1) Carl left town today. :( Although so far this is the only trip scheduled in July I still hate to see him go. I have noticed how very different our days and weeks are when he is in town versus out of town. Now that we are used to him travelling, I look back on how freaked out I used to be when he would leave for a night and I laugh. I miss him and want him home.
2) Matthew still has not taken a liking to Church nursery at all. Although this last time he did not fuss much, but he did have to be held most of the time. I guess we are making progress. He will be going to MDO there once a week in the fall and be in that same room, so I really hope he can get used to it. I will pull him out of MDO if, after a fair trial, he does not warm up. He will only be 18 months and we do not HAVE to do it since I am not working from the office any longer.
3) This summer is flying by! I can not believe it is July already. I need to remember this feeling going forward, as both last summer and this summer I was nervous about and wondered how I would keep the kiddos busy. In all honesty, I am looking at our "summer to-do list" that John and I created and wondering how I am going to get it all in at this point. I completely believe in down time, at home, doing nothing, except being with each other and taking us where the blows....but I may need to step it up a gear. :)
4) John is going to drop off camps this summer and really enjoying them. Garrett and/or Elyse are also there with him and in his mind there is NOTHING better. He has been to an "extreme sports" camp at The Little Gym and to VBS at Stonebridge United Methodist Church and to science day and tomorrow is solar system day at Trinity Presbyterian Church.
5) Matthew has bumps and bruises all over his head and body. It looks like we beat him. (we don't)
6) Bailee is old. I love her so much and she has been the one day-to-day part of my life that has stayed consistent since I was 21 years old. She is on pain medication for her arthritis, the vet says it is one of the most advance cases he has seen, but the meds really help. And they do not make her a lump on a log at all, they really just help her to walk and get up and down. I know John will remember her, as he still talks about Kallie, but I hope Matthew will remember Bailee too. Her name is one of the few words that he has and he loves dogs.
7) How is my house more messy now that I stay home full time than it was when I worked part time. I look around and think... I should be cleaning that, not writing this... but we can all see how that turned out. :)
8) We have been in this house 5.5 years and it is starting to show a bit. Random things are happening, but nothing major thank goodness. Toilet seat broke, cabinet door hinge fell off, shutters breaking, paint peeling, etc. I love this house, but would love to build one from scratch one day with my entire wish list (the list is reasonable and practical for the most part). Pinterest will really help me out in the design process! :)
9) I catch myself looking almost daily at John and wondering where the last 4 years went. Time flies by with these boys. I remember the early days with both boys thinking those sleepless nights and newborn frustrations would never pass, but man, they pass too quickly!
10) John is hot and cold, good days and bad days, no in between. Today was fantastic and gives me hope. His latest antic is the way he speaks to people, his tone of voice is so angry and unkind. The "fits" have virtually stopped (with the exception of the normal 4.5 year oldisms, but he gets those under control pretty quickly), but the tone of voice is crazy. We are working on it....
Wednesday, July 11, 2012
Monday, July 9, 2012
Matthew: 16 months
Happy 16 months baby boy!
Car Seat: Today was the first day that Matthew got to turn around and face forward in the car. I know I am not following the new guidelines of 2 years, but Dr. Bill said to keep him rear facing as long as we could. Being that today he is exactly 16 months, it seemed like a good day. :) He loved it and was mesmerized the entire trip.
Swimming: I took the boys swimming today and Matthew is a little fish! He loves the water and has no fear. I will stand him on the step and count to three and he "jumps" to me. Today I started telling him to go "under" the water this time and he would mutter a similar sound and then put his hand under water each time I said it. Then when he jumped I would let him go under. He comes up a little jolted, but then claps and laughs and wants to go again. It is so fun, but a little crazy for me when I have both of them in the water at the same time.
Talking: He does not seem to have many more words than last time I thought about it. I know he is soaking it all in, but doesn't seem to be processing it into output just yet.
Physical development: He is so close to jumping, he love to climb on EVERYTHING and he has no fear. He has some natural (at least compared to John) ability with balls for sure, he can kick, throw and catch balls and balloons and balance and manipulate them with no trouble. I over analyze all of his physical development because I still worry about the torticollis and the left side of his body. He does favor his right side, especially when he climbs stairs and holds anything. His left eye seems smaller to me, but only I would notice that. I suppose maybe he will just always have a little hitch in his left giddy up. :)
He also has 4 teeth coming in right now, all in the back and his little gums look like marbles are growing. BUT he is missing his "eye" teeth on both top and bottom. Hope that is not a problem.
Sleeping and eating: Same old, Same old. Sleeps through the night (7:30 - 7:30) and takes anywhere from 1.5 hours to 3 hours nap. Loves to eat and always asks to eat, but is starting to show stronger signs of preference in what those things are. Overall is a good balanced eater, but with a twist...the kids does not like fast food. I have yet to find a drive through that he will eat and enjoy. Not that we do it often, but I do revert to it at times. Arg....
In comparison: Just read John's 16 month post (here) and the three things that stood out the most as being different was that Matthew has NO interest in TV and John apparently loved to cuddle and watch PBS. I had just stopped pureeing Johns food! WHAT?!?! I stopped pureeing Matthew's food before he was 1. John had a much wider vocabulary for sure.
Car Seat: Today was the first day that Matthew got to turn around and face forward in the car. I know I am not following the new guidelines of 2 years, but Dr. Bill said to keep him rear facing as long as we could. Being that today he is exactly 16 months, it seemed like a good day. :) He loved it and was mesmerized the entire trip.
