Meow, Meow, Squeak

Translation:  Happy Halloween!!

Family Pictures...Again

I had mentioned that the last time we had family pictures with my side of the family, Staley was 18 months old.  Well, the last time we had family pictures with Zach's family, Staley was only 8 months old.  So 4 years and 2 kids later, it was time for an up-date.

A miraculous big family picture that was good of everyone...even the trees.

Uma and Papa with the grandkids

Zach's sister's beautiful family

4 year old cousins who also happen to be best friends

No family picture day is complete without some less than stellar pictures of my kids together.

And let's keep in mind...

...that these 3 photos...

were the best options she had to choose from.  Ouch.

Luckily, my kids can be more photogenic on an individual basis.

Just wishing I had combed his hair a little better...or at least licked his cowlick down more.

Sweet, sweet smiles...

...from my sweet, sweet girls.

Another family photo shoot in the books.  There were some tears.  Some resistance.  Some attempts at smiles gone wrong.  Some funky hair issues.  But all things considered, I'm calling it a success...and already dreading next year when we have THREE mobile children with their own agendas.  Lord help us!

They Make Me Smile

We had an extra carseat installed in the back of our van for the week-end since we had our nieces staying with us.  On Sunday afternoon, I took Staley and Adelie into Peoria with me to run some errands.  I gave Adelie the option of sitting in the extra carseat that was still installed in the back next to Staley's seat.  Of course, Adelie chose to sit in the back by Staley.  Excitedly, Staley responded, "Yes!  And then we can hold hands the whole way."

And they did.  :)

Skills

He's learning new skills.  He is starting to wave.  He will shake his head 'no', although it's more a trick and less a mode of communication.  He will feed himself Puffs.  He's starting to drink from a cup.  He consistently pulls off his socks and hat.  But sleeping through the night?  Not so much.

Love This Girl

Staley said, "I'm putting on my thinking cap.  My thinking cap is a crown.  It's invisible so you can't see it or touch it."

Yep.  That sounds about right.

Growing Up

She now says spider instead of siber.  And Caroline instead of Carolion.  And just like that, my little girl isn't quite so little anymore.

 

St. Louis

This past week-end was our annual fall week-end get-away to St. Louis.  The weather was beautiful, all our activities were a hit, the kids traveled wonderfully, and to top it all off, Zach's parents joined us for our fun.  We couldn't have asked for a better week-end.

Instead of a play by play of our week-end, I'll just share some highlights (in pictures):

The girls love to travel.  They love packing their suitcases and staying in hotels and eating at restaurants and getting to watch movies in the car.

We spent our first afternoon at the Botanical Gardens.  And although the girls spent lots of time playing and climbing and sliding and exploring in the Children's Garden, Staley said her favorite thing was "walking in the jungle" (the indoor climatron) and Adelie's favorite was "feeding the big fish." 

 

Briggs was generally happy to be carried or to nap in his K'tan during our outings, but he did join in on some of the fun.  He didn't want to miss out when his sisters were climbing on the sheep statues at the Botanical Gardens, and he also enjoyed his first carousel ride at the zoo.

 

Since Saturday morning was pretty chilly, we enjoyed some indoor fun at the Magic House Children's Museum.  The girls liked climbing in the climber and sliding down the big slide and enjoyed lots of time in the Children's Village area.  Staley said her favorite thing (just like our last visit) was the pet clinic.  Adelie said hers was the fishing game.

 

Of course, a highlight of any vacation is eating out...and getting lots of desserts.

 

Because the zoo is a favorite for the whole family, we spent Saturday afternoon and most of Sunday there.  Of course, riding the carousel is always a highlight.  Like usual, Staley said that was her favorite thing about the zoo, although she also added the sea lion show as another favorite.

And the other zoo highlight?  Riding the train, of course.  The girls were even more excited that they got to sit in their own "kids seat" on the train without any adults.

 

Briggs was not a big fan of the train.  (We rode twice.  He cried twice.)  But hanging out with Papa?  Now that was more fun.

 

Having Uma and Papa join us was a definite highlight.  The girls were so excited to have a whole week-end with Uma and Papa...and we were too.

 

With 3 kids under 5, road trips and sleeping away from home and lots of meals out and having full days with limited/no naps can be a recipe for disaster.  The highlight of the week-end for me was just how smoothly everything went and how well our kids did.  I love to travel, and I'm so glad that my kids seem to too.  What a fabulous week-end we had!!