Surprise!

My brother and his family are here!!! They came home for Christmas and landed in Chicago Tuesday afternoon. It was supposed to be a surprise for us girls, but we kind of ruined it. Apparently mom and dad have known for a month and a half that Nic was coming home, but weren't supposed to tell us. He wanted to surprise us. So for the past few months, mom's been talking about Nic, Ingrid, and the kids coming home, but we (me and my sisters) didn't think it would really happen. So we began to get worried that they wouldn't be able to make it and then mom would be heartbroken for Christmas. Over Thanksgiving we talked and decided that we needed to ask Nic for sure what their plans were so mom could be prepared if they couldn't make it. So I e-mailed Nic. A few days later he called me and told me that they were coming home. I was so excited! I didn't tell the girls because I wanted them to be surprised. They love surprises. Tuesday night Calvin put Aubrey to bed and told her that there was going to be a surprise for her the next day. The next morning she got right up and asked me if her surprise was inside or outside. When I told her that it could be either, she was confused - she thought her surprise was snow. Then she asked me if the surprise was at school or at home. When I told her it could be either, she was really confused. I told her that she'd just have to wait until after school to see her surprise and that she'd never guess in a million years what it was. She went to school. After lunch, Chloe looked out the window and told me that someone was here. When I asked her who it was, she said it was Grandpa and Grandma Timm. She went to the door to open it and there stood Nic and Elora. She looked at me and I asked her who it was. She said Uncle Nic. The rest of the family came in and it was so fun visiting with them. The boys have gotten so big and Elora is a doll. Nic and Ingrid looked great too. :) The kids played in the basement for a while. Maximus asked about Aubrey. My plan was to take Maximus with me to pick her up and have her be surprised. So he and Nic went with me to school. We stood outside the door where she comes out (in the wind and rain) and waited for her. Nic and Maximus kind of hid their faces and she came out. When I pointed at Maximus and told her that there was her surprise, she just looked at me with this look like "I know who they are but how can they possibly be here!". We've always told her that she wouldn't see Maximus again until they were seven. She almost looked like she was going to cry and then she went and gave Maximus a hug. It was so sweet! I about cried. After we got home, the two of them were inseparable. They played games together, just the two of them. Then they played in the basement. After supper they played upstairs and made pictures together. It was so sweet to see them getting along so well. Ingrid and I discussed how they are the perfect age to play together. They are old enough, yet not too old that they don't want to play together because they are different genders. Chloe and Colton didn't do too much playing together, but they are younger and don't have the bond that Aubrey and Maximus seem to have from spending time together since they were little. I can't even begin to describe how happy and excited I am to have them here for a little while. I didn't realize how much I missed them until they walked through those doors. Christmas is going to be so great!!

Aubrey and her "surprise"

As soon as their coats were off, they went and found some games to play.

Playing a fishing game

Grandma reading to Chloe and Colton

Christmas Tree

For the past several years we have gotten our Christmas tree on the Saturday after Thanksgiving. This way we have plenty of time to enjoy it before Christmas is over and it has to come down. This year the Saturday after Thanksgiving was wet and cold and Calvin was working, so we didn't get a tree that weekend. I was a little bummed, but figured that we'd get one the following weekend so it would work out. My parents moved the following Saturday and with all the busyness of that, we didn't get a tree that weekend either. I even went to Big R to get a pre-cut one, but they were all sold out. I was really bummed, and Calvin almost got me to agree to get an artificial tree, but I'm just not ready for that yet. I love going as a family to find the perfect tree and then coming home and decorating it. So, I made him promise to go the next Sunday, no matter what the weather was like. We ended up going last Sunday and found a tree that fits in the basement perfectly. The girls had fun walking through all of the trees and helping us decide which one to get. Then we came home and I put lights on it. After Aubrey got home from school the next day, we put ornaments on it. We've been enjoying it ever since. :)



Update in Pictures

We celebrated Calvin's 32nd birthday in November.

Daddy and Coye on the computer on Thanksgiving.

Gabe and Coye - almost 8 months and almost 7 months respectively

Coye can now sit up all by himself!

The girls painted and made their own earring holders.

The finished product

What great balance he has!

Seven Months!

