Rollen (note this was started on 10/11/2011)

We've been working really hard on our baby exercises with Daniel. From almost day one we've been doing crunchies, leg standings, tummy time, and assisted rolls. Yesterday and the day before Daniel and I were doing rolls around the room, and every time he would flip over I ( and sometimes Liza) would cheer and rub backs or tummies ( i haven't been able to teach him 'fives' yet). Today I couldn't hardly leave him alone on the floor without him rolling over onto his tummy. Of course I would discover this because he would get frustrated and start to fuss. I was always walking into the room to find him stuck.  He tends to push off with his legs and get his face smashed up against the floor.  He did roll from tummy to back a couple of times today on his own, so with a little more practice he could be rolling around the room. I would be thrilled if he does. This is something uniquely Daniel and I'm tickeled.

this was a time where i wish the camera was in video mode. he flipped over on his own, smoothly, without any fuss or struggle.

All one Autumn Morning.

It feels like fall!! The temperature has cool 20 degrees, it's now consistently in the 80's instead of the 100's The kids usually get me up between 6 and 7 and we usually go through our morning routine of getting mommy dressed, feeding kids, getting kids dressed, and then starting our morning adventure. Some mornings we are more successful at this process than others. yesterday we got dressed and ate breakfast and in the middle of getting Liza dressed I got side tracked by Daniel. The next time I located Liza she was sitting in the recliner working on a puzzle. It was the first time I saw her putting the pices back in without any help and sliding them into place, instead of pushing harder when the piece isn't aligned just right. Liza was entertained for at least a half hour putting the puzzle together, turning it over and dumping the pieces out and starting over again. I couldn't bring myself to interrupt her just to get her clothes on, who am I to interrupt such a learning opportunity?

Thursday also happens to be trash day and I had some choice specimens to take out to the trash can, which was already out by the street. Of course I was unable to sneak outside alone. Liza said " I coming!!" So Liza came, diaper and all.

Eliza had a good time sings and walking around the poll.

Ahh the joys of running downhill with your favorite panda bear under your arm.

 If only I could walk around with such confidence!! I don't know if I could pull that off fully clothed, much less in only a diaper.

Making Muffins

Monday morning I found that Daniel had settled down for what was likely to be a long nap, an excellent opportunity for Eliza to be Mommy's special helper. I had some ripe bananas and I'm always on the lookout for things to expand Eliza's diet. Liza loved the exclusive attention, something that she doesn't get very often these days. I would measure the oats and flour and help her pour them into the bowl. I would take my eyes off of her for a couple of seconds and Liza would be putting the dry ingredients back in with the rest of the oats. Thankfully there weren't many oats left so it wasn't a big deal.

I also tried to help her use the spoon to mix the dry stuff in the bowl. We had moderate success. Liza's favorite ingredient? Mini chocolate chips.

transferring stuff from one bowl to another. In short a grand adventure together.

"Picking Apples"

 

Since the weather has decided to cool down one of our favorite things is to be outside.  I load up Daniel in the baby carrier  and Liza loads up her stroller with her current treasures; this can include a baby or two, a bear, sippy cup, keys, and baby accessories, her hat, and this time her little purse. With this summers drought the only green spot is our front yard and these flowers are amazingly tolerant of the heat and drought, I keep finding little ones growing in random places. When the flowers are done blooming the seeds are in green bunches. Eliza calls the seeds apples and enjoys picking them. Liza had a grand time running around the tree, it's on a little slope and gets a thrill from the added momentum.

After the Sunken Gardens

It's a short walk from the sunken gardens to the zoo, so after we had our fill of taking pictures we wondered over to feed the birds and look in on the hippos. 

Pics at the Sunken Gardens

Last Saturday (Sept 24th) we went to the Japanese Sunken Gardens to take pictures. As usual Lexi was kind enough to be photographer. The original plan was to get some good shots of Liza and Cade, since they both have had birthdays recently. I believe we get some good pictures of Cade, but Liza was tired and not her happy, cheerful self by the time it was her turn. We did get some good group shots and some nice close ups of Daniel. Afterwards we walked over to the zoo to feed the birds and take a peek at the hippos. A morning well spent, especially since the weather decided to cool off a bit.

My Happy Smilie Guy

 

smelling flowers, an  unsuccessful attempt to get Liza to pose

Checking out the koi. If you look closely you can see Liza's baby under her arm.

 Someone was kind enough to share a slice of bread with us, so Liza and Ryah got to feed the fish. They were swimming on top of each other trying to get the bread, if one didn't know better you would think they were starving.

Happy Birthday Liza!!!

On August 14th Eliza turned two. We just happened to be on our way home from our summer travels. While we were at my folks place  we had cake and ice cream for Liza and her Auntie Heather. And while we were in Idaho, Gandma Marla  got some tasty cupcakes, which we managed to enjoy in the midst of the whirlwind of Eric and Jessica's wedding. However, once we got home and the dust settled I wanted to do something as a family. We got her a little cake and Liza found a baby doll while we were out shopping together. Liza loves babies and she loves playing doctor. At every one of my prenatal appointments she did everything that the midwives did. When they took my blood pressure and pulse , Liza would watch intently and mimic whatever they did. This baby with its doctor kit went to bed with her that night.

