Tis the season

So what have we been up to? Well, it is getting closer to Christmas and Aisling has been hitting it hard She is just obsessed with anything to do with the holiday. She gets giddy anytime she sees a jingle bell or wreath. And she keeps singing jingle bells and Rudolph over and over. It is really cute how excited she is. She loves Santa, but still refuses to sit on his lap, so I guess we will have to wait another year for that picture. As for Xander, he has had a few more firsts. He went on his first swing, sat in his first restaurant high chair and biggest of all, he said his first word. Da-Da. Although, it wasn't necessarily directed at Daddy, but it was still the word. He is getting close to crawling, but would rather stand up and jump. He is a regular jumperoo right now. He also will take steps while you are holding onto his hands and he can stand up while holding/leaning on something.

Anyway, here is another round of lists.

Things about Aisling:
1. Favorite song: Jingle bells, deck the halls, Rudolph.
2. Favorite TV show: Still watching lots of Little Einsteins and Mickey Mouse clubhouse. Of course lots of the Christmas classics have been added to the rotation.
3. Favorite toys: Anything Xander is playing with... And her stuffed animals, books and doll (She has named him baby Naffew and pretends to be Becca by the way.)
4. Favorite Food: Hashbrowns, chocolate chip pancakes, cashews, yogurt (she pretends to be eating whatever baby food Xander is having just in yogurt form)
5. Favorite comfort item: purple blanket. (I bought a new one, because she would never let me wash hers and now she doesn't want the old one. She calls it scratchy purple blanket)
6. Still isn't potty trained: She is half way there, just can't get her to go #2.... Ugh
7. Still Bippy free.
8. Still nap free.... double ugh!!

Things about Xander:
1. Favorite toy: Any bottle, cup or beverage container. Remotes, or anything electronic. His baby ball, giraffe, phone.
2. Favorite thing to do: Jump up and down while Mommy holds him. Watch Aisling.
3. Favorite Food: Sweet Potato
4. Sleeps from 7pm-6:30 waking at 4am for a snack.
5. Still giggles when you kiss his cheeks and tummy
6. Doesn't like getting into PJ's at night.
7. Is getting hard to change diaper (I forgot how hard it was to change a mobile baby)
8. Screams the loudest highest pitch scream when angry.
9. Still no teeth, but the drooling is extreme. We go through about 4 bibs a day.

Things I love about my kids:
Aisling
1. Her silly voices
2. The way she sings all the time.
3. The way she sits or lays on the couch and looks like a teenager
4. How she likes to be wrapped in purple blanket and carried upstairs by daddy.
5. How she never stops moving, even when she is pretending to be asleep
6. How she laughs at Xander and is always hugging him
7. How she likes to help me cook
8. Her little OCD things, like always putting her ice in her cup, touching the blue dot on the vacuum seal bags, or saying perfect after she puts on chapstick.
9. How she still mispronounces words. Igaboo - Igloo, Elegator - Elevator, Naffew - Matthew, Talk about - Talk like.
10. How she mixes up out, off, over and on.

Xander:
1. The way he bounces every time his feet hit the ground.
2. How cuddly he is.
3. The way he plays with his foot when he is nursing or being mellow
4. How he laughs with a big squeal gasp
5. Watching him laugh at Aisling
6. How when he is tired he sucks his thumb and tries to burrow or folds in half.
7. Those big dimples and how he bats his eyes and gets shy.
8. His little excited voice. sounds like a cough, coo and pirate arghhh, all at the same time.
9. How he studies and observes everything
10. How he makes a yummy sound when he eats sweet potato and then launches at the spoon
11. How he sucks his lips and looks like he has an invisible bippy.

Xander on his first swing ride with Grandma at the park.

Aisling helping Grandma make gingerbread cookies. She loves to help cook.

Aisling driving Daddy on a ride at Knott's. It was the first ride she ever sat on her own.

Here are some pictures we took at the beginning of October. I finally got around to loading up the disk.