The Zoo - A Comparison Shot

I wouldn't put it past this child to remember that he took this exact picture last year at his zoo field trip.  What a difference a year makes. 

2011

2012

A Hairy Conversation

As I was meticulously combing the knots out of Emma's bed head this morning, there was some definite squirming and crying coming from Em.

Me: "This won't be the first time you'll cry over a hair brushing."

Dean: "Don't you mean the last time."

Me: "Right."

Dean: "What happens if you can't get them out?  Do you just cut them out?" 

(pause)

Me: "Umm... no.  And, you dear sir have just earned yourself a permanent get out of girl hair free card."

Dear Sunday, You Will Never Be a Monday, So Stop Acting Like One.

Our church is a very large parish. Think standing room only Saturday mass for Christmas except its a regular Sunday. The 8:00 AM mass is much more manageable, but I tend to go alone. But, for Lent and because there are lots of things to pray for right now, I decided to get the whole family involved. Family mobilized by 7:45 AM, we make it to the parking lot by 8:05 AM. Not too bad. Well, just before I stepped out of the car to unbuckle the kids, I say to Noah, "we're going to see Jesus."

Hindsight 20/20. Wrong thing to say to a literal minded child. He was all for "going to church with mom." But "going to see Jesus," he did not sign up for that. He did not want to go in, and it was not pretty getting him to the front steps of the church. I'm pretty sure the other latecomers were hoping they wouldn't get stuck standing/sitting by us. We did make it into church and Noah finally realized that Jesus was not actually going to sit and talk to us. He was fairly good, but did not feel comfortable enough to find a pew. On the bright side, Emma was great.

After mass, we loaded up in the car and decided breakfast was in order. Apparently, we were just one of many wishing to indulge in some post prayer fare. Dean and Noah went ahead to get a table since Emma had fallen asleep in the car. Dean texted me when our table was ready. I came in, put an awake Emma in the booth. Dean suggested I take Noah to wash hands. He spent a bit more time on the floor while waiting for a table. Well, the bathroom was obviously what was getting to Noah. We couldn't get his pants off quick enough, before he had an accident on me and his pants. Bummer.

Guess who didn't have back up clothes? That would be me. Guess who road home bottomless? That would be Noah. You wouldn't believe the parenting strategies involved in talking him into leaving the restroom wearing wet pants. Dean paid $7.00 for our drinks and home we went. Guess what time it was? 9:30 AM. On the bright side, Emma was great. Can someone give me a do-over please?

Emma - Eight Months

I'm behind this month. So, let's see. Still little. Check. Still crawling. Check.

She's finally sitting which can't technically be called "W" sitting, but looks a bit like a reverse "W" sit. I think she is pretty much sitting back on her haunches to be able to add some force when launching her wee body across the room. I think Pa Pa gets the biggest kick out of anybody on her little stance.

She crawls on hands and feet, is super fast and gets into everything! Child proofing is desperately needed. Little things are everywhere and seem to appear out of nowhere. She mouths everything and is really fond of all things paper. Noah's memory cards are a favorite... That game is pretty much toast.

She is a drool monster, and after spending a week home, I am succumbing to the "put a bib on that child" peer pressure.

Speaking of pressure, I've starting supplementing. With everything going on, I need some alone time and a break from the feelings of "omg my baby isn't gaining weight, I have to feed her now!!" Since Emma has been attached at my hip since day one, I'm not sure how much an impact this will have on my supply. So, basically the couple feedings during the day that I find her not eating well, I follow it up with a few ounces of formula.

 I've also started food regularly, and if the mess she makes while eating is any indication, she really likes it. She has started to gain a bit, and she's officially over the 14 pound hump. Yay!

I'm pretty sure I mentioned last month, a bit of separation anxiety. This little one loves her Momma.  It hit its peek in month eight, but as we're closing in on nine, there's been a bit of improvement. Spending a week with family definitely helped. Ask Grammy, I think day 8 of our visit was tons better than day 2.

