Variations on The Gingerbread Man
Tuesday, December 27, 2011
Saturday, December 24, 2011
Merry Christmas!
(Premiere of "Variations on the Gingerbread Man" Tuesday, December 27!)
We hope everyone has a wonderful and happy Christmas!
Friday, December 23, 2011
Three Girls and a Guy
Pyper
Often times, I carry Pyper around in my wrap. She bundles up quite well in it, and she really likes it. This time, her little hand escaped. Every time I lifted my arm, her hand would brush me. I loved it.
Pyper had a bit of baby acne, as well as a rash on her face. We tried changing our laundry soap and other things, but not much helped. (This picture is on a good day.)
With time, her face is looking better. 
Babies (and children) are such angels when they are sleeping. There are many times when we will peek in on the girls, just to enjoy the peaceful beauty of them. So precious! (This picture was taken this morning.)
Claire
Claire is becoming so funny these days. Yesterday while we were driving, Summer saw a large Christmas tree with lights. She said, "And there's a bird on top!" Claire responded, "No, Tummer--(she's progressed from "Nummer" to "Tummer" now)--No, Tummer, I don't sink so." Her voice inflection with that statement was hilarious. Summer responded, "Yes it is Claire. It's a bird on top." Claire said again, "No, Tummer. I don't sink so. No bird." They argued about it for about ten minutes. It was so funny to listen to.
This is what we see every single night. We'll be up watching a movie, working on stuff, or just talking, and we'll hear this huge thump. Sometimes, she inches her way across the room, other times she just hangs out there. We don't know how it happens, (and how she doesn't wake up!), but she sleeps through the night. So we're not complaining!
Sometimes when Claire talks, she scrunches her nose up. I'll ask her a question and she'll respond with crinkled nose, "'Cause." It's like she's really thinking about it too. So cute.
Love my blue eyed girl!
Summer
Summer is impressing us every day. She's really enjoying drawing, writing, and "typing letters." Occasionally, I'll open a word document and let her practice typing her letters. She knows quite a few--S, U, M, R, T, D, P, O, L, A, X, and C. She enjoys practicing her letters. Here is a picture of her writing her name. You can see her S's, her M's, and her U's. Pretty good, eh? (And love the guy at the bottom!)
I found these Care Bear workbooks at the dollar store that had good activities for the girls to do. I was going to save them for when the girls got old and could actually do them, but Summer wanted to try them out. Here's the maze she did. I explained how to do it, and this is what she did. I was impressed!
The other day, she drew this: Nemo with lip gloss. This one's a keeper!
And here is a picture of her coloring and scissors skills. This was in one of the Sesame Street workbooks. It's a pirate hat for Elmo. After she had colored it and cut it out (with her scissors), she said she wanted to send it to Elmo. I had a hard time trying to figure out how to satisfy her insistence!
What a clan!
Often times, I carry Pyper around in my wrap. She bundles up quite well in it, and she really likes it. This time, her little hand escaped. Every time I lifted my arm, her hand would brush me. I loved it.
Pyper had a bit of baby acne, as well as a rash on her face. We tried changing our laundry soap and other things, but not much helped. (This picture is on a good day.)
With time, her face is looking better. 
Babies (and children) are such angels when they are sleeping. There are many times when we will peek in on the girls, just to enjoy the peaceful beauty of them. So precious! (This picture was taken this morning.)
Claire
Claire is becoming so funny these days. Yesterday while we were driving, Summer saw a large Christmas tree with lights. She said, "And there's a bird on top!" Claire responded, "No, Tummer--(she's progressed from "Nummer" to "Tummer" now)--No, Tummer, I don't sink so." Her voice inflection with that statement was hilarious. Summer responded, "Yes it is Claire. It's a bird on top." Claire said again, "No, Tummer. I don't sink so. No bird." They argued about it for about ten minutes. It was so funny to listen to.
This is what we see every single night. We'll be up watching a movie, working on stuff, or just talking, and we'll hear this huge thump. Sometimes, she inches her way across the room, other times she just hangs out there. We don't know how it happens, (and how she doesn't wake up!), but she sleeps through the night. So we're not complaining!
Sometimes when Claire talks, she scrunches her nose up. I'll ask her a question and she'll respond with crinkled nose, "'Cause." It's like she's really thinking about it too. So cute.Love my blue eyed girl!
