17 months old; Ella stands; general cuteness; catching up with Dave and Karin

Hello everyone and hope you are well. Nate and Ella turned 17 months old today and seemed to be fine moods. Nate has been waking up often at night, so we're working on that. They got their first juice boxes today and Ella in particular loved it. Here are a few recent family shots:

Ella stands up! She now gets up on her feet on her own, without pulling up on anything. And she loves it! Those first steps can't be too far away:



















Nate peruses "Good Night Gorilla," one of his favorite books. He also really likes "I Am a Bunny" and "Big Red Barn":



















Here's a shot of Karin and I before heading out to a great party our friends Kym and Aaron throw every January:

Ella Tries Out Family Names

Not bad for a little Roo not quite 17 months old:

January stuff

Hello again after a couple of weeks off the grid. We are all doing well and hope you are, too.

Ella is getting closer and closer to walking, standing up by herself and pushing a large toy car while walking behind. As you'll see from the videos below, she's a good talker. Nate is practically running now, is a bit more shy than Ella but is cute as ever.

We're just now getting them off bottles (a bit later than recommended). Last night was pretty rough for both and we're thinking that is why; they just aren't big fans of milk from sippy cups. But we are getting them milk/calcium in other ways, and they are drinking lots of water.

Here are some recent pictures and a series of short videos, shot by Karin in a somewhat "Blair Witch Project" style ...

Getting tickled on the couch:














Ella puts her baby to bed (Daddy finally had a moment to put the crib together):














Video vignettes:

Kids Think the Darndest Things Are Funny ...

Hope everyone had a happy New Year's! Nate continues to hone his walking skills. Ella stood up by herself without pulling on anything the other day. But the biggest Ella news is that she strung a couple of words together into her first sentence today, while looking up at the sky: "Bye bye plane."

Here, Nate enjoys a laugh during supper:


And here's a shot of Ella with her good buddy Lila:

Christmas 2009

Hello everyone! Just a quick post-Christmas note and a couple of photos. We had a nice with with Grandma and Grandpa T., Uncle Colin, Aunt Erin and Uncle Kevin in Spokane. The kids received many wonderful Christmas presents (thanks everyone!) We actually had a bit of a second Christmas back in Seattle this morning, opening gifts which we hadn't taken to Spokane. Nate and Ella are having a great time playing with all their presents. Thanks to Aunt Erin who took some of the photos below:

Nate is still fighting a cold but doing better. He continues to walk all over. Ella particularly loves her new baby doll.

Nate checks out the tree in Spokane a few days before Christmas:














Hello dolly: Ella meets her new baby on Christmas:














... and Elmo, who she calls "Melmo":














Nate meets Cookie Monster:














Back in Seattle, Nate plays with his new farm while Ella looks on:

Nate practices walking; more shots from Christmas party ...

Here's a video of Nate taking some steps (sorry for the sideways-ness, again):


And here are more nice shots from the recent family Christmas party, courtesy of Auntie Erin:

Maybe next year.....

The kids and I (along with our friends Sara and Lila) went to UVillage this year for Santa pictures. It didn't go so well.