19 months

Today was a big day for Calvin! Not only is he 19 months old today, but he also stayed in nursery for the full two hours without Spencer! A huge breakthrough! Spence definitely enjoyed it WAY more than Cal did, but thankfully Cal only cried for 20 minutes. I was all the way down the hall in the chapel practicing for our primary program, so I missed all the hysterics. One of the nursery leaders came and got a binky for him, but that's about it for my involvement with Cal being in nursery. I'm glad that Spencer can finally enjoy Sundays again.

Aside from not liking being left with strangers, Cal has been so much fun this month. He's talking like crazy, which is always exciting. He'll say anything we tell him to say but now says it clearly. Since early this month, he's be saying at least one new word everyday.

New words this month: animal, tomato, meat, stuck, binky, please, no more, all done, water, elephant, moon, yuck, work, walk, sister (I'm sure there's more, these are just all I wrote down).

He mostly just says words, doesn't really speak in clear sentences yet, but I will be able to pick out things like, "you read me a book?"

He loves watching "Letter Factory" every morning and as a result knows all of the letter sounds and can identify the letter name for O, K, M, U, B, W, S, Y, L, X and Z.

I love going through his letters and quizzing him. He gets all serious and says them so clearly. Except instead of W he just says "double".

Elle has fun quizzing Cal in the bath!

Cal's such a sweet little boy, He gives "hugs" on request by laying his head on the person's shoulder. I was dying during our Costco trip on Friday. He was being so sweet with Elle and kept snuggling up to her. I'd tell him to give her a hug and he'd lay his head on her shoulder while they sat side by side in the cart. I feel spoiled getting to hang out with him everyday.

He can definitely give me a run for my money though, and sure knows how to tire me out - like how he arches his back when I'm trying to put him in his car seat when he's not ready to get in, or when he digs through my diaper bag and pulls everything out looking for gum! Then he eats piece by piece, wrapper and all!

But oh how I loving having a boy!! I love watching Cal drive his trucks up and down our driveway. I love how he likes to hold his cars in the stroller or car seat. I love his expression anytime he hears a train in the distance. I love how he runs through the house with his football, throws it down, and put his hands up in the air for a touchdown! I love all the boy stuff which is so new for me.

But it is pretty funny when he puts on the Cinderella shoes and marches through the house pushing the shopping cart or shaking maracas! Such a crack up!

One of my favorite things I've discovered about little boys is that their mama can always make it all better. And that holds true for Cal - I'm usually the only one he wants when he's sad. Makes my day every time!

Happy Birthday Spence!!!

This past weekend we celebrated Spencer's 34th birthday! I had good intentions of finding him an awesome gift and taking him out on a romantic date Saturday night, but who am I kidding!? It had been a crazy week- dealing w Elle's canker, parent teacher conferences, and early release at 12pm every single day (giving me not a moment to myself all week). Taking all 3 kids birthday shopping was out of the question, and buying things like clothes, a new wallet, or briefcase (the last two which he currently wants) are a little hard to do on Amazon. We did end up going out Saturday night, but he had a priesthood meeting before and then went over to work on a project with his dad afterwards so we didn't actually leave til 7:30pm (thanks dad for babysitting)! By the time we were done with our Sushi dinner, the outlets were closing so we skipped shopping altogether. It was a nice to spend that short time out together though. 

Spence's actual birthday was on Sunday and it was Stake Conference which was nice (getting home at 12 is way better than 4pm)! The kids and I made his requested french toast for breakfast (but he woke up too early for us to serve it to him in bed), then he had leftover sushi for lunch, and we smoked a salmon for dinner served with broccoli and red potatoes. His dessert of choice this year was "a big ol chocolate cake - that the kids could help me make" (big thanks to Aunt Fay and Uncle Bob for the tips on the cake:). It was a fun family day with lots of delicious food!

The girls made Spencer the sweetest cards. Madi also made a special book for Spencer filled with pictures of her favorite things to do with her dad. What sweet little kids!

Love you so much babe! Hope it was a nice relaxing day for you! It's gonna be a great year! 

Elle's canker

This has been one of the longest weeks ever! I know kids are resilient and all, but there's not much more stressful than watching your own kid suffer. We discovered a sore in Elle's mouth on Monday (which we figured out was a canker sore), and by Wednesday she wasn't eating AT ALL! I was trying everything, but she'd pierce her lips shut, hold her hands over her mouth, and not let anything in.  

Wednesday afternoon I took her to the doctor (even though I was pretty sure they couldn't do anything for her). Calvin screamed the entire time, making it hard for me to even have a conversation with the doctor (which actually wasn't even our doctor- just the one on call). Elle was in lots of pain and would barely open her mouth to even let the doctor take a look. He prescribed amoxicillin which I don't think she should be on, but I was desperate and willing to try anything. He also told me to get cepacol which I hadn't heard of before, but was informed it would numb the area and allow her to eat. 