Last week Coye turned seven months old. Again I ask, where has the time gone? He is growing so quickly and changing so much. He's learned a lot in the past month and is quickly developing his own little personality. He's such a joy and delight and is never lacking for attention, especially when his sisters are around. :)

Here's what he is up to now:

• He started solids and while he wasn't so sure about them at first, he likes most of them now. His favorite is brown rice. He eats brown rice, acorn squash, and sweet potatoes.
• He figured out how to roll from his back to his stomach and is quite quick at it now. He can also go from his stomach to his back but doesn't do it as frequently.
• He can sit up. He loves to be upright and be able to see what's going on around him. He's got great balance and only falls over occasionally.
• He sits up in the bath tub too and loves splashing water everywhere.
• He says da-da all the time. I've been trying to teach him to say ma-ma, but he hasn't yet.:)
• He is still a happy baby and loves to laugh and giggle.
• He is very ticklish and will erupt with giggles when you nibble on his belly.
• His hair is really starting to come in, although it's pretty light so it doesn't seem like he has as much.

Rice is yummy?

When we went for Coye's six month well check, the doctor said it was time to start solids. While I was aware of this, I wasn't really looking forward to it - the mess, the extra time, none of it sounded very fun. Plus, after talking to one of my friends, I also realized that it's yet another sign that my baby is growing and getting bigger....something I don't want to acknowledge. But I know it's best for him, so we started. Before Coye was born, two of my friends went together and bought me the baby bullet baby food making system. In it was a recipe for brown rice cereal that you could make yourself. I made the girls' baby food, but I hadn't ever tried making them rice cereal. To be honest, it had never occurred to me that I could make that too. I thought that I'd give it a try. I'm all about making my own baby food. Just ask my husband. One shelf of our freezer is completely dedicated to food that I've made for Coye already. I just love the idea of knowing exactly what he's eating - no fillers or extras. Anyways, I used the baby bullet to grind up the rice. It worked amazingly well. I dumped in a 1/2 cup of brown rice and it ground it up to a powder that was the consistency of flour. I then added water and cooked it. It turned out a lot like Cream of Wheat, this boxed cereal that I used to eat as a kid. I tried some and thought it was pretty good. I kept some out for Coye to eat later that evening and froze the rest in ice cube trays. After he woke up from his evening nap, I sat him in the high chair and got his food ready. I just used a little bit of the rice and added some breastmilk - I probably added too much - it was pretty runny. The first bite he wasn't quite sure of...nor the second or third for that matter. He definitely didn't gobble it up, but he didn't fuss or cry either. Most of it ran out of his mouth, but I think some managed to go down. The girls were definitely more excited about him eating than he was. :) I've kept up with it and have fed him the past two days at lunch time. He still isn't too sure about it. He tries to push it out with his tongue, and yesterday he gagged on it (it was a little thicker). Eventually though, I'm sure he'll get the hang of it. I'm even starting to get used to the idea. :)

Before cereal - I'm sure he's wondering what is going on. I had just gotten the high chair down earlier that day and he hadn't ever sat in it before.

After cereal - he had some all over his face.

Six Months

Six months old! We're halfway through the first year. Incredible! Coye went to the doctor last Friday. He now weighs 15 lbs. 15 oz. and is 27 1/4" long. He dropped some on his weight curve, so the pediatrician said it's time to start solids, which I knew, but wasn't really ready for. It's just so messy and time consuming. But he needs to start. He also doesn't roll over yet (he used to but hasn't consistenly for a while), so the doctor gave us some exercises to work on building up his upper body strength. When he lays on his tummy he tends to put his arms out and back rather than in front of him, so we're working on it. He continues to be a joy in our lives. He's such a good baby. His sisters dote on him and fight over who gets to talk to him. Here's some thing he's doing right now:

• He loves to smile and laugh at almost anyone, though he is getting to be a bit of a mama's boy.
• He likes to be around people - he'll usually cry if you leave him alone in a room.
• Everything goes in his mouth and he loves to chew and suck on things.
• He's started sitting up as long as he's supported.
• His favorite book is Chicka Chicka Boom Boom. For some reason, he loves it when I read this to him.
• His favorite thing to do is lay under his play mat.
• He loves to be held, although he's not much of a cuddler.
• He naps three times a day but still doesn't sleep through the night.

Movie Night

A few weeks ago I promised the girls we could have a movie night some Friday when we weren't busy. They were so excited to sit down and watch "Tangled" and eat popcorn. Calvin even made it in to watch with us. The movie was very cute, although the girls thought some of the parts were scary. Their favorite part was the end when everything turned out happy.

Moo!

The girls asked Lisa on Halloween what Wade was going to be. When she said that he was going to be a cow, I knew I had to get some pictures of them together. She brought over Wade's costume the next day and I put them both in their costumes and took some pictures of them. They weren't too thrilled to be bundled back up, but they were good and I got some cute pictures of them together.

