Thursday, February 28, 2008
Sisterly Love
Today was beach party day at school! What a nice break from the long, dreary, snowy winter we've been having! The kids were dancing and "surfing" on their beach towels to Beach Boys music when I came to pick Makenna up from school! They sure looked like they were having fun :) So Makenna's been wearing her summer gear around the house the rest of the day and wanted to snuggle with a blanket to get warm. Maryn just couldn't resist and wanted to snuggle with her big sister. Check out these wonderful sister moments I caught with my camera....
Monday, February 25, 2008
Triplets
I've said all along that Eden, Makenna and Maryn could pass for sisters, but Jeanne is convinced that maybe they are long lost triplets ;) A few pictures happened to pop up on her screensaver at the same time that confirmed her suspicions so she had to send me the following.....
See if you can guess who's who!
From left to right, Makenna, Maryn, Eden
See if you can guess who's who!
From left to right, Makenna, Maryn, Eden
Sunday, February 24, 2008
Toilet & Vocab
Last weekend Maryn learned how to flush the toilet. Or maybe I should more accurately say for the first time Josh and I weren't able to stop her from flushing the toilet. She gets a look of sheer elation on her face every time she does it ! Now she wants to sit on the potty :) She will point to her diaper and squat down like she has to go to the bathroom. She'll pick up the little potty seat, put it on the big toilet and try to climb up herself! So I'll take her diaper off and put her on the potty where she is more than happy to sit and play with the toilet paper and toilet lid :) I'm thinking it's more of just a ploy to play with the potty than anything, but it's a good interest at such a young age so I'm definitely encouraging her excitement with the potty :) The amazing thing is that she has actually motioned for the potty at the right times... either right as she's pooping or right before she has to pee. She also has a weird fascination with sucking on the hand soap container in the bathroom, but that's a story for a different day ;)
Maryn has also hit a vocabulary growth spurt in recent weeks. She used to just come up to me with her empty sippy cup, hold it up to me and kind of make a grunting noise when she wanted more juice and now I'm actually getting "Ju Pee" (that's "Juice Please" in Maryn talk). She says "thank you" quite a bit and the other night she laid in her bed singing "Twinkle Twinkle Little Star" to herself after I put her to bed.
Maryn just recently started taking interest in baby dolls. She will rock her babies, feed them, give them loves (kisses and hugs) and read them books. It's so endearing to see that mothering quality just naturally emerge from my two little girls :) Of course two seconds after she's been giving her baby loves, she'll throw it on the ground and run over it with her toy shopping cart but we won't talk about that right now!
I've discussed on my blog a few different times about who my kids look like, etc. Overall, in the past it has been really difficult for me to pinpoint that one girl really looks like one or the other because I honestly just think we all look like individuals. I've had a hard time seeing it. I obviously saw certain features but not the overwhelming resemblancse that everyone else saw. Well recently I blogged about seeing myself in Maryn and now just a week ago I experienced the same thing with Makenna and Josh. We were looking at some video and pictures of Josh from when he was younger and I honestly gasped out loud. I couldn't believe the shocking resemblance between Josh and Makenna - it is seriously out of this world!
Makenna's vocabulary has been maturing as of late. By "maturing" I mean that she is using words that seem almost out of place coming out of a 3 year olds mouth. Of course I can't think of a lot of examples now that I'm writing this but a few that come to mind are "I sensed that was going to be the case Mommy" or "We were hoping for that." "Hoping" and "sensed" are such intangible ideas that I'm surprised she can use them correctly.
Honestly Maryn's favorite activity... reading books. Currently her favorite book is "Mr Brown Can Moo, Can You?" I can pretty much guarantee you that I read it to her at least 25 times on Friday and she probably read it to herself twice that much :)
Look at Makenna's sore, red lip from blowing her nose so much :( But she still has a smile to share!
How Maryn insists on eating these days... with Pup Pup shoved under her armpit.
Cheesing for the camera
Check out all that hair in the back! Yes it is a major mullet but I can't bring myself to cut it yet. Pigtails do the trick most days :)
Maryn has also hit a vocabulary growth spurt in recent weeks. She used to just come up to me with her empty sippy cup, hold it up to me and kind of make a grunting noise when she wanted more juice and now I'm actually getting "Ju Pee" (that's "Juice Please" in Maryn talk). She says "thank you" quite a bit and the other night she laid in her bed singing "Twinkle Twinkle Little Star" to herself after I put her to bed.
Maryn just recently started taking interest in baby dolls. She will rock her babies, feed them, give them loves (kisses and hugs) and read them books. It's so endearing to see that mothering quality just naturally emerge from my two little girls :) Of course two seconds after she's been giving her baby loves, she'll throw it on the ground and run over it with her toy shopping cart but we won't talk about that right now!
I've discussed on my blog a few different times about who my kids look like, etc. Overall, in the past it has been really difficult for me to pinpoint that one girl really looks like one or the other because I honestly just think we all look like individuals. I've had a hard time seeing it. I obviously saw certain features but not the overwhelming resemblancse that everyone else saw. Well recently I blogged about seeing myself in Maryn and now just a week ago I experienced the same thing with Makenna and Josh. We were looking at some video and pictures of Josh from when he was younger and I honestly gasped out loud. I couldn't believe the shocking resemblance between Josh and Makenna - it is seriously out of this world!
Makenna's vocabulary has been maturing as of late. By "maturing" I mean that she is using words that seem almost out of place coming out of a 3 year olds mouth. Of course I can't think of a lot of examples now that I'm writing this but a few that come to mind are "I sensed that was going to be the case Mommy" or "We were hoping for that." "Hoping" and "sensed" are such intangible ideas that I'm surprised she can use them correctly.
Honestly Maryn's favorite activity... reading books. Currently her favorite book is "Mr Brown Can Moo, Can You?" I can pretty much guarantee you that I read it to her at least 25 times on Friday and she probably read it to herself twice that much :)
Look at Makenna's sore, red lip from blowing her nose so much :( But she still has a smile to share!
How Maryn insists on eating these days... with Pup Pup shoved under her armpit.
