The Pumpkin Patch

We visited the Pumpkin Patch today. Clayton informed us that he wanted a big pumpkin, a small one, a smooth one, a bumpy one and an orange one. Luckily we got away with 4 small ones and one big one to carve. But it was a great time!

Daddy and Maecie in front of the pumpkins

Mommy and the kids

The whole Beare family!

A Fun Few Days

My sister and her family moved to Tennessee at the beginning of this year. We miss them and spend as much time as possible when they come to visit. They came for their Fall Break and we visited with some extended family as well.

The cousins making a "Haunted" Gingerbread House.

6 of the many great-grandchildren to Da and Papa

The Lucenti's and Beare's

"Baby Alive"

Daddy made fun of Mommy on Sunday after she dressed Maecie for church. She had on her dress, a shrug, leggings and a bow. He called her "Mommy's Baby Alive"!

It's a Zoo in There!

We made our first family trip to the Riverbanks Zoo! Both Patrick and I had attended this zoo as children and remembered it being a lot bigger! But Clayton loved seeing all of his favorite animals. Here are some of the highlights...Almost the whole family. And no, Maecie did not take the picture, she was sleeping.

Clayton on top of the rock, in front of the penguins!!

Maecie said, "There is something stinky over there!" haha...

If you look in the background, you will see an alligator laying on the ground. He was BIG!

My two favorite guys checking out the giraffes. They got pretty close to us!

Bath Time Songs

I know the day will come when my little ones will grow up and not care to hear me sing or give hugs or kiss their boo boos. But for now, I am enjoying it!

When Clayton was a baby, I wanted to make sure the day to day things we did were fun for him. And he seemed to respond well to music. So I made up a special song for bathtime. I would sing his song each time we were preparing to give him a bath. Three years later, I still sing it. He even joins in and sings with me. He does pretty well in matching pitch and enjoys music. Sometimes we sing in different genres -- opera, country, hip hop, etc.

So when Maecie was born, I thought she ought to have her own bathtime song, separate from Clayton. This would make her feel special, make Clayton feel like the new baby wasn't such a threat, and also to make bathtime fun. She grins every time I begin singing and kicks her feet too. She enjoys bath time, enjoys singing time, and even enjoys it when her big brother sings to her.

Yes, I know the time will come that my children won't want to hear their bathtime songs. But I love singing them daily, for now.

The Culprit

She may look cute, but this little pup is almost always in trouble!

When we leave the house for a time, if there is trash in the trash can, you can be rest assured that it will be on the floor when we return. This, I think, is to serve as punishment for not taking her with us.

Daisy has been a part of our family for almost 4 years. Patrick and I got her when I was pregnant with Clayton. She never acted much like a dog, sleeping in the bed with us, refusing to play fetch, and jumping in the car every chance she could to go for a ride.

However, she has always been a good watch dog. She barks when people are at the door, when people drive into the driveway, even when they are just walking down the street. She lets us know when to be on alert.

Of course, this does have it's downside. For example, this afternoon, she barked at the UPS man. Not that it bothered the UPS man or me. BUT it did wake up Maecie from her nap. A nap that is so precious because it usually last 2-3 hours in the afternoon and that's all of the sleep she gets before bed time. Waking her up from her nap resulted in a cranky Maecie, a cranky mommy and a dog in time out.

Love her ... she cuddles well ... and keeps you warm on a cool evening. But sometimes, she's the culprit!

A Lullaby

Clayton looks forward to nap time. Not because he takes a nap, but because Maecie takes a nap. And usually that means that he and mommy get some time together. So when I announce that I'm going to get Maecie to bed for naptime, he eagerly pipes up and says, "Let's sing Maecie a lullaby!"

I'm thinking, that sounds so sweet! So I encourage him to begin. His lullaby goes something like this:

Rock-a-bye baby

On the tree top.

When the wind blows,

the Maecie will fall down and hit the ground and get a boo-boo and she will cry and we will put a band aid on it and she will feel better and go to sleep.

It starts out so great and then just takes a turn for the worse. However, if you think about the original lyrics, this version might be a little better. At least we put a band aid on the boo-boo, right??

The Halfway Point

Maecie has also reached a milestone! 6 MONTHS OLD!

I am SURE that the second child grows faster than the first. First, she cried!

Then, she SMILED....

Had her first Holiday....

Wore her first bathing suit!

Ate her first meal with a spoon!

And before too long, she will be crawling!

Happy Half Birthday, my sweet princess!!

Everyday is Backwards Day

Clayton has achieved a partial milestone ... meaning, for the most part, he is going to the potty. This has allowed him to put his clothes on himself. Cause you have to get naked to go potty! Well, I guess not normally, but he chooses to. So, with only a 50% chance of getting his clothes on the right way, the odds are not in his favor. He spends most of his days with his clothes on backwards. It's too cute to fix!!