Summer
Summer is impressing us every day. She's really enjoying drawing, writing, and "typing letters." Occasionally, I'll open a word document and let her practice typing her letters. She knows quite a few--S, U, M, R, T, D, P, O, L, A, X, and C. She enjoys practicing her letters. Here is a picture of her writing her name. You can see her S's, her M's, and her U's. Pretty good, eh? (And love the guy at the bottom!)
I found these Care Bear workbooks at the dollar store that had good activities for the girls to do. I was going to save them for when the girls got old and could actually do them, but Summer wanted to try them out. Here's the maze she did. I explained how to do it, and this is what she did. I was impressed!
The other day, she drew this: Nemo with lip gloss. This one's a keeper!
And here is a picture of her coloring and scissors skills. This was in one of the Sesame Street workbooks. It's a pirate hat for Elmo. After she had colored it and cut it out (with her scissors), she said she wanted to send it to Elmo. I had a hard time trying to figure out how to satisfy her insistence!
What a clan!
Friday, December 16, 2011
Happy Birthday Claire!
On Tuesday, we celebrated Claire's TWO year birthday! I can't believe she's been with us for two years. I was scheduling her pictures at JCPenny, and I actually said it was her one year birthday! After her pictures were taken, I looked at them and thought--"Who is this girl? She can't be mine! My Claire is still little!" But the girl in the pictures looked so big and grown up. I couldn't believe it.Claire has been such a blessing in our lives. She is so sweet and tender-hearted (most of the time). I still remember when she was just a baby and Summer would tease Claire by making Summer's baby doll cry. Claire's eyes would just well up, and she'd start crying too. She's also so motherly. The first few days of Pyper's life, Claire would just sit by her and softly touch her arm saying consolingly, "No fry, baby. No fry." (No cry baby, no cry.) And Pyper wouldn't even be crying. :) So sweet. But when Pyper does cry now, I'll notice Claire sitting by her saying, "Sh. Sh. Sh. Sh." She loves taking care of her little sister.
Claire also loves watching movies. The first thing she says every morning when she walks into our room is: "Watch a movie? Watch a movie?" She's also picked up on saying "Never!" from Summer. I don't think she gets what it really means though; she just knows to say it when she wants to express something with force. Sometimes, she'll ask me to get her something, and I'll say, "Just a minute." Then she'll furrow her brows, pretend she's mad, and say forcefully, "No! Never!" I can't help but laugh.
Claire weighs 20 lbs and is 30 inches tall. She is in the 80th percentile for height, but completely off the charts with her weight. Her doctor also mentioned that she is impressed that Claire is speaking in complete sentences now. She said that's really impressive for Claire's age.
In the past couple weeks, any time we asked her what she wanted for her birthday, she'd say, "Chocolate birthday." I think she kept meaning chocolate cupcakes. But when it was time to eat the chocolate [black bean] cupcakes, she just ate the frosting off. I think she was mostly excited about the cream cheese frosting. Who wouldn't be?
For her birthday, we ate dinner, then had her cupcakes. Then we had a little "party" for her--just our little family. We played the "Humpty Dumpty" game (keeping Humpty Dumpty from falling on the ground to the Humpty Dumpty song), and then we all got some bells to jingle while we sang along to "Jingle Bells." Then Claire opened her presents. (We did Humpty Dumpty to our Christmas tree lights, and then I realized the camera was super blurry so we turned the lights on.)
Sweet, sweet Claire Bear. We love you!
Friday, December 9, 2011
Gum and Other Things
For a really long time, we wondered if Summer had sleep problems. She would wake up multiple times in the night, call out to us or sometimes end up in our room, always saying she was thirsty, or had to go to the bathroom, or that she just wanted us to hold her. She would be wide awake, and when we'd put her back to bed, she'd just lay there with her eyes open--not even tired.
Well, with Pyper around, Summer's "sleep problem," and Claire always falling out of her toddler bed, we have gotten NO sleep.
I addressed Summer's problem with her pediatrician. We talked about it for a bit and she asked if Summer was the oldest . . . yes . . . is she head strong? . . . yes . . . does she sometimes not want to do things because you want her to? . . . yes. The pediatrician then told me about her own daughter--same situation. She said sometimes, if they are headstrong and stubborn, the only way you can get them to do something is if you can help them want to do it.
