Isabel is 10 Months Old

Our little Pixie is 10 months old. She is getting to be a sweet little girl with a big appetite and a super happy demeanor. I don't have a weight for this month right now, but I will get one on Tuesday and repost. She remains long and lean, just like her big brother, but goodness, can this little girl eat. She isn't in love with baby food. She salivates for our food. Watching her look at us while we eat is hysterical. Big eyes and mouth open. So we cut our food up into little tiny pieces and she shovels it in.

 She looks a lot like me when I was young. Especially the hair standing up. I will scan a photo of me when I was young so you can see the resemblance.

Not really interested in sitting still for the camera. Gimme that thing!!

Maxwell is quite the baby wrangler.

Bathtime Fun

I have started working 5 nights a week now and Terry is doing a great job at being the best daddy around. He is even managing to get baths done a couple of nights a week. Wednesday night he took these sweet pictures.

 Isabel is proving to be quite the water baby, just like Maxwell was.

She LOVES the water. She doesn't even mind showers.

 I think Maxwell looks at Isabel as a big play toy.

A little brotherly love. He even told me about it the next morning. "Ha ha ha, I put letters on Isabelly last night in the bathtub." She, of course, has no idea. She just loves her brother. He makes her belly laugh and that is all that matters to her.

The love affair is hit or miss these days. Some days are great, others not so much. He asked me if I could put Isabelly back in my tummy the other day. Nope, sorry, she is ours for life. Today, he specifically asked to save a chocolate chip cookie to share it with Isabelly. He is in love today. We will see what tomorrow brings.

Weekend in Westport

For Terry and his brother Mike's birthdays, we went to Westport for the weekend. Kind of camping but in quaint little cottages, with showers!!! We stayed at the Ocean Spray Motel. Mike and Terry stayed there when they were kids. It was nice to see a part of their history. The place was great. Not a Motel really but 9 little, 2 bedroom cottages with kitchens, bathrooms, tv's and heaters. Quite a change for us. When we go to the ocean we usually camp. It usually rains and is generally miserable. I always rally and never complain, but this trip was great. Family, hot showers and oh yeah, rain and wind!

 These are some of the only pictures I took. Maxwell is flying Uncle Mike's kite, all by himself.

We played in the sand, both days, but the wind and the rain was awful. It didn't bother Maxwell until he was beyond cold and having a meltdown. Being able to go back to our room for a hot shower was the best part of it all.

One of these times, when we go to the ocean, it won't rain on us. Maybe next time I will forget the sunscreen in an attempt to bring on the sun. I highly recommend checking them out if you are down in the area. They do not have a website but you can still find their information online. Worth every penny. They also have a play yard, a large fire pit, barbeques and an area to clean anything you catch or dig out at the ocean. The walk to the beach is only about 400 yards, but you can drive your car out also. We will definetly go back. We even scoped out another cottage we liked better.

Standing Tall

Isabel has begun to pull herself up to standing. She is getting really good at it. The sitting back down has taken awhile to perfect but she is getting better at that also. She is extremely cautious, putting her hand down first to ease herself back down to the ground. Oh so cute to see her little brain at work. She is pretty proud of herself while she stands. Always reaching for Maxwell's things on his train table, but that is another story.

 When she loses footing, she clings to the side of the table for dear life. Then she squeaks to get your attention to come over and rescue her. Strong like her daddy, she never lets go until you have her upright again.

Her she is practicing her one-legged stance. She is pretty fearless.

Isabel's First Haircut

I couldn't stand it any more. I started putting hats on Isabel while she ate because she would be covered in food by the end of the meal. Her hair had to go! Nothing drastic, just the long baby fuzzies she was born with. Terry was reluctant to do it, so I did it while he was at school, hoping he wouldn't notice.

Before

 I mean really, who is going to miss the fuzz?

After

Hardly noticeable, right?

So, later that night I get a text message from Terry. "I saw what you did." I had actually forgotten and didn't know what he was taking about, so I started to ask him. Then I remembered. He texted that he did something to. That is when I paniced! I racked my brain...earrings...more hair? When I get home he tells me, he painted her fingers and toenails while she was sleeping. A sweet, pale pink. Adorable!

Fishing Derby Winner

Okay, not really. The derby is for 5 to 12 year olds. We took Maxwell last year and he caught 2 fish. He had such a good time that we went for several days after and kept trying for more. So this year, of course we were going to go again. So May 5th we set out to catch a "Whipper Whopper!"

Maxwell and daddy went before Isabel and I woke up. So sadly, I wasn't there to see the catch, but Terry got some amazing pictures.

 Showing off the "winner!"

 He had lots of admirerers. After they reeled in the fish, Terry says everyone came racing over to get in on the same spot.

Truth be told, he did have the biggest fish. It was 17.5 inches long and 1.35 pounds. According to the organizers it was the biggest of the day. One of the guys is a fan of Maxwell's from the hardware store and knows how old he is. He says next year, if he catches another, "whipper whopper," we can fudge his age by a few months.

He was so proud of his fish he dragged him over to show me when Isabel and I showed up. We tried for another one, but how do you top a winner?

I have to say thank you again to Marve and Joyce Branch for getting Maxwell his first fishing pole while he was still in my tummy. You started a passion.

We will try again next year and keep you updated on any other big catches now that fishing season is open.

Isabel Has A Playdate

My friends had an emergency and needed a sitter last minute, so I said okay, sure, bring Elliott over. You might remember Elliott. He is the little boy born 9 days before Isabel. My friends Matt and Kellie, from the Cheesecake Factory, were pregnant at the same time as us. They think Elliott had a stroke or series of strokes in the birth canal. It was a long, hard labor for Kellie. He didn't get to come home from the hospital until he was 10 days old. I am happy to report he is doing great!!

He has reached and exceeded his milestones and he is huge! Isabel truly looks like a pixie next to him. Such a sweet boy.

 You can't tell by this picture, but he has a good 10 pounds on her and maybe an inch or two. Both of them are pulling themselves up and standing, but Isabel has him on the crawl.

 Isabel is up on her knees and Elliott army crawls. Kellie says he gets around great at home. Up and down the stairs too. Their place is carpeted so his shirts take a beating, but he is all over the place.

Isabel is all over the camera! Elliott is over it! She kept reaching out and touching his face. So cute!

Maxwell The Mechanic

Maxwell has always wanted to help daddy everytime the cars have issues and Terry does a great job of letting him participate. I have posted pictures before of my favorite 2 grease monkeys and now I have more. This time it was his "motor vehicle," that needed work.

While I was at work Terry helped him set up his vehicle for repairs.

 He started out with it on the floor and tried to get under it. It was his idea to have it lifted.

 I love that he uses his tools appropriately.

Eventually he got out his headlamp to see better, just like daddy does! Sadly those pictures did not come out as well.

Today, he helped daddy change the water pump in the Jetta and it reminded me of what a good little grease monkey he is. It takes Terry twice the amount of the time, when Maxwell "helps" but he loves that Maxwell is involved. These pictures show that practice makes perfect!