First Day of Preschool!

Well, it's official. We have a kid in school! I feel like I definitely can't call her a toddler any more; she's a pre schooler!!





We love her school. I mean LOVE it. I came across it by a recommendation from a mommy group friend, because she said they would work with a stubborn potty kid. And now, that is the least of my reasons for liking the school. It is seriously so awesome, I just LOVE it! And, the teacher in me is so interested in this program and learning about how to teach in it some day. It is that great!!









The very first day was last Friday. Nelson was the parent helper that day, so we both went to help and stay. Only half the class was there, the other half had gone on Wednesday. She was totally ready! She has been to the school, in her classroom several times and has already gotten to know her teacher, teacher Stassi, so she is super comfortable there. She walked right in and started exploring and playing immediately and barely acknowledged us for a long time. She was sweet, friendly and shared with the other kids and barely batted an eye when someone else had a tantrum. She even asked to and peed on the potty!!! HUGE milestone. She participated in everything, followed directions and just did great. We are so proud of her and are so glad we made the decision to start her at school. She was READY!!











(And, I was ready too! It helps that my classroom job is the be the class rep; I meet and get to know all of the parents to make the help and 'mini meal' schedule. As Nelson put it; it gives me plenty of control about her and school- the perfect job for me!!!)

7 Months (a little late...)

A LOT of exciting changes have happened for Jakiah in the last several weeks!

Solid foods are going strong! Seriously, this kid eats everything I make for him! And a lot of it! I am so, so grateful that he likes homemade food (so far), because it is saving us a lot of money already! He regularly eats pears, spinach, sweet potatoes, squash, green beans, carrots, mangoes, peaches and brown rice. Sometimes I combine flavors and he eats it all! And so much! He eats about 4 'cubes' (I literally freeze the purees in ice cube trays, then break them up into baggies or tupperware to store in the freezer, so they're called food cubes) every day, which is about 4 small jars of food and those add up!! I just made cauliflower, broccoli, kale, plums, oatmeal and lots more of the previous types of food mentioned, so I'm stocked up for a little while. He seems to really enjoy eating and has started getting the hang of water in a sippy cup too.

Of course, with solids, it has thrown things off a bit. He has had some really hard times with constipation and we've had to get creative. When things are REALLY bad (4 or more days and I can feel how hard his little tummy it!), I give him pear juice or prune juice mixed with rice cereal and he eats the whole thing!! And, it usually does the trick in about 24 hours or so. I'm trying to give him leafy greens every day too, to keep things moving along.

Speaking of moving, this kid is on the move!! It happened so fast, so suddenly and he wants to GO! Just a few weeks ago, he was a lump, then he figured out how to roll and the next thing we know, he's army crawling across the room!!! It's crazy! He gets frustrated right now; he wants to be held and comforted, but he wants to be down and going at the same time. It has led to major separation anxiety and he only wants mommy for comfort and reassurance. He's sitting up a lot, unassisted as well. WHEW!!

I almost don't want to talk about his sleep. I've kind of given up on the idea of sleeping again any time soon, honestly. I've just started going to bed earlier and accept the fact that he wakes up every 2 hours. As long as I'm down early enough, it usually is okay. It's just one thing after another: teething, then tummy hurting, growth spurt, then mobility so he doesn't want to/can't lay down without rolling, etc, etc. I know he'll learn to sleep eventually, but, yes, there are days that I am one tired Mommy!

Seriously though, how can I complain?? He is the sweetest, cutest, HAPPIEST baby boy and I just adore his smiles and giggles, his pure delight and love for his family, especially his big sister. He adores her and loves that she attempts to play with him. He is starting to play and be interested in so many toys, and nothing on the floor is out of reach anymore! The favorite toy of choice right now is definitely Kalaya's baby dolls, maybe because he sees her with them so much! But really, anything that can be picked up and put in his mouth is good enough for him!