So we did this: I got a piece of paper and drew three boxes in it. Rhett picked up some "special stickers" on his way home from work, and we told Summer about her new sticker chart. We told her that if she stayed in bed that night and didn't get up for anything except to go potty, she could have a sticker for her sticker chart. Once she filled in her sticker chart, she would get a dollar to go to the store and buy her very own gum.
She stayed in bed.
The next morning, we made a HUGE deal about it. We were so excited. And she got to put a sticker on her sticker chart (and I put four more boxes on her sticker chart!). The Good News: Out of the past 8 nights, she has stayed in her bed 7 times. (Once, when dad was putting her down, he said he'd give her a dollar for staying in bed, but she said no, she wanted stickers for her sticker chart.)
Well, yesterday, she earned her dollar (actually two dollars once we got to the store and I realized gum was more than a dollar. Where have I been???) Anyway, we made it a special outing as her reward--just Mom and Summer. I gave her the money before we left and she stuck it in her pocket. On the way to Albertson's, she said, "Oh mom! We forgot a bag!" I then explained to her that when she bought the gum, the lady at the store would give us a bag to put it in. She was okay with that.
We got to the store and found the gum section. She browsed the different flavors, picked out Polar Ice (the "spicy" kind), and then we went to check out. The lady at the register was fantastic. She talked to Summer, asked her how old she was, how she earned her money (to which Summer replied proudly, "I stayed in my bed."), and told Summer good job and to keep up the good work. Summer was beaming. As we walked out of the store, Summer swung her bag of gum around. It was so cute I almost cried.
Since it was a little late when we ran to the store, I told her she had to save her gum until the morning. And this morning, she ate the whole package. She gave two pieces to me, one to Rhett, three to Claire, and she ate the rest. At one point, she stuck five pieces in her mouth! I let her enjoy it.
Other things going on around here . . .
Lots of lovin' with Pyper.
Pyper's growing:
And Face Painting with Dad:
And Summer's been learning: (We LOVE school!) I have no idea where Summer came up with this "Rono" thing. And Rachel--I see a slight resemblance. :)
Well, with Pyper around, Summer's "sleep problem," and Claire always falling out of her toddler bed, we have gotten NO sleep.
I addressed Summer's problem with her pediatrician. We talked about it for a bit and she asked if Summer was the oldest . . . yes . . . is she head strong? . . . yes . . . does she sometimes not want to do things because you want her to? . . . yes. The pediatrician then told me about her own daughter--same situation. She said sometimes, if they are headstrong and stubborn, the only way you can get them to do something is if you can help them want to do it.
So we did this: I got a piece of paper and drew three boxes in it. Rhett picked up some "special stickers" on his way home from work, and we told Summer about her new sticker chart. We told her that if she stayed in bed that night and didn't get up for anything except to go potty, she could have a sticker for her sticker chart. Once she filled in her sticker chart, she would get a dollar to go to the store and buy her very own gum.
She stayed in bed.
The next morning, we made a HUGE deal about it. We were so excited. And she got to put a sticker on her sticker chart (and I put four more boxes on her sticker chart!). The Good News: Out of the past 8 nights, she has stayed in her bed 7 times. (Once, when dad was putting her down, he said he'd give her a dollar for staying in bed, but she said no, she wanted stickers for her sticker chart.)
Well, yesterday, she earned her dollar (actually two dollars once we got to the store and I realized gum was more than a dollar. Where have I been???) Anyway, we made it a special outing as her reward--just Mom and Summer. I gave her the money before we left and she stuck it in her pocket. On the way to Albertson's, she said, "Oh mom! We forgot a bag!" I then explained to her that when she bought the gum, the lady at the store would give us a bag to put it in. She was okay with that.
We got to the store and found the gum section. She browsed the different flavors, picked out Polar Ice (the "spicy" kind), and then we went to check out. The lady at the register was fantastic. She talked to Summer, asked her how old she was, how she earned her money (to which Summer replied proudly, "I stayed in my bed."), and told Summer good job and to keep up the good work. Summer was beaming. As we walked out of the store, Summer swung her bag of gum around. It was so cute I almost cried.
Since it was a little late when we ran to the store, I told her she had to save her gum until the morning. And this morning, she ate the whole package. She gave two pieces to me, one to Rhett, three to Claire, and she ate the rest. At one point, she stuck five pieces in her mouth! I let her enjoy it.
