Some oldies....

Sooo...these pics are from a long time ago...like back in October I think, but they were just too cute. They were found on one of my old memory cards from the 3rd, yes 3rd camera I had broken in like 2 months. Thank goodness the pictures could be salvaged :) This is when Elie and I took a solo trip to San Francisco to stay with Stace, Justin and Bennett and we also had a visit with my good friend Beth and her son Eli.

THE BIGGEST NEWS OF ALL

I can't believe I almost forgot to post about this!! For about the past 10 days or so, Jack has been potty trained 100% during non-sleep times!!! Peeps, poops...all of it!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! He truly was just "ready" one day, and really started to kick it into gear with my wonderful sister Meg who devotes so much time, love and energy into our kids. It has transferred to all his time with me, Tyee, grammie and pa, and even at school!! I could not be more proud of him, and can not believe that he only requires 2 dipes a day now!

Next up....................Easter Bunny coming to take the binkis.......stay tuned :)

Oceanside

We had the opportunity to sneak away on Friday to take advantage of the amazing weather at the Oregon coast. Tyee's friend and golf mate let us stay in his beautiful little home in the quaint town of Oceanside. Jack was over the moon to be able to spend 4 hours running, digging in the sand, jumping in the ocean, looking for shells and sea life and more and more! He was not happy to have to leave and head up to the house for some food and rest. After a sleepless night (for Tyee and I that is) we make another little morning trip to explore in a cave and some tide pools and look at sea lions. Elie hung in there as ususal, and spent most of the trip on me in the pack, or crawling around the house looking for Jack's toys. It is so amazing how a 24 hour trip with two small kids can be so much work!! But the memories and pics make it all worth it.

Sweetie Peetie

Our Elie M..........................

Shamrock Run

Despite the FRIGID 30 degree morning and loss of a full hour of sleep, we had a blast at the Shamrock Run in downtown P-town!!! My parents were nice enough to drive in to help us out. My mom "ran" Jack's first 1K Leprechaun Lap with him and then my parents took the kids back home because it was so cold. Then me, Annie, Meg and Ty ran the 8K....not all together, but we ALL finished and thats all that counted!! Then back to our house for our own pre-St. Patty's day celebration. It is so fun starting new traditions as a fam....although I am not so sure our little Jacky will like being dragged out of bed for a frosty morning run again!

8 Month Elie Maitland

Wow...they just keep flyin by! The months, that is........Elie's personality has certainly continued to evolve. She is not the quiet, easy, passive babe that she used to be, that's for sure!! We seemed to have skipped that "potted plant" stage that was one of my favorites with Jack, where I could lie a blanket down and put a bunch of toys out and have him be content, quiet (and not moving) for an hour at a time. Well, Elie was not quite into that...as soon as she mastered sitting, she immediately transitioned down to her tummy and crawls EVERYWHERE..and fast!! She is not quite up on her knees yet while crawling, but commandos everywhere, and then gets onto all fours and rocks back and forth. Her favorite thing to do is crawl over to Jack's multitude of cars and put every single one in her mouth. Jack has been great about it, and even puts out a "set" of cars for her to play with. Elie hates to be alone, lets you know it, still smiles quite a bit, LOVES her brother, and is eating like a champ. She eats baby food about 3 times a day, and eats a lot! She loves oatmeal, peas, sweet potatoes, prunes, bananas, even some spinach! She is still breast-feeding, but to be honest it is hard to keep up with her needs, so we have started giving her one formula bottle at night. Of course, I cried and had all this guilt about it, but I was not able to produce enough milk to keep her satiated. Elie loves to be outside on walks or runs, she loves her alone time with auntie Meg, and had a wonderful time getting to know her "gaga" for 6 days while mommy and daddy were in Hawaii. She is growing lots more hair...kind of in a mullet pattern unfortunately, and those brown eyes just keep getting bigger :)

Jacky Moon

Well, I know it's LOTS of pics....but it's been WAY too long ...sorry loyal followers!!! This post is dedicated to Jack....my little Jacky moon, who has been up to so much!! As you can see, he finished some swim lessons with dad, got a new fish "Red" with his gaga, has been riding his bike a ton, had a ball at the art factory, and is just as cute as ever. He continues to evolve into such a loving, smart, and outgoing boy and I am so proud of him. He talks incessantly, can be very challenging at times, loves and gets frustrated with his sister (mostly loves:)), and wakes up too early! Jack tells most strangers "My mom is Kate, my dad is Tyee, I am two and am going to be three on my 3rd birthday, my dad has whiskers, and my mom and dad are the boss of me" I swear...verbatim! We could not possibly love this little "hugaroo" any more than we do.