SHMUFFIN BABIES

More Christmas celebration

2011-12-31T16:13:00.000-05:00

During the week following Christmas, we got to spend more time celebrating with Patrick's family. We missed getting together with Papa's family while we were away for my Grandma's funeral, so they all came to our house one day. We had a fun time, and I think they all enjoyed getting to meet Finn.

We also got to have our Christmas celebration at Bobbi & Papa's house on Friday. It was crazy and fun, as usual! Finn was awake for the gifts this time, and enjoyed getting to open his own.

First Chrstmas present

mmmm, blocks. yummy.

Baby's First Christmas

One of Molly's special requests this year - a pink "hoop-a-loop"

So excited!!

Elijah admiring the giant pile o' presents

Evan was excited about his gift from Elijah - Cars 2 movie!

The big girls are always so good with Finn!

Two crazy boys in their new shirts - This is what great looks like!

Bobbi knit all the kids a stocking with their name on it - Finn got his this year!

Yay stockings!

Finn in his santa outfit

Merry Christmas!

2011-12-28T19:35:00.000-05:00

We have enjoyed celebrating Christmas this year, and we aren't quite done yet! On Christmas Eve we made some special hot chocolate with fun peppermint stir sticks, (so rich and yummy) ate some cookies, and read the Christmas story in the kid bibles. The kids each got to open one book, one fun gift (they got pillow pets from Nana & Grandpa) and their stockings. It was such a fun time! The kids were very excited about everything. Afterward we went to the Christmas Eve service at church and then got the kids to bed!

The kids were up at their normal early bird time on Christmas morning. We went in to get them a little earlier than normal so that we could open presents without rushing around. Molly totally forgot what day it was! But they were both so excited when they got downstairs and saw the presents. =)

We read Luke 2 and then had a fun morning opening gifts, and the kids got some special Cars 2 cereal for breakfast, and then we headed out to church. Finn slept through the presents, but the big kids very nicely opened his gifts for him. The kids had a great time playing with their new stuff all afternoon. It was a pretty quiet day - so nice!

Opening gifts in their Christmas jammies.

Cute baby - almost too big for his jammies. =)

Playing with gifts - Elijah's cowboy cap guns and holster, and Miss Molly showing off the hat to her southern belle dress up outfit.

We have also enjoyed spending this week celebrating and being together and eating some yummy special treats. We made cinnamon roll pancakes (totally over the top, and crazy good) one morning and had fun snowmen milks another day. Merry Christmas, everyone!

So funny

2011-12-26T22:38:00.000-05:00

Finn and Daddy playing around last night. Love those baby laughs!

Christmas movie night

2011-12-22T18:52:00.000-05:00

Patrick: We're going to have a movie night!

Kids: Yay! Yay!

Elijah: So, what are our choices?

Patrick: A Clockwork Orange or Schindler's List.

Elijah: Um, how about Mickey's Christmas Carol?

Pictures from Pittsburgh

2011-12-21T19:46:00.000-05:00

Here are a few pictures of our time in Pittsburgh for my Grandma's funeral. Most of these are from my cousin Jackie - I think I took 2 pictures total. I think I just had my hands full holding the baby most of the time!

Molly and Luke "sneaking"

Gotcha!

Linde with Finn

Mom, Tammy, and Melissa

Madeline and Ana

Loey and Finn

John & Madeline

Patrick & Finn

Gone home

2011-12-20T22:02:00.000-05:00

My Grandma Jennie passed away last Wednesday morning. She was 97 years old, and had lived an extraordinary life, in a quiet and unassuming way. She was a teacher, a missionary, an encourager, and a wonderful grandma. She loved God with all her heart and loved people in real and practical ways. She was funny, smart, humble, never complained, prayed without ceasing, and made awesome gravy. Since Grandpa died in 2005, her health had been declining, and in the last few years she lived increasingly with anxiety and confusion. She had been ready and waiting to go home to Heaven for a while, so now we are rejoicing with her.

On Monday we got the news that she was not doing well - blood pressure, heart rate, various signs that the end was coming soon. Patrick and I took Finn and drove to Pittsburgh on Tuesday. (The big kids got to stay with Bobbi and they had a great time.) We got to spend the afternoon with Grandma. She was on morphine, but still obviously uncomfortable. She was more awake than I had expected, but mostly just gave one-word responses to our questions, and seemed to tire quickly if we tried to talk to her much. But we sat and held her hand, and let her listen to Finn laugh, and sang some psalms for her. My mom also flew out from Colorado and arrived while we were there. Before we all left, she suddenly asked about Elijah, which was the most she'd said all day. We were all so surprised! We had dinner and spent the night at Uncle Bruce & Aunt Margie's house. It was really nice to get to spend some time with them, too.

We got up really early and drove back Wednesday morning so that we wouldn't miss Molly singing in the little Christmas program at our Bible study. Mom called while we were driving back to let us know that Grandma died. She died before Mom and Bruce & Margie could get there, but my great-aunt Jean and great-uncle Clark were there with her. I am so glad that Grandma did not have to linger long, and that we got to say good bye, and to know that the last thing I said to her was, "I love you."

We took all the kids and went back out to the funeral, which was Saturday. It was great to be with all my cousins (we were only missing two of my brothers - Stuart and Cameron - all the other grandkids got to be there) and celebrate Grandma's life together. We also celebrated my birthday - how great to be able to be with my family that day! I was so glad that we got to spend a lot of time with Mom & Dad and with my brother John and Linde and baby Madeline. I thought it was going to be a long time until we got to see them again. It was such a blessing to have that time together.

Mom, me and Grandma 2002

Grandma & Grandpa 2002

Four generations (with Elijah) 2007

Finn pics

2011-12-11T14:30:00.001-05:00

All bundled up to go looking at Christmas lights.

This is the hat, sweater, and blanket set that Bobbi made for him.

Four (and a half) months

2011-12-09T20:49:00.000-05:00

Finn wearing his Bobbi sweater and hat

Finn is four months old! OK, four and a half. Life all just got away from me lately. =) He is a big, smiley, drooly snuggle bug. We went to the doctor this week and he was proclaimed a big, healthy boy - 99th percentile in both height and weight. Yup, he's a bruiser. He was amazingly calm and happy, and didn't even cry when he got his shot. He was not so happy later, but I was thankful for a calm appointment.

Baby in the mirror

Finn loves to talk to Elijah and Daddy and Mama, is usually pretty happy to be held by anyone he knows and even smiles for strangers sometimes. He is not a big fan of tummy time, and sometimes resents being put in his toy arch because he knows that means I'm leaving him. He loves mirrors and and standing up and watching Elijah and Molly play. He starts to laugh as soon as Daddy makes the "bum-bum" jaws-theme sound that means that he is going to get tickled! Molly loves to bring me diapers when it is time to change him, and he loves to smile and talk to us while I change him. Finn is getting a little better about riding in the car, which makes me happy, and sometimes talks to himself in the baby-view mirror. =) He has been rolling from belly to back occasionally since birth, but doesn't do it all the time. His legs and neck are both pretty strong for how young and big he is.

Right in the middle of the action - perfect.

Finn is still eating every three hours during the day, and usually getting up once during the night. We are working on consolidating his daytime naps into three longer ones, and it seems to be going pretty well for him so far. I'm hoping that he'll be ready to give up that nighttime feeding soon! The doctor said it's not surprising that he still needs it because he continues to grow so quickly. We are all just enjoying his cute baby laughs and noises and smiles - we love having him in our family!

Christmas decorations

2011-12-02T14:56:00.000-05:00

The kids chose and put on almost all the ornaments this year. They did a great job!

The best part is looking at all of them.

This year Molly got to put on the star!

Nana's visit

2011-11-30T14:26:00.000-05:00

Nana came to visit us for a week before Thanksgiving. We were all so glad to have her back! Elijah has decided that it's not good enough to have Nana for most of the summer, and a week here and there, he says that Nana and Grandpa have to come and live with us ALL the time. =) We got to go to Elijah's Thanksgiving celebration at school while she was here - the kids sang some songs and said their verses and we got to share their "feast." Nana helped me get a bunch of little projects done around here - I was so excited to finish some things! We never would have gotten so much done before having people over for Thanksgiving without her. She left Thanksgiving morning to go spend the day and the rest of the week in Pittsburgh with her mom, Great-Grandma Jennie.

This kid grew a bit since Nana got to hold him last!

Nana and the kids had a real tea party while she was here. They ate fancy cookies and drank "tea" (cran-raspberry juice!) out of tea cups. It was so much fun!

So thankful

2011-11-29T10:55:00.000-05:00

I really like Thanksgiving. I'm not sure why I like it so much - the food is great, but I wouldn't choose turkey and all as my favorite meal or anything. The meal prep is always a little crazy at the end, but maybe the chaos of too many cooks in the kitchen is part of the goodness - it is certainly an integral part of all my Thanksgiving memories. Maybe it's just the being together, celebrating, and enjoying good food without much agenda. I love the attitude of the day - being thankful, encouraging our kids to be thankful, and loving our family and friends who are gathered around. I love that we have to use our grandmothers' recipes and that everyone has a favorite dish that they look forward to, and that even the jello has tradition and memories and meaning. I love that both of our extended families celebrate with love and a lot of laughter around the table.

