so much for "babyproofing"....

I don't think we'd even had this thing for 2 weeks... and now we will have to put a real lock on the attic door. And we'll probably be playing the "go back to bed" game again at night.

fun day at gymnastics

Bear seems to have fun at gymnastics every week, but this week they brought out the fun inflatables and really disguised learning as fun. There was a big bounce house, tire swing, rope-climbing mountain and tunnel, zip-swing, swinging rope, and of course, the ever favorite foam pit. (Or as Bear calls it, the "stone" pit.) It was interesting to see that my little girl climbed up the ropes this time AND slid down the other side into the foam pit. She was too intimidated to complete the activity last time. However, she still needs to work on following directions... instead of letting go of the rope swing and jumping into the other foam pit, she swung across the pit and back and dropped onto the mat.

rise and shine, mommy!

Bear and Buddy woke up before I did, as usual. When Buddy and I finally made it up to the bonus room, we found Bear in full-fledged organizing mode. At least, as much of one as a 3 year old could possibly be in. You see, we boughtsome plastic storage containers at the Dollar Tree last night. And apparently she remembered that I told her we were going to use them to organize some of her toys with small accessories and parts... Barbies and Princesses, Diego playset, etc...

So here is what I found at the top of the stairs:


As you can see, she couldn't quite fit all of her ponies into a box and tried to balance them next to the castle. After I helped her tweak the sorting arrangement, everything fit. Doesn't she look proud?

the cutest kids on the block

hanging out on their blankets that mommy crocheted for them

when one kid won't cooperate, crop her out

cheese!

longer than the inchworm...
these days floor time=tummy time

notice the furniture....

3 little chairs all in a row...

with treasures in one of them...

Bear loved our family Valentine's Day Dinner...
flowers for Mommy from Daddy,
dinner on china, etc....

Bear also loves using Daddy's exercise equipment.

more tummy time, closed captioning on the bib

Buddy usually leans over the sides of his Bumbo seat,
trying to reach the toys that are not on the tray.

Bear climbed into the crib to keep her Buddy company while Mommy took her time waking up.
I supposed I should look up the weight limit on the springs... but since it's a convertible crib, I think we're pretty safe. Oh, and she brought some friends in with her.

quotable quotes

Bear has entered the "princess" phase. Rather, she has been there for quite some time now.
When Daddy picked her up from her Sunday School class yesterday, her teachers told him that when they had asked her if she "was a potty girl", meaning a girl who uses the potty, she firmly declared, "I'm not a potty girl, I'm a princess."
************
Last night, I had bedtime duty on my own as hubby was helping with a ministry at our church. Bear was being really good in her daddy's absence. When I told her it was time to go downstairs and get ready for bed, she stated ever-so-sweetly, "I need to clean up first!" I let her use that stalling tactic; what mother is going to complain when her child offers to pick up her toys?

1st swing

It figures that the first day Buddy rode in the baby swing at the playground, I would not have my camera with me. I got it on the phone, but am in the dark ages and don't know how to get pics from my phone onto the computer. Anyway, he sat up so well and loved it. Although it took as a few minutes to get him situated after that, he seemed to like riding in the sling that Grandma made while we chased Bear around the playground.

It had to be in the upper 60's today- perfect playground weather. It was wonderful taking advantage of it and getting fresh before winter returns.

January pics

5 months

Okay, so I'm not keeping up with this thing as well as I used to. It's hard to believe that we've entered the 5th month of having two kids! Sister and brother love each other... their faces light up upon sight of the other. It's the sweetest thing to observe, and I hope that even when they go through phases of sibling rivalry, etc., they will always be best friends. Brandon is so used to his sister's hugs that when he met our friend's 2-month-old, he leaned right over to give him a hug. And when they laid on the floor next to eachother, they held hands. SOOO sweet!!!

Not sure about the weight gain, but some 6-9 month clothes are fitting in addition to the 3-6. (Some of the sleeves are too short on those.)

we've started solids: rice cereal, oatmeal, and pears so far. He loves them, and will grab the spoon and shove it all the way back to his throat until he gags if we don't hold him back. He also loves to reach for our foods and drinks, no matter what they are. I let him taste some brown rice at Pei Wei yesterday, he loved that, too.

