Accident!

Sunday morning Matt decided to walk the kids down to Andy's to get some breakfast foods, and also to give me a chance to get some extra rest. Ellie is still getting up about twice a night, so I've been pretty tired.


I was drifting off to sleep when I heard the front door open, and Matt's voice saying "Go show momma your face." Levi came running in and said "Hello momma" and I opened my eyes and I wanted to cry. His poor face was all beat up. 'What happened?!' Matt said Levi was trying to run down Broadway with his hands in his pockets. He had tripped and fallen right on his face. He had a big bruise on his forehead and a lot of skin missing from his nose. He also had torn his pants and had skinned knees. Matt said he was very brave, after an initial cry he pulled himself together and still wanted to go to Andy's.

After leaving Ellie with me, Matt and Levi walked back down to the store and came back with doughnuts, crispy crowns and fresh fruit.

In other news, Ellie is expanding her territory, cruising around holding on to anything she sees. Today she even stepped up onto this box while exploring.

On our own

Matt left this morning early, about 5 am. While he didn't wake the kids, they did seem to rise earlier than usual today. So early, in fact, that I had laundry going and most of the dishes done before it was even 7 am. Too early!!

Something that Ellie has been doing for the past month (that I think I forgot to blog about) is playing peek-a-boo on her own. She wheels into the kitchen, reaches up and grabs a towel off the rack, wheels away before I catch her and then the next thing I know, she is putting the towel over her head and pulling it off again. She loves it! I had been unable to get a photo because she usually stops when she sees the camera, ruins all her fun I guess. Sorry this pic is blurry but you get the idea. She sees me and runs at me, making it hard to capture on film.

Where did Ellie go?

Peek-a-boo! There she is!



I was stressing out about what I was going to do with the kids all day, but I needn't have been. Laura told me about the Library's story time, so I planned on that. Levi and I had breakfast, put together a puzzle, and did some various other things to fill time until 10 am. The morning sure seemed to go slow. And yet I still didn't get as much done as I would have liked to.

Levi has started playing pretend, like talking on the phone. He will pick up any object that slightly resembles a phone and talk into it. Little conversations like "Hi. Uh, hey. This is Levi. I'm pooping on the toilet. Ok, bye!" When I ask him who he's talking to he tells me "A boy named Levi." So I am not sure if he is talking to himself, or if he has an imaginary friend named Levi. Today I asked him about that. His response was that it is a friend named Levi. So I asked him if Levi would be going with us to the library. He didn't know. I told him he should ask him to ask his mom if he can go. So he calls him up. "Hi. Uh, hi. Yeah. This is Levi. I'm going to the library. Will you ask your mom if you can go? Oh, ok. Talk to you later." I asked him what he said. "His mom said he can't go. He has to sleep." I asked him what Levi's mom's name was. "Uh.... (glancing around) Elephant. (silly laugh)" There was a toy elephant on the counter nearby.

On the drive to the library there was a man on a motorcycle who passed us, and was alongside us for a short time, later going on ahead. Levi asked me "Is that dada?" I said no. He asked me "What that man name?" and I told him I didn't know, it was just a man on a motorcycle. So then Levi tells me "Well, I will name him John." He is reaching the stage where everyone has a name, an identity.

The library was an experience. They have little mats with letters and pictures on them, in different colors. For example, the one Levi grabbed was blue, with a "Bb" on it and a picture of a boat. I guess the idea is that the kids each get a mat and sit on it as a reminder of where they should be during the story time. The woman sat up front and read a variety of Dr Suess books. The kids on the front row kept saying "I have that book!" so she got them involved a little by having them help her with the repetitive lines in Green Eggs and Ham. One of the books the kids stood up and did the motions with their feet. Levi really wasn't interested in much of it at all. He kept trying to escape because the ArtFish outside the door was more captivating. Once the books were all read, the woman handed out "kites" - colored contstruction paper that had been cut into diamonds, with a yarn tail. Markers were passed out so the kids could color on their kite. Levi said "I want a green one!" and thankfully he was able to get the color he wanted. He immediately drew two long lines (parallel) and then a curved perpendicular line. "It's a smiley face" he told me. Sure enough. I was so proud.



I asked him if he could write his name. I was curious to see what his response would be. The shocker? No response, he took his marker and drew a perfect L. The problem was, it was so large and so close to the right edge of the paper that was the end of that. I told him he could turn his kite over and draw on the other side. So he did. Another four or five giant L's. It's a start. I am so proud he knows how to write a letter on his own with nothing around to look at to copy.

