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.

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.

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!

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.

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!

And He's Off

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