Friday, February 26, 2010

3 months


El turned 3 months this week!

This past month has been a LONG one. We have had at least 1 sick kid for the past 6 weeks! On one particularly long week near the end of January all 5 were sick in the same week.

Remember last month when I boasted that Ellery slept through the night 3 times? Well those were the only 3 times, but we are once again on the upswing I think. Only Ellery owns the 3:00am hour now .... no leaving her to cry in order to go tend to the other cryer. LOL


During this past month Ellery has had her first ear infection, first case of thrush, and first bout of pneumonia! Her chest x-ray today confirmed all the pneumonia is now gone. Poor baby is back to just having a plugged up nose, and we pray it stays that way. I think we've permanently enlarged her nostrils with the big blue booger sucker!


She has also begun seeing a physical therapist for the muscle on the right side of her neck. The official term for it is torticollus. She is doing well with the excercises and showing a lot of improvement. See picture below.... you might mistake it for a cute pose, but it's not :)


Some stats at 3 months.....


*12lbs 6oz.

*smiling and cooing all the time. I love this age!

*still nursing but takes a bottle of soy in the evening.

*starting to get better about taking naps for longer than 20 minutes. Goes down around 10pm, gets up 1 time, we fall asleep together on the recliner, wakes up again around 5 , and I usually get her back down again before I get the kids up for school....a tricky time of day because I never know where to put her! LOL . She often cries a bit while falling asleep, and Dylan has snuck into our bed and is back sleeping again by this point, so I dont' want to wake him.

*Sydney can get her to laugh. She's laughed for me 1 time....while sitting in her swing watching me hula hoop on the wii... ha ha.

*She loves the kids, and they adore her! When she is laying on the ground we are supposed to stimulate her on the right side, because it forces her to straigten her neck. The kids love to lay on the ground and talk to her and shake toys in her face... especially since they know it is helping her.


*She enjoys sitting in her swing, laying in her cradle and looking at her mobile, standing up in your lap talking to you, and being carted around by the kids :)

*She is happy! When she is not in pain or fighting sleep, she is so happy! She will sit and smile and coo and talk to you. It is so cute! We love you Els!

Tuesday, February 23, 2010

seven

Sydney turned 7 this week!



This picture makes me smile. Last week she got all dressed up in my stuff and said "Look mom, I'm you walking to the bus stop!" Pretty accurate minus the purse.


Some thoughts on Syd at 7...

*She is the other mom. She is a huge help, and really enjoys holding and playing with Stella and
Ellery.
*She loves to play/create with Dylan. They are 2 peas in a pod when it comes to crafting, scheming, building stuff and the likes.
*At 7, she is outgrowing all things pink and would like her room to be blue please.
*She is starting to outgrow wearing dresses, and has begun wearing jeans for the first time in her life....so sad.
*She is still very responsible and loving towards her hampster April.
*She LOVES to craft.
*She loves playing with her faux American Girl doll, Lexi.
*At school she loves music and art....not fond of reading, writing or math- especially nickels and dimes :)
*She still loves to dance with her daddy.....but is learning to share him, because a certain 2 year old does as well.



I could go on and on. Sydney you are a beautiful blessing from God. We love you! Happy Birthday!


We had a combined little party for these 2. Stella was a bit miffed with her cake and wouldn't look at the camera.


Because her birthday fell over winter break this year, she was able to enjoy her first sleepover with friends. It went well!


playing musical chairs


all lined up for Simon Says

playing pin the butterfly on the flower

Saturday, February 20, 2010

this little tootsie is two

Stella turned 2 this week. Tim loves this age. She is absolutely hysterical! I would be quick to add naughty and curious, but yes, really funny too.

Stellas favorites at 2 include: playing with her babies..... and using an using an entire box of wipes to change their diapers, playing play-do, playing in her kitchen, coloring with markers....won't touch a crayon, helping me with housework, throwing my makeup in the toilet, dumping the sugar out, well actually dumping anything out and then running away quickly, climbing up on the desk to bang on the computer keys, and checking to see if Ellery is awake :)
She is my little helper, and follows me around wherever I go. If she keeps up her enthusiasm and level of enery she will be a rock star mom/wife someday! I do love it, but sometimes it is a little stifling ...like when i'm going to the bathroom and she's trying to wipe me :)

