New American Inventor

Mommy: Padyn, what do you want for lunch? A peanut butter sandwich or a turkey sandwich?

Padyn: A peanut butter sandwich.

Mommy: Ok.

(Time passes. Mommy places peanut butter sandwich in front of Padyn.)

Padyn: Want peanut butter turkey sandwich.

Mommy: You mean you want a peanut butter sandwich and turkey? (Time passes) Ok, here's some turkey.

Padyn: Want turkey on the sandwich. Put it on the sandwich, Mommy.

Mommy: Um, no. If you want it, you put it on there.

(Time passes as Padyn carefully places slices of turkey inside her sandwich.)

Padyn: Yum, peanut butter and turkey sandwich! Thank you, Mommy!

(Padyn eats entire sandwich. Are the rest of us missing some new amazing luncheon treat?)

Another Indication of My Tremendous Laziness

Katelyn loves the bouncy seat. Seriously, the child lives in the thing. I would be lost without it and its soothing vibrations. But, man, am I tired of schlepping it up and down the stairs 37 times a day. So, I bought another one. An exact replica of the one we already have. And you know what? That $20 for a new used one? Best $20 I spent this week.

Mommy's Little Cutie (who has forgotten how to sleep at night)

Far Away Friends

We miss you, Liam!

Small Victories

Potty training for Padyn began in earnest yesterday. By the end of the day I was sure she was going to be going off to college still wearing diapers. She wore underwear most of the day (a pull-up for nap time) and was promised a "cookie" every time she used the potty. We set the timer and every 30 minutes made the trip to the potty. We had no accidents, but she also only peed in the potty twice. By early evening she was refusing to sit on it and we went back to diapers. I was sure we were doomed to potty training failure.

Today I decided on a different tactic. Still only in underwear (when we are at home-at church we had a diaper...and during nap, of course. I'm not into changing the sheets everyday) but if she didn't want to sit on the potty when it was time (every 30 minutes) then I said fine. I figured accidents might make her want to sit on it. She was extremely hesitant to go back to underwear, but when I upped the ante to a jelly bean for sitting on the potty (just sitting on it, mind you) we were on our way.

We set up "potty central" in the entry way. I wanted to keep her on the floor and away from the rug. So, I hung paper up and the wall, and set out the crayons, markers and stickers. We put the potty seat right out there with her as a visual reminder. A jelly bean for sitting and two for peeing was the promise. I was praying it would work.

I wasn't present at the first 30 minute mark, but apparently she refused to sit, and as soon as she stood up, she peed on the floor. Neither she nor daddy were very happy about it. The next time around, she had started peeing while coloring and said, "Mommy, help. I'm peeing." Strike two. But that, I am extremely happy to report, was the end of the accidents for the day. By the end of the night, she TOLD me she had to use the potty. Before she peed! She was eating dinner and said, "I want to go potty." I took her, she sat, she did the deed and Mommy danced for joy.

Maybe we're going to conquer this thing after all.

What About Kate?

That's enough posts about Padyn for one day. Here's a look at the other child who now lives in our house. Who, by the way, just spit up ALL over me and now I smell of sour milk. Love that. She's pretty pleased about it. She's sitting next to me in her bouncy seat smiling away and making those cute little chirping noises.

She loves looking in the mirror when I'm changing her. I think she is trying to see us.

She loves hanging out on my bed, especially when Padyn is nearby to entertain her.

This was the first time I put her on her tummy. She liked sucking on the comforter.

She is really picking her head up here. We have one strong, active girl with this one.

Countdown

Only 2 and a half more days until Padyn goes to underwear. Just thought it would be the polite thing to warn all of you that hang out with us regularly. We'll be living in the kitchen and the entry way until Padyn can figure out what it feels like when she has to pee, and then actually tell me that she needs to use the potty. I'm not looking forward to it, but I've put it off long enough. Preschool is right around the corner and this must be done. Can't there be another way?

The Big BIG Girl Bed

A few months ago we moved Padyn from her crib to a twin size bed. The pediatrician thought it wise to make the switch before the baby was born, especially considering how in love with the crib Padyn was. The switch went more smoothly than we could have hoped for. Padyn quickly found a new love in her big girl bed and when she saw the crib disassembled in the guest room, she didn't break down in a fit of uncontrollable weeping as I had feared.

I think the bed was such a hit because, honestly, it was just an elongated crib. We had two rails on it, so there was only like a 2 inch gap that her foot could have possibly gotten stuck in. It just had the fitted sheet; no top sheet or quilt. She could still have books and toys in there for morning entertainment. And here's the best part-even though she could have climbed out if she really wanted to, she never did. She stayed put until we came in and freed her.

