A walk out in the dunes

This past Saturday was so beautiful, so we decided to take a walk by Saugatuak Dunes. It was so pretty with all of the leaves covering the ground and we enjoyed a nice walk to the beach. It was a little windy at the beach, but we did get some nice pictures. I am sure this is one of the last times we will be out there before the snow flies!

Fall updates

Ella and Callie at a "work Halloween party"

Carissa and Ella doing some fall camping at the Christian conference-grounds

Ella and Nathan loved the outdoors. It sure is a lot more work to bundle them up for the cold

Ella and daddy playing in the leaves...Ella is not to sure about it!

Nathan tried to stay awake till mommy got home from work, but he just couldn't do it

Nathan and Ella with their "gords"

What a cutie!

"Mom..are these going to be our dinner later?"

Close up of Nathan

Ella is really starting to ham it up for the camera

Their new play spot..the dishwasher!

It has been a little bit since I blogged. Just haven't had a lot of free time at night when I actually have access to the computer and Internet! Let's see what we have for updates. Of course the biggest news, is that my brother Dan and Laura had a precious baby girl on October 23. They named her Avery Mae. She was bigger than all of Laura's other babies, weighing in at 8lbs and 3 oz and 21 inches long. She has a huge amount of hair. Thank goodness for Internet, so we could see her on-line. Sounds like things are going well. I think the other kids are going back to Edgerton with Laura's parents, so that Laura can recuperate and adjust without 3 other children around. It was my 32nd birthday last week and Todd and Kathy and girls graciously took our babies so that we could go out to eat. It was so nice. We went to a restaurant downtown and enjoyed a quiet, uninterrupted meal with no babies hanging on our legs or trying to take away our food. We definitely overate, but it was all worth it. The babies currently have little colds. Both have runny noses and croupy coughs. Luckily they are able to sleep at night, but they are a little clingy during the day (which makes for a long day). They are not walking, but love to walk with our help and walk around furniture or anything that will support them. Ella loves to wave and clap and she now knows how to do, "so big!" Nathan does things when he wants to..but not consistently!!! I cannot believe they are 10 months old already. That one year old mark is getting pretty close. Last week, I also went to stay the day with Carissa and Rachel, who were camping at the Christian Campgrounds near Grand Haven. It was a beautiful day and we spent a lot of the day outside. The babies had fun, but they needed to be watched closely or they would try to eat acorns, rocks, bark, etc. The rest of the weekend was rainy, so I am glad that we had a nice day when we were there. Tim continues to be busy at his work which is a blessing here in Michigan. We are looking forward to going to Minnesota for Thanksgiving. We cannot wait to see all our family, especially little Avery.

Nathan and Ella and the puppies

Uncle Scott and Aunt Barb got these puppies for them when they were born and they all of the sudden are loving them. It so cute to watch them give the puppies kisses.

Summer fun in October

Nathan getting more daring at the beach

Nathan got a little daring at the beach. From the post below, you see him nicely playing in the sand, but he decided he wanted more. We took off his soggy diaper and decided against a swimmer and let Nathan go all natural. He was such a dare-devil. He would crawl right into the water and many times we had to go fetch him from the water's edge. It was pretty cute. We got a lot of smiles. Here is video of him and also of me grabbing him from going all the way into the water.

Ella and Nathan at the beach in October

It was such a beautiful weekend and so we spent some time outside and at the beach. We took our jogger stroller to Saugatauk Dunes and hiked to the beach. We let the babies play in the sand. They just loved to play in the sand. We did have to watch where their hands went because often times, we would see them going up to their mouths! I know this weather will not last, but it was sure fun to be at the beach and have 80 degree weather in October!

More Nathan and Ella lov'in on each other

Is it October already?

Ella and Nathan make it hard for me to get pictures of them together and actually looking at me at the same time. So for awhile, I think you will see mostly action shots and individual pictures! Not a lot new here. Hoping for some nice weather this coming weekend. We have got a couple outside projects to get done and it will also be nice to just be outside with the babies. They get so excited when they go outside. I am thinking it is going to be a long winter or we are going to have to really bundle them up in order to get some fresh air!

9 month doctor appointment update

Ella and Nathan had their 9 month check up this Tuesday. We were very curious to know how big they were getting. Nathan weighed in at 18lbs and 9 oz. and was 27 inches tall. Ella is a little bigger at 20lbs and 8 oz. and was 28 inches tall. I was hoping they would not have to get any shots, but they did end up getting their influenza shots. They did good though. Otherwise the doctor was very happy with their health and growth.

Nathan and his naughty tricks

Here is Nathan and his new trick of climbing on the couch and furniture. Of course he is allowed to do this by his parents who like to get a good laugh. He has no fear and will go head first off the couch if we are anywhere near to catch him.

Look at our "feminine"Ella!

Mommy cut off our heads, but we are trying to wave, "Hello!"
Ella at the beach for a wedding
Nathan chilling with Dad... both are waiting for dinner to be served!
Family picture by Oval Beach in Saugatuck.
Tim's friend got married on the beach. It was a beautiful day and gorgeous wedding. It was so fun to be outside and be right by the water.

Nathan looking tired in the swing
Enjoying some time outside on the sheet
Nathan thinks this toy should be on his birthday and Christmas list

Ella likes the outdoors
I am exhausted!

Full of you know what!
Look at my hair after my bath!

Ella is in love with "froggy" which is technically Nathan's, but who cares right Ella!

Wow...the babies are 9 months old. They still continue to do new tricks and keep both their parents busy. They now can wave and clap their hands. They have not tried to take any steps on their own, but love to walk by furniture or walk with us holding their hands. Nathan continues to be our serious, curious, and quiet one when he is is public. Ella will give out more smiles and noises when by other people. Nathan is not too quiet when he is at home. Then both are grunting and making "momma and dadda" sounds all day. It is fun to see their differences. Nathan is our better sleeper at night. He lays down great and will sleep till 7-7:30am. Ella will sometimes cry before bed, will get up occasionally during the night, and likes to be an earlier riser. During the day though, Ella is my better napper and Nathan sometimes gets up after a half our or so and thinks he is done with his nap. Oh the joy of two.

Nathan and Ella playing after church

We are trying to come up with the best time to go to church. We can either go at 9am or 11am. Both are right in between their morning naps. We would prefer the earlier service because it is nice to get home on time. Nathan and Ella both slept in this am till about 7:30 (of course Ella got up at 6:30am and loved to sleep by us) and so we went to the early service. The nursery at Mars Hill Church has lots of babies, so you need to be on time if you want to get your child in. We actually made it on time and enjoyed a nice sermon, but of course 10 minutes before church ended, we see our number show up on the screen which means, "we have tried our best to comfort your child, but it has failed, so come and get him or her!!!!!!" I assumed it was Nathan, who has a harder time being without his mommy. Sure enough it was. A tired little crying boy. He had all smiles when he saw me. Both fell asleep on the way home and then got their second wind and this video shows it. Oh well....now it is 2pm and they are both back to sleep (hopefully for awhile).

Happy Birthday Grandma Beckering

Happy Birthday Grandma Beckering. Ella and Nathan wish they could give you hugs and kisses in person, but for now, they send all their love to you over the Internet. We are so blessed to have such wonderful parents and grandparents. We just wish some of them lived closer to us!We pray God blesses Grandma Beckering with many more Birthdays to come. We love you!!!

Fun on the couch!

Here is Nathan and Ella enjoying some fun on the couch. Their usual game is to try and touch or pull on the lamp shade. You can also see how good Ella is at pointing to things. They turn 9 months tomorrow. Wow...time is flying now.