Happy Thanksgiving

From The Rankin Family

We are thankful for so many things this year...the birth of Andrew, health, and the support of our loving families. We are thankful for our friends and all the moments we have shared with them. And we are also thankful for the opportunity to share our lives with those around us. We hope that you all are touched in some way this holiday through loving family, friends, and our Lord and Savior. Happy Thanksgiving to all of you!

Blue Birdhouse

Today while mom was out and Andrew was napping, dad and I went out to the garage and built a birdhouse together. I've been watching the birds all summer and with winter coming, I really felt they needed a real home in our backyard. So, with the scraps in our garage we built this sweet little home for the birds.

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Of course, we had to paint it. My first choice was yellow. Lowe's didn't come through for us though with a birdhouse size can of paint in yellow. So instead, the bird house is blue! Not a bad choice, it's my favorite color. I love doing art, painting, and making things. So this was a real treat for me to work in daddy's workshop.

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Now, we just need to find a place to hang it!

Fall Fun

We had a beautiful day here and I got to go outside with my first truck! My cousin, Will, donated some of his old toys to me and I'm loving them! I knew what to do with this big yellow Tonka Truck the minute I saw it. I definitely have some of my dad's gene's in me. Not only do I look a bit like him but I also have his affinity for trying to see how things work. I had the wheels off in no time.

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Here I am checking out the grass. Unlike my sister, I love the feel of the grass between my fingers and honestly, it doesn't taste too bad either!

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My First Musical

From The Rankin Family

Ainsley, mom, and dad had a rare treat on Thursday night. Thanks to Papa and Gigi, we were able to go out just the three of us. It had been a long time since we had some alone time with just Ainsley and she has had a big year! A new brother, enrolling in speech classes, parents who are busy...we wanted to reassure her and let her know that she has a very special place in our family and we are thankful of the blessing that she is to us. So we all got dressed up and headed off to dinner. One of her favorite spots is California Pizza Kitchen, so that's where we went. After a pepperoni pizza for three, we were off to the big event!

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Ainsley's first musical! I got the tickets awhile back for opening night and it was so exciting. Ainsley couldn't wait to see George and the Man with the yellow hat on stage. We took some time to let her know it was a story being played out right in front of her, that there would be music and dancing, and that there wouldn't be a break for her to go potty for awhile. She was absolutely enthralled.

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I know it made an impression. This morning I found her dancing and singing "That's a Meatball" in the family room. It was a pretty cute sight. I wish I could have got that on video!

Belton/Grandview Train Ride

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After a long period of fascination with trains, Ainsley finally got to ride on a real one with her Monday morning play group. We made the drive down to Belton for an authentic train ride experience. Here is the train conductor.

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The train is run by a group of volunteers and they make a great effort to keep it vintage. There were old suitcases on the train and really cool lights on the ceiling. It was a 45 minute ride to the next station up the tracks and then the train went "backwards" all the way back to the depot. Here is Ainsley getting her ticket punched. The guy had an authentic ticket puncher that made a really cool shape.

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Andrew came along for the ride. He did great and really enjoyed looking out the window. A friend of mine got this picture of the two of us. One of the few with just me and him.

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Ainsley enjoyed looking out the window as well. She was pretending she was on a treasure hunt and enjoyed playing "I Spy" as well.

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Overall, this was a great raveling experience. I'm not sure how they would do on a long train ride. We're hoping to take them on the train to St. Louis one day. I guess will find out if a short trip is what makes the difference.

Happy Halloween 2009

Happy Halloween! This year we were off to Papa and Gigi's for some treating. No tricking here. They have a great neighborhood and Ainsley even got to trick or treat with her new little friend who was snow white.

