Sunday, November 30, 2008

Battling Illness

I hope you all had a wonderful Thanksgiving. We had a very enjoyable holiday eating turkey at Nana and Grampy's, along with Uncle Dan, Aunt Chloe and Uncle Patrick. The food was delicious, as always, and Brian thoroughly enjoyed his first turkey dinner. He absolutely stuffed himself with turkey, stuffing, potatoes and carrots, while Amy and Erin filled up on dill pickles and turkey. Beth had quite a full plate of turkey and fixings herself, and we all enjoyed pie and cake for dessert.

Beth battled a stomach virus a couple of days before the holiday, so we were very thankful to have all the kids healthy for turkey day! We thought that we had escaped an episode of stomach-virus-running-through-the-entire-household, but this morning Amy was hit by the bug. As stomach bugs go, it seems to be somewhat mild, so after spending the entire afternoon on the couch, she managed to hold down some jello for dinner, and then she collapsed into bed.

Two down, two kids left to go. I think I bleached everything in the house except the kids, so hopefully that helps. (Wishful thinking, most likely). Oh well. As long as Dan and I can stay healthy, I'll be happy!

I think I better get to bed. It might be a long night...

Friday, November 28, 2008

Guess Who's Walking?!

Well, maybe not walking exactly. But, he took three steps tonight, and kept his balance the whole time. It won't be long, now!!

Thursday, November 27, 2008

Happy Thanksgiving!

We're spending the morning watching the Macy's parade on TV, and moving Erin out of her toddler bed and into her "Big Girl Bed!" She needs a stool to climb up, but once she's settled in there, she's in heaven. Her headboard contains a bookshelf, and she's now busily filling it with favorite books and little knick-knacks. I'll post pictures later!

This afternoon we're off the Nana and Grampy's house for Thanksgiving dinner. We made the pumpkin pie, chocolate cake, and Amy designed turkey place cards for each guest. We wish you all a wonderful holiday!!!

Monday, November 24, 2008

Fresh and Clean

Beth is turning into quite a reader. She now reads longer chapter books, and particularly enjoys the Magic Tree House books, and stories about Can Jansen. Lately, she has taken to reading signs everywhere she goes. This morning, as she sat in the bath tub, she amused herself by reading all the labels on the bath products sitting on the edge of the tub.

"Baby Fresh Scent", I heard her say as she looked at Brian's baby wash. She re-read that one a few times, and then queried, "Mom, what does that mean?"

I explained that the soap smelled fresh and clean...just like a baby.

She mulled that over for a few minutes, and then said, doubtfully, "Well, babies don't really always smell fresh and clean. They must not be talking about the smell that babies have when they need their diapers changed. That would not be a smell that anyone would want to buy. Or that smell that newborns get when they spit up all the time. No one would want to buy that smell either".

She was quiet for a few more minutes while she played with some bath toys. Then she looked up and announced, "I've been thinking about this. I think the only time babies actually smell fresh and clean is when you put this stuff on them. So, really any soap could say "baby fresh scent" as long as it smelled good. Babies don't have a fresh and clean smell all by themselves. This label means nothing, really."

It's a case of the chicken and the egg, I think...

Friday, November 21, 2008

Peter And The Wolf

Tonight, after Brian was safely tucked into bed, the girls and I headed for their room for a special treat. I borrowed a copy of "Peter And The Wolf" on CD from the library, and have been promising the girls that they could listen to it tonight. The orchestra music is beautiful, and the girls adore hearing stories read aloud, so they've been looking forward to tonight's bedtime tale.

They all started out in their own beds. Tucked under their warm blankets, they curled up and awaited the beginning of the musical story-tale. Their giggles were followed by loud whispers of "shhh!" as the CD began.

They were mesmerized. Even Erin lay quietly in her bed, sucking her fingers and twirling her hair, as the cat tried to capture the bird and the duck. But when the wolf arrived on the scene, the music became more ominous. She sat up in bed and clapped her little hands over her ears. Then, she ran over to where I sat on the floor, and climbed into my lap.

As Peter tried to capture the wolf, the music grew louder and more frightening still. Amy hopped out of bed and ran to join us on the floor, dragging her blanket and pillow behind her. Within minutes, Beth climbed down from her top bunk to cuddle up with us. The wolf didn't seem quite so scary when we were all together, so they were able to enjoy the rest of the tale. They clapped and cheered when Peter managed to capture the wolf, and even learned to predict which character was arriving on the scene by the musical instruments being played. Amy proclaimed it to be the "best story ever", and they all tumbled into their beds exhausted but happy, with visions of Peter and his friend the bird in their heads.

It's amazing how something as simple as a story set to music can make such a memory. I'll never forget how much fun we had tonight, and I'll bet they won't, either.

Saturday, November 15, 2008

Birthday Bash




Today we celebrated Brian's first birthday with a party here at the house.

He wasn't overly impressed by the cake when we first brought it out and placed it in front of him. He tolerated the singing and the candle-blowing, but didn't crack a single smile.



But once we gave him a piece to eat, he seemed to appreciate the experience a whole lot more. He made a small mess, although he wasn't nearly as sticky as some of his sisters were on their first birthdays!



Happy First Birthday, baby Brian! Thank you to everyone that helped us to celebrate with him!

Friday, November 14, 2008

Happy Birthday, Brian

Brian is fighting a nasty cold right now. For the past two nights, he's been awake every hour, crying and coughing, and looking for some comfort. During the day, he's cranky and exhausted, constantly rubbing his red eyes and runny nose. He falls asleep in his high chair with a cheerio in his chubby little hand, but when he tries to take a nap in his crib, the coughing startles him awake, and his sobs begin again.