First Ashes

Swing Baby

I'm a bit behind on blogging. Eventually, I'll sit at my computer, upload some pictures, and talk about Mom's day, gymnastics and our recent trip home. But, for now, here's a bit of random from our day.

While Noah was at school, I went to Costco. I love that store. I actually popped in to see if they copied keys. Long story short, the kids and I got locked out of the house for about thirty minutes all because I lost our extra house key. Noah had to potty.  Emma wanted to eat, but was too distracted by her brother doing the potty dance.  Momma remembered the potty in the garage, and let's just say we were all super happy to have daddy arrive with the keys.  Good times. Well, Costco doesn't make keys, but I did find a toddler swing that was perfect for our play structure. I also found some Hanna Andersson pajamas for Emma that were about 60% less than the regular store. Love Costco.

Anyway, we hung it up on our play structure this afternoon. Emma liked it as long as I was talking and smiling while she was in it. Noah loved that we had a "swing for Emma."

Wondering why Noah's pants are a bit too short? Could it be that my 4.5 year old will not stop growing? Or is it possible that this is actually the third pair of pants he's put on? If you guessed B... The ground was a bit wet and muddy, every time Noah's ankles got a bit damp, he said, "I need new pants," and proceeded to pull out a fresh pair from his dresser. Momma got smart after the second quick change and pulled a pair from the give pile.

Salty Air Means...

Curly hair.

And Emma's was one of the curliest and cutest... if I do say so myself.

A Walk on the Beach

Before the rain, the whole crew headed to the beach for a walk. Noah and Pa Pa hand in hand.

Emma's first trip to the beach.

 

Shoes were kicked off immediately.

And a rather large stick was procured.

And, off we go.

Marking the path to find our way home.

The end of the island.

The Big Island

As a child, we spent many a summer vacation visiting Grand Isle.  We stayed at a camp right on the bay with a long dock.  We'd swim and ski.  Take boat rides and fish.  The adults would cook and drink beer. We'd play cards and watch movies on the Beta Max and a couple years later the trusty VCR.  At night, we'd have talent shows, which I'm pretty sure I always won.  I think my last trip to Grand Isle was for senior trip in high school.  Well, that was quite a while ago, and as many great memories that I have from all those trips, it took several invites from my sister before I finally accepted and took the kids down for a weekend.  Alright Mo... I should have accepted sooner.  It was really fun, and Noah had a blast.  Being February and with a really bad storm coming through there was no swimming or fishing, but there was lots of chilling and eating and of course, a talent show.  What a great weekend!

All the cousins were there.  From the oldest to the youngest.

Even Daddy made a cameo

Group hug from Noah.

Storms rolling in.

Enjoying a lot of marshmallows on the porch with Zack.

Ready for our beach walk.

Noah's favorite spot.  He didn't venture very far, but loved running and jumping around the porch.

Grammy and Pa Pa with all the grand kids.

Love outtakes.

ZIP-adeedodah

Sitting Pretty

It only took 8 months, but Emma's starting to get sitting down. Of course, she has her own signature style of sitting. It's more like a squat.

Which come to find out is all part of her master plan to conquer mobility early. Trying to stand?!? Seriously?!?

The Great Outdoors

The weather was warm today. And, the cool air and rain that threatened and misted all day yesterday was gone. Noah had the best time playing in Grammy and Pa Pa's backyard. At one point, I asked him if he wanted to go for a stroll, and he said, "No, Mom. I want to play."

Grammy spend a good part of the afternoon outside with him. We blew bubbles. I pushed him in the hammock swing where I taught him the old scout song, "three little angels." He especially loved the part about the "three little Martians all dressed in green trying to get to heaven in a washing machine."

The boys came over. The girls came over. He rocked the zip line, much improved since Christmas. He ran and ran. He did some swinging, pushed by Morgan. Seth threw him the football, which he caught. His little mind schemed for ways to get atop the playhouse like his big cousins.

