Shane stats 7 1/2 years old
Weight 58 lbs (75%)
Height 50 1/2 inches (75%)
BMI 16 (50%)
Shane is our amazing kid and biggest helper. He is a tad bit obsessed with his "screens" but we work with it. He loves his books and reads through series faster than I can keep up. He is partially through the Percy Jackson series and picks up the random other series here and there.
Myann stats 6 years old
Weight 46 lbs (50%)
Height 46 inches (50%)
BMI 15.4 (50%)
Myann is our best hope so far for a cleaner and organizer in the family. She loves to clean once she gets going. She is the only child who regularly cleans her room without being asked and makes her bed everyday without being asked. She is quickly learning to read and enjoying the new world that reading opens up to her.
Thursday, December 20, 2012
Monday, November 12, 2012
Some kids see figures in clouds...
Some kids see clouds shaped liked horses or puppies, well Anders sees poop shaped liked families. I am so thankful the kid finally potty trained, but I am slightly fearful every time he poops, I have to get a description of who or what his poop looks like. Quit reading now if you are already disgusted. But this is too funny to not save for posterity. I fully intend to embarrass him one day as he rereads this in his teenage years. So today his poop was a family, a mommy, daddy, and baby. 2 larger turds and one small one. Last night he had a baby Laila poop, a single small poop. Yesterday morning it was a giant whale poop - I will leave that to your imagination. Honestly I can not remember the first poop he described, but it started about 2 weeks ago, and since then I am forced to look at his poop and listen to what he thinks they look like before he flushes. The have been puppies, green bushes, superheroes.... (thankfully I have blocked out most of them). Tomorrow I am worried after he ate an entire can of black olives this afternoon. I do not recall reading this in the "mom" job description. So every time my stomach slightly lurches when I am forced to look at his poop, I remind myself that I could be changing his enormous diaper, so I am thankful.
Tuesday, October 30, 2012
Anders' 4 year stats
Anders and Laila had a combined well check up.
Anders is still our big boy. He has really thinned out, but he is rock solid. Still sweet as can be. He is learning to write his name, but may sign like daddy, since he seems to only care about the first and last letters.
Weight: 44 lbs. (90%)
Height: 42 1/4 inches (90%)
BMI: 17.25 (85%)
He is still a charmer and continues his, "You are the best (insert title here) ever!"
Anders is still our big boy. He has really thinned out, but he is rock solid. Still sweet as can be. He is learning to write his name, but may sign like daddy, since he seems to only care about the first and last letters.
Weight: 44 lbs. (90%)
Height: 42 1/4 inches (90%)
BMI: 17.25 (85%)
He is still a charmer and continues his, "You are the best (insert title here) ever!"
Laila's 15 month stats
Laila started walking about 2 weeks ago. It was pretty exciting and she has been quite proud of herself.
Her doctor appointment today went well. She is still our little bean.
Weight: 18 lbs. 3 oz. (25%)
Height: 29 1/2 inches (25%)
Head circ: 18 1/2 (80%)
She still has a big head. I guess she needs a big head for those big eyes.
She thinks she is such a big girl and can do anything the big kids can do now.
Her doctor appointment today went well. She is still our little bean.
Weight: 18 lbs. 3 oz. (25%)
Height: 29 1/2 inches (25%)
Head circ: 18 1/2 (80%)
She still has a big head. I guess she needs a big head for those big eyes.
She thinks she is such a big girl and can do anything the big kids can do now.
Monday, August 6, 2012
Our Thor
Amazingly enough, there are many days I regret not giving in to Brian when he wanted to name Anders "Thor". I wanted to avoid teasing and I wanted a name that started with an "A". My brother always called him Thor and addressed all his birthday cards to Thor. So in some ways, he is Thor. Today Brian explained to Anders that he wanted to name him Thor and Anders said that would be cool. Brian texted me to tell me what he said and I texted back that we could always change his name. Brian told Anders that mommy said we could change his name, so he said he would be Thor for a little while, but then he wanted to be called Hulk Smash! He is on a big Hulk kick right now. In fact, pretty sure he will be Hulk for Halloween. He wanted to be Thor, but I told him we did Thor 2 years ago. He was the cutest Thor ever though, so I would gladly repeat that costume.
Other Anders news, it has taken him until almost the age of 4, but he is finally potty training and succeeding. He was sabotaged last summer in potty training by the birth of Laila. He wanted to stay my baby and that translated into refusing to use the potty. It has been a long road, very frustrating at times. We decided to take a break while in Texas, though he did great pooping in the potty at my friend, Tricia's house. I think her fully potty trained 3 year old made Anders feel the need to step up his game. However, within 3 days of being home, he started using the potty on his own and has been a rockstar ever since. Huge, huge, huge!
Anders has been obsessed with when he "turns a new number". He is so excited to be 4. I guess he feels like he has been 3 for long enough. We are also really focusing on getting him ready for preschool. A few months ago Shane decided Anders was getting too old to say his "L's" like "W's". He still said "I wuv you" and "Waiwa is my baby." Shane started working with him. When Anders slows down and really thinks about the words he can do his "L's". I know he needs to better develop his speech, but a little part of me will be sad when he no longer says I wuv you and baby Waiwa.
