Why did the chicken cross the road?

Because she was trick-or-treating, of course!

And, after hitting a few houses in our cul-de-sac, finally enjoying the spoils...

P.S. - Josiah spent his first halloween evening strapped to my chest in the Moby carrier, sound asleep. He was unimpressed by the lights, sounds, and sweets. Give him a few years.

First Bath

You know, they say baths are supposed to be soothing...

post-bath-trauma stupor

faux hawk

comb-over

Two Week Check-In

For one of my first "mega-mom-moments" I took Michaela and Josiah all by myself to Josiah's two-week doctor's appointment. My analysis: parenting two young ones is totally doable, it just takes about 3 time the time it takes to have one child. The math doesn't somehow pan out, but that's how it is. It's a good thing we started preparing to leave for the appointment a good 40 minutes ahead of schedule, because even so, we were about 2 minutes late to the appointment. (The doctor was significantly later than that, but apparently there's nothing we as parents and/or patients can do about that particular issue.)

Michaela had been going to my OB appointments with me toward the end of my pregnancy, and she does very well at the doctor's office. Give her a snack and a sticker, and she's a happy girl. Josiah, on the other hand, was not a big fan of having to be the one getting naked, weighed, and measured. But it was worth it. We knew Josiah has been eating like a champ, but at his two week appointment he was a full pound over birth weight, weighing in at 9 pounds, 3 ounces, and measuring 21 inches long (growth of 1/2"). This puts him in the 66th percentile for height and the 67th for weight. The doctor said that - should this actually happen! - if Josiah sleeps for 6 hours at night, I should let him without worrying about waking him up and feeding him, because he is obviously growing well.

Here are some cutie-patootie pics from week 2...

All our baby dolls

Michaela's first time 'holding' Josiah

Hanging out

Never a big fan of getting strapped into the car seat

but a fairly big fan of sleeping in it.

Our Baby is Born!

A week ago this morning our son Josiah Adam entered the world. Happy One Week Birthday Josiah!!! (Having two children seems to keep us significantly more busy than one, as this is the first we've had time to blog about our new son.)

 Josiah came blasting into the world at a much faster pace than his older sister did. I spent 20 hours in labor with Michaela. With Josiah, I labored at home for about 4 hours, and then checked into the hospital at 1:15 am on Saturday. Josiah was born at 3:54 a.m. He weighed in at 8 pounds, 3 ounces and was 20.5 inches long. It was really an amazing experience and I still can't believe that 9-10 months of pregnancy resulted in such an adorable little guy. It feels surreal to be the parents to two children, but Adam and I are so thankful to the Lord for a healthy delivery and for bringing us all together.

Yes, folks, we have a Timbers fan!

A tired Daddy and a cozy baby. On a not-so-comfy hospital couch.

Michaela holding her new baby doll, and Grammy holding her new baby doll.

Loving the hair, anyone?

All dressed in new duds to go home.

Enter - the carseat. May it be a long and pleasant relationship.

39 weeks (and then some)

As I've been putting it off, I realize it's a little more difficult posting a picture of one's pregnant self online than I would have thought. But we had to take one to document for posterity - specifically, the posterity that continues to grow inside, in spite of all encouragement to the contrary. We're all ready to meet our little guy, and are having a hard time being patient. However, we know that he will join us in God's good timing, so there's no need to rush! And I haven't resorted to doing jumping jacks yet...

Baby Shower

Two weekends ago my wonderful sister-in-law hosted a baby shower and luncheon for me and little baby-guy-to-be. Some were worried that the baby might have arrived by then (I was 37 1/2 weeks) but I was confident in my procrastination ability and it went off without a hitch. It was great fun to have the women of the family over and use china teacups and eat a delicious lunch. Unfortunately, we have no pictures of the pretty table, or the baby-blue gift bags, or the gifts themselves, but we do have pictures of the little munchkins who tagged along to this event. They took a while to warm up to each other, but then as the novelty and hysteria of no-naptime kicked in, they became more interested in playing with each other.

I tried to sneak up on them and catch them playing unawares. My  nephew Greyson and Michaela may be negotiating over whose turn it is to touch the singing caterpillar, while Michaela's second cousin Jenevieve (Adam's cousin Sally's daughter) explores toys the others had left behind.

Then they figured out I was holding the camera. I asked Jenevieve what she was doing under the table, and this is how the other two responded:

And thus ends all chances of getting a posed picture...

Thanks to all who came to party!

Our Garden Bounty

After last summer's disappointment and overabundance of green tomatoes (which I never managed to fry), this summer's gardening experience has really been a delight. I've been harvesting carrots off and on, and have a few small red potatoes (when I sampled one plant last week... more to come this week), but the kingpins of the garden this year have been the tomatoes.

Yummy!!!!

why do we have a stroller, again?

Earlier this year, we invested in part-ownership of an Oregon Zoo pass. We have been getting some pretty good use out of it, of which I am quite proud. Sometime this summer (do you appreciate the attention to detail?) Michaela and I went to the zoo with friends Sarah and Lily and Kalina and Isaiah. We also met a new friend of Sarah's and her son. So it was crazy day at the zoo. For case in point of craziness, see below:

Look at Lily's cute little face... you won't believe what comes next!

Lily is pooped on by a Zoo Bird!

So, the kids all started out the day in their strollers. And after placating them with snacks didn't work any more, they had to get out. Plus, when you're 3 feet tall, it's really hard to see the animal exhibits from that low vantage point.

But I was so relieved to see that the strollers did get some use throughout the day.

Michaela's doll "Tiny" riding in Lily's stroller

Lily's baby doll(s), riding in Michaela's stroller.

And if I remember correctly, I'm pretty sure one of the girls was trying to crawl into Isaiah's stroller at one point, because of course, he wasn't riding in his, either. Share and share alike, I guess!

Big Girl Room

For much of the month of July (prior to our vacation and then a little bit upon our return) we spent a lot of time working on creating a big girl bedroom for Michaela. I wanted to have her moved out of the crib and nursery for several months before her little brother arrives on the scene. So, after purchasing bunk beds for a stellar deal online, repurposing and repainting some other existing furniture, and lots of organizing and convincing Michaela this was a good idea, we had her moved into her Big Girl Room just before her second birthday. Here is the proof:

The sleeping bed, with rails

The reading bed, with room for all the stuffed animals

Adam used to use this dresser. One of several things he had to give up as a father.

My dad built this shelf in high school... repainted 50 years later...

And... what allows Michaela to climb in and out of bed "all by self"

good ol' summertime

August, in summary...

                Playtime at the park (not pictured, Adam and I enjoying our morning coffee)

Popsicles with Daddy in the back of the truck (taking a break from tricycling and shoveling gravel, respectively)

Enjoying fresh produce from our garden - look at the size of this green pepper!!

Playing with cousins Greyson and CJ- (please note the baby doll that shows up with Michaela in every subsequent picture)

 ......feeding the donkeys (and eating any leftover crackers)

...feeding the chickens while Grammy helps Greyson

  ...exploring the "jungle" with Genevieve-

Fun times!!!