Two and Two

Lydia's 4th Birthday Slideshow

2009-07-02T22:04:00.001-04:00

A long-awaited visit!

2009-06-30T11:21:00.005-04:00

Dr. and Mrs M!

Last night my cousin, Sean, and his wife, Lisa, stopped for a quick visit and dinner on their whirlwind tour of visiting friends and relatives before they settle in Indiana. They both went to Tech for their undergraduate work and have been in California for the past five years while Sean completed his doctorate. He now has a "Doctor of Philosophy in Mechanical Engineering" and will teach classes at at college in Indiana.

cousins!

There are 11 first cousins in our family, but we were the ones represented last night. Thanks for carving time out during your travels to see us Sean and Lisa! Here's hoping we see each other again before three years pass!

another success!

2009-06-27T20:56:00.003-04:00

Here she is showing us her undies

She insisted she needed to go this evening saying, "Poop potty! Poop potty!" several times before I decided to let her try. She was right! She received lots of praise and the current fav for treats: starburst jelly beans!
Then I decided to let her wear some underwear for the rest of the evening. I don't know if it was the underwear or the previous success, but she wanted to sit on the little potty in a different bathroom on and off for about 30 minutes while we were prepping dinner. She stayed dry in the undies until bedtime. I guess this means I really do need to get serious about training...

overheard

2009-05-28T09:23:00.003-04:00

This morning the girls are sitting at their little table in the family room playing with magnetic dress up dolls. Lydia is carrying on a running conversation for both of them about what the dolls are doing and where they are going. Then I hear....
Lauren: "Nigh-nigh"
Lydia: very excited that sis comprehends the pretend play, "Yes, Lauren! They are going night-night. That's right!"
...more talking....
Lauren: "Nigh-nigh"
Lydia: Right, Lauren. It's time for night-night.
...more talking...
Lauren: "Nigh-nigh"
Lydia: I know, Lauren. Yes!
...talking...
Lauren: "Nigh-nigh"
Lydia: losing patience, "Lauren, yes! Will you stop talking about night-night?"
Lauren: "Nigh-nigh"
Lydia: "Stop saying it Lauren! They already did sleep! Now they need to do something else."
Lauren: "Nigh-nigh".....

Lauren reads

2009-05-27T16:14:00.005-04:00

I had to capture her little, high-pitched "reading" voice.

Success!

2009-05-11T22:03:00.003-04:00

We had potty success with Lauren this week! I'm hoping the generous bag of treats she received will not be forgotten as we move forward in the training

The things she ponders

2009-05-11T14:10:00.002-04:00

Last night as Lydia and I were snuggling in bed, she asked, "Mom, why do boys sometimes kiss girls and the girls don't like it and they cry?" I was astonished and began (quickly) pondering how to answer my almost four year old.
Me: "Who told you that boys kiss girls and make them cry?"
L: "Eden." (yeah right, she's also four)
Me: "I don't think so. Who said this?"
L: hemming and hawing, then finally .... "You know, Mom. Georgy Porgy, pudding and pie, kissed the girls and made them cry...."

This girl makes us laugh!

when she wants to

2009-04-29T09:59:00.000-04:00

Lauren doesn't talk very much, but this week she said her first sentence:
"I wan moosik ahn." (I want music on.) How appropriate. She does love her music!

the wheels are turning...

2009-04-23T16:44:00.001-04:00

Today Lydia asked me, "Mom, is my hair dirty?" I thought that was funny because usually she could care less. I told her it was fine.
L: Why does Uncle Josh call my hair blonde dirty?
Me: You mean "dirty blonde." He was telling you what color your hair is.
L: But my hair isn't dirty. Why does he say that?
Me: He was just being silly.
L: Why?
Me: Uncle Josh likes to be silly sometimes.
L: (after processing the info)..... Boys like to be silly, but girls just like to be right.

HA!! Well, I had a good chuckle over that whole exchange!

sisters

2009-02-19T16:26:00.002-05:00

Lauren - 17 months

Lydia - 17 months

2009-02-17T17:43:00.006-05:00

Someday I might get back to blogging with regularity..... Until then, a few things I want to remember:

Lydia is obsessed with skunks lately. I think she read about one in a book and wants to know lots about them. In the car the other night, it was just the two of us and we had a conversation about skunks. The last question she posed: "Mom, do skunks pray?".

Lydia is a pretty picky eater and we are battling on this front daily. The food she detests the most and the only one that I allow her to pick out of a dish: onions. (Unfortunately, they are in many of the things I cook!) But boy, she always finds the onions, no matter how small or hidden they might be. And no amount of my cajoling or proclamations of how delicious they are has yet to effect a change of her mind. Yesterday, the girls were playing in Lydia's room with the kitchen and accessories. Lydia brought me a dish she had prepared just for me -- onions, because "you love them Mom! They're your favorite!".

Most days you will find Lydia dressed in a skirt and leggings combined with a long-sleeved shirt ( a "leave shirt") with both sleeves shoved above her elbow. She would be most happy if warmer weather would arrive soon - allowing her to ditch the leggings completely and wear a short sleeve shirt! She has very decided opinions about her hair and attire, both of which are commonly modeled after someone or something -- everyone from me to cousin Kate to a character in a storybook.

Lauren, it seems, likes her role as baby in the fam. She doesn't say many words, although you can tell she thinks about it when you ask her to say something. She is also very attached to her paci -- a habit I know we need to break soon. She LOVES animals - stuffed and real. While Lydia clings to my legs around animals, Lauren will be racing to greet them. She is an excellent eater, putting big sis to shame! She eats fast and she eats a lot. Particular favorite lunch foods are avocado and cheese.
Words she says:
Mommy
Daddy
Shishee (sissy)
Leeya
cheese
cackuh (cracker)
no
hi (usually said with a small, quiet "shy" voice)
nye nye
uh-oh
Papa
Liss (Liz)
ahh duh (all done)
doddie (doggie)
byeeee

what colors are you?

2008-11-25T15:07:00.002-05:00

I thought this was a fun quiz.
I am
"water beads" Blue refreshes, soothes and induces meditation; it lends the feeling of protection to the frenzy of daily life.
and
"al fresco" The greens of Al fresco are inviting; they comfort, soothe, and restore.

What are you?

Good for a laugh

2008-10-16T09:54:00.002-04:00

Last night the girls were getting a bath together. They were playing happily and then Lauren passed gas -- a lot! Just as I was checking to be sure they didn't need to do an immediate exit from the tub, Lydia looked incredulously at Lauren and said, "Lauren, how did you get thunder???"
(Ben thought she learned some new euphemism for that bodily function, but honestly I could tell she actually thought Lauren had produced thunder like she hears when there is a storm outside!) Ahh...the things that child says.

random tidbits

2008-09-15T17:00:00.004-04:00

I had planned to post a few pictures of my recent foray into crafts -- sewing projects and jewelry. Unfortunately, Lydia broke our digital camera. (She tried to close it by pressing the lens into the floor.) Repairing it was going to cost more than it was worth. I briefly entertained the idea of a newer, fancier model -- maybe an SLR. But as it turned out, Ben found our exact camera on Ebay - brand new in the box - and at a price we were willing to pay. I hope we get it soon. I guess I didn't realize how much I like having a camera AND how much I use it!

Today I found my beloved watch that Ben gave me when we were dating. I thought I had lost it around the holidays last year when he gave me a sporty/waterproof watch that is "kid-friendly." I cannot express how surprised and delighted I was to come across my old watch. I wasn't looking for it (isn't that how it always happens?) but was doing some cleaning in our room. (I found it in the box that my new watch had come in. )As much as I love my new one, I was SO disappointed to lose my old watch nearly nine months ago. Anyway, it is found and I am thrilled!

Also today and on a sillier note - Lydia was playing with two of her Pups. Quite a while back I stopped being concerned about her knowing we had more than one of her favorite stuffed animal. And she loves having multiples out at a time. So this morning she calls to me over the railing, "Mom, can you throw Pup's sister up to me?" I almost laughed out loud. So now Pup has siblings. He may never have a brother though, since Lydia thinks all siblings are "sisters" =)

I don't want to miss it...

2008-08-28T15:11:00.010-04:00

I was at Target with some returns a few weeks ago when the cashier decided to engage me in casual conversation. My girls were with me per usual, and while they weren't being disobedient or rambunctious, their behavior was....childish! (They are after all, children!) If I recall, Lauren was probably doing her best to convince me to unbuckle her from the cart and hold her and Lydia was likely dancing around talking to me non-stop about basically anything and everything. Our conversation went something like this:

Her: "Cute girls."

Me: "Thank you."

Her: "How old are they?"

Me: "Three and one."

Her: Do you stay home with them?

Me: Yes, I do. They certainly keep me busy, but I love being home with them.

Her: I have one kid. He's in daycare. (Lauging) That way someone else gets to chase him around all day!

I hope I didn't appear as bothered as I felt my her glib remark. I walked away wondering why a person who feels that way about her child even has children... This is not meant to be a diatribe against mothers who work outside the home. Her comment just caused me to think...."Do strangers (or even friends) see how I interact and react to my children and wonder if I am happy with my life?"
I can get too focused on "my agenda" and what I need or want to get done in a day. I've realized it's not enough for the kids just to be happy or entertained during a day while I check things off my list. I want to engage them more and spark creative thoughts and ideas, even while they are very young. Sometimes I stop and really think about all that my three-year-old is learning and absorbing and I realize that I have an opportunity, a choice really, to influence her to teach her in so many ways. Of course this means managing my time better, spreading out my daily tasks and maybe even letting go of "me time." ("Me time" could warrant a whole other post!!)

Well, this week I have endeavored to do better, and I can see a difference in the girls, especially Lydia. I have made a concerted effort just to get down on the floor and play with them more. Not that I haven't done that previously, but this week, instead of watching and waiting for them to "need" me, I took a more active role. We have built forts and tents in their rooms everyday.(A huge hit with both girls.) We have played hide-and-seek (usually under Lauren's crib - her fav. little "spot"). I have had every non-deadly bodily injury I can think of to keep my little doctor busy. We have cooked many, many meals in the play kitchen including detailed discussions of what foods are most healthy, what foods are most yummy, and what foods should only be treats. We have worked on counting and addition and subtraction, using our stash of beaded necklaces! We have built castles and towers with the blocks. The Little People family and farmers have been introduced to a whole world on the floor, under the desk and in the cubbies of the girls' rooms.

I have also begun putting Lauren in her crib for a mid-morning "rest." She has become unusually fussy around this time and I finally just decided this is how I would deal with it. Amazingly, it seems to calm her down and in a way, adjust her attitude. Regardless of how fussy she might have been while we were all playing, she never cries when I put her in the crib. She seems fairly content with her newfound "alone" time. I have used this opportunity to do "schooling" (this is Lydia's term for it) more regularly with Lydia. She LOVES learning to write her letters, which is the bulk of what we do. Sometimes we do a little craft too. I have made it a priority to sit there with her to do the crafts along with her. She has enjoyed it, and so have I.

Like my cousin, I too occasionally read the blogs of people I do not know. Some posts are so insightful, some quite crafty and creative and others are just so eloquently and succinctly written that I can't help but enjoy reading! I realize that my blog doesn't really fall into any of those categories, (sometimes to my chagrin!)but today, I just thought I'd share something that has really made a difference in our day to day life. I guess when you boil it down, it is most simply, a different perspective and a change of attitude for me!

Lauren's First Birthday Slideshow

2008-08-01T22:21:00.001-04:00

friends and family

2008-08-01T22:03:00.005-04:00

Here are a few pictures of people with whom we have visited over the last month. There is much more to show and tell, but this is all for now.

My friend, Kelley, and her daughter, Greta came to visit

Greta is just as adorable in person as she looks in all her pictures!

On a separate occasion, my friend Katie dropped by and we got to meet her daughter, Charis, for the first time!!

Charis seems SO low-key and easy going.

Little Buddies: Emma, Lydia and Kate

fun times at the park

Lydia and Uncle Jake tickling the ivories

My cousins and my daughters!

Megan, Lydia, Kate, Lauren, and Anna

We love you Aunt Becky and Uncle Elias. And we miss you!

Ben's relative, Brad, just moved down to be the head librarian over the theological division of a joint library for several colleges in downtown ATL

Good times over dinner at Josh and Liz's house

New Videos

2008-07-07T22:18:00.002-04:00

Lydia's 3rd Birthday Slideshow

Lydia Feeding Lauren (from May)

2008-06-02T23:06:00.003-04:00

There are so many things I could say that I'm at a loss for where to begin. Also, I may never "finish" this, so I'm going to go ahead and put it out there!

LAUREN:

She loves to eat table food. She will allow me to feed her some foods with a spoon, but she prefers to feed herself anything she can pick up. Bread is her favorite. She can spot it on someone else's plate and she starts her "happy" hands and feet -kicking and banging her tray until she gets her wish.

A couple of weeks ago, I had her weighed and she was just a few ounces shy of 17 lbs. She is growing faster than her big sis was at this same age.

She is so active and wants to be able to do everything Lydia does.

She has a very strong-willed, stubborn personality and it is quite obvious even at this young age. She has shown us her temper!!! yikes!

Every day she gets more confident standing on her own. She makes it very clear by pushing my hands away that she doesn't want me to hold her up or help her. She can maintain her balance even if she gets excited and begins waving her hands or shaking a toy. Today she took three steps toward me all by herself!

She loves hair. She likes to play with mine, especially while nursing. She has a very bad tendency to pull Lydia's hair. Let me say, it hurts!!! Lauren is also really bad about pinching. She likes to pinch and grab you whenever she is in the mood. I'm convinced she does it on purpose to get a reaction.

She loves riding in her stroller and it doesn't seem to matter if it is while on errands or outside for a walk. She loves to be outdoors.

Lauren is a Mommy's girl, no question.

LYDIA:

It is so neat to be able to have a conversation with your little child. Lydia learns new words all the time and it is so funny as she experiments with how to use them in a phrase or sentence. As an example, I usually say "bless you" if someone sneezes. I don't think Lydia knows the word "sneeze." When I asked her in the car the other day if Lauren had her paci in her mouth, she responded, "No. She blessed it out." -- meaning Lauren sneezed and the paci came out.

There aren't many words that Lydia pronounces incorrectly. Latest favorite: sun scream

Lydia is extremely observant. Today at the grocery store she was (loudly) pointing out all the women she saw who were wearing lipstick! Then, our cashier was a woman with very short hair. Lydia asked, "Is that person a boy or girl, Mom?"

She has an excellent memory.

She knows the letters of the alphabet by sight and the sounds the letters make.

She LOVES to change her clothes during the day. She goes into her closet and tries on several outfits AFTER she is already dressed for the day. She also loves to dress up in leotards, and ballet accesories that have been given to us.

She is cautious in new situations and is by no means a fearless daredevil.

I'm IT

2008-04-12T09:52:00.003-04:00

I've been tagged. Since most of you have been tagged already, I won't bother!

1. I am a little fanatical about brushing my teeth. In college, I kept a toothbrush in my backpack and in my car so that I could brush whenever I wanted!

2. I love to read. It is my favorite way to relax and unwind. When I was younger my absolute favorite genre was mystery/suspense! I read every Nancy Drew, Hardy Boys, and Trixie Belden book that our library had. I used to finish one in an evening. Now I have little time for reading and it takes quite a bit longer to finish something. The last three books I have read are a Sherlock Holmes mystery, a Jane Austen novel, and a Christian parenting book.

3. I took private violin lessons for twenty consecutive years. I wanted to begin, but several times along the way I really wanted to quit. My mom would never let me! It was to be my choice when I was out of high school. When that time arrived, I had decided to make music my major in college. I even ended up with a masters degree. I am very thankful to my mom for the sacrifices she made in order for me to take lessons as a child and for her insistence that I continue, even during the rough times.

4. I am very competitive. I played soccer for many years on co-ed teams and perhaps that influenced my natural tendencies! I also have a blue belt in TKD and would LOVE to get back into it someday. I have mellowed a bit ( I think!) over the years, but especially when I was younger I never wanted to be viewed as weak or wimpy. I wanted all the same chances as a boy and no excuses or concessions because I was a girl. I thought I was just as strong or as tough as a guy. That was probably true for a while, but eventually, no matter how determined I was, it just wasn't the case any longer!

