September

September is long over but here are some pictures from then.

Silly kids love this beanbag.  They are always jostling each other for the best spot on it.  Ethan has taken to picking up Lillie and body slaming her onto the beanbag.  Its hard to get him not to do it because she laughs.

 The cousins were over for a bit when we were getting our new cell phones (we love our samsung galaxy s2s!!) and Cindy wanted to ride with Lillie.  Lillie loves this wagon. Its the first thing she goes for when we go outside.

 Ethan's favorite place is the dirt pile.  This was the spot Ryan put down mulch and had plans to use it around the yard.  Ethan has completely taken it over with his fleet of diggers and trucks.

She is so proud of herself when she can climb on things without assistance

Ethan

I've realized that I haven't posted as much about Ethan has I have about Lillie. Its been awhile so here are some new things about Ethan.
He does love his little sister. Once while Lillie and I were relaxing in bed still and Ryan had already left for work, Ethan managed to get into the kitchen and up onto the counter to grab a package of teddy grahams.  He brought back two bags and told me one was for him and one was for Lillie.  When I asked him where mine was, he went back downstairs and got 2 bags for me! There are still times when he needs to show his love in a different way, like when he sits on her or runs into her full speed knocking her down.
He is a whiz when it comes to the computer.  We had to put a password on it to keep him off.  If he had it his way, he would be on there all day.  He knows how to open the browser and go to his favorites to play various games on different sites.  He has even found a way to get to youtube to watch videos.  One day he wanted to watch Wild Kratts on PBS.  It wasn't on and I was trying to make dinner so I logged him into the computer.  5 minutes later he was watching Wild Kratts on the PBS website. I think he knows how to use my smartphone better than me.  He knows how to navigate the phone to get to different apps.  He loves to take pictures though he still hasn't figured out to keep his finger out of the way.  He loves angry birds and would probably do anything to play it.  If he manages to get one of our phones without us noticing, he will hide under the table to play it.  The good thing is that it makes shopping much easier with him, my phone keeps him occupied the whole time!
In the car he is always telling us to go left or right. He usually wants to go left, its definitely his favorite and will get mad if I tell him we are going right. Maybe he'll be a lefty like me ;) He points out the red, green and orange(cannot convince him that it is yellow) lights and knows we have to stop at red and go at green.  He knows the way to many places and quickly recognizes if we are headed to work, Jack and Cindy's house, his friend Ollie's house, the library and many other places.
Red is his favorite color.  He will only eat yogurt with his red spoon.  The red crayon is the only one he wants to use. When given a choice, he wants the red object. I didn't expect to see a preference so early on. He is starting to want to pick out his clothes.  Still no interest in actually dressing himself, but he will tell me he wants a certain shirt.
Ethan is talking more, but we still have to prompt him to use the words he knows.  One of his favorite phrases right now are "so cute". Everything is "so cute", Ryan's fish, the water banana plant, the neighbors dogs, the dragonfly outside etc.  So when I asked him if he thought Lillie was so cute, I thought he would say yes.  Nope, he responded "Ehan so cute!"
We certainly do think he is a cutie!

Lillie is 11 months

Lillie is now 11 months.  She has been walking for about 2 weeks now.  She has amazing balance.  When standing she can crouch down without her bum touching the ground, pick up a small object like a cheerio and stand back up and continue on her way.  She loves to climb up things and even though she is a peanut she has managed to climb up onto couch.  She is starting to show her wild side. When she is on a bed or couch, she loves to fall backwards. She laughs and laughs each times she does it.  Good thing we watch her carefully, she almost threw herself off the bed the other day!  She is looking the part of a wild child too, her hair has gotten long in front and will often pull out any clip I put in to keep it out of her eyes.   She has 2 teeth, one on the top and one on the bottom, it looks silly so we hope more come in quickly!
She is eating more.  On a good day, she will eat 4-5 bites of yogurt, a few pieces of chicken, a few grapes and a cracker or two.  Other days she will refuse almost everything other than some cheerios or crackers.  She is babbling, walking and smiling so we know she is fine, just destined to be petite!
Speaking of babbling, she says Dada a lot.  Ryan is convinced she says it when she sees him and so its her first word.  I don't think I'll be convinced shes spoken her first word until I hear her say Mama to me :)
We both love that Lillie will grab a book and walk over to one of us and climb up on our lap.  She doesn't actually let us read more than a page, but its always great to get some cuddle time in before she off to walk somewhere else.
She is already showing her preferences.  When I hold her, it has to be on my left hip.  If I hold her in front or on my right side, she will grab my shoulders and pull herself to my left.  She is also determined to walk everywhere.  She will let you know when she wants to be on her own and she will go where she wants to no matter how many times you try to guide her in another direction. 
We can't believe she will be one in a few short weeks! How time flies!

She barely sits still, so it was almost impossible to get a picture of her.  Plus she is sporting a black eye courtesy of Ethan.  So here she is, like we usually see her, wild hair with a mischievous look on her face!