Tis The Season of Thanks

We have so much to be thankful for this year! We have increaseded our family by one and are surrounded by family and friends who care about us. Thanksgiving dinner was at Cathy and Rob Mahaney's again this year and as usual they put on a great feast. Ceili got to meet the cousins and Great Aunt Skip. She really had a good time and was very social.

Ceili is now sitting up on her own. She is so strong, it's fun to watch her grow stronger and more confidant every day. She is sitting here with me helping me type this. Actually she pulls on and grabs my fingers as they press the keys.

We are getting ready for Christmas by decorating the house. Ceili helped Jon find out what lights worked and got them all untangled. She helped Erin hang garland and set up some of the santas

Hello All! This was a busy week. Jon Went hunting in Ohio with Josh while Erin and Ceili went to Longville. Erin sent Jon a picture text or two everyday. We will try and post some of those in the future. While in Longville Ceili got to meet some new faces. Jessie, Josh, Ryan, Brooklyn, Steph, and others. They had a fun weekend and wished it could have been longer. Jon returned home from Ohio with no deer but many stories. Luckily his season in Minnesota has been successful so there is some venison in the freezer.

Ceili is still loving her carrots and we are excited to try new veggies. In the next few days we will be trying sweet potato, spinach, squash, and broccoli. While she enjoys the solid food, Jon is not sure if he is ready because diaper duty is getting much more labor intensive!

Josh and Adam will be in town this weekend and they are both excited to see Ceili again. Hopefully we can go to the Cafe for brunch after church on Sunday.

Next week is Ceili's first thanksgiving and we think we are going to Prior Lake to visit Jon's family and meet some of the Cousins. Jon and Erin are looking forward to turkey and stuffing while Ceili will have to settle for sweet potato.

Four Months!

Ceili is now four months old! She went in for her four month shots and check-up this week. She weighed 14lb. 15Oz. and grew 3" to 24" long! she is in the 50th percentile for height and 75th percentile for weight. She is defiantly getting her nourishment. The doctor said that if we'd like we can start feeding her vegetables. We are very excited for this and can't wait to explore all the great veggies out there. Jon is going to Ohio this week to hunt with Uncle Josh.It' will be the first time he has been away from Ceili for more than a day. Thank goodness for the blog, email, and picture texts.

Happy Halloween!

It's Halloween and Ceili dressed up as a monkey. Thanks again Grandma O! Hannah and Lilly stopped to trick or treat. Lilly looked very cute as Raggedy Ann. I think Hannah said it was the same costume that she wore when she was that age. We went to Denny and Judy's so they could see the costume and they gave Ceili a spinning light up ghost light. She loves looking at it. Erin and Ceili then went around to the neighbors to bring them treats while Jon stayed to pass out candy.

Ceili has had to start eating a bit of rice cereal so that she can get enough to eat. We think that she could get enough but she is just to lazy to work for it. She actually does pretty well though she is quite messy.

Pumpkin Party and New Wheels

We had the neighbors over today to carve pumpkins. Ceili wore her pumpkin onesie to celebrate. Grandma and Grandpa Burgers stopped for the day to say hi. Grandpa Burgers gave Ceili some driving lessons in her new Combi Car Walker. She really enjoys licking the steering wheel!

Pre Pumpkin Party Planning

Ceili is helping us prepare for a pumpkin carving party for our neighbors. Jon made Pumpkin Ginger Soup and Erin made Pumpkin Chiffon Cake and Carrot Cake Muffins. We also made some other sweet treats to help celebrate autumn. Tomorrow we will carve pumpkins, play games, and eat our creations. Ceili has a cute pumpkin onesie that she is going to wear to get into the spirit.

The recipe for Pumpkin Ginger Soup Follows:

2 (15-ounce) can(s) pumpkin puree
3 (14 1/2-ounce) can(s) chicken broth
1 (11 1/2-ounce) can(s) pear nectar ( We found this in the juice aisle of the supermarket)
1/3 cup(s) creamy peanut butter
2 clove(s) garlic, finely chopped
2 tablespoon(s) grated fresh ginger root
2 tablespoon(s) finely chopped green onion
1 tablespoon(s) fresh lime juice
1/2 teaspoon(s) salt
1/4 teaspoon(s) ground cayenne pepper
Toasted pumpkin seeds (optional)
Chopped chives (optional)

Directions
1. In a 6-quart saucepan, combine pumpkin puree, chicken broth, and pear nectar. Bring to a boil over high heat. Cover, reduce heat to low, and simmer 10 minutes.
2. In a blender or the bowl of a food processor fitted with chopping blade, process 1 cup pumpkin mixture with peanut butter until smooth. Return to saucepan with the remaining pumpkin mixture. Add garlic, ginger root, green onion, lime juice, salt, and cayenne pepper; cook 10 minutes over medium heat.
3. Divide soup among soup plates and garnish with pumpkin seeds and chives, if desired.

New Gifts From The Heart

Last week Ceili received a surprise in the mail. A beautiful quilt hand made by our friends the Pattens. Elizabeth made this and writes in her letter to ceili "This blanket has sat on my lap through many an afternoon and evening. It has gone to the park and to Maddie's gymnastics class. It has listened in on lots of conversations and story reading." I'm sure this is just a start to the many adventures of this blanket. We are thankful for family and friends like the Pattens who, though they are far from us physically, keep us in their thoughts and prayers daily. Here is a picture of Erin and Ceili with her new blanket. Also a picture of Grandma O with "our little monkey". Grandma O made this while she was visiting over MEA break. Funny, I thought she was retired?!