"News"

Yes, "news" is relative, right?  But, here's a little of what's "news" around here:

* Emily officially loves peanut butter.  She loves it, loves it, loves it.  We were at a friends last week, and on impulse, I fed her a wonderful pb&j sandwich as I held my breath.  No worries, here, folks!  She is a fan.  Hey, it was a belated birthday gift, right?

* Em also loves milk.  BYE, formula!  Can't say I miss buying you, but whole milk isn't exactly cheap, either :)  She just recently mastered her sippy cup, so she's in business.  She transitioned beautifully from her bottle, and I'm thankful for that.

* Elyse is really into getting dirty.  Every time I take this girl outside now, she's filthy in minutes.  In fact, in the time it took me to buckle the girls in their car seats today, she was covered in dirt and wet grass.  I'm not sure where the little girl who hated getting dirty went, but this could be a long and messy summer!  Her favorite spots are little holes in sidewalks that are filled with dirt, muddy puddles, SAND, and anywhere gravel is present.  It's funny to watch her choose good ol' dirt over toys for entertainment!  She likes to spread the dirt over her skin and giggle.  Gotta love kids.

* Elyse has also enjoyed hockey playoffs with Daddy.  Good thing he has another hockey fan in this house!  The other morning, she cozied up to him on the couch and asked for, "hockey highlights, please, Daddy?"  Somebody was pretty happy about that.

* I'm kind of amazed at how much groceries have gone up in price this year.  I knew it was coming, I guess, but I've really noticed a difference in the little things.  I've definitely become more of a sale shopper, and I'm very proud to say that I haven't been to Wal-Mart in about a month!  For me, that's quite a record.  I've been shopping store ads and couponing when I can, and I must say, I don't miss Wal-Mart yet.  I have a feeling I'll still visit once a month if necessary, but that's better than two or three times, right? :)

* Emily and Elyse have been making an event of nap times.  For a while, I was able to put Elyse down first (since she usually sleeps about 3 hours and Em only sleeps about 2 to 2.5 hours), and sneak Emily in there, but Emily is just too loud.  SO, we've been trying to put them down at the same time.  They play for almost an hour every day.  That, in turn, makes my eldest not-so-tired at her 7pm bedtime.  I had to go in yesterday to remind Elyse to go to sleep (She was singing her medley of "Away in a Manger," "The Wheels on the Bus," and "Happy Birthday."); she looked up with the saddest eyes and said, "Mommy?  Can I please still laugh at Emmie?"  *sigh*

* I am loving sweet corn!!  YAY for awesome produce!

* Emily has cut her top teeth, and another tooth is just about to poke through.  I'm glad she's been pretty easy-going about these last two.  NOW, though, she's starting to grind her front teeth.  Not cool.  She smiles when I try to stop her :)

* Emily is still really into "wrestling" with Elyse.  I really do try not to encourage it too much, but they have so much fun, it's hard.  Emily is definitely the instigator, and Elyse loves it.  I'm amazed at what she puts up with from Emily that she would never put up with from other kids!

* Elyse has come up with a new "silly voice" that she likes to use.  I need to try to get a video of it, but it sounds very pouty and pathetic... somewhat like she's on the verge of tears.  As soon as I give her my full attention, she just starts cracking up.

* We're going camping this weekend, and it's all Elyse has been talking about.  She keeps telling us about how she gets to sleep on a tent!  We might put her up there if she doesn't sleep nicely for us...  This event could require a separate post in the future!

* Emily can now handle eating raisins & I'm not sure that I'm too happy about that.  Those of you who know what I'm talking about understand :)  Enough said.

Yes, all of these noteworthy events are true.  I know: we live on the edge, don't we?!?

Party, party!