Swimming: I took the boys swimming today and Matthew is a little fish! He loves the water and has no fear. I will stand him on the step and count to three and he "jumps" to me. Today I started telling him to go "under" the water this time and he would mutter a similar sound and then put his hand under water each time I said it. Then when he jumped I would let him go under. He comes up a little jolted, but then claps and laughs and wants to go again. It is so fun, but a little crazy for me when I have both of them in the water at the same time.
Talking: He does not seem to have many more words than last time I thought about it. I know he is soaking it all in, but doesn't seem to be processing it into output just yet.
Physical development: He is so close to jumping, he love to climb on EVERYTHING and he has no fear. He has some natural (at least compared to John) ability with balls for sure, he can kick, throw and catch balls and balloons and balance and manipulate them with no trouble. I over analyze all of his physical development because I still worry about the torticollis and the left side of his body. He does favor his right side, especially when he climbs stairs and holds anything. His left eye seems smaller to me, but only I would notice that. I suppose maybe he will just always have a little hitch in his left giddy up. :)
He also has 4 teeth coming in right now, all in the back and his little gums look like marbles are growing. BUT he is missing his "eye" teeth on both top and bottom. Hope that is not a problem.
Sleeping and eating: Same old, Same old. Sleeps through the night (7:30 - 7:30) and takes anywhere from 1.5 hours to 3 hours nap. Loves to eat and always asks to eat, but is starting to show stronger signs of preference in what those things are. Overall is a good balanced eater, but with a twist...the kids does not like fast food. I have yet to find a drive through that he will eat and enjoy. Not that we do it often, but I do revert to it at times. Arg....
In comparison: Just read John's 16 month post (here) and the three things that stood out the most as being different was that Matthew has NO interest in TV and John apparently loved to cuddle and watch PBS. I had just stopped pureeing Johns food! WHAT?!?! I stopped pureeing Matthew's food before he was 1. John had a much wider vocabulary for sure.
Monday, June 25, 2012
Confidence Building
After some angry outburst and beahvior issues with John I started asking around and reading this book "How To Talk So Kids Will Listen; And Listen So Kids Will Talk". While reading it and looking at our family and applying what worked for our family I quickly saw changes in John as well as myself. I feel like his confidence is much higher and I am much more patient becuase of some of the theories in this book.
I wanted to remember some of these confidence builders if I ever need them for Mattew or if anyone out there reading this sees anything that they empathize with. Note: some of these things are so small and some parents may have started well before 4, and I do think some of the issue was that I have not let John have the room to grow up as much as I could have. I rescue him in a lot of very simple ways that I have turned around and can see a big difference.
1) Completely picking out his clothes and getting dressed 100% by himself (no matter how long it takes)
2) Wiping his own bottom. (this one is hard for me to watch, but practice is the only way he will get better)
3) Eating off a glass plate and giving him a knife to cut his own sandwhiches.
4) Leaving cups at his level so he can get a drink when he wants one without asking.
5) Letting him struggle with something that he is clearly frustrated with (zipping his book bag, a game on the ipad, new toys, opening a lid, etc.)
6) I have stopped finishing his sentences. He takes SO LONG to tell a story and sometimes it is painful to listen to him struggle to remember or start over 3 times, especially when I know the ending. But I listen, patiently. He has actually become much more talkative and the end of the stories and sentences are sometimes unexpected and I learn something!
7) I put him in charge of things and let him make more decisions (holding the list at the grocery store, getting the mail, feeding the dog, deciding when he is done eating (which is hard on the rare occasion he only has a couple of bites, but until I feel like his health is in jepordy, I am going with this)), etc.
8) Stop reminding him to go to the bathroom.
Just these little things I have already seen improvements inlcuding:
- doing something when I ask him the first time (this is sort of a stretch, but still improvement)
- less thumb sucking
- no potty accidents at all
- talking more and telling me how he is feeling
- fits end as quickly as they start
- less whining (still whining, but less)
- wanting to do more things with no help
- better attitude overall
- more willing to do something new or a little uncomfortable.
I wanted to remember some of these confidence builders if I ever need them for Mattew or if anyone out there reading this sees anything that they empathize with. Note: some of these things are so small and some parents may have started well before 4, and I do think some of the issue was that I have not let John have the room to grow up as much as I could have. I rescue him in a lot of very simple ways that I have turned around and can see a big difference.
1) Completely picking out his clothes and getting dressed 100% by himself (no matter how long it takes)
2) Wiping his own bottom. (this one is hard for me to watch, but practice is the only way he will get better)
3) Eating off a glass plate and giving him a knife to cut his own sandwhiches.
4) Leaving cups at his level so he can get a drink when he wants one without asking.
5) Letting him struggle with something that he is clearly frustrated with (zipping his book bag, a game on the ipad, new toys, opening a lid, etc.)
6) I have stopped finishing his sentences. He takes SO LONG to tell a story and sometimes it is painful to listen to him struggle to remember or start over 3 times, especially when I know the ending. But I listen, patiently. He has actually become much more talkative and the end of the stories and sentences are sometimes unexpected and I learn something!
7) I put him in charge of things and let him make more decisions (holding the list at the grocery store, getting the mail, feeding the dog, deciding when he is done eating (which is hard on the rare occasion he only has a couple of bites, but until I feel like his health is in jepordy, I am going with this)), etc.
8) Stop reminding him to go to the bathroom.
