I am delighted to report that Eli has finally decided to walk. He is still not using it as his primary source of transportation, but it is starting to overtake the crawling. Here's a glimpse of our little linebacker walking...
Tuesday, October 28, 2008
Monday, October 20, 2008
Zoo-per Sunday Afternoon
On Sunday afternoon we continued our fun-filled weekend with our first visit to the Birmingham Zoo. It was a great way to spend a beautiful afternoon and we plan to return for sure. In fact, we're seriously considering the year-membership so we can go a lot. As someone who grew up going to the National Zoo, I wasn't expecting much, but it was actually quite a nice little place. We saw lions, tigers, a gorilla, monkeys, sea lions, etc. I think Brandon and I may have enjoyed the spider monkeys the most; they were quite entertaining. But, I think M&E's vote went to the sea lions. Also, the zoo was decorated for "Boo at the Zoo," their Halloween program, so there were lots of fun decorations to check out too.
Pumpkin Patch
On Saturday, Brandon and I took Madeline and Eli to the pumpkin patch. A good time was had by all. We arrived at Old Baker Farm at lunchtime, so Brandon, Madeline and Eli had hot dogs for lunch. Hot dogs gross me out, so I ate a bag of kettle corn - a whole bag of kettle corn. It was mmm, mmm good. When everyone was pleasantly full, we set out for the hayride, which took us to the pumpkin patch. After a photo session, we selected two pumpkins to take home with us. I have to say the pickings were slim, and it was only Oct. 18th! Don't pumpkins rot if you get them any earlier? What are people doing getting their pumpkins so early? Personally, I like to have mine last until Thanksgiving, but I guess that's just me. After we picked up our pumpkins, we rode the hayride back to the farm and went through the petting farm before heading back to the car and home for nap time. Madeline and Eli could not have been any better behaved for their first pumpkin patch experience. They were rewarded with snack cups full of graham cookies on the way home (and two pumpkins).
Friday, October 17, 2008
Just a Few Tidbits
I have been neglecting my blog lately - my apologies. Here are a few highlights from the last couple of weeks...
**Madeline and Eli were dedicated last weekend at our church. We enjoyed a good visit with our family members who came to share this with us. We are so grateful for these two beautiful children God has loaned to us and we are doing our best to be Godly parents to them.
(Madeline fell down the day before this and got her first big boo-boo.)
**Eli learned that "hot" means blow on your food before you eat it. He has found new ways to use this lesson as well. Yesterday, I fixed some homemade mac 'n' cheese and had just taken it out of the oven when I spied Eli reaching for the handle of the oven. I said, "No no, Eli. That's HOT." He let go, put his lips to the oven and blew on it. Forget the mac 'n' cheese, I want to eat HIM up!
**Madeline also is proving to be one smart cookie. The other day we were playing with some magnets, many of which Eli had chucked all over the room. I said, "Madeline, please bring me that magnet. It's by the stroller," totally thinking she wouldn't understand me. She walked right over to the magnet, picked it up and brought it to me! Now, I just need to train her to fetch diapers, wipes, shoes, etc.
**Eli is starting to walk more and more but not consistently yet. He has days when he walks quite a bit and the very next day he'll go back to crawling all day. We're working on it. On the other hand, Madeline is 100% mobile. Yesterday, I got home from some errands and took her out of her car seat and placed her on the ground. She walked over to the steps, crawled up them, walked (uphill) up the sidewalk, crawled up the next flight of steps and waited for me at the front door. My little baby, she is no longer.
**Last week, Mama Kaye taught M&E how to get down off of furniture backwards and feet first. It is so nice to be able to walk away from them when they're perched on the sofa and not have to worry about them nose-diving off of it. They're trying to crawl up on the furniture too, but aren't quite tall enough for that yet.
**Speaking of tall, M&E had their 15-month checkup on Wednesday. Madeline weighed in at 20 lbs., 2 oz. (just below 10th percentile) and her height is 31.5 in. (75th percentile). Eli weighed in at 24 lbs., 4 oz. (50th percentile) and his height is 32.5 in. (90th percentile). So, both children are tall and skinny like their mommy - yeah right. Dr. Smith said by looking at their growth charts, you'd never know they are twins, which made me feel like I've done a good job.
