Doctor, Doctor

Brooks went to the doctor this week to get his flu shot. He did great and usually doesn't mind going to the doctor. In fact, he often asks to go to the doctor or tells us he's "sick" and "needs to go to the doctor". After visiting the doctor, he was more inspired than ever to give his little Chloe-Belle a check-up. He better get the most of it now while she still holds still for him.

Almonds

I guess I wasn't paying enough attention to Brooks when he told me that he "got some Almanins" (pronounced: All-ma-nins).

Look at me, Mom! I poured myself some almanins without help!

Only my child would rather have almonds and chicken over Candy Corn and Gushers.

I had to explain that if he ate all of these almonds in one sitting he'd get a tummy ache. He was so proud of himself for getting them on his own, but accepted that I had to put most of them back in the container.

2 month check-up

Chloe had her 2 month check-up yesterday. We found out she is no longer the petite little girl we once thought she would be. She has grown rapidly and now sits at the top of the charts for height, weight and head circumference.

Here are her stats:
Height: 23 inches (75%)
Weight: 12 pounds 7.5 ounces (89%)
Head: 16 inches (90%)

And we thought she'd be our little peanut! Ha!

We are thankful to the Lord that everything else is great with Chloe and she is in perfect health.

Fall is finally here!

Fall is in the air. It is so fun to dress the kids in fall colors and fashions.

Hmmm...wonder if they love their Chloe-Belle very much.

COUSINS!

As always, having a blast being buddies.

Our Cuties.

Oh, Chloe! You are growing up too fast and you are so beautiful.

Brooks insisted to wear his sisters flower. He seems a little bit overly happy to have this very feminine bow on. I am thankful he proves to be pure boy in so many other ways!

Sleeping?

No Way! Just playing with Daddy!

Sweet Great-Grandpa Russ

Chloe got to spend much of Saturday morning with her Great-Grandpa Russ. He loves cooing at her, snuggling her and feeding her. He had 8 children of his own and loved holding our little bundle. Chloe did great with him. He must have lots of experience!

Oh, BOY! Here we go!

My sweet, innocent boy is starting to be so not sweet and innocent...or maybe he is just 100% pure BOY and it is starting to show more and more each day. So, the other day he and Greg are playing Play-Dough. Fun, huh? Well, Brooks was having tons of fun creating boy parts (of course without his daddy helping him or even mentioning anything about boy parts) and being silly. When I looked at this picture that Greg took I thought this face was so cute. Greg told me to look closer. Really, Brooks? Then, I love the look of pure guilt that covers his face in the next picture. What a BOY and OH! BOY! here we go!

Sunday School

Brooks had his first day of "real" Sunday School today. Up until this point, he has been hanging out in the nursery while we go to church. It is so great to have him in a classroom where he will begin to learn about the Bible and the really important things in life. He "didn't want to play with the kids" on the way to church, but as soon as he got there he was excited and did well.

It was fun for him to show us everything he did today in class. They sure keep the kids busy, as Brooks had about 5 different projects to give us when we picked him up. The teacher told us he did great and we are so proud of him. What a big boy he is becoming.

Another fun week

We had another great week and I am starting to get back in the swing of being at work two days each week. I am actually enjoying work once I get there, it is just leaving the house that is hard at first. On the days I don't work, we get to spend lots of quality time with our cousins! We love that they are home schooled (with a great teacher, I might add) so we are able to spend afternoons with them.

Kennedy is such a little mama to Chloe-Belle. She loves to get the diapers and wipes ready when it is time to change her and just recently has started to carry Chloe on her own around the house. Kennedy is very proud of the fact that we trust her to do this and she takes her "motherly duties" very seriously. It is quite adorable.

Like I have said before, Brooks and Maggie are either best buds or worst enemies depending on the day. I think it might be their age difference as well as their personality traits. Last week, while Kennedy was "taking care of Chloe", Brooks and Mags were best of buds in the kitchen working on art projects. It was fun to listen to them laugh and be silly. I think they look so much alike. I suppose they have 75% the same bloodlines since Steph and I married first cousins!

Everything that Brooks does is with great intensity and energy. I love this picture because he is so intense when showing me his pipe-cleaner! I hope he channels this intensity into sports or something else healthy as he grows up. Although a challenge, I adore Brooks' energy and would like to get just a little bit of that for myself!

"That's not a tractor!"

We continue to have a huge landscaping project in the works at our house. We are so excited to see the final product and will be able to enjoy a patio with a fire pit as well as some new bushes, plants, flowers and rock gardens. We can't wait to have it done and have been so impressed with the company who is doing the work for us.

Brooks has been watching the progress each day and is absolutely mesmerized by the work being done. He is such a worker himself, and can't get enough of all of the tools, tractors and equipment in our yard. The crew noticed that Brooks loves to watch out the window for long periods of time and asked Brooks to be part of the "crew" late last week! He was thrilled! The worker asked Brooks if he "wanted to ride on a tractor" and Brooks responded, "That is not a tractor, that's a back-hoe!" The worker got a kick out of Brooks knowing what each machine was called.