Just these little things I have already seen improvements inlcuding:
- doing something when I ask him the first time (this is sort of a stretch, but still improvement)
- less thumb sucking
- no potty accidents at all
- talking more and telling me how he is feeling
- fits end as quickly as they start
- less whining (still whining, but less)
- wanting to do more things with no help
- better attitude overall
- more willing to do something new or a little uncomfortable.
Thursday, June 21, 2012
Matthew: 15 months
Matthew's 15 month appointment went absolutely seamlessly. Only question I had for Dr. Bill was if I could possibly feed Matthew too many eggs. The boy LOVES eggs and I can slip anything in there and he will eat it...cheese, cabbage, spinach, meat, you name it, he will eat it in an egg. (Dr. Bill did say that he is not worried about cholestrol at this age, so feed away)
Matthews stats were (followed by Johns in comparison which I am shocked how close they are):
Weight: 25 lbs 4 oz (59%) (John: 25 lbs 14 oz (68%))
Length: 32 inches (75%) (John: 32 inches (75%))
Head: 19.25 (90%) (John: 19 inches (79%))
His favorite things are:
- Balls
- Balloons
- John
- FOOD (eggs, pancakes, muffins, fruit of any kind, cheese, deli meat, spagettios, peas, corn, oatmeal)
- Baths
- "swimming"
Developments:
- Running pretty well
- tries to jump already, but no air yet
- He is pretty steady on his feet. Especially in comparison to his Little Gym buddies, he can run circles and skills around those guys. But they are all 1st kids, so I think watching and chasing after John these past 15 months has given him a leg up.
- Words include: ball, dog, balloon, fish, shoe, mama, bubba, dada, tree, bye-bye, hi
- carries out instructions pretty well, even more complex ones as long as you use simple words.
- Wearing 12-18 month clothes, but I need to pull out the 18-24 months. That belly just keeps getting bigger.
- Only had 4 teeth up until last week, but 2 popped through at the same time. He was cranky, but overall, he is not a bad teether.
He is not cautious like I am used to, he wants to walk down stairs and dive head first into water and climb on anything he sees. Have to keep a careful eye on this guy. However, he does still look at me and will pause prior to doing most of those things. Not that it would stop him, but more of a warning for me and head start to catch him before he breaks a bone.
Matthews stats were (followed by Johns in comparison which I am shocked how close they are):
Weight: 25 lbs 4 oz (59%) (John: 25 lbs 14 oz (68%))
Length: 32 inches (75%) (John: 32 inches (75%))
Head: 19.25 (90%) (John: 19 inches (79%))
His favorite things are:
- Balls
- Balloons
- John
- FOOD (eggs, pancakes, muffins, fruit of any kind, cheese, deli meat, spagettios, peas, corn, oatmeal)
- Baths
- "swimming"
Developments:
- Running pretty well
- tries to jump already, but no air yet
- He is pretty steady on his feet. Especially in comparison to his Little Gym buddies, he can run circles and skills around those guys. But they are all 1st kids, so I think watching and chasing after John these past 15 months has given him a leg up.
- Words include: ball, dog, balloon, fish, shoe, mama, bubba, dada, tree, bye-bye, hi
- carries out instructions pretty well, even more complex ones as long as you use simple words.
- Wearing 12-18 month clothes, but I need to pull out the 18-24 months. That belly just keeps getting bigger.
- Only had 4 teeth up until last week, but 2 popped through at the same time. He was cranky, but overall, he is not a bad teether.
He is not cautious like I am used to, he wants to walk down stairs and dive head first into water and climb on anything he sees. Have to keep a careful eye on this guy. However, he does still look at me and will pause prior to doing most of those things. Not that it would stop him, but more of a warning for me and head start to catch him before he breaks a bone.
Wednesday, June 20, 2012
The Top Ten
I am not going to say that I will start the "Ten on Tuesday" again. But I sure did love it when I was doing it, so I am going to start my own version.... The Top Ten list and hope to post weekly at some point. :)
1) My 2nd nephew Everrett Ambrose Richards was born on June 12th. I can not wait to snuggle that little nugget next weekend!
2) John loves animals like no other kid I have seen and he has been this way since infancy. I think we have discovered that Matthew's passion is for balls and balloons. The boy can not get enough!
3) The book "How to Talk So Kids Will Listen and Listen So Kids Will Talk" is my newest attempt at understanding and coping with parenting.... LOVING IT! Not to say that it is for every situation, but it does have a very wide range of real life examples for ages from 3 and above. I know that overall my boys are happy and healthy, but some of the theories and language in this book has really helped me to feel like I have more control of my own impatience and I can see a lot of positive changes in John. Well.... this book and a lot of prayer!
4) OKC Thunder is down 3 games to 1 against the Miami Heat right now for the Championship. This is totally bazaar for me. This basketball team did not exist (nor did its stadium or half of the things that OKC downtown has these days) when I lived there. I keep calling them "us", but it seems so foreign. Good Luck either way! "Thunder UP" I think is the saying, although I like "Roll Thunder" better. (They forgot to ask for my opinion).
5) Matthew is working on more words these days... a lot of babble...but I am starting to make a little more sense of it. The pointing and staring give it away. So far we can understand...ball, balloon, fish, shoe, mama, dada, dog, book, tree. Looking back, I feel like John was saying much more than this, but I feel like Matthew understands a lot more of what we are saying. He follows simple commands, but can also understand a few more in depth sentences. He also can pick up sign language after the first couple of times you show him. Just this week he is doing the sign for "help" (his version) and he uses it correctly. He still uses eat, more, and brother on a regular basis, but has dropped the others for the most part.
