Lucas: "Mommy, you need to go see Mr. Joey. Your hair is too much."
Nice.
Monday, June 29, 2009
An 8 Month Love Affair
Our baby girl is 8 months old now and I must say that I am totally smitten by her. Like I have said before, it was love at first sight and my love for her seems to grow stronger each day. She is easy to love so much. She still smiles most of the day, and not just a little smile, a BIG wide open, eyes squinting smile that makes you feel so special.
At 8 months old her skin is still very fair, her eyes are blue and her hair is a light, strawberry blond. We don't know where she gets her "red" hair. I remember my grandmother saying that my dad had red hair when he was born, but I've never known him to have red hair, so I'm sure that Ellen's hair will not really be red when she grows up. For now, however, she is a beautiful little red head.
Ellen's appetite is great some days and then other days she isn't interested in solid food. She likes the finger foods that we put on her tray the best - puffs, strawberries, bananas, peas, carrots and 1/4 of a bagel. As for mommy's milk, she gets most of what she consumes at night. The only time that I can really get her to nurse during the day is before a nap. And if she does nurse at a non-sleeping time, she has to straddle my belly and nurse sitting up because that is the position that she's in when I wear her, which is often. She is usually way too busy, however. She is different from her brother in this way. If I had to call it now I'd guess that she won't nurse much longer than a year, but we'll see.
She is still a long, thin little bird. She usually wears 6-12 month clothing, but can also fit into some 3 month and 6 month clothing. Everyone comments that she is long. She has tons of shoes (thanks to maddie!), but doesn't wear them yet since she's not walking. They do look very cute on her when we dress her up though.
She is on the move and into everything. She loves to crawl up the entire flight of stairs and then reward herself by pulling out all of the mulch from the plant at the top of the stairs. She also loves to play in the Tupperware cabinet, climb onto the dishwasher, and pull things out of the fridge... you get the idea.
So, now for an update on her sleeping patterns. I thought for sure that we were given a good sleeper this time around to "reward" us for the 3 years of no sleep that we struggled through with Lucas, but I spoke too soon. I am thankful that she was a good sleeper at first, because Lucas was still waking up at night when she first arrived. So actually we were given the gift of more sleep, just not too much of it (sigh). My theory is that she stopped sleeping when she started moving. She would sleep for 12 hours until she learned to roll over, and now that she can stand up I swear she pops up as soon as a sleep cycle is over. Sometimes when she "calls" for us she is sleep standing and we just have to lay her back down, insert her pacifier, and cuddle her up with her bunny. We've actually started swaddling her again this past week (not her arms), and this seems to be helping. She can still stand up, but it requires more effort and maybe the swaddle reminds her that it's time to sleep. When I nurse he to sleep around 8pm I expect to see her again at approximately midnight, 2am, 4am and 7am (on a good night). She is very easy to get back to sleep and rarely cries, so our midnight rendezvous are not that painful.
Ellen still seems to be open to strangers. She usually studies their face and then gives them a huge smile. Lately, however, she's developed a little bit of separation anxiety, or we could call it "separation from mommy anxiety". Totally age appropriate. When SaSa was in town we experimented by having me hand Ellen to her or to Jeff at night (she only has it at night when she's tired), and she would get a concerned look on her face as she reached for me and cried. I'm flattered. And if anyone else tries to console her when she wakes up, forget about it. The baby that never cries gets totally ticked. We are sure that Lucas taught her this tactic!
Ellen still thinks that Lucas is the cat's meow, although she has learned to express her opinion when he picks her up or takes a toy away from her. She also is infatuated with Tyson, so we have to keep an eye on her since he can be a big grouch. And finally, she is growing more attached to her bunny. When we put her in the crib she dives for it and cuddles into it.
Jeff and I are still amazed by this little girl's contentedness. We comment on it every day. She rarely cries, and if she does she is easily calmed. This weekend we went to the pool for three hours and I wore her in a sling. She napped for an hour and then just quietly looked around for the rest of the time. She's getting to be harder at dinner because she grabs for everything, but this is to be expected. She'll also sit happily in the high chair as long as she has food and toys to keep her occupied.
