Polar Express

Last weekend we were lucky enough to be able to take MK on the Polar Express. To learn more about the event click on the title of this post. My brother-in-law is one of the engineers who runs the narrow gauge trains in Portland. We had a blast riding the train, drinking hot chocolate, eating cookies and getting into the holiday spirit. They read you the book, sing Christmas carols, and take you on a train ride. At the end of the ride the kids get to see Santa Claus. We were in line first and MK took the elf's hand and sat right by Santa with no tears. He got the first gift of Christmas - the silver bell from Santa's reindeer.

Both Matthew and I want to send all of you warm wishes for a peaceful and relaxing Christmas. We are grateful for all of the wonderful people in our lives and appreciate the love and support we receive throughout the year. Enjoy the pictures, thanks for watching and we hope that in our travels over the holidays we can make time for each other.

Merry Christmas, Happy Hanuka, Peaceful Winter Solstice and Happy New Year!

Thankful!

It is a bright Saturday morning and I am posting after having gone for a crisp "winter" walk with the family. MK is sleeping so this is the perfect time to get pictures posted. We had a wonderful Thanksgiving with friends and family. Matthew and I have so much to be thankful for. The love of a wonderful family, healthy lives, and a beautiful little boy that keeps us on our toes. Huck is pretty special too. We are both looking forward to seeing more family at Christmas time including Matthew's grandmother. In the pictures you will see my sister Mary, her husband Hans and their son Peter. Clearly there was a contest as to who could pick up who. Kathleen and Michael (Hans's sister and broth-in-law) came too - we are glad to share this holiday with them three years running. Kimberly and Matthew are the other couple and friends who are renting a house for a year in Maine while Matthew clerks for a judge in Portland. They are up from NYC and we are glad they were able to come over. You will also see pictures of MK is a bear costume. Who doesn't dress up for Thanksgiving? Hope all of you had a wonderful Thanksgiving and were able to reflect on what you are thankful for. If you would like to see the album or download any of the pictures click on the slide show title and it will take you to the album.

Greens

Thought it would be fun to see pictures of MK eating his greens! Brussel sprouts are his favorite. I harvested them two weeks ago and froze them for the winter. I make about 7 for him and he eats them all and then makes the sign for "more". Too funny. The video is another walking one. I just love how he walks with his hands up.

WALKING

It has been a busy week for our MK. Last Saturday he stood up on his own and walk solo over to Mommy. Since then he is walking more and more and having a blast. We had the thrilling election day. I was up late and again up early the next morning with MK. We had good friends up from PA for the weekend and enjoyed catching up with them. MK met Maddie - a sophisticated young lass. We are looking forward to a busy holiday. Enjoy the video. Sorry it is sideways.

Walking?

MK is starting to walk - a few steps here and there. Matthew is the driving force behind it. MK laughs and chats when he walks with his daddy. It is very cute. Check out the video for more walking. Our family wishes all of you a wonderful fall. We are anxious for November 4th as I am sure all of us are regardless of who we want to win this election. Matthew works 4 days a week now - Saturdays included. We enjoy our Sundays as our day as a family. Tomorrow we are dressing out our 35 broilers. It will be nice to have that meat in the freezer. Luckily, MK is a great eater. More to come . . .

Apples and Pumpkins!

It is Fall here in Maine and we are starting to put our garden to bed and store food for this winter. We harvested our pumpkins and went apple picking with our little guy. The two large pumpkins are too heavy for me to lift. Matthew was able to life them with ease. MK had a blast climbing all over the big guys. Huck just liked to cuttle with them. MK LOVED riding in the wagon. He was too cute about it. Enjoy the pictures, video and slide show. Click here to see all the pictures. Happy Fall!

Bath time take Two

Here is an updated view of MK in the bathtub. He is enjoying his "Christmas" gift Papa gave him and he loves to have Huck there, too. Huck would love to join MK in the water. So it takes just about all I have to keep this active little guy from standing up in the tub and Huck out of the tub. Clearly it leaves no time to actually clean the tiles. :-)

Rusty and Sara

Last week we spent with friends celebrating Rusty and Sara's wedding. They were married at Camp Weekela in Hartford, Maine. It was a beautiful and fun weekend. Here are some pictures of the great event in slide show form. MK was a star all weekend. He slept like a champ, hung out with Valeska, Erik and Lindsey when mom needed to go to the beauty salon and he eat everything in sight - even a huge meatball. Congratulations to Rusty and Sara!

