I have a back-log of posts that I would like to do -- from our busy week at home and then our fun-filled week in Michigan. Unfortunately, both my laptop and desktop computers have rebelled. My laptop is just old and the fan is starting to go causing it to overheat quickly and making it pretty useless for the large task of editing pictures. My desktop was apparently hit by lightening during one of the big storms we had right before we left for Michigan. We think the power source was damaged as it won't turn on at all. Scott has ordered the piece we need so hopefully it's just a matter of time until that is up and running again.
We went out and bought a google chromebook yesterday thinking it would be a good (inexpensive) option for a laptop replacement. However, after working on it for a couple of days, I've discovered that when they said you can't download programs onto it, they meant ANY programs. For some reason I thought "google" programs were the exception and that I would be able to download the picture editing program that I like to use. I was wrong. I can get picture editing "apps" that are web-based on the chromebook, but when I fiddled around with those last night, they did not seem to be user-friendly for editing large quantities of pictures or for uploading/downloading pictures. It may just be that I'm not quite tech-savy enough, or too impatient to figure out something new, or too stuck on what I know (or all three), but I just didn't see going through hundreds of pictures and editing them and saving them and posting them using the apps I looked at.
So, long story short, my posts will likely be sporadic, short and easy with minimal pictures at least until we get the desktop fixed. I think I'll be returning the chromebook since it doesn't seem like it will serve the function I wanted it to. We'll be keeping our eyes out for other options. (Do I need both a laptop AND a desktop? No, probably not, but I do like to be able to work on the blog or search around the web at night while watching t.v. with Scott instead of being stuck at my desk upstairs by my self... I guess it's more the desktop that is obsolete, but if the problem is the power source, it's a cheap and easy fix.) Be ready for a flurry of posts once I get a functional computer back! I just hope I don't forget everything that we've done before then!
Thursday, May 30, 2013
School's Out!
Our summer vacation has officially started! Woo hoo! Next week we start right in with swim lessons and continue on with t-ball. I'm still debating whether or not to sign the girls up for additional activities. If I wait too much longer I think the decision is going to be made for me. It's hard to believe Millie is done with preschool and moving on to Kindergarten in the fall. I'm not sure I"m ready for this next chapter, but I'm pretty sure I don't have much choice. I just cannot keep them small...
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| first day of school August 2012 |
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| last day of school May 2013 |
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| first day of school August 2012 |
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| last day of school May 2013 |
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| first day of school August 2012 |
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| last day of school May 2013 |
Millie has been both sad and excited about moving on from preschool. It has helped a lot that she learned that one of her current classmates will be going to the same school as her in the fall. We don't know yet if they will be in the same class, but I think just knowing she will see a familiar face at lunch and recess is comforting to Millie. I have to say, I'm nervous for her but I'm doing my very best to not let that show! Millie decided that she wanted to make goodbye cards for everyone in her school -- I talked her down to all of the children in her small group (45 vs. 12...). She took the cards today. I was proud of her for thinking of her friends.
Happy summer to all! May it be filled with laughter and sunshine!
Wednesday, May 29, 2013
Dance
so lucky to have such a great family to support the girls in all they do
these two were pretty entranced
Merrill's dance
Millie's dance
The videos
Rewarding hard work with flowers and ice cream
So proud of the girls as they completed another year of dance class and performed in their second class showing.
Thursday, May 23, 2013
Breathing Room
We are up in Michigan visiting family and friends for a long weekend and are really enjoying the slow pace of things and the fact that there is very little we HAVE to do (and the things that we DO have scheduled are fun -- like going to the Tiger's game on Sunday!). This is what LAST week looked like:
Monday: Teddy's 9-month well-visit in the morning and a playdate at the park in the afternoon
Tuesday: Dentist appointment for me in the morning and my date with Millie in the evening
Wedensday: Dance rehearsals for the girls in the afternoon/evening
Thursday: Scott headed to N.J. for work, T-ball in the evening
Friday: The girls school picnic in the afternoon/evening, Scott got back from N.J in the evening
Saturday: Merrill and I went on our date in the morning, dance recital for the girls in the evening followed by ice cream
Sunday: a classmate's birthday party at the Magic House at noon and my brother's birthday celebration at my parents in the evening.