We got to host this year, and we were so excited to put in all the leaves for Great-Grandma's dining table and use our wedding gift dishes and the giant roasting pan that Patrick gave me years ago, when we still lived in tiny places that didn't even have an oven big enough to roast a chicken, let alone a 20 lb turkey, in expectation of being able to do this someday. i was a little nervous about being in charge of the important stuff - turkey, stuffing, gravy - but it all came out great. And even though getting ready was a little hectic (especially after Finn was mysteriously very fussy ALL DAY the day before) it was so nice to be home during the day - Molly got a reasonable nap in her own bed, and I could take care of a still extra fussy baby in his own room when I needed to. And it is just so fun to have a crowd of people that we love in our home. =)

I didn't take many pictures - sorry! But we had a great time and great food. I am thankful for lots and lots of things. We were thankful for my mom's help while she was here, helping us get ready even though she didn't get to stay for turkey. We are thankful to be so near Patrick's family, and to get to celebrate with them. I am thankful for Patrick, and Elijah and Molly and Finn. I am thankful for all the many blessings God has given us this year, and for a day to celebrate being grateful.

Our dining room, ready for Thanksgiving, with the new light Patrick put up.

Making our first turkey -the giant bird goes in! We made a 27 1/2 lb turkey. I was surprised it even fit! And it was so yummy.

Molly and Elijah made lists of things that they are thankful for - I thought they were fun.

Molly: I am thankful for Finn, Mommy, Daddy, Elijah, my"friends" in my bed (her stuffed animals and baby dolls), and Jessie, my toy (from Toy Story).

Elijah: I am thankful for Nana, my turkey, Mom, Finn, Dad, Molly, God and Jesus, Love, (his friends at school), puppies and kitties.

Pictures, pictures

2011-11-20T19:22:00.001-05:00

More pictures ...

Finn is starting to enjoy his toys more.

Reading with cousins - Maiah is great with Finn


So is Zoie!

Wearing her necklace as a headband

Growing, growing, growing

Warm & cozy

Train audience

Brothers

More projects

2011-11-19T19:33:00.000-05:00

A few more things I've been working on:

paint

paper + mod podge

spray paint

fabric

putting it together

tools

House tour - Elijah's room

2011-11-14T16:43:00.000-05:00

Here's Elijah's room. I know there are a couple of pictures/frames from his old room that I haven't found yet, but it's pretty much done. It's the only room that I feel that way about. =) It was pretty easy to get his room together because we had everything for his room from way back when it was his nursery in Colorado.

I am hoping to refinish this whole set of furniture for the boys sometime. I especially want to get all the funky adolescent stickers off the beds and dressers. But it's good, solid furniture, so we're happy with it.

These photos are of Grandpa when he was working as a cowboy - so cool.

We haven't painted, but the white seems to work with all the wood and everything already going on. Elijah loves his room, and that makes me happy!

The reading corner is my favorite part - he loves this giant bean bag chair!

House tour - some little projects

2011-11-13T13:45:00.000-05:00

I know, I know, it's taken me five months to post any pictures of the new house. We've been busy, ya know, with a baby and all. =) Anyway, I am just starting to get some things done around here to make it prettier, homier, and more us. We have a long list of little things we'd like to do. This house was in GREAT shape compared to most of the foreclosures that we saw in our super long house search, but cosmetically, kinda blah-meets-ugh. The carpets are nearly white (WHY????) and grossly stained everywhere, and the paint through the entire house is cheap, flat, and white, white, white ... except where it is dirty. And the drywall is a little banged up and full of old tv mounting hardware. Like I said - GREAT for a foreclosure, and really, even a house that was well cared for but not our style would need most of the same work. (Except for the banged up front door, the splintering deck, and the yard full of weeds, but ...) So, to sum up - we are super thankful for this house, and how little needed to be done to make it livable, and enjoying making some little changes to make it prettier.

Here are some things I've been working on - pictures of the rooms to come later.

My "mudroom" area - which is basically just a tiny wall in the kitchen between the dining room doorway and the main hallway through the house. I wanted the kids to be able to be in charge of putting away their own things as we come in and go out every day, but there was no room by the garage or back door to do that. I decided that even if it was not so pretty to have it right in the middle of everything, it would be convenient, which might help it to really work! So, here it is, so far:

empty, but pretty

Lots of hooks that everyone can reach, and every day shoes in the chest underneath. (The chest was made for Patrick by his uncle Jimmy - each of the kids in his family got one. It's perfect!)

and in use

I still would like to add a shelf above the hooks for baskets to hold hats and mittens and all that jazz. It is working pretty well so far, though the kids are not quite automatically putting their things away just yet, I'm sure we'll get there.

Just on the other side of that dining room doorway, I put up some more organization help - my little version of what is known around the blogs and pintrest as a command center. Nothing fancy, just some wall pockets (for mail and school papers) a chalkboard (for the weekly menu plan and lists) and a clock. I don't have a chalk pen yet, but it's gonna be fun!

I am still looking for something pretty to put on that counter to the left to hold phones, sunglasses and keys, and a small book shelf to put at the end of the cabinet for cookbooks and such (instead of that cute but way too tiny cabinet thing).

In the playroom, I put up an art cable (inspired by this one, and others on pintrest) to hang up the kids' art work.

We also hung these initial fingerpaints that I had the kids do this summer. (Finn's was done by Elijah.)

More to come!

Three babies

2011-11-12T22:00:00.000-05:00

Do you think these babes look alike?

Elijah

Finn

Molly

Celebrating today ...

2011-11-11T15:00:00.001-05:00

Wishing a very happy birthday to my daddy today! We love you so much!

And thankful for all those who have and do serve our country, and the families who love, support, and sacrifice for them. Thank you, to Papa, Grandpa, and our many friends and family who have served. And a special thank you to Uncle Cameron and the men who serve with him in the Marine Corps around the world, to Nana and Grandpa and Uncle John and Aunt Linde who loved and supported him through deployment and war, and to Aunt Amanda who loves him enough to marry into the service and sacrifice of being a Marine wife.

The Horse Show

2011-11-10T09:48:00.000-05:00

A few weeks ago, Patrick took the kids to the Pennsylvania Horse Show. They had a great time seeing the horses, watching some equestrian events, having their faces painted, and even getting a pony ride!

Our morning

2011-11-09T20:00:00.000-05:00

Today we are having a quiet day at home. The kids have a cold - Molly has been a giant snotty mess for a week now, and although Elijah has been fighting it off pretty well, he was just totally worn out when we picked him up at school yesterday. I decided that he needed a day off, too. Finn has been a little congested and a little extra fussy, but he's eating and sleeping pretty well anyway. Thank goodness!

Finn woke up at 7 and I fed him and changed him and we got the big kids up. It was nice to take it easy and not have to run around in hurry to get ready for school. In that way, today is not at all typical! The kids played a little, and I made baked oatmeal. While it was baking, Finn went down for his first nap, and the big kids colored some pictures to send out in the mail with some photos we need to send to grandparents and aunts & uncles. As usual, Molly lasted a lot longer than Elijah, but they both did a nice job. =)

For breakfast, we had baked oatmeal with blueberries and milk, and they both had apple juice (their favorite perk of being sick).


Molly calls this hairstyle "hello kitty" because of the one bow - I call it "desperately keeping her hair out of her snot."

Molly did some more coloring after breakfast while Elijah played. Then we gathered pillows and quilts and they settled down for a sick day movie - A Bug's Life, which they hadn't seen before.

yep, lots of laundry!

I fed Finn and changed his diaper (a huge poopy blow-out!) and then his clothes. Finn and I talked and smiled together for a bit, and I put away some laundry. I didn't get as much done as I hoped, since Finn was feeling a little fussy. But I got most of it done once he got back to sleep.

all clean again!

The big kids had some more time to play (build more train tracks) while I made lunch. They had ham & cheese pinwheels with green peppers and carrots, and tomatoes for Elijah of course. I fed and changed Finn again while they ate.

After lunch we had the regular flurry of sending everyone to different bathrooms and getting Molly into her training pants for nap, and then it was time to read. Molly and I read Oh My, Oh My, Oh Dinosaurs! and then she got to read to herself for a few minutes while I read a chapter of Farmer Boy to Elijah. Finn enjoys the nap time reading, too. =) After I got both the big kids settled in, Finn and I rocked for a bit until he did that slow, sleepy blink that says he's ready to lay down.

I forgot to take any more pictures of the rest of our day. I got a little more spray painting done - we had two nice sunny days in a row! But I also spent some time holding Finn so he could sleep. We tried a new recipe of creamy chicken enchiladas for dinner and they were good. Patrick said he liked them almost as well as his new favorite dinner - baked chicken taquitos - yum!

Finn and Elijah

2011-11-08T21:44:00.000-05:00

One more ...

of Finn "talking" to Elijah. Love these boys!

Finn laughs

2011-11-08T08:54:00.000-05:00

This one is from last night - Finn laughing at Daddy. So far, Daddy is magic - I haven't gotten even a little giggle out of him! =)

Finn in action

2011-11-06T16:36:00.000-05:00

Here's a little video of Finn playing with Daddy the other day - enjoy the baby noises!