After the library I felt like I was starting to lose him, and I was pretty sure Ellie was missing her morning nap too. So we went home and made lunch. Levi wanted macaroni and that sounded good to me. He ate it quickly and then picked at his vegetables and chicken. He has a lot of trouble staying in his seat to eat any meal, unless it's breakfast and coated in sugar (syrup). So after lunch he went straight to bed and was napping fairly quickly.

While he was sleeping I decided to try a new recipe - Boston Cream Cupcakes. The cupcake part was an actual recipe, no box mixes here! At least I had all of the ingredients for that on hand. After that came out of the oven, Ellie took a nap but it only lasted about 30 min. Levi woke up happy, thankfully, and we headed out to run some errands. It was a beautiful day today, 55 degrees!

When we got back Levi spent some time outside running around with his "kite." When that got boring he wanted to tie it to things. I finished putting together the cupcakes and they are quite good.

Time to make dinner. I thought it would be spaghetti but once the water was boiling I looked in the cupboard and saw none. So I asked Levi, Rigatoni or Shells? He said shells. Then as I was working on something else he said "and peas" Ok I said, that sounds good. "And corn. And carrots." Wow son, are you sure? We just had mixed vegetables for lunch. I am only going to make peas, ok?" "But momma, if you do that, it will not match the map!" What in tar-nation was he talking about?? He pointed to the shells box. I never pay attention to the photo of prepared food on the packaging but he had. He thought I was making the photo on the box, following the "map." That was a cute moment. I did end up peeling a raw carrot for him too since he loves those.

Washing the car

Another day of beautiful weather! Matt decided to wash the car and again enlisted the kids' help.

Changing the Oil

On Sunday we had such nice weather that Matt went out and changed the oil in the vehicles. Levi assisted him and learned all about it.

He was especially helpful with fetching wrenches and learning about fractions to be sure he got Matt the right one. (Until he ran off with one and we still haven't found it)



Ellie enjoyed the weather too, but I had to keep a close eye on what went in her mouth!

Hey guys, I think you need this now!



Adding the new oil.

Levi resting after a job well done.

Helping daddy with round two - station wagon

Buttons

Levi has been getting really good at buttoning up his pajamas. His bedtime routine consists of me reading to him (books or Highlights magazine), brushing his teeth, putting on PJs and then Matt tucks him in with another story, this one from his imagination. His bedtime is supposed to be 8 pm, but often he does not go to sleep until after 9, even though he has been in bed all that time. He will kick the bed, count, sing, talk, wander out and tell us he's afraid of his bed, etc. I think that's just a stall tactic. Back to bed he goes.

One day he missed his nap and I was able to get him in bed, asleep, by 8:10 pm. The downfall to skipping nap-time is the attitude that seems to go along with it.

Ellie's 9-mo check up

Ellie had her Well-Baby Check Up this morning at 8 AM. We were a couple minutes late. Camille told me she was ready for us right away.

First I undressed Ellie and took her to the scale. She weighs a whopping 19 lbs 5 oz and is 27 3/4" long. She won't have any trouble reaching 20 lbs by one year old!

Dr Jen came in and was surprised to see us all in attendance. She commented that she had not heard us come in. I think they've come to expect the whole family since I don't believe we have ever gone in with less than that. Levi sat on the floor nicely and read the books. They had some new ones there that a patient's mom had donated.

Dr Jen set up her laptop and said "I want to show you this because I think it is so remarkable." I guess all of Ellie's visits have been for the well-baby exams. She has never been seen for any other reason. Apparently that is very uncommon! Thinking back, she has only had a very mild cold twice in her life that I can think of, and we didn't take her in for that. So, for that we are thankful.

Her weight and height percentiles have sunk - she is now 60th percentile for weight and 58th for height. Dr Jen said the first six months the baby is growing off of what was provided to her in the womb, and then genetics start to take over. She is eating solids well now and getting very mobile so that will impact her growth (weight) as well. Her head, at 18 1/4" is "enormous." Must be all those brains ;)

Dr Jen was very happy with everything she saw and heard about, and said it 'really starts her day off nice - we should always scheduled our appointments at 8 am.' Works for me!

It was a very easy and pleasant visit today - no shots! Yay! Ellie doesn't need to go back in until her 1 year check up, at which time she will get 4 shots. I had already scheduled that appointment last time I was in, so this time I scheduled her 18 month check up.