Dog Days of Summer

It is Labor Day weekend and Daddy went off to Chicago to visit with good friends. MK, Huck and I are hanging around here enjoying the last days of summer before I go back full time to work. The weather could not be more beautiful. Unfortunately I did not have the camera with me when we went swimming in the ocean or when we went to the farmers market, but I did capture some good photos and video of MK and Huck playing - and boy do they love to play. Click here to see all the pictures. Enjoy!

More Family Vacation Fun

Here are captured moments from our time in NC. That is Matthew and his brother Benny in the waves. Enjoy.

Summer Vacation with Family

We had a great time with our families up in Rangeley, Maine and down on Oak Island, North Carolina. MK camped out with Mom and Dad and Huck for the first time. As you can see the bugs liked him. Click here to see all the pictures.


Thanks to NaaNaa we had a kiddie pool to escaped to when the heat of the beach was too much.
MK loved the sand and I mean LOVED it. He eat and eat and eat it. Thanks to both of our families for a great two weeks. Can't wait until next summer!

One Year Old!

It was a great first birthday. Click here to see all the pictures. The whole family went to breakfast at our favorite place in town and then for a walk and when MK got to sit in a fire engine while mom got a burn permit. We then hung around home getting ready for the party, taking care of the yard and enjoying the day. We had friends and family over for a BBQ to celebrate. Mom made a carrot cake and dad fired up the grill to cook burgers and dogs. NaaNaa sent a great yard play set that was enjoyed by all the kids at the party. Mom put together a First Birthday Quiz which Aunt Mary won. She knows MK the best! MK was a trooper but got clingy and tired towards the end. He was not interested in the frosting - too sweet but did have a bite of the cake. I found the recipe off the internet on youtube - click here to get it yourself - it is very worth it! We are so lucky to have such a fun, healthy little boy. Matthew can't believe how much he is growing. He has two more teeth, he is pulling himself up on EVERYTHING and he loves to go go go! Thank you to all who love and support us as we try and do this parenting thing. More summer fun to come. I will post again after our visit from the Callam family and our trip to spend a week in NC with the Douglas family. Much love to you all from Maine.

Fourth of July

We had a great weekend celebrating the fourth. Our good friend Christy and her two girls came to visit for four days and we painted the state red! They arrived Thursday afternoon and we picked strawberries from the garden as a snack. What a treat! On the fourth we made a flag cake, went to LLBean to participate in kid weekend and all the games and fun - face painting, firework painting and more. We then spent the afternoon at Rusty's family camp swimming and having a BBQ. We topped off the night with fireworks back in Freeport. Saturday we went to Pemiquid Point and played on the rocks before heading over to Round Pound for a yummy lobster dinner on the deck. The kids got to play with sea creatures while the adults relaxed with a glass of wine and good company.

We went to the beach the next morning and in the afternoon picked strawberries from a bigger berry patch. Enough to freeze 12 pounds and make freezer jelly for this winter. It was such a treat to spend time with the Endrud's and we are hoping the next time they make the trek, Nik will also be with them! Click here to see all the pictures.

Below is a video of MK crawling through the grass making a break for it. Happy July! Our next post will be of the big one year birthday!

June Fun

We are enjoying the great weather - WARM and loving our growing little boy. He is fully crawling now and cruising. Walking is right around the corner. Now that he can pull himself up to standing it is getting hard for him to sleep. He is always on the go.


We are working hard on our garden. Click here to see updated pictures of the garden and our chicken harvest. Warning - there are some bloody pictures.


We are also enjoying our layers. They have not layed any eggs yet but with new information it looks like we will have eggs at the end of August. This chicken's name is Roxie.


We are also enjoying time with friends. Recently I was a mom of two. MK's friend Caleb and his mom went to Portland with us and I took care of the two boys for an hour while Caleb's mom went to an appointment. It was fun having two boys in the back.


The video below is MK in his crib smiling at Matthew and NOT going to sleep. Too cute.



That is it for now. We are ready for a fun July. Much love from Maine!

Summer Begins!

Michael Kirby, Matthew, Huck and I are having a fun summer with mommy staying at home every day! Dad is around working in the garage and hanging out for lunch and afternoon breaks. We traveled to see our friends Lisa and Erik in Portland and MK took his first swing

and he is taking a swim class so he took his first swim on Monday!