But the amount of stuffed animals and books in there was a bit overwhelming. Overwhelming for Mommy that is. Frankly, I got tired of how messy it looked all the time and last weekend decided to make a change. (Of course, Daddy wasn't home and had no say in the manner, but as always, is having to deal with the consequence of my actions now. I'm pretty lucky that he likes me so much.)

Now, Padyn is in her big BIG girl bed. I took a rail off and put the other one in the center of the bed. She can't roll out (unless she tries really hard) but she can climb out. I put her quilt and top sheet on and we played with it and practiced sleeping in a big BIG girl bed for a while before it was actually bed time. I also prepped her on how she could actually get out of bed in the morning and play with her toys. (This encouragement was an attempt to eliminate the screaming, "I want OUT! I want OUT! Mommy! Daddy! I want OUT!" that was happening most mornings.) We even hand-picked toys from downstairs that she would like to have in her room. I figured she would get up in the morning and play in her room until she got bored and called for us (probably around 7:30am) or we came and got her (also around 7:30am)

Great plan, but I was unaware of one thing-Padyn is able to open her bedroom door.

This we became aware of the second morning. Joel heard her and got up to go get her, and apparently she was found wandering the hall at 6:45am calling us. The next morning we didn't hear her until she was right next to our bed yelling, "Mommy! Daddy! I wake up! I wake up now! Mommy! Daddy!" Oh, and this was at 6:30am.

I have a general rule that the girls in our house don't get out of bed before 7am. Something must be done. I don't think one of those doorknob thingos that they apparently can't open is going to work. I think we have the wrong kind of knobs. I may put a digital clock in there and try to teach her to tell time. Something like, "You are not allowed out of your bed until the clock says seven zero zero." Joel suggested we tape 7:00 next to the clock so she remembers what it should look like. I'll keep you posted on our progress.

Oh, but as far as what she thinks of her new big BIG girl bed? It's the greatest thing since, well, the big girl bed.

Kleenex Shortage

So apparently Kleenex isn't good enough for Padyn anymore. Last week we were over at our friends' house for dinner. Padyn decided their door jam into their kitchen was a good place to wipe her nose. Just rubbed it right on there. No warning, no declaring that her nose was running, no asking for Kleenex. You gotta wonder just what goes through their little 2 year old minds.

Small Smiles

She did it! Kate smiled as soon as she reached 6 weeks old on Monday. They aren't big huge smiles yet, but they are definitely smiles. And they make the last 6 weeks of sleep deprivation and a whiney two year old worth it.

Story Pictures

One of the activities I use to enhance comprehension in my students is an activity where I have the students tell or write a story based on a series of pictures. Now it's your turn.

This is Padyn's cousin, Molly May. She was with us for brunch on Mother's Day. Molly turned 1 in January. You'd think being younger, Padyn would have an advantage over her. You would be wrong. Molly could teach Padyn a thing or two about, say, how to run or how to get what you want when someone else doesn't want you to have it. Here's them on the putting green together..

I want to be like my Papa

Padyn's Papa is an avid golfer. So, on Mother's Day, when we had brunch at the club with Papa and Bon-Bon, Papa had Padyn practice her putting.



He took her over to the proshop and got a putter and ball for her. A pink golf ball. As they were walking back towards me and our table, Padyn was shouting, "Mommy! Mommy! I got a ball! Mommy! I got a pink ball! Look Mommy! Look at my ball!" I'm sure the golfers were happy with all the noise she was making.


She understands the basics of putting-hold the putter, push the ball into the hole, remove and repeat. She really enjoys taking the marker out of the hole and carrying it around the green.

While the putting green is designed for, you know, putting, Padyn seemed to think it was also designed for gymnastics. And bouncing the golf ball. And running. With a metal stick in her hand. She's safety conscious like that.

First Days of Summer

Last weekend, when it was about 300 degrees here, we kicked off the summer season by our first dip in the pool. For Mommy and Kate, it was really just putting our feet in (Mommy ain't ready for a suit yet.) When I dipped Kate's feet in, she SCREAMED. Guess she won't be getting in the pool for a while. But Padyn had a fabulous time. We went two days in a row in the kiddie pool at Papa's club. It was great as it was only a foot and a half deep. She bounced up and down, back and forth across the pool for an hour. I was worried that it had been so long since she was in the pool that she'd be a bit hesitant, like she normally is in new situations. But no-she went right back to blowing bubbles, putting her face in, and even trying to kick with the kickboard! We'll have to perfect that this summer.

Like Mother, Like Daughter

Padyn is definitely listening. This past weekend Joel was gone on a AF trip and I was home alone with the girls. (It was the first time I've been completely by myself for the weekend with two the munchkins...but more of that later.) Anyway, on Monday afternoon when Joel was leaving the cold distant land to fly home, he called to say he had started engines and would be taking off shortly. It was a quick conversation. My end consisted of, "Ok, great...Call me when you land... Love you, too... See you soon."

