Let's Do It Again Soon!

Den 's brother and his family came for a visit over a break from school. I think everyone had a good time despite Josie waking everyone up a couple times a night and the discovery that Eddie while he ocassionally talks loudly in his sleep can actually talk quite a bit at night. G'parents Wisc. requested a photo of all 8 of us. Once we got the technology figured out, it only took about 6 tries to get everyone looking at the camera--and some bribbing of Eddie.

Their cousins, S and E are still all smiles despite taking the METRO to the end of the line and then walking a distance to get to Den's office, all to have the drive home last only a couple minutes.

They wanted to see the zoo, so we picked the warmest day of the weekend and bundled up. I really wish I'd brought my hat! It was I think in the upper 30s, or lower 40s. By Sunday, the high was around 21 with a bitter wind chill. These folks weren't phased in the least and continued site-seeing while we cowered inside enjoying the warmth.

G'parents Wisc Christmas

I already posted a couple photos from the g'parents Wisc. Christmas visit and some of these might look familar to g'parents Ohio, as they also took Eddie on the train at the mall. The difference being this second time, the line for Santa was ab out 20 people long and we had to wait through three train rides to get not the blue car, but the very end car.

Only g'parents Wisc. and Cookie take Eddie to the park in the winter...

If you can believe it, the weather was warmer when we went nearly a month later to the local Zoolights show, helped that it wasn't raining. Had my first taste of kettlecorn--yum. Eddie had his first taste of popcorn also (to my knowledge anyway, who knows what other caregivers have allowed him to sample w/o my knowledge).

Christmas Update

We just got back from 5 nights in warmer-than-here Florida. However, I'm a wee behind in my pictures posting, so lets all have a flashback to Christmas. Eddie was particularly elusive, as was G'pa Ohio (at least the later had the excuse of nursing a blown out back).

In the group photo, keep in mind, both kids had about 101 degree fevers here.

Almost all looking at the camera

This is about as close as we've gotten in a while to all of us looking (almost) at the camera.

This was at g'parents Ohio's house over Christmas. I still have a bunch of photos to post, so yes Uncle K, you'll have your photo on the blog eventually. Course you could stop over en route to England for more opportunities...

Enjoy...til next weekend. :)

The Zoo

I think I have to admit I'm not going to be able to post here as often as I'd like...maybe when Den starts traveling again...

Den's brother and family are in town this weekend. They wanted to visit the zoo. It was approaching 40 degrees, which they thought was downright balmy--I wish I'd brought my hat and long underwear.

Ed had a good time and thoroughly exhausted himself. I voluntered to sit in the car while Josie finished her nap. It was pretty quiet at the zoo and the animals were pretty active, so it was kind of a neat time to be there.

Alternate Uses for the Playpen

With Eddie, when he would no longer stay in the playpen, we ended up using it as toy storage. With Josie, as she has increasingly been less willing to stay in, we have started offering to Eddie that he can take his 3+ year-old toys in there.

And he loves it! He still cries out that he doesn't want Josie in there and ocassionally tries to throw things out of the playpen (in true Eddie style), but it is SOOO much better than Friday was--when Eddie was screaming all day long about Josie getting within 2 feet of anything he was playing with.

We have definitely entered THAT stage. She wants to play with his stuff, and he keeps pushing her on the head. I seriously couldn't tell you the number of time outs he has had this afternoon (Sat).

I digress, so the playpen is good for keeping one child out and another's toys in. Kind of wondered if and when it would come to this.

Eddie took a swim class today. After he got knocked over by a wave in the summer, he was scared to be in/near the water, so we signed him up for this class to help him get past that--it's a water aclimation class. He only cried the first 2/3 of the class--the last 10 min. he finally enjoyed himself and pronounced it 'fun'. This is good because I gambled and told him he wouldn't have to go again if he didn't have fun. Whew, it was close!

Still have xmas pictures to post...

Josie at 9 months

Still can't kick this thing...I have many more pictures to post when I'm feeling better, but wanted to get these up before you thought I'd lost my camera.

