How do you like them apples?

Katie picking an apple


Helena apple picking


Seamus apple picking


Yesterday we took a trip to the apple orchard. It was our first time going apple picking with the babies and we all had a blast! We picked apples, ate donuts, drank cider, and even got to walk through the orchard a bit. I think the walking was their favorite part. They've all gotten so good at it that it's hard to believe it was only about a month ago that the girls were still mostly crawling. We went to the zoo today and got to walk through the aviary, again their favorite part. We also saw the hippo actually walking around on land instead of just sleeping underwater, which was pretty cool! We celebrated my birthday on Friday with cake and ice cream. My parents and Uncle Steve came over to help Pat and the babies sing. Thanks again for decorating dad, I really liked it and so did the babies! It's been tough getting back into the swing of things with work. There just doesn't seem to be enough time in the day to get everything we want to do done and have time to spend with the babies when we are home. I'm sure it'll all work out but I'm not there yet. I guess when the house blows up completely, then I just won't have to think about it! Enjoy the pictures!



Helping Mommy unwrap her birthday presents



This is how Grandpa spends his days!

This weekend we decided to all go to the park to play on the swings. They also now play in the rocks and in one of the jungle gym thingies. Katie is still a fan of the swing, so all three have a good time when we go to the park. On Sunday we went to the zoo, and this time we decided to get the kids out of their stroller and go into the Butterfly and Bird House. This was the first time we all walked at the zoo since strollers can't go into these areas. The walking didn't last very long in the Butterfly House because Seamus kept trying to pull flowers off and Katie likes to step on things. Therefore we were worried for the butterflies' safety and we carried them until we were in the bird house. We walked again in the Bird House, and if we weren't holding their hand I think they all would have gone swimming with the ducks. Later on Sunday we tried coloring for the first time, and of course one of them (Seamus) had to take a bite out of the crayon. We now have drawings hanging on the fridge and days worth of food inside of it. We now officially have a "Mom and Dad Fridge."


Katie swinging


Helena swinging


Seamus swinging


Katie, Seamus and Helena playing in the rocks.


Katie playing in the rocks


Helena playing in the rocks


Seamus playing in the rocks


Seamus, Helena, and Katie coloring for the first time


Helena and Katie coloring


Seamus coloring

09-09-09

No pictures today sorry! Just wanted to post a message about today being 09-09-09. It's one of those things that make me smile and I know others (like Aunt Becca!) get a kick out of it too. We're officially back to work and looking forward to the weekend. I'll try to post more of an update with pictures later on this week. Until then, enjoy the day!

Where has the Summer Gone?

All good things have to come to an end. Starting tomorrow morning both Mary and I have to go back to work for the year. We have had a great summer spending nearly every moment with Katie, Seamus and Helena; and we tried to have some fun the last couple days of vacation. On Friday Aunt Debbie and their cousins came over and watched and played with the babies. On Saturday we went to Aunt Becca's house to celebrate their cousin Drew's 2nd Birthday Party. At the party the babies discovered how much fun a four-wheeler Powerwheel can be. Lucky for them we recently were given one so we played on them the last couple of days, they got to show off their driving skills to Grandma and Grandpa Murphy today. On Sunday we took our final trip to the Zoo for the summer, but I'm sure we'll go in the fall. The kids also had their 15 month checkup at the doctor this morning. Katie is still the biggest of the trio measuring 31", 24 lbs 1 oz, and a cranium 18 3/4" in circumference! Seamus is 30 1/4", 21 lbs and also a noggin of 18 3/4". Helena is 29" long, a head that's 17 1/2" and weighs a dainty 18 lbs 8 oz. The doctor is pleased with their growth and how well they are doing with developmental stuff. The pictures are from the kids playing in the house and playing outside yesterday.


Seamus and Katie


Helena kissing Katie


Seamus on 4-Wheeler


Katie driving her car


Helena driving her car


Seamus in his swing


Helena in her swing


Katie deciding she likes her swing

Haircuts, Fairs, and Visitors!