6) John's latest habit is to come into bed every morning with us when he wakes up. Luckily it has been later and later, but it was starting at like 5:30. And although I tried to sleep with him in bed, I was basically up at 5:30. Awesome. I am loving this little cuddle time!
7) Matthew must be going through a growth spurt. He is sleeping SO LONG at night and at nap. 7:30pm to like 8:00am (or longer) and then still a 2-3 hour nap! Woohoo!
8) The summer already feels like it is flying by. John has been out of school almost a month already. I know I am going to look up and Pre-K is going to start. We are staying extremely busy, but we have a lot of down time too, I think that is important for the boys to build their relationship now that they are starting to play together a little more.
9) I am in love with Pinterest. What an amazing concept. There are so many things that I now have at my fingertips. It is such a wonderful resource that saves so much time!
10) Outside of Nick Jr. and PBS are there any other channels that are generally safe for a small child? I feel like most other channels have some programming that I am okay with, but either the commercials or certain times of the day are turned more towards older kids.
1) My 2nd nephew Everrett Ambrose Richards was born on June 12th. I can not wait to snuggle that little nugget next weekend!
2) John loves animals like no other kid I have seen and he has been this way since infancy. I think we have discovered that Matthew's passion is for balls and balloons. The boy can not get enough!
3) The book "How to Talk So Kids Will Listen and Listen So Kids Will Talk" is my newest attempt at understanding and coping with parenting.... LOVING IT! Not to say that it is for every situation, but it does have a very wide range of real life examples for ages from 3 and above. I know that overall my boys are happy and healthy, but some of the theories and language in this book has really helped me to feel like I have more control of my own impatience and I can see a lot of positive changes in John. Well.... this book and a lot of prayer!
4) OKC Thunder is down 3 games to 1 against the Miami Heat right now for the Championship. This is totally bazaar for me. This basketball team did not exist (nor did its stadium or half of the things that OKC downtown has these days) when I lived there. I keep calling them "us", but it seems so foreign. Good Luck either way! "Thunder UP" I think is the saying, although I like "Roll Thunder" better. (They forgot to ask for my opinion).
5) Matthew is working on more words these days... a lot of babble...but I am starting to make a little more sense of it. The pointing and staring give it away. So far we can understand...ball, balloon, fish, shoe, mama, dada, dog, book, tree. Looking back, I feel like John was saying much more than this, but I feel like Matthew understands a lot more of what we are saying. He follows simple commands, but can also understand a few more in depth sentences. He also can pick up sign language after the first couple of times you show him. Just this week he is doing the sign for "help" (his version) and he uses it correctly. He still uses eat, more, and brother on a regular basis, but has dropped the others for the most part.
6) John's latest habit is to come into bed every morning with us when he wakes up. Luckily it has been later and later, but it was starting at like 5:30. And although I tried to sleep with him in bed, I was basically up at 5:30. Awesome. I am loving this little cuddle time!
7) Matthew must be going through a growth spurt. He is sleeping SO LONG at night and at nap. 7:30pm to like 8:00am (or longer) and then still a 2-3 hour nap! Woohoo!
8) The summer already feels like it is flying by. John has been out of school almost a month already. I know I am going to look up and Pre-K is going to start. We are staying extremely busy, but we have a lot of down time too, I think that is important for the boys to build their relationship now that they are starting to play together a little more.
9) I am in love with Pinterest. What an amazing concept. There are so many things that I now have at my fingertips. It is such a wonderful resource that saves so much time!
10) Outside of Nick Jr. and PBS are there any other channels that are generally safe for a small child? I feel like most other channels have some programming that I am okay with, but either the commercials or certain times of the day are turned more towards older kids.
Thursday, June 7, 2012
Evenings
Evenings have become my favorite part of the day. This is vastly different than some past times. Of course, the main reason being that Carl comes home and hangs with us, but even on days he is out of town, I enjoy the evenings the best.
I am not sure if it is because I can see the light at the end of the tunnel, or maybe the boys are finally tired of me (what? never!), or everyone finally has a full stomach, or the stars are all aligned, I don't need to know, I just want to enjoy it.
Both boys are calm (or at least calmer) and more content to just sit in the floor with me or without me or with each other or whatever. All of us seem to be much more relaxed and able to just be in the moment and do whatever tickles our fancy.
Love my life!
I am not sure if it is because I can see the light at the end of the tunnel, or maybe the boys are finally tired of me (what? never!), or everyone finally has a full stomach, or the stars are all aligned, I don't need to know, I just want to enjoy it.
Both boys are calm (or at least calmer) and more content to just sit in the floor with me or without me or with each other or whatever. All of us seem to be much more relaxed and able to just be in the moment and do whatever tickles our fancy.
Love my life!
Thursday, May 3, 2012
A Week in the Life: 4YO and 13.5MO (Sunday)
I am writing this post several days later, so the times may be off a bit.
Today Matthew started blowing kisses, he is literally learning something new every day. He may even be waving bye-bye, but I am not sure yet.
7:00ish - Me and the boys are up and eating breakfast. we play throughout the morning while I pack and get the house ready for our trip to Edmond and Carl's trip out of town on business.
8:00ish - Carl is up and starts playing with the boys while I forge ahead and shower and whatnot.
11:30 - Lunch and final packing as I watch the radar and make sure the storms are not going to meet us along the way. Panic running through the house looking everywhere for the video camera (only to be found the next day in the bottom of the stroller).
12:30 - We are out the door. Matthew is asleep within 20 minutes and John is watching "How to Train Your Dragon" Yes, still one of his favorite movies and first choice going on 2 years now. We hit 1 construction zone and a wreck before we leave Texas, so it is slow going.