He is still our little entertainer. He loves having his picture taken and will ham it up for the camera. He will commonly say to us or whoever is around, "You need snuggles?", or "I have not given you snuggles today." He is still our gentle giant.
Other Anders news, it has taken him until almost the age of 4, but he is finally potty training and succeeding. He was sabotaged last summer in potty training by the birth of Laila. He wanted to stay my baby and that translated into refusing to use the potty. It has been a long road, very frustrating at times. We decided to take a break while in Texas, though he did great pooping in the potty at my friend, Tricia's house. I think her fully potty trained 3 year old made Anders feel the need to step up his game. However, within 3 days of being home, he started using the potty on his own and has been a rockstar ever since. Huge, huge, huge!
Anders has been obsessed with when he "turns a new number". He is so excited to be 4. I guess he feels like he has been 3 for long enough. We are also really focusing on getting him ready for preschool. A few months ago Shane decided Anders was getting too old to say his "L's" like "W's". He still said "I wuv you" and "Waiwa is my baby." Shane started working with him. When Anders slows down and really thinks about the words he can do his "L's". I know he needs to better develop his speech, but a little part of me will be sad when he no longer says I wuv you and baby Waiwa.
He is still our little entertainer. He loves having his picture taken and will ham it up for the camera. He will commonly say to us or whoever is around, "You need snuggles?", or "I have not given you snuggles today." He is still our gentle giant.
Monday, July 30, 2012
Laila is 1!
My beautiful baby girl is 1! How did this year go by so quickly. Knowing she was my last baby I have tried to savor this year and enjoy every moment. We have also NOT encouraged her to develop. I know, horrible to say, but Brian's joke every time she tried to pull up was to tell me to knock her down. Neither of us are ready for her to be a toddler. We want our baby to stay a baby as long as possible; however, she is the youngest of 4, so she is ready to do what the big kids do. She pretty much skipped baby food. She loved baby cereal, but never took more than a bite of baby food every time I offered it. She went straight to eating what we ate for dinner, just chopped up small. Broccoli was one of her firsts and remains her favorite. She loves all proteins and most veggies, particularly carrots, green beans, peas, and broccoli. Not sure how it happened, but she dislikes most fruits. She likes bananas, and firmer fruits like apples and melon. Hopefully that will change because we are a berry family.
Despite our efforts to keep her a baby, she began pulling up at 10 months. While we were in Texas, she mastered pulling up and has even begun taking steps while holding on. She was signing "more" and "all done" at 10 months and now she does "hat", "please", "drink", and "eat". Sometimes when she really wants something and is trying to convey her need, she will run through all her signs. Ice cream brings on this response, she's my girl in that respect. So far her only consistent words are mama and dada. She has been overheard saying Gampa and up, but I can not get her to say it on command. Tonight she threw down food and said "uh oh".
Laila is a sweet baby and still loves to give love. She goes in for kisses and hugs and just snuggles into your body in general. I am savoring these moments most, because I know it will not last long. We are still nursing, but that too seems to be coming to an end. I do not think we will make it to Anders record of nursing until he was 20 months. Laila is too interested in what is going on to nurse in a room of people. She has those huge eyes just taking everything in. Not a day passes without someone commenting on her huge eyes and how they are wide open and checking out the world. She is spoiled and wants to be held or within a few feet of me at all times, but still has a sweet disposition. She loves her brothers and sister and is quick to give them love and attention when they are around.
We learned on the Texas trip that she is not a car sleeper, but is content to sit in the car for most of the time. She goes easily to other people and really bonded with her grandmas this trip.
A few days ago we gave her a cupcake when my mom was in town. She loved us singing happy birthday to her, but was less impressed with the cupcake.
So on her birthday, we took her for frozen yogurt after dinner. I think you can tell she liked it better.
Despite our efforts to keep her a baby, she began pulling up at 10 months. While we were in Texas, she mastered pulling up and has even begun taking steps while holding on. She was signing "more" and "all done" at 10 months and now she does "hat", "please", "drink", and "eat". Sometimes when she really wants something and is trying to convey her need, she will run through all her signs. Ice cream brings on this response, she's my girl in that respect. So far her only consistent words are mama and dada. She has been overheard saying Gampa and up, but I can not get her to say it on command. Tonight she threw down food and said "uh oh".
Laila is a sweet baby and still loves to give love. She goes in for kisses and hugs and just snuggles into your body in general. I am savoring these moments most, because I know it will not last long. We are still nursing, but that too seems to be coming to an end. I do not think we will make it to Anders record of nursing until he was 20 months. Laila is too interested in what is going on to nurse in a room of people. She has those huge eyes just taking everything in. Not a day passes without someone commenting on her huge eyes and how they are wide open and checking out the world. She is spoiled and wants to be held or within a few feet of me at all times, but still has a sweet disposition. She loves her brothers and sister and is quick to give them love and attention when they are around.
We learned on the Texas trip that she is not a car sleeper, but is content to sit in the car for most of the time. She goes easily to other people and really bonded with her grandmas this trip.
