Thanksgiving

In the two weeks leading up to Thanksgiving my parents spent a lot of time finishing up odd jobs around the house. We finally got all the walls and the ceilings painted in the living room and kitchen. With their babysitting help Marc and I were able to finish installing the wood floors. And the four of us came close to finishing up our multi-purpose space in the basement. The house was its cleanest and most complete its ever been just in time for Thanksgiving!

Christina, Erin, Katie, Stephanie, Elise, Bill, Will, Neil, 

Heidi, Violet, Jess, Uncle Billy, Marc (not pictured: Claire)

Being Violet's first Thanksgiving, Marc and I decided we wanted to do it up right. So we bought a turkey the size of Violet (20 pounds!) and invited 12 of our family members over to celebrate with us. We feasted on turkey, mashed potatoes, roast potatoes, gravy, original stuffing, stuffing with cranberries and almonds, green beans, green bean casserole, roasted brussel sprouts, southern sweet potato mash, broccoli salad, homemade rolls, and onion celeste. For dessert we had the option between pumpkin cheesecake with ginger crust, pumpkin pie, french apple pie or key lime pie. It was awesome.

Also awesome were the outfits. Thanks to her Aunt Katie, Violet had the perfect outfit to wear on Thanksgiving - a mock turtleneck complete with a turkey, her name and a matching tutu. Violet's outfit matched her cousin Claire as you can see in the above photo. I can't wait to redo this picture when these cousins are in their teenage years.

 

Overall I would say it was a very successful Thanksgiving and we can't wait to do it again!

Violet - 9 months

Weight - 20 pounds 9 ounces
Height - 28 inches
Head Circumference - 17 3/4 inches

Dear Violet, 

After returning from Hawaii you came down with your very first cold. Thankfully it wasn't too intense just a runny nose that turned into a slight cough. During the day we treated you with saline and nose suction - which you thoroughly hated. And at night we turned on your humidifier, put Vicks vaporub on the bottom of your feet and covered your feet with socks. Although we were sad to see you under the weather it was a fun discovery to find out just how ticklish you are on the bottom of your feet. I have to admit sometimes I put lotion on your feet just to hear your giggle. 

This month it seems like we have noticed some of the little milestones. You definitely recognize that "Violet" is your name. You've added the syllable "da" to your vocabulary and love to babble away to yourself, your toys, or to me from the backseat of the car. I'd like to think you have started calling Daddy "dada", however he's not convinced since everything seems to be called "dada" at this moment. Lastly, you have also started pulling to standing - on the coffee table, the brick fireplace, my legs and your crib to name a few. You'll even stand at the side of your crib closest to the door and yell at it when you are all done sleeping or greet us when we come to pick you up. 

Your left top tooth has arrived which brings us to four teeth in total. You also discovered that with four teeth you can grind them. I've been told this helps with the teething but it drives your parents insane! Thankfully you are still a great eater and you are taking after the Aquila side of your family. Whenever someone is eating you crawl right over to see what it is and try to get some for yourself. You are eating breakfast, lunch and dinner and are often eating whatever it is we are eating. You'll eat off of silverware but also feed yourself with your hands. And you are very specific about what you will and will not eat. So much so that you have even taken the items you didn't want off of the fork just to eat the one thing you did want. 

One of the sweetest actions I love about you right now is when I put you to bed at night. As I lay you down in your crib you momentarily rest on your back with your left thumb in your mouth and your right arm outstretched to the side. As I place your bunny blanket across your right arm you pull him to you in a hug and roll onto your right side, close your eyes, and drift off to sleep. It's simple but something I look forward to watching every night I put you down. 

It's the sweet little moments that remind us you are still our baby even though most of the day we are in awe at how fast you are growing up!

Love,
Your Mom and Dad

Halloween

This year we celebrated Violet's first Halloween. Thanks to her Aunt Carly and Uncle Andrew she had a very cute strawberry outfit to wear for the day. We started off by visiting Marc at his office. When we arrived we were just in time for the costume parade - unfortunately it was for the dogs so while Violet probably would have enjoyed trying a dog biscuit we decided to visit with our friends in the office instead. 

