Miles turns four & welcome Baby Claire!

Hi! Just a few months to catch up on, but so much to tell. All in this past month we have celebrated out friends Lilly and Georges birthdays, welcomed Nick and Lindsay Collins baby girl Claire, finally found time to go to the play Jeff got me tix to for Vday, and Mom got her turn to spend an evening at preschool with Miles.

My mom came down for the weekend to watch the kids while Jeff and I finally used our tickets to see The Long Red Road at the Goodman Theater downtown. It's in the mid-high sixties all week, and somehow we pick the blustery snowy day to dress up and walk around down town. The play was ok, weather sucked, and the blisters I got were painful... but alllll totally worth it to get to spend an entire day (nice restaurant dinner too) ALONE with my husband!

Here's an image of SuperDad in action- reading Mayse her pre-bedtime book. Miles likes to help too sometimes.

Just like Miles did, Mayse loves to sit on Daddys shoulders and hold his ears. :)

One of my new all-time favorite pictures. Nick and his new baby girl Claire, and his best friend Jeff with his baby girl Mayse. It's hard for me to think of us all as grown-ups now, but here's the photographic proof.

New mommy Lindsay holding six day old Claire Olivia Collins. :) :)
We drove out to Dexter to see them last Sunday, and it was so nice to get to meet Claire and hang with the new parents for a bit. As a tribute to who Lindsay is, I want it noted that she made her first post baby out of the house venture that to the store and get some groceries (including Jeffs favorite soda) to have on hand like a good hostess!?!?! While it was certainly not necessary, we truly appreciate the effort.

This picture is of Miles and his two best buds from preschool. Miles, Kasey, and Eliza are inseparable and they (along with neighbor Lauren) are all he talks about! Never noticed before, but they all have the same color blond hair.

Miles turned four and Lilly turned 3 in late February and George turned 1 early March. Here is a picture of us all at George and Lilly's combined party at Jessica's new house in Dewitt. A fun time was had by all!!

Miles is starting to 'think deep' about things now, and I love being here to see it, and help him uncover answers to things. When I explained that Mayse's poop was orange this week because she was eating orange vegetables, he thought about it and asked me why his pee never turned colors. The picture above was his solution to the question he asked me one day, "Mommy? How do Hippo's paint if they don't have hands?" I LOVE seeing him think!

Mayse LOVES her big brother. He can make her laugh when no one else can. He still really enjoys having her around too. He loves to make her laugh, to stop her from crying, and even to change diapers. She's starting to grab for things now, and I can see this will be causing some sibling stress in the future. :)

Brother is really good at feeding Mayse, and still often likes to hold her.

This is an example of how my days are spent, as servant and entertainer extraordinaire. When I say, "I am not your maid..." I often hear, "Yes, you are." :) Cute for now...

A messy child is a happy child. So true.

That wraps it up for this session! Hope you enjoyed~

Age Progression #4

Every year on or around Miles and Mayses birthdays, I will repost this but with the updated yearly picture. Emjoy
I got it stuck in my head to take a picture of Miles every year on his birthday with the same article of clothing, to show his growth. Well, we couldn't think of anything except a belt that he would be able to fit into (sort of) each year and that Mom wouldn't misplace. So, the next five pictures are of Miles on his day of birth (sans belt), on his first birthday, on his second birthday, on his third, and now his fourth. I can't wait to look back on these same pictures ten years from now!

The change over the years, up until now seems incredible ... TOO FAST, but this year it seems to have slowed down a bit!

Christmas preperations!

November and December are my two favorite cold months, if I have to claim any cold months as my favorite. It is purely because of the sentiments of Thanks Giving, Christmas, and all the warm fuzzies one gets from such great family time. :)

Miles and I put up lights around the porch, of which now half are burnt out and it took so long they are staying there. Ugh.

Miles new favorite game is playing 'reindeer.' He gets Jeff or me to play the role of Santa and sit in the sleigh (office chair), puts a long ribbon around his middle and hands us the reins. Then, after the appropriate hat on each participant, Miles pulls Santa around the house. Thankfully, we have hardwood floors that stand up to the many rounds of this that we have to do to effectively wear Miles out.

The first decent snow of the season brought the most perfect snow ball snow I've ever seen. So, of course, we headed out to build the perfect snowman. Mayse slept thru most of it, but got her STRONG big brother to hold her in front of the snowman for a picture.
Here's to the sense of warmth families bring to this season of cold!
Happy Holidays!!

Halloween 2009

Halloween this year was a lot of fun, mainly because we had two members of our extended family to enjoy it with! Titia and Uncle Brian came to visit, and a great time was had by all!

Uncle Brian and Titia took it upon themselves to entertain the heck out of Miles while they were here. After going trick or treating around our neighborhood, Daddy took them all to DinoNites at the zoo while Mommy and Mayse stayed home to cuddle.

Miles and Mayse posing with the neighbors down the street, Lauren and Nichole.
Lauren is Raggedy Anne, and Nichole is Cruella Deville. Nichole even took their dog along, spraying painting (hair color spray) spots on their dog!

Awww, what a great looking group.

Titia brought Miles a toy dragon, seen here in the picture because she knew how excited he was about his dragon costume. Since then, the dragon toy has gone missing... has anyone seen this dragon, or do I need to take an ad out on a milk carton?

Halloween was fun. I think Miles will actually remember this one, he did so much and had so much say in how things went (Mayse's costume was his idea) that I hope he remembers.

Mommy and Miles raked the leaves into a big pile to jump in; always a fantastic activity in Miles eyes. Then, Mayse and Mom watched as Miles and Daddy did the dirty work and carved the pumpkins, which the squirrels promptly ate.
Happy Halloween!!!

Mayse Jane Pfaller

A couple months of gathering photos, and a new camera later, I announce the arrival of the long awaited Mayse Jane. :) Too many pictures to choose from, so too many found their way here.
Enjoy.

Miles teaching sister how to play. He really does love her.

Daddy cuddling the the hours old Mayse. Note: He is sitting in the lactation chair. :)

Titia came to visit and enjoyed much cuddle time.

Auntie Manda and her friend Karis also came to visit. Mayse is one loved little girl!

She fell asleep while playing on her mat... so much for tummy time.

Great Grandma Homolka, Great Grandpa Jarrett, and Great Grandma Spicer get their chance to meet Mayse a few weeks after she is born.

My good friends Jessica and Erin stopped by to see Mayse and me while we were in Lowell enjoying a relaxing day together. It is GREAT to have such GREAT friends.

Miles is happy to teach anything he can to Mayse, especially how to find the exact right pumpkin!

I am the luckiest mom in the world. :)
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The first picture of Mayse taken at hours old, to a picture taken at a few weeks, and then at a month old. They grow so fast... I am thankful for this visual documentation we call a blog. Perhaps Miles and Mayse can look back through this one day and learn more than they ever watned to!