Sunday, July 31, 2011
Saturday, July 30, 2011
Nathan and Katie's house
After we left the O'Donnells' house last Saturday, we drove to Nathan and Katie's to spend the night. It was so hot that day that it was a necessity for every person to shower before bed. So all 9 of us got a shower/bath and hit the sack. We enjoyed each other's company and the air-conditioning the next day. Here are some pictures of us on Sunday before we left.
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| Naptime on the recliner |
Writing His Name
Eli wanted to work on a project this morning, so I got out a little booklet for him to color. He's done a few of these already. Today was Yellow Book day. He colored everything inside yellow- a bus, sun, duck, and cheese.
5 Month Stats
Ryan
Weight: 13 pounds 6 oz. 10%
Height: 23 in. <3%
Head: 41.5 cm 10-25%
Spencer
Weight: 14 pounds 10-25%
Height: 23 3/4 in. 5-10%
Head: 39.5cm <3%
I suppose the percentiles are skewed given that they aren't 4 months old. But it gives us an idea. They are growing well and catching up quickly!
Picnic at the O'Donnells' House
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| 2 sets of twins- Kyle and Ryan and Derek and Spencer |
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| 3 sets of twins! Kyle and Derek, Ryan and Spencer, Avery and Maitlyn |
Friday, July 29, 2011
July 29, 2011
Today I watched Eli read a book to Ryan. He was showing him the different shapes and telling him what sounds the animals made. So cute.
Today Eli and I baked brownies. I asked if anyone wanted to be my helper. Given that he was the only other person in the house capable of talking/helping, he gladly volunteered. I told him we were going to make a special treat. "Can I eat this special treat?" "You sure can, buddy. We'll make it now and it will be ready when you get up from your nap." So he helped me stir the batter for a batch of brownies. We even added some flair in the form of white chocolate chips. "Are those chips getting all dirty?" he asked as we stirred them into the batter. ""No, they are just hiding. They will become delicious morsels of goodness when they come out of the oven." Right now the brownies are cooling on the stove and I'm just waiting for little man to get up from his nap so we can dig in.
Today I felt pretty good about cleaning the middle floor of my house (family room, kitchen, living/dining room) before the twins woke up. This even involved treating a large mysterious red mark on our kitchen rug (which is tan/red so who knows how long the mark had been hiding there.) But then I walked upstairs to check on Ryan napping in our room and thought I detected a faint odor of wet dog....which is alarming since we don't have a dog.
Today (right now actually) all three kids are sleeping. Well Eli should be sleeping, but he's in his bed singing a variation of Row Row Row Your Boat. But he's contained, so it's all the same. Here's a tip to mothers out there who actually try to get things done while their children are napping. First, it's best not to scatter them all throughout your house like I did. If you have a child in your master bedroom, one in your living room, and the other in his room, it's not very easy to get much done.
Today I am wishing three of my friends at work the best of luck. They are all interviewing for the same position. It's the job I had leading up to when I gave birth to Eli. I'm anxious to find out how the interviews went.
Today Ryan and I enjoyed some time making silly faces in the mirror. He seems to think it's pretty funny. He sometimes starts giggling and can't stop. Uncontrollable baby giggling is the best!
Today Eli and read the Very Hungry Caterpillar. He can recite almost the entire book from memory. He can list every food the caterpillar ate on Saturday from memory. We have the book in a big size and little size, so he holds one, I hold one, and we read them together.
Today Eli was a cantaloupe hog. He ate his very large portion for lunch and asked for more. I filled up his bowl again. Then he came over and requested my cantaloupe from my plate. I said;, "here's one piece for you." He replied, "I'd like three pieces please."
Today Eli and I looked at a sheep he made at school. He had covered an outline of a sheep with glued on pom poms. Here's the discussion.
E: I put these pom poms on this sheep.
Me: I really like it. You did a great job. I like this big blue one.
E: Is it dark blue?
Me: It is dark blue. And these are light blue. And this one here is the darkest blue of all.
E: Is this one darker or is this one darker?
