Fall Fun!

We're getting into all kinds of fun things here in Ann Arbor now that the leaves are starting to change color and a hint of crispness has entered the air. Actually, we've had beautiful weather so far, so it's been easy to get outside and enjoy some fun stuff. Sorry, I think I did something wrong with the photos, they look kind of compressed (although Eliot's cheeks really are that chubby!)

First off, the boys and I went to a nearby petting zoo one afternoon while Jon studied. Graham loved feeding the little goats carrots, although his favorite thing was watching the chickens and ducks march around. The hayride was also a big hit, where he enjoyed stuffing hay into every nook he could find. Sorry, no pics of that!

Next we partook of the delicious fall treat of fresh cider and homemade donuts at the Dexter Cider mill--embarrassing how quickly that 1/2 dozen was gone! Eliot has become a champion smiler and is starting to giggle quite a bit. I'm thinking I got two very extroverted boys somehow-such fun to see them interacting with others!

I hope you're all enjoying some nice fall days to. Come visit if you get a chance! We miss you!

A few more

I've gotten better about taking pictures lately so I have a few more I wanted to share. We're starting into the fall season here in Michigan, and so far it's been beautiful, and thankfully not too cold! Jon has been working very hard at school, reading lots of books and articles and studying French alongside his history classes. We've been feeling very welcome in our community still, and are very impressed with all of the opportunities that the University has to offer, both for Jon and for our fam- it's been great! If any of you want to come for a visit, please do! This time of year there's lots of fun to be had picking apples, drinking cider, and enjoying the town. And Graham is already looking forward to this Halloween! On to the pictures. The first one is to show off the great onesie from Aunt Emily's New York trip (a hand-me-down from Maya). It's actually fairly accurate as Eliot tends to wake up to eat right about 2-3 am most nights; however, from my side of things it doesn't really feel like a "party". He's actually doing better all the time with sleeping, and is such a sweetie when he's awake that it's hard to complain. In #2 Graham is showing off his bike gear- he loves to wear his goggles and ride around the house pretending to be Diego or Emily Elizabeth (Clifford the Big Red Dog's owner). Too funny! #3 is just a cute brother pic in their Sunday clothes. What a pair!

Finally, some more pictures!

I had to get some new pictures up of my darling boys--even looking at these I'm overwhelmed at how much I love them! Graham loves Eliot and is so sweet to him. Eliot already thinks Graham is hilarious and wants to watch his every move. He loves to sit and chatter back and forth while giving many gummy smiles, and is up for pretty much anything while we're all hanging out during the day. Here they are playing on the couch.






And here with scared faces!











Graham cheesing it up.












Here is Graham with his best bud Dash- don't they look like they could be related? Dash's mom Nelleke has been amazing friend to me as we've gotten settled here; we've spent many hours chatting while the boys play cars and our younger ones sit with us. Dash's dad Mike has also been a great friend for Jon; we're feeling very blessed to have found such an awesome family of friends!

2 month appointment

Hello everyone! We just got back from Eliot's 2 month appt at our new Pediatrician- great experience all around (although Eliot would disagree about the shots). Eliot now weighs 13lbs8oz (getting close to doubling his birth weight!) and is 24 3/4 inches long. That's the 79th and 92nd percentile, respectively. He is a champion smiler and cooer, so mellow and Dr. Yousef our new Pediatrician said he looks great. And this time, I didn't even cry at the first shots! We're still loving our new home and are enjoying some time with Shosho and Babu this week. What fun!

A few more

I thought I'd make up for our recent dearth of postings by adding a few more pictures. Jon took the two boys out on the bus to buy a book, so I'm enjoying some time to myself! The boys and I had a great morning at the pool with our new friends Nelleke and her kids Dash and Scout. We had a blast! You'll notice in these pictures that Graham has learned to cheesy camera smile! I tell you what, he never slows down these days... Sorry the one of Eliot is blurry, but I wanted to show off his chubs. Too cute!

Pics!

Well, Eliot's napping, Graham's out with Jonathan and I have a MILLION things to do, but first I must finally post some pictures! Eliot was 2 months old yesterday (already??? No way!) and continues to be such a sweet quiet soul- He loves to just hang out and watch the world (and his tornado of a brother) go by when he's awake, and spends many a peaceful hour sleeping in between. He has gotten significantly bigger, as you can see, and the chubbiness seems to be increasing by the minute. Graham loves that his brother now smiles at him and makes noises. One of our favorite things to do is sit and talk to Eliot together, and he exclaims "He said 'Goo'!...He said 'na-ga'!... Eliot's trying to talk!" as we listen. He seems very impressed with the fact that he is able to do so many more things that babies can't do, and eager for Eliot to learn how to do them. It's very fun to see. Well, enjoy the pictures! These are some of us hanging out around the house, on the bus, and in downtown Ann Arbor. (Courtesy of Manna's camera- we had a great visit with Manna and Granddaddy this weekend and miss them already)

Much love to all!!

7 weeks later...

I can't believe so much time has passed since our last post! Since that time we have visited all of our extended families, traveled through 9 states and Canada and Jonathan completed a trip to Africa and back, and now we're finally settled into our new home in Ann Arbor, MI. Pretty exciting first two months of life! Needless to say, it's been tough to find time to get online. All of our pictures have been taken by others, so I will try to track some down to post.

In the meantime, I will just let everyone know that both boys are doing great (and we parents are surviving, too!) Graham has had some moments of jealousy, but is so sweet and helpful, and seems to recognize now that this family addition is permanent. Yesterday he carried all of our clean clothes upstairs (never mind they were all unfolded by the time he reached the top- it was too cute to stop him!)

Quick story to report: as I type this, Graham finished his juice and let out a burp, then said "I make burps. Eliot makes burps, too". What a kid he is. He's so full of fun and imagination. He had a great time hanging out with his Shosho and Babu, and still asks about them all the time, but seems to love living in Ann Arbor.

I think we all are really loving it so far. We've settled in a wonderful community of student housing, all of whom have families. In fact, just about all the kids are near Graham's and Eliot's ages, so friends are plentiful.

Graham has been having so much fun with these new friends, in fact, he is having trouble falling to sleep at naptime. He's required to spend some time in his room each day, "resting" but generally a lot more running around happens than sleeping, but at least he's in his room for forty minutes. When Kate went to get him last rest time, he was anticipating her comment about his being loud. He tried to preempt this by saying, before she could get a word in, "Mommy, I wasn't being loud. (pause) I was just sleeping (pause) with my eyes open." Wittier and wittier.

Kate will have lots of other moms to hang out with while I am in class, and although it will still be an adjustment with two kids, we're feeling very hopeful and excited about the upcoming year.

Sorry we don't have any pictures this go round, but we'll be back updating with vigor in a short bit.