Go Rams

We got to take the kids to their first Rams game this month. We had great seats (thanks to a Partner at my office), and the Rams actually played pretty well, but of course they ended up losing. Ellie wore her cheerleader outfit- who cares that it was an MU Tigers outfit - because in her words "the football coach will be happy to see my cheerleader outfit." We stuck around till halftime so Ellie could watch the halftime show, and everyone enjoyed the afternoon.

Better luck next season, Rams!

All Dressed Up

We all got dressed up for a Christmas open house at my cousin's house. Laura and Ella came in for the day so the mommies got to do a little Christmas shopping, while Jason offered to stay home with the 3 kids (what a great dad!). Then we all got into our holiday attire and headed to Festus for some festivities. Everyone looked quite adorable, and it's always nice to spend time with family during the holidays.

Caught Red Handed

While not quite crawling outright, Max is able to scoot and pull himself where he wants to go, and often times he wants to go to the Christmas tree. Many times we'll be in the kitchen, notice the Christmas tree moving a little, and find our little guy under it with a big grin on his face. He's even starting to get into the wrapped presents a bit. He tore a tiny piece of tissue paper off of one of Ellie's gifts, to which she of course cried, "He ruined it!" But who can really be angry at that face.

I'm thankful for cuteness

We were blessed to get to spend Thanksgiving with our families. The Marler side came up to our house on Thursday for the big meal (minus my dad who has been fighting a nasty upper respiratory thing for a while). I had responsibility for the turkey and my mom handled most of the sides. I was a little nervous because the turkey is the major component of the meal, and it was my first turkey solo. But Jason and I delivered a pretty tasty bird, if I do say so myself. The kids were all just as cute as ever and enjoyed being together.

The day after Thanksgiving, also known as Turkey Sandwich Friday, was spent with the Freed side of the family. I think Jason looks forward to Turkey Sandwich Friday more than actual Thanksgiving. It has become a bit of a competition with some of the Freed guys as to who can put together the bigger, tastier, more impressive turkey sandwich each year. This year there were even "buns" made out of fried cornbread stuffing. It was quite amazing.

I'm very thankful to have such a loving, healthy, happy family.

Mohawks are Awesome!

My little blonde boy has some awesome hair right now. It's at the perfect length to have a little fun. We haven't styled it outside of bath time, but I think a little gelled mohawk might be on the horizon soon. In fact, we have Marler family pictures coming up.....it could be very cute. What do you think, Gran?

Make like a tree and...

LEAF!!

When the rain finally stopped long enough for the ground to dry, we had a ton of leaves to rake up. It seems like this is the first year that Ellie has been big enough or maybe just interested enough to want to play in the leaves. Jason would rake then Ellie would jump, then Jason would rake again...this process went on till the sun began to set. Even Lucy (the dog) wanted in on the action. The autumn colors make for some great pictures, so I tried to take advantage.

Happy Halloween

Trick-or-treat.

We had such a good time on Halloween. Laura, Nate, and Ella came to town, along with Granny & Papi. We all chowed down on chili and hotdogs, then got into costume. Papa and Mamaw came by with Great Grandma and Grandpa Pohlman, then the trick-or-treating began.

Max dressed up like a skeleton (in super comfy jammies), Ellie was a beautiful princess, and Ella was a sweet, lady bug. We bundled the babies in the wagon and set off. We ran into some friends a few houses in, and Ellie was very excited to get to trick-or-treat with her friend, Lindsay. There really is safety in numbers because having Lindsay nearby made Ellie much braver. Some houses had scary decorations or lights which normally would be a strong deterrent for Ellie, but if we said that Lindsay was going to go to the door, then Ellie would be right there with her.

If Ellie was timid about going to the door, she was not shy about asking for what she wanted (chocolate) and making sure that Lindsay got a piece too. I heard numerous times during the night, "I like chocolate. Chocolate's my favorite."

Good Girl.