A few days ago we gave her a cupcake when my mom was in town. She loved us singing happy birthday to her, but was less impressed with the cupcake.
So on her birthday, we took her for frozen yogurt after dinner. I think you can tell she liked it better.
 |
| Forget the spoon, I'll just drink it. |
 |
| Oops, did I get some on my face? |
Thursday, June 14, 2012
Laila's 10 1/2 Month Stats
Laila and I went to her well check today. Hooray for no shots! She did great and performed on cue. When they asked if she waved, she did her good bye hand gesture (arm up with hand in a fist and wrist moving). She clapped, which she learned a month ago after countless baseball games and clapping. She began truly crawling last week. She has been doing an army crawl for about a month. She started pulling herself up to her knees 2 weeks ago, but she has not managed to pull herself up to her feet yet. She started pointing on June 10th in the vet's office. I was trying to entertain her while they worked on Katie. I took her around the office telling her what everything was and then she would point to something across the room. Then when I finished talking, she would point to something else. Her "pointing" is a whole hand out with extended arm.
Mid May she also started with the mamamama. We thought it was just another sound she was practicing, like bababababa, which she has been doing for 2 months. But then I started noticing that when she was upset and looking for me she would say mamamama. She still only says it when she is wanting me and upset. Never a happy mama, but I will take it. Brian's dad claims Grandpa was her first word, that she called him while he was here. But I am going to go against the whole house and say she said baba when he was trying to get her to say Grandpa. So she was definitely trying to say Grandpa and wanted to do what he wanted, but I do not count it. For the record, Brian and Shane agree with Grandpa that she said Grandpa first. But mom's vote has more power, so I win.
Laila is still a little bean, but the doctor was happy that her growth curve is consistent. On to today's stats:
Weight: 16 lbs 1 oz. (15%)
Height: 28 1/4 inches (60%)
Head circ: 18" (80%)
She needs a big head to hold those big eyes.
Bad pictures since my iphone does not take great pictures like the rest of the world. But here are some on my girls and I having fun with a wig on May 25th. Laila wore it best. I just look like I am having a really bad hair day.
Mid May she also started with the mamamama. We thought it was just another sound she was practicing, like bababababa, which she has been doing for 2 months. But then I started noticing that when she was upset and looking for me she would say mamamama. She still only says it when she is wanting me and upset. Never a happy mama, but I will take it. Brian's dad claims Grandpa was her first word, that she called him while he was here. But I am going to go against the whole house and say she said baba when he was trying to get her to say Grandpa. So she was definitely trying to say Grandpa and wanted to do what he wanted, but I do not count it. For the record, Brian and Shane agree with Grandpa that she said Grandpa first. But mom's vote has more power, so I win.
Laila is still a little bean, but the doctor was happy that her growth curve is consistent. On to today's stats:
Weight: 16 lbs 1 oz. (15%)
Height: 28 1/4 inches (60%)
Head circ: 18" (80%)
She needs a big head to hold those big eyes.
Bad pictures since my iphone does not take great pictures like the rest of the world. But here are some on my girls and I having fun with a wig on May 25th. Laila wore it best. I just look like I am having a really bad hair day.
Anders' Preschool Book
The school year is coming to an end. Shane finishes tomorrow and Myann and Anders had their last day today. Shane and Myann have been bringing home their portfolio's with their year's accomplishments. Both have progressed so much during the year. Anders' portfolio is a well done scrapbooked notebook, good job teachers, but the content shows the teachers' sense of humors. This is Anders' cover photo.
When I asked Anders why he took such a goofy picture, he said, "That's not me, that's a bad guy. Who is that bad guy and where is my picture." He was not kidding, he was really insulted that someone else's picture was on his book. Then this picture was on the inside.
Now this picture does not come as a surprise. After his class Valentine's Day party, his teacher was beyond tickled that she had immortalized Anders in this state. She suggested we blow it up and put it on his wall when he goes to college to show he was a born party animal. We already had a copy. The humor is that this is in his school book. He was "drunk" off sugar and passed out with his crown still on. That's my boy! He plays hard and crashes hard.
 |
| Sadly, this looks like a mugshot. |
When I asked Anders why he took such a goofy picture, he said, "That's not me, that's a bad guy. Who is that bad guy and where is my picture." He was not kidding, he was really insulted that someone else's picture was on his book. Then this picture was on the inside.
Now this picture does not come as a surprise. After his class Valentine's Day party, his teacher was beyond tickled that she had immortalized Anders in this state. She suggested we blow it up and put it on his wall when he goes to college to show he was a born party animal. We already had a copy. The humor is that this is in his school book. He was "drunk" off sugar and passed out with his crown still on. That's my boy! He plays hard and crashes hard.
