Future Hell Raisers

Samantha came over for a visit recently. Caroline wanted to show her a good time and took her for a joy ride in the jeep.
We love to let the kids drive around the back yard with a burning fire. It makes for great entertainment.
They love it. Go around again Caroline!

Pig Pen

While visiting JD and Megan's house recently Caroline decided to check out a pile of dirt in their back yard. Very closely. Until her entire face was covered. Didn't prevent her from licking her lips though. Mmmmmmm!
Stand still! Caroline gets filthy way more than big brother ever did.

It's Only Eight Months Away

Updated

More Kate....

Games

Caroline loves to play hide and seek now. Except she doesn't quite get it. She thinks hiding is standing or sitting in a spot and being perfectly still. Like this...And then she also looks down at the ground from her spot. Like we won't see her if she doesn't make eye contact. I play along and pretend not to be able to find her. She cracks me up.

Deja Vu

Remember this?When Caroline started crawling backwards and getting stuck under all the furniture? Now Kate is doing the same thing. See...
I feel so guilty for taking a photo instead of immediately helping my poor babes. Okay, maybe not.

Katie Update

Kate is almost seven months now. She was 27 1/2 ins and 17 lbs 10 ozs at her last check up. Growing like a weed. She's already wearing 12 mo size clothes! She has mastered rolling over and is sitting up pretty well now but can still fall over. She is teething like mad and is a slobbery, gnawing fiend. Even though she doesn't have any teeth yet she has decided that she much prefers table food over baby food purees. I can't say I blame her. A few nights ago she finally slept through the night from 8pm until 5am but hasn't done it again since. She is sleeping in the crib now in Caroline's room but amazingly manages to find her way into bed with mommy and daddy by morning.
Except for when those pesky toofers that are bothering her she is a very happy and laid back baby. She is very observant with a quiet curiosity that I love to watch. Here's a little clip I managed to get of her watching her feet move. She would even try to catch them.

That's all I have for now but I know a lot more will happen in the upcoming months so stay tuned. I can't imagine when I have to keep up with Caroline and Kate. Oh my goodness!!

Flash & Me

Not long ago David and I saw the movie Marley & Me. We were both struck by how much the movie mirrors our own relationship and marriage. Some of the lines from the movie could have been direct quotes from us. In one of the scenes Jennifer Aniston, up to her eyeballs in screaming kids, bans the family dog from the house because he keeps barking and waking up the baby. I've certainly been there done that. I think it happens to a lot of people that once a baby arrives the family pets take a backseat and even become a little neglected. I know people who even found new homes for their pets once kids enter the picture. Maybe that is the more responsible thing to do. I have come very close myself to finding a new home for some of our pets. But I've never been able to go through with it.

When it comes down to it I love our pets and consider them part of the family. Like Jennifer Aniston sometimes I just about have it, like when I step in dog puke or when barking wakes a colicy baby, and pets just seem more expendable. Flash's illness however has given me a new appreciation for our pets. I know they won't be here forever and that I'll miss them terribly when they are gone. Flash is doing very well btw.

The girls and I have even made taking the dogs for walks part of our daily routine. Flash and Chase love walks. It's not easy. I carry Kate in a carrier and walk Flash. Caroline walks Chase. We think they're worth the extra effort.

Getting Closer

This isn't a really good picture but I felt compelled to take it at the time since it was such a momentous occasion. The other day I was able to take a shower while Caroline and Kate played together. It was miraculous. They are really starting to interact together on a regular basis and it's very cute. For the most part Caroline entertains Kate as she does here with her pig imitation.


Since Dora had a show about becoming a big sister Caroline is now very proud of the fact that she, like Dora, is a big sister. Everywhere we go Caroline points out her sister to everyone we come into contact with.
I'm really loving their blossoming relationship.

Tricycles Are Out

The hottest thing at the ballpark this past spring were these little three wheeled scooters. All the little girls had them. They came in two flavors, Princess Disney and Dora. Caroline loved those little girls' scooters. She even tried to steal one by hiding it behind a bush. So when we saw the Dora variety on clearance we had to snag it for her. She loves it.She seems to be getting the hang of it too. They better watch out at the ballpark!

Flow-da

I think I'm suffering from post vacation blues. We spent last week in Jacksonville Beach, Florida. Which is where Jonah was born and where I still have family. We drove there this time. We took two days driving there and two days back. Driving that far with a toddler and baby is no picnic but once we were there we had an awesome time.

Of course we spent some time at the beach.
We picked up my niece Caice in Virginia on the way down. She and Jonah act just like brother and sister.
We arrived on Kate's six month birthday. Happy half birthday Katie!
Caroline and Kate preferred the pool so we spent a lot of time there.
Hardworking dad got a lot of time to relax. Just in time for father's day!
Of course we had to play a game of putt putt.
We got dressed up and went out to eat.And that was about it. Beach, pool, family, fun, and food. What else do you need? It was fantastic and I want it back!!!

Late Bloomer

Making sure my kids are good readers has always been a priority to me. I was an avid reader growing up and want to pass my love of books onto my kids. Plus it seems like a no brainer to me that you have to be a good reader to be successful in anything. So from the time Jonah was born I read to him faithfully every single day. If he couldn't sit still I would read to him while he played and he would eventually come around (this tip's for you Liz). After he turned a year old I would read to him every single night at bedtime. So when he was in the first grade and turned 7 and still couldn't read I became extremely concerned. He loved books and he loved for me to read to him but he just didn't seem to "get it." I became really afraid he had some sort of reading/learning disorder, especially since I have a brother who was diagnosed with dyslexia.