2:00 - John's first request to pee. We stop at Starbucks and get us all a snack and drink and potty. Unfortunately Matthew was sleeping, but had to be interrupted.
3:00 - John's second request to pee. Why did I get him a drink? I pull over on an access road. (Stop judging, boys are easy).
4:00 - finally make it to Edmond. Matthew has been crying on and off for about 30-45 minutes. Overall, a long, but not a bad trip.
4:00 - 7:30 - Play, eat and be merry with Grammie and Granddaddy. balloons were waiting all over the floor when we got there to break the ice with Matthew and it worked! He was in a fantastic mood and super friendly.
7:30 - bed time for Matthew, pretty simple, just a bit longer because I wait until he is asleep before leaving.
8:30 - bed time for John, he gets to stay up a little later. But with no nap, he was exhausted. He popped out of bed for various reasons a couple of times, but slept through the night. Matthew had a little more trouble, but overall, everyone was fine.
Today Matthew started blowing kisses, he is literally learning something new every day. He may even be waving bye-bye, but I am not sure yet.
7:00ish - Me and the boys are up and eating breakfast. we play throughout the morning while I pack and get the house ready for our trip to Edmond and Carl's trip out of town on business.
8:00ish - Carl is up and starts playing with the boys while I forge ahead and shower and whatnot.
11:30 - Lunch and final packing as I watch the radar and make sure the storms are not going to meet us along the way. Panic running through the house looking everywhere for the video camera (only to be found the next day in the bottom of the stroller).
12:30 - We are out the door. Matthew is asleep within 20 minutes and John is watching "How to Train Your Dragon" Yes, still one of his favorite movies and first choice going on 2 years now. We hit 1 construction zone and a wreck before we leave Texas, so it is slow going.
2:00 - John's first request to pee. We stop at Starbucks and get us all a snack and drink and potty. Unfortunately Matthew was sleeping, but had to be interrupted.
3:00 - John's second request to pee. Why did I get him a drink? I pull over on an access road. (Stop judging, boys are easy).
4:00 - finally make it to Edmond. Matthew has been crying on and off for about 30-45 minutes. Overall, a long, but not a bad trip.
4:00 - 7:30 - Play, eat and be merry with Grammie and Granddaddy. balloons were waiting all over the floor when we got there to break the ice with Matthew and it worked! He was in a fantastic mood and super friendly.
7:30 - bed time for Matthew, pretty simple, just a bit longer because I wait until he is asleep before leaving.
8:30 - bed time for John, he gets to stay up a little later. But with no nap, he was exhausted. He popped out of bed for various reasons a couple of times, but slept through the night. Matthew had a little more trouble, but overall, everyone was fine.
Wednesday, May 2, 2012
A Week in the Life: 4YO and 13.5 MO (Saturday)
Note worthy: Matthew started saying "hot" today and waving his hand like he is cooling something.
6:00 - My alarm goes off... good intentions...
7:00 - I get out of bed. Still before the boys. Even though I hear little man kicking his feet, the one cup of coffee is already making the day seem like a great one! I tackle one to-do item and schedule the dog sitter and read Audra's blog. Reading hers makes me realize I really do not add much feeling to my "week in the life", so watch out... today's could be long (again...good intentions). I heat the pool because John is so excited that it is Saturday and Daddy does not have to leave for work.
7:30 - Get Matthew out of bed and downstairs to help me feed Bailee. Almost every morning the first word/sign he uses is about the dog. We go outside while Bailee eats and he wants me to read a book that John had left outside, and then... here comes John! Pancakes (from yesterday) for both of them with strawberries.
8:00 - I have John wake up Daddy (one of his favorite things to do) and then we all get ready for the Tball game and leave about 8:45.
9:00 - Tball game. John always seems so excited about the game and is ready to go, but when he is out there, oh man, it is hard to watch. He does not hustle AT ALL and he plays in the dirt. Nana and Da are at the game and get some time with Matthew. I have to admit that the games are SO slow, they do not keep score and it is all a learning process for them. BUT, John did get the game ball today.
10:30 - Home and have a snack (cereal bar for MJ and juice and a fruit roll up thing from the game for John) and then play out back and inside for a bit while we get ready to go on a walk with Daddy.
Play for a bit inside and then all four of us go on a walk in the neighborhood. John brings 2 buckets, one for treasures and one for bugs. He also brings a pad of paper and pencil to write down what he collects. Along the way he found a caterpillar a lady bug and a roly poly. All of which did not make it very long outside of nature. We walked into some open houses, John thought that was pretty fun.
12:30 - Daddy goes to get us McDonalds. We are being REALLY bad this week, of course the week that I journal it and have evidence.
1:00 - nap for Matthew, play for Daddy and John, shower and pedicure for me! YEAH!
2:30 - I swim with John and Daddy goes to run errands. He is more and more confident in the pool and I bet by the end of the summer he is swimming like a fish. After Daddy gets home, I go up and get Matthew and we all swim for half hour or so and have ice cream. I never got my camera out for this, but I am sure there will be plenty this summer.
4:00 - Ran a few errands together. I am sure there were snacks in here somewhere, but I am writing the 2nd half of this day a few days later....
6:00 - we are done with errands, and both boys are hungry. we decide to stop and eat at a restaurant. Surprisingly, they held up well through the 30 minute wait. Matthew is super messy when we go out, and can be hard to entertain once he decides he wants to get out of his seat. Overall, this time he was really good. John typically engulfs himself in the coloring book that comes with the menu or on the iphone. He was great this time too. Overall it was a good outing.