Josie turned 9 months last Thursday. This happened to coincide with the day I took a nap, went to a work meeting, came home and went to bed--at 5pm. But I can tell you all about the days before and after.

Immediately before, she and Eddie got their first bath together. Being brother/sister, I have no idea how long this will last, but it sure is nice to plop them both in. They seem to have a good time and she doesn't fuss when Eddie dumps bathwater on her head the way she fusses for her dad.

She is starting to take chunkier pieces of foods and in the last week converted to a cheerios baby, so I can stop buying those Gerber puff things and the teething biscuits. She LOVES cheerios--also nice cause they are a lot cheaper and easier to find.

We are more regularly getting her to sleep by herself (course she's been sick a lot lately, so not so much in the last 2 weeks). CIO is not nearly as bad with her, to be sure. She actually eventually winds down. Can't remember if I posted this, but she can climb stairs and anything that resembles a stair (like the plastic garage that sits under her brother's easel). I walked in the living room last week to find her standing ON the garage, leaning against the easel, grabbing one of Ed's magnetic (mag-it, as Ed would say) letters. Lovely.

Oh oh, did I mention she popped her first tooth. Food wise she'd tried mashed potatos (with regular milk) and seemed to do okay, so this bodes well for the transition to dairy at one-year. Cookie got us to buy a baby food mill, something we didn't bother with Eddie, but then we weren't trying to get food quickly on the table for 2 at that point. It's a great gizmo. No batteries or plugs and it grinds things up great. Nice for small quick meals--not major batches of food.

She is beginning to be pushier with her brother, which we like, she weasels herself in and he will ocassionally shove her back. Den and I can't wait for the day she shoves him back. Course then that will open a whole other set of battles, but then we won't have to be her defenders.

So for Christmas we opted for the table top, 4 foot tree with completely kid-safe ornaments. Good thing too, because Josie used the stool to prop herself next to the tree and grab an ornament---and then Ed knocked the whole thing over.

Ed has pretty much given up his nap and we are desparately trying to instill a quiet time in the afternoon when his sister is napping. Isn't working well w/o waking her...

We are starting to try and get Ed to 'help' as a way to diffuse him and make him feel good. Two nights ago he started setting the table for dinner. He has a good time, and is learning to order in which to place the utensils and to put out a napkin too. Manages to occupy a lot of his time at a point Den and I are both scurrying around--so while J-Lo downs the cheerios, Ed runs between the dining room and kitchen with knives, forks and other safe items.

Also, at g'parents Ohio, their light switches are apparently lower than ours. This provided endless entertainment for him and periods of surprise darkness for us. Back home, he saddles up a stool to the light switch, stretches as far as he can on tip-toes and ususally just barely reaches the switch. It's pretty cute. Ed can also open the childproofed basement door. It worked for just about a year, but he got to the point where he was watching the adults intently and just figured it out on his own. Fortunately he is good about keeping it closed.

Am sure there is more...pictures to come hopefully in the next couple weeks. I have 2 night meetings this week and 2 next week, so we'll see how it all goes as I try to beat down this illness.

Pictures Coming...Soon

I am still feeling the kind of sick that actually makes you want to lay in bed...not just the I'm tired from my 2 year old waking me at 6am after my 9-month old wakes me at 2 and 5, but the Little Engine That Could, I simply can not go another step kind of ill.

I now owe an update for J's 9months, which miraculously will include her weight before her 9 month appointment--17 pounds and change (little girl packed on 2 pounds in the last month).

Anyway, look for pictures hopefully this weekend--if I don't get sucked into looking for a new car. Anyone in the market for a great 2006 Hylander Hybrid? It's only got 9000 miles and has leather seats if you decide to have a baby in the front seat (see Eddie's buddy Eli --Working Mom Redundancies --for that one). I've decided after packing it for 3 or 4 trips with 2 kids that it just doesn't meet our needs and I really want to replace it with a minivan.

Oh and did I mention that while in my last post, Den's mom was hospitalized for 4 days with pneumonia, on Jan. 1, the original family member to get sick --Den's dad-- was diagnosed with pneumonia. Yikes!