Trick-or-Treat

Dora, Dora, Dora! Don't call her Sage. She fell in love with the whole idea of trick-or-treating the first time we described it to her. She was quite good at it too!
Shaun Alexander. Hayden was wondering why the costume didn't come with a cast for his hand, the real Shaun has a cast. Contemplated Matt Hasselbeck for awhile, but in the end, went for running back. Besides, he already had a #8 jersey, now he has some variety.
My little stinker! Has there ever been a cuter skunk? I think not! She stayed toasty warm in her costume. Too warm for our indoor activities.
carving pumpkins is one of my favorite parts of halloween. Heath isn't so much into it. He is chief mucker. Hayden and I sort seeds, and Sage says how "gusting" it all is. Marlee chewed on her foot for the whole thing. I am in charge of carving. Easy designs this year. However, the seahawk pumpkin is not real sturdy, don't expect to see it holding up in the morning. :(Boo from us!

Pumpkin Patch

We go out to the pumpkin patch every year, this year we did it twice. Once as a family, and then me and the girls got to go with Hayden's Kindergarten class too! I love the pumpkin patch. Its a photo-taking extravaganza! We get to take a hayride out to the patch. This year, we rode the John Deere-both times. Pretty cool! The Monday night we went as a family, it was very quiet out there, maybe two or three other families. Now, pumpkin hunting is a very individualized sport. I like an enormous fat pumpkin, especially with deep grooves and lots of bumps on it. If there is some green, even better. Hayden does not appreciate the green pumpkin, as it is not ripe yet in his eyes. He likes them round, with little or no grooves. Sage just hopes to be able to lift one some day. Heath prefers them pre-gutted, pre-cut Jack-O-Lanterns-or pureed with some cinnamon, nutmeg and cloves. Marlee likes them best when they are small enought to get ahold of and chew on. We got two great pumpkins, just perfect for carving. We did the hay bale maze and pyramid, always fun. Lastly, before they shut the lights out on us, we got to pet all the animals in the barn. One of the ladies who worked there got the bunny out for us to pet. Sage was speechless for a good 30 seconds. She loved the bunny. When speech did return, she just kept saying, "He's so soft!" with an enourmous grin on her face. She loved the pig too, gave him a good snort. Hayden talked to all the animals, but I don't think he got too close to any of them. He did get a kick out of quacking with the chattiest duck ever.

totally ripped this pose off from Jamie :)

And it wouldn't be a trip to the pumpkin patch without getting some of their homemade candy at the cute store. I prefer the dark chocolate covered caramels with almonds. Heath went with the chocolate mint truffle. Really, you can't go wrong in there. Fun, fun, fun!

Hayden's class went this week. It was a gorgous sunny day. I put Marlee in the backpack which she loves. Sage knows most of the kids in Hayden's class and just blends in. A couple of the girls have adopted her as a surrogate little sister and she couldn't be happier about it. Turns out that our favorite pumpkin patch has a special patch of little pumpkins. Perfect for a bunch of kindergarteners needing to carry their own pumpkins. It was really cute. The kids all got to do the other fun activities: maze, pyramid, barn, and they got a snack. A cookie and cider. It was so fun watching the kids play and enjoy this great place.

The pink blob is Marlee, she desperately needed a nap, but was having a tough time falling asleep with so many kids around to watch.
The kids had a great time climbing around on this pyramid. When they were told it was ok to climb, it was like watching an ant hill the way they swarmed their way to the top and ran around. Sage followed her brother all the way to the top. When we got home, we discovered her pants and shoes were full of hay from sliding around on.Hayden reached the top!

