Family Photos by CAT

As mentioned in one of the 782 posts I recently did about our trip to Oklahoma, a week into our stay we had an appointment to meet up with my pledge sister, Charity, who owns her own photography business, CAT Photography. After seeing the work that she'd done on her blog and specifically for some of our other Kappa Delta sisters, I knew having her take pictures of our family was a must. It also just so happened to be right at Porter's birthday, so I figured it could double as his one-year shoot. Perfect timing!

Char did a fantastic job working/playing with our not-always-willing-to-sit-and-say-cheese models, and made the process as quick and easy as possible. (Which was important, as they'd been woken early from naps and were getting hungry for dinner!) I was anxious to see the results as soon as we parted ways, but of course realized Char needed a reasonable time to edit, etc. It wasn't too long before we were able to view our proofs on her website, and since then I have been excitedly awaiting the arrival of our disc of images in the mail. This afternoon I nearly squealed with delight when I saw a package from CAT Photography sitting on our front porch!

Enough of me talking. Here are my favorites of the bunch. (Okay, so it may or may not be the whole bunch...)

Charity, I can't thank you enough for capturing our boys so beautifully. We appreciate the time you spent with us in person, as well as the time it took to pore through pictures after our shoot. We are so pleased with the outcome, and you'd better bet we'll be calling upon your talent again in the future!

Next up for Kyndal? Narrowing down these lovelies for Christmas cards and printing to hang on our walls! I'm open to suggestions... :)

Buddy Bonding Time

Today after our music class Kaiser, Porter, and I were excited to meet up with Amy, Koen, and Tavin for some playtime at Mellon Park. Once upon a time, we were lucky enough to see the Melders several times a week, but lately our schedules have been causing us to miss each other. The boys and I pulled up about a quarter to twelve and were glad to see that our friends were already there! It wasn't long after our arrival that the kiddos were hungry for lunch, so we sat down at a picnic table to eat. During the course of the meal, Tavin wandered over to a little playhouse with a table inside, and Koen and Kaiser decided to bring their food over to keep him company.

 Precious little friends.

 Porter stayed on Mommy's lap, as he's not yet old enough to eat unattended.

Generous Tav came over to share some crackers with us.

 A grin or a grimace?

After filling their tummies, the boys got to runnin' and playin' on the equipment. They did a wonderful job with one another, which afforded Amy and I the opportunity to have some quality catch-up time. Of course, Tavin took a spill and I had to keep very close tabs on Porter, but on the whole the boys were pretty low-maintenance. Amy and I both noticed the sweetness in the way Koen and Kaiser interacted. These two have been buddies for just over two years and have spent quite a bit of time together, but I feel like just recently Kaiser is more capable of "keeping up" with Koen and being more of a "big boy" peer to him. It brought a smile to my face watching them with one another.

 I didn't snap quickly enough, but Kaiser was trying to pose with his chin propped on his hand just like Koen. :)

 Sharing some of Koen's yummy snack.

Sliding is way more fun when you do it with a friend!

It seems like only yesterday that K & K looked like this...

October '09. Sigh.

Even though he mostly hung with the mommas, Porter had his share of fun at Mellon Park, too. He did some climbing and cruising, and we couldn't let an opportunity to swing pass us by!

 My squishface.

"Wheeeee!"

Amy, Koen, and Tavin, thanks so much for a fun time at the playground! We hope to end this streak of incompatible schedules and be seeing a LOT more of you in the coming months!

Chilly Evening Walk

Today's beautiful fall weather was a welcome change from last night's yuckiness. After dinner this evening, we decided to take advantage of it. Brett loaded Kaiser and Porter into their wagon, and we headed out on a short walk around the neighborhood before bed. As expected, the temperature dropped as the sun set, so we bundled up the boys. 

The turned cap was his doing, not mine.

Don't be fooled; Daddy wasn't pulling them that fast.

I suspected it was only a matter of time before the boys took issue with the apparel on their heads...

Aaaand off it goes!

 Porter soon followed suit.

 Refused to wear his hat, but Mommy insisted upon his hood!

Not sure how many of these evenings we'll have left before winter sets in and bitter temps + snow make family walks impossible! We'll take all that we can get. :)

Halloween 2011

So I know you've been on the edge of your seat, waiting with baited breath for the big reveal of the Braly boys' Halloween costumes. Right?! Well, I won't keep you in suspense any longer. :)

Today I spent the day with a dynamic dinosaur...

Fierce, but friendly.

Gotta get a shot of that tail!

...and an endearing elephant.

This costume may come as no surprise; Kaiser sported it on his first Halloween!

We started our morning off right by steppin' out in style for storytime at our library. Due to travel/appointments/other scheduling conflicts, it's been a while since we've been able to attend. Kaiser and Porter were so excited to see Miss Ing again; wearing their costumes was just an added bonus!

Methinks a certain reptile is enthralled...

Miss Ing's super silly.

Reading Mouse's First Halloween to the kiddos.

After about half an hour of songs and stories, we headed to the children's section to select some new books to check out. We've been without our library stash for a week now, and in the Braly casa that's no bueno!

"Got any books about pachyderms?"

After loading up at the library, we stopped at Target to make a return and pick up a few items. I also fed the boys animals their lunch there.

Dinosaurs like carrots -- who knew?

This elephant dined on turkey, cheese, and apples.

After returning home for nice, long afternoon naps (apparently being a dino is exhausting; Kaiser had to be woken a little after 5:00!), I fed the kiddos their dinner and got them back into their costumes for trick-or-treating. Miss Kacia, Mr. Andy, and Baby Harlow were coming over around 5:45, and though we were all excited about it, Kaiser had been talking about their arrival all.day.long!

 Tickle/giggle-fest while we waited for our friends.

 Sweetest lil lamb I ever did see!

(Kacia is uber-talented and knitted her cap!)

 Beautiful mommy with less-than-cooperative babes.

 Porter looks like he's asking, "Why God? Why?!?"

Unfortunately, an hour or so before we were due to go out, it started to rain. It wasn't coming down too hard, though, so we were determined not to let the nasty weather thwart our plans. We drove to a street not far away in our neighborhood, parked our cars at the end of it, and set out. Turns out it was quite the hoppin' spot!

Stinkin' cute family.

 "Let the candy-collecting begin!"

H & P kick back and leave the work to K.

Kaiser really seemed to enjoy trick-or-treating this year. (Although, considering how much he loves the goodies he acquired, I can't say I'm shocked.) He did a great job showing off his "ROAR!!!" to the nice people who answered their doors and said thank you fairly consistently. I was a proud dino mama!

 Several people guessed he was an alligator.

 Walking up all by himself!

Impressive pumpkin display at one house.

We took turns, but I think he especially liked holding Miss Kacia's hand. :)

This house had a crazy lawn full of at least a dozen inflatables!

I'm not sure how many houses we stopped at, but after about 45 minutes we were wet and cold. Porter was especially cranky and had started crying, and we all just knew it was time to call it a night and go home. Before stripping down the boys, I asked if we could pose for a family picture. 

 As good as we got. :)

 Showing their claws!

We're so wild.  

After our dinosaur, elephant, and lamb were sound asleep, Brett, Andy, Kacia, and I sat down to enjoy a dinner of taco soup and cornbread and dessert of pumpkin chocolate chip cookies (Thanks, Kac!). Then we parked it on the couch to watch last night's Dexter. (They're some of those fellow fans I mentioned yesterday.) A perfect way to end a Halloween night, if you ask me!

Just for kicks, I thought I'd look back at the past few October 31sts to see how these sons of ours have grown. (You know, because I never do that...)

Getting cuter by the year, if you ask me!