5. I love to find a bargain. It pains me if it is ever necessary to pay full price for things like shoes and clothing.

6. My least favorite household chores are cleaning my wood floors and the stovetop. =)

7. I have seen The Phantom of the Opera in Atlanta, New York and England -- all expenses paid.

Few and Far Between

2008-04-09T23:31:00.006-04:00

It has been so long since an update on anything around here that I just keep putting it off because I don't have the time right now to devote to putting down all the things I'd like to. If I can't chronicle all the little goings-on then I may as well write nothing...No! That is worse! So, tonight I'm sticking to the two things that happened so far this week that I can remember right now and that I don't want to forget!
Lydia has been wrapping her brain around the fact that there are boys and there are girls. She is also learning about familial relationships. She doesn't know what a brother is and always calls other people's siblings their "sister." Of course she doesn't know what a husband or wife is -- adults are all just Daddies and Mommies. So, I am Ben's Mommy as well as her Mommy ;) Lately an added twist is the argument between Lydia and Ben about Pup's gender. (Go ahead and chuckle.) When you ask Lydia if Pup is a boy or a girl, she insists that "he is a girl." So we worked on he/she and now she will say it right and with extra emphasis - "SHE is a girl!" Anyway, Ben likes to tease her that Pup is a boy. She denies it every time. Yesterday she waltzed into my room and said this: "Mom! Pup has big ears, so Pup is a boy." I laughed heartily and wondered who put that idea into her head. (Daddy of course!)
Lydia has trouble being scared at night. We also go through periods where she wakes up crying about being scared. She has mentioned that "the birds are scary" but I don't know where she got that idea from. (We haven't been watching Hitchcock lately!) Anyway, we've been working on some short Bible memory verses and including ones like Ps 56:3 and others. I remind her that God is with her and that she doesn't need to be afraid. He loves her and cares for her. At the same time we've also been talking about how God does not have a body like we do. We can't see Him, but he sees us. Probably quite hard for her to grasp very well, but she usually accepts my explanations readily. Well, tonight she was whimpering at bedtime saying she was afraid. We'd already done the storytelling (she has to have a story every night about Curious George and Jeremy Monkey--Kate's stuffed animal is cousin to George, for those not in the know). We had also done the singing and the cuddling. So I reminded her that God was with her and she need not be afraid. Then, as I gave her her final kiss goodnight, she said, "Mom, will you go get my Bible so God can be here with me?" I haven't looked in at her, but I expect that she'll be cuddling Pup and her little bible tonight.

Lydia Sings

2008-03-24T20:23:00.003-04:00

Hallelujah Praise Jehovah

Joy to the World

Stats for Lauren

2008-02-19T09:28:00.007-05:00

I finally took Lauren to the doc last week. It was her first well baby check. We went about 3 times during the first month of her life and that was enough for us for quite a while. I don't really like to go to a place where germs abound when I feel my kids are "fine." It just seems counter intuitive. In fact as we got ready to leave, the PA told us to wash our hands well because the flu was really going around. (Great!)
So my curiosity regarding Lauren's weight was satisfied. Almost seven months, she weighed close to 16 pounds. I was a bit surprised as I guess I was expecting a little less. I seem to remember Lydia weighed 19 lbs at 1 year. (My mom always reminds me that I weighed only 17 lbs at 1 year. I must have been a sickly looking child!) I do think Lauren looks a little more filled out than her sister did at this age. I love it! Baby chub is great! (I wish Mommy chub was also great.) I don't remember Lauren's length, but it was in the 25 percentile.
Lauren is a happy baby. She smiles a lot with her big grin - her tongue usually sticks out and her eyes nearly closed. Lydia is good at making her grin and laugh. The girls like to play "chase" where Lydia runs and Daddy zooms Lauren around after her. This can produce belly laughs from both girls.
Lauren loves the johnny jump up we got from our cousins. She is quite good at bouncing around. If Lydia is nearby, she will "swing" Lauren. I have to remind her not to be so exuberant in the swinging!! Lauren thinks it is great though, and she always gets a big smile on her face when big sis swings her.
Lauren is proficient at the inchworm crawl and has been for about 2 months now. Occasionally she gets on her hands and knees and does it the "right" way. When she is a few inches from her goal (be it a toy or Mommy!) she gets so excited that she goes spread eagle on her tummy and stars waving her arms and legs.
She is enjoying her food and likes to eat 3-4 times a day. Nursing is not waning either! She eats rice cereal, sweet potatoes, avacado, banana, pears and peaches.
She has been working on cutting a tooth for about a week and it finally broke through her gum. Just this morning I noticed that it seems to be both bottom teeth that have come through and not just one like I thought. (I recommend Hyland's Teething Tablets for fussiness and soreness that often accompanies teething.)
Well, that's all for now. The girls are calling!

Edit: Add to Lauren's latest stunts - When playing on the floor she can maneuver herself into a sitting position AND we have seen her pull herself up to a standing position!

recent quotes

2008-02-07T20:19:00.000-05:00

Things Lydia has said lately

"I sink so."

"I need to tell you a question."

"We need gwoshees from Pugwix."

"Look Mom, I'm running around like a boy!"

"I need to milk (nurse) Pup."

"Lauren doesn't want to nurse. She wants to play with me."

"I need to match baby sis. I'm the big sister and Lauren is the little sister. She likes to match with me." ( I hear some variation of this story every day!)

When she is being silly I often tell her she is a "nilly" - basically derived from part of a nonsense nickname given by Gramma. She responded the other day with, "I'm a big nilly and Lauren's a little nilly."

New nickname for Lauren: baby sister-li-la
New name for Daddy: Mister Dad or Ben-Dad

How long has it been since you ate an Oreo?

2008-01-29T12:35:00.000-05:00

I know some people consider these cookies to be the ultimate indulgence - especially with a glass of milk. I don't drink milk and I have never really craved an Oreo. However, this past weekend I bought some in order to make a dessert for the youth group. Of course the recipe didn't call for the entire bag...so I took a bite...and ended up eating several cookies. =)
I cannot think of Oreos without also thinking of a particular woman at our church. She is an older lady and is very much into all things natural (which I am certainly not against, but she is on a whole other level than I am!). Anyway, whenever she mentions junk food she equates it with coke and oreos. She cannot imagine how anyone could crave such things. (I've had this conversation with her more than once.) She is very direct and will look you right in the eye and ask, " Do you REALLY enjoy cokes or oreos?" =)
Here is the recipe for Oreo Ice Cream Dessert. It is always a hit with young and old alike. Don't expect to have any left-over!

1 - 1/2 gallon vanilla ice cream, slightly softened
1 carton of Cool Whip, thaw to spreading consistency
24 Oreos, crushed
1 stick of butter

Fudge Sauce
4 oz of unsweetend chocolate
1/4 C butter
2/3 C sugar
2/3 C milk
dash of salt

Make the chocolate first so it can cool while you put the rest of the ingredients together. Over med-low heat, melt the chocolate and butter together and then add the sugar and stir. Add the milk and a little salt and cook for a few minutes stirring constantly so the chocolate will thicken but not burn.(You can use other types of chocolate -german, semi-sweet, etc. Just taste it to be sure the proportions are right. I never measure the ingredients for the fudge sauce, so I'm only guess here!)
Crush oreos in a bag and sprinkle in a 13x9 pyrex dish. Pour melted butter over the cookies. Scoop ice cream evenly onto the cookie crust. Pour cooled chocolate over the ice cream. (It doesn't have to be completely cool, just not too hot.) Spread the cool whip over the chocolate. Sprinkle nuts or oreo crumbs on top if desired. Store dessert in freezer. Allow a few minutes to thaw before cutting and serving.

Bathtime Fun

2008-01-15T20:07:00.000-05:00

When the tub is in use, there is always the sink!!

Photos

2008-01-14T22:05:00.000-05:00

In December we had some family photos taken. It was a bit of a challenge with a 2 year old and a 5 month old but our photographer was patient and good humored. To view more of her talented work, visit her photo blog.
Thank You Abby!!!

(There are lots more pics and I plan to post more on my dropshots site...check under December 1.)

Tidbits

2008-01-04T21:21:00.000-05:00

SO MUCH has been going on around here these past few weeks that I don't have time to chronicle it right now. I'll just post a few things I'd like to remember
We're still plugging away with potty training Lydia. The novelty of getting to go when the kitchen timer buzzes has totally worn off. She protests every time I require her to try. She does prefer to wear her "underwears" though, so I hope we're done with pullups and diapers really soon. We've had several completely dry days -- and even a few dry naps. She has recently decided that she prefers to be alone when she is in the bathroom, proclaiming to me "Don't come in, Mom." Last week I did follow her into the bathroom soon after she had climbed onto the potty and this is what she said (nearly verbatim): "Mom, I told you not to come in. You did come in. You did not obey. Now you need to get a spankin'." I wanted to laugh, but I held myself in check while trying to explain that she must obey me while I do not have to obey her.
Lydia is quite the nicknamer! She gets it honestly, I must say. Her Papa (my Dad) is the king of nicknames -- and the ones he creates have no basis on reality! A few I remember from childhood that he gave to us kids: chili-down-chookus, slim R muscle bullet, low, lobus-tootmo....you get the idea. So Lydia has come up with a few of her own. I am frequently Maman (but the last few days she is testing out Mom-puh), Ben is Dad-o, Lauren is baby sis-a-ler, Kate has morphed from Katie-boo-boo to Katie-boob to Katie boob-a-loo, Liz is usually Auntie Liz or sometimes Aunt Lizzie. Lydia got a kick out of hearing someone call her Elizabeth, so she decided to try it out... "Uh-wizz-a-biff." While Ben's parents were here for the holidays she finally decided to drop their proper names (Grampa Rob and Gramma Kaffee) and called them just Gramma and Grampa. That was nice to hear. She did decide to try out Grampa Robbie once or twice and even called him plain "Robert" once. That was funny as no one calls him that -- we don't know if she heard it or if it was another example of a nickname she thought she was creating!
My baby has started solids and is crawling!!!It is by no means a coordinated crawl, but she can maneuver herself really well. She gets on all fours and begins the rocking motion. Then she usually launches herself face first and begins that inchworm crawl. She is one determined baby. Lydia was playing Memory the other night and Lauren really wanted to get some of the cards. She spied them from several feet away and decided to go for it. Just as she reached her prize, Lydia grabbed the cards off the floor saying, "No baby sis, no no no. Those aren't yours!" We removed Lauren and she immediately headed for the game again. On her third time making it over to the game and her third time being thwarted, she began her "I'm mad" cry. Feeling a bit sorry for her, I relented and let her play with a couple of cards. =)
Well, I've forgotten whatever else I was hoping to record here! Oh well =)

Lydia makes us laugh

2007-12-13T22:06:00.000-05:00

Things Lydia has said recently:

Surveying her hands after a meal, "My hands are almost clean Mom!" She is so proud of herself when she finishes a meal and her hands aren't covered in food. She thinks she doesn't need me to wipe her face and hands because they are clean in her mind! I end up telling her she is "almost" clean.
Now, everyone knows Pup is her #1. She has also really enjoyed her doll since Lauren arrived. Just this past week she has adopted a stuffed butterfly that Aunt Becky gave to Lauren and began calling it "my baby girl." I've reminded her that it is really a butterfly,but that she can take care of it like a baby doll. (She swaddles it, puts it in the swing, "soothes" it when she tells me the butterfly is crying etc.) Alright. She loves the song "The Wheels on the Bus." You have to sing it with her in a particular order or she interrupts to correct you. (The wheels are first, then the wipers, then the children, the driver...) I heard her in her room this week and she added a new verse. "The butterflies on the bus go 'wah wah wah'..."
At lunch while covering her eyes with two pieces of bread, "Look Mom. I'm Bartimaeus. My eyes are sick!" I laughed heartily and then asked her who made Bartimaeus' eyes well. "Zaccheus." =) We'll keep working on the Bible stories!

L&L

2007-12-10T22:07:00.003-05:00

I'm working on a project that requires me to go through ALL of my pictures. I'm thankful that I organized my non digital pictures a few years ago. It has certainly made the task easier. I thought I'd post a few of my girls when they were near the same age.

Lydia, 4 months

Lauren, 4 months

Lydia, 4 months

Lauren, 3 months

Lydia, 4 months

Lauren, 4 months

Hodgepodge

2007-11-30T11:23:00.000-05:00

This morning over breakfast I saw three deer walk into our backyard. If you've been to our house you know we live in a subdivision and our house doesn't back up to any woods. By the time I grabbed my camera and took the picture they were trotting into our neighbors' yard.
Also during breakfast Lydia and I noticed some leaves falling from the trees. She exclaimed, "Mom the birds are falling!" I explained that the wind was blowing some leaves off of the trees. A few minutes later after she had done a little processing she said, "The leaves are breakin' Mom."

Here is my littlest girl showing off her latest skill. She loves to grab her feet these days. She also now rolls from her back to her tummy. We knew she was really close and she actually did it last night. I think it was the first time.
She enjoys her bouncy seat but we frequently see her straining and trying her hardest to sit up! She does not want to be a "baby." We remember Lydia acting this same way.

Since this post is kind of random already, I'll list a few of my latest favorites.

1. Izze drinks. Have you tried one? They are so delicious. No refined sugar, no caffeine. Just fruit juice and sparkling water.
2. Baby Bee diaper ointment by Burt's Bees. The ingredients are all natural and gentle to their skin. No parabens or mineral oils here.
3. Pizza dough in the Publix bakery. We have started having homemade pizza night on Fridays. (If you can still call it homemade even though I buy the dough!) I am hooked on this and we haven't even wanted to order out for pizza in months.
4. The book "Teach Them Diligently" by Lou Priolo. Maybe I'll have a chance to do a little review sometime; it was a very worthwhile read.

Thanksgiving in Review

2007-11-27T17:59:00.000-05:00

Although we feel a bit spoiled that we always get to "host" our family members, we are so happy they are willing to drive down to spend holiday time with us. This year, Patrick and Susan stayed at our house for the few days they were here.

Lydia beat Patrick fair and square at Memory.

Lydia bonded right away with Aunt Susie. She started calling her "Suze."

Ben's Uncle Carl and Aunt Rita usually join us either for Christmas or Thanksgiving and they are fun to spend time with. We say it every year, but Rita has the magic touch with the babies. My girls, who don't really cuddle, always seem to snuggle up in her arms and fall asleep!

We had the feast at my parents' house on Thursday. It was a large crowd of both family and friends.

All of the tables were decked out in silver, fine china and fresh flowers.

Where Patrick goes, a game will be played! He has introduced us to many games. He is a good sport and patiently explains the sometimes very complicated rules as many times as needed.

"Two matchin' girls"

I don't think Carl believed us when we explained that the big red ball gets daily use with Lauren!

I'm not feeling very verbose, so I hope you enjoyed the pictures!

my fashonista

2007-11-27T17:31:00.001-05:00

Yesterday I began (and almost finished!) sorting through the girls' clothes. It is well past time for shorts and tanks and sleeveless onesies to make their way out of closets and into boxes! It was fun to revisit Lydia's clothes from two years ago and get them laundered and put into Lauren's room. I have also found that in that short period of time, some of my taste has changed! Oh well. I hope I don't feel this way every time Lauren moves up to Lydia's clothes =)

Lydia loved helping me sort. She also decided to redress herself using several interesting items from various piles. She is getting more independent by the week. Every day I hear, "I do it myself Mom." Just a few weeks ago she was saying, "Me do it!" so we have at least progressed closer to correct speech!

struggling with her socks

the end result: a summer skirt that finally fits, newborn hospital cap, pink socks andMom's slippers (or flippers, as she calls them)

Dinner

2007-11-13T16:05:00.000-05:00

Last week I made Zucchini Moussaka for dinner. We had not had it in quite a while, and I'm not sure Lydia had ever eaten it. Of course she wanted towatch (and help) me make it earlier in the day. When dinner time came, she was sitting in her booster cheering when it came out of the oven. She kept saying "Yum!". This seemed unusual, but then she's two, so you just never know what they decide is funny or weird or YUM!
I put her portion on her plate to cool and after the prayer she dug right in. After a few bites, the reason for her previous anticipation became clear. She said, "It's not choc-wit Mom," as if I had been misleading her all day! She seemed to enjoy it despite the fact that it wasn't the yummy dessert she had been expecting. =) She likes Italian type foods and was even convinced that the sauteed onions were noodles.
The slices of zucchini were not as well liked. I had given her both a fork and a spoon for the meal so she could use whichever utensil was easiest. (We are battling with her about using utensils these days. The novelty has long since worn off and she just wants to get the food to her mouth with the most ease and speed!) Anyway she was spooning the food in with ease and picking out the zucchini slices and placing them carefully on her fork which was on the table beside her plate. I was quick to remind her that she was going to have to eat some of the zucchini too. Her response - "Dey're waitin' right on da fork for me, mom."

