Stitched with Love

My grandmother (Granny) has been making Christmas stockings for her grandchildren and great grandchildren since my brother was born. This Christmas we were lucky enough to get stockings made for Max and Tessa. They are just so beautiful. I could not have been more excited. Granny really had to work hard this past year because she also had my niece Lily's stocking to make. Luckily, my Aunt Molly was able to help work on Tessa's stocking. It makes me so happy to see their stockings next to mine, all made with such love. Thank you SO MUCH Granny and Aunt Molly!!!! Above, you'll see Granny in front of all the stockings she has made for her grandchildren and great grandchildren.

My Gift to Duke

We have plenty to celebrate this year with the babies, so we just got small gifts for each other. This hat was my gift to Duke (and to my brother). As you can see, it was a hit. Our Christmas dinner was deep fried prime rib (which was awesome) and that gave the guys a chance to have some fun outside. If you are interested, the hat is from Beard Head and they have several different hats to choose from.

It was a merry merry Christmas!

We had such a wonderful Christmas this year! It started with an early Christmas celebration with Duke's family
(forgot my camera that day) and then we headed to Pittsburgh last Tuesday. I think I will do a couple posts, but I'll start with highlights of Max and Tessa. They did great in the car (minus a major diaper mishap on the way home). They also loved watching their cousins Grayson and Lily play. Grandma Sassy and Papa gave them lots of love!! We started a tradition this year of having all the kids wear matching Christmas pjs that my mom picks out. How cute are they? How long do you think we can get them to wear matching pjs??

We had such a wonderful time in Pittsburgh. My parents went out of their way to make our visit special and we can't thank them enough. It was good to be home for a few days. Lots of fun family time and good food! We can't wait until next year!

Then and Now

Here's a pic of the babies when they were first born and one of them at four months!

Thanksgiving and Four Months!

Max and Tessa are four months old today! I can't believe it and I also can't believe how much they have changed in just a few short months. They are doing something new everyday and it is so much fun to watch them grow. I've been meaning to put pictures up for a while, so here are a few from Thanksgiving and random pics over the last few weeks. Here's an album with more:

Cranley Scholastics, Inc.

After talking about this for a very long time, we recently decided that I would leave my job at the ABA to work with Duke on our business, Cranley Scholastics, Inc. Duke has been working hard as a one man team for a few years and we really wanted to try and take the business to the next level. I have been so proud of Duke for being dedicated to making this business successful and staying positive every day (even the super stressful days). Here is a pic of us in front of the new office storefront. Cranley Scholastics, Inc. is open for business!

P.S. We are still arguing over who is "the boss"

Great Weekend

My parents were here over the weekend and we had a great time. It was a beautiful fall weekend. We did some shopping, made some good dinners and had breakfast at Feed one morning. We also tried out the hats my mom got the babies...too cute! We can't wait to see them again at Christmas.

Three Months

Max and Tessa were three months yesterday and we can't believe how fast these few months have gone by. It has been challenging, tiring and amazing all at the same time. We have really enjoyed the last few weeks as M&T have started to smile all the time and Max is even giving us a few giggles here and there. I can't believe how much they have changed already!

Next up, we have a visit from Grandma Sassy and Papa and M&T can't wait to see them on Friday.

Welcome Elizabeth "Elsie" Gibson

Our good friends Matt and Laura welcomed their new baby girl, Elsie into the world on November 2nd. Elsie was 8 lbs and 20 1/2 inches. All are going well. Here's a pic of Elsie and her big sis Anna. Congrats Gibsons!

Big Kid Seats and Thumb Sucking

The weekend in Chicago was fabulous. Sunny and 70 degrees both Saturday and Sunday. We took the opportunity to get the kids out for some walks before it gets cold again. And, we thought we would try out the regular stroller seats instead of their car seats. I wasn't sure if they were big enough yet, but it worked great. You can reline the seats, so they were fine. They both snoozed on the walks. We headed out to breakfast both mornings. We hit Moonshine on Division Saturday and this great place Feed at Chicago and California on Sunday. Feed was excellent. It's small, but good. If you go soon, try the pumpkin french toast...awesome!

In other big news, Max is officially sucking his thumb! We tried to get a good pic. I am sure the time will come soon enough when we want him to stop sucking his thumb, but for now it is his way of self-soothing. This is good for us because in the middle of the night when he drops his pacifier, he sticks his hand in his mouth.

Tessa tends to suck on her whole hand more than her thumb, but both are finding and studying their hands. It's pretty neat to watch. That's excitement for us these days!!

Hope you all had nice weekends.

Happy Belated Halloween

This is a late Halloween post. I would have posted earlier, but the babies only lasted five minutes in their costumes before they got overheated. We didn't get any pics of them on Halloween. We did get this shot when we tried the costumes on them in Pittsburgh. The leaves in the background are courtesy of Grandma Sassy's photo staging. We went to the Hood's Halloween party and had a blast! Can't wait for next year's party!!

Also, I just saw this Today Show video on The Soup and could not stop laughing. Thought I would share. It's hilarious!! Be sure to watch the whole video.

Happy Halloween!

Hoo Hoo Hoo Hoosiers!

My best friend Jorie came to help with the babies last week for a couple of days and we had the best time (We met at Indiana University). Jorie was a huge help with feedings and she changed lots of diapers! Friday morning, I asked Auntie Jorie to dress Max and Tessa and as you can see above, she wanted them to show their IU pride. I think they look pretty comfortable in their IU gear.

Max and Tessa also loved meeting Jorie's girl's Emme and Delanie. The girls did an excellent job with the babies holding them and feeding them. It was so fun to see the girls so excited about the babies.

Jorie and I also got a well deserved night out on the town while Duke watched the babies. I have to say, that wine tasted pretty good after not drinking for close to a year. I probably had one too many!

Thanks for coming to help Jorie...it was a blast!

Say Cheese!

My parents gave us an early Christmas present when they scheduled a photo shoot for Max and Tessa and my brother's kids, Grayson and Lily. The kids did great at the photo shoot and here are some of the really good ones and some of the really funny ones.

Yinz go dantan n watch the stillers play

I didn't go dantan n watch the stillers play, but I have had a wonderful time in the burgh for the last week. We came to Pittsburgh last thursday for a baby shower my mom and sister-in-law hosted for us. The shower was fabulous. All the decorations were beautiful, the food was excellent and I was able to visit with so many friends and family that I don't get to see that often.

Duke headed back to Chicago and I stayed with the babies for the week. It has been great. My mom and dad are spoiling the babies and best of all, I am getting lots of much needed help and sleep! The babies have been great. They have been smiling a lot. They are starting to get a little more fussy, but grandma sassy knows just how to calm them down.

As much as I have enjoyed my time in Pittsburgh, I really can't wait to get home tomorrow to see Duke. I know he misses the babies a lot and he won't believe how much they have changed in just a week.

Here are some pics from the trip.

Pittsburgh Trip - Fall 09