"Don't Go Breakin' My Heart"

Thanks for the shades, sissy.

Wordless Wednesday: Just "Lion Around"

HE who said, "Don't Cry Over Spilled Milk"

Never had to pump!

Soccer Update

Well, I wouldn't say Ava LOVES soccer, at this point, but she is at least starting to participate. She is building confidence every week and learning new things. She tends to get frustrated if she is not the best or if someone takes the ball from her--umm, which happens when there is a herd of 8 three-year-olds running down the field. But we are slowly learning and practicing. I think 3 is just so young to start soccer. We will probably focus on a fundamentals class next, depending on how the rest of the season goes.

At her games, she has been known to a)pick grass b)stand by and watch her teammates from center field c)be very literal and stand in the position that coach told her to, for the entire quarter.

It's so fun and cute to watch! And, as you can see, she looks quite cute as a soccer player!

Cloth Diapering

I knew before Griff was born that I wanted to at least try cloth diapering. I've read how easy it is and it's NOT what our parents used to do. I didn't want to try it when he was a baby, baby because....well, quite honestly....it would have made my plate too full trying to figure that out on top of having a newborn and a toddler.

So, I decided I was ready about a month ago, Griffin was about 3 months old. I also knew I didn't want to invest in them and find some that were affordable and easy.

A month into it and cloth diapering is pretty easy. It requires a diaper change every 2-3 hours, which can be a problem if he is napping and that 3rd hour has come and gone, resulting in a leak.

I chose pocket, all-in-one cloth diapers that should grow with him until potty training. So we shall see. They were about $5 a piece which is GREAT when you look at some that can set you back $20 a diaper!

Here are some pics of my little man in his Sunbaby cloth diapers.

Little Artist

Some pictures I've captured of her artwork recently. She has always loved to draw and keeps getting more and more detailed.

This is our family.





I just thought this little guy was cute!





This is a space ship.

To the Beach!

Well, more like a lake....but made to look like a beach, sand and all. For labor day last weekend, we met some friends and Aves and Griff enjoyed a day in the sand and surf.

Well, Ava swam and dug and Griffin just laid low and hung out or slept. He was such a trooper and did great. He even got to dip his feet in the water for the first time. He wasn't so sure about it, but like most things, just goes with it.

It was a fun day and being only 10 minutes from us, an easy trip!

A Diagnosis from Dr. Ava and other blurbs

While Ava was examining Boo (our cat) and me, she concluded that we have the following diagnoses.....

Boo: Meanness Infection (I concur, Doctor)

Me: Arm-itis (Came up with it while examining my arm, go figure)

========================================

Another story.....

While driving in the car yesterday, on the way home from school, Ava was eating her snack of grapes.

Ava: "Oops, I dropped a grape."

Me: "That's okay. Maybe it will turn into a raisin."

Ava: "No, maybe it will grow into a tree. And then it will shade me from this sun at my window in the car. And then mommy can have a tree on her side. And Daddy. And Griff" (you get the idea).

Just thought that was such magical, logical thinking.

========================================

On our way home from school yesterday, I was doing the usual "how was your day? what did you do in music; in art?; in dance?; in theater and we got to talking about each. After Aves had explained her day it dawned on her how much she loves her preschool and she said, "This school is just SO PERFECT for me!"

LOVES!

=========================================

Randomly while driving (you can see we have a lot of deep convos while driving) Ava said:

Ava: "What was your dad's name?"

Me: "Ted"

Ava: "Was he silly like my daddy?"

Me: "He sure was!"

Ava: "Did he run all around with you and make you laugh like my daddy?"

Me: ::smiling, reminiscing, tearing:: "Yes, he did. He was SUCH a good daddy. And so fun and silly. Just like your daddy."

Griffin is 4 months!

And just look at these rolls!! I call him my little roly poly!











