Christmas Crumbs

Before I get the last of Christmas put away I wanted to post a few little things from the month of December that didn't make it into any other post. First was that my parents came to visit us for 6 days (yay!). We were so glad they were here, especially Clark who got to open a present every day that Grandma was here. Next is a couple snapshots of the kids doing their work: Lana opening cabinets and Clark (aka Superman) raking leaves in the backyard. Third, Clark and I made Christmas cookies together (ones that he can eat). I let him operate the mixer, pour in the ingredients, and cut out the cookies. Last, we made some new ornaments for our tree. My favorites are Clark's painted works. Not pictured are the handprint ornaments of each child which were ridiculously frustrating to make but worth it since I'll treasure them forever!  

Lana's First Party

Since I was a bit buried in Christmas preparations on Lana's first birthday--two days before Christmas--we postponed her celebration until yesterday. It was a small party, with just our little family as guests, but still sweet. We started off with a little game, borrowed from Elder Perry, that we've done with each child so far on their first birthday. We place some food, a toy, some scriptures, and some money across the room from the child and let them select the item that most intrigues them. Lana waffled between the toy and the cupcake, but eventually chose the toy. According to Elder Perry's words, the toy represents the need to take time to add to one's personal worth.

Moving right along with our party we sang to Lana and had cake. I made carrot ginger cupcakes with orange buttercream frosting, allergen-free (recipe by Cybele Pascal in the Allergen-Free Baker's Handbook), so Clark could be included. Lana enjoyed the singing, but wasn't sure what to make of the cake. She dipped her finger in the frosting repeatedly and smeared it around awhile before trying any. She's not a real eat-with-her-hands kind of girl so I wasn't surprised at her dainty approach. 

And of course no party is complete without her famous crazy eye face (which I didn't notice she pulled until I uploaded the pictures!). Clark wasted no time in putting away his cupcake, then offered to help Lana enjoy hers by feeding her some. 

Even with help she didn't do much damage to her cupcake but she seemed to enjoy a few licks of frosting. Too bad she didn't eat more cake--they were delicious if I do say so myself! After cake we had a few presents and went on a walk. Happy first birthday, sweet Lana. We sure love you, little one! 

Christmas at Home

Merry Christmas! We made some sweet Christmas memories this year. Last night we spent the evening with cousins. Things got a little rocky after that. Steve (who was not feeling well) and I had a bit of a late night and Lana was up several times during the night with a stuffy nose and mild fever. Clark came into our room in the morning the back way, bypassing the whole gift setup. I suppose he forgot about the presents? It was great for me anyway because I got to see his reaction when he walked into the living room.

I made the kids a teepee as well as matching Christmas pajamas. Clark didn't want to take his PJ's off so he wore them all day. Lana wasn't feeling well but was in pretty good spirits anyway. Clark's favorite toy of the day was the loader from Grandma B. Since Clark can't read yet I made good use of our misprinted Christmas cards: I cut them up and taped the face of each gift's owner on it. Clark had no trouble figuring out which gifts were his. He was also very helpful in opening everyone else's gifts. 

Lana was most interested in opening the doll from Grandma B. She was really excited about getting it out of the box and in her frenzy stood up without holding onto anything. After realizing that she could stand up unassisted she did it several times throughout the day after that for a couple of seconds at a time.  

With all our families elsewhere for Christmas we spent the day here by ourselves (just like last year!) but we got to Skype with, call, and Facetime our siblings and parents. Although we were very tired, and some of us were sick, it was a wonderful and relaxing Christmas. One of my favorite parts was seeing the kids in their matching outfits. (I may just have to make more pajamas next year!) One of my least favorite parts was late last night when Steve and I were trying to assemble a bike that was poorly machined (as in the pieces didn't fit together at all). We finally had to bag the whole thing and decided to get Clark a bike another time. One that works!

Christmas Babies

We wish you a Merry Christmas Eve!

Lana is 11 months

This little lady is full of personality! If you ask her questions she'll "respond" by either shaking her head no or nodding yes. Whether or not she knows the difference between the two is irrelevant--it's just cute to watch her respond. If you talk about her hair she'll brush hers with her hand. One time I was holding her (as usual) while doing Clark's hair and I forgot to do hers so while we were walking away from the mirror she reached up and rubbed her hair to remind me to do hers! so cute. Whenever she's looking at herself in the mirror she'll start opening her mouth really wide and closing it repeatedly. She loves to point to things and talk about them. Especially after naps. She points to the window and tells me about the construction she was watching outside. One of her favorite toys right now is the musical vacuum from Grandma B. She pushes the buttons and dances to the music. You wouldn't guess it because of her petite size, but Lana is an eating machine. But not finger foods--she will only eat puree. When she starts screaming after the last bite she needs more food ASAP! She always growls during every meal too, like a little bobcat. Speaking of animal sounds, while listening to music in the car she'll sing along like the high-pitched meow of a kitty. She's learned to hold her own while playing with Clark and will screech when he takes something from her. She loves to giggle and be silly, but she also can't stand not being held by or within 1 foot of me. She likes to walk while holding my hands and just started cruising along furniture this last week.

