Siblings

One of the things I was most excited about when Max was born was watching the relationship between the two kids develop.  I have such happy memories from growing up with my siblings and I wanted to give my own kids that experience.  Molly has always been kind to her brother, but there was a bit of an indifference there for quite a while.  She's not one who is really into babies and so when he was an infant, she really didn't have much use for him.  However now that he is a little older and can interact with her she is really having fun with him and it makes me so happy.  She loves to make him laugh by playing peek a boo or dancing crazy.  She likes to try and teach him new things and she likes to chase him as he crawls through the house.  He loves to watch her and copy what she is doing all the time.  Here are some pictures from a few of their recent adventures.

 

 A ball had rolled under this cabinet and Molly was determined to get it out with no help from Mom using a flashlight and the stethoscope from her Dr. kit.  Max was her helpful assistant.

 

Here they had built a fort and Molly was trying to teach Max how to play a game on the iPad. 

 

I am so excited that they are starting to have fun together and can't wait to watch their relationship grow.  Especially as we get ready to welcome sibling #3 in a few months!

Max's 1st Birthday

Yes, Max turned one 3 months ago, but better late than never right?  We had a fun party with a Yo Gabba Gabba theme and family to help celebrate.  Max loved his cake and his sister was very helpful in opening his presents. 

 

 

I wasn't organized enough to order a cake in advance so the night before the party I enlisted the help of Mike and Gammy and Lumpy and this is what we came up with.  Gabba friend cupcakes and a Brobee cake.

All ready to be squished!

 





The birthday boy eating his breakfast.

 



Big sister "showing him" how to open his presents.

 



Getting the hang of it.

 



His present from Mom and Dad, a blow up Mickey Mouse ball pit that now, 3 months later has a hole popped in it.  Oh well, they loved it for a while.

 



Checking out the decorations with Grandma and Grandpa.

 



Jack and Molly getting some love from Grandma Bev.

 



He was a little timid at first to really get in there, he started by pointing at it.

 



Then one finger...

 



Then a few fingers and a little taste...

And finally really going for it by the fistful.

 



The aftermath.

 



Little rinse off in the sink afterwards.

 



Playing in his new toy with Grandma Bev.

 

And a family picture with our big boy.  Such a fun day to celebrate such a sweet little guy.

Christmas 2012

We traveled to Grandview for Christmas this year and were able to spend some good time with Mike's family.  It was a quick trip with lots of activity, but we were glad to be able to be there.  Max had a good first Christmas and Molly was thrilled with all of her gifts.  It seemed like the whole Christmas season came and went in record time this year!

Grandma and Grandpa Great with the awesome cookbook of Grandma's recipes that Nancy, Melissa and Jessica put together.

All 7 of the grandkids trying to hard to wait patiently to get downstairs and see what Santa left.

This is seconds after discovering the Princess Little People Castle that Santa left.

"Seriously Mom, we get to keep these toys?"

To say she was happy would be an understatement.

Hard to get them to stop and pose for a picture when there is so much to explore.

Max had some interesting methods for getting into his presents.  At one point he was biting the box, but I couldn't get a picture quick enough.

He worked really hard.

 

The Peppa Pig dollhouse was also a big hit.

So I gave Molly $10 and told her she could pick out anything in Target she wanted to give Daddy for a present.  She spent like an hour wandering around between the sporting goods section, the toy section, the electronic section and everywhere in between.  Eventually she settled on a Ray Mysterio WWE wrestling figure.  Odd choice, but she was so excited.

Proof I was there too.  :-)

Luke modeling his new worker guy outfit in the midst of the carnage.

Back home on Christmas night playing with the new stuff.

Molly's Christmas Program

Molly had her first school Christmas program a few weeks ago.  She was so excited and took it very seriously.  I have some video, but for some reason they won't load.  I'll try again later. 

Hiding behind her hands.

Very serious face.

Cute girl.

Thanksgiving 2012

We spent Thanksgiving at Mike's parent's house.  I didn't do a very good job of taking pictures, but here are the few I got.  It was a great time with family and we especially enjoyed meeting the kids' newest cousin Baby Jake, although I have no pictures to show.

 

He looks thrilled to be hanging with Uncle Dennis.

Molly and Lauren having a snack.

Max loves Grandpa Great.  He always goes to him and he always has a big smile.

All of the girl cousins "sharing" the iPad.

Jenn, Mike and Jessica

Max's Baptism

We had Max baptized the first weekend of November.  It was All Saints Day which is special to us because William is recognized during part of the service.  We were lucky to have both sets of grandparents and Aunt Annie, the Wessels and several Gilberts there.  Charlie and Amanda weren't able to make it and they were sure missed, but honored they accepted our request to be Max's Godparents. 

I love how Molly and Max are laughing at each other in this picture.

Whole family picture.