He rolls over from back to tummy occasionally, plays well in his exersaucer with a pillow under his feet... his legs are a tad short to touch steadily, and I don't want to crunch him you-know-where. He seems to enjoy tummy time more and more, spits up less most of the time, and my friend who is a physical therapist said she thinks he's about a month ahead in strength because he sits up so well, even though he does face plant every once in a while. I think there is something to the theory that boys are naturally stronger than girls. He is also beginning to pick up objects

Last night, he slept in his crib in the room he and Hannah share all night!!! That is a milestone. A big one. (He's beens leeping in the travel-lite crib in our room, even though it has about 1 inch left of length in it.) I haven't even replaced the batteries on the mobile yet, but he fell asleep quite well and stayed down until 7:30 a.m. Sissy slept all night, too. :)

4 month check up

Okay, so our Buddy a.k.a. Champ will be 5 months old in 10 days. But I wanted to make sure he was past his crud before taking him for his shots. And Daddy had to be off work.

Weight: 14 lbs 8 oz
Length: 25 1/2 cm, give or take a bit. He was pretty squirmy.

Doc has given the okay to begin cereals (which we actually did this week when he was staring us down at dinner), considering how much he likes to eat (30-36 oz a day), and is pleased with his development. He's alert and strong... he prefers to stand on my lap more than sit on it these days, and if you are wearing a necklace or earrings, or have long hair, watch out! He's drooling more and chewing on everything, so even though I don't feel them poking yet, I am sure his teeth are working their way up. He still spits up, but not AS prolifically as he used to, and honestly, having such a sweet baby makes me think I could be ready for another one SOME DAY.

winter from a child's eyes...

Mommy, can we go for a pretty drive and look at the icicles?
- Hannah

photo catch up

look what i did!

she wanted her hair up in the comb, to wear this "dress", and to walk in mommy's shoes....

pthbt!!! ! (i did not ask them to do this simultaneously)

sweet dreams, little one

can i eat this, please?

Happy New Year

We took Buddy in the Saturday after Christmas and he got his first antibiotic prescription. Since he was sick, we abstained from the 4-month vaccinations. He seems pretty well recovered, but Bear still has a cough and runny nose... yet her bloodwork came back just fine last Saturday.

At his doctor's visit, Brandon weighed in at around 13 pounds, so he's holding pretty steady for now. But the way he's been eating the past couple of days, I think we'll be introducing him to solids soon. Big Sis's still around 33 pounds, too, in spite of her uncle's claim that she feels heavier. It's all in the physics, she's just shorter and squattier than her cousin who she's almost caught up to in weight. It could be all those curls. ;)

Anyway, Brandon has been rolling from tummy to back for quite a while now. Tonight, he rolled from his back to his tummy! :) He's also starting to scoot a little bit at a time, though tummy time still frustates him if he gets too much of it. Sometimes he scoots in circles, other times a couple of inches forward. When Bear heard me get excited about her brother's first big roll, she exclaimed, "Good job, Brandon! We're so proud of you!"

Thanks, Uncle Grant, for the awesome pics!

our virtual Christmas card

reunions

We reunited with some very special people this week. On Thursday, the kiddos and I met Steph, Caroline & Kimberly for lunch and a play date at McDonald's after gymnastics. Our friend April and her boys were supposed to come to, but one of them got sick in the car a block from Mickey D's. :(

Brandon and Kimmy had fun staring at each other. Hannah and Caroline had fun running around and playing with eachother and the other kids. By the end of the 2 hours, they were holding hands as we left. So cute!!! And of course, Steph and I got to enjoy some time together with our kiddos while she is home from TX.

Today, we enjoyed spending time with my parents and Uncle Dan and Aunt Petra at Mom and Dad's house. I told my Dad that maybe the house hasn't sold yet because God wants them to stay here. He said if God wanted him to stay here, He would send someone to help keep up the 2 1/2 acres, and that God just wants him to appreciate FL even more when they eventually get there. I got some good photos, but haven't uploaded them yet...