More So Cal Fun

I finally figured out why Blogger wouldn't let me upload pictures, so here are a few more from our week down south.

Strike a pose, there's nothin' to it Can we have a tortoise, too, Mommy?
Leo "helping" Padyn play
Aunt Christie and Bella hanging out with Kate

(Bella wanted to hold her ALL the time)

Tori dog is extremely concerned about the girls. Everytime Kate started to cry, she would start whining like, "Go help her, guys. Stop standing around."

Dancing to Bob and Larry

Grandpa joins in the dance

Sleepy girl

Attempting to take pictures with two

I attempted to get some shots of the girls for Daddy for Father's Day. Did you know how hard it is to try to get ONE decent photo of TWO girls, especially when one of them can't quite hold their head up yet and you are the only adult in the room? Both girls ended up in tears in the middle of the shoot. Kate, because Padyn stuck her elbow in Kate's eye, and Padyn, because (obviously) I got mad at her for it. They aren't wonderful, but they are authentic. And if we're anything, we're about keeping it real.

They'd both been crying right before I took this one. Look at those tired eyes.


Kate doesn't look so happy, does she?

Things Lately Discovered About Padyn

She can turn the faucet for the hose on.

When she says, "Mommy, I be careful." she really means she is climbing up on something dangerous.

She knows how to say "tupperware."

Everything is spelled P-A-D-Y-N.

She knows what it means to miss daddy-she told him she missed him at least ten times the day we came home.

She can put pants on by herself.

She knows which drawers her different clothes are kept in.

When she says, "Ok to go pee pee in my underwear?" she really means I have to go potty.

She can squeeze through a six inch opening in the sliding glass door.

She can put her shoes on by herself.

She is a genius at interpretive dance.

She has an active imagination that is seen when she makes up her own songs.

She knows how to take the pillowcase off a pillow.

She can sleep in a twin bed without rails without falling out.

She knows all the words to the chorus of "Jesus Loves Me."

She really does like her baby sister.

Announcing...

No new baby yet, but her blog is already up and running! Meet Ella, due to arrive in the world in August. Her proud Mommy is one of my roommates and best friends from college. You can find her here still in utero!

Great job laboring away on the blog, Sus! We're eagerly awaiting her arrival.

Fun Times in So Cal

You might have noticed it's been a while since I've posted anything. There is a valid reason for this. The girls and I where down at my mom's house in Southern California this past week. We drove (DROVE!) down on Friday the 9th and came home Friday the 16th. My mother was saintly enough to come with us both ways. She flew up, drove down, drove up and flew down. It made for some long days. The original plan was for her to just drive down with me and I would do the return trip on my own. But as she pointed out-how would I manage to go the bathroom if I was on my own? Point well taken. Needless to say, I believe it was a much better car experience for us all to have Grandma with us!

So that's not the entire reason I haven't posted anything for a week and a half. I had big plans to put pictures up every couple days while we were down there so Daddy could see his girls. But the internet gods were not cooperating and my mom's internet provider who shall remain nameless was indisposed until Tuesday! Then, Wednesday night when we were leaving the next morning at 5:30am (5:30AM!!!) I was trying to post a few pictures from the week. I got them all up and hit the spell check button and they all disappeared! You can imagine how irritated I was. Especially since it was almost 11pm.

That's enough excuses. Here are a few pics from the week. Padyn had a great time playing in Grandma's "pool", dancing with Bella and Grandpa, watching Dora (which she doesn't get to watch here since we're too cheap to have cable), playing with turtles at Bella's house and feeding Grandma's dogs their vitamins. Kate had a good time, too. At least, she slept well, so I'm assuming that means she had a good time.

Enjoy!

To:Coley From:Padyn

Dear Coley,

Mommy wouldn't let me send you another card, so I thought I'd post a birthday message on Mommy's blog while she wasn't looking. I can't believe you turn 3 today! I feel so left out. But it's been fun getting to learn things from you. Remember when we first met? You taught me how to drink out of a bottle and how to sit up and play with toys. I wasn't ready to do those things yet, but I watched you. I think our Mommy's had fun those couple days.

Remember when I came to visit you for the first time? We went to the park with the lake and walked around. My favorite part of that trip was playing your daddy's guitar. I soon discovered my daddy also had a guitar. Did you know they used to play together? And our Mommies used to sing together? Maybe someday we can do that.

Then there was the time you came to my house and started walking. I wasn't quite crawling yet, but after seeing you get everywhere you wanted for a few days, I decided I needed to move around, too. You weren't very nice to me all the time on that visit. You liked yelling NO at me when I was playing in my saucer. I'm still not sure what you were mad about. Remember how we went to the farm to visit the animals and the gnats wouldn't leave you alone? You were not happy about that. And we played the piano at my papa's house. That was fun.

When I came to visit you after that, I was yelling NO at you. Funny how we did things like that. Remember on that trip we went to the zoo and our mommies didn't realize how cold it would be? Good thing they brought our matching sweatshirts. I think they were pretty cold, though. I also went with you to your gymnastics class. That was really fun. I wasn't walking yet, but I was able to walk myself along the parallel bars. Your sister, Jalyn wasn't born yet, but she was coming soon. We talked about what your Mommy and Daddy should name her. And now Jalyn is 1! She's such a big girl. You're lucky to have such a good little sister. I hope mine is that good someday. Right now she just sleeps and eats a lot.