Fall

2007-11-07T23:03:00.000-05:00

at Amicalola Falls

We had fun a few weeks ago on our outdoor expedition here. Liz posted about it so I won't rehash the details except to say I hope not to have a baby strapped on next time! Actually it wasn't so bad after the first 30 minutes...I kind of forgot about it.

Oh - and Lauren is sporting a brand new outfit in this pic. We had a diaper catastrophe of gigantic proportions! It was so bad that I had to go buy her something to wear for the rest of the day. (You'd think when I know we'll be gone the entire day I might learn to leave the house fully prepared for any situation...)

Last week was our family's first Fall Festival. Lydia has no idea what "Halloween" is or what it entails for some people. I did not even bring it up to Lydia until right before room time that day that anything out of the ordinary was in the works. So after I finished teaching that evening, we got the girls ready. The idea of spending much money on a costume is foreign to me. So whatever we can come up with for a few dollars -or free! - works for us. Thus, Lydia was a cat (ears compliments of Auntie Liz's stash) and Lauren was a cow -- a $3 hand-me-down from big sis. I gave Lydia some whiskers and a pink nose. She waited pretty patiently while I drew on her face and then when I told her to look in the mirror, all she could say was, "MOM!".

Lauren was great. This is how she spent her evening while we raced around with Lydia.

The church had quite a few of these giant inflatable play things. It was Lydia's first experience on them and she LOVED it! Every time we pass by the church now she says, "Mom - we go pway games?"

The happy trio of unlikely animal friends

It was a fun night and best of all - everything was free --hotdogs, popcorn and drinks -- cupcakes, balloons, pony rides, candy and games!

Prayers

2007-10-30T17:15:00.000-04:00

Today a violin student of mine was playing in a competition in SC. Her mom called during lunch with a few specific prayer requests for her daughter as she was about to perform. So, Lydia and I prayed for the girl as we ate our lunch. I finished praying and we ate a few more bites then Lydia wanted to pray again for this girl. We folded our hands and prayed again...and again shortly thereafter.
After our prayers for this student, Lydia started requesting that we pray for some of my other students...and then for Mommy, and then Lauren and lastly Lydia. I was touched by some of her requests and the fact that she willingly put lunch on hold each time we stopped to pray for someone.
While she was still sitting at the table, she was unusually quiet as I rinsed our lunch dishes. I was wondering if she was thinking about our little prayer session. Then she asked very seriously, "Mom, we pway for Dora?" while looking at the cartoon character on her placemat. I had to try very hard not to laugh out loud!

The Story of Lauren's Birth

2007-10-26T23:01:00.000-04:00

Is it possible to stay pregnant forever? Obviously not, but I wonder how long Lauren would have stayed in her cocoon had she not be "encouraged" to leave! My midwives gave me up to 10 days past my EDD to let labor occur naturally. Nothing doing. I know people thought I was nuts to wait that long for labor and I did get some comments like, "Why won't your midwife go ahead and induce you?"She probably would have done it sooner had I wanted that. As I did when preparing for Lydia's birth, I tried many things to bring on labor but without success. Lauren was cozy inside and had no intention of coming out! So when July 23rd came, we went to the hospital for an induction.
When we arrived we waited an hour in the waiting room for them to call us back. I remember flipping through magazines trying not to become irritated at the additional opportunity of the hospital to "time" my birth. (When I was finally taken to a room we realized that the shift change occurred at 11am and I surmised that we had been made to wait until that could take place.)The midwives Stephanie and Jill were on call until 6pm. Stephanie broke my water shortly after 11am and it had been previously agreed upon that I would be allowed to walk and to try to get some contractions going. After a couple of hours and little to no progress (I was 1.5 cm dilated and completely effaced) they put me on Pitocin. I struggled a little bit with this as I REALLY wanted this birth to be without Pit, but I lost that battle. I reminded myself that I had to keep a positive attitude regardless of the situation. To say I was disappointed is an understatement. Now I was facing loss of mobility as well as drug induced contractions. It was right about this time that dear Pat, our friend and doula, arrived to bring support and positive thinking! (She had been waiting at home until things started to happen.)
The pit drip was started at 2pm. After about 5 minutes of Pitocin, my contractions were immediately painful and intense. I began to despair a little because it had taken several hours of Pitocin during my labor with Lydia to get to that stage. I was wondering if I really was going to make it without the pain meds! I continued laboring in the rocking chair with my feet propped on the bed. Pat, Ben and my Mom were there. I tried a birthing ball for one contraction and it was awful!!! I couldn't wait to get back to the chair! At 4pm they checked me and I was at 6cm ( only 6 I remember thinking). I remember going to the bathroom after that and then casually mentioning after my next contraction in the chair that I felt like pushing during a contraction (and had) on the toilet. That got Stephanie and Jill's attention and they checked me again. I was nearly 10 cm and they gave me the green light for pushing! It was about 4:30 then. Things began to kick into high gear in the room as lights came on, gloves were snapped on and gowns donned by the midwives. I literally could NOT believe I had progressed from 6 to 9.5 cm in about 20 minutes. I kept thinking (and probably saying) "I can't believe it's time to push!". (The midwives were surprised too, I think, as we had chatted earlier in the day about how they wouldn't b e there for Lauren's birth. I remember hoping very much that Lauren would be born before my nurse's shift ended at 11pm!!)
When I had to move from my glider to the bed I climbed on top of the bed and was standing on it until the various IV cords and blankets were situated. I remember Pat laughing at this =) My left hand was hurting so much from the IV port that I could put no pressure on that hand without lots of pain. So standing was actually easier than trying to shift my huge body around on the bed one-handed!!-Well, I think I had5 or 6 contractions after that point and then Lauren was born. The cord was around her neck and one arm across her body with her hand near her cheek when her head came out. That felt really weird when Stephanie was maneuvering Lauren's arm around her head. I think perhaps the cord was cutting off some of Lauren's oxygen because I remember Stephanie looking at me after only about 3, maybe 4, contractions and saying, " You really need to get her out on this next one, okay?". I was shocked.What did she mean the next contraction? Was I really that close? Could it all really be going this much faster this time? Well, it really did. Lauren was born at 5:11 pm and they placed her on me right after she came out. It was incredible. She gave one little cry and then was quiet while I held her. We tried nursing a few minutes later and I will say that she had a powerful latch from the get go! Birth really is a miracle and there is nothing like that feeling I get after birth when I meet my baby for the first time.
After I was cleaned and stitched up (the tearing was not as bad this time, and really I think I might have escaped it altogether if the pushing stage had lasted a little longer) the nurse wheeled me to my room. Although Lauren's birth was so much "easier" than Lydia's, my hospital stay was certainly less pleasant. I guess I can leave those details out unless anyone is really curious.
Lauren - you finally arrived, safe and healthy and we are so excited about life as four. I love you little Lauren and I love being Mommy to you and Lydia. I pray for wisdom, patience, tenderness and peace every day as I seek to parent you as God would have me to do. May you love Jesus and cling to Him all your days. Love Mommy

Changes

2007-10-23T09:08:00.000-04:00

Ben and I were reminiscing the other day and it came up that this fall is the first time in the nearly 5 years of our marriage that I am home every evening when Ben gets home. When we were first married, I was in the middle of pursuing my Masters degree. Concerts and rehearsals kept me out late in the evenings. When I wrapped that up, I began teaching for a music academy. I taught there three days a week and on my earliest evenings I arrived home by about 6 or so...the other days it was after 8pm. I even kept this somewhat crazy schedule for Lydia's first year. She took to it as well as I can imagine. She has always loved going bye-bye and she became quite close with the two women who kept her in the nursery. (In fact, the other day we were heading toward that area and going the same route we used to take every week and she suddenly said, "Mom, we're goin' to see Miss Carmen at the nursery?" I was stunned that she remembered our driving route and touched once again by the fact that she misses Miss Carmen and Miss Cindy and the kids she played with.) Anyway, I ended that crazy schedule and we are enjoying a more normalized evening routine. It has been good for us.
I took about 2 months off of gigging when Lauren was born and since I started back in September, our quartet has had a wedding, or two, every weekend. Actually last weekend was our first "free" weekend. We'll start back the first weekend in November and keep up the pace through Christmas. I enjoy gigging and have to thank Ben for sacrificing a large portion of his Saturdays to watch the girls and enable me to do this. (This reminds me of how I used to avoid using the word "gig" when I was first getting into this. I thought it sounded so stupid and I preferred to call it a "job." Obviously my peers rubbed off on me and now I use the term with the best of them!)

My baby is three months old today. It really wasn't that long ago that she was born but it wouldn't seem like our family without her. She is an active baby and likes to be held. This means Mommy wears the baby bjorn for a portion of every day. (I could benefit greatly from weekly visits to a masseuse and a chiropractor!) She is rolling over -from tummy to back - nearly every day. This accomplishment has translated into middle of the night feedings again because she wakes up distressed. She hates her carseat and loves her bouncy seat. She enjoys the little toys that hang off of that seat and she will just GRIN at the bird that is attached.

Lydia continues to make us laugh. She can be quite the little ham and after you laugh once she will continue doing whatever it was to try to keep you laughing. She is (finally) really enjoying being read to. She has always liked books, but never had the patience to hear the story. She likes her "special books" (the books I will not leave in her room). Favorite stories include "If You Give A Pig A Pancake," (and others in that series), Curious George, and Olivia. She has a great memory, but she is very stubborn and resists memorizing anything we think is profitable...i.e. short Bible verses, Children's Catechism etc. She likes to sing and I can finally recognize a melody in there somewhere. Too bad it is always the same melody --Come Thou Fount! She will put any words, including nonsense, to that tune. She loves her little sister and it is sweet to see Lauren's face light up when Lydia talks to her. Even though I am constantly reminding Lydia to be gentle, she still has occasional bursts of wildness that have resulted in near miss accidents. Last week I took something from the kitchen out to the fridge in the garage. I was out and back inside in under 5 seconds. When I looked over to the girls, Lydia had picked Lauren up (she was propped on the boppy on the couch) and was standing next to the couch holding her in a bear hug with a proud grin on her face. In the milisecond it to me to react, I ditched my first thought and instinct-- raising my voice - or saying anything at all -- and raced to her side to grab Lauren. To say my heart was pounding does not even describe how I felt!
That's all for now!

My Littlest Girl

2007-10-11T18:29:00.000-04:00

Just a reminder that even when i don't have time to post here, there are pictures being added at my dropshots site.

www.dropshots.com/jenviolin

Name that tune...

2007-10-09T08:48:00.000-04:00

I'm not sure if I've mentioned this before, but Lydia uses the Consumer Reports Buying Guide as her hymnal/Bible. That is the book she runs for when we're having family worship or even during the day when she feels like singing. Last night she was flipping through it and here is the line she kept repeating,
"Pardon for sin and a peace that endureth" except it sounded more like "Pahdon for sin and a peace dat endoooowith".
Can you name that hymn?!

Quiz

2007-10-07T23:46:00.000-04:00

What American accent do you have? Your Result: The Midland "You have a Midland accent" is just another way of saying "you don't have an accent." You probably are from the Midland (Pennsylvania, southern Ohio, southern Indiana, southern Illinois, and Missouri) but then for all we know you could be from Florida or Charleston or one of those big southern cities like Atlanta or Dallas. You have a good voice for TV and radio.
The Inland North
The West
The Northeast
Philadelphia
Boston
The South
North Central
What American accent do you have? Quiz Created on GoToQuiz

Lydia Sings

2007-10-05T18:47:00.000-04:00

I have tried multiple times to capture her singing this song on video. Usually she gets part way through and says "bye bye camera!". At one point today when she caught me looking at her(without the camera) while she was singing she said, "Don't see me Mom!" This is our best result so far =)

2007-10-01T16:25:00.000-04:00

Today, to celebrate this wonderful weather, I took the girls to a local park. I did some walking on a path with one in the bjorn and the other in the stroller. When we made it to the playground area, Lydia hopped out of the stroller and made a bee-line for the equipment. She alternates between doing her own thing and copying what other kids are doing. She also can't resist a baby. Twice today she saw babies and went right up to them to say hi and pat their heads or hands. She has had the "be gentle" talk for weeks now, and both the mommy and grandma were very gracious about her attention to their little ones. Still, I realize some parents do not want another child right in the face of their baby. I had to coax her away each time.
Over lunch when we got home she was recounting the things she had done at the playground. There is some thing there that kids can spin around on and regarding it she said, " I spinning on dat. I be very busy!". (Busy is Lydia's word for dizzy.)
Before her downtime, I was reading from her new favorite story "We Help Mommy." (It is a classic Golden Book story by Eloise Wilkins.) There is a part where the little girl helps her mommy make something with dough and she has to roll and pat it. Lydia and I talked about how she has sometimes helped me make something in the kitchen. She looked at the book and then back to me and said, "Like pizza, Mom!". I was impressed she made that connection about rolling out dough since the picture was of a pie, I think. The very next thing out of her mouth was, "Auntie Liz can't have cheese". Wow! And she is right. The last time I made pizzas, Lydia was helping and I explained how we had to be careful to leave some of the pizza without any cheese because Auntie Liz can't eat cheese. She has a great memory. Little instances like this remind Ben and me that we need to encourage her in developing that memory -- as in memorizing short Bible verses or the questions/answers she is s l o w l y learning in the catechism.
A week or so ago she touched the wheel on the car tire right after we had gotten out. Of course it was very hot and she really hurt her fingers. After kissing her hand and wiping the tears I reminded her of the importance of obedience. (She had been told before not to touch the car tires.) I told her that sometimes when she did not obey mommy and daddy she could get hurt like this. It made an impression because she kept bringing up that instance all day and for many days afterwards. How I wish other things for which she is disciplined would remain so clear in her mind!
On a much more comical note, Lydia proclaimed during church last night (at a vocal level those sitting nearby could not have missed), "Mom! I'm poopin'!". Ahhh the joys of potty training.

Strong Girl

2007-09-27T17:19:00.000-04:00

Lauren is really strong for such a young baby (I think). She has been able to hold up her head since birth and just continues to progress in this. She can bear her weight on both legs as long as someone keeps her steady. She likes to sit up in your lap and I just got the Bumbo back and she even enjoyed that for a time. Today I found her on her back in her crib. She had rolled over! I have discovered her like this several times, but this is the first time she managed this feat while in a calm state! Previously she was really upset and I think all the squirming sort of resulted in her rolling over. Oh - and this afternoon while in the crib, she squirmed out of her little pants! When I went to get her she was at one end of the crib and the pants were about a foot behind her little feet.

Yummy Sandwhich

2007-09-24T14:42:00.001-04:00

You'll need:

deli sliced roast beef
avocado, sliced
red onion, sliced
lettuce
pita bread
cream cheese
prepared horseradish

I made these for a church reception last night but didn't get to try one. I had some left-over stuff so I made this for lunch. Really good!! I made a half sandwhich but it was so tasty that I made another half right away. =)
I mixed 8oz of cream cheese with 2 tablespoons of prepared horseradish. Obviously that makes quite a lot. I think you would get a similar taste using a spicy mustard if you don't want to go the other route. And I didn't have any more pita bread, so I just used regular bread and I toasted it.
I'll definitely make this again. It would be a really fast dinner and it was yummy and filling. (And I wouldn't have to turn on the oven!!!)

Life

2007-09-15T10:16:00.000-04:00

is just flying by it seems. It is hard to believe we are halfway through the month of September. The weather is finally beginning to get a little cooler and I can't wait for real fall weather to arrive.