Friday, May 11, 2012
My Girls
I am still surprised some days that I am raising brothers and sisters. I grew up my whole life with an amazing brother, who I miss everyday. But I never knew what it was like to have a sister and Alex did not have a brother. My kids are blessed to have brothers and sisters and I love watching their bonds grow. Of course they fight A LOT!!!! But they also love each other. On any given day you could hear Anders say, "Shane, we are best buddies!" Then once Shane leaves for school and Myann and Anders start playing Anders will say, "Myann you are my best buddy too." It goes without saying around here that Laila loves Shane, and he is beyond in love with her, but we are also starting to see how much Laila adores Myann and Anders too.
 |
| My beautiful girls! |
Tuesday, May 8, 2012
Anders: 3 year old version of digestion
Anders told Daddy tonight at dinner, "Food goes through your neck, to your belly, to your butt dad. Water goes to your belly too, then your pee pee." Perfect description of digestion to me - who needs 4 years of medical school - Anders figured it out by 3.
Now if he could only figure out how to poop on the potty!!!
Now if he could only figure out how to poop on the potty!!!
Teacher Appreciation Day - a lesson
Today was Teacher Appreciation Day and I hope all of you teachers felt well appreciated. We tried to spoil the teachers at my kids' schools. One, because they deserve it. Two, because I am trying to teach my kids the joy of giving, and what better way than by example. This was explained in the car ride to Myann today. She asked why we were taking cupcakes to the teachers because kids love cupcakes too. I said that today was a day to tell your teachers that you appreciate them and they deserve to be spoiled too. I said I want her to feel how good it feels to do nice things for others. Myann responded, "I would rather feel how good it is to eat cupcakes." And this is why we will continue to teach by example. Oh my girl, so sweet, but still so egocentric. Once we got to school, she was pretty excited to give them the pretty cupcakes and her thank you card. Anders was excited to tell me once he got home that his teacher ate the cupcake and said it was good. Even he is learning the joy of doing for others.
Last week at lunch, the kids received fortune cookies for dessert. Shane's fortune said, "You are a thoughtful man." That fortune could not have been more perfect. Shane is one of the sweetest and most thoughtful people I know. We have tried our best to teach him, but I think he is just innately thoughtful. He leaves me love notes all over the house. Hoping to photograph and post soon. Story below to make any mom happy. However, today he was all about his teacher. He was sad that I only had his teacher pick out one cupcake. For the record, I told her to help herself, but I wanted to take cupcakes for all the teachers in his school, because they all deserve a special treat. Shane wrote her a long, very kind note about what a wonderful teacher she was, citing specifics like how she teaches math, and he loves her reading, and how she picks great science themes. Then I had a picture of all the kids hands from the class and needed all the kids to sign. I was just going to do it in front of her, but Shane insisted it needed to be a surprise and that I had to have the kids do it in secret in the hallway. Again, very thoughtful. Lastly, his teacher recently moved and Shane wanted to buy her furniture for her new place. Big spender he is, rather big spender of his daddy's money. We comprised and got her a gift card to buy things for her new place.
The story: On the way home from karate tonight, Shane said he wanted to live with us forever. I told him that we were raising our children to be responsible, independent adults who lived on their own, so he could not live with us. He decided that he would buy a house next door to us because he never wanted to live far from me. I told him that one day his wife might not want to live next door to his parents. Shane's response, "The girl I marry will have to understand that you are very special to me and the most important lady in the world, well you and Laila. So if she will not live by you, then I will not marry her and will find a girl who will live next door to you." Glad to see my boy has his priorities in order!!! That said, he wants Laila to live on the other side of him. God help his future wife and hopefully one day I can find a way to cut the umbilical cord.
Last week at lunch, the kids received fortune cookies for dessert. Shane's fortune said, "You are a thoughtful man." That fortune could not have been more perfect. Shane is one of the sweetest and most thoughtful people I know. We have tried our best to teach him, but I think he is just innately thoughtful. He leaves me love notes all over the house. Hoping to photograph and post soon. Story below to make any mom happy. However, today he was all about his teacher. He was sad that I only had his teacher pick out one cupcake. For the record, I told her to help herself, but I wanted to take cupcakes for all the teachers in his school, because they all deserve a special treat. Shane wrote her a long, very kind note about what a wonderful teacher she was, citing specifics like how she teaches math, and he loves her reading, and how she picks great science themes. Then I had a picture of all the kids hands from the class and needed all the kids to sign. I was just going to do it in front of her, but Shane insisted it needed to be a surprise and that I had to have the kids do it in secret in the hallway. Again, very thoughtful. Lastly, his teacher recently moved and Shane wanted to buy her furniture for her new place. Big spender he is, rather big spender of his daddy's money. We comprised and got her a gift card to buy things for her new place.
The story: On the way home from karate tonight, Shane said he wanted to live with us forever. I told him that we were raising our children to be responsible, independent adults who lived on their own, so he could not live with us. He decided that he would buy a house next door to us because he never wanted to live far from me. I told him that one day his wife might not want to live next door to his parents. Shane's response, "The girl I marry will have to understand that you are very special to me and the most important lady in the world, well you and Laila. So if she will not live by you, then I will not marry her and will find a girl who will live next door to you." Glad to see my boy has his priorities in order!!! That said, he wants Laila to live on the other side of him. God help his future wife and hopefully one day I can find a way to cut the umbilical cord.