And of course, the girls were at school every morning and we had all of our usual household things going on. That is NOT a normal week for us. I know that that probably looks like a pretty light week for some families, but for us, it was an incredibly busy one. The fact that we had so many evening activities made things seem that much busier because we typically have very quiet evenings and get the kids to bed early ... very early for Merrill (she's generally asleep by 6:30 these days). So multiple nights of bedtimes an hour to two hours later than usual all in a week's time pretty much wiped them out. My brother actually asked us on Sunday, "what did you DO to her (Merrill) this week?!" when she fell apart at dinner over eating her vegetables. Poor girl was just done.
I was SO glad Scott took Monday and Tuesday of this week off before we hopped in the car on Wednesday to drive up to Michigan. It gave us time to get the house back in order and to pack (what seemed like the whole house) for the trip without going crazy. It's funny, we were very pleasantly surprised by how well all of the kids did on the car ride up here. We left the house at 5 a.m. and made it to Scott's parent's house around 4:45 p.m. Eastern time, which means we made the trip in under 11 hours. With three kids. Not too bad. We only made a few short bathroom stops. The kids were pretty content to sit and listen to books on CD and play the few games we had brought along. After writing out the details of our previous week and thinking about how abnormal it was for us, I think I know why they were so content to just SIT.
This all comes on the heals of reading the link Leslie posted the other day. While last week I would have answered "how are you guys doing?" with "busy," most weeks the response is "good, quiet." You could call us up on just about any given day and say "hey, want to get together today?" and we'd be able to without any trouble. That's a pretty freeing feeling. It's clear talking to friends, that that is not the norm though. The norm for other families defnitely seems to be busy -- always busy. Sometimes I look at all the things other families are doing and get panicky that we aren't doing enough. I'm not good about scheduling playdates, and we don't often get invitations for playdates (most of the girls' friends are in school all day so playdates during the week just aren't feasible for them). We have our standing playdate on Mondays with a group of friends that occurs about 75% of the time. And honestly that is just as much for me as the kids since it's with good friends of mine and their children. But knowing how busy the families are that I would want to spend more time with, I never want to add more to their plates, or cause them stress over trying to get together when I know what they would probably love even more is to just have a quiet day with their own family. How can I insist on taking "quiet" away from someone else knowing how wonderfully valuable it is.
In the same vein, I worry about whether or not I'm giving the girls enough opportunities for activities, should I be signing them up for more things, should we be more involved. I don't give myself a lot of projects around the house -- or rather, I don't make them priority. We've got a pretty good To Do list going for the house, but it just seems hard to get to with three kids around. I know that other people with just as many or more kids manage to do big house projects though and they are still awesome and involved parents so then I wonder if I'm just lazy. I don't think that's it, I think I just have a low tolerance for "busy." (I come by that honestly -- when I was in high school if I went out on one weekend night and then asked permission to go out again the next night, my mom would say "you just went out? Do you really need to go out TWO nights? I don't remember this ever being a problem between us, either I didn't argue or she let me go out anyway, it's just the mentality of not needing to go out all the time that I remember). I guess the point is this, even though I sometimes worry about our lack of busyness and our "quiet" lives, reading things like the article Leslie linked to reminds me that "quiet" can actually be something to strive for and that "busy" doesn't have to be the goal. Ultimately it's always a choice and we have clearly chosen a way of life that works for us (and the behavioral meltdowns that occur when we don't have a quiet week -- for all of us -- really indicate that we just aren't "busy" people). It's also about knowing our strengths and weaknesses as a family and accepting them; embracing them. It's so easy to look on the other side of the fence and start making comparisons and stressing that you aren't doing it "right." But busy or quiet ... there isn't a universal "right." Choosing the path that makes your family happily hum along -- that's what is right. I don't know if last week is an indication of what our new normal will become as the kids get older and continue to get more involved in school and activities or if we will always have a comparatively quiet life. I just hope that we always choose to do what feels right for us and that we don't become busy simply because it's what you do when you have a family.
