Flin-STONE!!!!

Well, after a LONG period of time the basement is finally close to done. I think (or at least I hope) that the fireplace is the focal point of the basement. (If it's not, I don't want to hear it! :) ). Here is a pic:

It might be hard to tell, but that is slate tiles with built in (drywall) shelves on the sides. The shelves will eventually hold books and logs in the bottom (larger) shelves.

Now we just need to actually light a fire (# of fires last year - 0) and see if the fireplace still works!


Well enough of that boring stuff - bring on pics of the kids!

Our little models:



In honour of the new Rocky movie coming out:

Adriaaaannnnnnnn!

(And yes, she's mobile! The big secret is that she can already stand - pics of that to come!)

Thanks for tuning in, dudes and dudettes!

P.S. Welcome back to the web Dad and Wendy!!!

Holy teeth Batman!

#3 is here. It's the one beside the top incisor (?) on her right hand side. The top right incisor is just below the gums too. My guess is we'll see that one tomorrow!

This explains why she was up SCREAMING at 1:30 am last night...

And they just keep comin'...

* edited to add: Did I mention that she's also pulling up to standing on ANYTHING 6 inches off the ground or higher? Sheesh.

Ella was kinda grumpy yesterday, and I was commenting on that fact to my mom on the phone last night. She asked if another tooth had come in, and I said, "Hmmm. I don't know..." Sure enough, her other bottom front tooth is here!

We'll try getting a picture in a few days, when they're both a bit more out of her gums.

Introducing the newest member of the family...

Ella's first tooth! I could post random Ella pictures, like Ruby's mommy did (as if there's a tooth in those pictures K!). But I won't, and can't because I left the camera at my parents' house on Wednesday.

Potty update: Ben has cooled on this front. We tried again a couple nights later, but we've gotten lazy. I would prefer to wait until Gord is off for Christmas holidays so that we can double-team him.

I've gotta get crackin' on housework and laundry...but I don't want to. Anybody wanna buy me a maid for Christmas?

What a weekend!

Ella started crawling yesterday! She has been pulling up on all fours for a couple of weeks now, and early last week, she started lifting up one hand and moving it forward. Then on Thursday, she would do both hands (no, not at the same time!), and finally on Friday, she'd do a third. Yesterday, she really started to take off! She now goes about halfway down the living room. Wow, look out world!

And then today, Ben went pee in the potty! This was then followed by two accidents, but it's definitely a step in the right direction! Whoo-hoo! We made a big huge deal about it, and he thought that it was pretty cool. We'll see how things progress this week. We thought that we'd tackle this potty-training thing at Christmas time when we'd both here, but maybe it'll start now...

Other than that, I've got nothing to report. Can't wait for Christmas...

I have a new addiction...

Starbucks Peppermint Mocha.

Yum.

My friend Marla nailed it - it's like Christmas in a cup.

It's kinda funny when...

Ella spits up a bit in her mouth, and then makes this hilarious sour face when she tastes it.

And you know what? Mommy makes the same face when it ends up in her mouth.

'Nuff said.

What was he thinking? (And some more stuff...)

This is what we found when we went in to check on Ben tonight. If you have any ideas, let us know! We're at a loss...




















Otherwise, things are just fine here in the Sheppard house! Ella is a total joy - she is pretty much always happy, unless she is really tired or really hungry. Ben is a crazy, silly little boy and keeps me hopping!

Mmmmmmm...Robeez...














She'll be crawlin' any day now!














Just a funny picture from last weekend...note Grandma Joan's mouth too!














Here's Ben watching "Dumbo"...














Ella was just as engrossed as her big brother!

Happy Halloween!

We trudged through the snow here tonight to go trick or treating - well, Ben walked through the snow while we walked on the sidewalks! The whole family went, as you can see:















Ben practicing his "RRRRRROOOOOAAAAAAARRRRRRR!"














Close-up shots of both kiddos:




























After we hit the houses on our block, Ella fell asleep in Daddy's arms. Daddy and his little ladybug went home while Ben and I continued down the next street. After two houses, Ben said that he was cold and that he wanted to go home. Oh, and I had to carry him through the snow. Lucky me. On the way home, I said that maybe we could have some hot chocolate to warm us up when we got home. Ben said no, that he wanted to share some water with me. But then he added, "Maybe candy would warm us up!" Whatta guy!

