Latest news: October 9th, 2006 - Holy smokes it's been a while since we gave you, our loyal audience, an update. We apologize for the lack of both photos and news but we've been quite enjoying ourselves. Here's a recap. (This turned out to be a really long update so I'll let you know right up front that there are new pictures posted and this blog entry is going up on Rilla's site too as there's no way I'm writing all of this twice!)

Once again, we survived June and exams. We even got in a camping trip with the Brissons. We spent the St. Jean Baptiste weekend in Robert Moses State Park. We had beautiful weather the whole weekend. It was even nice enough to go swimming on Saturday morning. Bronwyn didn't do too well sleeping in the tent the first night we were there (John finally knocked her out with a drive at about 11:30) but she settled a little better the next night. She and Carolane had fun playing at the swings (which were right behind our tent) and roasting marshmallows. She also learned that vodka is a grown-up drink as she couldn't understand why she couldn't have some of Mommy's lemonade. (She now makes me sound like I have a drinking problem as she often asks if I'm drinking vodka.) Rilla also celebrated the occasion of her first camping trip with her first real word. She'd been saying "mamamama" and "dadadada" for a little while but when "dadadada" tried to put her down for a nap, she made it perfectly clear who she wanted. After letting her cry for a few minutes to see if she would sleep, John went in to get her. As soon as she saw him - "DADA"! Oh well, Bronwyn said "mama" first!

July saw us heading east. We stopped in Cross Creek for a couple of days to see the Arseneaus. It was a pleasure as always and breaking up the 18 hour drive always makes for more pleasant travel. We made it to Cape Breton on the 3rd and stopped for a couple of days in Bras d'Or. We then embarked on our Newfoundland excursion. The ferry ride went fairly smoothly considering we were all up and on the go at 4:30am. A portable DVD player goes a long way to making any voyage with kids more enjoyable. Rilla napped in her stroller while John and I took turns pushing it through the hallways of the cabins (nice and quite with no bumps to drive over). Nanny took a couple of laps too if I recall correctly. The playroom wasn't very impressive but at least there was room for Bronwyn to run a little and Rilla to crawl. It helped get the kinks out for sure. We finally hit land sometime around 10:30pm. Auntie Shauna and Uncle Darrin met us at the top of the road to guide us to Cupids. So did a freakin' huge moose. Luckily, he had found something tasty by the side of the road because we'd have been toast if he'd been on the road. We got to spend 5 days in Newfoundland with Nanny, Auntie Shauna and Uncle Darrin (and of course Shadow and Chance). It wasn't nearly long enough but it was wonderful. We got to see Cupid's Haven (it's amazing) and we got to spend time with the Akermans. We also got to do some touristy things. We went whale watching in Bay Bulls which was awesome. Bronwyn was afraid to go anywhere near the rails on the boat until the first humpback spouted. Then we couldn't keep her away from them. I can't say whether the one that was right next to our boat was a big humpback whale or not but it was huge. We could see the lines on his pectoral fins through the water we were so close. We got to see lots of puffins and other birds along the cliffs. We were supposed to head right back to shore but there was a young humpback breaching so our captain took us over for another quick look. Bronwyn will probably still say the whale was waving at just her. Rilla slept through most of the cruise but did look awfully cute in her life jacket. Unfortunately due to a hard drive crash, we lost the pictures but I assure you, they were good. While in Newfoundland, we also got to visit Signal Hill and Salmon Cove Sands Beach. Who knew you could have grey sand? We left for Nova Scotia with a few tears on Monday night. We were on the waiting list for a cabin but we had no such luck. We had three berths though so off we went. Bronwyn got to meet everyone who had an upper bunk. Needless to say, if we ever tell her that she and Rilla need to share a room, she won't object to bunk beds. We made good time on the crossing and were home in New Waterford for lunch.

