The Past Week

For Thanksgiving, we started out at Kyle's Uncle Bob and Aunt Bobbi's house.

Here is Tessa with her Great-Grandma

Bobbi with the delicious looking bird

(Everything looked sooo tasty, but we took off before the meal so the girls could nap in the car on the way to my brother's house.)

My brother and Kay hosted Thanksgiving for my side of the family, and they did an amazing job, too.

Here is Tessa trying mashed potatoes for the first time on her first Thanksgiving.

And here is Grandpa Mike holding Tessa for the FIRST time!

(It only took him 9 months to feel comfortable!!)

Pretty Mia

Look at this awesome kids' table!

(Scott wanted to be part of the kids' table, too.)

On Saturday, I took the girls out to my roommate Erin's house in Indiana for a visit with some of the Purdue girls. We went to a really nice Christmas display where they got to sit with Santa. Kyri was waving to him as soon as she saw him and walked up the stairs by herself to go talk to him while I was still paying! Tess smiled at him when she saw him, too, but then wouldn't smile for the picture. Our scanner isn't working right now, so I don't have the actual Santa picture on here, but here are some others that I took while we were there.

Tessa didn't want me to put her down for this photo shoot...

Big Sis trying to comfort her

Back at Erin's house...

Kyri and her buddy, Kelly

Tessa and her buddy, Erin

Amy and her new cutie, Lucy

How sweet is she???

Look at that dimple!

Love her hair!!!

Group shots...

Tess and Lucy

Rylan, Tessa, and Kyri

All three were looking at the camera!

(Tess couldn't believe Erin didn't have any money in her purse.)

Sisters

Kyri LOVED Erin's pink tree.

Tess liked them all.

These are some old pics from last weekend. I went to a fashion show and Kyle was out of town, so Sandy and Steve came over to watch the girls. It sounds like they had a blast!

I did Kyri's hair in two french braids for the first time, so I had to get a pic.

She looked so grown-up!!

9 month Stats, Nieces' Baptisms, Lunch with Good Friends

We finally got to the doctor tonight for Tessa's 9 month check up (at 9 1/2 months).

Weight: 22 pounds - 93rd percentile

Height: 29 inches - 95th percentile

Head: 18 inches - 90th percentile

I know I say it after every appointment, but I just cannot believe the difference between Tessa's stats and Kyri's stats. Can't believe we have a kid on the high end of the charts this time!

Tess did great at her appointment. The doctor even called her a showoff. Right on cue, as the doctor would ask if she was doing something yet, she would start doing it. So funny. She clapped for him, waved at him and said "I" while she waved (she does this all the time...I really think she's trying to say hi). He asked if she was babbling yet, and she broke into a whole story for him, smiling and shaking her arms up and down the whole time! Of course she cried briefly when she got her shots, but as soon as I picked her up she gave the nurse the biggest smile. The nurse burst out laughing. Tess had the whole office cracking up. She really loves being the life of the party!

Some other things Tessa has been up to...

* She is starting to put her arms up in the air when we say, "So big"

* She can cruise all over the furniture

* Her favorite thing to do is pull up on the furniture and steal things she's not supposed to have

* She can walk with the assistance of her push toys, but has yet to let go and try it on her own

* She is getting closer to being able to stand without holding on but only lasts for about a second before she chickens out and switches to a crawl.

* While she's still an excellent sleeper through the night, she is starting to put up a short fight before she falls asleep. It's like she is just not ready to go to bed yet and needs one last hug. So if I pick her up and snuggle her for a minute, she will then go right back to bed. While it's frustrating that I have to go back in there, I can't say I mind getting some snuggle time with my non-snuggly baby. She's normally on the move and doesn't have time for that kind of thing!

We are so blessed to have this smiley baby in our lives!

Last weekend was Gwyneth and Lillian's Baptism

Owen and Sweet Lillian

Gwyneth and her Godsister, Nancy

God Bless Gwyneth and Lillian!

Burritt Family Shot

Visit from the Riebe Girls...and Jake : )

Kyri loved having Emily, Madison, and Jillian over for lunch a few weekends ago. They all played so well together and had a blast.

This started out as a tea party but changed to a pizza party once lunch was delivered!

Even among all of the toys, these two preferred to do some reading.

This isn't the best shot, but I had to put it in because it was the only one I got of my two girls in their EIU gear. Since Both Beth and Jake are Eastern Alums, we thought they would appreciate Kyri and Tessa's EIU wear.

Fun Times in the Basement

Halloween Happenings

I was out of town last weekend (for Divya's baby shower), so Kyle and his parents took the girls "Business Trick-or-Treating" in Villa Park. It looks like they had a lot of fun, and Kyri came back with quite a bit of candy!

Since it was chilly, Tessa wore Kyri's old monkey costume to keep warm.

Kyle said everyone kept calling her a boy.

I guess that little monkey needed a bow! : )

Grandma B. and Kyri

Cutie pie!

Later that weekend, Kyri and Kyle created the perfect Jack-o-lantern.

She really loved the finished product!

I came home late Sunday night, just in time for Halloween on Monday. My mom brought the girls to my school for our class party in the afternoon.

Here's Minnie Mouse

Kyri instantly loved all the big kids at the party, and my students were great about including her in all of the games.

These girls doted on Kyri the whole afternoon.

Tessa and Auntie Chrissy

My sweet girls

Some more Minnie shots

Later that night, Aubry met us at Grandma Nancy's and Grandpa Mike's to go Trick-or-Treating.

T-Rex on a mission for candy

The t-rex and lady bug waiting patiently

Auntie Chrissy joined us

Aubs was the leader to each door, while Kyri slowly brought up the rear.

Every time someone would open a door, Tessa squealed at the top of her lungs.

She was saying trick-or-treat, too!

Minnie tried so hard to be part of the fun, but passed out for the last two houses. : )

The girls were so excited to knock on Grandpa's door to get candy, too!

Sampling some of the treats!

Mmmm...chocolate!

We found out that we should have let Kyri sample some chocolate before trick-or-treating because it gave her tons of energy. Maybe that would have sped things up as we walked from house to house! We'll remember that for next year!