May 01
One year ago today we held you for the first time and were overwhelmed with how lucky we were to have such a perfect baby girl! On year later you:
- are trying to walk
- are learning new words
- are playing with Elijah
- will play independently
- love to dance
- can climb
- are sneaky
- smile easily
- love to cuddle
- still have eczema
- are night weaned
- love broccoli
- love chicken
- refused to every eat baby food
- can drink from a straw
- have a few signs down pat
- is very tolerant of Elijah's games where you are the dog...
Grace and I have had our first argument. It went like this:
me: Look Grace, it's a plane.
Grace: bird?
me: Well, it flies like a bird, but it's a plane.
Grace: bird.
me: It's a plane sweetie.
Grace: Bird!
me: It's a plane.
Grace: BIRD!
I'm pretty sure that I lost. Of course, she was riding in the car with Jerry and said, "plane." (punk!)
Anyway, Happy Birthday Baby Girl! I hope that you are as happy with us! We sure love you!!!
May 02
We had cake!
and more cake...
and more cake
and played
and ate
All surrounded by friends! It was really windy, but warm. Overall a pretty darn good birthday!!
May 18
I wrote a huge entry about Grace's Well Child Check Up, but stupid Windows Live Writer froze and it got lost in cyber world... sooo the gist:
Grace weighs in at 20 pounds (25-50%), is 29.5 inches tall (75%), and I can never remember her head size, but it's in the 50%. She is all around well. She does have low iron so we are on a Multi-vitamin with iron for her. Her eczema is really bad, so we (after lots of talking!) broke down and got her a steroid creme. I now feel like a total jerk for not getting it for her six months ago. Overnight her eczema is gone. We can only use it 5-7 days at a time and then have to take her off it for 4-5 days, but keep her lathered in the thickest lotion one has ever seen. So far, GREAT! So, I've made peace with it. Two days after her appointment Grace took many independent steps, while on the ferry on vacation, she took off! She is officially a walker now!
Okay VACATION!!!! WAHOO!! (This is a REALLY long entry...but it's our whole vacation...so sorry in advance!)
We went to the Outer Banks hanging out in Kitty Hawk, to be more specific. Here's how our week went (I will add an album of our week shortly!):
Saturday: Got up bright and early to be on the road by 7:00 a.m. We had to be at the ferry gate by 10:00 and made it there by 9:52. Luckily we had pre-ordered our ticket as the ferry was full and if you didn't have a ticket, you were out of luck... or at least stuck waiting for the next ferry 3 hours away! Elijah thought the ferry was the cat's meow and we spent the 2.5 hours wandering around talking about how the waves were generated, what a life buoy was, and why channel markers are VERY important! We also saw a bunch of HUGE jelly fish (to which he informed me that it was okay, because the turtles will eat them...thanks Diego!) and some dolphins. Grace found her sea legs and loved wandering around in the air conditioned part of the boat. Afterward walking so much, Jerry and Grace took a nap in the car while Elijah and I explored the ferry yet some more! Once we got off the first ferry, we raced to the next one. This one was only 30 minutes. So we hung out in the car. Then it was a 1.5 hour drive to Kitty Hawk. After unloading the car, Elijah, Grace, and I went to the pool and the playground on the grounds while Jerry went grocery shopping.
Sunday: We lazed around and explored the grounds a little more. We went to the main rec area and checked e-mail and played around. After lunch and a nap, we went to the beach for some afternoon playing. Elijah got to stay up a little later and watch Finding Nemo (thanks for the movies Kristie!!!)
