May 2017

We are still trucking along at the new house. It is becoming clear why Joe said end-isa summer! We have hit a few snags (permitting issues concerning asbestos being the biggest) which means some weeks we see a ton of progress and then others absolutely nothing happens. I am trying to get things knocked off my list - picking sinks was easy, granite however has been a headache. So far we have made a "final decision" on 3 different slab only to be told later "I'm sure someone has talked to you about this... but this isn't a good choice for your situation" AHHHHH!

I had a meeting with our realtor, Gina, recently, and she said she wants us to get our current house on the market as soon as possible. So that means we are going to be doing nothing but getting this house ready for a while. Mostly I think that means boxing up anything extra laying about and then tying up a few small maintenance projects.

Aurora had her violin recital, and she did so great! We had a bit of a struggle with practice because she didn't think she needed to and that she was "good enough" but in the end she got down to it and played a beautiful Popcorn Twinkle Variation, which she chose because it's her Dad's favorite rhythm that she plays.

Mothers Day was really nice this year. We didn't get to go to brunch at Jax (the usual Mother's Day plan) and instead went to the nursery and got all our plants for the vegetable garden and window boxes. I am so thankful for my family and how much love they showered on me by helping to plant our garden that day.

We took the kids to see The Secret Garden. It was one of their Christmas presents and they have been looking forward to going. Unfortunately, when we got the email reminder, it also stated that children under 4 would not be allowed. I knew Connor could handle it even though he was only 3.5 so we decided to see if we could get away with it. I had two different ushers question me but no one told me he couldn't come in. Both kids behaved spectacularly and didn't cause a single issue. I then had multiple people comment on how impressed they were that Connor had behaved so well during the show. Win!

Connor had his last day of his first year or preschool! His class went to a park to celebrate and it was hysterical to watch him interact with the other kids. He has a new buddy at school, Torin, and when Torin showed up Connor's whole body language changed. He started talking lower and moving around in a different way. But really cute, he said to his friends "Hey guys, this is Cooper, he's my brother. He's a good guy!"

-- Cooper at 19 months --

We potty trained Cooper over Memorial Day weekend! I am so happy to be essentially done with diapers. These first few days have been a bit rocky, but things seem to be falling into place.

Cooper's favorite book right now is Pete the Cat and the Brand New White Shoes. It is absolutely hysterical to read it to him because he chimes in at certain points and gets super excited about it. He loves to point to all the shoes at the beginning and tell us what color they are. He also likes the "Oh No!" and "Goodness No!" parts :)

Cooper knows most of his colors pretty solidly. I especially like when he points to something and says the wrong color, pauses, shakes his head and says no, then tells the right color.

He is obsessed with putting on boots. I think he just likes that he is able to do it all by himself.

May 2016

Preschool is over... How do I have a kindergartener already?! I am really going to miss taking Aurora to Miss Katie and Miss Sharon everyday for school. They really have an amazing way of dealing with the kids and working through any issues that come up.

Mother's Day Tea at Inspire

We finally had Aurora's 5 year pediatrician appointment. She has been complaining of headaches just about everyday for the past... month? They told us headaches at her age are usually dehydration but if drinking more water doesn't help I am going to take her to get her vision checked. The only thing I can think of is that she has been reading A LOT more recently and I think it coordinates to when the headaches started.

Cousin Julie came to visit

Aurora got her real violin! And just in time for her first concert. She was so proud standing up in front of everyone and having a violin just like all the bigger kids.

Aurora's first violin recital

First time holding her violin

I am finally getting around to using the family responsibilities charts that Matt and I got the kids for Christmas. I have tried giving them jobs before but have always failed due to my own forgetting not any resistance on their part. Aurora has been unloading the dishwasher (which is an amazing blessing for me in the morning) and Connor has been feeding the dogs.

