Samuel on his first day

Samuel arrived January 27th at 12:38pm, weighing in at 7lbs exactly and 19.5″ long. We are absolutely overjoyed to have him with us! Beatrice is a great big sister and we’re enjoying these first days as a family of four.

Family of Four

Now that we’re able to get out of our house, we decided to have a little family fun day as a bit of a last hoorah as a family of three.

First stop: Top Pot Donuts

Donut Feast

If you know us pretty well, you can easily figure out who had which donut. For her part, Beatrice very much enjoyed it!

Yum!

After our treat, we headed to Hobby Lobby (this was Beatrice’s idea! Love that girl!). I had looked at their advert online and noticed that “men’s decorative items” were on sale. Jonathan said no man under 50 would ever decorate with them and they really shouldn’t indicate that they are for men, but rather purchased by the women who decorate men’s homes. He does have a good point. I didn’t see a single man in the “men’s items” area.  We spent quite a long time in Hobby Lobby, for the youngest member of our party just couldn’t get enough of the crafty goodness. It helped that her Daddy was along to give her a better view of things:

Doll Houses

After Hobby Lobby, we stopped by the mall in hopes of finding some new shoes for Jonathan, but quickly realized it was too close to lunch and nap time to do any shopping. We returned home for Bea’s nap, after which we headed to dinner at one of our favorite local restaurants:

Mmm. Delicious!

As you can see, Beatrice was so excited by her pepperoni pizza that she couldn’t look up for the photo. What a difference a year makes! We’d gone out for dinner here on our anniversary last year and it was kind of terrible. Beatrice was horribly crabby and while they had our food out in record time, Jonathan and I each only had one slice of pizza before we headed home because it was evident Beatrice was not able to dine in public during the evening! Yikes! This time, we waited almost 35 minutes for a table and she was only fussy the last five minutes or so of this period. Once we sat down, she was happy as can be with the coloring page and crayons provided for her. They brought out breadsticks for us right away and we were able to keep her supplied with little bits of bread to munch while she colored. Our waiter was kind enough to suggest that he could cut her pizza into bite-sized pieces in the kitchen if we’d like, so her food was all ready for her when it came out! Jonathan had to make sure her plate always had a few more bites on it, but all in all, we had a really enjoyable meal. Hooray! And just in time for us to hit the “reset” button and start all over again.

Here are some photos of our fun in the snowy weather:

Snowing!

She liked being out in the snow a little better when it was just snowing rather than snow up to the top of her boots. I think walking in that much snow was a little tricky for her.

Making a snowball

Yes, I showed her how to make a snowball and then we maybe threw them at Daddy who gladly participated in our snowball fight!

Eating a "snow treat"

And Daddy taught her that snow is delicious! She calls it a snow treat. Don’t worry, we made sure the snow was “clean” and we’ve talked about avoiding yellow snow….

We like snow

And naturally, she gets to have some “tea” when she comes inside (it’s really warm apple juice):

Nice and warm!

What has happened in the last few months?  Well sweet girl:

You got your first hair cut and it wasn’t terrible! I will be honest and tell you that’s the last time I want to cut your hair, so it better grow out in some cute style or we’re going to have some trouble on our hands.

We celebrated Thanksgiving and you sat by me while I watched the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade. I don’t think you loved it, necessarily, but you sat still for a few minutes.

We continued our tradition of going downtown the day after Thanksgiving. We saw the Teddy Bear Suite at the Fairmont, the gingerbread houses at the Sheraton and the tree lighting at Westlake. The best part for you was your first candy: a candy cane. You were in wound-up toddler heaven:

It's sweet! It's sweet!

You have started to help out in the kitchen. We made chex mix just before Christmas and you decided that yes, you do like mixed nuts but only the cashews! Fancy girl! You also helped me make sugar cookies for the first time, which mostly made me want to cry tears of delight and joy and amazement at how big you’re getting!

You also ate dough:

You continue to desire to be outside pretty much all the time, all day long. You also like to watch for birds in the yard. We have a book about birds in our area and you’re learning to identify them. You still get most excited about crows and ducks, but now you’re learning to recognize robins and chickadees.

You’re getting really great with shapes and continue to be strong with color recognition. Last week, I made you eggs and toast for breakfast and you nibbled your toast into a triangle and exclaimed, “it’s a triangle! It’s a triangle!” which made you giggle.

You’ve started to realize that “you” isn’t always the appropriate way for you to refer to yourself. If you see a photo of the three of us, you will now say, “It’s me, you and Daddy” but you still use phrases such as “Daddy hold you?” when you want to be held. It’s adorable.

You are also beginning to experiment with speaking in different tenses. If I give you a kiss, you will say, “that was a kissy!” or if you were recently held, you say, “Daddy was holding you”. We’ve only heard you use the future tense a couple of times and you usually speak in present perfect tense, but it’s still really neat to see how you’re language is being developed. You’re getting to be such a big girl!