Saturday, April 14, 2012
Opening Day for Baseball
We have 2 baseball players now. Shane is in coach pitch with Brian coaching and Myann is in tee ball. Myann is doing incredibly well and really enjoying learning the sport. She is the only girl on her team, and likes it that way. She plays all the positions, but does quite well at 1st base.
Shane was back and forth on playing this season and then decided he really did want to play. His attitude has improved a lot this year and his skill level with it.
Shane was back and forth on playing this season and then decided he really did want to play. His attitude has improved a lot this year and his skill level with it.
Saturday, April 7, 2012
My Amazing 7 Year Old
Shane is a blessing to have as a son. Now my oldest is 7 and he has become so much more than just a son. He has become our friend and helper. Maybe since he is the oldest, everything he does seems so smart and so awesome, but maybe just a little biased - he is so smart and just so awesome. He has his days where he picks on his younger siblings just to be a stink, but most of the time he is so kind and helpful to them. He has been helping to teach Myann math, Anders to spell and poop on the potty, and he wants to hold and love on Laila every chance he gets. To say he adores Laila is the understatement of the year. Just last night we were up talking since he had ice on his neck, a minor injury from his birthday outing with a friend from school, he did a flip on the trampoline and hurt his neck. Anyway, we were chatting and he teared up describing how much he loved Laila and how he did not want her to grow up. He said she was his special baby and so cute and he wanted her to be that way forever. I told him I understood and once upon a time I felt the same way about him. I said he was such an enjoyable baby that I wanted him to stay that way forever. However, now that he has gotten older I find myself enjoying him at each age and in some ways more. I explained that he will continue to love her as she grows up. He disagreed and said he just wants her to stay the baby that gives him hugs and kisses and does not talk. Oh dear, that statement is slightly foretelling.
Shane at 7 has matured so much. He has focus and determination that constantly inspires me. I know Daddy thinks often that he is a chip off the old block. He is already planning out his summer business. He is expanding on his lemonade stand and now wants to run a sprite float business. He believes that he is the originator of the Sprite float. I personally do not know anyone who had a Sprite float before Shane came up with the idea a few months ago, so I have not disagreed with him. He said he has to get the word out about his invention, so he wants to have a stand. He said if enough people come then the media will notice his idea and he can share it with the world. I am slightly paraphrasing, but pretty much his words, media and sharing with the world included. He said when the world knows, then he will be famous.
Not to say he does not beg to spend hours on the Wii or DS or playing computer games, but he also enjoys his schoolwork and asks for more. He knocks out his homework usually in 10 minutes. He said he felt the math homework was much too easy and asked for 2nd grade math workbooks. He works on those some during the week and even finds them a bit easy. He is definitely my math wiz. I ask him how he figures it out since he has not been taught the concept and his response, "I just know." Wow! I was a pretty smart kid, but he blows me away. Though math is his strong area, he is quite a great reader too. He has been reading the Percy Jackson series on his own and I read Harry Potter to him.
Some things he is into right now, all things Angry Birds and Ninjago. He told me that he was not that into super heroes anymore. However, he just got an Iron man wrist shooter and is all too happy to play with that. I bought him $3 worth of apps on my phone (mostly Angry Birds) and you would have thought I gave him $1000. He was over the moon, bouncing around and hugging me telling me I was the best mom in the world. $3 bucks I tell you. I guess it pays to only do free apps because when you spend that extra buck for special occasions, they are so thankful.
One thing I am really enjoying right now are all the notes he leaves me. Daily I find a note on my computer or the kitchen counter. Sometimes they are thank yous for something, other times they are requests for things he wants. He has left me a few notes with birthday wish lists in the past month. Other notes have been about how much he loves Laila and I. Then he wrote Daddy a note about how much he loves him. Sometimes they are just silly notes, but I want to keep every one of them as a reminder of this age and this time. He loves this new way of communicating with us and has so much to say/write. During his parent teach conference, his teacher, Ms. Luciani, said she has to rein him in bit. They do weekend news every Monday and Shane has 3 pages of writing he wants to share with the class and there is not enough time for each kid to present when he has a book.
I can not wait to see what this year holds for him.
Shane at 7 has matured so much. He has focus and determination that constantly inspires me. I know Daddy thinks often that he is a chip off the old block. He is already planning out his summer business. He is expanding on his lemonade stand and now wants to run a sprite float business. He believes that he is the originator of the Sprite float. I personally do not know anyone who had a Sprite float before Shane came up with the idea a few months ago, so I have not disagreed with him. He said he has to get the word out about his invention, so he wants to have a stand. He said if enough people come then the media will notice his idea and he can share it with the world. I am slightly paraphrasing, but pretty much his words, media and sharing with the world included. He said when the world knows, then he will be famous.
Not to say he does not beg to spend hours on the Wii or DS or playing computer games, but he also enjoys his schoolwork and asks for more. He knocks out his homework usually in 10 minutes. He said he felt the math homework was much too easy and asked for 2nd grade math workbooks. He works on those some during the week and even finds them a bit easy. He is definitely my math wiz. I ask him how he figures it out since he has not been taught the concept and his response, "I just know." Wow! I was a pretty smart kid, but he blows me away. Though math is his strong area, he is quite a great reader too. He has been reading the Percy Jackson series on his own and I read Harry Potter to him.