The Sweater

So 6 years ago I found out I was pregnant for the first time. Heath and I were very excited and wanted to buy something for the baby. Not knowing if it was a boy or a girl, we bought a t shirt with a basketball on it(boy) and a rainbow sweater with a cute star(girl) . We had to buy something for each sex as we didn't want to seem to be tipping the scales in either direction. Well, we had a boy-yes, old news. The basketball shirt was really cute, we have had many more basketball shirts, some cute football, soccer and all other sport related clothes in varying shades of blues. We have boxes of way fun boy stuff. But, I was sorta sad to put the sweater away, however a little part of me knew that it would see its day. Well, then Miss Sage came along and I was tickled to pull out the rainbow sweater, a few years old, never been worn, tag still on. It was darling on her as I imagined when we bought it. Anyway, that is the history of the sweater. Well, it was pretty special when I pulled it out of the box a few weeks ago. I recalled the excitement of the original purchase, the hope upon packing it away, and the joy of getting to use it after all with Sage and now, with Marlee, it just seems like a great reminder of what a joy each of my children are. I still love this sweater.
This is Marlee in the sweater at 5 months old. I have a cute picture of Sage at 4 months in the sweater as well, but Blogger does not seem to like it and won't let me put it on here. You would have enjoyed it very much and probably left me a comment on how much they look alike.

Nap Time

You know how when an almost 3 year old disappears and the house is just way too quiet? This usually means trouble. Well, Sage is the exception to the rule. If it is after lunch and she vanishes, I know that she has found herself somewhere quiet to take a nap. No need for me to help, she has it all taken care of. Sometimes her nesting habits just make me laugh. Today, it was the laundry basket that she put one of her pillows in. Cozy.

As her 3rd birthday approaches, I know that the end of napping is also getting closer. Not sure when that day will come, but know that I will cry. Yeah, not just because it means an end to the peaceful mid-day quiet time, but also because I will no longer be able to stumble upon this sweet scene.

5 months

Marlee has turned 5 months. Time is flying. This month we learned more and more that this girl has got personality! We have really seen her develop a sense of humor. She cracks herself up spitting, pretty much all day long. Its pretty funny. Hayden and Sage are really funny too, she gets a big grin on her face when she catches sight of them. Each day when Hayden gets home from school, she gets pretty excited. They have a pretty special relationship. He sits behind her in the car and I get to listen to her squeal and laugh all over town as he entertains her. Who needs radio!

Diaper changes are still one of her favorite parts of the day. She gets wild bug eyes when she hears the Velcro fasteners and grins and laughs when the diaper comes off.
I’m not sure but perhaps teeth are getting closer as she has been gnawing on everything she can get her hands on. I love to watch her gnaw on her toes, its amazing how flexible babies are.
Oh she loves toys. The caterpillar bug is one of her favorites and she attacks if you put it close to her. Its sorta like watching a Venus fly trap, you set the bug on her belly, and she gets the wild eyes again right before she folds up around it and bites its nose. Too cute!
And talk! This girl is a chatterbox. Look out Hayden and Sage, you’ve got competition.
We all love that she is able to farm on her exersaucer. Free hands for mom, and the kids can play with her toys entertaining themselves and her. Win-win-win.
Cereal started out strong, but a few days in, she changed her mind. She clamps that mouth shut and its game over. We took a week off and tried again with oatmeal which seems to be going better.
This month I worked another weekend (boy, my work schedule is grueling!) and she did great with the bottle. Heath said she sucked it down like she had been doing it forever.
Her schedule seems to be pretty consistant. Up in the morning about 7, a few naps and down for the night about 8:30 pm.
She now prefers to sit propped up or stand, lying down is for tiny babies, she will let you know if you forget and lay her down.
Her hair is getting thinner on top, the baby fuzz is falling out and it seems awfully light where it is coming in. The little bald patch in the back is perfect for little kisses.

Highlights:
Rolls over-same night she tries cereal. Can roll back to tummy, and tummy to back.
Being out side for all Hayden’s flag football games-being outside is the best, and when there are a ton of funny kids running around, well, it just doesn’t get any better than that.
Trip to Seattle for Auntie Angies birthday
Getting loved at Heath’s company picnic.
Girls time when Hayden is at school