He played outside until long after dark as Pa Pa and Uncle D grilled our steaks on a open fire over mesquite. Noah said, "mom, want to go camping?"

He came inside dirty and smelling like a puppy dog. "I'm hungry," he said. He scarfed down some BBQ chicken covered in ketchup, two oranges and a chocolate pudding.

At bath time, the water was almost black as the days dirt was washed away. About 8:00 PM, he came out of the playroom carrying the bed rail for the day bed. Pretty much a not to subtle hint that he was ready for sleep. What a fun day for Noah.

Happy ♥ Day

Homeward Bound

Only about 8 miles out of Texas, Noah has asked about 10 times, "is that Grammy and Pa Pa's house?" We've still got a ways to go, my man, but we're heading home.

What a Trooper

My dad commented this weekend how much of a trooper little Emma is.  It's true.  She defintely goes with the flow.  We have cut back a bit on Noah's busy special, but despite that, she is cruising in the car anywhere from 4-6 hours every day.  I took these pictures around 12:30 PM yesterday.  At this point, Emma had been strapped in her carseat or held by Momma since 8:30 AM.  As for Noah, he's of course got it down. Enjoying a "picnic" lunch on the backseat before therapy with Mer. 

And here's Emma. 

What's going on outside?

What is brother doing? 

He's pretty funny!

I love my family.

Sick. Sick. Sick.

Poor baby Emma. Things just went downhill after Wednesday. Thursday morning she was dripping eyes, mouth, nose. She was hoarse and coughing and running fever. She looked and felt totally pitiful.

I called late afternoon to schedule her an appointment first thing in the morning. The night was terrible. Dean was OOT, and my thinking was to sit in the steamy bathroom to help loosen snot and mucus to help her breath. It backfired as the hot steam spiked her temp to 103. Ugh. I spent most of the night nursing her on and off in the big blue chair.

By morning, Emma and I had both seen better days. I think I'm finally learning how to say "uncle," because I called in the G family for reinforcements. They arrived in numbers with a "why didn't you call is sooner," and watched Noah while I took Emma to the doctor. The verdict. Ear infection. The first diagnosed in the C family. Doctor thought the cause ... RSV. We left with an antibiotic script. After much sleep over the weekend, she seems to be on the mend.

Boo for sick babies.

Legos with Noah

On our trip to Target yesterday, I picked Noah up a small Lego set. Spongebob, of course. Noah has still never actually watched Spongebob, but for some reason very drawn to the characters.

Anyway, with Emma napping, Noah and I get to work. Instruction booklet in hand. It takes about 20 minutes, but we get together the Spongebob characters and boat. Keep in mind, I'm using the word "we" very loosely. Noah pretty much supervised the instruction following. Project complete, Noah takes all of about 10 seconds to examine my handiwork, then says, "want to make it again?"

Seriously? OK. Trying to embrace the quality alone time (napping Emma), I start to take the Lego masterpiece apart. Noah has been watching some Sesame Street lately. He's got it on the brain. He then says,

"Mom, what's the word of the day? Separate. What's separate mean? To break into pieces."

Great use of functional scripting, Noah.

Speaking of Sesame Street and scripting... Today he told me, "Mom, today we're going to talk about the word, conflict. Conflict means to plant flowers"

I think you've got your episodes mixed up buddy, but I like your commitment.

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Phone Purge Friday 02.03.12

Taking a cue from my friend Aunt B, here's my most recent iPhone favorites:

 Guess who's not ready for bed. 

A cow dressed as a firefighter? That's silly.

Emma and Pa Pa Harold. We love you so much Pa Pa.

Emma wearing one of Momma's old dresses. What a sweet face.

Playing "computer."

Big brother gives the tightest squeezes.

Little sister coming in for the hair pull.

Sitting pretty.

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone