Santa - Ho, Ho, Ho

Rylee and Alex with Santa

Spencer and Alicia & Will with Santa

Tha Gang with Santa and Alicia and Will with Santa

All the kids with Alicia and Drew with Santa

So I guess it has been a while since I have posted pictures on the blog - oops! A couple weeks ago we took our traditional visit to see Santa Claus. We were happy to see that Downtown Santa is still the city's best kept secret. There was a very short line, a beautiful setting and a wonderful, very patient Santa. My friends and I gathered all the kids and set out for the adventure.

Like I said, Santa is a VERY patient man. First, Will and Quinn were a bit scared of Santa. The words of Quinn sum it up best, "Santa scarry!" Second, trying to get all six kids to pose in a picture with Santa while a line is forming behind us was challenging. Third, we had our wonderful photographer, Suzie, there to capture just the right moments of each child alone with Santa -so we pushed our time with Santa just a bit.

As you can see Will would not sit with Santa. Santa told me to take a seat on his lap with Will on mine. Not sure I needed to be a part of the annual Santa picture, but it will make for some good memories. Since visiting Santa Will enjoys telling you what Santa says (see the video), but when asked, "Will, do you like Santa?" he will always answer, "No!" I'm sure his tune will change in years to come.

We wish you a very Merry Christmas!

Chris, Alicia and Will

HAPPY HALLOWEEN!!!!

Halloween started with an early call from our friends Sarah and Tim saying they were heading to the hospital! I guess they had a little trickster (coming a week early) that didn't want to miss out on the festivities. Rylee (their 4 yr old daughter) came to spend the day with us and also did some trick or treating last night. Baby Drew was quite the treat for the Easter family -- what a doll! I also added some pictures from cookie making with Grandma Peterson. Alivya and Rylee the other night.

All the kids had a great time getting in and out of the car as we took the Halloween costume parade around town. Will amused is mother and enjoyed his lion suit (except his mane had to be removed for the car rides). It got to be a late night so we were all thankful for the extra hour of sleep this morning.

Back to School Time

Back to School time has brought many changes to the Peterson household. Mommy had to go back to work at the beginning of August, and Daddy finished work at the end of August. Yes, Chris has made the big leap to go back to school (fulltime) this year. Last Monday was his first day of classes at the University Center in Sioux Falls. (I just had to take his picture with his school bag on the first day - thanks for playing along, honey!) He's taking many science classes this year in hopes of pursuing something in the medical field down the line. Medical School is something that has always been of interest for him, so we'll see where this adventure takes us. Many of Chris's classes are in the evening, so Will gets to stay home with Daddy instead of going to daycare. On Tuesdays Will goes to spend the day with Grandpa and Grandma Tatge and on Thursdays he's with Grandpa Peterson. Quite a great arrangement for one lucky little boy! The first week went quite well for everyone!

Next Sunday Will is going to be 18 months old. I can't believe we are 1/2 way to two already! He is developing like crazy recently. His language seems to be exploding with new words all the time. I think we have a little parrot living here. He is also getting quite good at using a fork and spoon. He wanted to stretch the walking milestone all the way to its end, but I think he should be pretty close to mastering it by 18 months. Will is choosing to walk more and more even though crawling gets him there faster. The other night our pastor's children, Anna and Jorey, brought Will their slide they have outgrown. Will just loves playing on it. Thank you Anna and Jorey - we'll have many hours and years of enjoyment with your slide! Will just loves being outside sliding, playing in the sandbox and riding on his truck. Not sure what we'll do when the season changes to winter.

Such a Big Boy!

Our summer is drawing to a close. Alicia had to go back to work last week, so Will has been back to daycare. He has enjoyed going to Grandpa and Grandma's house since Beth has been on vacation the last 2 weeks. Nothing like getting spoiled every day of the week!

We are amazed with all the learning Will is doing lately. Today he is 17 months old (nearly 1/2 way to 2!). For those of you waiting and waiting to here that Will is walking, we are almost there. He is so, so close to walking on his own. He is able to do it, but still lacks confidence in himself. The other night we tried giving him a spoon to use with his supper. We were amazed at how well he did. I added a video below! Will is also talking up a storm. He says quite a few words and uses about 3 baby signs. His favorite words are "juice" and "Bam-ba" (Grandpa). Our boy has also fallen in love with buses, trucks, semis, trains, etc. Every car ride and walk are so exciting for him when he spots those things "WOW!" is often heard from the backseat or stroller.

I'm adding a bunch of pictures from different things we did this summer. You will see pictures from the 4th of July when we had people over at our house and took a trip to the Washington Pavillion. There are also some pictures from when Alicia's aunt and uncle were here visiting from California. Grandpa and Grandma Peterson came over a couple weeks ago and built a small sandbox in the backyard. It is a favorite outdoor activity at our house. Last, are some pictures from a day we spent at the park with Kjersten and Zoe --- Will's friends from the baby class we attended last year. All three kids were born within a week of each other.

Summer Fun!

We are having a fun summer so far. It is going by so quickly (I don't like to think about it). It has been so fun to be home with Will! We have managed to keep very busy now that the weather has shaped up a bit. A couple days a week we meet another mom/daughter for some walking/running on the bike trails. The jogging stroller has turned out to be a great purchase. We have taken advantage of many of the Sioux Falls Park and Rec programs for kids this summer. So far we have been to a singing group (Do Re Let's Play), Kids Nite in the Park, Storybook Theater, and the wading pools (of course). Last week our niece, Alivya, was staying with Grandma Pam for the week so we had so much fun seeing her.

Today Chris, Will and I took a trip to the zoo. It was a beautiful summer day. Will seemed to enjoy the zoo. We'd have to say he got most excited about the lawnmower, a sculpture of a cat and the "concrete" ball in the bear exhibit. If you take a close look at the picture of Will looking through a window you will see his stylin' hair -- you can see he sucked his fingers and twirled his hair while traveling in his stroller through the zoo.

Will's new favorite pastime is shredding up old catalogs. You can see he was having a fun time tonight from the picture above!