We move on to that time Ethan got a hand-me-down tie and fancy shoes from Boston cousins and rocked the look...and then his brother and sister got jealous of Mommy's photography subject:
Aunt Syssa gets credit for officially being the first adult to keep these 5 children alive by herself when Mommy needed to sneak out for a meeting. |
By the end of November, big Spenceman was officially 1.75 years old. He's still a small little guy, but man, he's got big things happening! I have now seen this happen with 3 kiddos, and it never gets any less exciting. Spencer's language gets more and more developed as he expresses himself in dramatic gibberish and dozens of new words every day. For me, the sweetest language development came towards the end of the month when he began piecing two independent words together to communicate, as in "Byebye Mommy," "mor wahwah," "crakah peez," or "uh oh [gui]tah." And this guy has the best smile when he points (attempted sign) at you and says "i-yuh-you!"
He tantrums as all good toddlers do; his smile lights up the room; he LOVES vehicles, especially "choo choo"s! Spencer can count (with assistance) to 10; he carries a tune remarkably; and he loves singing and repeating songs happily.
using a big boy spoon to feed himself |
Spoiler alert: That's not mud. (It was, however, one of the grossest days of my life.) |
like his big brother. |
when the smaller piece of challah wasn't big enough |
on the loose with Mommy's slippers |
another day, another opportunity to fall asleep before making it to the crib |
It was another cold day. Or a wet day? Or a day that Mommy didn't feel like entertaining the kids or taking them outside? Luckily, Mommy remembered the fabulous indoor pool available to us!
If these moments on the slide don't capture the love that these 2 brothers have for each other, I'm not sure what else would.
"Wasting time" at the mall one afternoon:
They say there's a first time for everything... |
Gabriella continues to improve her reading skills as her list of recognized sight words increases. She thinks scientifically and mathematically. She can be sweet, cuddly, and smiley. She can also be the opposite of all of this. Sigh.
Mommy got to have a special lunch with Gabi at school to help celebrate Thanksgiving. |
When Gabi asked that I not cut the celery into small sticks, she was so tickled that I actually said "yes." And yes, she ate the entire plate's contents. #snacktime #notnormal |
Jon does a great job taking turns with the big kids for "Special Daddy Time." And he's pretty good at documenting with food selfies apparently.
Dads & Donuts at school |
Subway |
queso! (and tacos) |
McDonald's ice cream cones |
And speaking of 'Special Daddy Time,' he led a great stretch session one night before dinner. While Daddy and the big kids are cute and all, this moment belongs to the cute toddler.
We really enjoy going to our local library's once a month evening pajama storytime.
This seems safe. |
This month's kitty update focuses on Casey who has displayed more and more tolerance of veteran Cohen kitties Maggie and Nikki.
package delivery |
Why did she put herself in timeout? |
And in summary-