Tuesday, November 29, 2011

What a Great Feeling

Michael has been working hard on learning to read and letter sounds at school and at home. We have been playing games with words to identify the first letter here and he has been working on it at school during center time and with his teacher.

I opened his folder when he got home from school today and this note was in there.



I was so proud of him and excited that he is learning to read. It's so wonderful watching him put the pieces together to learn this new skill. I am excited to see how reading is going to change his whole world!

Dental Issues

Today Todd and I had our semi-annual dental checkups. He had a great visit. I was not as lucky. I have been very fortunate to not have any problems with my teeth. 6 months ago, I had a cavity and got my tooth filled. The dentist said that I now have 4 cavities. 3 of them are in between my teeth and were only caught on the x-ray. So I will be heading to the dentist in the new year to get my teeth filled. I can't wait to spend some quality time with the dentist!

Thursday, November 24, 2011

Things to Thankful For

This year I am thankful for many of the same things I have been thankful for in the past but it's always good to give thanks again. They include:

- a wonderful and supportive husband and father who goes above and beyond

- two beautiful children who mean the world to me

- a comfortable home to live in

- extended families who are involved in our lives

- good health and happiness

I know that there are so many things that I am forgetting but I am thankful for the life that I am living every day.

Wednesday, November 23, 2011

Sunday, November 20, 2011

Uncle Day

Todd let me sleep in this morning. When I woke up, the kids were coming upstairs to get dressed. Uncle Sidney had come over to see if they wanted to go to the pond in our neighborhood to feed the ducks. They couldn't wait to go. We gathered up some old bread and they headed down there.

When they got back, they couldn't wait to tell Todd and I what they had done. They collected leaves, fed the ducks, played on the playground and went for a walk in the woods. Michael even told me that Uncle Sidney climbed up on top of a rock that was super tall. He said he wasn't big enough to climb up there.



Tonight, Todd got a text that Alex, our brother-in-law, was going to be coming through Columbia for a work trip and wanted to stop by. He got here a little after 5:00 and stayed for dinner and hanging out with the kids. Michael was excited to see him but Katie took a few minutes to warm up because she had just woken up from her nap. Uncle Alex offered Katie a tortilla chip and all was good between them.

The kids had fun with the surprise visit from Uncle Alex. Unfortunately, he had to leave right before bed to head on to Georgia. The kids climbed up on his shoulders and thought that was so much fun.



I feel that Katie and Michael are very lucky to have such awesome and fun uncles. It's such a special relationship and I am glad they have it.

Monday, November 14, 2011

Pajamas

Michael and Katie love pajamas. If it was up to them, we would wear them all day every day, especially Michael.

All summer long, Michael has been asking when he can wear his zipper pajamas again (footed one piece Pjs). Of course, when it is over 100 degrees outside, the last thing he needs to be wearing is a pair of fleece pajamas. He has been so excited since the weather has gotten a bit colder recently as he can finally wear his zipper PJs.

Now Katie is taking after him. If he asks to wear the zipper 'jamas, then she wants to wear them too. The only problem with this is that most of Katie's pajamas are two piece without feet. She only has 2 or 3 zipper 'jamas and gets upset if you tell her that they need to be washed.

I love seeing the kids in these pajamas. Even though they are getting big so fast, there is something about the footed pajamas that makes it seem like they are little for just a little longer.

Monday, November 7, 2011

Potty Training Pitfalls

We are several months into potty training Katie. I would say that she is 75% trained at this point. Unfortunately, the 25% that is not complete seems to be the most difficult and keeps her from getting to 100%.

She is wearing underwear all day and pees on the potty regularly. She even wears underwear for naps and wakes up dry about 60% of the time. For a while, she wanted to wear underwear to bed at night but she was waking up wet almost every night, multiple times a night. So we went back to pullups for now.

The main obstacle seems to be using the potty for #2. For whatever reason, she does not want to do that on there. If you catch her in the act and take her to the bathroom, she will stop and wait until you are busy doing something else. I have actually followed her around for more than one day and the minute that I leave her alone, that's when it happens. To be honest, I am tired of changing dirty underwear. Every 10 times or so, I want to throw the towel in. Of course, I can't bear to do this after all of the work that we have put in.

I keep hoping that one day things will just click and that's all it will take. I have tried giving candy, telling her she can go to the store to get something she picks out but it doesn't work. Now that we have been at this for a while, I wonder if it was too early to start. One day I will look back and wonder why it seemed so hard. I know she will get it before she heads off to kindergarten (I hope it doesn't take that long).

Wednesday, November 2, 2011

Everybody Dance Now

Michael has a toy car that plays the above title song and moves by itself in time to the music. The kids seem to think that this toy is so entertaining. It doesn't hold the same appeal for me as it bangs into the wall and various furniture items. I want to get rid of it whenever it makes an appearance. However, the kids can have so much fun with it. Today was one of those days. It made my heart sing to watch the kids dance and laugh with the car. Maybe I will let it stay around for a little while longer.

Tuesday, November 1, 2011

Trick or Treat

Our neighborhood had trick or treating last night from 6-9pm. The kids were so excited to get ready to go out. Katie started asking about when she could put her costume on as soon as she got up in the morning. Michael was ready to go as soon as he got home from school. We were waiting on Todd to get home from work.

One of Todd's co-workers and his sister were coming over with her kids to go out with Katie and Michael. Two of Michael's classmates from last year also met up with us when we headed out. Our friends brought over their golf cart limo and we rode it around the neighborhood. There are quite a few hills in our neighborhood and while it's fine walking to the trick or treating, it's kind of rough on the way back. It was nice to ride in style as the golf cart was decorated for Halloween!

The kids had fun. Of course, the boys ran from house to house while the girls were much more deliberate in their quest for candy. They were both dressed as princesses and acting like it by not getting too rowdy. Katie didn't go to as many houses as Michael did but yet it seemed like she had as much, if not more, candy.

After trick or treating for almost 2 hours, we came back to the house where the kids ate cupcakes and looked through their candy stash. Everyone left shortly after 8:00. Katie and Michael ate some cereal and Michael actually asked to go to bed, which is a rare occurrence for him. I guess something finally tired him out!