Three Little Cows

All three of our kids were cows for their first Halloween and wore the same costume. I thought it would be interesting to see what they all looked like and how they resembled each other. 

Coye

Chloe

Aubrey

An Old Shirt

When mom and dad were in the process of going through things before they moved, mom found this old shirt/dress of mine and gave it to Chloe to wear. It actually fits her perfectly and she loves to wear it. She even wore it one day to school. Surprisingly enough, it's in pretty good condition still.

Chloe in my old shirt

My friend Sarah and me in the same shirt/dress

Halloween

After Calvin got off of work, we took the kids trick-or-treating. It was so nice outside and the girls had a blast trick-or-treating with their cousins.

The kids in their orange for Halloween

Coye and Wade

Aubrey, Coye, and Chloe in their costumes

Halloween with Gabe

Last Sunday we went down to mom and dad's to visit them and to also see David, Hannah, and Gabe who were over for David's cousin's wedding. We hadn't seen them in forever! Gabe has gotten so big and has so much hair! He and Coye have kind of switched in that departement. :) The girls loved helping take care of Gabe and were excited to watch him roll around and sit up all by himself. We were also able to go and see the new house that mom and dad bought. It's very nice and I'm excited for them to get everything signed and for them to move in and have a place of their own. Most of the afternoon was spent just relaxing and visiting, although Han and I did take a quick shopping trip to Lowe's and Walmart to pick up a few things without our children. It's amazing how fast you can shop when you don't have to unbuckle seat belts and strap in baby carriers. Mom and dad's church also did trunk-or-treat, which is basically trick-or-treating in a parking lot where people have decorated their trunks and pass out candy. It was windy and sprinkling, but the people were very nice and we went through it in about five minutes. The girls were excited. Coye missed out because he was at home with Grandpa sleeping. Once we got back home, we ate some pizza and then waited for Gabe to wake up from his nap so we could take some pictures of the four of them all dressed up. Needless to say, it was late before we got home, but the girls were very good and went straight to bed.

Hannah with my kids at mom's new house

The girls in front of the house

Gabe and Coye

I'll help hold you up Coye

The girls loved watching Gabe eat.

He wasn't so sure about the peas.

Hannah and Gabe at trunk-or-treat

Mom and Coye

Coye the cow and Gabe the penguin

The kids in their Halloween costumes

Carving Pumpkins

Last week on Friday we finally sat down and worked on carving the girls' pumpkins that they had picked out at the pumpkin patch - nothing like waiting til the last minute I know. Both boys were sleeping so I thought that we would at least start working on them. Once I got the tops cut off, I had the girls work on scooping out the insides. They tried with a spoon, which didn't work that great for them. Then they used their hands for a while until they lost interest. Once I finished scooping everything out, I had them come back and draw on the faces they wanted cut out. Aubrey did a great job drawing a face that I could actually cut out, while Chloe's face consisted of lines. I had her pick out the shapes she wanted instead, which worked better. The pumpkins even had eyebrows! :) Later that evening after it was dark, we put a candle inside them and turned out all the lights. The girls loved it and Coye was mesmerized by the lights coming from the pumpkins.

Chloe and her pumpkin

Aubrey and her pumpkin

Digging out the insides

Using her hands

Drawing faces

The finished product

Complete with eyebrows - Aubrey's teeth were a drawn a little close together so her poor little pumpkin lost some teeth during the carving process

Kitties!

Last winter must have been really hard on cats because we went from having about thirteen to only having one left this spring. The girls were pretty bummed when their favorite cat, Orangie, from last year couldn't be found. So when one of my friends was getting rid of some kittens this fall, I jumped at the chance to get some more cats. (We've got plenty of mice outside that need to be eaten!). As an added bonus, the four kittens that we got were tame. The girls, of course, were scared of them at first, because the kittens would follow them around. They gradually warmed up to them and I finally got them to hold them a few weeks ago. Chloe went first (she usually does - she's a tad braver than Aubrey). I put the kitten in her arms and she just stood there for about 30 seconds before asking if she could walk around while still holding the kitten. When I told her she could, her little face just lit up. I think she's so used to me telling her to sit still while she holds her brother that she just expected to not be able to walk around carrying anything alive. :) Aubrey loved holding the kitten too and walking around with it. Sadly, one of them has now disappeared. The girls will occasionally ask where Layla is, and then say that she's probably just hiding, since she wasn't as tame as the rest. I don't have the heart to tell them that something probably happened to her.

Peachy and Smoky



Coye swinging

Aubrey holding Goldilicious (Goldy for short)

Chloe holding Goldy - doesn't she look so excited?