I'm continuing to adjust to being a mother to two. Having a toddler and an infant has definitely impacted our "on-the-go" lifestyle! Sometimes I miss getting out for fun activities, lunch with Daddy or even just spur of the moment errands. We'll get back to that point someday, but for now it is easier just to stay home! In the beginning I was really hesitant to go out with both girls, but I have done it and I survived =) Lydia doesn't like to ride in carts or strollers (although she does seem to like our new Sit-N-Stand fairly well) and Lauren hates being in her carseat --even riding in the car, forget the stroller! So the combination makes it somewhat less desirable to go out a lot and has made me really think more about consolidating errands. When we go out now we only have a certain length of time to get stuff done. (Besides the nursing schedule, I can only carry an infant strapped on for so long!) And forget browsing; I am armed with a list and on a mission!
Lauren is developing good night-time sleep habits. I am very thankful. This is definitely a blessing that my second child is sleeping so well. (I'm a little afraid to type this as if mentioning it might change the situation!) We really have done nothing differently to bring about this change. It is just another reminder that all children are unique in their personalities and dispositions and you can't really make any predictions. Uninterrupted sleep makes such a difference in my ability to function as mommy -- greater patience, gentleness, kindness, self-control (I guess I could just type out all of the fruits of the Spirit as that seems to be what I'm getting at!). With your first child you can sort of adapt your schedule to theirs. Not so with #2 and following! It is great to be able to wake up before both girls (and feel rested!) with time for a shower, clothes, quiet time and the beginnings of breakfast. I am also less prone to dawdle around when I know I only have a short time to get myself in gear and ready for the day.
I am striving to "play" more with Lydia while Lauren naps. It is tempting to use all of that time for household chores etc., but I'm trying to remind myself that she needs my focus and attention too. The house can wait, even if it is less convenient for me. Like me, she is used to the busy lifestyle that we had before Lauren came. It has been an adjustment for Lydia to realize we don't go "bye-bye" as much as we used to! Now that we're staying in more I do have more time just to play, and I'm enjoying that.
Lydia soaks up everything she sees and hears these days. She loves to mimic my conversations with others. I especially notice this when I am talking to Lauren. It is quite funny to hear my terms of endearment coming out of Lydia's mouth, especially if I am not in the room when she does it. I think I have already mentioned that Lydia likes to report on Lauren's every mood and behavior before I even have a chance to react. When she hears her little sister crying, Lydia rushes to her side bringing blankies, a paci if she can get her hands on it, and a lovey of some sort. Then she starts talking to her in her special high-pitched baby voice, "It's okay sweetie. Don't cry my sister. It's O-kay my gail (girl). It's O-kay." However, she is not always so sweet. Lauren usually cries in the car and most of the time Lydia just ignores her. But sometimes it really starts to bother her and Lydia tells me, "She needs you mom. You can hold her? Lauren's cryin'. She's sad mom! She needs her paci." etc. The other day we were leaving my parent's house and Lauren had already started crying in the driveway. As I was buckling Lydia in, she sort of huffed and said in a pitiful voice, "Noise Mom!".
I already mentioned Lauren's greatest achievement to date -- sleeping through the night!!! She is learning to interact a little more and it is so sweet when she smiles at us. Lauren has discovered her thumb and is sometimes able to soothe herself with it. Although we have paci's, she really doesn't like them too much. She has started making the little baby cooing sounds which are so sweet to hear. Her first few weeks were tough (for her and us), but things have settled down and she seems much more happy and content -- which makes the rest of us happy too. =)
I took Lauren for her follow-up ultrasound on Tuesday. The results came back today showing no change in the gallbladder. In other words, it still appears to have "sludge" in it. This is a little discouraging and slightly mystifying. She was on medicine for a month to help clear it out and it would seem that it didn't do its job. However, the reasons for the testing in the first place were the marks on her tummy and her extreme fussiness. Those marks are barely visible now and her demeanor is so much more peaceful. This is a blessing. For now we will proceed as normal. Our pediatrician may refer us to a GI specialist in the next month in case there is some treatment we need to pursue.
Well, it has taken me nearly a week to type this in the midst of life's happenings here. I will go ahead and post before I'm interrupted again!

Photos

2007-08-30T16:44:00.001-04:00

We have so many pictures and it is impossible to put all or even a good many of them up on my blog. So I've decided to give dropshots a try - mostly for the sake of our out of town family who do not get to see the girls very often. http://www.dropshots.com/jenviolin

Password: bailey

2007-08-28T16:40:00.000-04:00

If you have used a nursing bra that you really love (or one you hate!), please post!! I thought I was making an investment when I bought some after Lydia was born. Unfortunately, I'm not the same size this time! (Has anyone else experienced this?) My size is not available in stores so I am left to search/order/return online. This also means paying big bucks. Fun.

My Girls

2007-08-27T15:53:00.000-04:00

Today it has just been "us girls" here at home. Since Lauren's birth there have been various people here helping with the girls. Ben's mom came for a visit and just left on Saturday. She was a great help- especially with entertaining and caring for Lydia these past couple of weeks. I know it was a luxury not to have to get Lydia up and fed in the mornings and to be able to catch an extra hour or so of sleep. Besides playing with Lydia and taking her to the playground or the pool, Kathy also taught Lydia plenty of "useless" (her words!) words and phrases.
Uh-oh Spaghetti-O's (this began at Christmas)
silly nilly patilly
zippydee doo da
rats!
crikey!
Let's go, Joe
oopsie doodles
exactly! (ezaklee)

Oh yes, and instead of calling Ben's mom Grandma or even Grandma Kathy, Lydia very quickly abandoned the "Gwamma" and just called her "Kaffee." In the afternoons when Lydia felt she'd "served enough time" in her bedroom, she would get down on the floor with her mouth pressed to the crack at the bottom of the door and begin calling, "Kaffee! I'm all done. Come get me! I want out!" (Naps are pretty much a thing of the past -although she happens to be taking one right now - but at least she can still spend time alone and plays up there for a couple of hours each day.)
For those who asked, Lauren's tests have all come back negative, so to my understanding all "serious" potential problems have been ruled out. She continues on the gall bladder medicine for at least another week and then will have an ultrasound to see if the medicine has been effective to clear out that "sludge."
I'm sort of afraid to say it for fear that it isn't true, but we think Lauren may be feeling somewhat better. She doesn't scream and cry as much as she did in those first few weeks. She also seems to be nursing much more contentedly - which was definitely a problem before (and sometimes still is). Another blessing is the couple of nights of good sleep we've had recently! She managed to go about 5-6 hours, wake up to nurse, and then immediately down for 3-4 hours more. These nights (3 so far and not consecutive) are wonderful and I feel SO much more rested in the morning. A more typical night would be 3 or maybe 4 hours between feedings. I sincerely hope she will learn to sleep longer at night sooner than her big sister who was closer to 8 months old before she was sleeping all night without waking. (Yes it was horrible and I hope we never repeat that again!)

And now for the pictures...

One week old

Pink cheeks and homegrown tomatoes from Auntie Liz's house

with Aunt Becky and Kate

Uncle Elias loves babies

Matching outfits

Lydia calls this dress her "ice-cream dress" as there are little ice cream cones on it. She has worn it a few times, but was thrilled to find out that "baby Wah-yen" has one to match!! Knowing my penchant for clothes, it is probably the first of many little matching outfits!

Update #2

2007-08-18T21:26:00.000-04:00

We are very thankful to report that the pediatrician has received results from most of the blood tests, and, so far, they have all come back normal. We are still waiting to hear back on 2 of the tests that have not returned. The pediatrician called me on Tuesday about the tests and I have not heard back (and forgot to call before the office closed on Friday) about the other tests. I'm trying to think positively and take this as a good sign! The tests that came back were the more serious ones, so the ones we're still waiting on are "less serious."
For now, the plan remains to treat and monitor the gall-bladder issue. They'll perform another ultrasound next week to check on progress.
Lauren is still one very fussy baby. Fussy may not even be the right term. I am fairly certain she cries because she is hurting...not for other reasons. I am also starting to wonder if she is allergic to something I am eating. I may begin a food diary for a few days and write down her reactions. Then, perhaps, I will eliminate some things from my diet to see how it goes. The pediatrician said I don't need to do this at this point...but I feel like we're getting a bit desperate here!!! I'm willing to give most anything a try!

We thank God for his mercy, and you for your prayers.

Update on Lauren

2007-08-11T22:04:00.000-04:00

A lot has been going on in our little household for the past week. Since quite a few of you live far away (and don't attend our church!) I thought I'd post a brief update on what we're going through with Lauren.
This Tuesday I took her back to the pediatrician because I just felt things were not all "okay." Lauren has had a lot of gas problems and is a pretty fussy baby -- but I know that is not abnormal for a newborn. She also has two largish light red marks on her tummy on either side of her belly button. There is a chance they are nothing more than birthmarks, but the doctor was concerned enough given the combination of things I mentioned, that she ordered first an x-ray and then an ultrasound after that.
Here is the church-wide email Ben sent out this week:

First, I'd like to thank everyone for your prayers, e-mails, and calls. We appreciate it very much and have confidence that God hears and answers the prayers of his people.

We spoke to the doctor this evening after she had reviewed the results of the ultrasound with the radiologist, and with a GI specialist from Scottish Rite. To make a long story short, it appears her gall-bladder has a build-up of "sludge". They're not sure if they're gallstones, or other matter, but that appears to be the main cause for concern based on the imaging procedures. Apparently, this is not terribly unusual in infants, but they would like to take some more blood tests in order to rule out liver problems or other GI issues. Also, they'll give her some medicine to try to clear out the buildup. In two weeks, they'll do another ultrasound to determine if any progress has been made. Assuming the blood tests come out okay, that'll probably be the extent of it. Otherwise, we may be referred to either a pediatric GI specialist, or to a pediatric surgeon (possibly for the removal of the gallbladder) - but that is mainly speculation at this time.
We are very grateful that it doesn't appear to be anything more acute at this time, but would still desire your prayers on her behalf that the blood tests would reveal nothing else wrong, and that the treatment would be effective.

Thursday I took her and she had blood drawn. I hope to know the results by the middle of next week. She also got a prescription for the medicine to help clear out her gallbladder. Apparently it can take at least a week to notice any kind of difference.
I know all our church family has been praying for us and we appreciate that so much. We know God has Lauren in His hands and we are trusting in Him.
I'll update when we know something new...

Pictures from the last week...

2007-08-02T21:45:00.001-04:00

The two midwives, Jill and Stephanie, who helped deliver Lauren. When Stephanie broke my water at 11am none of us thought Lauren would arrive before their shift ended - at 6pm!

Apparently Lydia "chose" this gift for her little sis. Aunt Liz gave her a few options and this is what she picked. As she handed me the little gift bag she kept saying, " I want it...I want it!" Needless to say "little Pup" spends more time with Lydia than Lauren!

Heading home...couldn't come soon enough for Dad who was going stir-crazy!

Look how strong! She pushes up on me and tries to look at my face. Her little legs are also quite strong - but I knew that already from her late night gymnastics in the womb!

Lydia seems to be doing as well as we could hope in her new role as big sister. She loves to talk to Lauren whenever she notices that her eyes are open. She gives lots of kisses to Lauren and wants to hold her frequently. In those first couple of days, Lydia became distressed whenever Lauren was crying. Now when Lauren cries, Lydia will say "Baby Wah-yen's okay Mommy," since we had to remind her of that so many times!

Lauren Olivia

2007-07-23T22:07:00.000-04:00

Baby Lauren is here! She made her grand entrance at 5:11 PM after less than 6 hours of labor. She weighed 7 lbs. 9 oz. and measured 19.25 inches long.

Jen was a trooper again, going without pain medication for the duration. We arrived at the hospital around 10. The labor started in earnest around 2:30, when they hooked her up with Pitocin, to get the contractions going faster. A bit before 5, they announced to our amazement that it was time to push. Soon, our newest little one was with us. She gave one cry, then was quiet for almost 10 minutes until they gave her a Vitamin K shot.

We are so amazed and thankful for this wonderful child, and the relative ease with which she came into the world. God is very good.

Lydia and the family all have been by to visit. Lydia brought a "little" pup for Lauren, which she gracefully played with. She got to hold baby Lauren and was very sweet and gentle, though she returned to her rambunctious ways after she got off the bed.

Unfortunately, we forgot the cable for the camera, so we can't upload our pictures yet, but we should have some tomorrow.

Thank you all for your prayers.

Ben (for Jen)

41 Weeks, 3 Days

2007-07-22T21:37:00.000-04:00

It would seem that little Lauren is perfectly content in the womb and would rather stay there than come out and meet us! Apparently a little extra time inside has not encouraged her to make her entrance. Unless the Lord intervenes in the next 12 hours, I am scheduled for the induction tomorrow morning. I was told to call ahead to make sure there were empty beds before we arrive!! I suppose it's better that way than to arrive only to wait, but...I sure hope we can get this going in the morning rather than the afternoon or evening!
We'll have internet access at the hospital so I'm sure there will be email or blog announcements to come!

The Waiting Game

2007-07-17T15:40:00.000-04:00

I fear I'm not so good at this game, but we're playing it anyway! Today's visit to the midwife was frustrating because it took forever. Why don't doctor's offices pay their clients the courtesy of explaining reasons behind long waits in the office? The 45 minutes I waited for my NST (non-stress test) would have been much less painful had I known that only one of their machines was working, and thus the reason behind my long wait. Anyway, I ended up being there for 2 hours for something that should have taken an hour or less. The NST showed that the baby is doing just fine. My check with the midwife did show some progress - yay!!! She was very encouraging and told me I had made "good progress" since my visit last Thursday. I was dilated a little bit more and more importantly I am about 70% effaced. Sooooo...I left feeling a little more positive. I have to go again on Friday to do the same things all over again and if I make it to that appointment =) they will go ahead and schedule my induction for Monday the 23rd. One additional bit of "good news" is that my midwife won't necessarily begin my induction, if it comes to that, with pitocin. She said she thought I was probably at the point where simply breaking my water and doing lots of walking would get the contractions going. I was very pleased to hear that and I would be much happier to be induced in that way.
So there is my update for those of you who were wondering!

40 weeks

Due Date

2007-07-13T14:19:00.000-04:00

Well, the EDD is here and so far...no baby! Truthfully, I'm not expecting her this weekend since I wasn't dilated any more than 1cm at the appointment yesterday. (That is no change from the last visit 9 days previous.) Also, I haven't been having any contractions either. The midwife did go ahead and strip my membranes yesterday and that was PLEASANT let me tell you. For those of you wondering, it just separates the amniotic sac from the cervix and in the process releases prostaglandins -- hormones that soften and dilate the cervix. The thought is that if your body is ready, having this done can kind of jump start labor...sometimes within 24-48 hours.
I am so ready to be done with pregnancy! I really want to go into labor on my own without having to be induced, but I am starting to lose heart! I have 10 days left for something to happen naturally, otherwise the midwives will induce.
I know people say that near the end they sometimes lose their appetites and actually lose weight. Ha - if only that would happen to me! While I'm certainly not ravenous and the idea of cooking is NOT appealing, I'm still eating and that means still gaining!!! I weigh a few pounds more than I did when Lydia is born and the prospect of 10 more days means that number is just going to rise!! Besides concern over my own weight, I really don't want to birth a 9 pound child!! (My friend Rachel just had a 10lb 9oz little boy --- WOW!)
Another "disheartening" tidbit to add to my own scenario is that quite a few of my friends from church are(I think I'll have to change that to were) pregnant at the same time as me. It has been lots of fun going through things together, but that "fun factor" is beginning to wear off now that I (whose due date was the first of five) am now at least third in the delivery order!!! As exciting as these calling posts and emails of births are, it is just a constant reminder that I am still pregnant!!Five of us were/are due in 5 consecutive weeks. Chris went 1 week early last weekend and Amy (due 2 weeks after me) is scheduled for induction tomorrow. This leaves only Stephanie and Michelle (both due in August) for me to "beat" to delivery. *sigh* (And with Stephanie's track record, I really wouldn't be that shocked if she went into labor before me too -- right Steph?!!)
Unfortunately my thoughts are starting to turn from a natural onset of labor and all of the options I should have for labor and delivery to how I will handle induction and all the interventions (I interpret that as "restrictions") that can and usually do accompany the procedures. So -- send me your tips on natural things to do to get labor started! I think I tried them all two years ago with Lydia, but a reminder or some new idea can't hurt. I am off to the health food store in search of magic pills or potions =)

p.s. Ben just walked by Lydia's room where she is supposed to be napping. He told me he heard her talking and stopped to listen. He caught her saying the ABC's...apparently from M-Z. I'm impressed. I haven't heard her do that and didn't know she could!

2nd Birthday Slideshow

2007-06-29T16:42:00.001-04:00

Here is a slideshow Ben and I put together for Lydia's birthday. Stephanie does it for her girls and I thought it was such a great idea that I borrowed it for our family!! For me, having a digital camera means lots of pictures get taken and rarely any get printed. I think this is a nice way to make a collection of favorite pictures during a year's time. I hope this will be a tradition that we can keep up for all of our children.

Lydia Turns 2

2007-06-25T14:07:00.001-04:00

Well, we've been busy over here during the last couple of weeks. Lydia turned two on June 20th. Here is a picture of the cake we made together! I went round and round trying to decide about how to decorate the cake. She loves Dora but I am not really into creating masterpieces out of icing. So I found an easier way...

