Makin' Cookies

Noah and his good friend Myles had a great playdate yesterday. They hadn't seen each other in several weeks and were very excited to spend some time together. In between playing trains and "bad guys" they had time to help me make some cookies. Two boys, two bowls of powdered sugar, some chocoate, and lots of energy = one great big mess... and a ton of fun.!!!

Havin' Fun

Doug snapped this picture the other night while the kids were playing before bedtime. They have so much fun together. Mara is learning very quickly to hold her own against her brother.

Halloween

Here are a few pictures from Halloween. Both kids had a great time trick-or-treating and came home with loads of candy. Since Mara is too little for most of her candy, Noah decided he would give her the stuff he didn't want (Goldfish & Animal Crackers) in exchange for the stuff Mom and Dad didn't want (anything non-chocolate). Worked out great for everyone!

Do you have any idea how difficult it is to find a "non scary" ghost costume! Fortunately, WalMart had white sheets on sale for $2.50 and good friend Myles had a white-hooded sweatshirt!

What a cute puppy she made!! Notice the red splotches all over her face -- apparently she was having a reaction to the medication she was on. It looks a lot worse that it actually was, she didn't seem bothered by it.

Noah had a great time carving pumpkins. His the the one on the left. Mara's is the on the right. She pretty much wanted nothing to do with the pumkins and screamed when we tried to take her picture with them.

Dancin' the Night Away

Noah and I attended a family wedding a couple of weeks ago. Mara was sick, so she and Dad stayed home. Though I wish the rest of my family could have been there, I was excited to have a pint-sized dance partner. Little did I know that I wouldn't stand a chance next to the beautiful flower girl (my cousin's daughter Anna).

Here's a picture of another cousin, Trevor, getting in on the action.

Apple Jack's Orchard

Amidst a mostly dreary and cool October was one spectacular Saturday. We were fortunate enough to be able to take advantage of that sunny day and head out to Apple Jack's orchard with Doug's brother and his family. The kids had a great time climbing the hay pile, pulling Dad in a wagon, dangling on tree limbs over a stream and shooting apples out of an air cannon. Here are some pictures of the day.

Noah need a bit of help pulling Daddy.

Aren't they cute!!

With just a little bit of help from Dad, Noah was able to hit the targets way out in the field.

Birthday Party

We celebrated Mara's birthday with some of our extended family this weekend. As you can see from the pictures, Noah was very helpful to his little sister... good thing she wasn't into opening gifts. She did enjoy her cake, though. She was somewhat tenative at first, but as soon as she got a taste of the frosting there was no stopping her.

The Wrath of Mara

We caught a few photos of Mara in the midst of her "aaaahhhh's" and "eeeeeeeh's". In adult speak that translates to "You're in my way" and "Hey you, stop ignoring me and pick me up." She certainly knows how to get noticed. One of these days we'll get it on video and you can hear her incessant demands.

A little girl's room

It only took a year for Mara (and me)to get her "girly" room. While Noah and Doug were visiting Grammy and Bumpa in LaCrosse I took opportunity to finally paint and decorate Mara's room. Grandma Ericson made the quilt and accessories and they have been sitting in the room for the past few months just waiting for a pretty shade of pink to be put on the walls. I still have a bit of accessorizing to do, but there is only so much a person can accomplish in one weekend (especially with a baby around). Mara obviously doesn't have much of an opinion, but apparently the boys of the household feel there is a bit too much "girly". When I asked Noah what he thought of Mara's room, he said, "It's pink." Doug echoed the sentiments.

I also took some time to reorganize Noah's new room but still have to put the curtains and posters up. Hopefully I can accomplish that yet this week. I'll post pictures of his room when I have them.

Labor Day at the Simonson Cabin

This is a bit out of order, but we just received some great shots from our weekend at the Simonson cabin in Wisconsin. Our kids, along with cousins Morgan and Geoffrey, enjoyed swimming, kayaking, and fishing. The weather was perfect, the food was good, the wine kept flowing and the company was outstanding! Thanks Bob and Esther for the great weekend!

Cousin Emily taught Noah how to kayak, but as you can see, he was a bit frustrated that the current kept bringing him back to shore.

Mara wasn't too sure about the water at first... it was kinda cold. As long as I kept my hand on her bottom, she was content to lay back and watch everyone else.

Renaissance Festival

Since Saturday was such a beautiful day, we decided to step back into medievil times and venture to the Renaissance Festival. We had a great time watching juggling acts, knights and their horses competed for the honor of jousting, and eating giant turkey legs (mmmmm....). Noah thought it was particularly funny when people commented on his "steed" (he was riding on Doug's shoulders).

Noah got to ride on a miniature pony and an elephant.

Mara was too little to go on the pony and elephant, but she was satisfied in petting the goats and sheep. Although I'm not so sure they were excited about her.