We took it pretty easy while in New Waterford. We celebrated Rilla's baptism while there. Thanks to everyone who came to celebrate it with us. Rilla was quite happy to be christened. She barely made a sound and was pretty social through the whole thing. We all had quite a laugh when Fr. Lester was in the middle of his sermon and couldn't help but proclaim "Oh my God, you look like your mother!!". Well, she does! After a week in New Waterford, it was time to pack up and head to Bras d'Or. We spent more time relaxing there. I believe we ventured as far as Baddeck with Jamie but that was about it. It was really nice to have the luxury of having the time to relax. Bronwyn and Rilla enjoyed the shore with Granny and Grampy. Bronwyn also had great fun finding shells at Aunt Judy's beach. All in all, it was a wonderful 3 weeks. We eventually started for home, driving down through Bangor, Maine and North Conroy,New Hampshire to avoid the long, boring trip through Quebec again. Our route took us through the White Mountains. They are beautiful and we're pretty sure we're going to back there for a camping trip next year.

So, you'd have thought we were pretty sick of travelling by August. However, after picking up the mail, interviewing some caregivers and mowing the lawn, we hopped back into the car and headed to Boston - or at least just outside of it. We camped for a week in Harold Parker State Forest. It's about 30 minutes north of Boston but a beautifully wooded and pretty darn quiet park. Rilla celebrated the trip by standing up on her own for the first time. She was pretty excited by it. The Brissons met up with us there for a few days so we hopped on the subway and took the kiddies to the New England Aquarium. Bronwyn was pretty excited to see the penguins, the jellyfish and the seals but she flipped when she saw the sea turtle. "Daddy, is that Dude?!" (Anyone who's watched "Finding Nemo" will get the reference.) She even got to talk to the diver who was going into to clean the big round tank and watch him feed the turtle lettuce. She also told him to watch out for the barracudas. She's a smart one alright! On Friday, the Brissons left and we went into the city again to visit Fenway Park. Now to be fair, Bronwyn did not enjoy this as much as John and I did but the whole summer couldn't be all about her. Rilla did love the feel of the wind going through her hair when we were on the highest walkway. We spend Sunday morning walking around Harvard, getting the girls used to where they're going to go to school. We had a somewhat disastrous trip to the Museum of Science (really should have gone back to camp and napped) and finished the day off with a dip in the ocean. We will definitely visit there again.

So we spent the rest of August getting our caregiver set up, tidying up the house and just enjoying each other's company. John and I have never in our lives spent 9 weeks together with nothing we had to do so this summer was a great experiment. I think we could do it again every year so I guess I've got to go get my B.Ed. sometime soon. September came pretty quick and that meant John went back to work and I followed shortly thereafter. The girls have settled in nicely at Sara's. Bronwyn really likes them as she has told us she'd like to have a little sister named Sara and a little brother named Ed (Sara's husband). We're not planning on obliging her just yet but maybe next year. Rilla celebrated September by popping her first tooth on the 1st followed by another on the 14th. She hasn't spiked any fevers recently so the third is not likely to pop soon.

We ended September at Scott and Eric's wedding. It was a beautiful day and a beautiful ceremony. We don't think Bronwyn understands what getting married means as she kept asking when were they going to dance. She thinks first you dance and then you're married. She'll figure out the in between stuff later (probably when she's about 12 or so). Rilla didn't get to go to the wedding but she made her own excitement this week. She's been cruising the furniture more and more and finally, she let go and took a couple of steps. Then she got brave and took four steps over to John. Since then, she's been only crawling but we think it's because she can keep up with big sister that way. You can just see it in her eyes that once she starts running, she won't stop. Hmmm, who does that remind you of?

So it's Thanksgiving Monday and we are resting after an active weekend. We went hiking in Gatineau Park yesterday and today we had fun at Saunders Farm. Tomorrow, it's back to work and daycare. Before we know it, it will be Halloween, then Rilla's first birthday and then Christmas. With everything that's coming up, I'll try not to get so behind in the updates. Until then, Happy Turkey Day!

June 10, 2006 - The last post stated that Rilla would be sitting up and crawling before we knew it. Well...