We had a fun day with Emily on her first birthday.  We met up with some families from our community group at a local park & had a nice little picnic together.  Emily seemed to enjoy herself greatly, but probably not as much as we did.  We are so thankful for brothers and sisters in Christ to share these fun events with!  Here are some pictures of our sweet birthday girl with her family and little friends :)

My Big Girl

I will not get sappy, I will not get sappy, I will not get....  Yea, you know.  It's hard.  My sweetie pie is one.  It still seems like yesterday that I spent a sleepless night (one of many) walking a tiny, screaming Emmie up and down our hallway, trying to piece together coherent thoughts that would inspire me to stay awake, wondering if every night would be like this one, trying to see how life would ever be normal . . .  and THEN, she decided she liked us  :)  I remember those moments like yesterday.  Even in the midst of those rough weeks, once she was done screaming her head off, her little face would finally relax in the most precious way that would just melt our hearts.  *sigh*  BUT, we were glad she got over that screaming stuff.  Boy, were we glad!  If you feel like reading her birth story, here is the link.  I will spare you all of that reminiscing today... you're welcome.

Emily is definitely growing and changing.  For the first time in a long time, she actually looks 12 months old!  She just might be getting some chubby arms and legs, too!!!  Her spunk never ceases to amaze me.  She gets this little twinkle in her eye as she lets that food drop out of her hand and onto the floor... a little smirk as she's just about to head to some forbidden object... that "innocent" smile as she yanks off her bib...  Yea, she's keeping us on our toes.  Aside from spunk, her happiness is quite charming.  She loves to giggle at nothing, make fake laughing noises whenever she hears us laugh, and squeal over absolutely nothing.  Her greatest entertainment is still Elyse, but she's finding amusement in balloons, noisy toys, snacks, and bubbles these days.  She's sleeping about 12 hours at night (perhaps it could be longer if she didn't insist on playing with her roommate for far too long at night!), and she takes a naps in the morning (about 1.5 hours) and in the afternoon (about 2 hours).  She loves to sit up in her crib - hands holding the railings, sitting right up against the railings - and laugh.  If she gets tired, she'll start sucking on her finger and eventually fall over and go to sleep.  It's a process, folks.  I love that she sleeps on her side a lot, limbs flung out in front of her, but there's something about seeing her sleep with her little bum up in the air.

Em loves to eat, but she's not as big of an eater as I thought she'd be by now.  Her current favorites are: blueberries, strawberries, cheese, broccoli, carrots, and pineapple.  She's not too fond of spicy foods, but she will try just about anything, and she prefers to eat all by herself :)  NO help from Mom, thank ya' very much!  I've had to laugh at her food envy lately.  If she's eating bread and cheese, and I help myself to something other than bread and cheese, she starts panting and getting agitated.  Wow.  She cut one of her top front teeth, and the other is visible under her gums.  She only has her two bottom teeth at this point, which makes for some cute pictures :)

Emily loves to crawl around the house with something in her mouth.  A piece of paper, a toy, a piece of clothing... anything will do.  She loves to follow me into the kitchen and crawl around my feet as I cook.  I am always amazed that trying to get anything done in the kitchen draws the small two-person crowd to supervise :)  Em loves to get on her knees, but just. cannot. get. on. those. feet.  Hey, can't complain.  She'll do it in her own time, as every kid does.  In keeping with tradition, again, here are the usuals:

fun's:

* I must say, some of my favorite moments are walking into a room and discovering what Emily's up to :)  Thankfully, it hasn't been too terrifying, yet!
* that goofy, cheesy grin!
* I love watching her sleep.  Seriously, I could watch her all night.  Her face is so peaceful and her cheeks are chubby :)
* Giving her blueberries is kind of a joke.  They don't stand a chance.  In a split-second, her little "claw" (the index finger and thumb pinch) grabs them, and they are inhaled.  I'm always checking around her to see if they fell... Nope, she just ate them.
* I love watching her sign.  This must just be a magic age for picking up things, and despite my laziness, she's adding "more" and "thank you" to her very small repertoire.  I must admit, "please" and "all done" are still ALWAYS prompted...

