Gurnee Trip

Erik had an Anesthesia convention to go to in Chicago (Oct. 14-19) and we figured it would be the perfect opportunity to visit my parents in Gurnee! We stayed there for 10 days (13th-22nd) and had a lot of fun, it was especially enjoyable being able to see my new niece for the first time, as Lisa was flew out from Idaho as well.  The kiddos did really well on the plane ride there; neither one of them hardly made a peep!  We all stayed in one room, Gabe did okay with that, I was worried that we would get no sleep at all, but he was alright.  Not good or bad though, just alright.
I took this time away from my hectic life to just relax, as in, get an entire year's worth of TV watching in within 10 days.  I think I succeeded in that.  I mainly watched ghost stories and the like and gave myself the heebie-jeebies for the following couple of weeks, but I sure had fun watching them!

I have a ton of pics to post, I think they explain our fun better than me trying to type it all:


The super shuttle ride to the airport.  The driver was a jerk and lied to us and said we needed to pay an extra $7 for Gabe, plus he had is rap crap blasting the entire time while Elisa was trying to sleep.  Jerk.

 My parents hosted a "birthday party" for me and Lisa.  It was fun to see family and friends that we have not seen in a long time!

   

 Pictures!

 Me, Elise, and Lisa!  It's where Elisa gets her name from!!

 My mom and her sister Lisa and her brothers Mike and Bob.

Some random pics:

 

 
 
 
 
 

 
 This looked way more hilarious in person, but obviously, our sit n' stand stroller does not double as a double stroller for infant car seats (pardon the pun).  The girls looked like they were on an amusement ride!
 
 Elisa torturing the cat


 Grumpy girl
 
 Love this pic of Aaliyah!
 
 Two granddaughters!
 
 Me and my sweet niece!


 Cute Aaliyah
 
 Me and my girl


 Lisa and her girl
 
 Grandpa and all of his grandchildren
 
 Grandpa Ron and his granddaughters



Lisa, Aaliyah, and Gabe and I went to a free pumpkin farm in Wisconsin.  It was very cold and very windy, so I left Elisa with my dad and just took Gabe.  I fell asleep in the car and we had to wake him up so that is why he looks so grumpy in some of the pics, but I promise you he had lots of fun!  It was a really neat place to visit, especially for being free. 

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I also took Gabe and Elisa to the Jelly Belly Factory for a "tour".  Gabe loved it since we took a train and got candy. I thought it was boring (they call it a factory tour, but all we did was go around in a train and watch on screens how they make the jelly beans--we never actually saw any of the candy making in person) and Elisa was indifferent.  But I'm glad Gabe enjoyed it!

Some more random pics:

Elisa's photo shoot

Elisa and uncle Michael

Elisa torturing the cats, again.

  Gabe being a goof

 

My mom's boss and the cat

 

 

We also went to the annual trick-or-treat path again.  It was freezing cold, but Gabe enjoyed getting lots of candy.  I thought he would enjoy seeing Elmo since he LOVES Elmo, but instead he kinda flipped out when we saw Elmo:

Yum! Yum!

 As of October 12th, I started Elisa on solid foods, just on a whim.  She absolutely LOVED her rice cereal and ate TWO bowls the first time! I'm so glad I started her on solid foods when I did, she has been so much less fussy and sleeps better through the night.  I'm happy she likes her food, such a stark contrast from Gabe who was very hard to start on solids and even now requires heavy prompting to eat.   It is fun to watch her get so excited to eat food!

Halloween Baby/Toddler Halloween Party!

 This year I hosted my 2nd annual Halloween Baby/Toddler party!!  Last year was really fun and we had a great turn out so I wanted to do one again.  I'll admit-last year's party was more stressful because I went a little crazy with the food and cleaning the floors and other such preparations.  But this year I made it easy on myself and just did the drinks, apples and caramel, and dipped marshmallows. Everyone else brought a treat to share.

Anyway, we had a great turnout again (who in their right mind would miss a Halloween party?!).  My only complaint is that it was way too hot outside so everyone was inside instead of outside like last year, so it was a bit crowded.  It was a really fun party, for both kids and adults.  Thanks to everyone that came! Here are the pics for ya:

 My cute bumble bees.  Gabe wouldn't keep his costume on (I think it was too hot for him to wear anyway)

 Yummy food!

 Aren't these just the cutest little bugs you've ever seen?!

 
Elisa's costume was too hot for her too! I freaked out a little when I saw this but I realized it was just a heat rash:

Lately...

 Life update:  We have been doing well, despite the colds we all have.  Erik is doing research right now and I am taking care of our cute kids and sewing and teaching piano. 
Gabe is getting taller and speaking much better.  He is finally speaking in sentences, but his pronunciation still needs work.  Gabe loves Elmo, Thomas (trains), his milk, his pacifier that he's torn all up, stories told by Mommy, and being tickled.  He is a very sweet little boy and has recently been bed trained, as in NO crib whatsoever!  Yay! Now to get him potty trained... 
Elisa is getting big.  She is a sweetheart but definitely has a finicky streak.  She LOVES her big brother Gabe--she gives him the biggest smile whenever she sees him.  She still won't roll over, even though she is 5 months (she CAN--I've seen her do it (once)--she just won't) I'm just slightly concerned, but whatever, hopefully she'll be sitting up soon but our prospects aren't too good on that either.  She is, however, VERY interested in toys, much more so than Gabe ever was.  She gets SO excited when we put her in her excersaucer that she can hardly contain herself! We love her!

My dad recently came over for a visit.  Elisa got spoiled because she was held almost every second of the day!  Gabe had a blast too playing with grandpa.I enjoyed his help around the house and with the kids.

 

We went to the Dessert Botanical Gardens in Phoenix.  It was fun, for being free, but if I would have had to pay the $18 admission fee I would have been dissapointed.  We went on the most perfect (and unusual) day-it was cool and cloudy.

Coming up next: My toddler/baby Halloween party, our trip to Chicago, then Disneyland, then on to Texas and finally Utah!

Annoucement

You probably already know this, but I just have to announce that I have the cutest 4 1/2 month old girl in the world.  That is quite an accomplishment.  She literally draws crowds, not even kidding.  Who could resist this cute face?!

It's no wonder then, the uncanny resemblance between her and the cutest 4 1/2 month old BOY in the world, 2 years ago: 

                                                                      cutest boy in the world                                     cutest girl in the world

Amazing!!