Cheesing for the camera
Check out all that hair in the back! Yes it is a major mullet but I can't bring myself to cut it yet. Pigtails do the trick most days :)
Thursday, February 21, 2008
Makenna's 1st Conferences
***KID BRAG ALERT***
This is as much for my records and personal journal as it is for everyone else to read, so please forgive me if this seems over the top but I wanted to remember this moment.
Josh and I had another first today as a mommy & daddy - we attended Makenna's first ever parent/teacher conferences! I told one of my friends that I felt so old! I couldn't believe I was going to conferences as the parent!
Anyway, I was so nervous going in, but as you will soon see, there was absolutely no reason to be. Mrs. Sodman made some comment about this being our first ever conference as parents and then said "Well you have no reason to worry whatsoever because this is Makenna we're talking about!" Whew! What a relief. To say the least, her conference was glowing :) I don't really even know how to start so I'll break it down how I know best...
Self-Help/Social Skills:
Mrs. Sodman said that Makenna does very well at cleaning up after herself (snack, bathroom, etc) and doesn't ever need help. She gets along very well with all the kids in the class and Mrs. Sodman couldn't even recall one instance where Makenna had an issue with another child or where she wouldn't share. Mrs. Sodman said that it is obvious that Makenna likes the social side of preschool :) She said that she was sure Makenna knows all of the kids' names in her class (I assured her that she does because she points them all out to me in her class picture at home) and said that this is very uncommon for someone to be able to do this at her age. She said that she loves helping and having a "job" in the classroom. The area that she said may need improvement is Makenna's ability to make transitions. For example, Mrs. Sodman said that if Makenna is sitting at a table working on a puzzle and they ring the bell for carpet time Makenna has a hard time not finishing the task at hand. Mrs. Sodman said that she'll always say "I just need to finish this first" or "Just one more minute please." Sorry kiddo - this a trait you picked up directly from your mommy :)
Verbal/Listening Skills:
Basically said that Makenna can talk up a blue streak and you can understand what she says :) She will tell anyone a story that will listen and said oftentimes these are very long, detailed stories. Said that she will occasionally get a case of the "wiggles" on the carpet ;)
Motor Skills:
Mrs. Sodman said that Makenna loves games and dancing activities and isn't shy about joining in even when the rest of her friends aren't. She said that Makenna isn't afraid to be silly and is able to stay in control and be a "good" silly :) As we all know, pretty difficult to come by in a 3 year old! Silly usually gets out of hand at this age. She said that Makenna does need to practice more on her cutting skills.
Academic Skills:
Mrs. Sodman individually asked all the kids (in preparation for conferences I'm sure) how far they could count and was hoping and expecting 1 - 10 (which is age appropriate). She said that Makenna counted the farthest in the class and counted to 39! She asked me if that was normal and I said that she had just counted to 39 for me this afternoon. She said this is amazing for her age and that she suspects that Makenna would've counted even farther if she wouldn't have been distracted by some of the other kids in the classroom. Then the fact that Makenna can identify all of her letters, sound them out, identify all the shapes, identify numbers, knows all her colors.... basically everything is terrific and she is advanced for her age! :) She said that the rate at which Makenna learns and her ability to recall information is outstanding and that she is performing well beyond her grade. The concern we talked about with Mrs. Sodman was that we are all concerned that she may eventually get bored with school since she knows all of the age appropriate academic skills already. Mrs. Sodman suggested that Makenna is the perfect fit for an enrichment program to excel her skills and recommended us to Kumon Learning Centers. Crazy! I'm not sure what we're going to do. I think we might try it out this summer and see how it goes and take it from there.
The overwhelming theme that we kept hearing as Mrs. Sodman was talking to us was that Makenna is performing well beyond her age. She is one of the youngest in her class (being a mid-summer birthday) but she is performing at a level much beyond most of the rest of the class. We kept hearing over and over again "It's amazing she can do this at her age." Josh and I have thought that all along but it's great to hear it from a teacher and someone who is trained to do this.
So as you can imagine, we left the conference beaming. I couldn't have been any prouder of Makenna. And not just for the academics, but for the fact that she gets along with everyone, has never had a sharing issue, has made such a smooth adjustment to preschool and that she does it with such "enthusiasm." I have been praying about this long and hard because I worried about sending her to preschool too early given her birth date. What a wonderful answer to my prayers today :)
And now to brag about my younger daughter for a minute... right when Josh and I got home, we were in the kitchen making dinner. Maryn was sitting on the floor playing with some magnets on the frig when all of a sudden one of the songs from her toy came on and here sits Maryn singing the ABC's!!!! This child is only 17 months old and she's singing her ABC's! We are very proud of our two little munchkins!
This is as much for my records and personal journal as it is for everyone else to read, so please forgive me if this seems over the top but I wanted to remember this moment.
Josh and I had another first today as a mommy & daddy - we attended Makenna's first ever parent/teacher conferences! I told one of my friends that I felt so old! I couldn't believe I was going to conferences as the parent!
Anyway, I was so nervous going in, but as you will soon see, there was absolutely no reason to be. Mrs. Sodman made some comment about this being our first ever conference as parents and then said "Well you have no reason to worry whatsoever because this is Makenna we're talking about!" Whew! What a relief. To say the least, her conference was glowing :) I don't really even know how to start so I'll break it down how I know best...
Self-Help/Social Skills:
Mrs. Sodman said that Makenna does very well at cleaning up after herself (snack, bathroom, etc) and doesn't ever need help. She gets along very well with all the kids in the class and Mrs. Sodman couldn't even recall one instance where Makenna had an issue with another child or where she wouldn't share. Mrs. Sodman said that it is obvious that Makenna likes the social side of preschool :) She said that she was sure Makenna knows all of the kids' names in her class (I assured her that she does because she points them all out to me in her class picture at home) and said that this is very uncommon for someone to be able to do this at her age. She said that she loves helping and having a "job" in the classroom. The area that she said may need improvement is Makenna's ability to make transitions. For example, Mrs. Sodman said that if Makenna is sitting at a table working on a puzzle and they ring the bell for carpet time Makenna has a hard time not finishing the task at hand. Mrs. Sodman said that she'll always say "I just need to finish this first" or "Just one more minute please." Sorry kiddo - this a trait you picked up directly from your mommy :)
Verbal/Listening Skills:
Basically said that Makenna can talk up a blue streak and you can understand what she says :) She will tell anyone a story that will listen and said oftentimes these are very long, detailed stories. Said that she will occasionally get a case of the "wiggles" on the carpet ;)
Motor Skills:
Mrs. Sodman said that Makenna loves games and dancing activities and isn't shy about joining in even when the rest of her friends aren't. She said that Makenna isn't afraid to be silly and is able to stay in control and be a "good" silly :) As we all know, pretty difficult to come by in a 3 year old! Silly usually gets out of hand at this age. She said that Makenna does need to practice more on her cutting skills.
