The Kenworthys

Miscellaneous...

2010-06-21T19:27:00.004-05:00

I wish I was a great writer like a couple of my friends... every blog post they write seems so eloquent and so well thought out.

Alas, I'm a numbers gal.

So, I'm just adding a post with my random notes about what my kids have been doing lately to crack me up...

LUKE:

The other night, we were talking about getting a pizza for dinner. I said, "Pizza Hut or Papa John's?" and he replied by saying "papa's in the house". I think he's seen a few of the commercials.
There's a pesky fly in our house right now. It was on my chair tonight and he said we should try to kill it with the "shoo-fly bugger".
At the grocery store the other night, Luke's eyes got big and he excitedly asked for some cookies that he saw... I asked what kind... he said, "the chocolate on top and chocolate on bottom with vanilla in the middle cookies". Thankfully, Nabisco figured out a shorter name - Oreos. I told Luke what they were really called, and each time he asked for one after that, he asked for "Wareos."
When he was younger, he used to call the movie theater the "R" movies. (Not because of the movies we took him too, but because our theater is called "Rave" and has a giant "R" on the side of the building. ) He doesn't call it the "R" movies anymore, but says we should go to the "Movie ahveater".

MARISSA:

Everyone's name is eye-yah. At first, we heard it mostly when she was talking to Luke and we thought it was her way to say "brother". But now, we notice that anyone is "eye-yah" except for Mommy, Daddy, Grandma & Papa.
Her word for blanket is "ah-bet". No matter who you are or how often you're around her, you'll hear this word for sure.
I may have mentioned this before - but just in case - Marissa won't say the word please. She says the p sound instead... this started because her babysitter was trying to get her to switch from signing please to saying it and was emphasizing the p sound.
This girl knows no strangers. The other night, I took the kids down to Scott's work to meet him for dinner. She waved at everyone she met and gave a hearty "Bye" as we left... she even blew kisses at one of the workers!
She still prefers sucking on her bottom lip to a pacifier. That girl has not used a pacifier for a day in her life!

Of course, there are a thousand other things I should be writing down, but that's all I can think of for now... since this blog takes the place of a baby book (I know - it's terrible!), I want to be sure and put as much as I can on here!

Changing Cups

2010-06-03T18:26:00.002-05:00

It's silly when you think about it... a trip to the bank usually involves us driving by 15 other banks on the way there. In fact, when we go the "back way" to our bank, there's an intersection where there is literally a bank on each corner.

Luke knew we were going to the bank, and as we sat at that corner, he asked "Mommy, is that the bank where you will change cups?"

Change cups? I admit I was slow on the uptake, but he quickly explained how you pull up to the cup and put your money in and then push the button to change cups.

I love the way he sees the world.

Yard Work

2010-05-29T19:52:00.002-05:00

More of my husband's handiwork... We had a pretty steep area by the side of the house that would not grow grass. Scott decided to build a 2 level flower bed... The top level has shrubs and the bottom layer has flowers. It's a nice little touch to the backyard. And we don't have to look at the bare dirt anymore!

I am certainly not the gardeners that my mom & my aunts are... unfortunately, that gene did not get passed on! But I do manage to get my lillies to come back each year. These lillies were first started at my duplex (2 houses ago). When I moved to my first house, I took 3 bulbs and planted them at the side of the garage. They multiplied enough that I split them a couple of times and moved them to various spots. When we moved to this house, of course I had to bring a few. I think I brought 3 (maybe 4) to this house. This is our 3rd summer here and you can see how they've multiplied! I LOVE these flowers - they're so pretty!

Career Day

2010-05-25T20:10:00.000-05:00

In 10+ years of life in the accounting world, one thing I've decided is that my kids will grow up to do something they love. I don't LOVE accounting. I'm good at it, but I certainly don't love it. I want my kids to grow up to do what they LOVE.

I thought these conversations were way off in the future... but lo and behold, the other night, Luke announced that he knew what he wanted to be when he grew up.

Me: What's that Luke? What do you want to be when you grow up?

Luke: A chicken clown.

Me: [nothing at first! What would you have said?] Really? What does a chicken clown do?

Luke: [in a very matter-of-fact tone] They juggle chickens on plates.

Me: Oh, I see. Where did you see this? On one of your cartoons? On a movie?

Luke: No, Mommy. It's just what I want to do.

Let's just hope there are more career conversations to come...

Love these people!

2010-05-24T20:03:00.000-05:00

Mother's Day

2010-05-10T19:16:00.001-05:00

I had another great mother's day... my kids made special flowers out of tissue paper complete with a card (thanks, Jen!) and my husband gave me an iTunes card so I can download my Glee music.

We were at my mom & dad's for the weekend. My brother was also in town. The weather was crazy windy and a little cold on Saturday, but that didn't stop the kids from getting out on their tractor. Sunday was nicer, so of course that meant more time out on the tractor!