We can't believe she is 8 months already. We're enjoying her so much and know that we have a lot to look forward to!
At 8 months old her skin is still very fair, her eyes are blue and her hair is a light, strawberry blond. We don't know where she gets her "red" hair. I remember my grandmother saying that my dad had red hair when he was born, but I've never known him to have red hair, so I'm sure that Ellen's hair will not really be red when she grows up. For now, however, she is a beautiful little red head.
Ellen's appetite is great some days and then other days she isn't interested in solid food. She likes the finger foods that we put on her tray the best - puffs, strawberries, bananas, peas, carrots and 1/4 of a bagel. As for mommy's milk, she gets most of what she consumes at night. The only time that I can really get her to nurse during the day is before a nap. And if she does nurse at a non-sleeping time, she has to straddle my belly and nurse sitting up because that is the position that she's in when I wear her, which is often. She is usually way too busy, however. She is different from her brother in this way. If I had to call it now I'd guess that she won't nurse much longer than a year, but we'll see.
She is still a long, thin little bird. She usually wears 6-12 month clothing, but can also fit into some 3 month and 6 month clothing. Everyone comments that she is long. She has tons of shoes (thanks to maddie!), but doesn't wear them yet since she's not walking. They do look very cute on her when we dress her up though.
She is on the move and into everything. She loves to crawl up the entire flight of stairs and then reward herself by pulling out all of the mulch from the plant at the top of the stairs. She also loves to play in the Tupperware cabinet, climb onto the dishwasher, and pull things out of the fridge... you get the idea.
So, now for an update on her sleeping patterns. I thought for sure that we were given a good sleeper this time around to "reward" us for the 3 years of no sleep that we struggled through with Lucas, but I spoke too soon. I am thankful that she was a good sleeper at first, because Lucas was still waking up at night when she first arrived. So actually we were given the gift of more sleep, just not too much of it (sigh). My theory is that she stopped sleeping when she started moving. She would sleep for 12 hours until she learned to roll over, and now that she can stand up I swear she pops up as soon as a sleep cycle is over. Sometimes when she "calls" for us she is sleep standing and we just have to lay her back down, insert her pacifier, and cuddle her up with her bunny. We've actually started swaddling her again this past week (not her arms), and this seems to be helping. She can still stand up, but it requires more effort and maybe the swaddle reminds her that it's time to sleep. When I nurse he to sleep around 8pm I expect to see her again at approximately midnight, 2am, 4am and 7am (on a good night). She is very easy to get back to sleep and rarely cries, so our midnight rendezvous are not that painful.
Ellen still seems to be open to strangers. She usually studies their face and then gives them a huge smile. Lately, however, she's developed a little bit of separation anxiety, or we could call it "separation from mommy anxiety". Totally age appropriate. When SaSa was in town we experimented by having me hand Ellen to her or to Jeff at night (she only has it at night when she's tired), and she would get a concerned look on her face as she reached for me and cried. I'm flattered. And if anyone else tries to console her when she wakes up, forget about it. The baby that never cries gets totally ticked. We are sure that Lucas taught her this tactic!
Ellen still thinks that Lucas is the cat's meow, although she has learned to express her opinion when he picks her up or takes a toy away from her. She also is infatuated with Tyson, so we have to keep an eye on her since he can be a big grouch. And finally, she is growing more attached to her bunny. When we put her in the crib she dives for it and cuddles into it.
Jeff and I are still amazed by this little girl's contentedness. We comment on it every day. She rarely cries, and if she does she is easily calmed. This weekend we went to the pool for three hours and I wore her in a sling. She napped for an hour and then just quietly looked around for the rest of the time. She's getting to be harder at dinner because she grabs for everything, but this is to be expected. She'll also sit happily in the high chair as long as she has food and toys to keep her occupied.
We can't believe she is 8 months already. We're enjoying her so much and know that we have a lot to look forward to!
SaSa
We loved having SaSa in town. Lucas is old enough to remember everyone now, so he gets really excited when we tell him that a family member is coming in town. We always have a relaxing time when Sandy visits. We eat good food, play a lot, and get a lot of things done around the house. This visit Sandy treated us to some plants for the front of our house - they look so pretty and create such a peaceful environment on our porch. Jeff and I also got to sleep in every morning, like we did when Grandpa Schroeder was here, because Ellen also loves her grandparents and was happy to hang out with them while we snoozed.