Me: That one is darker. We can call that one navy.
E: Oh I like these red ones. One, Two, Three, Four. The red ones are my favorite.
Me: I like them too.
E: I love those red ones. Does Mommy like these brown ones? I think Mommy loves these yellow ones.
Me: Well yes I do love those yellow ones.
E: And see the sheep has a green eye?
Me: I see that. (I didn't know craft googly eyes came in different colors)
E: And see these red ones? I love these red ones.
Today Eli and I baked brownies. I asked if anyone wanted to be my helper. Given that he was the only other person in the house capable of talking/helping, he gladly volunteered. I told him we were going to make a special treat. "Can I eat this special treat?" "You sure can, buddy. We'll make it now and it will be ready when you get up from your nap." So he helped me stir the batter for a batch of brownies. We even added some flair in the form of white chocolate chips. "Are those chips getting all dirty?" he asked as we stirred them into the batter. ""No, they are just hiding. They will become delicious morsels of goodness when they come out of the oven." Right now the brownies are cooling on the stove and I'm just waiting for little man to get up from his nap so we can dig in.
Today I felt pretty good about cleaning the middle floor of my house (family room, kitchen, living/dining room) before the twins woke up. This even involved treating a large mysterious red mark on our kitchen rug (which is tan/red so who knows how long the mark had been hiding there.) But then I walked upstairs to check on Ryan napping in our room and thought I detected a faint odor of wet dog....which is alarming since we don't have a dog.
Today (right now actually) all three kids are sleeping. Well Eli should be sleeping, but he's in his bed singing a variation of Row Row Row Your Boat. But he's contained, so it's all the same. Here's a tip to mothers out there who actually try to get things done while their children are napping. First, it's best not to scatter them all throughout your house like I did. If you have a child in your master bedroom, one in your living room, and the other in his room, it's not very easy to get much done.
Today I am wishing three of my friends at work the best of luck. They are all interviewing for the same position. It's the job I had leading up to when I gave birth to Eli. I'm anxious to find out how the interviews went.
Today Ryan and I enjoyed some time making silly faces in the mirror. He seems to think it's pretty funny. He sometimes starts giggling and can't stop. Uncontrollable baby giggling is the best!
Today Eli and read the Very Hungry Caterpillar. He can recite almost the entire book from memory. He can list every food the caterpillar ate on Saturday from memory. We have the book in a big size and little size, so he holds one, I hold one, and we read them together.
Today Eli was a cantaloupe hog. He ate his very large portion for lunch and asked for more. I filled up his bowl again. Then he came over and requested my cantaloupe from my plate. I said;, "here's one piece for you." He replied, "I'd like three pieces please."
Today Eli and I looked at a sheep he made at school. He had covered an outline of a sheep with glued on pom poms. Here's the discussion.
E: I put these pom poms on this sheep.
Me: I really like it. You did a great job. I like this big blue one.
E: Is it dark blue?
Me: It is dark blue. And these are light blue. And this one here is the darkest blue of all.
E: Is this one darker or is this one darker?
Me: That one is darker. We can call that one navy.
E: Oh I like these red ones. One, Two, Three, Four. The red ones are my favorite.
Me: I like them too.
E: I love those red ones. Does Mommy like these brown ones? I think Mommy loves these yellow ones.
Me: Well yes I do love those yellow ones.
E: And see the sheep has a green eye?
Me: I see that. (I didn't know craft googly eyes came in different colors)
E: And see these red ones? I love these red ones.
Saturday, July 16, 2011
July 14, 2011
Today I stayed home with the boys because Kevin and I switched days.
Today I thought it was Friday all day.
Today I did more laundry in one day than I ever have before.
Today at 12:30am Eli woke up and threw up all over. See previous sentence.
Today I had a feverish little boy who wanted to cuddle and read books all day.
Today everyone napped at different times.
Today Eli and played with stickers. We went through his sticker books and found lots of blue stickers to put on our blue piece of paper. We also did purple and brown.
Today I thought it was Friday all day.
Today I did more laundry in one day than I ever have before.
