Happy Birthday Erin!

Two years ago today, God blessed us with our third little girl. We hardly knew what to make of you, Erin, because you really never cried. I can clearly remember one evening, when you were about 3 weeks old, when Daddy wanted to take you to the pediatrician's office, because he was worried that maybe you were too quiet and sleepy!

You happily sat in your bouncy chair, car seat or high chair, while Mommy and Daddy ran around taking care of your two big sisters. You patiently waited your turn for diaper changes and feedings. You spent hours riding in the car when we took Beth and Amy to school, gymnastics and dance classes, and you never made any complaints about that. You've always been so easy to love.

Two years later, you're feisty and able to hold your own in this busy household, but you're still so easy-going and patient. I love your broken-tooth smile, your blond curls, and your baby voice. You're our little jumping-bean, and we love you so much. Happy Second Birthday, little Erin.

You Know Your Kids are WAY too accident-prone when...

...they have conversations like this:

AMY: "Mommy, next time one of us goes to the hospital for some more stitches or a bumped head or for ITP medicine or something like that, can we get some food in the hospital cafeteria or a present in the gift store?"

BETH: "Which one is your favorite hospital, Amy? I like Children's Hospital the best. I like seeing all the tall buildings. But I also like the hospital where I had my stitches. They have good snack machines there."

AMY: "I think I liked the one where I went when I bumped my head, but I can't really remember it too much. They did have a cool playroom with a kitchen in it. I played there, but my IV kept getting caught on things".

ME: Let's just try to stay OUT of the hospitals for a while, okay? I don't like any of them. If you want to see tall buildings or get snacks from a vending machine, we'll just take a day trip somewhere, okay?"

Fall leaves

AMY: Mommy, when the leaves start turning colors in a few weeks, I don't want just orange and red and yellow. I'm tired of those colors. This year I want them to turn pink and purple, because I love those colors. Who do I talk to about that?

(I'm not sure, but I think Uncle John might be a good person to take this one on...)!

Soaking Wet

Trying to keep three little girls occupied and happy can sometimes be a challenge. But today I discovered that it is infinitely more difficult to do this when all your carpets and upholstery have been professionally cleaned, and there is not a single dry, soft place on the entire first floor for them (or me) to sit on.

I had no choice about the cleaning. I'll merely tell you that Beth had some sort of violent stomach upset on Monday and Tuesday, and she managed to completely MISS the bucket with each upheaval. So on Tuesday afternoon I called every carpet cleaning company in the phone book in a desperate attempt to find someone that could come to the house within 24 hours. Luckily I found a great company, and they spent this entire morning trying to straighten things out around here. And Erin spent the entire morning wrapped around my neck, petrified by the loud noises coming from the steam cleaner.

After he left, I realized that the kids could not walk on the sopping wet carpet, couldn't play on the floors, and couldn't sit on the couch. We played outside for a long time, but eventually Erin had to take a nap. That's when Beth and Amy usually watch a movie, but it was quite tricky this afternoon.

I tried dragging hard-backed kitchen chairs into the living room, but the girls lasted about 5 minutes in those. I finally resorted to piling blankets on top of the wet couches, and then piling two girls on top of the blankets. They thought it was a great game. Unfortunately, approximately every 2 minutes one of them would need to go to the bathroom, but would be afraid of the wet carpet. So I carried them back and forth, back and forth...all afternoon. When the movie ended I climbed onto the piles of blankets with them, and we read stories for an hour, until Erin woke up.

Never a dull moment. Never, never. But at least things are clean.

Conquering Fears

Erin and I spent this afternoon at a nearby playground. For most of the summer, Erin has been petrified of the slides and jungle gyms, so she clings to my legs while Beth and Amy run, climb and swing. I must confess, it's actually been quite convenient for me, because I've only had to keep track of the two older ones. But a couple of weeks ago, Erin finally ventured up the stairs of a smaller jungle gym. She tentatively sat down at the top of the slide. She sat and sat, until older kids began to get annoyed with her, so I coaxed her down the very small slide. And thus began her love of speed, heights and danger.

Now, she loves slides - the bigger the better. Today's playground had a very high, twirling slide, and I was quite worried that it was too dangerous for her to attempt. I managed to divert her attention for a bit, by pushing her on the swings, and leading her toward some smaller, more toddler-friendly slides. But eventually she noticed the bright yellow slide towering above all the rest.

"Slide, Mama! Slide" she shrieked, pointing out the apparatus. Reluctantly, I let her lead me over to the steps, and I watched nervously as she began climbing. The higher she got, the more anxious I became. Finally, she reached the top.

I was calling out cautionary advice, such as "sit down slowly, Erin!" and "hold on tight, Erin!", but she knew just what to do.