What was Ainsley you ask, well this year she really wanted to be a princess. For a few days it was Sleeping Beauty, then it was Ariel and she kept waffling. So, here I was running out of time to get her a costume. Of course I was looking forward to the last minute discount but equally concerned I wouldn't get the desired look. So off we went to shop, Ariel, no Sleeping Beauty, no Snow White and then I said, "No matter which one you pick, you must wear clothes underneath your costume." (It was going to be very cold on Halloween night.) Fearing she would ruin the look she said, "Mom, I'll be the dragon costume that we already have." (I had picked this up for free at a garage sale this summer.) We stopped at one last place, Target. She saw this costume and was hooked and so was I. It was warm, she could wear a cream shirt underneath, and it was well constructed. Happiness all around, including a 30% discount :)

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And then there was Andrew. He was the duck/chicken that Ainsley was for her first halloween. (Minus the striped tights.) I think he is equally as cute as a duck/chicken!

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Here is the finished pumpkin carving project. Ainsley is fascinated by the moon, we always look for it and talk about it's shape.

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Pumpkin Carving 2009

Well, nothing has changed much on the pumpkin carving front in the last year. Ainsley is still not willing to dig in. This year she did take a hold of the spoon and make an effort at some scoops in cleaning out the pumpkin.

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Then Ainsley decided that the pumpkin smelled funny. This has been her new thing lately, "Mom, I smell something pewy." And once, I hear that it's all over. She's usually right, and often it's Andrew. But you know there was no cleaning out the pumpkin after that statement. Dad, was called in for the remainder of the clean out.

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Andrew was completely unsure of the whole pumpkin thing. He looked inside it, didn't even make an attempt to touch it, and when I helped he remained unfazed. Admittedly, I was disappointed.

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Perhaps next year will get more of a reaction out of him. Right now, he is just content with his thumb and his lambie.

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She was definitely into the carving portion more this year. We purchased a new pumpkin carving knife but she's still not quite strong enough to do it without some assistance. She still loves to yank out the carved pieces though. This year, no toothpick necessary!

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Our girl is a puzzle fanatic. Have I mentioned we are up to 300 piece puzzles with her. She can really get going if the puzzle has discernible colors. So it was no surprise that she loved fitting the pumpkin top back on. "Mom, it's like a puzzle!"

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First Fall/Winter Walk

The weather has been strange here in Missouri. We've had a really rainy October with a lot of really big temperature swings. Today it started off sunny and in the high 60s but by mid-afternoon we had gray skies and low 50s. Ainsley still really wanted to go for a walk though. So after what seemed like 30 minutes of preparation, we went out for the same length walk.

Fall raincoats and winter hats/mittens. I haven't quite gotten to the winter coat stage yet, but we are close. Andrew was not a fan of all the extra gear, not that you could tell by this picture.

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Ainsley loves walking with her dog Bolt. Usually Bolt is in a doll stroller, today we kept him warm by carrying him. I would not be surprised if he got a dog jacket yet this winter and a Christmas present. He goes everywhere with us, absolutely everywhere.

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Rosy cheeks, red noses, and cold hands when we got home. I need to stock up on some hot chocolate and marshmallows, Ainsleys drink of choice on days like this. (Sometimes, I think it's the whole premise for going on a walk in the first place.)

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Halloween Cookie Making

It's been rainy here and we've been stuck inside. So, mom and I made our annual halloween pumpkin cookies. This year I have been much more involved. I helped with the counting and measuring when we made the dough. Then, I got to help with the rolling of the dough. Mom even gave me the scraps so that I could really roll my own cookies! But then there was my favorite part, DECORATING!

I picked out some sprinkles at the store and mom let me go to town. By the time I was done, you couldn't even see the smiling pumpkin face underneath!

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Here's one of mom's decorated cookies. She only made two. I wonder why. :)

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Why is this one plain? Oh yes, we are going to frost these!

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Umm, Andrew is definitely suffering from second child syndrome. Can you believe that he has sampled these cookies!

Drinking!

Andrew is slowly graduating to a cup. I'm not sure why it has taken him so long to catch on. Perhaps it's because with the second child I decided to introduce water only or mommy's milk. (Bottle acceptance diminishes rapidly at this house and a cup is my only hope.) Or perhaps it's because the cup seems as big as he is. Whatever the case, I am glad he is finally getting the hang of it.

