Who is Who?

The girls are both about 6 weeks old in these photos. Can you tell who is who?

Some folks think Eliza looks like Cap, some like me. Some folks thinks she looks like her sister, some folks don't as much. I think she and her sister do look very similar - same mouth, same chin and I think same eyes. I definitely think they have different noses, different eyebrows and different hands. It's kinda like a Mrs. Potato Head.

She Likes Me!

A little sister time.

The Photo Shoot

My friend, Jan Birch, whom I met when we were taking photography classes together, offered to do a newborn photo shoot of Eliza as a gift. I told her I wanted a few that captured how small Eliza is as a newborn (even though she's rather a big baby!) because I know I won't remember myself. These are two of my favorites. Those little feet! I have so few photographs of myself with Addie when she was an infant because I was always the one behind the camera. I love having these of me with Eliza. You can check out the entire photo shoot here.

Eliza is about a week and a half old in these photos. Today she is 6 weeks old. How did that happen? She smiles like a charmer and her vocabulary of coos is growing. The other day she made an expression exactly like her big sister that made me laugh out loud. Her eyes are lightening up, and even Addie exclaimed, "the baby's eyes are blue!" Just like her big sister.

Capt. Bones

Sunday we met up with Addie's pals from her former daycare for a little pumpkin time at Mr. Bones Pumpkin Patch in Beverly Hills. Gone are the days when I can just plunk Addie down in a sea of pumpkins and expect her to sit and smile for a photo. Eliza was passed out in the Baby Bjorn so there aren't any cute pictures of either of them snuggled in between the gourds. Instead, Addie and the gang ran amok, got their face painted, ran some more, rode in a wagon, ran some more, jumped in a pumpkin shaped bounce house and then ran some more and more and more and more . . .

I'm not sure where the kids got this pirates hat, but there is a hatless skeleton somewhere.

Check out more photos (mostly of Addie getting her face painted) here.

Pumpkin Patch Round One

We made a detour on our way home from Idyllwild to explore Oak Glen which I had read about in Sunset magazine as a great day trip for apple picking. We missed apple season (next year!), but did get to enjoy a giant slice of apple pie with cinnamon sauce at a local diner, buy a mandatory jar of apple butter and pick our own pumpkin.

It was cold and a dense fog was rolling in making the fields even more romantic and mysterious. We had the pumpkin patch at Los Rios Rancho to ourselves. Addie selected her own pumpkin, and she and Cap cut it off the vine with a knife. I love pumpkin patches. There is something so timeless about photos of children in amongst the giant orange beasts.

On Sunday we are off with some friends to a more urban pumpkin excursion in Beverly Hills where we'll stock up on more pumpkins and funny shaped gourds. Can't wait! I still haven't decided yet what to carve on my pumpkin but Addie said she wanted a scary face on hers.

Check out more photos from the pumpkin patch at Los Rios Rancho here.

Where the Wild Things Are

Nothing like a little mountain town, a cabin in the woods, s'mores, an old-school metal slide and some football to put you in the Fall spirit. We spent 3 nights in Idyllwild nestled a mile high in the San Jacinto mountains. I had a cold (and a clogged milk duct - ew) unfortunately but our cabin was a great place to convalesce - a one bedroom with kitchenette, TV and fireplace. Plus it was Eliza's one month birthday and taking a mini-vacation is a great way to celebrate. Happy Birthday my sweet little pea pod.

Let the wild rumpus start!

Spoiling Addie is super fun.

Old-school metal slide

Bird watching from our cabin's front deck

S'mores in our cabin

Hanging out in the local coffee shop, a short walk from our cabin

Check out more photos from our weekend here.

My Crafty Wreath

In between bouts of Eliza screaming, I finished my Halloween wreath today. She's either colicky or I'm just really bad at calming her. Right now I have her in the car seat on top of the washing machine set to the spin cycle. It works for a few minutes and then I have to reset the spin cycle over and over again.

I bought this fall wreath at the end of season, half-off sale at Target last year and then spray painted it glossy black for Halloween and added a silver ribbon. I think it looks splendidly gothic.

Sisters

"Where's my baby?"

That's pretty much the first words out of Addie's mouth when she wakes up in the morning or comes home from school. She adores her little sister and is eager to help out - often a little too eager - although she has learned to apply diaper cream which is always a useful skill. When we remind her to be careful around Baby Eliza, we're met with an indignant, "I AM being careful!" Addie also enjoys impersonating her sister's facial expressions which has Addie in stitches. Her new nickname for Eliza is Baby Eliza Weedy or just Weedy for short. This is in honor of the Weedy Sea Dragon we saw at the aquarium on Saturday. Eliza Weedy is not so weedy though. At her 2 and half week doctor's appointment, she weighed in at 9 lbs 11 oz and 21 inches (8lb8oz and 19.5 in at birth). No wonder she doesn't fit in her newborn diapers anymore!

When Addie and my mom came to visit us in the hospital, Addie immediately noticed that her baby sister, her mama and her dada all had fancy new hospital bracelets compliments of St. John's Medical Center. She demanded that she get a bracelet too. The nurses kindly made Addie her very own Big Sister bracelet. How sweet is that?!

I was a little nervous about what Addie would think of the whole breastfeeding concept. "Oh, my baby sister has special milk from your nipple?" (pronounced with an equal accent on both syllables - "nip pole"). The first few days Addie would head off to school with her own nipples lubed in Lansinoh breastfeeding cream in solidarity. She also concocted a special pretend soup for her baby sister which she presented to her in a silver goblet. The secret ingredient? Special Milk from the Nipple of course!

Despite the outpouring of affection for her sister, Addie is also struggling with all the changes. She's a tough cookie, and I know she will adjust to our new family of four.