James' Baptism

James Louis was baptized at the First Congregational Church in East Millinocket when we were home over Labor Day weekend. This was especially meaningful to us b/c this is the church I grew-up in, I was baptized in, we were married in, Noah was baptized in, & now James too. It's great to be able to have a home base from which to grow that you can always return to:)

Happy 150th Caribou!

So in a last minute whim Mom & I decided to take the kids to Caribou for their 150th Birthday celebration. We met the Pelkey's and Uncle J-me for the parade. The parade started at 1pm, but we were so far along the parade route it didn't reach us until2:15/2:30, then it lasted until almost 4pm!! There must have been every tractor, marching band and business in the County in the parade:) We had a blast and Noah's favorite tractor is the bottom picture.

Storyland 2009

This is Noah's second trip to Storyland and what a difference a year makes!!! This year he was tall enough to ride ALL of the rides... I didn't realize how tall he was in comparison, but there were many 3 year olds, much more articulate than him, standing outside many of the rides crying b/c they weren't tall enough to go on them. I think Noah has reached a stage that he will do almost anything that dad suggests b/c he doesn't know that he should be scared. Having said that Noah, without hesitation, when on the roller coaster, the spinning ride, and the log flume twice (among other rides I never would have guessed he would ride on)! Watch out Pelkeys, soon Noah will be going on all of the roller coasters at Busch Gardens soon:) We have a picture of his first log flume ride with Gabe and his face looks horrified, but yesterday I had to buy a frame for it b/c Noah looks at it so much and says, "you and daddy, weeeeee" (he doesn't have the whole you and I things down yet). He insisted that we put the picture in his room and it was the first thing he said to me when he got up this morning. Surprisingly, the thing he struggled with the most and refused to go in was the ball pit! It was a very fun trip that ended with Noah and Gabe sleeping most of the way home while James screamed... who knew they could both sleep through that?!?!

Fireman Noah

This may have been Noah's favorite time of the summer (although the boat rides are still high on the list:)). He was fortunate enough to be able to go and visit Chief Brown at the East Millinocket fire department and "drive" the fire trucks. I have tons of pics, but here are just a few highlights and I hope they portray the excitement that he felt! To all of our surprise he was not afraid of the big fire trucks and ambulances at all. This is despite the fact that every time he hears a siren he clings to my leg in fear, no matter how far away it is. He insisted on driving every fire truck, ambulance, and rescue vehicle in the station. The last picture is of him on the old fire truck that was in the back garage of the fire station. When we told him that it was time to leave he spotted this one and insisted on riding it. He has talked about this visit everyday since and requests often to go back to the fire station:)

Noah, Grampy & the Tractor

Noah has had a blast being able to see and do lots of different things this summer! On his most recent visit to Grammy & Grampy Civiello's, grampy took him for a ride on the tractor and let him drive... despite the very serious look on his face he thoroughly enjoyed himself:) As it turns out, Noah is also a very good tractor operator.

Noah & James' First Sea Dogs Game

Last night we took the boys to a Portland Sea Dogs (AA) baseball game. I told Noah that we were going to a baseball game the day before and it was all he would talk about. I was a little afraid that he thought he would get to play baseball there since all he wanted to do was to go into the cellar and play baseball. Both boys did so well and we ended up staying for almost 2 hours! Noah brought his glove and had a HUGE smile on his face the whole time. He also used one of his earned car washing dollars to buy a cheering pom pom (which he uses at home to "sweep"). He is still talking about it today with great enthusiasm:)

Reading with Grampy

Last week we got to spend the evening with Grammy & Grampy Civiello and had a wonderful visit!! Noah is getting more adventurous in the water and had a ball swimming, jumping off the dock, and chasing the fish with his hoe, oh and playing with the rope attached to the dock:) He also was thrilled to cuddle and read a book with grampy after swimming. The bottom pic was one day after Noah's nap. He wanted James to get in bed with him. It is so much fun to watch them and see what good friends they will be (hopefully!). Noah loves to talk to James about fire trucks, baseball, and other random things. "Play with James" is a common request these days.

