So, I think tonight went a little bit better in the feeding department. She gagged several times while trying to get the food down but she was moving it around in her mouth and trying to swallow. We got through the bowl I had prepared for her, about 1.5 Tablespoons. The kids were so excited to feed her but we are not quite there yet. Once she gets the hang of eating, then they can try their hand at it.
Today we had a fun playdate/brunch with friends from church. We also took some time to play outside. Everyone slept well last night and had a nap today. So, today has been good.
Mira has been going through most days in just panties, even when we are out. She wears a cloth diaper for naps and a paper diaper for bed. It is interesting, she makes it to the potty without fail if she has to poop. She kicks you out of the bathroom while she is going and insists that the door be shut. But, she can't be interrupted to go pee. So, we just set a timer and take her every hour. She did go to the bathroom today, grab the little potty, bring it into the kitchen and go. But that is the exception, not the rule. I can't complain too much. I really did not want 2 in diapers at the same time and for the most part I got my wish. We go through at most 1 disposable diaper a day.
On another Mira note, she is speaking in deliberate sentences now. She very carefully chooses her words such as, 'No light...off' and 'Daddy...wash...da-da (car)' She talks about everything: empty cups, trains, the cat, the dog, Joshua, milk, whatever. It is fun to listen to her budding language skills. Joshua likes to talk in Mira-ese, too. Only that is not so cute. It sure is hard being the big brother!
Saturday, January 23, 2010
Friday, January 22, 2010
Swimming
We took the kids swimming tonight. They had so much fun. A nice mid winter break. Mira loved the baby pool. She just splashed and ran around. Joshua went back and forth between the big pool and the baby pool. He loved that there were foam water noodles there. Evie even got in and sat, splashed and kicked. She loves bath time so I figured she would also love the pool and she did. I'll put the picks up on flickr soon.
We left for swimming at dinner time and got home at bed time. Needless to say that were pooped. Hope they sleep well tonight.
We left for swimming at dinner time and got home at bed time. Needless to say that were pooped. Hope they sleep well tonight.
forgotten stories
This week I learned the value of Bible stories. I always knew that many of the stories were allegorical. I just didn't realize that I could apply them so soon. Joshua loves to read about Jonah and the whale. Noah, too, is a favorite. And what do these men have in common? Ah, they listened to God. What happened when Jonah didn't listen? He was eaten by a fish. I went to town with that story citing the benefits of good listening and following directions the first time one is asked.
The second incident I would like to share happened on the why home from preschool on Wednesday. Joshua has been learning about dinosaurs in school. He looked out his window in the car and said, "I see a little dinosaur!" It didn't take long to realize that he was talking about the cloud shapes. He saw another and then asked, "Mommy, who put those dinosaurs in the clouds?" It was just the sweetest moment.
The second incident I would like to share happened on the why home from preschool on Wednesday. Joshua has been learning about dinosaurs in school. He looked out his window in the car and said, "I see a little dinosaur!" It didn't take long to realize that he was talking about the cloud shapes. He saw another and then asked, "Mommy, who put those dinosaurs in the clouds?" It was just the sweetest moment.
Thursday, January 21, 2010
Off and running
Well, she's off! We started Evie Joy on sweet potato puree tonight as her first solid food. It went in, it came out. She made faces and mostly kept her little tongue poised so as not to allow any more of it to grace her pristine mouth. We, of course, video taped the whole thing. She did enjoy chewing on her spoons so in the end we allowed that and moved on to our own meal.
Since the temps have been above 20 for most days we have taken to afternoon adventures, mucking around in the backyard, exploring the plants that are setting out buds, walking, collecting pine cones, playing at the play ground. Joshua can now cross the monkey bars, unassisted, at break neck speed. Evie enjoys all these adventures perched on my back in the backpack carrier. Mira, grumpily, gets tucked into the stroller for the walks but otherwise, tags along bringing up the rear.
Today's adventure included pulling out my new gardening tools from Christmas to test them out. Now we are scheming of plants that we will start indoors in the next week or two. Joshua does enjoy gardening and likes to eat what he grows.
Since the temps have been above 20 for most days we have taken to afternoon adventures, mucking around in the backyard, exploring the plants that are setting out buds, walking, collecting pine cones, playing at the play ground. Joshua can now cross the monkey bars, unassisted, at break neck speed. Evie enjoys all these adventures perched on my back in the backpack carrier. Mira, grumpily, gets tucked into the stroller for the walks but otherwise, tags along bringing up the rear.