We grilled hamburgers and had a family party by the pool at my parent's house. Here she is tasting her "chocick" cake and ice cream. She was pretty excited about the Dora themed cake. And sometime over the course of the weekend she stopped calling Dora "Dadoo"and now pronounces it correctly.

These three girls, although closer in age to Lydia, are my cousins.

I think this might be Lydia's favorite gift -- from Aunt Liz and Uncle Josh. Lydia thinks Kate's car seat is for Pup, so Liz decided to get her her own.

"Bitny" helped my Mom decorate with crepe paper and best of all - bee-woons!!! Lydia loves balloons and notices them everywhere we go - from the grocery store to car dealerships as we drive by.
On her actual birthday, J,L and K came over and we had one of Lydia's favorite meals...becksis - blueberry pancakes, eggs and bacon. She ate about as much as any of us did! We ended the evening with cupcakes and she even managed to blow out her candles all by herself! (She preferred the M&Ms and the cream cheese icing --which she called "butter"-- to the cake part!)
(In the last week Lydia has been saying "Happy Birthday cake...to you!" in a little sing-song voice. It is so cute!) I can't believe my little girl is already two years old. In many ways it does not seem like very long ago when she was just a few days old. I keep trying to talk up being a "big girl" as I remind Lydia that Lauren will be coming soon and she'll be a baby kind of like Kate is. It's hard to say if she "gets" any of this or not, but I'm hoping she will be as interested and in love with her little sister as she is with cousin Kate. Kate seems to have a very easygoing and happy personality. I can't wait to see what Lauren's personality will be like. I have no doubt that Lydia will fall quite easily into the leader/organizer/boss role among the girls! Hopefully that will be balanced by kindness, gentleness and compassion for the younger ones as she grows.

Here we are before church this past Sunday. I am 37+ a few days in this picture.
As I wrote earlier, Lydia loves having a carseat just for Pup. Here she is ready to get in the car to run errands. I thought it would be challenging to fit two carseats into our car...apparently the number is now three!
And finally, my little helper. She always wants to help with the sweeping - indoors or outside. The problem with indoor is that she practically attacks the floor with the broom and thus the long handle is flying all over the place threatening to knock things off the counters or hit me! Several months ago I found this little "mommy's helper" kit with various child-sized cleaning paraphernalia. I decided it was time to bring it out this weekend! She even takes her little dustpan to the trash can to empty her dirt!

This past Saturday I played my last wedding of the summer before Lauren's birth. I subbed with another quartet and it was SO nice not to be in charge of any of the details. All I had to do was show up and play what they told me. I didn't even have to drive there! A nice change.

I'm working on getting the nursery in order. I did buy some diapers and have washed all(and even ironed a few!) of the newborn clothes. I also went ahead and washed all the bedding and all the seat covers for things like bouncy seats, carseat, swing etc. It adds up! It is so nice to have all these baby items already in my possession -- the clothes especially. Yet, knowing I have those baby necessities on hand has kind of made me forget to go through and make sure I actually DO have all the things we'll need. It seems like everyday I think of at least one thing I still need to purchase - mostly just the small stuff though (like the diapers). I also "forgot" how many diapers a newborn goes through in a day!! When you have a toddler who is potty training, those diapers and pull-ups can go even farther! I realized the bag of 40 newborn diapers wasn't even going to last a week!! HA! And they're so much more expensive. I kind of got sticker shock all over again buying the newborn ones. We have used generic ones for Lydia for so long that I forgot Pampers were so pricey!!
I have started wondering what I'll do if the baby comes early! I'm trying to prepare myself mentally for labor and birth and since Lydia was late, it just doesn't really enter my mind that it could be different this time around! So many people I know loved their epidurals (I've even talked to several women who have done it both ways) and I just wonder if I'll have the strength and determination to do it "natural" again this time! I guess we'll see! I ought to read the literature again and remind myself why I chose to do it that way the first time! Since I'm using a midwife this time, things have been somewhat different than they were with the doctor. We're not having those same "discussions" about labor and delivery and that has been nice. I don't feel like I'm always arguing for the other options out there.
Well, I think I'm starting to wander here and I could ramble on and on. Maybe another day... =)

Little Helper

2007-06-14T21:14:00.001-04:00

Lydia loves to "help" in the kitchen. Anything from loading/unloading the dishwasher to being involved in making a meal. I have to remind myself to be patient and to include her when possible. Sometimes I don't always appreciate the "help" as it takes more time, makes a bigger mess etc.

We had a Mexican meal this week and Aunt Liz took it to another level by making us homemade tortillas! Lydia LOVED helping her.

Today I baked Lydia's chocolate birthday cake for the family party on Saturday. She really enjoyed stirring and pouring cupfuls of the flour into the batter. As soon as I began creaming the butter she was asking for a taste! Wonder where she got that idea?

The best part =)

She loves to go on bike rides with Daddy. Notice that Pup must go too!

Notice anything similar? We picked up Megan this morning and she watched Lydia while I taught lessons. Lydia chose her own outfit this morning (yes -she had an opinion about her shirt color. I didn't realize we matched until she said, "I wear boo like Mommy!".) Then I laughed when I saw that Megan matched us as well!

Clothing....optional?

2007-06-08T10:00:00.000-04:00

I think I've mentioned that Lydia has been in her new room with the twin size bed for several weeks now. The transition was actually painless and quite smooth. She has had no problems sleeping at night and always stays in her bed. Naptime is another matter. She actually sleeps about half the time and I consider this sucessful since even in her crib she would play for sometimes 2 hours before she finally gave up and fell asleep. So somedays she goes up there and just has "quiet time" which I should probably re-name "private play time" since quiet doesn't exactly describe it!! The good thing is that she is happy in this routine and whether she sleeps or not I have the opportunity to get some things done (or maybe get some rest) without interruption.

Yesterday afternoon there was no nap. After a couple of hours, I went in to get her. I wish I had had the camera. She had opened up the rubbermaid box that currently serves as her step up into bed and she was sitting inside it ---shirtless--- playing with Pup and a few other things. As I walked in she grinned at me saying, " I get in Mommy, I get in!". (I didn't know she knew how to get a shirt off...I puzzled about how she managed it until I saw her try it later.)

This morning, I heard her wake up but didn't get her right away. She is usually happy to play for a little while and doesn't get fussy if I don't come in immediately. Well, I guess I waited a little too long today. When I went in I found her sitting at her table in her room ---wearing only her p.j. t-shirt --- having "becksis" (breakfast) with Pup. She was in one chair and Pup was in the other. The wet diaper (thankfully only wet and there were no accidents that I could find in the room) was discarded on the floor by the bed along with the p.j. shorts. She had also gotten into her closet and pulled out an assortment of items and diapers that were within reach. (Unfortunately the closet door doesn't close tightly so now we are going to have to figure out how to keep it shut!) Again, I thought of my camera this morning. I was a bit exasperated but Ben and I had to laugh. She looked so hilarious sitting bare-buns at the table pretending to sip from a cup and eating a plastic hamburger and apple from a frying pan, telling me: "I have becksis and Pup!!"

Discoveries

2007-06-05T15:53:00.000-04:00

Lydia absolutely adores her cousin Kate. She talks about her every day and whenever Kate arrives for a visit Lydia practically squirms with delight. It is cute to see. Generally Lydia is very gentle with Kate, but sometimes her "play" gets a little too rough and she has to have some stern reminders about being loving and gentle. She also loves Kate's baby toys and wants to grab them away from Kate at any given moment....and then when she gives them back she sometimes tosses them or shoves them in Kate's face. Thankfully Kate has never been hurt and now that she likes to grab hair - she can inflict a little of her own type of pain on cousin Lydia!
We ventured to the Zoo last week and I think Lydia enjoyed that. She loves animals (in books and on dvds) and thus knows a lot of them by name and sight, but it was kind of hard to point some of them out when they were so far away. It was hard to tell how much she enjoyed the trip while we were there, but during the days following our trip she did ask several times if we could go to the Zoo again. (Yesterday for fun I asked her what she wanted to do that day. Her response - "go to beach" and "go to zoo"!)

The petting zoo was a nice opportunity to get up close to some of the animals. Lydia was tentative at first, but she did get close enough to touch a couple of the goats and sheep...while clutching Liz's hand!

Thankfully there were many helping hands on our trip to the Zoo because she did not want to be in the stroller very long at all! She loves strollers and talks about them every time she sees ours in the garage or anyone using one when we go out. However, she wants to push Pup in the stroller -- not ride in it herself! (The same is true of other baby paraphernalia -- infant carseat, swing, bouncy seat, exersaucer -- in her mind these are things to be used for Kate.... and Pup, of course!)
Lydia is getting very good at recognizing her colors. At first she always answered "yewoh" or "boo" regardless of the color. Now she can recognize red, green, blue, yellow, orange, pink, purple, black, brown and white. As I was dressing her the other morning she pointed out my attire "Mommy wear boo shirt and back pants!" She was particularly delighted when I grabbed her blue shirt and said "I wear boo shirt like Mommy!". And speaking of clothes, she has recently become enamored with dresses and skirts - to her they are all the same. She asks to wear a dress more than one time during the day and always notices if I happen to have on a skirt. Unfortunately none of her play clothes are dresses so she is stuck with shorts! (Sundays are beginning to stand out as special days for all the wrong reasons - she gets to wear her special bracelet AND a dress!!)
Today as she was playing with some sidewalk chalk on the patio in the back, it began to rain. (Thank the Lord - we needed it even if only for 10 minutes!) We went to the front where we could sit outside and watch and still be under the covered porch area. She was totally fascinated and delighted. I guess this was the first time where we have actually been outside when it was raining. There was some very loud thunder ("under" as she was calling it) and although she was startled she didn't get too scared. I took the opportunity to talk about how God sends us the rain from up in the sky and how he makes the thunder very loud and that we need the rain for the trees and grass etc. etc.
Seeing her interest made me realize that I should talk to her more about God's creation and that I should seek out opportunities to do so. Sometimes I feel like I am lapsing into "boring" or "lazy Mommy" mode where I don't take advantage of chances to teach her or to capture her attention and point out new things to her. Even in her play time at home I think I am too often caught up in my own "to-do" lists rather than being available to play with her and stimulate her mind. Personally I find it difficult at times to balance getting things done around the house or accomplishing "my" daily tasks with being available to play with and teach and share in my child's new discoveries.
Ok -enough time spent blogging. Time to get some things done while she is napping!

I karate chopped a fork because I'm cool like that...

2007-06-04T08:40:00.000-04:00

My sister-in-law-to-be posted this on her blog and it made me laugh. (Yes friends, you read correctly. My youngest brother Jake proposed to Brittny this weeked!) A lot more could be said but I'll leave you with this for now...

Pick the month you were born:
January------I kicked
February-----I loved
March---------I karate chopped
April---- -------I licked
May-----------I jumped on
June----------I smelled
July-----------I did the Macarena With
August-------I had lunch with
September---I danced with
October------I sang to
November----I yelled at
December----I ran over

Pick the # of the day you were born on:
1 -------a birdbath
2-------a monster
3-------a phone
4-------a fork
5-------a snowman
6-------a gangster
7-------my cell phone
8-------my dog
9-------my best friends' boyfriend
10-------my neighbor
11-------my science teacher
12-------a banana
13-------a fireman
14-------a stuffed animal
15-------a goat
16-------a pickle
17-------your mom
18---- ---a spoon
19------- a smurf
20-------a baseball bat
21-------a ninja
22-------Chuck Norris
23-------a noodle
24-------a squirrel
25-------a football player
26-------my sister
27-------my brother
28-------an ipod
29-------a surfer
30-------a llama
31-------A homeless guy

Pick the color of shirt you are wearing:
White--------because I'm cool like that
Black---------because that's how I roll.
Pink----------because I'm NOT crazy.
Red----------because the voices told me to ..
Blue----------because I'm sexy and I do what I want
Green---------because I think I need some serious help.
Purple--------because I'm AWESOME
Gray----------because Big Bird said to and he's my leader.
Yellow-----because someone offered me 1,000,000 dollars
Orange-------because my family thinks I'm stupid anyway.
Brown--------because I can.
Other---------because I'm a Ninja !
None----------because I can't control myself.

The Van-Car

2007-05-18T14:01:00.000-04:00

As if last weekend was not already busy enough, we got the call from our mechanic saying our car wasn't really ready to be picked up. Ooookaaayy.They had the car this time in order to check on the "check engine" light that they had supposedly fixed twice already in the last 2 weeks. So the auto shop owner calls Ben Saturday morning and relays the information to him. I was showering and getting ready for the wedding in which I was to play that afternoon(first time in 7 consecutive weeks that I have personally known the bride -a girl from church). We had just mapped out our plans for the morning trying to decide how much we could get done before we needed to leave for the wedding. When I came downstairs I got the news: Upon returing from a short test drive, the mechanic in our car was careless and drove right into another customer's car. WHAT!So we decided to head to the auto
shop to inspect the damage and get some "evidence" on camera. I was irate. ( Ben is naturally more laid back and he was very calm and polite when talking to the shop's owner.) I, however, had to refrain from much talking at all. Not only was the front all smashed up, but it looked like someone had keyed both doors on the passenger side! It didn't compute with the rest of the damage. AND the idiot mechanic was drinking what would appear to be some soft drink while driving our car and it was spilled all over the console on the inside. Papers and other little things I had in the compartment were totally drenched. I was pulling out soaked stuff and just throwing it on the ground by the car. With the front end damage plus the gouges on the doors, I would imagine they would have to have the whole car repainted. It is not a new car so they won't be able to get away with just "matching" the paint. (Even the retelling of this story is making me irritated again!!) I just hope the car comes back to us in the same or better condition. I'm a little worried about that part of it. The ever optimistic shop owner told us just to rent a car through this past Tuesday and see where things stood. HA.

In the meantime, this is what I'm driving. Lydia was scared to get into it that first morning. She still won't get in or out of the van on the opposite side of her car-seat, but she has since made her peace with the "van-car" as she calls it. I know God purposes all things and that this little incident happened for a reason, but it sure has been a cause for extra stress.
Positive things: This van has allowed us to pick up some large items (like Lydia's twin size mattress and boxspring) without borrowing a vehicle. I can be thankful for that! Oh and it is a "free" opportunity to have a long-term test drive of another vehicle. While I wouldn't want this particular van, I can see why people go for these. Oh yes, and I'm enjoying the factory tinted windows and the icy-cold A/C!!! So there you go - my entire post was not spent whining about the car situation!
When Ben talked to the insurance adjuster a day ago, they had yet to even look at the car. So, I fully expect to be driving around in the van-car for at least another week.

Pregnant Me

2007-05-11T11:01:00.000-04:00

Ok friends. Here you go. A new pregnant picture of Lauren and me. This was taken about a week ago at 30 weeks. I feel farther along if I think of that as almost 7 months, but I also prefer to remember that I only have 8 weeks left (instead of 2 months) -- it sounds shorter somehow!
Things are going well for baby and me. I have little to nothing to complain about when I think of the trials some women go through during pregnancy. I have gotten to that point where I just "feel big"and awkward. My lower back sometimes really bothers me and I have definitely reached that place where comfortable sleep is often very elusive. I am definitely a back sleeper when not pregnant, and even with about 6 pillows strategically placed, I still occasionally wake in the middle of the night and find myself on my back.
I had a diagnosis of placenta previa early on in the second trimester, but several weeks ago another ultrasound showed that my uterus had grown enough that the placenta had moved up. That was good news! I had a small scare after having blood drawn to test for gestational diabetes. They called the next day and when I finally got a nurse on the line it was nothing serious - I just need to take an iron supplement.
In the spirit of openness I will share that my total weight gain so far is at 18 pounds. Depending on which midwife I see, my weight gain is either "really great" or cause for concern to "be careful not to continue gain at this rate." Out of the 4 midwives in this practice, the one that is sort of my "primary" midwife seems to be the most insensitive and blunt. It has been one of the "other three" every time that either a) sympathized with me early on and told me to eat whatever sounded good - even if it was french fries and ice cream b) had mercy and prescribed medicine for nausea when nothing else I tried was working c) has looked positively on my weight gain. Oh well!
In other news, some household projects are finally "in progress." I wish I could say they were completed...hopefully that will be soon. I am really feeling the push to get some paint on the walls of several rooms before baby comes. Lydia's "new room" (as she calls it) is finally painted and now ready for her big girl bed and her toys. I'm not really sure if she gets that it is her "new room" yet, but hopefully she will understand and be excited once her things go in there.
Gotta run! Now, fair is fair - I want to see some pregnant pics of the rest of you mommies!!