This is her most common sitting position: one leg bent and one leg out to the side. She's also really into doors right now and opening and closing books.

Trimming the Tree

Part of the magic of Christmas is helping to decorate the Christmas tree. I love watching Clark get excited about each ornament and deciding where to put it. After we hung the ornaments the tree was a bit bottom heavy but Clark gave me permission to do some redistribution. We also stuffed a few clear ornaments with shredded paper (Business Week pages just for Steve). 

Thanksgiving 2013

This year we hosted Thanksgiving at our house with three of Steve's siblings. It was nice to have a full house--7 adults and 8 kids--though it was a little rough since we're not up to speed yet on furnishings and there are still a few boxes lying around. We had the important stuff, though: food, lots of food, including two smoked turkey breasts from Rudy's and 8 half gallons of Blue Bell ice cream. The kids all seemed to have a great time running amok and we had a few activities to keep the adults entertained, such as: the turkey trot, smoothie competition, Jim Gaffigan, Rockets game, golfing for the men, shopping and cupcakes for the ladies, Wii dancing, and we all took turns taking family photos. 

As mentioned, we ran the turkey trot on Thanksgiving morning as is the annual tradition. Steve volunteered me to represent our family in the 5K since he recently had ankle surgery. It was freezing, I might add: just a mere 38 degrees. I ran hard but wasn't able to clench this year's family title, just a lot of muscle soreness.  

Most memorable moments from this year's Thanksgiving festivities include: Helaman blending up pecan pie (and threatening to blend a host of other things), Steve's attempt to fix a leaking toilet that ended in a cracked tank and flooded bathroom, nobody going out shopping early on Friday (???!!!), kids + crushed ice, numerous references to an Indian wedding, butternut squash soup, seeing every toy we own...all at once, and having occasion to break open my second box of china. We're glad everyone could come! Clark keeps wondering when all his cousins are coming back.

Hug the Bunny

Today while the kids and I were playing I invented a complicated game called "Hug the Bunny." I would give Lana's bunny a hug then give it to her and tell her to...hug the bunny. I guess I didn't expect her to understand and do it, but she did and it was so adorable. One of those melt-your-heart moments. She would give that bunny the biggest hug and hold it right under her chin with a big smile on her face. Then she would give it right back to me and we played over and over and over again while Clark played garbage man with no pants on. ha ha. Kids are so fun.

In other snuggly news I captured Lana snuggling her blankie a couple of days ago. Something about watching such a tiny person cuddle/snuggle/hug/love something is ridiculously precious.

Beware of Stinging Caterpillars

Clark got welcomed to the suburbs with a painful zap of poison by this furry fellow a few days ago. He and a friend were out back on the patio taking turns riding his trike when he suddenly came inside screaming. I could make out the word "bite" here and there and after he stopped hopping and took a breath he told me that he got a bug bite on his hand. I asked him a series of questions so I could figure out what kind of "bug" it was but he pointed to this furry thing and insisted that was it. He doesn't usually make stuff up but this time I couldn't believe him since caterpillars--especially furry ones like this--are harmless. I couldn't see any bite or stinger on his hand, and there was no welt or swelling, but I washed it off and gave him an ice pack. After several minutes he was still inconsolable and voluntarily went into his room because he wanted to go to bed. He looked absolutely miserable and kept crying and repeating, "my hand hurts!"

I wasn't sure what I could do to help my little guy so out of curiosity I googled "caterpillar bite" and learned how much I hate asps! They're a poisonous caterpillar that can cause a doozy of a reaction including "excruciating, relentless pain" (Clark can attest to that), sore lymph nodes, vomiting, respiratory distress, fever, and a few other things. Clark was "lucky" in that his only symptom was pain at the site of the sting for a few hours. Talk about learning the hard way! A couple of these guys were only inches away from us while we were chalking and I even picked one up with a stick to look at it closely. Now we know to keep our distance!  

Chalking It Up

I unpacked the sidewalk chalk this week so Clark and I went out on our back patio to make some art (right next to an asp, no less! We learned about those the hard way this week...). Historically he has drawn a few lines before losing interest but this day he was really getting into coloring the cement and lining up the chalk. Lining things up is becoming his signature. Clark let me have some colors so I made a portrait of him coughing since he was still getting over a little cold.

