Max's first wave good bye

Last night Max did not sleep well; he has a cold again. He kept me up all night laying beside me (becuase he kept crying horribly for me when I left him in his crib), kicking me, fussing, turning sideways, and just geniounly doing al he can to assure I was exhausted and cranky in the morning. He succeeded.

When I dropped him off at Mom's this morning and was saying bye, he finally waved bye bye all by himself! It was so cute. I was so happy and proud of him. I kept making him do it over and over again!

Look at that smile of pride after I ran over to kiss him!

It's these little firsts that make up for the sleepless nights! I love my little Maximillian!

What'd you almost lose?

I was telling Ellie good night and nearly lost my balance.

Ellie said, "what happened?"

Me, "I nearly lost my balanced."

Ellie, "I will fine it for you."

Me, "Thanks." while giggling to myself

Ellie, "Here you go." reaching out her hands to me. Still, not laughing, straight faced, and seriously returning my balance to me.

Me, while reaching out my hand, "Thanks Ellie for looking out for me and returning my balance."

Ellie, "You're welcome."

All of this was a serious conversation to Ellie except at the very end when she could tell I thought she was funny, she somewhat laughed too.

Max keeps growing

Max went with me to watch Ellie an Daddy Swim on Saturday. He's getting so big. I think it's soon time for him to get a turn in the pool. When these lessons started just 6 weeks ago, I didn't think he was ready. But I think he'd have a blast now. If only there was a class when we could put them both in together.

Max had a good weekend. He loves when his Aunt Katie visits. The way he always snuggles into her is something else! He's done this since the day he was born.

Swim Class

Ellie finished up her second set of swimming lessons this weekend. It was a good little winter activity and good to remind her to be brave and try new things. Even with missing one class, it's amazing the progress in a few weeks.

Here are a few photos of her and Daddy from the last class. Max and I went to watch!

I'm very proud of Ellie today

Ellie really had a great day today; really, she had a great weekend.

Saturday we had her cousins over and Erika spent the night. She did a really good job of sharing toys; I didn't hear of any hiding or fighting once. This is such a great improvement for Ellie. I am so proud! She even wanted to share her Snow White dress with Erika. This is huge - as Ellie spends much of her waking time in this dress and still likes to be referred to as Snow White.

Not exactly a flattering photo of Ellie, but they were having fun!

Sharing some dress up fun with Amy:

On Sunday, after Erika went home, she said to me "Mommy, I had so much fun with Erika!" This made me feel great that she enjoyed having her cousins over. We need to do this more often.

We went to church, and for the first time, I left Ellie in the Sunday School room without Blanky Bear and without any tears! This was a big big thing and I was so proud of her!

At home, she enjoyed a lunch without fussing and spend much of the day drawing and coloring. She has gotten so good at coloring in the lines. It is amazing to watch her pen control she has developed in the past few weeks. She colored in a bowl of ice cream staying totally in the lines. It was really wonderful! When I told her how proud I was of her, her little face lit up from ear to ear with pride!

Then, she ate a great dinner and didn't pester me for dessert.

At the end of the night, she topped it off by cleaning up. Not only did she clean up her mess, but when David asked her to clean up the toys Max messed up (Which was alot) she didn't bat an eye, but just started picking things up and putting them away! This is another huge step forward for Ellie! I was so happy with her, I gave her 4 M&Ms before bed.

WHen I was putting her to bed, I asked one of my typical questions, "Ellie, what was the best part of your day?" She answered the question by saying, "Playing dress up. What was the best part of your day Mommy?" he he he, she's so grown up!

What a fabulous day for my little Ellie Bean who is growing more and more each and every day into a wonderful, lowing little girl!

Why are you so happy?

Yesterday, I was on my way home from work and daycare with Ellie. We were almost home, in the neighborhood, just listening to her normal music - "Gino's Songs," when she let out a very real giggle of pure delight.

I turned to her and asked, "Why are you so happy Ellie?"

Ellie says, "I'm so happy that I like Owen so much!"

I snagged this photo on March 3rd!