For Christmas, you received some very wonderful gifts, but you mostly seemed to enjoy looking at and holding the wrapped presents so your Daddy and I unwrapped things for you. One of the most delightful parts of Christmas morning was hearing you exclaim “Oh how wonderful!” when you saw the little cups your Aunt Rachel got for you. You squealed with joy when you realized the blue quilt your Meamaw made you had duckies all over the other side and this blanket continues to be a highlight of your day. You like me to “make a pocket” (fold it in half) and then you scoot your little self inside it and just roll around.

You are going through a Daddy phase. BIG TIME. If we are both in the room, you only want Daddy. If I go to get you from your crib in the morning, you respond to my “Good morning!” with “No Momma. Only Daddy!” to which I generally say that he’s busy and you’re stuck with me, sucka. We were traveling in the car recently and you were having a rough time. We had stopped for lunch and you refused to eat anything so we got back in the car and while J was using the facilities, I said, “Momma and Daddy both love you very much, I’m sorry you’re having a rough time right now” and you looked at me and said, “No Momma loves you! Only Daddy!” which naturally upset me. I was nervous about our return to the regular routine after having Daddy home for ten days, but you were completely unfazed. Once Daddy left for work, you just sat down on my lap and asked me to read you book after book like usual.

I’m so thankful to have you as my buddy during the day. You like to help out around the house and usually Raggedy Ann or Big Duckie help out as well. Last month, I was getting the laundry out of the dryer and you came up and patted my back and said, “You’re a great helper, Momma!” which warmed my heart!

There are some big changes coming soon. We know you’re going to be a great big sister and we pray that the transition is smooth as we begin to live it up as a family of four.

All in all, it was just fine for us to walk around all morning. The weather was unseasonably warm and sunny. We were able to hang out with my Dad for a bit and do some light shopping at the mall. We went to the library and our local Ben Franklin to look at craft ideas.  The estimate of “1 to 3.6 hours” ended up being only 2.5 hours. I felt really good after a nice, long walk and we found a delightful little book at the library (don’t worry, we currently have at least a dozen children’s books checked out!). Beatrice did a great job with all our wandering around and after some lunch, she cuddled on my lap in the rocking chair and fell asleep on my shoulder. I love that she has done this the last two days!  I will say, however, that the whole time we were walking around I was thinking that I was really thankful we are not homeless. Entertaining a toddler with no home base is tricky! I imagine it would be even trickier if we were on the go regularly and wondering where we’d sleep or what we might eat. Also, it’s really nice that our downtown area is flat. REALLY nice.

After her nap, Beatrice asked to paint. “I love painting!” she said. So, I got out the fingerpaints and q-tips and she got to work. I was cleaning the kitchen and just happened to look over at her to see this:

she loves paint!

It should be noted that she fingerpaints with q-tips because she doesn’t like the feeling of paint on her fingers. It is apparent that she doesn’t have a problem with it on her face or her arms. Sillypants!

The day after Thanksgiving, we once again participated in our traditional treck downtown and saw the Christmas trees, gingerbread houses and tree lighting. Beatrice did not take a nap that day and to distract her while waiting in line, we let her have her first candy: a candy cane!  She LOVES them!

And we’ve been doing some other fun things to celebrate the Christmas season. Christmas tree hunting:

Trimming the tree:

Riding a horse-drawn carriage:

Making decorations:

Visiting Christmas light displays:

All this and we’ve still got two weeks until Christmas! It’s been a delight to see hear Beatrice singing Christmas songs and carols and to watch her learn more about the traditions of Christmas (she caught on especially quickly to the fact that men dressed as Santa generally give out candy cane treats!).

We took a family roadtrip to Chico, CA. Beatrice did a great job in the car! Naturally, we’d stocked up on activities, books and a portable DVD player and of course, one of her favorite items to play with was a crumpled paper towel.

Paper towel!

We stayed in a hotel and attended the wedding of our friends, DJ and Ashley. The wedding was beautiful, but Beatrice and I did not stay in the sanctuary for long. When the candles were being lit, Beatrice began singing “Happy Birthday” in her loudest voice. It was both adorable and completely embarrassing! We read some books in the narthex area and when it was time for the congregational hymn, we went back inside and sat with Jonathan. After the ceremony, we headed to their beautiful reception and enjoyed some fun with old and new friends, a delicious meal and dancing! Congratulations, DJ and Ashley! We’re so happy for you and glad that we were able to witness your entering into marriage!

The happy newlyweds!

The next day, we drove home and were very glad to sleep in our own beds!

October also brought a change in weather around here and we were able to enjoy our first family trip to the pumpkin patch. Beatrice wasn’t as excited about the pumpkins as she was about the farm animals and gourds, but it was a great day to be outside together and a fun memory. She selected one gourd for each of us and we’ve had fun using them as decorations inside.

We like pumpkins!