Note from Oma

The other day the kids went to spend a couple hours with my mom while Matt did some assistant photography work. The following is a note from her:

"Yesterday when the kids were here, I was trying to put the playpen up in case Ellie would sleep in there--and I could not figure out how to get it into locked position. I knew it was easy, but could not remember.

Levi pointed to the warning signs on the side of the playpen and said "Look Oma, just read these instructions here, and then maybe you can figure it out."

I thought that was so hilariously cute!

The warning was just showing how NOT to leave it, but it does look like instructions--"

On Point

In the last couple of days Ellie has learned how to point. The other night my mom came by and was sitting on the sofa, pointed to Ellie and Ellie pointed right back. She also is trying to figure out how to wave. It ends up looking like floppy arm motions but she's getting there... It is pretty cute when she is sitting with me at the computer and I pull up a photo of someone she recognizes, she will flap her arms and point, like "Do you see that? I know them!"

In other news I was greeted by quite the surprise when I came home from work today. Levi walked over to me and said "I love you momma" and gave me a hug. I should have been suspicious. Then next thing out of his mouth was "Will you share your chips with me?" Matt had brought some some salt & vinegar chips home for me at lunch and I had forgotten to take them with me. So there they sat by the TV all afternoon and Levi had to wait for me to get home to ask to share them. Well, it was sure nice, even if it was due to an ulterior motive.

Brains

Levi got done with his bath tonight and was talking away as the water spiraled down the drain:

"The water go'ed down"

"Good job, good job!"

"The drain didn't say anything because the drain doesn't have brains!"

Won't you be my Valentine?

Happy Valentines Day everyone! This year, Matt wanted me to have a turn planning. He has really done a great job surprising me the past ...oh... 10 years? So it was my turn. I wanted to really do it up right. I started collecting recipes from food magazines at work a month ago.

My brother Wes and wife Joanie came to town with their darling daughter Natalie. This was the first time I had seen her and she is 7 weeks old. She is precious. Ellie was very curious about her, and would crawl over and smack her head. I think maybe she was jealous of that head of thick hair. Joanie had purchased matching outfits for the girls so they wore them today. It was hard to pose them because Ellie kept grabbing at Natalie and scratched her a couple time

For breakfast today I made up a Potato-Onion Frittata. This was my third try at a Martha Stewart recipe. My first two attempts were complete failures, (the first bringing me to tears the first time ever), so I decided early on that the third time's a charm, and if this recipe wasn't good, well three strikes and Martha's OUT! Luckily for Martha, and the rest of my family, this dish was quite good. It was fairly simple to make, containing sauteed onions, boiled potatoes, whisked eggs, salt and pepper and some extra sharp cheddar cheese with a bit of sour cream. My mom made up an awesome fruit salad and provided some vegetarian links so we had a well-rounded meal.

It was raining today so Matt had Levi help him push the motorcycle around the back of the house. Funny thing was, Levi had hijacked Ellie's socks and put them on his hands in place of gloves.


Lunch was low-key, just Matt and I while Ellie practiced walking around holding onto things and Levi napped. I set out a spread of cheese and crackers. We tried Edam (from Wisconsin), Gouda (imported smoked Holland cheese), Dubliner (imported from Ireland), the Tillamook extra sharp cheddar that I had purchased for the Frittata, and a wild card ~ Buffalo Wing Hot Sauce New York Cheddar. This one had habanero, jalapeno and cayenne peppers listed as main ingredients. Matt loved that one. One little nibble and my throat was burning.

For dinner I had planned out a Goat-Cheese Ravioli with Parsley Sauce for myself (scrumptious!!), and Roast Rosemary Chicken & Vegetables for Matt. We also had Lemony Swiss Chard. It was most enjoyable. Thanks for 10 fabulous Valentine's dear! I think I got incredibly lucky this year, to have tried out multiple new recipes and all of them are keepers. Phew!

Dessert : the decadent-looking Peppermint Meringue Cake with Chocolate Buttercream. It was very rich, and I have to say that I could have done without the meringue layer. It was somewhat crumbly and the whole cake just sort of fell apart when I cut into it. I loved the chocolate buttercream, the cake needed more of that, and I do still have some left over in the fridge, we've been thinking about turning it into fondue for fruit later in the week. So I don't think I'll make this again but I am keeping the recipe for the buttercream, I think it will have multiple uses.

Levi gets a hair cut

Here is Levi on 2/11

Matt got out the clippers and gave him a haircut while I was at work. It is always a shock to come home and see his 'new look.'