Academic Skills:
Mrs. Sodman individually asked all the kids (in preparation for conferences I'm sure) how far they could count and was hoping and expecting 1 - 10 (which is age appropriate). She said that Makenna counted the farthest in the class and counted to 39! She asked me if that was normal and I said that she had just counted to 39 for me this afternoon. She said this is amazing for her age and that she suspects that Makenna would've counted even farther if she wouldn't have been distracted by some of the other kids in the classroom. Then the fact that Makenna can identify all of her letters, sound them out, identify all the shapes, identify numbers, knows all her colors.... basically everything is terrific and she is advanced for her age! :) She said that the rate at which Makenna learns and her ability to recall information is outstanding and that she is performing well beyond her grade. The concern we talked about with Mrs. Sodman was that we are all concerned that she may eventually get bored with school since she knows all of the age appropriate academic skills already. Mrs. Sodman suggested that Makenna is the perfect fit for an enrichment program to excel her skills and recommended us to Kumon Learning Centers. Crazy! I'm not sure what we're going to do. I think we might try it out this summer and see how it goes and take it from there.
The overwhelming theme that we kept hearing as Mrs. Sodman was talking to us was that Makenna is performing well beyond her age. She is one of the youngest in her class (being a mid-summer birthday) but she is performing at a level much beyond most of the rest of the class. We kept hearing over and over again "It's amazing she can do this at her age." Josh and I have thought that all along but it's great to hear it from a teacher and someone who is trained to do this.
So as you can imagine, we left the conference beaming. I couldn't have been any prouder of Makenna. And not just for the academics, but for the fact that she gets along with everyone, has never had a sharing issue, has made such a smooth adjustment to preschool and that she does it with such "enthusiasm." I have been praying about this long and hard because I worried about sending her to preschool too early given her birth date. What a wonderful answer to my prayers today :)
And now to brag about my younger daughter for a minute... right when Josh and I got home, we were in the kitchen making dinner. Maryn was sitting on the floor playing with some magnets on the frig when all of a sudden one of the songs from her toy came on and here sits Maryn singing the ABC's!!!! This child is only 17 months old and she's singing her ABC's! We are very proud of our two little munchkins!
Big Gray Truck
Much to Makenna's delight, we were able to get "Daddy's big gray truck" back this morning! She was so excited when we told her last night that it was ready that she thanked God for the big gray truck in her prayers :) She also told us this week that she couldn't feel better until we had the truck back!
So after almost 2 months of work on this truck, Josh and I are amazed at the outcome. When they pulled it around to the front of the auto body shop this morning I think my mouth dropped open. It looks exactly like the brand new Ford truck we drove off the lot just a little over 6 months ago. If you could've seen the truck right after the accident you wouldn't have thought this was possible. I was skeptical, that's for sure. You honestly can't even tell that it was in an accident (and trust me we scoured every square inch of that thing). And even better news, Josh said that it is driving perfectly! I was afraid it would have some odd tick or pull to one side or something and he said it was just fine. Thank goodness. If anyone is ever in need of some serious auto body work, I would highly recommend Quality Auto Rebuilders in Marion. Not only did they do great work, but they were very easy to work with. The owner personally showed the truck to us this morning to make sure that we were happy with it and more than once told us to bring it back if we have any problems at all. It seriously was great service at it's finest. Nice to have a good experience come out of a not-so-great situation.
I think Josh might have to take the girls for a joy ride in "Daddy's big gray truck" tonight! They can't wait!
So after almost 2 months of work on this truck, Josh and I are amazed at the outcome. When they pulled it around to the front of the auto body shop this morning I think my mouth dropped open. It looks exactly like the brand new Ford truck we drove off the lot just a little over 6 months ago. If you could've seen the truck right after the accident you wouldn't have thought this was possible. I was skeptical, that's for sure. You honestly can't even tell that it was in an accident (and trust me we scoured every square inch of that thing). And even better news, Josh said that it is driving perfectly! I was afraid it would have some odd tick or pull to one side or something and he said it was just fine. Thank goodness. If anyone is ever in need of some serious auto body work, I would highly recommend Quality Auto Rebuilders in Marion. Not only did they do great work, but they were very easy to work with. The owner personally showed the truck to us this morning to make sure that we were happy with it and more than once told us to bring it back if we have any problems at all. It seriously was great service at it's finest. Nice to have a good experience come out of a not-so-great situation.
I think Josh might have to take the girls for a joy ride in "Daddy's big gray truck" tonight! They can't wait!
Monday, February 18, 2008
Under The Weather
Josh and I knew it was too good to be true that the stomach bugs out there hadn't made it into our house yet this year. Friday and Saturday Maryn developed some bad diarrhea which left her with an incredibly sore bottom. Her bottom was so sore that you couldn't even put your hand underneath her when you held her :( She was very clingy and was out of sorts. To top it off she's had a rotten cold for awhile now that gives her coughing fits anytime she lays down to sleep.