Ketchup 9/8

It’s been an extremely busy, fun, productive and did I mention BUSY last couple of weeks! Life has gotten busy!! Here’s a recap of what I can remember:

*Kalaya has finally, FINALLY decided she’s ready to use the potty. For those of you that don’t know, this has been one of the biggest frustrations of my life. Things were bad folks. Every time she was successful on the potty (and this was only with extreme force or bribery) she cried like her heart was broken and the world was coming to an end. It was so bad that we took it to the pediatrician, who determined there was something much more emotional attached to the potty and wearing diapers for her, some kind of security issue and we were to let it go and wait until SHE decided to be ready. Well, we’re getting there!! Lots of regular times on the potty lately, dry pants during the day, asking to go and lots of stickers going on the sticker chart! This is HUGE!!! (still flat out no #2 on the potty, but I’ll take what I can get. Luckily, her preschool is willing to work with us)

*I have been pinterest project crazy! Mainly in the kitchen. I’m trying to save more and more money by making as much as I can from scratch and/or buying in bulk. My freezer is filling up! I’ve made: 15 quarts of chicken stock, a quart of greek yogurt every other week, multiple muffin recipes, cookies, make ahead breakfasts, hummus, whole wheat sandwich bread every other week, granola bars, and some 10 or so different types of baby food; spinach, pears, mangos, apricots, green beans, peas, sweet potatoes, squash, prunes, broccoli, cauliflower, peaches, plums, blueberries, raspberries, kale, and carrots. I’m trying to lower our monthly grocery budget even more, now that we have a small car payment!

*We are LOVING having a mini-van. Nelson makes fun of me for how happy the new van is making me, but it’s AWESOME!!

*We had a fun Labor Day weekend, which included a trip to the beach, visits to both sets of grandparents and an unplanned FREE trip to the Oregon State Fair! Highlights included catching teeny fish in a sand pail, making a nest in the sand, watching the goats climb on a see saw, petting a llama that had ‘just had a bath’, seeing the bunnies and ducks, tasting strawberry lemonade, eating ice cream and having a picnic. (I’ll let you decide which activity happened where)

*Jakiah is 7 months and MOBILE! I’ll try to post a (late) update for him in the next couple of days, I hope.

*Pre school has started!! Again, another post in a couple of days.

Too much excitement!!

Okay moms, ready for a story that will make your heart race???

This starts out with something very positive: We bought a minivan!! We traded in our 2002 Camry (which was a pretty fantastic car, actually, just getting too small with 2 big carseats in a couple of months. Plus, space for gear, luggage, etc? Forget it.) We found a GREAT deal with low payments and reasonable financing on a 2005 Toyota Sienna and we're so excited about it!!

Almost.

This afternoon changed my mind for a few minutes.

Did you know that the newer Toyotas automatically lock all the doors when they are closed? REGARDLESS OF IF YOU'RE KEYS ARE IN THE CAR.

Here's what happened:

I had just finished up taking the kids to the park. I unlocked the car and opened both rear sliding doors. I parked the stroller behind the trunk, put Jakiah in on 'his' side, threw my keys on the front seat (as I've done hundreds of times in the Camry so that I don't leave them in the trunk or drop them) and shut Jakiah's slider. I walked around to Kalaya's side, strapped her in her carset and shut the automatic sliding door on her side. I then turned to walk back to open the trunk to put the stroller and gear away and HEARD ALL OF THE LOCKS LOCK. I had not pushed or done anything.

!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

BOTH KIDS were strapped in their carseats, my keys were on the front seat and the CAR LOCKED ME OUT!!!

At this point, I almost sh** a brick.

By the grace of God, I had my phone. (though, I could have run into the rec center to use the phone)

VERY LUCKILY, it was not very hot today and Jakiah fell asleep and Kalaya was fine.

I tried to get her to unfasten her carseat so that she could unlock the car, but (I guess it's a good thing in the long run!) she couldn't do the buckle.

I called a locksmith and as soon as they heard that there were kids in the car, they immediately told me to call the police.

So, I called 911, stayed calm and the fire truck arrived and got into the van without damaging it even.

The whole process took less than 1/2 an hour.

And, the kids were FINE. A little sweaty, but fine.

I am thankful for cell phones, a sleeping baby and fast firemen. (who happened to be quite good looking and let Kalaya get up in the truck and gave her stickers) This could have been a horrible, dangerous, life threatening situation to my children, so I'm grateful it wasn't.

But still.

And, Toyota already got a (polite but firm) ear full about this. And, they were pretty understanding and nice about it.

Too much excitement on a Sunday afternoon folks!!

But, Dairy Queen made everyone feel much better.

I would have taken FULL responsibility for it being my fault, but I had no idea the car would do that!!! So, I will now be hanging onto my keys and ALWAYS OPENING A WINDOW AS SOON AS WE UNLOCK THE CAR.