7:30 - home, bath, bed.
8:00 - can not really remember much of what we did after this because I am writing this last part several days later (busy weekend that just got away from me, but I wanted to finish these posts)
6:00 - My alarm goes off... good intentions...
7:00 - I get out of bed. Still before the boys. Even though I hear little man kicking his feet, the one cup of coffee is already making the day seem like a great one! I tackle one to-do item and schedule the dog sitter and read Audra's blog. Reading hers makes me realize I really do not add much feeling to my "week in the life", so watch out... today's could be long (again...good intentions). I heat the pool because John is so excited that it is Saturday and Daddy does not have to leave for work.
7:30 - Get Matthew out of bed and downstairs to help me feed Bailee. Almost every morning the first word/sign he uses is about the dog. We go outside while Bailee eats and he wants me to read a book that John had left outside, and then... here comes John! Pancakes (from yesterday) for both of them with strawberries.
8:00 - I have John wake up Daddy (one of his favorite things to do) and then we all get ready for the Tball game and leave about 8:45.
9:00 - Tball game. John always seems so excited about the game and is ready to go, but when he is out there, oh man, it is hard to watch. He does not hustle AT ALL and he plays in the dirt. Nana and Da are at the game and get some time with Matthew. I have to admit that the games are SO slow, they do not keep score and it is all a learning process for them. BUT, John did get the game ball today.
10:30 - Home and have a snack (cereal bar for MJ and juice and a fruit roll up thing from the game for John) and then play out back and inside for a bit while we get ready to go on a walk with Daddy.
Play for a bit inside and then all four of us go on a walk in the neighborhood. John brings 2 buckets, one for treasures and one for bugs. He also brings a pad of paper and pencil to write down what he collects. Along the way he found a caterpillar a lady bug and a roly poly. All of which did not make it very long outside of nature. We walked into some open houses, John thought that was pretty fun.
12:30 - Daddy goes to get us McDonalds. We are being REALLY bad this week, of course the week that I journal it and have evidence.
1:00 - nap for Matthew, play for Daddy and John, shower and pedicure for me! YEAH!
2:30 - I swim with John and Daddy goes to run errands. He is more and more confident in the pool and I bet by the end of the summer he is swimming like a fish. After Daddy gets home, I go up and get Matthew and we all swim for half hour or so and have ice cream. I never got my camera out for this, but I am sure there will be plenty this summer.
4:00 - Ran a few errands together. I am sure there were snacks in here somewhere, but I am writing the 2nd half of this day a few days later....
6:00 - we are done with errands, and both boys are hungry. we decide to stop and eat at a restaurant. Surprisingly, they held up well through the 30 minute wait. Matthew is super messy when we go out, and can be hard to entertain once he decides he wants to get out of his seat. Overall, this time he was really good. John typically engulfs himself in the coloring book that comes with the menu or on the iphone. He was great this time too. Overall it was a good outing.
7:30 - home, bath, bed.
8:00 - can not really remember much of what we did after this because I am writing this last part several days later (busy weekend that just got away from me, but I wanted to finish these posts)
Friday, April 27, 2012
A Week in the Life: 4YO and 13.5MO (Friday)
6:45 - MJ is up and extremely ready for the day while I am extremely ready for a cup of coffee. I make whole wheat pancakes from my stash. Follow link and keep this in your pantry! feed the dog, feed the baby, drink coffee.
7:30 - Carl is getting ready to leave so he goes up to wake up John to tell him goodbye. John eats and then watched Ni Hao Ki Lan and plays while Matthew plays with the soccer ball the blinds.
8:30 - I shower and Matthew plays with the glass door and all the bubbles. I tell John that we are going to go on an adventure but we have to get responsibilities done first, so we go upstairs and the boy picks up like I have never seen him pick up before. He REALLY wanted to go on an adventure.
9:30 - we get in the double stroller armed with a cardboard egg crate and head down the street to meet our neighbors to go on a nature hunt. The boys (all 4 of them) had a good time. It was a SUPER slow walk and we looked at almost e.v.e.r.y. s.i.n.g.l.e. roly poly that we found and examined a hundred rocks and leaves and flowers until he picked out what he wanted to keep in his "treasure box". The walk was cut a little short when Corbin sliced open his toe (the boy had been fighting his shoes all morning and then Emily finally let me go without and look what happened! If only he was old enough to learn the lesson. :)) so we headed back.
10:45 - played outside with bubbles, I made a grocery list and the boys chased each other for a while.
11:15 - I can not longer ignore Matthew's constant sign for food. I make him a grilled cheese sandwich and a prune and John has a turkey and cheese sandwich with oranges and carrots. while they are eating I clean up the glass lid that Matthew shattered in the bathroom earlier today (don't ask how he got it because I am still unsure) and complete my dinner and grocery list. I give Matthew some Tylenol, he is drooling like crazy and whimpers every bite he puts in his mouth.
12:15 - nap for MJ and Mike the Knight for John and I. Then play dough (lots of fun today for me and it usually is not due to my lack of creativity) and then that Pirate hunt game that he loves so much. He was sorely disappointed when we could only play it once, but I could only find like 5 clues. I need to ask Johanna where the rest are.
3:00 - Matthew is up and I make them both a shake with Carnation instant breakfast, a banana, peanut butter, milk and ice. They both slurp it down in a hurry (I should have made more). John also has some cheese bunny crackers and I give Matthew those fiddle sticks.