More October pictures

2011-11-04T12:57:00.000-04:00

Sleeping comfortably?

Ahhh, now that's cozy.

Not so much.

Another Daddy trip, another movie night.

Smalls has been loving the swing lately.


So cute when they read together!

First Snow

2011-11-03T13:50:00.000-04:00

On Saturday we had our first snow of the year - and we got enough to get out and play in it! The kids were so excited. They got bundled up ...

It's a long process ...

and we still need lots of help from Mama.

What did Finn do while the big kids played outside? Took a nap by the fire, of course.

... and went outside to play! They built a snowman, and made snow angels, and wrestled with Daddy, and had a grand time. Yay for snow!

Got him!

Ready for some candy!

2011-10-31T19:41:00.003-04:00

Elijah was very excited to wear his fireman costume - not that you can tell here.

little ballerina - as ready for the cold as a ballerina can be!

the ballet bun

little fly boy - he didn't last long in his costume

We had a fun night! Note to self: next year, get more candy! There are a lot of kids in this neighborhood!

3 months old - and more pictures

2011-10-30T13:57:00.000-04:00

Finn turned 3 months old last Saturday! I don't know exactly how much he weighs, but he is a beast - I would guess 18-19 pounds? That would make him as heavy now as Elijah was when he was a year old. Yikes. He hasn't had as many growth spurt-type eating days this month, but he continues to grow very quickly. (It's no wonder that I am hungry ALL the time.) He wore his 6 month clothes for about three weeks, and is now in the 9 month size. Lately I feel like I spend all my time doing laundry and switching out clothes!

Finn is very smiley and happy most of the time. He likes his swing, usually, and likes watching the big kids play. He is starting to make little laughing noises for Daddy and I am eagerly listening for that first real laugh. =) He is also starting to pay attention to hanging toys and batting at them. He spends a lot of time trying to put his hands in his mouth. I think we may have a thumb-sucker on our hands when he gets dexterous enough to get it in there, though I think I'd rather he stuck with the pacifier.

what, me? fat? no.

movie night while Daddy was away

Elijah has discovered the Magic Tree House series (short chapter books) and he LOVES them


Molls is getting to be quite the builder - with blocks and train tracks

October pictures

2011-10-29T15:40:00.000-04:00

Wow, it's the end of October already. We did not get to do all the fun fall things that I meant to do - with Elijah in school five mornings a week our free time is a lot more limited, and Patrick had some traveling overnights and working weekends this month, so apple picking and the pumpkin patch just didn't happen. Maybe next year it will be easier when Finn is a little bigger. We have been working on some projects around the house and just trying to keep up with all the every day things that need to get done.

Today we are getting our first snow of the year, and we have a fire in the fireplace. It's the kind of day that I want to spend cuddled on the couch napping and reading! The costume party that we were planning to go to this afternoon is canceled because of the snow, but it will be nice to just hang out at home and play games. =)

Here are some pictures from the last few weeks.

piggies with lots of bows!

check out those chubby rolls!

i love baby smiles!

the kids love to talk to Finn

enjoying tummy time

Molly has become quite deliberate with her coloring lately - so focused

We took the kids to Family Reading Night at Elijah's school. It was a fun event with fall snacks, and some teachers and parents reading aloud, and time for us to just read together. At the end of the night, we went home with a tote bag of new books and a bunch of apples - does it get any better? Elijah discovered the Magic Treehouse book series and he has been loving them!


silly baby face!

Happy fall!

2011-10-09T20:25:00.001-04:00

Ha - retro blog header! I saw this one the other day and it made me laugh, and I love the pumpkins, so I thought I would put it up again for a bit. (It's hard to believe it's three years old!) I hope you all are enjoying some beautiful fall weather too!

Baby, sleeping

2011-10-06T22:19:00.000-04:00

love.

After a bath - you can see a little of the cute, goofy long hair around his cowlick. =)

Happy Birthday, Daddy!

2011-10-01T22:04:00.000-04:00

Today we celebrated Patrick's birthday! We took the kids to a local township's touch-a-truck event, despite some rain, and the big kids had a great time getting to climb on and in some construction and emergency vehicles. (Finn and I stayed in the van where it was dry.) Afterward we met up with Bobbi & Papa and Danny's family at Five Guys for lunch. Yay!

Elijah and Molly made Daddy some fun cards, and gave him some cool frames to put up the pictures they draw for him in his office.

Finn was not as excited about the hamburgers and peanuts as the rest of us.

Birthday candles in a big ol' burger. Awesome.

Molly digs into her cheeseburger!

Finn celebrated Daddy's day with a cool motorcycle outfit.

Happy 2 months (belated)!

2011-09-28T21:49:00.000-04:00

Finn was 2 months old last Thursday, and 9 weeks on Friday. Today we went to see the doctor and got him all checked out. He is well and GROWING ... 16 lbs, 3 oz. Oh. my. word. We shall call him Biggie Smalls. He is doing well! The doctor thinks his weight is just fine. (Tell that to my poor tired arms and shoulders!) He sleeps more than the other kids did at this age, but it must be exhausting growing at that rate, so you can't blame him. Finn has rolled over from his tummy to his back a couple of times now, and has started smiling and cooing. I love baby smiles!

Smalls is ready for some Penn State football!

Trying to get a good smile picture ...

Three kids...

2011-09-26T19:54:00.002-04:00

Elijah - ate lots of asparagus and as I was putting him to bed, wished me a good night's sleep, and a good day at work, and, "I hope you don't have any funerals tomorrow."

Molly - threw a fit and went to bed early

Finn - is cooing, smiling, and rolled from his belly to his back. Again. And he's only 9 and a half weeks old. And he ate. A lot. I think he is bulking up for his weigh-in on Wednesday.

Pictures this week

2011-09-25T15:18:00.000-04:00

They're both getting pretty brave and fast at coasting down the driveway.

We had a fun pizza & movie night when Daddy was out of town.

Molly is still totally in love with Finn - and she is so excited to get to hold him!

Apparently Finn thinks his bib is really a cape. Super baby!

The kids

2011-09-23T15:24:00.000-04:00

Sweet chubby cheeks

Elijah is getting so grown up.

I'm so glad they're such good friends!

Big sister

Cute girl!

Our cowgirl ballerina

2011-09-22T15:57:00.010-04:00

I had to get some pictures of Miss Molly in her favorite outfit - not only is it hilarious and super cute, but also represents her personality pretty well. I saw a very pretty photo of a little girl in her tutu and cowgirl boots on etsy that I wanted to get for Molly's room, but it has since disappeared. =( Oh well, Molly is cuter and has cuter boots! And since I don't have Amanda or anyone here to take a beautiful picture for me, I decided I needed to just take some myself, even if I'm a lousy photographer, to remember Molly at this age. Some of them are pretty cute, despite the photographer - yay!

{I'm not sure how to crop this one for printing - her face is so cute, her hair, not so much.}

pirouette

Elijah gets in on the dancing fun, too. I think he's an airplane here.

Some pictures of Finn

2011-09-10T18:09:00.003-04:00

Finn is seven weeks old! Tonight he is very fussy, but mostly he has been sleeping better at night and pretty easy going during the day. Here he is in his bath the other night - so chubby!

He looks calm and happy, but ...

this is how he usually looks in the bath!

What a big boy!

Some pictures

2011-09-07T14:46:00.007-04:00

It is raining here, and has been most of the last few days. I am very glad for my rain boots today! (I think growing up in Colorado, where rain boots are silly and unnecessary, has made me especially fond of them.) Everything is starting to flood now - we have a river in our backyard, and I don't think we'll be able to get to school tomorrow with all the roads that are flooded out. Hopefully Patrick makes it home tonight! Finn is six weeks old, and continues to grow like a mad man. Today I feel like I have done nothing but take Elijah back and forth to school, and nurse Finn. A 6 week growth spurt, maybe?

He sure is cute, though! Fun little sleeper (ack! the shoes!) from Aunt Louise.

I think his chubby little rolls are getting rolls. Gracious.

On Sunday we got to spend the day with Diane's family and Bobbi & Papa. We should've taken more pictures.

Oh my word, she is such a spaz. Where does she get it from?

Seriously.

Wonderful

2011-09-01T23:36:00.001-04:00

This afternoon, something amazing and wonderful happened.

While doing my normal scan of the blogs/facebook for sales and deals, I saw a great clearance sale on little girls summer clothes. Yay! There were a few things that I saw that I thought would be great for Molly for next year, and the prices were fantastic.

Now, all that is great, and I was excited, but finding great deals on stuff we need does happen pretty often, and I wouldn't normally write a blog post about it.

But then, I realized that I could just GO DOWNSTAIRS to our basement, and check the bin for next year and see what we needed! Like, in the very minute that I found the deal, not like making the trek out to the storage unit and not even being able to find the right bin, and three days later when all the clearance stuff is gone figuring out that I don't even know what we need ...

So, I got some great stuff - the right stuff, in the right sizes - and realized again how much I love having a house. Hooray for our basement!

First day of school!

2011-08-31T17:10:00.001-04:00

Today was Elijah's first day of school!

He was a little bit excited ...

um, more than a little. He couldn't stand still!

