18 months old!

EDIT: I forgot to add these official 18 month old pictures.. in the chair!

Already half of another year has gone by? You have to be kidding me.

Oh, there is so much to report. Nate and Lilly are like sponges these days. Just absorbing everything around them and it is neat to watch!

As you can see from the post below, they have been very loving lately (usually only on cue- but I'll take it!). Lilly walks around with her baby doll and silky, and she has started trying to cover up the baby with her silky, and even swaddle her! She got a stroller from Donna for Christmas, but instead of pushing it around she likes to just pick it up and carry it. She is my strong girl! She does everything how she wants to do it. I think she will definitely be a leader. They both love making you read books to them- any and all books! She has become more picky about what she's eating, so I guess for that reason and because she is running around now, she is getting skinny! My chubby little baby is losing her chubby! Her favorites are mac and cheese, breads, peas, anything with cheese! Recently she has become extremely clingy.. much more than in the past. She wants to be held and have 100% of your attention all them time. When you ask if she is ready to go to bed she shakes her head "no" and her whole body kind of shakes along with it.. it cracks me up! She's very social and warms up to people quickly. She takes books to people wanting to sit in their lap and have them read to her- it is so cute! She still loves to carry my purse around and even has tried to put on my shoes a few times already!

Nate on the other hand, is more shy. Although he is running around also, and is definitely my curious explorer, he is still very suspicious, as he has always been. He is so smart, he has really been amazing me with everything he is figuring out. Every morning we wake him up first, and after we change him the first thing he wants to do is go wake up his sister! It is really cute during the week when she needs to wake up anyway, but not so cute on the weekend when she could be sleeping in!! If you say to him "let's go wake up Lilly" he heads toward her room and opens up the door. The other morning you could hear him say "Hi Lilly!" when he walked in her room and peeked into her crib.. ugh.. so sweet! Nate is still eating anything and everything, hence the Buddha belly and double chin! He is NOT a picky eater!

Right now their favorite thing to do is read books (they are both always handing us books to read and backing up to sit in our laps)! I will not confirm nor deny that a couple of weekends ago we were so sick of reading the same books over and over that we hid all of them in my closet. I was like "No more books- watch TV!" haha.. They also love taking baths and being in their high chairs (piggies!). Their favorite snack has gone from cheerios to graham crackers.. and they LOVE bananas! They are both copying a lot of words and sounds that we make, which can be kind of scary!

This Christmas is going to be so fun. I know they don't really get it yet, but it will still be more fun than last year! At least for me, anyway!

Random pictures from this month-
This is how Nate lets us know he's hungry now..

Proof that I actually do try to teach them how to use a fork..
We tried to color in our big coloring books for the first time..
Nate's green color ended up on the carpet and on his face (click on the picture if you can't see it)

I love Nate's face in this picture.. So funny..

More interested by a suitcase and a humidifier than all the toys in the world!

He thought he was so funny trying to back into the tree! ouch!

Maybe they really DO love each other!

WARNING: Heart Melter!

For all the fighting Nate and Lilly have been doing lately, all it takes is one moment like this morning and all of that is forgotten.. at least for a few minutes. I put them next to each other to take pictures of the clothes from Grandpa Dick and Grandma Diane (so cute, by the way!), and they just started getting close and giggling.. and then giving each other kisses!! We have seen them do this once or twice, but this time they realized how much I was loving it so they just kept doing it! We were all laughing.. it was an awesome way to start off my Monday morning, I have to say..
See, told you it would melt your heart..

The many faces of Lilly..

No one can say this girl doesn't know how to express the way she feels! \Of course- these are my favorite!
And these were all taken in about a two hour period! HA! My sweet baby girl..

Big boy teeth!

When we were in Colorado, I noticed Nate had some bumpy gums and I could barely see and feel almost ALL of his teeth coming in at the same time! He has had just the four in front for so long and now all of a sudden he has this mouth full of teeth.. These were the best pictures I could get tonight trying to make him giggle. Isn't he handsome with his new haircut too?

Deck the Halls!