Griffin had his 4 month well visit today and his stats are:

16 lbs. 2 oz (70-something %)

26.5 inches (90-something %)

He is such a strong, healthy baby boy! I couldn't ask for more.

-He is rolling both directions: tummy to back right at 3 months and back to tummy this weekend, so right at 4 months. This is starting to present a problem at night because he rolls onto his back and won't roll back over although he knows how. He kind of looks like a turtle flipped over, hehe.

-His sleeping and eating are pretty awful, so we talked about doing Ferber and she was all for it. We are both on board and are going to be ready soon. He was doing SO WELL at 3 months and then we transitioned him to the crib and his sleeping got all out of whack, which then led to his eating getting messed up (i.e. consuming a large amount of his caloric intake at night).

-Received his first vax today: DTaP
It was so nice to not feel any pressure from our new pedi re: vax. They are a pediatric homeopathic practice, REAL doctors who take an alternative approach to medicine and nutrition. I am absolutely loving our pediatrician and the nurse practioner. They are very PRO vaccinations, just not so many at one time. It was a breath of fresh air when I told them that I was ready to start vax (that's right....on MY schedule) and she said okay, do you want one or two today? I was so relieved that the most they'll give is two. I chose to do DTaP today and come back next month for HiB and Prevnar and alternate months between those.

He is such a healthy, happy boy (who needs to work on sleep).

Love him!

Shaving Cream Play

What is THIS?

I think Ava would rather do science experiments over ANYTHING right now. In fact, I KNOW she would rather do that than soccer, anyway, as she has been seen searching for acorns and seeds during soccer practice instead of listening to her coach.

She loves to combine and mix and predict whether it be banana peels, potato rinds, or toothpicks dipped in food coloring or orange juice or saltwater.

We accidentally caught Griffin....

.....rolling!

Ava and I, that is.

We were doing a photo shoot of him in his adorable "g diaper" and he rolled over right in front of us, from tummy to back.

Ava was ecstatic! We clapped and cheered for him!

This was just a few days after he turned 3 months (I had to look on the camera to see when the pics were taken....oops!).

Sister. Brother. Love.

Griff is sleeping.

Ava just said, "I miss Griffin."

Melt.

Me too.

Wordless Wednesday: Who's Who?

TODAY, at 3 and one half years

This is a post I started a few weeks ago and have just added to it, as everyday happenings, occurring in the life of a 3 1/2 year old.

Today you woke up singing "You are my sunshine".

Today you decided that you are done wearing your Dora panties. It's exclusively princesses.

Today you tilted your head down when I went to give you a kiss goodbye at Science Camp, leaving me to kiss your forehead.

Today you told me that you saw some "extracise machines" and that I "should start using them since I don't have a baby in my tummy anymore."

Today you helped me make zucchini bread.

Today you told me you loved me out of the blue.

Today we played Mommy/Babe.

Today you told me you were gorgeous.

Today you looked frantic as you thought you lost me in the store. I know the feeling.

Today you told us you love your baby brother.

Today you used the word "fortunately" in the correct context.

Today you had to go to your room at least 3 times.

Today you laughed so hard your tummy jiggled.

Happy half birthday, Ava Alexandra!



Your favorites:

Food: chips, any kind, you LOVE chips

Activity: Arts and crafts

Outfit: Ariel shirt and skirt

Shoes: flip flops

Song: Princess Madeline

TV show: Lazy Town

Movie: Despicable Me

Book: Anything Princess

Schedule:

Wake up around 7:30

T, W, Th is school from 8:30-12:30

Lunch

Rest time

Activity with Mommy

Errands

Help with Dinner

Play

Bath/Shower

Bedtime is around 7:30

Griff is starting to be able to grasp onto objects. It's kind of painful to watch him try, but boy he tries so hard. You just want to jump right in there and do it for him.

In about a month, I'm sure he'll have it! Ava gets so excited when he holds on to something. It is so amazing to watch him come out of the newborn phase and become a baby.