Watch out, Pre-K 5. This kid is ready!
Have a great year, Elijah!

The end of the summer

2011-08-30T14:17:00.002-04:00

Just trying to get in the last few days of fun together in before school starts ...

arts and crafts with Nana

dress up

oh, the yummy food of summer - we love sweet corn!

yes, she got it all the way down her chin

(Almost) back-to-school picnic at the pool with Elijah's school

Elijah on the really big slide - way at the top ...

and at the bottom!

All ready to visit Elijah's classroom and meet his new teacher - too excited for pictures!

Finn's baptism

2011-08-29T14:33:00.000-04:00

On Saturday, we were so blessed to have lots of family here for Finn's baptism. Nana was here all month, and Grandpa came out for the weekend. My Aunt Louise also came out from western PA, and Bobbi & Papa and Danny & Lorrie's family were able to come as well.

with Aunt Louise

with Maiah

so cute!

Yes Finn, Bobbi is laughing at you!

the five of us

with Nana & Grandpa

with Patrick's side of the family

with Bobbi & Papa

all the grandparents

with my side of the family

Mama & Daddy and our little man.

Chunky Monkey

2011-08-28T00:00:00.001-04:00

Finn just keeps on growing! On Friday we went to see the doctor for Finn's one month check up. (He was actually 5 weeks old that day.) I knew he was looking chubbier and chubbier, and getting quite a bit heavier, but he was even bigger than I was expecting. He weighed 12 lbs, 13 oz, which means he gained 5 lbs (plus those few ounces all babies lose in the first couple days) in 5 weeks. Yowza! The doctor commented, "It looks like breastfeeding is going well," with a bit of amusement. Yes, it sure looks like it's working out OK for Finn.

Big brother is always interested in what Finn is doing and is very gentle with him.

I don't think either Finn or Nana minds him taking naps this way.

With Daddy (their matching chins = cute)

He doesn't seem to mind taking a bottle. =)

I have been blessed to be able to nurse all three kids without any major issues - the first two until they were about a year and ready to be weaned. So we've never needed to use bottles - much. But I did learn a couple of things about giving a bottle with the first two kids. First, from Elijah, I learned to pump and freeze some emergency stock, just in case. Worrying about the baby refusing to eat is the last thing you need in an emergency. Even if we never use it, I need to have a stash in the freezer for my own peace of mind. Second, from Molly, I learned to continue to give the baby a bottle periodically, so that if you need to, you can give the baby a bottle. The emergency stash is no good if the baby refuses to drink out of a bottle. And anyway, it's nice for Daddy to get to feed him once in a while.

Both kids have been great with him, and are really looking forward to the day when he starts paying attention to them. =)

Little man, we're so glad you're doing well!

Besides, chubby baby cheeks are about the cutest thing in the whole world.

One month old!

2011-08-22T21:19:00.000-04:00

Finn is a month old today. Wow! That went fast. He is growing a lot, and his cheeks get chubbier every day. He loves tummy time, but he thinks it should be nap time. Silly boy!

Thunder Cake

2011-08-16T15:50:00.004-04:00

Yesterday, Elijah, Molly and Nana made Thunder Cake! Elijah has been anxiously waiting to make the cake from the recipe in the book, and Nana was excited to help them, since it is one of her favorite books. The kids got to help with the whole thing, from shopping for the ingredients to putting on the strawberries. They had a great time - and made a fun memory!

All my shmuffin babies

2011-08-15T10:51:00.008-04:00

Brothers and sister =)

Big sister loves

She just loves Finn - very energetically!

Brotherly love

Tickles

My sweet boys

Love these kiddos!

Elijah-isms

2011-08-11T21:38:00.002-04:00

After showing great problem solving skills while building tracks for his trains, Elijah was asked if he is going to be an engineer when he grows up. His response:

"I really haven't decided that just yet."

Life goes on - the mostly big kid update

2011-08-10T18:04:00.015-04:00

Since there's more going on around here than just a new baby, here are a few pictures from the last two weeks.

Enjoying their free Rita's - summer reading program prizes. Yay for reading!

Yum!

Oops! Mama forgot the bibs!

Finn joined the adventure - one of his first trips out.

The kids have been able to ride bikes almost every morning with Nana.

Silly girl!

Elijah's train track creations.

Buzz Lightyear!

Do his cheeks look chubbier?

More pictures of Finn

2011-08-09T17:57:00.000-04:00

bath time

nap time with Daddy

Sleeping so hard, not even a diaper change can phase him!

Milk coma.

Shmuffin babies 3.0

2011-08-08T22:15:00.004-04:00

at two weeks old ...

one

two

three

Life with Finn - the second week

2011-08-06T10:58:00.002-04:00

Finn is two weeks old! It's been a good week. My mom is here, and she's staying for the rest of the month, so the big kids have had lots of fun Nana time. Both Molly and Elijah seem to like Finn a lot, and I haven't seen much jealousy from either of them so far. Finn seems to be getting used to their noise level - he doesn't cringe as much when he hears them coming anymore, and he mostly sleeps through whatever is going on around him (at least during the day).

Awake and alert!

Brothers

Sweet boy.

Finn's first week

2011-07-31T21:21:00.000-04:00

Our first week home with Finn has been good, and pretty uneventful. He learned to nurse in about 10 seconds flat when he was just a few minutes old and has been a champion eater ever since. He continues to eat every 2-3 hours day and night, so we are hoping that those nighttime feedings will start to get less frequent sometime soon. He also occasionally decides to binge in the middle of the night - he wants to nurse constantly for a few hours at a time! - yikes!

It is good to know that he's eating well and growing though. He had his one-week appointment with the doctor on Friday, and was already up to 8 lbs, from 7lbs 12 oz at birth. Yay, Finn! We also took him back to the hospital to have his jaundice levels checked, and they were fine - no lights needed - despite his bad orange spray-tan look this week. =)

sun bathing to get rid of his "tan"

Elijah's Prayer

2011-07-30T17:41:00.003-04:00

Last night, Elijah was praying for Great Grandma Jennie:

"Dear God, please bless Great Grandma Jennie and keep her from sickness and death in between a rattlesnake."

I'm not quite sure that anyone will ever know what that means.

The new kid in town

2011-07-26T02:33:00.007-04:00

We are so glad to welcome this sweet little man into our family!

Finn Patrick was born at 5:09 pm on Friday. He was 7 lbs 12 oz and 19 1/4 inches long. Finn and Mama are both well and we got to bring him home from the hospital on Sunday.

Finn looks a lot like both his big brother and sister!

The proud big brother and sister!

Praise God for a healthy baby boy and a safe delivery. Now we're a family of five! We'll be putting up more pictures soon!

Elijah at 5

2011-07-20T21:53:00.001-04:00

Wow, I am still getting used to the fact that our Elijah is five years old. I don't know why it's been such a big shock to me, but I just can't seem to get used to it. Five sounds so grown up! I suppose it's the age of starting school, and there just isn't anything left of the little toddler/preschooler that we used to have around here. He is so tall and thin (yes, I know, he always was - but even his cheeks and hands have thinned out now!) and becoming so independent. He was 46" tall (95%) and 44 lbs (70-something?%) at his exam on Monday. He is learning to do more and more things on his own, and taking more responsibility for himself all the time. He does a great job making his bed, keeping his room tidy and cleaning up the toys and books downstairs every night. I think he is ready to learn to help out even more around the house, and I am planning to give him a couple more chores, but I just haven't had the energy to teach him yet. I'm sure we'll be working on those things in a few months when we start to settle into a routine with the baby.

Elijah has been reading on his own for a while now, and very rarely comes across a word he doesn't know or can't figure out anymore. He is still a very early riser (he's generally up between 5:00 - 6:00 am) and it's been great that he can read to himself in the morning until Molly and I are ready to be up at 7:00. He is much more content in the mornings, and I love that he is happy, safe (and pretty quiet) in his room. He still sleeps for a while at nap time almost every day, although we skip his nap sometimes when we're away from home or something exciting is happening. I think his very early mornings are the reason he's still ready for a nap in the afternoon. Even if he doesn't sleep, though, he still spends nap time quietly in his room - reading, of course! When he is not reading, Elijah is full of energy and loves to run and play. He still enjoys building his train tracks, which get more and more elaborate all the time, and playing with his trains, and has started to enjoy building and playing with Legos, too. He loves to play with Molly, and they have been playing pretend more and more lately, as well as chasing, playing tag, wrestling, and trying to play hide-n-seek. Neither of them really understands the rules of hide-n-seek, but they have a blast playing and finding each other anyway. Elijah loves to play outside, and is happy to spend hours in the sandbox or at the playground, even if it is hot. We are excited to have a yard, and to be able to spend more time helping him learn some of those outdoor skills that he hasn't had much opportunity to practice, like catching a ball and riding a bike.