Luke loves his Uncle Wade!

thanks to Scott for taking the picture!

sweetest kids in the world!

Extracising

2010-05-07T19:08:00.001-05:00

Luke loves to "extracise". That's how he says it. He not only loves to play with the treadmill (see Invention post), but he loves to run and walk on it. He knows how it works and he knows how fast he can go.

I had to post some video of him extracising... and please forgive my laughter in the background. It still cracks me up.

Inventions

2010-05-02T18:30:00.000-05:00

Luke has a new favorite thing to do in the playroom...

He will say "Come see my new invention".

This is code for turn on the treadmill and make a giant mess.

I do love the creativity of it... it started with the play food bucket. He would take out the play food (say, an apple) and put it near the top of the treadmill belt. Then, he'd turn on the treadmill and the apple would make its way down the "assembly" belt. Soon, the food bucket was empty, thanks to the help of his assistant, Marissa, who would hand him something each time an item fell off the belt.

Every toy in that playroom has been on the assembly line... big toys, little toys, you name it.

Swingset

2010-04-21T18:34:00.005-05:00

Luke & Marissa now have something to do outside in this wonderful April weather! Thanks, Grandma K!

Much unlike Rome, this swingset WAS built in a day! Thanks to some Saturday help from our good friend, Brian, it was assembled and ready to play on by Sunday afternoon! It has a rock wall for climbing, a ladder, and a slide. You can also see the glider swing (which is VERY high and looks like an accident waiting to happen if you ask me!) and 2 swings. Believe it or not, we tried to be proactive by purchasing the toddler swing, but lo and behold, Marissa would rather swing on the regular swing! Of course she would!

Luke has developed quite the imagination, so this set includes some pretty fancy extras, like an "attic" where he stores his "engine", a food shop where you can order anything from a hot dog to crunchy bugs, a lair for Batman and his entire entourage, and various other things.

We've already logged quite a few hours on the swingset, so we're looking forward to a fun summer outside!!

No, I didn't quit!

2010-04-12T18:53:00.003-05:00

No, I didn't quit the blog! I've been busy... LOL.

I haven't posted since Christmas which means there's no way to catch up on everything... in summary, we had a nice holiday with Scott's sisters and brother and their families; we played in the snow several times since we had so much this winter, and the winter highlight was probably our trip to Disney World with Grandma & Grandpa Ellis!

The other thing I realize is that it means I haven't posted for almost 4 months of Luke & Marissa's little lives! They have changed so much in the past few WEEKS, let alone months! I'm so grateful that my friend / babysitter Jennifer writes down the things they do each week! She's kept a better record of my kids than I have! Thanks, Jen!

About Luke...

rides his bike (with training wheels) any time he has a chance
knows alot of shapes, including parallelograms (which I love to hear him say that word!)
can almost write his name! The "L" and the "U" are good... "K" needs some help, and the "E" looks like a comb because he puts so many lines on it.
enjoys hitting golf balls off the tee in the back yard
plays "Lego Batman" on the x-box and knows all the little tricks
buckles himself in the carseat
gets dressed by himself in the morning
potty-trained! (still use a pull-up at night)

About Marissa...

has lots of words, including mommy, daddy, bye, puppy, mine, baby, up, brother, all done, and various other words that only WE know.
she eats like every meal is her last! vegetables, fruit, meat, junk - you name it, she'll eat it!
she's tough! scrapes and bruises all over the place
personality plus! And she certainly makes it known when she doesn't get her way.
she has lots of teeth - 10 I think - and she has been an easy teether just like her brother. So glad these kids know how to sleep!

Scott is back to working 2nd shift, so it's just me & the kids in the evenings. As tax season wraps up, I know that I have been short on patience and haven't enjoyed my time with them like I should. Tonight, as I tried to get supper on the table, Marissa had a death grip on my leg and Luke was trying to tell me something in the midst of it all. I found myself about ready to lose my patience! Something inside me whispered "they won't be little for very long" and I literally stopped. I stopped in the middle of the kitchen and just tried to soak it all in. I've been thinking alot about how fast the kids are growing up since I talked with a few parents in the parking lot at church yesterday - they all have older kids and were teasing me about how soon they'd be asking to drive and other things that I must confess make my knees buckle. What a couple of precious gifts I've been given!

I managed to get a couple of really cute shots of Luke & Marissa all decked out for Easter. I love to see them dressed up...

I hope to be more regular with my posts after this week... It will be nice to have some "free time" after the kids go to bed instead of heading back downstairs to my office to work!

Our Christmas pic

2009-12-22T07:07:00.000-06:00

Santa!

2009-12-22T06:50:00.001-06:00

fa la la la la. Right?

So, as you can tell, Marissa wasn't crazy about Santa.... Luke looks a bit dazed, but actually, he's just excited about the candy cane in his hand.

