Father/Daughter Dance 2011

Tonight Mike took the girls to a Father/Daughter (and Mother/Son) Dance which was put on by our town's Parks and Recreation Department. Mike took Isabella to the dance last year, but this year they opened it up to include Kindergarteners, too, instead of just grades 1-5. This was great news for Sienna! She was excited to get dressed up and join in the fun this year!

My "Mini ME"!!

Elijah wasn't feeling well, so he and I hung out at home, watched Thomas the Tank Engine, ate popcorn and enjoyed some extra snuggles.

Mike's "Mini ME!" (the female version)

Dada and his dates!

Elijah couldn't pass up this photo opportunity!

Mike took the girls out for dinner before the dance. It sounds like they had a great time running around and dancing the night away with a bunch of their friends. They topped off their evening by going out for ice cream after the dance, too! What fun!!!

Franklin Park Zoo

Today we made a trip up to the Franklin Park Zoo. I heard that they had a new baby gorilla, so I was anxious to see her! Even though it was windy and many animals were off-exhibit, it was worth the trip to see the gorillas (my favorite animal)! I could watch them all day-especially the new baby!
Mike and Elijah tried to catch a peacock.

A zookeeper gave Isabella this peacock feather. Germ city!!!!

Elijah tried out Dada's sunglasses.

The lion was warming up in a patch of sunlight between the snowdrifts. That's just like Africa, right?

The girls checked out the tapirs.

The male gorilla.

Proud mama, Kiki, and her four-month-old baby, Kambiri.

Is she smiling for the camera?

I expected her to be bigger, but she was one of the cutest things I have ever seen! I wanted Isabella to sneak Kambiri home in her jacket!

Kiki sat patiently while Kambiri played around her. She's a very protective mama!

"Me need towel."

I was washing dishes this afternoon when Elijah came over and said, "Me need towel." Then he took a towel and put it over his shoulder. When I'm cooking or washing dishes, I always have a towel over my left shoulder. I picked up this habit from my mom, my two aunts, and my grandma! In fact, if my Uncle Paul ever needs to use a towel in the kitchen, he knows to put it back over my Aunt Sharon's shoulder when he's done with it. Another time my Aunt Sharon went to the store and looked down and realized that she still had a kitchen towel over her shoulder!! I haven't done that yet, but I love that Elijah needed a towel over his shoulder so he could "cook" in his kitchen!! He said, "Me wear towel like you-cooking kitchen." Grandma F lives on in the next generation!

Elijah also sticks out his tongue when he's concentrating-just like his dad! Look closely at the next picture.

Elijah-isms

Elijah has been saying some funny things lately that we need to remember!!

"No, hose way!" = No way, Jose!!!
(or if I say, "No way, Jose," Elijah responds, "Yes, hose way!")

"Buckle me out." (of his carseat) = Unbuckle me.

"Zipper me down." (when he's wearing a jacket) = Unzip me.

"Read a book at me." = Read a book to me.

"Pick it up truck" = pick-up truck

"Harold the Hocticocter" = Harold the Helicopter (from Thomas and Friends)

Elijah's friend, Adam, sucks his thumb and calls his thumb his "thumby thumb." I asked Elijah if he has a thumby thumb, and he held up his two thumbs and said "Me have one two fummy fums!"

(I tried to upload a video of Elijah saying some of these things, but it didn't seem to work. Boo!)

Snow Day #2

We're on Snow Day #2 for the month of January! The kiddos were off last Wednesday for a blizzard that brought 12"-18" of snow. School was canceled again today since another 4''-6" inches were predicted. The girls were already off of school on Monday of this week for Martin Luther King, Jr. Day, and Sienna has been home all week with the flu! She would have been back at school today since she's been fever-free since Wednesday afternoon, but I guess she gets another free day to recuperate. She was able to enjoy playing in the show with Isabella and Elijah!

Ready to shovel/snowblow!!!

Elijah is into layering his clothes lately. I think it's because we occasionally put a t-shirt on over one of his long-sleeved shirts. Now he likes to wear "pants over pants" or "scarf over scarf." Elijah will say, "Jijah wear blue Thomas shirt over green monster truck shirt." This morning Elijah took it to the extreme and had Sienna help him put on FOUR pairs of socks. What a goofball! His feet were definitely warm when we were outside; although, I imagine he was losing circulation in his feet! Sienna, Queen of the Mountain!

Isabella, the polar bear.

Elijah is ready to blaze a trail through the snow!

At least the snow is still white!! Yum!!

A snow day wouldn't be complete without hot chocolate with marshmallows!

It's a great way to start a snow-induced long weekend!

Welcome to the world, Gwen Marie!

My cousin, Kevin, his wife, Tami, and the newly three-year-old big brother, Gabe, welcomed a new baby girl today!

Gwen Marie

9 lbs., 2 oz

We are thrilled to have a new baby cousin!!! Can't wait to meet her!

Locks of Love

Isabella has been growing her hair out for a while now with the intention of donating it to Locks of Love. The minimum donation is 10" of hair so we were glad to finally reach this milestone!

Before

Elijah did his own hair at the vanity while he and Isabella waited for Sienna to get her hair trimmed.

