Happy Halloween

Halloween was quite an event at the Beckner house this year! A weeklong event -- that began with trick-or-treating at Capitol Market on Oct. 25th with Grandpa and ended tonight with trick-or-treating with Pawpaw. After Belle's pumpkin was too heavy for her to carry, she decided she was ready to go home. I'm delighted to report that she did enjoy watching The Great Pumpkin Charlie Brown with us tonight! Belle has accumulated enough candy that we can all have candy to eat until Christmas -- maybe longer. The slideshow shows some highlights from today, including Belle's Halloween parade and party at pre-school. Enjoy and Happy Halloween!

Carving Pumpkins

Fall is my favorite time of the year. Probably because I have so many childhood memories of fun family times -- like carving pumpkins. I get nostalgic in the fall. This leads me to want to recreate my memories with my children. Unforutnately, they're not too keen on creating lasting childhood memories (yet!) No, they definitely like picking out pumpkins and think they're cool. But carve them? Yuck. What's that inside, Mommy, Belle asks. Cook pumpkin seeds to eat later? No thank you, Mommy. Drink hot apple cider while we listen to fun Halloween songs and carve our pumpkin. No, thank you Mommy. Just give me some juice and crackers and I'll run around and play while you do all the work. The extent of Belle's help was to pick out the pattern that we would use to carve our pumpkins. You see the end result. As for the Beckner family memories... I guess we'll have to wait a few more years for the girls to get older.

It's football season.... Go 'Eers!

Fall fun

Walking montage

First Birthday party

Thank you to everyone who attended my first birthday party. I had such a good time. I appreciate all the gifts I received. You should have seen our house when we got home. It looked like Christmas! At least that's what Mommy said. Belle and I are already fighting over the new toys and have enjoyed a couple of our new DVDs. Thankfully, I received some nice new outfits for the fall since the weather is getting cooler. Most importantly though, I am just happy to have such loving friends and family. Thank you, Lilly.

Our attempt to get Lilly to walk

Goodness this girl is stubborn. She could walk. We just have to figure out what will entice her to take her first steps.

Lilly turns 1!

Can you believe it was a year ago that this little bundle of joy came into our lives? My how the last year has flown. While Lilly is growing leaps and bounds in many ways, she still holds onto those baby ways. We think she'll enjoy being the "baby" of the family for some time.

Dance fever

We like to shake our booties. Today, Granny and Pawpaw got down with us!

Lilly walking, with some assistance

Mommy & Daddy are determined that I'll walk before my first birthday, but I'm not giving in to them yet! I do walk with some assistance, whether it's from Pawpaw (who helped me get around while we were at the beach) or from my toy car.

Life under the sea

I understand that everyone has wondered what happened to me this. Be assured that I'm here and making my presence known. It's just hard to get any face time in front of the camera when my sister is more mobiel and getting herself into peculiar situations.

It began to rain last night and continued this morning so there was no trip to the beach today. The surf was wicked because of the storm coming through. Apparently there is a tropical storm all the way in Florida that is causing problems here. We're pretty bummed that the weather was bad today and is predicted to be just as terrible tomorrow. So rather than sit around the house (which is wonderful) for two days, Mommy and Daddy decided we would drive to Myrtle Beach after all and visit Ripley's Aquarium. Boy was I happy they decided to visit the aquarium. I've never seen anything like it. It was so exciting to watch all the colorful fish swim around in the tanks. Belle liked the fish, but she was preoccupied with the moving sidewalk that took us through a tunnel. It made you feel like you really were under the sea. We saw sharks and all kinds of fish -- including ones that look like Nemo and Dory! We also were allowed to touch a horseshoe crab. Belle declined -- and not so politely, I might add -- but I was happy to reach out from my stroller and touch the wonderful creature. It was a fun time and we received cool souvenirs from our trip.

I've had a wonderful time at the beach this week. I love the ocean and the sand. We've seen a lot of interesting animals. The only downside is I have some battle wounds to show for it. I have several mosquitoe bites on my legs, forehead and left eye from our visit to the nearby gardens. It's been such a great week. We've enjoyed playing with Granny & Pawpaw and we'll be sad to leave for home on Saturday. I'm definitely not looking forward to that long car ride home.

Shopping & friends

Today we visited a nearby shopping plaza, where they make Pawley's Island Hammocks. It's similar to Nags Head Hammocks, but Mommy says she still fonder of Nages Head Hammocks. We did a little bit of shopping (as much as I could tolerate) until we found a playground in the middle of the shopping area. I was finally happy that I was able to burn off some energy and meet some new friends. I made a boyfriend while we played in the magical castle together. He wasn't playing like I wanted so I had to "direct" him a bit. But he was so nice that I gave him a hug and told him I loved him.

I have a lot of new friends this week. I have a whole herd of horses now. We didn't bring a lot of toys to play with inside so Granny got me some new friends to hang out with this week, "pokies" (read: ponies). I like my ponies. We also have a friend at our beach house, a real lizard. Pawpaw is trying to catch him so I can take him home with me!