Monday: It was rainy and chilly. So we decided to hit the aquarium. Elijah was excited to see the "diving boys" in the tank and when we arrived we rushed to the big tank. The question/answer time with the divers was over, which actually worked in our favor. All the big groups were gone, but the divers were still in the tank cleaning. So we got a front row seat to see the divers and the HUGE sharks. I'm not sure you could pay me enough to be in there with those sharks. Obviously the sharks knew what it was all about, they seemingly would swim by where all the people were standing and SMILE, showing off all 8703245 teeth they have! My kids were FACINATED! They loved it. So after the divers finished cleaning, we went back to see all we had missed. It was a good day. Elijah and Grace were awesome! So we stopped by the gift shop and Elijah got a souvenir of a truck with sharks on it! cost: $23
Tuesday: The rain was gone, the sun was out and the temp was perfect at 67. We hit the Roanoke Island Festival Park. This is by far the best day we had! This park has a replica of the Elizabeth II ship. Complete with actors in New World garb and speaking in Old English-ish style. This is all well and good, but I always don't know how to react... Anyway, we had a nice visit with the boat, but that wasn't the end of it! We walked a little way down a forest path and into an English settlement with tents and a blacksmith. We were given a tour of the tents and then got penny nails made for us from the apprentice black smith. (Fun fact: 100 nails cost a penny then...sounds cheap... not so much... one penny then is worth 100 DOLLARS today. So nails were only used to hang doors.) So THEN we walk up the trail a little more and there is a GREAT hands on museum. We were greeted here by a museum worker who was thought that Elijah pretending to be a puppy was cute and totally played along. She guided us through the whole museum, personally. This museum ROCKED! There were dress up clothes, boats to climb on, tents to walk through, a pirate that told funny stories from his ship, a general store, and a house. There were interesting things for the parents to read and no one was saying, "NO DON'T TOUCH THAT!!!" In fact, there were little hand prints and foot prints that led through the museum for kids to follow and to know that it was indeed ENCOURAGED to put their little grubby paws on things! THEN we went out to a fossil digging area where you are encouraged to dig and sort through dirt to find sharks teeth and other various things. Apparently there was even more to see, but we had to get the kiddos fed and napped. The pass is good for two days and next time we will go back the second day for sure! It was worth every penny! cost: $16 (kids under 5 are FREE!!!)
Wednesday: Again, the weather was sunny and warm. So we packed the kids up and headed up the coast to Corolla to the Currituck Lighthouse. After a brief screw up in directions from yours truly we arrived at the lighthouse. Elijah and I decided to climb to the top. All well and good in thought... not so much in reality. First, I forget how much I really don't like places that are high up. Secondly, I had a 3 year old to worry about in addition, which was rather nerve wracking. Walking up the stairs you can see through to below. There is a space in between each stair and I was left wondering if it was indeed big enough for Elijah to slip through and down many stories... It didn't help that it goes around and around, making me not only wary of the height, but also rather dizzy. But it was fine. Elijah was GREAT going up. He climbed all on his own (mostly with me holding onto his hand.) We stopped at each landing that had a window and looked out. When we got to the top we waved to Jerry and Grace. Then we walked around the top. Elijah was excited and wanted to stand on the bottom railing. This left me wondering why the hell there was no plexiglass covering the whole top of the lighthouse. So, of course, when I tried to pull him back, he had a massive breakdown. I explained that it was very dangerous to be that close to the edge and it made mommy VERY nervous. He then decided it was time to go back down and I was more than willing to oblige. Of course, we had to wait for 5 of the slowest people in the world to finish climbing (there is really no room to pass at the top.) Then it was down the lighthouse for us. This started out okay and then Elijah realized that he could see all the way to the bottom and FREAKED out! He got scared. He wanted me to carry him. My legs were already sore from climbing the 8 million stairs to the top, no way was I going to carry him all the way down. So we stopped on a landing and I hugged him and reassured him that it was fine and I would hold his hand. What tickled me was what got him to agree to walk down. I told him we could count the stairs in between each landing. This seemed like a great idea to him and he made it all the way to the next to the last landing, where he suddenly declared (very loudly) that he had to pee! Screw the tired legs, I scooped him up, waited for some dazed looking children to hurry the hell up the stairs and ran him down the stairs, stopping only to pick up a sticker that said we climbed to the top, and ran him to the bathroom, where he peed in the toilet without incident! We then walked back to Jerry and Grace and I went in to the gift shop and got a little snow globe for Elijah. I was very proud of him! We took a stroll out to the sound and then headed for some food and back to the condo for some naps. cost: $12 (including admission to the lighthouse and souvenir)
Thursday: Warm, sunny, and WINDY! We headed to the Wright Brother Memorial. I have to say, that this is not a great place to take kids. Well, I shouldn't say that...it's not a great museum to take kids. Elijah wanted to see the big plane. They were giving a lecture where the big plane was... we had to leave the area, Elijah broke down. BUT I got him excited by (foolishly) coercing him into a race to the top of the monument. So, once he agreed, I had to actually do it! SO, Elijah and I raced to the top of the monument. I am still feeling the soreness in my thighs from the lighthouse climb and the shin splints from running up a big-ass hill...sigh... Anyway, it was fun. Even more windy at the top. But great view. After hanging out up there for a bit (read, catching my breath) we RAN down the hill to meet Jerry and Grace at the airplane sculpture. This is where you should go if you bring children here. The kids can climb on the plane and hang on the figure and all around get all the sillies out. In fact, had I known it was back there, we may have forgone the museum all together. Though there are some interesting things in there and SOME hands on stuff, but not a lot. So the day redeemed itself at the end. cost: $14 (including a 7 day pass to the park (wish we had known this beforehand as well. We would have gotten it at the beginning of the week and gone a couple more times for the kids to play) and a souvenir.)