Isabella's turn!

Ready to cut off the braid.

Here goes nothing!!! There's no turning back now!

After!

She instantly looked so much older!!! Isabella was proud to show Mike her new haircut and she asked if she could pose for another picture with him.

She spent a lot of time brushing her hair tonight and looking at her reflection in our sliding glass doors. Thankfully, she likes her new haircut!!

Cooking and Counting With Elijah

This morning Elijah helped me make some pancakes, and he practiced counting, too!

All three of our kiddos made the same mistake when they were learning how to count. They all said ... 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 8.... I think they all do this because eleven sounds like seven, so eight comes after seven (and eleven, apparently)!

2010 Pumpkin Carving Contest Winners!

Thank you to all who participated in our pumpkin carving contest this year and to all of you who voted for your favorites!!! Every year we are impressed with all of the submissions! This year was no exception!

Congratulations to all of our winners!!

Adult Entries (with stencils)

*First Place (23 votes) "Dragon" carved by Jim S. in MA.

*Second Place (11 votes) "Nightmare on Pennsylvania Avenue" (Sarah Palin) carved by my brother-in-law, Nathan, in CA. Nathan mentioned that he also thought that his carving looked a bit like Harry Potter. Someone who came trick-or-treating at our house tonight suggested that it was John Lennon.

*Third Place (10 votes) "Scarycrow" carved by my mother-in-law, Jean, in PA.

*Fourth Place (8 votes) "TerrifEYEd" carved by Liz. I was disappointed to hear that many people couldn't tell what this was supposed to be!!!!!! It's a person in bed pulling the covers up to his chin with a giant scary eye looking through the window! Hence, the name, TerrifEYEd! How can you not see that?!?! Just kidding, of course! As one of my neighbors said, if you have to explain it that much, people aren't going to vote for it. I'll keep that in mind for next year!

Adult entries (no stencils)

*First Place (21 votes) "Pirate Skeleton" carved by Andy H. in Wisconsin.
*Second Place (20 votes) "Jaws" carved by Ted L. in MA. I gave Ted a hard time because I couldn't make out the shark at the bottom. I guess I shouldn't talk since noone could tell what I carved!
*Third Place (16) "Jagged Jack-o-lantern" carved by Sara L. in MA.
*Fourth Place (11 votes) "George W." (aka "The Best President Ever") carved (actually-sculpted) by Mike. He noticed George W. behind homeplate at the World Series tonight, so we had to take a picture of the former president and Mike's pumpkin. Isn't there an amazing likeness?!? :) I asked some of our trick-or-treaters if they could tell who it was. Once I told a group of teenagers that it was a former president, one of the girls guessed correctly. Another little boy guessed Luke Skywalker. A third neighbor thought it was Voldemort from Harry Potter. Mike said, "I knew I wouldn't win, but I'm the only one who did a 3-D pumpkin!" I have a feeling that we are going to need a new category next year!

Kids' Entries (with assistance)

*First Place (39 votes-a landslide!) "Spike the Spider" by Mindy with help from Eliza (age 5) in WI. Eliza helped pick out the stencil, she scooped out the pumpkin, helped transfer the stencil and helped a bit with the carving. She also thought long and hard to come up with the perfect name. They did a great job again this year!!
*Second Place (14 votes) "Panda" carved by Mark with input from Luke (age 5 1/2) in MA.
*Third Place (13 votes) "Cat in the Moon" carved by Liz with help from Sienna (age 5) in MA.
*Fourth Place (6 votes) "Mean Eater" designed by Ellie L. (age 4) in MA and carved by her mom, Sara.

Kids' Entries (without assistance)

*First Place (24 votes) "Maggie the Dog" designed and carved by Isabella P. (age 7) in MA. This pumpkin was inspired by our neighbor's golden retriever, Maggie!
*Second Place (15 votes) "Insane Maniac" designed and carved by Collin L. (age 7 1/2) in MA.
*Third Place (14 votes) "Peace and Love" designed and carved by Maddie S. (age 6 1/2) in MA.
*Fourth Place (6 votes) "Vampire" Although this is technically Elijah's (age 2 1/2) pumpkin, Isabella designed and carved it for him-as she is known to do every year. He did help scoop out the seeds, though!

The following pumpkins are listed in no particular order, but I wanted to give credit to all of the talented carvers!

"Cat on a Branch" (MK) carved by my cousin, Megan, in CA
"Cat on a Branch" (TS) carved by Tanya S. in MA
"Tinkerbell" carved by Travis H. in MT
"Vampire Bat" carved by Eric L. in MA
"Bat" carved mostly by John F. (age 7) with help from his dad, Mark.
"Roly Poly" carved by Mindy in WI with help from Eliza for Eliza's brother, Ian (age 3).
"Scary" carved by Sarah H. in WI with help from Noah (age 7) and Caden (almost 5).
"Spider" carved by Jim S. with help from Ben (age 4 1/2) in MA.
"Alien Explosion" designed and carved by Calvin L. (age 6 1/2) in MA.
"One Tooth" designed and carved by Madi H. (age 7) in MT.

HAPPY HALLOWEEN!