Uh-oooooh

Contessa is 8 months old and has said her first word!

She is always saying, "uh-oh!"

And she says cuter than you've ever heard...something like, "Uhhh - oooooooh." She is really good at making the "O" shape with her lips.

She will repeat us when we say it and sometimes will just start saying it spontaneously.
I don't think she understands its meaning but it is fun nevertheless!

She is also getting closer and closer to pulling herself up to her knees. If she were just a bit stronger she'd have it. And we are so not ready for that!

She needs to stay 8 months. We are having so much fun with her!

Love him

We got home from small group tonight and Sully was still awake in his bed. Jordan let him come down and Sully got to cuddle on the couch with us for awhile.

I love this one on one time. I wish I had some of it with each of my kids on a daily basis. It is the one thing I miss most about the days when it was just us and Lauren...

Here is Sully looking a little unsure about Jordan's late night movie choice...Hitchcock's Psycho. We abandoned idea that for some books instead!

Three girls, two guitars and one maraca

The love affair...

Sully's love affair and sweet attitude with Tess is slowly turning a corner. She is now a threat, she can move. She can also pull hair and pinch. They got in a fight today. It started out innocently enough...




I have to give Sullivan some credit. He did not show real aggression to her but he was not pleased with her either.
A new day may be dawning!

Its true...

"...We're meant to lose the people we love.
How else would we know how important they are to us?"
-Mrs. Maple
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button

He's got me

I wont lie, Sullivan has been very 'trying' lately. Potty training is basically a flop at this point and he just has attitude. Melanie says he's going through a bad cycle, he definitely is.
Everything has to be screamed and the term inside voice is totally not comprehended. And he NEVER and I mean NEVER stops talking!
Everything also has to be thrown or kicked, including people.

Aggravating!


BUT, he is still the cutest thing.

This morning Avery was talking about her friend Bella because that was the friend she chose to have over to play. Bella's mom called to say that Bella has gotten a little shy about coming over and wanted Avery to go there instead. Avery was more than happy with this arrangement.
Anyway, Sullivan was asking all morning, "Where is Tinkerbelle? Is Tinkerbelle coming?"
I couldnt figure out what he meant. Then we pulled up to Bella's house and Avery went in and as we pulled away Sully said, "Oh. Is that Tinkerbelle's house?"
I had to stop the car I was laughing so hard. SO CUTE!

Then at lunch time I asked Sully what he wanted for lunch. He responded, "Um, how about peanut butter jelly time sandwiches?" (We sing that song a lot...)
SO CUTE!!!


Anyway, I am madly in love with you buddy, but if you could get through this 'cycle', I'd appreciate it!

weak moments

I've had some weak moments this week which have gotten my schedule jam packed. Packed with fun things but still busy and I'm extremely tired for a Saturday morning!
Yesterday I took Contessa to the dr. for an ear infection recheck and to get caught up on her shots. The ear looked perfect so that was great news. I scheduled the appt. for 8:45 so we left town at 8 and then raced back to meet with at Venenga's for a play date with 4 other mom's and kids. We girls are planning a girls weekend away in April and I think its fair to say we are giddy with excitement.
After that I raced home and got my house cleaned and supper prepared and we had friends over last for supper. We had a great time and our house was dead silent before 10 pm. We were all in bed sleeping soundly!
This morning I told Avery and Lauren they could both have friends over while Jordan is at work...very weak moment.
So we are preparing for that and then this afternoon we are all going to Waterloo for Sullivan's 3 year pictures and some shopping.

I think I'll be in bed early again tonight. Pathetic.

Also, I just realized that I used the word 'giddy' twice in the past 2 posts. Not a word I use on a regular basis so it struck me as funny.

Like I said, I'm tired! Happy Saturday!

giddy-up

I think its safe to say, Daddy's out of spots!

Growing up

I've been struggling lately with how fast Lauren and Avery seem to be growing up. They are both showing more interest in having friends over and with having 'their own little lives'. They have real conversations with each other that we aren't supposed to hear. They whisper to each other and giggle behind our backs. They go into their room and shut the door. They have inside jokes with each other.

And as much as I LOVE seeing their relationship grow and love seeing them be close, and as excited as I am to see what plans Christ has in store for them, I don't like them growing up.

I hate it.

Not that I don't want them to become who they are going to be, I know that will be fun too...but I just don't want it to happen yet. A friend of mine is always telling me, 'when your kids get big, their problems get big too'. I like little problems better.

Tonight Jordan was sitting on the couch and Lauren crawled up beside him and nestled into the crook of his arm and put her head on his shoulder. I watched and thought to myself, look how easily she does that, how natural it is for her to snuggle up with her daddy. Then I realized that in just a few years she might not feel comfortable doing that...she might find it awkward or silly because she's 'too old'. I pray that she doesn't ever feel that way, but she might. The girl who was the world's BIGGEST Daddy's Girl, might actually feel funny being that close.

