Wednesday, November 30, 2011

Visit with Lula


On Friday, Daddy's cousin, Tim and his family came to Mimi and Grandpas for a visit. Gwen and Cole had fun playing with Lula. The highlight of the visit was at the end when Grandpa brought out a toy that sang and danced to The Chicken Dance. All of the kids had fun playing with it and dancing :) We had a very fun visit and are planning to hang out again around New Years.

More Thanksgiving 2011 Photos





Thanksgiving 2011





On Thanksgiving morning we took the kids out of the house to burn off some energy at a local McDonalds. In the past when we have gone to playland places (McDonalds, CFA), they seem to want to engage in the activity but usually end up sitting with mommy and daddy and watching the other children. This morning was different in that the place was empty and somehow they got the courage to climb to the top and explore in the tubes! It took a lot of encouraging but both kids had a BLAST! I'm curious to see what they will do the next time we go to an indoor playland!

Thanksgiving afternoon was spent at Mimi and Grandpas house. We visited with Maggie, Kevin, Carol, Matthew, and Grandmommie. The kids did very well considering they had been inside all day (and cole refused to nap). They took to Matthew as they did last year and enjoyed reading and playing with him. The food was delicious as usual and Cole and Gwen enjoyed a couple of slices of birthday cake. They lit up when everyone sang to them and were VERY into opening presents!

The Bug Box





The Tuesday evening before Thanksgiving we packed the minivan and loaded the kids for a trip to VA. The big kids watched movies and Reid slept which meant a nice, relaxing ride for Mommy and Daddy. On Wednesday, we took the kids to The Bug Box to explore. We had been there last year but the kids were much more into it this time. Cole took to Bob the iguana right away and Gwen had many questions about the insects. They did have a difficult time using their "indoor voices" but who could blame them when there were so many cool insects to see?

Reid Update



Our little Reid has been having a blast learning from his big brother and sister. He refuses to lye down because he wants to see exactly what they are up to! They have had some rough moments recently with him but overall are pretty gentle and helpful with him. Yesterday I looked in the rear view mirror and Reid was holding Gwen's finger and Cole's finger at the same time. So SWEET! On 11/16/11, he decided that he was done with the pack and play in mommy and daddy's room and slept in his big boy crib for the entire night (waking every few hours to nurse, of course). Unfortunately, our little man has been having a difficult time with his cradle cap and eczema. I took him to the pedi yesterday because it seems to be getting worse and Dr. Rice thinks he may be allergic to milk, soy or peanuts (his best guess is milk protein). They had to take Reid's blood (sad, sad baby) and are supposed to call us in the next few days to talk about the results. In the meantime, I've been trying to avoid milk products but it seems like everything we have in our house contains milk!


Christmas Tree Tagging 2011





On Sunday, November 20, 2011, we went down the road to tag our christmas tree. I cannot believe this will be our fourth Christmas in PA! The kids looked so big following daddy around with their sticks to search for the perfect tree. I remember last year we debated taking the stroller just because they were not able to walk very far. We took our annual pic by the train and our tagged tree. We're looking forward to picking up the tree soon as the kids are anxious to decorate it!

Tuesday, November 29, 2011

Thomas the Train






For the kids birthday, we went as a family to Thomas the Train. We met the Michalski (Deanna, Marcin, Gavin, Kaleb & Jakob) family there and had a blast! The highlight was the ride on Thomas. Cole's face lit up every time he saw Thomas come into the station. He chatted the entire time we rode Thomas. Gwen happily snuggled with Daddy and Reid cooed at Mommy. Afterwards we rode a small train and the kids did hand operated carts with Daddy. On the way home we stopped in Reading to visit Aunt Yvonne and Uncle Gene. The big kids and daddy napped in the car for a little while which allowed Aunt Yvonne and Uncle Gene to hang out with Mommy and Reid. Reid was in a GREAT mood. He cooed, smiled and talked the entire time! Afterwards the big kids came in and Cole enjoyed reading Dinotrux with Uncle Gene while Gwen ate them out of house and home! We had such a wonderful day. We are definitely finding it much easier to do these types of activities now that the twins are older and a little more flexible as far as napping goes.

Gwen and Cole's 3 Year Appointment

On Thursday, 11/17/11, I took all of the kids to Dr. Rices office for G & C's 3 year well visit. Cole weighed in at 26.5 lbs and Gwen was 25 lbs. They were big kids and did not fuss at all. Cole had a difficult time sitting still to get his blood pressure taken but successfully completed the task the 3rd time around! Dr. Rice played with the kids to examine them at the same time. They proudly sat next to each other and were very engaging-- giggling and chatting with each other the entire time. Dr. Rice was happy with their development and I was glad that they were on the growth chart, though barely in the 3rd percentile for weight! Dr. Rice said that we should push Cole a little more on the potty training front and that we would "have to be more stubborn than our stubbornist child". Fun times ahead!

Friday, November 18, 2011

Happy 3rd Birthday, Gwen and Cole!




