Well, crap, its been a while.....

Hi everyone. I know its been forever since we posted. Here's why: two toddlers, plus demanding jobs; a house on the market and football season. And, we're just tired at the end of the day. So, here's what we've been up to. Jackson had his 9 month old well-child visit yesterday. He is 26 pounds (Doc O'Brien said..."Buddy, you're the size of a toddler" to which Jackson flashed her a big toothy grin), not yet crawling although sooooo close, has 4 teeth breaking through gums and 2 more on their way, is eating foods now and dancing to music. He is so fun and sweet, gives lots of hugs and still lights up when Nora Kate comes near him.
Here is proof of our first french braid. It doesn't last even half the day, but it looks so sweet when its in. Eleanor is transitioning to big girl panties and bed this weekend, but mostly her updates include highly emotional outbursts multiple times a day, loves her school (reference last statement for how much), and singing. She repeats everything we say and sings the last word of every line for songs she knows. We have also overheard her singing the ABCs on her own which we are trying to get on video.
Here they are together, the two of them. Its been enormously fun watching Nora try to help Jack as he falls over or gets frustrated from not being able to crawl. We have seen some more jealousy now that he wants toys or "gets" to have a bottle. Whenever we feed him, Eleanor now says "Me eat too" so, we're trying to talk about feelings more and remind her she is a big girl.
And this picture shows that we bought Halloween costumes. Jack will be the giraffe you see above, but Nora had to wear it around an hour or so first. She loves wearing his clothes, so we let it go and leave that battle for more important stuff like not touching stoves or running into the street. We'll leave Eleanor's costume a mystery for now.....roar!
Did I mention the jealousy over bottles? Well, she may have been "delivering" this one to her brother, but she was down to a diaper, with shoes on and put all these headbands into her hair. It makes us laugh, this girls fashion sense. Just look at that face! Hard to believe she is ever ornery.

In other news, we're selling our house and if you'd like to buy it, leave us a comment. I won't post our address here, but its a great 109 year old house with original wood door frames & pocket doors, 3 bedrooms, plus a bonus 3rd floor room, full basement, galley kitchen with a large fenced backyard and hot tub. Its going for a steal given the economy (almost 1400 square feet for $209,900) and is in a great neighborhood. We actually had a great open house and 5 private showings in the 15 days we've been on the market.

Finally, a few congrats need mentioning. Our friends the Frymyers just added baby Jacob to their family. He joins big sis Maddie and is darling, just like her. My grad school chum Rachel and her husband Lee just welcomed their first baby, Olivia Ann a month ago; and my cousin Kevin and his wife Abby just had a son, although I have yet to see what they named him. Finally, a very special note about my cousin Matthew. This child (for I still see him as a four year old, despite being an adult and about to enter law school) just announced his engagement to Annie. I am certain they will enjoy a long happy marriage and just hope we get to be a part of their lives as they start out.

More updates coming soon!