Ahh, a sippie cup.

From Andrew Tyndale Rankin

Look mom, so big!

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I really do know how to use this thing.

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He'll only drink about two ounces a day, but it's a start. He really enjoys just chewing on it and making squeaking noises on the rubber spout with his gums. Oh well, he's happy. What more could I ask for!

Harvest Party

Ainsley has made a few new friends lately and we were invited to a 4th birthday Harvest party this weekend. Ainsley had a lot of fun at the party with her new friend and experiencing some new fall activities.

Here she is painting a pumpkin. She made a very beautiful abstract design. I have had it on my window sill in the kitchen admiring it. I'm sure we'll be painting pumpkins again next year.

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They also had a pony ride and a hay ride. Of course Ainsley was excited about Shadow, the pony! She sure is an animal lover. There is a pet somewhere in our future, hopefully not something quite this large!

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Out of everything though, she was most excited about bobbing for apples. She talked about this from the time we got the invitation. She had a blast getting wet up to her pig tails. She had a few young coaches on the sideline tipping her off to the stem trick.

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Check it out mom, I got it!

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We're so thankful that God is bringing these new friends into Ainsley's life. This particular friend is close to our home out in Independence and he has also blessed us with a new friend down the street from Papa and Gigi's house. Even after three years of living in Missouri we are still finding our way and he is guiding us.

The Cider Mill and Pumpkin Patch

It was Andrew's first trip to the pumpkin patch this year and the weather did not cooperate. It was cold and gray, but we had fun anyway. We started off our annual excursion with a trip to the cider mil. Ainsley loves cinnamon and sugar donuts right out of the fryer! Guess what, Andrew does too! (And, I'm wondering why he's not so into his normal food right now. What with cookie and donut tastings who wants bland mushy apples.)

Hay rides, feeding the chickens, pony rides, and big orange round things. Andrew took it all in stride and we had a blast despite the chill in the air.

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Checking out the surroundings. I think he was a bit overwhelmed.

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Ainsley on the look out for the pumpkins. She's also checking out the very serious pumpkin cannon that the farm had. It was in working order and shot pumpkins out like you wouldn't believe. We also saw some camels you could ride.

The great pumpkin patch. We took the hay ride out to the u-pick pumpkin patch but didn't brave the mud. We have had a very rainy October and when we saw mud-caked tennis shoes on their way in, we thought we would play it safe and check out the pre-picked patch in the greenhouse.

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How tall are we this year. Andrew's getting a bit of a boost from mom so it's not accurate. However, if you could see the numbers you would notice Ainsley is past the 3 foot mark. Last known measurement 37.5 inches! She's up to my hip, it's amazing how fast they grow! Before I know it I bet Andrew will be taller than me.

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Milking the cows and feeding the REAL chickens. There's no fear in her. She's ready for the farm.

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Taking a break in the hay bale maze.

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We had a wonderful time and it's been exciting to have Andrew along with us this year.

Pie Making Extravaganza

Well, you saw the apple orchard pictures and after picking almost 3 whole bushels of apples this year we had to figure out what to do with all of them. So, mom, Gigi, me, and Andrew had a pie making party. Gigi wasn't so sure how this would all work out, you know having two small children around while peeling, coring, slicing, and rolling dough. I do know she sure didn't expect to get 12 whole pies made!

We got some great pictures of the day. How did I help? Well, I stirred the apples up. They made my hands sticky!

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And then I measured out the apples into Gig's big measuring cup.

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Then, we mixed in the cinnamon and sugar. (This was my favorite part. I wasn't exact on the measuring part because I knew I
would be eating here.)

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Here's Andrew helping. He sorted through some of the apples.

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And tried to taste some. Still no teeth, so the apples were still usable. (After a good washing of course!)

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And check it out, Andrew can palm an apple. Maybe basketball is in his future.

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It was a long one but we all smiled and really enjoyed that extra pie after dinner!