Lana is 10 Months

And she is finally sitting! It's been about a week now and I'm still amazed every time I see her do it. She still loves to be held and follows me around screaming when I put her down unless she gets distracted by a toy. Her diet continues to expand and she's back to loving avocados. She eats chicken now and I've been giving her bits of cottage cheese to test for milk allergies. She drinks water from a sippy cup here and there but doesn't seem to love the taste. She's a very playful and giggly little lady and loves when I chase her around on my hands and knees. She and Clark like to call back and forth to one another in their own little language.  

Happy Halloween from Bedrock!

It's a few days late, but Happy Halloween! I had a blast making our costumes this year. I made every piece of everyone's outfit except the flesh-colored leotard for mine. I started a couple of months ago and finished just in time to pack my sewing machine up for our big move last week (more on that later!). Our friends invited us over on Halloween--it's our annual tradition!--and we trick-or-treated with them in their neighborhood.

Lucky for me Steve is a good sport about dressing up and even got into character by shouting "yabba dabba do!" randomly throughout the night. Most people knew who we were dressed as, but I heard some kids asking their parents "what are they?!"

Wonderful weather, wonderful company, wonderful night!  

Tears from Pebbles

We're ready for the big day tomorrow: Halloween! Steve suggested we all be sports stars for Halloween this year (I think he suggests that every year) but I decided to go in a different direction. Here is half the crew in costume as Pebbles and Bamm-Bamm. Little Pebbles doesn't like when Mama puts her down so this is the best we got!  

Expressive Baby

People tell me quite often that I have a very expressive baby. (That's my girl!) There are still a few expressions I have yet to capture, but here are a few she made for me in just a couple of minutes, including everyone's favorite "stinkeye" look.

Pumpkin Patch Lumberjacks

We went to the pumpkin patch as a family a few nights ago to get a few pictures of the kids. Clark had a blast running around the pumpkins and was very good about holding his sister. Lana was not having as much fun but stopped crying for a few minutes to watch Steve's antics to get her to smile. I was not planning to be in any shots (notice my bun head) but a nice lady volunteered to take one of all four of us so I didn't want to pass up the opportunity. It's still pretty warm here but it seemed wrong to have the kids wear shorts to the pumpkin patch so instead they were dressed as lumberjacks. ha ha. Lana's fur vest is a quick little creation I whipped up for her last week.

Clark got a hold of Lana's bow on the way home and decided to give it a try. I decided that he looked like a bigger version of his sister. It was kind of weird, actually. These two kids look so similar sometimes! 

Piano Bench

This lady has been spending a lot of time standing at the piano bench lately. She must find it to be the perfect size to practice standing up. Plus, she loves the piano so it's a win-win.

She's a goofy little baby that likes to pull faces. I've been trying to capture them all, but this is her signature one. I don't know how she came up with it, but she makes this face and sniffs loudly in and out. It makes me laugh every time (and reminds me a little of her aunts Kara & Karlee with their crazy sniff face). I love that little pouty lip!

Lana is 9 months

My little lady is 9 months! Here are her stats:

Height - 27.75" - 39th percentile

Weight - 16 lbs 3 oz - 20th percentile

She is a 100% mama's girl in that she screams when anyone besides me tries to hold her. She also likes to cry whenever I'm not holding her (see above). She seems to be quite a sensitive little thing. She's still too busy to have interest in sitting. She's fascinated with eyes and likes to poke her finger into the eyes of willing subjects. She loves to babble and sing, usually dadada or nanana with an occasional mamama. She loves eating--except avocados and some veggies--and gets quite upset when whoever is feeding her steps away for a moment or when the food runs out. If she's not crying she's very smiley and giggly. She likes to nod her head and can pull up on just about anything these days. She's got a little funny face she makes that makes us laugh every time. We love our sweet little Lana! 

Party-Planning in a Day

This year I decided to throw Clark a birthday party and invite friends. I found a fun park that has a 6-mile train track for mini steam trains that the public can ride every 3rd Saturday. What kid wouldn't love that, I thought. Plus, it's outside. Easiest party ever. The more the merrier. I had it planned for weeks. AND THEN...it rained and rained the day before and the forecast said 80% chance of rain for the day of the party. Ack! I had to re-plan the entire party in less than a day. Instead of riding fun trains we: built trains using shapes I cut out of construction paper, played musical "walk-around-on-a-train-track-made-of-masking-tape-and-pick-up-a-numbered-bean-bag-when-the-music-stops", played spin around a time or two then pin the conductor on the ghetto train without a blindfold (most kids were under age 3), opened presents, played with trains and other toys, and ate ridiculously messy wheat-free, vegan chocolate cupcakes. I felt bad sending those kiddies home so messy but it was pretty funny to see 9 kids totally covered in chocolate cake. Each kid went home with a homemade favor bag complete with printed train. The party lasted just over an hour. It was pure chaos but I think...I hope...the kids had fun.

