Growling kids

Lillian loves to growl. I think part of it is that so many people love to growl at her in order to get her to growl back so she gets lots of attention when she growls. She and Alan will sometimes have long conversations growling back and forth before she bursts into laughter. Here are the kids growling at each other today.

Lillian can Crawl!!

Lillian crawled yesterday! In the morning she was trying hard to crawl and by afternoon she had gotten it.

Morning before she had figured it out.

Afternoon crawling!!

Standing Lilly

Lilly hasn't quite figured out how to crawl yet, but she is apparently now able to pull herself up into a standing position if she has a support at just the right height... like, say, the edge of her crib.  

The other day I lay her down in there for a minute while I left the room, and when I came back she was standing up against the edge and so proud of it.  She's still not great at remaining upright though, as you can see in the video after the jump...

Auntie Amy's Visit

Auntie Amy came to visit us for Memorial Day! We had a great time filled with baseball and walks and fun. Unfortunately on the last day poor Amy woke up feeling awful. A trip to the doctors discovered that she had strep throat. Luckily the airline let her move her ticket and she stayed an extra day sleeping and trying to feel better. Below pictures are from before the sickness came upon us.

Memorial Day 2014I

On Memorial Day we were lucky enough to have two sisters and a Joe come visit to make the day even more special. Alan and I did a lot of cleaning in the morning - moving boxes and clearing out the basement to prepare for Larry and The Boys to start work. The afternoon kicked off with two amazing kid naps and then turned into a wonderful, warm, sprinkler/pool filled day of eating grilled foods and snacks. Simon had fresh cherries for the first time (loved them) and had watermelon again (still loved it) and Lillian had beets for the first time (loved them). 

Happy baby, happy auntie.

Simon threw me a ball and it caught my ear - I didn't hear him tell me he was throwing it.

They played nicely in the pool, so long as she didn't touch him.

I can stand!!

The sprinkler is coming!

Catch - but Simon prefers not to stand on the grass.

Farmers market morning.

Saturday morning of Memorial Day we went to the Lincoln Park Farmers Market. Hopefully we go often this summer as it was a blast! We went to the zoo and walked the pond and did some people watching. Lillian practiced standing like her brother and Simon practiced driving a tractor. 

Simon Playing Baseball (May 2014)

Simon is very good at baseball for an almost three year old. This isn't just a doting mother, take a look at these hits!

Sleeping Lillian

During Gaga and Papa's visit Lillian was back in our room in the baby-tent for the night and in her crib for naps. She usually sleeps with Little Piglet and her Purple Hippo Lillian blanket. Here are some sleeping baby pictures just because.

This girl is almost mobile!

Lillian at almost 7 months is revving up to go! She isn't crawling quite yet, but can move from sitting to belly to crawling/rocking position and back up to sitting. Watch out world, here she comes!

Weekend fun: Grandparent Basques Visit 5/15-5/19/2014

Gaga and Papa came to visit on Thursday last week. They helped Colleen watch the kids on Thursday. Luckily they were here all day on Friday to watch the kids because Jenn got sick (poor Jenn) so had to call in sick. The Grandparents were probably totally worn out by two days of kid watching, but they hid it well. It helped that we always go to bed at 8:30 anyway. We had a rough week(end) with Simon - both in his attitude and his sudden potty training regression. (Every day had at least one accident.) That coupled with the weather prevented much outdoor activity Thursday through Saturday. By Sunday we were all stir crazy so went out to the park and played some baseball. I'll include a video of game time on a new post, but there are some pictures after the jump as well. Even though it might not have been the most fun trip for Ken and Cindy, it was a weekend we really needed and appreciated the help!

Auntie Colleen's Pictures

Auntie Colleen watched the kids last week on Tuesday and Thursday and sent a couple fun pictures. Love that last one of my little Eddie Bauer Model!

Simon Says Part 3

Simon: Someday I'll be old like Mama, with big legs!

Daddy: Simon, please leave Mama alone while she's going potty.  She needs privacy.
Simon: Oh ok sure.  [opens the bathroom door and yells in] Mama, do you need privacy??

Simon: Where were you, Daddy?
Daddy: I was upstairs, trying to put Lillian to sleep
Simon: [hears Lillian, still upstairs, start to cry again] Oh, that's ok Daddy.  Keep trying, you'll get better.