Some things he is into right now, all things Angry Birds and Ninjago. He told me that he was not that into super heroes anymore. However, he just got an Iron man wrist shooter and is all too happy to play with that. I bought him $3 worth of apps on my phone (mostly Angry Birds) and you would have thought I gave him $1000. He was over the moon, bouncing around and hugging me telling me I was the best mom in the world. $3 bucks I tell you. I guess it pays to only do free apps because when you spend that extra buck for special occasions, they are so thankful.
One thing I am really enjoying right now are all the notes he leaves me. Daily I find a note on my computer or the kitchen counter. Sometimes they are thank yous for something, other times they are requests for things he wants. He has left me a few notes with birthday wish lists in the past month. Other notes have been about how much he loves Laila and I. Then he wrote Daddy a note about how much he loves him. Sometimes they are just silly notes, but I want to keep every one of them as a reminder of this age and this time. He loves this new way of communicating with us and has so much to say/write. During his parent teach conference, his teacher, Ms. Luciani, said she has to rein him in bit. They do weekend news every Monday and Shane has 3 pages of writing he wants to share with the class and there is not enough time for each kid to present when he has a book.
I can not wait to see what this year holds for him.
Thursday, March 22, 2012
My Hubby Rocks
I failed to blog on Brian's birthday, so I thought I would take today to say a few nice things about him. Almost 2 years ago, my hubby made a conscious decision to help out more around the house. It has been huge and very helpful. We had an agreement when I quit working that I would take care of the house and everything in it and he would work. Well, I am not supermom/superwife, props to those who are, but I could not do it all and stay pleasant to be around. Plus I got pregnant with out 4th, and he saw me drowning and gave me CPR. He continues to be quite helpful.
Sometimes his help has negative consequences. The other night he made chili almost entirely by himself. I say this because usually when he cooks, I am still key in the process by prepping or mixing or finishing his meal. But this time I was cooking dinner for the night and he cooked the chili so we could let it sit for the following night. Well he took the lid off and the condensation ran down onto the stove top into the lighter controls and within minutes we had a full on electrical fire with flames shooting out of the control handles. Poor guy was just trying to cook and instead nearly burned our kitchen to the ground. $200 later and 2 service calls, we have new electrical components on our gas top range.
To not inflate his ego too much, Brian can be a royal pain in the butt. I have no problem saying that on here because most people would agree, including his boss, his employees, his family for sure, and several of our friends. Of course we mean pain in the butt in the most loving way possible. But this pain also has an unbelievable compassionate streak. Some I can't say on here because he does not like his good deeds recognized. He is very private about what he gives and does for others. I can mention one though because it shows how he does better for others than himself. Brian occasionally takes leftovers to work, or rather he intends to take leftovers, but they rarely make it out of the house. However, a coworker has been struggling with cancer, so for several meals we would make double portions and we would pack it up to deliver to her. Never once did he forget to take the food, and was constantly reminding me to make up extra food for them. He cooked a couple meals himself to make sure they had a variety of food to eat.
So as much as he can be "challenging" at times, his good qualities certainly make him worth the challenge.
Sometimes his help has negative consequences. The other night he made chili almost entirely by himself. I say this because usually when he cooks, I am still key in the process by prepping or mixing or finishing his meal. But this time I was cooking dinner for the night and he cooked the chili so we could let it sit for the following night. Well he took the lid off and the condensation ran down onto the stove top into the lighter controls and within minutes we had a full on electrical fire with flames shooting out of the control handles. Poor guy was just trying to cook and instead nearly burned our kitchen to the ground. $200 later and 2 service calls, we have new electrical components on our gas top range.
To not inflate his ego too much, Brian can be a royal pain in the butt. I have no problem saying that on here because most people would agree, including his boss, his employees, his family for sure, and several of our friends. Of course we mean pain in the butt in the most loving way possible. But this pain also has an unbelievable compassionate streak. Some I can't say on here because he does not like his good deeds recognized. He is very private about what he gives and does for others. I can mention one though because it shows how he does better for others than himself. Brian occasionally takes leftovers to work, or rather he intends to take leftovers, but they rarely make it out of the house. However, a coworker has been struggling with cancer, so for several meals we would make double portions and we would pack it up to deliver to her. Never once did he forget to take the food, and was constantly reminding me to make up extra food for them. He cooked a couple meals himself to make sure they had a variety of food to eat.
So as much as he can be "challenging" at times, his good qualities certainly make him worth the challenge.
Wednesday, March 21, 2012
Pregnancy memories
Laila is growing too fast. We recently had our awesome photographer Jaidean take Laila's 7 month and sitting pictures. She was an awesome happy model. I will share pictures once we get them. I already find myself missing pregnancy and missing the newborn baby stage. No more for me, so I am trying to focus on enjoying Laila in each of her stages. She really is a sweet easy going baby. I would venture to call her perfect if only she would sleep through the night. I had 2 glorious months where she did sleep through the night and then the doctor broke her. He told me she needed to eat more since she was not gaining weight. Well she heard him and almost immediately started waking every 2 hours to eat. At our last appointment, when he walked in I said, "You broke her, you fix her." He laughed and said sorry.
