My sweet darling boys woke up on Saturday morning almost back to their old selves. They didn't eat too much, but were not longer getting sick and felt just fine enough to play and play and play with all their new toys and games. Awesome!
And, since they are so sweet and darling, they were kind enough to share their sickness with me. I knew around lunchtime that I was going to be in for it later. I finally caved and crawled into bed around 2:00 or so. The vomiting started at 3:30 and lasted about 12 hours, just like the boys. I puked like clockwork every 2 hours. And it wasn't pleasant in between the puking either. I felt so sick I was doing almost anything to make myself get sick - like chug water and Sprite. It did eventually work, but generally only moved the timeframe up by about 30 minutes or so.
I did feel well enough on Sunday morning to nurse Lexi around 6:30 since I hadn't vomited since about 3:00 and figured I was past the every 2 hour milestone and was feeling slightly better. After cleaning the bathroom and a nice hot shower I was still feeling pretty drained, but at least no longer sick.
I just hope that Luis and Lexi are able to sidestep this one - it ain't no fun.
On a happier note, Lou's parents stopped over on Sunday afternoon to exchange gifts. The boys were psyched to get the Bat Cave, which they had been talking about for weeks and were slightly disappointed since they didn't think they were going to get it. Lexi was quite interested in the flushing potty noise of the Little People Happy Home and I got a beautiful baby blue cashmere sweater. Luis got a nice merino wool sweater which he kidded his mother about saying it was the 5th year in a row that he had received one of those sweaters, all in the same color (and it is mostly true LOL).
By the time dinnertime rolled around I was even able to eat some food - yippee! Maybe I'll use this to kickstart my diet.
Sunday, December 27, 2009
Saturday, December 26, 2009
Not Exactly the Christmas I Dreamed of
In my head there was laughter, fun, toys, smiles and lots of playing.
In reality, it started with with Jackson puking in his bed at 6:15 in the morning. Then again as we opened stocking gifts. Then again as we opened gifts from Lou's sister's family. Then again....well, you get the picture.
As if that wasn't joyful enough, around 10:00am Nicolas joined in the fun. Of course, the benefit of having a sick child who is a little older is that he usually makes it to the bathroom/toilet before actually puking, which is different from a 3 year old who just pukes on the floor wherever he happens to be standing.
So both boys walked around with "puke pails" (sand buckets that Luis washed out for them) all day. There was limited playing and as the day wore on both boys got more and more wiped out. Jackson stopped vomiting shortly after lunch and took a nice long nap. Nicolas also took a nice long nap, but continued throwing up all day.
My parents did come down to celebrate with us (Christmas, not the puking) and felt so bad for the boys (as we all did). But we did have a nice Christmas lunch/dinner (at least the adults did) and some time to visit (in between the million loads of laundry I was doing).
Poor Nicolas got sick one final time after going to bed - and he was so worn out that he didn't even wake up or realize he had vomited in his bed. I went in to check on him and discovered the vomit covered bed and pjs. Luckily that was the last time he got sick and he seemed to sleep through the night pretty well.
On a happier note, the boys did get a lot of really great things and seemed to be very excited by everything. Lexi was more interested in playing with the boys' toys than anything she got, with maybe the exception of her new pink plasma car. I got a sticker maker that I really wanted for scrapbooking and my parents also gave us a gift card for a nice restaurant that we love here in town, as well as the latest Harry Potter DVD. Score!
In reality, it started with with Jackson puking in his bed at 6:15 in the morning. Then again as we opened stocking gifts. Then again as we opened gifts from Lou's sister's family. Then again....well, you get the picture.
As if that wasn't joyful enough, around 10:00am Nicolas joined in the fun. Of course, the benefit of having a sick child who is a little older is that he usually makes it to the bathroom/toilet before actually puking, which is different from a 3 year old who just pukes on the floor wherever he happens to be standing.
So both boys walked around with "puke pails" (sand buckets that Luis washed out for them) all day. There was limited playing and as the day wore on both boys got more and more wiped out. Jackson stopped vomiting shortly after lunch and took a nice long nap. Nicolas also took a nice long nap, but continued throwing up all day.
My parents did come down to celebrate with us (Christmas, not the puking) and felt so bad for the boys (as we all did). But we did have a nice Christmas lunch/dinner (at least the adults did) and some time to visit (in between the million loads of laundry I was doing).
Poor Nicolas got sick one final time after going to bed - and he was so worn out that he didn't even wake up or realize he had vomited in his bed. I went in to check on him and discovered the vomit covered bed and pjs. Luckily that was the last time he got sick and he seemed to sleep through the night pretty well.
On a happier note, the boys did get a lot of really great things and seemed to be very excited by everything. Lexi was more interested in playing with the boys' toys than anything she got, with maybe the exception of her new pink plasma car. I got a sticker maker that I really wanted for scrapbooking and my parents also gave us a gift card for a nice restaurant that we love here in town, as well as the latest Harry Potter DVD. Score!
Wednesday, December 2, 2009
Finally, a well visit
Jackson had his 3 year checkup this morning. It was nice to go to the doctor's office for something other than a sick visit! He is doing great. Weighs 30 pounds (25%) and is 37 3/4" tall (50%). Ears look great, which is good. He has been so congested for the past week, I wouldn't have been surprised if he did have an ear infection. He got his second dose of the H1N1 shot as well, just to be on the safe side.
Saturday, November 28, 2009
Happy Birthday Jackson!
Wow - 3 years went by in the blink of an eye. It seems like just yesterday when then placed you on my stomach and you promptly pooped on me. Ahhh....the memories :-)
We celebrated with the family today - everyone came to celebrate Jackson's 3rd birthday. It was great to see everyone and the kids all had a blast playing together. The food from Pazzo's was excellent, as always - we couldn't have asked for a nicer day. Unfortunately, Poppa Marques was feeling under the weather, but was still able to come celebrate.
Jackson got all kinds of great new toys to play with and some really cute outfits (for me to play with LOL).
Bryan was nice enough to walk around in the basement with us, giving us some ideas/suggestions/opinions on some of the things we are looking to do down there, which was nice. Made us think of a few things that we hadn't considered which is always a good thing - gets the imagination going.
One of the cutest things that happened all day was that Lexi fed Tyler. Well...sort of. Tyler had finished his dinner and had gotten out of the booster chair. We put Lexi in and was feeding her some ham and orange melon. Tyler pulled himself up and was standing next to the booster chair looking up at Lexi and she started feeding him melon! She would grab a piece and put it in Tyler's open mouth. It was absolutely hysterical and went on for a little while. Now that is what I call sharing :-)
We celebrated with the family today - everyone came to celebrate Jackson's 3rd birthday. It was great to see everyone and the kids all had a blast playing together. The food from Pazzo's was excellent, as always - we couldn't have asked for a nicer day. Unfortunately, Poppa Marques was feeling under the weather, but was still able to come celebrate.
Jackson got all kinds of great new toys to play with and some really cute outfits (for me to play with LOL).
Bryan was nice enough to walk around in the basement with us, giving us some ideas/suggestions/opinions on some of the things we are looking to do down there, which was nice. Made us think of a few things that we hadn't considered which is always a good thing - gets the imagination going.
One of the cutest things that happened all day was that Lexi fed Tyler. Well...sort of. Tyler had finished his dinner and had gotten out of the booster chair. We put Lexi in and was feeding her some ham and orange melon. Tyler pulled himself up and was standing next to the booster chair looking up at Lexi and she started feeding him melon! She would grab a piece and put it in Tyler's open mouth. It was absolutely hysterical and went on for a little while. Now that is what I call sharing :-)
Friday, November 27, 2009
Swine Flu sucks
I picked Nicolas up from school right after lunch on Friday the 20th since he was coughing like crazy and the teacher called to see what we wanted to do. Luckily, both Luis and I had taken the day off of work to do some things for the basement, so it wasn't a problem. Nicolas started running a fever Friday night and had a fever all the way through last night. Coughing, tired, and miserable for the past week. Eating ok, but that is about it. Taking 2-3 hour naps every day which is completely unheard of. And stayed home all week from school this week. Based on his symptoms (fever, coughing, tiredness, sore legs and 1 random puking episode), I have concluded that it was the swine flu (as opposed to the regular flu). Hopefully no one else in the house will catch it.
Jackson and I have been sick since Sunday, but hopefully just with regular colds as there doesn't seem to be a persistent fever for either of us.
Jackson and I have been sick since Sunday, but hopefully just with regular colds as there doesn't seem to be a persistent fever for either of us.
Wednesday, November 18, 2009
Holy crap, molars!
Lexi had her first visit to the dentist this morning. They did a general mouth check, just to make sure everything looks ok and to get Lexi used to going to the dentist. All looked good and the dentist pointed out that Lexi has one of her top molars already and the other one was starting to push through as well. Hmmm. Maybe that is why she has been a bit cranky lately and not wanting to sleep...
Wednesday, November 11, 2009
Feeling hot, hot, hot
Lexi has been running a fever since Saturday. And not just some run of the mill slight temp kind of fever, but the kind of fever that requires a dose of both Tylenol AND Motrin to keep it down in a reasonable range.
I was convinced that she had another ear infection, and Jen was nice enough to let me stop by her house Sunday morning so that she could check. The good news was that Lexi's ears weren't infected (although one did have fluid in it). The bad news is that I had no idea what was causing the fever.
Monday she stayed home from daycare. I thought she seemed a little better yesterday, although still feverish. Was feverish again this morning, so home she stayed. Then as I took her out of the bath tonight and was drying her off...lo and behold...a rash. So it looks like she has Roseola. The good news is now that the rash has appeared, the fever should be gone. I did give her some Motrin right before bed just in case, so we'll see how she does and how she is feeling tomorrow.
I was convinced that she had another ear infection, and Jen was nice enough to let me stop by her house Sunday morning so that she could check. The good news was that Lexi's ears weren't infected (although one did have fluid in it). The bad news is that I had no idea what was causing the fever.
Monday she stayed home from daycare. I thought she seemed a little better yesterday, although still feverish. Was feverish again this morning, so home she stayed. Then as I took her out of the bath tonight and was drying her off...lo and behold...a rash. So it looks like she has Roseola. The good news is now that the rash has appeared, the fever should be gone. I did give her some Motrin right before bed just in case, so we'll see how she does and how she is feeling tomorrow.
Sunday, November 1, 2009
Cake the turtle
Jackson woke up on the wrong side of the bed this morning. Whiny and crying for a decent part of the morning. Didn't want to eat breakfast, didn't want to get dressed, etc. After much asking, telling and threatening he finally got dressed, just in time to head out to the birthday party he was supposed to be attending. Except that all of a sudden he decided he didn't want me to bring him - he wanted Daddy to bring him. Which normally would be fine, except that last week when Luis brought the boys to a birthday party Jackson decided that I would bring him to this birthday party. And we'd been talking about it all week, and I literally had my keys in hand. It was either go with mommy or not go at all. To write it out here sounds harsh, but from my perspective I didn't want him thinking/learning that he is in charge - that just because he wants (or doesn't want) something means that is how it is going to be. After much to-do, we were off, with much crying from the backseat. About halfway to the party he stopped crying and apparently decided to make the most of it.
The party was at a small children's museum and although it took a little while for him to stop clinging to me and really enjoy the party, he did have a good time. They had a woman talk to the kids about animals they would see in their backyards, and passed around a bird's nest, beaver chew and woodpecker hole to feel/see. She also had a pair of box turtles that all the kids were able to pet (except for Jackson who refused to touch them). Then the kids did a craft of making and decorating their own turtle, which Jackson promptly named "Cake". Then pizza (which Jackson actually ate a few bites of) and cake. Then we had time to wander around the rest of the museum for a little while before it opened to the public. Jackson had a great time in the "boat" room pretending to drive the fishing boat and catch fish. He also loved watching the electric train make the loop from the hallway into the boat room and back out. When we were leaving he said his favorite part was the cake. Too funny. That's definitely my kid!
After a short nap and a bit of time running around outside, Lou suggested that we go out to eat. Being a sucker for punishment I agreed and quickly packed up a bag of food and we headed out.
