Foxy PlayDay

Tuesday, October 20, 2015

haircuts and walking!

A lot has happened in the last month! Elliot got a big boy haircut, had his 15 month doctor's visit (stats to follow) and started walking!!! Owen had his second dentist appointment, so now his pearly whites are even pearlier!
The fall is going well here, we are still enjoying a lot of outside time as the weather is still warm, have done some apple picking, and are gearing up for Halloween!

Elliot's 15 month stats:
height - a whopping 33.5 inches!!! 98%
weight - 25 lbs 6oz - only 5 lbs less than O weighs...which explains my beefy left arm ;) - 82%
head circ.- 19inches - 85% - yup, El, you got your dad's big head...Owen got my little pinhead.
length to weight ratio - just under 50%, so for height he's middle of the pack! He just seem so giant to us because O was always so tiny!
Plus El is wearing 2T clothes...as in clothes I removed from the Owen rotation about 3 months ago...and they fit him. He's totally going to be the big Little Brother.

Elliot's latest obsession is large kitchen utensils...they serve dual purpose of eating and playing...sometimes at the same time!

surprisingly, he did manage to get this bite to his mouth

warm fall day at the park!

We got both boys into the bike trailer for the Nicollet Open Streets fest - Nicollet Ave (a main thoroughfare with lots of restaurants/shops/etc.) was closed off for about a 20 block stretch to all motor vehicle traffic for a Saturday afternoon for a street fest. We rode over with the boys to take in some sidewalk beers (some of Dave's favourite!) and the petting zoo at the local hardware store.

Owen and his friend Walter enjoying a dumdum after having a pony ride

who needs to ride a pony when there are chairs to climb?

We also took in a "touch a truck" on a Saturday morning. This is the greatest thing ever! A bunch of trucks of all varieties (rescue vehicles, snowplows, semi trailers, cement trucks, you name it!) are organized to just be parked in a parking lot (in this case at a podunk mall in a suburb) for like 6 hours where the kids can come and climb on them/in them/pretend to drive them/honk the horns (to the chagrin of all the parents...and most of the very small kids - those horns are loud!).

I think he would have stood here pretending to be a garbage man all morning if we hadn't prodded him on to the next truck

And of course, our requisite fall activity....drum roll please...apple picking!!!

in the wagon, headed out to the orchard!

the haircut is pending...

O insisted on having his picture taken with the turtle statue "Mom, look! It's Mzee!!" (from his book, "A Mama for Owen"). In the book, Mzee is the new surrogate mama for Owen (Owen is a hippo...but close enough!)

haircut! now he can see again!

El started walking about a month ago now...although it's still not that graceful, but you know, it's almost Halloween, so zombies are in season! And note his shoes - I know you can't see from the pic, but they are a) too big and he insists (and boy can this kid be insistent!) on wearing them anyway and b) made to look like cats. They are called the "Chairman Meows" hah!! slays me every time! How could I not get him those shoes!! so awesome...I love a good pun.

watch out! has a sprinkler head and is mobile!!

"hmmm...I think Goldbug's hiding over here"

yup, photo at the dentist's office, complete with oversized teeth and toothbrush props
kids sized sunglasses for him to wear to not get water spray in his eyes during the cleaning were also a nice touch...plus they were spiderman glasses...he was disappointed when harsh reality hit that he would only be bringing his new (regular sized) toothbrush home

Tuesday, September 15, 2015

At long last!

It's been awhile...I've been computerless for 2 weeks (and almost pictureless forever), but just got my (much improved) computer back from Geek Squad (let's never speak of my stupidity again). So, I can finally post some pics from the last month +.
We went for an extended vacation (3weeks!) to Calgary while Dave headed to Kenya for a month starting in late July. We had a great trip visiting with friends and family and Owen even did his first summer camp! A one hour/day bike camp the first week we were in Calgary. He loved it so much he keeps asking to go back and do more! We also got to spend a lot of time playing with cousins and at the beach at the cabin - and tiring Grandma and Grandpa out!

Elliot was a bit unsure of everyone the whole time...
turns out he was teething. ugh.

pig pile on Uncle Greg!

who needs a lake when there are giant tonka trucks to play with?

I think they are actually all looking at a camera at the same time!
just not the camera that took this picture....

cousins!

the boat was mostly a terrifying experience for O...

except when he was allowed to drive...because then we were going really slowly.

pulling the truck back into the driveway with Uncle Scott was pretty good too...although Owen voiced his concerns that it wasn't safe for him to not be in his car seat...hah! so safety conscious!

possibly on the verge of crying...