We really planned this trip out.... wait to go on one of Scott's days off so I didn't have to go by myself.... pick a weekday afternoon before school kids are on break so that maybe we can just walk in and go right to Santa without having to wait in line.... our plan worked perfectly! And still these little stinkers didn't want anything to do with Santa! Oh well!

I do have to say that this Santa is (a) the best looking Santa I've ever seen, and (b) so sweet and patient. He even *sounds* like what I think Santa should sound like.

Quote of the day as we left from Luke: "Mommy, Santa just told me he'd be at my house in a few days. I think that's weird."

Another cute outfit

2009-10-02T21:32:00.000-05:00

One of the girls I work with sent this outfit for Marissa.... so sweet.

BIRTHDAY GIRL!!!!!

2009-09-30T21:18:00.000-05:00

Our beautiful little girl is ONE! She is a FAST crawler and is interested in everything Luke is doing. She began crawling up the stairs.... I didn't know she knew how until I happened to see her halfway up the stairs one day! You can kind of see it in her birthday picture (below), but she fell off the 3rd stair just a couple hours after her professional birthday pictures were taken - instand black eye and huge bump on her forehead! She has taken steps between people, as long as someone is standing waiting to catch her. She says Mama and Dada.... but "Dada" is also the word for several other things, including doggie, baby, and Luke. Each one of those "dada"s has a different sound to it - she definitely thinks she's saying different words. She is cracking everyone up with her personality and she's even starting to show a little temper when things don't go quite her way. In fact, two days before her 1st birthday, she threw her first major tantrum while I was *trying* to visit some friends.... she SCREAMED (no, really, I mean SCREAMED) for well over an hour. In that time, I loaded the kids up, drove back to our house, called my doctor because I thought something was wrong..... and after an hour and 15 minutes or so, she just decided she was done. I couldn't believe it. Oh, sweet Marissa.

Here's Marissa in her birthday shirt:

We made cupcakes for the actual birthday

She wasn't too shy about getting into it.

This is another of Marissa's quirks: she likes to rub whatever she might be eating into her hair.... so, clearly the icing made an interesting look.

Other things I keep forgetting....

2009-09-29T12:58:00.003-05:00

And before I forget YET AGAIN.... I have to jot down a few of the funny things these kids do....

Marissa loves to "sing" while she eats. It all started when I fed her for the very first time in the hospital and the lady who came to help me start nursing said "oh, she's going to sing for her supper". Marissa has always made some kind of noise while eating, but now that she sits in her high chair and eats table food, she constantly makes some kind of noise while eating. I can be in another room and I know if someone has given her something to eat because of all the noise.

I asked Luke if he would please let Ashley (our dog) inside..... he said "Well, I most certainly can, Mommy". How very helpful.

Luke also likes to add "actually" to just about every sentence these days. I asked him if he wanted cereal and toast for breakfast and he said "Actually, Mommy, I'd just like Apple Jacks actually." All in a very matter-of-fact tone. Crack me up - how old is he anyway?

Marissa has been giving guppy kisses for awhile, but now she's picking up on what we do when we try to get kisses..... you know how you make the "mmmmm" noise while you lean in for a kiss? Well, Marissa has started pursing her lips together tightly and making that "mmmmm" noise while she leans toward you and pushes her nose on your cheek. Once is just not enough, either..... which is fine by us!

Luke calls Scott's whiskers "crumbs", as in "Daddy has crumbs on his face" or "Daddy is washing his crumbs". The last time Luke got his haircut, he announced that he had crumbs on the back of his head (where the hair was the shortest). This is especially funny when he tells OTHER people about the crumbs. For instance, his Sunday School teacher has a mustache - he told Mr. Doug that his daddy didn't have one of those yet, he only had crumbs. Funny, funny stuff.

And just in case I haven't posted this somewhere else (because this is my favorite Luke-ism) - when eating something particularly tasty, Luke makes either Scott or me say "This is delicious" so that he can say "You can say that again". I love it.

Marissa likes to twirl MY hair as she winds down.... I think simply because she doesn't have enough hair of her OWN to twirl. haha. It's pretty sweet though.....

True Confessions....

2009-09-21T13:51:00.002-05:00

For any of you who check the blog regularly, you know that it's been a LONG time since I posted anything! Work was CRAZY busy.... I can't even find a word to describe how terrible it was. My family didn't see much of me - especially in the last few weeks leading up to 9/15. However, it is OVER and as my wise friend says, it "came to pass.... it didn't come to stay, it came to pass."

So, I'm now catching up on posting pictures and stories from the past month and a half! There have been lots of exciting developments in the Kenworthy house.... Scott started a new job on 8/3 and is enjoying it. The kids are growing and changing right before our eyes!