Today's adventure included pulling out my new gardening tools from Christmas to test them out. Now we are scheming of plants that we will start indoors in the next week or two. Joshua does enjoy gardening and likes to eat what he grows.
Tuesday, January 19, 2010
The Day
Today was one of those rare perfect afternoons. The whole day, actually, was pretty good. It started off well with the children getting up around 7. It is always a good day when I can get dressed before we head downstairs for breakfast and today I did. There were several chores that I needed to complete and I was able to, even with the kids 'helping'. Before lunch we drove to the dairy for groceries. It was already very nice weather out so the children ran a bit in the field outside the dairy and were relatively well behaved inside. Aside from meat and milk we picked up a quart of our favorite ice cream, 'dirt'. At lunch Joshua and Mira both ate well: meatballs, quinoa, brocolli and ice cream for dessert. Naps, were... naps... but we moved on and after the quiet time we spent the rest of the day outside exploring the backyard, running races and then taking a walk around the nearest streets in our neighborhood. We came in and washed the mud off with baths and pj's and now it is time to get ready to make dinner. The sun has almost set. I am not making dinner yet because I fear the nightly screaming battle that usually ensues when I turn on the stove just letting this moment linger a little while longer.
Sunday, January 17, 2010
just going along...
The days are going by. Interesting things happen but with three now, it is hard to keep up with just the daily tasks let alone sit down and write about them. We celebrated again last Sunday with Grandma for her 90th birthday and this Saturday we warmed Amy and Omar's new house. The children love all the time spent playing with their cousins and it makes our lives easier when they are worn out from all that play time!
Mira had the thrilling experience of tumbling down the stairs. It must be a rite of passage that all children (with homes that have stairs) must experience. She was looking for me and I was downstairs washing dishes while Jason was busy putting Joshua to bed. As best we can tell, she tripped on her blankie and tumbled down the entire flight. She banged up many body parts and we looked her over carefully. We checked on her throughout the night but miraculously she didn't have a bruise on her little body come morning.
Thursday, Jill and I took the kids up to an organic Amish bulk food store in Pennsylvania and stocked up on all sorts of yummy things. Mira is currently nibbling on the dried figs we bought and the quinoa is going to be enjoyed tonight with our chicken. After reading both "Ominvores Dilemma" and "Animal, Vegetable, Miracle", I am convince we need to change the way we eat and that there are LOTS more yummy things out there to enjoy that we are missing out on!!!
The boys are back from ice skating, gotta go!
Mira had the thrilling experience of tumbling down the stairs. It must be a rite of passage that all children (with homes that have stairs) must experience. She was looking for me and I was downstairs washing dishes while Jason was busy putting Joshua to bed. As best we can tell, she tripped on her blankie and tumbled down the entire flight. She banged up many body parts and we looked her over carefully. We checked on her throughout the night but miraculously she didn't have a bruise on her little body come morning.
Thursday, Jill and I took the kids up to an organic Amish bulk food store in Pennsylvania and stocked up on all sorts of yummy things. Mira is currently nibbling on the dried figs we bought and the quinoa is going to be enjoyed tonight with our chicken. After reading both "Ominvores Dilemma" and "Animal, Vegetable, Miracle", I am convince we need to change the way we eat and that there are LOTS more yummy things out there to enjoy that we are missing out on!!!
The boys are back from ice skating, gotta go!
Monday, January 04, 2010
The big snow, Christmas, Ohio and New Years
At 11 pm when Jason and I went to bed on Friday, December 18 you could just barely see the snow flakes swirling around the lamp posts. There was nothing sticking to the ground and only rumors of the inches of snow yet to come. When we awoke on Saturday morning, there was already 4-6 inches on the ground. The snow kept falling through the day and night and next morning until we eventually had nearly 2 feet of it. By lunchtime on Saturday Joshua and Mira had already been outside 3 times to play. They helped me shovel, went sledding and tried to walk in the ever deepening snow. The idea of leaving our little corner of the world was laughable but thankfully we had no where to go and could just enjoy the beautiful swirling flakes. Saturday night was our neighborhood Christmas party, which ended up being a huge success thanks in large part to the snow keeping everyone home on our street. There was plenty of food and drink and the children played and watched movies. We had a gift exchange like the one at the big family Christmas party.