Then yesterday morning Makenna was not acting like herself at all and mid-afternoon I found her falling asleep in the living room (very odd since she hasn't napped for over a year now). I asked her if she wanted to take a nap in her room and she happily obliged... again making me realize something was wrong. She woke up about 7:00 last night and seemed back to her normal, happy, charming self. She got tired very fast though and we had her back in bed by 8:45. I had a bad feeling when we put her in bed though because she started to seem out of it again. I was right.... at about 9:30 she woke up vomiting. Poor thing. Luckily that has been the only time she has vomited so far, but she was very uncomfortable all night with stomach cramps, headache and a fever. Tylenol seems to do the trick, but she very quickly takes a turn for the worse when it starts to wear off. Now today both Josh and I aren't feeling the best but we're not sure if it's just due to lack of sleep or if there is something else really going on. We're saying some prayers that this is short-lived and that no one else gets sick.
Now that Makenna is a little better today (at least while she has Tylenol in her), she has done some pretty cute things. She went to the bathroom and came out with two towels. She let me know that the yellow towel was hers and the blue towel was for everyone else because she didn't want to get anyone else sick. I told her that was very sweet and thoughtful of her. I think she's paid attention in the past :) Right now she's actually laying down in bed for awhile so we'll see if a nap will help her get over this or not. Last time I took her temp she still had a fever but she seems in better spirits and finally ate a cracker.
Between all the illness and snow around here, you wouldn't think that we would have time to have cute stories but the girls have provided ample material lately :)
Valentine's Day was a very fun, yet overwhelming holiday for our family. Way too many goodies and treats. Makenna was in awe of her box full of candy from all her friends at preschool and playgroup. Then the girls got valentine's from me and Josh. I was trying to explain to Makenna that day the purpose of Valentine's Day - to show the people that you love just how much you love them. Early in the day she nodded and seemed to understand and even pulled out a "That's nice Mommy." Well after all the goodies and candy we were having the same conversation again and she looks at me and very confidently says "Nuh-uh Mommy. It's all about candy." UGH! So we sat down and had a nice little chat about how the candy was a nice way to show others that you love them but she wasn't buying it. Of course right as we're having this conversation the doorbell rings and it's our neighbor with two bags full of candy for the girls, a tupperware full of frosted valentine sugar cookies, M&M cookies and another container of homemade fudge. To say the least, she wasn't buying my explanation of Valentine's Day.
Maryn was talking up a blue streak this weekend. She was repeating words left and right and interacting with words more so than she ever has before. One word she learned this weekend was Josh, or "Osh" in Maryn talk. It's so sweet :) Josh isn't so sure though.... I think he's having visions of the 7 - 8 months when Makenna called him Josh and only Josh.
Makenna was mad about something one day last week and I just ignored her and let her throw her fit. Typically if I don't pay any attention it will go away all by itself and I won't reinforce her behavior by reacting to her. Well for some reason this one wasn't going away on this particular day so I pulled her up on my lap and we were talking about it. After we had been talking for a little while Maryn sauntered over and very obviously wanted up on my lap as well. Makenna got very fidgety and tense and said "No Maryn! This is my problem, not yours!"
Makenna was very curious about the concept of going on dates after Josh and I went on our date last weekend. She kept asking if she could go and then when we got home she asked if we had fun on our date. I explained to her what a date was and then told her that she would get to go on dates when she was married too ;) She thought this sounded cool and then responded with "I'll go on a date with Daddy!" Then last night while she was feeling a little better (after her nap) she was laying on the couch watching Cinderella. It was the part where Cinderella and the Prince get married and Makenna was talking all about it so I said to her "Someday you're going to get married too, aren't you Kenna?" And she responded with "Yeah, I'm gonna marry Daddy." You could almost physically see Josh's heart melt by just looking at his face :)
Maryn is picking up on so much. This weekend when we were telling Makenna not to do something so Maryn walked over to her, got right in her face, shook her little finger at her repeatedly and kept saying "No No Nenna" Josh and I couldn't help but laugh. She wants to be just like all the "big" people in her life and tries to do everything we do. The pictures below are proof :)
Then yesterday morning Makenna was not acting like herself at all and mid-afternoon I found her falling asleep in the living room (very odd since she hasn't napped for over a year now). I asked her if she wanted to take a nap in her room and she happily obliged... again making me realize something was wrong. She woke up about 7:00 last night and seemed back to her normal, happy, charming self. She got tired very fast though and we had her back in bed by 8:45. I had a bad feeling when we put her in bed though because she started to seem out of it again. I was right.... at about 9:30 she woke up vomiting. Poor thing. Luckily that has been the only time she has vomited so far, but she was very uncomfortable all night with stomach cramps, headache and a fever. Tylenol seems to do the trick, but she very quickly takes a turn for the worse when it starts to wear off. Now today both Josh and I aren't feeling the best but we're not sure if it's just due to lack of sleep or if there is something else really going on. We're saying some prayers that this is short-lived and that no one else gets sick.
Now that Makenna is a little better today (at least while she has Tylenol in her), she has done some pretty cute things. She went to the bathroom and came out with two towels. She let me know that the yellow towel was hers and the blue towel was for everyone else because she didn't want to get anyone else sick. I told her that was very sweet and thoughtful of her. I think she's paid attention in the past :) Right now she's actually laying down in bed for awhile so we'll see if a nap will help her get over this or not. Last time I took her temp she still had a fever but she seems in better spirits and finally ate a cracker.
Between all the illness and snow around here, you wouldn't think that we would have time to have cute stories but the girls have provided ample material lately :)
Valentine's Day was a very fun, yet overwhelming holiday for our family. Way too many goodies and treats. Makenna was in awe of her box full of candy from all her friends at preschool and playgroup. Then the girls got valentine's from me and Josh. I was trying to explain to Makenna that day the purpose of Valentine's Day - to show the people that you love just how much you love them. Early in the day she nodded and seemed to understand and even pulled out a "That's nice Mommy." Well after all the goodies and candy we were having the same conversation again and she looks at me and very confidently says "Nuh-uh Mommy. It's all about candy." UGH! So we sat down and had a nice little chat about how the candy was a nice way to show others that you love them but she wasn't buying it. Of course right as we're having this conversation the doorbell rings and it's our neighbor with two bags full of candy for the girls, a tupperware full of frosted valentine sugar cookies, M&M cookies and another container of homemade fudge. To say the least, she wasn't buying my explanation of Valentine's Day.