Click here for more pictures of the swim class and click here for pictures of our garden with updated photos. We are enjoying early harvests of strawberries, lettuce and radishes. The chickens will be harvested next Sunday and we have our layers in the garage awaiting their home to be built. They will start to produce eggs in about a month. We are looking forward to the Fourth of July, MK's first birthday, the Callam Family visit to Maine in mid July and then our trip to NC at the end of July to visit with the Douglas family. Matthew is biking a lot and I am enjoying a schedule that allows time for MK, Huck and Matthew.

A Good Laugh

Matthew is out of town until Thursday so MK and I are on our own along with Huckleberry. We are having a blast. Tiring as it is, we had lunch with friends, dinner out and snuck in a few naps here and there. I applaud all single parents who do this on a regular basis! Here is a short video of MK cracking up. He is looking at me shake my head with my hair lose, flying back and forth. MK found this particularly funny. Enjoy.

Eat Local

Visit Eat Maine Foods!

11 months

Happy 11 month Birthday! Click here to see updated photos of MK. Recently his Aunt out in California sent two big boxes of hand-me-down clothes from his older cousin Johnny. They fit perfectly and just in time for summer. We are looking forward to a fun, relaxing summer with mom at home full time and daddy out and about. For those of you asking here is a picture of Matthew's new do.

Morning at the Farm

                                    

              

Michael Kirby and I headed out to the Wolfsneck Farm this morning to meet friends and see farm animals. The two kids loved to see the big animals more from the comfort of our arms then anyway else. Happily, Leah had the right sounds and was able to communicate well with our furry friends. Click on the title "Morning at the Farm" to see all our photos. Happy Sunday!

Fun Pictures

A few fun pictures of MK as he is learning to crawl and eat more fun food. Happy June 1st!

The Big Cut

Last weekend, Matthew, Michael Kirby and I went to a Seadogs game (the local bball team). Before the first pitch, Matthew and I donated our "locks" to an organization that makes wigs for people loosing their hair from cancer treatments. With the recent diagnosis of a close friend, Matthew and I wanted to contribute to the cause. Michael Kirby cheered us on as he did the Seadogs. His first baseball game! Enjoy the pictures and click on the title to read more about the "big cut".

1 point 7 farm

Welcome to "1 point 7" Farm. Here are few pictures of our backyard. Click on the title of this entry and you can see what we are up to. Happy growing.

Almost there

This is a picture from Mother's day. It was hard to take any pictures - MK wanted to play with the camera - and when I say play I really mean chew on it. The video is the developing crawl MK is working on. He loves Huck's toys. They are the primal drive to get his move on. Notice at the very end of the journey - after MK reaches the toy, Huck comes over and takes it away with one quick snatch. MK was not set back, he just turned around and went at it again

10 months old

I am 10 months today and happy as ever. Mom and I had a wonderful Mother's day. Dad says it was all me, but really he was the champ making Mom brunch, hanging out with me so she could read. It was a warm sunny day too. I ordered that for Mom. I also had my first taste of ice cream. We went into town to Cote's and I shared with Mom. YUMMY!!!!!!! I am moving around like a mad man. I am not crawling quite yet but I have the worm down. I guess break dancing is in my future. Huck and I share toys - he takes from me and I scream back until Mom or Dad intervene. Guess that is what it is like to have a sibling or at least that is what Mom tells me.

The Olympic Trials

We had a great day going down to Boston to watch the Women's Olympic Trials on April 20. Our friend Emily Levan qualified and worked hard to be ready for this special event. Click on the title of this post to learn more about her and her daughter Maddie's amazing journey. MK had a great time in the big city. His pal Huck really got all the attention. Both the boys did a great job during the long day (430am wake up to make it to the start by 8am). The weather was amazing and Boston is about two weeks ahead of us with spring so we enjoyed the blooming that seemed to be happening before out eyes.

Sugaring in Hartford

Here are a few pictures from MK's first day sugaring. He did not get a taste of the sweet syrup but his mom sure did. Click on the title to see all the pictures from that day.

Spring break turned out to be a peach here in Maine. We enjoyed the beautiful weather and the company of friends. It has been a long winter. With the passing of our special friend Blueberry, we longed for the changing of the seasons and a rebirth into spring. We spent much of the week getting our garden ready to plant. Not being pregnant allows me to be right there digging in the dirt without getting exhausted. Matthew was able to work three days. MK was brilliant all week. He is happy and healthy.