Sunday brought more snow play and shoveling as did Monday. It was nice to just bundle Joshua up and let him romp around out in the backyard. Everything is more fun when there is snow and I was even able to get out to sled with the kids a few times. Monday and Tuesday schools were closed and the last day before Christmas break was a two late entry. The snow stuck around until nasty rain on Christmas day washed all of it away.
On Wednesday, we enjoyed the Christmas lights in the neighborhood after sharing a meal and presents with the Andreens. It has been a long time since we all got together and so since to have the children playing. Jason and I were up late wrapping as many gifts as we could but did not finish and ran out of paper.
Thursday, Jason came home early from work and we went to the Carpenters for a lovely Christmas Eve dinner. There was still much wrapping to do and other Christmas preparations. We had a letter and cookies to leave for Santa and our tradition of reading 'Twas the Night Before Christmas' to complete. I made the banana bread and Jason wrapped and we made it to bed before midnight.
Santa arrived sometime in the night and Christmas morning the tree was wrapped in gifts and our stockings were filled. Joshua and Mira were so excited. Mira emptied her stocking and then proceded to eat a breakfast of M&M's. Joshua emptied his stocking and played with a wind up airplane while I prepared our Christmas morning breakfast of toast, eggs and bacon. We all had a good breakfast before getting Grandma and Papa on the computer to share in opening gifts. Joshua received a robot from Santa that stayed by his side through Christmas and sat next to him on our drive to Ohio. Mira received a tea set from Santa and continuously poured Jason cups of tea. Evelyn received a see and say toy that she and Mira shared playing with. There was so much to open and the children were thoughtful in doing so. They wanted each gift opened, batteries inserted and played with before moving on to the next item. After finishing up with all the presents, we got dressed and headed out to Memaw and Grandad's for the rest of the day.
We arrived close to 2 and had a late lunch. Aunt Carie stopped for a few minutes soon after we got there and my friend Lisa came over later. Godfather was there for a while during the day and evening as well. After getting a little food in our bellies we started the gift opening again this time with the whole gang: Memaw, Grandad, Nanny, Aunt Jill, Tia Amy, Tio Omar, Dylan, Stephanie and Noella. There were SOOOOO many presents.
We had a nice Christmas dinner after the presents but Mira was just plain pooped by then and went to sleep. We all stayed over at Memaw and Grandads so that we could just relax and enjoy before heading home on Saturday.
We visited with Godfather's and Aunt Carie's parents on Saturday morning with the children. The rest of the day was spent unpacking and then repacking so that we could leave on Sunday morning to go to Ohio.
We were off and running by 9:30 Sunday morning and met with Memaw, Grandad and Aunt Jill in Somerset to continue the ride to Aunt Margaret's house. We only had to stop once to feed Evelyn and that was at a potty stop. Joshua, Mira and Evelyn all did great on the ride out. The only minor issue we had was when Mira begged to go poop on a mountain road with only emergency pull offs. We took one and then she didn't go. But she did end up going in her diaper moments before we reached Aunt Margaret's house. We had to open all the windows in the car to breathe. We stayed with Jeanne and Dave that night. They have a dog, Titus, who is not used to little children. He did ok with Josh and Mira but though that E was a tasty treat so we had to be very careful. It didn't even matter that we were holding her. The kids did great meeting all sorts of 'new' people. Joshua only flipped out a little bit when Aunt Margaret picked him up for a big hug and within two hours of any new stop, Mira warmed up to our hosts.
The next day, Monday, we visited with Aunt Janet & Uncle Bob. It started to snow the night before while we were eating dinner at Aunt Margarets and we still snowing Monday. That made for some interesting driving but we got where we were going and we see these friends and family so infrequently that we braved the weather anyway.
Tuesday we left Jeanne and Dave's for my godmother, Susan's, house on the way to Aunt Beth and Uncle Ray's. The last time I saw Susan we had no children and now we have 3! Mira came down with a fever on Monday and Tuesday but was feeling better by the time we made it to Aunt Beth's. Sleeping was difficult wherever we went. Josh and E seemed to be ok but Mira just has a hard time traveling and didn't want to sleep in these new places. She was up most nights every hour.
Janet and Matthew and Bill joined us at their parent's house Tuesday for dinner and visiting. Joshua LOVED having Matthew, 8, as a playmate. From the moment he woke up on Wednesday he started asking for him again. The kids all warmed to Aunt Beth and Uncle Ray quickly which made for nice visiting. Wednesday the kids played in the snow, played in the house and played and played and played. We opened gifts in the evening and let Josh stay up late with Matthew. It felt just like Christmases past.
