks on her. It must be the angle, because he's not that big - though he is getting so big! He's grown so long, I still need to measure, but I know he's too long to wear his 1 piece 0-3 month jammies. He's wearing some 6 month jammies here!

I love how tenderly she is looking at him and touching him here - but again, doesn't he seem so big?! See below for another perspective.

Xander and I cuddle on the loveseat. We love the way he positions his legs. You can't tell that easily, but he has one stretched out and one bent, and as I type this he's laying similarly but with his two arms up by his head. I love sleeping babies.

First Snow

Wednedsay morning we had our first snow of the season. To celebrate, we have a tradition of "hot chocolate on the first snow." So, before going to bed Tuesday evening we each enjoyed a cup of hot chocolate and we played Libby's new memory game. She has lots of fun finding matches of My Little Pony cards, but she liked the hot chocolate most of all. She's a little thrown off because we usually drink hot tea (mama and daddy), and out of these red cups. So, for the past two days she's been asking if she can have "hot chocolate tea, with marshmallows."

Libby and daddy say "cheers" (she loves "cheering")

looking for a match

she got a match!

this picture is completely not flattering, but that hot chocolate mustache is just too funny to hide

i only wish i had a picture of her tipping the cup completely bottoms up to get the last of the marshmallows.

Thanksgiving at Grandma and Granddad's

Last weekend we took a trip to Grandma and Granddad's to celebrate Thanksgiving with them a bit early. We had a good time, as you can see from the pictures below.

Granddad found mama's old bouncing horse that she and Aunt Brett and Uncle Mason had enjoyed for years. Libby thought it was a bit wobbly and she was too scared to ride it, but granddad showed her how fun "Silver" was once you got her out on the open prairie.

A few minutes later little Alexander revealed to grandma his sweet smiles.

Libby agrees, bouncing on this pony is a lot of fun!

We visited Great-Grandma Mary before coming home, and both kids enjoyed our time at her house. Xander was smiley and Libby got a new puzzle!

Little Miss Can't Be Wrong

Hello there everyone. This post is for those of you who enjoy reading about our little family, I have no new pictures at this time. Welllll, that's not entirely true, but I am not posting new pictures at this time. Soon enough I'll have a couple from our weekend at Grandma and Granddad's celebrating an early Thanksgiving.

In the meantime, this morning Libby and Xander and I were off to do some grocery shopping when Libby asked for something to help her clean her hands since they were a bit dirty from her snack. I handed her a diaper wipe and she set to work cleaning up. Soon after, she said:

L: ouch! my eye itches.
M: well be careful not to get the wipes in your eye.
L: did you give me two wipes?
M: no, you only need one.
L: well, I just heard you say, "well, be careful not to get the wipes in your eye." --- like, two wipes.
M: you're right, I did say wipes. I should have said wipe.
L: yes, you should have said, "well, be careful not to get the one wipe in your eye."
M: yes, you're right.
L: well, can you say it mama?
M: "well, be careful not to get the wipe in your eye."
L: no, you should say, "one wipe."
M: "well, be careful not to get the one wipe in your eye."
L: oh! (pause) okay. thank you mama.

I don't know why I humored her and corrected myself so extensively, because this surely doesn't help with her confidence level (bringing it back down to earth). When I told daddy about the conversation he laughed and commented that she corrected me in the same way I correct her, pointing out the fault and asking her to say her sentence again properly. Then he instructed me to go write the conversation down immediately, so here I am.

This also reminds me of an incident last week, where Libby was changing Baby Sue's diaper.

L: oh no! baby sue (libby's doll) has a wet diaper. yuck, some of her tinkle got on my shirt.
M: uh oh, well you better change her diaper. and, let's leave baby sue's jammies off and i'll put them in the washer with your laundry in a few minutes.
L: no, i don't want to wash her jammies.
M: well libby, they're very dirty. we need to wash them (we really did). plus, baby sue just got tinkle on them so i think it would be a good idea to put them in with your clothes.
L: she did not get tinkle on her jammies.
M: yes, she did. i thought she got tinkle on her jammies that even leaked through to your shirt...
L: no, she got tinkle on my shirt after i took her jammies off.
M: (sensing defeat)
L: see mama, feel her jammies. they're dry!
M: (feeling baby sue's dry jammies, and desperately wanting to sass: well your shirt is dry too little miss! but biting my tongue.)

Okay, that's all I have time for now. Doesn't parenting reveal the natural condition of our hearts? That sin that creeps in so easily - seeing it in my kids reminds me of my own. But what a joyous task to try to teach them the way of the Lord and watch for him to work in their hearts.

hopefully pictures soon - but no promises. I need a nap!