Maryn was talking up a blue streak this weekend. She was repeating words left and right and interacting with words more so than she ever has before. One word she learned this weekend was Josh, or "Osh" in Maryn talk. It's so sweet :) Josh isn't so sure though.... I think he's having visions of the 7 - 8 months when Makenna called him Josh and only Josh.
Makenna was mad about something one day last week and I just ignored her and let her throw her fit. Typically if I don't pay any attention it will go away all by itself and I won't reinforce her behavior by reacting to her. Well for some reason this one wasn't going away on this particular day so I pulled her up on my lap and we were talking about it. After we had been talking for a little while Maryn sauntered over and very obviously wanted up on my lap as well. Makenna got very fidgety and tense and said "No Maryn! This is my problem, not yours!"
Makenna was very curious about the concept of going on dates after Josh and I went on our date last weekend. She kept asking if she could go and then when we got home she asked if we had fun on our date. I explained to her what a date was and then told her that she would get to go on dates when she was married too ;) She thought this sounded cool and then responded with "I'll go on a date with Daddy!" Then last night while she was feeling a little better (after her nap) she was laying on the couch watching Cinderella. It was the part where Cinderella and the Prince get married and Makenna was talking all about it so I said to her "Someday you're going to get married too, aren't you Kenna?" And she responded with "Yeah, I'm gonna marry Daddy." You could almost physically see Josh's heart melt by just looking at his face :)
Maryn is picking up on so much. This weekend when we were telling Makenna not to do something so Maryn walked over to her, got right in her face, shook her little finger at her repeatedly and kept saying "No No Nenna" Josh and I couldn't help but laugh. She wants to be just like all the "big" people in her life and tries to do everything we do. The pictures below are proof :)
Thursday, February 14, 2008
Happy Valentine's Day
Happy Valentine's Day! We hope you have a wonderful day with those you love! Our holiday is already in full swing as Makenna enjoyed her first ever Valentine's party this morning at preschool! She couldn't believe that all of her friends would be so nice and give her a valentine too! She just kept repeating "Oh my goodness!" Our holiday will continue by celebrating tonight when Josh gets home from work and then we have another Valentine's party tomorrow morning with our playgroup! We will most definitely be on a sugar high by then :)
Happy Valentine's Day from our two sweethearts!
Happy Valentine's Day from our two sweethearts!
Wednesday, February 13, 2008
Scary, Scary, Scary
I had one of those horrible mom moments yesterday. The kind where you know your child is in great danger and there is nothing you can do to stop it. Maryn fell down the stairs last night and I was too far away to get there in time to catch her. Thank God, she is fine. She has a carpet burn on one side of her forehead and a little scratch on the other side and other than that she was just really shook up (Mom and Makenna too... we were all crying).
We had just gotten home from ballet class and the library and I was trying to get the girls occupied while I threw dinner in the oven. Makenna was engrossed in her pile of library books and Maryn had followed me upstairs and was sitting amongst all the books in Makenna's room happily flipping through them. I watched her for awhile and decided that she was content where she was so I'd leave her there while I ran downstairs to put dinner in the oven. I even did all the correct things... I shut all the doors to the rooms that aren't kid-proof and only left her door and the playroom door open so she could wander into the playroom if she wanted. Then I secured the gate at the top of the stairs. Just as I was slipping the food in the oven I hear Maryn at the top of the stairs calling for me and I told her I'd be right there. But before I could even turn around I hear the gate slip, a bunch of thuds, lots of crying and screaming and then all I see is my baby rolling off the gate at the bottom of the stairs. She was hysterical, I was hysterical. I just grabbed her and held her tight trying to console her, praying that she wasn't seriously injured. I held my breath and pulled her away from me so I could look at what damage had been done. She looked fine. She actually pulled herself together within only a few minutes and was walking around and bugging her sister like normal. The nurses gave us some stuff to watch for but since she wasn't showing any out of the ordinary signs, we just kept an eye on her.
I have said it before on this blog and I will say it once again, our family has some tough, tough guardian angels. How Maryn wasn't more hurt is beyond me. The amazing thing that we believe happened is that she was probably had a good hold on the gate, pushing it eventually causing it to fall and thus most likely ended up riding down the stairs on it kind of like a sled. The way the gate landed at the bottom and how I saw her roll off of it at the bottom leads me to believe this is what happened. Obviously it wasn't as fun as a sled ride and she did get jostled around a little too much, but it was a much better alternative than somersaulting and her head hitting each and every step on the way down.
So to say the least, today we are thankful. Thankful to God that our baby is okay. We continue to pray that nothing else comes about from this. Makenna has been worried about Maryn as well and has been praying for her a lot. I think she saw more of it than I did (she was actually in the living room at the time) and it really scared her.
We had just gotten home from ballet class and the library and I was trying to get the girls occupied while I threw dinner in the oven. Makenna was engrossed in her pile of library books and Maryn had followed me upstairs and was sitting amongst all the books in Makenna's room happily flipping through them. I watched her for awhile and decided that she was content where she was so I'd leave her there while I ran downstairs to put dinner in the oven. I even did all the correct things... I shut all the doors to the rooms that aren't kid-proof and only left her door and the playroom door open so she could wander into the playroom if she wanted. Then I secured the gate at the top of the stairs. Just as I was slipping the food in the oven I hear Maryn at the top of the stairs calling for me and I told her I'd be right there. But before I could even turn around I hear the gate slip, a bunch of thuds, lots of crying and screaming and then all I see is my baby rolling off the gate at the bottom of the stairs. She was hysterical, I was hysterical. I just grabbed her and held her tight trying to console her, praying that she wasn't seriously injured. I held my breath and pulled her away from me so I could look at what damage had been done. She looked fine. She actually pulled herself together within only a few minutes and was walking around and bugging her sister like normal. The nurses gave us some stuff to watch for but since she wasn't showing any out of the ordinary signs, we just kept an eye on her.
I have said it before on this blog and I will say it once again, our family has some tough, tough guardian angels. How Maryn wasn't more hurt is beyond me. The amazing thing that we believe happened is that she was probably had a good hold on the gate, pushing it eventually causing it to fall and thus most likely ended up riding down the stairs on it kind of like a sled. The way the gate landed at the bottom and how I saw her roll off of it at the bottom leads me to believe this is what happened. Obviously it wasn't as fun as a sled ride and she did get jostled around a little too much, but it was a much better alternative than somersaulting and her head hitting each and every step on the way down.