Not 5 minutes after sitting down, the boys managed to dump out Lou's full glass of water all over the table, menus, and Lexi. Then they filled up on dinner rolls so that when the food actually came, they didn't want to eat it. Jackson had all of 1 bite of his hot dog and I think Nicolas had 2-3 pieces of chicken. They both ate a number of french fries, as well as the mini pumpkin muffins I had grabbed on the way out of the house. Lexi ate most of her jarred food, some Cheerios and some of Nicolas' chicken (maybe even more than he did). Then Nicolas decided he had to poop and Lou was in the bathroom for a long time with him, which I tried to keep Lexi and Jackson entertained. Luis finally came out and suggested that I pack them in the car while Nicolas finished up.
Shortly after getting home we headed to bed where Jackson proceeded to demand to sleep in our bed. Luis had to manhandle him back into the boys' room and lean against the door to keep it closed while Jackson threw a screaming/crying fit trying to get back into our room. Once he finally calmed down he got in bed (with Luis) and they both fell asleep until almost 10 when Luis came back into our room to sleep.
Isn't it a little early for the wonderful "3" behavior to start? And to think we have a whole year of this ahead of us. And another year once Lexi hits this fabulous age...
The party was at a small children's museum and although it took a little while for him to stop clinging to me and really enjoy the party, he did have a good time. They had a woman talk to the kids about animals they would see in their backyards, and passed around a bird's nest, beaver chew and woodpecker hole to feel/see. She also had a pair of box turtles that all the kids were able to pet (except for Jackson who refused to touch them). Then the kids did a craft of making and decorating their own turtle, which Jackson promptly named "Cake". Then pizza (which Jackson actually ate a few bites of) and cake. Then we had time to wander around the rest of the museum for a little while before it opened to the public. Jackson had a great time in the "boat" room pretending to drive the fishing boat and catch fish. He also loved watching the electric train make the loop from the hallway into the boat room and back out. When we were leaving he said his favorite part was the cake. Too funny. That's definitely my kid!
After a short nap and a bit of time running around outside, Lou suggested that we go out to eat. Being a sucker for punishment I agreed and quickly packed up a bag of food and we headed out.
Not 5 minutes after sitting down, the boys managed to dump out Lou's full glass of water all over the table, menus, and Lexi. Then they filled up on dinner rolls so that when the food actually came, they didn't want to eat it. Jackson had all of 1 bite of his hot dog and I think Nicolas had 2-3 pieces of chicken. They both ate a number of french fries, as well as the mini pumpkin muffins I had grabbed on the way out of the house. Lexi ate most of her jarred food, some Cheerios and some of Nicolas' chicken (maybe even more than he did). Then Nicolas decided he had to poop and Lou was in the bathroom for a long time with him, which I tried to keep Lexi and Jackson entertained. Luis finally came out and suggested that I pack them in the car while Nicolas finished up.
Shortly after getting home we headed to bed where Jackson proceeded to demand to sleep in our bed. Luis had to manhandle him back into the boys' room and lean against the door to keep it closed while Jackson threw a screaming/crying fit trying to get back into our room. Once he finally calmed down he got in bed (with Luis) and they both fell asleep until almost 10 when Luis came back into our room to sleep.
Isn't it a little early for the wonderful "3" behavior to start? And to think we have a whole year of this ahead of us. And another year once Lexi hits this fabulous age...
Sunday, October 25, 2009
Party Weekend
Saturday Lexi and I headed up to Massachusetts for my friend Laura's daughter's first birthday. Because I was making the round trip in one day, I decided to leave the boys at home with Luis since 4 hours in a car is not something I wanted to subject them to. Lexi slept almost the whole ride up and immediately got busy exploring Laura's house once we arrived. Abby was in her Halloween costume (a peanut, which is what they call her), as were some of the other kids. I knew Lexi wouldn't have kept hers on for very long, so I didn't even bother trying.
We stayed a couple of hours, but once Lexi started getting tired, headed out. We stopped at my parent's house for a few minutes to visit, but my mom was feeling really sick (was actually in bed when we got there around 1:30), so we didn't stay long. Luckily, Lexi slept almost the entire ride home as well.
The boys went to visit Lou's folks while we were out, so they had a good time as well.
Today the boys went to a birthday party for one of the kids in Jackson's Preschool room. They had it at MyGym and the kids had a lot of fun. I stayed home with Lexi while she napped and headed to BJs for a shopping trip once she woke up. The boys were full of excitement and stories when I returned so I got to hear all about how much fun they had.
Both boys acted up quite a bit all weekend, for reasons that escape me, but I'm hoping they were just a little overtired and that they will be back to normal soon.
We stayed a couple of hours, but once Lexi started getting tired, headed out. We stopped at my parent's house for a few minutes to visit, but my mom was feeling really sick (was actually in bed when we got there around 1:30), so we didn't stay long. Luckily, Lexi slept almost the entire ride home as well.
The boys went to visit Lou's folks while we were out, so they had a good time as well.
Today the boys went to a birthday party for one of the kids in Jackson's Preschool room. They had it at MyGym and the kids had a lot of fun. I stayed home with Lexi while she napped and headed to BJs for a shopping trip once she woke up. The boys were full of excitement and stories when I returned so I got to hear all about how much fun they had.
Both boys acted up quite a bit all weekend, for reasons that escape me, but I'm hoping they were just a little overtired and that they will be back to normal soon.
Tuesday, October 20, 2009
Reconnecting
Mastitis. I have it. Bah. Antibiotics for the next week for me.
In more interesting news, Luis and I went to the "Meet the President reception" for Babson College held at Tunxis Plantation tonight. Free drinks and dinner, and I was curious about the new college President. I was pretty impressed with him and the food was delicious. I ran into a woman I played volleyball with (she was a freshman when I was a senior) and discovered that she actually lives across town from me and has a 3 year old. How awesome. So, we are hoping to get together for a playdate soon. It was nice to reconnect with someone who I haven't seen in about 15 years! (Yikes).
In more interesting news, Luis and I went to the "Meet the President reception" for Babson College held at Tunxis Plantation tonight. Free drinks and dinner, and I was curious about the new college President. I was pretty impressed with him and the food was delicious. I ran into a woman I played volleyball with (she was a freshman when I was a senior) and discovered that she actually lives across town from me and has a 3 year old. How awesome. So, we are hoping to get together for a playdate soon. It was nice to reconnect with someone who I haven't seen in about 15 years! (Yikes).
Saturday, October 17, 2009
Animal adventure
Although the weather was nice today, we got a little bit of a late start since Lexi took a really good (meaning long) nap this morning. So, instead of heading to the Apple Festival, we decided to go over to Robb's Farm where they have a animal petting area (mostly goats), bouncehouse and warm apple fritters (yum). On the way we stopped at a nearby elementary school to check out the playscape. It was the only one we haven't been to before and the boys were thrilled to find a "new" place to play. Even Lexi was able to go down the slides a few times.
Avos had taken a drive to buy some chouriza and met up with us at the farm for a little visit. We walked around and saw the different animals (goats, pigs, emu, donkey, cows, rabbits, chickens) and ate apple fritters (my favorite!). The boys of course had a blast in the pumpkin bounce house and were thrilled to see a momma cow nursing her calf. Then we all headed to our house for some grilled chouriza (well - the kids just had sandwiches and so did I). It was nice to see Avos and I was glad to see that Vovo is feeling a lot better from the surgery.
Avos had taken a drive to buy some chouriza and met up with us at the farm for a little visit. We walked around and saw the different animals (goats, pigs, emu, donkey, cows, rabbits, chickens) and ate apple fritters (my favorite!). The boys of course had a blast in the pumpkin bounce house and were thrilled to see a momma cow nursing her calf. Then we all headed to our house for some grilled chouriza (well - the kids just had sandwiches and so did I). It was nice to see Avos and I was glad to see that Vovo is feeling a lot better from the surgery.
Thursday, October 15, 2009
WTF???
So it SNOWED today. Yes, my friends, I said SNOW. It started out innocently enough around 1:30 today and started accumulating as the day went on. After eating dinner, Luis and the boys went outside to play in the snow, since we had probably 1/2 inch or so. They were very excited to let me know that they made a snowman. Yes - we had enough snow for a snowman.
It is just WRONG to have enough snow in early/mid October for a snowman. I have a feeling this is going to be a very long winter.
And to top it all off, I brought Lexi in to have her ears checked and sure enough she has a DOUBLE EAR INFECTION. Damn, damn, damn. And there is still a nationwide shortage of the preventative antibiotic. So, onto another round of antibiotics for her and hope that once she is done taking them we can get a hold of the preventative medicine soon.
It is just WRONG to have enough snow in early/mid October for a snowman. I have a feeling this is going to be a very long winter.
And to top it all off, I brought Lexi in to have her ears checked and sure enough she has a DOUBLE EAR INFECTION. Damn, damn, damn. And there is still a nationwide shortage of the preventative antibiotic. So, onto another round of antibiotics for her and hope that once she is done taking them we can get a hold of the preventative medicine soon.
Tuesday, October 13, 2009
I knew it
For months Luis has been telling me how much Lexi needs a haircut. And although she does look shaggy, I've been trying to be patient while her hair grows out. Unfortunately, she doesn't let me put any clips or ponytails in her hair, so it is always in her face.
I finally caved and made an appointment for all the kids to get haircuts, although I still wasn't sure how they would/could cut Lexi's hair since the part that is falling into her face/eyes is not her bangs, but the longer hair that is in the middle of her head. So the hairdresser takes one look and says the best she could do is trim Lexi's bangs and then we'd have to pull the rest back until it grows longer. Which in reality wouldn't really change anything since the part that falls into her face would still fall into her face. So, after talking to her I decided to wait a little longer. I did buy another hair clip in the hopes that she'll be more amenable to wearing it. The boys got cuts and look ever so handsome now. Two out of three isn't bad, right?
I finally caved and made an appointment for all the kids to get haircuts, although I still wasn't sure how they would/could cut Lexi's hair since the part that is falling into her face/eyes is not her bangs, but the longer hair that is in the middle of her head. So the hairdresser takes one look and says the best she could do is trim Lexi's bangs and then we'd have to pull the rest back until it grows longer. Which in reality wouldn't really change anything since the part that falls into her face would still fall into her face. So, after talking to her I decided to wait a little longer. I did buy another hair clip in the hopes that she'll be more amenable to wearing it. The boys got cuts and look ever so handsome now. Two out of three isn't bad, right?
Saturday, October 10, 2009
A Night Out
Today our friend Kevin got married in Kent, CT at a place called Club Getaway. Since it was about a 2 hour drive from our house, my parents were nice enough (for the THIRD weekend in a row!!) to spend the night so that Luis and I could stay over. We had a little cabin with a couple of twin beds (haha - the one night of the whole year that we have uninterrupted and we are in separate beds!). The wedding was outside which was a bit chilly, but it was a very quick wedding, even though it was actually a double wedding (the bride and her brother both got married). The reception was in a heated tent (thank goodness) and we had a lot of fun hanging out with our friends and dancing. After the reception, we changed into warmer clothes and headed down to the bonfire they had (complete with a guitar-playing singer to entertain us). We headed to bed around 1am to get as much sleep as we could before heading out to breakfast and then to head home. Tons of fun.
A few people had brought their kids and while I did miss our kids, it was nice to not worry about who needed what at any given moment.
A few people had brought their kids and while I did miss our kids, it was nice to not worry about who needed what at any given moment.
Tuesday, October 6, 2009
Happy Birthday dear Lexi!
I cannot believe how fast this past year went by. I remember like it was yesterday (no, really, like it was yesterday) pushing out my beautiful baby girl. And here we are four teeth, lots of hair, walking, talking, year later. Totally amazing.
And what did I do to celebrate this wonderful milestone? Took Lexi for her 1 year checkup where she got 4 (yes 4!) shots and a finger prick to check her blood for lead. Bad mommy. Not exactly the nicest of things to do on one's birthday. Luckily she is young enough that she won't remember.
Her ears are nice and clear. She does have a yeast infection (man, I am getting good at this diagnosing stuff) and is now weighing in at 20 lbs 5 oz (25-50%), 29 3/4 inches (75%) and a head circumference of 46 1/2 (75-90%).
On a more serious note, my mother in law is having surgery today on her thyroid. The surgery wasn't until late this afternoon, and so I think it is still going on as I write this. Hopefully the surgery is going smoothly and she will have an easy recovery. We are keeping our fingers crossed for her. We love you Vovo!!