We'd been helping her sit for a while but she was still very tippy. When the good weather kicked in and we started going to the park, I'd plunk her in the sand and she stayed up a little better if you got her on the right incline... but definitely still tippy. Then all of a sudden during the last week or two, she just seemed to get it. She occasionally falls now but can sit for very extended periods without tipping over. She has also figured out how to crawl!! Yes people, we have a mover!! She's not up on her knees yet but it is definitely crawling. She looks like she's constantly trying to crawl under barbed wire - it's pretty cute. We installed the baby gates today and have started a "no food in the living room" rule. Bronwyn doesn't seem to care where her cheerios land but we do. We have video of Rilla sitting and crawling and will be posting it soon. Other than that, Rilla is very busy being Rilla. She's a very easy baby. The only exception is when we screw up her nap schedule and even then, she's still pretty good. She's sleeping very well, usually from 7 to 7 with a wakeup to feed around 5. No complaints from Mommy and Daddy!! She's eating lots of different food now. She seems to especially like squash and prunes. There are still no signs of teeth so we'll hold of on the steak for now. She's got lots of hair, just like her big sister but without the curl. When we put it in pigtails, they look like antennae - she gets lots of adoring looks with her hair like that. It might be our imagination but she seems to understand the word "kiss". If you say it to her while you're holding her, she grabs your face and puts her mouth over hers. She doesn't seem to understand it's rude to slip people the tongue but we'll work on that.

May 11, 2006 - What a busy month or two! Rilla celebrated turning 5 months old with rice cereal. Apparently, she'd been hungry for a while as she started off with the usual tablespoon of cereal and progressed very quickly to almost half a cup. She's since tried barley, oat, and wheat cereals and last week, she tried carrots. She and Bronwyn are definitely two different kids as she loved them. She took one little taste and opened her mouth as wide as it can go for more. She's also sleeping better now that she's not so starving anymore. She also had a big milestone at the end of last month (the 27th to be precise) - she FINALLY rolled over. Rilla is so much easier going than Bronwyn. Once Bronwyn got the notion she could roll over, she didn't stop trying until it happened. Rilla didn't seem to care whether or not she did. Now that she's doing it though, look out. She likes to lie on her playmat and wrestle with her toys. It's pretty cute. Rilla also started swimming lessons. Yesterday was her third lesson. Her breaststroke is pretty good but she needs to work on her butterfly. Seriously though, Daddy and Rilla never get seem to get enough quality time so Daddy does the lesson with her while Mommy watches big sister in her big girl lessons (for more info on that, watch for more info on Bronwyn's site).

Rilla turns 6 months old on Saturday. Where does the time fly? She's going to be crawling and sitting up before we know it. We're probably going to take in the Tulip Festival this weekend so there should be more pictures up soon.

In case you were wondering why there haven't been many pictures or updates lately, you might want to check out the Cupid's Haven website. It's the reason Bronwyn and Rilla's webmaster has been too busy to do anything with their sites. They don't mind sharing with Uncle Darrin and Auntie Shauna though!

March 28, 2006 - Rilla's still doing well. She's not been sleeping through the night lately but is otherwise a perfect little baby. She can roll from front to back but not back to front yet and will scoot across the floor on her back if she's got barefeet and a slippery shirt on. At her 4 month checkup, she was weighing in at 14.5 pounds. She probably weighs 30 pounds as she's just getting over a hunger kick. She's very smiley, not too cuddly and very nosey. She is most content when she can see everything that's going on. You really should see the contortions she does to try and watch Bronwyn around the room. Nothing like sisterly love! There are new pictures up, including some from our recent portrait sitting.

February 24th, 2006 - Rilla is continuing to thrive. She's started sleeping a little longer at night (from 7pm to 5am one night!) and is still eating like a horse. She weighed 13lbs 1oz at her 3 month weigh-in. In the last couple of days, she's got the notion that she can roll over so she's putting a lot of effort into that. She tries especially hard if Bronwyn is nearby but not in her direct visual path. Boy, does she love her big sister! She's also discovered her fingers recently as you'll see by the pictures.

February 8th, 2006 - New video added.

February 5th, 2006 - There's not much new with Rilla. She's sleeping well and eating well. She's been a little cranky the last couple of evenings but we think that might be a growth spurt. New pictures added!

January 23rd, 2006 - Rilla went swimming for the first time ever yesterday. She had a blast. She was in the pool for about a half hour and didn't fuss the entire time. She only cried once we took her out and were drying her off. Who's shocked to find out she likes the water? They may look like Mommy but Rilla and Bronwyn both swim like Daddy. Other than that, there's no new news. New pictures added! The pool was pretty steamy so some of them are pretty blurry!

