Little Piggies

Levi has been putting up a big smile lately. It's fun to see his personality start to emerge.

Rumble Tumble

This morning we checked out a play place called Rumble Tumble. We all got a bit of exercise as we explored the trampoline, tunnels, uneven bars, basketball court, and more.... What a blast! Jude's friend Ben and his mom joined us on this outing. We'll definitely be adding this to our list of fun things to do!

3 Months

I can't believe another month has gone by. Here's what I've been up to -


I'm mostly waking up only 1 time a night. Some time between 2 and 4 AM.

I love to stand up - so mom got the exersaucer out of storage for me. It tires me out quickly, especially when my big brother plays with me. But I'm fascinated by it all.

Nap time is getting better. I've been sleeping for longer than 45 min intervals some of the time. My new noise machine helps to drown out some of the noise my big brother makes while I try to catch some winks.

Most of the time I'm a happy-go-lucky type of guy. I giggle and am starting to talk more. Unfortunately for my parents, I'm not a big fan of cuddling. They still sneak in kisses... and that makes me smile.

I really enjoy spending time outside. Although it's getting colder out, so I get nice and toasty all bundled up.

Today I got a rough weigh in- I think I weigh somewhere between 15 and 16 lbs. I just love to eat! (It's all mom's milk for me though...)

This month I tried to get a lot of time in with my daddy... his 12 week paternity leave has finally come to an end.

Every night I'm still getting a bath. It doesn't really bother me, but I tend to spit up A LOT. This usually occurs 15-30 minutes after I eat. So the bath help me stay fresh for all the ladies. (I'm still single....)

My hands have become useful. I'm able to grab a couple of toys now. My favorite one is in the picture above. It's easy to grab and makes a couple of nice subtle sounds. And because I love to have something in my mouth, this rattle seems to do the trick. (Otherwise, I'm usually able to find my fist. It follows me everywhere.)

Thanksgiving '09

Kids Table

Em and Levi

Jud and Levi

Gemma and Jude

Boo and Eleanor

Adult Table

This year the Hartter's had so much to be thankful for.... But most of all we are thankful for all of our wonderful family! Once again we were invited to spend the day up in Brunswick with the Caswell clan. We had a delicious meal and a wonderful time chatting with everyone. Joel and I were having such a great time, that we forgot to take our camera out. Luckily, Marsey was snapping shots. I stole the pictures for Girlwind. And more importantly, Jud's father, Edward was documenting the day with his camera. You can check out his photos here: http://www.edcaswell.com/events/thanksgiving%202009/index.htm?1

Dover Library

Jude continues to absorb words like a sponge. In search of some different books, we've been visiting our local library. Not only is it home to many books, he also gets to play with trains, check out some gerbils and fish, and play with a small house. We like the fact that we can also check out free passes to many nearby exhibits, including more children's museums.






He gets so excited to read.....

Pictures from Around the House

Venturing Out on My Own

With Joel's leave about to end, I've been working up the courage to take both boys out on some outings. The museum was a natural choice for our first outing....it's close, familiar to Jude, and very kid friendly. We've been on a few outings now and all have gone off without a hitch. I think I can, I think I can, I think I can....

J-U-D-E

Jude has mastered recognizing just about all of his letters. Now, he's begun to realize that when you string letters together..... you can form different words. He likes to call us over to the fridge directing us to spell different words with his magnetic letters. He's conquered spelling his own name....

Bowdoin's Arctic Museum

Wednesday, Levi, Ray, and Double J (Jack stayed home...he's healing but wearing a cone) took a trip up to Brunswick. Mars and I took all of the kids to campus to take a look at some of the arctic animals. Jude has been studying many different animal habitats through one of his favorite books. He was able to recognize many of the "stuffed" (taxidermy type) animals that the museum had on display. Musk ox, arctic fox, caribou, harp seal, snowy owl, and polar bears were some of the animals we got to take a look at. They even had the horn of a narwhal. The weather was so pleasant that we got to goof around on campus too.

Dancing at the Gazebo

Checking out the rocks on display from down below.....

A friendly game of hide and seek....

Can you find all of them?