I cannot believe how fast this past year went by. I remember like it was yesterday (no, really, like it was yesterday) pushing out my beautiful baby girl. And here we are four teeth, lots of hair, walking, talking, year later. Totally amazing.
And what did I do to celebrate this wonderful milestone? Took Lexi for her 1 year checkup where she got 4 (yes 4!) shots and a finger prick to check her blood for lead. Bad mommy. Not exactly the nicest of things to do on one's birthday. Luckily she is young enough that she won't remember.
Her ears are nice and clear. She does have a yeast infection (man, I am getting good at this diagnosing stuff) and is now weighing in at 20 lbs 5 oz (25-50%), 29 3/4 inches (75%) and a head circumference of 46 1/2 (75-90%).
On a more serious note, my mother in law is having surgery today on her thyroid. The surgery wasn't until late this afternoon, and so I think it is still going on as I write this. Hopefully the surgery is going smoothly and she will have an easy recovery. We are keeping our fingers crossed for her. We love you Vovo!!
Thursday, September 24, 2009
Can you hear me now?
Nicolas failed (and I mean totally failed - as in did not hear even one beep) his hearing test at his 4 year old checkup in March. Granted, he had a double ear infection 2 weeks prior and had fluid still in his ears, so the doctor was not too concerned at the time. They suggested coming back during the summer to have his ears rechecked. Since he had another ear infection over the summer, I decided to wait until today to have it done. And, since we were going to be at the doctor's office anyway, I scheduled flu shots for all the kids too.
Luckily, Nicolas did great with the hearing test and was able to hear every single beep this time (so now he has no excuse for not hearing me when I am speaking to him). Both boys did great with their flu shots as well. No flinching, crying or anything. Lexi wasn't as pleased and did cry initially but calmed down very quickly. Lucky her - she gets a booster shot in another month since this is the first time she's ever got the shot.
I was very proud of both boys and hope that I am as brave when I go to get my shot.
Luckily, Nicolas did great with the hearing test and was able to hear every single beep this time (so now he has no excuse for not hearing me when I am speaking to him). Both boys did great with their flu shots as well. No flinching, crying or anything. Lexi wasn't as pleased and did cry initially but calmed down very quickly. Lucky her - she gets a booster shot in another month since this is the first time she's ever got the shot.
I was very proud of both boys and hope that I am as brave when I go to get my shot.
Tuesday, September 22, 2009
F$$*^$%&*#$&@#$(*$ ears!
Lexi still is not quite herself, and since I know she had fluid in her ear on Saturday, I decided to have her ears checked out. Of course, she has an ear infection. She didn't even make 2 weeks after being off the preventative antibiotic. So, the doctor prescribed an antibiotic that he wants her to take until her 1 year appointment on the 6th and then we'll evaluate and decide how to move forward.
1) Wait and see what happens
2) Start the preventative antibiotic again
3) Visit with the ENT and discuss the placement of tubes
Why couldn't the kids have gotten MY ears?????
1) Wait and see what happens
2) Start the preventative antibiotic again
3) Visit with the ENT and discuss the placement of tubes
Why couldn't the kids have gotten MY ears?????
Walk This Way....(Talk This Way)
After a miserable night with Lexi last night, and after she woke up from her nap this afternoon coughing and then puking all over me (don't you just love the smell of puke....not), I decided to bring her to the doctor's office to have her ears checked. Sure enough, her right ear has an infection. Wonderful. Not 2 weeks after we stopped giving her the preventative antibiotic she comes down with an ear infection. This is not a particularly good sign.
In much more exciting news, Lexi decided to start walking today. And she doesn't fool around. Most kids (I think - at least both boys) will pull themselves up to a standing position, and then may let go and take a few tentative steps toward mom (or dad or whoever/whatever). Not Lexi. No siree. That's too easy. She decides that it is much better to be sitting in the middle of the room, with nothing to grab onto and get to a standing position from there. She is soooo proud of herself - she immediately starts giggling. Stands there and giggles like a maniac. Once she did it the first time she was determined to practice, practice, practice for the next hour or so, even after I could tell she was getting tired.
She even attempted a few steps - and got up to 4 steps before falling down. We are so proud of her and she is all smiles as she is doing it, clearly quite proud of herself as well (as she should be!).
And yet a teeny tiny part of me is a little sad as this is such a significant milestone - our baby is growing up so quickly right in front of our eyes.
In much more exciting news, Lexi decided to start walking today. And she doesn't fool around. Most kids (I think - at least both boys) will pull themselves up to a standing position, and then may let go and take a few tentative steps toward mom (or dad or whoever/whatever). Not Lexi. No siree. That's too easy. She decides that it is much better to be sitting in the middle of the room, with nothing to grab onto and get to a standing position from there. She is soooo proud of herself - she immediately starts giggling. Stands there and giggles like a maniac. Once she did it the first time she was determined to practice, practice, practice for the next hour or so, even after I could tell she was getting tired.
She even attempted a few steps - and got up to 4 steps before falling down. We are so proud of her and she is all smiles as she is doing it, clearly quite proud of herself as well (as she should be!).
And yet a teeny tiny part of me is a little sad as this is such a significant milestone - our baby is growing up so quickly right in front of our eyes.
Saturday, September 19, 2009
The Great Escape
Fearing the worst, I made an appointment to have Lexi's ears checked with the doctor on call today. Luckily, there is no ear infection, but unfortunately there is fluid in her ears. Which, based on past history with her, will most likely turn into an ear infection over the next few days.
Today we went to a party for one of the kids in Jackson's Preschool class. He was in the same class with him in Toddlers and often tells us stories of what he did at school with Maxwell. The party was at The Great Escape which is an indoor playscape/arcade type of place. It is in our town, although I had never been before.
It took a little while for the kids to "warm up" and be comfortable enough to stop clinging to either Luis or I, but once they got going it was hard to get them to stop! After quickly eating some pizza and cake, all the kids headed out to the playscape area. It was pretty cool, with lots of slides/tunnels, ladders, ramps, and various other climbing apparatus. Lots of ball pits as well, which I asked the boys to avoid if possible - they make me nervous (like, how often do they get sanitized, etc.). Even Lexi had fun climbing up a mat ramp and sliding town a tunnel slide. After running around for a while, the kids moved over to the "arcade" area. They had lots of arcade-type games that were age-appropriate and gave out tickets at the end. By 7, Lexi was ready for bed, so we headed home, but not before stopping at the "gadgets" counter to turn in all our tickets for some cheap toys. Great. Just what we need. More cheap toys in the house, like we aren't already overrun with toys. Sigh. The kids had fun picking out their treasures, though.
Today we went to a party for one of the kids in Jackson's Preschool class. He was in the same class with him in Toddlers and often tells us stories of what he did at school with Maxwell. The party was at The Great Escape which is an indoor playscape/arcade type of place. It is in our town, although I had never been before.
It took a little while for the kids to "warm up" and be comfortable enough to stop clinging to either Luis or I, but once they got going it was hard to get them to stop! After quickly eating some pizza and cake, all the kids headed out to the playscape area. It was pretty cool, with lots of slides/tunnels, ladders, ramps, and various other climbing apparatus. Lots of ball pits as well, which I asked the boys to avoid if possible - they make me nervous (like, how often do they get sanitized, etc.). Even Lexi had fun climbing up a mat ramp and sliding town a tunnel slide. After running around for a while, the kids moved over to the "arcade" area. They had lots of arcade-type games that were age-appropriate and gave out tickets at the end. By 7, Lexi was ready for bed, so we headed home, but not before stopping at the "gadgets" counter to turn in all our tickets for some cheap toys. Great. Just what we need. More cheap toys in the house, like we aren't already overrun with toys. Sigh. The kids had fun picking out their treasures, though.
Sunday, September 13, 2009
We've Got Tickets to Ride (and ride, and ride)
We continued our tradition of attending the Hebron Harvest Fair every year by heading over there today. Hard to pass up when it is only about 6 miles down the very road we live on! The boys were looking forward to the truck pull, but I realized last night that the schedule had changed and the tractor and truck pulls were both yesterday. Today they were having some motorcross stunt stuff, which is new.
We arrived around 10:30 which is later than usual, but I didn't want to wake Lexi up from her morning nap since I figured she wouldn't be getting an afternoon nap and the motorcross didn't start until noon. The kids had fun checking out the family area - Nicolas got to pet a baby chick and the boys tried milking a pretend cow (they had water or something in it, so they actually could squirt something out of the udders). After a quick bite to eat, Luis took the boys over to the Motorcross event and Lexi and I stood in a VERY LONG line to buy tickets for the kiddie rides. Each ride was 3 tickets and so we needed 6 tickets (3 for each of the boys) for each of the rides. I counted close to 10 rides, so decided to buy 60 tickets. Holy crap - 60 tickets were $51. Or, I could get all day ride bracelets for $25 each. So, I went that route, but still, $50 seems like an insane price for a bunch of kiddie rides. I though Luis was going to fall over when I told him the cost. Luckily, the boys got into the actual fairgrounds for free and then spent most of the day on the rides, but good god that is a lot of money. Or maybe I'm just cheap or nuts or not centered in reality.
At any rate, the boys had a blast on the rides, Lexi was FABULOUS and stayed in her stroller without any significant fussing for most of the 5 hours we were there. She even caught a small catnap while the boys were busy on the rides. The boys were so busy on the rides that they never made it down to the animal barns. I took Lexi down there and she was fascinated by the pigs, cows and sheep. Or maybe she was just embarrassed by her mom making all the animal noises.
In our rush to leave the house this morning, we only grabbed the 'big" stroller for Lexi and didn't think to bring one of the umbrella strollers for Jackson. Luis got quite the workout holding/carrying Jackson for a good portion of the day, especially later on in the afternoon. Live and learn I suppose.
We arrived around 10:30 which is later than usual, but I didn't want to wake Lexi up from her morning nap since I figured she wouldn't be getting an afternoon nap and the motorcross didn't start until noon. The kids had fun checking out the family area - Nicolas got to pet a baby chick and the boys tried milking a pretend cow (they had water or something in it, so they actually could squirt something out of the udders). After a quick bite to eat, Luis took the boys over to the Motorcross event and Lexi and I stood in a VERY LONG line to buy tickets for the kiddie rides. Each ride was 3 tickets and so we needed 6 tickets (3 for each of the boys) for each of the rides. I counted close to 10 rides, so decided to buy 60 tickets. Holy crap - 60 tickets were $51. Or, I could get all day ride bracelets for $25 each. So, I went that route, but still, $50 seems like an insane price for a bunch of kiddie rides. I though Luis was going to fall over when I told him the cost. Luckily, the boys got into the actual fairgrounds for free and then spent most of the day on the rides, but good god that is a lot of money. Or maybe I'm just cheap or nuts or not centered in reality.
At any rate, the boys had a blast on the rides, Lexi was FABULOUS and stayed in her stroller without any significant fussing for most of the 5 hours we were there. She even caught a small catnap while the boys were busy on the rides. The boys were so busy on the rides that they never made it down to the animal barns. I took Lexi down there and she was fascinated by the pigs, cows and sheep. Or maybe she was just embarrassed by her mom making all the animal noises.
In our rush to leave the house this morning, we only grabbed the 'big" stroller for Lexi and didn't think to bring one of the umbrella strollers for Jackson. Luis got quite the workout holding/carrying Jackson for a good portion of the day, especially later on in the afternoon. Live and learn I suppose.
Thursday, September 10, 2009
On Your Mark, Get Set.......GO!
The boys have a game that they call "puppy races". They each have a stuffed dog ("the puppy") that has velcro on the paws - and in theory are supposed to "hug" each other with the arms wrapped around and velcroed (is that a word?) together. However, what the boys like to do is wrap the dogs around their bodies (usually waist area) and run/race from one end of the hallway upstairs to the other. Hence the "puppy races".
Last night they did puppy races right before jumping into the bath, so they happened to be naked. Amusing sight as you can imagine.
Tonight when we said it was time to get ready for bed, they raced up the stairs to do some puppy races before going to bed. I finished up downstairs and carried Lexi up to get on her pjs and nurse her before bed. And came upon the boys doing the puppy races (which I knew were going on based on the pounding feet running back and forth).