A Decision

2007-04-26T09:10:00.000-04:00

Well, there is nothing super exciting to report around here. May is right around the corner and that means summer-time is almost here. I only have 4 more weeks of teaching left at the Academy where I give violin lessons. This will be it for me since I have decided not to go back once baby Lauren is born. I did it with Lydia and we made it work. She was very adaptable to new situations and continues to love going to the nursery to play with the other kids and to see the two women who have been taking care of her since she was just 2 months old! It was a great situation to have childcare on-site in the church nursery. Also the two women who keep the teachers' kids are great. I trust them implicitly and never had a moment's worry about what was going on while I was teaching. Lydia has never been a "clingy" child or a mama's girl, so she took right to the situation. However, it was virtually impossible to have a set "schedule" with her because my hours were so different from day to day. We fit nursing and naptimes in between lessons....and those were some really long days! Looking back, I think it made nursing and sleeping through the night more difficult for both of us than it needed to be...and it didn't help my stress level either! Anyway, Ben and I decided that this schedule just was not the best choice for our family anymore. I'm hoping the opportunity to stay home more (let's see how that plays out!), especially at the beginning, will help the transition from 1 to 2 munchkins go a little more smoothly.
Part of me is a little sad to be leaving this behind. I've met some really wonderful families over the past six years and had some students that were really talented and were a joy to teach. Also, Lydia loves the social interaction she gets at the nursery. (She thinks the only time she "pways" (plays) is when she is there!! She says, "Go nursey and pway? See Ian, see Courtney"....proceeding to name all of the children she sees while there.) On the other hand, I'm looking forward to being at home more. I'll be able to devote more time and energy to being a wife and a mom - a better homemaker I hope.
I'll leave you with a few tidbits about Lydia. We take turns putting her to bed a night, but the "ritual" is usually the same - cuddling in the rocking chair, singing some songs and praying. She has recently started requesting her two favorite bed-time songs: "Jesus, da Bible" and "Great my Father." Translation: Jesus Loves Me and Great is Thy Faithfulness. It took me a couple of nights to figure out that last one, but we have it now! (I have grown up singing these hymns and yet I can barely make it through one verse with correct words. Even so I think I may mix up some phrases here and there. I "blame" it on the fact that I have been playing my violin in church for the past 15+ years, so I rarely get to sing songs. I could tell you the key almost any hymn appears in in our hymnal or play from memory the soprano, alto or tenor lines...but the words escape me. Kind of depressing!)
Lydia beat me to it and has decided she is done with her highchair. I know some people think they are space wasters, but I have truly enjoyed mine. I guess the highchair will go gather dust for some months before Lauren is ready for it.
Lydia loves shoes - particularly a pair of ballet slippers from Mema and her jellies. She doesn't understand why she can't wear the ballet slippers outside to play. She calls the jellies her "jelly shoes." They were cheap and don't give her blisters (unlike the water shoes we bought for the beach and pool time). I think we'll need to find something a bit more secure and durable for her summer play shoes though.
I brought out a few "new" books from the stash that I've hidden away. She used to be really rough on her books and I stopped letting her look at books during her nap-time after she totally ripped apart two board books! I'm more careful to try to monitor her with the books with regular paper pages and she seems to be doing pretty well. One of the books I pulled out is a collection of Curious George stories. She loves this book about " George, da monkey." (We used to refer to her as our curious "georgette" because she was always getting into something.)
We try to talk often about baby Lauren and how she is mommy's tummy. Lydia likes to pull up my shirt to look at my belly. Sometimes she says," Hi Wahren," or "How doin' Wahren?" Other times she will give a kiss to the baby. She does this by putting her lips on or very close to my belly and saying, "MUH" - a funny and fake kissing sound!
Well, those are my thoughts for now. =)

Easter pictures

2007-04-13T10:29:00.000-04:00

As I was playing for another church's Easter worship service, Ben got Lydia dressed and ready for church that morning.
The family lunch was at our house. Here are the youngest girls (minus Kate B.) In our relatively small group we had two Kates, two Megans and two Matts!

Yesterday after her nap as I was approaching her room I heard Lydia saying, "Open it! Open it!". I thought she must have somehow sensed that I was right outside her door ready to come get her up. When I walked in she had her pants around her knees and was struggling trying to get her snap on her pants to "open".

Beach Vacation

2007-04-10T21:05:00.000-04:00

Hello friends. I'm still here - it has just been very busy lately. I know the rest of you have busy lives as well, so I can't really use that as an excuse for not blogging. I have enjoyed reading all your posts, I just haven't gotten around to it myself. The longer I wait, the more there is to write so I'm jumping in now before I have no hope of getting caught up.

Lydia recently began noticing jewelry. She now has a few of her own "neckaces" that she dons daily.

We had a really nice time spending a few days in Hilton Head with Josh, Liz and Kate. The condo had great views to the ocean and the layout of bedrooms suited our needs perfectly. It was a relaxing time and as Liz has already noted, there are definite changes that accompany vacationing with little ones. Naptime and meal times were the things that really determined our schedule with Lydia.It just isn't possible to bask in the sun on the beach all day or be gone from your lodgings for hours on end, or to skip lunch or have a late dinner. We also didn't get in any long walks on the beach. As my father-in-law noted earlier this year, walking with a toddler is not so much about the destination as it is the journey. Once she got over her fear of the sand, water and waves, Lydia really enjoyed the beach and ocean. I was totally surprised that she was not interested at all interested in the shells or anything else that had washed up onto the beach.
Being pregnant also changed my MO a bit. I lathered myself with sunscreen every day (I even used Lydia's spf50 after I burned in a few spots the first day!!!) and I had to have a chair no matter whereI was stationed. No sunning on the beach towel for me! It was nice to get the chance to stretch out on my stomach again for the first time in a while. I dug a little hole in the sand and got cozy for a short time. We also bought a beach umbrella which I really wouldn't have considered except for Lydia... but as it turned out I probably used that shade way more than she did! It was so nice just to "get away" and have Ben around and spending time with us all day. We read more than is ever possible at home and made daily trips to the beach and the pool.

Any doubts as to where we had lunch on our way there?

That is another change in traveling with a young child. They need to get out of their carseats and let out some energy at regular intervals. We broke the trip into two segments by stopping for lunch after about 3 hours on the road. Then as hoped, she fell asleep for a good portion of the final leg of the trip and woke just as we were nearing Hilton Head. (I thought we were in trouble for sure when she had played with all of her little toys, already done some drawing and then started asking for lunch at 10:30!!)
She says "I get out?" when she wants to get out of the carseat. We heard that alot during the trip. Also "Here! da beach. We're here!" - we heard this for the first time the morning we left when we pulled into J and L's subdivision which is a 5 minute drive from our house!

Although I don't have any pictures of her pool play time, Lydia loved the pool. I'm confident she will thorougly enjoy Mema and Papa's new pool that was just finished.
Lydia loved going into J and L's room to "see Kate!". She also loved the doorknobs at the condo because they were that lever kind and she could open doors at will. No one was guaranteed any privacy unless the door was locked!She liked posing with Kate and wanted to hold her after a few shots. Of course when she is done, she practically shoves Kate aside and moves on to her other activities.

Riding on the luggage cart was lots of fun.

Sleeping with her faithful friend on the way home.

Ok this is enough for now =)

The past week

2007-03-15T21:12:00.000-04:00

Wedding Day: 9 March 2007

Dressed and ready for pictures...

Elias and Becky: husband and wife!

The weekend was a bit of a whirlwind - but very fun. Various out of town family members flew or drove in on Thursday and most made it to the rehearsal dinner that night. Friday we met up in the Cornelia area for a quick lunch before church and reception decoration ensued. Family and a few of Becky's friends were invaluable help in this endeavor which Elizabeth headed up. I felt pretty worthless after the smallest of tasks --being pregnant can cause that I suppose. In the end everything came together and the service was a God-honoring blend of both cultures. The reception location was unexpectedly lovely for a town that size and the meal served by Elias' family was a traditional Guatemalan wedding meal. Having missed her nap in the midst of a very hectic day, Lydia was, at this point, almost a basket case. She drank two cups of punch ("wah-duh") and was not remotely interested in the dinner. She lasted long enough to eat a few bites of cake and then I had to put on her p.j.'s and prepare for the drive home. She was asleep within minutes of hitting the road.
Saturday the family members who were still in town gathered at our house for the day. Lydia remembered Carl and Rita from their visit at Christmas and she had everyone's names learned and intelligible before they left. She learned the word "precocious" (co-cious) from Uncle Carl and the phrase "I'm a genius" from Aunt Sue.

Trisha, Sue, Rita and Carl stayed at our house while here for the wedding

In other news, I've been trying to prepare myself for potty-training Lydia. I bought a cushy seat for the toilet as well as a little child potty. (A few previous endeavors by Grandma Kathy to sit her on the toilet had resulted in immediate tears and great distress, so I was a little fearful of whether she would take to sitting on it - even with the child seat.) After the wedding commotion died down I thought we'd ease into the training process. The cushy seat is great and Lydia's fear of sitting on the big potty went away when she saw and tried out the Elmo seat.

The past several days I've been talking up going potty like a big girl and have put her on the seat at various times. She loved it - and getting to read a book on the toilet is somehow perceived as particularly wonderful!
Tonight after dinner we put her on the little potty downstairs and to my (almost) disbelief - she went after just a minute of sitting there. We made a huge deal of it and I quickly brought her the treat I'd decided to use as a motivator - chocolate yogurt raisins. She gobbled them up immediately while I explained that anytime she went on the potty like a big girl I would give her a treat. I was sure she wasn't paying any attention to me as she stuffed the raisins in her mouth. Not more than an hour later after bathtime we were all sitting on our bed and she told me she had to go. (She does this by grabbing her diaper and saying "poop." While she has never been right about it being poop, she will do this occasionally when she is just wet.) So off we went to the potty again -this time upstairs on the Elmo seat. Her diaper was dry and I could not believe my ears when after a short time I heard some dripping into the toilet! Before I could even begin praising her, she looked at me and said "treat! treat!"
I would love to believe that she is truly "getting it" but I have a feeling there will be ups and downs and that it just can't be as easy as it was tonight.

Here is the proud girl in her new Dadoo (Dora) p.j.'s that she was delighted by at Wal-Mart today.

Pictures, wedding, birthdays

2007-03-01T14:58:00.000-05:00

After a bike ride with Daddy to the playground

She likes this "hat" quite a bit

Lydia enjoyed their quick stop by our house earlier today

Guess who loves spaghetti?

Lauren and me at 21 weeks

I almost didn't post that last picture - I really don't like to look at pictures of myself! Anyway, my bump is visible for those who don't see me often -so this pic is for you all!
Tomorrow I'll get a haircut - yayyy! It's been at least 5 months by my count...too long, especially when your last cut was a short style! Honestly I was too sick to care what my hair looked like for a long time, but now it is really bugging me. (I tend to operate that way with my hair in general. I can go a while without cut, but when it starts to bug me - I have to do something today!)Plus my sister-in-law is getting married next weekend. That occasion has spurred me into taking action!
Liz and I had a bit of difficulty deciding on and finding something appropriate to wear to this wedding. Neither of us can really wear our regular dressy clothes, yet we didn't want to make a large investment in something that would be a "one-time" wear in a larger or maternity size! As it turns out, after several tries for new items for me - I'll end up wearing a dress I already own. (I have a lot of "formal" type clothes that I wore to my recitals and concerts etc. I hadn't really considered any of this stuff, but one of those dresses still fits and doesn't look tight or awkward. So - problem solved.)
Today is Ben's birthday! I just finished making a chocolate cake. Tonight we're going Mexican with the meal per his request. His mom (who arrived Monday) made some fresh tortillas. (If you have never had a homemade tortilla - you're missing out. I had heard stories of how they can be eaten plain or with a little butter when they are homemade. Now, I love bread, but that did not sound appetizing to me. Well, five or so years ago I had my first homemade tortilla and now I know what they meant! They are sooo good.) We ordered some fajita meat "prepared" (already seasoned) from a carniceria nearby and I'll make some "real" Mexican rice to go with it all. Fresh fruit to top it off --- mmm I can't wait! (After the sickness with pregnancy, when my appetite returns I feel like I enjoy food even more!!)

Wanted: Another Pup!

2007-02-23T09:26:00.000-05:00

Last week while at the midwife, a small tragedy occurred. Pup was lost. Lydia played with him in the room while the midwife saw me, but somehow we left the room without him. At the car, we realized he was missing and went back to retrieve him. We both went in separately and checked with the nurses in the room and retraced our steps to the car. No luck. Pup had vanished in 5 minutes!
Thankfully we still have 2 Pups left. (At this point you're laughing thinking, "that's not enough?".) If you've ever seen the way she loves on this poor animal you know why we need several! He receives daily love bites on the face and ears - causing him a few minor injuries -and basically goes everywhere with her. He is the only toy that has the privilege of riding in the seat of her toy shopping cart - everything else gets thrown into the the basket area. She usually wants to be able to see him at meal time - especially breakfast. She has tried to give him a bath. She has tried to put a diaper on him. He watches "dd's" with her. He always sleeps with her and she cries pitifully if she throws him out of the crib and can't get him back. Recently he aquired his own "banket"- even though she doesn't have anything like that for herself. Now she wants to tow that thing around with him too.
All this to say, I'd really like to have another spare. Pup goes into the washing machine at least once a week and I don't know how long he'll last! SO - if any of you ever happen to see a Pup and can pick it up for us, I will happily cover all costs! I've found this stuffed animal at the Osk Kosh outlet stores for about $6. Unfortunately, they are out of him at Discover Mills. So if anyone likes to hit other outlets nearby and can pop into that store... we'd appreciate it!

Input

2007-02-22T16:16:00.000-05:00

Today has been such a beautiful day! I took Lydia to the park this morning for some much needed outdoor playtime. We met friends there and the mommies chatted while the girls were in various states of "play." I had to meet up with Ben at lunchtime since he took both our cell phones to work today (and we don't have a home phone.) It was weird to be "incommunicado" - if only for a few hours!
Now Lydia is napping and I'm trying to get a grocery list together. It is not going well! I feel like I make the same things too often. Probably because that is "easy" - but it also gets boring!! Anyone want to share some dinner recipes?? (Sometimes I wish I could just call someone in the morning and have them tell me what to make for dinner...wouldn't that be nice on occasion - not having to come up with a meal plan?)

Also, does anyone have any good children's worship or praise song CD's to recommend?

She loves to find our shoes and put them on. Actually walking in them is quite the challenge...

The artist - So far all coloring surfaces have been limited to paper. She prefers regular paper to a coloring book. (love that hair!)

Mommy's helper

Best Strawberry Cake

2007-02-19T20:40:00.000-05:00

1 pkg white cake mix
1 pkg strawberry jello
1 -10 oz. pkg frozen strawberries in syrup
4 eggs
3/4 Cup oil

1.5 pints whipping cream
2 pints fresh strawberries

Grease 3 cake pans and line bottoms with wax paper. (This is critical! I use Crisco and then cut a circle of wax paper for the bottom of each cake pan.) Mix first 5 ingredients in mixer. Pour into prepared pans and bake about 20 minutes at 350 degrees.

Slice berries (saving some whole ones for garnish if you wish), sprinkle with some sugar and smash them to produce extra juice. Beat the cream, adding sugar to taste, until it is stiff. (If you've never made whipping cream before, try it. It is so easy and cannot be compared to Cool Whip! Beat it in your mixer until it starts to get stiff and add sugar a little at a time. The important thing is to be sure you don't get any drops of water in the cream or it won't whip up.)
Remove cakes from pans and allow to cool. Pierce a layer with a fork and then spoon the berries on top -drizzle the juice over the cake too! Spread some whipped cream over the berries and top with another cake layer and begin process again. The top layer should not have any berries - just the whipped cream. Use the remaining whipped cream to ice the cake when it is assembled. (I add some toothpicks between the layers to add stability.)
Plan to make this cake at least a day ahead as it only gets better the longer the strawberry juice soaks into the cake layers. Don't forget you'll need to refrigerate this cake!
This is a pretty easy cake to make and it always gets rave reviews. I've made other kinds of strawberry cakes and tasted other versions, but this one wins hands down in my opinion!

