Operation Overload!!!

Wow!! Talk about a "traumatic" weekend for mommy!! This weekend I really feel like I have lost my "babies". Jazmine got a brand new "Big Girl Bed", and Isaac moved officially from his infant car seat to a convertable car seat. I know it sounds silly, they are such simple things. But for some reason they are huge to me.

To top it off, today at church, when we took Jazmine to the daycare, she couldn't wait to go!! She practically didn't even want to give mommy a kiss because she was so excited to get to play with all the other kids and the cool toys.

If these little things are so emotional for me, I can already imagine what the future holds with all the "Firsts" and major events in their wonderful lives that are yet to come. I am so happy that the kids are growing so well and are such well-adjusted children. But I do kind of miss those little newborns that it seems they were just yesterday.

Just because I think it's cute

It starts...

I have been fortunate enough that I have not had to put locks on the cupboards in the kitchen yet in this new apartment. They have left them alone. Jaz opens up one drawer (the one with the tupperware lids) and that is it. She loves to play with the lids. However, last night Isaac figured out how to open the cupboards. It was pretty funny watching him. He gets more excited with the actual opening than with what is in them, but I know that will be short lived. Looks like a trip to WalMart is in my future so I can get those locked! :)

Some recent pics...

Tickle Time!

Ever since Jazmine was born Lenny and I play a little "tickle" game. Of course, we now get Isaac too. The kids see the tickling fingers coming towards them, while we say "tickle, tickle" then we tickle them. Jaz now does it to Isaac everytime he gets his diaper changed and it is adorable. Well yesterday Isaac started saying "tickle tickle"!! BUT the funniest part about it is that he TRIES TO TICKLE YOU while he says it! He completely "gets" what it means!!! All day yesterday, all night, and all morning it is what he wants to say. And it is so adorable. When is the last time you had a baby try to tickle you???

Cracker

That is Isaac's newest word. Of course the pronunciation is still a little off, but you have no doubt when you hear him what he is saying. He is now saying Mama, Dada, baba, night night, and cracker. :) He is going to be a talker like his sister. I wonder where he gets that from....

Parents Prayer

Now I lay me down to sleep,
I pray my sanity to keep.
For if some peace I do not find,
I'm pretty sure I'll lose my mind.

I pray I find a little quiet
Far from the daily family riot
May I lie back--not have to think
about what they're stuffing down the sink,
or who they're with, or where they're at
and what they're doing to the cat.

I pray for time all to myself
(did something just fall off a shelf?)
To cuddle in my nice, soft bed
(Oh no, another goldfish--dead!)
Some silent moments for goodness sake
(Did I just hear a window break?)
And that I need not cook or clean--
(well heck, I've got the right to dream)

Yes now I lay me down to sleep,
I pray my wits about me keep,
But as I look around I know--
I must have lost them long ago!

Church Daycare Part 2

Yesterday we took Jazmine into the toddler room at the church again. This was her second time there. She didn't fuss at all, and just looked at me as I walked out of the room, and went back to the books she was looking at. There were more children there this week than last (probably because everyone overslept last week because they forgot their clocks needed changed!).

Lenny and I did much better this week and only checked on her three times. Also, we kept her there almost the whole time, only snagging her 10 minutes early. At first she was still shy, but she was walking around looking at things and children. By halfway through her time in there she was playing with the other kids! :)

I was so excited that she wasn't just sitting there observing with those big blue eyes and was actually playing! Because it broke my heart to see her sitting all by herself last week. I have a feeling next week may just go even better!

Couple Videos

Here are a couple videos of Isaac and his walking. The video of Jaz (sorry it's so dark) is her playing "Ring around the Rosie".

Paper Monster

Isaac is a little paper eating monster. If there is a single scrap of paper in this house he will find it and try to eat it. No matter what I do to keep it away from him, with Jaz's help he always gets his hand on something! When I hear the distinct sound of paper tearing I instantly stop whatever I am doing to get to him. The funniest part is that he KNOWS he isn't supposed to do it. So now when I come running to take the paper away, he does one of two things....
~He either shoves the paper all in his mouth as fast as he can and tries to keep me from getting it out of his mouth.
~Or he takes off running with it obviously thinking he is faster than mommy. Oh, and he laughs as he is running away... :)

Probably tougher on Mom and Dad...