Brookgreen Gardens

It's so nice to wake up, walk downstairs and see the ocean out your living room window. I enjoyed eating my yogurt and grapenuts this morning in the high chair while I watched the waves crash on the shore. It was so invigorating, that I was deeply upset when Mommy and Daddy wouldn't immediately take me to the ocean. Instead, we visited this place called Brookgreen Gardens. It's pretty cool. They have a natural habitat zoo. We saw cows, horses, chickens, otters, alligators, foxes and lots and lots of birds (like the one in the picture above.) We had a nice lunch and then we walked through pretty gardens with lots of cool statues. I enjoyed talking to the lions. I also tried to jump into the many water fountains throughout the gardens, but Mommy and Granny wouldn't let me because they said it was full of goose poop! It was a pretty neat place. The cool thing is you pay once and then you can go back to the park all week.

After very, very short naps this afternoon, Daddy and Pawpaw took us to the beach while Granny and Mommy shopped. Once again, I didn't care for the sand. Lilly, however, became so hungry that she started to eat it! It's been a pretty fun day, and I only suffered three meltdowns today!

We've added a link (on the links section) to Brookgreen Gardens so you can see more of it for yourself. Enjoy!

-- Belle

Sleep deprived, but having fun

Well, as always when we travel, the second day is the worst. We're so excited when we arrive that we just can't take a minute to sleep. Therefore, the second day of our trip (whenver we go anywhere), we're usually a bit grouchy. I must say Belle has been extremely grouchy today. I, on the other hand, am pretty pleasant, regardless of how much sleep I get. I'm sure you can guess that when given the option between taking a nap or continuing an activity -- say going swimming in the ocean -- Belle never chooses a nap!

So needless to say, Belle was quite the grouch today. I slept for a couple of hours while Daddy played with Belle in the ocean. I heard that once again Belle did not like the sand and would not walk in it until she got near the water. I was fine not going to the beach this morning, Mommy said the water was nice and warm but the air was cool and so it wasn't very comfortable. And then when it came time for an afternoon nap, Belle wouldn't sleep again. so we went for a ride in the car, which is the only time we got some rest. There sure is a lot to do here at Pawley's Island. We toured the island a bit and picked up some bait to go fishing. There is a pier near our house, so Daddy and Mommy were going to take us fishing. However, we discovered -- much to our dismay -- that the pier is privately owned and only the people staying in nearby condos can use it!

I didn't make it down to the beach today, because Belle was ban from the beach as punishment for her bad behavior. So we hung around the house, which is fine with me. I was able to explore the stairs -- four actually -- until Mommy discovered me. Then every time I tried to escape to the stairs again, Mommy was right on my tail. She just wouldn't let me be.

Well, tomorrow we'll have new adventures and one of us will write to tell you all about it.

With love, Lilly

P.S. By the way, we've added a link to the blog for Pawley's Island. There is a webcam on a house just up the beach. You may catch us on it one day. At the very least, you can see the weather down here as you listen to the waves.

Wipe out on Pawley's Island

Hello from Pawley's Island, S.C.!

We're on our first vacation with Granny and Pawpaw. What a trip. It took a long time to get here. After our 8th hour and no naps, we were ready to get out of the car. I (Belle) was so excited to see Granny and Pawpaw and our home for the week. There are three floors for me to run wild. I have my own room with bunk beds. I'm a big girl so I'm sleeping on the bottom bunk. For weeks, all Daddy has talked about is the ocean and finally today I got to see the ocean. Even though I visited the ocean with Grandma and Grandpa Bott last year, I didn't really remember the sand. I didn't like the feel of it at first and told Mommy "eewww!" But I quickly got over that and ran into the ocean. Daddy took me out pretty far into the ocean. I loved it and even though I feel on my face, it wasn't enough to keep me from enjoying the water.

Lilly enjoyed the water too. As you can see from the video, she had her first spill too! Mommy thought she was back enough from the water that the little waves wouldn't hurt Lilly, but one was too much for her and sent her toppling. We sure had a good time at the beach. I didn't want to leave, but Daddy said we'd go out early again tomorrow.

Now that Mommy and Daddy have a new camera & Pawpaw brought his laptop to the beach with us, we'll try to update everyone each day on our vacation. We're going to visit a botanical garden this week and maybe even the aquarium. Mommy said we'd have to see because it's still an hour drive to the aquarium and she isn't too eager to get back into the car with us.

Tah-tah!

Belle

Big girls

Well, since everyone has been begging Mommy for some news.... we thought we'd better get on Blogger and write to everyone.

We've had our first hotel stay during Labor Day weekend. Let's just say Belle and I didn't care for it and so Mommy and Daddy paid a hefty price. In the end, we won. We came home early and got to sleep in our own beds. Although, we had plenty of rest on Sunday, Belle is still a bit cranky and tired this week. Geesh, she can be a grouch! Daddy turned her crib into a big girl bed, which I think is cool too. I just need another inch or two and I'll be able to climb into Belle's bed too! It sure looks cool without bars all around you. Course, I think Mommy and Daddy would prefer to have the bars, as I hear them talk about how Belle is up several times a night and wonders into their bedroom.