Baby J #2

2007-02-16T15:42:00.000-05:00

Well friends and family, today was my 19 week appointment with the ultrasound tech and the midwife. The tech was so kind and very helpful by pointing out all the organs and bones and body parts she was looking at. (Neither of us has very fond memories of our previous ultrasound tech - she seemed quite grumpy and very tight-lipped. You had to ask for every bit of information.) This woman was quite the opposite. She was chatty and informative and kept saying "what a beautiful baby!" I actually got the impression that she was a Christian too just by some comments she made. So she started by looking the baby over and taking all the measurements and then the hunt for the gender began! Baby's legs were crossed and was quite sqirmy, but she eventually felt confident in pronouncing that this little baby is...a girl! I was actually a bit surprised as I thought I had seen something else between those legs! Ben claims he knew right away that it was a girl. So here we are...soon to be the parents of two girls. I'm excited. I never had a sister and always wished for one. This little girl and Lydia will be almost exactly two years apart. I hope they will always be close and enjoy each other as sisters and friends. (Another plus is that all of Lydia's clothes should work out seasonly just perfect for this baby. Fewer shopping trips??? That's one sigh of relief for Daddy!)
The next question is...what about names? Since I've been encouraged by some of you just to "tell all" here is what we're thinking. We reserve the right to change our minds at any time, but we like the name Lauren Olivia. The middle name is not set in stone, but 'Lauren' is a favorite of mine so that is likely to stick. I'll scan in the ultrasound pictures as soon as possible!

Pictures

2007-02-15T14:02:00.000-05:00

As Liz has posted, Lydia is fascinated by Kate - she even has a special high-pitched"Kate" voice. She loves to get right down on Kate's level to talk to her and look at her. Whenever I am on the computer she comes over to get "up here" and see "da bebee."

My baby is growing up!

2007-02-13T11:37:00.000-05:00

Lydia and I are both happy that Ben returned safely late last night from his 5 day trip to Portland. She asked about him many times during each day. She learned the word "trip" (tip) as I tried to explain that he wasn't at work, he was on a trip. Each time we got in the car she would get excited and talk about "Daddy!!" as if we were going to see him. It was pretty sweet.
Her vocabulary just seems to be growing by the day. Here are some of my favorite new words:

becksis (breakfast)
syrpup (syrup)
wahduh (any drink is water)
Nee-nee (Brittny)
Cah-dine (Caroline)
Losis (Lois)
beer (bear)
kitchen
up here
ahh done
ready, go
sim (swim - in the bath)
bubbus (bubbles)
open
cose (clothes)
kip (clip - for her hair)
bipuhs (diapers)
tank, mom (thanks mom - She used to say something that sounded much more like "thank-you" and then that stopped. This is what she says now and it is kind of amusing because she never calls me "mom" any other time - always mama or mommy.)
There are many more, but it gets to a point where you can't chronicle every single achievement! I put the majority of little milestones and stories on the blog as my way of saving the little memories. I'm sure some things become even harder to remember as your family grows!

After baths when I wrap her up in her towels I ask her, "Who is Mommy's bundle of joy?" She says, "ME!!"

Her favorite song is "The Wheels on the Bus." She says, "da bus, sing, da bus"! She would have me sing that song endlessly I think. At the end she chimes in for "all over town" by saying - "da town." Her favorite hand motion is for the wheels - but she doesn't always like to join in. Most often she just grins as you sing it.
We've been working on teaching her the first couple of children's catechism questions. 1) Who made you? A: God. She learned that one a couple of months ago but it has been very slow trying to get her to answer the second question. 2) What else did God make? A: All things. Sometimes she will say "tings" but not often. Last night as we prepared for bed I sang some songs, said the Lord's Prayer and asked her the questions. We talked again about the answer to #2. I asked the question over again after talking about "all things." So I asked, " what else did God make?" She answered, " a mess." (I had to chuckle to myself.) This probably comes from me constantly reminding her at meal times not to make a mess with her food.

More Diapers

2007-02-07T09:49:00.000-05:00

This morning I heard Lydia chatting happily in her crib. It is so nice when she wakes up like this instead of crying for someone to come and get her. I opened the door and before I could even step in the room she was shouting, "da bipuhs! da bipuhs!" (the diapers). She had reached around the outsided of her crib and gotten into the stash of new diapers in her diaper stacker. (She only had 2 in the crib - thankfully!) She was trying very hard to get one on Pup. (He was on his back, she spread his "legs" out and she was attacking a diaper trying to get it to fit on etc....) She didn't even want to get out of the crib because she was so intent on Pup wearing a diaper. I sat in the chair to wait and finally after some talking about going downstairs and eating breakfast she was ready to get out.
In other news our family has just gotten over bad colds which lasted about two weeks. Dealing with a child who feels miserable but can't express what hurts gets frustrating the longer it goes on. I did take her to the doctor because the first night was terrible - she was feverish, she threw up and was having a really hard time breathing. (I thought immediately of Bethany and Avalyn. I cannot imagine how scary it must be when she is having asthma attacks.)I was thankful that I didn't start to feel bad until Lydia was well.
I am 17 weeks pregnant now. I think"morning" sickness (what a misnomer) is finally over although I still have an occasional spell of nausea. We should find out next week if this baby is a boy or a girl. I think we've settled on a girl's name, but we're still not set on a boy name. Last time we didn't decide Lydia's middle name until we were on the way to the hospital! I am officially wearing maternity pants as of about a week ago. My jeans stopped fitting comfortably about two weeks ago. My belly is so sensitive that I can't stand anything squeezing me. I'd probably be in sweats all the time if it were appropriate!! I'm still in that awkward stage with the shirts. Most of my regular ones look too small (or at least too short for my taste) and the maternity ones look like tents. Oh well. Like Stephanie, I enjoy my baths almost every evening. These are purely for relaxation which means a lot of times I get a shower and a bath every day. My skin is practically cracking between this extremely dry weather and the hot water!

Prayers and Diaper Changes

2007-02-06T09:41:00.000-05:00

A couple of cute things we've witnessed recently but can't seem to catch on video or in a picture.

1) Lydia has started "praying" on her own. This usually happens around naptime or bedtime when we're cuddling. She folds her hands and starts jabbering away. A few intelligible words are mixed in - mostly peoples' names. This continues for a short while and then ends with very firm, "A-men." (She knows that prayers end with "amen" and she freely uses this when she thinks the prayer has gone on long enough - both at home and even at church!)

2) Last night after work, Lydia and I joined the impromptu gathering at Joss and Liss's house for his birthday meal. We missed dinner but I did sample the selection of desserts! While there Lydia entertained us with her antics. She had us all in hysterics when she got into her diaper bag and proceeded to give Pup a diaper change! This began by laying out the changing pad and placing Pup spread eagle on the mat. Then she got a wipe and began wiping him thoroughly. After he was "clean" he got several hugs and then she retrieved a diaper and placed it on top of him. She was engrossed for about 5 minutes (especially while she was wiping him), but then she realized we were all watching her and that was the end of it. We were all nearly in tears as we tried to stifle our laughs!

The point at which

2007-01-31T13:09:00.000-05:00

the stepping stool will now reside on top of the fridge.

While in the dining room checking email today, I realized Lydia was being suspiciously quiet in the kitchen. I peeked around the corner to see that she had pushed my little step stool across the kitchen over to the sink where she was standing on it and playing with one of her sippy cups that I had washed and left by the sink. The child sees something once and she's got it down.

the tv cabinet must remain closed unless in use.

Another recently aquired "skill" is her ability to operate the tv, dvd player and sound system either manually or by remote. She knows exactly which buttons to push to make all of them work. I didn't realize she could work them manually until one morning when I went upstairs and a few minutes later heard the baby einstein music playing. I looked over the balcony and she was proudly grinning up at me saying, "dd, dd!". (Oh, and I've also caught her opening up the dvd case, removing the disk, opening the disk drive and placing the dvd inside!) I guess this is a clue as to how many "dd's" she has watched over the past few weeks while Mommy laid on the sofa! Thankfully I no longer spend my mornings, afternoons and evenings in the horizontal position, but it has been a bit difficult trying to break her of continually asking, "dd, watch?". We're still working on that!

bibs

2007-01-28T18:46:00.000-05:00

Does anyone have any advice about bibs? I am so disgusted with the plastic ones I've been using with Lydia. (Those plastic ones with a softer "fabric" backing.) They always seem to smell bad - it is so gross. I scrub them thoroughly after each use, hanging them to dry, and frequently soak them in laundry detergent (or toss them in the washer). Does anyone have any tips? Or do you have a wonderful bib you'd like to recommend?

Feeling Better

2007-01-25T20:33:00.000-05:00

Thank you all for your kind inquiries and your prayers. Things have been looking up considerably since my last visit to the midwife a week ago. With a little encouragment from Liz, I had been psyching (sp?) myself up to be extra pitiful. I was almost prepared to beg for some medicine. As it turned out, I really didn't have to.
I had gained a whopping half a pound since my visit a month before. I'm still below my "pre-pregnancy" weight (which they don't know) but since I have some extra to spare, I don't think it matters. Anyway, I saw a different midwife this time. She was much more sympathetic and just generally pleasant. When she asked why I thought I hadn't gained more weight I was pretty frank...puking and all day nausea...?? When I laid down on the table she said my belly looked "small." As she got out her measuring tape she said, "How tall are you, 5'4"?". My brain was blank. Was I 5'4"... or maybe it was 5'6". No wait, everyone accuses me of thinking I'm taller than I am. 5'5"?? I told her I couldn't remember and that if it was important I thought the nurse had that in my chart. She laughed and then said my belly was measuring in the normal range but on the low end. Then she told me that she thought I had a long trunk and perhaps that is why I seemed small. (Good grief!)
Anyway, we chatted a bit and I explained that I had tried all the "natural" remedies for nausea without any relief. She then told me she was going to prescribe something "to see if you can't get to feelin some better." I almost cried. (I hadn't even been reduced to getting on my knees to beg!) She also told me to eat whatever sounded good to me....even potato chips or french fries and to be sure I ate often. So I walked out feeling encouraged and with my prescription. Yayyy!!!
So far I'm attributing my feeling better to the drugs. Maybe I was about to turn the corner regardless. I am still waiting for that "everything is normal" feeling to return. Hopefully it won't be too much longer, but I am thankful that things are finally looking up!
P.S. My next appointment is in mid February which is when we'll find out if it's a boy or a girl!

Trying to catch up...

2007-01-19T17:28:00.000-05:00

I thought I'd post some pictures chronicling our past two months or so! I like to send out a Christmas card with a picture now that we have little one(s) in our family. Well this year I was feeling so crummy that we never could find the right moment to get a family picture. Eventually I just decided we'd send one out just of our child - after all she's the one everyone wants to see! Here are a couple shots (of many) from our impromptu little photo shoot.

Below is the Christmas card photo. Many of you were on the list to receive one, but I misplaced (and still have not found) several of my address books... Anyway we have twenty or more extras around here - guess I could scratch out "Merry Christmas" and write "Happy Valentine's Day" instead! I smile every time I see this picture.

Here are some photos of our day at the hospital when Kate arrived!

Here Lydia is with a couple of her most favorite gifts - the kitchen from Mema and Papa and the doll house from Joss and Liss. (When the dollhouse was out of the box, one of the first things she attempted was to squeeze Pup through the front door...it was hilarious.)

She is fascinated with "gasses" - she points them out whenever she sees them.

Uncle Patrick and Aunt Susie -(Shoe and Pat or But) -Ben's sister and husband who spent several days here with us over Christmas.

Lydia seems to love her little cousin. We weren't sure what she would think of sharing the limelight, but she hasn't been as jealous as I expected. Whenever Kate makes any noise Lydia is quick to remind us "baby! baby!". She loves to look at her and it is very cute how she squats over the infant carrier to take a peek. She always wants to touch her and it is amazing how gentle she has been. Here are some sweet pictures from the first time Lydia got to "hold" Kate. I didn't post the last one where we took Kate away and Lydia was crying with her arms stretched out!

Pregnancy the second time around

2007-01-04T12:27:00.000-05:00

Wow. So much has happened since my last post. I'm sure it will take me a couple of posts to give any kind recap on what we've been up to this past month. Since I don't have access to posting the pics right now, I'll stick to my pregnancy woes.
This pregnancy started off different than my last....that is to say I haven't been hugging the toilet everyday from the very beginning. That is a defininite plus, let me tell you! I've still been struggling a lot with fatigue and all day nausea. And I have still thrown up....just not as frequently as before.
Ben has really been wonderful. He takes care of me and Lydia and does everything. He has been bringing me some breakfast in bed every morning before work as this seems to help me. Then he gets Lydia up and fed before he leaves. I am thankful that his job can be flexible like that when we need it. He can even work some days at home - or even an hour or two before Lydia wakes up so that he can get his work done.
Lydia has had some adjustments to make to this "new" Mommy as well. We have been staying at home when at all possible. I know she gets so bored playing on her own and entertaining herself all day. I have to say that Baby Einstein DVDs have been a wonderful way to allow me some rest time. (She gets the remote and walks to the TV saying, "DDD? DDD?".) As soon as i'm feeling better we're going to have to curb this trend! She is used to getting out and doing errands, going to the park, meeting Daddy for lunch...I had not even been to the grocery store in at least a month until earlier this week, and that was not an experience I' d like to repeat any time soon.
On Tuesday I decided I felt well enough to get out to the store for a quick trip. We were out of all our staples and didn't even have anything for lunch. On the way out the door I grabbed a pile of clothes that have needed to go to the dry cleaners for about 3 weeks! (Unfortunately when I dropped them off I realized I had grabbed the wrong pile of stuff -- oh well, I left them anyway!) Then as I was heading into the grocery store, Ben called to tell me our new washing machine was going to be delivered in the next 30 minutes. (Our old one stopped working Christmas week when all the family was here!) So I hurried in to make a much needed deposit at the bank and also to get a sub sandwhich for lunch. As I was leaving the deli counter I started to feel terrible. I started to get tunnel vision and then my hearing became very faint. I was getting weaker and dizzy and felt I was passing out. Thankfully Lydia was in the cart and I just had to sit down in the middle of the floor. I got up and struggled to the register to buy my lunch and the man at the check-out was quite concerned. He was very nice and helped me sit down and then got me some water. After a few minutes I felt somewhat better and I made it to the car. (I think the cold air and the water helped.) I felt that I could drive safely and I knew I needed to get home to meet the delivery guys! I was practically in tears upon arrival and they were already there waiting on me. I was so shaky I couldn't even unlock our front door! I took them upstairs to the laundry room to get the old washer and then they informed me that since it still had some water in it they weren't allowed to take it away. I couldn't believe it! Well, in the end they did take it away (without spilling any water on their way out) and they hooked up the new one. What a morning!
Right now Lydia is laying on Pup while the B.E. Dvd is going and still attempting to play with her doll house with one hand. She just spilled my ginger ale on the floor and has already had way too many pretzels. We're both still in p.j.s and it is 12:30!!!

Pretending

2006-12-08T14:32:00.000-05:00

As most of you know, Lydia is seldom without her special stuffed dog, Pup. She really loves that animal and sometimes I'm a bit jealous as he gets loved on more than Ben and I do! This week I caught her "pretending" (or at least I think she was pretending) with Pup. She was eating some goldfish and decided to share. She carefully placed a fish on Pup's stitched mouth and waited a couple of seconds before she started saying, "Mmmm, mmmm." Then she snatched the cracker back and popped it in her own mouth with a giggle. I have also seen her attempt to share a drink with Pup. And if you read Liz's blog I left a comment there about how she reacted to seeing Kate's little stuffed dog. It was pretty funny.
Lydia hasn't quite grasped the phrase, "I love you." We tell her that a lot but her response is always, "night night"...no matter what time of day or night it might be.
Another cute thing she does is related to Auntie Liz and baby Kate. When we ask her, "Where is baby Kate?" or "Where is Auntie Liz's baby?" she will usually toddle over and pat Liz's belly. Occasionally we even convince her to give baby Kate some loves...and she gives Liz's belly a hug.
It seems that she learns something new everyday. It has been so much fun to watch her grow and learn.

News

2006-11-30T13:38:00.000-05:00

I thought I'd post some pictures of things we've been up to in the last couple of weeks.

Becky and Elias both had birthdays this month and we celebrated at our favorite Mexican restaurant. Our server brought out these hats along with a complimentary dessert when he found out the occasion. They were then serenaded by about 7 waiters.

Lydia loved her cheese tortilla.