Friday: This was our last day on the islands. What better way to spend the day than climbing up Jockey's Ridge. The climb is tedious and there is no easy way to get up on top. Don't be fooled. But I think it's worth it. You climb up these huge dunes and really see how thin these islands are. From the top you can see the sound and the beach. And regardless that there were three school groups there, you can completely feel very isolated. We took some sand toys up. This is where people hang glide as well. We happened to be there on the first day of a hang gliding festival. Unfortunately, Elijah got antsy so we only got to see some practice flights as they tested where the best take off place would be. Some of the high schoolers that were there were sliding down the dunes. Elijah wanted to slide down SO much. So I thought, what the heck. I walked down in front of him and since he didn't have anything to slide down on except for his tush, he scootched down the whole way. But he thought he was something else! He smiled the whole time and laughed! So it was good. At the bottom, he wanted to go back and do it again, but with bribes of going to the beach, he left willingly enough. cost: free!
Saturday: Our trip home was uneventful (thankfully!) We drove all the way back and for this I'm thankful. 1) it is really hard to schedule the long ferry ride. If you don't make it you are stuck for 3 hours and that's saying the next ferry isn't booked. You can only get on and off of Okracoke Island by boat. 2) it was raining and rough water...not so much for Erin. So we drove. It's only about 5 hours, but that's a bit of a trip with kids and only a few rest stops. Nevertheless, it was fine. Elijah entertained us the last leg of the trip with made up songs about: bedtime, bears, a twinkle twinkle little star remix, good and bad dinosaurs, mama and dadu raccoons, peeing and pooping. He also made up some stories that he "read" from some construction paper that he had in his little pack (can I just say this was a handy little investment and I filled it with things for him to do including: coloring books, chalk, crayons, dry erase markers, books, lacing cards, and toys! Got one for Grace too!)
Overall VERY good vacation. Busy, but you have to be with kids or they get bored and then you go crazy. We also utilized the resort's indoor pool a few times, as well as their video rentals. The costs I included did not included the MANY times we ate out, but I thought that we did A LOT of stuff for not a lot of money! Best kind of vacation!!
May 24
my folks left yesterday morning. They arrived last Sunday for a visit. It was a quick adjustment to come home from vacation then to dive into hostess, but my folks stayed at a hotel this visit and this allowed for a little more downtime in the evening and waking up time in the morning. Unfortunately, the weather wasn't as nice as it could have been, but it's all good. We hung around the house on Monday. Tuesday we had soccer, so mom and dad played with Elijah and Grace for the morning. Right before we left for soccer mom and I went to get the right sized bolts for the baby bike seat. Wednesday was a HUGE day. Elijah had his first dentist appointment. I was very nervous since he would NOT open his mouth for the doctor at his 3 year old well child check. I also thought that they would simply look at his teeth and count them and make sure everything was okay. HE DID GREAT! I was SO proud!! I seriously almost cried! not only did he let them look at his teeth, he let them polish them, and floss them! We decided to just bring him to our dentist instead of a pediatric dentist because of insurance and convenience. They said that if there were any problems then they would refer us to a pediatric dentist, but his teeth were perfect! He got to choose two toys from the treasure chest and got a new toothbrush. My folks then took him down to a local cafe while I had my teeth cleaned. Turns out that I had a cavity. But the scheduled me in for 8 the next morning. So Thursday I went in and had the filling, then I went to the cafe until about 9:15. At 9:30 I had an appointment to tour the preschool where we may send Elijah. We are looking for a year from August. But I want to start looking now so we can start putting money in Jerry's flex spending account at work. This one is in a church about 10 minutes from our house. It's 9-12 (or 1 if we pay an extra fee per month) 5 days a week. Our biggest thing is to get him comfy around teachers and other peers. They do a lot of learning through play which is a big deal for us. I'm