So to say the least, today we are thankful. Thankful to God that our baby is okay. We continue to pray that nothing else comes about from this. Makenna has been worried about Maryn as well and has been praying for her a lot. I think she saw more of it than I did (she was actually in the living room at the time) and it really scared her.
Sunday, February 10, 2008
My Special Valentine
Josh surprised me last week with an early Valentine's gift - tickets to see STOMP and dinner at ZINS! I was elated! First, because we were in desperate need of a date night. Second, STOMP has always been at the top of my list of shows to see. Third, I have been dying to eat at ZINS. To say the least, it was a very touching gift from my sweetheart and it meant a lot to me :)
We started our evening with dinner at ZINS. ZINS is new to the Cedar Rapids area. It is a tapas style restaurant, meaning that you order food in smaller portions. Basically it's suppose to be 8 - 10 bites for each thing you order. Since it comes in smaller portions, you order anywhere from 2 - 4 items and as a result you get to try more food! This is right up our alley. Josh and I love to try new things and ZINS definitely didn't let us down. Just to give you an idea here is what we ordered:
Josh - Fried Calamari, Goat Cheese & Crab Empanadas, Lamb Ribs, and Coeur A La Creme with Raspberry Sauce
Katie - Asian Tuna Salad, Braised Beef (with Bleu Cheese Mashed Potatoes and Brussel Sprouts), Pasta with Shrimp, Artichokes, Portabella Mushrooms and Pomegranates, and Rhubarb Crisp.
We loved almost everything! The Goat Cheese and Crab Empanadas were outstanding... we almost ordered another order of them on the spot. The tuna on my salad melted in your mouth. Even the brussel sprouts were unbelievably good. I'm a person that likes brussel sprouts, but I definitely can't make them like they do at ZINS! It was fun to try pomegranates, neither of us had ever had those before. The only thing I didn't care for was the Bleu Cheese Mashed Potatoes and the beef from my Braised Beef wasn't the best cut, but other than that it was outstanding. The atmosphere is romantic and sophisticated. I told Josh that I felt like I was in the middle of New York City while we were eating there. To make the experience even better, we had a hilarious couple sitting at the table right next to us and we had fun interacting and conversing with them. At the end of our dinner they told us that they liked us better than the couple on their other side because "they were too stuffy" ;) It was a fun, delicious dinner experience. I would highly recommend ZINS to anyone interested in eating in the Cedar Rapids area.
And STOMP - Unbelievable! I had high expectations (since I've wanted to see it basically my entire adult life) and they blew my expectations out of the water. The music was incredible. The performing even better. These people are seriously talented. One thing that surprised me was the amount of humor in the show. We were seriously doubled over laughing numerous times throughout the show and this all without a single word ever being spoken by any of the performers. I had no idea that there would be so much humor in the show, but that made the experience that much more enjoyable. It didn't hurt that we had the best seats in the house - front and center on the balcony. Seriously can't find better seats at the Paramount Theatre - leave it to my husband to get them for us :) Since we were in the front row, I lead the standing ovation at the end! Wasn't hard to do since I was about jumping out of my seat with excitement by the end of the show! And my less theatrically inclined husband was having just as much fun as I was :)
And the icing on the cake for the night... Saturday night was the first time we've ever left the girls with anyone other than family. I was fairly confident in our decision to do so because it is a neighbor girl that I know and trust and the girls adore her. Right when she got to our house, Makenna and Maryn both ran to her and didn't want to leave her side! That made leaving rather easy on us! And then we came home to find out that both of our girls went to bed perfectly and didn't put up any fight going to bed. What a relief. Now I think we might actually have a regular baby-sitter we can count on! Maybe we can actually go on a date more than once every 4 months now :)
And finally, thank you to my dear, sweet husband for making this weekend happen. This was the best Valentine's gift I could've ever dreamed of. Thank you for being so sweet and loving me so much. We have a magical love story that most people only think happens in books or in the movies. I am incredibly blessed that I get to live that love story with you. You are an amazing man and I love you more with each day!
We started our evening with dinner at ZINS. ZINS is new to the Cedar Rapids area. It is a tapas style restaurant, meaning that you order food in smaller portions. Basically it's suppose to be 8 - 10 bites for each thing you order. Since it comes in smaller portions, you order anywhere from 2 - 4 items and as a result you get to try more food! This is right up our alley. Josh and I love to try new things and ZINS definitely didn't let us down. Just to give you an idea here is what we ordered:
Josh - Fried Calamari, Goat Cheese & Crab Empanadas, Lamb Ribs, and Coeur A La Creme with Raspberry Sauce
Katie - Asian Tuna Salad, Braised Beef (with Bleu Cheese Mashed Potatoes and Brussel Sprouts), Pasta with Shrimp, Artichokes, Portabella Mushrooms and Pomegranates, and Rhubarb Crisp.
We loved almost everything! The Goat Cheese and Crab Empanadas were outstanding... we almost ordered another order of them on the spot. The tuna on my salad melted in your mouth. Even the brussel sprouts were unbelievably good. I'm a person that likes brussel sprouts, but I definitely can't make them like they do at ZINS! It was fun to try pomegranates, neither of us had ever had those before. The only thing I didn't care for was the Bleu Cheese Mashed Potatoes and the beef from my Braised Beef wasn't the best cut, but other than that it was outstanding. The atmosphere is romantic and sophisticated. I told Josh that I felt like I was in the middle of New York City while we were eating there. To make the experience even better, we had a hilarious couple sitting at the table right next to us and we had fun interacting and conversing with them. At the end of our dinner they told us that they liked us better than the couple on their other side because "they were too stuffy" ;) It was a fun, delicious dinner experience. I would highly recommend ZINS to anyone interested in eating in the Cedar Rapids area.
