Kim and Miles Come to Visit + September Pictures

We had visitors! Kim and Miles came to visit! We had such a good time with them.




One night we went out to dinner. Zack drove us there.



Just kidding. He tried though! (He is so funny. One day he went and got Tim's keys. I asked him what he was doing and he very matter-of-factly stated that he was going for a drive. He went out and got in Tim's truck and put the keys in the ignition. I'm so glad I saw what was going on! We really have to keep our eye on that kid.)

We took some pictures at the new restaurant The Full Moon.



Nice shot of Peter spitting up--it happens dozens of times a day




The weather was wonderful while they were here. Zack relished having extra hands to swing him. He and Kim had a great time talking while he swang :)



One day he found a teeny tiny inchworm, and put in on his swing tray to swing with him.



It was pretty cute.



Miles picked up some fun things to work on with the kids.



Some sort of moon sand or something...



...and a model jeep. They all really enjoyed that for several days.





We also went to Adventure Land and had all kinds of fun. I've only got one picture of that. :( We were there for hours, and the kids and Miles won thousands of tickets.



Afterwards we headed to soccer. Zack fell asleep in the truck. He was tuckered out. (In a side note: he has pretty much given up naps. And I have given up trying to make him take them. When he has a nap he is up forever after we put him to bed. It's just not worth it. He's only 2. Pretty sad for Mommy...)



Zack loves to help with Peter, and likes to push his stroller at soccer.





We did lots of hanging out with Kim and Miles...plus shopping, eating out, 2 Adventure Land trips, and a trip to Chuck e Cheese. We were so sad when Kim and Miles had to leave. Zack still randomly comments that he misses them.

With them gone, we had a very quiet week. Trevor was in Washington D.C. with Grandma and Grandpa, so it's just the 6 of us at home :) We took a walk--just the Littles and me. Zack rode his little yellow bike and Peter slept in the stroller. Zack made it almost all the way home, and then a big hill wore him out and he rode the stroller the rest of the way.



One night we went to eat sushi with the family. Zack LOVED the soup--a surprise to everyone--



and Peter enjoyed lots of snuggles.



We've done some laying around...



...and cuddling.



And we finally made it to soccer as a family unit--all riding in the same car.



We are slowly trying to re-establish a normal life with our newest member :)

Peter is a very sweet baby. He has started smiling and even cooing just a little bit. He loves to "exercise"--like holding his head up and standing on his little legs. He loves noise, and sleeps great in the play room with the kids all playing around him. He seemed to like the arcade when we went with Kim and Miles, and slept peacefully the whole time even though it was super loud.

We have finally started back to church. Tim had been going with all the kids while Peter and I stayed home, which was great, but I'm ready to be back in the land of the living.

Zack is still doing great with his potty training. He's actually pretty funny in his commentary. He shouts through the house every time he poops. He likes to do it standing up--yes, standing up on the toilet. It's a bit of a splash hazard, but at least it's in the toilet and not his pants. Hopefully he makes the switch to standard pooping posture soon :)

The big kids are doing well. Trevor is back home and had a great time in D.C. I can't help but feel sorry for him as he readjusts to real life.

The boys are a great help with Zack and Peter. William especially has gotten comfortable picking Peter up and carrying him around. They also are slowing growing in their ability to help out around the house, which is super important these days. Tonight (Sunday) Samuel and William made our smoothies! Samuel even let Zack "help" which is extra challenging. The smoothies were delicious!

Soccer season is almost over. Trevor and Samuel have one more game each. The weather has finally cooled down enough that the last games should be a real treat to go see.

This brings me up to date through the end of September. :) Finding time to blog has been tricky! But Zack's birthday is coming up in a week, so hopefully I can get that blogged in a timely manner. We'll see...

The First Month

Peter is already more than a month old!! I have so many pictures I want to share!!

The day Peter was born was action packed at the Tolleson house. Grandmother came and took everyone out to pick pears at her cousins' house.



They brought home bags and bags of pears!! That sure kept Mom and Dad busy. They made pear butter and poached pears--both more than once. And we still have pears in the fridge!



Poor Zack wanted to pose for a picture, but you can barely see him :)



Later that day Mom remembered that I had suggested they make a birthday cake for Peter's birthday. So they got to work on that, too.





The first few days at home included lots of hanging out with Zack (and Peter). We ate in bed together...



...looked at pictures together...



...fed Peter together...





...played video games, watched videos, took naps...







...and marveled over this new person in our house. Thankfully Zack thinks Peter is great. He often remarks on Peter's "little ears."



We recently made our first pilgrimage to Wal-Mart. They both did great :)



Other people have had their turns with sweet Peter.

Grandpa:





Grandma:



Daddy (who has been a huge help at night, by the way):



and Trevor:



My biggest challenges so far have been keeping Peter happy, and keeping Zack busy. I've tried a sling a few times with Peter, and sometimes he likes that.



The family has all pitched in to keep Zack busy.













Real life is trying to resume, whether I"m ready, or not. I took all the kids to the doctor one day. Peter needed a check up, Trevor and William were overdue for shots, Zack wanted to see a shot, and Samuel didn't want to be left out. It was absolutely crazy. The kids did good in the waiting room, but began to unravel a bit in the exam room as Peter kept fussing and crying and screaming. We were all worn out by the time we got home.



My super helpful and usually pessimistic (he calls it realistic) husband inconveniently turned optimistic last month and decided we should potty train Zack. Ha. Ha. You can laugh if you want. Here's all the kids enjoying the process together. Zack is sitting on a potty watching Super Friends :)



It took a month, but I think Zack is officially potty trained...he goes poop on the potty on his own without being told. It was a long month, but we made it. Thanks, Honey, for getting us over that hurdle.

I'll close with all my random pictures of Peter from the month.