april

Yeah, I know this is way late... but I have to document baby's first birthday month!

Sharing!

Trevor modeling the new vest I made him

Jason's egg says "Eat Me!" :)

I think it was our first year dying eggs with Claire- she loved it!

 I am noticing our similar cheesy grins

It snowed a few days before Easter

Two bros and their babies

On our way to the Easter Egg Hunt at the park

It was a little bright :)

You can see some residual snow

Playing on Trampoline while big kids have Easter egg hunt in cousins backyard

Babies Easter egg hunt in cousin's yard

The Find

 

Cousin Alyson and Lance also have birthdays this month

Trevor wasn't too sure about his gluten free pumpkin cake, while Alyson finished her cake... then Trevor decided it was pretty good

YAY!  The Easter bunny came to our house

Easter feast at home

Claire and Trevor's new Easter Sunday outfits... Ts vest from here... I suggest using a cotton  (dress) shirt as the model not a strechy t- shirt/ onsie - I am guessing that is why her boys vest is not buttoned in the pics... and this is two colors- but not reversible- I think its easier to make two vests than to make one reversible vest
Claire dress is inspired from here- I love elastic thread...makes it so easy. Just use a dress that fits and add an inch of fabric  for the elastic thread part

Claire loves dress up

Watching dad rota-til the garden area

Cousins at Bicentennial Park during Spring Break

Enjoying Alyson's new water table

Trevor's first time at McDonald's

Getting garden area ready!  Imagine a before picture with started construction of a big brick oven.. My awesome hubby has been working hard!

Trevor chowing down on shredded chicken breast

Fun times at the party at Dad's work

She had no problems scaling this wall

Woo hoo!

Cousin Matthew and Claire (Aunt Laura and kids came because they were so kind to cart us around to and from car lot to mechanic and back that day-- thank you so much!!!)

The mechanic said it looked great!  We love it!  Especially the power doors and no more denting the cars next to us when kids open doors!

Bye bye Honda!  It was a good car... but the no AC and having problems starting where an issue

Poor Trevor got a shinner on accident from big sister

Claire loves her swimsuit- I think she would wear it every day if I kept it down lower in her closet

YAY!! Trevor loves books too!

YAY! Trevor is one!  For his cake I only used tips for the blue and black part.  The chocolate frosting was so yummy , but too thick I think..  I could only pipe one or two stars before it was got too runny and would have to put in the freezer, or I kept braking the really thick ziploc bag for piping. But I think it turned out cute!

Trevor loves big sister!

Happy 1st birthday

You are so loved!

Love this collection of three pics- Grabbing for my hair- so happy about almost getting it (You can see his shiner and bruised forehead- adventurous like big sister)

Content with patting the shoulder

You are so sweet Trevor!

Up next our trip to AZ!

bedtime woes + successes!

This post is for moms with bedtime woes- hopefully it helps someone with a little munchkin like mine.

I was so grumpy today... poor kids-They were even so cute today.  Claire had a tea party in her room and Trevor joined (while I scoured a book- looking for parenting/ sleeping answers).  They played so well together for like 10 minutes- never happens.  Trevor was crying when I went in there to check on them.  Claire had put 4 of her shirts over his head- lol- but  the last one was a pair of shorts- covering his face- lol- so funny!- I wish I would have gotten a picture- but I wanted to free Trevor quickly.  

 Claire has taken two hours to fall asleep the last two nights. Tuesday night- Jason had YMs till 9:30pm Trevor, was recovering from drinking cows milk from his cousins sippy at around 5pm, so he was up until 2am that night, while Claire was up till 9:30pm (No they don't even share a room).

 And last night (Wednesday) she pulled a new trick.  She opened her window, pushed out the window screen and was standing on the flower grating- Gee that girl!  Where does she think of these things or even think about pushing out the screen- I never knew how to do that at her age.  So today there were alot of lectures.  I pulled out an old sleeping book that worked for Claire as a baby(but would have killed Trevor if I listened to it at all for him and his tummy problems).  Well it worked again for Claire!  Thank goodness!

 So here is what we were doing for her sleep routine. Starting at 7:30pm- Go bathroom, brush teeth, talk about scripture stories with Gospel Art kit pictures, pray,  read books (10 + minutes)- get her to lay down while reading books,  sing songs , kisses, good night.  Then we had a system where we would take down a number if she got out of bed.  If there were no numbers up- then we took a stuffed animal toy away.  This worked well at first as she was motivated to keep her toys with her in bed.   But then she stopped caring about her toys or book or anything it seemed- no matter what I threatened her with... no computer time, no swinging on Trevors baby swing, no going to the library.... nothing worked anymore- we lost all power last night.  And that is also when she climbed out the window.  So we couldn't even lock her door- we had to watch her to make sure she didn't do it again.  

