Pumpkin Patch Time

We were really excited to go to a pumpkin patch with Miles this year. We got him a little pumpkin jack-o-lantern bucket last week and he's been a big fan of it so we knew he'd get a kick of seeing lots of pumpkins. We went to a farm really close to our place. It turned out to be such a great farm. Miles got to run around, chitchat with the sheep and the alpacas, and play in their different play sets. Miles even went through this long winding tunnel all by himself. He LOVED it and clapped for himself when he got out. haha 

We also went on a hayride around the property which turned out to be so big! We had a great time. The weather was just perfect. It's been raining one day and the sunny the next during the week, so we figured we needed to take advantage of the sunny days as much as we can! 

It was really nice to just relax at home this weekend. We did some major cleaning/organizing in the house. Since we have moved in, we have used our first level (which is pretty much just the foyer area), as storage for boxes, baby bath tubs, swing, etc etc. We took apart the baby swing, baby rocker that were just sitting there and got them all to fit in one box! It felt great to put everything in boxes and tucked away. We're getting ready for family visiting us at the end of the month! (We're excited!) =)

Miles' Update - 18 Months Old!

Our baby is a year and a half old today! I can't believe how fast time is going. With Miles being more expressive, independent, and active, his newborn days seem so far away now. It's remarkable how much development a baby goes through in such a short period of time. Miles has definitely bloomed on the social side. Or maybe he's always been pretty social. hehe He loves to play with kids and adults. He definitely responds to you in his own babble (which I'm understanding more and more) when you ask him questions. He loves to sing and dance. He expresses when he wants things and when he doesn't ("No!") He is generally very happy (Tim & I are very happy for that). Miles is great eating with his spoon and fork and loves to eat if he likes the food. But if he doesn't want a specific food, he definitely expresses that too. Miles loves to copy what I do like vacuum, wipe the table or wipe the milk he spills on the floor =P. He copies what I say or sing, which is pretty funny. It's so fun to watch him grow & learn! I love how he gets/looks when he's proud of himself for doing something. It's too cute!

Miles is very interested in everything! He loves to look out the window to see many different things like birds, cars driving by, balloons, the trees, and Papa coming home from work. It's so cute to see him play with his toys and read his books. Such a little human! =) It's just so amazing to me. I love his hugs & kisses and I think many people do since he's pretty friendly with everyone. I love how Miles sings the Alphabet song (clearer and clearer!) and counts 1 to 10 in different languages. He just amazes and makes us so proud.

We had his 18 month check up today and he did very well. He wasn't a fan of the doctor looking in his ear though. He was very friendly with the staff - blew kisses to the nurse and waved hello multiple times! I let him play a bit longer in their waiting area after his checkup because he loved the train set so much. He ended up dancing with a little girl there too. haha 

The doctor said he's doing really well.. her only comment was he's a little skinny. Hah! It made me laugh a little. I never really thought Miles was skinny. 

Anyway.. here are his 18 month stats:

Weight 24 lbs 5 oz (10th percentile)

Height 31 in (20th percentile)

Head Circumference 18.5 (25th percentile)

Counting in English & Tagalog!

During lunch, Miles and I counted in English and Tagalog.. Mama needs to learn how to count in Arabic so we can do that together too! hehe Maybe we'll record that one later with Papa!
 

September Recap & A Wedding!

In the month of September alone, we traveled to 6 states! We flew or drove to Vermont, New Jersey, New York, Georgia, South Carolina, and Michigan! It has been such a whirlwind. Every trip was fun in its own right. I can't believe we did that much traveling! Miles was amazing through it all.

Recently, we went to Michigan for one of my best friend's wedding. We flew out last Wednesday. Tim's parents picked us up from the airport and we got to spend a couple of days with them. Miles had so much fun with them. He even got to play with his cousins Gabe and Grace on Friday morning before we headed out for Ann Arbor. It was cute to see them play in their grandparents' house. He was pretty surprised to see kids that morning.

