Monday, December 16, 2013

A First

Wes isn't the only one still having "firsts". Molly went to her first movie in the theater a few weeks ago. We saw Frozen & she totally loved it! She sat on the edge of her seat the entire time and it was really fun to experience it with her. Great movie too!
Enjoying some popcorn before the movie started.

Saturday, December 14, 2013

Santa!

We heard Santa was coming to town on Friday (to the ice cream shop in Edina) so we had to go! Sure enough, he was there. It was snowing huge flakes of snow & very Christmas looking! Both kids did so good. Molly told him she wanted Barbies, Sophia the First & a new sled and that Wes wanted a puppy. He reminded her to be really good the next couple weeks and gave her a candy cane. She was so excited (and so much braver) this year!

Cousin Time

 Just before Thanksgiving, Luke's sister Amanda and her family were here to visit from Florida. The kids all had grown so much and they really had fun playing together. Molly & Emma were best buds and the little kids enjoyed having other little kids to play with.

At church for Layla's baptism. It doesn't happen very often, so here are all the Miller cousins together! Molly, Emma, Sage, Wes & Layla.
The Three Amigos: Sage, Wes & Layla. Sage is the oldest, followed closely by Layla & then Wes is 1 month younger.

Sage & Wes having a face off over one of Sage's toys. Pretty sure the next photo was of Wes crying.

Monday, December 9, 2013

9 months

Well, I was starting to think Wessie might be 10 months old by the time I got his 9 month update done! It's been a busy last couple weeks, but Wes turned 9 months old on November 25th. His accomplishments this past month include crawling, pulling up, eating more finger foods & trying new fruits, veggies & meats, and using a sippy cup. I thought he had hit the 20 lb mark, but at his checkup the official scale weighed him in at 19.6 lbs. Additionally, he is 29 inches long. He is still a very light sleeper, but other than nighttime, he is a very happy baby. He plays so well with Molly and they have crawling races up and down the hall. It is so neat to see the love that they have for each other. This past month included his first Halloween & Thanksgiving and next up will be Christmas!

Friday, December 6, 2013

Thanksgiving

It was just the four of us for Thanksgiving day this year. I cooked my first Thanksgiving dinner: turkey breast, mashed potatoes & gravy, green beans & mushrooms, jello salad, rolls and pecan pie. It was Wesley's first Thanksgiving, so even though it was just us, it was still a big deal. It was fun to enjoy the day with him & he loved his turkey and green beans.

Thursday, November 7, 2013

Dresser Redo

 I found this dresser at a yard sale earlier this fall & bought it for $20. It's solid wood & the drawers slide well, it just needed a facelift.

I roughed it up with a little sandpaper and took off the hardware. Then I used some Colonial Red glossy paint to give it a new brighter look. It took 2 coats. After this, I distressed it with some light sanding mostly on the edges. Next, I used a dark walnut stain and an old dried out paint brush to give it the antique look. You just paint on a coat, let it dry a few minutes and then wipe it off. It leaves some darker spots in the corners & edges and darkens the whole dresser slightly. This took 2 coats also. I found some neat spray paint called "Hammered" which gives a hammered metal look to whatever you spray it on. I used this on the hardware. The paint was $7 and spray paint was $6. I had the stain, brushes and sandpaper already, so for about $33 Wessie has this cute "new" dresser for his room!

Don't you enjoy the model in these photos? She was a big helper with this project--good thing I wasn't going for a really precise finish because my helper is better at brushing paint the wrong way and dripping it everywhere! You just can't complain about help though!

Wednesday, November 6, 2013

And He's Off

As of November 2nd, we have a crawler. Nothing in the house is safe anymore!

Saturday, November 2, 2013

Campfire

We had a little bonfire/weanie roast the other night. It was such nice fall weather & since we hadn't gotten to go camping all summer, we decided to at least have a campfire. It started out great. We roasted hot dogs & Wes was sitting on his blanket. Then...he spit up and we discovered he had apparently eaten a substantial amount of grass. Whoops! He was really upset after that & I ended up taking him to the house & putting him to bed while Molly & Luke finished up with the marshmallows. He was fine the next day, so I guess it didn't hurt him--he's just learning.
Luke whittling some roasting sticks with all his helpers.
Helping Molly with her hot dog. She thought it was too hot to get that close.

Thursday, October 31, 2013

Happy Halloween

From Beauty and the Beast!


Wednesday, October 30, 2013

Corn Maze

We had quite the fun afternoon at the Jackson Country Connection Corn Maze in LaPlata a couple weekends ago. I think Molly would of stayed there for days and been happy. She especially loved the giant slide and bouncy house. The actual corn maze was just kind of a sideline deal for her. I thought she might be a little afraid to go down this slide all by herself, but she didn't hesitate.


Wessie just kind of had to look around from the stroller. There wasn't too much that he could participate in yet, but he had fun too. He posed for some pictures and enjoyed playing in the hay. Molly also loved the hay bale animals. There was a giant caterpillar (below), spider & pig.

We also made a stop at the pumpkin patch on the way home so we could pick our pumpkins out of the field. It's so much more fun than getting them at the grocery store!

