It's a...

(Alena translation: brother, brother, BROTHER!!) Yes, we're having a baby boy at the end of January 2011! No name for the baby, yet!

Hunting Season/Thanksgiving

Daddy took Alena for a ride and she LOVED it despite the cold temperatures!

Playing with the walkie talkie was a past time while cooped up in the cabin. Daddy didn't like it so much when he was in the woods with his radio was on and she pressed "call."

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We were surprised to find out that Alena fit into a bucket (used for water), and Grandpa turned it into a fun game for her at the cabin!

She used Great Grandma's walker for her own purposes!

A family photo after Thanksgiving at Great Grandma's house: Grandpa Cance holding Alena, Avery's fiance Davey, Auntie Avery, Great Grandma Cance, Eric and I (with Great Grandpa's photos behind me).

Our attempt at a Thanksgiving photo...

Post-Thanksgiving lunch nap.

Uncle Frank and cousin Breezy entertaining Alena and Kaylee.

The adventures of Alena and Baylee. Baylee is Grandma and Grandpa Hawkins' new golden retriever puppy. She bites a lot and has lots of puppy energy. I put the puppy in this tub to separate them, but I still had to make sure that Lena stayed far enough away so that she didn't get a bite in the face! They were cute together, though!

Getting Ready for Hunting Season

Eric took our boots out to spray them with Campdry. I just thought it was so cute how he lined our boots out. We're all excited to spend a week together in the Northwoods! It is so nice that it worked out that Eric could take off the whole week. We so enjoy this week of the year!! I'm really hoping that Eric shoots a deer this year. Now we have a freezer to put it in, and venison is so much healthier than beef! Our babies will LOVE it!

She's Growing Up!

Eating her spaghetti and getting messy, as usual.

Peek a boo!

Reading together

Fascinated by a sticker after her usual "aggressive" coloring.

Showing off her new Dora underwear.

So tired that she can't keep her eyes open while eating. She doesn't usually do this and it was SO funny!

Pics of Alena's Weekend

Alena went to the Shine program that my home church in Tomahawk put on for Halloween. It was a kid-oriented program that included puppets and a Christian message. She got her face painted, and got to take home a carved pumpkin that said Jesus loves me. My mom was more than happy to take her granddaughter!

Cabin Time!

Eric and I went to his parents cabin last weekend... without Alena! My mom desperately wanted to take her for a weekend and I had NO problem with that, at all! We really loved being able to sleep in and not have to watch what dangerous thing our busy toddler would have been getting into.

We spent most of our Friday and Saturday cutting up trees that were down on the road and the trails. I hauled the brush while Eric used his chainsaw to cut up the trunk and the branches from the tree. We even made a hunting blind since we had such an abundance of pine brush which is perfect for a blind! We treated ourselves to food cooked over the fire for the most part. On Saturday night, we drove to Iron Mountain and ate at a nice restaurant :) Great weekend!!

My mom had a great time with Alena and it seems like the Bean was on her best behavior. She was very tired when we picked her up and even had a "tired hangover" on Monday. This is a funny shot of her on the way home. She had just woken up from a nap and had this grumpy face! Her body looks funny because she's mid "hump"... something she does when in her car seat.