* Getting Em up in the morning is always fun.  She's in her usual "behind bars" position, always waiting on us.  We're NEVER waiting on her.  Her grin is priceless.
* She's been doing more "talking."  Her little "da-duh-na-nuh" cracks me up.  Her eyebrows are all into it, and I can just picture her telling her a story.
* I love her hair.  It's getting kind of wavy in the back.  The other day, my neighbor told me she loved how I cut Em's hair :)  Trying to imagine sending her to a stylist when she can't sit still for me to wash her face.
* I love love love her tiny feet.  They may have grown a smidge, but they're pretty tiny.
* She's cracking us up with her mischief.
* I love watching her try to get Elyse's attention.  She loves to wrestle with her, and she keeps coming back for more, though I'm not sure why.  She'll have a giggle going the whole time.
* This girl now loves books.  I'll often find her in her room flipping through the pages as if she's captivated with the stories.
* I love making her laugh.  It's quite easy these days.
* Emily's been much more of a cuddle-bug lately, which is always fun!

not-so-fun's:

* Her screaming is doing me in.  Screams when she's hungry, tired, impatient, happy, sad, etc... Okay, sometimes it's fun to watch Elyse jump a mile, but it's quite taxing on my ears :)
* I spend much of my day trying to get Em's hair out of her face.  Sometimes it's glued with some form of stick, and it's quite nasty!
* Somebody has the potential to have quite an attitude :)  Still quite attached to whatever she may be holding, so WATCH OUT.
* If you are hoping to hold a quiet baby when you pick Em up, you might want to pick up another baby.  She loves to jabber or squeal.
* She's still cutting a tooth which makes for depressingly gross diapers.  I know it's probably just an old wives' tale, but I tend to think it true???
* I despise that she's going to be done with her bottle as of TONIGHT.  I think that I will have a hard time with this issue tomorrow :(
* I'm sad that I'm forgetting so much of what Emily was like as a baby.  It reminds me that every day is to be enjoyed!

Emily Mae.  How is it that an entire year has disappeared???  I have had to remind myself that this first birthday, as with all birthdays, is a celebration of you, NOT a lament of the passing of time.  As I reflect on this first year as your mommy, I cannot help but be most aware of what a precious gift you are.  You stole our hearts from the very first moment we saw you on the big screen: the ol' black and white ultrasound.  We watched you move around and had no idea that you would add so much to our family.  You add spunk, joy, hilarity at times, LOTS OF NOISE, and so much love for life.  Your dad and I praise God that you were entrusted to us to raise.  I have a feeling that though you won't make it easy on us at times (no offense, baby), you will remind us again and again of God's deep love for us.  Happy birthday, Emily.  We love you more than you'll ever know!!!

Listen Closely...

... and you might hear some of these phrases around here.

"Elyse, let Emily sleep."

"What's Emmie doing?" (spoken by Elyse whenever she wants to distract me out of scolding her)

"Mommy?  She pulled your hair!"  (spoken by Elyse now that she's learning to tattle-tale... notice I still need to work on her pronouns...)

"Emmie, no screaming!"

"Elyse, put your food back on your plate.  No, not under your plate, ON your plate, like this.  Now eat it.  No, use your spoon.  Honey, do not use your fingers, use your spoon."

"Honey?  I think Emily has something in her mouth."

"Oh, it's just paper."

"Babe, can you grab me a kleenex?"

"Nastyyyy.  She just snotted all over me."  (spoken by Jordan and me when we pick up Emily)

Mommy: Elyse, do you need to go potty?
Elyse: No.
Mommy: No...
Elyse: No, thank you. {looks up at me and smiles}  Mommy, you funny!

"Mommy, we're goin' to the Lake!" (I'm rethinking why I told Elyse that vacation was coming in a couple of months)

"Mommy, you are upset." ( ... spoken with a small scowl on her face as Elyse remembers me confessing to her recently.  I hear this phrase when I'm happy OR sad.)