The "true confessions" part is that you'll see posts with August dates and you'll wonder why you hadn't seen them before. I back date my posts because I use the blog as a kind of "baby book". Back dating helps me remember the exact dates things happened. So, no, you're not on a one-month delay, I'm just cheating!

Enjoy catching up with us!

Toothy grin!!

2009-09-14T14:38:00.000-05:00

Another season of Colts football!

2009-09-13T14:35:00.000-05:00

Here we are on our way to the Colts Season Opener!

Here's Luke sending us off...

Our big boy

2009-09-09T14:34:00.000-05:00

2009-08-30T14:31:00.002-05:00

Again, you'll have to ignore the Purdue shirt. It was a gift, okay? :)

11 month pics - Luke & Marissa

2009-08-30T14:24:00.003-05:00

(L) Marissa - 11 months - August 30, 2009
(R) Luke - 11 months - September 9, 2007

(Please ignore the Purdue shirt.... haha)

Marissa - 11 months old!

2009-08-30T14:12:00.002-05:00

My last post of this kind for Marissa..... and I'm REALLY sad! Marissa got her first tooth on August 13th!! We have been waiting and waiting for this and without any warning, there it was! Her picture shows that new tooth pretty well!

Marissa also started CRAWLING! She's mobile! She had been pulling up on the furniture and had been pushing up on her arms, but up until the day she started crawling, she really wouldn't even roll over! She just didn't see the need! But, on August 13th (Yep!! Same day as the tooth popped through), she just started zooming around! (the video is pretty dark, but I had my camera near me and so I just grabbed it to catch the moment!)

Marissa says "Mama" all the time, and I couldn't be happier! Luke was all about Dada and the dog, so I guess it's my turn! She has taken an interest in her blanket, but only at naptime or bedtime. She is very social! If someone is in the same aisle as we are at the grocery store, she will wave and say "Haaaaaaa" until someone acknowledges her. Same deal at restaurants - she has to wave at everyone that walks by. People seem to enjoy it and her toothy grin is quite contagious.

We cannot believe how fast the year has gone. We talk about it all the time. What great memories we're making!

Brother & Sister

2009-08-23T14:10:00.000-05:00

Sunday Outfit

2009-08-23T14:09:00.000-05:00

More of my Milligan cutie pie

2009-08-08T14:07:00.000-05:00

GO BUFFS!

2009-08-08T14:01:00.000-05:00

Milligan College Class of 2030!!

This little onesie was a gift from my fellow Milligan alum, Amy, when Marissa was born. She's just now big enough to wear it!! I was excited to dress her in it for the Milligan Alumni function at Connor Prairie! It was a huge hit!

(p.s. - this is the last time my daughter gets to wear anything with words on her rear-end.... I am NOT a fan.... but on a baby tush, it's pretty darn cute!)

Gone fishin'

2009-08-06T13:58:00.002-05:00

There is a great pond behind our house and Scott takes Luke out from time to time to see what's out there. I've seen some pictures of nice-sized fish (they always throw them back) and I've heard some pretty spectacular fish stories from Luke.

(I just love this picture....)

Grandpa, Luke & Great Grandpa

2009-08-02T13:49:00.000-05:00

Hey - that girl looks just like me!

2009-08-01T20:30:00.000-05:00

10 month pics - Luke & Marissa

2009-07-30T16:26:00.001-05:00

Marissa - 10 months old!

2009-07-30T16:13:00.000-05:00

WOW! 10 months!! Marissa had her well baby checkup yesterday and was 19 lbs 8 ozs and 29 inches long! She is still holding out on the crawling and the teeth. She says "DA!" loudly when she sees our dog, Ashley. We figure her first word will be dog-related, just as Luke's was. She continues to be such a happy little girl. It's easy to make her laugh, and Luke enjoys doing that. I've also overheard Luke saying "I'm so proud of you" and "You're a sweet baby". It's cute to hear those praises coming from his mouth!

Summertime!!

2009-07-13T16:32:00.000-05:00

Watch out Roger Federer....

2009-07-01T20:51:00.000-05:00

Nine Month Pics - Luke & Marissa

2009-06-30T20:37:00.001-05:00

(L) Marissa - 9 months (6/30/09)
(R) Luke - 9 months (7/9/07)

Marissa - 9 months old!

2009-06-30T16:25:00.001-05:00

Sweet Marissa is 9 months old! She has started saying "da da" and has even said "ma ma" a couple of times.... probably by accident, but I'll take it even so! She enjoys cheerios with a passion and has tried some table food. She STILL doesn't have any teeth, so I'm too chicken to let her try too much! I've found that she can roll over EASILY if she really wants something that is just out of her reach. This proves my "she could do it, but doesn't have to" theory.