As soon a I hung up, Padyn picked up her little toy phone and said, "Hi. Daddy? On the airplane? Okay. Bye."

How did she know that?

Happy Mother's Day!

The girls wanted to say "Happy Mother's Day" to Grandma, Mimi, Bon Bon and Grammy!

Barney Love

Because Joel and I are both visually distractable and if we had cable or DirectTV like normal people, we would never talk to each other, we don't have cable. What's good for our marriage is also good for our children. However, we do get a few free TV channels due to our rabbit ear antenna, so Padyn is able to watch some of the normal toddler/preschool shows like Barney and Sesame Street. These are only on at select times in the morning, and I usually take advantage of that time to shower, get ready to leave the house, feed Kate, pay bills, check email, etc. But there are other times of the day I need a little TV distraction for her, so I have recorded a of couple episodes for emergency usage.

Today is Saturday, so no good shows are on our available channels for Padyn. Therefore, she is watching a Barney episode I have recorded for the 17th time. I usually don't watch with her since I'm usually in the shower, but today I fed Kate in the room with her while she watched. And I couldn't believe it. She can quote most of the episode! And act it out! How is it she is able to accomplish this amazing feat? Just another reminder that I need to be careful about she is watches.

Sometimes it's fun just to post random pictures of your children.

Our Little House on the Prairie daughter. -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Can you see it? The water is spraying her right in the face.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Padyn's first Band-aids. When we put them on, she said,"That feels much better." How is it Band-aids always make everything better?
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------

What exactly is she reacting to?
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Does this remind you of anyone she is related to?
(Please fail to notice that her hair hasn't been brushed yet. This is "Morning Padyn"-crazy scary hair child. It did get done before we went to church.)

Almost...

Katelyn almost smiled yesterday. I know almost doesn't count, but if you had seen it, you would have sworn she is trying to smile, too. It was one of those really big, open mouth kind of smiles with the bright wide eyes.

Today I had a few more glimpses of the allusive smile. They were coupled with some adorable little coos. It's coming...

Hopefully within the next week I'll actually have some pictures of it.

Katelyn at One Month

Since one of the reasons I'm keeping this blog is to have something to look back at when the girls are older and remember what my children were like when they were young, I really should post some facts so I can reminisce later. (Especially since I'm still pretty foggy most days.) This is a purely selfish post, so feel free to skip it.

Katelyn: 1 Month Old

*eats every 3 hours during the day, starting at around 7:30am

*after 10pm feeding, sleeps about 5 hours

*naps well after 10am and 1pm feedings

*has baby ache and a receding hairline

*eyes blue, hair brown

*weighs a bit over 8 pounds and is about 22 inches long

*has already outgrown a few Newborn size outfits

*only cries when very hungry or very tired

*loves the bouncy seat, hates the carseat

*spends most of her wakeful hours grunting and in constant motion

(at her two week appointment, her doctor said she was quite active)

*when lying on your chest, can pick her head up and hold it there

*likes looking in the mirror over her changing table

*really wants to keep the pacifier in her mouth, but can't quite do it

*seems to like her big sister's attention

More Springtime Fun

Taking pictures in our "pretty dresses" wasn't the only fun we've been having since the weather turned nice. Last weekend Padyn got to break in her new bathing suit while "helping" Daddy wash the car. (I think she was more interested in washing her shoes.)

We also took a trip to Deer Hollow Farm to see the goats, pigs, and sheep.

We hiked a bit farther past the farm as Mommy is trying to get back into the exercising habit. Along the trail we encountered a man on this beautiful horse. When Padyn saw them in the distance, she wanted to go up and pet the horse. I thought, "Great! She really is becoming more adventurous." But as we got closer, she decided she didn't really like that idea anymore. She just wanted to take his picture. She must have assumed it was a pony from afar.

Help Wanted

So seeing as how I haven't had a newborn in 2 1/2 years, there are things I don't remember about this stage. Like how long should they be sleeping? How much milk are they getting on average at each feeding? When will her hair grow back and the acne go away?

Since I only have minutes to be on the computer, my search for answers has been less than satisfactory. Anyone out there with suggestions of good websites to look to for baby information?
I'd be highly appreciative.

Padyn vs. Her Baby Sister II

There's an ongoing debate concerning whether or not Padyn and Katelyn look alike. We'll let the voting public decide.

Padyn at 1 month

Katelyn at 1 month (today!)

(I know, it's a little hard to compare with those pacis in their mouths.)

Multitasking

Would you believe I just posted a blog entry, balanced our checkbook, checked and responded to email, checked someone else's blog AND nursed my 4 week old? I am so impressed with myself I had to write it down. One-handed, of course. There's been a lot of that lately.

Spring has Finally Sprung!

After rain for the entire month of April, it was wonderful to get out last week and enjoy the beautiful sun. And Padyn looks so cute in a dress!