halloween

We can't believe that it is November already....goodness, where does the time go? October was a quick one! The chickens are laying tons of eggs, Cory celebrated his 32nd in good 'ol Essen Haus style (we had an Oktoberfest party, complete with live accordion player) and the girls got all dressed up for trick-or-treating. Lilly even drew her first pumpkin face which Cory carved very carefully, making sure to stay true to the artist's intended vision.

it's fall already?

Summer's not yet over here, despite the calendar date. Sigh.

We have been busy around here! Over Labor Day weekend, we packed up our stuff and flew out to Portland, OR for a little mini-vacation, see some family and to see our good friend get married. Unfortunately, two niblets in tow prevented extended visits to the regions wineries...but that just gives us reason to return!

Helen's been getting teeth at a rapid clip--we're cutting #6 right now. She is getting so big, so fast. Hard to believe! Her newest trick is to wave bye-bye with her fat little fingers. She is loving being able to eat cheerios, and getting better about getting them in her mouth rather than the snack trap of the high chair. Perhaps the biggest news is that Helen is up and standing, cruising along furniture...walking is not far off.

Lilly is thriving in her new classroom at school. She comes home each day brimming with excitement about what she learned and did that day. Right now we're working on cutting with scissors and writing letters. She is also being nice to her sister...most of the time. We are on the receiving end of non-stop inquiry (begging) regarding ballet lessons. Our train and truck-loving kiddo has been sporting her tutu just about every chance she gets.

Our other girls (Bruiser, Maybelle and Oprah) are doing great as well. Just this past week or so, all three of them have started to lay eggs!!! We are so excited--so far, an egg a day from each! Come on over for an omelette.


running on the beach in OR


mmm, fingers.






sporting some fancy Black Dog wear from MV....thanks PaPa!

cluck, cluck!

SHHHH! We've got chickens! In our backyard!

We had been talking about getting a few hens for the girls for a while, but figured that we'd wait until we could fix up the yard post-construction and take our time building a coop for them. Well, a coworker was moving overseas and had three young hens that needed a home. So started the flurry of coop building and the arrival of the girls. Woo-hoo!

Two New Hampshire Reds and a Leghorn have taken nicely to the wicked awesome coop-and seem to be quite happy! Lilly has already managed to let one of them out, which gave us a bit of excitement chasing it down.

So far, they are proving to be quite funny and entertaining to watch. We gave them some cantaloupe and spinach as a treat and they gobbled it right up!


The front of the coop. Note the dutched roofline and exposed rafter tails that match our house! Woo!

Not quite finished yet, but a good view into the nesting/roosting area above the storage area below. We'll be putting up a big door with a window so the girls can look outside. Eventually, the coop will be moved to the back corner of the yard once we get around to putting up a new fence.

The white chicken's name is Bruiser. She came pre-named and we couldn't come up with a good reason why we should change it. The other two girls are named Maybelle (after the San Francisco cable car) and Oprah (because I had a dream to use that name and it makes me laugh).

happy girls!

check me out!

#2 has started to explore the sippy cup. She is not yet that interested except when she chucks it to the floor.

Yes, that is #1 eating with chopsticks...and doing a relatively good job. The best part is that she was so intent on eating with them, that it allowed us to eat our meal in relative peace. The joy!


mugging for the camera....#2 has paid attention to the "how to's" from her sister.

summer vacation

Yes, we're here....but it's summer. Pictures have been difficult to upload here lately, so here's a link (cut and paste it) to some goodies:

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2595033&id=8640164&l=320d02bddc

getting bigger!

Helen is getting to be such a big girl these days--bouncing in the saucer, pushing up on her arms, eating cereal, smiling and grabbing at Lilly--such fun. She is currently loving on Sophie, her very cute, very overpriced rubber giraffe chew toy...from France of course! She's not put it down yet. It will be a tragedy if it goes missing. She's also moved into 6-9 month clothing, a few months sooner than Lilly did. We await her stats at the 6 month mark...