3:30 - we head to the dry cleaners and store, but before I am through 2 stoplights John is asleep. Matthew is a great car rider, so I just turn on the radio and drive slow and enjoy some music and nice weather. I decide to drive to the far away grocery store that has fresher produce due to the peace and quiet. Get what we need, but it takes a long time because I do not know the store layout well and I double back several times. Ugh!
4:30 - home and Matthew needs a snack so I give him a baby rice bar thing. I start dinner a shrimp pasta (it was good, but not healthy and super rich). John is playing his Angry Bird board game thing and Matthew is exploring as usual.
5:15 - Carl is home and dinner is ready (this timing NEVER works out). Everyone eats it except Matthew. :( He gets a squeeze pouch after dinner. I clean the kitchen while the boys play in the living room. I join them after awhile and then me and the two boys head upstairs and take turns burying each other in the stuffed animals.
6:45 - Matthew wants to eat again, so of course John does too. I give them both an oatmeal muffin thing (cooked and froze on Monday I think). Then we make more crayons and play hide and seek and wrestle in the living room until bed time.
7:30 - bed for Matthew, no problems. John and Daddy watch Whale Wars.
8:00 - bed for John. Tonight we are reading "Dinosaurs Before Dawn". It is a chapter book he picked out the last time we were at the book store. He cuddles super close to me and gets a little freaky at sounds while we are reading it, but it is not really scary. I think he just anticipates it might be.
8:30 - I manually run the sprinklers because we have some leaks, and we can only water on trash days. TV time, talk time, bed time.
7:30 - Carl is getting ready to leave so he goes up to wake up John to tell him goodbye. John eats and then watched Ni Hao Ki Lan and plays while Matthew plays with the soccer ball the blinds.
8:30 - I shower and Matthew plays with the glass door and all the bubbles. I tell John that we are going to go on an adventure but we have to get responsibilities done first, so we go upstairs and the boy picks up like I have never seen him pick up before. He REALLY wanted to go on an adventure.
9:30 - we get in the double stroller armed with a cardboard egg crate and head down the street to meet our neighbors to go on a nature hunt. The boys (all 4 of them) had a good time. It was a SUPER slow walk and we looked at almost e.v.e.r.y. s.i.n.g.l.e. roly poly that we found and examined a hundred rocks and leaves and flowers until he picked out what he wanted to keep in his "treasure box". The walk was cut a little short when Corbin sliced open his toe (the boy had been fighting his shoes all morning and then Emily finally let me go without and look what happened! If only he was old enough to learn the lesson. :)) so we headed back.
10:45 - played outside with bubbles, I made a grocery list and the boys chased each other for a while.
11:15 - I can not longer ignore Matthew's constant sign for food. I make him a grilled cheese sandwich and a prune and John has a turkey and cheese sandwich with oranges and carrots. while they are eating I clean up the glass lid that Matthew shattered in the bathroom earlier today (don't ask how he got it because I am still unsure) and complete my dinner and grocery list. I give Matthew some Tylenol, he is drooling like crazy and whimpers every bite he puts in his mouth.
12:15 - nap for MJ and Mike the Knight for John and I. Then play dough (lots of fun today for me and it usually is not due to my lack of creativity) and then that Pirate hunt game that he loves so much. He was sorely disappointed when we could only play it once, but I could only find like 5 clues. I need to ask Johanna where the rest are.
3:00 - Matthew is up and I make them both a shake with Carnation instant breakfast, a banana, peanut butter, milk and ice. They both slurp it down in a hurry (I should have made more). John also has some cheese bunny crackers and I give Matthew those fiddle sticks.
3:30 - we head to the dry cleaners and store, but before I am through 2 stoplights John is asleep. Matthew is a great car rider, so I just turn on the radio and drive slow and enjoy some music and nice weather. I decide to drive to the far away grocery store that has fresher produce due to the peace and quiet. Get what we need, but it takes a long time because I do not know the store layout well and I double back several times. Ugh!
4:30 - home and Matthew needs a snack so I give him a baby rice bar thing. I start dinner a shrimp pasta (it was good, but not healthy and super rich). John is playing his Angry Bird board game thing and Matthew is exploring as usual.
5:15 - Carl is home and dinner is ready (this timing NEVER works out). Everyone eats it except Matthew. :( He gets a squeeze pouch after dinner. I clean the kitchen while the boys play in the living room. I join them after awhile and then me and the two boys head upstairs and take turns burying each other in the stuffed animals.
6:45 - Matthew wants to eat again, so of course John does too. I give them both an oatmeal muffin thing (cooked and froze on Monday I think). Then we make more crayons and play hide and seek and wrestle in the living room until bed time.
7:30 - bed for Matthew, no problems. John and Daddy watch Whale Wars.
8:00 - bed for John. Tonight we are reading "Dinosaurs Before Dawn". It is a chapter book he picked out the last time we were at the book store. He cuddles super close to me and gets a little freaky at sounds while we are reading it, but it is not really scary. I think he just anticipates it might be.
8:30 - I manually run the sprinklers because we have some leaks, and we can only water on trash days. TV time, talk time, bed time.
Week in the Life: 4YO and 13.5MO (Thursday)
Let me preface that I had a SERIOUS lack of motivation yesterday in all aspects of the day, so I write this the day after and might leave out details.
Firsts things first.... Matthew started saying "fish" or some variation there of yesterday!
7:00 - John comes down to wake up both of us. What is our deal?!? we NEVER sleep this late and this week we seem to a lot.
