Week in review

Anessa and little John are coming in today and I still need to clean the guest bathroom, so please enjoy the pics and I'm sure I will have adventures to write about once we add a 10 month old to the mix!

Silly me for not specifying which shoes I wanted her to get to go to the Y...  This is also a good shot of what her daddy refers to as 'the rat tail.'  Mommy calls it the curl. 

I don't think Rachel got this herself.

What?  I'm busy!

Really?  You want me to smile when this thing is squeezing my head?!  

We were so blessed to get to see the Dilbecks this past weekend.  Here is Robin with Miss Disgruntled herself. 

Victoria and Elizabeth...chillin' to Sesame Street.

But Mom...you said get ready!

Yeah...I don't really know what happened to that baby...

Language barrier?

To update you on my last posting (since I just left you hanging for a whole week!), we decided that Elizabeth was saying, "drink."  Of course, I'm the only one who's heard it so Scott is doubtful.  He got home and held up her sippy and asked, "What is this?"  "Sappy," she answered.  (Which sounds really funny when she says it fast...sappy, sappy, sappy, sappy...)  Then he held up his water glass.  "What is this?"  "Bup."  (cup.)  He turned and looked at me.  "I swear, she said it!"

On to new adventures...

Learning to talk

I just have to tell you this one. I've written about how Elizabeth is really trying to mimic and sound things out, heavy on most consonants.  She's getting really good at her letters, but sometimes she gets mixed up.  This morning, she said "hib-bup" (hiccup) and she asks for "bibicks" (biscuits) at dinner on most nights, if we have rolls.  I made chili earlier this week and we had chips with them, which of course she wanted, but we couldn't get her to ask for.  She just pointed for them.

Well today, we were eating lunch and she points to the table and asks for the four-letter "d" word.  I'm not joking.  I'll call it "duck" for blogging purposes.  I'm cleaning up the table and she is basically done, but she points to the scraps and says, "Duck."  

I almost choke on my water.  "What, honey?  What do you want?"  "Duck," she answers.  "Do you mean, chip?" I ask, trying desperately to find out what she wants to I can correct her, but there are no chips on the table.  I'm thinking, do not react...do not react...because then she will say it all the time.  My brain is already shooting ahead to family dinners with my grandmother...being called into the church nursery to discuss my daughter's language...what Rachel's first word will be...the first time her Uncle Jason hears it...

So what happened?  I couldn't figure it out and she stopped asking for it.  I kept my face neutral and started cleaning her up and plopped her onto the floor.  She ran into the living room to play and I didn't hear it again.  Crisis aborted...for now...

Have you ever seen anything so cute?!

Peek-a-boo, mommy!

D

Does this onesie make me look fat?

 This is our not-so-smart mighty hunter, trapping a mouse under the garage stairs.  He sat like this for 20 minutes, staring it down.  When I got behind him and looked, I realized he had trapped a leaf.  Poor Butchy.

Forever the considerate big sister, Elizabeth is giving Rachel some "tea."

  Really?!  And then what happened?

 What does mine say? Dude!!  What does mine say? Sweeeeet...

 I'll get the light, mom!

 Why yes, I did my hair myself.  Why do you ask?

 And my heart melts...

O

Our little bathing beauties!

The latest adventures

Bath time

Scott does the baths and we've gotten into a little routine to get both girls bathed and read to and into bed at night.  We are a smooth, oiled machine now, but there were a couple nights that things got a little hairy in the beginning.  One night, we were running late and Scott decided to just bathe Rachel in the tub after he got finished with Elizabeth.  I'm finishing up the dinner dishes when I hear my sweet husband yell, "Elizabeth!  Don't pee in the water!  I was going to wash Rachel in that!"  I run in and our 20 month old is standing up in the tub, grinning.  Needless to say, that was the night Rachel started taking baths in her baby bathtub!

My baby can read
I've told you about the alphabet puzzle.