Here we are on our way to dinner...
And here is Lucas cuddling up with SaSa as they watched Curious George...
Sunday, June 28, 2009
Learning to Swim
Lucas is taking his intense little personality straight to the pool. The first few times he would jump off the side into Jeff's arms, like he did last year. A few visits later he is running full speed off the side and "diving" into the pool until his "feet touch the floor". This is with his life jacket on, but today he jumped into the pool without his jacket, so his confidence is increasing. The other day he saw Charles being pushed to the bottom by Mark to get one of those pool toys, so today he had to do it too. Charles does it without his life jacket, but Lucas wears his, so he pops back up quickly with a huge smile on his face - he is so proud! We're enjoying the summer so far.
Here is the turkey so excited to be going to the pool later...
And here he is enjoying a sno cone...
Friday, June 26, 2009
Wednesday, June 24, 2009
"More, please!"
Okay, so she doesn't say "please" yet, but we do think that she is showing us the sign for "more". This is her version of it anyway. She has another sign that she has made up where she waves her right hand up and down - this may be her version of "all done". We're also working on "milk", which she does but I'm not sure it's intended as a sign, and the sign for sleep.
She seems to be a smart little cookie. She studies our motions and looks as though she is processing them.
The Turkey and The Bird
These two are developing a special little relationship. Ellen reserves her best smiles and giggles for Lucas and Lucas does his best to get both many times throughout the day. Lucas is such a good big brother. He has become very good at "protecting" Ellen. For example, if she picks up a shoe to chew on he rushes over and yanks it away as he says, "No Ellen, that's not for you!" Although she loves him dearly, this ticks her off and I have to remind him to quickly replace the shoe with a more appropriate toy... which he is starting to do without being reminded.
The hardest part of my job right now is that Lucas loves Ellen too much. He can hardly keeps his hands off of her. He likes to pinch her little cheeks, give her kisses and hugs, and pick her up under her arms and move her to where he thinks she should be. She's going to be a tough little cookie when she gets older. She puts up with most of this roughness, but has learned that when she gets mad that she can scream and get an immediate response.
It's so cute when we encounter someone new. He always tells them about is baby sister, "ahlen", and tells them that she is cute.
Monday, June 22, 2009
The Little Lady and her bath...
We've gotten into a routine where each night after dinner and before bed Ellen splashes around in the tub for a few min. We have done away with all of the props and just put her in there with about an inch of water. She really enjoys it and often crawls in there during the day to pull up and happily bounce beside the tub like she was doing in this first picture. Sometimes Lucas gets in there with her, but that guy can get silly in the tub so it just depends on our mood that night...
Sunday, June 21, 2009
Wednesday, June 17, 2009
Lincoln and Lucas
Lincoln is Lucas's bud from school. He loves him so much! We aren't sure why, but he calls him "Blincoln". Lincoln's parents are Ms. Kelly and Mr. Brandon and Lucas loves them just as much as Lincoln, or so it seems. He's always so excited to see them. Lincoln came over for a play date last weekend. The boys were excellent. They shared most of the time, and when there was an issue they talked it out - "Please don't do that again." or "May I have a turn now?" After nap we met the Hurter fam at the pool... it was a fun day.
Saturday, June 13, 2009
Another Visit with the Autry Clan
Karis and Ellen
Fun in the tub
Big brothers, Lucas and Blane, with their sisters!
Potty Trained
Yay!!!! We haven't changed a diaper or a pull up in at least a couple of weeks. It is finally sinking in that life has gotten a little bit easier. We're so proud of Lucas. He wears his undies 100% of the time and is almost totally self sufficient with going to the bathroom. We don't have to remind him anymore and when he does have to go he goes by himself. He even had me take him to the bathroom today while we were at the pool (he hasn't figured out that most of those kids probably pee in the pool anyway).
He doesn't always put his undies back on the proper way, but we'll take it.