Elijah usually has a lot to say, and is constantly telling me about the things he learns. He is very interested in dinosaurs and all kinds of vehicles and animals, and has a long list of places that he would like to travel to, including the arctic, Africa, Australia, Japan, a big construction site, outer space, and California. He often says that he would like to be a scientist, but sometimes claims that he is going to be a cowboy, firefighter, or a construction machine driver. He enjoys puzzles and playing games and painting, and loves to sing and dance (when he decides to, but almost never when someone else asks). His favorite song is "mnah mnah" from the old Muppet Show. Most of his favorite songs now are silly ones, but he also likes to "rock out" to U2 with Daddy, and he loves the mix CD and the Clancy Brothers CD (Irish folk songs) that I made for the kids to listen to in the van. He is not at all shy, and often starts up conversations with strangers around him out in public. He loves to ask people how they slept, and if they are having a good day, and usually announces that he is going to have a baby brother soon. Elijah would like to name to baby Jo-Jo or Thomas or Jed. He is going to be a great helper, and has already decided that it will be his job to bring me diapers and wipes and whatever I need.

After long months of deliberation, we decided that the best thing for Elijah this year would be another year of preschool. His preschool teacher agreed, which really helped me feel confident with our decision. I am excited to let him have another year of exploring and growing before he has to start "real" school and head to Kindergarten. I think it will be really helpful to give him another year to develop socially and physically, and I'm not as concerned now about him going back to school right after the baby comes. We're very fortunate that his preschool has a class just for kids who are/will be five this year, and that a few friends from his class last year will be in his class again this year. I am looking forward to seeing how he will learn and grow this year!

Molly at 3

2011-07-18T16:00:00.011-04:00

Today we took the kids in for their annual well-kid visit to the doctor, so it seems like a good time to do a little update on how each of them is growing and changing lately! Molly turned three a few weeks ago. They measured her standing up this time (and on the scale instead of the wall, plus she was not at all pleased to be on there, so I'm not sure how precise a measurement they got), and she is 39" tall (87%) and weighs 38 lbs (still 95%). She feels to me like she has stretched out and gotten a lot leaner in the past 6 months, but I think this is the first time that she's had a higher weight percentage than height percentage. The doctor said that her proportions are still great. Molly was anxious about the whole thing, especially about the doctor examining her, but she still did pretty well. (Sitting on Daddy's lap through most of the exam really helped.) She had one booster shot, and I was very thankful that Patrick was there to hold her - she really did not want that shot, but she calmed down pretty quickly.

Little ballerina in her leotard and tutu.

Molly is (mostly) quite a lot of fun to have around! She is a little chatterbox, and loves to talk and tell stories and sing songs. She makes up silly words and silly little songs all the time. She keeps us all laughing, and spends a lot of her day grinning about something. Her favorite toys are her baby dolls - she loves to dress them and take care of them, and would prefer to take them everywhere she goes. The other day in the van she was crooning away to her Bitty Baby, “oh, it’s ok, I’m right here,” over and over. So sweet! But she also loves to play trains with Elijah, with her pretend kitchen/dishes/food, and outside in the sandbox. Elijah and Molly have really been playing well together and like to make up silly games and pretend together. Miss Molly also loves to read and look at books, work on puzzles, and do any kind of art. She likes to dress up and pretend to be a ballerina or a cowgirl. The ladies in her preschool class at church say that she is "an angel" at children's church and is always willing to share and let everyone have a turn.

Molly is still very shy with new people, and usually takes a little while to warm up each time she sees people (even those she sees regularly). Molly is reserved around others at first, but she’s never quiet at home! She always lets us know what she’s thinking, and she laughs (and fusses) quite vocally. She does sometimes still have trouble when we leave her somewhere, like church class or with a babysitter, but usually calms down and has a great time once we’re gone.

Molly is still sleeping in her toddler bed for now, and says that she doesn’t want her big bed yet. She is potty trained during the day, and almost never has accidents, but still wears diapers for sleeping right now. She speaks very clearly and has a lot to say! Some of her favorite songs are “Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star,” and Psalm 23. Her favorite books are Bear Snores On, Goodnight Moon, Red Hat, Green Hat, and I Love You, Goodnight. She also loves Hello Kitty and everything PINK! She is very excited for her new room to be pink. She is always especially excited to see her own name, or any of the letters in her name or Elijah’s. She thinks we should name her little brother Molly Beth, and she is very excited to help take care of him.

Quote of the day

2011-07-05T21:42:00.001-04:00

From Elijah, as we enjoyed an afternoon snack on the back deck:

"There's nothing better than a yummy smoothie pop on a beautiful summer day."

That kid cracks me up!

Still moving in - and some new house firsts

2011-07-05T16:00:00.003-04:00

So, I think I would say we're 50% unpacked. It's the really important 50% that is done, which is good, but there's still plenty to do. We got some new appliances to fill in what was missing or not working here, but we've had some issues getting everything to work correctly. Our new dishwasher wasn't draining correctly, so Patrick did huge loads of dishes by hand this week, and we've mostly still been using disposable plates, but the maintenance guy came today and it seems to be working again now. Yay! We did not replace the stove, but did have to get an electrician come and fix the power to the stove last week, then discovered the gas to the stove was not on, and then discovered that the oven does not work. Patrick got it all figured out, and the part ordered, so hopefully we'll really be cookin' again soon. =) The washing machine and dryer that we got seem to be working fine (once we got the gas to the dryer turned back on!) but we did have some wiggling and scooting to do to get them to fit into the 2nd floor laundry closet correctly. I can now open and close the closet doors and the washer and dryer doors, but the detergent drawer is still a little tricky. =) We also had the electrician install the boxes for overhead lights in the kids' rooms, but haven't actually gotten any lights to put up yet.

We've had lots of fun first experiences in our new house, and I thought it would be interesting to write them down, so I can remember how huge this was for us someday when we're all used to having our own house. =)

Just for a little perspective - this was our 10th move in the 8 1/2 years that Patrick and I have been married. We have lived in three states, owned our own home (a 3rd floor condo) only once before, and lived in only one stand-alone house before this (that we did not own).

This is the kids' first yard! Patrick and I had a yard for a while (7 years ago), but this is a first for the kids. We have a lot to learn about how to how to stay safe out there, since we don't have a fence yet, but I am so excited about this one!!!! I am so thankful for our yard and the space for the kids to just play. We will be even more excited and love it even more someday when the yard is actually grass, and not 90% weeds. =)

Along with our yard, we have our first driveway. (Again, we'll have to learn some new safety rules.) How fun to have somewhere to learn to ride bikes and stuff!

In this house we have a dining room! A couple of days after we moved in, Elijah pointed to the kitchen table (in the eat-in kitchen where we have eaten all our meals so far) and said, "Why is this still here?" When I asked him what he meant, he said, "THAT's the dining room! That means we should be DINING in there!" Well, I guess we'd better get busy and clear it out (that's where all the boxes that we are still unpacking are right now) so we can actually eat dinner in there sometime - it will make him feel a lot better. =)

We decided to use the formal living room space for a playroom. I love that all (well, almost, so far) the toys can be in one place, and that that place is NOT the family room floor! The kids are overjoyed to see a bunch of their toys that we have had packed away - we haven't had room to have them all out at once before.

I am still adjusting to the idea of having a more permanent address. I am so excited to not have to constantly update everything - once we're done getting everything switched over to this address, that is. I still have to log in to Amazon sometimes to check my address book - when I am updating addresses I often find the old address is actually one or two (or more!) addresses back, and I can't even remember all the street numbers and zip codes anymore. It's a good thing someone kept a list for me!

Some other things we had to/have to get - a second shower curtain and bath mat, more towel racks (it seems like we always need more towel racks, every time we've moved anywhere!), new toilet brushes (we've only ever had one before!), a lawn mower, and a broom. We also get to go through all of our cleaning products and give away the ones that we won't use at this house, instead of hauling around our collection of things specific to other houses. =)

In case you missed it earlier, I am excited to be able to decorate our new house! It's going to take me a while, but I'll try to post pictures as I start to get things done. So far, we've rearranged the living/family room furniture a few times, but that's about it. We'll probably be ready to unpack the fun stuff - books and pictures and all that jazz - pretty soon. I think I'll have plenty of time to think about anything I want to do beyond that as we continue to get unpacked and then bring home a new baby, before I'll actually be able to do anything. That's OK - then I will really know what I want! In addition to decorating and making it feel like us, we have plenty of little projects to keep us (Patrick, mostly - sorry, babe) busy, since this house was a little neglected when we got here. Neither of us is new to working on projects like this, but it's been a long time since these things have been our responsibility at our own house. Cool, but a little scary!

Happy Fourth of July!

2011-07-04T22:12:00.001-04:00

We had a fun day - Patrick took the kids to a kids' parade and a new playground in the morning, and in the evening we all went to a BBQ with one of Patrick's coworkers. The kids had a great time playing, and we enjoyed eating good food and meeting new people. I took Molly home to bed when she got too tired, but Patrick and Elijah stayed up and watched the fireworks. It was Elijah's first fireworks show, and he loved it! We did miss our friends in Rhode Island and the over-the-top fun of the Bristol 4th of the July celebration, though.

Happy Fourth, everyone!

Elijah's 5th Birthday!

2011-07-03T14:22:00.018-04:00

Happy Fifth Birthday, Elijah!

Wow! Elijah turned five yesterday! He is growing up so fast. It's been one week since we moved in, so we didn't get to do everything that we would've wanted to do for Elijah's special day, but it was still great! He chose blueberry pancakes for breakfast (anyone surprised?) and loved coming downstairs to streamers and his Lightening McQueen balloons.