I finally got smart and moved it into Elizabeth's room and we like the thing a whole lot better since we're not stepping on little pegs 20 times a day.  Elizabeth has gotten really good at being able to say most of the letters and she knows where almost all of them go.  The funny thing is that, since we've been working the puzzle, she realizes there are letters everywhere!  She reads the letters on our shirts and on products around the house.  The other day, a cartoon character was writing his name (OSO) and she spelled it out.  The cutest thing by far has been in the bath tub.  I bought her these soft letters that stick to the side of the tub.  The first night she and Scott worked on them, they were in the tub for an extra 20 minutes!  He would get so excited when she knew which letter came next.  When it was time to get out, she cried!!  He said she was so cold from standing to put the letters on the wall, her teeth were chattering. 

Mommy, nap time!

So my smart girl tried to pull a fast one on mommy.  The other day, I was nursing Rachel and Sesame Street had just come on, which is the cue for nap time (I tape it to watch later in the day).   Elizabeth went in her room and got her blanket.  She came out and put the Boppy on the floor in front of the TV, laid down with it as her pillow and covered up with the blanket.  She turned and looked at me and said, "Map, mama," and shut her eyes, as if to say, " Oh, you don't have to worry about putting me to bed, mother...I will be fine right here in front of Elmo."  Nice try, sweetie.  

My little mimic

We have an echo in the house, as my daughter is starting to try to repeat words that she hears.  She is really big on consonants, but normally, they come after a pause, as if she's trying to figure out where they go in the word.  Babi..K...T  is blanket.  Yo-yu...T is yogurt.  For some reason, she puts a K on the end of fish...I've been trying to get that out of there.  She's getting good with her songs and counting, although one and nine sound the same and she doesn't do ten.

Get in shape, girl!

Courtney used to have those little pink and purple workout sets.  Remember?  The past two weeks have been devoted to my getting back in shape.  I hate being heavy...funny because I do work to gain weight in my pregnancies.  I'm not one of those girls that do the 10-15 pound deal...I gain 50.  No kidding.  So I am in the process of doing an hour of cardio in the gym and then P90X during nap time.  I'm starting week three now.  I've always been a little psycho about being in shape...I'll admit it...that's how I meet Libby and Amanda freshman year at Campbell.  ha!  I'll keep you updated on my progress.  I have just under 30 lbs to go to get back to my fighting weight.  

Our little girls

Funny how two can be so different and so similar at the same time.  It amazes me how much we have forgotten about Elizabeth as a baby - and it wasn't that long ago!  So here is to comparing the two...

If Rachel is tired, she will go down awake.  As long as she doesn't see or hear you, she'll fall asleep.  With  Elizabeth, you had to either nurse or rock her to sleep and then pray that she didn't wake up in the transition to the bed.  

Elizabeth never cared for rattles or shakers, but Rachel really likes them.  They both love that sound of crinkle paper and Elizabeth has always had a thing for tags.  She used to reach around the Boppy and find the tag and rub it in her fingers to go to sleep.  She still looks for the tags on things now.

Same outfit (thanks, Aunt Lynn!), 1 year later! ERS on top, RLS  on bottom.

Rachel will sit in the bouncy chair or swing for a while.  Most nights, Scott comes home to the sounds of Elmo on the TV and the rain forest setting on the swing, as I'm trying to distract both kids to get dinner made.  Elizabeth always wanted to be held - she had a 10 minute tolerance for all baby furniture.

Rachel won't eat if she's not hungry...Elizabeth never said no to a meal.  This is funny because when we look back at Elizabeth at 7 weeks, she is such a little chunk, although Rachel seems like a big baby - she's longer limbed and doesn't quite have the Michelin look going on yet!

Elizabeth would take a bottle and Rachel seems content to starve to death until I get home...much to the chagrin of whoever is watching her.  

Elizabeth was exposed to more people.  By this time, she was in daycare at Carleta's and was held by all my pitching moms.  I hate that Rachel doesn't have that opportunity, but she's done well at the Y nursery so far.

Rachel goes from 0 to 60 with her temper in a hurry and it's hard to calm her down once she gets going.  In turn, she sucks in air like crazy, so she is the gassiest baby you've ever met.  The kid is always farting or burping.  She fakes the women out at the Y and they are always checking her diaper.  Yeah...that's what I want to be known for...the mom of the farter and mulch eater at the Y...

