Trying to catch up!

I'm way behind on posting.  We've been busy but good as usual!  The above photo was just me being silly with the girls.  I've uploaded some more photos of our fun in November and December.

Eleanor ready for the cold weather!

Some of Audrey's art work - "Rock n Roll Girls"

 Lillian loving on Eleanor as usual:

We took Mathilde and the girls to see Niagara Falls:

 Lillian at our ornament making party:

 Eleanor's first flight! On our way to L.A.  She was easy as usual.

 Audrey up in the middle of the night on the plane.

 Jonny was very excited to help take care of Eleanor.

 Fun at Venice Beach.

 Eleanor getting ready for her first meal!  She didn't take to it at first but is now happily eating purees.  We are still working on real solids.

I'm going to try to post the rest in the morning - which happens to be Lillian's third birthday and I was lucky enough to have the day to spend at home with the girls :)

October Festivities

I've been working on this post since Halloween, and finally found the time to finish it up now that we are almost through November!

October was an exciting month at our house with visitors, birthdays, and of course, Halloween!

We managed to partially surprise Michael for his birthday with a party.  It is possible that the surprise element was slightly diminished when Audrey told Michael that his friend Dan was going to "distract" him for the afternoon!

Audrey chose Michael's cake:

Kira, Audrey and Lillian.

Lillian ready to go!

Mathilde's birthday brunch at the Cheesecake Factory:

Mathilde & her friend Eva. With the delicious french toast!

The girls had several opportunities to dress up in their costumes.  Audrey had her heart set on this dress and hat, and said that she was Mary Poppins.  Here are some photos of the Pumpkin Festival at Tabora Farms:

Going to the pumpkin patch!

Here's Lillian trying to pose like Audrey again:

And being her silly self:

This wasn't a costume, just having fun around the house:

One of Lillian's costumes!

Lillian didn't want to wear the gorilla suit to Audrey's school party, but dug a Sofia the 1st costume out of the closet instead.  And Audrey got creative and went as Olaf.  She said she was actually an Olaf/Anna/Elsa due to her costume combination.

Being turned into a mummy!

Cityscape by Audrey.

This is an example of the "kid writing" that Audrey is doing at school.  To give them confidence they are told to write things out the way they sound.  This says:

"The book without (I think Audrey hears liff-out, instead of without) pictures.  I am so sorry it is no pictures, it is not the picture book."

I know she still has a long way to go, but she is making great progress and is so proud.  And for the most part I can read everything she writes.  I think it's really neat.

Lillian loves to read as well, and we are working on her starting to trace and use a pencil to work on letters.  She is very bright and has so much energy!

Eleanor is still easy and happy.  She is getting sturdier, although we still have to constantly remind Lillian to be gentle.  She is starting to sit a little and rolls over easily.  The most fun is that she loves interacting with Audrey and Lillian, and they have fun making her laugh.

Here are a few videos from the last month:












I still have more pictures from Halloween itself, and we are headed to Toronto next week to visit family, so I'm sure we will have more adventures to share.  I just hope that Buffalo doesn't get another 6 feet of snow while we are trying to pass through!

Sisters

I've been noticing an increasing echo around our house lately.  Lillian is absolutely fascinated by Audrey and follows her around saying what Audrey says, doing what Audrey does and generally being a little mimic.

I had thought that Lillian was just being silly when she posed for pictures, but I've often noticed that it's difficult to get her to look at the camera because she is usually watching Audrey.  And while I was going through some of my recent pictures I realized that her crazy poses are actually the two-year-old version of what Audrey is doing:

I am so happy with how well Audrey and Lillian get along together.  Which isn't to say it's perfect, but it's very sweet to see and hear them interact a lot of the time.  I can't wait until Eleanor can start to join in the fun with them!

Fall Fun

We have been lucky to have lots of nice weather this fall, even though it's been a little hard to deal with the alternating hot and cold days.  

The girls are still doing really well and settling into a bit more of a routine with me back at work.  Audrey is still enjoying Kindergarten and had her first field trip this week.

Lillian is doing really well with her potty training.  She is doing great over all.  She is so energetic, but absolutely loves to read and will sit for many books.

Eleanor is getting stronger every day.  She rolls over regularly now, and we are working on her muscles for sitting!

The girls having fun in our back lane:

At the Apple Festival:

This is one of Audrey's art pieces.  She asked me to "put it on the internet so that everybody can see."

Nana is in town visiting for a few weeks, and we are having a really nice time:

Audrey's school photo:

Eleanor trying out her hat from Baba:

Lillian holding Eleanor:

Lillian had her first real haircut today, and Audrey decided to go for another bob as well:

Happy Thanksgiving to all our family and friends in Canada!  We will be doing a small thanksgiving dinner tomorrow, especially since we will be in Canada for American Thanksgiving.  We are keeping busy as usual!