"Ooooooo" caught on his cousin's barbie fishing rod!

creating a bathing suit full of sand.

El was pretty darn happy playing at the beach...I did find a lot of sand in his diaper...unclear if it was arriving there through an external or internal route.

Grandma's birthday was pretty fun..what kid doesn't love cake, even if his mouth hurts?!?

cake about to be covered in kid spit spray...the dangers of having help blowing out candles!

Sunday, July 26, 2015

July fun!

July brought a lot of beach time, pool time, sandbox time, and just plain ol' play time! Usually on the weekends, but we also did a week long stay-cation 2 weeks ago and explored some pools and beaches a little farther afield than usual and had a great time!

We usually head to Lake Calhoun for the beach, which is an easy 10 block walk from the house.

sharing their toys nicely! We also managed to lose this hat of El's this day...oops.

backyard play time!

stay-cation afternoon at Como pool, followed by a walk and a snack at Como Dockside restaurant! Complete with photo op at the waterfall by the Dockside!

These next beach pics are from a little gem we discovered. Bryant Lake Park Reserve - about 18min drive, and the beach is complete with permanent, giant umbrellas and a huge sand beach...it was an awesome stay-cation find!

digging in the shallow water

headed to do whatever O is doing!

cooling off!

"look-it ma!"

low rider

Wednesday, June 24, 2015

Happy 1st Birthday, El!

I'm one week late, but Happy Birthday little El!

Here is a little of what you are like at one year old:

You are happy. And mellow. People comment on this constantly! You are always grinning, and you rarely put up much of a fuss about anything...you can be hungry and you still just wait patiently for food! If you were a different, less mellow baby, there is no way I would have dreamed of taking you and O halfway across the country to camp in Kansas for 2 weeks. And you give the best kisses!! This started only a week or so ago, but you lean in with a big open mouth that closes right as you get to our face and even make a good "mwah" kissing sound...it's very sweet! You are even insistent on giving O kisses...and your stuffed animals.

You are very much on the go these days. You will tolerate being held and snuggled if you're tired, otherwise you like to be down on the ground where you can be part of the action with O. You're still crawling (quite quickly!) and you've figured out how to get up the stairs (to my dismay...and a couple head bumps), but you also pull yourself up to cruise around the couch/chairs/coffee table, and I think you'll walk sooner than your brother did.

You love your big brother and want to do/play with whatever he is doing/playing with...and for his part he wants to do whatever you are doing (I think out of attention and jealousy...but also love), this can create a bit of a vicious cycle! You are quite good at standing your ground when O tries to take away whatever ball/truck/car/etc. you are playing with. You hold on with a death grip and let out a big scream...and I think you win the battle more often than not.

You are a great eater. You are not so big on us feeding you anymore, but you have a good pincer grasp and pick up all sorts of table foods...we haven't met a food yet that you won't eat!

You are also a really great sleeper. You have been sleeping through the night (7pm to 6-7am) since you were about 2 months old, and you still take 2 naps a day for anywhere from 1.5-3 hours a nap. You are super easy to get to sleep. We read you a book, and lay you down in the crib and you'll just lie there playing with your paci until you fall asleep. I've checked on you 15 min later, and sometimes you are still awake, just lying there content, not making a peep. Sometimes when you wake up in the morning or from naps you'll just hang out in your crib being quiet playing with your animals or looking at a book. Like I said, you are not a fusser.

You babble a fair bit (particularly if O is not around) and your first word is "ball" although it sounds more like "bah", but it's very clear that you are referring to your favourite toy. You may also say "truck" and you say "Mama"...although I'm not sure yet if you actually use this for me or just say it generally. You definitely understand us when we say "No" to you...like when you are trying to climb the stairs or play with the stereo. You stop doing whatever it is, then you get this little mischievous grin and a little twinkle in your eye, and try again...you're funny!

Peanut, you have made our family complete and we love you so, so much. I am excited to see the toddler you'll become in the coming year!

And here are your stats:
height: 31.5" 95%
weight: 22# 4.8oz 65%
head: 18.5" 75%
You are still long and pretty thin for your height!

And now the pictures! Grandma arrived on El's b-day to be here for the (first) celebration, and stayed through the weekend for his party. It was such a nice visit, with lots of play time!!