If I am doing housework, she WILL help. If I am in the kitchen, she is sitting on the counter helping me. If I am putting away laundry, she is following me with a sock trail. If I am feeding Ellery, she is hitting me on the head with a book to read to her. She's a persistant little one. She can usually be found carrying the bathroom stool around with her, just in case she needs to get somewhere high in a pinch.
At 2 she still LOVES her brown bunny, and must have it to sleep. She takes 1 nap, usually around 10:30am before Dylan goes to pre-school. She still absolutely loves Ellery, but the obsession has worn off. She likes to play with her own dolls now. She loves her daddy, especially riding in his truck. If she's going to fight with someone, Dylan is her sibling of choice.
She understands most everything you say now. At 2, she WILL NOT say amen or please and thank you....tho we've seen the words form on her lips, she is quick to stifle them for the sake of non-compliance. She is one stubborn cookie and has spent many hours in a battle of the wills with her father. One night she and Tim spent 2 1/2 hours on the floor battling it out over a bookmark she threw off the table and wouldn't pick up. After 2 1/2 hours of conversation and crying, she FINALLY picked it up. Her eyes now get shifty if you mention the word bookmark :) She is our little comic relief, and most dinners are spent laughing at/with her.

Some endearing Stella sayings... aka words that we hear ALL. THE. TIME....

baby bleh (says this when she brings out a new diaper for Ellery)

poppy (pipe)

uh-huh

buuun-eeeeee (bunny)

yo-yo (play-do)

BILL....BABY BILL! (spill, baby spill. aka Ellery spit up...and she really does not like it)

MamAAAAAAA (I have to laugh, she has started calling Sydneys barbies her mamas too. ha ha)
num num (when she would like candy or anything good)

ba ba ( sippy cup)

no woofie no!

mine, eat, and no

watching tv from her little perch

we love you stella! happy birthday.

Sunday, February 14, 2010

goodbye faithful friend

This week we sadly said goodbye to our Mabel.


Mabel joined our family on a sunny Sunday afternoon in the spring of 1999. I had wanted a dog SO badly, and had been watching the newspaper for puppies. I found some, and convinced Tim to go for a ride. The directions led us to a barn in the middle of nowhere about an hour north of here. She was the runt of the litter and ran right to us. $25 later we were on our way.

Those early years, she ruled the roost. We treated her like our first child. She rode shotgun in my jeep everywhere i went. She slept on our bed. Tim would play hide and go seek with her when he came home from work at night. We bought her Christmas presents.


She was a good dog, and had a full life. By doggie standards, she was an old lady. Over the years her place shifted as we welcomed child after child after child into our family. But she remained full of love.....always making her presence known.

Tim and I never realized how hard it would be to say goodbye to her. She was our first dog, and was with us for most of our married life. 11 years of fond memories. No matter what your mood, she would always come running..... tail wagging and ready to lick you, always happy to see you. She was wonderful with the kids, and over the years earned many nicknames as the kids all started talking. Austin called her "goggie", Sydney "mommer", Dylan "Bee-bo and the latest "foofie" as Stella affectionately calls her.

Sadly, it was time to say goodbye. She was very sick and in alot of pain. She will surely be missed.

Thursday, February 4, 2010

fabulous five

yup, this kid is 5!

and let me tell you, he's a hoot!


His greatest dilema in life right now? "Mom, all the girls want to sit by me (at pre-school) but I only have 2 sides!" Indeed, a rough life.
Some thoughts on Dyl @ 5....

*very, very, very creative. This kid will "create" all day long. If you throw something away, he will dig it out of the trash and make something out of it....no matter what it is. He likes to go down to the unfinished part of the basement and "work". He continues to amaze us with the things he makes. He recently made Sydney a bed, table and skis for her faux American girl doll. If I need a good hour to myself in the afternoon, I get out the glue, macaroni noodles, and some popsicle sticks and tell him to have at it. An hour later i will have a counter full of glue and a sweet log cabin.


*He never stops talking. Even if he is watching tv, he will make sure to keep you informed on every detail....and make sure you are listening. He will say "mom" 32 times if he needs to.

*He loves being the big brother to Stella and Ellery .....actually he loves to make Ellery smile and Stella scream.


*He is hysterical, and also brutally honesty. The other day over PB&J he turns to me in all seriousness and says "Mom, did you know your butt is bigger than dads?"

*He loves all things legos, pokemons, bakugans and the likes.

*He LOVES pre-school, and is doing very well!



the cake


We took Dylan to Chuck E Cheese this year. Poor kid was sick, but he still had a good time.

We love you Dylan! Happy Birthday!