Today at 12:30am Eli woke up and threw up all over. See previous sentence.
Today I had a feverish little boy who wanted to cuddle and read books all day.
Today everyone napped at different times.
Today Eli and played with stickers. We went through his sticker books and found lots of blue stickers to put on our blue piece of paper. We also did purple and brown.
Saturday, July 9, 2011
Friday, July 8, 2011
Nursery Update and DIY artwork
So the boys' nursery isn't complete. I started it during my bedrest time- the idea part at least. Here's how that went. I decided on a paint color- gray- and I knew I wanted a white horizontal stripe in the room. My color scheme in my mind was gray, white, and mustard yellow. I ordered yellow and white stripe fabric online and my dad came down and painted the room for us. It turned out that the color gray I picked had a bit of a bluish tint to it. So the gray accessories and gray and white polka dotted fabric I wanted didn't look right with it. The yellow and white fabric arrived while I was in the hospital. The yellow was a bit more "citrus" than "mustard." Hmm. This wasn't turning out the way I thought it was going to. I decided to change the color scheme to grayish-blue, white, navy, and citrus yellow.
My first project in the room was a pelmet window treatment. I wanted vertical stripes, but the fabric arrived with the stripes going the other way and there it wasn't long enough to have vertical stripes without cutting, etc. I found an online tutorial and used foam board. I wanted something inexpensive that I wouldn't feel bad about changing in a couple years. Kevin put it up over the sheers and I like how it turned out.
I also made a DIY crib skirt from fabric I got on sale at Joann Fabric. It's navy and white circle print. I still have to make the one for the other crib, but that crib is still in our bedroom. The boys aren't sleeping in the nursery yet, so we still have the queen size bed in there for guests.
After that, I did a little mod podge project with some cardboard letters, navy paint, and some leftover fabric.
I also repurposed a lamp shade that I used in Eli's nursey. The shade was white with a green stripe at the bottom. I repainted that stripe navy and added a yellow ribbon.
I used the same navy and white fabric to recover the light blue cushions on the rocker.
And lastly, I just finished some artwork for the room. I couldn't find anything that I liked for a reasonable price. Plus I wanted something pretty big. I have plans to do some picture/shelves/letters thing for another wall. So I found some inspiration here. (Check out the price for a 28 x 28!) I didn't want a transportation/car themed artwork, but I liked the idea of it. So I decided to do my own canvas again. I let Kevin pick between whales and elephants ( I needed to keep it simple since I'm not gifted whatsoever in the art dept). He picked elephants. I bought a 24in by 24 in canvas at Joann Fabric for $12 when it went on sale. I thought I could knock it out in the short breaks I got over the course of a weekend. That didn't happen. My left brain wouldn't let me just start painting. I carefully measured out every space and the border. I had everything measured out to the 16th of an inch. I realize that it was a little much, but I can't help it. I kind of wish I hadn't left a border, but since it was all measured out, it had to stay. After putting on the second coat of paint last night and doing touch ups today, it's done! Instead of making one elephant in the middle different, I picked two- one for Ryan and one for Spencer.
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| So here is the finished product. It's 2 feet by 2 feet. |
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| It's not hung up yet, but I wanted to show it with the lamp and pelmet box. |
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| Here are the letters that will go on some shelves. I won't hang anything until we moved the big bed out and other crib in. That will probably happen sometime within a month. |
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| The crib skirt is adjustable as the crib mattress moves lower and lower. It will eventually be just a couple inches long when the crib is fully lowered. |
So I know it's not fancy and it's certainly not finished. But I haven't had to spend much money at all. I have a small bookcase to move into the space as well. It needs to be painted white first. I'll post more of the finished product soon!
July 8, 2011
Today I finished an art project for the twins' room that I've been working on for 2 weeks.
Today after Eli's nap, he decided he didn't want to wear clothes, just his construction truck undies.
Today Eli and I sang silly songs and made silly faces at Ryan to make him laugh.
Today Ryan napped for 4 hours in the swing upstairs.