Let's see, what else have you taught me? You made me want to go pee pee on the potty and you showed me how to be a great big sister on our last visit. Remember our fun trip to the aquarium? And playing at the park? And swimming in the pool? We've done a lot for never having lived in the same state. Maybe someday we will. Tell your dad to become a Reservist and move here.

I better go now. Bears is on. I can't miss it. I love you, Coley! Happy Birthday! I'm glad your my best friend!

Love,
Padyn

PS I tried to post pictures with this, but Blogger was not cooperating. Maybe later I'll add them in.

Tummy Time

As Katelyn is now 2 months old, I should be a good mommy and put her on her tummy a bit every day. I wasn't really looking forward to this, as Padyn HATED being on her tummy until she could roll over. But it seems Kate likes it better than her big sister. Maybe because she has better head control. Right after I put her down, she rolled over onto her side. I think she might have gotten onto her back if the bar on the mat hadn't been in her way. I'm assuming it's just a fluke and my 2 month old is not really ready to roll over yet. Here are a few shots from today's tummy time. My favorite is the one with the lovely drool coming out of her mouth. Gotta love that.

Two Months Old

As of June 3-

weight: 12 lbs (75th percentile)

length: 22 3/4 in (75th percentile)

milestones: picking head up when on tummy, smiling, cooing, beginning to giggle, follows object with her eyes

sleeping: between 5-6 hours at night

favorite activities: eating, sleeping, pooping, watching big sister dance, watching her mobile

other: constantly moving, generally happy and content

Things that don't seem as big a deal the second time around...

getting out of the house with kid(s) in tow...

letting the baby cry for longer than 5 minutes...

waking the baby up in the middle of her nap...

baby falling asleep in the middle of nursing and only eating for 5 minutes...

coughing and runny noses...

baby looking at the TV while you or other kid is watching...

being around larger children who are constantly putting their face in her face...

letting the routine/schedule slide...

having an untidy house...

having completely uneven amounts of milk from each breast...

continuing to wear clothes with spit-up on them....


Still amazingly difficult? Being sleep deprived.

Everyday, a New Blogger is Born

I want to welcome my sister to the blogging universe. You can find pictures and stories of Padyn's favorite cousin (ok, ok, she's her only 1st cousin) Bella whenever you want.

Way to go, sis!

http://www.redlandsromo.blogspot.com/

Bob and Larry Save the Day!

well, the morning, anyway...

We've been having trouble with Padyn getting up really early in the mornings ever since she has been able to get out of bed herself. I know that 6am is not really early to many people, but to us nursing mothers who are still getting up during the wee morning hours to feed our little ones, it's darn early. We wouldn't mind if she was playing quietly in her room until, say 7:30, but she isn't. She's getting up, playing, then shouting, "Mommy, Daddy, I awake now!"

I should back up and let you know we ended up putting one of those knob cover thingos on her doorknob so she can't get out of her room. At least we don't have her at our bedside at 6am. How horrible would that be every morning at 6am.

So, anyway, in an attempt to curb the getting up so early, we decided to try a trick my friend Stacy used with her 2 year old. We put a CD player alarm clock in her room and told her she couldn't get out of bed until she heard the music. We set it for 7am. Over and over, all day long yesterday, I told her, "Remember, don't get out of bed until you hear Bob and Larry. STAY IN BED until the music comes on." I had her repeating it. I would ask her, "When can you get out of bed and play with your toys?" (Most of the time she said, "I don't know." But I knew she really did.)

This morning? Not a word from her until 7am. Then, 7:02, knocking on her door, yelling, "Mommy, Daddy! The music is on! The music is on!"

Perfect. Thank you Bob and Larry's Sunday Morning Songs.

Paci Love

Sleepy...so sleepy. And this is why Mommy loves the paci so much. This is why Padyn is still allowed to have her pacis at night. This is why we are a paci family. Judge if you must. I am not ashamed.

Simple Joys

Padyn's first popsicle. She got it because Mommy was so excited that she (sort of) pooped on the potty. Think she enjoyed it?

Fascination

Apparently, Padyn is still in love with the mobile. Good thing Kate seems to like it also.

How Can You Resist This?

Did she know it was her 8 week birthday the day I took this picture? Is that why her smile is so big?

Potty Training Update

For those of you that care (all 3 of you), I just thought I'd let you know the success Padyn has been having this week in Potty Training Boot Camp. She's been in big girl underwear everyday since last Saturday, except for naps and outings. But even in a pull-up, she has remained dry. I am so excited! It has been much easier than I anticipated, with much less clean-up than I feared. And I never imagined I'd find so much joy in those 5 little words...I want to go potty.

Is that sad, or what?

And yesterday, because I'm me and I myself hate using public bathrooms, I bought a travel potty. No, not a seat to put on the toilet. An actual little potty that comes as its very own carrying case. It looks like a little suitcase and unfolds to be a little potty. Great for those trips to the mall or down to Grandma's house. Padyn is very excited about it. She keeps wanting to use it. Next week, sweetie, when we drive down to Grandma's house. (That I'm sure will be another few entertaining posts.)