And STOMP - Unbelievable! I had high expectations (since I've wanted to see it basically my entire adult life) and they blew my expectations out of the water. The music was incredible. The performing even better. These people are seriously talented. One thing that surprised me was the amount of humor in the show. We were seriously doubled over laughing numerous times throughout the show and this all without a single word ever being spoken by any of the performers. I had no idea that there would be so much humor in the show, but that made the experience that much more enjoyable. It didn't hurt that we had the best seats in the house - front and center on the balcony. Seriously can't find better seats at the Paramount Theatre - leave it to my husband to get them for us :) Since we were in the front row, I lead the standing ovation at the end! Wasn't hard to do since I was about jumping out of my seat with excitement by the end of the show! And my less theatrically inclined husband was having just as much fun as I was :)
And the icing on the cake for the night... Saturday night was the first time we've ever left the girls with anyone other than family. I was fairly confident in our decision to do so because it is a neighbor girl that I know and trust and the girls adore her. Right when she got to our house, Makenna and Maryn both ran to her and didn't want to leave her side! That made leaving rather easy on us! And then we came home to find out that both of our girls went to bed perfectly and didn't put up any fight going to bed. What a relief. Now I think we might actually have a regular baby-sitter we can count on! Maybe we can actually go on a date more than once every 4 months now :)
And finally, thank you to my dear, sweet husband for making this weekend happen. This was the best Valentine's gift I could've ever dreamed of. Thank you for being so sweet and loving me so much. We have a magical love story that most people only think happens in books or in the movies. I am incredibly blessed that I get to live that love story with you. You are an amazing man and I love you more with each day!
Thursday, February 7, 2008
Green Bean
This morning I took Maryn upstairs to get her dressed and brought her down in an all green outfit (you can see it somewhat in the picture below). Makenna looked at us, started laughing and said "She looks like a green bean!"
Maryn is just getting so big so fast. It seems to be happening overnight (even though I realize it's not). Last week Josh kissed her good-bye in the morning and told her "Bye MarBear. I love you." And she clearly responded with "Love you." :) She definitely melted her Daddy's heart that morning. Those are the words you just love to hear as a parent.
And another move in the big girl direction... Maryn moved out of her highchair this week! I don't think either Josh or I were really ready for this but it was more than apparent that Maryn wanted nothing to do with her highchair and wanted nothing more than to eat at the table with the rest of us. So we hooked up the booster seat and now our little peanut eats with us. She is much happier this way and already seems to be eating more. Go figure. Makenna switched over right at about this age as well so I guess it's time. Maryn really seems to like it and will even stand by her chair until I sit her in it just for fun!
Loving sitting at the table and she has the cheesy grin to prove it!
The first night we put her in her new big girl chair Josh and I were going on and on about how she's such a big girl now and I sadly made some comment about how she's not my little baby anymore. Makenna very quickly responded with "That's okay Mommy. We can just have another baby this summer!" She said it so matter of factly and cheerfully! Like it's that simple :) I think it took Josh a few minutes to get over choking on his food ;) In all honestly I think she just wants another sister so she can name her Ariel!
Somewhere along the line Makenna has taken to telling jokes :) We're not quite sure where she picked this up from but it is quite amusing (at least for her!). Her jokes make no sense whatsoever, but she laughs hysterically every time she tells one. Of course Josh and I just play along which makes it all the better! Oh 3 year olds have such a great sense of humor!
Maryn is just getting so big so fast. It seems to be happening overnight (even though I realize it's not). Last week Josh kissed her good-bye in the morning and told her "Bye MarBear. I love you." And she clearly responded with "Love you." :) She definitely melted her Daddy's heart that morning. Those are the words you just love to hear as a parent.
And another move in the big girl direction... Maryn moved out of her highchair this week! I don't think either Josh or I were really ready for this but it was more than apparent that Maryn wanted nothing to do with her highchair and wanted nothing more than to eat at the table with the rest of us. So we hooked up the booster seat and now our little peanut eats with us. She is much happier this way and already seems to be eating more. Go figure. Makenna switched over right at about this age as well so I guess it's time. Maryn really seems to like it and will even stand by her chair until I sit her in it just for fun!
Loving sitting at the table and she has the cheesy grin to prove it!
The first night we put her in her new big girl chair Josh and I were going on and on about how she's such a big girl now and I sadly made some comment about how she's not my little baby anymore. Makenna very quickly responded with "That's okay Mommy. We can just have another baby this summer!" She said it so matter of factly and cheerfully! Like it's that simple :) I think it took Josh a few minutes to get over choking on his food ;) In all honestly I think she just wants another sister so she can name her Ariel!
Somewhere along the line Makenna has taken to telling jokes :) We're not quite sure where she picked this up from but it is quite amusing (at least for her!). Her jokes make no sense whatsoever, but she laughs hysterically every time she tells one. Of course Josh and I just play along which makes it all the better! Oh 3 year olds have such a great sense of humor!
Monday, February 4, 2008
Trip To Chicago
I finally was able to make my long awaited trip to Chicago this past weekend. Everything went very well. The weather cooperated and the drive was fine (Chicago rush hour traffic didn't even stop me!). I did okay being away from the girls, Josh did a phenomenal job taking care of the girls, and Eden is an abosolute peach!
We'll start with little Eden since she was the whole reason for this trip :) She is so good and absolutely adorable. The two nights I was there she slept for 4 - 5 hour stretches at night and last night I believe she slept for six hours straight! She continues to be a great eater and is very content most of the time. She has had a few fussy patches over the last week, but I think we narrowed it down to Jeanne eating garlic a few times. The garlic must be making Eden's tummy upset and is possibly changing the flavor of the breastmilk because all of a sudden Eden wouldn't want to nurse when she is typically a very enthusiastic eater :) Hopefully that problem is solved. Over the course of the weekend we worked on teaching her to like the pacifier and I think we succeeded at that. Auntie Katie also tried to convince her to like her bouncey seat but I wasn't as successful at that attempt. Eden makes the funniest faces and noises. She grunts and groans and furrows her little brow. She's such a sweetheart! One of the funny things about Eden is that she has this sixth sense to know when her diaper is off and she will immediately pee! Luckily she never did it to me when I was changing her diaper, but she seems to do it at least a few times every day :) Jeanne and JT are adjusting to parenthood very well and I loved seeing the motherhood glow on my sister's face. Eden and I had some major bonding time and I think the little angel has grown quite fond of her Auntie Katie (if I do say so myself) :) Now I am on a mission to move my little niece (and her mommy and daddy too!) to Iowa so I can see her more often!
