Happy 33 months, Sarah!

As the seasons change here on the Cape and we begin to believe that Spring is really coming, we also see the wonderful changing and maturing of our little girl. She is a sweet blessing to our family!

Weight: ?
Height: ?
Clothes: 3T; shoe, size 6 or 7

Likes: pretending to be someone else (best when the whole family pretends to be another family), playing outside, collecting rocks/shells, reading, singing, tending to her babies

Dislikes: Josiah actually wanting to play with toys (sometimes), bugs, vacuum cleaners (doesn't have to be running, it's mere presence will keep her out of a room,) and specks of dirt or fuzz in the bathtub

Schedule: Sarah usually goes to bed around 7pm and wakes up around 7:30am. It is nice at this stage that she is able to stretch and get more or less sleep depending on what we have going on. She still goes down for her nap around 1pm and only sometimes sleeps. The rule lately has just been that she must remain quiet, so that Josiah will not wake up. She probably sleeps on average 3 days a week.

Eating: Sarah still likes eating and especially loves bread and cracker treats. Lately she has been a little picky and particular, but generally wanes under pressure. Favorites are yogurt, pretty much any and all fruit, peppers, string cheese (a.k.a. "Daddy cheese"), an open-faced peanut butter sandwich, and grilled cheese.

Talking: Sarah can say pretty much everything she wants to say- plus some! She loves connecting the dots and talking about the same things over and over. Favorite subjects are eye color, birth month, and gender. We also do a lot of singing during the day. We still sing Angels We Have Heard On High and The Solid Rock before bed.

Potty Training: She is doing really well. We don't put diapers on her for anything at this point and she has had about an accident a month for the last three months. We were a little concerned about travelling a few weeks ago, but she did really well and always told us when she needed to go. She still isn't close to going by herself yet, but we haven't pushed it.

Random, but fun:

* She went swimming for the first time this year in FL and loved it!
* She still doesn't really jump, so we have been practicing hoping like a frog. It is super cute...she doesn't get anywhere close to getting off the ground :)
* Sarah doesn't like to go up or down any vertical change without holding onto something. We suspected this and tested it walking from the sanctuary to the church office recently. Sure enough, she would wait for us to come back and give her a reassuring hand to hold or would put her hand on the ground. I think the doctor may say she might be lacking core strength (which is probably true to some degree), but we are quite sure she can do it and just doesn't have the confidence.
* Church is very exciting to Sarah. She loves to be in the service to clap and dance, but equally loves going to the nursery to play.

Next appointment: Monday, July 22, 2013 at 9:15am

Happy 11 months, Josiah!

It has been said before, but is worth saying again- what a fast year! Josiah is still our little joyous, adventuresome one, and he keeps us on our toes in the most fun way. He is thoughtful and intentional at this stage and generally sensitive to what is going on around him. He is a sweet and happy boy!

Weight: heavy
Length: especially long torso
Head: getting hair!
Diaper: cloth and size 4
Clothing: 12 and 18 month (and 24 month in one-piece items)

Likes: splashing in the bath, crawling on Daddy, Cheerios, pulling up (especially on Mommy's pants), closing himself in a room (bathroom, closet, etc.), tickling/being tickled by Sarah, scooting around on and playing with the blocks in Beep Beep (the push cart), fridge magnets

Dislikes: being told "no no", Mommy walking away, sleeping until daylight :(

Schedule: This goal was rarely achieved this month...

7 am: Wake and nurse/eat
7-9 am: Wake time
9-11am: Nap
11am: Wake and nurse/eat
11-1 pm: Wake time
1-3 pm: Nap
3 pm: Wake and nurse/eat
3-7 pm: Wake time
7 pm: Nurse and down for bed

Sleeping: Unfortunately, the time change wasn't the catalyst our little guy needed to get him back to sleeping until daylight. For the last month he has been waking up around 5:30-6:00am, sometimes going back to sleep, sometimes not. The last few mornings he has been waking up at 1 or 2am and then again at 4:30 or 5:30am. Not good! We are holding out hope that he will stretch out and that being out of town will shake up his schedule enough to knock him back into some good habits. (Read: really wear him out!) In other news, he has developed a sleep prop, which Sarah never did. When he sees his blue dog lovey he does his two finger throwback and either rubs his head on my should or lunges for his crib.