What I did not expect was that they decided that puppy races need to be done while nude. Which, I must add, was news to me. In fact, I know they have done puppy races fully clothed before - many, many times. So tiny naked bums with fairly large stuffed dogs wrapped around the boys' midsections is what greeted me at the top of the stairs. And I couldn't help but bust out in laughter.
Ain't kids grand??
Last night they did puppy races right before jumping into the bath, so they happened to be naked. Amusing sight as you can imagine.
Tonight when we said it was time to get ready for bed, they raced up the stairs to do some puppy races before going to bed. I finished up downstairs and carried Lexi up to get on her pjs and nurse her before bed. And came upon the boys doing the puppy races (which I knew were going on based on the pounding feet running back and forth).
What I did not expect was that they decided that puppy races need to be done while nude. Which, I must add, was news to me. In fact, I know they have done puppy races fully clothed before - many, many times. So tiny naked bums with fairly large stuffed dogs wrapped around the boys' midsections is what greeted me at the top of the stairs. And I couldn't help but bust out in laughter.
Ain't kids grand??
Wednesday, September 2, 2009
Light dawns on marble head
On Sunday we were busy unpacking, etc. and picking up some groceries. I walked across the street to the farm stand with Nicolas to get some fresh fruit and veggies. He complained that his legs hurt and that he was tired. It is literally across the street, so I assumed he was just being a little difficult.
Monday morning he was still complaining that his legs were sore and he had 2 canker sores on his tongue. I asked him if he had bitten his tongue and he said yes, so I didn't think anything more of it. However, when I picked him up from daycare at 4:30 he was running a fever of 103 and was generally miserable. Didn't eat any of his lunch and kept complaining that his legs still hurt. I did call the doctor and they thought that he was just probably coming down with a cold.
Tuesday he seemed better - the fever was gone, although he still wouldn't eat and had even more canker sores in his mouth. He did take a 2 hour nap which is very unusual as well.
I had a regular appointment at the dermatologist this morning for a skin check and sent him to school, with the assumption that I would check back with them on my way home from the appointment and take him home if he wasn't doing well. They actually called me while I was in the waiting room and said he was feverish again and refusing to eat anything. So I called the pediatrician while I was waiting to be seen and the nurse said it sounded like coxsackie virus (hand, foot and mouth disease) and that it is quite contagious. She also suggested 1 tsp of Benedryl mixed with 2 tsp of Maalox to gargle with. Luckily, that seemed to help a little and Nicolas would at least eat some yogurt. He also took a 2 hour nap (totally unlike him) so I knew he still was not feeling well.
I'm hoping he starts feeling better soon and that neither of the other kids (or us) catch it.
Monday morning he was still complaining that his legs were sore and he had 2 canker sores on his tongue. I asked him if he had bitten his tongue and he said yes, so I didn't think anything more of it. However, when I picked him up from daycare at 4:30 he was running a fever of 103 and was generally miserable. Didn't eat any of his lunch and kept complaining that his legs still hurt. I did call the doctor and they thought that he was just probably coming down with a cold.
Tuesday he seemed better - the fever was gone, although he still wouldn't eat and had even more canker sores in his mouth. He did take a 2 hour nap which is very unusual as well.
I had a regular appointment at the dermatologist this morning for a skin check and sent him to school, with the assumption that I would check back with them on my way home from the appointment and take him home if he wasn't doing well. They actually called me while I was in the waiting room and said he was feverish again and refusing to eat anything. So I called the pediatrician while I was waiting to be seen and the nurse said it sounded like coxsackie virus (hand, foot and mouth disease) and that it is quite contagious. She also suggested 1 tsp of Benedryl mixed with 2 tsp of Maalox to gargle with. Luckily, that seemed to help a little and Nicolas would at least eat some yogurt. He also took a 2 hour nap (totally unlike him) so I knew he still was not feeling well.
I'm hoping he starts feeling better soon and that neither of the other kids (or us) catch it.
Friday, August 28, 2009
Ogunquit
We got out of the house early today to take a drive up to Ogunquit. Lexi fell asleep on the way so we hung out in the car for a bit once we arrived so she could get a little extra shut-eye. I figured that was better than having a cranky baby. It was perfect weather for walking the Marginal Way, so we started in Perkins Cove and walked to the center of town. Although it was a tight squeeze in a couple of places with the double stroller, it was a lifesaver and I will forever be indebted to the Shafmans for letting us borrow it.
After we finished walking the Marginal Way, we headed down to the public beach so the boys could check out the giant sandbar. I ran into the parents of one of the girls I played volleyball with back in my high school days (which sadly I admit was almost 20 years ago - yikes). Her mom looks exactly like she did when I was in high school - which is probably why I recognized her right away.
The kids were getting cranky, so we hopped on a trolley back to where the car was and headed back to the condo. I was able to escape for a little while when Jackson and Lexi went down for naps and got some shopping at the outlets in Kittery done. It was a little slow-going as Nicolas decided to come with me, but it was nice to have the company.
We decided that we will be heading home tomorrow instead of Sunday since it is supposed to be a very rainy day and we might as well head home to do laundry, etc. if we are going to be stuck in the house all day.
After we finished walking the Marginal Way, we headed down to the public beach so the boys could check out the giant sandbar. I ran into the parents of one of the girls I played volleyball with back in my high school days (which sadly I admit was almost 20 years ago - yikes). Her mom looks exactly like she did when I was in high school - which is probably why I recognized her right away.
The kids were getting cranky, so we hopped on a trolley back to where the car was and headed back to the condo. I was able to escape for a little while when Jackson and Lexi went down for naps and got some shopping at the outlets in Kittery done. It was a little slow-going as Nicolas decided to come with me, but it was nice to have the company.
We decided that we will be heading home tomorrow instead of Sunday since it is supposed to be a very rainy day and we might as well head home to do laundry, etc. if we are going to be stuck in the house all day.
Thursday, August 27, 2009
The Obligatory ER Trip
So, after a very busy day yesterday, Jackson woke up screaming about 9pm holding his ear and saying it hurt. He had mentioned that his ear hurt around dinnertime, but since he hadn't mentioned it all day previously I didn't think too much of it. Duh.
After taking some Motrin, he fell asleep sitting in the recliner with Luis. But when Luis brought him upstairs to put him in bed, all hell broke loose again. I told Luis to take Jackson to the ER at York Hospital since I didn't think we had many other options at 10pm. I stayed with the sleeping kids, sure that Lexi would wake in the middle of the night (she didn't - slept until 4:30am, go figure). Both Luis and Jackson slept late (to make up being awake half the night), so we decided to have a fairly low-key day.
After breakfast, we headed down to the Fun-O-Rama for some mini golf. Luis and the two boys played while Lexi (in the sling) and I looked on and explored the buoys hanging on the wall.
The boys did pretty well golfing. We walked next door for some lunch (chaotic as usual) and then headed back to the condo for naps.
Of course, after nap we headed straight for the playground, which I am convinced, is the boys' favorite part of York! Tomorrow we are hoping to check out Ogunquit for the day.
Wednesday, August 26, 2009
Come See, Come See
Zoo time!
Uncle Bryan, Auntie Rebecca and Tyler met up with us this morning. We walked over to York's Wild Animal Kingdom and Amusement Park to start our day off. First up was feeding the ducks. I thought that Lexi would jump right out of the stroller in her attempt to grab one of the ducks. The boys had a blast running all over the place calling "Uncle Bryan, come see, come SEE!" all day long at every single animal.
The boys' favorite, just like last year, was the alligator. We spent a while gazing into the enclosure, even though the alligators barely moved. Nicolas had a lot of fun feeding the deer while Jackson looked on. He wasn't quite brave enough to try it on his own this year. After eating a quick lunch, we headed out to the amusement park area.
This year, the favorite rides were the bumper cars, which both boys were able to go on at the same time - one with Uncle Bryan, and one with Lou and the go karts. I volunteered to hang with the little ones, so even Auntie Rebecca was able to have a ride.
Tyler and Lexi were starting to get pretty cranky, so a few more rides and we headed back to the condo. Lexi took a short nap once we got home and the boys had a blast playing with Uncle Bryan, Auntie Rebecca and Tyler. We ordered a couple of pizzas for dinner and then our guests headed home. It was an awesome day and we all had a really fun time.
Uncle Bryan, Auntie Rebecca and Tyler met up with us this morning. We walked over to York's Wild Animal Kingdom and Amusement Park to start our day off. First up was feeding the ducks. I thought that Lexi would jump right out of the stroller in her attempt to grab one of the ducks. The boys had a blast running all over the place calling "Uncle Bryan, come see, come SEE!" all day long at every single animal.
The boys' favorite, just like last year, was the alligator. We spent a while gazing into the enclosure, even though the alligators barely moved. Nicolas had a lot of fun feeding the deer while Jackson looked on. He wasn't quite brave enough to try it on his own this year. After eating a quick lunch, we headed out to the amusement park area.
This year, the favorite rides were the bumper cars, which both boys were able to go on at the same time - one with Uncle Bryan, and one with Lou and the go karts. I volunteered to hang with the little ones, so even Auntie Rebecca was able to have a ride.
Tyler and Lexi were starting to get pretty cranky, so a few more rides and we headed back to the condo. Lexi took a short nap once we got home and the boys had a blast playing with Uncle Bryan, Auntie Rebecca and Tyler. We ordered a couple of pizzas for dinner and then our guests headed home. It was an awesome day and we all had a really fun time.
Tuesday, August 25, 2009
We were THAT family
Another great beach day today - that is until Jackson (a tired and hungry Jackson) turned into grumpy Jackson and we were the family on the beach packing up all our gear to the background sound of a seriously screaming, flipping out child. Lovely.
Before flip-out:
Start of flip out:
Luckily after a nap he woke up like a new child and we were able to enjoy the rest of the day without any further outbursts. For some reason, the kids are all obsessed with the bookcase - specifically sitting in it. Most of the pictures I captured were of them crawling out of it, but I got lucky and was able to time this one just right...
Monday, August 24, 2009
You need rain for rainbows
What a perfect beach day! Luis and the boys headed out to stake out a spot on the beach. I hung around the condo waiting for Lexi to wake up from her nap, keeping busy packing lunch for everyone and fun things like that. Once she woke up from her (long!) nap (why do they always take long naps when you want them to take a relatively short one and take short ones when you need/want them to take long ones...one of life's mysteries I suppose) I popped her into her swimsuit, slapped some sunscreen on her and we walked down in search of the boys.
We found them without too much trouble, conveniently located near the bathrooms. Lexi and I found them down playing in the water and joined them for some fun, before returning to the blanket to check out the hole they had been digging "to China" (honestly - where do they get this stuff??). Lexi was obsessed with eating sand. Not sure why - it really can't taste/feel very good after the first mouthful, but everytime I looked away for the tiniest moment, her fist full of sand would immediately bring another pile to her mouth. Sigh.
Everyone enjoyed lunch and then we packed everything up and headed back so that Jackson and Lexi could take afternoon naps. We took a slight detour to the playground, but didn't stay long as it started raining while we were there. Then it started POURING as we ran to the car. Lexi was having a blast and actually got really mad when we tried taking her out of the umbrella stroller to go in the carseat, so since we were already soaked to the bone and we were both in our bathing suits, I told Luis we'd walk back and meet him and the boys back at the condo. By the time we arrived, the rain had essentially stopped and the sun came back out.
After the kids woke up from their naps, we headed over to Fox's for dinner. They remodeled the inside since last year and looked great. Luckily, the wonderful menu hadn't changed and we both had some delicious seafood. The kids behaved (more or less) and it rained while we were having dinner - but the sun came out just as we were walking out the door, treating us to a gorgeous, enormous rainbow right over the Nubble Lighthouse. It was amazing. So we all walked a bit closer to the Nubble, took a couple of pictures and headed back to Fox's for some ice cream. Yum.
Just about the most perfect vacation day.
We found them without too much trouble, conveniently located near the bathrooms. Lexi and I found them down playing in the water and joined them for some fun, before returning to the blanket to check out the hole they had been digging "to China" (honestly - where do they get this stuff??). Lexi was obsessed with eating sand. Not sure why - it really can't taste/feel very good after the first mouthful, but everytime I looked away for the tiniest moment, her fist full of sand would immediately bring another pile to her mouth. Sigh.
