Announcing a new addition!

The baby isn't due for another few months, but in the meantime, we've added a new member to our family.

Meet Harley. He's about 5, mixed breed, and very well trained. All the boys in the house, big and small, are absolutely thrilled with this development. Some friends needed more room in their house, and needed a good home for one of their dogs, so we took him for a trial weekend. Doesn't look like he'll be leaving anytime soon. =)

*Mommy might be a little more excited about THIS new addition,

since the other one worked sporadically and kept burning my baked goods, (this one makes absolutely perfect cookies!)but has to confess that Harley is a sweetie, even for someone who's not really a dog person... =)

Halloween

For Halloween this year, I dug deep for my creative bone, and went with a Dr Seuss theme. The boys are enthralled with all things Dr Seuss at the moment, especially the Cat in the Hat, so I found a hat and a few wigs, dyed some pants, and Wa-la:

Turned out pretty good, don't you think? I have dreams of getting a sewing machine and making costumes every year, but since I'm not at that skill (or equipment) level yet, I made do. Felt circle make nice labels, and some RIT dye made the clothes close enough in color to work. The boys loved it. Even Andrew stayed still for the make-up application. (He was not so cooperative in the removal, but you can't have everything.)

I wasn't sure what to do with my costume, since I wasn't about to make a fish costume. Then a friend suggested a costume for my belly instead, and "Thing 3" was born. Well, not yet, but it doubled nicely as an announcement for those at church who hadn't yet heard. =)

And look! I got another family photo! =)

For those of us left at home....

I was also a little worried about how Andrew would handle his big brother being gone every afternoon, but I needn't have. He really seems to enjoy this quiet time to himself, or to spend with Mommy.

We've run errands,

with the occasional surprise treat. =)

We spend hours doing floor puzzles, which can sometimes wear us both out. =)

And then sometimes, he's just silly:

His imagination is really showing through now. The other day, he put his fingers in his mouth, and pretended they were walrus tusks. And he's talking up a storm. I guess not having your personal mouthpiece around garners a need for that. =) Grunts are still his preferred form of communication, but he's learning words accomplish things so much faster, which I'm grateful for. =)

Of course, he's SO excited when Timothy gets home. Timothy loves to teach him what he's learning, so as an added bonus, A's also learning his letters. He's nowhere near perfect, but it's fun to listen. =)

As for me, my morning sickness seems to be finally over, so I'm usually able to make it the whole day without wanting to fall over. They boys keep me busy. =)

We did have a bit of excitement in early September, when I was rear-ended right after dropping T off at school.

Thankfully Andrew and I got away with only mild whiplash, and we do have our car back, good as new. Although, I have to confess, driving around a minivan with all that room, but it's nice to have our car back too. =)

School Days

Timothy has really been enjoying preschool this year. I was a bit nervous about sending him off every day, but FL has a voluntary pre-kindergarten (VPK) program for 15 hours a week, and we decided to give it a shot.

He has LOVED it, and I have to admit, it has been pretty good for him. He only has 8 other kids in his class, is always talking about what they are doing. All the stuff I'd been working on with him over the last several months have finally started clicking, (which is nice to see) and he's learning so much more.

Every week or so, they work on a new letter or the alphabet, and the teacher sends home a bag for them to fill with things that start with that letter. It's sometimes a stretch, but he loves the hunt. =) (He's also learned what a dictionary is during these hunts)

He also is constantly telling me about stories they read, and rhymes they learn. Also, thanks to the daily calendar, he can now count to 30 (whereas before, getting to 15 seemed hard, no matter what I did), tell me what day it is, and is developing a sense of time. It's been fun to see what he's learning, and build on it here at home. We're working on telling time, expanding on his knowledge of letters and sounds... and pretty much turning life into a teaching moment. I've enjoyed it, even if at sometimes I'm at a loss to respond to what comes out of his mouth.

About 6 weeks after school started, his class had their open house, and T got to bring home his work from the past several weeks. He was to proud. Here's a shot of our little man and his display. =)

So, may be school days won't be as bad as this Mommy has feared. =)