I was thinking about Clark's birthday and realized that turning 3 had it out for him. I planned to take him to ride the zoo train on his actual birthday but he woke up with a stomach bug so we stayed home instead. Then his party got rained out. And the fun train sticker books I ordered for him and his guests got lost in the mail. And I ran out of ingredients while making the cupcakes, etc. etc. It was one thing after another. But despite all that, I think he still got a proper celebration for turning 3!

Clark's 3 Year Well Check

Clark had his 3 year well check this week...and all is well! He's growing well and is thankfully nowhere near the 5th percentile range like he was 2 years ago. Here are his stats:

Height - 37.75" - 48%

Weight - 32 lbs - 54%

Some other interesting tidbits about this cute boy:
He doesn't use contractions in his speech e.g. he uses "cannot" instead of "can't"
When he wants to do something he always asks, "Should we [fill in whatever thing he wants to do]?"
He has a handful of scriptures memorized, and to be funny sometimes puts "everybody" on the end e.g. "...which are not seen, which are true, everybody!"
The sticker he got from the doctor was worn on his arm for 2 days straight. He reluctantly removed it for bathtime.

Sewing and School Buses

This week I decided to make a tiny dent in my fabric/clothes to refashion stash. I can't remember where I came across a men's XL salmon polo, but I did, and it's been stowed away in my scary sewing closet. I came across this tutorial the other day and that shirt popped into my mind. A little cutting and sewing and ta da! And how cool is it that there are 2 school buses permanently parked around the corner from our house?

Since the buttonholes were so far apart on the original shirt I added 2 of my own to make them work with the smaller scale of the new shirt. I gave Clark a handful of fabric choices for the pocket and he chose this one, which was also my top pick. I made the hemline scoop down a bit in the back. Just for fun. 

Poor Day for a FARE Walk

We went downtown this morning to participate in the Houston FARE (Food Allergy Research & Education) Walk. We checked out all the booths and bounce houses, but right as the actual walk kicked off it started pouring rain. We all got soaked and Clark was especially distraught. Some of the crowd did the 2-mile planned walk in the rain, but we joined the other part of the crowd that made the walk back to the parking garage. 

Steve's favorite thing to do after such events is to sample all the handouts. Clark could not be convinced to eat the new Enjoy Life products Steve offered him, but we all tried a sip of Neocate Splash and suffered in its grossness together. 

Clark is 3!

My little buddy is 3! His birthday had a rocky start, when, at 6:30 am he was calling for me crying in bed. When I arrived on scene he informed me he had "spit up." Sure enough. I got him cleaned up then he lay in my bed where he "spit up" again. All the birthday activities I had planned for the day were replaced with nursing a sick boy and washing all the bedding. Fortunately, after a morning nap Clark said he was feeling great. He was a bit feverish, however, so we stayed home and took it easy. He opened presents throughout the day and was most excited about his cake. He requested a chocolate cake so I made him an allergen free one from scratch. Once he blew out the candles he dug his hand into the side of the cake! He nearly inhaled the piece I gave him and was bouncing off the walls the rest of the evening. He loved all his presents and birthday wishes. We sure love our little man!

Lana is 8 Months

This little lady is 8 months now! The big news for her at this stage is her rapidly expanding diet of solid foods and that she's pulling up on things. Her eyes color now is brownish in the middle and blueish on the edges. I guess I call it gray? She is a very curious and doesn't seem to have the same sense of caution that her brother had as a baby. She has been sleeping in her crib for a couple of weeks instead of the pack 'n play in Mom and Dad's room. She and Clark share a room and some days they stay up late giggling back and forth. She is very much a mama's girl still but always has a smile for her daddy. She likes to listen to music and sings to the radio in the car. Though she likes to practice standing she still will not sit by herself. Crazy lady! I am loving this stage of motherhood with my two little babies!

Galveston Evening

We went to Galveston this afternoon/evening with our cousins and chose to play at a beach along the seawall. We splashed in waves and got covered in sand then had a picnic dinner. Lana and Clark both enjoyed the water, but Clark especially enjoyed the sand. Steve especially enjoyed driving us there. ha ha.

I've never been much of a beach person but it seems to be growing on me. I could, however, do without the sand that seems to find its way into everything.

A Mom's Friday

It's Friday. This is what ours looks like:

Very similar to every other day. Oh how I love it.

Road Trip to Dallas

We took a road trip to Dallas over the weekend to meet our newest adorable baby cousin, Elliott, and attend his blessing. Along the way we stopped at the Sam Houston statue for a picnic, caterpillar meet and greet, and a quick picture with the statue. Also en route to Dallas, Steve and I enjoyed our first TX Burgers. 

We had a great time in Dallas, despite the piping hot temps. Clark and his cousins all had fun together and got along so well. I'm so glad got to spend our weekend in such good company.