Since our house was not really party-ready yet, Danny and Lorrie graciously hosted Elijah's birthday party. He loved celebrating with all of Patrick's family and we all had a fun time together. (We also discovered the night before that our oven was not working, so I was very thankful to be able to run over and bake his cupcakes at Danny & Lorrie's, too!)

We just did some simple cupcakes, but all of Elijah's cars helped make them fun and festive!

Yay, presents!

Elijah had a great time at his party, and wore that birthday hat all day. =) We had so much fun celebrating him! Love you, chum!

Five years ago.

Knoebels!

2011-06-30T11:33:00.000-04:00

Monday was our annual trip to Knoebels amusement park with Patrick's family. This year, Patrick took the kids and let me spend the day sleeping and trying to rest up after a crazy weekend of moving! I was pretty worn out, and we decided that a long day of walking around and being too pregnant to take the kids on any rides wasn't the best idea. (Last year, I took the kids while Patrick had a work conference - maybe next year we'll all get to go together again!)

Getting moved in ...

2011-06-28T16:24:00.000-04:00

Well, moving is always a crazy adventure, and we are certainly still right in the middle of the crazy. But we are excited to be living in our new house, and that everything in the past week has gone quite well, considering all the extra complications. Patrick had to be traveling for work for three days last week, and was gone again over the weekend, and during the day today, so this was NOT the best time to move. But thanks to lots of help from my mom and Patrick's dad (and some professional movers), we survived the week, and all of our stuff made it from one place to the other without any major disasters. We are loving our new house and all the extra space, and I am excited to have already met some of our neighbors, who all seem really nice. Wow - neighbors! So cool! We have a lot of unpacking and setting up still to do, but I'm excited about how things are working out.

First sunset in our new house - this is the view out our back door.

The kids are loving the new playroom, and their new kitchen!

Wow - we're finally moving!

2011-06-22T19:17:00.004-04:00

Well, after eight months of looking at houses, four offers that didn't work out, a whole lot of waiting and wondering, and a couple of weeks of near-panic when we suddenly couldn't close when we thought we would, we are finally moving! Closing is scheduled (FOR SURE this time!) for Friday, and we are moving on Saturday - just in time to prevent being homeless. =)

The past couple of weeks have been, wow, a nightmare headache to say the least. I'm sure that in a few months or years it will be just a crazy story that we laugh at and tell to amaze our friends (like the refrigerator in the bathroom closet in our first apartment), but right now it feels traumatic and stressful, and not really a story I want to tell on our public blog. God has been very gracious to us throughout, and we are so thankful for all the ways that He has blessed and protected us and we continue to trust that His way is the best way.

We are so thankful for this new house - the space and the YARD that we have been hoping for for so long, and just the blessing of having a place of our own. And I am very glad to be moving before baby comes, and that we will likely even have a few weeks to get settled before we become a family of five. Hopefully we can post some pictures as we get settled in, but we won't be doing a whole lot of improving right away, so no exciting before-and-afters just now. =) I am just thrilled to have the space to unpack!

Really a big girl - yay!

2011-06-21T15:19:00.006-04:00

As of today, Molly has been wearing her big girl undies for two days! She kept her training pants dry for three straight days, so on Sunday night we gave her her new undies - she got Hello Kitty, Jessie (Toy Story), and Princess and the Frog. (Well, she really stayed dry for four days, but one day we had to drive to Baltimore to pick up Nana, and so she was in the van for almost five hours, and she wore a diaper for that, and that shouldn't count.) And, she has kept her panties dry since she's been wearing them - yay!

Molly is so proud to be a big girl! I am so proud of her, and so excited that potty training has been relatively painless this time. (Although I'm sure that we are still a long way from being accident-free all the time.) I don't think I would have chosen this particular time to work on potty training, with moving and everything else that is happening, but I am glad to take it, if this is when she wants to do it - she made it so easy for me!

Miss Molly is 3!

2011-06-20T20:57:00.004-04:00

Happy, happy third birthday to Miss Molly!

This year was the first that Molly knew what to expect - so she was really excited for her birthday! She had planned the menu for the whole day, and made her requests for cake decorations, and made a list of the presents she would like. When she got up in the morning, she was so excited to come down and find the kitchen already decorated in pink streamers and balloons - and a Hello Kitty balloon!

We had blueberry pancakes and smoothies for breakfast. Molly's pancakes were shaped like the number 3 and the letter M. (Shaped pancakes are a lot harder when they have blueberries in them, FYI.) She loved her breakfast!

Showing off her finger number 3, and her pancake number 3

Mmmm, blueberry, strawberry and yogurt smoothie!

The kids went to the park with Nana before lunch, and then we had Molly's favorite lunch: mac 'n cheese with peas. Both kids took a great nap (yay!) which gave us time to get ready for more celebration. Bobbi joined us in the afternoon, and Daddy came home after work to celebrate with us. We had "noodles and white sauce" for Molly's birthday dinner, and then had presents and cake and ice cream.

Molly has been asking to have Hello Kitty for her birthday for several months. I was so glad to be able to borrow this cool pan so I could make just what she wanted! It ended up requiring the help of both Bobbi and Nana to get the fondant on, but we all had a good laugh working on it. Molly loved it!

So excited for her cake!

I was surprised that Molly knew just what to do with those candles this year. I guess she's not a baby anymore!

And she blew them all out by herself!

I forgot to take a wide-angle picture of Molly with all her decorations - you'll just have to imagine lots of pink streamers and all those pink balloons behind her. =)

It was so special to be able to celebrate Molly's birthday with both Nana and Bobbi!

Molly got a bitty baby from Bobbi!

And LOTS of fun accessories!

Opening more presents

We had so much fun celebrating Molly today! She is so grown-up and fun. I loved watching her enjoy her birthday today. She had enough expectations to realize what was going on and enjoy it, but was still so surprised and delighted when she received the things that she asked for. I don't know if birthdays get any better than that! Happy Birthday, sweet girl!

Elijah...

2011-06-17T19:23:00.003-04:00

Just got home after I tidied up a bit. He said, "Wow! It's neat-o daddy! Its...well...as clean as I wanted it to be."

So glad I could meet his expectations...

June means strawberries!

2011-06-11T23:37:00.004-04:00

Twice in the past two weeks, Bobbi and Papa have given us some fresh, local strawberries grown on their friends' Lancaster County farm. Hooray for strawberries! We all love them around here, and they just don't get any better than this.

She emptied her bowl before I could get a picture! Yummo!

Baby update - 31 weeks

2011-06-08T14:18:00.006-04:00

The weeks seem to be flying by as we wait to know for sure if we are really and truly moving ... in only 9 days. Yikes! Despite the moving question, and potty-training, and the traveling that Patrick has and will be doing this month, and the kids' birthdays coming up, and all the craziness, the wee bairn (aka baby boy) is growing and developing and seems to be well and healthy. I had my glucose test a few weeks ago, which came back normal (hooray!) and the blood tests done again. The Rh antibodies test was negative (yay) but my iron was still low, so they actually increased my dose. I was very much hoping to be able to quit taking the iron, but it isn't the worst thing in the world. It's just a lot to remember - twice a day, not with the prenatal vitamin, but with food, but not with dairy, which inhibits the body's ability to absorb the iron ... Anyway, I got my regularly scheduled RhoGAM shot two weeks ago, and was only sore for a couple of days. Yuck. I think that was my 7th dose over the past 5 pregnancies? Maybe this time the wee bairn will be Rh negative and I won't have to do it again after he is born. =) Now we are back to the quick, boring appointments - every 2 weeks for now.

According to the baby development book, the wee bairn is now approximately 16-17 inches long, 3-4 pounds, and almost a skinny little version of his full-term self! He is still very active whenever I am not, and pretty still during the day while I am busy. Soon he will start to run out room for all this activity, but we are enjoying feeling his big crazy wiggles for now. Molly is not at all sure she wants to be able to feel the baby move, and usually frowns on him if he happens to move when she is snuggled with me. But the rest of us think it's great. =)

Patrick and I went on a tour of the hospital where I'll be delivering, just so we know where to go and what to do when it's time. I think it's crazy that we have had to do this with each baby - learning all over again at a different place with different procedures. I should get a job writing reviews of maternity wards around the country. (Queen size beds in the maternity ward, people. Dads DO NOT like those horrible fold-out chairs!) I'm glad to have that done, though. Now we just have to map out the best route from the new house to the hospital. Of course, we don't want to have to use any of this just yet - hopefully we'll have more than 10 days after the move before the baby comes this time.

(Almost) a big girl!

2011-05-30T11:25:00.002-04:00

This weekend we planned to use our three-day weekend to go to Pittsburgh to visit friends and family while I can still travel. Then Molly decided to fuss all night long for a couple of nights (for no apparent reason) and then she woke up with a fever on Thursday morning. Not wanting to infect any of the pregnant mamas or new babies in the waiting room at my prenatal checkup, Patrick kept the kids outside - they went for a walk and played around, and then Molly fell up a cement step and cut the inside of her mouth, and skinned her chin and her shin, and bled all over Daddy. The nurse who was supposed to be taking my blood pressure and getting my Rhogam shot got to clean her up and get her some ice and a bandaid. It was a rough day to be Molly.