We finally managed to get up a few Christmas decorations in the house last weekend. The tree looks a little challenged because the bottom two feet have no decoration (thanks to seventeen month old babies who can not help themselves). But it still lights up the room and gives us that little bit of Christmas cheer we need. I also got the stockings up on the mantle. Other than that, a snowman here and a Santa clause there and voila, we have Christmas!

Before leaving for my office Christmas party..

Pictures do not do justice to this cuteness of this new dress from Aunt Kelly... SOOO CUTE!

Ornament for first family Christmas..

Nate picked up "Ho, Ho, Ho" and he has been repeating it when we say it. It's so funny!

Read me this Christmas book, mommy!!!!!!!!
Stockings hung by the chimney with care.. or recklessly with a hammer and nails into my new mantle..

First trip to the E.R.

I mentioned that Lilly was sick before Thanksgiving, but I didn't mention that her temp got up to 104 and would not go down, so we had our first experience with the E.R. and all I have to say is UGH!! I thought the pediatrician's office was a little on the unpleasant side, but the E.R. makes that seem like a day at the Spa! UGH! Luckily Lilly was pretty entertained people watching (as was I) so she didn't get too fussy.. that is until any member of the hospital personnel looked her way, and then she completely lost it. After about two and a half hours, we were admitted to what I can only call a hallway gurney, because there were no available rooms. So at this point she was so tired and fussy and screaming at the top of her sick little lungs. A witchy nurse came over to our gurney to dope her up with Motrin in an effort to shut her up. This poor older man was on a gurney next to us.. probably admitted for severe headaches or something. I apologized profusely as I paced around with her until Mr. Physician Assistant could come look in her ears and throat for two seconds. He was telling me what was wrong and what my options were but I couldn't hear over Lilly's screaming.. BIG UGH! Turns out she had her first ear infection. She got an antibiotic shot in her leg (poor thing- she had just gotten two other shot for vaccines a few days before!) and we got out of there at 12:30 am (some four hours later)!

So several days later when Mr. Nate started getting fevery and snotty on hour 11 of our 13 hour trip home from Colorado, I called the pediatrician's office and got him in as soon as we got home! We were super stinky and gross from being in the car for so long, but I was not about to get into a situation where we ended up anywhere near that E.R. again!! NO WAY! Turns out Lilly was nice enough to share her ear infection with him and he also picked up a barky cough along the way which required some steroids to make sure his airways were open. Fun stuff..

So everyone has been coughy and snotty and runny nosey for the past couple of weeks, but I think we are all on the up-swing!

Thanksgiving in Colorado!

I can't believe how long this has taken me!! So Sorry!

As you can see from the post title, we spent our Thanksgiving holiday in beautiful Colorado this year with Brian's family. It was so great to see everyone and for all of the cousins to be able to spend time playing together. I was so nervous because poor Lilly had an ear infection before we left and I knew Nate would follow. Luckily, she was feeling better and Nate waited until after we got back to get sick, so everyone was in pretty good spirits while we were actually there! Just seeing the difference of all that the babies can say and do on their own now since we were there last January was amazing! They are running around now, and playing more independently. It made the whole trip a lot easier and more fun for all of us! The drive was not easier.. oh no, there was nothing easy about that.. but that is another post! Let's keep this one positive.. :)

Aunt Steph and Lilly..
Aunt Kelly and Lilly (Are you seeing a pattern here?)

Cousins playing..

We could not wait to see this little guy.. our nephew who just born in June and this was our very first time to see him! What a cutie he is!! Just smiling away!

Then there is Nate.. so jaded by life already.. not as easily amused.. :)

Lilly warmed up to Grandma pretty quickly..

Grandpa with two of his six grand kids! Lilly looks like a big girl next to the baby!

They had fun with sidewalk chalk in the driveway

Lilly stayed squatting so she wouldn't get her pants dirty. Smart girl!

Lilly really enjoyed making her aunts, uncles, and grandparents read to her (OVER and OVER)!

Nate and Daddy

Brian reading to the girls..

We did our Christmas while we were there too. Nate and Lilly had fun unwrapping this year! What a difference a year makes!

This was the best shot we could get of all the kids!

Yes, we do have a lot to be thankful for..

We miss all of you and love you very much!!