First Smiles

Tuesday afternoon my little guy was very wakeful and preventing me from getting anything really accomplished around the house, so I gave up and played with him. Look at my reward. As soon as I sat down with him on my lap and gazed into his eyes with a big, "hi there Xander" his whole face lit up and he beamed. Of course, I then had to jump up and grab the camera and try to accomplish this feat again, and it was easy. These are pictures of his 5th or 6th smiles, and they do not do him justice. It's very difficult to photograph and baby's smile. He won't smile at the camera of course, but responds to mama's voice and eye contact, so I have to manage to solicit a big grin and then magically capture it by clicking my right index finger while not looking into the viewfinder. These were the best I could do for now. Of course, we might have more and better pictures to show as practice does make perfect, and Libby and I now have a new favorite past-time that involves high pitched candy sweet voices and big bright eyes fawning over our little man.

1 month old

Well, to commemorate Xander's 1 month birthday, I took some pictures of him in the buff. Here are a couple of them. I do have a really cute one of his bottom half, but I better get my hubby's permission before I post it. There's a part of me that thinks that exposing him to the world is wrong, though I know most of you are family and close friends. But, here he is - and posing with his big sister. My favorite thing about taking these pictures was discovering that it is a truth that there is something inherently sweet about a baby's naked bottom. As Xander lay and mama snapped some pictures, Libby looked at him and said, "oh look at his little bottom!" in a super sweet voice that any mother would have used. She'd never heard us say anything like that about anyone's bottom, so I knew at that moment that the preciousness of a baby's bottom is absolute truth. Even a 2 year old can see it.

Libby changes baby Jane's diaper, for probably the 5th time that day. She really enjoys caring for her dolls, and changes diapers routinely, even telling me about how stinky or wet or clean and dry each diaper was. Later, she'll help me fold the laundry in the basket behind her. Truly, she's gifted in folding - she gets that from her daddy. The two of them should take the task and make it their own. :)




In an attempt to make dinner, I put Xander in his papasan and Barns quickly joined him for a nap on the floor. I thought it was a cute scene so I took some different pictures of the two of them. Barnabas is so big! He is doing well with Xander. It took him some time to get over the "newness" of having our baby in the house - Barnabas wanted to sniff him any chance he got. But, he now leaves our little one alone (for the most part, occasionally I catch him approaching) but is interested in being near him. Aside from being twice the size that we expected him to be, he does have the personality we expected from a labradoodle. Barnabas is very much a people-pleaser. He wants to be near us at every moment, and that includes the kids, as you can see.

This was the next day. I put Xander in his papasan so I could shower and just after I put him down I heard a very loud sloppy sucking sound. The binkie is behind his hand, and he has found his thumb. Which is the lesser of the two evils, I do not know! But, I left it at that and he was asleep in no time.

Libby and mama gave Xander a bath the other day and he really liked it (for a while). We discovered that he especially likes baths when the heater is blowing near him, and Libby is holding his little hands.

Kind of a cool effect...

Here are the two little friends, Libby and the Professor Hudson. Sometimes Hudson can't get enough Libby, following her and chasing her and hugging her. There was a time when she would start to be bothered by his constant attention. Well, now the times are changing. Libby is now the persuer, and Hudson is on the receiving end, and it's his turn to get annoyed with Libby's constant attention. She tends to him like a big sister in this case. As we left Fazoli's, Libby scurried around saying, "okay Hudson, okay, hold my hand, we're going out into the parking lot." The held on and stayed safe.

Here they do a little spinning do-si-do.

The Kids

Libby gets Xander ready for the photo. Notice she's already positioned Baby Sue.

How sweet.

Can you take a picture of me, mama?

How about Baby Sue?

now can I take a picture of Baby Sue?
(those last 3 captions were direct quotes from the little lady of the house. and i might add that she's become quite the avid photographer. she loves taking pictures with our camera. i have some pictures saved on our other computer that i need to post that demonstrate her first night of photography. she got some pretty good pictures of grandma and mama and granddad and daddy. she even got one of mama and xander, and then took one of mama's bottom - she tends to aim a little low.... but fear not, that one won't be posted.)