For now, I'm going to enjoy our chance to just breathe and be while we are here in Michigan. Life will speed up again on its own soon enough I'm sure.
Monday: Teddy's 9-month well-visit in the morning and a playdate at the park in the afternoon
Tuesday: Dentist appointment for me in the morning and my date with Millie in the evening
Wedensday: Dance rehearsals for the girls in the afternoon/evening
Thursday: Scott headed to N.J. for work, T-ball in the evening
Friday: The girls school picnic in the afternoon/evening, Scott got back from N.J in the evening
Saturday: Merrill and I went on our date in the morning, dance recital for the girls in the evening followed by ice cream
Sunday: a classmate's birthday party at the Magic House at noon and my brother's birthday celebration at my parents in the evening.
And of course, the girls were at school every morning and we had all of our usual household things going on. That is NOT a normal week for us. I know that that probably looks like a pretty light week for some families, but for us, it was an incredibly busy one. The fact that we had so many evening activities made things seem that much busier because we typically have very quiet evenings and get the kids to bed early ... very early for Merrill (she's generally asleep by 6:30 these days). So multiple nights of bedtimes an hour to two hours later than usual all in a week's time pretty much wiped them out. My brother actually asked us on Sunday, "what did you DO to her (Merrill) this week?!" when she fell apart at dinner over eating her vegetables. Poor girl was just done.
I was SO glad Scott took Monday and Tuesday of this week off before we hopped in the car on Wednesday to drive up to Michigan. It gave us time to get the house back in order and to pack (what seemed like the whole house) for the trip without going crazy. It's funny, we were very pleasantly surprised by how well all of the kids did on the car ride up here. We left the house at 5 a.m. and made it to Scott's parent's house around 4:45 p.m. Eastern time, which means we made the trip in under 11 hours. With three kids. Not too bad. We only made a few short bathroom stops. The kids were pretty content to sit and listen to books on CD and play the few games we had brought along. After writing out the details of our previous week and thinking about how abnormal it was for us, I think I know why they were so content to just SIT.
This all comes on the heals of reading the link Leslie posted the other day. While last week I would have answered "how are you guys doing?" with "busy," most weeks the response is "good, quiet." You could call us up on just about any given day and say "hey, want to get together today?" and we'd be able to without any trouble. That's a pretty freeing feeling. It's clear talking to friends, that that is not the norm though. The norm for other families defnitely seems to be busy -- always busy. Sometimes I look at all the things other families are doing and get panicky that we aren't doing enough. I'm not good about scheduling playdates, and we don't often get invitations for playdates (most of the girls' friends are in school all day so playdates during the week just aren't feasible for them). We have our standing playdate on Mondays with a group of friends that occurs about 75% of the time. And honestly that is just as much for me as the kids since it's with good friends of mine and their children. But knowing how busy the families are that I would want to spend more time with, I never want to add more to their plates, or cause them stress over trying to get together when I know what they would probably love even more is to just have a quiet day with their own family. How can I insist on taking "quiet" away from someone else knowing how wonderfully valuable it is.
