That fluffy white stuff.

Winter arrived with a force in Alaska this year. I think we got 6-8 inches in a matter of two to three days. It's here to stay for sure, it won't get warm up here for months now. I don't really mind the winter so much. What I can't stand is the wind, and by wind I mean 50-60 mph gusts that make me feel like the house is going to collapse and the windows are going to blow in.
Last Thursday the drive needed shoveled and the two Owen's were sleeping. I bundled up Nathan and Lilly and out we went. Last year Lilly hated the snow, she just stood in one spot and cried. This time was a totally different story. She was thrilled to be outside, she loves her gloves and her "ca cake" hat, I figured she throw and fit and take them off. It's so nice to know that as long as it's not windy I can take sent the two of them outside this winter.

 I'm pretty sure Nathan is explaining to Lilly how to eat snow.

Diving in! 

Good stuff!

Lilly was quite impressed with herself after made herself a seat.

Laying in the snow, I may have to get her some bib snow pants. She likes to lay in the snow and a cold belly is not much fun.

Thanks to my friend Beth for taking photos of the kids while I shoveled!

Reading

Up until about a month ago Lilly was not really interested in books. She'd bring you one, sit still for about  10 seconds then very abruptly slam the book closed and be off to something else. We've read to her before bed since she was little but during the day it just never happened. Now it seems that's it's all she wants to do. Her favorite thing is to read her own book while you read to her. I find it rather annoying, I don't like to read over her "da da da da da" Mike, every patient man that he is, tolerates it just fine. Lilly also spends a lot of time reading to Owen. I'm so glad she has this new found interest in books, I was a bit worried there for a while.

 I just love when she sits down and reads to Owen, it is a rare moment when she's not trying to pick him up or drag him around by his neck. 

 This one just melts my heart. 

I can talk Momma

Lilly has become quite the chatter box in the last couple months. She's figured out how to call me from another room. Sometimes I love the "Momma, Momma do'in?" Other times I want to press the mute button. She opens doors quite adeptly now, gone are the days of things being safe as long as the door was closed. She's starting to pretend play, sometimes mixing up food for Owen. Other times sitting on the couch reading to her baby. She's a lot like her dad in some ways, everything has to be "just so" with her. Before bed, we must have her beloved baby on her pillow, with a blanket before we can start reading. I try to remind myself that it's sweet.
She tries to be nice to her brother but she has yet to grasp the concept of the word "gentle." More often than not I look over to see her with her arms around his neck in what appears to be some sort of wrestling move but in actuality is a hug.

She has lots and lots of words, and is starting to put together sentences. My current favorite word of hers is "dupe," with the U having a real U sound so it comes out more like duuuupe. That is how she pronounces soup and soap. Makes me smile every time.

6 months

It has been two months since I last blogged. Sorry. We've had lots going on around here, but I won't bore you with all of that stuff. Instead, here are some photos of Mr. Owen Caleb, who is now six months old! He's doing all the typical six month things, rolling, jabbering, lauging and boy is he grabby! If he can see it he wants it. He can sit a little with help but not very well on his own yet. He is still pretty content most of the time. Night time has gotten better, he's only up about once a night now. I didn't get any good smile photos last night but he certainly looks like his daddy, with a grin that takes up his entire face. I can't wait to see more of his personality develop over the next six months.

Check out those baby blues!

See how much I look like my Daddy???

Yes my hand or my thumb is in my mouth 98% of the time.

4 months

My little "O" will be four months old in a couple days. He's getting SO big. I tend to be a minimalist when it comes to toys/accessories in my house. However with Lilly and two other big "littles" in my house I get a bit worried about them pulling him off or out of something or stepping on him. We've had a couple accidents ending with "O" on the floor crying. I thought a bumbo seat might be just the ticket. I looked on craiglist for several days with no luck. Fortunately one of Mikes co-workers had one he didn't want. So last night we got this lovely green seat for FREE. *happy Mommy*

He's trying to get his thumb in his mouth. This task usually requires both hands and is usually successfull. However he usually ends up looking like this at some point in time.

Love that smile, takes up his whole face.

And apparently all that smiling was hard work.