Bedtime

I enjoy the bedtime routine with the kids most nights. Since I truly do regret having to work, I cherish this time and typically try to drawl it out when they are in good moods. We are starting to hit a grove with the two kids where they can get in the bath together and generally be on the same schedule. This is a big blessing! There are those nights that are exceptions - where I have had such a rotten day or they are really tire - but all in all, it generally is a nice smooth family time.

Tonight was one of those good nights.

David gave Max his bottle while I got Ellie her bath. She listened quite well and even asked for a rag to wash herself when I was done. I know that I need to encourage her learning to do things herself, so I indulged - though not as fast as Daddy does. Daddy's the easy going bath giver - go figure.

After Max's bottle, Ellie plays while Max jumps in to get washed too. When he's done, they play together for a while. Max loves to splash in the tub and Ellie likes having him there. I love the way his face lights up when he looks up to see me all proud of being in the tub and splashing in the water and just having all our attention on him.

I then get Max dressed and David gets Ellie dressed. Max loves to laugh! He loves to have 'zorberts' on his belly and kisses on his feet, and I love the way he laughs. Ellie loves to listen to him laugh and usually runs in. Tonight, I also got her dressed and ended up giving her a 'zorbert' on her belly. Well, the laugh on her face was one of the best I think i've seen. YOu could tell it was a small form of torture, yet she loved it! She kept asking for more and laughing so hard. It was funny.

We read Sleeping Beauty. Max plays in my arms laughing and distracting Daddy and Ellie.

Finally, David takes Max to put him to sleep and I go through Ellie's standard routine. (Which only I am ever requested to do - and it makes me feel special)

Daddy turns out the lights and we have quite time to talk, say prayers, and sing songs. I like to ask her what was her favorite part of the day. Today her response was "Playing with Owen when he was chasing her today."

Prayers - sometimes I ask her who she wants to thank God for... the answer is always the same "G" or "G and Gramma." If I ask for more, the Perrottas come up. (I think she must take our immediate family for granted :-) )

Songs - I set the expectation I will sing her 3 songs a night before leaving. She usually is stuck on 3 or 4 songs. Everyone once in a while a new song makes the routine. If she had her way - it would always be 3 CHristmas Songs. But once January hit, I limited her to 1 of 3 being Christmas songs until December (this is for my sanity sake). She always asks me for The Twelve Days of Christmas. This is so painful, that I have developed an abbreviated version of this song which she cause the "Short-ry version of the twelve days of christmas." Her next new favorite song is "The Owen Song" which is the Banana rhyming song using her favorite friend Owen's name. The third song varies between a few - Twinkle Twinkle still being the one song I started singing her as a baby that is requested most nights of the week. Some other favorites are You Are My Sunshine, Amazing Grace, and West Virginia.

My favorite part that Ellie has recently inserted into the routine is when the songs are done, she tells me how many hugs she wants before she goes to sleep - It's so sweet.

I love being a mom!

Starting to get around

Max is going through a lot of quick physical changes during month 8. He is so clost to crawling. He can now get on all fours with his belly off the ground and move a little forward. He's excellent at moving enough to completely clear off the bottom shelf of all toys! When complete, he's quite proud of himself.

It's funny to watch him becuase he is getting very good at going backwards.... although, when he does this, it's not his intended movement. He does this after he ends up flat on his tummy and can't sit back up. SO he's pushing up and moving back and sliding along the floor quite effectively (especially on the hardwood.) Meanwhile, he is getting more and more frustrated. We encourage him, but I give in and sit him back up becuase I don't like the whining :-)

Tonight he was playing on the floor after dinner and he chased a ball about 4-5 feet moving on his but or one hand forward and then sitting back up. We are nearly there.

I know that when he hits the go stage, we will be in trouble, at least compared to things with Ellie. She was never really that in to getting into things and wasn't a big crawler - she just rolled from one end of the house to the other for a couple months! I still laugh at this when I remember this.

"Treaty"

Ellie says to me this morning when we return home from dropping Max off at my mom's at 9am, "Mommy, I feel treaty right now."

I asked, "what does treaty mean?"

Ellie, "It means I want a treat right now."

I laughed out loud and then Ellie did too. It was cute that she realized she made a joke and made me laugh, even though she wasn't going to get a treat, or really, another treat, considering I had given her one chocolate munchkin from Dunkin Donuts when we drove through to pick up my morning Latte.