January 12th, 2006 - Well, it's taken a while but we've recovered from Christmas. Rilla had a great time in Cape Breton meeting all of her family members. She was a great traveller both to Cape Breton and back to Ottawa. The driving agreed with her as she started basically sleeping through the night once we got there (one wake-up at 5am is good enough for me!). She was passed around from one set of hands to another basically the whole time we were home and didn't seem to mind to much. She's growing quickly as when we were left for the island, we were getting occasional smiles and by the time we got back to Ottawa, she was almost giggling. There are a couple of smiling pictures posted but it's hard to hold the camera and make her laugh at the same time. She had her two month checkup yesterday and all went well. She's up to 12lbs 4oz and 59cm which are both in the 90th percentile for her age. She got a clean bill of health and her first two vaccines. She handled them like a troooper, barely crying and only spiking a little bit of a fever last night. Both girls are sleeping so I'm trying to update both sites as much as possible today. I still haven't posted Rilla's one month picture but I'll take her two month picture tomorrow and post them both then. By the way, in case you are wondering, the turtle in the pictures is Rilla's equivalent to Lambie. His name is Mofo and she likes to sleep with him touching her head. If you put it where she can see it in the crib with her, she'll wiggle and whack at it until he's next to her and then she falls asleep. It's pretty cute! Hope you enjoy all the pictures!

December 13th, 2005 - Happy 1 month Birthday Rilla! Rilla had her 1 month checkup yesterday. She was 8lbs 3oz at birth and 7lbs 10oz when we left the hospital. I think we can safely say she's thriving as she weighed in at a whopping 10lbs 8oz yesterday. She's also grown an inch and has started to smile at us. She's still sleeping well and very much looking forward to meeting her family in Cape Breton. I will post her 1 month picture later as well as some others that we've been snapping.

December 5th, 2005 - Just a quick update to share how we're doing. Rilla has been a fantastic baby so far. She's eating very well (currently going through a growth spurt) and sleeping even better. Last night she gave us more than a 7 hour stretch! She attended her first Christmas party on Friday night and was a big hit. Everyone especially loved the tiny patent leather dancing shoes. In theory, she should have a doctor's checkup next week so we'll see how big she's gotten. She's already outgrown the newborn diapers so she's definitely growing. We'll post new pictures sometime today - it depends on when both girls decide to nap! Our plan is to head for home in a couple of weeks so we should be there by the 20th at the latest. We're all looking forward to seeing all the members of Bronwyn and Rilla's fan clubs!

November 25th, 2005 - New pictures added!

November 22nd, 2005 - Rilla is doing very well. She has a pretty big appetite and very much likes to be held. Much like her big sister, she's very alert when she's awake and looking around her at everything. She had a checkup on Friday and was already putting weight on. She's probably back up to her birth weight by now, given the amount she's eating and the diapers she's wetting. She's a great sleeper so far as she gave us 6 hours straight last night (WOOHOO!!). Daddy is home for the rest of this week so we're taking the time to enjoy being a family. For those of you that are local, we're up for visitors as long as you call first so we know you're coming.

November 16th, 2005 - I'm here!!! Rilla Josephine Serroul arrived at 10:58pm on November 13th, 2005. She weighed in at 8lbs 3oz and was a lengthy 22in long.

While we were scheduled for a c-section on the 14th, Rilla decided to move things along a little quicker. Mommy woke up with labour pains around 3am although being 6 days overdue, it took her a while to accept that that's what they really were. Odette and Paul arrived to watch over Bronwyn while we went to the hospital. After a fair amount of walking the halls and some very good drugs, the doctor felt that it wasn't likely I was going to come out on my own so they decided to come in and get me. I was crying as soon as I popped out of Mommy's tummy. It became obvious to everyone in the room that my name was Rilla Josephine and that I was/is perfect. I've been eating really well and Mommy and I came home from the hospital yesterday. My big sister Bronwyn is being really cool with me - she even loaned me her lambie! Daddy is finding it a little easier now too since all his girls are under the same roof. All in all, we're a pretty happy family right now.

Mommy is adding pictures and video as she has the time to so check them out. I don't have a guestbook yet but you can always email me at rilla@serroul.ca if you wanted to let me know you were thinking about me (and why wouldn't you be when I'm so darn cute!?).