Halloween

We started our Halloween festivities on Friday with a parade and party at Reegan's school. 

 Reegan and her besties, Mona

 Gavin was in preschool, so it was just us 4 for the party.

 Halloween! These three!!! Love them.

 Reegan loves to cheer and dance, so this costume was perfect for her!

Gavin is completely obsessed with Spider-man. We toyed with other costume ideas, but ultimately this was it! (apparently this is Gavin's interpretation with Spider-mans pose)

 We had a cul-de-sac potluck and here are the kids ready for the dash to get candy! Spider-man refused to take a nap even after the many attempts by his parents, he refused to take this picture and the first melt-down occurred. Emerson was already changed into her pajamas and was taking her evening nap at this time as well.

Reegan and Jason had a great time trick-or-treating, Gavin only made it 3 houses before we headed home and he helped me pass our candy to the kids. We finished the night with our dear friends the Keeley's coming over to watch the Royals game! Melt-downs and all it was a great halloween!

Emerson - 7months

Emerson is now closer to 8 months than she is 7 months. This baby is growing so fast and the days are flying by. What a joy this girl is, we love her more and more every day that passes.

 Emerson sits so steadily and can sit for a long time and play with her toys. I think this is her favorite thing to do. She spreads all the toys out around her and loves when her brother and sister sit down next to her and play/read with her. She also loves to play in her exersaucer while I am in the kitchen.

 Emerson rolls all over the place and reaches as far as she can. She pushes up on her arms but has not figured out that she can pull those legs underneath her. I think we have a long time to go before she starts crawling and I am OK with that. Immobile for as long as possible is what I hope for!

 We started baby led weaning around 6 1/2 months. I wasn't going well (Emerson refused to feed herself), so we have given her baby food, cereal, carrots, sweet potato, squash and peas. We are still doing some baby led weaning and it is going great. Emerson has started to realize she loves food and is more interested in feeding herself some! I love baby led weaning, makes meal time so much easier!

I think this girl is currently teething as she has her fingers in her mouth all the time. Only the 2 bottom teeth right now, but soon there should be a few additional popping through. This is only the second time we have put her up on her feet. She balances ok, but I am in no rush to keep showing her that she can do this all on her own. Stay little baby!

Hay

My mom has been wanting to take pictures of the kids on hay bails for years now. The timing finally worked out and the day was perfect. 

 Emerson was asleep for most of it, but we woke her up at the end

summer ends

We're wrapping up summer with family time and outdoor time before the temps turn cold. To start, here are some wonderful pictures of our cute little baby!

Last Saturday we ended up having the most wonderful day ever. It started with the Old Settlers day parade. The kids loved it and it totally reminded me of my childhood. I remember going to different parades and running for the candy, watching my kids do the exact same thing was so fun!

Saturday night we were given tickets to the circus. We left the baby behind and took the big kids. They had the best time and talked about it for days after.

 Such a silly boy.

Emerson 6 month!

Emerson is now 6 months old! She is still a joy and an absolute blessing. I can't believe its been half a year already. Time really does fly when you're having fun.

This month has been a real month of growth for the little miss. She now has 2 teeth and rolls everywhere. Loves to sit in her exersaucer and chews on everything she can get her hands on.

We started rice cereal with apple and banana in it and avocado. She loved them both. This week the highchair is going to make a reappearance so we can start with chunks of veggies.

 Emerson's sleeping habits haven't adjusted with her age like I hoped they would. She is now having more awake time but sleeps off and on all the time. She usually wakes up between 7 and 8 and goes back to sleep around 9 when we are in the car taking Gavin to preschool, running errands or taking a walk. This nap is approximately 45 min long. She often will take another 30 min nap when picking the kids up from school around 11-11:30. She is always awake between noon and 1:00 and goes down for her long nap around 1:30. She wakes up around 4 and takes a cat nap around dinner time at 6.  Bedtime is 8:30ish.

Baby loves her brother and sister. The feelings are mutual, Reegan and Gavin can't get enough of her!

Despite Emerson's cheeks and thigh rolls, she is the smallest of the 3 at this age weighing in at 16 pounds, 5 ounces (50%ile) and 25inches tall (20%ile).

first days of school

Aug 20, 2015 was Reegan's first day of kindergarten. She was so excited and talked about this day all summer long. Arbor Creek Elementary is 3 neighborhood blocks from our house and we walk as often as the weather lets us.

 Mrs. Knoefler

 Gavin started preschool on Aug 20, 2015. He goes every Wednesday and Fri mornings and was a little less excited to go. He talked about it all the time and would tell you he was excited, until it was actually time to go. He was nervous, but luckily got over it very quick. We had a meet the teacher morning before school actually started where the kids could see the classroom and play with the toys. He held my hand so tightly when we walked in, stayed right by my side, and wouldn't talk to anyone...until he found the playdough. He plays with this playdough every day and no longer wants me to stay with him. He walks in and off he goes. Makes me so proud and happy to see this boy grow and be OK with being away from us.

Oregon- day trips

The last of our Oregon trip. While at the coast we took a couple daytrips to check out a few things. First up was Newport for the marine science center. It's free and its amazing.

 Gavin liked to look at the starfish but refused to touch anything.

 After we went to Rogue brewery for lunch and a tour.

Another day we drove to Tillamook Cheese Factory. Cheese tasting and ice cream, what can be better!

 Then drove by an amazing looking museum (we did not go in, just admired from afar).

 The girl cousins all wore their matching outfits.

 We had one last afternoon at my grandparents house before we left town.

 After leaving the coast we drove to Eugene to see the campus before heading back to Portland.

 Portland Rose Garden and free concert.

Headed home...there is something so bittersweet about heading home after a trip. Sad it's over, but excited to be back to familiarity. This trip was the perfect ending to our summer and we had such a great time.