New Family Photos

Truth be told, I just don't have as much time to devote to the blog as I used to. If you need a refresher as to how much time I used to sink into this little hobby, check the middle months of 2005 in our blog history. I used to have Libby photoshoots regularly, and posted the results complete with witty captions. Well, as of now I'm spending more time holding, feeding, nurturing, molding, convincing, feeding, holding, burping, diapering, reading, etc... So, this evening I'm posting a bunch of pictures from the past week or so. I'm going to do my best to at least organize them so similar pictures are together, but I'm not promising no mistakes! And as soon as I get this finished up I'm off to tend to more motherly duties! Have I mentioned, though, what a joy it is to be the mama to my two lovebugs? Libby is such an entertainer for me through the days and it's so sweet and precious to have Xander to hold and cuddle and adore for his simple sweetness. One of these days I'm going to keep my paper and pen nearby and jot down the hilarious comments Libby makes through the day. She uses such comical phrases, mainly in that she uses adult language and it's so comical to hear it coming from such a little lady, and to see how seriously she takes herself as she explains to me, "well of course I like bananas..." etc.

Libby and Hudson "hide" during our playtime at Hudson's house Thursday.
Our friend Merrill and her son Mason were at Brittany's house to play as well.
Maren and Xander are still little friends-in-training.
Xander in particular, who slept the whole time we were there.

Saturday morning Libby put this puzzle together entirely by herself. She absolutely loves puzzles. I find her over at her little table putting puzzles together at different times throughout the day. I intend to make a video of her putting a puzzle together because I continue to be amazed at how skilled she is at them! She really has an eye for putting the pieces together, matching up the colors, etc. On more than one occasion I have been just about to tell her, "I don't think those pieces will fit together" when she'll turn one of them 90 degrees and snap them right into place. Of course, I am her mama, I'm sure I'm a little biased at her brilliance. But many of you are her family as well, so I'm sure you'll be equally impressed. :)

Below are some pictures from a little photoshoot of Xander. I took these pictures today. When I looked through them I couldn't help but notice how much he has changed from the pictures I took of him just a few days ago. He is really growing. I can tell almost daily, he's getting longer and longer and longer! Today I put a 0-3 month outfit on him that is one of my favorites and it fit him like capris! Just last week he looked perfect in it. Do you think he might grow to be a tall man? hmmmmmmmm.

Halloween Eve we went to a costume party at the home of our friends Erik and Christie. Libby was a little ladybug. Now, for those of you who have been following us since Libby's birth, you might recognize these little wings. Libby wore them for her first Halloween when she was 8 months old. This year, I didn't have time to make a costume for my little ones, which was a disappointment for me. But, I took a look at her wings and realized they still had plenty of life in them. :) I saved them in case a future little sister wanted to wear them again, but as it turns out they got worn by this future big sister. And, unlike the last time she wore them (when she was too young to have a clue what we were doing dressing her up and parading her around "the lawn" and posing her for cute pictures) she really enjoyed wearing them. She thought it was a lot of fun to dress up, as a butterfly no less, and go to her first costume party. "I haven't been to a costume party before!" she declared as we were getting ready. It took her a little while to figure out what we were up to when we got to the party, there were kids everywhere and games in progress. But it only took a few minutes to learn that standing in line to play a game would eventually lead to candy in the bag. Interestingly, I might note that she hasn't once requested to eat any of that candy. Out of sight, out of mind! But, I'm not the cruelest mother ever - once our loving friends are finished delivering tasty dinners complete with large desserts, I'll offer her a piece of candy now and then. As for now, we're eating sweets all the time! By the way, thanks so much to you ladies bringing us dinners and desserts!

here Libby poses with her friend Kate. (aka, Ariel)

Libby tosses a ring onto a stick. or, near a stick.

This was a little photoshoot from early last week. I just love his little long johns! And, his little (long) feet.

You'll see above, sometimes when he starts to cry he wrinkles up his face and the blood rushes to a his forehead. It lasts just a second, and by chance I caught it in this picture. If Libby had been here to hear him cry, she might have said in her sweet as honey voice, "oh, Xander, don't be so sad. it's okay, Big Sister is here." She nurtures him so well. And, the other day as he fussed in his bassinet, she came to his rescue and placed her lovie at his side. I didn't get the camera and regret it still. It was the sweetest gesture! Needless to say, Libby is very sensitive and caring with her little brother. When he's happy and quiet she goes about her day, putting together puzzles and writing and coloring and organizing her many purses and helping her mama with just about everything I'm attempting to accomplish. But the minute he fusses, she gasps and alerts me, "mama! xander's crying!" and literally runs to wherever he is so she can coo and settle him down. It's such a sweet thing to watch.

I love his expression here. He's more and more alert these days and looking at us, starting to investigate the world around him. This is our little man. Those are his long feet.