A Visit from Kellan

This past weekend we enjoyed a visit from Olivia's friend Kellan (his parents Nic and Nicola came along for the ride, too). It was a busy weekend exploring Iowa City, and Olivia slept like a rock when it was all done. That is a sure sign of a fun time. We spent as much time outside as we could while the weather is beautiful. When Kellan returns in January I doubt that much time will be spent outside.

Olivia and Kellan at the Ped Mall playground after enjoying a lunch at Hamburg Inn No. 2. If anyone visits us in Iowa City, you can be sure that we will take you to both places.

Just a cute picture of Olivia at the PedMall playground.

Back to the Devonian Fossil Gorge to hunt for dinosaur bones. Olivia was certain that she found a dinosaur tooth this time. When she lost it while jumping on the rocks it devastated her.

Bathtime with Kellan! We could not get both kids to look at the camera at the same time. And trust me, we took plenty of pictures attempting to get that shot.

Fun at the playground near our home. Much of the time at the park was spent with both of them diving head first down a slide while shouting "bababa". We had no idea why Olivia started this game, but it kept them occupied and happy!

Ethan (being held by Nicola) enjoying the fun of the weekend.

Some quick videos

We haven't posted any videos in awhile, so we thought we'd update with a few things.

Here is Olivia dancing to one of her favorite songs from The Backyardigans (actually pretty cute show that doesn't drive us crazy). While you have to have seen the show to understand this song about the Luau Brothers trying to find what gift the goddess-like Volcano Sisters want to prevent a volcano from erupting, I think Olivia dressed as a chef (for no apparent reason) dancing her little heart out speaks for itself. In case you are wondering, her big singing moment is shouting, "We'll get you what you want!"



Here is one of Ethan as a rolling machine. We are a little worried about this guy getting mobile so darn fast. Plus, this video is a little old, so he's really moving now!



We'll have a few more pics and things soon. Olivia had a visit from a Springfield buddy over the weekend, and good times were had by all.

Our Kids

Just a quick update on our lovely children....

Ethan, Ethan, Ethan. He is going to cause gray hairs, I just know it. In ONE WEEK he rolled over (back to belly), sat tripod style (see picture below), and stood on his own holding onto an object. All happened at 3 1/2 months, one month earlier than Olivia. He fluctuates between nursing constantly due to a supposed growth spurt to not nursing more than one minute because there are so many interesting things happening around him. Olivia is his idol and he cannot wait to be a big kid to play with her. I'm not sure how Olivia will react once he is mobile and able to steal away her toys. Then the gray hair will really start.

This picture shows what happens when I leave Joe alone with Ethan - he encourages bad behaviors like standing!


Ethan sitting tripod style. He is still working on perfecting this move, but he is able to hold himself steady for quite awhile.

Now on to Olivia. She is still attending preschool, but is still not enjoying it much. We plan to wait a few more weeks before making a decision on whether to continue with school or withdraw her and wait until she is a bit older. She no longer cries continuously, is participating in the activities more, but still is not excited by school. Olivia has also begun attending Kindermusic in town and loves it, although we both miss our Springfield music class. Olivia is very musical - loves to sing, dance, play instruments, etc., and does pretty well at keeping rhythm.

This is how we found Olivia one night in her bed. Who sleeps like this???

Labor Day Weekend

Labor Day weekend is the first weekend that we have ventured back to Illinois since moving to Iowa. We stayed in Litchfield and had a whirlwind trip of 2 parties and one baseball game. The drive there is long for adults (about 4 1/2 hours) so you can imagine how it is for small kids! We have yet to join the ranks of people buying portable DVD players for the car, but this may force us to reconsider. Joe and I still aren't sold on the "necessity" of owning one.

Olivia and grandpa in the garden. Toward the end of the summer season quite a few weeds do begin to pop up, but there are still veggies in there!


Our first party was a pool party for the families in our Springfield playgroup. Luckily, almost all were able to attend for a great time. I think that every imaginable activity was crammed into this party - pool fun, tee ball fun, feeding the fish at the pond, washers, running in the field, and lots of eating (mainly on the adults' part).

Griffin, Kellan, and Olivia towards the end of the party. I must admit that Olivia is the one who started the trend of taking off clothes to swim in underwear.

On Sunday we continued our tradition of taking the kids to one ball game at Busch Stadium each year of their life. This made Olivia's third game and Ethan's first. Both did very well during the game. Olivia even managed to eat an entire bucket of cotton candy without getting too sick. As you can see, we had great seats for the game.

The family with the Cards' World Series trophy.

After the ball game was the 2nd party at my sister, Rachel's house. This picture shows Olivia's love of the Cardinals!

And, like Olivia, Ethan doesn't have a chance of escaping baseball in this family. He had better grow up to be a Cardinals fan or we have failed as parents!

Ethan and Aunt Rachel.

Olivia showing the last remains of her chocolate ice cream. She was certainly on a sugar high this day - an entire bucket of cotton candy and a big bowl of ice cream!

Just a cute picture of Ethan before we left again for Iowa City.