Levi on 2/12

Since I had a decent experience with Ellie the day before, and the price was right, I decided to make Levi an appointment to have his portrait taken as well. We were there on time but there were a couple people ahead of us in line. While we were standing and waiting our turn, Levi expressed that he did not want his picture taken and started getting emotional. He looked over and saw the balloons and told me he wanted one. I told him that if he sat nicely for his photos and obeyed me, he could have a balloon when we were all done.

This was a different woman taking portraits today. I really did not like her. We started off well enough but she quickly lost points when she started grabbing at Levi to pose him and telling me to be quiet so she could just talk with him. Well she wasn't getting a smile, he was closing his eyes and really squirming around. It was tough. He is not crazy about cameras at this point in his life as it is. Somehow we finally did get the seven poses and then we waited while she worked on her "enhanced" versions of the photos that she is required to do. The waiting wasn't too bad, Levi practiced his counting and laid across the chairs to make himself a "bridge" and ran around and goofed off. Then we had to go and sit and listen to the spiel.

The woman told me all about their 'popular' packages (uh, no thanks), I told her I just wanted the basic sale package. She was REALLY pushy, and I am sure part of that is her job because there is no way they are making any money selling only the sale package, but she was over the top. Levi was getting restless and I really did not appreciate her constant insistence of "this is how that photo looks enhanced." I had to keep telling her "No, I would like to see the original version of the photo please!" I was trying to decide between three images and I could have been done about 10 minutes sooner if she had co-operated. I warned Levi that if he didn't sit still he was not getting a balloon and he had to push the envelope. I really am not enjoying this age. Push push push, test test test. It seems like such a struggle over everything, every day.

I ended up buying the same amount of images as I had for Ellie, the sale package and one additional sheet. The interesting thing today is that she told me the additional original (un-enhanced) sheet was $20. I said to her "I was here yesterday and it was $10!" Oh, she said, that is not an advertised special but sometimes the other gal and I will give them at a discount. Sneaky!! So I did get them at a lower price but my patience for the day was just shot.

She gave me the printout for the online images and guess what? The session number and password do not work so I am not able to see them. Another strike.

Ellie - 9 months

Ellie turned 9 months old today, so I scheduled an appointment for her at Wal-Mart. They are having their special package deal again for $4.99 for 30+ photos. The nice thing about this visit was you now had a choice of 7 poses for that package. The gal taking the photos was ok. Ellie is not sure about strangers as it is, so I wasn't sure how she'd do. I asked about the feather duster and she told me the managers had removed all of them because they had sharp points under the feathers that could injure a child. But she had tissues, so she used one of those and got a smile by lightly brushing it over her head. Another new feature is that you can view your photos online within 48 hours of your session. I did end up ordering one sheet of an additional pose for $10. So I spent less than $20 and was happy with the overall experience.


I took a couple more photos when I got home since it will be a couple of weeks until our portraits come in.

How to entertain kids

Put an empty box in the room.





And yes, I realize Ellie's outfit doesn't match. We were living dangerously today.

Ahhh that's the spot!

Ellie enjoys a back massage from Oma

Super Sunday

This morning I had to run to Andy's for some ingredients for lunch. Levi wanted to go with me. I started the car, and got Levi buckled into his car seat. I sat down, put on my seat belt and gave the car a little gas because it was cold and having a hard time running. The second I took my foot off the gas and put it into reverse it died. I tried to restart it and it didn't want any of that. ARGH! I hear a little voice from the back seat. "Maybe we should walk."

As we were walking to the store Levi was asking me about a retaining wall. Then he said "Actually, grandma Gail caught a dragonfly." I asked him "How did she do that?" "uh, it died, like the car."

The kids have been doing well together lately. It is fun to catch them playing together from time to time. Most of the time Levi is possessive of his things but sometimes he will share and they have a good time.

Ellie is babbling, saying Ba ba ba ba mostly but sometimes Hi or Hey (or at least it sounds like it) She is also branching out in her travels, hanging onto the sofa and walking along the edge, then reaching out for the walker and moving on, along that to the desk, on to the desk and along the edge. She is sure getting around!

The other day I spent some time working with Levi on his writing skills. I drew letters with a light crayon and then he traced over them with his dark marker. By the end of our session he had written his name!

Today was Superbowl Sunday. We are not football fans in this house but I was tempted by some Doritos on sale at the store this past week so we did turn on the game and watch the end of it. Levi woke up from his nap and came out to see what it was all about. I He loves chips.