Everyone enjoyed lunch and then we packed everything up and headed back so that Jackson and Lexi could take afternoon naps. We took a slight detour to the playground, but didn't stay long as it started raining while we were there. Then it started POURING as we ran to the car. Lexi was having a blast and actually got really mad when we tried taking her out of the umbrella stroller to go in the carseat, so since we were already soaked to the bone and we were both in our bathing suits, I told Luis we'd walk back and meet him and the boys back at the condo. By the time we arrived, the rain had essentially stopped and the sun came back out.After the kids woke up from their naps, we headed over to Fox's for dinner. They remodeled the inside since last year and looked great. Luckily, the wonderful menu hadn't changed and we both had some delicious seafood. The kids behaved (more or less) and it rained while we were having dinner - but the sun came out just as we were walking out the door, treating us to a gorgeous, enormous rainbow right over the Nubble Lighthouse. It was amazing. So we all walked a bit closer to the Nubble, took a couple of pictures and headed back to Fox's for some ice cream. Yum.
Just about the most perfect vacation day.
Saturday, August 22, 2009
Feeling HOT HOT HOT
Today was a mad dash of finishing up the remaining packing, packing up the car and trying to get everyone (including ourselves) ready for Jason's birthday party. We arrived at the party only 1/2 hour late - which wasn't too bad as far as I am concerned.
It was HOT. Africa hot as we used to say in college. Luckily I had some bags with the kid's bathing suits easily available and we were able to change them into their swimsuits so they could splash in the baby pool (Lexi) and go down the cool water "bouncy" slide. Jackson was a little young for it (it was big) but that didn't seem to slow him down in the least. Both boys had a blast going down the slide and watching the other kids play as well.
Once the kids started losing steam, we got them dressed and headed up to my parent's house, with a quick stop for some dinner on the way. Once we arrived, the boys went for a quick swim and I got Lexi ready for bed. With MUCH effort, she finally fell asleep and we got the boys tucked in without too much trouble as well.
It was HOT. Africa hot as we used to say in college. Luckily I had some bags with the kid's bathing suits easily available and we were able to change them into their swimsuits so they could splash in the baby pool (Lexi) and go down the cool water "bouncy" slide. Jackson was a little young for it (it was big) but that didn't seem to slow him down in the least. Both boys had a blast going down the slide and watching the other kids play as well.
Once the kids started losing steam, we got them dressed and headed up to my parent's house, with a quick stop for some dinner on the way. Once we arrived, the boys went for a quick swim and I got Lexi ready for bed. With MUCH effort, she finally fell asleep and we got the boys tucked in without too much trouble as well.
Thursday, August 20, 2009
Chemical reaction?
First, and most importantly: Lexi slept ALL NIGHT. As in, went to bed at 7:30 and woke up at 6:15.
She slept ALL NIGHT.
Only took 10+ months. And I'm trying not to get too excited since one night does not a habit make. But, I am thrilled that she finally did it.
I am hoping it is not due to a chemical-induced fog that she may have slept in that smells of Resolve. When I went into her room this morning the smell of Resolve hit me like a wall. Yuck. I opened her window, closed the door and nursed her for a bit (technically it was 5 am, but she fell back asleep until 6:15 (ok, we both did), and then started our day.
I mentioned the smell to Luis and was trying to figure out how I was going to air out her room since we are having a heat wave and I can't just open up all the windows in the house when he suggested contacting someone to clean the carpet.
And don't you know I almost ran to the computer, looked up Stanley Steemer, and booked an appointment for this afternoon. Wahoo. Then I ran around like a crazy person trying to move everything off the floor so they could do a proper cleaning.
In addition to bringing the boys for haircuts so they'll be ready for vacation.
But now I have nice clean carpets and the guys who did it were super nice.
I also took the kids to the Preschool/Pre-K open house at daycare today. They are both so excited to be starting in their new rooms when we get back from vacation.
She slept ALL NIGHT.
Only took 10+ months. And I'm trying not to get too excited since one night does not a habit make. But, I am thrilled that she finally did it.
I am hoping it is not due to a chemical-induced fog that she may have slept in that smells of Resolve. When I went into her room this morning the smell of Resolve hit me like a wall. Yuck. I opened her window, closed the door and nursed her for a bit (technically it was 5 am, but she fell back asleep until 6:15 (ok, we both did), and then started our day.
I mentioned the smell to Luis and was trying to figure out how I was going to air out her room since we are having a heat wave and I can't just open up all the windows in the house when he suggested contacting someone to clean the carpet.
And don't you know I almost ran to the computer, looked up Stanley Steemer, and booked an appointment for this afternoon. Wahoo. Then I ran around like a crazy person trying to move everything off the floor so they could do a proper cleaning.
In addition to bringing the boys for haircuts so they'll be ready for vacation.
But now I have nice clean carpets and the guys who did it were super nice.
I also took the kids to the Preschool/Pre-K open house at daycare today. They are both so excited to be starting in their new rooms when we get back from vacation.
Wednesday, August 19, 2009
Shit
Literally (unfortunately).
This morning, as usual, when Lexi woke up at the crack of dawn and refused to go back to sleep I lay on the floor while she kept herself busy playing with her toys. I must have fallen asleep momentarily and when I woke up I smelled poop. So I sat up and went to pick her up and realized WHY I smelled poop.
She apparently decided it was time to have the mother of all poops (which explains why she hadn't had a good poop in a couple of days) which oozed out of the top of her pajamas. While that itself wouldn't be too terrible, she obviously had it there for a while since it was all up and down the legs of her pjs, on her hands (and therefore on any of the toys she had recently touched), and, oh yeah, ALL OVER THE CARPET. And I'm not just talking about a small little spot. I am talking about it looked like she had rolled around in poop all over the floor. Lovely.
I used Resolve to get as much out as I could, but now her room reeks of chemicals and there are still HUGE brown spots all over the carpet.
Shit.
This morning, as usual, when Lexi woke up at the crack of dawn and refused to go back to sleep I lay on the floor while she kept herself busy playing with her toys. I must have fallen asleep momentarily and when I woke up I smelled poop. So I sat up and went to pick her up and realized WHY I smelled poop.
She apparently decided it was time to have the mother of all poops (which explains why she hadn't had a good poop in a couple of days) which oozed out of the top of her pajamas. While that itself wouldn't be too terrible, she obviously had it there for a while since it was all up and down the legs of her pjs, on her hands (and therefore on any of the toys she had recently touched), and, oh yeah, ALL OVER THE CARPET. And I'm not just talking about a small little spot. I am talking about it looked like she had rolled around in poop all over the floor. Lovely.
I used Resolve to get as much out as I could, but now her room reeks of chemicals and there are still HUGE brown spots all over the carpet.
Shit.
Saturday, August 8, 2009
People Suck
This morning we were all out in the yard playing/working. Luis was using his (high-end) leaf blower to spread out the mulched grass from mowing, the boys were playing (Lexi was napping) and I was weeding.
After lunch we were getting ready to put Lexi and Jackson down for their afternoon naps and happened to be in the bonus room. Luis heard a car and when we looked out the window, a red Volkswagon Jetta was backing out of our driveway. This is odd because our driveway is about 175 feet long and has a turnaround near the house, so backing out of the driveway is not a usual occurence.
Luis went out to the garage a little later, which, just so you know, had all 3 garage doors open, toys were still out in the driveway, etc. and realized that his blower had been stolen! The SOB in the red car stole our $350 blower!!!! We filed a police report, but didn't really think anything would come of it.
Later in the day I went across the street to pick up some items from the farm stand and casually mentioned what happened. The owner (who has lived in our town his whole life) said they had a chainsaw and some other tools stolen recently as well and he had a very good suspicion as to who it was. He made a phone call and confirmed that the person he suspected drove the make/color car that we saw.
The bad news is that if that is the person, he is a heroin addict and almost certainly brought the blower to a pawn shop in order to make some money for drugs. Sigh. He must have spotted Luis using the blower and just waited to make his move. Creeps me out thinking that this guy was "casing" our house. And it sucks that I don't feel quite as safe as I used to in my own house - I mean this guy stole our stuff WHILE WE WERE HOME!!!!!! Ballsy. That's all I have to say.
And the boys keep asking why someone would take our stuff. We've tried to explain that a not-nice man came and took it so that he could buy drugs. And that drugs are bad and make you do crazy things which is why you should never take drugs. Never too early to start that conversation, right???
After lunch we were getting ready to put Lexi and Jackson down for their afternoon naps and happened to be in the bonus room. Luis heard a car and when we looked out the window, a red Volkswagon Jetta was backing out of our driveway. This is odd because our driveway is about 175 feet long and has a turnaround near the house, so backing out of the driveway is not a usual occurence.
Luis went out to the garage a little later, which, just so you know, had all 3 garage doors open, toys were still out in the driveway, etc. and realized that his blower had been stolen! The SOB in the red car stole our $350 blower!!!! We filed a police report, but didn't really think anything would come of it.
Later in the day I went across the street to pick up some items from the farm stand and casually mentioned what happened. The owner (who has lived in our town his whole life) said they had a chainsaw and some other tools stolen recently as well and he had a very good suspicion as to who it was. He made a phone call and confirmed that the person he suspected drove the make/color car that we saw.
The bad news is that if that is the person, he is a heroin addict and almost certainly brought the blower to a pawn shop in order to make some money for drugs. Sigh. He must have spotted Luis using the blower and just waited to make his move. Creeps me out thinking that this guy was "casing" our house. And it sucks that I don't feel quite as safe as I used to in my own house - I mean this guy stole our stuff WHILE WE WERE HOME!!!!!! Ballsy. That's all I have to say.
And the boys keep asking why someone would take our stuff. We've tried to explain that a not-nice man came and took it so that he could buy drugs. And that drugs are bad and make you do crazy things which is why you should never take drugs. Never too early to start that conversation, right???
Wednesday, July 29, 2009
Our little angels
The infant area at daycare had a Lemonade social today from 4:30-5:30. I brought the boys with me since I usually pick them up by 4:30 anyway. They each had a chocolate chip cookie, half a browning and 1/4 of a molasses cookie (the last only because I am weak and caved to the whining). Shortly thereafter they started getting a little too rambunctious, so we headed home.
They were in rare form during dinner - I fed Lexi and then took her upstairs for a bath since she only had one nap at school today and she was yawning and rubbing her eyes during dinner. I reminded the boys what happened the other night when Nicolas continued to fool around after being warned in the hopes that they would eat nicely and not fool around too much while I was upstairs (fat chance of that happening).
They were really wound up by the time Lou got home from work and were just plain crazy acting during bath and pj time. While Lou was getting them some fresh water the boys lay on their floor, moving their arms and legs and telling me they were making snow angels. In July. In 80 degree heat (ok, so the AC is on, but still...). Where they get these things I'll never know.
In other news, Jackson is doing GREAT in his big boy underwear. One accident at school, but none at home today. And he stayed dry during his nap. And informed me multiple times when he had to go to the bathroom. And even peed at school in the school-age bathroom which has slightly bigger toilets than the toddler area. I am so proud of him and am thrilled at the prospect of a diaper-free (for him at least) future.
They were in rare form during dinner - I fed Lexi and then took her upstairs for a bath since she only had one nap at school today and she was yawning and rubbing her eyes during dinner. I reminded the boys what happened the other night when Nicolas continued to fool around after being warned in the hopes that they would eat nicely and not fool around too much while I was upstairs (fat chance of that happening).
They were really wound up by the time Lou got home from work and were just plain crazy acting during bath and pj time. While Lou was getting them some fresh water the boys lay on their floor, moving their arms and legs and telling me they were making snow angels. In July. In 80 degree heat (ok, so the AC is on, but still...). Where they get these things I'll never know.
In other news, Jackson is doing GREAT in his big boy underwear. One accident at school, but none at home today. And he stayed dry during his nap. And informed me multiple times when he had to go to the bathroom. And even peed at school in the school-age bathroom which has slightly bigger toilets than the toddler area. I am so proud of him and am thrilled at the prospect of a diaper-free (for him at least) future.
Monday, July 27, 2009
Officially a big boy
Today Jackson wore big-boy underwear at school. He had one accident on the way to the toilet (not bad) and another as I was loading the other kids into the car to go home from daycare. That was my fault - I should have asked him if he had to go to the bathroom before we left school. Lesson learned. The poor kid started crying while I was strapping Lexi into her carseat. I looked over to see him pointing to the sidewalk which I realized was wet...he had on shorts, so when he peed it just ran down his leg and puddled on the ground. I reassured him that it was ok to have accidents while learning to use the potty and ran back into daycare for some dry underwear and shorts for him.
