TWO 2 1/2 YEAR OLDS = ENERGY, EXCITEMENT AND LOTS OF FUN IN OUR HOUSE...

Two and a half years ago today Charlotte and Jacob arrived in our family and our lives have never been the same since! They fill our house with endless amounts of energy, tons of excitement and so many laughs and giggles it's hard to keep up at times! 

It is hard to imagine that my first babies are 2 1/2 today. So much has happened in their short lives and Doyle and I have enjoyed having a front row seat to all the action. We have watched them go from extremely tiny vulnerable people to confident toddlers who want to do everything on their own. As frustrating as it is at times to let them try it themselves it is all part of the growing process and I need to constantly remind myself of this as I stand over them thinking "just let me do it...or we'd be done by now if I did it....or hurry up we need to get out of here". Sure time is precious and we all lead busy lives but watching the world through a 2 1/2 year old's eyes is priceless and really shouldn't be rushed! 

CHARLOTTE

Weight: 26 lbs 6 oz
Length: 33"
Favourite foods: 

• Ham and cheese sandwich 
• Noodles 
• Any kind of fruit

Favourite word(s): 

• No way
• That's mine
• I want to pick one
• Myself
• What's making noises
• Who buy'ed that?

Things she loves to do:

• Play outside (especially in the front and backyard)
• Go for walks 
• Play in the park (especially on the slide)
• Go to music at CECC
• Read books and play with our nanny Claire
• Play with Jacob and Oliver
• Visit with Grams, Grandpa, Grammy, Grandma, Grandpa and GG
• Play with her friends Wesley, Ethan, Ali, Ben, Myra, Brinkley and Mia
• Crawl into Mommy and Daddy's bed for snuggles when she first wakes up in the morning
• Swim (in the Turtle Pool or a big pool)
• Talk

JACOB

Weight: 26 lbs

Length: 33"

Favourite foods: 

• Cookies (or anything sweet) 
• Peanut butter toast 
• Cereal (especially Rice Krispies and Cheerios)

Favourite word: 

• Mommy!
• Myself 
• How about...
• Where I supposed to be a sitting
• Who buy'ed that
• What's making noises

Things he loves to do:

• Play outside (especially in the front and backyard)
• Go for walks
• Play in the park (especially climbing up stairs and ladders on the play equipment)
• Go to music at CECC
• Read books and play with our nanny Claire
• Play with Charlotte and Oliver 
• Visit with Grams, Grandpa, Grammy, Grandma, Grandpa and GG
• Play with his friends Wesley, Ethan, Ali, Ben, Myra, Brinkley and Mia
• Crawl into Mommy and Daddy's bed for snuggles when he first wakes up in the morning 
• Sing (especially his ABC's)
• Dance in front of the mirror while playing his piano
• Go to the library and pet store
• Play in the bath
• Help with everything 
• Clean up (put toys and books away)

SOME PICTURES OF CHARLOTTE AND JACOB

Ms. and Mr. independent!  

Sibling love

Always getting into mischief together
(hiding under the podium at GG's b-day party)

Overall...best buds who light up our lives! 

CENTREVILLE FUN....

Today Doyle and I hopped on the ferry over to Centre Island to enjoy a fun filled day at Centreville Amusement Park with Charlotte, Jacob and Oliver. The kids loved the ferry and all the rides at Centreville and were exhausted when we left.

We started the day at 9:30 a.m. and ended our island adventure at 3:15 p.m. The kids have already said they are ready to go back tomorrow!

Team "red"...this is how we roll! Waiting for the ferry

Jacob and Charlotte watching the waves in the water

Nice boobs Doyle!

Just cruising around in the fire truck car 

Hanging in the boat

Jacob not so sure about the Toronto Island Monster roller coaster

Oliver hanging out in his new stroller at Centreville

Charlotte loving the Bee ride (she was the first to go on it...
Jacob went only after he watched her go!)

Hey...these Bee's aren't so bad after all

Driving in her red car

Loving life in his car

Jacob and Daddy on the log ride...woosh!

Funny faces....

