Best Friends

Ethan thinks Chloe's bed is now his. He loves to pretend he is a dog and lay down on it. He doesn't care if Chloe has already occupied it, he just lays on top of her. He also likes to give her great big hugs which you can see from the picture. They are best buddies right now which is fun and a little bit of a break for me. He will throw the ball to her endlessly. She will catch it and then go to the top of the stairs and drop it back down to him. He will also pretend to give her a toy and then run away and make her chase him. The worst trick he has is when he puts one of his toys right in her mouth and then he comes running to me to "tattle" that she took his toy. He is so sneaky. Luckily she is one mellow dog.

How Times Change

Who would have thought back when we were in highschool that this would be the scene 15 years later. Here are Ethan and the girls...Anna, Olivia, Mia, and Lucy at our annual holiday party.

Ethan's First Haircut

I took Ethan to get his first real haircut on Tuesday. I have cut it before but I don't think that counts. Good thing I saved a lock of his hair from when I cut it though so I didn't have to buy it back in the "first haircut package" yesterday. He was really good, except that they played the Wiggles for him at his station. It probably isn't easy to cut a toddler's hair while he is chair dancing.

Ethan flying in his hair-plane : )


Sitting up nice and tall watching the Wiggles

All done! They were even able to use the clippers!

Aren't I handsome?

Let It Snow

Ethan was excited to try out his new sled in all the snow we came back to from Florida. We bundled him all up in his new snowsuit and boots. He really liked his first time playing in the snow. The only other time he has really touched it was on New Year's Eve when he sat by the front door greeting people so he could eat the snow off the bottom of their shoes. At least this time it was a lot more sanitary.

Joe decided it was better to push him rathar than pull him after the first pull resulted in Ethan tipping over backward and landing with just his feet sticking out of the snow.

Chloe playing football with her friends Malley and Sadie.

Susan and Joey's Wedding

As I wrote below, the reason we went to Florida was for Susan and Joey's wedding. It was absolutely beautiful and we all had such a great time. The sunset was one of the best I have ever seen and the timing of the ceremony was just perfect. Of course Susan looked gorgeous as you can see from the pictures.

Fun in the Sun

We went to Florida for Susan and Joey's wedding on January 3rd. They got married on Marco Island so we were able to stay at my parents' house. They came down with us to watch the kids during the wedding which was great. Nick also stayed with us for the weekend, so hopefully we didn't scare him away from ever wanting kids. It was Sophie's first plan ride and she did really well. The early flight was rough, but both her and Ethan adjusted pretty well.

Here is Ethan relaxing by the pool. The weather was perfect the entire week so were were able to swim and go to the beach a lot.



He LOVED the beach and everything to do with the water. He could have played in the sand all day if we let him. The water was really cold but he didn't care at all. We put him in a floaty and he just bounced in the waves.



This picture had to be taken so many times because the tide was coming in and the water kept washing away the words. I was determined to get it, and finally did. Then I realized that I had been writing "Naples 2008" the entire time and had to start all over since it is now 2009.



Ethan loved to be thrown in the pool so Joe could catch him. Unfortunately, Joe had to leave on Monday so that only lasted a couple of days. Ethan tried to teach Uncle Kevin to not be afraid of the water so he could play, but that didn't work. He didn't feel comfortabole catching Ethan with his goggles and noseplugs on.



Kevin was very good at entertaining Ethan in the backseat of the minivan that we rented though.



Ethan's first ice cream cone.



On the last day of vacation, we went back to the beach to try to get a couple pictures of Ethan and Sophia together. We weren't too successful because Ethan just wanted to throw sand and that isn't so fun for a four month old who can't defend herself. Here is the best we could do...a picture Photoshopped to look like they were actually next to each other.



It is hard to believe that later on this day were were walking in a foot of snow : (







Grandpa and Sophia

Sophia's poolside photoshoot

A New Year's Kiss

Happy 2009! A bunch of us hung out at our house on New Year's Eve. We ate a lot, played Wii and listened to Kevin play "Grandpa's Banjo" all night long. Chloe had her boyfriend over and Ethan received his first new year's kiss. It was a lot of fun except for the headache I received from too much champagne.

Chloe and Wrigley


Kevin with Grandpa's banjo


Anna and Ethan


Pucker up!