Pockets

dollie

Meredith is entering the typical little girl stage of playing "Mommy" and carrying around dolls. YAY - so fun! So far in our household, we only own one doll! :p But, one doll is all Meredith needs to act out the mother role.

Last Christmas Granna made this doll for Meredith and it has become a household favorite. Most days "dollie" comes along with Meredith all over the house and is included in many activities. :)

I wasn't able to catch it on camera, but Meredith loves to give her dollie kisses and then push the doll into our faces to receive the same free love. :) What a little mama!

hummus pizza :)

Jane:

We've begun a new tradition - Erik cooks on the weekends! So far, the plan is a huge hit all around. Jane gets more time to sew and hide out in her art room, and Erik gets to experiment in the kitchen and try out his own swing on recipes. Meredith continues to happily toddler around the kitchen with Daddy...and sometimes takes matters into her own hands and feet by climbing up to the 3rd floor in search of Mama. :)

Tonight's menu: hummus pizza and a scrumptious salad. I'll let Erik fill you in on the details. :)

Erik:

I started with a base of olive oil, sprinkled with salt, pepper and rosemary. After a layer of hummus, I spread chopped yellow pepper, mushrooms and apples. Then topped off with a squeeze of lemon juice and cheese (feta on one half, on colby the other).

Other weekend endeavors included Chai Muffins (a wonderful side to eggs in the morning), Apple-Walnut Pancakes, and a Carrot Raisin salad with the addition of apples, cinnamon and lemon juice.

All this was primed by crisp weather and a free schedule - both necessary ingredients for cooking to be enjoyed at its fullest. And for a fine finish - a 2007 Château Perron (a red bordeaux blend) from Lalande de Pomerol in France.

halloween

As usual, we jumped at the chance for a good deal. We went to Chipotle this halloween for $2 burritos if you dressed up and joined their 'farm theme' for the evening. Sweet!

We took the youth group from our church - they definitely rocked the farm theme. :) Pig, pumpkin, two scarecrows, dorothy from The Wizard of Oz and a cowgirl farmer. Well done!

I was super excited to make MJ's costume this year and decided on "the very hungry caterpillar" as our contribution to the farm theme. Every farm has plenty of caterpillars, ya know. ;)

Making the costume was very fun and easy...but, what I didn't plan for was MJ not being a fan of dressing up in it. :( Before we left for Chipotle I tried to get MJ to wear it at home - I hoped to take her around to a few neighbors. But, I was met by a strong, "Nooooooooooooooo!" and a quick walk away. (Hmmm...is this the beginning of a picky dresser?) After discussing a plan with Erik on our way to Chipotle, we were able to wiggle her into the costume...but, we had a bit of a grumpy and un-cooperative caterpillar on our hands... She wore the costume for about 10 minutes and then it was over. *sigh* I only got a few not-so-good photos.

she spotted an impressively dressed adult-size chicken!

Overall, despite the grumpy few minutes in costume for MJ, it was a very fun evening altogether!

new games and little friends.

Meredith loves bath time in our new home especially now that it involves her fun new toy: bath crayons (given as a housewarming gift from our sweet neighbor!). These crayons are soooo awesome - draw anywhere on the tub and it washes right off. Meredith thinks they are pretty cool and has been going to town drawing on the tub walls...between a few tastes here and there... :p

Daddy picked up this new toy over the weekend. Just what our little organizer needs - a job to put all the red and yellow circles in there own place - YES!

and...her latest favorite word : "cheese" which pretty much sounds like "eeeeeeeeesssssseeee"

Vincent came over to play this week (remember how little they were back then) - now he's getting close to his first birthday! He and MJ a great time together...Vincent didn't think the camera was as exciting as MJ did. For her, it was good excuse for her to say "eeeeeeessssssseeeeee" a lot! ;)

even though it's MJ's fake smile...we still think it's pretty cute. ;)

Last weekend...

Last weekend we were in Carlisle for our annual concert at the OP church there. It was great to be back with that sweet congregation and to have time in my hometown again. :) We visited with Jonny and Bria and our darling niece, Lila - fun times.

sorry for the blurry shots - these kiddos were always moving!

tickles with Aunt Bria!

I love Lila's expression here - just like her Momma!

say "cheese!"

sweet hug good bye

blue eyes

Some recent photos of our favorite little blue eyes...

...and her new hair-do!! :)