Tomorrow, we are going to the pumpkin patch. Brandon and I are very excited about it. We can't remember the last time we've been to a pumpkin patch! We plan to do it to the max, hayride and all. I also made M&E some new corduroy pants and fall design appliqued t-shirts today for the occasion. Unfortunately, my camera made an unexpected trip to Newnan inside Mama Kaye's purse, so let's hope Brandon's work camera does a good job documenting the experience! Brandon, by the way, is out at the farm tonight so he can wake up early and go bow hunting in the morning. Yes, I am sacrificing my Saturday morning sleep-in so my husband can go hunting, and I am patting myself on the back right now. If only I had a glass of wine and a good movie to watch... sigh.
**Madeline and Eli were dedicated last weekend at our church. We enjoyed a good visit with our family members who came to share this with us. We are so grateful for these two beautiful children God has loaned to us and we are doing our best to be Godly parents to them.
(Madeline fell down the day before this and got her first big boo-boo.)
**Eli learned that "hot" means blow on your food before you eat it. He has found new ways to use this lesson as well. Yesterday, I fixed some homemade mac 'n' cheese and had just taken it out of the oven when I spied Eli reaching for the handle of the oven. I said, "No no, Eli. That's HOT." He let go, put his lips to the oven and blew on it. Forget the mac 'n' cheese, I want to eat HIM up!
**Madeline also is proving to be one smart cookie. The other day we were playing with some magnets, many of which Eli had chucked all over the room. I said, "Madeline, please bring me that magnet. It's by the stroller," totally thinking she wouldn't understand me. She walked right over to the magnet, picked it up and brought it to me! Now, I just need to train her to fetch diapers, wipes, shoes, etc.
**Eli is starting to walk more and more but not consistently yet. He has days when he walks quite a bit and the very next day he'll go back to crawling all day. We're working on it. On the other hand, Madeline is 100% mobile. Yesterday, I got home from some errands and took her out of her car seat and placed her on the ground. She walked over to the steps, crawled up them, walked (uphill) up the sidewalk, crawled up the next flight of steps and waited for me at the front door. My little baby, she is no longer.
**Last week, Mama Kaye taught M&E how to get down off of furniture backwards and feet first. It is so nice to be able to walk away from them when they're perched on the sofa and not have to worry about them nose-diving off of it. They're trying to crawl up on the furniture too, but aren't quite tall enough for that yet.
**Speaking of tall, M&E had their 15-month checkup on Wednesday. Madeline weighed in at 20 lbs., 2 oz. (just below 10th percentile) and her height is 31.5 in. (75th percentile). Eli weighed in at 24 lbs., 4 oz. (50th percentile) and his height is 32.5 in. (90th percentile). So, both children are tall and skinny like their mommy - yeah right. Dr. Smith said by looking at their growth charts, you'd never know they are twins, which made me feel like I've done a good job.
Tomorrow, we are going to the pumpkin patch. Brandon and I are very excited about it. We can't remember the last time we've been to a pumpkin patch! We plan to do it to the max, hayride and all. I also made M&E some new corduroy pants and fall design appliqued t-shirts today for the occasion. Unfortunately, my camera made an unexpected trip to Newnan inside Mama Kaye's purse, so let's hope Brandon's work camera does a good job documenting the experience! Brandon, by the way, is out at the farm tonight so he can wake up early and go bow hunting in the morning. Yes, I am sacrificing my Saturday morning sleep-in so my husband can go hunting, and I am patting myself on the back right now. If only I had a glass of wine and a good movie to watch... sigh.
