Ben and Caroline's Blog

Finding some free time when both kids are awake, fed, happy and available is pretty difficult these days. This morning both kids were happy and dressed so I figured we could get a good 15 minutes of picture time at the pumpkin patch before dropping Emily at school. Unloading the kids from the car and sitting them together in the patch involved a lot of physical strength, some serious wrestling and one verbal threat, but I got them set up perfect and ready to go. I grab the camera from around my neck, they both smile, and then I realize the battery is dead. Ahhh! Picked up both kids and carried them back to the car to get my iPhone and put down our camera that cost a small fortune. Then I set them up again for some iPhone shots. So, the quality isn't great and their patience had run out, but here they are!!

Here is a video link to Mark's newest trick (and one of his old tricks)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7ffqDS87G9A

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Emily's school pictures arrived Friday. This is an iPhone photo of the prints so it won't look as good as the real thing but it works.

This pose makes me laugh. She looks like a teenager.

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I decided Emily did not need to wear the pumpkin costume for the 3rd year in a row. It's Mark's turn now - more pictures of that to come. Emily picked out her own costume this morning. This was the clear winner because it came with toys. I am pretty sure it was the scissors that closed the deal. Here is our little hairstylist.

We took a trip to Dewberry Farm with Mimi and Grandma. It was a lot of fun. They have jungle gyms, rope swings, big slides, bounce areas, the Cow Train (a tractor that pulls little cow painted carts over a bumpy track), a hay ride (without the hay) around the farm with a stop at a pumpkin patch where the kids can pick one out to take home. You have to get a group together to go on a weekday (we went with my moms group) and for a lot of the activities you have to be with the group to participate. For instance, you can't just ride the cow train whenever you want - you have to go when your group is going. I guess that makes sense, but its kind of a bummer because I think Emily would have liked to ride the cow train over and over again and the place is big so its hard to keep up with everyone. There were also a few other shows and activities that we didn't get a chance to try but I think we still had plenty of fun. Here are some pictures.

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We just bought a new Britax Marathon for Mark. He was getting too long for the infant seat and appears to be happier in his new, bigger seat.

We have a Peg Perego Prima Vaggio Sip 30/30 and base that we no longer need. It was manufactured in November of 2008. If you are a stickler for AAP (and manufacturer) guidelines like I am then that means this car seat is still good for 2 more years. We have never been in a wreck with this seat. It adapts to Peg strollers as well as Bob, bumbleride and Baby jogger strollers. It does not adapt to graco strollers. It is a high end car seat with excellent reviews in good condition. I also have a matching stroller. It is yours if you want it. Here is a link for more info in the car seat.

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The weather is beautiful so it is park time again. Here is a video of Emily singing on her favorite stage at spring valley park.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J0DqZRIJGco

I made meatloaf and mac n cheese tonight. Mark loved the meatloaf and scarfed if down. He would finish what was on his plate and then reach and jump for more. He ate a few pieces of macaroni but mostly just ate a ton of meatloaf by the fistfuls. And then when he was finally finished he clapped his hands. Guess he has been waiting for the beef.

Mark loves to pull up on Emily's chairs. Just yesterday I was in the kitchen while he was standing with the chair. He must have knocked it over accidentally and figured out it would move. When I looked back in the playroom he was walking across the room like a little old man. Here is a video of him slowly moving along with his makeshift walker.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BFp9VuHiou8

Ben is 31 today. He jokingly asked me yesterday if I was going to write a blog post on his progress. I will refrain from posting any percentiles or updates on his favorite foods and activities but can report that he is doing perfectly well. Emily and I decided to pick up a few fun things this afternoon for a little family celebration tonight.

Happy birthday to a wonderful husband and dad. We love you very much.

We converted Emily's crib into a toddler bed a few months ago. It has gone much better than I anticipated and she loves the new set up. I meant to post pictures a while back but never found the time. Emily loves to show all her friends her "big girl bed" and loves playing with Mark in her bed too. Here are some pictures.

Lastly, a few pictures of Emily and Mark having a Cheerio picnic. Someone is hogging all the Cheerios...

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Mark had is 9 month check up last week and everything went well. He is 29.5 inches long and 18lbs 10ozs, which puts him in the 87th percentile for height and 22nd percentile for weight. He has cut 3 new teeth in the past few weeks so he now has 6 teeth! He is still doing the army crawl. It is kind of funny to watch because he drags himself like that all over the house. The doctor showed me some exercises to work on a more traditional crawl. Not crucial, but supposedly they build better upper body strength with a traditional crawl. Ive tried working on it some but the doctor said once they've been creeping/army crawling for a while then they might never convert to the traditional way so it might be too late already but we will keep trying. He has also started pulling up and is just now starting to experiment with sofa cruising.

Mark is eating anything and everything right now and has now mastered finger foods. He loves to pick up the food himself and has started getting frustrated when I try to spoon feed him. He is really good at picking up the food and getting it straight to his mouth and chewing - the hard part is preparing healthy, soft finger foods. I think his favorite new thing so far is orange, sweet potato or squash, but he likes any kind of grain (puffs, cheerios) as well. Mark is now fully weaned as of yesterday! I think once a baby is devouring solids and has 6 teeth it's a good time to call it quits. Mark has not skipped a beat through out the whole weaning process and loves getting a bottle or drinking formula in a cup.

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Mark loves to stand at the window, but just the other day I realized that when he is standing he can't see over the windowsill very well. So I sat him in a chair and he got so excited. He loves watching squirrels and people and cars. It is so cute. Mella likes to do it too.

We had a very impromptu trip to the zoo yesterday. It was pretty hot but we still had a great time. My mom came too which was nice because I definitely think one adult per kid is a good ratio for a zoo trip. Emily liked the Monkeys best but I feel like we didn't even get to see half of what they have to offer. Mark did well and he really did look at all the animals and displays. I think he liked the monkeys best too. Everyone always says an hour or so is enough at the zoo, so I let Mark take his morning nap at home and then figured we would stay from about 11:00-12:30 at zoo and then be home for naps. But, we got there at 12 and had to drag Emily out at 2. Next time we will get there first thing and stay until lunch. And I think we will wait until it is no longer 100+ degrees out. Although they have a lot to offer even in the heat.