Other things going on around here . . .
Lots of lovin' with Pyper.
Pyper's growing:
And Face Painting with Dad:
And Summer's been learning: (We LOVE school!) I have no idea where Summer came up with this "Rono" thing. And Rachel--I see a slight resemblance. :)
Tuesday, November 22, 2011
A Two Week Birthday!
Wow! I cannot believe that Pyper is two weeks old today! Time flies when you can't find your camera, eh?
Well, here's our two-week photo shoot: (Some of the lighting isn't that great so she looks a little yellow.)
She started smiling here, and Claire reached into the picture right as I took it. Not sure what Claire was trying to do.
Photo by Claire:
And at one point during the day, I looked over at Claire and she said, "Hat! Hat!" It was her little cereal bowl.
By the way, a few people have asked about Pyper's middle name. We chose "Anona" because it was the name of my great grandma, not because it means pineapple in Latin, though that is a plus.
Well, here's our two-week photo shoot: (Some of the lighting isn't that great so she looks a little yellow.)
She started smiling here, and Claire reached into the picture right as I took it. Not sure what Claire was trying to do.
Photo by Claire:
And at one point during the day, I looked over at Claire and she said, "Hat! Hat!" It was her little cereal bowl.
By the way, a few people have asked about Pyper's middle name. We chose "Anona" because it was the name of my great grandma, not because it means pineapple in Latin, though that is a plus.
Monday, November 21, 2011
What was lost . . . now is found . . .
After a long week of absence, our camera has reappeared--thanks to Dad who found it hidden in the back of our closet where the girls hide (and of course, we found it the day after Dad went out and bought another one). But we're glad we have it again, and we're glad we can post more pictures of the girls.
Pyper sun bathing:
I posted these two pictures of the girls after Claire was born, and then realized today that I had one similar of Pyper too. I originally took this picture of Pyper because Claire was sharing her doll with Pyper, but I love the profile of her little face. (All these pictures were taken within the first week of their lives.)
Summer:
Claire:
Pyper:
Claire and Summer both love holding Pyper all the time. (Ignore Pyper's spit up on the the sheets.)
Just playing . . .
And now that we have a tiny little baby around, the girls look sooooo much older.
Other happenings--
It's been snowing quite a bit here. Well, just Friday and Saturday it snowed pretty much all day. The girls were so excited. But I think Rhett was more excited than they were. We went out on Saturday (thanks to my mom who watched Pyper for us), and got the girls snow clothes and a saucer, and when we got home, we bundled them up and Rhett pulled them around. The girls absolutely loved it. But again, I think Rhett loved it more. He ran up and down the street, back and forth, and they screamed and laughed and fell off, then climbed back on for more. They came in with pink noses, cheeks, and chins, but they couldn't stop talking about it.
Pyper sun bathing:
I posted these two pictures of the girls after Claire was born, and then realized today that I had one similar of Pyper too. I originally took this picture of Pyper because Claire was sharing her doll with Pyper, but I love the profile of her little face. (All these pictures were taken within the first week of their lives.)
Summer:
Claire:
Pyper:
Claire and Summer both love holding Pyper all the time. (Ignore Pyper's spit up on the the sheets.)
Just playing . . .
And now that we have a tiny little baby around, the girls look sooooo much older.
Other happenings--
It's been snowing quite a bit here. Well, just Friday and Saturday it snowed pretty much all day. The girls were so excited. But I think Rhett was more excited than they were. We went out on Saturday (thanks to my mom who watched Pyper for us), and got the girls snow clothes and a saucer, and when we got home, we bundled them up and Rhett pulled them around. The girls absolutely loved it. But again, I think Rhett loved it more. He ran up and down the street, back and forth, and they screamed and laughed and fell off, then climbed back on for more. They came in with pink noses, cheeks, and chins, but they couldn't stop talking about it.
Sunday, November 13, 2011
Good News and Bad News
The good news is . . .
she has a name!
We've picked Pyper Anona Barney to name our little girl. She's doing well--eating well, sleeping well, and filling diapers well. We are blessed she is so healthy.
And the bad news is . . .
we can't find our camera. I've pretty much told Rhett if we don't find it in the next two days, I'm just going to go get another. I feel like she's changing so much already.