So we headed to CVS to fill the prescription (I gave Cal a lecture all the way there about how this is not about him and how he needs to chill and let me get some medicine to help Elle feel better). Cal calmed down and sat quietly in the stroller allowing me to drop off the prescription and start looking for the cepacol. Elle was crying with her hands clutching her mouth as we walked up and down the aisles looking for something that wasn't even what we needed. Long story short, Elle went to bed that night with her mouth still in pain and only a drink of water in her tummy.

This picture was taken the only time Elle ate food on Wednesday- at preschool when she had 3 fruit snacks!

Thursday morning, in attempts to get her to eat using the left side of her mouth (like she'd done earlier), I noticed another sore on that side of her tongue! So now she had canker sores on both sides of her tongue! I started salt water. Since Elle wouldn't let anything in her mouth, I'd use a syringe. While holding her hands, I'd sit her on the kitchen counter and squirt salt water through her teeth, telling her to spit it out. She'd cry, allowing me to squirt it directing onto the canker. It was terrible. But then at least she'd drink water afterwards. She ate no food at all on Thursday. I did buy some almond chocolate milk at Trader Joes that afternoon that with lots of bribing, she drank a tiny bit of. Elle didn't talk all day. Any use of the mouth hurt way too much.

Spencer gave Elle a priesthood blessing Thursday night before bed.

Friday Elle woke up and seemed better. I was shocked and immediately offered some chocolate milk to drink. She drank almost a half cup (while holding the cup herself)! I was so happy I grabbed my phone to snap a picture!

Unfortunately, that small glass of milk was the only thing Elle ate or drank the rest of the day. She even refused water. It was killing me to see her so hungry but knowing that whatever she ate and/or drank would hurt her mouth. The shocking thing about all this was that Elle didn't lay around, lethargic and lazy all day. She'd do puzzles, color, play with Calvin. She even went out and picked me a little bouquet of flowers. She's been the sweetest little girl though all this. She didn't talk the entire day again, but would make little noises with her mouth and motion for things she wanted.

Friday night was our ward trunk-or-treat. Elle was excited to get all dressed up and head out to the party. I was shocked that she had any energy left in that little body of hers. I could tell she desperately wanted a piece of pizza at the party, but she continued to refuse. Before bed I again held her down to squirt in salt water, give some Amoxicillin, and offer water (all which she tried refusing). She again went to bed on an empty stomach.

By now Spencer and I were by beside ourselves. I sent Spence out to "find something" that we could use to numb Elle's mouth and get her eating again. By the time he got home Elle was fast asleep, but at least we had something I was hopeful would work the next morning.

I've never been more anxious for Elle to wake up.

This morning, after 3 days of no food and little amounts of water, Elle woke up still refusing to eat or drink. Spencer was threatening to take her to the hospital if the "mouth sore medicine" he'd bought didn't work. The only way to get Elle to open her mouth was squirting salt water through her teeth. Sure enough she started crying and I got my finger into her mouth, wiping the gel onto the side of her tongue. She immediately demanded water which we were thrilled about! Then we gave Amoxicillin and continued to offer chocolate milk. The medicine finally kicked in because she then went to the fridge and pointed to the applesauce. She couldn't open her mouth to eat it though, so Spence came up with the genius idea of feeding her applesauce through the syringe. It worked!! I held her upright while he'd squeeze it in. I was elated!!

She ended up eating an entire bowl of applesauce, then rubbed her belly and said "Mmmm". She went onto eat some yogurt (even opened her mouth to take a bite), a muffin, bites of a banana, and some cheese!

She's continued to make improvements throughout the day and I'm just loving listening to her non-stop talking!!!

Elle at FOUR!

Time for an update on Elle - since she turned 4 three months ago!

Elle is my mini me. I don't know if it's being the middle child or what, but she reminds me of how I like to think I was as a kid.

She's a natural when it comes to little kids. She's my #1 babysitter and takes care of Calvin every morning while I'm scurrying around trying to get breakfast made, lunches packed, hair done, clothes on, and Madi out the door by 7:50.

She's super responsible too! She wakes up the earliest, gets dressed on her own, then reads books on the couch while she waits for the rest of the house to wake up.

(This is her spot- wrapped up in blanket, bowl of dry cereal for munching, and usually a huge stack of books next to her.)

Many times I'll leave on an early run with instructions for her to wake up Spencer when she's done reading and have him help her get Cal out of bed. I'll come home and find her in Cal's bedroom playing and reading him books.

Elle is super thoughtful. Anytime she goes on a daddy daughter date with Spencer and they get a treat, she'll ask to bring home a treat for Madi too.