We were also able to be present for the baptism of the baby of our friends, Mike and Julianna. Once again, Beatrice was a source of embarrassment and joy as she yelled “Amen!” like a Southern Baptist during the prayer and started to sing “Happy Birthday” with the lighting of candles. Thankfully, Julianna’s family is very forgiving and her presence wasn’t seen as a nuisance. It’s a blessing for us to be part of joyous occasions such as these!

Baby C's baptism

The biggest milestone for the month was the night away that Jonathan and I were able to share. Our friends, Carrie and Dan (and Frankie!) stayed at our house with Beatrice and we were able to have a nice date night out and stay the night at a local bed and breakfast. We had a great time! Dinner was delicious and my goal for the night was to take a bath, read a book and have a cup of tea and I got to do all three at once! Yay! Beatrice didn’t seem to skip a beat, which was great. She had a great time with Carrie and Dan, enjoyed having pizza for dinner and showed off her new skill: twirling!

Two well-rested parents!

We celebrated Jonathan’s 31st birthday three times this year! It was great! We had family over for a dinner comprised of all of his favorites: spicy maple-glazed pork tenderloin, quinoa dinner rolls, roast brussels sprouts, roast red potatoes, cherry pie. It was really nice to have everyone together for a meal! We went to dinner at a German restaurant with the Eske-side of the family later that week and for Jonathan’s actual birthday, we had sushi!  Beatrice mostly ate sushi rice from our rolls and potstickers, but she had a great time with the teeny-tiny plates.

Mmm Sushi!

The end of the month was Halloween and Beatrice chose to be a dinosaur (I know, I thought she’d pick duck too!). She really liked her costume and we had lots of fun just putting her in it around the house for some giggles. We went to a “trunk or treat” event at my parents’ church (the one in which I grew up). She had a great time seeing everyone in costume, but she was not interested in any of the carnival games. Once we were outside, she liked seeing the decorated vehicles, but she was more interested in splashing in the puddles than collecting candy.

Splashy! Splashy!

We participated in trick-or-treating at Jonathan’s office on Halloween. I was a little nervous that she wouldn’t catch on with the concept of collecting candy since my coaching her resulted in her holding out her bucket and saying things like, “Say hi to my pumpkin bucket?” Once we got to the office and she saw the bowls of candy, she set to work! Sadly, she was mostly drawn to Baby Ruth (is it the packaging?) and it took some coaching to get her to put peanut butter cups into her bucket, but she figured out that trick-or-treat is fun! Mostly, she liked the decorations and it was definitely a highlight for her to get her very own plastic spider ring!

We picked up the chicken and it was placed into our car in a tidy little box. I didn’t have to lift anything! YAY! I was feeling pretty good about things. It wouldn’t take forever to get it packed up and ready. In fact, it looked smaller than I’d expected:

Not so bad

Since I’m a bit of a paranoid preggy-pants, I decided that carrying 40lbs of chicken was not in my best interest. I’m glad to have a swell brother in-law who is willing to come over during the day to help out! Thanks Patrick!

Once inside, we opened the box and found this:

Inside the box!

After the three of us worked for a bit, we ended up with 28 chicken breasts. Not bad! I made my current fave for dinner that night: chicken parmigiana (with alphabet pasta! Beatrice chose, naturally).  After dinner, I got to work preparing the chicken into portions that we’d use regularly. I cut the chicken into chunks/cubes, strips and cutlets. All in all, I ended up with chicken for 11 meals, plus the dinner we ate “fresh” that day.

Foodsaver to the rescue!

And thanks to my Grandpa’s wonderful wedding gift to us, that chicken doesn’t take up much room at all in our freezer:

Packed away

The chicken does have great flavor and it was an incredible value (only $1.49/lb!), but 40lbs of chicken is a bit much for this little family. I like a good bargain as much as the next person, but I think the next “great deal” we get on a massive amount of food will have to be something we eat more frequently, like chickpeas!

Through our CSA, we get a pumpkin (or two) each year and we went one Saturday to pick it up. First, we picked some chard, which Beatrice “chomped” while I filled the bag:

Chard Chomper

Misty Morning

Then we walked back to pick out our pumpkin. She was very careful to look for just the right one:

The best pumpkin!

Afterward, we went to a “real” pumpkin patch, not that the first one was fake, that had pumpkins and gourds and animals to pet and activities for children. It was also very sunny, so we are squinting in most of the photos. Ah, what a great problem to have around here in October!

Mighty McP Four at the Pumpkin Patch

After looking at many, many pumpkins, Beatrice decided the “teeny tiny ones” were what she liked best. She selected four gourds for our home and only tried to put a few of them in her mouth!

Selecting just the right gourd

See ya next year, pumpkin patch!

Pumpkin Patch 2011

Daddy and Bea make the big announcement

Yes, Beatrice is a Big Sister! Baby McPherson 2.0 (or just 2.0 or “Newbie”) is due February 4th! Yes, we do know this child’s gender….but we’re going to wait on sharing it here for a bit. So far, things seem to be going okay and Beatrice already loves patting my belly, her belly and Jonathan’s belly. She also has her own ideas for baby names!