A sick week

I haven't had any big stories to write this week. We've been dealing with lots of winter germs. Max went from flu straight to cought/bronchitis and Ellie is now starting with the cough just as Max finishes up. Meanwhile, I've been fighting it too, and I think I'm loosing the battle. I thought Echineachea was the key to staying well as a Mom taking care of sick kids, but I think that had limited potency. Trying to keep up while working through all of this hasn't been easy, so needless to say, the blog wasn't a priority this week. However, with the kids napping and me trying to avoid further cleaning, I thought I'd just remind us of a few highlights from the week.

Monday night when we came home from daycare, Ellie announces, "Mommy, Erin is so luck." Erin is the daycare providers daughter. Me, "Why Ellie?" Ellie, "Becuase she gets to stay at Ms. Sara's A- L - L the time!" What does a Mom say to that. I am glad Ellie has fun at Ms. Sara's but a little sad that she doesn't enjoy our house as much. I can only hope it's becuase she's starting to enjoy playing with the other kids.

Tuesday when I picked Ellie up from Ms. Sara's, I told her it was time to go and to say bye to her friends. She turns around and says, "Bye O - W - E - N...." My response, "Ellie, are there not other people here too?" Ellie, "Bye Brody, Erin, Parker and Sammy." Meanwhile, Sammy's Dad is there to pick her up and he puts his hand to his mouth and makes a "AHHHHH" sound.

Thursday when I picked Ellie up from Ms. Sara's she was there with just Owen. THese are her favorite times. While the 3 adults talked, I watcher her follow Owen around the room playing like a shadow. I couldn't get her up the stairs. However, as soon as Owen started up the stairs, she was right behind him. She sure loves her Owen!

This week while at Ms. Sara's Ellie also learned how to write her name for the first time. We have been talking about spelling, but I haven't worked with her at all on handwriting. Ms. Sara sure has! She does great. I can't believe she can write her name already! Well done Ellie.

Meanwhile, with Max this week, he is slowly starting to feel better. I have grown such a feeling of attachment with him finally. I always love him to pieces, but I can feel him wanting to communicate with me all the time. It's just wonderful to watch his eyes light up when he sees me and see that smile build across his whole face! We have started a game of sticking our tongues out at each other. I say tongue and sometimes touch his with my finger and he thinks it's hallarious, especially when I proceed to then stick mind out too. (Not at each other, just down towards our chins.) It's the first game we have besides laughing at each other (which is still a favorite)

Although he is pretty sick in this picture, he still gives the smiles!

While Max was sick, I had him back in bed beside me again. But after about a week, now that the coughing fits have died down, it was easy to transition him back into his crib. I'm very proud of his flexibility. We didn't have any crying. This boads well for me being able to still get in a few snuggle naps on he weekends now and again to fullfill some of my cuddle needs. He is definitely a Momma's boy and I am just loving every minute of it.

Friday I took him with me to pick up Ellie at Ms. Sara's. Max will start going there in August. She held him for a few minutes and he didn't cry - though did look a little worried. But I stayed close and he stayed strong. When she finally gave him back to me, he let out a very audible sigh of relief to be back in my arms. It was sweet - though I know he needs to get used to Miss Sara.

This morning we have all just hung out around the house. I skipped church becuase I'm not feeling great. THe fun of a lazy morning, which I never used to be able to handle is just watching the kids have fun and playing with them too. Max and Ellie really do enjoy being around each other now and I can imagine it's only going to grow. I love watching them entertain each other and laugh together! It makes me want a bigger family!

This isn't exactly a normal post, but a week with sick kids is one I've learned to just make my way through the best I can. Things won't be perfect and that's okay (I keep telling myself.)

Yesterday while the kids napped, I did finally get to start on a project I've been planning since I had my first house back in Spring Ridge - it's a bathroom mural of a sea scene. It's not finished, but it was fun to get started. Not a work of art, but a great use of my creative side. I do enjoy these projects and one great thing about having kids is that I have an excuse to live like one sometimes!