The boys were doing a lot of fooling around at dinner tonight, so I gave them a couple of warnings to settle down. Nicolas decided that he was going to grab the yogurt container out of Jackson's hand, sending his spoon onto the floor making quite a mess. I told him that was it - no more food and to get down from the table. He proceeded to cry/scream/whine for the next 45 minutes (maybe even longer) that he wanted another yogurt. I refused since I had warned him a couple of times to stop fooling around or he wouldn't get anymore food. It really wasn't pleasant, but hopefully will help to avoid similar situations in the future.
The boys were doing a lot of fooling around at dinner tonight, so I gave them a couple of warnings to settle down. Nicolas decided that he was going to grab the yogurt container out of Jackson's hand, sending his spoon onto the floor making quite a mess. I told him that was it - no more food and to get down from the table. He proceeded to cry/scream/whine for the next 45 minutes (maybe even longer) that he wanted another yogurt. I refused since I had warned him a couple of times to stop fooling around or he wouldn't get anymore food. It really wasn't pleasant, but hopefully will help to avoid similar situations in the future.
Thursday, July 23, 2009
A little bit of everything
Since the temp here at the beach didn't break 70 degrees, with rain expected in the afternoon, we decided that hanging out on the beach was probably not the best option. So while Lexi took her afternoon nap, Luis took the boys to the playground at the end of our street. They have been asking all week to play there, so we figured today was a perfect day for that.
After lunch, Lexi and Jackson took a nap and I took Nicolas to the outlets for me so I could pick up another bathing suit for Lexi. We're heading to Maine next month and I expect that she'll have outgrown one of the suits we are currently using by then. I should have picked it up when I was there on Tuesday, but was in a rush and didn't think of it. We also picked up a new pair of Stride Rite sneakers for Nicolas for when his current sneakers are too small.
Nicolas and CJ played out in the rain in the afternoon while the rest of us hung out in the house going slightly stir crazy.
We had to change our dinner plans since we had planned to go to a place with a large outdoor seating area, but a small indoor area. Since it was raining, we decided to try a different place - Westbrook Lobster. The food was good and it was nice to get out of the house.
We ushered the kids up to bed upon our return to the house since it was already almost 8pm and then the guys went out and got some ice cream for us ladies. Not a bad ending to a day if you ask me.
After lunch, Lexi and Jackson took a nap and I took Nicolas to the outlets for me so I could pick up another bathing suit for Lexi. We're heading to Maine next month and I expect that she'll have outgrown one of the suits we are currently using by then. I should have picked it up when I was there on Tuesday, but was in a rush and didn't think of it. We also picked up a new pair of Stride Rite sneakers for Nicolas for when his current sneakers are too small.
Nicolas and CJ played out in the rain in the afternoon while the rest of us hung out in the house going slightly stir crazy.
We had to change our dinner plans since we had planned to go to a place with a large outdoor seating area, but a small indoor area. Since it was raining, we decided to try a different place - Westbrook Lobster. The food was good and it was nice to get out of the house.
We ushered the kids up to bed upon our return to the house since it was already almost 8pm and then the guys went out and got some ice cream for us ladies. Not a bad ending to a day if you ask me.
Wednesday, July 22, 2009
Thank god for outdoor seating
So, when people ask "how was your vacation", I'm torn between answering the short, easy answer which is "great, thanks for asking" and the real version which goes something like this:
"Great, if you ignore the fact that we had a 9 month old teething infant who, oh, by the way, seemed to have some crazy stomach bug which caused her to puke in the middle of the night for the first 3 nights of the vacation and then on day 5 came down with a fever of 102.2 and was incredibly cranky."
Although today started off overcast, it did eventually warm up and turned into a beautiful day. Unfortunately, Lexi was not feeling well and I spent the majority of the afternoon nursing, snuggling (inside) and attempting to put Lexi down in the pack and play for multiple naps. Throw in a few doses of Tylenol and Motrin to try to take down the fever and I missed out on a lot of fun out on the beach. At low tide, a HUGE sandbar appears and is close enough that the kids are able to walk out on to it. Today the kids caught snails and crabs (a big bucket full of them) and had a great time exploring the area. Lexi loved playing out there on Sunday, so I was sad that we missed out on all the excitement.
Most of us headed out to dinner at Bill's - a restaurant just down the street with outdoor seating. We sat down and I started feeding Lexi some jarred food. Not even a quarter of the way into the jar I glanced down to get another spoonful and as I looked up to try to feed it to her I realized that my foot was soaked and that she had vomited ALL OVER THE PLACE. I had nursed her before we left and that entire feeding plus the food I had just fed her came back out. EVERYWHERE. I felt so bad. We cleaned it up with napkins as best we could and then the waiter washed the deck off with a cup of water and a rag. I brought Lexi out to the car for a quick change of clothes (thank goodness I had grabbed an extra outfit on the way out) and we were able to finish dinner with no additional mishaps.
On the positive side, Lexi appeared to feel a LOT better after getting sick and was back to acting like her normal self (mostly).
"Great, if you ignore the fact that we had a 9 month old teething infant who, oh, by the way, seemed to have some crazy stomach bug which caused her to puke in the middle of the night for the first 3 nights of the vacation and then on day 5 came down with a fever of 102.2 and was incredibly cranky."
Although today started off overcast, it did eventually warm up and turned into a beautiful day. Unfortunately, Lexi was not feeling well and I spent the majority of the afternoon nursing, snuggling (inside) and attempting to put Lexi down in the pack and play for multiple naps. Throw in a few doses of Tylenol and Motrin to try to take down the fever and I missed out on a lot of fun out on the beach. At low tide, a HUGE sandbar appears and is close enough that the kids are able to walk out on to it. Today the kids caught snails and crabs (a big bucket full of them) and had a great time exploring the area. Lexi loved playing out there on Sunday, so I was sad that we missed out on all the excitement.
Most of us headed out to dinner at Bill's - a restaurant just down the street with outdoor seating. We sat down and I started feeding Lexi some jarred food. Not even a quarter of the way into the jar I glanced down to get another spoonful and as I looked up to try to feed it to her I realized that my foot was soaked and that she had vomited ALL OVER THE PLACE. I had nursed her before we left and that entire feeding plus the food I had just fed her came back out. EVERYWHERE. I felt so bad. We cleaned it up with napkins as best we could and then the waiter washed the deck off with a cup of water and a rag. I brought Lexi out to the car for a quick change of clothes (thank goodness I had grabbed an extra outfit on the way out) and we were able to finish dinner with no additional mishaps.
On the positive side, Lexi appeared to feel a LOT better after getting sick and was back to acting like her normal self (mostly).
Tuesday, July 21, 2009
Making the most of the rain
Unfortunately when we woke up this morning it was pouring rain. Monsoon-like rain. Which, would normally not be so terrible, except we are on vacation AT THE BEACH. Luckily, one town over has a really cool indoor play-park called Stay and Play. We decided to head over there with the kids since it seemed to be the best option for our kids and their ages. Some of the other families went to the movies, bowling or for a train ride.
The place was very nice. The boys had a blast running around, going down the slides, kicking the ball around with Luis and in general, running out some of their excess energy. There was even a special area specifically for children who are under 1 with toys, balls, rattles, slides and climbing mats made for children who are crawling or learning to walk. Perfect. On the way back home we stopped for lunch at McDonald's - another treat for the boys.
The place was very nice. The boys had a blast running around, going down the slides, kicking the ball around with Luis and in general, running out some of their excess energy. There was even a special area specifically for children who are under 1 with toys, balls, rattles, slides and climbing mats made for children who are crawling or learning to walk. Perfect. On the way back home we stopped for lunch at McDonald's - another treat for the boys.
Once Jackson and Lexi were down for their afternoon naps, I headed out to the outlets and was able to score some pretty good deals. I left a couple of new toys - transformers - for each of the boys to help keep them occupied once Jackson woke up. Worked like a charm, too!
We are hoping for better weather tomorrow.
Monday, July 20, 2009
An unexpected bath
Another sunny day here at the beach. Not quite as warm as it was yesterday, and the water is decidedly cooler, but a decent day overall. I'm hoping that Lexi starts feeling better soon. Last night she vomited again and then fell back asleep in it. So around 2am when she woke up, Luis and I had to give her a bath in the kitchen sink since she was covered in puke. Nice. At least she seemed ok afterwards and acted fine throughout the day.
We all headed to Lenny & Joe's for dinner tonight. Lexi was tired, so we left a little early in the hopes that she would sleep on the way to the restaurant, which she did. Lou got out and ordered food for the kids while I stayed in the car with Lexi until she woke up. The rest of the gang arrived shortly after we did and Lexi woke up not long after that, so I was able to join the tail-end of dinner with everyone. Then we all picked out Lenny & Joe t-shirts for the kids for the group photo we are planning for later in the week and the kids went on the carousel.
We all headed to Lenny & Joe's for dinner tonight. Lexi was tired, so we left a little early in the hopes that she would sleep on the way to the restaurant, which she did. Lou got out and ordered food for the kids while I stayed in the car with Lexi until she woke up. The rest of the gang arrived shortly after we did and Lexi woke up not long after that, so I was able to join the tail-end of dinner with everyone. Then we all picked out Lenny & Joe t-shirts for the kids for the group photo we are planning for later in the week and the kids went on the carousel.
Sunday, July 19, 2009
A perfect day
The day dawned bright and sunny, so we spent as much time as we could on the beach today. Lexi had a great time playing in the little pool that the Lombardi's were kind enough to loan us. I also took her out to the sandbar and she had a BLAST sitting in the warm sand, grabbing it with her fists and splashing in the shallow water as it lapped across the sandbar. The boys had a lot of fun too. Jackson took a short boat ride around the area with Luis, Mike and CJ.
I don't think the weather could have been much more perfect and hope that the rest of the week is as beautiful as it was today. Hopefully Lexi will not puke in our bed again (which she did last night around midnight). I don't want to end up doing laundry every day that we are here - we are on vacation!!!
I don't think the weather could have been much more perfect and hope that the rest of the week is as beautiful as it was today. Hopefully Lexi will not puke in our bed again (which she did last night around midnight). I don't want to end up doing laundry every day that we are here - we are on vacation!!!
Saturday, July 18, 2009
Vacation Kick-off
It's here! V-A-C-A-T-I-O-N. We had a hectic day - finished packing up the cars, driving to Westbrook and then unpacking everything upon our arrival. We had to make up our bed, set up the pack and play for Lexi, blow up the two beds for the boys and get everything settled in. The house we are staying in is enormous. It is over 100 years old. Our room had 2 buzzers - one for the kitchen and one for the maid. It has servant's quarters, a dumbwaiter and two kitchen areas. Our bedroom has its own bathroom which is nice and the room is plenty big for all of us to share.
Dinner was pizza since we really didn't feel like cooking and we went to bed with hopes for a great sunny day ahead of us.
Dinner was pizza since we really didn't feel like cooking and we went to bed with hopes for a great sunny day ahead of us.
Wednesday, July 8, 2009
a DREADED noise
Have you ever heard a noise, and know exactly what it is but at the same time hope to god that you are wrong??
This morning Lou left for work and I was helping the boys in the guest bedroom put together some Geotrax. Lexi was playing nicely in the bonus room and all I had to do was lean backwards and peek through the doorway to see her. All of a sudden I heard horrible thumping sounds and just knew what it was. I jumped up and as I was running into the bonus room saw that the baby gate was open and that Lexi was no where to be seen. Unfortunately I was right - the noise that I heard was my sweet baby girl falling down the hardwood floor stairs to the landing. Luckily, she only fell down (that sounds so wrong to even write that) 5 stairs to the landing below. She of course, started crying. After checking her over and calming her down, I concluded that she was fine - probably scared herself to bits (as well as took 10 years off my life!), but I was unable to find any bumps, bruises, cuts, marks, etc. anywhere on her body (thank goodness). Obviously I hadn't realized that the gate was NOT locked (it was closed, but not locked) and I have since sworn to keep that sucker locked even if I am not in the room!
