Noah and More Noah

Batman. Just waiting for his next call to duty.

Why just grab from the outside when you can climb right in to your toy bin?

Loving attacking the cat

He's gotten to be a pretty self sufficient eater!

He loves trains, just like Nate did.

He also loves books. 

The pacifier is no longer just for sucking on, but can also be used as a full mouth insert teething device.

Here it is, entirely in his mouth.

Am I in trouble, too?

Monday is trash day. Monday = The best day of the week.

Check out those curls behind the ear!

Sometimes Batman pajamas get converted into real clothes for picking up the kids from school.

This kid loves to vacuum. He would follow me around the house while I vacuumed, screaming until I let him have a turn. I finally bought him his own so that he could vacuum while I vacuumed.

He's quite thorough with his own.

This is how/where Noah slept in Alan's and my bed at Alan's Residency Retreat in the Dells. It was really conducive to a good night sleep for all of us.

He found his nostrils. I swear he's not picking his nose, it's just a fun hole to stick your finger up.

Noah is happiest outside. He's always been like this--I can remember swaddling him up when he was teeny tiny and walking him back and forth in front of the house during his fussy time in the evening.

Did I mention he's independent?

I seriously wish this thing really worked. I'd have the cleanest floors on earth.

"This goes here, right Mom?"

Don't ask. Please don't ask.

Katy and Baby Kayla

We had the opportunity last weekend to go visit a friend and her new baby in the hospital. I've known Katy since sixth grade--It was so fun to go see her and her new baby, especially because we visited her with another friend from middle school, Alli and her daughter Maya, who is just a couple of months older than Abbie. Maya and Abbie were over the moon holding baby Kayla. I was too.

First Lego League--Team NITE

Nate and three of his best buddies are participating in the First Lego League competition this year. It's a robotics program for 9 to 16 year olds, which is designed to get children excited about science and technology -- and teach them valuable employment and life skills. They program an autonomous robot (using the LEGO® MINDSTORMS® robot set) to score points on a thematic playing surface and create an innovative solution to a problem as part of their project. It's been a crazy amount of work, some of it very difficult, but they are all learning tons. They have learned some computer programming because they have to program the robot to do certain obstacles. They've all used their Lego building skills. They've had to do research and interviews, including meeting with experts in the field of Geriatrics, to complete the project portion of the challenge. This year's challenge is to improve the quality of life of seniors. Team NITE (Nate, Ian, Tommy and Elliot) has decided to take on the issue of loneliness among the elderly for their project. I'm amazed by the work they've done, the time they've spent, and the dedication these four nine/ten year olds have.

The Kids

Just a bunch of photos of the kids together from this summer.

Noah actually really enjoys riding the scooter. 

Alan hung this swing in our front yard. It's definitely a hit.

Nate had definitely imparted his love of reading on to Noah. I can't think of much in this world that I love more than finding Noah in his big brother's lap, reading a book.

Still doing the five minutes, holding hands, in front of the door for fighting.

A rope swing Alan hung in the backyard. Also a big hit.

This is Noah trying to throw the ball into the street because he knows he's not supposed to.

He is a runner. A really fast runner.