Well I was reading a friend's blog when she mentioned pregnancy hunger and it made me laugh because I identified 100%. I had unreal pregnancy hunger. When women lose weight in the first trimester because they feel sick, I am baffled because I ate nonstop and gained weight right away. I had such intense hunger that I think Brian was afraid to be alone with me in a car for fear of his life. Before we had Shane, we shared one car and drove to and from work together. One day on the way home from work at about 5pm, I told Brian I was hungry and we needed to stop and get food. We lived about 15 minutes from work. Reasonably, Brian suggested I wait until we get home. I said no that I needed to eat now and once we got home I would have to prep something and there was not time for that. You would have thought I was a ticking time bomb, oh wait, I was. In the course of the conversation progressing a few more minutes, I must have screamed or at least been very convincing because Brian pulled in to Carl's Jr. If you know Brian, you realize I must have been very convincing or he was afraid of me, because Brian does not usually do something that you tell him to do. He is too stubborn. So within 3 minutes, I was eating the 6 million dollar burger or whatever the name is of the biggest burger on their menu. Thankfully the burger helped me make it the extra five minutes left in the drive home. And an hour later at home I was eating dinner. Shocking that I gained 55 pounds!
Another food story I will have to leave for Brian to tell, but basically it involved Brian making BLT's and me throwing a 3 year temper tantrum over him taking the "good" tomato and using turkey bacon. After my tantrum, Brian threw my sandwich in the trash. Hell hath no fury like a hungry pregnant woman. Thankfully my hormones must have worked themselves out in the first pregnancy because I was much calmer in the following 3 pregnancies. Don't get me wrong, I was still crazy hungry, but I learned to carry food in the car at all times. Every time we make BLT's, Brian and I still laugh about that day.
Well I was reading a friend's blog when she mentioned pregnancy hunger and it made me laugh because I identified 100%. I had unreal pregnancy hunger. When women lose weight in the first trimester because they feel sick, I am baffled because I ate nonstop and gained weight right away. I had such intense hunger that I think Brian was afraid to be alone with me in a car for fear of his life. Before we had Shane, we shared one car and drove to and from work together. One day on the way home from work at about 5pm, I told Brian I was hungry and we needed to stop and get food. We lived about 15 minutes from work. Reasonably, Brian suggested I wait until we get home. I said no that I needed to eat now and once we got home I would have to prep something and there was not time for that. You would have thought I was a ticking time bomb, oh wait, I was. In the course of the conversation progressing a few more minutes, I must have screamed or at least been very convincing because Brian pulled in to Carl's Jr. If you know Brian, you realize I must have been very convincing or he was afraid of me, because Brian does not usually do something that you tell him to do. He is too stubborn. So within 3 minutes, I was eating the 6 million dollar burger or whatever the name is of the biggest burger on their menu. Thankfully the burger helped me make it the extra five minutes left in the drive home. And an hour later at home I was eating dinner. Shocking that I gained 55 pounds!
Another food story I will have to leave for Brian to tell, but basically it involved Brian making BLT's and me throwing a 3 year temper tantrum over him taking the "good" tomato and using turkey bacon. After my tantrum, Brian threw my sandwich in the trash. Hell hath no fury like a hungry pregnant woman. Thankfully my hormones must have worked themselves out in the first pregnancy because I was much calmer in the following 3 pregnancies. Don't get me wrong, I was still crazy hungry, but I learned to carry food in the car at all times. Every time we make BLT's, Brian and I still laugh about that day.
Thursday, March 8, 2012
Myann's week in Houston
During Myann's week in Houston, Grandma Jo and Grandpa Richard hooked her up with a ride in a wagon in the procession for the opening of the rodeo. You can not just be in any regular clothes, so Grandma Jo took her for some cowgirl shopping Obviously, no dresses, so this is what she picked out and looks pretty darn cute. She loves the jeans, her blinged out belt, and her real cowgirl hat.
Tuesday, March 6, 2012
Aunt Sunny's Musings
I am uninspired to blog tonight, so I am copying Aunt Sunny's facebook posts. Cute memories. Myann and Daddy flew to Texas today, and Myann gets 8 days with her grandparents alone. She will come back sufficiently spoiled.
Aunt Sunny posted, "Today is better than Christmas! Myann has arrived. Nothing is better than having my niece run across the airport and jump into my arms. She kept holding my hand and even hugged and kissed my hand and told me, 'it's been way too long since I've seen you! I miss you!' Already melting my heart. Huge smile!!"
Aunt Sunny posted, "Today is better than Christmas! Myann has arrived. Nothing is better than having my niece run across the airport and jump into my arms. She kept holding my hand and even hugged and kissed my hand and told me, 'it's been way too long since I've seen you! I miss you!' Already melting my heart. Huge smile!!"