We couldn't find her pants

Ellie is in her 3rd week of swim lessons. She's enjoying them. She's taking a bit of a refresher course, one that allows us to be in the water with her. She hasn't really done a lot of swimming in her life, so this is a good way to help her get comfortable with swimming. She really likes to be in the water. Even though swimming in the winter isn't always condusive to staying healthy (at least it wasn't for Ellie the first time we tried this, we figured we'd give it a go.)

Class falls during Max's morning nap, so someone has to stay home. I have taken her to class the first two weeks while David stayed home with Max. Today was Daddy's turn to take Ellie. (I got to stay home and have a morning nap with Max!)

When they come through the door after class Ellie stands up against the wall and announces to me that her legs are cold. I say what? David announces, "We couldn't find her pants."

Me, "Her underwear, or actual pants?" (I'm thinking, underwear are small, I could see how those may get lost...)

David, "Her pants. They dissapeared while we were in the pool."

My oh my, I can only imagine.

So, to keep Ellie warm, Daddy wrapped her in his jacket and carried her to and from the car. Good improvising David! It was about 25 or 30 degrees tops this morning!

Owen

Ellie spends her days with Ms. Sara, a wonderful wonderful lady who runs an in home daycare. We are so thankful for her. I didn't really think I could find someone other then the grandmothers I would feel safe and comfortable leaving Ellie with - especially after the Maria issues in 2008. However, I was clearly wrong. I love Ms. Sara's and so does Ellie.

She has fun with all the kids. Having "friends" to play with on a daily basis besides her cousins is a new and exciting thing for Ellie. She is still learning the basics of friendship, but one thing she has mastered is how to pick a favorite.

About 2 weeks after she started at Ms. Sara's, Ellie told me one night, "Mommy, Owen is my favorite." I didn't pay this much attention at first. But, as the weeks progress, it's clear that Ellie has a bit of a first crush on Owen. Owen is 6, with blond hair and brown eyes. He's quiet, but very sweet.

We've been talking about the importance of having everyone be friends, and not announcing favorites. But the way Ellie follows Owen and looks at him is so evident. She always knows where he is. She likes to give him a hug at the end of the day before going home. And, apparently, he will sit for nearly an hour and read book after book to Ellie. She truly loves hanging out with Owen.

The other night Gramma was talking to Ellie on the phone and asked Ellie, "How come Owen is your favorite?"

Ellie replies with a cute slightly embarrassed looking grin on her face, "Becuase he s - m - i - l - e - s at me!"

I told Ms. Sara this story the other day. She says, "Ut oh, you will have you hands full when she's a teenager if that's all it takes." we both laughed!

Ellie's right - Owen does have the best smile!

Updated 4Mar2011:

Below is a picture of one of Ellie's favorite things to do at Miss Sara's, color beside Owen and Erin.

Laughs

Max has always been one to be easily frightened. So, quite often, when Ellie gets too excited in a near proximity of his face, he lets out a very sad puppy dog whimper which turns into a very sad cry. I realize we need to find a way to get over this, becuase Ellie is surely not the loudest thing in the world.

Max also loves, absolutely loves, to laugh at and with his sister. This started about 2 months ago. If Ellie is just the right distance from him - about 2 feet - and starts laughing (even a fake laugh) he starts laughing too. They take turns laughing until they are both really really laughing hard at each other. Then, Max has the hiccups. It's a cycle I've come to know well.

Tonight at dinner, Max had finished his food and was sitting their trying to wait and knaw on his high chair (another little strange dog like habit my son possesses.) Anyway, I did something to make him laugh, I'm not sure exactly what started it all. Then Ellie laughed. Then I laughed at the cycle. Then Max laughed again. Then Ellie laughed. It was a game!

I started making different faces and noises to try to intensify the laughing and check his reaction. He mostly stayed on the laughing side, with a few borderline whimpers that we were able to turn to laughs as he realized they may be different, but were still friendly and funny. Ellie was getting into it as well. We must have gone on like this for nearly 5 minutes. By the end, I was truly laughing hard at the easily amused children and the amount of fun that was created just by trying to make each other laugh becuase the other person was also laughing. We even had David almost laughing ... and definitely smiling.

It all sounds simple, but these are the moments that make my long work days melt away, and the reason I love my children so much! Thanks Max and Ellie!