She doesn't like to see her siblings sad or upset. Anytime Calvin is crying, Elle will run grab his blanket, monkey, and/or binky and bring it to him with a hug and kiss, reassuring him that everything's ok. She and Madi make cards and draw pictures for each other when the other is sad.

Elle is great at making friends. I had a parent/teacher conference with her preschool teacher the other day, and Ms. Barbara commented on what a good friend Elle is and how she likes to play with everyone.

She really does. Elle makes friends everywhere we go. And she gets along with the boys just as much as the girls. She's a natural friend and doesn't get all emotional and sensitive about silly stuff. One afternoon awhile back, Elle brought her scooter and bike to the park and really wanted to share with one of her boy friends that was there. After offering him her scooter, he says: "It's pink! I don't like pink. It's a girl color."

Very cooly Elle responds: "It has black on it, black is a boy color."

Elle also plays really well on her own. I rarely have to entertain her. She's got a great imagination!

She's super sweet, but also has her quirks that can drive me absolutely crazy- like her early morning requests for me to fix her hair when I'm not even awake yet! Elle can't stand having her hair in her face and is really big into ponytails right now. It's funny how she'll go through hair styles. She'll find something she likes, then request that same hairstyle every single day!

It's hard to get mad at Elle and she actually is very sensitive when time-outs or having to apologize is involved. She'll seem stubborn, but inside feels terrible and will be on the verge of tears. 

Elle got her first ever canker sore (on her tongue) yesterday and has been in excruciating pain. When we said prayers last night, she asked Heavenly Father to help her "sore tongue" feel better. I think I said something to reassure her that she would definitely feel better after getting a good night sleep. Then when Elle woke up this morning she was being especially whiny, emotional and dramatic about everything. I lost my cool and told her to knock it off or she'd be spending the morning in "quiet time". Then she burst into tears and cried out, "But you promised me my tongue would feel better today!!"

Poor little girl! Broke my heart right there! I pulled her into my lap for a snuggle to tell her how sorry I was. I love how Elle helps me to remember to be patient. She helps me to be a better mom and I'm grateful for all that she teaches me. Love you Elle!!

Friends

Madi with her buddies at the annual Dance-a-thon. 

Dress-up! Think we found a winner for a Halloween costume! 

The giant nest!! Every single kid at the park was helping to build it! 

On one of our "visiting teaching" park days.... Cal loves his big buddy (also a Calvin - in the middle) who passes on all sorts of adorable clothes he's outgrown!

Calvin with the ladies! Love these sweet little girls and their moms!

What great friends my kids have! But what I love most, is that anytime I ask who their BEST friend is, they always say each other!

I'd get Cal in there, but he's in the "don't force me to be in a picture" stage!

And I love having finding stuff like this in Madi's backpack!

General Conference weekend

I was so in need of this weekend! It had been a rough couple of weeks leading up to conference- very busy, lots of stress, and for some reason a lot of things were really annoying me- making me especially on edge with Spencer and the kids. So I went into the weekend with a prayer in my heart and a desire to learn. I was hoping for some inspiration, words of wisdom, and just a good kick in the pants! And I tell ya, Conference was exactly what I needed for a good attitude adjustment.

I'd love to link all the talks that touched me, all the quotes I jotted down, and include all the notes I took, but there was just way too much good stuff. Elder Hales said it perfectly, "What is said is not as important as what you hear and feel."

I was left feeling uplifted and inspired, with a desire to be better, work harder, be kinder and to make changes in my life to help me become more like my Savior.

I've already started re-watching / re-listening to some of my favorites:
Elder Hales, Elder Soares, and President Uchtdorf from Saturday morning.
Elder Christofferson, Elder Nielsen, Elder Holland, and Elder Elder Ballard from Saturday afternoon.
President Eyring and President Monson from Sunday morning
Elder Cook and Kevin Hamilton from Sunday afternoon


I loved seeing the girls so excited about conference! They were up early Saturday morning, dresses on, conference packets set out, and ready for the fun to begin.

Even Cal was having a good time!

I think they were most excited about our traditional conference cinnamon rolls though. We made two batches this year- one on Saturday morning and a new batch Sunday morning. Our house smelled heavenly all weekend! And it was fun making deliveries between conference sessions- loved sharing the cinnamon roll goodness with family, friends, neighbors, visiting teaching and home teaching families!

Saturday sessions were fabulous! The girls were good little workers- Elle colored and drew pictures, Madi took notes, colored, played BINGO, cut out pictures of the speakers and glued onto another paper in the order they spoke. Cal ate snacks and then wandered around playing quietly for morning session and napped during second session.  At 5pm, the kids and I joined friends for dinner, crafts, and then the park while Spencer went to priesthood session.