HAPPY EIGHTH MONTH "BIRTHDAY"...OLIVER

Yet another month has passed in our house. This month not only marks eight months since Oliver's arrival but also triggers my eight week count down to returning to work  from my maternity leave (I'm heading back two months early)...gulp.

It has been an incredibly fast eight months but I will look back on these past months with so many fond memories. Oliver continues to be an amazing little man who brightens each day with his incredible smile and easy going personality.

This month Oliver has:

• Grown and gained weight: We won't have Oliver's official eight month weight / length measurements until June 13 but I am quite confident Oliver will tip the scales at over 20 lbs. 
• Begun to sit unassisted: On May 27 Oliver decided it was time to change his vantage point and began to sit unassisted! He is quite proud of himself and really enjoys being able to play upright vs on his back or front
• Said so long to his bath support seat: This past week we threw away Oliver's bath support seat. Now that he sits unassisted he prefers to play in the bath that way as well. 
• Sprouted his first tooth: On Friday June 1 I noticed Oliver was fascinated with pulling his lips into his mouth and biting on them so I decided to explore his gums to see what was happening in his mouth...much to my surprise I felt his first tooth poking through.  (bottom right front tooth) It is still very small but means we no longer have any toothless children in our house....oh how I'll miss those "toothless grins"....sniff sniff
• Moved from pureed food to small chunks of real people food: Oliver is now eating the same meals that we eat in our house. We have officially said good-bye to baby food purees and hello to small chunks of whatever food we're eating. So far he has enjoyed Rice Krispies cereal, turkey meat, cheddar cheese, yogurt, peanut butter, hummus and pita, mushroom pizza, pesto pasta, steak, green beans, broccoli, french stick bread, brie cheese with fig sauce, peanut butter toast and chicken - in addition to all the other food we've introduced over the past four months - - so long baby food! 
• Wished GG's a happy 90 birthday: On May 19 we all gathered to honour "GG" as she celebrated her 90th birthday...if only we can all be so lucky!
• Celebrated his baptism: Oliver was baptised on June 2 at St. Anselm's Catholic Church
• Become more mobile: Oliver continues to enjoy rolling to get where he needs to go. Although he remains stationary in his seated position he is no longer stationary while on his stomach or back
• Started to wean from his dream feed: We have started to experiment with weaning Oliver from his dream feed. We are on night number two...stay tuned over the coming weeks for his progression from the dream feed to sleeping completely through the night without a feed before we go to bed
• Shown more of an interest in being part of the "action": Oliver loves being anywhere that Charlotte and Jacob are. He is always laughing at them and watches them in amazement. He has also started to react when someone takes something from him that he was playing with - grunts in frustration and makes his feelings known! 
• Continued to sleep through the night: Oliver by far is the best sleeper out of all the kids. He continues to sleep from 6:30 p.m. to 6 or 6:30 a.m. (with a feed between 9:30 / 10 p.m.)
• Continued drinking from his straw sippy cup: Oliver continues to enjoy drinking from a cup. Most of his feeds are still from the bottle but I do give him his sippy cup throughout the day so he can get used to drinking from it
• Not missed a moment to show off his clapping or vocal abilities: Clapping, smiling, screaming with excitement or making sounds are just a few of Oliver's favourite things! Not a day goes by when he isn't engaged in one or more of these skills!
• Activities outside the house: Walks in the neighbourhood, Stroller Fit, Music at CECC, yard / porch time, visit to Mommy's office

IN THE NAME OF THE FATHER...SON...AND HOLY SPIRIT...

Yesterday we celebrated Oliver's baptism at St. Anselm's Church. We all gathered at 1 p.m. for the service and by 1:45 p.m. we were back at our house for the party! It was great fun and a very special moment for all of us. Thanks to everyone for sharing in Oliver's day.

Oliver and GG sharing a moment before the Baptism

The first blessing - Oil

The second blessing - water

Oliver getting baptised

Fr. Clough blessing everyone

Oliver with mommy, daddy, and his god parents Sean and Sally Ann

Looking "handsome" in his baptism gown

All smiles for Oliver

Jacob, Oliver and Charlotte 

Thanks everyone for your generosity!