Firsts

When you have two toddlers your life is filled with "firsts". 

Reese ate her first (whole) apple this weekend after we visited the pumpkin patch/apple orchard.  She saw her brother eating one and insisted that she take a bite.  So I let her and next thing I knew she was gnawing away and making the cutest sounds as she ate her first apple.

Ethan has picked many pumpkins from the pumpkin patch, but we usually just set them around as decorations.  This year, though, we thought Ethan was old enough to help Daddy carve a pumpkin.  He was a little upset that his pumpkin face was "happy" and not "scary" like he requested.  Sorry little dude you have a social worker for a mommy, not an artist. 

Reese got her toenails painted by one of our babysitters one evening when we out to dinner.  She said that she sat really still for her and just kept looking down at her feet.  This was my handy work above at a later date.  She really did sit still and just kept watching what I was doing. 

Ethan enjoyed his first season of soccer...er maybe his only season of soccer?  We don't think that he's Beckham material, let's put it that way.  He was more interested in picking grass and making faces with the other kids.  But he did get some exercise, played with the other kids, listened intently to his coaches and learned how to dribble the ball pretty well. 

Reese is saying tons of first words.  Her vocabulary is expanding every single day.  Her understanding of every day conversation is also huge.  She thrives on routine and "tells" us what we need to do each morning.  She is also a major pain in the butt. :-)  She gets into everything she's not supposed to.  As soon as I walk into the kitchen, she hops up on the couch and grabs my phone and the TV remote...the two things she's not supposed to touch.  SIGH.  And then when I come back in the room she just grins and laughs.  Oh, it's gonna be a long road ahead with her.  I do think that potty training might be in our near future.  She does not like to have a dirty diaper and will "tell" me when she's pooped and point me in the direction of the diapers.

Ethan and I were able to spend some time together on Friday during his parent's day at school.  It was great to see that the other kids really seem to like him and he seems to be the kid that everyone gets along with.  He doesn't cause fights/controversy and if it's around him he just walks away and finds something else to do.  He is friendly but will also do his own thing if he wants to.  He knew all of the songs that they sang, but didn't raise his hand to answer questions.  He would be taking after his quiet mother on that one.  And you think I'm kidding, but I'm not.  When I was young, I was painfully shy.  Go ahead...laugh.  Those of you that have only known me in my adult life just can't picture it...because now I don't keep my mouth shut and I'm highly opinionated.  But anyone who knew me in grade school can attest to this fact.

So, lots of firsts in the Shepard household. 

What firsts are you experiencing?