But tonight, as I sat in his rocker and gave him his bedtime bottle, I cuddled up with my baby boy and marvelled at all the changes that have taken place over the last year. We certainly had a few rough patches, beginning with a difficult delivery in which the spinal anesthesia didn't-quite-work. His few nights in the hospital with reflux, his awful bout with RSV, and his not-so-good-sleeping habits made those first six months seem very, very long. But the last 6 months have flown by, and we have thoroughly enjoyed watching him learn to roll over, crawl, stand up and cruise, wave bye-bye, clap his hands, and eat his first solid foods. He's certainly changed quite a bit from that little blue-eyed newborn baby boy that I held for the first time one year ago today. Still groggy from the general anesthesia, I couldn't quite believe that this little boy with jet-black hair could really be ours.

But tonight, when my not-so-little baby boy with his blond hair trimmed into a big-boy haircut fell asleep drinking his bottle, I put him over my shoulder and spent a few extra minutes enjoying the feel of my sleeping baby's breath on my cheek. And I realized that, while my son has certainly grown and changed over the last year, he's still the same cuddly little boy that I fell in love with last November 14th.

Happy Birthday, Brian. I love you.

Wednesday, November 12, 2008

Amy's New Friend

It's amazing to me what I'll do just to see Amy smile.

She's been begging to have her new school friend, Jackson, come over to the house for a playdate. So I contacted his mother last week and arranged for him to visit us today, along with his mom and little sister. Amy has been eagerly counting down the days, and began planning the details about a week ago.

First, she had to decide what to wear. She finally decided upon a favorite sweater and skirt, which I dutifully ironed last night at 10pm, before collapsing into bed.

The reason for my total exhaustion last night was because of all the preparation that went into readying the house for Amy's new friend. She worried that there wouldn't be enough "non-girl" toys for him to play with, so we spent a long, long time sorting through toyboxes and digging out old dinosaurs, toy cars and trucks, pulling board games out of closets, and readying arts and craft supplies.

Then, there was the issue of refreshment. She informed me that Jackson loves chocolate, so she requested that I bake a chocolate chip bread that she and her sisters enjoy. And so, last night, after putting batteries in the old dinosaur toys and fixing the noise-making choo choo trains, I baked some bread. I think I put more work into preparing for Amy's playdate than I do into my own social plans.

But in the end, it was all worth it. Amy and Jackson had a wonderful time, and when Amy said her prayers tonight, she thanked God for a "perfect day with my great friend".

And for that, I'll gladly bake bread. Although, I now remember quite clearly why we took the batteries out of that loud, roaring dinosaur two years ago. He might very well find his way back to the bottom of the toy box sometime soon...if I can manage to get him out of Brian's hands for a minute.

Wednesday, November 05, 2008

Clean as a Whistle

Today Erin had her first trip to the dentist's office for a cleaning. She didn't talk much about it beforehand, but once we entered the waiting room it became clear that she was feeling quite nervous. She climbed onto my lap and buried her face into my shoulder. When the hygienist opened the door and called Amy's name, Erin watched as Amy confidently strode into the back room. When the dentist came into the waiting room a few minutes later, Erin's eyes showed pure panic. But she bravely stood up when her name was called, and grabbed my hand. She refused to sit in the huge chair until we let her peek into the room where her sister was sitting, so that she could watch Amy having her teeth cleaned. Finally, she agreed to sit in the dentist's chair and let Dr. Laura look into her mouth.

She was petrified, but I was so proud of how well she cooperated. She followed all the instructions perfectly...too perfectly, in one instance. When the dentist asked her to sit up to rinse out her mouth, Erin did as she was asked. The dentist handed her a cup of water, and told her to swish the water in her mouth, and then spit it out. So, Erin did just that. Perhaps we should have told her to spit the water out in the sink, though. The directions apparently weren't too clear for my three-year-old, so she simply swished the water in her mouth, and then spit it right back out...at the dentist. The dentist was soaked, and so was Erin's lap. Dr. Laura didn't skip a beat, though, and after cleaning up the mess, she pointed to the sink and explained how it was used.

Finally, the cleaning was finished, and Erin climbed out of the chair. As we headed for the "prize drawer", Erin proclaimed, quite loudly, "That dentist not know what she is doing, Mama. She brushed my teeth with a bunch of dirt".

I suppose that toothpaste does taste a bit gritty...

Saturday, November 01, 2008

Happy Halloween!

There's an awful lot of candy around here right now. The girls are on sugar highs, and it's very, very difficult for me to avoid the temptation to dig into their orange pumpkins to steal a kit-kat every now and then. Brian didn't seem overly impressed by his first Halloween, although he did allow me to dress him up in the Pooh Bear costume that I made many years ago for Elizabeth's first Halloween. Unfortunately the pictures that I took on Halloween night came out too dark to post here, but here's a shot of the younger three, all dressed up for the library Halloween party on Thursday.



We did manage to capture many photos of Beth's big event this week. In honor of All Saints' Day, the first graders at Beth's school dress up as their patron saint, and, at a school-wide prayer service, they each stand at the microphone and give a brief statement about the saint. Beth did beautifully, speaking so clearly into the microphone, and making us all quite proud! Unfortunately, Brian seemed to think that it would be a wonderful opportunity to test out the acoustics using his loud voice, so we missed hearing some of the quieter saints giving their presentations. Here's Elizabeth dressed up as Saint Elizabeth of Hungary. (There are many Saint Elizabeth's, but Saint Elizabeth of Hungary was a princess, so there really wasn't too much of a choice for Beth...)Her beautiful costume was made by Nana!


Tomorrow we're off to Beth's very first gymnastics meet, and I'm not sure who is more nervous...Beth or me!! Good luck, Beth!!! We are proud of you!!!