Eating: He is still nursing and eating like a champ. This month he tried lots of new foods and doesn't turn his nose up at much. (Avacado is still on his "definitely not" list.) We can usually give him a little something from the meal that the rest of us are eating, which is nice. It is a reminder than one day we will all be able to eat the same meal at the same time...glory!

Moving: It appears that, like Sarah, Josiah may only ever be an army crawler. He is pretty fast at it and finds it quite sufficient. The only time he gets on all fours is if we leave him in only his diaper, but he makes it look like torture that we are making him keep his belly off the floor, so we don't do that intentionally. The last couple of weeks he has gotten good at playing on his knees and pulling up. He is even cruising around the furniture and stepping between the couch and coffee table. Those are things that we had doctors teach us to work on with Sarah, so it is kind of amazing to watch him do it so naturally. The last couple of days he has been pulling up on a little push cart and walking by himself, which is also neat to see. He enjoys taking steps when we hold his hands.

Communication: He makes all kind of noises these days, but no new words. Josiah does seem to use "momma" and "dadda" very intentionally, which is fun. He definitely understands much of what we say and is choosing how to respond.

Teething: One of his top two teeth is through now and boy, was it a SLOOOOOOW process. It took weeks to get from the blister on the gums to while spot to breaking through stage. This one seemed to bother him a bit a times, which was unfortunate. The other front one is also on the move, but hasn't broken the gums yet.

Fun facts:
- A lady at church complemented his new haircut, which I think means he looks like he has real hair now. (No actual need for a haircut yet.)
- His eyes are still blue, but it is kind of a navy/gray blue.
- He was so tired once that I was able to move him from the car seat to my shoulder without him waking up. This is the first time in recent memory he has slept on my shoulder- I ate up every moment.
- He likes to chase Sarah so that she will chase him back.
- He has had a few good bruises this month. The best was on his forehead after he lunged into a low shelf.
- He is a grunter and makes lots of little man/monkey noises. Sarah does a pretty great impression.

Next appointment: Monday, May 6, 2012 at 9:40am

Playing with Pappy

It was fun having cousin Eli visit!

Siah's first sled ride- he was a fan!

Walking on Mom's toes at the Cape Cod Children's Museum

Big fun!

Daddy let J-man "drive" while we waited on the sun to set

Josiah's first Easter

Dave's take on the kids' photo at Easter lunch :)

"I've got moves, people"

The aforementioned shoulder sleeping experience :)

I love that they (generally) love playing together

Could you sleep like this?!?!

#1 Sarah telling Josiah to smile

#2 Sarah turned her back and Josiah seized the moment 

#3 Josiah is pretty proud of his attempt while Sarah gently scolds. . . never a dull moment with these two!

Daddy/Siah fun at the Clermont library for story hour

Cousins' Visit!

A few weeks ago my sister Jacki and her husband Mike brought two of Sarah and Josiah's favorite cousins to visit: their son Eli and our cousin April. Big fun was had, of course.

Playtime with cousins is a whole lot more fun!

There was a whole series of bathtime pics, just like the ones of me
with my cousins when we were little.
This is the only one we're willing to share
with the internet, though!

Eli sees snow for the first time

And April sees snow for the first time!

They quickly began building a snowman

Snow Manny, as Sarah named him

At the Cape Cod Children's Museum. There wasn't much to it, but we had a fun time!

The big kids :)

Cousin April gave Sarah her first set of painted nails.

We kids were happy to try on their Easter outfits from GiGi . . .

. . . but not so happy to be photographed in them!

We're so glad you came, and especially that it snowed while you were here. See you soon!

Happy 10 months, Josiah!

