An Apple a Day...

Don't look now, but it seems as if Libby (22 months) and Kate are heeding the doctor's orders! It's always a treat when we can get the kids to eat really healthy snacks. Too bad Katie's daddy introduced her to Peanut M&Ms the other day...let's just say that she has inherited the McG candy radar.

Such Big'Uns

Katie and Connor (16 months) looked like a couple of pre-schoolers eating their blueberry-n-cheerios snack this afternoon. Don't they look like such big kids now? My, how time flies when you are having fun.

On a side note...GRUMBLE, GRUMBLE... Mike spotted a little bit of warping on our dining room ceiling yesterday. A day later, we have a new toilet and a few hundred dollars less in our pockets. Happy holidays to Mr. Plumber! Mr. President, consider this our first economic stimulus package for the season.

Now That's a Mouthfull!

Thought this was a funny picture of Katie attacking her Mac 'n Cheese tonight at Ruby Tuesdays. As you can surmise from the determined expression, the selection is usually a can't miss with her. Katie thought it was a fantastic end to a fun day of Christmas shopping...

Boo-Boo...Oh-Kaaaay

Ever since we told Katie that her toys could get "boo-boos" by being thrown around, she has become fascinated with the whole "boo-boo" concept. She likes to look for knicks and dings on her toys (and parents) so that she can kiss them and make them "Oh-kaaay" again. In this picture, she must have found a boo-boo on Baby's forehead.

Today, Katie really got to put her boo-boo knowledge to the test. We wanted to brighten the day of a friend who is unfortunately pregnant and bedridden in the hospital. As soon as Katie saw all of the medical equipment, IVs, etc. in the hospital room, her "boo-boo" concept clicked in. Unfortunately, she was a little too shy to give our friend a kiss, but she kept going up to her and saying "Oh-kaaay!" Hopefully, Katie will be right!

Two New Seats, Too Little Time

Katie and Traci went shopping for some big girl stuff today. No more bottles and pacifiers and baby food... Nope, we're onto more important stuff like booster seats and (gulp) toilet-training apparatus. Above, Katie was a little apprehensive of her new booster seat until we put Big Bear in the seat. (Unfortunately, she did not care about crushing Big Bear.) Now, she looooves her "shooshie" (the brand name is Cooshie) and cannot wait to take it on our vacation travels.


And, then there's the toilet.... I cannot believe we are nearing that dreadful process. Here is Katie trying it out for size. Don't worry - she wasn't actually "TRYING" it in the middle of the kitchen. She just liked sitting in another cushy seat. (Too bad the darn thing doesn't fit our toilets well - that might be $15 literally flushed down the drain...) Anyway, we will spare all of you any actual toilet training pictures. This was just a good pretend shot.

Farewell "Kid K"

Here, Katie puts on her best pouty face upon learning the news that the Cubs decided not to resign Kerry Wood. Probably a good business decision, but we will miss "Kid K" none-the-less. Wood took the news about as graciously as anybody could have expected. We wish him well...

Bye-Bye for Now

One day after having her Papa all to herself, it was time for Katie to say goodbye...for now. After morning Mass, she got Papa to read her favorite book one last time. She cannot wait until Thanksgiving when she gets to see Papa, Mah-nee, and the rest of her extended family again.

Here's a shot of Daddy and Katie at our post-Mass pancake brunch. The little one was almost as excited for her restaurant crayons as she was about the food.

Weathering the Storm

Traci and Mike met up with friends Brian and Maureen (both former Navy!) for a long trek up to Baltimore for the Notre Dame vs. Navy football game this afternoon. After a soggy forcast, it turned out to be a perfect day...that is, for a little while. A monsoon caught up with us halfway through the 4th quarter. We left with ND safely up 27-7. Little did we know that ND would have to weather their own storm in the form of a Navy comeback. A tense couple of minutes by the car radio ended in a 27-21 Irish victory. Phew!

Throughout the day, we had fun tailgating with friends Eric and Kristina, Brent and Lisa, Brian, Rob and Kate, and others. Thanks for letting us join in, guys. You had a fantastic location and quite the spread.
Our night concluded with a delicious dinner in Baltimore's "Little Italy" neighborhood. Thanks to the grandparents for letting us ND-Navy alums out for a fun day away from the kids. When else would you see these two looking so happy after 12 hours in each other's company?

PAPA!