Fun in Mattamiscontis:)

We were able to spend a wonderful day with the Pelkeys last week! It was a beautiful hot & muggy day, but on the river it was perfect. Noah took his first kayak ride, got to drive a remote control speed boat, feed the fish (sorry Jacob), and the most exciting for him was the 4 wheeler riding and "driving". James very much enjoyed his day sitting on the dock in the shade:)

Big Trucks

When we were home last weekend Noah spent an entire morning washing vehicles with Grampy. They washed 4 total including our neighbors "Big Truck". Noah was so excited to be that close to a big truck and as a result earned his first $2 which he promptly gave away having no sense of what money was for:) The last pic is of the loader that was in front of the house where they were tarring parts of the road.

James at 2 months!

James is 2 months old- 12 lbs. 6 oz. and 23.5 inches! We took him to his 2 mo well check last week and things looked great, developmentally on track, etc. That is of course except for the raging case of thrush I failed to notice until the pediatrician looked into his mouth... Luckily he has not been eating less or showing any other signs of not feeling well (he usually cries all of the time so that is hard to judge), but needless to say I felt like a great mom & nurse practitioner for my oversight:) Since he has been smiling I have been trying to capture it and these are as close as I could come.

Summer Update

Summer is a funny time b/c it is the time when we do the most and have the most to blog about, but the least time to actually get on the computer and post:) This has been a wonderful summer for us! Full of change, but all good change and adjustment. James is growing well, smiling & cooing all of the time, we are starting to see his personality more and more. I have just been amazed at how fast it is going by this time around... we just took him for his 2 month well check already! Noah has also blossomed this summer, not only has he started talking, but he is very much into pretend play now... amazing to see how his little mind works and the subtle things he picks up on. The other day I got him up from his nap and he was digging a hole on his bed and wouldn't get up until he was done cleaning up the dirt:) The most heartwarming thing has been how much Noah has embraced being a big brother and how much he loves James. He is a big help taking care of James, always is giving him hugs and kisses (mostly gentle I might add), and to show how kind hearted he really is… when James screams for long periods, especially in the car, he tells us to put James’ pacifier in and when that doesn’t work he sits back and sucks his thumb with his blankie. Gabe is adjusting well to residency and really seems to be enjoying working in pediatrics. I am LOVING all of the time I have been able to spend at home with Noah and James this summer, but alas I will be heading back to work mid September 2-3 days a week. That’s all for now… enjoy the pics!!

Trip North- Part 3

On our last night home Noah finally got to have a campfire. We have been reading a Curious George book where he goes camping, has a campfire, and roasts marshmallows, so Noah has been asking for a campfire for a while now. He had a great time making the fire with Grampy, eating Wheat Thins for supper, and finally roasting the marshmallows... Although he was a great marshmallow roaster (very patient and a slow turner) he did eventually figure out that it was much faster to just eat them "raw" out of the bag:)

Trip North- Part 2

We spent an afternoon at the lake and Grammy & Grampy Civiello's new home. Noah had a blast playing in the lake with Brady and James loved all of the attention so much he slept most of the time while being held by everyone:) We had lots of visitors there who it was great to see and have them meet James and see how much Noah has grown. It was also Aunt Sherri's birthday weekend so Noah got to have some birthday cake and feed it to Great Grampy Day:)

Trip North- Part 1

With all of our free time this summer and Gabe working so much, the kids and I have been able to spend lots of time up north with family. On our last trip we had a wicked fun, though exhausting, trip home with almost every minute booked:) The top picture is of Noah with Uncle John driving the Bobcat... I actually have a short video of this that Noah watches several times a day that I will try to post. Next, we went swimming and spent the day at the campground with Aunt Amy & Uncle Dennis. I love this picture of the two of them b/c you can see how much fun Noah is having. The bottom pic was right after Noah woke up from his nap and found James and Nanny napping too:)