Isn't She Lovely?

Mommy & Emma together again!

First visit to see new baby sister.

Proud Big Sis!

Smitten Big Brother!

Our new family of five

When I started this blog I had a lot more time on my hands (I just didn't know it!).  When Owen was little, I managed to post pretty often and then when Anna Claire came along, sadly, my posts were fewer and farther between.  I completely stopped because getting to the computer to do this was something that I did not seem to have the time to do.  I love looking back at the monthly updates because it reminds me of what Owen or Anna Claire was doing at that time (I'm not the greatest Baby Book keeper, bet you guessed that).  I'm hoping that since we've upgraded to high-tech phones (say hello to the iPhone!) and I have a little laptop, that I'll be posting again to record those precious memories of my kiddos that I know I won't remember if I rely on my brain.  If anyone is still checking in here, thanks! and if not, it will just be for me and that's just fine.

Without further ado, let me introduce Ms. Emma Kate (we are calling her "Emma" but the kids insist she is to be called "Emma Kate").  She was born on Thursday, March 14, 2013 at 8:23 pm.  Labor started early that morning but was mostly uneventful and very easy until about 5 pm that afternoon (then I was pretty sure that we were having a baby that day).  Keith and I made it to the hospital and in less than two hours, our girl had arrived!!  Dr. Charles Padgett delivered her as it was his night on-call and he lived up to his reputation - laid-back, kind, and a great doctor.  It was very quick and other than problems getting the IV in (took three nurses and five sticks, ouch!) and the horrible epidural (it took two sites and at least five sticks that were shooting into a nerve, really ouch!!! and then it didn't work other than to numb the top half of my left thigh for 24 hours), it was a pretty uneventful and relatively easy labor/delivery.  Best part was a very healthy baby girl who cried for just a second, then got quiet, then cried a little more after some oxygen.  She weighed in at 7 lbs 12 oz and was 20 inches long.  She pinked up quickly and had some fluid pulled from her stomach (about 10 cc's).  She looked just like her big brother (everyone agreed) but, as one nurse put it, "she just looks like a girl, you know?"  The first time I held her, she was looking at someone else and when I spoke, she immediately turned her head and stared right at me.  It was as if she was saying, "hey, I remember that voice, nice to meet you mom!"

We were visited by Alexis, Amber, Deanna, Savri, Honey, and Poppa that night and then it was just mommy, daddy, and Emma for a few hours.  We slept a little at a time but Emma was a big fan of being held (name a baby who isn't!) so sleep was limited overall.  Didn't matter, I had a nice breakfast Friday morning and a cute baby to keep me company and I was waiting for my two kiddos to come and meet Ms. Emma.  

Owen and Anna Claire visited their new sister Friday morning and they were thrilled with her!  They wanted to hold her and kiss her and hug her and wanted to know when we were all going to be going home. We had a few visitors over the next 24 hours and then we were discharged and headed for home Saturday afternoon (Emma wasn't even 48 hours old and we were able to leave, yay!).

We had a little adjusting to do - Owen and Anna Claire needed some sort of "normal" life for a few days and we needed to become accustomed to being a family of five with one tiny new person who needed lots of care.  Emma has been such a joy and I love just staring at her whenever I can.  She is so sweet and seems to have a gentle disposition.  Even in the hospital, when she was awake she would calmly stare at you and would only cry out if she was hungry or needed a new diaper.  She is quite a snuggle-bug and loves sleeping right next to mommy.  She's also pretty content to fall asleep in the bassinet if she has a pacifier and is tired. 

The past seven weeks has brought us smiles and tears and sleepless nights but I finally feel like we're getting the hang of this "three kids" thing.  It is sometimes surprising to see all three in the same room and realize that we are a family of five when a few years ago I didn't know if we'd be more than a family of two.  Time has flown by and I hope the good days overshadow the bad for my kids and that they'll remember smiles and laughter more than mommy yelling or complaining.  I'm hoping this is the beginning of a new era of posting for me so that I can look back and remember the little details of our life with our babies. 

It's Spring! It's Summer! It's time to play OUTSIDE!!!

It's been so long since I've posted pictures or an update that I'm sure there's no one checking in but I'm here just in case! We've been enjoying some (very) warm weather the last few weeks and we've gone from being housebound to doing lots of outside stuff! Makes us all happier people to be outside for much of the day. The first two pictures are from February when it was still cool outside but, as you'll see, the weather has made it time to play in the water! Owen and Anna Claire are loving playing in the water table and the pool and snacks, lunch, and dinner are usually eaten outside (so much less to clean up after those meals...).

bubbles and water are great fun!

learning how to balance
painting with "our toes" - we saw it on Curious George and Owen desperately wanted to try it!

smore's!

Anna Claire lovin' some dark chocolate!!!

look, pigtails!

snacks

his "sweet" smile

"cheese"

Hello! We're still here...

