One Year Old!

Talia turned one on Saturday. What a year we have had with her. We cherish her smiles, snuggles, giggles, wrinkled nose, tentative steps, scoots, songs, chatterings, mischevious looks of satisfaction….

This month she gained confidence in climbing. Mommy needs to be much more careful what she leaves out which might become an obstacle course for a little one trying out her new skills.

She is LOVED by her big brothers. They are both so caring towards her. Nate, being 5 and a little more responsible, is fantastic at walking her around or just playing with her. If he hears her crying, he will stop whatever he is doing to go and play with her. Adorable. Jadon tries hard, but is still practicing his skills at anticipating what she needs or is trying to communicate. He loves being near her, carrying her around, bringing her toys and when he is sad, she is the one he wants to comfort him.

Talia woke up to snow on her birthday. It disappeared fast but stuck around long enough for a little bit of playtime in the morning.

Grampa dropped by during the day to give Talia her own princess ball. She was delighted. No one is getting that ball from her (and believe me that the boys have tried. Multiple times.)

She also decided that just maybe she could walk on her own, even without the safety of Mommy or Daddy’s arms to catch her if she falls. She just looks way too small to be walking on her own. (sorry for the "vertical" video, it will still give you an idea of how she moves, particularly is you put your left ear on your left shoulder while watching!)

On Sunday, we had a small family birthday party for Talia that was all pink (thank you Thrifties for a scrumptious complementary cake!).

She seemed to soak up all the attention.

She has so many people who love her.

Halloween

We had fun dressing up about three times this year. Jadon dressed up for his school’s Halloween day as did Nate and then we all dressed up together on the 31st to trick-or-treat with some friends. We also (and when I say we, I mean the kids) dressed up for some early treat gathering from Grama & Grampa Raabe. This year Nate was a gorilla, Jadon a turtle, and Talia the cutest little duck you ever did see. It sure makes dressing up easy and fun when the kids happily wear an animal costume from our “tickle” trunk. One day, likely soon, they will want more adventurous, creative costumes. Hopefully we are up for the challenge.

This crazy dress up picture wasn't actually for Halloween but shows what the boys are capable of left to their own devices in coming up with a great costume!

October Party Day

Jadon had his second party day and already seems a little more comfortable and settled in his new school. He dressed up as a turtle for Halloween and was able to wear his costume during the presentation time. The kids all looked great and were dressed so creatively. Unfortunately (for both me and Teacher Marzena!) I was selected to take some photos with the class camera so missed my opportunity to take a group shot with my camera. Therefore, my “editing” also looks extremely biased as it is solely focused on Jadon. (Remember this Jadon when you are complaining that mommy ALWAYS does this for Nate or ALWAYS helps Talia. I’ve got your back too big guy!) We love this little monkey (or on this day, turtle) and love hearing him spit out words like “photosynthesis”.

One month to go

"I like to move it, move it!" That's Talia's theme song for the month. Just in case, you need help embedding those lyrics, Nate will help you in the following video clip from this spring.

Talia is just one month away from turning 1. She will walk with whomever or whatever will take her. She is starting to stand by herself very briefly and thinks it’s a hoot to squat down to pick things up or put things down.

She is LOVED by her brothers and squeals in delight when they walk in the room (or screams in self-defence depending on the moment).

Talia’s mischievous self has also grown this month! She is enamoured by phones (please, let this not be foreshadowing!), remotes, Buddy’s leash, and basically anything that seems important to someone in this family. She has also learned to climb and gives quite a cheeky, satisfied look whenever she masters a new height.

Talia loves Buddy too! He has a special gentleness for her and lets her "pet" him and show her affection. It's really sweet to hear her say "Uh-Dee" in trying to get his attention. She also seems to say "Daddy" and make an approximation of "Mama". It is clear she understands all of our names and likely it will only be a matter of time until she is calling each one of us. Much to the delight of her “mama” it looks like she will have a head full of curly hair (once it grows a bit of course). The little curl that is present doesn’t like to be photographed quite yet!

Pumpkin Patch

We visited Laity Pumpkin Patch on the weekend. The day was gloriously sunny and a perfect fall day. The kids loved the pumpkins, animals, tractor ride and corn maze. The fields of pumpkins were carefully scoured for 3 perfect ones for our steps.

Nate found an unruly large one that had to be left on the field for the next unsuspecting “gatherer”!

Jump the Sillies Out

This spring we picked up Brent's cousin's trampoline. The boys have not stopped bouncing since!

It was tricky to find a level spot on our property to put it, so Brent ended up building a few retaining walls with a nice level spot. We also invested in a safety net to keep our wild animals caged! We love the addition of a fun, enjoyable way to burn some extra energy. Mommy and Daddy let the secret out that they actually can jump too and are often highly requested as jumping partners. Maybe the family that jumps together stays together?!?