Molly, of course, picked the "Big Daddy Pumpkin" for her own. Wes slept in the car for this stop, but we picked him out a good one too--just not quite so big.

Tuesday, October 29, 2013

8 Months

Our little Wessie turned 8 months old last week. He now weighs in at 20 lbs and is 28 inches long and wears 12 month sized clothes. He is SO close to crawling. He can get up on all fours and rocks. He has even figured out how to move his hands but his knees just haven't followed yet. He can now get from his belly to sitting up on his own and has pulled up on several chairs, tables, etc. He's still enjoying solid foods and eats up just about anything we feed him. He got to try meat (turkey) for the first time on his 8 month birthday. The only thing he has refused to eat has been diced peaches. He makes a face like they are just too sour. With his ever increasing mobility he keeps Molly & I very busy pulling things out of his mouth. He is a very busy boy!


Riding in the stroller.

Sunday, October 6, 2013

September Happenings

September was such a busy & fun month for us. The first big deal was the Knox County Corn Fest where Molly was big enough this year to participate in lots of the activities! First of all was the parade where she discovered that if you wave, you get lots more candy thrown to you. Let's just say she filled her bag for sure!


Enjoying the parade.
Then there was the Corn Scramble. Quarters are hid in a big wagon full of corn and they put all the 3-4 year old girls in there together and see who can come up with the most quarters. Molly ended up with 3, which tied her for first. She won 2 dollar coins and a candy bar so she was very happy!




Find those quarters!
She also participated in the Pedal Tractor Pull ending up 3rd and getting her picture in the paper with her big medal. She was lucky enough to borrow a frog from a friend and got to be in the frog jumping contest also. Her frog got loose just before the competition and jumped really far with me chasing it...but when it came time for it's jumps to actually count it was rather disappointing. Still fun though. She also got to go on a train ride and jumped in the bouncy house. What a day!
Wes & Dad
Wessie was too little to participate in much of the Corn Fest (we refuse to do baby contests), and although he slept through the parade he did enjoy hanging out with Dad.

Other than the Corn Fest, we also made one big trip to Montana for my best friend's wedding and to visit family. It was a very busy 10 days! It was really nice that Molly had her own seat on the flight--so much more room, and Wes was a pretty good traveler. Here is a photo from the wedding. Molly was the Flower Girl and I was the Maid of Honor. It was SO gorgeous!

Waiting for the Bride's arrival.
Now, we are back home and enjoying the little things. Molly & I made our very first apple pie and Wes started swinging in the outdoor swing. Such fun!
My pie helper!




Swinging with some help from Sister!

Double Take

Back when Molly was 4 months old, I took this photo of her and it has been one of my favorites! When Wes was 4 months old, I made an attempt to try to create the same picture with him.
Molly-4 months
There was one problem with my plan. It turns out Wessie was too big for the box so he was very unhappy and uncooperative! Here is the one shot I got of him before he totally lost it. Geez...what a chunk compared to Molly!
Wessie-4 months
The good news is Sister Baby fits just great and really wanted her picture taken with her big sister Molly. What a deal. Look how much Molly has changed in 3 years!

Molly & Sister Baby-ready to pose as always.

5, 6 & 7 Months

Wow! It has been over 3 months since my last post. I guess 2 kids + a busy summer doesn't leave much time for the blog. Well...I will give it another shot & try to keep it updated. Here is a little growth chart update for Wessie who is now 7 months old!

5 months old! Meeting lots of family for the first time (Grandpa Monty & Great Grandma Be)!
Unfortunately, my Grandpa Max passed away in July, so Wes & I made a last-minute trip to Montana for the funeral. Although under very sad circumstances, it was a great opportunity to spend time with family and for everyone to meet Wes. He was a good boy on his first flights and overall a good traveler for being such a little guy.
6 months old! Eating lots of new foods!
In August, Wes turned 6 months old and started eating all kinds of fruits & vegetables. We haven't given him anything that he hasn't liked yet & he goes crazy for Cheerios!

7 months old. Sitting up really good!
September was a big month for us. 10 days were spent in Montana for my best friend's wedding and we all made the trip this time. Here is Wessie with his Grandma Leila. He has changed so much in the last 3 months. He is weaned onto formula and is such a happy boy. He even said "Mama"!

Sunday, June 30, 2013

4 Months

Little Wesley turned 4 months old a few days ago. He is growing like crazy! At his checkup, he was in the 75th percentile for weight and 95th percentile for length. I guess this explains why he is already wearing 12 month size clothes. I looked up Molly's stats to compare them, and she wasn't this long until she was 10 months old.

His colic is getting better and I think it mostly stemmed from his food sensitivities. Nursing him, I just have to be absolutely sure not to eat any dairy products or we will sure know it the next day. I think he is also possibly allergic to nuts and/or soy. I would like to start supplementing him with formula or at least to have it as a back-up in case I can't be there every 4 hour interval of his life, but with him having so many digestive issues I'm afraid it may do more harm than good. The doctor gave us some soy formula to try, so we will have to give it a shot sometime when we have nothing planned for the next couple days (in case it doesn't sit well with him).