Anyway, by Friday Molly was over her fever but certainly had a cold and a cough. On Saturday morning, Patrick and I had to make the unfortunate call that she was not well enough to go anywhere, and certainly should go nowhere near my fragile little grandma at the nursing home. So the boys went to Pittsburgh and Molly and I stayed home, both of us heartbroken not to be able to go.

Molly and I have been talking about getting serious about potty training, and we were planning to start on Tuesday - after Elijah finished preschool, and we got back from our trip to the 'Burgh. Since we were going to be stuck at home for the whole weekend anyway, we decided to go for it.

Molly has been wearing her training pants whenever she's awake since Saturday morning, and went a full two and a half days before having an accident!! WOW! We offered her the same deal as we did Elijah - keep your training pants dry for three days in a row and you get to go pick out some big kid undies. I thought she might just pull off a crazy straight-to-panties victory today, but the streak ended around 10 am this morning when she was too involved in solving a train-track related problem and didn't make it to the potty on time. Still, she's obviously been ready for this for a while, and she's doing an amazing job. I'm so glad we waited until she was ready and excited to do it, and that we had this weekend to just focus on Molly and the potty. Molly has been proudly telling people on the phone that she is "almost" a big girl, since Daddy always tells her that she will be a big girl when she doesn't wear diapers anymore. She really is getting to be such a big girl!

Last day of school

2011-05-25T18:11:00.006-04:00

Today was Elijah's last day of school. Wow! I can't believe that he's done with a whole year already! He loved both of his schools this year, and made the transition from one to the other pretty easily. He has grown up so much and learned a lot. He's made a lot of progress in his scissor skills, figured out the calendar, learned about patterns, memorized rhymes and songs, and learned a ton about animals. He also enjoyed taking soccer and gymnastics at school. Elijah was very blessed to have a great teacher who really knew him as an individual and cared about his development. He is both sad that school is ending, and excited for summer! On Tuesday, we all got to go to Elijah's end of the year party (with his whole school) at the park. It was so fun!

One of the big things that I was hoping for him to get out of his preschool experience was a good friendship. Elijah is not at all shy - but he's usually happy doing things on his own, totally absorbed in WHAT he's doing, and not too concerned about WHO is there (or not) to do things with him. He has a great time playing one-on-one with friends and cousins when we see them, but he doesn't need a friend to play with to be content. I love his self-sufficiency and his focus, but I also wanted him to experience the joy of a great friendship! And, just in the last month of school, Elijah suddenly had a best friend! Just like Elijah, she is the oldest kid in her family and very curious about the world. (And, strangely, almost as tall as he is - the only one in his class at his eye level.) They get along so well and love to do the same kinds of things. We are so thankful for her, and hope we can get them together often during the summer.

Best friends.

More pictures with Cam & Amanda

2011-05-24T16:24:00.000-04:00

Hey look, I found some more pictures!

So glad we got this one, even with Elijah's awesome silly face.

Crazy blanket monsters

Beautiful kid pictures

2011-05-19T14:37:00.003-04:00

Amanda sent me these beautiful pictures of the kids, taken on Sunday when they came up to visit. The kiddos are hot and sweaty - we had so much fun playing outside, but it was humid - but the photos are fantastic anyway. =)

Love them!

A fun visit

2011-05-17T12:43:00.005-04:00

On Sunday we had a wonderful visit with my brother Cameron and his wife Amanda. They came up from Virginia for the day - we didn't do anything exciting, but we had such a good time just spending time together and catching up. The kids were very excited to have Uncle Cameron and Aunt Amanda here to visit, and played hard all day. I'm not sure who got more worn out by the end of the day, but everyone sure had fun! Patrick made really yummy burgers stuffed with cheese for lunch and we all ate until we were stuffed! We're really glad that we could spend some time together before Cam & Amanda move to Japan this summer!

Playing with chalk - love those chalky jeans!
(It was really humid, and the kids got pretty sweaty playing outside.)

Loving Uncle Cameron

Elijah reading for everyone.

Some spring pictures

2011-04-29T13:31:00.002-04:00

Just a couple of pictures from the other day when we went to the park to play and enjoy the spring weather with a picnic. We've had so much rain this year that when we do get a sunny day, everything grows explosively - you should see how crazy the dandelions are! They are everywhere. We had fun picking them and making bouquets and chains.

"I'm the king of spring!"

Happy Easter!

2011-04-25T09:31:00.009-04:00

Happy Easter!

All of Bobbi & Papa's grandkids, ready to start the annual egg hunt!

Yowza! That's a lot of eggs!

Check out our eggs!

Crazy

2011-04-23T09:27:00.000-04:00

At the Blue & White game, in the pouring rain. Yep, we're nuts.

Spring and the decorator itch

2011-04-20T15:52:00.001-04:00

We will now take a (very long, rambling) break from your regularly scheduled dose of kid news.

I've been itching to decorate our space for a long time now ... like since 2007. But now that it's spring, and we've been in this interminable loop of waiting to hear about whatever house we currently have an offer on, I just can't stop thinking about what we're going to do with our new space when we get it. The idea of a place of our OWN where we can do what we want is inspiring me to want to paint the walls (and a bunch of our hand-me-down, mis-matched furniture) fresh, soft spring colors and nice, bright (clean) white! Maybe I've been living with plain (and ugly) white rental/student housing walls for too long, since I'm not normally a big painter. I think my style has evolved some, too, since I was last able to do any decorating. Our casual/classic (or comfortable traditional) vibe is getting just a bit of coastal/cottage influence.

I am very, very excited to be able to hang pictures and curtains, and to get out all the books and bookshelves. At our last place in Rhode Island, we made a fun gallery wall of pictures that we love (mostly of places that we love - some of our own shots and some of our loved friend Reb's incredible photos - if you love them too, you can check out her new etsy shop), and I am excited to get those pictures out and maybe even fill it out a little more. Mountains, beach, Ireland - happy. =)

All laid out on the floor, ready to hang. I never did take a picture of it on the wall - doh.

I'm trying to be reasonable, and not get my hopes up that we'll be able to do a whole lot right away, since any available funds will go toward actually buying the house and any appliances, etc. that may be necessary to get it up and functioning, but I think there will be a lot of little, inexpensive things that I will want to do as soon as I can. (Because moving and promptly having a new baby isn't enough to have on your plate.) I have a cool little cubbie shelf riding around in the back of the van, ready to help organize the toys in whatever basement/playroom area we may end up with, and a fun little kid-sized table and chairs (in storage for now) for art projects and puzzles and such.

I would love to make some fun, interesting wall art for that playroom space, too. This map idea is fantastic (and pretty cheap), and I have some kid art and some other fun (cheap) mod podge canvas ideas floating around in my head that would be great with it, based loosely on something like this:
We already made a rustic and western looking name plate for Elijah's cowboy room, and I have all the supplies to make some great letter tiles for Molly's name in her girly new room.

I think I already have most of what I need to put the kids' rooms back together into something fun and cute, but I am on the lookout for appropriately-sized chairs/beanbags (or whatever) so that they can each have a little reading corner with a book shelf and a cozy spot to sit. I don't know why, but I am SUPER excited to make that happen for each of them. I've also been designing a big-girl quilt for Molly in my head for about a year now. (That's going to be on hold until she really needs it though, since I've got a bunch of baby quilts that are much more pressing at the moment.)

Here are some other pictures that are inspiring me:

A little mudroom nook - I think I would skip the middle shelf and hang the hooks a little higher, and I'm sure anything at our house would be less pretty and more utilitarian and basic, but I love all the storage! Mittens, jackets, backpacks, shoes and boots, all in one place - perfect.

I'm also excited to get out my grandma's dining room table and have enough room to have people over. Of course, we're gonna need some chairs, so that people don't have to stand around that table! =) Well, we can throw together the whole motley crew of mis-matched chairs from all over until I find some I like and can afford, but I love the ones in the pictures below - the shape of the first ones and the fabric on the blue striped ones in the background of the second picture. I'm a sucker for comfortable upholstery, and washable slipcovers, and curved backs instead of the plain old square backs of regular parsons chairs. Wouldn't it be great to have some nice, summery slipcovers like these, and some darker ones for when you want something more formal? (Have I thought about this too much? Oh yes, definitely.)

(photos from House Beautiful)

Our new neice Madeline!

2011-04-18T11:09:00.004-04:00

We love you, sweet girl!

Elijah's Preschool Easter Concert

2011-04-15T14:23:00.007-04:00

Last week, Elijah performed in his first concert - the Preschool Easter Program at his school. When I heard about it I asked him what he was going to do, and he said, "I'm gonna sing some songs and do some moves." Hey, who could pass up an opportunity to see Elijah's moves?

Here are the kids, all dressed up and ready to go:

Um, not exactly the best photo I've ever taken of them.

Elijah was more excited to go than he looks. Both the morning of the concert, and the morning before, he was dressed and wearing a tie when I went in to wake him for school. He just couldn't wait!

Despite his excitement, Elijah ran out of enthusiasm about half way through the program. He did a great job at first, but after he had to sit and wait through a couple of other classes doing their songs, he was over it. It was so fun to go and see him perform on stage for the first time! Daddy, Molly and I loved it.