"Emily, come to Mommy!  Emmie.....!"

"Hey, baby girl... how you doin', baby girl."  (spoken by Elyse to Emily whenever Emily's not pulling her hair or taking off her glasses ...)

"How early am I allowed to go to bed?"  (spoken by me to Jordan just about every night :) 

You'll also hear lots of "I love you" going on around here.  I'm pretty sure it's my favorite phrase.  Sometimes, though, I do have to ignore the fact that a certain little girl tells me she loves me as a means of distraction.
I'm sure she doesn't even know she's doing it. *cough*

On mommyhood...

It's hard not to ponder my role as a mommy as we approach a vastly commercialized day dedicated to "appreciating" our mothers.  I've recently been pondering much of what being a mom entails, not the least of which is basic care of children.  I'm thankful that my mom did so much more than that, though.  I'm often reminded from nature that most mothers are fairly decent at caring for their kids.  In fact, if that were the only standard, we'd have some pretty proud moments as moms.  But, as I'm just starting to realize, the magnitude of this job can be astounding.  Parenting in general implies giving guidance.  And even that is an understatement.  Mothering implies more than wiping snotty noses and giving cuddles when baby girls should be sleeping... It involves more than potty training and meal preparation... more than tickles & games during playtime... more than manners and scheduling.  It involves nurturing.  It involves support, training, education, and encouragement.  AND, if it isn't frustrating enough that kids' basic care isn't mastered through studying a manual, basic nurturing has no manual.  I have yet to find my mothering checklist online.  Yes, I am amazed at what is instinctual, but believe me, there are plenty of things that should have been instinctual and just weren't.  I couldn't be more thankful for the mother God gave me.  She mothered us in humility, mercy, love, and graciousness.  She loved us when we were pretty unlovable, and when we were quite homely, I might add...  She probably got sick of disciplining us, yet we always knew she cared about us.  Deeply.  She still does, in fact.  And it's thinking about the way my mom mothered that makes me realize that it's God's love that gives mothering its depth.  If he didn't love us first, what kind of love would we have?  Today I'm thankful for a mom that knew God's love.  I'm thankful for a mother-in-law that knew God's love.  And, I'm just starting to realize what a magnificent responsibility I have to pass God's love on to my girls.  I hope they have way more than just an appreciation for me when they are my age.  I sincerely hope they will be able to say that they saw Jesus in me.  I'm so thankful I know where to start.  And I'm so thankful that it didn't start with me.

This and That

It's been a while since I updated my little blog, so here is a little of what's been going on here.

* I turned 30.  'Nuf said.

* Emily is sick.  I've enjoyed cuddling her, but that's about all about the sickies that is redeemable.  She hasn't been napping well in the afternoons, so I've taken advantage of my rocker, read a lot, and enjoyed Emily during her most serene of moments.  I must say, looking down at her sleeping face has been quite a bold reminder of how fast this year has gone by.

* Elyse has been enjoying her books (as usual), but her new phrase as she flips through the pages is, "Mommy?  What's he doing right here?"  Sometimes there is no answer to that question when the picture involves stars or scenery.

* Jordan's parents were able to visit last week, and we enjoyed having them around to babysit... Did I just say that?  Oops.  I meant, we enjoyed having them around.  :)  I will say, the added entertainment for our girls is extra nice, and who better to spoil them but a grandma and grandpa?  And they were spoiled.  Elyse has never had so much Curious George read to her in one week.  We celebrated my brother-in-law's seminary graduation and just enjoyed being together as a family.

* Emily is talking quite a bit in her own jibber-jabbery way, and it's very entertaining.  She has developed lots of fun inflection, and I love asking her a question and hearing, "Na-na-da-da" with all different tones.