Luke continues to be an awesome big brother. They play a screaming game where he makes a high pitched squeal, and Marissa imitates. It's one of those "cute for 10 seconds" things.... then it gives you a headache! He loves to tell her "It's ok" when she cries, and sometimes it helps. He also loves to be in her face, and I think that Marissa is one who enjoys her personal space because it never lasts long.

These are great kids, let me tell you! They are easy going and are easy to take places.... and we do go places! They spent a couple of days with Grandma and Papa Ellis in June while Daddy was Best Man in a wedding.... they've been to Aunt Jackie & Uncle Bill's for a day of swimming.... they've had a good summer so far!

I love this face!!

Fun in Columbus

2009-06-30T14:48:00.000-05:00

h

Luke & Marissa (and Daddy) spent the day with Uncle Bill, Aunt Jackie, Nicole, Zane & Connor. They had a fun trip to the park, spent some time around the pool, and watched movies with a wisdom-toothless Zane.

The Lius come for a visit

2009-06-28T20:41:00.000-05:00

Our good friend from high school, Amber, and her husband George came for a visit. It's a couple of weeks later, and Luke still asks if George & Amber are coming over. They must've made quite an impression!

Jon's Wedding

2009-06-21T15:45:00.000-05:00

This is Scott's best friend from high school - Jon. He married a great girl, my new friend Paige, and Scott was the Best Man.

I didn't get many pictures of the big day, and most of the ones I got were dark or blurry. I'm not the best photographer in the world... But here's one just minutes before the ceremony.... They clean up nice, don't they?

Luke & Aslan

2009-06-08T20:44:00.002-05:00

Luke's best friend these days is Aslan. Aslan's mom watches Luke & Marissa every day, so they get to spend alot of time together. This is from last night in the back yard - I thought it was such a cute shot!

Hoodlum Baby

2009-06-06T21:08:00.000-05:00

Family picture attempts

2009-06-06T21:06:00.000-05:00

Night at Victory Field

2009-06-06T20:54:00.000-05:00

We went to Victory Field for a charity softball game - it was fun! The kids were great and it was cheap! Luke was cracking us up, though... at the end of each inning, he thought it was his turn to play. He had his glove on and would get up from our seats and walk down toward the dugout. Fortunately, there weren't alot of people there, so it wasn't a big deal to let him roam.

Here's Bob Sanders and Dwight Freeney (#93).... the teams were made up of alot of Colts players... Peyton Manning even made an appearance, but to every Colts fan's relief, he did NOT play! (He's the one in the khaki shorts and loafers)

Playin' Tag!

2009-06-01T20:18:00.002-05:00

Luke on 6/6/07

Marissa on 6/1/09

a Kenworthy kid pastime.... Ashley continues to be a good sport!!

Eight Month Pics - Luke & Marissa

2009-05-30T20:12:00.001-05:00

(L) Marissa - 8 months (5/30/09)
(R) Luke - 8 months (6/9/09)

Marissa - 8 Months Old!!

2009-05-30T16:48:00.000-05:00

Well, here's our baby girl - 8 months old already!! She has all of a sudden started doing fun things like making a "ba ba ba" noise and waving bye-bye. Amazingly enough, NO TEETH! Where are they? She still is content to sit and let the world come to her - no rolling or crawling. She does kind of pull herself up if she has the opportunity, but other than that, she's enjoying "diva" status! She is also a mama's girl, which mama loves (most of the time anyway). She gives the best kisses - okay, slobbers - but she's always so excited to give kisses! And Marissa has the sweetest laugh with the big giggles being reserved for Daddy.

I tried to take her picture outside on her 8 month birthday, but there was just too much going on as you can see...

Marissa's crinkly smile

2009-05-23T20:41:00.002-05:00

Marissa's nose crinkles up when she smiles - it's very cute! Her dimple in her right cheek is getting more noticable too. What a doll baby!

500 Festival Parade

2009-05-23T17:27:00.001-05:00

The huge Grover balloon....

Luke watching the parade with the War Memorial in the background...

Mario Andretti!!

I think this was Luke's 1st parade. It was pretty hot that day, but we enjoyed ourselves. The highlight for Luke was the float that had Pablo from The Backyardigans on it.... here's a video:

Luke's Tractor - "Just Like Papa's"

2009-05-06T13:39:00.001-05:00

Anyone that knows my dad knows that this tractor isn't really "Just like Papa's".... my dad has never had a green tractor!! But apparently, John Deere has the corner on kid tractors. This is a toy that stays at Grandma & Papa's... more room to roam!

Only Daddy could come up with this...

2009-05-03T20:22:00.000-05:00

Scott pulled the kids around the upstairs for about 15 minutes - wearing Daddy out and wearing the kids out from all the giggling!!

Laundry Basket Fun

2009-05-03T19:25:00.003-05:00

It's dark because I took it with my digital camera....

Uncle Wade

2009-05-02T19:17:00.000-05:00

Marissa - 7 months old!

