A Surprise For Daddy

June

 Don't look Daddy. We have a surprise for you.

 E: Ta-da! Look at all these pictures and letters we made for you! Aren't they beautiful? I made these. 
O: I made this one!

W: I MADE THIS ONE!

 Daddy received family portraits,

 lots of letters full of gratitude and love,

and a stone decorated with the kids' handprint, a footprint, and fancy jewels.

 Baby H provided the tiny footprint.

 I'm so cute.

 Everybody smile!

 Ok, let's try this again. Smile!

One more time. Everybody smile! Ok...that's good enough.
We love you Daddy!

Whatever Happened To The Rattle?

June

Children's toys have evolved drastically over the years.

Most of the toys you see now are colorful plastic, have bright lights, irritating sounds, and a short lifespan.

 We tend to be choosy with what comes into the house. Aren't we all to a certain extent?  When we got the Ipad a couple years ago, we never thought it would become such an entertaining part of our lives. The world of apps was at our fingertips and it was basically limitless.

So it's not unusual to have any one of our kids coloring, playing a game or reading a story on the Ipad. Naturally, Baby H has followed suit.There are plenty of baby apps to entertain and challenge her.

 

We do still have our rattles, homemade dolls, football, dress up, cardboard boxes and tupperware. They get plenty of playtime around here.

The best thing we have that lights up, makes noises, and plays around with us is our Daddy. The kids are so excited to play with him when he comes home.....him and his Ipad.

Check Up

June

Going to the dentist is no big deal, especially when the dentist is your sister.

 Checking in at the Dentist Office. You have to sign in and ring the bell.

 The Dentist will be with you shortly. Please have a seat in the waiting room.

 Hello O! How are you doing today? Just lay back and relax. You can keep reading if you want to.

 Open wide so I can see your teeth.

 Very nice. I don't see any cavities. It's important to keep brushing
 every day, ok?

I need to put this under your chin as I work.

This is such a fun job!

Mommy, can I be a dentist when I grow up? 

You can do whatever you want to do, E. 

I don't want to be a dentist.

Big O's Birthday

June

 He may be the size of an average six year old, but O just turned four. He's very excited about several things- his Cars cake, his present, having taco salad, weighing as much and being almost as tall as E.

 I decided to go with a Piston Cup cake, since he has a passion for Cars right now. I named it the Big O Cup. It seemed easier to me than the cakes I've seen before. I was able to make the whole thing with one 9x13 cake and it turned out huge!

 

 I placed miniature Car characters at the bottom, which he loved.

O was born on a hot and humid summer afternoon. At 9 lbs 10 oz, he was the second largest baby in the nursery. The largest was a Hispanic girl. She looked as if she were a very well nourished three month old with a broken collar bone, which was the result of her birth canal adventure.

O had to stay at the hospital an extra day because, believe it or not, he was having a hard time eating. But once he  caught on, he never stopped. At three months, he was so passionate about eating that he not only drank a bottle in about 5 minutes, but he held the bottle himself.

Now he's just about as big as his six year old sister and she has expressed her detest. She's desperate to stay bigger. We keep telling her that someday (someday soon) he will be taller and heavier and stronger...well, he's already much stronger. E doesn't want to lose her Big Sister title. Funny girl.

 

E prepared several gifts for O, which were very creative. She also made her own Pin The Tail on The Donkey game for everyone to play.

O's cake toppers were small and squishy. I don't remember the name of them, but they didn't last more than a few days in the house. After the 10 millionth time I found the cars in their mouths, as if they were chewing gum, I said my goodbyes and we parted ways.

O was thrilled to get a double slip n' slide.

We opened it up inside to check out its total awesomeness and the boys threw off their shirts and started sliding. O actually stripped completely naked and went looking for his swim suit.

After a few laughs and a busted boogie board, we brought it outside.

Fun in the sun.

W checking out how this thing works.

No hesitation.

Relaxing in the 'pool'.

Happy Birthday Big Guy!

Sitting Up

June

Miss H began sitting by herself at 6 months.

  

She's so excited to be doing something new.

  

Even if she does lose her balance occasionally.

I never had a Bumbo before H. Everyone around me seemed to have one though. What was the fascination? It's not like the baby can stay in there very long. Once they arch their back or hang to the side, they'll figure out how to escape the seat.

Plus, there are lawsuits going on because babies are getting hurt. By what? 

The stupidity of their parents. 

The baby seat company is very clear that the seat is to stay on the ground. It is not used in bathtubs and it is certainly not supposed to be placed on a counter top, table, or a bed. It's printed on the box, in the instruction manual, and on the actual seat in two places. It also states that you should no longer use it when your child can sit up on their own or tries to get out of the seat (arching their back). So it's a puzzle to me as to why these cases are even going anywhere.

Anyway...knowing all this, I decided to get one. Silly, I know. (It was before she was 6 months) I didn't really want one, but I got a gift card and Baby H started to get a flat spot. I figured it was a solution to keep her precious head perfectly shaped. These pictures are proof that she actually sat in the seat. She didn't like it, therefore she hardly sat in it. The event was rare, yes, but it made me feel better to get her off her head.

  

Even so, I started to regret the fact that I bought it.  I couldn't just take it back without a receipt or a reason why. I was stuck. And then out of the blue, H sat on her own. If I placed her in the seat, she tried to get out. I was completely done with Bumbo.

A glorious thing soon happened. A national recall of Bumbo seats because of those unfortunate parents. It's an awful situation, however, I was able to get a full refund. That made my day.

I was able to use that money to help pay for her new toy, the exersaucer.

Plenty of things to do and she's not going anywhere. Hooray!

Have I mentioned that she's not a very good eater?

Food, no thanks...but a car! That I'll eat!

 Sisters