Today we put Jazmine in the toddler room at church. (They have three different age group rooms for the kids not old enough for Sunday School.) That was a first for all of us! She has ALWAYS been with me. She has never experienced anything like that or a daycare type of thing before. (We kept Isaac with us because we knew that he would freak out in the nursery. Plus he doesn't feel good with all these teeth coming in, so we didn't want to irritate him more.)

We got to church early because the last time the room had already hit it's limit so she had to stay with us, and we want her to have the interaction. Well, being as it was the early service PLUS daylight savings, hardly anyone was there. She was the only child for about 30 minutes. The three workers there were great with her. One lady was reading Jazmine books which is her favorite thing to do when she isnt' causing chaos!

Lenny and I took turns peeking into the room without her seeing us like every 5 minutes because we were worried about our babygirl. And I must confess we took her out of the room early. But it's because we felt bad. There was like 7 or 8 other kids by about 9:30 and they were all broke up into small groups playing, but she was just sitting in her chair looking at her books or standing watching the other kids. She never interacted with them, but she also never cried. And she was very interested in what they were doing.

We figure if we are consistent with taking her every week, then she will start to get used to it. It was so wierd to watch my little bundle of personality and energy just sitting there being so still and so quiet. But the minute we took her out she started talking up her usual storm.

Putting her in the toddler room at church serves two purposes. For one, she will start to hear a message about Jesus at a young age in terms that are easier to understand for her than the sermon we listen to. Secondly, since the children are with me all day, they don't get very much outside social interaction, especially with chilren their age. I dont' want them to be the children that really struggle when it is time for a Pre-K or Kindergaten program. Jazmine already knows her alphabet, can recognize what letters are what, can count to almost 30, knows her colors and shapes and all of those sorts of things because I work with her on them. But social interaction with other children isn't something I can just teach her from home.

BANG! CRASH! BOOM! THUD! ....AGGGHHHH!!!!!!

That is what I heard while I was in the kitchen getting my angel of a toddler Jazzie Mae a graham cracker. I dropped the box of crackers and RAN to the bedroom as fast as I could, to see my dresser, all it's contents, and everything that was on top of it in a pile on my bedroom floor. However, the screaming toddler was nowhere to be seen.

THAT would be because she was UNDER the pile that was my dresser. I stood the dresser back up and pulled Jazmine out of the rubble. Thankfully there was not a scratch on her. She was just a little scared. However as I was carrying her back into the living room because there was broken glass and tons of choking hazards now on my floor, she looks back at the mess and says "It's broken, Mama. All broken."

Thanks for pointing that out Jazmine....I was confused about that!

Just checking in

Isaac is now walking (he has been doing it about a week, but is just now making an extra effort to do it alot more)!! I will put video up of it in a couple days, but he is so funny! He falls, and then claps for himself along with us, then gets up to try again. Jazzie loves it, too, and always tells him "good job Buddy," and "one more time". He is also just like his sister, and has already been trying to run. In fact, that is the main reason he falls when he falls. He likes to try to take off running after his sister. They are pretty funny.

Jaz has been talking like crazy. And I often wonder where the things she says come from. Today I asked her about if she wanted to go big girl potty, and she looks at me and says "I suppose", then heads to the bathroom. I suppose????? Where did THAT come from? LOL! Yesterday, I was having her say her name so my friend on the phone could hear her say it, and she said it kind of quiet so I asked her to say her name again. She says "I already said it, Mama!!". Oh Boy!!

They have been keeping very busy this last week, leaving me barely any time to breathe. However, they do make me stop and laugh out loud more times in a day than I can count, so I guess it balances out!!!

Silver Falls State Park

Not this Saturday, but last, we took a trip to Silver Falls State Park. It was absolutely gorgeous. There are several falls there to see, a lodge you can stay at, a cabin that rents out for events, place to swim, camping, kids playground...but it is so spread out that it still feels super private. We really enjoyed it and can't wait to go back! But anyway...I forgot to post pics of the trip so here are a couple.

Our trip to the park

About three blocks behind our apartment, is a little neighborhood park. It is nothing fancy, and doesn't even have swings, but it is a nice walk and Jazmine loves the slide!! We went there the other day and here are a couple pics and a short video of Jazzie sliding. (No video of Isaac because it was just me taking them while Lenny was at work, so there was no one to hold either him or the camera. - Next time, though!)