2009-04-30T13:57:00.001-05:00

Marissa is 7 months old! She is much more dependable when sitting up on her own and she is enjoying baby food at lunch and dinner. She fills out her 6 month clothes, so we've moved up to the 9 month in some things - that's hard to believe! She has discovered her toes and really enjoys putting them in her mouth. She still doesn't want to roll over! I don't know why she doesn't want to, but she won't do it! Marissa has also graduated to the "big" tub for bath time - I try to get her in there before brother, since Luke likes to "help" by pouring water on her head. She continues to sleep for at least 10 hrs every night.

I think that she may finally be getting hair! It's really filling in around the back and everyone who sees pictures of her asks if she has red hair - I don't notice it just to look at her, but it does appear to have a red tint in pictures. I would love that! She is NOT getting any teeth, however! I don't know when those are going to show up!

Luke continues to be a great big brother (bathtime help aside) - the other day when Marissa was crying, he went to her and said "Don't be mad baby - be happy!" He has a knack for making her laugh - that is especially helpful in the car!

Scott & I just look at each other and say "Can you believe these kids are ours?" They are sweet and beautiful and we couldn't ask for more!

I love this grin! What a happy baby!

Seven Month pics - Luke & Marissa

2009-04-30T12:10:00.001-05:00

(L) Marissa - 7 months (4/30/09)
(R) Luke - 7 months (5/9/07)

Miss Marissa's Official 6 Month Pics

2009-04-16T10:27:00.000-05:00

Marissa may be just as much of a ham as her brother after all! I remember with Luke, anytime a camera was in front of him, he would grin and pose... Marissa doesn't do that at home! But in a photography studio, she apparently knows how to turn on the charm! We had a gazillion great pictures to choose from, but we limited ourselved to 2 poses!

The dress in the pictures was her Easter dress... so sweet!

Sissy Sandwich

2009-04-05T12:20:00.000-05:00

How in the world......

2009-04-03T07:21:00.000-05:00

I hear Marissa's usual talking/singing as she was waking up this morning.... when I came in, all I could see was a foot hanging out of the crib! She was having a good time!!

I can't.... take it.... anymore..... zzzzzzzzzz

2009-04-01T11:18:00.000-05:00

Marissa - 6 Months Old!

2009-03-30T19:06:00.001-05:00

6 Months already? Marissa is laughing all the time. She loves to talk to herself first thing in the mornings and I never know which corner of the crib I'll find her in - she scoots herself around on her back. No rolling over still - she did it once, but I guess she decided it wasn't all it was cracked up to be. She is filling out her 6 month sized clothes quite well. She is still nursing and is a champ! We've continued the occasional cereal at supper time and she is MUCH better with a spoon than she was a few weeks ago. We're getting ready to embark on the vegetable adventure soon... watch out diapers! Her well baby checkup is on 4/16, so I'll have to try to remember to post some stats - she's a healthy and happy little girl and we love her!!

Six Month Pics - Luke & Marissa

2009-03-30T14:23:00.000-05:00

(L) Marissa - 6 months (3/30/09)
(R) Luke - 6 months (4/9/07)

Quality Brother / Sister time

2009-03-28T15:02:00.001-05:00

Luke is WONDERFUL with his little sister.... He says "Hi baby girrrrrl" in a sing-song voice, just like he hears Mommy and Daddy do a dozen times a day. He likes to tell her "it's okay" when she cries. He loves to make her laugh and it doesn't take much! She loves him, too!

At work with Mommy

2009-03-25T17:46:00.000-05:00

Look who came to visit me in my office? Okay, so it was on the way to her room... I'm blessed to be able to work from my home office often - especially during tax season when the hours are a little ridiculous. It lets me maximize the work time so that, in turn, my family time is maximized. Marissa's favorite office activities are pounding my calculator and shaking my keys.

Sunny days......

2009-03-17T17:58:00.000-05:00

Sweet Marissa's hair.... or lack thereof....

Thank God for sunny days!! We've taken the kids to the park a couple of times this spring. Luke is re-familiarizing himself with the playground equipment. He loves the slide. He's becoming more brave with tunnels and swings, too. We all enjoy the park!

Play-doh adventures

2009-03-16T13:53:00.000-05:00

I'll admit - we've had Play-doh since Christmas, but we're just now getting it out and of course, Luke loves it! Scott has been giving him ideas of things to make. (No, he didn't make these letters himself.... he may have had *some* help).

Little Miss Personality

2009-03-06T11:01:00.000-06:00

Marissa's hair cracks us all up! One small tuft on the top that usually sticks straight up, but of course, it's too fine for a bow or clip or anything girly. I love her little bald head!

Of course, the grandmas get a kick out of this shirt... and it's true.

Look what I did to my baby....

2009-02-28T21:16:00.000-06:00

The toddler version of mug shots....