So today as I read this book, Healthy Sleep Habits, Happy Child I realized that our system- though it attempted to allow her get out a few times- in hopes to give her some leeway- the problem with this is that it also set her up for getting out of bed.  And the best time to calm her down and get ready for sleep is when we are with her reading books and singing songs.   The book talks about using different tactics besides just reading books to help calm kids before bedtime:

slow down activity

close physical contact

                Nestle or snuggle in bed

                cuddle up with child on a chair

Quiet voices

                sing or hum a song

                tell a family story

                chat about the day

                say good night to everyone /everything in the room

The other important thing the book made me remember is that talking (or yelling) when they keep getting out of bed will only reinforces the bad behavior because instead of sleeping they are getting more attention from you.  This totally makes sense for Claire- she would rather be awake, although it makes me really frustrated, she would rather do that than to go to sleep.  The girl loves attention.  But what 3-year old doesn't.  So if they do get out of bed then silently, and with no emotion  put them back to bed gently.  You can explain before bedtime-"this is a new rule.  No talking after we say good night.  So if you get out of bed, that is why mommy will not talk to you. "

The book also had 4 rules to put on her wall ( suggested for 3 year olds- and to decorate it to make it look really cool)

At bedtime we...

1. Stay in bed

2. Close our eyes

3. Stay very quiet

4. Go to sleep

(And if she follows the rules, then she gets to pick a treat- candy in a clear bowl above the fridge- the next morning)

She did amazing the first night!  She never got out and she gets a treat in the morning!  I am so proud of her!  I am so happy that we have a new way to help get her to  sleep.  I am not feeling powerless and admittedly embarrassed (to the neighbors ) if any saw her parading on her flower grate at 9pm last night. LOL. 

 I had a good book and a comfy chair parked right outside her door fully expecting to be putting her to back bed alot.  (Some parents had to do it 75 times- I remember those days when she first went to a bed- that was a crazy choice- looking back I realize you can potty train without them being in a big kid bed) Today we worked really hard to make sure she was well fed, got gotten lots of energy out, and then at 7pm we started the bedtime routine.  I have been waking her up at 7:30am so she can say good bye to Jason before he leaves for work, but she still didn't fall asleep until 9:30 pm (with bedtime starting at 7:30pm those nights)

I know things won't always work out this perfectly, but it sure gives me hope that Jason and I can have a little more relaxing time together!

Update:  These things only worked for a week or so.   I have stopped waking her up and let her sleep in.  I now put her to bed about 12 hours after she wakes in the morning (usually 7:30- 8:30am).  Instead of giving her a warning that if she gets out three times then we take something away- we take something away the first time she gets out of bed.  We have tried being on a different level of the house from her, when she is trying to fall asleep.  Not as easy than just walking out of her room to have mom and dad's attention.  The thing that helps her stay in bed alot of times, is saying do you want to earn back (a certain stuffed animal) monkey then you have to stay in bed for 5 minutes... Her staying in bed for any length of time is usually enough to get her to calm down and fall asleep.  And we have started putting a drop of lavender oil on her feet.

I've had a few requests for updated pics, so here goes...

Claire did this all on her own- such a clever girl

Got a hair cut from a neighbor! Love it!





One of the last snows in our very mild winter


Heart attacked our kitchen for Valentines, idea from here



Watching the cousins





Poor Trev got sick that night...






More towers - Looking up at dad

Boys and Bowties- adorable!

Last few weeks
Ups
1. Jason's mom showing up at our place right before dinner time and bringing leftovers from Jason's birthday dinner for us. I had no dinner plans and was exhausted that day.

2. Not being afraid or tense while getting cavities filled! I think my biggest beef with dentist (at least the last two dentists who did my fillings, is that they usually never get my bite back to where it was. So I have to go back in to get it readjusted. One dentist who did 4 fillings on the bottom, made it so my jaw kept popping when I would eat certain foods. The other dentist was not very gentle, maybe just to get it done really fast. But my new dentist is awesome! He doesn't even have to ask, "How does it feel to bite down". He just seems to know and he takes care of it and it feels great! And I can eat any food, even those really hard and thick pita chips and it doesn't hurt! HURRAY!

3. Finished making this bunny bunting. I hate eating peeps, but they sure look cute above the fireplace

4. Going to the GI specialist for a follow up visit to Trevors testing and him having a night and day different experience this time. The only thing I can think is that pediatricians send patients to him with getting a scope done in mind (really invasive procedure), so he is kinda defensive and doesn't want people thinking its a big deal (because 95% of kids out grow the intolerance after 12- 24 months) And it doesn't physically harm them, even though they seem to be in lots of pain. This is the only thing that seems to make sense of why he acted the way he did the first time.

5. Finding this parenting email in my inbox- "Now I have a different feeling each time my kids beg for things they shouldn't have, or when they try to test limits. I used to get frustrated, asking myself what I was doing wrong. I would also get mad at them. But that's all changed now."

"Well, what do you do now?"