This afternoon was spent at Lou's work yearly summer picnic (Actuarial department only) at a public park in the town over from us. We skipped (I say "we" loosely - I believe that Luis went without me or the kids) the last 2 years so it was nice to go see some of the people I am friendly with. They had a bounce house, snow cones, a clown and a pinata for the kids. The boys took turns batting at the pinata and were thrilled to get some of the candy that eventually rained down on all the kids. But they spent most of the time in the bounce house (surprise surprise). I took Lexi for a nice leisurely walk so that she could catch some shut eye and not become the crankiest kid on the block.
It was a fun afternoon, topped off with the kids favorite treat - McDonald's. Which was a treat for me since it meant that I didn't have to cook dinner :-)
This morning Lou left for work and I was helping the boys in the guest bedroom put together some Geotrax. Lexi was playing nicely in the bonus room and all I had to do was lean backwards and peek through the doorway to see her. All of a sudden I heard horrible thumping sounds and just knew what it was. I jumped up and as I was running into the bonus room saw that the baby gate was open and that Lexi was no where to be seen. Unfortunately I was right - the noise that I heard was my sweet baby girl falling down the hardwood floor stairs to the landing. Luckily, she only fell down (that sounds so wrong to even write that) 5 stairs to the landing below. She of course, started crying. After checking her over and calming her down, I concluded that she was fine - probably scared herself to bits (as well as took 10 years off my life!), but I was unable to find any bumps, bruises, cuts, marks, etc. anywhere on her body (thank goodness). Obviously I hadn't realized that the gate was NOT locked (it was closed, but not locked) and I have since sworn to keep that sucker locked even if I am not in the room!
This afternoon was spent at Lou's work yearly summer picnic (Actuarial department only) at a public park in the town over from us. We skipped (I say "we" loosely - I believe that Luis went without me or the kids) the last 2 years so it was nice to go see some of the people I am friendly with. They had a bounce house, snow cones, a clown and a pinata for the kids. The boys took turns batting at the pinata and were thrilled to get some of the candy that eventually rained down on all the kids. But they spent most of the time in the bounce house (surprise surprise). I took Lexi for a nice leisurely walk so that she could catch some shut eye and not become the crankiest kid on the block.
It was a fun afternoon, topped off with the kids favorite treat - McDonald's. Which was a treat for me since it meant that I didn't have to cook dinner :-)
Sunday, July 5, 2009
An afternoon by the pool
The kids had so much fun swimming at Carol & Marty's yesterday that we decided to set up our own pool in the backyard. Not quite big enough to swim in, it was nonetheless a big hit.
It was a perfect day to hang out at home, relax, stay cool by the pool and play on the playscape. Well, almost perfect:
Friday, July 3, 2009
Poopsie it is
Happy Independence Day!
This afternoon we headed over to the Shafman's to enjoy the nice weather (finally) by swimming in the pool and celebrating Ella's 3rd birthday. The boys were excited to go swimming again and show off "Poopsie". Who/what is Poopsie you ask?
Well, as I mentioned yesterday, the boys picked out an inflatable great white shark. Apparently, the shark has been named Poopsie. Yes, I know it is a very fitting name for a vicious great white shark and that it might be too scary for small children, but Poopsie it is.
The kids all had a BLAST playing in the pool and by the end of the day, Nicolas was brave enough to float around with only the vest on, without any pool floats, etc. Lexi LOVES swimming and Nicolas has asked multiple times if he can go back to swim lessons, so I think I'll try to sign him up in the Fall for those.
After swimming and dinner, we all sang Happy Birthday to Ella and the boys got busy playing with one of her new toys, a puzzle (surprise surprise). Then we headed home to bed - long before the fireworks started as we were all exhausted from a fun day of swimming and hanging out with friends.
Penguins and boats
Since we didn't have to work today, we decided to bring the kids to Mystic Aquarium. We went once before with my parents, brother and sister-in-law to celebrate my parent's 60th birthdays. Nicolas was not even 1 1/2 so he doesn't remember going at all. It is a good aquarium and luckily small enough that we didn't need strollers for the boys. First stop was naturally the bathroom and while Luis took Nicolas to pee, Jackson, Lexi and I watched some guys playing with the remote-controlled boats. Apparently these boats had a very lasting impression on Jackson since at the end of the day he said that was his favorite part of the visit!
The boys had a great time looking at all the different animals. According to Nicolas, the best part of the aquarium was the penguins (they were pretty cute). And both boys seemed to be less than impressed with the Sea Lion show which I thought was pretty cool.
The boys had a great time looking at all the different animals. According to Nicolas, the best part of the aquarium was the penguins (they were pretty cute). And both boys seemed to be less than impressed with the Sea Lion show which I thought was pretty cool.
No trip would be complete without the lap through the store and we let the boys pick out one item each. I was hoping they would stick with the "pinchers" that they picked up just outside the doorway (animal head on a stick and when you press on the lever, the mouth opens and shuts), but once inside they were bombarded with all kinds of really cool things. Nicolas settled on an inflatable water-squirting great white shark to bring to the pool tomorrow and Jackson decided on a floor puzzle (do we really need another one???)
We left for home around 2:00 and all 3 kids fell asleep almost immediately - and even slept through the crazy downpour that we hit on the way home. The shark got his first swim in the bathtub with the boys before bed.
Saturday, June 27, 2009
Good Job
Luis was out of the house early this morning to go golfing with Marty, Jimmy and Mike. They were supposed to go on Father's Day, but the weather was so crappy that it was rescheduled to today (with a later tee time as well). Jackson was not happy that Daddy was leaving just as he was getting out of bed, so I had to pry him off Luis with many tears shed. Luckily, the crying only lasted about 5 minutes and we were able to get on with our day. After breakfast, Jackson informed me he wanted to sit on the potty and proceeded to poop. Hooray! That is a great start to the day as far as I am concerned.
After putting Lexi down for her morning nap, I got the boys dressed and we headed outside to make special chalk drawings for Daddy to see when he got home. They requested a BIG sun, so I drew a big blue sun (which is about the extent of my artistic capabilities - a circle). Since Nicolas was throwing a rock around on the driveway, I made him a hopscotch game to at least aim the rock at. Then Jackson decided that he needed me to draw him a big dinosaur. A T-Rex, of course. As I previously mentioned, I am a horrible artist, but I got to work anyway. As I was making my best attempt to draw said T-Rex, Nicolas came over and said "I can tell this is going to be a good dinosaur. You are doing a very good job Mommy". I almost fell over laughing because it was something that I would say to one of the boys and it sounded so funny to hear them say it to me. Especially since the drawing was pretty pitiful. But, apparently they don't mind the fact that I can draw for squat (or carry a tune to save my life either) since they were thrilled with the final product (and I think they enjoy my singing as well - at least for now).
Once Lexi woke up from her nap we all walked over to the farm stand and bought some strawberries, raspberries, squash, green beans, shucking peas and cherries. (Have I mentioned how awesome it is to live across the street from a farm???)
After some fun in the sandbox and playscape we headed inside for some lunch and an early nap. Nicolas even offered to lay down for a nap because he wanted to be well rested for the cookout we had planned for later in the day. Unfortunately, that didn't work out too well (as I suspected it wouldn't). Jackson is not used to having Nicolas take naps with him, so he kept talking, singing and in general fooling around. So, after getting Lexi down in her crib, I brought Nicolas into "Nana's bed" in the guest room so he could lay down and told Jackson to quiet down and take a nap. Which, luckily he did. Nicolas wandered down into the kitchen about 5 minutes later and informed me that he was done with his nap. We played War (what else??) while I ate my lunch and then I started getting stuff packed up for the party.
Once Luis got home, I jumped in the shower and finished packing and nursed Lexi while he showered and we were ready to head out. The boys almost immediately wanted to go into the pool, so I changed them into their swimsuits and Luis took them into the [COLD] pool. They had a blast - and I was so nicely surprised that they had so much fun since in the past Nicolas usually starts shivering and whining to get out. Although he was shivering (it really was cold in the pool), he did not want to get out and had a lot of fun using the borrowed swim vest to play. Jackson didn't last quite as long, and when he came out, Luis took Lexi in. I think she had the most fun out of all of them. She was all smiles as she splashed Daddy and kicked her feet. And when Luis was so cold he wanted to get out, she was unhappy and wanted to stay in!!
We dried everyone off and the boys went off to play in the bounce house and on the swingset and sandbox. Lexi and I sat on the blanket and visited with Carol and Madison until it was time to eat. After dinner, the boys started playing "chase" with some of the other kids. Ella (Carol and Marty's 2 1/2 year old) came running over crying saying that a boy made her cry. I think said boy was Jackson because he was chasing her and growling (just like we do at our house every day). Poor Ella didn't know what to think of that. I guess that might be the difference between boys and girls??
The boys started asking to get back in the pool, but it was finally time to head home. I nursed Lexi upstairs and we packed up the car and headed out. Lexi fell asleep almost immediately, but the boys waited to fall asleep until we were 1 minute from home. The key, as my mom is always telling me, is to tire them out during the day so they will sleep well at night!
After putting Lexi down for her morning nap, I got the boys dressed and we headed outside to make special chalk drawings for Daddy to see when he got home. They requested a BIG sun, so I drew a big blue sun (which is about the extent of my artistic capabilities - a circle). Since Nicolas was throwing a rock around on the driveway, I made him a hopscotch game to at least aim the rock at. Then Jackson decided that he needed me to draw him a big dinosaur. A T-Rex, of course. As I previously mentioned, I am a horrible artist, but I got to work anyway. As I was making my best attempt to draw said T-Rex, Nicolas came over and said "I can tell this is going to be a good dinosaur. You are doing a very good job Mommy". I almost fell over laughing because it was something that I would say to one of the boys and it sounded so funny to hear them say it to me. Especially since the drawing was pretty pitiful. But, apparently they don't mind the fact that I can draw for squat (or carry a tune to save my life either) since they were thrilled with the final product (and I think they enjoy my singing as well - at least for now).
Once Lexi woke up from her nap we all walked over to the farm stand and bought some strawberries, raspberries, squash, green beans, shucking peas and cherries. (Have I mentioned how awesome it is to live across the street from a farm???)
After some fun in the sandbox and playscape we headed inside for some lunch and an early nap. Nicolas even offered to lay down for a nap because he wanted to be well rested for the cookout we had planned for later in the day. Unfortunately, that didn't work out too well (as I suspected it wouldn't). Jackson is not used to having Nicolas take naps with him, so he kept talking, singing and in general fooling around. So, after getting Lexi down in her crib, I brought Nicolas into "Nana's bed" in the guest room so he could lay down and told Jackson to quiet down and take a nap. Which, luckily he did. Nicolas wandered down into the kitchen about 5 minutes later and informed me that he was done with his nap. We played War (what else??) while I ate my lunch and then I started getting stuff packed up for the party.
Once Luis got home, I jumped in the shower and finished packing and nursed Lexi while he showered and we were ready to head out. The boys almost immediately wanted to go into the pool, so I changed them into their swimsuits and Luis took them into the [COLD] pool. They had a blast - and I was so nicely surprised that they had so much fun since in the past Nicolas usually starts shivering and whining to get out. Although he was shivering (it really was cold in the pool), he did not want to get out and had a lot of fun using the borrowed swim vest to play. Jackson didn't last quite as long, and when he came out, Luis took Lexi in. I think she had the most fun out of all of them. She was all smiles as she splashed Daddy and kicked her feet. And when Luis was so cold he wanted to get out, she was unhappy and wanted to stay in!!
We dried everyone off and the boys went off to play in the bounce house and on the swingset and sandbox. Lexi and I sat on the blanket and visited with Carol and Madison until it was time to eat. After dinner, the boys started playing "chase" with some of the other kids. Ella (Carol and Marty's 2 1/2 year old) came running over crying saying that a boy made her cry. I think said boy was Jackson because he was chasing her and growling (just like we do at our house every day). Poor Ella didn't know what to think of that. I guess that might be the difference between boys and girls??
The boys started asking to get back in the pool, but it was finally time to head home. I nursed Lexi upstairs and we packed up the car and headed out. Lexi fell asleep almost immediately, but the boys waited to fall asleep until we were 1 minute from home. The key, as my mom is always telling me, is to tire them out during the day so they will sleep well at night!