Hi everyone! We're still here even though you wouldn't know it by my lack of posts.

The kiddos have been growing, learning, changing, and having fun every day. Anna Claire is talking more and more and has great problem solving as well as climbing skills (I'd rather her have NO climbing skills as she's taken a tumble or two that scares the life out of me). She tries to do whatever her big brother does (don't tell me I can't... it'll just make me try harder - the above picture should tell you that) and she usually succeeds. She's in love with her babies and loves to feed them, rock them, or push them in the stroller. She's still a cuddle-bug and would rather be held or snuggled than not most of the time.

Owen is becoming a little boy and is growing taller each day (it seems sometimes that I can see him growing right before my eyes). He knows all of his upper and lower case letters most of the time and is very interested in what a word "starts with." He enjoys coloring, painting, and cutting but really likes to run around the back yard and he REALLY likes to "kung fu fight" with daddy (mommy does not kung fu fight...). He's all boy and rough and tumble but still a sweetie (especially when he needs a hug from mommy).

We've been enjoying this not-so-wintery weather by playing outside as much as we can. (Thank goodness we've got a fenced in back yard, it is truly a saving grace.)

I promise to post more so that I can share pictures and cute kid things with all of you.

Hope you're all having a great new year!

the cowboy and his sister (notice she's sitting on the table... thank you new gross motor skills)

our cute girl - she just loves her hats (and Owen's hats)

I drew a pumpkin!!!

10 & 11 months update

Well, I got a little behind on everything and didn’t get a chance to post when Anna Claire turned 10 months but I’m back and have lots of cute pictures. We were very busy planning vacation (Owen & Anna Claire were at the beach for the first time!) and just doing regular stuff that keeps us busy every day.

Here’s a quick 10 month update for Miss Priss. At ten months, Anna Claire was crawling on her belly and attempting to get into hands and knees to crawl. She moved around the house at a quicker speed than before even though she seemed to be dragging herself more than crawling. She was fingering feeding herself a few snack foods and attempting to use a sippy cup to drink water. She began holding and looking at board books just before turning 10 months (although for quite a while, she had been very interested in looking at books when she’d sit on my lap while we’d read Owen’s books). Just before she turned 11 months old, her sixth tooth popped out (that explained the previous two weeks of up every two hours!).

Owen is, of course, constantly learning lots of new things and attempting to exert his independence (yikes!) on an hourly (or maybe minute by minute) basis every day. He can be the sweetest and most challenging child I’ve ever met all at the same time (can you tell I’m not a huge fan of 2 years old?). Most recently, he has learned to spell his name and identify it when he sees it; identify the “A” for Anna Claire; hold up one finger, two fingers, and five fingers and identify which amount he’s holding up; sit on the big potty without a potty seat; and wear underwear and stay dry with few to no accidents during waking hours. He is definitely “all boy” and loves to wrestle and climb and shoot stuff (don’t worry, it’s only a squirt gun or a play gun). He’s still in love with Toy Story and he really prefers TS 2 & 3 to the first one because Jessie is in the second and third movies. I think we’re looking at a Toy Story themed birthday party as his love has yet to diminish for “Rootingest Tootingest Cowboy” and his crew. Thanks to Poppa, we took Owen to see Toy Story 3 on ice in May and it was so exciting to see his face as each character came to life in front of him. He was truly in awe and had a great time. I’m hoping to take him to see the new Cars movie this summer, it will be his first movie theater experience and I’m sure he’ll enjoy it. He still loves to watch Curious George but Toy Story is his favorite thing to watch right now (I think we could have it playing 24 hours a day for a month and he wouldn’t be tired of it).

At the beginning of June, we went to Fort Walton, Florida and had a great vacation. We hung out with Poppa, Aunt Laurie, Uncle James, Lilly, and Elliot and spent some time with Aunt Steph, Uncle Tiger, Lexi, and Amber. Owen loved digging in the sand and splashing in the pool but was a little hesitant to go into the gulf (I think it was just too loud, too big, and moved too fast). Anna Claire liked digging her feet in the sand and was lulled to sleep by the sound of the waves. She hung out on the beach with mommy and even took a few naps right there on the beach (which gave mommy a little reading time – yay!). Just before going to Florida, Anna Claire had learned to pull to standing but she perfected it while we were there. I have to say that one thing I was happy about seeing when we got home was our own “child proofed” house – it was so hard to keep her out of all of the stuff in the condo since she was moving so fast. I have to say that our first family vacation and first trip to the beach was a success! We had a great time and hope to be able to do it again.