I had to smile as I watched her trying to overcome her own fears. "Help, Mama!", she yelled down fearfully, but when I walked over closer, she called out, "No, no. No help. I do."

She sat for a few minutes and thought carefully about her challenge. Then she took a deep breath, pushed off, and started flying down and around. I watched her little pink shirt whipping around the turns, and heard her giggling voice yelling "wheeee!!". When she finally emerged at the bottom of the tunnel, I realized that I had been holding my breath the entire time.

She jumped down and ran back to the steps, yelling "Again! Again!", and "I did it!!"

She was so proud of herself. And I was so proud of her, too. This growing-up process can certainly be nerve-wracking for Mom, but sometimes I guess I just need to step back a bit, and let her fly.

Special plans

We've been having quite a bit of difficulty lately with Amy's behavior. Frequent tantrums, screaming fits and outright defiance are part of our daily routine right now. We're working on discipling her, but we're also trying to figure out what could be the root cause of her issues. Is she worried about heading off to school in a few weeks? Is she concerned about the arrival of a new sibling? Is it simply that "middle child" syndrome that we hear so much about? We're not at all sure.

We think that she could be seeking attention. There's been so much focus on Beth's first day of kindergarten, Erin's upcoming birthday party, and the new baby's arrival. Maybe Amy feels overlooked. So Dan and I decided that next week, I would take her out shopping for a new school backpack, and then the two of us would go out for ice cream. We don't naively think that this will solve all her problems, but we do want her to realize how important she really is.

I eagerly presented the plan to her this morning. She sat quietly and listened, but then she got a worried look on her face.

"You want me to go out for ice cream with just you?", she asked. "You want to leave Beth at home? And Erin? And Daddy?"

I explained that it would be a special treat for the two of us. I talked about how much fun it would be to pick out a new backpack. But she was not interested in the least.

"I'm not going without Beth. We'll have to come back home after the backpack shopping and pick up Beth. She loves chocolate ice cream. I'm not eating any without her."

So, I agreed that we could make it a special trip for the three of us.

"No, no", she answered. "I can't go out for ice cream without Erin. She loves vanilla ice cream. It can be her special day, too. And Daddy. He'll want to come and get some ice cream too. Let's all go and have a special day together".

So in the end, that's what we decided to do. It wasn't exactly what we had planned, but somehow I think she recognized our intentions. One thing is certain. We planned the outing in order to remind her just how special she is, but instead, her adorable and unselfish response reminded us that underneath all those temper tantrums, she really is an amazing little girl.

Growing Pains

BETH: Mommy, can you check these ballet shoes for me? They're so tight. I think they're not a size 11 anymore.

Top Five Reasons Why Today Was A Great Day!

5. The girls hardly bickered at all. For some strange reason, they played happily together all morning. They almost seemed like...well...friends!

4. Even though it was raining, I was quite happy with the weather, because the temperature outside was only 56 degrees. Those of you that know me at all are well aware of my love of Autumn. I wait all year long for those cool, crisp days, and today I finally felt like the season may actually arrive soon!

3. We all had lunch together at Daddy's work. French fries and pizza from the hospital cafeteria are somehow appealing when it means that we get to visit Daddy's office and all of his friends!

2. As an extra treat, we all went to Dairy Queen tonight after dinner for ice creams. Why? Because...

1. Beth had her final checkup in the city today, and after her bloodwork came back, she was declared ITP-free...finally!

wedding photos

We've returned from our wedding weekend, and the girls all had a wonderful time. Surprisingly enough, they all slept quite well in our hotel room, although I can assure you that I will never again offer to share a bed with Beth. I had no idea that such a small person could kick quite so much. They were all reasonably well-behaved, considering the fact that they were awake and partying until after 10pm on Friday and Saturday evening...later than they've ever been up before!

The reception was held in an aquarium, which was a dream-come-true for the girls. They had free reign of the whole place, and got to spend hours touching starfish, digging for dinosaur fossils, and watching fish and turtles swim. There were only a dozen or so children in attendance, so they all enjoyed experiencing a private evening in the aquarium with no crowds of children to deal with.

Above you can see a tired-out Beth, taking a rest after her flower girl duties were completed. And here's proof that Amy and her cousin Ella actually did sit quite still for the ceremony. They really did a wonderful job!

Now, we're home and enjoying our last few weeks of summer before the hustle and bustle of the school year begins once again! Congratulations to Dan and Chloe!

Flower girls...Take two!

We're getting those extra-special, sparkly white "party-shoes" out of the closet. Beth and Amy will be flower girls again on Saturday, at Uncle Dan and Aunt Chloe's wedding! Amy is so much more relaxed this time, now that she knows what to expect. Beth tells anyone that will listen that this is "her fourth time being a flower girl!" She feels like an old pro, but is still just as excited.

We'll post pictures after the weekend. Wish us luck!