Boston Children's Museum...

The boys on the bank of the actual spot where the  Boston Tea Party took place!

William on the bridge over the spot...

In the museum 3 story climber...I hate these things, if the kid gets freaked out, there is no good way to get them down again! Baltimore has one too, except it has many, many entrances and exits so it makes this one look good!

Will loves all these golf ball based mechanical doohickeys..

Charlie enjoyed getting to know that elusive "baby in the mirror"...

These are real musical chairs: When you sit in one a different kind of music is heard overhead!

Every kid loves to play with real tools! I wonder how long it takes for the kids to saw one of these down....

Will was so happy to have some safety goggles!

We found, what may be the world's best bathroom for little boys...It's a large display of various animals poo!  Wow!  Will was thrilled!

They have cranes to move things around on, which Will spent a lot of time doing...very carefully!

They had 2  Bobcats to drive!

Charlie got to test out his driving skills in a jeep...

We spent more time in the golf ball room, and Charlie practiced his pulling up..

Will loved making the electricity to run lights and a motorized contraption above his head...You can see how proud he is of himself!

The always thrilling rope climber...

We made 2 trips into the baby room for Charlie...he loved it, and I loved the calm in this area...the rest of the place is a little nuts!

Hi Mom!

More standing!

We had a great day and 2 tired boys after a full day at the Children's Museum!  We were worn out, but it was time well spent!  Boston has one of the best Children's Museums I have ever seen, and it is also one of the less expensive!

Mommy turns 33...

Will found many, many treasures on the beach...

Charlie tasted many, many treasures on the beach...

After the beach we went up to the hills to a large fort dating from the War of 1812, it was long abandoned and was in pretty awful shape, but still lots of fun to climb around on....

And the view was INCREDIBLE!

We topped it all off with a trip to the Lobster Pound for some lobster rolls and a fun show for William...

Since we are here in Boston over my birthday week I decided that I would take full advantage of the 63 degree temp and hit the beach for my big day.  We had a fun time at the beach and aside from the stress of losing my cell phone while there, I found it very relaxing to be at the shore.  I hope I find it as relaxing when I drive there again tomorrow or the next day to get the cell phone!  My birthday was topped off with 2 lobster meals, and a great cone from Ben and Jerry's, and William singing me "Happy Birthday!"

Charlie's First Thanksgiving...

Charlie had a nice first Thanksgiving.  He enjoyed sweet potatoes and apples, while the rest of us chowed down on all the other goodies.  Cousin Alicia came to visit and really seemed thrilled by Charlie.  While I was at work Friday, they went into DC and saw the Christmas train display at the National Botanical Garden.  After seeing some of the pictures, I can't wait to go see it for myself! 

This years themes were "Animal Homes" and "Presidential Homes"...

Climb Every Mountain...

Yesterday I came in to check on Charlie from the kitchen and I found him like this! Yikes!  He was so proud of himself though and I think he would have tried to climb the whole thing if we would have let him.  We are still trying to figure out a baby gate that will work in this spot, the round newel post makes it complicated...

7 Down, 989* To Go....

*the 989 months estimate is based upon the current male life expectancy of 83 years.

7 months have passed since Charlie came into our lives.  They have gone so fast!  He is changing these days at lightening speed! In the last 3 weeks he has perfected crawling, and seems to be practicing for some baby Olympic speed crawling trials, he has pulled up to a stand, and is now determined to be in no other position if he can help it.  Two nights ago he was crying like crazy in his room after I put him to bed, so I rushed in and he was standing at the end of his crib, holding on for dear life, because, as much as he has mastered standing, he hasn't figured out how to get  back down.  Poor guy.  He is eating the same repertoire he had last month, sweet potatoes, butternut squash, pears, and apples.  He has reacted to carrots, so I am holding off on adding anymore until we see the GI specialist tomorrow.  We are still struggling to get him to eat more during the day so he doesn't need to eat during the night.  He is still a terrible sleeper, waking at least twice every night.  Jason and I are still suffering from sleep deprivation, and honestly we aren't sure what to do at this point.  I know it has to change soon though, because he is slowly driving us insane.  Aside from that small issue, we are so happy we have him.  He is so cute, still loves to cuddle, and now follows us around the house like a puppy.  He loves to go outside, loves the swings, and adores going down the slide.  I am looking forward to having another first Christmas, and seeing him tear all the paper (and eat some), and we are heading up to Boston this week for another conference, so he will get to see all the fun stuff it has to offer.  I am dreading the long drive up there, but it will be worth it!  Happy 7 months Charlie!

Charlie On the Move...

He has risen, he has risen indeed...

Charlie is on the move and now seems to be working on vertical movement as well as horizontal!  This afternoon he crawled over to the toy bin, grabbed the side and hoisted himself right up.  He wasn't too sure what to do once he got up there, so I helped him back safely to the floor.  William and I were so proud of him!

The Darkest Hour is Just Before Dawn...

Last night Charlie suddenly developed his first high fever.  He was very fussy all day and wouldn't let me put him down.  William and Charlie have a bad cold, but Charlie woke up last night about 10pm with a raging 103.6 temp.  I hate fevers, but when they reach that level, they scare me terribly.  After all, my next door neighbor is deaf only because of a high fever in infancy.  I know what can happen, and I always fear a febrile seizure.  I have been with 2 children during them and I don't ever want to do it again.  I kept Charlie in bed with us, gave him cold pedialyte and ibuprofen, and prayed.  He slept next to me all night with his hot, sweaty little body pressed up against me.  Even his feet were burning up.  He slept hard and only woke once, even though I was taking his temp often during the night.  I barely slept, but much to my relief, the fever seems to be going down on it's own now.  He is still super crabby, but I will gladly deal with that compared to the fear I was living through last night!

A Walk in the Woods...

Nothing is as fun as holding a nice fat worm...

Will was pointing up at a bat house in the trees...

Ready to jump!

We are still enjoying every moment of fall.  I have been taking the boys out as much as I can.  There aren't many pictures of Charlie on these trips since he spends the time strapped to my back.  Will loves doing all the same things I did as a kid, turning over large rocks and logs to see what is moving around down there.  It is fascinating!  I am so glad there are so many nice trails close to us.  I know it helps us all to get out of the house, and all too soon we will be spending way too much time trapped inside these four walls!

First Friends...

Lincoln is catching up fast!  Look how chubby he is!  Love it.

Both babies were giggling and smiling at eachother.  I have a feeling these two will be buddies for a long time!
Will and Maya have always had a love/hate relationship, but these two are so much more layed back and not nearly as feisty! Thank goodness...

Preschool Picture...

I scanned this off of the paper proof, so it's a little grainy, but you can see Will's first school picture turned out great!

Catch Up...

I made 18 containers of Pears and 18 containers of Sweet Potatoes in less than 2 hours!

Charlie was thrilled...

Daddy took the boys to the park over the weekend...Will met a dog there that was less than friendly and has been telling everyone the dog bit him.  It didn't.

Love. The. Hair.

A face full of concentration while waiting to go down the slide...