By Sunday, the kids were a little burnt out with sitting and listening to conference. We let they play quietly but the the fighting began... so after morning session, Spencer took Madi over to Boppi and Grandpa Al's (love that we can do that:) for Madi to finish a sewing project she'd been working on and then enjoy conference over there. Elle played quietly at home while Cal napped, giving Spencer and I a nice, quiet Sunday afternoon session! Then we joined Madi afterwards at Boppi and Grandpa Al's for Sunday dinner. Madi was really excited to show off her final sewing project! She sure has enjoyed her sewing classes with Boppi, and now Elle's in line for cooking classes with Boppi (love living close to grandparents and being able to do stuff like this).

Another fabulous conference weekend down in the books! 

18 months

Height: 34 inches (95th%)

Weight: 27 pounds 12 ounces (90th%)

Head: 49 1/2 in. (90th%)

I'm really lacking in the picture department lately. Don't have much from this past month, but I can't let that stop me from documenting! I feel like so much has happened in the few weeks since I last documented Cal at 17 months. The whole tantrum deal from last month was short lived thankfully. Not sure what that was all about - maybe teething?! I think expanding his vocabulary has helped.  Cal now feels pretty confident about being able to communicate with us. Most of the time he jabbers on about all sorts of things - none of which we can understand, but he does have a dozen or so words that he says clearly, like: apple, bagel, cookie, nana, cheese, mom, daddy, Ellie, baby, shoes, book, bubbles . . . as well as several phrases that he uses all the time, like:
"go bye bye"
"get out" (when he wants out of his high chair)
"Where is it?"
"Where _____ go?" (usually filled in with mama or daddy)
"What you doing?"
"I don't know" (which sounds more like "I no know").

I love his newfound desire to communicate with us!

He also loves copying his sisters. When I ask the girls, "Who wants ________?" Cal will now be the first to answer "MEEEE" just to beat them to the punch line!

I've also noticed how he watches them very carefully and then does the stuff that they do. For instance, last year Madi started the whole "kissing hand" thing when we'd say goodbye to her at school or when Spencer would leave for work. Elle followed suit, and now Calvin will come running with his hand in the air for a kiss, anytime any of us are leaving, saying good night, good bye, etc. It's adorable!

Always being silly!

Cal's been super sweet lately and very obedient. Just the other day he grabbed something he wasn't supposed to have and took off running in the other direction. I immediately said, "Calvin, bring it back to mama please!" And not kidding you, he stopped mid run, turned around, and brought it right back to me! I was impressed! He's really good about giving things back when people ask for them. I'm trying to teach the girls that they just have to ask, instead of throwing a royal fit when he takes off with their stuff.

He's a lot like Madi was as this age. He's very teachable. We're currently working on letters - "S" is his favorite. He's obsessed with watching Letter Factory in the morning with Elle.

Calvin seems like such a big boy lately!

He plays super well by himself, which I believe he's learning from Elle, who gets lost in her dollhouse and/or barbie play, so he'll wander off to his room where I find him reading books on his chair, or playing with his leap frog letters, or cars, or animals, etc. I love it!

He loves playing chase and wrestling with his dad.

We celebrated Cal's half birthday with a trip to Boppi's work to wish her a happy birthday! He was a pill though and didn't want to be held or smile for any pictures. That's definitely been the biggest frustration of this current stage- his only wanting to be with mom or dad, and not warming up quickly to others.

Cal's such a lovable little guy though and I want others to able to experience his sweet personality. His big hugs are the best! Especially when he pulls on my shirt or leg, calling, "mom" just to get me to pick him up and give him a squeeze! I love how he'll put his head on my shoulder when he's tired, how he'll listen intently to story after story at bedtime while rocking on my or Spencer's lap, how he still calls fish "babies", how he folds his arms on demand for family prayers, how he looks up and says, "nummy" when he's eating something he likes, how he'll put his finger to his lips, say, "shhhh" and then tell us to be quiet ("kiet"),  and how he's always watching us and learning. Sure love our little man who melts my heart everyday! 

Hawk Pride Award

This morning was the first Citizenship Awards Assembly of the year at Madi's school and she received the Hawk Pride Award! Mrs. Pidduck introduced Madi as someone who always tries to do her very best! Describes Madi perfectly! She gives her all to any and every assignment given. I couldn't have been more excited for Madi to get this award (it was a surprise that I'd known about for a week or so).

Madi thought it was pretty cool too, especially since it was the first assembly of the year!

 Congratulations Madi! 

Keep up the great work!

Speaking of great work. . . check out these writing assignments Madi brought home today:

This is why I'm going going crazy with all the paperwork sent home. I can't decide what to keep and what to toss! It kills me to throw this kind of stuff away!