Okay, it's official. I lied. I said in my last post that I would try and be better about updating what's been going on around here but that didn't happen. Instead, it's been another 2 weeks and I'm just now thinking about where the time went. We have had visits from Aunt Debbie and the cousins, gone and seen my mom's cousin Suzy and some of her family at my parents house, gone to see Sister Mary at my aunt Kathy's house, went to the Armada Fair, played in the pool, played in the tent, washed our carpets, played dress up, and went to the Renaissance Festival. Okay, I lied again... when I think about it I see exactly where all of the time went over the past 2 weeks!! On top of all of this, Seamus got his first haircut! Maybe I should just post some pictures. They can probably explain the last few weeks better than I can at this point. Enjoy!!


Helena playing dress up


Seamus after his first haircut


Haircut!!


Seamus and Daddy petting the rabbit at the Armada Fair


Helena and Mommy feeding the goat


Grandpa and Katie feeding the chickens


Renaissance Festival


Bryan and Helena


Kevin and Seamus


Shannon and Katie


Playing in our Ikea tent!

Busy, Busy...

Our first Popsicles!


Swimming with Aunt Kathy D at the garage sale


Helena at the corn roast


Seamus and Ashley at corn roast


Katie and Abby at corn roast

It's been a while since our last post and I honestly can't tell you where then time went but I feel like we've been super busy the last few weeks. We finished the month of July by having a huge garage sale. We sold enough of our stuff to have all of the baby equipment we still have fit into the spare room down stairs. Speaking of... if you know anyone who needs a triple decker stroller we have one for a good price! Around the same time as our garage sale we had a case of the stomach flu travel through our house. Seamus took it the worst and actually had to go to urgent care after barfing all over his sister (Katie) and himself at my Aunt Kathy's annual corn roast. I am still so happy we were outside at the time! Nothing a little water from the hose couldn't wash away. We did have to leave early though and I missed getting to hang out with the Huddas side of the family. Oh well, there will be other times. The big news is we have 3 walking babies! Seamus is still the best walker but Katie has been doing really well the last week or so as well. Helena has taken a bunch of steps but still walks a little bit like Frankenstein or as we call her Franken-bean! Yesterday Pat and I got to actually get out of the house alone and go golfing! Thanks again everyone for watching them!! We also had our last swimming lesson today. Grandpa Huddas has been nice enough to come along with us since Aunt Kathy D has been out of town. I think that officially catches us up. Phew! Tomorrow we are going to Birch Run to get ALL of us some new shoes. I hope! The plan is to try to finish all of our summer chores in the next week so we can enjoy our last week or so of summer vacation. Wish us luck! Personally, I'm not going to hold my breath. I'll also try to update a little more often. We've got lots of family coming in to visit so we should have lots to post!!

Hey Boo Boo

Katie took some big strides in her walking. After weeks of trying to get her to walk without holding onto fingers, she took six steps without us even telling her too. That's our Katie, she does everything on her own time. On Wednesday we went camping after swimming and lunch to Jelly Stone Park in Indian River. The babies had a lot of fun their second time camping because they all can walk a bit more and this camp ground had Yogi Bear! They also went to the beach for the first time and played in the sand and even splashed around in the lake! We got back home and started to prepare for the garage sale that we're having this weekend to sell some of the baby stuff the kids have grown out of. So it has been a pretty busy week with camping, swimming, and getting ready for the garage sale we have been quite busy. The babies are having fun and doing more every day, pretty soon they will all be running in different directions! The pictures are from their camping trip.


Helena, Seamus and Katie playing in the camper


Grandpa Huddas, some babies and I on the Yogi Wagon Ride


Helena, Seamus and Katie arriving at the beach


Helena playing in the sand


Seamus playing in the sand


Katie playing in the sand


All of us at the beach


Mommy and the girls in the lake


Seamus and me in the lake


Seamus and Helena riding their cousin Drew's bike


All of us with Yogi