Posts about previous trips:
Saturday, February 25, 2012
Lose a Tooth, Gain a Tooth
Big day around here for teeth. Myann lost her first tooth, and Laila's first tooth broke through.
Not sure of how it happened, but a month ago Myann came downstairs with a bloody mouth and said she was coming down her bed and a string was stuck to to something and caught on her tooth. Sounds gruesome to me, but never quite made sense. Soon after one of her teeth was loose and finally today she pulled it out in the parking lot of karate. She is beyond excited. I think it makes her feel closer in age to Shane, since that boy has still only lost 2 teeth. The tooth Myann lost is her bottom left. She was giddy at the thought of putting it under her pillow.
Laila has been chewing a bit more than usual, so I should not be surprised that I felt a tooth today - bottom right. The kids were super excited for her. They think it means she can start eating steak and everything else. I am a bit nervous. My sweet girl has been gum biting me, so now I get the joy of an actual tooth. Lucky me.
Today, a blizzard like snowstorm blew through, and once the wind slowed, the kids ventured out. I wanted to capture of few shots of them sledding, but was distracted by the gorgeous sunset over the snow and through the trees. Yes, this is the view from my backyard - pretty blessed.
Not sure of how it happened, but a month ago Myann came downstairs with a bloody mouth and said she was coming down her bed and a string was stuck to to something and caught on her tooth. Sounds gruesome to me, but never quite made sense. Soon after one of her teeth was loose and finally today she pulled it out in the parking lot of karate. She is beyond excited. I think it makes her feel closer in age to Shane, since that boy has still only lost 2 teeth. The tooth Myann lost is her bottom left. She was giddy at the thought of putting it under her pillow.
Laila has been chewing a bit more than usual, so I should not be surprised that I felt a tooth today - bottom right. The kids were super excited for her. They think it means she can start eating steak and everything else. I am a bit nervous. My sweet girl has been gum biting me, so now I get the joy of an actual tooth. Lucky me.
Today, a blizzard like snowstorm blew through, and once the wind slowed, the kids ventured out. I wanted to capture of few shots of them sledding, but was distracted by the gorgeous sunset over the snow and through the trees. Yes, this is the view from my backyard - pretty blessed.
 |
| Front yard - love the sunset |
 |
| The kids with their snowman, Tim. Tim is named after Tiny Tim from Scrooge. |
Tuesday, February 14, 2012
Valentine's Day
Valentine's Day was great around here. Started with the kids waking me excited to open the cards they have been receiving in the mail, as well as the goodies we set out for them.
I got everyone, Brian included, stamped spoons with love messages. So now they can eat their cereal or stir their coffee and see how much we love them. I know, cheesy, but isn't that what Valentine's Day is about - cheesy expressions of love. We also got Myann a necklace stamped in the copper pendant with loved. I told her it was so she would always know she was loved. She seemed to really enjoy getting "big girl" jewelry. Shane got the Percy Jackson series, since he is becoming quite the avid reader; and Anders got a puzzle and cars. I do not think I have ever gotten them gifts for Valentine's Day, but this year it just seemed fun. They were so appreciative of the little gesture that I may keep it up. They also all got money from their grandparents, and were over the moon. Laila now has her piggy bank off to a good start.
After getting them to school, I stayed for Anders' party. So fun being in a room with 20 three year olds. Myann's party was the same time as Shane's so I told her that next year I would do her party and miss one of the boys. Then I met my Valentine for lunch downtown. After lunch I went to Shane's party, which is always a treat. I really love his age - 6 and 7 year olds are interesting to talk to and be around.
Upon coming home, Shane, my super sweet boy, wrote me a sweet card. However, since Laila was born, she is stealing my thunder, so all my cards are now addressed to Mommy and Laila. I should be thankful though, because Laila has bumped Brian clear out of the picture.
 |
| How did she get so grown up looking? |
 |
| Love my sweet boy! |
 |
| Opening her Valentine card |
 |
| My girls! |
 |
| Sisters! |
 | |
| Love this face. |
Sunday, February 12, 2012
Laila rolled back to belly
Finally my girl rolled from her back to her belly on Feb 10th, Friday. And since she learned, she is just rolling every chance she gets and even when I try to change her diaper, which is not so cool.
Daddy insists she is kissing now too. He told her to kiss him at church and she leaned in with open mouth to his cheek. I told him that she is doing what she does to every object and putting it in her mouth to explore. He insists it is a kiss.
We have been trying solids for 2 weeks, but so far Laila is not very interested. She even shudders with some of the bites. She is just not my eater. However, I tried sweet potatoes this week and she seemed to keep a few bites in, as opposed to spitting it back out.
Daddy insists she is kissing now too. He told her to kiss him at church and she leaned in with open mouth to his cheek. I told him that she is doing what she does to every object and putting it in her mouth to explore. He insists it is a kiss.
We have been trying solids for 2 weeks, but so far Laila is not very interested. She even shudders with some of the bites. She is just not my eater. However, I tried sweet potatoes this week and she seemed to keep a few bites in, as opposed to spitting it back out.
 |
| Sweet potatoes on her face. |
 |
| Such a pretty face! |
 |
| Anders had to show his belly too. |
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)