Spring Recital

Delaney had her spring recital for preschool today. They sang songs about springtime, Jesus and hot dogs--it was pretty interesting! And super cute of course.

Laney wore a beautiful spring dress---with pink pants underneath---it was literally snowing today and I was worried that she would freeze. She had been begging / demanding that she wear her true and authentic 'recital dress' (crushed cranberry velvet-she wore it to her first recital around Thanksgiving time) to the spring recital, but I put my foot down. When she saw her 'new recital dress', her love for her 'old recital dress' quickly faded.

Laney was so excited for her recital and had been talking about it for weeks. She LOVES school and that makes Dave and I so happy-and more than a little relieved.

After the big show, her preschool had a little party--Elliot was thrilled that he got to sit at the big kid tables and eat treats!

Sacramento Zoo

Dave and I decided that we needed to get out of town for the day, so we headed to the Sacramento Zoo. Per Mapquest, Sacramento is 2 1/2 hours away---obviously, these people aren't traveling with three little kids--and especially not with a six month old who screams in the car and a three year old who repeatedly insists that she has to poop--false alarms of course.


As Dave said, the day could be broken down into quarters----Louisa screamed for 1/4 of the trip, Laney had a serious meltdown and freak-out for 1/4 of the trip, and Elliot whined / complained for 1/4 of the trip; however, 1/4 of the trip was sheer bliss---with the kids loving every second at the zoo and there's just nothing like watching our kids have fun.

Elliot was super enthusiastic and would run to the monkeys, lions, giraffes...but then when he got to the exhibits, he was super concerned that the animals would get out and bite him!
Laney was fun because she was so excited for the trip and then truly loved, loved, loved the zoo. She loves to take little trips and do anything new and different. Louisa was along for the ride and certainly was glad that her mommy was there; we hung out a lot while Dave ran around with the big kids. She was not super impressed with the car drive. And she managed to poop like four times at the zoo--it was ridiculous-I felt like all that I did was change diapers!

And yes, we left the zoo in tears. After a meltdown in the gift shop---the type of meltdown that every parent fears--the really, really ugly kind. But we managed. And all in all, we were so glad that we made the trip. It wasn't easy but definitely worth it!

Grandma B Crafts

Grandma B is a (awesome!) preschool teacher, and sent Laney a bunch of crafts that she is doing with her students. Today Delaney decorated foam eggs before naptime and a nest for the eggs after naptime. Art projects keep Delaney busy and make her happy---what could be better? We're hoping to receive a new batch of projects soon (hint, hint, Grandma B!).

Six Months

...And two weeks---but this is what happens when you're the third child--mommy gets busy. Don't worry Louisa-you'll be better adjusted because of it. My beautiful little baby. Sweeter than sweet. She's quiet and calm, but when she does get upset, watch out---if you're not her mommy, then you can't make it all better! She doesn't like to be by herself--at all--which isn't a bad thing, because she is NEVER by herself. She has the most beautiful chocolate brown eyes--with unbelievable lashes. She can sit up like a big girl and roll over both ways. Loves to pull hair and pinch cheeks. And she's tiny. Itty bitty. She's 12 lbs 8 oz and 24 inches long (I personally think that she's longer but we'll stick with the doctor's stats for now!). She's not on the growth charts but is growing well.

Trip To Pittsburgh

Grandma Mimi and Gramps came to babsit, so Louisa and I could take a trip to Pittsburgh, visit with my parents and ALL of my siblings and meet my older sister's latest red-haired and blue-eyed cutie---and Gabe is soooo cute! He's two months old but definitely bigger than Louisa---his little cheeks are absolutely adorable.

Yes, it was weird to be away from my big kids for 5 days---weird and WONDERFUL! I got a much needed breather. And the kids did great---Laney even told me repeatedly on the phone how much she didn't miss me. It would almost be funny but she reminded me so often and so emphatically that she didn't miss me that a little part of me wanted to strangle her. Don't worry--I'll remind her of this when her own child acts wretchedly.

Louisa got some much needed mommy time and snuggles. She was a piece of cake to travel with---who would have thought that traveling across the country with just one baby would seem like such a breeze!

ABCs

Delaney is learning how to write her name--with very little help from me. Yes, all of the letters are there (although not in a line!), and yes, I wish that we would have named her 'Ann' instead-would be much easier for everyone!

The Best Of Times

Life isn't always like this at our house, but these moments and memories are precious.

Morning At The Park

Dave took Laney and Elliot to the park this morning. Both Laney and Elliot have had colds and Laney was pretty cranky this morning---she's so much easier and cooperative than she was a year ago but certainly still knows how to push our buttons and throw a good fit.

On the other hand-Elliot's been giving us a tough time lately. A really, really tough time. The terrible twos have hit with a vengeance. However, we survived Delaney's terrible twos, so we certainly can survive anything that Elliot throws at us. Still, the fits, defiance and uncooperativeness are exhausting. It's like--come on kid, just chill out and cooperate.

Elliot goes nuts if he's inside for too long. Well, I go crazy, as I watch him bounce off of the walls. He loves, loves, loves going to the park and usually has to be dragged away when it's time to leave. His favorite things to do are climb up the slides, walk down the slides and climb, climb, climb. When I take him to the park, I'm constantly gasping and my heart is in my throat. He's incredibly coordinated and physical---certainly, doesn't get this from me!

Fingers

Look familiar, mom and dad?

Mornings

Since January, Dave has been getting up with the 'big kids' most mornings, so I can catch a little bit of extra sleep and lots of extra snuggles with Louisa. I am so grateful to Dave for this time--it's so precious to me--just me and the baby with no distractions. And it's the perfect start to my day.

Swimming Lessons

I was planning to wait until Delaney was four to start swimming lessons--then Elliot would be three (and hopefully potty trained!) and they could take lessons together. However, when Laney learned that her buddy Jimmy was going to be taking lessons, she wanted to take them too--and how could we say no?!

Delaney loves school and anything structured and stimulating, so it's no surprise that she loves 'swimming lesson school'. She's been super attentive and focused---loving every second of her lessons.

She now has swimming lessons two days a week and school two days a week. She asks me every night, 'What do I have tomorrow--school or swimming lesson school?'. Of course, she also asks me every nite, 'What is for dinner tomorrow nite? What about the nite after that?' and 'What am I going to wear tomorrow?' and 'What are we going to do after school tomorrow?' and 'What is Elliot going to do tomorrow?'. She is FULL of questions and wanting to know exactly what everyone will be doing!