So thankful.

 

 

We had an almost perfect Thanksgiving this year. Other than being away from some of my family, everything was fabulous! We enjoyed a delicious lunch out at a country club here in town and then spent the afternoon eating desserts and visiting with my grandparents back at home.  The day felt very restful and I was overwhelmed with how blessed we are.

 

 

    


    

            
      

     

 

We love the pumphouse!

Nothing like a spontaneous ice cream run with the fam

 

 

 
 

 

 

Peter Pan and Wendy bird...

Inspired by her Auntie Kate, laynie had her heart set on being Wendy for halloween! We have read some of Peter Pan together and she loves the part where tink calls Wendy, "wendy-bird"...so it seemed like the perfect thing to dress up as! Of course, Hudson had to be her side-kick and go as Peter.

Trick-or-treating at Nana Lisa and Papa Tim's house!

       
        

 

"I think Peter Pan just wants to crawl away now" ~Alayna

 

 

     
    

  

 It was a successful halloween until Laynie feel asleep in the car! She woke up with a fever and ended up being sick for two weeks! 

October Re-cap.

This fall has been a time of huge blessing and rest for our family.

After a crazy busy summer with very little sleep (thanks to hudson) we have enjoyed taking things slow and spending lots of time at home.  Laynie and Hudson are starting to really play together which is so fun to see.  We have had lots of jammie days and I'm (slowly) learning to embrace my messy house....it is just something that comes with having two little babies who love to play!

 

 

The days where we wake up with no agenda are usually the best.  By 10:00 both living rooms are trashed but we are happy.  In order to have no agenda I've had to let a lot of things go the last few months but it has been worth it and I can feel our family growing in a direction that is important to Jeff and I.  Also, my kids are amazing and even though I might balk about not getting to do anything...I would rather be tucked away at home with them than doing just about anything!

 

       

This little stinker just kills me! He is developing quite the personality and keeps Laynie and I in stitches! He is like a little tank and always needs to be right in the middle of the action.  He is climbing up on EVERYTHING!  Chairs, couches, the fireplace, kitchen table...At eleven months old he is 3x's as busy as Laynie ever was as a toddler!  However, for as busy as he is he also really loves to cuddle.  In between all of his adventures he will sneak into my lap for a few hugs and kisses.  He is talking alot and starting to do some motions to songs when we sing.  His "words" so far include: Mama, Dada, Papa, Ball, Up, Hot, Cold, Uh-Oh, Hi and Buh-bye...quite a list for not even being a year old yet! We sure love him to pieces!

We have also had some fun days with friends.  Many of my closest friends have kids the same age as Laynie which is a huge blessing!  I don't think I could stay home if I didn't have such a strong community of other woman doing the same thing. I really felt this while my kids were fighting colds this month...I had friends checking on me and bringing pizza over spontaneously which is such a huge help to a stessed out mama!

One of the days that everyone was here we found the kids with everything (literally everything) from Laynies room piled on her bed.  Apparantly the bed was their train and they needed to take all of their stuff somewhere.  Too funny :)

Laynie and Eli chasing each other....wish you could hear how hard they are giggling!

 
If we do get out of the house it is usually to one of the following three: Meijer, Gym or the Library!The library is still one of our favorite places!
 I love these pics of Hudson because they are so representative of two things....1) He loves to scoot away from me whenever we are out somewhere.  He is becoming more and more independent and loves to go explore.  2) This boy LOVES trucks and cars! We don't own hardly any (still mostly girl stuff at our house!) but if he finds them he will sit and play with them for a long time.  What is fascinating to me is that he knows exactly what to do with them! Without anyone ever showing him he has figured out how to push them around and make little car sounds.
        

There are two reasons I love these pics of Laynie.....1) See that little peek of a green skirt under her dress?? We are totally into the "I will dress myself stage" and that green skirt is somehow incorporated into almost every outfit! It is not at all unusual for her to wear it under a dress for 2 or 3 days in a row! 2) Floor puzzles are her favorite activity right now.  She has 3 at home that she does 4-5 times a day!     
 


 We only had one cookout this fall but it was with some of our favorite people!  A last minute Friday get together was the perfect occasion for hot dogs and smores!





If a few days goes by without seeing the Quackenbushs we have to come up with an excuse to see them! Thankfully, it is actually pretty unusual for us to go more than a few days... :)

 

 Hudson also learned to walk in October!  Over the course of just a couple days he got it down and now he is unstoppable!  He was so proud of himself those first couple days and so happy to be able to keep up with his sister! (Well, almost keep up with her!)