In the same vein, I worry about whether or not I'm giving the girls enough opportunities for activities, should I be signing them up for more things, should we be more involved. I don't give myself a lot of projects around the house -- or rather, I don't make them priority. We've got a pretty good To Do list going for the house, but it just seems hard to get to with three kids around. I know that other people with just as many or more kids manage to do big house projects though and they are still awesome and involved parents so then I wonder if I'm just lazy. I don't think that's it, I think I just have a low tolerance for "busy." (I come by that honestly -- when I was in high school if I went out on one weekend night and then asked permission to go out again the next night, my mom would say "you just went out? Do you really need to go out TWO nights? I don't remember this ever being a problem between us, either I didn't argue or she let me go out anyway, it's just the mentality of not needing to go out all the time that I remember). I guess the point is this, even though I sometimes worry about our lack of busyness and our "quiet" lives, reading things like the article Leslie linked to reminds me that "quiet" can actually be something to strive for and that "busy" doesn't have to be the goal. Ultimately it's always a choice and we have clearly chosen a way of life that works for us (and the behavioral meltdowns that occur when we don't have a quiet week -- for all of us -- really indicate that we just aren't "busy" people). It's also about knowing our strengths and weaknesses as a family and accepting them; embracing them. It's so easy to look on the other side of the fence and start making comparisons and stressing that you aren't doing it "right." But busy or quiet ... there isn't a universal "right." Choosing the path that makes your family happily hum along -- that's what is right. I don't know if last week is an indication of what our new normal will become as the kids get older and continue to get more involved in school and activities or if we will always have a comparatively quiet life. I just hope that we always choose to do what feels right for us and that we don't become busy simply because it's what you do when you have a family.
For now, I'm going to enjoy our chance to just breathe and be while we are here in Michigan. Life will speed up again on its own soon enough I'm sure.
Wednesday, May 15, 2013
This Guy
edited 5/16: Teddy also finally popped his top two front teeth through yesterday. It was a big day to be 9-months old!
Mother's Day Hike
We went on a lovely hike with my family to celebrate Mother's Day last Saturday. My dad suggested a park none of us had been to before and it was the perfect setting for a relaxing morning outside. The weather couldn't have been better and the company, as always, was great. The girls loved exploring the trails and picking wildflowers with Lainie and Grandpa (and eating good food). Teddy loved being outside too and would have been crawling around exploring more had he been given the choice! Some of my favorite memories of the day:
- neither Teddy nor Peyton were too sure of riding in their backpacks at first. Peyton quickly decided it was okay, Teddy moved to the front carrier position and fell asleep :)
- Peyton digging in the bag of blueberries to both eat them and share them (while covered in yogurt)
- Peyton and Merrill blowing dandelions with my dad
- The girls giving bouquets to everyone
- Millie hiking with her "sketchbook" (even though she never stopped to sketch anything -- she was prepared to though!)
- sharing the day with my own mother as well as my daughters AND my sister and her daughter
- the picture perfect weather
- all of the inch worms that kept falling on everyone
- the ability to really "slow down" for a morning and just enjoy life in such a beautiful setting
As usual, I took WAY too many pictures. So I put them into a short video instead of just listing them all out. These are my favorites (about half of what I actually took...)
Dinner Date
Millie and I got dressed up last night and headed out for our May date -- dinner out! There are probably few things Millie loves more than going out to dinner (though her date to the ballgame with Scott is currently ranked as the BEST date ever. Millie picked out a fancy dress for each of us to wear and we headed out to Kaldi's for a light dinner that we were able to enjoy outside on their patio. It was a bit windy, but other than that it was a perfect evening. We enjoyed chatting about school and our upcoming trip to Michigan, making wishes in the fountain, and watching the trains go by.
Merrill wanted to dress up and be in the picture too :)
Windy!
veggie burger and a salad for me, grilled cheese and 7-bean soup for Millie. We each brought home half of our yummy sandwiches for today!
making a wish
splitting a cookie for dessert -- guess who picked the bigger half ;)
I really enjoy doing things in downtown Kirkwood, it has such a nice aesthetic to it, it's super family-friendly, and it's really close ;). Hopefully we'll make it to some of the summer concerts they do at this particular pavilion this summer!
Monday, May 13, 2013
{9 months}
Oh. My. Where is the time going?! I cannot believe Teddy is closing in on a year already. He continues to be such a bright spot in our lives and we just couldn't imagine our family without him.