What a day.

Ketchup

Okay, so I don't really blog any more. Since I finally joined the world of now old technology and got a smart phone a few months back, I really don't sit at the computer any more. I've figured out how to do pretty much everything I used to do on a computer with my phone, except blog or anything else that requires typing more than a quick paragraph. (which explains why I don't respond to emails very quickly too...)

Here's a catch up (ketchup, get it?) on happenings in our house lately:

*Summer!! I am so happy for the sun and warm weather! It's so nice to have an Oregon summer. It makes me appreciate this state so much. I try to remember that this weather is coming, when I'm stuck inside with a toddler in the middle of February and it's been raining for 45 straight days. Summers here are SO pleasant and just perfect. 75-85 degree days, 60 degree (or cooler) nights, and no humidity! We've had a few hotter days and our house has central air!!! It's such a blessing and works really well. Finally, something I love about this house. : )

*Speaking of which, I want to do some posts about our house. We are really trying to get some things done and in order, especially in the yard. Pinterest has given me some ideas for all areas of decorating and yard. Some day I may actually implement them and blog about it.

*Kalaya is enrolled in pre school!! I cannot believe it. I 100% cannot believe we're already to this. But, we are very excited! Her school is a-may-zing. I cannot wait for her to go there. I am so happy with the decision we made about this school and hope it will go as well as we think it will. I plan to write a longer blog about this soon, but, you are welcome to look at their website!!

*LOTS of summer activities lately; trips to the park, playing in the sprinkler and wading pool in the yard, trying our our new (hand me down, but awesome and FREE) play structure, going to the beach, pj and pancake day with our mommy group, picking blueberries at Oma and Grandpa's house, pedicures, going to the farm to pick raspberries and feed goats and chickens, visiting friends and watching the Olympics!

*It's not all peaches and cream. We are trying to figure out poor little Jakiah's tummy. He is doing SO GREAT with solids, but he keeps getting backed up. We've avoided white rice cereal, apple sauce and bananas, but it's still happening. He loves everything we feed him, which is totally amazing, but he is having days where he screams and strains to poop and it's so awful to see. Luckily, he will eat prune juice mixed with his (organic brown) rice cereal, and that seems to help the problem. I also made apricots from rehydrated, dried apricots and it is helping too. I'm going to make kale and spinach and hope that moves things along too. Poor guy!

*Jakiah had his 6 month appointment yesterday and Dr. Ruby says he looks great! He is in 9 month clothes these days and weighed in at 16lbs 1/2 oz. He is 26 1/2 inches long. He's busy growing! We're starting to introduce signing at meal times and he's sorta maybe thinking about rolling over. He is happy, healthy, loves his family, especially his sister, and is a joy to be around! Teething is still an issue, though has improved. I have no idea whatsoever how much he wakes up at night, because I am barely conscious when I roll over to nurse and fall back asleep. I know it doesn't work for everyone, but co sleeping is still a blessing at this house!

6 Months

Half a year has gone by!! HALF A YEAR PEOPLE!!! (not to mention that minor detail 9 months that already flew by….and the three years…..sigh. They’ll be off to college before we know it!)

(side note: Jakiah, if some day you find this blog and wonder why the heck I posted so much when it was just your sister and had a hard time posting often about you, it’s not because I love you any less, I PROMISE!!! It’s because I’m choosing to spend time WITH you and your sister, rather than on the computer!!!!)

6 months marks some milestones for Mr. Jakiah! We have started solid foods! My blender has been busy, busy! It’s nice to be making baby food in the SUMMER this time; so many fresh options! And, Jakiah doesn’t seem to have the texture issues that Kalaya had and is doing great with solids! Avacado is his clear favorite right now, but he has also had pears, bananas and sweet potatoes. Peaches, broccoli, squash and blueberries are ready and waiting. I really do love making my own baby food and it saves SO much money! And, it doesn’t take quite as much time as you may think at this point; either steam and mix with breast milk or just mix with breast  milk, blend, pour into ice cube trays and freeze!  LOVE IT! He’s also been experimenting with a sippy cup of water, which is more fun to gum on at this point; when he gets water by accident, his faces are extremely entertaining!

 Rice cereal really hasn't been a big hint, we just did it the one time.

(now I mix it with the food purees)

" Mom, I got this!"

