Santa!

While Matthew was running a marathon today, I took the kids to see Santa. Wyatt and Annabelle are still so genuinely excited...it's so much fun! Daphne had no idea, but she still enjoyed sitting on his lap, and just being there with the big kids. We had to wait in the rain for a bit, but everyone was great! I loved being able to get some of my own pictures while the kids and Santa were doing their thing. We've been coming to this same Santa since Wyatt was almost 2. He held Daphne 2 years ago when she was 8 days old! The pictures pretty much tell the story themselves. Enjoy!

Daphne's expression in these shots is priceless!!!

Kitchen Demo!

This was the living room, what will be the great room. Surface bricks have been removed. They will take down the rest of the fireplace once the supports are in for the large center beam.

BIG room!

 Looking into the kitchen from what will be the pantry door.

 What's left of the kitchen! We still have the cook top, ovens, sink and dishwasher (although I packed up all of our plates, etc., except for one place setting per person!).

Uh, think we had a leaking pipe beneath our fridge...

The fireplace from the kitchen side...it's time is veeeeery limited! :)

Tarp wall blocking off the stairs and the family room. Working great!

 New kitchen skylight!!!

That doorway will lead into the pantry!

TWO!

Yikes. It's hard to put into words all that Daphne turning two means to me. I have such a different appreciation for all that happens from that baby turning one to that kinda big kid turning two. She's just such a joy.

All the aunties and uncles and cousins came together for a pizza dinner at Fred's house (Fred was in Sea Ranch), since our house is just not that conducive to hosting anyone right now. It was so great to have them come, as it really made it feel like a little party for Daph. The cousins all love being together, and the adults got some catch-up time in, too.

Daphne got her first real taste of opening presents (all 3 of them!), and I can tell she'll be fully engaged when Christmas rolls around!

Singing Happy Birthday!

Needing a little help blowing out the candle.

It's not a birthday in our house without an ice cream cake!

Annabelle drew the sweetest card for her sister!

Daphne letting Lacy love up her new doggie. She loves dogs!

Wyatt and Brian being silly on the stairs! Their tushies were a little sore when they were done!

The girlies being sweet on the couch!

Thanksgiving

We had our last hurrah in our kitchen for Thanksgiving. I cooked my heart out, and it was all delicious. Chieko thought it was the best so far. We moved the kitchen table into the demo-ed living room, strung some lights, and ta-da! It looked pretty cute!

Not just a cute picture of my hubby...also trying to show that absolutely every surface in the kitchen was covered! It was great!

Cold House!

We thought our heat had been disconnected last weekend...it made for a cold day and a half, before we tried it, "just to see"! Duh! It wasn't disconnected...our contractor said, "I'd never do that to you!!!"

Can't Stand It

That she's going to be 2! Two whole years! How is it possible?! I can't begin to believe that she's having a birthday in a week, but I can try to recap the last couple of months...

She's talking up a storm - trying, trying, TRYING to keep up with the big kids. You can most often discern a few key words in the yammering that surrounds them! I do think it's harder to understand her because she so wants to communicate the way the big kids do, but she just doesn't have it yet! The words are clearer every day, though.

She plays around in our bedroom and bathroom while I'm showering. The instant she hears the shower go off, she comes running in to hand me a towel. I don't know how this started...

She has colored on more things than I care to count, with markers, crayons, pencils, you name it! Her toenails, our bedspread, her carseat harness, the floor...I could go on and ON! It's extremely frustrating, but practically impossible to keep her away from the writing utensils, as the big kids are ALWAYS using one thing or another and leaving it out.

She loves to run, jump (up and down with both feet), dance, climb up the ladder, go down the slide, hang from anything you can hang from, go, go, go, go, go, goooooooooo! She seems to be pretty agile/athletic. She just loves to GO-GO!

When she feels like she isn't being listened to she likes to YELL! And boy can she be LOUD!!! She can be pretty bossy, too!

She loves to wave Hi to people, and greats those she knows exuberantly!

She was a ladybug for Halloween, and stole the show pretty much everywhere we went! She loved wearing her costume and participating in the kids' school parties. At the end of the school parade, the whole school performed Michael Jackson's Thriller dance on the field. More parents were watching Daph, than their own kids!

She was a trick or treating rock star! She had a great be-bop in her step that was hysterical! She walked right in to the houses of the first few that we went to. She had no interest in riding in her stroller, didn't trip and fall at all, and was eager to keep up with all the kids. So fun to watch!

Gettin' the goods!

She loves to sing.

She has pooped in the toilet several times (a few times a week, for the last 2-3 weeks), but can't sit still long enough to even begin to entertain going potty! She totally knows the feeling of needing to poop, though!

She loves to do what her brother and sister are doing, but is loud and clear when they're doing something she doesn't like, or they get too close. She definitely likes her space (something that is so hard for the big kids to understand. They just always want to smother her! She is awfully lovable!)

Daph is such a joyous addition to our family. I can't tell you how many times I've heard Wyatt say, "Daphne is just too cute!" And he really means it. Wyatt would love to have another baby in the family, though. That's just the way he is. The other day, we were hanging out with friends that have a new baby. I overheard Wyatt tell the oldest that he was so lucky to have a baby-baby. Talk about tugging on my heart!

We are so lucky that both of the big kids love her so much, and are so patient with her. She is a special little person, with a big bit of spunk!

Annabelle & Daphne

I know I still owe a post about Daphne all for herself. I've got it all in my head, I think, but there's more to write than I have time for right now. I'm under Grandma's gun for getting something up here, so that she has something to take to Auntie Mar! Here you go, Mom!!!

School Pictures

Annabelle's first lost tooth!!!

And...just 9 days later, her second lost tooth! She pulled this one out while lounging in the tub, unbeknownst to me. That's just her way!

I shook her and told her she needed to knock it off! Losing teeth means that she's just getting older! 

sniff, sniff

sniff.

And here's this one~

She fell on her forehead this afternoon. She was standing on a curb, bent down (I'm not sure why) and fell forward right onto her forehead! She hit really hard, too. Such a typical toddler! It was hard not to laugh, as I watched the entire thing!

My cell phone started ringing as I was taking her picture. She's dancing to the ring tone!