He's very aware of and curious about his environment. He loves to look at pictures and things hanging on the walls and often wants to be carried over to them so he can inspect them. He loves Scott's guitars and seems to really enjoy music as he'll often stop and perk up his ears when he hears something he likes. He still loves to bang on the bongo drums or anything else that could be used as a drum.
Teddy continues to be one the move at all times. He still crawls on one knee and one foot -- and can be incredibly fast! He pulls up on anything and everything, can let go and lower himself down to the floor, cruises around furniture and transfers from one piece of furniture to another, even turning around to do so, he likes to walk holding someone's hands -- particularly if that someone is Millie. He likes to be danced and bounced around and always wants to be right in the middle of the fun. If the girls are wresting around on the floor he gets right in the middle of it! He LOVES to be outside and play in the dirt, grass, mulch, whatever he can get his hands on. He likes to swing, but I think he'd rather be down crawling around. It will be nice when he gets a little older and I can give him a little more freedom to do that without having to worry about what he's going to put into his mouth. Though, Millie ate plenty of dirt at this age and she turned out okay :). He has gotten the hang of the "I'm going to get you!" game and will now play along and crawl away at top speed squealing with delight as he goes. A month ago he would crawl TOWARD his play partner with his battle cry in a hilarious game of chicken. He never backed down and barreled his head right into the person he was playing with. You were then supposed to scoop him up into a big hug and roll around on the floor with him :). It was really cute and I'm kind of sorry he figured out the "real" game!
Teddy loves to babble and talk and giggle and squeal. If his sisters are being loud he'll join right in. He finally added mamamamama to his repertoire of babbling, so that made me happy :). Scott thinks his first word will be "Millie" (boy would she love that!). He likes to "sing" and sometimes we harmonize together with one sustained note (not the most beautiful music, I'm sure, but he likes it)
On the eating front, Teddy is still nursing full-time. He'll take a bottle from Scott or my mom, usually, but never more than a couple of ounces at a time. Even with my working the past few months, there just wasn't much need for him to take a bottle. He has not yet taken to solid foods -- either pureed or finger foods. Pretty much anything we get in his mouth is greeted with a wrinkled up face followed by a gag. He likes to suck on apples, but didn't like applesauce. I try really hard to start all the kids on real foods before processed (there is plenty of time for all that later in their lives ...), but Teddy has been so slow to accept any foods that I even broke down and bought some puffs. I think he's actually eaten one. Now when I give him one he just puts it back in the container. Great for his fine motor skills, not so much for eating :). BUT, he's growing and healthy and happy, so we aren't worried about it -- and neither is the Dr. We try every couple of weeks and eventually he'll like what he gets.
For being the third child and the baby, he gets his picture taken A LOT. He can thank our new camera for that :).
weight: 17 lb 2 ounces -- 12% (up a little more than 2 pounds from 6 months)
height: 27 inches -- 7% (up and inch)
head: 17 inches -- 9%
a pretty proportionate little guy. People still comment on his feet and hands (how big they are), so who knows, maybe he'll end up being a 'big' guy. I'm in no hurry for him to grow any faster than he is though!
**just like at 6 months, Teddy is the same height as his sisters and still just slightly ahead of where Merrill was at 9 months (just 2 ounces) -- crazy how closely they are all tracking each other! **
He loves to play in drawers and cabinets ... and the dishwasher ... and in the bathroom (he has learned how to flush) ... and with the printer ... He's getting better at understanding and following the "ah ah ah" rules and will stop what he's going for, I don't know, more than half the time?