Pumpkin Painting

We opted out of carving pumpkins this year in favor of painting pumpkins since I know how my daughter is about feeling messy things with her hands. She asked me to draw a face on the pumpkin (not a scary face), then she would paint it. Jason teased me that my OC would come out, and I would have to take the paint brush away from Ellie. But I'm happy to report that I let her use as many colors as she wanted and paint the pumpkin however she chose. It became a lovely, colorful, non-scary pumpkin.

At the Pumpkin Patch

A couple of lovely pumpkins to paint...check.

Some adorable pictures in the pumpkin patch...check.

A fun family evening...check.

This year's trip to the pumpkin patch was a success. We tried to go to the pumpkin patch on the weekend, but the crowds were too much for us. We tried again on a weeknight, and found it to be much less crowded and much more inviting for a family with young children. Ellie had fun climbing on the tractors, playgrounds, and goofing around with Dad, and Max had fun looking at and trying to eat the pumpkins. So much fun!

Sitting Up & First Tooth

Max is now confidently sitting up. In fact, he's been sitting up for about the last month, I'm just a little slow in updating the blog lately. He loves to sit now, so he can reach all his toys and see what's going on around him. He's beginning to get up on all fours and rock, but when his legs push off, he falls on his face...I'm sure he'll get the hang of it soon and will be mobile....Aaahhhhh!

Max also has his first tooth. The poor little guy has been working hard on cutting teeth the past few weeks. I've said before what a good baby he is and how he doesn't fuss much, but we could definitely tell that his mouth has been hurting him. He would be happy and smiling one minute, then the next he'd purse his lips together, give a little wimper, and tears would come to his eyes...quite pitiful. Finally, one of his bottom front teeth popped through. We've got the baby ambesol and baby tylenol to give him a little relief, because I think he's working on cutting a few more.

Toes

We got the Zac Brown Band CD a few months ago, and if we're not listening to Mickey Mouse or Backyardigans, then we're listening to Zac Brown. Apparently Ellie has picked up on some of the songs, though she doesn't quite get all the words.

One morning, Jason sang a couple of lines to the song, "Toes," and Ellie jumped in to finish the next verse. Hopefully you know the tune, and can hear the music in your head as your read her rendition below...

I've got my toes in the water,

Toes in the sand,

No worry in the world,

Cold in my hand,

I was good to Dad.

I was good to Dad.

A Little Silly Fun

Ellie loves to do "projects" and one evening that project was making crowns. Ellie made a crown for everyone in the family, unfortunately you're only going to get to see Ellie and Max in their crowns. They're pretty darn cute, though, wouldn't you agree?

JDRF Walk

We were so happy to be able to join our cousins, the Felkers, for the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation Walk in Kansas City this month. Ross (not pictured) is such a cool kid, and we're lucky to be a part of his family.

We started the weekend off by heading to Columbia on Thursday evening to watch the MU v. Nebraska football game. Being the true fans that we are, we stood in the pouring rain, only to watch the Tigers disappointingly lose the game in the 4th quarter. On Friday, we headed to KC to spend some time with our friends, the Benassi's. They generously put our family up for the night, and then joined us for the JDRF walk on Saturday morning.

We knew it was going to be cool the morning of the walk, but we still were not quite prepared for the close to freezing temperatures at walk time. We made due with what we had, which meant both kids wore multiple layers of clothes, with pajamas on top. I even forgot Ellie's tennis shoes, and since we only had crocs, which would be a little chilly with their holes, we pulled socks on over the top of her shoes. None of us were going to win any fashion awards, but our team shirts for Ross's Gator Crusaders definitely pulled our outfits together.

Klondike Park

At the beginning of October, we had some beautiful weather (before the rain began), with perfect 70 degree temperatures and clear, sunny skies. One particular Sunday afternoon, we piled the kids and the dog in the car and went for a drive down to Klondike Park. We got our workout in pushing the strollers to the top of the steep trail up on the bluffs overlooking the Missouri river. The leaves hadn't started to change yet, but it was still a beautiful view, and the whole family enjoyed getting out of the house.