The girls and Josh did outstanding while I was gone. Josh made sure to do some fun activities with the girls while I was gone... he took them to the movie store and let them (mostly Makenna) pick out a movie for the weekend, took them out for pizza on Friday night, let them play at the gym while he worked out on Saturday morning, Papa and Nana came to visit on Saturday night and church and Sunday school on Sunday morning. I think all the activities helped to keep their mind off the fact that mommy wasn't around. Not only did Josh do well keeping the girls occupied and caring for them but my house was still clean when I got home!! I was so pumped! I think that's just proof of how comfortable Josh is with the girls that he was able to multi-task like a typical mom :) I am so appreciative of Josh and the fact that he is such a good Daddy. So many of my friends would never feel comfortable leaving their kids with their husbands either because their husbands aren't willing or else they don't think their husbands can handle it. I am so fortunate not to have to worry about either. Josh is such an integral part of the girls daily lives and caring for them that I didn't even really have to leave instructions. He knows everything about the girls and it's so nice to know that I can leave and everything will be just fine. I wrote down bedtimes and naptimes and he just shook his head at me and rolled his eyes because of course he knows that! I just felt like I had to write something down :)
The hardest part of this all was Maryn's reaction when I got home. Both the girls came running up to me and hugged me when I got there but Maryn was mad at me. I went to put her down for a nap shortly after I got home and all she wanted was Daddy. She would scream for him and reach for him and wanted nothing to do with me. It just broke my heart but I figured it would pass. After her nap I ran up to her room expecting a rosy reception from her but instead she immediately went to Daddy. I held out my arms to take her and she shook her head no, said "Dada" and buried her head in Josh's shoulder. Yes, as all you moms can imagine, I was crushed. I shed a few tears. Right now I'm thinking I'm never leaving again.
Now for the long awaited pictures from this weekend...
Beautiful Eden
Eden in her new bunny slippers from Makenna and Maryn
This is how they found Eden in her bassinet after one of her long stretches of sleep
Proud Auntie Katie
"Instructions Not Included"
Sleeping Baby
More Sleeping Baby
One of her rare moments in the bouncey seat
Cuddling on the couch
Daddy and his noodlebug
Mommy and her Edie bug
Wide awake and ready to play!
We'll start with little Eden since she was the whole reason for this trip :) She is so good and absolutely adorable. The two nights I was there she slept for 4 - 5 hour stretches at night and last night I believe she slept for six hours straight! She continues to be a great eater and is very content most of the time. She has had a few fussy patches over the last week, but I think we narrowed it down to Jeanne eating garlic a few times. The garlic must be making Eden's tummy upset and is possibly changing the flavor of the breastmilk because all of a sudden Eden wouldn't want to nurse when she is typically a very enthusiastic eater :) Hopefully that problem is solved. Over the course of the weekend we worked on teaching her to like the pacifier and I think we succeeded at that. Auntie Katie also tried to convince her to like her bouncey seat but I wasn't as successful at that attempt. Eden makes the funniest faces and noises. She grunts and groans and furrows her little brow. She's such a sweetheart! One of the funny things about Eden is that she has this sixth sense to know when her diaper is off and she will immediately pee! Luckily she never did it to me when I was changing her diaper, but she seems to do it at least a few times every day :) Jeanne and JT are adjusting to parenthood very well and I loved seeing the motherhood glow on my sister's face. Eden and I had some major bonding time and I think the little angel has grown quite fond of her Auntie Katie (if I do say so myself) :) Now I am on a mission to move my little niece (and her mommy and daddy too!) to Iowa so I can see her more often!
The girls and Josh did outstanding while I was gone. Josh made sure to do some fun activities with the girls while I was gone... he took them to the movie store and let them (mostly Makenna) pick out a movie for the weekend, took them out for pizza on Friday night, let them play at the gym while he worked out on Saturday morning, Papa and Nana came to visit on Saturday night and church and Sunday school on Sunday morning. I think all the activities helped to keep their mind off the fact that mommy wasn't around. Not only did Josh do well keeping the girls occupied and caring for them but my house was still clean when I got home!! I was so pumped! I think that's just proof of how comfortable Josh is with the girls that he was able to multi-task like a typical mom :) I am so appreciative of Josh and the fact that he is such a good Daddy. So many of my friends would never feel comfortable leaving their kids with their husbands either because their husbands aren't willing or else they don't think their husbands can handle it. I am so fortunate not to have to worry about either. Josh is such an integral part of the girls daily lives and caring for them that I didn't even really have to leave instructions. He knows everything about the girls and it's so nice to know that I can leave and everything will be just fine. I wrote down bedtimes and naptimes and he just shook his head at me and rolled his eyes because of course he knows that! I just felt like I had to write something down :)
The hardest part of this all was Maryn's reaction when I got home. Both the girls came running up to me and hugged me when I got there but Maryn was mad at me. I went to put her down for a nap shortly after I got home and all she wanted was Daddy. She would scream for him and reach for him and wanted nothing to do with me. It just broke my heart but I figured it would pass. After her nap I ran up to her room expecting a rosy reception from her but instead she immediately went to Daddy. I held out my arms to take her and she shook her head no, said "Dada" and buried her head in Josh's shoulder. Yes, as all you moms can imagine, I was crushed. I shed a few tears. Right now I'm thinking I'm never leaving again.
Now for the long awaited pictures from this weekend...
Beautiful Eden
Eden in her new bunny slippers from Makenna and Maryn
This is how they found Eden in her bassinet after one of her long stretches of sleep
Proud Auntie Katie
"Instructions Not Included"
Sleeping Baby
More Sleeping Baby
One of her rare moments in the bouncey seat
Cuddling on the couch
Daddy and his noodlebug
Mommy and her Edie bug
Wide awake and ready to play!
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