 Seriously.

Yum!

 Not sure. (seriously, I barely count that junk as food)

 Mmmm, avocado, much better!!

 Delish!

  ...Sorta.

 This sippy cup is awesome!

 ...to teethe on.

 Alright, a little help.

No problem.

Poor Mr. Jakiah has been a fussy guy the last couple of weeks; we think a tooth (or 2!) are working really hard to get their way out! I was nursing every 45 minutes at night for the last 2 weeks. Add staying up until midnight every night to watch the Olympics (yes, my own choice, can’t complain about that one…) and I have been ONE. TIRED. MAMA. He has wanted to be held all the time, needs to nurse totally to sleep (been a lot of remembering Miss Kalaya’s first few months….), screaming randomly without able to be comforted, etc, etc.  However, I finally broke down and remembered to buy Hyland’s teething tablets and YEEEEESSSSSSS!!!! A miracle. Totally worth $15 or whatever it was for the little bottle. He is back to sleeping four hour blocks at night and 1-2 hour naps, going to sleep on his own. HALLELUJAH CHORUS PEOPLE!!!! (hopefully I did not just jinx myself!!!)

He is also getting very active which I think has affected his sleep as well. He has always been a tummy sleeper (yeah, yeah, save me the lecture) and now he immediately flips himself over and wakes himself up, wanting to keep playing. Again, TIRED MAMA. We’ll get there though. I do know it’s just a phase and that Mommy watching the Olympics is too, just a phase. ; )  (Come on, the women’s gymnastics all around is tonight!!)

He is honestly the cutest, sweetest boy though! He is so social and smiley and just gets smiles and laughs everywhere he goes. He is getting so interested in the world around him, so observant, holding and looking at everything he can and, of course, testing EVERYTHING in his mouth. I think rolling isn’t too far in the future, he doesn’t stay in one place any more, wiggly, wiggly!! We got out the Jumperoo, which he’s having fun jumping in.

Our summer has calmed down a bit, since our unexpected trip and I’m grateful. We’ve been focusing on playing, relaxing and enjoying the GORGEOUS Oregon summer weather. Keep it coming!!

Life Happens

So, the last few weeks were a crazy, unplanned, blur. I'm trying to think of where it all started....

I guess let's go back 7 years. My Uncle Scott had a liver transplant, which saved his life. Things went really well and he had been doing great, with occasional visits to the hospital. Then, a few weeks ago, he got an infection and things started to get worse. (I should also mention that with an organ transplant a 'good' length of time with a new organ is 10 years or so. And, any kind of infection can be very bad news. Even a small one) His numbers (please don't ask me what they were or what they meant) kept getting worse and things weren't getting better. He was losing weight and getting worse instead of better.

On the 4th of July, my mom got a very, very sad phone call. Scott had been given one to two days left to live. His liver and kidneys had stopped functioning and it was just a matter of time before his other organs shut down. At this point, another transplant wasn't even an option. Scott passed away on the evening of the 5th of July, surrounded by his family. Unfortunately, my mom wasn't able to make it in time, though she flew out that morning, hoping to say good bye.

The 5th was a frantic day of packing and planning for me; Jakiah and I flew out the morning of the 6th and, after receiving the sad news that Scott had passed, Nelson and Kalaya followed on the 7th. I wanted to get there as soon as I could to help in any way. My cousin Victoria, Scott's daughter is the closest thing I have to a sister and she asked me to come out.

This was one of those times when nothing else mattered but family. Forget the cost of last minute airfare, the stress of travelling with 2 young children, not sure where we'd be staying or how we'd get around. We knew God would just make sure everything worked out. I'm so glad we went.

The visitation, funeral and burial were beautiful. It was wonderful to see family members and friends who loved Scott. It is so hard to see those he left behind; he was only 49. His parents are both still living and already lost their other son (my Uncle Tom) 13 years ago. His 4 children are 29. 27, 13 and 11. His grandchildren are 3 and twin 3 month olds. His wife of 19 years has a heavy load to carry on her own. My heart goes out to them so, so much. I can't even imagine.

Please consider becoming an organ donor if you haven't already done so. It can prolong the life of someone who might not otherwise have a chance. I'm so grateful for the extra 7 years we all got with Uncle Scott.

Holding one of his grandsons only a couple of months ago; so grateful he got to meet them!