So Mommy and Daddy are really pushing Belle on this "big girl" thing. First the bed and then the potty. Several times a day she has to sit on this thing called a potty. I guess, I wouldn't mind it either if I was getting candy and presents for it! Belle also got a "big girl" haircut on Monday. Mommy said she bribed her with candy during the haircut. Afterward, Mommy took her to the toy store, where she bought Belle a train called Henry from the Thomas the Train set. I sure like that train too, but Belle is pretty stingy with it.

Belle was supposed to start pre-school on Wednesday, but because it's been a week full of changes, Mommy said she could start on Monday. They're hoping for the best that she'll actually enjoy school and like her teacher. From what I heard, their first meeting didn't go well at orientation.

As for me, I'm busy learning how to walk. I still haven't mastered standing on my own, but I'm getting there. With the help of a toy car that you push (that apparently Aunt Sara bought for Belle) I'm able to walk across the living room floor. I can still scoot pretty fast on my hands and knees too.

Sorry, we don't have photos or video of me walking or Belle's new haircut for you to see. Mommy and Daddy's camera broke. They are shipping it off to be repaired so hopefully we'll have photos again soon. In the meantime, here's a picture of Belle playing in her classroom with her new teacher.

Schoolhouse Rocks!

Belle
It's been so hot lately that I've been spending a lot of time indoors. Needless to say, I'm feeling a little cooped up. I've been itching to get out so much that today I asked if we could go see Elmo! Daddy laughed at me. So I asked if we could go to church. Of course, we missed church this morning because Lilly and me are sick. Actually Mommy is too. We're pretty sure we got a disease (virus) from the swimming pool last week. It's called hand,foot and mouth disease. We all have snotty noses, sore throats and blisters in our mouth. And we're tired! So we've been hanging out all weekend. One thing I like to do when I hang out is watch videos. One of my favorites is Conjunction Junction, Junction, Junction on Schoolhouse Rocks! I also like Lolly, Lolly Lolly's. It's fun to sing along too. Mommy says I should enjoy my time at home because before too long I start pre-school. Two mornings a week, I'll be attending Growing Place at Christ Church on Quarrier Street. It's a lot of change so Daddy is taking me to orientation this week so I can see my classroom and meet my teacher.

Belle well-visit update: She weighs 30 lbs. 2 oz. and is 37 1/2 inches tall.

Lilly
Boy, being sick is for the birds. I can't breath out of my nose, which makes it difficult to eat, sleep, or well, do anything. It's been a rough couple of days with this virus. Daddy has been nice enough to keep me company at night when I can't sleep and I'm just out of sorts.
I'm still having fun playing with Belle, though. Yesterday, we were playing in her room with our Noah the Arc animals and she pulled out her Playschool doctor's set. So I decided I wanted to play with that too. But she didn't want me to play with it so she took all the instruments and ran to the other side of the room. Now that I've mastered crawling on my knees I was on her like a fly on honey in no time. She seems to get annoyed with me a lot and sometimes she tells me to "Go in the other room." But Mommy tells her to be nice and share so I got to play doctor afterall.

Lilly well-visit update: 19 lbs. 2 oz. 29 1/2 inches long. Still only two bottom teeth.

Standing strong

It's nothing for me to pull myself up to a standing position now. I can scoot/crawl along the floor at a pretty quick speed when I have a purpose and destination, like trying to catch Mommy as she heads out the door in the mornings. It won't be long before I'm able to stand without holding on to furniture and then walking and keeping up with Belle (my ultimate goal.) Belle and I are having such a good time these days. I love to laugh at her and watch movies. I especially like to flap my arms to the music. Sometimes, though, Belle still gets annoyed with me and tells me no or "Go in the other room." It's nice when she bursts into my room in the mornings to greet me or when she hands me puffs at dinner because Daddy doesn't get them to me fast enough. We're playing together pretty well. We have the occasional fight over a favorite toy or book and sometimes it ends badly (like pages ripped out of books). For the most part, though, Belle and I are becoming best friends.

Hot days

Boy has it been hot outside! It's frustrating for me because Granny, Daddy and Mommy won't let me go outside to play. I keep hearing them talk about a heat index and say it's dangerous. All I know is it's sunny and there are things to do outside. Mommy took us on walks in the evenings early in the week, but even then it was pretty warm outside. We had to drink a lot of water when we came inside. I'm pretty frustrated just hanging out inside all day, every day. So to change things up a bit, Mommy took us to Granny's on Thursday to play there. We spent a good bit of time at Granny & Pawpaw's last weekend since Granddaddy was in from Florida for a visit. When we visit Granny and Pawpaw, I like to play in the windowsill.

ABC's