Anyway, I am just praying for life to slow down. For time to stand still for a bit so we can enjoy our girls at 4 and 7. I don't want them to be 11 and 14 the next time I turn around. And if the next 7 years go by as fast as the past 7 went...well then they will be that old the next time I turn around.

You know, I don't think anyone ever warned me that watching them grow up would literally feel like someone was ripping my heart out. Ok, maybe they did, but I sure didn't listen.

Because it really does.



Lauren age 3.5, Avery age 1. Summer 2005

Wednesday Art

Outside

Our daycare is blessed by a huge "REC" room for the kids to play in during the cold months.
So of course, they dont go outside much right now.
Well yesterday they told all the kids that they would be going outside for a walk TODAY.

Sullivan has talked about nothing else since.

Last night he kept reminding me that he was going to get to go on a walk with his teachers today. When he woke up this morning he immedietly wanted to get his boots ready to take with him for his walk.
While eating breakfast with Lauren he asked her if she got to go on a walk with her teachers today. She said no and he responded, "I do, I'm a big boy."

When we arrived at daycare he told the first teacher he saw that he brought his boots. Then when we got to the breakfast area he told all his friends that he brought his boots and he was going on a walk with his teachers.

I don't know that I've ever seen him so excited about something! It is so cute and I dont want to forget. I think Sully might be the most ready for spring of any of us!

Yep...

One of my favorite things to do is to go through my dad's bible and read his notes and thoughts. He wrote a lot in his bible. A lot.
Its also filled with many post it notes. Tonight I was going through it a little and I found this note;

Three frogs on a lily pad, two decided to jump.
How many were left?
Three.
Decisions not acted upon are worthless.

I think I needed to hear that...to get my butt in gear on somethings. He's still teaching me things even though he's not here.

Love that.

Love it.

Crawling...

And guess whose crawling? Full out crawling.

AND!

Trying to pull herself to a standing position.

STOP!

My best friend

Lauren asked tonight why Jordan and I wanted to go away together. I told her that she likes to spend time with her friends and that Daddy is my BEST friend so we like to spend time together just us.
And he truly is, after almost 10 years of marriage together, he is absolutely, without a doubt, my best friend. We laughed so hard this weekend and it felt so great...to remember why we like to be together and that we are pretty fun!
Thanks for a great weekend Jordan, my best friend.

Home

We're back.
Jordan and I took a weekend away this weekend. We left Friday morning and returned Sunday about 4.
It was perfect, and wonderful and relaxing and peaceful and fun and just what the doctor ordered.

Mischief

I left Tess on the living room floor to get an afternoon snack for the other kids. When I came back she was in the playroom. With a book she had taken from the living room shelf. And a page had been ripped out and partially digested. I was wondering why she was so quiet.
I think its safe to say we are at the, "nothing is safe stage"

The look...
"what? I did nothing wrong."


The evidence...
This book was my grandma's when she went to country school...not cool Tess, not cool.

Potty update

Well I'd say I've accomplished potty training today.

And I mean ME. I am trained to take Sullivan into the bathroom every hour and have him sit and go potty. He has been dry the entire day and has gotten many stickers for his chart, which he loves.

But at nap time I found myself wondering...where is my sticker chart? Because if I weren't making him go in an go, he'd have had 4 wet diapers today.

Am I doing this wrong? Is this how I'm supposed to potty train? Just keep doing this until he gets it?

I really don't remember training the girls. I need some help!

For Brian...

I talked to my brother Brian this afternoon and he admitted to checking my blog multiple times per day and always hoping for pictures. We haven't gotten to see him in a couple of years so he's never even met Contessa.
This picture isnt from today, she's not quite this happy today...but it shows her personality perfectly.


We miss you Brian!!

Only in small town Iowa...

So I picked Tess up from daycare today and when I walked in the door one of the teachers in the hall said, Tess was fussy today, she didn't nap. I knew immediately that she was sick.

Now Tess does not nap well at daycare, but they say she is never fussy. In fact I've accused them of lying to me that she is really as good as they say.

When I walked into her room she didn't smile at me, this confirmed to me that she was sick.
We came home and tried to get her to nap. She wanted nothing to do with it.

Jordan brought her back downstairs and I said, I'm calling the dr. She's sick. She's had a cough and a nasty green runny nose all week. While she's been acting fine all week, I knew now it had become something more...
He said there was no way anyone was still in the office, it was 6:00.

Now I'm telling you, this is why I love small town Iowa...

I called the clinic and our dr. was there doing paper work. She told me to bring Tess right in and she unlocked the doors and turned all the lights back on.
After she diagnosed Tess's THIRD EAR INFECTION IN 2 MONTHS, she called the Pharmacy and ordered the prescription and got them to keep the door open.
Then the pharmacist MET ME AT THE DOOR, told me he went ahead and charged the prescription to our account and wished me a peaceful night with the antibiotic!

Here's to small town Iowa. And to the hope of Spring being just around the corner and ear infections being gone for another season!

Rejoicing!

Often times when someone would ask my dad, "How are you doing?" or questions like that; he would respond,
"Rejoicing!"

What a great response. I miss hearing it. A lot.