After Cass City, we headed down to Ann Arbor to start the wedding celebration! Friday was the wedding rehearsal & dinner. It's always so much fun to hang out with my friends. They loved seeing Miles and Miles definitely loved hanging out with them. We were all so excited for our friends Carla & David to get married. The wedding was on Saturday at St. Mary Catholic Church. The last time I went to mass at that church was with Carla during college. =) It feels like so long ago! The wedding was beautiful and the reception was a lot of fun. Miles was dancing all night long! There were many kids at the reception, so Miles had a lot of fun with them. But then again, he could dance and have fun all by himself too! haha (I love my baby!) 

We stayed at The League (the wedding reception was held there) and my friends stayed there too. It was nice to be on the same floor and just hang out without having to worry about driving and meeting up, etc etc. It felt like we were in a dorm! =) We walked around Ann Arbor in the evenings. So fun.

On Sunday, our flight was late evening. It gave us plenty of time to hang around campus. It was neat to go to North Campus again and show Miles the School of Music. We even got to watch a symphony orchestra practice! Miles loved hearing all sorts of instruments as we walked down the hallway of the practice rooms. Tim's brother Kareem and his family, and Tim's cousin Jameel met us up in Ann Arbor. My brother Herman also drove to meet us up. It was a mini party outside of our car for a little bit since Miles fell asleep in the car! It was really nice to see family even if it was a very short visit. Miles woke up and played with his cousins Mena and Sophia for a little bit too!

Another Michigan Trip!

Another trip for the Khoury Family! We flew out to Michigan on Wednesday night. We are going to one of my best friend's wedding this weekend in Ann Arbor. Before the wedding festivities, we wanted to spend some time with Tim's parents. Miles got to play with his grandparents today. He's having a good time so far - exploring their house, dancing around, playing with all of the toys here from Papa's childhood, and eating lots of food! We try to get as much in in our Michigan trips as we can.

US Open Women's Finals

This past weekend, we headed to the City to hang out with my friends Melissa and Daisy. The 3 of us watched the US Open Women's Finals! Tim and Miles hung out in the City. It was such a great experience and an amazing match to watch! We had fairly good seats and saw the game nicely! Before the match, Andre Agassi was recognized. And Andy Roddick did a little speech for him. That was a nice surprise!

The match was supposed to be on Saturday night but since there was a tornado (!!) - it got rescheduled to the next day at 4:30pm. It was pretty cool to watch a day turn night game! =)

Since we didn't have a game to watch on Saturday, we all hung out in the City during the day. At night, my friends took me out for a little pre-birthday celebration. It was so fun to hang out with them. I really do have wonderful friends. Such a memorable birthday weekend!

It was fun hanging out and walking in New York City. We rode the train from Connecticut and we stopped at Grand Central Station. It is such a beautiful station. Would have been cool to see a mob dance happen there! hehe

Where did Summer go??

The air got crisp overnight! Where did summer go? 

It has definitely been a very busy season. We traveled so much and to so many different places. Over Labor Day weekend, we took a little family trip to Vermont. Tim and I went skiing in Vermont years ago but we never got to see too much of the state when we went. Vermont makes state #11 for Miles! Our little traveler was great. He slept and traveled well. He's always been so alert but during this trip, I feel like he was really noticing everything! 

We drove around Vermont.. stopped at cheese farms/stores, random farm stands, and a surprise waterfall off the road. Vermont is gorgeous. It was so lush and green everywhere. The mountains were just filled with trees. They look like broccoli since there were so many all clumped together. We saw lots of animals during our drive and while stopping at some farms. Miles loved the sheep we saw at one cheese farm we stopped at. It was very cute to see his reactions. We also visited the Ben & Jerry's Factory and did their factory tour. They give you a pretty big sample of ice cream at the end of the tour. We also stopped at Woodstock just for kicks. It's just a small town. Nothing really special =P It was a great family outing. Lots of driving but it was relaxing and the view couldn't be beat! Speaking of driving, from our last restaurant stop in Vermont all the way to our driveway, Miles was "talking" and singing the entire time! Who needs a radio when we got Miles. ; )

Michigan Trip

Miles and I have been such travelers! We flew out to Michigan on the 9th and came back on the 19th! And during that time, we had a lot of fun with family & friends. The main events I had were my friend Carla's bachelorette party & wedding shower one weekend, and my college roommate Sarah's wedding the next weekend. Those celebrations were all amazing in its own right. The bachelorette & wedding shower were a ton of fun - which is pretty normal with my set of friends. My friend Sarah's wedding was just beautiful. It was at the Museum of Art in Ann Arbor. Amazing place to have a wedding & reception. I could write about those events on their own. During the week, Miles & I got to have a lot of fun with my sister & her 2 kids and both of my brothers!