* Elyse is officially potty trained.  We still throw a courtesy diaper on her at night, but she's been doing great.  This started about two weeks ago, and I'm still getting used to the concept.  I'm still learning to ask her if she needs to go before we leave the house, etc...  The other day, we had just gotten on the highway when I hear, "Mommy?  I need-a go potty!"  I have no idea how she made it home, but she did.  Note to self: DON'T push it with her.

* Emily is trying to pull up, but still has yet to get on her feet.  She loves to try, though, and she rarely melts down after a tumble.  Elyse has been trying to test her out as a wrestling buddy, and Emily holds up fairly well, I must say.  Emily keeps coming back for more!

* We've been having the most perfect weather here, and it has made for some lovely times outside.  I am wishing all of the coming summer would be this nice (70'), but I'm sure the 90 degree temps are just around the corner.

* Elyse has been singing a lot.  I have yet to determine if she's trying to sing as badly as she can, or if it's just how she sings right now.  Aside from cracking up at the most random lyrics she throws in songs, her melodies are astounding.  Sometimes there's just nothing I can say :)

* Elyse is still doing her "kinda like" stuff, and today, she said that the spaghetti sauce I was making was kinda like mashed potatoes!  Wow.

* Emily has been waking up before Elyse during her afternoon nap, so I usually sneak into the girls' room and get her out before she wakes up Elyse.  I'll give her a bottle and keep her entertained, but if I leave her side, she immediately crawls to her bedroom door and pushes against it and cries!  It's sad, frustrating (because she's LOUD), and funny all at the same time.  Sisters...

* Before a crazy weekend, Jordan and I got to sneak out on a little date.  We'd been saying we were going to go to the Virginia International Tattoo for years, but it just never happened.  A nice friend gave us tickets, so it was an easy decision!  It was a lot of fun, and I was thankful to start off a crazy week with some time together!

"it's kinda like..."

I've been hearing that phrase lately from Miss Elyse.  She's into comparing LOTS of things around here.

On chewing her dinner: "It's kinda like gum, but it's pasta."

On a picture of Grandma Tildy in her But No Elephants book: "It's kinda like Miss Judy {our neighbor}, but it's really Grandma Tildy."

On my eye shadow this morning: "It's kinda like Shiloh {her cousin}, but it's eye shadow."

On chewing her grapes: "It's kinda like gum, but it's really grapes."

On my face cream: "It's kinda like lip gloss, but it's Mommy's cream."

On the occasion of her bath tonight: "It's kinda like swimming, but it's a bath!"

On just about any cracker she has: "It's kinda like a cookie, but it's a cracker."

On chewing her biscuit: "It's kinda like gum, but it's a biscuit!"

As you can see, she's the eternal optimist.

Someday she'll be allowed to have gum!

1 til 1!

ELEVEN months old!  Emily Mae, stop it.  My little string bean has been fattening up nicely these days, and I am enjoying seeing a few rolls here and there.  I can probably credit her love for avocados & bread for that.  Em has been learning so much; I will probably forget to jot down all of the things I've noticed recently.  She is very spunky.  Still.  Not changing one bit, and I guess I should get used to that.  She is now crawling, which is fun for all of us, and it is really fun to watch, I must say.  I don't mind chasing her or teaching her all the fun new boundaries (YET), since she's got this perpetual look of determination & joy on her little face as she explores.  I am always amazed at what babies must think as they crawl around for the first time.  Emily's most recent adventure was a week at Grandma's and Grandpa's house, and she didn't seem to notice that her daddy and I disappeared for a few days!  She loved chasing around their dog, Daisy, and I'm sure Daisy is missing her benefactress.  Emily was ALWAYS willing to share her food.  She's as mischievous as ever, and I wish I had her energy.  All of it.