Yes, there's a reason why places like 'Cookie Cutters' exist. It's because crazy moms like me get ahold of clippers and say "Oh, how hard could it be to give my 2 year old a haircut?"

We answered that question when I decided to give Luke a trim, and ended up buzzing the poor baby. I don't know what came over me, but all of a sudden I was shaving those bangs off his head and he was a bald little guy. Scott swooped in and at least helped fade it (a little), but I was mortified at what I had done!!

Scott told Luke that he looked like Curious George. Anytime someone made a comment about his haircut, he would tell them "I like George!" - and was excited about it!

Before the haircut.....

2009-02-28T20:14:00.000-06:00

we call these shots "BEFORE the haircut"....

Five Month Pics - Luke & Marissa

2009-02-28T14:08:00.002-06:00

(L) Marissa - 5 months (02/28/09)
(R) Luke - 5 months (03/09/07)

Marissa - Five Months Old!

2009-02-28T14:02:00.001-06:00

Crusty nose and all.... Here's Marissa at 5 months!

She was just getting over her first cold - poor thing coughed all night for a week straight.... Never ran a fever, but thankfully, her well-baby checkup was during this time and we found out that she didn't have any ear infections or anything. That was good at least!

Marissa has started to be more wary of strangers - she'll still warm up to just about anyone after a little while, but she questions who is holding her at first! She loves to chew on her fists and is slobbering all over the place! She giggles at brother, and has really started to show interest in TV. The lights are fascinating! She is still no good at eating cereal from a spoon, but we're working on it.

As you can see from the picture, she is starting to enjoy her exersaucer. In just a couple of week's time, she's gone from needing a dictionary to stand on to being able to reach the floor! She's standing on our laps with ease now - I'm amazed at the strength she has all of a sudden.

She still continues to be the sweetest little baby - we're so proud of her!

5th Anniversary

2009-02-21T23:57:00.001-06:00

Views of downtown.... a bit blurry since I couldn't use flash.

Scott & I celebrated 5 years of marriage on 2/21! We went out for dinner at The Eagle's Nest in downtown Indy, which is a revolving restaurant in the middle of downtown. The views were wonderful, the food was delicious, and of course the company was perfect!

Ahhhhhhhhh...........

2009-01-31T14:43:00.000-06:00

Family Pics

2009-01-31T14:37:00.000-06:00

with Grandma and Papa on the 2nd (colder) night.

Miniature Golf(er)

2009-01-31T14:31:00.000-06:00

Putt-Putt was a huge hit! No kidding - he hit a hole-in-one on the first hole he stepped up to! It was a riot! He hit another hole in one the next night on #8... Yep, we went 2 nights in a row, it was such a success!

The theme of the putt-putt place was "Jungle Golf". This was one of the animals on the course.

On the beach

2009-01-31T14:17:00.000-06:00

Marissa enjoyed the fresh sea air naps.

Luke had more sand toys than a boy needs and made good use of them! We spent alot of time walking from our beach chairs to the ocean to fill up buckets of water. This was the only documented time that Luke sat still for 5 minutes.

Swimming

2009-01-31T14:11:00.000-06:00

Luke really enjoyed his arm floaty things... what are those actually called? Anyway, he was unstoppable. Every kid that joined him in the pool became an instant buddy in a conversation that usually happened something like this:
Luke: "Hey Boy!"
Boy (or girl): "Hi"
Luke: "I LUKE!" (Extra emphasis on LUKE)

Marissa had about 30 seconds in the water, but she seemed to like it.

Swimsuit modeling at its finest......

Quality Brother / Sissy Time

2009-01-30T14:41:00.001-06:00

Four Month Pics - Luke & Marissa

2009-01-30T14:25:00.001-06:00

(L) Marissa - 4 months (01/30/09)
(R) Luke - 4 months (02/09/07)

Marissa - Four Months Old!!

2009-01-30T14:21:00.000-06:00

While we were in Florida, Miss Marissa turned 4 months old!!!

Handy "man"

2009-01-09T15:57:00.003-06:00

Scott is getting ready to tackle another home project.... This is a rare indoor project, so Luke is right there to "help" all the time. I came downstairs today to see Luke with safety glasses on and dustbuster in hand.... looking like some kind of cleaning Rambo. Of course, I wish I could add sound to the picture because whenever he has glasses on, he says "I cool". Okay, if you think so.

LOV*E

2009-01-04T16:01:00.000-06:00

!!!MUSH ALERT!!!

I'm going to get mushy here people.... I just love this picture and it so wonderfully captures the things I love about my husband. He's so gentle and patient and sweet and funny.... my little girl apparently thinks so, too. This is my favorite photo of all time (so far, anyway!)