On 11/16, after school I took a small lunch and cupcakes for the kids to share with their friends (Madelyn, Alexa, Scarlett & Sawyer) in celebration of their birthday.

Toddlerisms...



I'm sitting here trying to think of some of the funny things that Cole and Gwen have said recently...

1. When Gwen wants me to velcro her hat together she says: "Mama please scarecrow my hat".
2. Cole has been very focused on counting and telling us when someone or something is missing. He definitely likes things in order which daddy attributes to his engineer side ;)
3. Cole is still stuck on Reid being "the tutest baby in the ever!" I don't want to correct him because i think that is the "tutest little expression ever"!

More to come, i'm sure...

4. Daddy and Mommy have been giggling at Cole's Shower Valet Service recently. Every morning he runs into our room when Andy is about to take a shower and insists on opening the door and escorting Andy into the shower. He then runs out of the bathroom and promptly closes the bathroom door.
5. Apparently both kids think Andy needs lots of pampering. During bath time they often scrub down his legs, brush his leg hair and wash his feet (see pic)
6. Who knew running around in diaper/underwear and trying to pounce on a balloon would be so much fun? (see pic) This activity lasted a good 30 minutes...
7. The other day I was going to use the bathroom. Gwen followed me (no privacy when you have two toddlers!). She then closed the door so that the two of us were in the room while saying: "Mommy, I close door so you have privacy".

DE Trip and Granny's Birthday Party

Granny turned 93 on 11/11/11! To celebrate we went to Aunt Terrie and Uncle Milt's house on Sunday 11/13. First we visited Nana and Pap Pap in Delaware. Nana was up and moving around and in good spirits. She seemed to enjoy the company and the kids were thrilled to see her and Pap Pap (this was the longest period of time they had gone without seeing each other). Granny's party was fun and the kids were very well behaved. They raided Jeff and Laura's old toys and enjoyed racing the cars around. We mainly hung out on the porch to give G & C some room to play. Gwen was still wiping her nose but this time with Pap Pap's extra soft hanky!


I'm thankful for the little things...

Fun times...

1. Kids had another round of colds. Thankfully everything was minor and Reid only had a snotty nose. As you can tell from the pic below, Gwen is a chronic nose wiper...

2. Kids had a blast trying to pop the blue balloon. They ran around the house for at least 20 minutes jumping on it and on each other. Thankfully noone got hurt.

3. Reid has been enjoying riding facing outward in the Moby. He is too nosy to be in the ring sling newborn carry but still sleeps there if i can get him settled. Thankfully he still likes to be warn because it allows me to have my hands free to help the older kids.



Week of November 7th in Review

This week we enjoyed lots of playtime. We also cooked up our pumpkin seeds (see pics). Both kids are smiling but they really didnt' care to eat the seeds. heh. Gwen also discovered some large giraffe toys (a giraffe family, according to her) in her rice bin. She decided to take them for a ride in the coupe car and has been playing with them ever since! On Wed. 11/9, i created an easy scavenger hunt for the kids and a few of their friends. We had fun looking for everything at The Rose Gardens.


Reid's 2 Month Appointment





On Monday, 11/7/11, I took Reid to Dr. Rices for his 2 month check up. Our chunker weighed in at 11 lbs, 10 oz and was 23 inches long! He barely fits on the boppy pillow when i nurse him at this point! He LOVES smiling and cooing. Also, he follows Gwen and Cole around with his eyes. He is wearing size 2 diapers now and mostly in 3-6 month clothing. Everyone who sees him comments on his chunky cheeks and how alert he is. Recently he started going to bed earlier (6:30ish) and is still sleeping 3-4 hour stretches. One night he slept for 6 hours but I didn't sleep much because i kept waking up waiting for him to fuss!

Gwen and Cole's 3rd Birthday Party




On Sunday November 6, 2011 we had a small kids party for G & C. In attendance were the Nemitz Family (Abe, Sarah, Riley and Jonah) and the Wachter Family (Emmalyn, Noah and Lena). Miss Erin came to entertain the younger crowd. Cole proudly recited the entire Hush Little Digger book and Gwen was glowing when Erin read a bunny story. Afterwards everyone did a cute craft and then played. The balloons were a big hit! At one point all of the kids were running in a big circle in the family room. The funniest part was when Jonah got stuck in the middle of the circle and couldn't get out! Gwen and Cole enjoyed opening their presents and blowing out the candles on their birthday cake.

Sadly, we had to postpone the kids other party due to mom being in the hospital after having a heart attack. Not an easy week around here but it was nice to see the kids smile and celebrate with them.

Mimi and Grandpa Visit



Mimi and Grandpa came to visit the weekend of November 5th. We all went to the Lehigh Valley Zoo for the rescheduled Boo at the Zoo event. Gwen and Cole enjoyed dressing up and did well trick or treating. We also carved a pumpkin. The kids had fun helping to scoop the guts out :)


I have my fingers crossed that Grandpa has a few good pics because i'm just realizing now that I didn't take many :(