Connor has recently decided to start acting like the two and a half year old that he is. He is getting quite an opinion about everything. There have been a lot more tears than usual and a lot more refusal. He has also been only napping about 50% of the time which doesn't help. The other night I was lying in bed giving him kisses and he looked up at me and said, "Mama, I love your kissed... but now go" Ha.

Connor and Knox

 

Aurora has been reading all.the.time. I usually try to limit her reading to quiet time because it is one of the few times that she and Connor do not get along. He wants to sit and be a part of what she is doing and she wants him to leave her alone. And the other night I went into her room to check on her and I found chapter books hidden under her bed. Apparently she has been opening her window to get light and reading instead of going to sleep. That girl.

I have never really liked requiring a child to say they are sorry because saying doesn't actually mean they are sorry.  If one of the kids does something to the other they have to go over and ask if the hurt one is okay and what they can do to help. It is super cute that lately they have been answering "you can give me a hug and a kiss" awwww.

Matt and I decided that even though the kids don't watch much TV, they had started watching more of it on weekend mornings with Dad and it seems to be negatively impacting their behavior towards each other and us. We are going to try cutting it out except for times when we all want to sit down as a family and watch something together. I am excited to see if this helps all the poor behavior we have been seeing.

-- Cooper at 7 months --

Cooper is sitting up completely independently! He hasn't figured out how to get himself up to a seated position yet but we went ahead and dropped his mattress because I would hate to learn he had figured it out by finding him on the floor in the middle of the night.

He has been pulling up to standing by holding onto our hands. He wants to stand so badly!

This boy hates tummy time. I have been trying to do more of it with him since he is showing no signs of crawling, but it isn't worth the tears.

I have finally decided to stop being lazy about food and get him on some solids. Nursing is just so much easier...

He is solidly on two naps -- 8:30 and 1

Nights are starting to turn!! He has been going to sleep really well and he has been going back to sleep some of the times with just some extra white noise. He has been waking 3-4 times but only getting fed at 1 and 4 which has thankfully caused an increase in day intake. I offer pretty frequently and he eats before and after each nap as well as once in the middle of his awake time.

May 2015

Aurora's first year of preschool is over! How did that happen so quickly? And yet this past school year has at the same time felt like an eternity with her separation anxiety. I just can't believe how fast she is growing up...

We spent Memorial Day weekend in San Antonio with Matt's side of the family and it was just so sweet to see all the cousins together. It's also fun that Aurora is finally old enough to do some of the kids activities with her grandparents - really sweet memories being made.

Mothers Day was cute this year, Aurora talked about it for a few weeks before and tried so hard to keep my surprises quiet. Matt got me a new laptop and the kids and Dada took me out to brunch at Jax which I absolutely loved. Interestingly the kids both devoured a plate of mussels at brunch -- apparently Connor isn't really picky we just didn't realize he had such an expensive palate ;)

Things are going well with the pregnancy! I am now about 24 weeks so it's moving along pretty quickly. I am definitely not enjoying being pregnant as much this time around but I think that's more to do with chasing the other two around. I am also having a few complications that I haven't before like the nasty varicose veins on my legs…

-- Connor at 17 months --

Connor has his first true two word sentence! He has always said "gigit" for get it but I think to him that was more one word ;) In true second child style his first two word sentence was "Go Ro-Ro!"

This guy is killing me with his early wake ups. I don't even remember when it started but he has been waking up around 5 or 5:15 for quite a while now and I'm just tired!

He's still climbing on everything and now has started jumping. He loves to climb onto of a bolster and jump onto the big teddy bears we have.

He is officially on one nap. He will absolutely fall asleep if we are in the car too long around 9 or 10 but he can usually make it until 12 or 12:30 without much problem.

Just started saying Connor, which sounds more like "Ca-Ca"

A rare moment of sibling love.

He's been pretty clingy lately which causes the kids to be at each other's throats a lot. When they play they play well but it seems like those times are getting fewer and farther between. He does miss her a lot when she's not home though so that's cute.