Our little guy is super fun. We are enjoying really playing with him these days, though it is probably Sarah who enjoys this new phase the most. We are extra looking forward to warm weather play when it arrives!

Weight: still a big boy
Length: ?
Head: ?
Diaper: cloth and size 4
Clothing: 12 and 18 month (especially shirts and one piece items)

Likes: sitting/playing on the steps, bath time, being held, being with Sarah, playing with doors (and generally opening/closing things), hanging out with the fridge magnets, tickles/crawling on Daddy when Daddy is on the floor

Dislikes: being set down before he is finished being held, sometimes being left in nursery (mostly if other babies are already crying), being told he can't hang out on the steps

Schedule: What we are currently shooting for...

7 am: Wake and nurse/eat (he has been waking around 6am for the last three weeks...we are all ready for the time change!)

7-9 am: Wake time
9-11am: Nap
11am: Wake and nurse/eat
11-1 pm: Wake time
1-3 pm: Nap
3 pm: Wake and nurse/eat
3-7 pm: Wake time
7 pm: Nurse and down for bed

Sleeping: We continue to be so thankful that things are much improved from his earliest sleeping habits. Josiah goes down pretty easily and gets good sleep while he is down. His naps are generally not super long (at least compared to Sarah), but he doesn't usually cry or take long to get to sleep anymore. As noted above, he has been waking up early again (he has gone through an early phase before), generally in the 6am region. And sometimes in the 5ams. That makes for a very tired family :) We are hopeful that he'll stretch out soon and/or that the time change with get us back to normal.

Eating: Nursing is still going well. Dave and I were away recently and he did really well for his sitters drinking his milk from a bottle. He took a whole 8 ounces every time, they tell me. I have a hard time imagining he drinks that much at a normal feeding, but I think what he lacks in snuggles he makes up for with milk while I'm away. Josiah is still happy with purees and we are starting to give him baby appropriate finger foods to try. He has learned to identify the Cheerios by their box and gets the excited shakes when he sees it. I think he is going to be a carb-lover like his sister (let's be real, his mom and dad, too).

Moving: He is quite mobile these days. Crawling is still going well. He is an army crawler, like Sarah, and moves quickly that way. On the last day of February he learned to sit up on his own and has enjoyed that new freedom. He loves to follow Sarah around as she plays and just do whatever it is she is doing. Sometimes he will put weight on his legs and hold our hands, but doesn't move his feet yet. He will crawl or pull up on things occasionally, but isn't comfortable on his knees.

Communication: Nothing too new here. He still says "mama" and "dada" and babbles with Sarah. When he is tired he enjoys listening to us read to him.  We are doing a few signs with him and he sometimes does them back, but nothing consistent. He has shown us that he understands our correction as he gives us a knowing look and does whatever it is anyway :)

Teething: Nothing new is through, so he still just has his bottom two. We can see movement under the top two gums, but he hasn't been super bothered.

Fun facts:
- He loves splashing at bath time. I think he is going to like the ocean!
- We have a new double stroller that he thoroughly enjoys burrowing into for a wintery walk.
- He dropped his third nap this month and has become more flexible in regard to the two remaining naps.
- Josiah is much less cautious than Sarah. He is quite fearless in comparison, which is fun and nerve-racking. 
- Went through a fun "tricks" phase this month. He learned to wave, slap his hands on one another, and make the "wawawa" sound by putting his hand over his mouth. They were the big thing for a couple of weeks. Now when we ask him to perform he looks at us with a you-look-so-ridiculous-but-I-love-you smile.

Next appointment: Monday, May 6, 2012 at 9:40am

Blizzard meal time
"Being cold makes me extra hungry, mom!"

Playing to keep warm on the cold floor

Good times

Sarah tickles Josiah

And Josiah strikes back

We went to the mall to get out one last time before the blizzard. Note the difference in Josiah's face with a hat...

...and without.

More often than not, this is the way a room looks when they are finished with it.

Sweet, squishy, baby lips

His favorite hideaway