Addie Mae - 3 1/2

Half birthdays are a big deal when you have an August birthday. Addie's school celebrates "unbirthdays" for those that have summer or holiday birthdays, and celebrate we did! We made Valentine M&M cookie bars for a combo half birthday/Valentine's Day treat. And at home, you better believe we did candles and singing, too. She kept asking where her party and her presents were!

She loved preparing for Valentine's Day with decorations at home, making cookies and getting her Valentines ready for friends.

We had a great "conference" with her teacher, who said she wished she had a class full of Addies (I think my parents heard something similar about me ... :)) She is such a good listener, focuses so well at school and wants to do everything just right. But she also gets into a little trouble every now and then, so I'm glad she feels comfortable there and lets her true colors fly! She likes to be the leader and does a fair amount of bossing to her classmates, but apparently always in a nice way. She is so confident, and has even recited the weekly verse in chapel in front of all the 3s, 4s and 5s. I'm so proud of her I could just burst.

We are fairly certain she'll remain at Warm World next year for the 3-day preK program. I just can't imagine my baby, who will have just turned 4, going to all-day, every-day preK at the elementary school. She has flourished so much at Warm World, and I love that environment for her. And selfishly, I'm not ready to give her up every day. Plenty of time for that. And then after next year remains to be seen ... we have the options of a transitional kindergarten at Warm World, preK in Deer Creek, or kindergarten at either Warm World or Deer Creek. And yes I'm already obsessing about all of it.

After being really healthy for a long stretch, the last two weeks have been rough. She and brother both had a virus, that resulted in pneumonia for him and an ear infection/ramped up asthma for her. We experienced what I would call her first asthma attack, at night of course. Thankfully the rescue inhaler did its job and she was able to get some rest. This week has been marked by being up most of the night, coughing and vomiting, which is what started our whole asthma journey. Yuck.


Weight: 31 pounds
Length: 36.5 inches

 New things:

• Spelling words she sees everywhere ... on food boxes, in magazines or books, on signs. She's pretty amazing.
• Cutting. Thankfully just paper, but she's really into it right now.
• Writing her name on everything. She mastered writing her name a few months ago, but now she wants to put it everywhere.
• Going to music class once a week with brother. She's the oldest one in the class, and some of the other little ones just love her. 
• Getting ready to start soccer in a few weeks!
• Asking and talking about her school verse every week, and reciting from memory in chapel a few times.
• Lots more skills in gymnastics. They have been going to the "big" gym, working on the big beams, practicing cartwheels and handstands. All very preliminary, foundational type stuff right now, but she loves it. And she loves to practice at home, and make us all pay attention and practice, too.
• Helping Lola with her "school." Lola has been going to obedience classes, and Addie likes to see what she's learned when we come home and give some instruction of her own. Imagine.

Likes:

• Reading books. Or having them read to her. She can recite a lot from memory, or just makes up words to go with the pictures. She loves to read to her bubs. Some of her favorites are Pete the Cat and Fancy Nancy.
• Going to the zoo. She is obsessed with two animals in particular who have both lost limbs - the female jaguar and a baby chimpanzee. We have to go see them both and talk about them every time. We got the chance to talk to a zoo keeper at length about the jaguar last weekend, and she was completely amazed. She loves feeding the giraffes and seeing the new baby elephant, too.
• Going to eat at restaurants. We took her to Hideaway (Hideaway Pizza, as she always calls it) for her half birthday, then a few days later, on conference day, we had a little date to Unpluggits and Panera, then a few days later on Valentine's Day we took her to Saturn Grill. Her mind was blown. It's the little things!
• Going to the park.
• Riding her scooter, which she's getting really good at. She can ride it all the way to and from the park. Sometimes, instead of stopping, she just abandons ship, but she's doing great.
• Baking and cooking.
• Gymnastics. She loves her coach and all her little friends. I can't wait for her recital in May.
• Talking about Izzy and what she's doing in heaven. Be still my heart.
• Helping brother learn to walk. She's forever, at his LOUD insistence, helping him walk all around the house. And he only wants her. 
• Sleeping in our bed. I think when brother started sleeping with us more, she decided she needed to as well. We usually rearrange, so we haven't had them both at the same time, but regardless, we need a bigger bed!
• Making up songs and playing lots of pretend, imaginative games.
• Playing with her doll house. 
• Hula hooping.
• Her new 101 Dalmatians movie from Pawpaw, and a new flannel quilt made by Grammie. She was so ecstatic about the quilt, recognized that my mom had made it and has slept with it every night since. We've also watched the new movie about 101 times.

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Dislikes:

• Brother getting what she deems is more attention than her. 
• Not being the leader or being in charge.
• Staying home. She, and brother, like to be out and about.

Hutch Marshall - 14 months

Walking? That's for wienies. This guy takes a few steps every day, usually to his sister, stands alone, even going from sitting/lying on the floor to standing, without the help of people or objects to facilitate him ... but that walking thing is still out of the question. He will go up to Addie and grunt and pull on her hands until she walks him all around the house. And he'll walk holding just one of our fingers ... I guess, like everything, he'll do it when he's ready!