Just before we left Mira decided to feed Uncle Ray's fish with the lid to the food can on full open just dumping the stuff in there. They were able to clean up that mess fairly easily, so they say. We got off by 10:30 am but it was a long drive home. We were all tired. Aunt Betty and Uncle George were actually on the same road as us, just a little ahead, coming from Indiana for Grandma's 90th birthday party so we met them in my parent's town for dinner. It was a good stopping point since Mira and Evie were both screaming and tired of being in the car. We had dinner with the gang at Panera and then made our way out to our house. We got home around 8:30. The kids went right to bed and then our friend Richard came over to celebrate New Years with beer, pina coladas, a bad game of Scrabble and the movie Underworld 2. We were ALL ready for bed as soon as the ball dropped.
New Year's day the little ones slept in and we made a family trip to Target. I think we spent more in that one trip than a majority of the Christmas shopping and it was all on batteries. We invested heavily in rechargeables and a charger to power all the new toys.
Saturday it was Christmas again as we picked up a box from Grandma and Papa and enjoyed opening the gifts with them on the computer. Saturday,after nap, we headed out to Eldersburg again for Grandma's birthday party. Aunt Betty, Uncle George and Aunt Jo were in town for the event and it was a nice evening. We are having another party for her this Sunday. Her actual birthday is Jan 11.
The days have been lazy and the kids are sleeping it. It is so nice to have Jason home. We just play games, do a little house work, run the required errands and there is no work or school or anything else to interfere. I could live like this. Ok so I wouldn't be able to put food on the table but it is nice!!
Evelyn is going through withdraw from having so many people hold her all the time. I suppose she is getting over it but she really was in her glory just being passed from adoring holder, to adoring holder. Mira is back on her sleep schedule and has been sleeping very hard since we got home. Joshua is himself just somehow sassier. He as acquired a glare and some talking back that are new and he knows just what he is doing.
We had a fun game of Memory tonight with Joshua and he would have cleaned house I think if the cards had been in rows.
Sunday brought more snow play and shoveling as did Monday. It was nice to just bundle Joshua up and let him romp around out in the backyard. Everything is more fun when there is snow and I was even able to get out to sled with the kids a few times. Monday and Tuesday schools were closed and the last day before Christmas break was a two late entry. The snow stuck around until nasty rain on Christmas day washed all of it away.
On Wednesday, we enjoyed the Christmas lights in the neighborhood after sharing a meal and presents with the Andreens. It has been a long time since we all got together and so since to have the children playing. Jason and I were up late wrapping as many gifts as we could but did not finish and ran out of paper.
Thursday, Jason came home early from work and we went to the Carpenters for a lovely Christmas Eve dinner. There was still much wrapping to do and other Christmas preparations. We had a letter and cookies to leave for Santa and our tradition of reading 'Twas the Night Before Christmas' to complete. I made the banana bread and Jason wrapped and we made it to bed before midnight.
Santa arrived sometime in the night and Christmas morning the tree was wrapped in gifts and our stockings were filled. Joshua and Mira were so excited. Mira emptied her stocking and then proceded to eat a breakfast of M&M's. Joshua emptied his stocking and played with a wind up airplane while I prepared our Christmas morning breakfast of toast, eggs and bacon. We all had a good breakfast before getting Grandma and Papa on the computer to share in opening gifts. Joshua received a robot from Santa that stayed by his side through Christmas and sat next to him on our drive to Ohio. Mira received a tea set from Santa and continuously poured Jason cups of tea. Evelyn received a see and say toy that she and Mira shared playing with. There was so much to open and the children were thoughtful in doing so. They wanted each gift opened, batteries inserted and played with before moving on to the next item. After finishing up with all the presents, we got dressed and headed out to Memaw and Grandad's for the rest of the day.
We arrived close to 2 and had a late lunch. Aunt Carie stopped for a few minutes soon after we got there and my friend Lisa came over later. Godfather was there for a while during the day and evening as well. After getting a little food in our bellies we started the gift opening again this time with the whole gang: Memaw, Grandad, Nanny, Aunt Jill, Tia Amy, Tio Omar, Dylan, Stephanie and Noella. There were SOOOOO many presents.
