Christmas photo shoot

Our wonderful neighbor, who is honing her photography skills, was kind enough to come and take some pictures of our family for our Christmas card. Here are a few of my favorite shots:

Tiny Tim

Once upon a Sunday morning, Ava and Charlie were having a great time playing in the sun room - they had taken the cushions and pillows from the sofas and laid them on the floor to play on. Joe heard a cry from Charlie and wasn't sure what had happened. He thinks Charlie must have stepped on or off of a pillow or cushion and somehow twisted his ankle. He recovered quickly but wouldn't put any weight on his right foot the rest of the day. By the time I came home from work and Charlie was up from his nap, he still wouldn't put weight on the foot, so we called the nurse who said we should bring him into the ER. And, after lots of waiting, a quick exam and a couple of x-rays, the pediatrician told us that he did, indeed, have a fracture. The break was near the bottom of his tibia, and is aptly called a "toddler fracture." It's a type of spiral fracture that occurs most often in kids 0-4 and is usually caused by an awkward fall or tripping on an object (just like Charlie).
Although it was heart-breaking rocking him to sleep that first night, knowing that he was injured, I can honestly say, that in the two weeks since it occurred, he hasn't shown any sign of pain or discomfort. So, while the cast is awkward and his mobility is severely impaired, I'm just thankful that he's not uncomfortable or upset by the situation. I think his age is a blessing - he doesn't seem to have any concept of what has happened - he just scoots around or crawls as if he knows walking isn't an option.

Charlie in the ER after the pediatrician put a temporary splint on:


Home after getting his official cast - green for Christmas, per Ava's request; she was the first to sign it, too! He got the cast two days after the splint, and he'll have it on for three weeks.


Here is proof that Charlie is still our happy-go-lucky little guy... :)

The First Thanksgiving (at our house, anyway)

With smaller turnouts for the Walkers and Reiters in Eau Claire, we decided this might be our chance to host Thanksgiving dinner at our house. Ava was excited to have everyone come to us, and even though we missed some of our favorite peeps (Grandma Lois, Grandma Reiter, Ben and Katie especially), it was a fun day. There was the small issue of our cable fading in and out all day long - if you know Joe, he's not much for panicking, but when Thanksgiving day football is at stake, let's just say he was on the phone with Comcast fast (not that it helped - it didn't really get better til Sunday...) Anyway, it feels good to have a Thanksgiving meal under my belt (I actually meant that figuratively, but I guess it's kind of a pun, huh?), although I had LOTS of help from Joe, my mom and Cheryl. Still, I think we can all agree that I'm officially a grown-up now!

Here are a few pictures:

The place card (lovingly made by Ava) says "Michael," not "Millie." Good try, though.


Time to eat!


Ava and her insatiable desire to play Skip-Bo (I don't know where she gets it!)


Playing games after dinner (I think Kate called her her "human blanket." :)

The lion, the witch and...

...Joe thought it'd be fun if he somehow dressed up as a giant wardrobe, but we never really followed that idea through. :)
Here are some pictures from Halloween 2010, which was a week-long celebration around here (not including the weeks of candy-eating following the big day).

The witch and her black cat


Putting on her tap shoes for costume day at dance class


Ava's dance class


Time to celebrate at preschool


Of course, Ava and her BFF picked the same costume


Finally, the actual night is here. I'll spare you the photos of Charlie crying while putting on his costume and attempting to pose in it with Ava. Here is one where he's literally pacified. He just visited the immediate neighbors with Ava before she went out "for real."


Some of the neighborhood kids ready to go


As much as Charlie wasn't into the trick-or-treating, he loved the people coming to the door (Oma and Opa got to join us, too!)


He carried his basket of candy around for the next couple of days - just taking everything out, examining it and putting it back (he didn't figure out, til a couple of days later, what was actually inside those colorful wrappers; then, there was lots of grunting and pointing whenever we came near the stash).


It was a fun week, and I ate more candy than a person should consume in a year's time, but hey, you have to look out for your kids' best interests - we can't have them eating all that junk!

Sibling love

It's been such a long time since I've posted, and not for lack of material; Ben and Katie's wedding was the highlight of our last month - unfortunately, I don't have any of my own pictures from the event, so I might have to copy and paste some of the ones I've received online. Also, Halloween involved a full week of photo opportunities, between dressing up for dance class, school and trick-or-treating.
But, for now, I thought I'd devote a post to the sweet relationship between Ava and Charlie. Literally every day, I am amazed at the unconditional love that Ava gives her little brother. I always imagined that she would be a great big sister, and most likely a little "mother hen," but I never could have imagined her unending patience and understanding with all of his toddler antics. And she doesn't just tolerate him, she actually seeks him out throughout the day to play with him and read to him. You can see how rewarding it is for her when he snuggles into her lap or gives her hugs and kisses (and how sad she feels when he insists on Mommy instead). Here are a few shots from the last month...

In their favorite reading nook (under my computer desk)


Reading after breakfast


Love this one!


I love seeing their different eye colors together


Yup, more reading...


Visiting Ava's classroom


Charlie was NOT happy to be in his costume last night - this is the best we could do! (Oh, and I don't know how to rotate it, because it wasn't on my camera!) :) But, you get the idea...

Five!

We have a five-year-old! This blow is somewhat softened for me since I can still refer to Ava as a preschooler. But she is such a big girl in so many ways - she's reading like a champ, riding her two-wheeler, and spending hours at a time playing outside with her friends. I continue to be amazed at what a wonderful big sister she is - she "plays" with Charlie all the time, reads to him, gives him tons of hugs and kisses, and just generally enjoys being with him. And he is probably her biggest fan, as well.
So, to celebrate the big 0-5, Ava had a party with some of her best friends at Perpetual Motion, here in Woodbury.

Waiting for friends to arrive


Obstacle course fun


I think she smiled the entire time!


Crazy jumping girl


Waiting for the kids to...


...shower her with blocks!


Cake time!


Three of her party gifts: Snow White dress, Easy Bake Oven, and chef's hat and apron, all modeled early the next morning!


The next day, we had our parents and grandparents over to celebrate at home. Ava was excited to get lots of craft supplies, books and a whole slew of new Silly Bandz!


Happy Birthday to You!


We love you, Ava!

End of Summer

Here are some random pics from the last month or so. We had a great summer - it seems like the nice weather has been here forever, and that's saying a lot in Minnesota. After a few camps and sports the first half of summer, we spent most of the second half pretty unstructured, playing at parks, going to beaches and pools, and playing with friends.

Here's Ava with two of her biggest fans


Charlie's always smiling (except when he's not) :)


Riding a pony at Woodbury Days


Giving up the morning nap can wear a guy out


But a long afternoon nap can re-energize - yes, both feet are off the cushion!


A costume montage


Everyone's favorite...corn on the cob!




Next week, Ava is back to preschool three mornings a week. She'll do dance and swimming in the afternoons/evenings, and Charlie even has a few activities lined up: he's going to do a little toddler tumbling class, a baby storytime, and we'll do a drop-in playtime at ECFE. And, I almost forgot: Ava's birthday is in less than two weeks - that will probably be my next post.
As for me, I'm looking forward to monthly game night, book club, and moms' night out, as well as attending Wicked with a friend and going to a company party with Joe this month. And...the event we're all super excited for: Ben and Katie's wedding!!! Less than a month away...we can't wait!!! Happy Fall, everyone!