Katie is absolutely psyched because her Papa T. is finally here! (Since she is a little shy when she first sees people, we've been telling her about the visit for weeks.) Papa has graciously agreed to come and babysit Little K while her parents attend the ND-Navy game this weekend. He may not know what he is getting himself into... Here she has roped him into one of her favorites activities of late, reading her "Big Word Book" with Big Bear. Mama relishes the fact that somebody else has to read that darn book that she has read with Katie a billion times!

Raining Cats, Dogs, Kangaroos, Lambs...

With the skies just pouring out buckets of rain, we stayed inside for the day. Katie decided that it would be a stuffed animal kind-of-day, so we brought her big basket downstairs. We had lambs reading on the couch, octopi eating from the high chair, kitties helping in the kitchen. You name it and we had the stuffed animal for the job!

Color My World

The concept of color dominates Katie's world view right now. She definitely recognizes most colors and can name quite a few. In fact, as we read through books now, she no longer names objects. Instead, she focuses on naming the color of all objects on the page. And, of course, she loves to color with her crayons and colored pencils. She often reaches into her arts and crafts cabinet before anything else after coming downstairs. In this picture, she is admiring her handiwork and probably saying "bur-bo" (purple) and "boo" (blue).

Jeffersonian Jaunt

We took advantage of another Government holiday and headed down to Charlottesville on Saturday for a three day weekend. We had a blast! Katie was incredibly well behaved and loved running all around the campus of the University of Virginia. Mom and Dad had fun being back in the atmosphere of a true college town. It didn't hurt that we had two beautiful fall days to explore UVA, the Historic Downtown of C-Ville, and Monticello. Be sure and click on the photo album to the right to see more details...

Newer IS Better!

Not too long ago, when Grammy visited, we wrote about one of Katie's favorite playgrounds being razed. We hadn't been back since, but we decided to investigate our old stomping grounds since the weather got to the low 70s today. Well, take a look at the new digs!! Katie happily reports that the new playground has multiple slides, climbing walls, and bucket swings. The only downside was the increase in older kids enjoying the more challenging playset. I'm sure we'll be back again soon.

Dairy Queen

What's a girl to do when it gets cold and gloomy outside? Why, eat ice cream, of course! Katie very enthusiastically enjoyed her first ice cream treat in a while. Here is a picture right after she commandeered her Mama's cone. Yes, by the end of our trip, she finished off the cone and her entire cup of vanilla ice cream.

Vote! Vote! Vote!

Dear Mommies, Daddies, and other Big People:

I just wanted to remind you that today is a very, very, very important day! Not only do I turn 22 months old (what, everything's not about me?), but it is National Election Day in the USA. Mama and Daddy have been telling me how important it is to vote, so I think you should get out and vote, too!! Mama clearly has her favorite guy, but Daddy's a little more wishy-washy. If it were up to me, I would vote for things like "More pacifiers for all!" or "National Ice Cream Day!" I guess I have 16 more years until I get my voice heard. So, since I cannot vote today, all of you big people out there should Vote, Vote, Vote!!!

Love,
Katie (Currently Independent)

Har-De-Har-Har

Alright, you no-good-USC-Dodgers-Angels-anythingSoCal-lovin-good-for-nothing... You know who we are talking to... We got your package, and we didn't like it one bit! As a matter of fact, Katie was so upset by this Dodgers hat that this was the best picture we could get of it. She threw a tantrum about two seconds after this was taken. Any faithful Cubs fan would do the same.

Oh, and we certainly didn't shed any tears over that USC loss earlier this year. Let's not talk about Thanksgiving weekend, though.

Scary Good Fun

As mentioned earlier, Katie attended her 2nd annual Moms' Group Halloween Party at her friend Lyla's house (pictured left, in red ladybug outfit). This year was a little more fun for Katie because she wasn't the only one in the room who couldn't crawl or walk. She loved showing off her super-duds and digging into the goldfish, cookies, and other snacks.


Last year, she cowered away from the party crowds. This year she was in the thick of things.


The party really got kicking when the ball pit came out! Yep, there she is with Patrick, her football-watching buddy from yesterday. Check out his cool German lederhosen costume.

The Happiest Fans in the Room

We had a fun afternoon entertaining our friends Patrick (2.5 years), Kim and Jim with food, drinks, and football. Although they are both UVA grads (see Patrick's Cavalier football jersey above), Kim and Jim are also pretty big Notre Dame fans...so they got to share in the misery of defeat. Katie and Patrick, on the other hand, were the happiest fans in the room. When not munching on yummy food, they could be found chasing each other, screaming at the top of their lungs, dancing, and even hugging and kissing. Looks like they already have the behavior found at an average college football tailgate party down pat....