We had a nice Christmas dinner after the presents but Mira was just plain pooped by then and went to sleep. We all stayed over at Memaw and Grandads so that we could just relax and enjoy before heading home on Saturday.
We visited with Godfather's and Aunt Carie's parents on Saturday morning with the children. The rest of the day was spent unpacking and then repacking so that we could leave on Sunday morning to go to Ohio.
We were off and running by 9:30 Sunday morning and met with Memaw, Grandad and Aunt Jill in Somerset to continue the ride to Aunt Margaret's house. We only had to stop once to feed Evelyn and that was at a potty stop. Joshua, Mira and Evelyn all did great on the ride out. The only minor issue we had was when Mira begged to go poop on a mountain road with only emergency pull offs. We took one and then she didn't go. But she did end up going in her diaper moments before we reached Aunt Margaret's house. We had to open all the windows in the car to breathe. We stayed with Jeanne and Dave that night. They have a dog, Titus, who is not used to little children. He did ok with Josh and Mira but though that E was a tasty treat so we had to be very careful. It didn't even matter that we were holding her. The kids did great meeting all sorts of 'new' people. Joshua only flipped out a little bit when Aunt Margaret picked him up for a big hug and within two hours of any new stop, Mira warmed up to our hosts.
The next day, Monday, we visited with Aunt Janet & Uncle Bob. It started to snow the night before while we were eating dinner at Aunt Margarets and we still snowing Monday. That made for some interesting driving but we got where we were going and we see these friends and family so infrequently that we braved the weather anyway.
Tuesday we left Jeanne and Dave's for my godmother, Susan's, house on the way to Aunt Beth and Uncle Ray's. The last time I saw Susan we had no children and now we have 3! Mira came down with a fever on Monday and Tuesday but was feeling better by the time we made it to Aunt Beth's. Sleeping was difficult wherever we went. Josh and E seemed to be ok but Mira just has a hard time traveling and didn't want to sleep in these new places. She was up most nights every hour.
Janet and Matthew and Bill joined us at their parent's house Tuesday for dinner and visiting. Joshua LOVED having Matthew, 8, as a playmate. From the moment he woke up on Wednesday he started asking for him again. The kids all warmed to Aunt Beth and Uncle Ray quickly which made for nice visiting. Wednesday the kids played in the snow, played in the house and played and played and played. We opened gifts in the evening and let Josh stay up late with Matthew. It felt just like Christmases past.
Just before we left Mira decided to feed Uncle Ray's fish with the lid to the food can on full open just dumping the stuff in there. They were able to clean up that mess fairly easily, so they say. We got off by 10:30 am but it was a long drive home. We were all tired. Aunt Betty and Uncle George were actually on the same road as us, just a little ahead, coming from Indiana for Grandma's 90th birthday party so we met them in my parent's town for dinner. It was a good stopping point since Mira and Evie were both screaming and tired of being in the car. We had dinner with the gang at Panera and then made our way out to our house. We got home around 8:30. The kids went right to bed and then our friend Richard came over to celebrate New Years with beer, pina coladas, a bad game of Scrabble and the movie Underworld 2. We were ALL ready for bed as soon as the ball dropped.
New Year's day the little ones slept in and we made a family trip to Target. I think we spent more in that one trip than a majority of the Christmas shopping and it was all on batteries. We invested heavily in rechargeables and a charger to power all the new toys.
Saturday it was Christmas again as we picked up a box from Grandma and Papa and enjoyed opening the gifts with them on the computer. Saturday,after nap, we headed out to Eldersburg again for Grandma's birthday party. Aunt Betty, Uncle George and Aunt Jo were in town for the event and it was a nice evening. We are having another party for her this Sunday. Her actual birthday is Jan 11.
The days have been lazy and the kids are sleeping it. It is so nice to have Jason home. We just play games, do a little house work, run the required errands and there is no work or school or anything else to interfere. I could live like this. Ok so I wouldn't be able to put food on the table but it is nice!!
Evelyn is going through withdraw from having so many people hold her all the time. I suppose she is getting over it but she really was in her glory just being passed from adoring holder, to adoring holder. Mira is back on her sleep schedule and has been sleeping very hard since we got home. Joshua is himself just somehow sassier. He as acquired a glare and some talking back that are new and he knows just what he is doing.
We had a fun game of Memory tonight with Joshua and he would have cleaned house I think if the cards had been in rows.
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