At 11 months, Anna Claire is a very mobile and talkative girl! She is cruising along the furniture, crawling on hands and knees, climbing onto things much taller than her (oh yes, she is a CLIMBER!!!), and, in general, moving FAST! Her favorite thing to do right now is to climb up on Owen’s train bed and then attempt to climb down (which looks as if she’s going to fall on her head and snap her neck but she somehow makes it work, most of the time…). She says, “mama” “dada” “Owa” (Owen) “Poppa” “ni-ni” (night night) “uh oh” “hi” “bye bye” and “bay-bay” (baby). She waves hi and bye and is starting to imitate the signs for “more” and “all done” at meal time. She will sometimes give a kiss on request and loves to pat-pat and hug. She clicks her tongue, makes “lubble” sounds with her tongue (moving it all around while humming), and says, “p p p p” (she does all of this in play and in imitation). She is a loud talker and has a huge laugh. She puts the phone (or remote) to her ear and “talks” and puts a headband on her head (she’s even managed to get it to stay a time or two). She is still taking morning and afternoon naps and wakes up at night (sometimes once, sometimes three times…). She is eating a huge variety of foods and the only thing she hasn’t been directly exposed to is nuts and shellfish. She finger feeds herself most of her food and knows how to sip water out of a sippy cup. When she is finished eating, if she’s not taken out of the highchair quick enough, she starts waving her hands on her tray to sweep all of the food off. She’s all smiles most of the time but when she’s mad, she lets you know! She loves to chase Owen around and tries her best to keep up with him. I can’t believe we’re planning her first birthday – this year has gone by in a blink!

Here are a few pictures from the last couple of months:

Anna Claire pulling to stand for the first time!

Playing outside in the pool (no, there's no water, it's like an outside playpen!)

Our first Family Beach Vacation!

The boys watching the waves...

Poppa and his babies

Our Little Monkey (no, he didn't climb up there himself)

aVERY happy baby girl

9 months! (so sorry, post is a little bit late...)

Hi everyone! I know I'm really late with this update (I should have done it about 3 weeks ago but we are busy busy - isn't everyone?). Anna Claire and Owen are growing and moving and keeping us on our toes! Anna Claire weighed in at 22 lbs 4 oz at her 9 month well visit and measured 30 inches long - that's about the 90 percentile for weight and over the 100th for height (no petite babies here). She is a very happy baby and really has no complaints except when hungry or very tired. She is a go-with-the-flow kind of baby and her sweet personality is developing more every day. She is eating lots more table food and has tried almost everything except nuts - even cake and cookies (just little bites). She is quite the eater and is interested in trying everything she can (hmmm, sounds like she might be related to us...). She is not very interested in a sippy cup although I give it to her to play with in her high chair but she does take sips from a straw.
Anna Claire's a mover and moves quite fast on her belly with her legs and arms pumping away. She's a pro at commando (or army) crawl and will get from one end of the house to the other in a few seconds - she even tried to crawl out of the doorway and down the step when I left it open to get something out of the car! She gets onto her hands and knees and rocks but hasn't yet figured out how to move. She holds all of her weight in standing and even took a few steps yesterday while I was holding both of her hands. She's pulling up to her knees from sitting when next to something she can hold on to.
She loves toys that make noise or that react in some way. She really likes to look at books and will usually sit on my lap and look at the book while we ready stories. She will release a tiny object into my hand and has started to clasp her hands together but has not yet clapped. She
is teething a lot and while she already has a total of five teeth (two on top and three at the bottom), I think she's got another one on its way. I can't believe how fast she's changed in just a few months and that her first birthday is just around the corner.
Owen is growing taller and he is potty trained!!! He is about 95% potty trained and only wears pullups or a diaper at night or nap and wakes up dry most of the time (yay, that means we've got $40/month for something other than diapers!). He is quite a little monkey and climbs on anything that he can - I actually made a deal with him that he could sit on the table outside as long as he didn't stand on it (I couldn't believe what I was saying...). He knows how to hold two fingers to show "2" and five fingers for "5" (he worked on this for a couple of days and was so proud of himself when he figured it out). He climbs up the slide then turns around and slides down. He matches shapes and can identify most of them. He draws a circle and accidently drew a triangle and identified it a couple of weeks ago. He can verbally spell his name and identify the "O" in print as well as identifying his name out of a choice of two names. He knows his "whole big" name and sometimes knows daddy's as well.
Owen had lots of firsts this month - he caught his first fish (reeled it in himself!), rode on a huge army truck (I'm told it's called a "deuce and a half"), and had his first easter egg hunt (wow, eggs with candy!!! - he asked to do it again the next day, go figure!). He LOVES to do new things and figure stuff out. Lately he is really exerting his independence and loves using the words "no" and "I do it myself" (can you hear my exhausted sigh...) so we've had a bit of a struggle in figuring out who is in charge.
All in all these two little people are growing and changing too fast and make us laugh (and sometimes cry) on a daily basis. They are more fun than a barrel of monkeys and generally smell better too! I really love watching them do stuff for the first time because it's so neat to see someone experience a sight, sound, taste, or activity with so much wonder.
Here are a few (ha ha) pictures from the past month.

Owen decided that painting cookies is not as
important as taste-testing them!