Poppa Dad Visits

My dad was just in town and, unfortunately, we didn't take that many pictures. We did, however, get a few. Maddie especially enjoyed spending time with Poppa Dad. It was great to see him and we've got tons of fond memories of his visit!

Christmas

For the first time, we stayed in Seattle for Christmas. While we both missed our families, it was very nice not to travel. It was exciting for Maddie to get in to her first Christmas, though it took us about two hours to open presents! Maddie wanted to play with everything as she opened it. Maddie also got to open all of Otis' presents and wanted to play with all of those as well.

Maddie leaving cookies and milk for Santa

Our tree with all the presents

Otis in his suit on Christmas Eve

Maddie and Daddy reading her new Dr. Seuss book

Maddie's new guitar from Santa

Christmas Playdate

Today we had a fancy Christmas play date with some friends. We all dressed up our kids in their holiday clothes. It was very cute to see our little ones dressed up and having a great time.

Maddie and Otis before we left:

All the kids:

Baby Bear Hugs

From baby Maddie (2 weeks):



From baby Otis (3 week):

Sibling Fun

Kid Pictures

Family Photos

Otis Cywinski Howell

Before the C-section

Maddie is excited to be a big sister!

Otis is here!

First cuddles!!!

First family photo

Big Girl on the Potty

We have been potty training Maddie for the past few weeks now and I'm excited at the progress we've made. It's been about two weeks without an accident and she's only wearing diapers when she sleeps. She's very good about telling us and wanting to sit on the potty. It's been my single most dreaded parenting task, so I'm glad that we've made such progress. I hope she doesn't regress once the baby comes!

Where is Maddie?

In preparation for our little boy, Eric and I set up the cosleeper in our room. Maddie immediately wanted to climb in it. We wouldn't let her for fear she's too heavy, but she quickly discovered there was a zippered storage compartment in the bottom she could climb in, which she immediately did. She soon had her lovie and a blanket in there and was "resting".

Halloween 2009

We have a great Halloween tradition of a potluck with the Fentons, Poasts, and Mapps, which we were happy to continue this year. As our kids get older, it gets more playful and boisterous, thus, we have no pictures from our potluck. We did, however, take photos of our pre-potluck fun. Maddie was a cute little bear and we took her to the Seattle Gymnastics Academy for an open/haunted house. She had a great time, as she always does there, but soon had to take off her costume because she was too hot from running around. In all, it was a really fun day and Maddie really seemed to enjoy the focus on fun and candy!

Jack 'O Lantern

Eric and Maddie carved their first Jack 'O Lantern tonight. It was a fun experience for both of them - and the Jack 'O Lantern looks great too!

36 Weeks

Pumpkin Patch 2009

Today we took Maddie to the pumpkin patch. We've taken her every year so far and I'm quite fond of the tradition. We didn't make it to the same farm we've historically gone to, but Maddie still had a great time. This afternoon Eric and Maddie will carve the pumpkin for the first time. It should be exciting!

Owls

Here is a shot of Maddie's room with some new wall decals that she and I put up today. I think they look great and can't wait to get the rest of her room decorated.

Daddy's little helper

Eric has been working on some home improvement projects and Maddie is always eager to help. Today we bought her her own tool belt and she was very excited. She even wore it on our trip to Home Depot today. I think she's realized that her tools are all toys - she kept telling Eric they didn't work!

Cuddling with the baby

Maddie has really gotten in to the baby lately. She's really in to giving him kisses and cuddles and has started asking if she can feel him kick. Today she got to feel him move for the first time. It's very cute and sweet. I'm glad she's excited about being a big sister!

Howell Family Visit

Grandma, Grandpa, and "Knuckle" Brendan came to visit. We were able to spend some time in Port Townsend as well as see some of the sights in Seattle. It was great for Eric's whole family to get together and Maddie really enjoyed all the constant attention. Here is a slideshow from all of our adventures.

While our month of family visits created a lot of good memories, we're happy to get back to normal and finish some home improvement projects before Baby Bonzo comes!

Granny Visits

Phew, it's been a busy September, but I wanted to get some pictures up. My mom (Granny) came for a quick trip and, unfortunately, we didn't remember to take too many pictures. Here are a few from our afternoon at the zoo and dinner at Ray's.