Perhaps he's not walking because he is focused on his TALKING. All the time. Although, he will not, under any circumstance, say a word when you ask him to. 

He is so hilarious and loves to be the center of attention. He loves to make us laugh, and that giggle of his is contagious. He does not care for it when his mommy or daddy is holding sister and he asks LOUDLY to be held, too. 

The rough part of the past month has been pneumonia for the little guy. Which probably sounds worse than it was. After a long weekend of a yucky virus and very high fever, we went back to the doctor for that diagnosis, an antibiotic shot and oral antibiotics. The worst parts were some scary wheezing, very high fever and a normally very active baby (read: no snuggling unless it's bedtime) who laid on me for the better part of a week. So very thankful he is well.

The sleeping. Oh the sleeping. It's not good. This guy is probably just never going to sleep. Or walk. 

Weight:  21 pounds
Length: 26.5 inches

New things:

• Going to music class once a week. He especially loves dancing to all the music and the fun instruments ... I think the egg shakers and bells are his favorites. And watching his sister. He follows her and imitates her at every move.
• The talking. "Push" and "ball" still remain near and dear to his heart. Another favorite is "whee," which means he wants to go to the park or go in the wagon. He sits at the back door poking his head out the cat door and calls for "whee" "whee" (he can see the wagon from that perch.) He also loves to yell (in a distressed voice) "bye bye bye" which means he wants to go somewhere, anywhere. So like his sister. He also yells it when we are anywhere else and he's ready to come home, i.e. gymnastics with sister, school, etc. He yells it really loudly whenever we go to the doctor. He calls for Pawpaw constantly. When he sees Grammie, he says "Pawpaw?" He's started asking for "book" when he wants one read. He started saying please, not surprisingly because I bribed him with food. Be still my heart when that baby says "peas peas." Yes, you can have anything you want. He also says play, bubble, bath, night night ... and I'm sure a lot of other things I can't decipher. He's always, always talking, or grunting and looking at me like "why do you not understand what I'm saying, lady???" 
• More sleeping in our bed. Whatever.
• Sliding semi by himself at the park. "Wheeeeee!"
• Telling what the puppy says. Most animals say "woof woof" now. He's not particularly interested in what any of the rest of them might say.
• Following directions more and more. When he wants to of course.
• Real shoes. He did NOT care for the shoe shopping experience, but he's got two whole pair. That are supposed to facilitate walking ....
• Just having the paci at nap and night time, although pneumonia really messed that up. We're still trying to transition back.

 

 

 

Likes: 

• Ba and Yaya, aka Mia and Lola. He asks Lola to lick him by looking at her and smacking his lips/tongue and holding out his hand. When she obliges he thinks it's hilarious. He also loves to feed her from his chair.
• His blankies and lovies. We spent a lot of time snuggled up when he was sick, and he just runs his fingers along his soft blankies. 
• Patting or looking at doors and saying bye. Still loves to open and close doors constantly.
• Going to the library. He says play!!! He especially loved a recent class with the parachute, but he was not amused when a bajillion balls were placed on the parachute, to pop up and down, and not given to him. 
• Turning on the TV. With the remote. Which means he has figured out how to turn on the cable box and TV. That's like 4 buttons in a sequence. 
• Going to the park. Riding in the wagon or stroller. While yelling wheeeeeee! Playing in the back yard is usually an acceptable alternative. He loves the little slide/jungle gym, as long as sister will play, too.
• Going to the zoo. He loves to point at all the animals.
• Sister. She's his number one. The way he hugs her and looks at her like she hung the moon ... makes me teary.
• He also loves to bug, pinch, hit and poke her. 
• Playing peekaboo.
• Peanut butter and hummus. He'd prefer all meals consist of these two items. He's finally come around to avocado, sweet potatoes and bananas remain favorites, and he recently ate the heck out of some kale chips. While Addie never really had a sweet tooth, this guy sure does. He gets excited when he sees pictures of cupcakes, muffins or cookies. He's definitely mine.
• And snacks in general. When he gets to school or church, he immediately points at the little table and says BITE.
• He also really seems to love church and school, perhaps because they give him lots of snacks!! He always reaches for his teachers. Just on Sundays, he's recently moved to the 1-year-old room, but when passing by the nursery, he saw his teacher and reached and reacher for her until she (quickly!) came to grab him. So thankful they love our little guy like their own. Perhaps someday he'll really move out of the nursery, but for now, I'm content for them to keep him :)
• Pushing everything. Microwave buttons. The buttons on Addie's doll house. Buttons on his cars or toys. Elevator buttons. Buttons on my keys. The buttons at church to open the doors ... if there's a button, he's pushing it.
• Music of all kinds. He does not discriminate. T Swift is still at the top of his list.
• Books, particularly those that have noises or things to touch.

 

Dislikes:

• Hearing the word no. He immediately cries.
• Sleeping in his bed, or at all really.
• Going to the doctor. Immediate crying and yelling BYE!
• Having to wait for a meal or snack, you know, for like 30 seconds.