Monday, September 29, 2008
Madeline and Eli's Excellent Outdoor Adventures
Last week was park week. Madeline, Eli and I went to Homewood Park 5 times (including two separate visits on Friday). You just can't beat this weather! As a result, M&E have gotten a little blonder and a little tanner. Madeline also has taken off. She's sitting above because she's eating her lunch. Right after that though, she was off and running. May I point out that Madeline has now been walking for over a month and Eli still is a crawler? However, he did take 4 steps this weekend. Come on, butter bean, up and at 'em!
Brandon and I took M&E to Toys 'R Us on Saturday and Madeline got her first baby doll and stroller. (Eli got a brachiosaurus.) Both M&E have taken tumbles trying to push the stroller because they think it's sturdier than it really is.
Yesterday, we took a trip out to Johnny and Susan's farm. M&E met the ducks and geese - lots of "Duck! Duck!" (At least that's what it sounded like so I'm sticking to it.) Johnny caught some fish for them too, but M&E weren't sure about the slimy feel of them. We had a great visit and a delicious meal with the B'ham Wards - a great way to wrap up the weekend!
Sunday, September 21, 2008
Weekend Update
So, our weekend started out great. Friday was another gorgeous fall day, so Madeline, Eli and I picked up some lunch and went out to Homewood Park for a picnic. It was so nice to spend some time outside, and such a beautiful day spent with my children really reminded me of how blessed I am to be able to be a stay-at-home mom! Our friends Kelley and Carter met us there to play, and the Priers and the Neelys showed up too. Madeline had a great time walking around and playing with all the big kids. There was lots of "Dah!" "Dah!" (Ball! Ball!). Sweet Eli wanted to be in on the action too but was stuck on the ground unfortunately. I really think he's starting to realize there might be something to this walking thing.
Saturday was a different story. After a sleepless night, I woke up feeling pretty bad. A couple of hours later I realized why - I had M&E's stomach bug. I really thought I was in the clear since it had been several days since they were sick and I was symptomless but I was mistaken. Brandon really stepped up to the plate though. It was Daddy Day in the Rooks household as I stayed in bed for most of the day. M&E got to go to Dick's sporting goods store to shop for arrows and later even got a special trip to the grocery store for cookies from the bakery and a pack of balloons for entertainment. Here's Madeline having fun with one of them...
Saturday was a different story. After a sleepless night, I woke up feeling pretty bad. A couple of hours later I realized why - I had M&E's stomach bug. I really thought I was in the clear since it had been several days since they were sick and I was symptomless but I was mistaken. Brandon really stepped up to the plate though. It was Daddy Day in the Rooks household as I stayed in bed for most of the day. M&E got to go to Dick's sporting goods store to shop for arrows and later even got a special trip to the grocery store for cookies from the bakery and a pack of balloons for entertainment. Here's Madeline having fun with one of them...
On Sunday, we pretty much stuck around the house since I was still pretty weak from the day before. However, we did venture out to Target for a little outing. M&E wrapped up the weekend by watching Daddy mow the grass. As you can see, it was quite enthralling...
Wednesday, September 17, 2008
These Shoes Are Made For Walkin'
Madeline is officially a walker now. She hardly ever crawls anymore, which means time for shoes! Mama Kaye bought her the cutest little polka dot tennis shoes and I've been very impressed with how well Little Miss has been walking in them. (The photo is a bit blurry because it's an action shot.)
Eli also has a cute pair of shoes compliments of Mama Kaye. He's not quite walking yet, but he is standing up on his own with nothing to pull up on, and when he does it, he is VERY proud of himself. It's really cute. He'll stand up on command and beams with pride while doing it. I've tried to get him to walk to me, but he does more of a lunge than a step. We're working on it though and I think it's becoming painfully obvious to him now that his sister walks and he doesn't. Not long now!
Eli also has a cute pair of shoes compliments of Mama Kaye. He's not quite walking yet, but he is standing up on his own with nothing to pull up on, and when he does it, he is VERY proud of himself. It's really cute. He'll stand up on command and beams with pride while doing it. I've tried to get him to walk to me, but he does more of a lunge than a step. We're working on it though and I think it's becoming painfully obvious to him now that his sister walks and he doesn't. Not long now!
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