Wednesday, June 10, 2009
First Rhyme
Last night Jeff asked Lucas to sing his ABCs and Lucas responded with, "ABCs, eat mac cheese!"
He was so proud of himself! We figured he heard it from an older child at school, but when we asked him, "Did Nicholai say that? Did Cane say that?" he said, "No, Lucas said it!"
So who knows, but it was cute and he was singing it again this morning : )
He was so proud of himself! We figured he heard it from an older child at school, but when we asked him, "Did Nicholai say that? Did Cane say that?" he said, "No, Lucas said it!"
So who knows, but it was cute and he was singing it again this morning : )
Tuesday, June 09, 2009
In case you didn't know...
Lucas to me: "Where do yous live?"
Me, confused a little bit: "I live in your house... where do you live?"
Lucas, matter-of-factly: "I live at the Earth. Wiv Daddy, and ahllen and Tyson."
Yes sir, you are correct!
Me, confused a little bit: "I live in your house... where do you live?"
Lucas, matter-of-factly: "I live at the Earth. Wiv Daddy, and ahllen and Tyson."
Yes sir, you are correct!
Monday, June 08, 2009
Typical afternoon...
Lucas usually watches an episode of Curious George at some point before dinner. He has HIS spot on the couch... and don't you dare try to sit there! While he unwinds on the couch Ellen practices her pull ups on the furniture and tries to grab Lucas's feet or Tyson's face and tail. If she can distract Lucas from the t.v. long enough, there is sure to be some sibling cuddles and tickles. Lucas loves holding her "all by himself!" And if you can't tell by the grin on her face, Ellen loves the attention from her big brother : )
Grandpa and the Kiddos
We had a fun visit with Jeff's dad last week. I think that Dennis fell in love with Ellen (not hard to do). She was her usual sweet little self and I am sure that made him feel so good. They had a lot of time to bond because I took advantage of him being here and instead of wearing her I handed her off to him as much as I could. And there were two mornings where Jeff and I got to sleep in an extra hour while Grandpa and Ellen hung out on the front porch with the birdies and the wind chime.
He of course was wowed by Lucas, mostly due to how the kid is a bottomless pit of energy. Lucas was in full effect this weekend. We don't know why, but he was super wound up and even threw a couple of tantrums, which is unusual these days. He was fine today so maybe he was just crazy excited to see his Grandpa...
Crawling, Standing, and Cruising (almost)
The bird is on a roll. It seems like just a couple of weeks ago her head wasn't that sturdy, but now she is full blown crawling from room to room and pulling up on everything. Today she even let go with both hands for a few seconds. When she realized that she was standing on her own, she let go. And this weekend she worked really hard to go from holding on to the rocking chair to holding on to the wall (technically her first cruise on the furniture).
Things are harder in some ways and easier in others with Ellen on the move. I can't sit her down with some toys while I'm cooking dinner anymore and expect her to be there when I return, but I can sit her in the kitchen with some toys and monitor her crawling around the room... which is almost as easy. It's really fun to watch her explore the house. She looks like a little bug moving across the floor. And doesn't she look too darn small to be standing like this?!
Max and Ben's House
Lucas loves, loves, loves his cousins Max and Ben. We went there while Dennis was in town and it was a really nice evening. I got to relax because Lucas was entertained and there were plenty of people dying to hold Ellen...
Here is Ellie holding Ellen. Her feet were cold, so she had to wear some boy socks...
Dennis had gotten Ben a cake for his birthday...
Mommy and Ellen
Max, Lucas and Ben
Thursday, June 04, 2009
Did I mention that she's eating?
For about 6wks now. Oatmeal mixed with water or milk in the morning, and maybe some banana, but she's not a big fan. Pureed apple, pear or carrots for lunch. Oatmeal and one of these veggies or fruits for dinner.
We just started putting peas and puffs on her tray this week. She loves it! She can sit happily in her high chair for at least half an hour if she has finger food on her tray. And I must say, she has a pretty darn good pincer grasp. She picks up one pea at a time and puts it in her mouth. She drops some of them, but I haven't seen her pick up a handful and cram it into her mouth yet. I wonder what this says about her developing personality...
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