So hopefully, we'll find it soon and be able to post more pictures.
Wednesday, November 9, 2011
Baby Number Three
IS HERE!
And still nameless.
Hopefully we'll decide tonight on what she'll be called, but for now, we just call her "Little Sister," or "Little Sissy," as Claire says.
The birth went well--when we finally realized I was in labor. But before that, we weren't sure what was going on. I woke up about 3:30 Tuesday morning and was having a really bad, sharp pain just below my belly button. It would come and go. I thought maybe they were contractions, but it was a very different kind of pain than in my previous labors. Rhett timed them anyway. They were often, but not regular. Some had only two minutes in between, some had up to fifteen minutes. After about an hour of them not going away, I called my midwife. She had been here just the night before and had felt the position of the baby. She said the baby was packed in there tight and maybe I was having some trapped gas or a bowel movement and needed to clear things out to make more room for the baby. So I worked on that for a bit. Made a little progress in both, but it didn't help with the pain. I got in the tub and tried to relax for a bit--which helped a little too. At 5, things settled down and I slept until 6. A little after 6, I woke up to the pain again. It was very painful, and kept coming like contractions would, just still not consistent. I got in the bath again and tried relaxing--still going to the bathroom quite often. Every time, I would notice a little blood and other stuff. We weren't sure, but thought it was maybe my mucus plug (do they really have to call it that???), or a problem. So at about 8:30, we called my midwife again--this time, expressing concern that something might be wrong. She said she'd be right over.
The girls had awaken about 7ish and began noticing I was doing funny things--like getting on my knees and leaning against the couch or the air mattress. I also would bend over and brace myself against the counter, rocking side to side to help with the pain. Summer asked, "Mom, are you doing yoga?" I told her I was. I think they could sense I was in pain (though I tried to hide it so they wouldn't worry). The next time I did it, Summer said, "Claire, Mom's doing yoga. It's okay."
During all this, Rhett was running around trying to comfort me, help the girls, make breakfast and pack a lunch for Blake (who is visiting while going to a work conference in CDA), and take care of himself too. He had been up with me since 3:30, and had never taken a break for himself. What a great guy.
We called our friend to watch the girls for the day. We were getting prepared to head to the hospital in case there was something wrong. Blake left for his conference a little after 8:30, and the midwife showed up a little before 9:00. (She lived 20 minutes away.) Rhett was getting the girls dressed to go to their friends' house when the midwife walked in and checked me to see what was going on. In only a few seconds, she said, "Oh! There's here head." I said, "What?!?" She responded, "You're having a baby." She then asked how long Rhett was going to be gone for, and I told her maybe ten minutes. She said, "He might want to stick around." What!?! I had no idea I was this close to birthing Little Sister. I told Rhett this, and he said our friend was coming to get the girls. As she pulled in a few minutes later, my midwife explained that I had a "lip" (or something like that) where, (as I understood it), the baby's head was pressing against part of my cervix, and I couldn't fully dilate on that side. So every time I had a contraction or the baby moved, it would pinch and hurt excruciatingly! Anyway, Brenda arrived, the girls gave me loves, and then headed out the door.
Finally, I could relax. I had been so stressed before this--not knowing if I was actually in labor, thinking something might be wrong, worrying about taking care of the girls, and trying to be a good host to Blake. My midwife put me on my left side and raised my right leg in the air. This helped the baby move away from the cervix. She said once the baby moved, I would start to have regular contractions. And I did. Just then (at 9:00) I started having regular contractions. At 9:45, my water broke, and at 10:00am, Little Sister pretty much just slid right out! Rhett was bracing me the whole time, so I actually was able to put my hands down and somewhat catch her. She was so slippery! I looked down and there she was, arms starting to flail and a little cry coming out of her. I couldn't believe it. I picked her up and Rhett and I cuddled her. It was amazing.
She weighed 6 pounds and measured 21 inches. All morning we kept saying, "I can't believe it! Here she is! She surprised us! We just had a baby!" We were excited to call and tell everyone because we knew everyone would be as surprised as we were.
