Photo Saturday-Not Much For You Today

I only have two photos for you today because I'm busy. But if I tell you what I'm busy doing you'll be super jealous and not want to be my friend anymore, so I'll just save it. You'll figure it out when you see the next post (which might not be for a week or so...just warning you.)

This week Miss Padyn moved up a belt in karate. Here she is before her belt promotion ceremony last night practicing her side kick. Not pictured (though there is one on Daddy's phone) is her in her new yellow belt. Hiya! Mr. Robbie is finally cutting his upper middle teeth. Soon he will not look so much like a vampire. Fortunately for us, this means a return to a regular (sort of) night's sleep and more consistent eating patterns. Although, he is following in the path of his oldest sister. Apparently, he just wants finger foods these days. Hmmm...what will I do with all the frozen pureed food in the freezer? Carrot smoothie?

Not pictured is Miss Katelyn because, well, because she's Katelyn. Currently she is in her room screaming her head off because I will not give her what she wants. That's about what life is like with her right now. And she wants to be carried everywhere. A bit jealous of her younger sibling?

Happy Saturday. Next time you see us...well, you'll see us.

Ten Months Old Today

Well, technically tomorrow, but I didn't know when I'll have the chance again to post. So here we are.

Here's the big guy at ten months old. I thought I'd give you a brief rundown of what he is and isn't doing now. If I had enough brain cells left to compare him to his sisters, I would. But I don't, so you should just look here and here to see what they were up to at this age. Robbie currently weighs in at about 20 pounds and stretches out to just about 30 inches. We finally moved him into the big car seat a couple weeks ago. It was about time seeing as how he was well over 3 inches too long for the infant carrier. But I miss the infant carrier! It was so much easier to get him in and out of the car, deal with him napping on the go, and keeping him warm on these freezing cold winter mornings. But he does seem happier in that big Britax. And he can see Padyn better, which makes them both very happy.

He has four teeth...two on the bottom in the middle and two on the top, but not in the middle. You can almost see them in this picture...

He loves playing, especially with things he's not supposed (as pictured below). But, like all non-first children, he's pretty happy to sit and watch as long as there are bigger small people around to entertain him. He definitely prefers Padyn to Kate, but that's obvious as to why. Padyn doesn't shout at him or yank things out of his hand. Nor does she get right up in his face, so close that he falls over backwards to gain a bit of personal space. No, Padyn is a really good big sister. I can just see Robbie deciding to call her Momma instead of me when he finally can say that. Right now, it's still just "Dada," although he does have a new word that he occassionally repeats. I can't quite make it out, but it is possibly the "P" or "K" followed by the short /a/ sound. Hmmm...is he going to say his sisters' names before "Momma"?
Now that the worst of his cold and teething stint seem to be over, Big R is back to eating with some regularity. A month ago I would have listed every food he put into his mouth as a favorite, but these days he has turned a bit picky. Must be something about having trouble swallowing with too much mucus in your throat. If I had to say what his favorite foods were, they would have to be the following (in no particular order):

Bread, oranges, oatmeal with peaches, bread, cheese, bread, cheerios, graham crackers, bread, dehydrated fruit, bread, bread and bread. Notice a pattern?

Other favorite activities seem to include watching TV, sucking on his pacifier, taking a bath, banging toys, putting everything in his mouth, and lying on Mommy (as seen below). He is usually pretty happy to take one of his two naps. The morning one lasts anywhere from 45 minutes to three hours. The afternoon one is a bit more difficult to get him down. It's usually only 30 to 45 minutes, but that means he is usually asleep at night by 8pm. I'll take it.I can also tell you what Robbie is not interested yet: crawling, pulling himself up, lying on his stomach, giving up nursing, and sleeping soundly through the entire night. Obviously, a few of those items don't bother me in the least. The longer he puts them off, the easier it will be for me. But that last one. Not so fun. He typically wakes up right as I am drifting off to sleep. Lately it's been his cough that wakes him, but sometimes it's his teeth and sometimes we have no clue what his deal is. After assuring that all his needs are met (Tylenol, Mylecon, pacifier, etc.) we just have to let him cry. Usually it's not more than 10 minutes, but still. It's an additional 20 to 30 minutes that I'm awake. And since he's up around 4:30am to eat again, Mommy isn't getting a very good night's sleep. Maybe next year.

But, now that this cold and teething seem to be past, I'm happy to have my happy boy back, even if he is a bit clingier than he was. Separation anxiety? Maybe. Still feeling a bit out of sorts? Possibly. Just a Momma's boy? Who knows. But this face makes it all worth it.

This Is What She's Been Waiting Her Whole Life For

Finally! Padyn lost her first tooth. And on Valentine's Day of all days. She was already excited about the day, but this totally sealed the deal for her. I just hope she doesn't expect to get Valentine's Day cards and cash from the tooth fairy every year on February 14th!

Photo Sunday AND Happy Valentine's Day

Photo Saturday-Cause Sometimes Friday Just Doesn't Happen

The kids seem to be getting back on track after being sick. Kate was back at school this week and only hacking when running around or outside in the cold. Robbie still has his cough, and I think he's teething. He's still not eating as much as usual, he's congested, and he's drooling up a storm. Plus, he is a bit on the clingy side. He's really not happy for very long unless Daddy or I am holding him. He's just not quite his usual self, if you know what I mean. But, you'd never know that from this picture...I finally pulled out all the 12 months clothing since he was stretching out all the nine month stuff. Unfortunately, I think I waited too long for some of it. It's not going to fit on his growing body very long. (19 pounds at his 9 month appointment this week.) Take this outfit, for instance. It is my favorite one of the lot. (Ang, I think you are responsible for this...Thank you! I love it!) It fits him perfectly right now, which means it won't fit well for long. This is my favorite part...the back. You can see in the picture above that it has a train on the front. Kate has been wanting her hair pulled back in a ponytail lately. And the runny nose is nice in this shot. But don't her eyes look green? I don't think they really are, though...

Padyn wanted her hair in a pony today, also, but she really needs clips on the side to keep her hair back. She refused, as you can see.

This is the center of their activity this week. The pillows and blankets have been out all week. Someone is usually a queen, someone else a princess, and there is a lot of sleeping involved. And plastic food. That's been a big hit also this week.

Until next time, Happy Saturday. I'm going to go bake something in my new oven now.

Kate's Worldview #19

Mommy: Later today we are going to go get a treat with our friends.

Kate: What is it?

Mommy: You'll see. I'll tell you later.

Kate: I think it's going to be some choking candy, like lollipops.

Cooking Again

Did you know I have this other blog where I write down recipes that I have tried and really like and want to make again and again and again? Well, I do. And because it's been a year since I posted anything, I decided that now that I have a stove and oven again, I should really be writing stuff down. So I did. And I am. And if you have anything to add, feel free to let me know about it. And look over there on the right...I even made a link to it. Finally. But if you can't find where it says "Down the Hatch" because my new Valentine's Day themed background is a little too busy, I'll give you a link right here.

Still Sick...

...but you wouldn't know it by these pictures. This is what happens when Motrin kicks in. Before this he was a whiny, snotty, feverish mess who didn't want to sleep well without being held. And who still doesn't want to eat anything. I don't think I have much time left...I better get to being productive. I don't think it's going to last long today.

And There Was Much Rejoicing

After 9 months, we now have a working oven and stove. It's beautiful......and blue. But only on the inside. And it works like a dream.We've already baked fish, roasted veggies, heated bread, boiled water and made cookies. And it hasn't even been hooked up for 24 hours. Can you tell we are excited?