Today while all three kiddos were sleeping, I had a chance to catch up with my bff Linsey.
Today the house got very dark in the middle of the day and we had a big storm come through.
Today I couldn't figure out how to put together Eli's train tracks and felt like a dummy.
Today Eli played with his sand table outside. He played early because the rain was coming!
Today everyone napped very well. Except me... I didn't nap. I did laundry. :)
Today I asked Eli to come inside to watch the space shuttle launch. I know he won't remember, but I thought he should watch anyway. He thought it was pretty cool and said the astronauts were going to the moon.
Today after Eli's nap, he decided he didn't want to wear clothes, just his construction truck undies.
Today Eli and I sang silly songs and made silly faces at Ryan to make him laugh.
Today Ryan napped for 4 hours in the swing upstairs.
Today while all three kiddos were sleeping, I had a chance to catch up with my bff Linsey.
Today the house got very dark in the middle of the day and we had a big storm come through.
Today I couldn't figure out how to put together Eli's train tracks and felt like a dummy.
Today Eli played with his sand table outside. He played early because the rain was coming!
Today everyone napped very well. Except me... I didn't nap. I did laundry. :)
Today I asked Eli to come inside to watch the space shuttle launch. I know he won't remember, but I thought he should watch anyway. He thought it was pretty cool and said the astronauts were going to the moon.
Monday, July 4, 2011
Lyric Change
This may have been funnier to hear in person, but Eli really cracked me up today. He very much enjoys breaking out in song randomly. Today he started singing Baa Baa Black Sheep- one I haven't heard in awhile. This time was funnier than usual due to his lyric change at the end.
Here's how it went:
Baa Baa Black Sheep
Have you any wool
Yes sir, yes sir two bags full (he insists it's two, not three)
One for my master
One for my dame
And one for the little boy who lives down the drain.
Grandma Bish and Eli tree
This is the third year we've taken Pop and Eli's picture in front of the tree.
July 1, 2011
Today I woke up before Ryan. He slept almost 9 hours
Today I went to Knoebels Grove with my kids and parents.
Today Eli got to ride a train 3 times. He was in heaven.
Today I ate at the Fence. Love.
Today I got to enjoy one of my favorite spots on Earth- the front porch of my parents' house in the summertime.
Today Eli and Pop walked over to Meadowbrook to visit Aunt Jo's summer daycare.
Today Eli spent the entire day outside.
Today my mom and I peaked on Eli during his naptime. He wasn't sleeping. He was pretending that his hands were babies and was talking to them.
Today I watched this crazy red bird attack my parent's house. It crashes into windows and flies fast back and forth. It poops everywhere- even down the side of my van after my dad washed it.
Today I watched fireflies in my parents' front yard. I love the summertime.
Today I went to Knoebels Grove with my kids and parents.
Today Eli got to ride a train 3 times. He was in heaven.
Today I ate at the Fence. Love.
Today I got to enjoy one of my favorite spots on Earth- the front porch of my parents' house in the summertime.
Today Eli and Pop walked over to Meadowbrook to visit Aunt Jo's summer daycare.
Today Eli spent the entire day outside.
Today my mom and I peaked on Eli during his naptime. He wasn't sleeping. He was pretending that his hands were babies and was talking to them.
Today I watched this crazy red bird attack my parent's house. It crashes into windows and flies fast back and forth. It poops everywhere- even down the side of my van after my dad washed it.
Today I watched fireflies in my parents' front yard. I love the summertime.
Friday, July 1, 2011
Knoebels
The boys and I are in Milton for a few days while Kevin is stuck at home working. We came up to visit my friend Varissa who is visiting from Hawaii. Today we packed up the van and spent a few hours at Knoebels Grove. It was a perfect day- sunny and 80 degrees. We barely waited in a line which meant we could indulge Eli's requests to ride the train multiple times. The boys slept for most of the outing. We joked that next year we'd have to get leashes for them. We were certainly quite the crew today with our caravan of strollers.
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| Mim and Eli on the train |
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| PB&J lunch break |
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| Taking a break from the stroller with Mim |
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