Potty Training 101

This title is to insinuate that this is a class I am taking...not one that I am teaching. When I first mentioned that I was going to start Elizabeth potty training, I got suggestions from you wonderful friends of things to do and books to read.  Well, I haven't done any of that.  Not that I am not appreciative, but I've been a little busy with this new leech of mine.  So we've struck out on our own in potty training.  Here's to new adventures.

I asked for Mom's help when she came down for a week and she informed me that I had gotten Elizabeth a boy's chair.  I had no idea there was a difference.  She plopped my unhappy child down on the seat and showed me the lip for little boys that made it uncomfortable to sit way back in the chair.   Elizabeth would sit on the very edge of the seat, without her rear end anywhere close to the collection bowl.  Yikes! So off to Target we went to get a "girl" potty chair.  Now, my mother picked out this chair...I had no say.  She purchased it for her granddaughter.  It is...sigh...a princess potty chair.  It has a crown as a back rest and has a sensor in the seat that plays music when liquid or solid hits the bottom.  

Elizabeth is in love with it.

She loves it so much that she takes the seat off and brings it into the living room to stand in.

Yeah, I know...now, none of you should feel offended that you haven't been invited to dinner.  ha!  I missed the Kodak moment that she had it on her head.

So anyway, we've started this process by just sitting on the potty.  All clothes are in place, we're just getting used to sitting in there.  She likes this game, with mommy sitting on the big potty and she gets books and we sing songs.  Then she declares, "All done," splashes her hands in the sink and runs off to play.  Check!  She likes the potty.  We read potty books, she can say potty (sounds more like didi, but she points to the bathroom, so it's potty to us).  Therefore, it's only logical to think, let's try it without the diaper.  So one Saturday, my sweet husband goes in to get his daughter and takes her into potty.  Off goes the diaper....he sets her down on the seat..she SCREAMS!  Do you want a book, Elizabeth?  SCREAM!  She does not want to sit on the potty without her diaper.  I'm fixing breakfast at the time and my naked-from-the-waist-down daughter comes sprinting in and throws her arms around my legs. 

"That didn't go well," Scott says.

So...we're not quite ready yet.  I'll keep you posted...

The watering can

So last weekend, my husband tilled me a garden.  His parents always had gardens when he was growing up and his Grandma Davis still has a huge garden so we decided to give it a go.  We talked about what a valuable experience this would be for our children and that we could take advantage of the rental property (which already had a raised bed in the back) and use this as our garden trial run.  Not to mention the money we'd save if we got anything to actually grow.  So he planted the plot and I planted some herbs in pots for my kitchen and we felt very productive.

Since the weather has been BEAUTIFUL, we've been spending more and more time outside, so while I was out last weekend, I saw a little watering can for $1 and thought that Elizabeth could help me water the garden.

Yesterday, the temperature was close to 90 degrees and I thought it would be a good day to break the pool in.  We got this thing for $7 at Walmart for Butch a couple years ago and it's been a great investment!  Elizabeth loves the water and was so excited to get her suit on and actually squatted (because she was wearing her Crocs) for a full hour and splashed the water out.

This led me to think of a great lesson in using the watering can.  Here I go, super mom, ready to teach my daughter how to water the flower bed and about how cool it is to reuse the water in the pool.  Cue back pat.  

So here goes my crew, out into the yard.  We set up Rachel's swing and she is out like a light...warm breeze, cool shade...zzzzz.  Color me jealous.  Elizabeth runs full speed to the pool and stops short with a nose snarl that I can only claim as my own.  Seeds and blossoms off the pear tree have blown into the water, plus it looks like Butch has walked through it at least a couple dozen times since the day before.  My daughter does not like dirt.  Introducing the sandbox has been a slow-go and when she falls down, her hands go up so they don't touch the ground.  Again, this can only be my influence since I can very vividly remember crying all the way home the first time I had to slide in a game.  I mean, who slides in tee-ball, really?!