Sittin' up...

Here's Ella, sitting up. She is also starting to pull up on all fours and rock back and forth. Crawling, here we come!

(2 days less than) 6 month appointment!

Ella's appointment for her next set of shots was this morning. She did well again, but cried just a little with the Prevnar vaccine, just like last time. That one stings a bit, her pediatrician informs us. Anyhoo, he said she's the picture of health!

Weight: 18 lbs. 8.3 oz.
Height: 28.25 in.

I asked about her percentile rankings - 90-95th percentile for weight and 97th percentile for height. WOW! That just confirms that she IS a big girl!

Now we've got to thing about getting her a big girl's carseat, seeing as how she's 2 inches over the max height and almost to the weight limit (20 pounds) of the infant carrier. Darnit, the carrier is so convenient...I'm going to miss it!

Happy Birthday Grandma Joan!

Today (Sunday) was Grandma Joan's fuh-mumble-mumble birthday! We headed out to Morden to celebrate with her. The other night on the phone, I asked her if she wanted a Jeanne's cake, which she said no to, but then she went on and on and on about how she loves cream puffs. So I, being the wonderful daughter I was raised to be, made her cream puffs. They turned out quite yummy, if I do say so myself! Mom insisted on having whipped cream to dollup on top, and here are some pictures of Ben enjoying the messy beaters:














Double-fisting it:




















HAPPY BIRTHDAY GRANDMA!

Odds 'n ends

Every week, I take Ben to a Moms & Twos class. The kids get to do a craft every week, and this has become one of Ben's favorite parts of the class. Here he is showing off the Jack-O-Lantern he made:














Is that not the scariest pumpkin you've ever seen?! ;)

What else is new? Ella has started eating cereal and she's doing pretty well with it. I've been procrastinating on this front, as it is just so much easier to nurse her! But since her 6-month pediatrician's appointment is next week, I wanted to be able to tell him if I had any concerns. I don't, as you can see!














Here she is, with a messy face, blowing raspberries:














And for dessert, she's eyeing up the toy kitty!














Last week, we had to leave Ben's gymnasitcs class early because SOMEONE decided to push another kid out of the way so that HE could move the big step. I told Gord that I feel like Ben's the bully in his gymnastics class and our Moms & Twos class, and anywhere else we go. I'm not sure if it's the "terrible twos" rearing its ugly head, or if it's the result of being at home with only Mommy to play with all day every day, or what. I'm starting to see some improvement, so that makes me feel a bit better. I'm happy to report that class was much better this week, and he shared and took turns like a good little boy.

That's it...I'm signing off!

And the award for Worst Mommy of 2006 goes to...

MOI!

Ben crapped his pants in Old Navy today, so when we got back to the car, I put him in the front seat and Ella in her seat. I was rummaging around in the diaper bag and getting a change area ready, and Ben was horsing around in the driver's seat. I changed him on the passenger seat, tidied up, picked him up and closed the door. I went to open his door to get him into his car seat, and...it was LOCKED. Ben had hit the driver's door lock, which locks all the doors, when he was playing around in the driver's seat. I had heard a loud click, but thought that he had kicked the middle console tray with his foot.

As soon as I realized what had happened, my stomach felt like it was coming up! EVERYTHING was inside the running car - Ella, my purse, the cell phone... So I accosted some young guy in the parking lot and begged to use his cell phone. He, sensing that I was about to lose it, obliged. I called Gord's school and told the secretary, "I need to speak to Gord ______. This is his wife, and it's an EMERGENCY!" When he came on, I told him that Ella was locked in the running car in the Old Navy parking lot, and he said, "I'll be right there." The LONGEST 20 minutes of my life passed by. Ella was screaming her head off - and to boot, her hat had wriggled down her forehead and was covering her eyes - I'm sure that didn't make it any better! She cried herself to sleep shortly before Gord arrived. He got out of the car, gave me a hug, and said, "I have to ask...HOW did this happen?"