7:20 - After some cuddles, we all get up. Carl gets ready and John and I go to get Matthew. Matthew LOVES when John comes to get him in the morning. We eat breakfast (oatmeal for John and toast with PB and strawberries for Matthew). As we take turns getting ready, Matthew explores again with a bucket on his head, John puts finds his "show and tell" since he is line leader today, he also puts together a puzzle and colors a bit.
8:30 - leave a bit early for school so that I can take pictures. It is the letter Y this week, so John decided he wanted to name one of his bears that he had yet to name "Yippee" and take him as show and tell with a name tag on. So... that is what we did. My camera was giving me trouble for some reason at school, so I only got one with it, but one with my phone too.
9:15 - home after Starbucks because my coffee pot needs descaling. Matthew and I play bubbles out back and with the toy box toys and then of course a snack (banana). He is pretty cranky, so I also spend a good amount of time with him on my hip this morning.
10:20 - lunch (because he is asking again for food) is bubble biscuits and string cheese. followed by a pears, spinach and peas pouch at 10:45. we play a bit more outside. he LOVES to be outside. and I LOVE our pool fence and the shade in our backyard.
11 - 1:45 - Matthew naps and my friend Emily comes over for lunch and chat.
2:00 - Pick up John and head home. the rest of the afternoon is pretty much the same as normal. toy box and upstairs play because I am organizing all the while. :) snacks (animal crackers for john and cereal bar for Matthew, and then later spoon fulls of peanut butter and milk for Matthew). I tried to get John to nap because he was in a horrible mood when he got him, but no such luck. We also pulled out a toy from Christmas that we had not yet....a crayon maker.In the picture below John is a monkey doctor and is fixing the toy that has a brown heart (what?!).
.jpg)
5:00 - dinner. fish sticks, blueberries and sweet potato fries (don't judge my processed meal). get ready for Tball, play downstairs. John reads me some of his "box books". He picked the last one ins the set that he has never read and did a GREAT job!
6:00 - Daddy walks in the door, scoops a sandwich I made for him and takes John to Tball practice. This is the first practice I have missed and I am NOT sad. It is on the other side of town and it is hard to watch Matthew and help John. Not my favorite part of the week.
Matthew and I read some books, ply with more bubbles. he is saying bubbles, but it sounds exactly like bubba. we take an extra long bath, because we can. then it is time for another snack, 2 homemade french toast sticks.
7:30 - bed time for Matthew. no trouble. Carl and John get home after a slushy. Quick bath in my room for John and then off to bed. He was up several times tonight (couldn't be the slushy) and downstairs with various reasons, but eventually fell asleep.
8:00 - we watched some TV and were extremely lazy and fell asleep early.
Firsts things first.... Matthew started saying "fish" or some variation there of yesterday!
7:00 - John comes down to wake up both of us. What is our deal?!? we NEVER sleep this late and this week we seem to a lot.
7:20 - After some cuddles, we all get up. Carl gets ready and John and I go to get Matthew. Matthew LOVES when John comes to get him in the morning. We eat breakfast (oatmeal for John and toast with PB and strawberries for Matthew). As we take turns getting ready, Matthew explores again with a bucket on his head, John puts finds his "show and tell" since he is line leader today, he also puts together a puzzle and colors a bit.
8:30 - leave a bit early for school so that I can take pictures. It is the letter Y this week, so John decided he wanted to name one of his bears that he had yet to name "Yippee" and take him as show and tell with a name tag on. So... that is what we did. My camera was giving me trouble for some reason at school, so I only got one with it, but one with my phone too.
9:15 - home after Starbucks because my coffee pot needs descaling. Matthew and I play bubbles out back and with the toy box toys and then of course a snack (banana). He is pretty cranky, so I also spend a good amount of time with him on my hip this morning.
10:20 - lunch (because he is asking again for food) is bubble biscuits and string cheese. followed by a pears, spinach and peas pouch at 10:45. we play a bit more outside. he LOVES to be outside. and I LOVE our pool fence and the shade in our backyard.
11 - 1:45 - Matthew naps and my friend Emily comes over for lunch and chat.
2:00 - Pick up John and head home. the rest of the afternoon is pretty much the same as normal. toy box and upstairs play because I am organizing all the while. :) snacks (animal crackers for john and cereal bar for Matthew, and then later spoon fulls of peanut butter and milk for Matthew). I tried to get John to nap because he was in a horrible mood when he got him, but no such luck. We also pulled out a toy from Christmas that we had not yet....a crayon maker.In the picture below John is a monkey doctor and is fixing the toy that has a brown heart (what?!).
.jpg)
5:00 - dinner. fish sticks, blueberries and sweet potato fries (don't judge my processed meal). get ready for Tball, play downstairs. John reads me some of his "box books". He picked the last one ins the set that he has never read and did a GREAT job!
6:00 - Daddy walks in the door, scoops a sandwich I made for him and takes John to Tball practice. This is the first practice I have missed and I am NOT sad. It is on the other side of town and it is hard to watch Matthew and help John. Not my favorite part of the week.
Matthew and I read some books, ply with more bubbles. he is saying bubbles, but it sounds exactly like bubba. we take an extra long bath, because we can. then it is time for another snack, 2 homemade french toast sticks.
7:30 - bed time for Matthew. no trouble. Carl and John get home after a slushy. Quick bath in my room for John and then off to bed. He was up several times tonight (couldn't be the slushy) and downstairs with various reasons, but eventually fell asleep.
8:00 - we watched some TV and were extremely lazy and fell asleep early.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