"Here's what's so great, Jim. Now I tell myself that they are just checking to see if I still love them enough to provide limits. It's a totally different mindset. I still say, 'So what did I say?' when they test. But when I do, I feel like I'm giving them a gift.

Downs
1. Not eating much while the Novocaine wears off and being exhausted.

2. Trevor getting in his 3rd top tooth and being up a lot at night because of it (Thursday). I took him 2 hours to fall asleep that night, even though Jason and I took turns trying to help him go to sleep. Thank goodness Claire was an angel that night! ! I just always have to remind myself- even though you think they are just trying to break you- it always ends up that they are not feeling good- even though they seem fine- besides the screaming when not holding them part.

3. Thinking Trevor was in a lot of teething pain, but the next day he threw up while sitting in his high chair right when I was in the middle of making dinner- busiest time of day.

4. Monday-Getting what my poor little guy Trevor has, at least now I can pass on antibodies to him. Only had it one day and I just took it easy and never threw up or had the runs- just a bad headache and stomach ache

Ups

1. Making a cute Easter dress for Claire with minimal effort

2. Trevor liking and tolerating carrots, no more pooping every hour

3. Finding turkey hotdogs that don't have potassium lactate (no dairy) for Trevor- He loved them for a week, then decided he didn't after he got sick. Then I tried cutting them into long skinny pieces, yeah I have to monitor him when he gets towards the end- but at least he is feeding himself again!

3. After Trevor got sick, he would be grumpy and not eat anything unless I spoon fed it to him, and other times we would get so grumpy that he wouldn't even eat what I was feeding him... but he would eat if Claire fed it to him! And boy did she love this!

4. Finding a cute hair style that Claire doesn't rip out her hair 2 minutes later! (see below)

Downs

1. Seeing Trevor sitting at the very top of the stairs with his feet dangling down the first step- ready to go- Thanks goodness Claire asked where'd Trevor go when I was trying to quickly vacuum under the table- I got to him just in time

2. Claire getting her foot stuck in our reclining couch, I thought with the way she was screaming that she had broken or severed something. When I tried to help, I reclined one way not sure if it would help and she started screaming No, and then she reclined it the other way and we got her foot out really easily. She was still screaming even with it out, but its weird that she knew which way would help fix the problem (they are electric reclining couches- so I forget which way is up and down).

more movies

These ones are definitely older, but too cute to not share!

Peek a boo


dancing in my exercauser

movies

I am sure Trevor will love me when he's older for posting this... but it makes me laugh everytime I see it



Saying muma!



Not the best video, but just in case your wondering how I pushed the little guy in the car.




Trevor wiggle... so cute! The iTunes visualizer are fireworks to Claire :)




Trevor crawling. Besides reaching really far for toys, he didn't seem interested in crawling. Then one day, Claire got a new toy for filling up her chart for staying in bed at night and Trevor does this! (I am  only a month late in posting this. Now he is getting fast even on our hard wood floors)

ups and downs of the week

I got this idea from a friends blog and thought I would copy it, since its a great way to think back on week... especially since they go so fast
 Last week (3/6- 3/12)

Top 7 ( in no particular order)
1. Having a fun Sunday night relaxing, chatting and teasing the hubby
2. Jason loving his new snuggie I made for his birthday, and all his other presents too
3. Claire has stopped biting her toys, wanting to mimic Trevor or something- after she would bite them, I would put the toys in timeout on our fireplace mantel to remind her not to do it (I kept them up there until after church on Sunday- yeah a long time, but she has alot of toys).  If she bit T's toys or pacifier, then I would pick one of her toys
4. Besides Claire's bad actions (#1 & 2 below), she says sorry mama in the sweetest, most endearing way and she gives the sweetest, softest hugs and kisses after timeout
5. Trevor liking and tolerating turkey!
6. Having such wonderful weather and being able to push the kids in Claire's toy car, and them loving it! (Have a video- but the camera disappeared...maybe soon)
7. Finding a great blog with awesome handouts and activities for my primary lesson

Bottom 4
1. Clarie opening a rice milk container ($4 a half gallon) when I just opened another one that morning, meaning it will spoil before I drink it, unless I up my dosage of the stuff... its not very good plain (I just eat it with cereal- because its fortified and I hate taking vitamins)
2. Claire climbing up her tall dresser every time I put her in timeout in her room, which doesn't help me cool down like timeouts should (the reason I care, is that it has almost fallen on her and Jason already had to repair one of the drawers because of her doing this so much )- Now the dresser is turned towards the wall and the clothes are in her closet
3. Having to watch them poke Trevor twice for a blood test
4. Almost  in tears at the GI specialist office for him making me feel like a bad mom, because I hold back foods that make Trevor wakes up repeatedly at night (like worse than as a newborn)- His theory, they don't hold anything back in Europe and their kids are just fine- wow, buddy, that really helps me- how much am I paying you for that expert advice