Thanksgiving

My gramma with her three youngest grandchildren and two great-grandchildren. By next summer there will be three more great-grandchildren!

Guess who's going to be a big sister next summer?

November

2006-11-16T13:50:00.000-05:00

It seems hard to believe that Thanksgiving is only a week away! I'm looking forward to seeing some aunts, uncles and cousins that I don't get to see very often. We'll gather this year at my parents' house...which is still not quite in order from the move! It should be interesting. I think Mom FINALLY decided on the furniture and has probably just placed her order this week. (We're hoping it might arrive just in time for Christmas!!)In the meantime we grumbled a bit about how there is nothing comfortable to lounge on upstairs...and reminded them that sofas and chairs would be a must if they were going to host the Thanksgiving meal. So last Sunday when Mom had her sons and son-in-law captive after a delicious meal, she pleaded with them to bring up the extremely heavy and unwieldy leather sectional sofa that was waiting to be set up downstairs. Since it was too big to fit up the stairs, they loaded it onto the trailer on the 4-wheeler and Dad drove it up to the front of the house to bring in through the double doors. I wish my camera had been nearby. "You know you're a redneck when...."
Though I don't often get pictures of anything else, you know I have plenty of this little girl -

What better way to show your true love than with a bite on the nose?

Filling her purse with the chess pieces

Lydia Lou Who?

Another Wedding

2006-11-07T08:47:00.000-05:00

This past Saturday I played another wedding. This one was quite different from the last. For starters, it was indoors at a church. The bride originally hired us as a duo - violin and cello, but when we got into her musical preferences, I knew we were going to have to get creative. She wanted all of her ceremony music to be from the movie "Love Actually." Now, I never saw that movie but I was pretty sure she wasn't going to achieve her desired effect with a violin and cello!(It is kind of amazing to me how many people hear strings in music and think that one or two instruments can somehow sound like the full orchestra version...) We had several discussions about how to choose appropriate music that was still meaningful to her and also unique. Thankfully our cellist is also a pianist, so we were able to play a prelude of cello/violin duos and then Kelly moved to the piano to facilitate the movie scores! We covered "Love Actually," "The Sound of Music," "Quest for Camelot" and "Breakfast at Tiffany's." Quite a range there, and although it wouldn't be my style for a wedding ceremony, I think it turned out quite nicely.
We only had a couple of minor incidents this weekend.
1. Even though we talked very specifically with the Aunt who was directing, she still sent the mothers down on the wrong song...in fact I really don't know how she got so confused. She was supposed to give us a wave and then wait for us to get to the piano. We were still playing prelude music (violin/cello) which we had to wrap up mid-song and scramble to the piano so at least 1 of the 4 mothers could walk in to the song the bride had chosen.
2. During the sand ceremony/communion we played a song that also included the groom's step-sister on the flute. She was really pretty accomplished but she was extremely nervous and thus she played it very differently than she had in our practice sessions beforehand. Unfortunately for me, my A string went flat and I didn't realize it until the song had begun. Imagine putting your finger down to play a note and having the note not be the one you were expecting. It was challenging, to say the least, for me to try to play in tune. It was such an odd feeling only to be partially "in control" of the music I was producing.

Lydia the Leopard

2006-11-01T21:16:00.000-05:00

We did not go trick r treating, nor did we go to any festivals on Tuesday. But in keeping with last year's tradition, I found this costume Tuesday morning for just a few dollars and decided to have fun dressing Lydia up. We did stock up on some candy and open the door for the kids in the neighborhood. I had to teach late so I missed most of it, but according to Ben, Lydia had a blast! She loved hearing the doorbell ring and would beat Daddy to the door most times. She figured out how to grab the candy and put it in the kids' treat bags. Then she would say, "bye bye" when they left.

pre-whiskers

post-whiskers

loves for auntie liz and baby kate

Windy Wedding

2006-10-28T22:48:00.000-04:00

This afternoon I played an outdoor wedding with a string quartet at the Windermere Club House. It was held on the lawn overlooking a small lake where a few weeping willows were drooping by the lake's edge. Quite beautiful. Unfortunately, although it was a gorgeous day, it was extremely windy! I've played some very interesting weddings at some equally interesting locations, but as far as struggling to get through, this one took the cake. Talk about battling the elements!
I like to be organized and try to prepare for all possibilities. That is why I take things like sunglasses, hair clips, clothes pins (to hold the pages open) and a heavy duty music stand. However, I don't think there was anything else I could have brought that would have helped today. It was so windy that our music stands were being blown over by the wind! Really. This was a first for me. I thought just keeping the pages open to a certain piece of music was going to be the challenge. I never imagined that the wind would actually blow the stands holding the heavy 3 inch binders to the ground. Once, while in the middle of a song, the wind blew my bow off of my strings. It was ridiculous!
So there the four of us were, sunglasses on, spitting out strands of our hair, our feet pressed on to the legs of the music stands (trying in vain to hold them to the ground), while trying to make beautiful music with numb fingers.I don't think all four of us were actually playing all at the same time for about half of the music! As soon as we started a piece, one person's stand would blow over. As soon as she got it back up, someone else's pages blew to a different song...etc etc. There were a few moments during the ceremony music where two musician's had to quit playing to hold down the music of two others - this way at least the music (be it a duo instead of a quartet) could go on!!!
And of course we weren't the only ones struggling. Two of the nearby6 foot tall iron candelabras with glass votives blew over and smashed to bits. The flower arrangements fell off the pillars, the tablecloth upon which the unity candle was placed(yes folks, they still tried to light a unity candle) was blowing up and around the glass covered candle, and of course the rose petals that were scattered along the aisle blew away about 5 seconds after they were dropped.
So. That is a peek into my afternoon. I think it will be one of those wedding ceremonies I don't soon forget!

Another Update

2006-10-27T15:24:00.000-04:00

With our dear, long-distance relatives in mind, here are a few Lydia updates...

This is one of Lydia's favorite spots to "hang-out" in the house. Her toy chest is right next to the stairs and she loves to sit on the bottom step and swing her legs. I think most of you know she is obsessed with phones...the more realistic, the better. I gave her my old cell phone several months ago, but it was quickly discarded when she realized that the rest of us had flip phones, while she was stuck in the dark ages with a regular one. She has about four different toy phones too, but nothing beats the real thing. And she knows where to find them too! If a purse is open and within reach, she digs through it looking for treasure and if a man has one clipped on his belt, she makes it clear what she wants!

Despite the huge mess that is always created, Lydia is allowed to play in the tupperware cabinet. Just yesterday she decided it would be the most fun to take everything out and sit inside. After she had cleared the cabinet she scooted all the way inside and closed the doors saying, "Bye." Notice her partner in crime, Pup, who is never far from her side. (If anything I think she is getting more attached to that dog. When I get her out of the crib in the morning, she hands him to me first before she will let me pick her up.)

New words she can say:

No (she has mastered this one!)
Sit
Soo (shoe)
Sock
ME-muh (Gramma)
car
pane (plane)
uh-oh
gway (grapes)
Leedl-a
Hi-ee (she is particulary fond of this one and she says "hi" to strangers any time we are out)

Everyone tells me she is at the fun stage, and I admit it is fun! Everything is exciting to her and it is so much fun to see her learning and experiencing new things.

Overheard

2006-10-20T15:47:00.000-04:00

Ben to Lydia during bathtime:
"Lydia, what is the square root of 1? Can you say, '1'?"

"Lydia, can you say 'buns'?"

Lydia to Pup as she placed him in a laundry basket:
"Nye Nye" (night night)

Lydia to herself as she was playing in the kitchen:
"no, no NO Leedl-a" (That is the best phonetic spelling I can render of the way she says her name right now.)
Over the past several days I have heard her telling herself "no Leedl-a." Sometimes she is about to do something she knows is a "no-no" and sometimes she just says it while she is playing!

Just the other day she discoverd that this cabinet is the perfect size for her to sit in. She has had a great time opening it, sitting down, trying to close herself in, getting out, shutting the door etc. etc.

Dance With Me

2006-10-20T14:22:00.000-04:00

Chances are if you know about youtube, you have seen this guy's dance moves. For those of you who have not seen it, enjoy!! It is quite entertaining!

2006-10-17T21:14:00.000-04:00

Here are some pictures and brief update of thing around here during the last couple of weeks. I am too tired to write much of anything....
The weekend of our church ladies' retreat, Liz received a call from her youngest sister telling us that she was engaged! I think they are planning the wedding for this Spring...When they came to Buford to get the ring sized, Liz make a very yummy meal (complete with a fresh flower arrangement) to celebrate.

Becky and Elias

Monday morning, one of my old housemates from college called me out of the blue (eight of us lived in an old house in Athens affectionately known as "the white house"). She is a middle school teacher but had jury duty that day and decided to spend her lunch break catching up with me. Unfortunately she had trouble getting to the house so our chat time was all too short.

Robin and me

(I tried my best to hold the camera and tilt my head in such a way to avoid that lovely triple chin that you get when you do the extend-o-arm shots...alas)

Monday night, Liz volunteered to come cook dinner at our house. Who would refuse that kind of offer? Since Monday is my late day at work, I don't get home until almost 9pm. Ben was happy not to worry with his meal and I was thrilled not to have to stop for fast food. (I never thought I would tire of Chick-fil-A...but I am dangerously close!) Earlier that day, the boys picked up our new mattress set and also did some shopping for camping and fishing gear. I couldn't resist getting a few shots...

Liz and I gave Josh a hard time about these waders....so sexy, right?

Lydia enjoyed "helping" set up the tent.

Lydia likes to climb in and out of the stools and push them around the kitchen.

Inside the tent...

Best Banana Bread

2006-09-21T23:17:00.000-04:00

Ok. Best is hard to qualify...but the recipe is really easy.

3 ripe bananas
2 eggs
1 stick butter, softened
1 cup sugar
2 T. milk or buttermilk
1 t. vanilla
2 cups self-rising flour

Here is the "best" part about it. Put everything but the flour into the blender until mixed well. Stir in the flour and bake in a greased loaf pan at 350 for 50 minutes.
I often use only half the amount of sugar. When the bananas are ripe, I don't miss it.
Enjoy!

Shoes

2006-09-14T15:30:00.000-04:00

While I do love to buy shoes, I had hoped that Lydia's foot would not outgrow shoes so quickly. She has needed three different sizes over the summer. She has been going barefoot to church lately since outgrowing her white sandals - or wearing her sporty pair of Tevas. (Very stylish with those pretty church dresses!) I had a hard time justifying those baby Tevas in July, but she needed something waterproof before we went on vacation to the lake! Unfortunately (size wise) they barely lasted a month. (Before resorting to the Tevas, Liz and I looked everywhere for something cheap and water friendly to get her through the hot months - but to no avail.) We are at a size 5 (wide) right now and that leaves a little room to grow. I'm hoping we can use the couple of pairs I bought at least through Christmas!
The poor girl seems to have a rather chubby foot. When I had it measured recently she was right in between regular and wide widths. So some regular (i.e. cheaper) styles fit, but in others she needs wide. Here is a pair I found at Marshalls in a wide! I paid less than half the price that the kid's shoe store wanted for a pair of tennis shoes.
Today we went to a park with Amy and Emma and Auntie Liz. We moms wanted some exercise and boy did we get it pushing those strollers up and down the hills on the walking path. Lydia had a blast exploring and finding such treasures as rocks, pinestraw, pinecones and tree bark.

The swing was lots of fun!

I went in the grocery store to pick up a couple of things on the way home. Lydia was wearing the blue shirt and khaki shorts. Inside a kind woman waved at Lydia (who was waving) and said "He is quite a cute boy." I hesitated only a moment before answering, "thank you".

Reason Enough

2006-09-11T08:50:00.000-04:00

why Lydia will never again wear only her diaper to bed. Before I launch in I guess I should say that I painted Lydia's bedroom on Saturday so we've had her sleeping in the Pack N Play in a different room while the fumes are still strong. So Sunday after lunch she went down for a nap and Ben and I laid down in our room as well. Probably about 30 minutes later I heard her crying. My first thought was, "Why didn't she take a nap!?" She's been having some trouble napping during the afternoon lately. I reluctantly went in to see if I could comfort her enough to get her to sleep. As soon as I opened the door, I knew all was not right as I was assaulted by a horrible smell. I looked in the Pack N Play and thought, "Poor baby, she threw up." I took a couple of steps closer and I realized....no that was not puke. Yes, the child had taken off her diaper, which was on the floor, and had pooped in the pack n play. It was everywhere. She had spread it all over the pack n play, up the sides on the netting and some was thrown over the edge onto the floor. Can we all say it together, "GROSS!!!"
I called Ben in and he took her to the bath while I was left with the mess. The sheet was filthy of course - Ben just wanted to throw it away!!! I had to chuckle at that. What did he think I 'd done with all those outfits she had pooped in when she was a tiny baby?? Yes, the washing machine would survive this one.
Later on when she and the mess were all cleaned up, we were just shaking our heads at the whole thing. Ben said something about how nothing could be much more gross than that. While I agreed, I did have to remind him that there were likely to be many more nasty little messes to clean in the years to come!

Expectations

2006-09-07T22:29:00.000-04:00

Lydia loves scrambled eggs for breakfast. She also loves my Greens Plus. I don't think Josh believes me, but she reaches for my drink every morning and I usually have to cut her off after a couple of gulps.

She is facinated by the dishwasher and wants to "help" me with it (usually by pulling out the racks or shutting the door) whenever I have it open. She has recently discovered the joy of putting her toys - especially books or Pup - inside and then closing the door. (She also loves to do this with the dryer.)

I've realized she understands a lot more than I am often aware. The other day she was sitting in my lap and I asked her to go get her shoes and bring them to me so we could go out. I didn't point and she had to sift them out of her toys that were scattered on the floor. She brought back one shoe and then went back for the other. Today she was playing in my room and was missing her hairbow when she came toddling into the closet area. (She finds great delight in pulling out the bow. She usually trys to put it back by placing it on her head!) I said, "Lydia where is your bow? Go get your bow and bring it to mama." She promptly went out of the closet, through the bathroom and into the bedroom and went right to her bow which was lying on the floor. She picked it up and put it on her head, then she handed it to me.
So, perhaps my expectations of her level of obedience also need to increase...!

Home

2006-09-07T22:06:00.000-04:00

So here they are. A few pictures of the new house for you friends and family who live so far away that it will be months (years??) before you're here in person. I want you to know how hard it was for me to take pictures of the interior before I have done what I want to do....you know, paint, pictures, decor etc. So here is the "tour of the downstairs...

The dining room

The living room

This is essentially one long room to the left of the front door as you walk in the house.

The kitchen view from the windows at the back of the house.

View to kitchen from doorway into dining room.

Family RoomThe kitchen and family room are open to each other. This is the heart of the house and is where we spend most of our time together. We love this house and feel very blessed to be here. It is wonderful to be so close to church and many church friends and family! I no longer have to drive 30 minutes or more to get anywhere!

Labor Day Fun

2006-09-05T22:27:00.000-04:00

One of our chief desires in this new home is to show hospitality to others by having them in our home whenever we can. So, even though there are still boxes scattered around the house we decided to invite some friends and family over this past Monday. We had a great turnout with nearly 30 people - a number which would have been far too many to squeeze into our previous home. We really enjoyed it and I captured a few moments with my camera.

Caleb, Anna and Kate playing Candyland...he chose this game after a short attempt to teach Anna chess!

Bocce!

At least half the crowd (or all the men and boys plus Brittny!) spent a good deal of time playing bocce - an Italian lawn game that involves bowling with a wooden ball. Only four can play at a time so that left a decent amount of onlookers watching from the patio. At one point someone came in for a tape measure - presumably to clear up any doubts about whose ball was really closest to the mark.

Good times around the tables...

The great-grandma, affectionately known as Granny to many of us, with little Emma - our youngest guest. Granny is fun to have at any party or gathering. She is always smiling and is up for any game any time... especially if it involves cards! Liverpool Rummy anyone?

Bethany and Megan spoiled Lydia who probably had her every desire granted that day. I'm making a mental note to have at least one of those girls around the next time I have a large gathering!

Matt and Teisha with their three girls: Anna, Kate and Megan

Sam's house is now little more than a mile away, so he and Megan came over on their bikes!

Lydia waving bye-bye to the Moseleys.

Her "bye-bye" is barely audible and her wave is a twist at the wrist that is reminiscent of a beauty queen's wave.

Monday was a lot of fun. We hope to have more times like this in our home for years to come.