We were also excited to see how the girls would react. I'd checked out a few picture books on "The New Baby" and "What's in Mommy's Tummy"--stuff like that. So we'd been trying to prepare the girls. We were anxious to see how they would react. But we enjoyed the day together, just us three. At about 3, Rhett went and got the girls. I sat on the bed with Little Sister and waited for them to come in. They walked in the door and I heard Claire say, "Sissy . . . Sissy . . . where go? Where go?" I could tell she was wandering around the front room trying to find the baby. Rhett herded them into the bathroom to wash their hands, and then they came in to meet her. Here's what happened: (I've been trying since yesterday to post this clip. I finally had to split it and save it as a lower quality. Sorry it's a bit blurry!)
And still nameless.
Hopefully we'll decide tonight on what she'll be called, but for now, we just call her "Little Sister," or "Little Sissy," as Claire says.
The birth went well--when we finally realized I was in labor. But before that, we weren't sure what was going on. I woke up about 3:30 Tuesday morning and was having a really bad, sharp pain just below my belly button. It would come and go. I thought maybe they were contractions, but it was a very different kind of pain than in my previous labors. Rhett timed them anyway. They were often, but not regular. Some had only two minutes in between, some had up to fifteen minutes. After about an hour of them not going away, I called my midwife. She had been here just the night before and had felt the position of the baby. She said the baby was packed in there tight and maybe I was having some trapped gas or a bowel movement and needed to clear things out to make more room for the baby. So I worked on that for a bit. Made a little progress in both, but it didn't help with the pain. I got in the tub and tried to relax for a bit--which helped a little too. At 5, things settled down and I slept until 6. A little after 6, I woke up to the pain again. It was very painful, and kept coming like contractions would, just still not consistent. I got in the bath again and tried relaxing--still going to the bathroom quite often. Every time, I would notice a little blood and other stuff. We weren't sure, but thought it was maybe my mucus plug (do they really have to call it that???), or a problem. So at about 8:30, we called my midwife again--this time, expressing concern that something might be wrong. She said she'd be right over.
The girls had awaken about 7ish and began noticing I was doing funny things--like getting on my knees and leaning against the couch or the air mattress. I also would bend over and brace myself against the counter, rocking side to side to help with the pain. Summer asked, "Mom, are you doing yoga?" I told her I was. I think they could sense I was in pain (though I tried to hide it so they wouldn't worry). The next time I did it, Summer said, "Claire, Mom's doing yoga. It's okay."
During all this, Rhett was running around trying to comfort me, help the girls, make breakfast and pack a lunch for Blake (who is visiting while going to a work conference in CDA), and take care of himself too. He had been up with me since 3:30, and had never taken a break for himself. What a great guy.
We called our friend to watch the girls for the day. We were getting prepared to head to the hospital in case there was something wrong. Blake left for his conference a little after 8:30, and the midwife showed up a little before 9:00. (She lived 20 minutes away.) Rhett was getting the girls dressed to go to their friends' house when the midwife walked in and checked me to see what was going on. In only a few seconds, she said, "Oh! There's here head." I said, "What?!?" She responded, "You're having a baby." She then asked how long Rhett was going to be gone for, and I told her maybe ten minutes. She said, "He might want to stick around." What!?! I had no idea I was this close to birthing Little Sister. I told Rhett this, and he said our friend was coming to get the girls. As she pulled in a few minutes later, my midwife explained that I had a "lip" (or something like that) where, (as I understood it), the baby's head was pressing against part of my cervix, and I couldn't fully dilate on that side. So every time I had a contraction or the baby moved, it would pinch and hurt excruciatingly! Anyway, Brenda arrived, the girls gave me loves, and then headed out the door.
Finally, I could relax. I had been so stressed before this--not knowing if I was actually in labor, thinking something might be wrong, worrying about taking care of the girls, and trying to be a good host to Blake. My midwife put me on my left side and raised my right leg in the air. This helped the baby move away from the cervix. She said once the baby moved, I would start to have regular contractions. And I did. Just then (at 9:00) I started having regular contractions. At 9:45, my water broke, and at 10:00am, Little Sister pretty much just slid right out! Rhett was bracing me the whole time, so I actually was able to put my hands down and somewhat catch her. She was so slippery! I looked down and there she was, arms starting to flail and a little cry coming out of her. I couldn't believe it. I picked her up and Rhett and I cuddled her. It was amazing.
She weighed 6 pounds and measured 21 inches. All morning we kept saying, "I can't believe it! Here she is! She surprised us! We just had a baby!" We were excited to call and tell everyone because we knew everyone would be as surprised as we were.