Em's sleeping less during the day (FINALLY!), which is nice.  If she takes a long morning nap, she'll take a shorter afternoon nap, and vice versa.  She's still a little piggy and loves to eat.  Her current favorites are bread, broccoli, avocado, potatoes, cheese, and ANYTHING we're eating.  She's the messiest little eater, but she sure is happy while she's eating.  She is learning a few "signs" here and there, but she has yet to talk to me :)  We've been having some battles with Emily keeping her bib on, and she must be so used to the "no-no" phrase already... when I saw her little hand reaching up to her bib tonight, I gave her the stern: "Emily..." ... and she said "na-na!"  She's really into crinkling up her little nose when she's being silly, and typically she'll pull that face on me as I scold her over something.  *sigh*  Just have to laugh.  She LOVES to pull Elyse's hair and grab at her glasses still, and she is also into guzzling her bath water.  Seriously gross.  

Emily's trying to mimic Elyse by shaking her head "no" (I like to pretend she has no idea what she's doing, and I think I'm right), and it's quite funny.  She has a ways to go.  She's still using her voice a LOT, and she's such a busy baby.  Short tempered at times, but fun :)  Here are some of my current fun's and not-so-fun's:

fun's:

* I am LOVING her new scrunchy-nose-goofy face!!!

* I love that her feet are MAYBE three inches from tip of heel to tip of toe.  She might not ever be able to walk on those things, but they're sure cute!

* Summery clothes.  Bring 'em on!

* I love hearing her play in her crib.  Sometimes it's within seconds of screaming her head off, but it sure is funny.  She'll squeal and explore all four corners.

* Emily loves getting Elyse's attention.  Elyse is the FIRST and ONLY person she wants to see.  

* Her "all done" sign looks like a little wave :)

* When she does wave, it looks like she's testing the strength of her wrist!

* I love seeing her crawling around in her crib; when she spots us, she'll just light up and start flopping around on her stomach like a fish.

* She is definitely figuring out boundaries, and she will often go right towards trouble with a twinkle in her eye and a smirk on her face.  I'm in trouble.

* She does this little game with us where she'll blow raspberries.. we'll mimic her, and we go back and forth.

* She still cuddles with me.. briefly :)

not-so-fun's:

* Emily's strong bond with toys she shouldn't have.  'Nuf said.

* Outdoors... Unless she's constrained or in a swing, she's eating whatever's on the ground.

* She is a very impatient child when it comes to food.  Still.

* She is spitting more often than she should... with or without food in her mouth.  That could be a result of the above listed game :) 

* She can work up a mean diaper!

* I'm NOT cutting her hair, but what do you do with a girl who keeps trying to eat her clips?  

* Emily's going to hit a year old and just get all toddler on me.  I know it's coming, and it makes me sad in many ways.  I'm going to enjoy this last month to its fullest!!

Emily Mae, I'm wondering where my docile baby went, but I LOVE who you are!  I can't wait to see how you channel all of that spunk into life!  You're welcome to cuddle with me anytime.

Spring

i feel like i can actually say it: spring.

i'm loving it.

the girls are loving it.

and, no, they're not this intense about it.

it's exciting enough to blow raspberries about.

and, spring makes me remember the days when the most beautiful flowers

in the world grew in our backyard...

and, before you start mocking my matchie-matchie taste, may i submit that those precious shirts for $1 at target last fall were worth the trip down memory lane into 1985.

i'm sure some of you remember wearing those exact colors in stripes?

you know, that age when the biggest concern of your life was wind in your hair or dirt in between your toes... or that mommy wouldn't let you eat the grass... the tough things in life.

but most of the time, spring just meant sunshine, some rain, green grass & happiness. 

happy springtime!

Little bit of love

Good old sister love.  Pictures like this do remind me of the reason parents fail to remember horrible behavior of their little ones years later.  I mean, who in their right mind could ever imagine these two NOT being this sweet to each other?  And, I've decided that I do not want to take pictures of my children being mean to each other (within reason), so this is how it will be for me: glossy pictures.  

(p.s.  I'm loving their bare arms!!)