It's pretty neat & very coincidental that my siblings and I could meet up in Michigan. My sister flew out from California, my oldest brother flew from the Philippines, and my brother in Michigan didn't have to go on-site for his job that week. The stars aligned! =) During the week, my nephew Ian turned 4. We had a little party for him at home. It consisted of a Big Boy lunch (it was Ian & Lily's first time at that restaurant). Ian was pretty excited to see a strawberry sundae for his birthday at the end of the meal =) We also danced around at home, had a nice dinner with cupcakes & a cake! And ended the day with some bubbles outside. My sister got the 2 older kids a bubble blower thing... Miles enjoyed every bit of this activity.

We also visited the Ann Arbor Hands On Museum which all 3 kids loved. On another day, we went to the Detroit Zoo. The weather was perfect but a bit too sunny for the animals, I guess, because a lot of them weren't out and about. We did get to closely see giraffes eat their lunch which was pretty cool. The kids had a lot of fun at the zoo and it was neat to see Miles' reactions to the animals.

It was such a busy week! But we had a great time and I'm so grateful still that I got to see all of my siblings and close friends in Michigan. 

Here is a little video fhte 3 cousins dancing around in morning. Pardon the sheets & blankets all around. We were a packed house that week!! =)

Miles and Lola

This past weekend, we took a road trip to New Jersey. This makes state #11 for Miles.. our little Miles has a lot of miles under his belt! =) We stayed at my cousin's house (technically, she is Tatay's [dad's] 1st cousin). They got to meet Miles and Tim for the first time. My oldest brother met us up there too! He is attending a training in Washington DC and so we made NJ the meeting point! =) 

The greatest part of this trip is definitely Miles meeting Lola. (Lola means grandma in Tagalog) Technically, Lola is my dad's aunt but in the Philippines, no one really uses the term great-aunt. Growing up in the Philippines, Lola helped take care of me and my siblings. She moved to the U.S. 10 years ago and moved to New Jersey where her daughter & family lives. The last time I saw Lola was when she first moved to the U.S. and she even attended my high school graduation. So much has happened in the past 10 years! It was so precious to see Miles and Lola together this weekend.. generations and generations apart - 88 years. She had a great time with Miles this weekend. Nagigil lagi =) I can't wait to see her again and for her to play with Miles again.

Miles is so good at knowing people so quickly. After introducing people to Miles in New Jersey, he knew each one so well. It was so easy to ask Miles to high five Lola specifically, and he would actually go to her and do it. He could be in the living room and you can ask him to go to a specific person and he will go to a whole different room to find that person. Miles amazes me daily! I'm so proud and grateful for him everyday.

Videos!

I haven't had a lot of time to post lately. When Miles is awake, I'm busy busy playing with him .. he's running all over the place. And when he's napping, I try to get as much work done as I can. And.. to eat. =) The past couple of weekends, we've been relaxing more at home. Trying to finally clean up more and decorate. We've also been going to a really nice farmers market. It's great to just go there for a little outing, eat lunch, and enjoy whatever activities/events are happening for that day. Last Sunday, we got to see a Fife & Drum parade at the farmers market. Very cool. This coming weekend, we'll be heading to New Jersey to visit some family. But for the rest of the summer, I feel like every weekend is booked! Crazy!

I've been recording Miles a lot more since he is so active and hilarious. His personality has always cracked me up. Even in his newborn days, I've always felt that Miles' personality has shown. And now that he's an active toddler, his personality definitely shines though! I love talking to him and asking him all sorts of questions and he always has a response for me. I love being able to ask him to do something or find something, and he listens and does it! I've always been and still am so proud of my little boy. He's growing up so fast.

Here are some videos I've recorded lately. Enjoy! I can watch 'em over and over! haha
I lovve Miles' laugh!


Dancing around in the house


Miles learned how to wink! hehe