I then requested a meeting with the reading specialist at Jonah's school. She told me that learning to read is a milestone that usually occurrs when a child is between 4-8 years old and that some kids just get it later. She assured me that the kids who learn to read later can end up on the same level as the kids who learn to read earlier. Just as kids who learn to walk later will eventually begin running with their peers. I was pretty surprised by this. I always thought that the more I read to him the earlier he would begin to read. She suggested that I keep reading to Jonah and that he would eventually get it. Well she was right. The next year in second grade Jonah got it and began reading at his grade level.

This past year Jonah really began to love reading and just devour books. He even read the entire Harry Potter series. At his school they have a reading counts program where they earn points for the books that they read by passing a comprehension test for each book. The kids earn charms for every 50 points that they earn. Jonah ended up finishing in first place for the fourth grade and in third place for the entire school! I am so proud of him!!!! I am also absolutely amazed when I think back to first grade and how much trouble he had "getting it." As a parent this whole experience was such a huge lesson about not freaking out when a milestone is delayed and supporting and encouraging my child. Good job Jonah!

Jonah with his 400 point charm.

My Turn

When I started watching Samantha I realized very quickly that Caroline wanted to do all the things that the baby got to do. She wanted her turn in the baby stuff. I guess they seemed like little amusement rides to her. For the most part I didn't mind unless I was about to put the baby into something and Caroline would swoop out of no where and plop down. That got old quickly. Also sometimes she would get a little too rough. I went through three bouncer seats while I watched Samantha because of Caroline. The one I have now has a 45 lb weight limit so I hope it lasts through Kate. And then sometimes Caroline wouldn't even wait for the baby to vacate before she would hop aboard. Of course this could get downright dangerous so I would watch her like a hawk.

Samantha enjoying her bumbo seat.
Caroline enjoying Samantha's bumbo seat.
Caroline loves the baby swing. I've had to ban her from it since Kate was born. She's just too big.
Now she has to try out Samantha's car seat.
Caroline! You have to wait until the baby is out first. (No one was hurt in the taking of these pictures.)

First Sam.
Now Kate.

Updates

Poor Flash had to have surgery this week. I noticed a very small bare spot in his fur that he kept biting and licking. David took him to the vet and the bare spot turned out to be a skin tumor. Apparently these are fairly common in dogs. Well we had it removed the next day (For a price of course. Vet = $$$). We won't know what it was exactly, if it was malignant, until next week. Flash is a real trooper and doing very well. We feel so sorry for the poor guy. He'll get his stitches removed in two weeks.On the lighter side Jonah had his very first pimple! I've been saying that I feel like Jonah is entering puberty. I don't know a more glaring sign of puberty than a pimple. Right on the front of his nose too. You can't even hardly see it though because of his freckles. He says that he now loves his freckles. I've always loved his freckles. (This announcement was posted with his permission.)

Five Years?!

This past Memorial Day was our five year anniversary of living in this house together. I still can't really believe that I quit my job, packed up everything I owned, and moved with my small son three states away from our home and family, especially as a single mom. That was one of the scariest decisions I have ever made. But also one of the best decisions I have ever made. I can't imagine life now without David. He made our little family so much more complete. I managed to dig up some pictures from that first year together, from before we went digital.

David taught Jonah how to ride a bike.Jonah's first day of Kindergarten. Wasn't he so little and cute?!
Jonah met his new cuzins.
Jonah and David clowning around. It's funny. Everything back then was boys against girl. They always wanted to gang up on me. I showed them! Girls out number boys now. (Boy I hated that carpet!)We did a whole lot of painting. Some rooms even ended up getting painted twice. Like this one, thank goodness.Jonah started his baseball career.
This is just a really cute photo of Jonah at Halloween. David makes the holidays, and everything really, a lot more fun.Happy anniversary to us! Five years went by so quickly. I'm very excited about where the next five years will take us.

It's a Miracle!

Whenever I figure out how to do something myself on the computer I am absolutely amazed. I'm a real moron when it comes to computers. Also I get insanely frustrated easily and just give up. I guess I get computer rage. I've been trying to figure out how to download pictures from my cell phone onto the computer for months with no success. Lately I realized that the pictures application on our laptop which has Windows Vista is much more user friendly so I thought I would try to download pictures from my cell phone one more time. The laptop pretty much walked me through the whole process step by step and was incredibly easy. I am so thrilled!!!

The pictures that I have on my phone can be broken down into several categories. The first category are pictures that I send David while he's at work, just to show him what we are up to.

Like visiting the library.Or having lunch with bubby.The second category of pictures on my cell phone would be pictures from last summer when I couldn't find my camera.

Caroline had her very first haircut.Jonah's cub scout pack cleaning up a creek in Veteran's Park. (It was nasty!) Jonah is the one second from the left waving.Caroline being a diva.
Third are pictures of Samantha that I would send to her parents over the phone when I babysat her and also while I couldn't find my camera.

Sammi was such a cute, happy baby.
Sam and Caroline had so much fun together.Last are pictures of Kate. These are either pictures I sent to people or I took just because my camera wasn't around.

First recorded smile.I do love her big dark eyes. They're such a novelty after having two with blue eyes.
There were a lot more photos on my phone. Too many to post now. I'll have to save them for future entries.