We sure do love our little Wesley though. He is really kicking and discovering his feet, playing with toys, making all kinds of baby noises and putting everything in his mouth. He can roll up onto his side, but hasn't made it over yet. His hair is getting a little thin on the sides and back, but on the top I've already trimmed it twice and it just keeps growing and growing.

Molly Turns 3!

Our little baby Molly just isn't much of a baby anymore..she's 3 years old! She's turned into such a big kid and a wonderful big sister. She's potty trained, eats using utensils, is athletic and aced her 3 year old screening through the Parents as Teachers Program. Well, all except one thing...her name! She would not say her name no matter what. She insisted her name was "Big Sister" and wouldn't consider anything else. Minor details right??

Molly's one request for her birthday was to have a blue cake with strawberries. So, her party didn't really have a theme this year, it just most definitely had a blue cake with strawberries!

Blowing out the candles.
 Instead of having the party at our house, as we have done in the past, we had it in the park with a playground. Molly LOVES playgrounds and was so excited to have her party there, that we had to talk her into opening her presents instead of swinging.

Lucky girl!
 Don't worry though, she had plenty of time to play and plenty of other kids to play with. She really had a fun day and still talks about it all the time. Thanks to everyone who came to her party, sent gifts and wished her a happy birthday!!

Getting a push from her older cousin.

Sunday, May 26, 2013

Awww...

I feel so lucky to have this little family :) No matter how much whining and crying we have been through, it always seems like everything is better when Luke comes home. I'm so thankful for these 3!

Visitors From Montana

Grandma Leila came and stayed with us the first month of Wesley's life. This was our attempt at a photo of her and her grandkids...
 
Despite the picture, Wes was a real happy baby for the first 6 weeks of his life.

Uncle Matt got a full dose of life with little kids while he was here. Pretty sure that was some good birth control for him; Molly & Wes should not be expecting any little Pugh cousins anytime soon. Our attempt at a group photo...this was the best one-ha!

 Molly was SO excited to show Uncle Matt her new fishing pole and how to use it. She got kind of disappointed when he caught a fish and she didn't. Keep practicing Molly, he's got a few years on you!

  

You might be surprised, but Uncle Matt is really good at calming down a crying little Wes. He did a great job with his new nephew and helped me out SO much!!

 



Family of 4

Oh how life has changed since my last post in January. Things have been a bit hectic and the blog has definitely taken a backseat, but I will try to catch up with it. I suppose everyone knows by now that Wesley Stephen Miller was welcomed into our family of February 25, 2013. My doctor had been telling me for almost 3 weeks that he could be born any day and that my body couldn't be more ready...just waiting on a signal from the baby. Well, the signal didn't come fast enough and with a giant blizzard headed our way, I was induced. It was so much easier than natural labor with Molly. However, when it came time to push it was the worst pain I could ever have imagined. Pretty sure 8 lbs 6 oz is the biggest baby I can have, and that's what he was. Now our little Wes is 3 months old and over 15 lbs. Here's a timeline in photos to show you how he has grown.

Birthday!

1 Month Old

Sporting his Bobcat "muscle man" shirt- 2 Months Old

3 Months Old - already almost time for a hair cut!


Sunday, January 13, 2013

Snow Day Fun

When it snows a couple inches or more around here, pretty much everything is closed. I used to think this was ridiculous, but they are just not prepared to take care of the roads and nobody has snow tires, etc. so it really is for the best. Plus, who doesn't love a snow day! Molly & Luke had some daddy-daughter bonding time and made a snowman and went sledding. It was really cute & they had so much fun. Molly has been talking about it ever since!

Fun in the snow.

The snow wasn't quite right to make a snowman but they did their best.

Christmas Pictures

Christmas already seems like it was so long ago--and really, I guess it was. We have just all been trying to get the house ready for baby brother and fighting the flu so bad that I haven't gotten a chance to update the blog. So here is a summary of our Christmas through pictures.

Baking cookies for Santa.
Opening presents at Matt & Emily's house on Christmas day.

Molly waiting for Santa on Christmas Eve after we returned from church.
Molly got to open 1 present on Christmas Eve and she chose one from Grandma Leila. A "baby jaguar" (like in Go Diego Go) vest and a singing reindeer. Way to go Grandma!
We all had a nice Christmas and although we didn't have to go through the stress of traveling, it didn't quite feel like the holidays without it. I guess that has become a part of our lives and probably always will be, as I sure was missing everyone back in Montana.

Our New Niece

 The first of the new Miller babies has arrived! My sister-in-law, Emily, and I were both about to "pop" at Christmas. However, she was about 2 months closer than I am.

Me at just over 29 weeks & Emily at about 37 weeks.
Our new niece, Sage Lorena, was born last weekend & we went to visit them in the hospital. She's just perfect! Congrats to Matt & Emily and we can't wait to watch Sage grow up.


Remembering how small a newborn is.
Not even a day old yet!

We hope that they have all made it through the first week okay-it only gets easier from here! (for the most part anyhow)