wake up

 I love it when Lexa first wakes up and is barely opening her eyes, she spots me and starts smiling.My favorite part of the day is seeing her sleepy smile in the morning

the kids- random tidbits

I think my son is so smart and possibly gifted and talented(mom bias! Lol) he can focus on a task so much longer than other three year olds, was generally early on reaching developemental milestones, knows more words, can really stack blocks and solve problems. He soaks up everything like a sponge. He just amazes me. I also think my son is much more difficult than other three year olds. He doesn't listen as well, respect personal space, pokes and pushes and wants to play rough, is so busy, gets wild, is more impulsive. It's so hard taking him anywhere where there are other kids, especially with Lexa along too.

My children are named after family, for either both names or at least their middle name.

I am already noticing that neither of my children learn in the same way, nor are they interested in all the same things.

I think Timmy looks like me his father and my my father a little bit.

I enjoy watching their reactions and the way their eyes light up. 

When Timmy was small I'd take him for walks in the stroller at the nature center. Now he walks alongside me while I push lexa in the stroller.

Timmy has just realized that there are two genders. That not all children are boys like he is. He had a hard time getting the word girl out. He hesitates and then says it slowly like it's a foreign word that.... Giiirrrl

our bed fall 2010

My kids still sleep in our bed most nights and I secretly like it that way. I love sleeping with them and snuggling and wish that was something i didnt have to stop doing.  Ive learned there is a BIG difference between sleeping with an infant and sleeping with a toddler! I still love the fact that my son sleeps with me,  and while we're asleep, he puts his arm around my neck to keep me next to him. However, I thought I'd use a crib. I thought people who used co-sleeping were weird. I didn't realize that this would be the only way we'd function. We put Timmy in a crib for the first four sleepless months, then I brought him into ours, started blissfully sleeping again, and never looked back.

17 month old Lexa

Lexa holds Timmy's hand when they ride in the stroller.

She likes her Mommy and Lexa time while Timmy's at preschool.

She likes to turn around and around.

She can play with mega blocks now.

She says mamamama when she wants me.

Lexa has started giving me and Timmy hugs and kisses. So sweet...

She looks like her brother. We can see the family resemblance now.

She sits in wagon and points at the handle.

Mmba has many meanings.

She pats the floor next to her for me to sit down.

She loves to kick the soccer ball.

She's started having her first tantrums

She likes tto play with her toy animals and cars. She makes them have conversations with each other.

She follows Timmy along at soccer.

She gets a pillow and sits on it on the floor.

She likes to pretend to be talking on the phone

She likes playing ball, throwing, and playing fetch.

She's always taking off her pants.

She tries to tickle Timmy,

and she wants to do everything Timmy does.

Up

Park

grabbing fall 2010

Grabbing and sharing problems,
Does Timmy like having a baby sister? Sometimes. If I ask him, he says yes. It's always the three of us now, our new normal. He's used to her being with us all the time. To him it's the way it should be now. Now that she's on the move, things have gotten so much more difficult. Whatever he is playing with is what she wants. She knocks over the block towers, crawls over the neatly lined up cars. I tell him to play with his toys on the kitchen table or in the play room with the baby gate up. He's usually not happy about this. He'd rather I come in the room with him and lock her out. Screaming, grabbing, pushing and time outs fill our days.

They also have really sweet moments. She adores him, wants to do whatever he's doing, thinks he's so funny, and doesn't seem to care how rough he is. We're trying to teach him not to try to pick her up. She follows him around the house. Sometimes he's really sweet and shares with her and wants to make her feel better when she's crying. He says she's his friend, wants to hold her hand, hugs and kisses her, and tells her he loves her. (Although he hugs other children on the playground and tells them he loves them too.) When just Lexa and I go somewhere and Timmy's not around, she's slower to warm up to other children and won't let me put her down right away. This is completely different than Timmy ever was. I'm not used to it yet. Timmy is always off all over the place, not shy at all. I think she misses him when he's not around.
We've been having lots of grabbing and sharing problems lately. Timmy's been doing well at playgroups and preschool learning how to share and use his words, but Lexa's always grabbing from him and "can I please have a turn with that next?" doesn't work with her yet. She can even reach onto the kitchen table now, so nothing's safe anymore. It's pretty exhauasting for me. Lexa's also been helping to ransack the house everyday. It tempts me to spend as little time at home as possible. If we're not here, it stays picked up and I don't have to clean it again. When I do pick up in the evenings it's so nice to sit in a clean room after Timmy's in bed.