Daddy: This summer when it gets hot you can play in the sprinkler again
Simon: [confused] What is a sprinkler?
Daddy: Oh you don't remember?  It's a hose that sprays water in the backyard, and you can run around in it outside
Simon: [suddenly very excited] Can... can I pee in it??

Simon: I have to go potty

Daddy: Ok, we'll be home soon so you need to hold it.

Simon: Ok [grabs his crotch]

Daddy: You don't need to actually hold it with your hand, just please don't go to the bathroom in your pants

Simon: [looking confused] But... I don't have a bathroom in my pants!

Simon: Let's play with the doctor kit! You can be the doctor

Daddy: Why don't you be the doctor? 

Simon: Because I'm not a believable doctor

Simon: I think farts are just poops talking

Simon: My nose is like a chip... it is crunchy

Daddy: Simon, today we're going to go walk around in the woods.  Does that sound fun?

Simon: [thinks for a minute] Ok but can we milk a cow there?

Daddy: Um, I don't think will be a cow, but we might see some other animals

Simon: Well I think we should keep walking until we find a cow

Simon: Can we watch another one, just because you love me? 

Lillian Standing on Piano Toy

Lillian has started pulling up and practicing standing so we pulled out the stand up toy that Simon loved so much. I remembered there being a picture of him on it so I went and found it - and lo, both kids at the same age playing with the same toy.

Lillian standing at six and a half months.

Simon Standing at 7 months

The blog post about Simon standing at the same toy when he was about six and a half months, roughly the same age. More standing of Lillian after the jump.

Mother's Day 2014

For Mother's Day this year we went to Waterfall Glen (about 50 minutes away) and had a family picnic and a mini-hike on Saturday. It was a lovely day and a great time. We got off to a very late start because Lillian's normally 30 minute 9AM nap turned into an epic 2.5 hour nap (we woke her at 11:15). We had a little trouble finding a place to park as well so we didn't get to hike to the waterfalls, but we did to a short hike and got to spend some time resting in the sun. It was a great day and we are looking forward to going back and seeing the waterfalls sometime when we have an earlier start.

Sunday we spent the day at home, played some baseball, made some cookies with my new mixer attachment and took a walk down to Scooters for some custard. It was a great family weekend!

This is me hiking. Lillian is passed out in the wrap.

Looking for critters.

Simon LOVED the hand pump.

Stacey's Last Day

Get ready for sadness... Stacey's last day was Thursday.

We love, love, loved Stacey, but she was looking for part time and we really need a full time person. The two part time people was getting hard for everyone's schedule. Just about the time we were starting to talk about what we were going to do, Stacey got a call from her previous family asking if she could come back to them for two days a week. It was meant to be.

On a happier note, Jenn is going back to full time for the summer starting when her classes are over in two weeks. Until then, Auntie Colleen is going to fill in for Tuesdays and Thursdays. When Simon starts school in the fall, Jenn will go back to school, too, and start at a job in the photography lab at her school. We will then look for a full time nanny that can stay with Lillian for the next couple of years until she starts pre-school.

He was hiding, she found him!

Art and smiles

Simon and Stacey made a zoo map

He is quite proud.

Lillian likes it too...

Poor Sick Lillian

Jenn noticed on Monday that Lillian was pulling on her right ear, but she sometimes does that for comfort so when Jenn mentioned it to me I looked for it but wasn't worried. Looking back I should have connected that to the fact that Lillian has just been sleeping terribly. She was up a ton on Monday night and again on Tuesday night - only sleeping for 2-3 hours stretches. On Wednesday Jenn mentioned again that Lillian was pulling on her ear and I made an appointment for Lillian to go into the doctor's office. Colleen was coming by anyway to help make a cake for Stacey (last day cake) and she was awesome and came early so she could take the little one to the doctor. 

Lillian has an ear infection in each ear. Poor kid. We gave her Tylenol and her antibiotics. She had a hard time settling down for the evening, when the Tylenol kicked in she was so much happier she just wanted to play!  When she finally did get to sleep around 9pm she slept better than she has in days, only woke up once.

Hopefully she starts feeling better as quickly as the doctors expect her to. She should be feeling better by Friday, though obviously will stay on antibiotics for the full 10 days.

Cooking with Michael Jackson

Alan decided he and Simon were going to make an apple caramel crumble today. While headed to the store they hear Michael Jackson on the radio and so it was Michael Jackson that was on while they cooked. Simon even learned the thriller dance. I don't know if my tummy will be up for eating sweets, but it sure smells delicious!