We were also excited to see how the girls would react. I'd checked out a few picture books on "The New Baby" and "What's in Mommy's Tummy"--stuff like that. So we'd been trying to prepare the girls. We were anxious to see how they would react. But we enjoyed the day together, just us three. At about 3, Rhett went and got the girls. I sat on the bed with Little Sister and waited for them to come in. They walked in the door and I heard Claire say, "Sissy . . . Sissy . . . where go? Where go?" I could tell she was wandering around the front room trying to find the baby. Rhett herded them into the bathroom to wash their hands, and then they came in to meet her. Here's what happened: (I've been trying since yesterday to post this clip. I finally had to split it and save it as a lower quality. Sorry it's a bit blurry!)
I tore just a little, but not enough for stitching, and I've bled less this time than with my first two. I actually feel really good, except for a little tenderness down below.
Little Sister slept well through her first night (from 9 until 3) and has latched on well to feed. It does look like she might need her tongue clipped too, though she isn't as bad as Claire was.
We love her so much and are so excited she has finally joined us!
Little Sister slept well through her first night (from 9 until 3) and has latched on well to feed. It does look like she might need her tongue clipped too, though she isn't as bad as Claire was.
We love her so much and are so excited she has finally joined us!
Saturday, November 5, 2011
About School and the New Baby
Sometimes Summer will just talk and talk about school. Other times, I have to prod her to get her to say anything. She was talking quite a bit about it, so I tried getting a little clip of it.
And then there's Claire who's talking with a mouthful of a chocolate covered cinnamon bear. (And yes, those are my real fingernails! BRIGHT PINK! I decided to go wild before the baby's born.)
And then there's Claire who's talking with a mouthful of a chocolate covered cinnamon bear. (And yes, those are my real fingernails! BRIGHT PINK! I decided to go wild before the baby's born.)
Saturday, October 29, 2011
Happy Halloween!
This year for Halloween, Rhett had a great idea for matching costumes, but in the end, we decided to just let the girls choose what they wanted to be. Again, we went frugal and shopped at Goodwill. You can buy treasures at Goodwill! We found these cute little dresses--Summer wanted the black, so Claire got the red. We had two witch hats, but Summer wanted to be a cat, so we made some ears for her and made up her face with a nose and whiskers. (The bat was painted on her cheek at the ward party.)
And here's our scary witch, Claire, with a big wart on her nose.
Rhett and I saw this idea on the internet and thought it was pretty funny. We just used freezer paper to make the stencils, then painted the bones on. Rhett's a surgery gone bad, and I'm . . . well, pregnant!
And here's a clip of the girls eating their candy from the Halloween ward party. They had people set up in each room so the kids could go from door to door and say trick or treat (as well as other games and activities). The girls thought it was the best thing ever. They were so intrigued with everyone's costumes, with the spooky decorations, and especially with people just giving them candy for saying "Trick or Treat!"
We also went to our local library's Halloween party. They did fun little games and gave out little trinkets for the kids. That's where Summer got the black cat on her face, and Claire got a white ghost on her arm. We also did a little spider on Claire's face for this party.
I rationed the candy out for a few days, and then today, we just decided to let them eat it all at once and hope they got their fix for a while. I'm not sure if they are satisfied or if I just put them on a huge sugar high. We'll see!
Have a Happy Halloween!
And here's our scary witch, Claire, with a big wart on her nose.
Rhett and I saw this idea on the internet and thought it was pretty funny. We just used freezer paper to make the stencils, then painted the bones on. Rhett's a surgery gone bad, and I'm . . . well, pregnant!
And here's a clip of the girls eating their candy from the Halloween ward party. They had people set up in each room so the kids could go from door to door and say trick or treat (as well as other games and activities). The girls thought it was the best thing ever. They were so intrigued with everyone's costumes, with the spooky decorations, and especially with people just giving them candy for saying "Trick or Treat!"
We also went to our local library's Halloween party. They did fun little games and gave out little trinkets for the kids. That's where Summer got the black cat on her face, and Claire got a white ghost on her arm. We also did a little spider on Claire's face for this party.
I rationed the candy out for a few days, and then today, we just decided to let them eat it all at once and hope they got their fix for a while. I'm not sure if they are satisfied or if I just put them on a huge sugar high. We'll see!
Have a Happy Halloween!
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