Generally a happy, smiley guy, but able to express when he's unhappy with a situation or when he's ready to go back to mom. Shows mild separation anxiety when he's with people he doesn't know well -- usually this just means he'll look at you a little longer before offering a smile (and the smile is generally contingent on mom or dad holding him at the time)
getting good at waving, though sometimes his timing is a little off and he'll wave after the person is gone :). He's also mastering clapping for himself ... or anyone else around
loves his daddy and loves to jump back and forth between the two of us. And of course he still thinks his sisters are absolutely awesome
Teddy continues to be one the move at all times. He still crawls on one knee and one foot -- and can be incredibly fast! He pulls up on anything and everything, can let go and lower himself down to the floor, cruises around furniture and transfers from one piece of furniture to another, even turning around to do so, he likes to walk holding someone's hands -- particularly if that someone is Millie. He likes to be danced and bounced around and always wants to be right in the middle of the fun. If the girls are wresting around on the floor he gets right in the middle of it! He LOVES to be outside and play in the dirt, grass, mulch, whatever he can get his hands on. He likes to swing, but I think he'd rather be down crawling around. It will be nice when he gets a little older and I can give him a little more freedom to do that without having to worry about what he's going to put into his mouth. Though, Millie ate plenty of dirt at this age and she turned out okay :). He has gotten the hang of the "I'm going to get you!" game and will now play along and crawl away at top speed squealing with delight as he goes. A month ago he would crawl TOWARD his play partner with his battle cry in a hilarious game of chicken. He never backed down and barreled his head right into the person he was playing with. You were then supposed to scoop him up into a big hug and roll around on the floor with him :). It was really cute and I'm kind of sorry he figured out the "real" game!
Teddy loves to babble and talk and giggle and squeal. If his sisters are being loud he'll join right in. He finally added mamamamama to his repertoire of babbling, so that made me happy :). Scott thinks his first word will be "Millie" (boy would she love that!). He likes to "sing" and sometimes we harmonize together with one sustained note (not the most beautiful music, I'm sure, but he likes it)
On the eating front, Teddy is still nursing full-time. He'll take a bottle from Scott or my mom, usually, but never more than a couple of ounces at a time. Even with my working the past few months, there just wasn't much need for him to take a bottle. He has not yet taken to solid foods -- either pureed or finger foods. Pretty much anything we get in his mouth is greeted with a wrinkled up face followed by a gag. He likes to suck on apples, but didn't like applesauce. I try really hard to start all the kids on real foods before processed (there is plenty of time for all that later in their lives ...), but Teddy has been so slow to accept any foods that I even broke down and bought some puffs. I think he's actually eaten one. Now when I give him one he just puts it back in the container. Great for his fine motor skills, not so much for eating :). BUT, he's growing and healthy and happy, so we aren't worried about it -- and neither is the Dr. We try every couple of weeks and eventually he'll like what he gets.
For being the third child and the baby, he gets his picture taken A LOT. He can thank our new camera for that :).
weight: 17 lb 2 ounces -- 12% (up a little more than 2 pounds from 6 months)
height: 27 inches -- 7% (up and inch)
head: 17 inches -- 9%
a pretty proportionate little guy. People still comment on his feet and hands (how big they are), so who knows, maybe he'll end up being a 'big' guy. I'm in no hurry for him to grow any faster than he is though!
**just like at 6 months, Teddy is the same height as his sisters and still just slightly ahead of where Merrill was at 9 months (just 2 ounces) -- crazy how closely they are all tracking each other! **
Love my little bubby!
Sunday, May 12, 2013
Breakfast is Served
I was served a wonderful breakfast of fruit and blueberry muffins on Friday by the girls at their school. Such a wonderful tradition to be a part of. The girls made me some gifts for the morning too -- a bracelet and hair accessory fashioned from clips and bracelets that they already had. AND Merrill had a "sparkly rock" to give me. Okay, it was a stone from the pea gravel, but the sparkle in her eyes when she gave it to me was brighter than any diamond around. I wore my accessories and my flower corsages that they made at school with pride the rest of the day :).
guess who LOVED t-ball the night before so much that she wanted to wear her shirt the next day :). Also, guess who got her bangs trimmed the day after this!
Love my girls
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