Monday, June 22, 2009
Dreary Dad's Day
The weather this weekend was pretty dreary, but we tried to make the best of it. Saturday morning I got some "me" time and headed to the Lombardi's house to discuss our upcoming vacation plans. I spent a few hours planning everything out with the other moms who are going (5 families in total) then headed home to help get the kids fed and ready for naps.
After watching the weather forecast for Sunday, it was decided to delay the Father's Day golf morning to next weekend since it sounded like it was going to be terrible weather on Sunday morning.
Lexi must have eaten something that did not agree with her because she was very fussy. She woke up about an hour after falling asleep, and I assumed she had a burp. When I picked her up, she did burp, but then did vomit all over me, herself and the floor. Lou came to help me clean it all up, but Lexi was not happy about going back in her crib and I ended up spending most of the night in the rocker/recliner with her. She actually pooped twice in the middle of the night (which she never does) and continued to be very squirmy all night. Clearly something was bothering her. Luckily, she seemed to be back to herself by late Sunday morning.
After wishing Luis a Happy Father's Day, the boys had fun playing outside Sunday morning (in their pajamas) since the weather threatened rain, but never actually delivered. All in all, it was a fairly low-key weekend (luckily since I haven't had much sleep in the past few days).
After watching the weather forecast for Sunday, it was decided to delay the Father's Day golf morning to next weekend since it sounded like it was going to be terrible weather on Sunday morning.
Lexi must have eaten something that did not agree with her because she was very fussy. She woke up about an hour after falling asleep, and I assumed she had a burp. When I picked her up, she did burp, but then did vomit all over me, herself and the floor. Lou came to help me clean it all up, but Lexi was not happy about going back in her crib and I ended up spending most of the night in the rocker/recliner with her. She actually pooped twice in the middle of the night (which she never does) and continued to be very squirmy all night. Clearly something was bothering her. Luckily, she seemed to be back to herself by late Sunday morning.
After wishing Luis a Happy Father's Day, the boys had fun playing outside Sunday morning (in their pajamas) since the weather threatened rain, but never actually delivered. All in all, it was a fairly low-key weekend (luckily since I haven't had much sleep in the past few days).
Thursday, June 4, 2009
Pooper Party
Who but a mother or father would clap and dance around the kitchen in sheer joy and happiness because their child pooped or peed on the potty?
Jackson had been doing great for a while on the training potty, but for some reason hasn't used or wanted to even try to use it for weeks, possibly even months. I didn't want to push it and have it backfire, so I've been patiently waiting for the right time to try again. After he got up from his nap, we went downstairs and when I asked him if he wanted to try to go on the potty he said "yes". Not expecting much, I sat him down while I got some clean clothes for Lexi who had successfully pooped out of her diaper all over her outfit. When I came back, he had made one small poop, so I asked him to sit for a few minutes more to see if there was anything else. Sure enough he peed and made a LOT more poop. Who would have thought I'd be so excited about pee and poop????
Nicolas is STILL obsessed with cards, and more specifically war. At the time, I thought it was a great game to teach him. It would help him learn/understand the concept of higher/lower, etc. The child is OBSESSED. All day long all he wants to do is play war. And he'll play by himself, pretending to be someone else. He'll play and pretend that one pile of cards is mine (or Lou's or anyone else within eyesight) and will play.
Yesterday at school it was one of his classmate's birthday and she gave all the kids in the class a big sand pail with a shovel, pack of cards for "Go Spidey", bubbles, chalk and a paddle game. Go Spidey is a take on Go Fish and we've been playing that a bit. We had to go out to the Internet today to figure out the names of the Spiderman allies and villains since neither Luis or I had any clue for most of them. I knew Doc Oc, The Green Goblin and Spiderman. The others I looked up.
Lexi has gotten pretty good at crawling/pushing herself backwards but gets frustrated since she moves farther away from the things she wants instead of toward them. But I am sure that within the next couple of weeks, she'll be crawling around like a pro...sometimes they grow up too fast.
Jackson had been doing great for a while on the training potty, but for some reason hasn't used or wanted to even try to use it for weeks, possibly even months. I didn't want to push it and have it backfire, so I've been patiently waiting for the right time to try again. After he got up from his nap, we went downstairs and when I asked him if he wanted to try to go on the potty he said "yes". Not expecting much, I sat him down while I got some clean clothes for Lexi who had successfully pooped out of her diaper all over her outfit. When I came back, he had made one small poop, so I asked him to sit for a few minutes more to see if there was anything else. Sure enough he peed and made a LOT more poop. Who would have thought I'd be so excited about pee and poop????
Nicolas is STILL obsessed with cards, and more specifically war. At the time, I thought it was a great game to teach him. It would help him learn/understand the concept of higher/lower, etc. The child is OBSESSED. All day long all he wants to do is play war. And he'll play by himself, pretending to be someone else. He'll play and pretend that one pile of cards is mine (or Lou's or anyone else within eyesight) and will play.
Yesterday at school it was one of his classmate's birthday and she gave all the kids in the class a big sand pail with a shovel, pack of cards for "Go Spidey", bubbles, chalk and a paddle game. Go Spidey is a take on Go Fish and we've been playing that a bit. We had to go out to the Internet today to figure out the names of the Spiderman allies and villains since neither Luis or I had any clue for most of them. I knew Doc Oc, The Green Goblin and Spiderman. The others I looked up.
Lexi has gotten pretty good at crawling/pushing herself backwards but gets frustrated since she moves farther away from the things she wants instead of toward them. But I am sure that within the next couple of weeks, she'll be crawling around like a pro...sometimes they grow up too fast.
Sunday, May 24, 2009
It just gets better and better.....not
Today was a busy day here in the Marques household. Lexi was up at 5:40 so I fed her and tried to get her back to sleep - which was useless. So I woke up Luis, handed her over and headed out to the Farmer's Market (no kids in tow this time). On my way home, I picked up munchkins as requested and after unloading the plants and munchkins took Jackson to meet up with Miss Jen to check his ears. He has been acting funny all week and I wanted to make sure that he was ok. Apparently, he is just busy being 2 1/2. Sigh.
Luis and Nicolas headed out to soccer while Jackson, Lexi and I played all morning. She is so close to crawling - she even gets almost into position, then decides to roll over onto her back instead. But somehow she still manages to move around quite a bit.
Jackson refused to nap, which is never a good sign. So I decided to bring all 3 kids (Lexi in the stroller and the boys walking) across the street to pick up a couple more plants for the deck planters. Jackson was adament that he wanted to push the stroller and I was just as adament that he could not push it along the street (no sidewalks, busy road) and that both boys needed to walk on the grass next to me. It turned into a showdown and I decided we wouldn't go. Jackson was mad and decided to run towards the street and give me a heart attack. TWICE. So then we had to all go inside because I was afraid he'd take off running the second I turned my back. The boys then proceded to fight ALL AFTERNOON. I almost lost my voice from yelling so loudly all day. It was like they were conspiring to push me over the edge. And of course Lexi didn't really have an afternoon nap because it was total chaos in the house all afternoon.
Fast forward a few hours and everyone is getting ready for bed. Jackson was upset about something (come to find out later that he wanted crackers from the kitchen) and kept trying to go downstairs. Luis was busy trying to get the boys in their PJs and teeth brushed amid all the crying and yelling. I was attempting to get a very tired Lexi to bed. I went in to help try to get the boys settled and started cuddling Jackson in my lap to settle him down. He proceded to puke multiple times all over me as well as himself.
Luis and Nicolas headed out to soccer while Jackson, Lexi and I played all morning. She is so close to crawling - she even gets almost into position, then decides to roll over onto her back instead. But somehow she still manages to move around quite a bit.
Jackson refused to nap, which is never a good sign. So I decided to bring all 3 kids (Lexi in the stroller and the boys walking) across the street to pick up a couple more plants for the deck planters. Jackson was adament that he wanted to push the stroller and I was just as adament that he could not push it along the street (no sidewalks, busy road) and that both boys needed to walk on the grass next to me. It turned into a showdown and I decided we wouldn't go. Jackson was mad and decided to run towards the street and give me a heart attack. TWICE. So then we had to all go inside because I was afraid he'd take off running the second I turned my back. The boys then proceded to fight ALL AFTERNOON. I almost lost my voice from yelling so loudly all day. It was like they were conspiring to push me over the edge. And of course Lexi didn't really have an afternoon nap because it was total chaos in the house all afternoon.
Fast forward a few hours and everyone is getting ready for bed. Jackson was upset about something (come to find out later that he wanted crackers from the kitchen) and kept trying to go downstairs. Luis was busy trying to get the boys in their PJs and teeth brushed amid all the crying and yelling. I was attempting to get a very tired Lexi to bed. I went in to help try to get the boys settled and started cuddling Jackson in my lap to settle him down. He proceded to puke multiple times all over me as well as himself.
Tuesday, May 12, 2009
sad and glad
Poor Lexi spends almost every night sleeping in the "old" bucket car seat because of her congestion. It is the only way she gets any significant amount of sleep in any one stretch of time. However, she is getting bigger and bigger (as children tend to do) and is barely fitting in there comfortably. So, I called the pediatrician's office to try to figure out how I can get her comfortable at night without needing to stuff her into the carseat. They told me to bring her in just so they could check her over. Don't you know the little dear has ANOTHER blasted ear infection. (For those of you keeping count, we are up to #4). I almost cried right there in the office. On one hand I'm so sad that she has yet another ear infection - if she gets another we are going right to the ENT. On the other hand, I know that after about a day on the antibiotic the congestion will go away and she'll be able to sleep all stretched out and comfortable in her crib.
I keep telling myself that in the big scheme of things, we should be so lucky that a few ear infections are the worst that ever happen to our kids. But, when it feels like (because it is true) there is always someone in this house who is sick, it is sometimes hard to feel positive or lucky. Sigh.
And not to jinx myself, but if I didn't know any better, I'd swear that Jackson has an ear infection as well. Very clinging, whiny and generally not quite himself all day. However, we just had the pre-op visit with the ENT on Friday which was great - no fluid or anything in his ears, which is why cancelled his surgery for today. You win some and lose some I guess.
I keep telling myself that in the big scheme of things, we should be so lucky that a few ear infections are the worst that ever happen to our kids. But, when it feels like (because it is true) there is always someone in this house who is sick, it is sometimes hard to feel positive or lucky. Sigh.
And not to jinx myself, but if I didn't know any better, I'd swear that Jackson has an ear infection as well. Very clinging, whiny and generally not quite himself all day. However, we just had the pre-op visit with the ENT on Friday which was great - no fluid or anything in his ears, which is why cancelled his surgery for today. You win some and lose some I guess.
Saturday, May 9, 2009
Daycare teachers are saints
In honor of Mother's Day tomorrow, I thought it would be a great idea to do an "arts and crafts" project with the boys for the grandmothers. A friend of mine gave me a great idea that I thought would be easy enough for both boys to do. And - to be fair, it was a pretty easy project with a few simple materials, all of which I happen to have in the house for an occasion such as this. However, I underestimated the boys' enthusiasm level as well as the amount of time it would take to complete the project. The boys lost steam about 3/4 of the way through the project, so I actually ended up finishing them once everyone was in bed, but they did a fair amount of the work.
However, my patience was shot by the end of the project. I don't know teachers take a room full of toddlers, preschoolers, etc. and get them to focus on art projects without totally losing their minds. I was stretched to my limit with only 2 of them! But, they were so cute working on it and so excited to have something special to give to Nana and Vovo.
However, my patience was shot by the end of the project. I don't know teachers take a room full of toddlers, preschoolers, etc. and get them to focus on art projects without totally losing their minds. I was stretched to my limit with only 2 of them! But, they were so cute working on it and so excited to have something special to give to Nana and Vovo.
Friday, May 8, 2009
The first of many
Lexi officially has her first tooth. Her front bottom left pearly white is officially poking through her gums. It stands as a reminder to me how fast kids grow up. It really feels like just yesterday that I was holding a warm little bundle in my arms in the hospital and now, just over 7 months later we are looking for teeth and waiting for the day (which should come anytime now) that she is able to sit on her own.
I am trying to treasure every moment, and lock them away in my memory since I know that as we pass each new milestone, it will be the last time I celebrate those moments since we are not going to be adding any more children to our family.
I am trying to treasure every moment, and lock them away in my memory since I know that as we pass each new milestone, it will be the last time I celebrate those moments since we are not going to be adding any more children to our family.
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