Kenworthy Christmas

2008-12-31T16:05:00.000-06:00

We had Kenworthy Christmas on New Year's Eve.... it was a rough afternoon for Luke... opening presents during what should have been nap time, so I don't have very many pictures of him. But here he is with one of the big hits of the day - his Colts helmet!

Marissa made out like a bandit - even got a piece of furniture for her room. Here's cousin Nicole helping her sit in it.

Three Month Pics - Luke & Marissa

2008-12-30T19:59:00.005-06:00

(L) Marissa - 3 months (12/30/08)

(R) Luke - 3 months (01/09/07 )

Marissa - Three Months Old!

2008-12-30T19:54:00.003-06:00

I have been thinking about the past three months alot today. I don't know what it is about this second baby that makes me stop and think about what Luke was doing when he was this age... It makes me realize how fast time with Marissa is going.... I'm more sentimental for some reason. (hard to believe, I know!)

Marissa has really developed a sweet little personality in three months. As you can see in the picture, she's laughing and smiling all the time - she just melts everyone instantly! I'm truly blessed to have two great kids! What a joy......

My family at Christmas

2008-12-25T09:46:00.000-06:00

I think Luke has had this look on his face in every family picture we've had since Marissa has been here.... Cracks me up! It's the anti-Luke. Oh well, it's the best we could do.....

Christmas Dinner with Landsdowns

2008-12-25T09:35:00.001-06:00

My mom's family came over for a big dinner.... her 3 siblings, their kids, their grandkids.... 30'ish people in all.

Here's all the great-grandkids... (And Annie making sure Cade didn't take a nosedive off the pool table! )

This is all the grandkids.... first time this picture was taken since Chad's wedding in Dec. 2004, I think.

Grandkids with spouses

And here's the Ellis chunk of that crew

Christmas

2008-12-25T09:26:00.001-06:00

We were at my mom & dad's for Christmas this year...

Christmas Eve....

Lots of stockings, cookies, etc.... all the essentials.

Post-Santa

Luke's new "computer"

Luke doing the robot (?).... seriously, I don't know what was going on here. I didn't take as many pictures as I thought, so I'm posting what I have!

Christmas Picture Attempts

2008-12-05T10:32:00.000-06:00

This is the first year I haven't had 10 good pictures to choose from.... trying to photograph 2 children is significantly more challenging than just 1 child... and this is the first Christmas where Luke's stubborn streak factors in.

Check out Marissa's mohawk.....

Marissa's Christmas Dress

2008-12-05T09:35:00.001-06:00

I love buying dresses!! I would've never thought I'd enjoy the frilly, girly stuff so much!

Marissa - Two Months Old

2008-11-30T20:06:00.000-06:00

Two Month Pics - Luke & Marissa

2008-11-30T19:13:00.001-06:00

(L) Marissa - 2 months (11/30/08)

(R) Luke - 2 months (12/09/06)

Luke & Marissa's Thanksgiving Picture

2008-11-28T20:30:00.001-06:00

Happy Thanksgiving!

2008-11-28T20:07:00.001-06:00

We spent Thanksgiving with Scott's family this year. This is the cousin picture... ages ranging from 21 years to 8 weeks! It's amazing how much everyone changes each time we do this picture!

Christmas 2007

Thanksgiving 2006

Professional Pics - Luke's 2 yr and Marissa's first photo session

2008-11-17T13:17:00.002-06:00

Here are the unedited versions - the ones we ordered are even better!

We had them taken at Portrait Innovations at Metropolis in Plainfield.
http://www.portraitinnovations.com/index.html

More Marissa

2008-11-15T12:52:00.003-06:00

Marissa started sleeping all night for me a couple of weeks ago.... she's such a champ at it!

At her one month well-baby exam (she was 6 wks old), she was 11 lbs 1 oz and 23" long. She's growing like a weed!

I was also able to capture some of her first real smiles....
Daddy is the one that can get her to smile.

Bedtime

2008-11-13T20:03:00.000-06:00

Luke loves to hold his baby sister. She seems to love it to. He just pats her and tells her "Hi baby girl".... wonder where he heres that all the time?!?

Coach Kenworthy?

2008-11-10T09:06:00.003-06:00

Luke found Scott's x-box headset.... Kind of looks
like he's calling in some plays.

Luke & Marissa

2008-11-09T19:03:00.000-06:00

Marissa - One Month Old!

2008-10-30T08:54:00.001-05:00

She wasn't really that into this photo session

One Month Pics - Luke & Marissa

2008-10-30T07:58:00.000-05:00

(L) Marissa - 1 month (10/30/08)
(R) Luke - 1 month (11/09/06)

Big brother & little sis

2008-10-26T20:46:00.001-05:00

a kiss?

Makes Luke look so tall!!

More family meetings

2008-10-26T11:41:00.000-05:00

Great Grandma Landsdown

Cousin Zane

Zane's girlfriend, Katie