Lilly is being a super big sister too! She is really getting into helping out with Helen. She picks out her clothes, gets diapers and has started to help with feeding her cereal. Awesome. She is also bursting with creative thoughts and stories. Just today, Lilly announced that she and her best friends Shelby and Catherine went shopping for kiwis, peppers, bread and beer(!) in the yellow car...this all before going to the party to pick all the pumpkins. They took turns driving the car by the way, how polite.


snuggling in bed

carrying her doll in her 'sling' just like mommy

eldest child feeding the youngest child. bunny slippers at Lilly's request.

giving Sophie a chew...

pushing up!

Happy Mothers' Day?

Ahh, Mothers' Day. Flowers? A laundry fairy? Nope...this was my gift:

da da da dahhhhh! the garage!

Finally, the garage is 'finished'. It looks like its been there forever. We especially love the door. Donations are being accepted to finish the guest suite.


Hee hee...fooled ya! Helen in her new favorite sleeping pose.


Whoo-hoo! We might even park our cars in it!!!


A view of the grounds. Back corner where that plywood is will be the future home of the chicken coop.


More backyard...look closely at the back fence and you'll see our giant butternut squash (an unplanned planting!) growing happily in our compost pile! Woo!

strawberry pickin'

We drove up north this weekend for the first of a few trips to King's Orchard. The strawberries were ripe, the weather was good and we had a great time. I think we picked about 7 pounds...oh, the possibilities. Unlike those grocery store berries, these guys started their decline about 5 minutes after we picked them so I had to act fast. So, we're enjoying daquiris, pie, sorbet and eating them just as is. Once we get our garden in order, we'll have our own to tend to!!!

Grandparent Tour '09

Grandpa Peter and Grandma Sue came down for a visit, luckily right before summer came to Houston for real. We had a great time hanging out!! We had a wonderful picnic at the local park, visited the Beer Can House (ask us to take you!) and ate well of course.

Here are some favorites from the weekend:


relaxing on the porch swing

if she's going to go on spring break, let's hope this is how she looks
alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5334344169261630290" />
swinging!

Helen's new tricks

Helen isn't doing much yet....rolling over to the right is the biggest thing. She rolls over and then promptly barfs. Sweet. We test drove the rice cereal too, but she wasn't yet into it yet. After tasting the stuff when Lilly was eating it, I wouldn't be either.

nature hike

We went to Fredericksburg, a small touristy town in the hill country a few weeks ago for a friend's wedding. Enchanted Rock is a short drive north and is one of those "must see" places in Texas, not to mention cool for geologists, as it is a giant exposed granite dome poking up through a whole mess of limestone. The hike was 1/2 mile to the top...we didn't make it. Helen was less than impressed by the wind and Lilly was more into the bugs, rocks and plants along the way. Only half of us got to see the top that day...


Helen, unsure about this "backpack" thing...

Cory and Lilly ready for the big hike up!

real pictures

We had a photographer take some 'real' pictures of the kiddos a few weeks ago. Let's just say they are WAY better than anything we could have captured. We don't yet have them all...but a preview can be found on our photographer's website:

http://www.brookeschwabphotography.com/myblog/portraits-1/sisterly-love-houston-children.html

tricycling!

Lilly has really gotten good about riding her tricycle. She always asks to go out for a ride and also tells us that she is fast. The other day she saw some older boys riding their bikes and she told me, "mommy, I am faster!". One day, for sure.


big, big smiles

rolling down the street

so focused!

Easter!

The Easter Bunny visited our house on Sunday, bringing goodies galore (thankfully not much candy) and some nasty weather. After all of the craziness subsided, we poured ourselves large cups of coffee and got busy in the kitchen making brunch. A few friends came over during a terrific thunderstorm to hang out and eat. The weather got significantly better--and warmer in the afternoon thankfully!


The Easter Bunny, despite being very busy, was able to write the girls a little note...and eat the carrots.

baskets full of goodies...

Lilly checks it out.

Helen was quite happy her treasures. How did that Easter Bunny know that she could use waterproof bibs and a chew toy?!

lots of good stuff...thanks Easter Bunny!