But back to the watering can...  My child is not going to swim in that "yuck wa-wa" so I break into teacher mode and grab the watering can, showing her how you dip it into the water and pour it onto the dirt in the garden.  Now you pro mom's are probably already laughing because you know what's going to come next, but I was confident in the farming ability of my 20 month old.  Her eyes light up.  She grabs the watering can and dunks it into the pool and pours it onto the grass.  Yay!  I egg her own with clapping and praise.  Next, she grabs the spout and dunks the can and then pours it onto her hand over the grass.  Again, praise...but this time, "let's try hitting the dirt, honey."  It is at this point that I see the glint in her eye.  She dunks the can and pours it down her arm.  Looks at me.  "See?  We water the GARDEN," and I pick up my watering can and demonstrate again.  The can is dunked a fourth time and goes over her head.  Knowing when I'm beat, I watered the garden myself and my child had a wonderful, wet time. 

Spring Cleaning?!

I wish I could borrow Zack Morris's pause button to use on my children while I clean the house.  I vaccuum every morning because my dogs like to view the entire house when they eat   I have no idea why they feel the need to take the food and drop it onto the carpet, but regardless, every morning, Elizabeth comes trapsing in and sticks a leftover piece in her mouth.  Therefore, I clean right away.  This morning, Rachel is peaceful (for once!) in her bouncy chair, so I start the sweeper.  I look up and, within three seconds, my baby's blanket has been ripped off and she has an assortment of blocks and a little fisher price mirror placed in her chair.  The B to the puzzle is on her belly and Elizabeth has the burp cloth on her shoulder.  "Leave the baby alone," I say, and start up the sweeper again.  Three more seconds...I look up and she is eating the mini blinds on the front window.  I wish I was kidding.  There are bite marks in our $2.99 mini blinds.  So I stop the sweeper.  "Don't eat the blinds."  And pull them up to halfway up the window.  

Your attempt to put the laundry higher is futile, Mother...

I have a mountain of daily laundry and have piled Elizabeth's and Rachel's clothes in a basket in her room (they share a closet).  Now why I did this can only be explained by some form of "lack of sleep insanity", but regardless, it wasn't smart.  I just looked in her room and there are clothes strewn all over and she is trying to put on her pajama pants over her clothes.  She can't get them all the way up, or on both legs, so she settles for them to stay on one leg and slouch down around her ankles.  She adds a pair of Rachel's pants (on the same leg) and a shirt for the multicolored, Punky Brewster leg warmer effect. 

 Mom! Look what someone did!

Is it only Tuesday??

He is Risen!

The meaning of Easter really hit me like a brick once I became a parent.  We are so thankful for this day to celebrate the blood of Jesus and give thanks for God's amazing grace and sacrifice.  We had a great morning and actually made it to church on time and then had a wonderful breakfast at Cracker Barrel, thanks to Grandma Le-Le's gift cards!  The girls looked adorable, thanks to dresses provided by Robin.  Rachel's was a hand-me-down from Miss Sophie and then she sent this dress to Elizabeth so she wouldn't feel left out.  She got so many compliments on it!  The hat didn't make it to church - I forgot about it, to be honest.  But I got some pictures once we got home.

The girls and mommy

The girls and daddy

Why, in the world, does everything go in her mouth?!

Quiet...for now!

The great outdoors

Woo-hoo!  Over 70 degrees today!  Time to get some sun on our legs and get outside!  I am so ready for summer, I can hardly wait...  I didn't realize until I was getting Elizabeth dressed that she hasn't had shorts on since last summer and she looked at me like I was making her go outside naked and pressed her little knees together to cover herself up.  She soon forgot all about them though, as she sprinted through the yard, picking up every stick and rock to give to the dogs.  Here is our latest adventure in pictures - I apologize if they're grainy.  I took them with the cell phone.

Pink shirt, orange shorts, green and yellow shoes... Don't judge me by how I dress my children!  We were in the backyard!

I found this swing at a consignment sale to put Elizabeth in when I was coaching.  It works in the backyard too and Rachel actually laughed yesterday at the lights that blink!  (I know!  The disgruntled child laughs...go figure!)

Beep, beep!

Ah, my crew.

Here, Butchy.  Here is a leaf for you.

How about you, Tina?  Do you want my leaf?

How my child found this sand, I have no idea.  Looks like it's time for a sandbox!  Hear that, Daddy?  Outdoor toys!!

One of the only survivors from the SC house...the rose bush from Tammy.  

And here's the other survivor...the hydrangea from Brenda.  This one has an especially tough spirit, having lived through an accidental "pruning" by Scott with the weed-eater.