Later in the day we were invited over to a local friends house. Marie and I met during prenatal yoga and since then Bryce and Violet have had many play dates together. Bryce is a few months older then Violet so I get a little insight into what's coming up although each month the difference between the two gets smaller and smaller. I've really enjoyed spending time with both Bryce and Marie, watching our little ones grow this year.

After Marie's husband Adam returned from work, we all walked down to the center of Lebanon passing trick-or-treaters on our way. In town we stopped by the firehouse to look at the firetruck and say hi to their mascot. Then we headed over to city hall to try our hand at spin art and listen to a Halloween story. Marc met up with us while we were there. Then we all headed back to Marie's house to meet up with the other babies and enjoy a delicious soup dinner.

Apparently animals were the theme this year - Violet missed that memo. 

An astronaut, a strawberry and a banana walk into a Halloween party . . .

Back to Reality

We've been on a little hiatus over here recently. The leaves have changed and most of them have already fallen. Violet and I spent a week in California followed by a week in Hawaii with Marc and the rest of my family. 

Now that we are home we are trying to get back in the swing of things. Violet is battling the tail end of her first cold and Marc and I are busy preparing for the change of seasons. 

Today Marc climbed up on the roof and together we cleaned the chimney. It looks like next week's weather will require the wood stove to be working. While he was up there Marc also swept the roof of pine needles and cleaned out the rain gutters. 

While he was on the roof Marc suggested I sweep the deck. I decided to do one better and pulled out the leaf blower. Now I know why my dad thought it was important we had one ... that power tool is fun!! 

I'm hoping to get a chance to catch up on some posts this week as there is much to share. Violet has turned 8 months and we all had a fantastic family vacation to Hawaii. 

Violet - 8 Months

Weight - 19 pounds 9 ounces

Dear Violet,

I started drafting this letter to you on my iPhone as you were sleeping in my arms on our flight from Vermont to California. It wasn't the first time we had flown without Daddy but it was the beginning of our first week without him away from our home. Together, you and I spent one week in California with Nana and Granddad. Then Daddy joined us for a week in Hawaii with the rest of my family. Although I haven't been jotting down copious amounts of new moments with you, I really feel that during these two weeks you grew up. A lot. We've definitely hit some big milestones this month with teeth and crawling.

This month we had to give you your first dose of Tylenol. You had woken up at 11 pm after being put to bed at 7 pm and just screamed until 1 am. There was nothing your Dad nor I could do to calm you - not rocking, not turning the lights on and not even nursing. It was at this point that we decided you must be really close to getting a tooth. The Tylenol helped you and, let's be honest, us get some rest. But in the morning there was still no new tooth. Four days later we found ourselves in the same predicament, but still no tooth. Finally a week after the first screaming incident your second bottom tooth (right center) made its appearance.

The downside to teeth is biting. As I watch you play sometimes I watch you bite things you shouldn't be - the brick fireplace, the wooden coffee table, the metal chair and even daddy's shoes. Three times you have also bit me while nursing. I think my response is as equally surprising to you as the bite is to me and neither of us seems to be happy after you've bit me. Hopefully this will be a fleeting experience for both of us.

During our vacation in Hawaii you finally met your Uncle Andrew and Auntie Carly and spent a lot of time with your 2 year old twin cousins, Josephine and Nixon. It was your first time to the beach and the most time you have spent in a pool. I think it was the twins running around that encouraged you to really get a handle on crawling. Not only can you get where you want to now but you can also transition back and forth between sitting and crawling, which makes watching your cousins run around or checking out where Mom and Dad are even easier. It's been really fun to watch the things you will crawl after but it also came with the realization that we probably should have already baby proofed some of our house.

Your new word this month was "up". You have no idea what it means but you have definitely said it over and over again. You are also getting better at waving. If you are in the right mood and provided the right encouragement you will wave to other people. Your timing is still off for the "hello" or "goodbye" wave but you do enjoy a good middle of the conversation wave. And when you are really proud of yourself you have even started clapping. We can't wait to see how you master these skills next month.

Love,
Your Mom and Dad