So at 1:10 I got into the car. We quickly grabbed some drive-thru and I had to boot it to my dentist appointment, which was scheduled for 1:30. Needless to say, I did not make it on time...

Can I go to bed and hide for the rest of the weekend?

p.s. The real kicker is...this happened to my mom long, long ago. I was accidentally locked in the car in the grocery store parking lot, and she had to call my dad to come let her in. I've always given her a hard time about this (jokingly, of course). What goes around, comes around. But, wow, how about that deja vu?

Tights and Cups!

Well, I finally faced the fact that I have a little girl and put her in...tights!















Yesterday, the 4th Potter Cup was held in Brandon. We drove out just for the day - and it was a beautiful day too! The weather was perfect (for the first time) - while the men played golf, the women sat out on the deck at Aunt Simone and Uncle Rick's while the kids played in the yard.








































Ella and a new friend:




















This year, Gord was awarded the Cup - a real honor as he is the first non-Potter to win it.














Gord and Dad in the shade:














Ben and Jackson playing tetherball:














Last but not least, it would not be a Potter get-together unless there was food on someone's face, so Aunt Simone started a Cool-Whip-smearing frenzy. She got Chris (who got her back), and Chris then brought Aunt Nancy into it. I also ended up with a Cool-Whip mask. Sheesh!

Pukey.

So Ben came down the hallway at 6 this morning and puked all over the carpet at our door. I rushed him to the bathroom and had him lean over the toilet. Of course, he was pretty much done by then. It was mostly the water he drank at 5.

He's thrown up a few more times this morning, but has now kept down some diluted apple juice and a few digestive cookies. Poor little gaffer. The last time, he looked at me and said, "Mommy?" I knew what was coming. I quickly carried him to the toilet and we made it just in time - I think he was starting to swallow it back (sorry if that's too much information!).

He had a very slight temperature during the wee hours of Sunday morning. I didn't really think anything of it 'cause it was gone a few hours later. I'm sure it's just a bug of some sort, although I don't want to tell Ben he has a stomach bug - who knows what he'd think!

Sorry it's been so long...

Wow, we've been kinda busy! Between Ben's fall activities and the home projects we've been working on, suddenly it's almost October!

Where can I start...

The kids and I recently had a visit with my Grandma Lil (a.k.a. GG). I think that Ben entertained her, making our trip to see her worthwhile. She was very impressed with Ella too!



























Ben said that he was going to the moon, and that this was his "face helmet" (space helmet).














Random cute car seat shot of Ella smiling:














Ben and I made cookies, and I even let him use the mixer (under my watchful eye!).














Side by side:














They love each other so much...














But Ella loves her toes too!














We took some pictures at Gymkyds this week so that you can all see how much fun Ben has!

Here he is on the trampoline - by far, his favorite thing! It's still the first thing he goes for!



























This is the whole setup (except for the trampolines, which are behind me):














Ben on a balance beam:














He also loves to hang and swing on the rings:




















Ella trying on Ben's new hardhat and her new Bumbo at the same time!














A boy and his trains...














Ella in cute hats...isn't she sweet?




























(This is the controversial Hanna Andersson pilot cap I had to buy in Minneapolis.)

GymKyds!

Today was Ben's first day at his gymnastics class! Boy, am I glad we signed him up for this. We got there a little bit early so he was very eager to get out there by the time they called us in (he could see the class before his jumping on the trampoline and walking on the balance beams). They do this warm up at the beginning of class, running around in a circle, shaking some maraccas, etc. Can you guess what Ben did? He ran around all over the balance beams, mats, and anything else there was to climb on. Thank goodness that Peggy (the instructor) gave us the "this is supposed to be fun; don't stress" talk at the beginning of class!

All in all, he did very well and wore off lots of energy. If only it was more often than once a week!

BTW, Ella came too, with Daddy. She nodded off halfway through the class. Guess it wasn't that exciting for her!

Okay, okay...

I've been getting some flack about posting such a silly picture of Ben-Ben, so I'll post a more "normal" one. But honestly, he's adorable in both!

Brother and sister

Today, Ella was wearing an outfit that Ben used to wear a lot when he was a wee one. I thought I'd do a comparison of brother and sister:

Ben
















Ella