4th of July

Yes, I realize this is a couple of weeks late, but a lot has happened since then, which I will blog about later.

So, we had a very fun 4th!! We started out by driving down to Salem on the 3rd, to visit with Nelson's family. We spent time with the kids' grandparents, uncle, auntie and cousin, whom they love and it was just a quiet, calm afternoon of playing and family time.

We went to Independence (near our college) to visit with 2 families of friends that we went to college with, the Comptons and the Lockwoods. There were 2 toddlers and 2 babies, so lots of busy fun and toys! We had a yummy BBQ and did some simple fireworks with/for the kids. Kalaya loved doing the sparklers (with CLOSE supervision) and throwing down the popping ones. (what are those called??) She liked watching 'Mr. David' light and throw some of the slightly more elaborate fireworks. (I have some great sparkler pictures in my phone, but can't get them to upload! grrrr...)

We spent the night with the Comptons and then get up for the 4th of July parade! This must have been very surreal to my husband; he watched this parade for 20+ years, from the time he was my kids' age! It was a simple, small town parade, but Kalaya watched the whole thing and loved waving to all the 'floats' and people. Highlights included Smoky the Bear, a 'pizza man' (Papa Murphy mascot), horses, fire trucks and 'the ANTS mommy!!' (a float depicting a picnic with giant ants on it)

We then drove back to Portland to have another afternoon BBQ with my parents, including burgers, salmon and watermelon. We took a walk together to the park and then finished off with some more of the simple fireworks. We had planned to go watch a local, large fireworks show, but, got some very sad news, which ended the evening abruptly. We had a really nice rest of the 4th, blessed to have been surrounded by friends and family!

Narcolepsy??

So....for those of you who don't know, Kalaya was quite the challenge when it came to sleep in her first year of life. She had to be completely and totally nursed dead asleep and it was next to impossible to transfer her to any where else. So, I either nursed her laying down on our bed totally asleep and sloooooowly rolled away or I held her while she slept. And, for the first few weeks of her life, she would ONLY sleep on me. She also could only be put to sleep by me for her first year. I didn't mind it, but that's how it was.

Around a year, she started sleeping all night and a few months after that, started being able to let Nelson put her to sleep and was able to go to bed or nap without nursing. (most of the time; unless she was sick) Around 2 years old or so, she stopped taking naps, because any length of nap at any time of day would have her up until 11. She usually sleeps a hard, solid 12 hours from about 8 to 8. It's fantastic!

I don't know if it's a growth spurt or what, but we're finding her asleep and she's voluntarily putting herself down for naps. We'll notice she's tired, suggest quiet time and she goes to her room and lays down with her 'friends' (stuffed animals) and passes out.

Then, this week, I've found this:

(mid dress-up)

and this:

(mid jump??? probably not : )

Seriously, this kid is growing or something!!!

3 year Old 20 Questions

We asked Kalaya the following questions and plan to do so every year:

What is your favorite color? Blue and mommy's favorite color is pink and Daddy's is red and Jakiah's is pink too and Pippy's is yellow.

What is your favorite toy? Computer (her leap pad that was in her line of sight at that moment...)

What is your favorite food? Macawonie and cheeeese!

What is your favorite TV show? Kipper. Not Cinderella, that's a movie

What is your favorite thing to eat for lunch? Bread with jelly and peanut butters

What is your favorite movie? Cinderella

What is your favorite game? Hide and seek

What is your favorite snack? Goldfish

What is your favorite animal? Bunny and owl

What is your favorite song? Elmo's World!! (theme song)

What is your favorite book? Cinderella book and Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What do You See?

Who is your best friend? Elena and Uncle Joel is Daddy's best friend and Auntie Sarah is Mommy's favorite friend and Baby Alexis is Jakiah's best friend.

What is your favorite thing to do outside? Go in the dirt and grass

What is your favorite drink? Milk

What is your favorite thing to take to bed with you at night? Daddy (*melt!*)

What is your favorite thing to eat for breakfast? Blue Cereal (Crispix)

What is your favorite dessert? Pumpkin Roll (again, in her line of sight...)

What do you like to eat for dinner? Macawonie and cheeeese!

Where is your favorite place to go? Kinnamin (translation: Kinnamin Elementary School playground)

What do you want to be when you grow up? (we were unsuccessful at getting an answer at this time)