We took some video of the concert, but as of now, it won't load to blogger. We'll keep trying!

Hippos

2011-04-07T19:47:00.003-04:00

Tonight Molly told me, "Jesus plays Hungry, Hungry Hippos with us. In our hearts."

And another nice quote, from the mind of an almost three-year-old:

"Mama, my baby [doll] is sick. She has to go to heaven so God can heal her. Maybe He has some apple juice to make her feel better."

Breakfast in bed

2011-04-04T19:13:00.006-04:00

While my mom was here, Patrick and I got to spend a night away on our own, courtesy of a gift certificate to the Yorktowne Hotel that he won at work. Patrick arranged for a pregnancy massage for me that afternoon (so wonderful!) and then we drove down to Maryland to a great little outdoor shopping area.

The weather was fantastic that day, and we enjoyed walking around and eating dinner out on the patio. Patrick chose the place because they have a Noodles & Co. - another fantastic treat! (Seriously, that place makes me so happy, especially after a few years of living far away from them.) We had our favorites ... well, Patrick had his favorite (Pad Thai) and I had small bowls of two of my favorites, Tuscan Linguine and Mac & Cheese. I may be eating for two, but I just couldn't get all three of my favorites - that would just be ridiculous. =)

Mmmmm ... mac & cheese.

Back at the hotel, a wonderful day was topped off with chocolate covered strawberries and champagne. (Real for Patrick, faux for me!) We got to sleep in and have room service breakfast in bed. What a wonderful treat for a tired mama! We spent most of the rest of the day enjoying being together and finding some fun local food and even enjoying some appliance and house-related pre-shopping (just to be prepared - not because we know anything yet - don't get too excited).

Breakfast yumminess.

When I'm a grown-up

2011-04-02T10:08:00.003-04:00

The other morning Molly and I were running our errands. We had a very typical conversation with one of the check-out ladies.
"Hello, I love your cute pigtails! How old are you?"
"I'm two!"
"Wow! She's really big for two!"
(Yep. I've never noticed that before.)
Molly then told the lady all about how she's going to play "bollyball" at Penn State when she's "a big tall girl."

Afterward, in the van, Molly told me all about all the things she's going to do when she's grown up:

I'm going to drive the van, and put the key in there.
I'm going to use the big seat belt.
I'm going to sit there in the front (the passenger side) when my brother drives the van.
I'm going to put my own piggies in myself.
I'm going to put all the groceries on the checkout.
I'm going to push the cart.
I'm going to make lunch myself.
I'm going to carry the baby and buckle him into his seat.

She went on and on, and I can't even remember them all, but my favorite, by far, was:

I'm going to clean up poop.

Visitors from Colorado

2011-03-26T21:16:00.001-04:00

Yay! Nana came out to visit and spent her whole spring break with us. The kids were so excited! We had a great week. Patrick and I got to have a just the two of us overnight excursion, and I got to leave the house on my own a few times - what a treat! Nana and the kids loved every minute of just reading, playing and spending time together. Mom and I also got a lot of fabric shopping and quilt design done for my new little niece, who John and Linde are expecting in April.

Some of the fun things we did during the week:

finger paints - always a favorite

A recent hobby - Legos! The kids are starting to get the idea of creative building. I love seeing them spread out all over the table - it reminds me of being a kid and building with my brothers on our huge basement table. =)

On Thursday evening Dad arrived, to spend a day with us before both he and Mom headed down to Alexandria for a quick weekend of quality time with Cameron & Amanda (we all have to get in as much as we can now, before they leave the country for a while). We all went out to dinner at the Olive Garden - Grandpa and Elijah totally agree on the greatness of the Olive Garden - and had a wonderful time.

sharing animal cracker "appetizers"

Both kids ordered - what else? - fettuccine alfredo ("noodles and white sauce"), and requested that they add red peppers. We had a very helpful and understanding server. =)

Reading with Grandpa

The kids really enjoyed having a day with Grandpa (Molly's favorite "silly guy," who she is now calling "Gramps," since she has to have a nickname for everyone she loves - her other grandparents are "Nan," "Bob" and "Pops"). We had a lazy morning with lots of reading with Grandpa, took Nana & Grandpa to Patrick's office to see the campus, and stopped to look at the house we're currently in process with. We had a great week with Nana, and a great day with Grandpa, and we're so glad that they could come out to Pennsylvania. We can't wait to see them again soon!

Who needs sleep?

2011-03-25T06:50:00.001-04:00

As per normal, E was not going to sleep once he was in his bed. I went up to encourage him to shut his eyes. When asked what he was doing, he responded, "But Daddy, I don't like to sleep. I wanna stay up and play around all night."

Excellent.

First day of spring!

2011-03-21T13:37:00.002-04:00

Sunday was the first official day of spring, which means (around here, anyway) free Rita's! We went out and met Danny, Lorrie, and the kids to celebrate the new season and share our fun treat. We all had a great time despite the long line, and enjoyed our ices despite the chilly weather. It was a sunny day, and warm enough for the kids inside the van, and we loved getting a little spur of the moment cousin time.

Elijah chose the birthday cake flavor (um, yuk), and Molly had chocolate.

I think the rest of us mostly were smart enough to get fruit flavors. Danny tried the iced coffee flavor and liked it.

Evan's was cotton candy flavor. (Again, yuk. But they're four. What do you expect?)

Yay for a fun (free!) spring treat!

IT'S A BOY!

2011-03-19T20:56:00.001-04:00

Patrick and I got to go to my 20-week ultrasound yesterday morning.

The big question was answered right away - we're having another boy! We are thrilled (Patrick actually yelled when we found out) and excited to be able to start thinking of names and designing a quilt. I always feel so much more connected to the little one I'm carrying around once I can feel them kicking and know whether to call them "him" or "her." (I just can't stand calling a baby "it.")

It was amazing to see our baby in all his tiny perfectness - great views of the four chambers of his heart beating and pumping blood, and resting (for a moment - he sure is an active little guy!) with his arms above his head - just like big brother Elijah does when he sleeps. We are so thankful that he is healthy and all is well.

We were a little nervous to tell Molly - she has been quite sure that the baby would be a girl - but she accepted the news without any signs of being upset, and seems to be adjusting to the idea of having a baby brother. Knowing the gender also seems to be helping the kids imagine what having a baby is going to be like, and they both seem much more inclined to love him now. My belly has been rubbed much more often now, and more tenderly, to say hi to little brother.

Kiss me, I'm Irish!

2011-03-17T20:44:00.000-04:00

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

from our wee leprechauns ...

Elijah's favorite part of the day was calling out, "Kiss me, I'm Irish!" And, of course, fun food.

Green, shamrock pancakes (not the best shaped pancakes ever) ...

and green bagels.

Confessions from a week on our own

2011-03-16T15:49:00.001-04:00

Well, not quite a week, although five days has felt more like two weeks ...

Patrick has been at a conference. He's gone for a night or two fairly regularly (not super fun), but these longer trips (once or twice a year) are hard for all of us. I did feed the kids mac & cheese twice in less than a week, and let them watch a lot more TV than normal, and missed a few baths, but we also had some good times. Art projects are always a big hit and we spent one whole morning painting with finger paints and then water colors. One night we got a movie from the library and ate popcorn for dinner in our PJs. And we all survived. But we are so glad that Patrick is coming home this afternoon!

Some pictures

2011-03-14T18:47:00.008-04:00

Sorry about the lack of posting and pictures lately. Nothing very exciting has been going on, the kids were sick and we've just been busy with everyday things. But here are a few of the random here-and-there pictures we've taken since our last random photo post:

This one was actually taken last October when we stopped to visit Cameron & Amanda. Amanda took this very cute picture of me and my boy. (Can you tell that we had been at the beach? Holy freckles, Batman!)

Valentine's Day lunch - heart-shaped PB&J

This is Molly's almost daily uniform - her tutu and her beloved pink hat. With her favorite rain boots, she's a super hero. Without, she's a ballerina. Here she was dancing for Daddy.

Two little dancers, showing off their twirling skills.

Playing - she loves her Jessie backpack, too.

They both just love to do puzzles.

College

2011-03-04T19:14:00.001-05:00

Elijah: "Dear God, Thank you that Mama and Daddy were good today. And please help the baby to grow up big and strong so it can go to college."

I'm not silly

2011-03-04T04:35:00.001-05:00

I was getting Molly ready for bed the other day and having a good time while doing so. She was being funny and I asked, "Are you silly?"

Her response was simple, "I'm not silly, I'm just crazy."

Elijah's story

2011-02-22T10:07:00.004-05:00

Here is a story Elijah told us on the way home the other night.

Once upon a time there was a little bunny and he loved to eat carrots. He didn't have any carrots, so he went to Bobbi's house. Papa answered the door and said, "Hello little bunny! Do you want some carrots? Come in!" But when Papa looked in the refrigerator he didn't have any carrots. So he told the bunny to go upstairs and ask Bobbi. The bunny went upstairs, and Bobbi said, "Yes, I have some carrots for you!" The bunny ate lots of carrots and felt much better. The end.

There was another story about a manatee, a squid, a manta ray, and a shark named Israel, that I can't remember well enough to write down, but the shark made me laugh.