Halloween Fun

We had a great weekend filled with lots of parties, the pumpkin patch and finally trick-or-treating!Alemu took Elias on a hay ride. Elias was super excited and had a great time with his uncle.

Notice the arm around the shoulder :)

Isla loves kisses!!

Sitting on her Papi's shoulders

Israel and Alemu did the maze blindfolded. Alemu was so grossed out that he had to hold my hand to get to the starting line.

Family Pumpkin Patch Photo, October 30, 2010

Any guesses who might be teething?

Lassoing the bull

Another family photo...this one in costume. Elias was a giraffe, Isla a caterpillar and Brian and I were the zookeepers.

Trick-or-treating at Grandma and Grandpa's house.

Our "RAF"

Best buddies :)

Our little caterpillar

Group photo at the Denney's, our annual halloween night party

Uncle Alemu and Uncle Israel

And we're off...let the candy collecting begin

Alemu trying to run away from the camera, such a junior higher

Just a quick little juice break. Our giraffe was starting to get tired.

Checking out the end of the night loot! Every lollipop was met with a "YAY! LOLLIPOP!"

"Wow! This is a lot of good stuff."

All About Isla

It is time to give our second-born a little blog time. Isla is a wonderful baby. I don't know that words or pictures could even come close to doing justice to her personality. She could very appropriately be renamed "smiley" as she is ALWAYS smiling. She rarely cries and when she does it indicates a true need. I often say I am glad she was not my first baby because I wouldn't appreciate how truly good-natured and easy she really is!

Isla in July (4 months old). Our little "peanut"

Isla in September (6 months old)

Going for a family walk to the park. Isla is always up for going with the flow...no matter what we are doing!

Booties and sweater made by Great Aunt Cindy...I love those little feet.

Isla's first rice cereal. She did great this first time but ever since then she has shown off her uber-sensitive gag reflex. When the food hits her tongue (not even the back of the throat) she starts gaging until a) we stop feeding her or b) she throws up. This has been a bit of a frustration as she acts super interested in our food and the doctor insists she is ready and should be eating baby food. For now, it is a work in progress.

Until really recently, Isla was content to just hang out and roll around on the floor playing with her toys. In the last couple of weeks she really wants to get going and is super close to crawling (she can go one to two paces before doing the face-plant then scoot).

First time feeding herself.

Isla's favorite toy is Mr. Jangles! She absolutely loves him and he has been a favorite since about 3 months old.

Isla loves her pacifier and her thumb. It is super cute having a thumb-sucker :) She always wakes up happy. Usually we wake to her talking in the morning, very rarely to a cry. Recently, she just rolls around and plays in her crib until someone comes in the room. She then greets us with huge smiles and gets so excited she starts scooting and rolling all over her crib.

October (7 months old). Isla loves to lay on the floor and join her big brother in watching morning cartoons. It's a little disturbing to me how much she loves watching t.v. From a very early age she would crane her neck and wiggle her body around when she heard the t.v. in order to get into a position where she could watch.

First cross-country meet - watching Uncle Alemu run (and of course come in first). Alemu has yet to even meet any competition!

Cuddling with mama in the Moby at the Fall Festival! Isla loves to snuggle - just as much as Elias does. I really do spend about half of my day cuddling with the kids as they both love their one-on-one snuggle time!

At 7 months old Isla is about to get her two front bottom teeth. She is super drooly and I imagine her first teeth will make their appearance in the next month or so. Isla is also very close to being able to sit up on her own and to crawling. The next few weeks are bound to be exciting and bring lots of changes. Isla loves interaction and touch! All it takes is saying her name and making eye contact and you will be rewarded with wonderful baby smiles. She absolutely loves kisses, especially on the mouth. Recently she has started grabbing my face to pull me to her if I stop kissing her. Also, if I kiss her on the cheek she will turn her head to make sure she gets smooches on the lips! Isla is a complete joy and a wonderful blessing to our lives. We love you, Isla!

Elias Turns 2 (ok so 3 months ago...)

On July 22nd, Elias turned 2 years old! Time has gone by so fast. After church we had a great party with tons of family and friends. Elias' favorite cartoon is still Sesame Street and Elmo is still his favorite so our theme this year was Elmo. Elias still talks about his "Elmo Happy Birthday Cupcakes" three months later so I think it was a success. Brian and I made these cupcakes the night before. It wasn't without drama but we loved how they turned out. We had a huge pool party, great weather, great food (we had one of Elias' favorites which is pizza), all with great friends. There were fun things for big kids and little kids which included: the pool, jacuzzi, kiddie pools, water tables, squirt guns, and a slip n slide.

It was a little windy so the candle blew out itself but Elias didn't know the difference. He loves blowing out candles!Frosting was everywhere in no time. Elias ended up painting himself.
At 2 years old, Elias' best friend is Hailey (who he also calls his girlfriend). He gets to see her a couple times a week and they always have a blast together.

Isla went in the pool for a little while and seemed to enjoy it.

Grandma and Grandpa Gossett, Aunt Lori and Uncle Kevin all came dressed as Sesame Street characters which Elias loved!

All about Elias at 2 years old:

Favorite Cartoon: Sesame Street

Favorite Friend: Hailey

Favorite Candy: Lollipops, Skittles and M&Ms

Favorite Things To Do: Swimming (with his floaties which he loves), playing soccer, watching cartoons, watching Israel and Alemu play sports, getting in his car seat (because it means he gets to go somewhere), playing Mario Kart wii or Super Mario on the gameboy, taking a bath, reading

Favorite Food: McDonald's chicken nuggets and french fries (this is his special treat)

Favorite Phrase: "I need..." (apple juice, to cuddle, to play soccer) he NEEDS everything :)

Favorite Tricks: Spelling his name, saying the ABCs, counting to 20, recognizing his letters, reading his favorite books to adults (he has them memorized)

Favorite Books: "Pajama Time" and "There's An Alligator Under My Bed"

Favorite Breakfast: Pancakes "Pampakes"

Favorite Song: "Da da da" aka Don't Stop Believing from the Glee Soundtrack - he knows the whole song and loves to sing along!

Elias loves his baby sister and is always looking out for her. He has recently become very interested in playing with cars and superheros. He loves to see pictures and videos of himself. Elias thinks he is a big kid and jumps right in there playing with elementary, middle schoolers and high schoolers. He is still my baby and asks to "rock rock," "cuddle," and "touch my hair" on a multiple times a day basis. He loves his sippy cups and his apple juice and milk are his security blanket. Elias loves to be outside and on the go. A perfect day for him includes getting in his car seat first thing in the morning and not coming home until it's dark out. He loves fruit but is finicky about his veggies. He loves to put his hair product in himself and then go look at his "pretty hair" in the mirror. We are currently working on becoming potty trained but he isn't quite there yet. He is really looking forward to Halloween and has been practicing saying "trick or treat" for weeks now because he knows people will give him candy. Elias is a wonderful little boy and charms everyone who is lucky enough to be around him. We love you, Elias!