Since she is two I wanted to share some of the things that we love about her. She is our happy smily girl and is very playful. One of her favorite games is hide and seek with her daddy, Jack hides and Liza seeks. She also loves to dance and is another thing she loves to do with her daddy. She will often express an opinion about the music and request her favorite songs,which include; "Trash'en the camp" , " Thriller", " Jesues want me for a sunbeam", and " Head, shoulders, knees, and toes". Liza has a thing for bears and babies and can't get enough of either. She also loves her books and coloring. Liza also loves to help and be a part of whatever is going on. Where ever we are during the day, so is Liza, doing what we are doing or playing nearby. This play is often getting into whatever is in reach. Jack washed the car Friday and Liza had a grand time helping. Liza is also a big tease, running away from diaper changes and tickling toes laughing all the while. She will often do something and then watch for your reaction. She is our sweetheart and we love having her around.

A month old

It's hard to believe that our little Jack Jack has been with us for 5 weeks. He no longer looks like a newborn but a little infant. His last check-up was on June 17th weighing in at 10 lbs and measured 22 1/2 in. long. His eyes are sill a deep blue, but not so deep that they are almost purple.  In a lot of ways he still looks like Eliza's double as a baby. Jack Jack is a very sweet tempered baby, usually happy and easy to please.  He loves to be held and I've found that the extra attention goes a long way with him. So we often find ourselves holding him for the first bit of his nap or I'll put him in one of the baby carries that I have for an hour or so. After eating he often curls up, folds his little arms underneath his head, and promptly goes to sleep on my chest. Jack Jack is a great night time sleeper, often sleeping for about six hours once he settles down. However he often grunts, stirs, and makes other baby noises while still asleep so he spends the night in his own room. I have the baby monitor carefully adjusted so I can hear him when he needs me but  soft enough so I don't wake up with every little grunt.

By the time he was two weeks old he was already lifting up his head and now he's a pro. Jack Jack is also moving out of the east,sleep,repeat phase and will be happy to kick and wiggle and look around.  I've set up a baby station on our kitchen table. Most of the time we eat around the island anyway and the table is a place where I can lay Jack Jack down that is out of Eliza's reach. When he's there for some reason he like to stare at the computer desk. I have no idea why because I don't think he can see the monitor.



Eliza loves he little brother. She often wants to hold him, give him hugs and kisses, and his binkie.  She also goes into his room while he is sleeping to check on him and goes running when he starts to cry. So far she hasn't appeared to be jealous over him and has usually been very patient when she has to wait for me to get to her while I take care of Jack Jack.  I'm very grateful for both of my sweet kids.

Little Jack

Little Jack arrived at 1:55 a.m. Monday May 23th and boy was he in a hurry to get here. Things started warming up about 5 p.m. Sunday night. Then when contractions finally got about a minuet long five min apart everything slowed down. I tried to rest and Jack took Eliza to spend the night at a friends house just in case. I was still having contractions, and they came often enough for sleep to be out of the question. Around midnight, just when Jack settled down for a nap, the contractions started up again. By 12:30 I knew that baby wasn't going to be to long in coming so I called Robin and woke up Jack. Robin arrived by 1 a.m. and was busy for the first 15-20 min setting things up. When she checked my progress I was sitting at a 4. I went ahead and hopped into the pool. I had been dying to get in and looking back on things I had been holding back, waiting for the go ahead to get in the water. If I had jumped into the pool sooner it's quit possible that Jack Jack could have come sooner as well. Anyway what seemed not too long later I felt the baby starting to crown.  Three contractions and a half push later Little Jack had arrived. As soon as she saw him, Robin said that he looked exactly like Eliza. I must say that I agree. Little Jack Jack was also extremely close to Eliza's size at birth. When Eliza was born she weighed 8 lbs 12 oz and was 21 inches long. Jack Jack was 8 lbs 11 oz and 21 inches long. Talk about consistency!! Also like Liza,  Jack Jack likes to snuggle with his hands by his face. Another fun thing,  after Jack Jack got cleaned up and  had been given to his daddy he immediately started sucking on his thumb, very noisily. Also like Liza, Jack Jack is a very sweet tempered baby and we are very happy to have him in our family.

getting measured

weighing in

handsome guy

Eliza at birth

Eliza at the hospital, only a few days old

Stretch!!!

Shopping Diva

Friday Liza and I went out shopping together at Marshal's, one of my favorite stores. I let Liza walk with me instead of putting her in the cart. It's a small store and she is really good about staying nearby.  Liza had a grand time wondering around and filling the cart with the things she found. I belive she has inherited her Grandma Marla's shopping talents. Her favorites included almost any stuffed animal she could find, a pink softball glove & ball, several watering cans, a straw hat she found in the men's department and proceeded to wear around the store, and a pink poodle purse. We went over to the women's accessories and found a pink girly cowboy hat that she readily traded  the mens straw hat for. Liza found a hat for me as well. The cowboy hat made it home with us, along with some baby things and exercise shorts for Jack.  Liza was so cute and animated, charming the other shoppers. I haven't had so much fun shopping in a long time

Fall Fun

O.k. I know it's not Autumn, but here in Texas the oaks don't lose their leaves until March.   Jack had fun editing the video with his new toy.

Bowler Hat

Liza loves anything she can put on or off herself. The other day she was helping me in the kitchen and found the perfect bowler hat. We were so excited that we had to go outside and show Daddy.

That pile of leaves took Jack most of Saturday. We have yet to tackle the rest of the yard, which would be between the house and barn.


  Liza also enjoys wearing Jack's eye mask as shown in this picture.

She is also having her daily dose of chocolate in the form of mini m&m's.