Rachel & Sean

From our little book worm.

February is here and Valentine’s Day is just around the corner.  For V. Day Sean is cleaning up our balcony and buying me plants to put out there.  I am hoping it will be a great place for Dean to play.  The weather is so nice we really should spend as much time outside as possible.  I still don’t know what I will be giving Sean.  Maybe, I should just count giving him a baby girl as his Valentine’s gift.  After all,  Miss Maggie Bea is Due to arrive in just five short weeks (well hopefully “short”).

We hope all of you have a wonderful holiday.

Martin Luther King Day was a great day!  We spent the morning at Manhattan Beach.  It was beautiful but chilly.  Then we had lunch at Cafe Rio.  We spent the afternoon at home, each doing what he or she wanted to do.  Sean played Zelda, Dean played with his toys and I organized two closets.  We finished the day by watching the last Harry Potter Movie.  Sean and I agree that all weekends should be three day weekends.

This week Dean turned eighteen months old and the expected arrival of our number two is officially two months away!  This preganancy has gone so much faster than my first, I have been so distracted.  At the moment, however, I can think of nothing else since she is kicking me in a very sensitive spot just now.  Dean is now 27 lbs. and 33 1/2 inches tall.  He loves cars, trucks, animals (especially dogs an birds), books and music.   He wants to spend all of his time running and playing.  I am starting to have a hard time keeping up with him.

We had a wonderful Christmas up north with the McKissick clan.  Dean got lots of cars and trucks, which made him very happy.

He also got a collection of musical instruments.

I got lots of wonderful presents, including a new lens for my camera that allowed me to capture this beauty.

It is mid-December.  This means that Dean is seventeen months, Maggie should be here in about three months, Sean is working hard to reach his billing requirements for the year and I am preparing for Christmas. 

In honor of the season we went to look at Christmas lights at the temple last night. 

Dean had a wonderful time running around and looking at the lights. 

This last photo I took this afternoon, it is so sweet I have to share it.

We went to the Bay Area for Thanksgiving.  It was wonderful to see family and friends.  Dean had a great time playing with his cousins and all of their toys.  

The Bay Area is beautiful this time of year.  I love LA but it was nice to see all the fall colors.  Dean loved playing in the leaves with his cousin JD. 

We went to San Francisco to see the Christmas decorations.  Here we are in front of the enormous Christmas tree in Neiman Marcus.

I love Halloween!  It is even more fun now that I have Dean to dress up.  Dean’s costume was pretty easy to put together this year, but I think it turned out pretty cute.  

He dressed up as Billy Beane, during his playing years, and Sean and I were his fans. 

These pictures are from our ward Trunk or Treat party last night.  We had a great time with our friends and neighbors, and of course all the kids were so cute.

In closing let me just say, Happy Birthday to my dear mother-in-law, Kelly!  You are wonderful you deserve a great day!

Dean had his 15 month checkup today.  He now weighs 25 lbs and 13 ounces.  He is 32 1/4 inches tall.  I am starting to have a hard time carrying him.  Partly because he is is getting so big and partly because my pregnant belly is ever expanding.  If I don’t hold Dean just right I get a little kick from baby girl McKissick, who is just defending her territory.  Dean-o needs to stop wanting me to carry him so often or these next 20 weeks will be hard for both of us.

I have been really bad about taking pictures lately, but I will post some new ones soon.

My boys and I went to the County Fair yesterday.  We love the fair!  We couldn’t go last year because I sprained my ankle, so we didn’t let anything keep us from going this year.  

We loved seeing all the animals, especially the babies.  Dean, as always, enjoyed pointing at the animals and saying dog. 

Dean really enjoyed the petting zoo until one of the little goats got right up in his face.  In this last picture you can see the look of concern in his face as the goat gradually moves closer.  I think it is safe to say that Dean loves animals as long as they stay at least two feet away from him.