excited for him, and a little sad since it means my little guy is growing up. Thursday was also our 9th anniversary! Friday morning was spent at the beach. Mostly because it was the first day that it wasn't freezing cold or raining. My daughter has no fear! This child LOVES the water. We had to bring her out after about 10 minutes because it wasn't THAT warm yet, but she was fascinated. And her confidence wore off on Elijah a little bit. He came into the water as well. I decided, though, that it would be really hard to take them together on my own. So it will be a rare day that we go by ourselves. Not that the beach is that fun without at least another adult. So we got back, ate lunch, and I sent the kiddos off to nap while I got ready for an actual DATE! Jerry and I went to see Angels and Demons while mom and dad took the kiddos to a local free family concert. We met up afterward for dinner and ice cream. Elijah did not fall asleep until 10:00!!! And then woke up at 6:45 on Saturday...WTF? SO anyway, with grouchy toddler in tow we met mom and dad for breakfast before they hit the road. I got my lawn mowed. Dad weed whacked my back yard. I ALMOST have the pool rid of algae. Overall life is good. We have ordered a new mower, an electric one with a cord. I love our reel mower, but it's already getting SO hot...so this is another option. I really wanted a battery powered one, but the one I want is REALLY expensive, so this is something that we know how to use and it will be easier than the reel mower and still low emissions. So hopefully it will all be good! Our garden is looking better. It rained so much that all the nutrients in the soil washed out, so we fertilized and sprayed the worm poop on there a few times and it's looking much better. I'll get pics soon! okay... I'm going to go enjoy the fact that Jerry has an extra day off this weekend and watch a totally brain candy movie!!!
May 31
but satisfaction brought him back right? I hope the same is true for little boys. Elijah has entered the question stage. This is all well and good, I really try to encourage questions asked and finding answers... but there really should be a limited on questions asked before 9 in the morning!
It's actually all good. Here is a sampling of the questions we have been getting lately:
- What's that? (pointing to random things... most frustrating is while in the car and I can't see what he's pointing to... the question increases in volume and intensity until I, thinking my head is going to explode risk the lives of myself and our children to see what the hell he is pointing to only to find that whatever he was pointing to is gone since he started pointing to it 5 minutes ago.)
- What's that train/plane/truck/car/bird/bug/tree (you get the idea) does? (Yes, the grammar is bad, I try to restate the question correctly, but he doesn't get it...yet... sigh, this question seems to be easy right? Not so much. I have tried saying the following, "What do you think it does?" (response: I don't know mommy, what it does?) "It takes people places." (response: WHERE?) and finally, "I don't know!" (response: why you not know mommy...) sigh... also, Air Force One does touch and go practice once a month here. I made the mistake of telling Elijah that it was Barack Obama's plane, so through in the mix of this, "Mommy is that Orock Omama's plane?" "Yes it is." "Where he going?" lather, rinse, repeat....)
- Why? (I ask myself this question often... At least, thus far (KNOCK ON WOOD) it is usually just one why, I try really hard to come up with good answers as to nip the 9835769 whys in the bud, but we'll see...)
- Where does steam/smoke/rain/thunder/lightening come from? (again, try to answer as best I can... have had the Why question follow these...)
- Will you/Gracie/Dadoo play with me? (I love this question, because he really just wants you to sit on the floor with him. But he comes up with the best stories during his playing. You will get dressed up as a fire boy or ride in a plane or build a dumping trash garage, but it's totally worth it! Grace ends up getting distracted within a few minutes. He will also ask me if others can play with him. I tell him it's not up to me. He needs to ask that person. This is probably my favorite question.)
This stage is definitely keeping me on my toes, but I love that he gets it and remembers things we tell him/he sees. At the same time, it makes me a little sad. He's growing up (literally and figuratively) SO quick. He really has only been speaking understandable sentences for a year. It's CRAZY! Sigh... My little guy...
