Thursday, August 16, 2012

"It's like a new car, Mommy"

On July 29, 2012, we decided it was time to try out a new configuration in the minivan.  Our little guy had outgrown his infant carseat so Andy installed his convertible carseat.  Our original plan was to put one of the big kids in the back seat but they both insisted on moving to the way back.  We went with it and they seem to have a little big kid club going on in the way back of the van.  During our first drive they kept saying:  "Mommy, it's like a new car!"

 Reid's first ride in his big boy carseat.
 Matilda has her own spot in the back row.
Since we're on the topic of cars, i figured i would add this pic.  REid has been walking around the yard and likes to push the mini coupe around while waving, of course.

Messy Fun

One night I decided to try out some bath paint that i made with shaving cream and food coloring.  At first Cole and Gwen enjoyed painting with their fingers but within minutes they decided it was much more fun to slather the paint on their hands and paint the entire tub and themselves :)  Reid played on the floor and tried to splash in the cat's water bowl.  






Just some Day to Day Pics

 Reid has been taking some steps on his own recently.  He loves to walk on the kitchen floor and to help Mommy with the laundry.
 Gwen trying on her princess flower girl outfit for Cousin Elizabeth's wedding.
 Um... kids say they "decorated the christmas tree".  Not exactly what i was thinking but it did entertain them while i fed the baby.
 Reid investigating another vent.  He now enjoys throwing his toys into the hole and banging the vent piece on the hardwood floor.
 My little chunker :)

Cole trying on his ring bearer outfit for Cousin Elizabeth's wedding.  the way he's holding his arm/hand he looks like some kind of servant.

Speaking of day to day, i keep wanting to write our general schedule these days so i can look back in a few years and not have to wonder what our days were like so here it is:

6:00/6:30 am- Daddy gets up with kids
7:00 am- Daddy brings all of the kids to wake up Mommy.  Reid starts waving at me and the cats and the big kids jump in the bed.
7:30 am- All kids eat yogurt for breakfast
8:15am- We have been going for a morning walk.  We search for bugs, make graphs of numbers on mailboxes; count cars of different colors; run like race cars and many more fun activities that mommy tries to come up with to convince the kids to go outside and get some energy out first thing in the morning.
9:00 am- Reid has been taking a morning nap regularly for a few months now.  During this time i like to spend some quality time with Gwen and Cole.  We play games, do crafts and recnetly started learning some computer mouse skills
10:15 am- Reid wakes up and we get ready to go on a morning outing
10:30am-12:30 pm- We head out on the town (playgrounds, playdates, storytime, Science Center, Zoo,etc.)
12:30 pm- Lunch.  Reid has been eating some finger foods in addition to enjoying his squeezer baby food.
1:00 pm-3:00 pm- Reid's second nap.  I usually try to convince the big kids to go upstairs for some quiet time during this time.  On a good day they spend 1.5 hours playing upstairs so i can eat, relax and get some housework (usually laundry) done.
3:00 pm- snack
4:00 pm- outdoor activity.  THis is when we usually play in the yard (water table, swingset).  Sometimes neighborhood friends stop by or we go for walks and end up playing with neighbors.
5:30 pm- Daddy comes home.  Reid waves when he sees daddy's car pull into the driveway.  If we are inside he will toddle out to the kitchen to meet daddy and wave at him.
5:45 pm- Dinner.
6:00/6:30 pm- Big kids play with daddy while mommy bathes Reid; nurses him and give him his breathing treatment to go to sleep.
7:00 pm- Big kids have snack and bath
7:30/8:00 pm-On a good night all three kids are sleeping :)
Then Reid wakes up 3-6 times a night and we start the routine all over again the next day...

Sand and Waves in Sea Isle City

So apparently we have a little sea turtle on our hands.  This time when we put Reid down in the sand he crawled as fast as possible towards the water and actually went in the water!  I shot video of this and all you can hear is me screaming:  "Honey, our other kids would not have done this!  This kid is crazy!".  Something tells me that this kid is going to be running towards the water next year at this time!  Cole and Gwen had plenty of fun in the sand but were still very hesitant about hanging out in the water.  






Cape May Zoo and Ocean City Boardwalk

On Saturday, July 21, 2012 it was a little cooler so we decided to go to the Cape May Zoo with Nana and Pap Pap.  Apparently everyone had the same idea because we had never seen so many people at the zoo!  We had fun walking around.  Cole decided he was hungry pretty early on so he and Daddy went to buy him a hotdog which he scarfed down in seconds.  Gwen enjoyed spending time with Nana and her babydoll, Matilda.  

 Gwen's favorite doll, Matilda, who usually lives at Nana's house.
 Squirmy Wormy Reid


That evening we went to the boardwalk with Nana, Pap Pap, Mimi & Grandpa.  Cole and Gwen knew what to do this time around-- they practically pulled us onto the rides and they were happy to ride by themselves!
 Cole riding by himself for the first time.  We were shouting at him to hold on but he giggled with delight each time he rounded the corner!
 Gwen riding by herself for the first time.
 A little brother-sister ride.  Notice how Cole's hands are up by his face.  He does this when he is VERY excited.  One day he saw a bunny outside and ran inside, put his hands by his face and shook them before he  could get out the words:  "mommy, mommy, mommy we saw saw a bunny!"
 Reid enjoyed his puffs and some pizza crust on the boardwalk
Reid's first taste of ice cream.  He was jumping out of Daddy's arms to have a second and third lick.  He must be MY baby :)

Stone Harbor Wetlands Institute- July 20, 2012

Towards the end of July we took our second trip down the shore.  This time we were joined by both sets of grandparents.  Cole, Gwen and Reid loved all of the special attention that they received during the trip. We went to The Stone Harbor Wetlands Institute with Mimi and Grandpa. The big kids participated in the nature talk about ospreys and we explored for a little while.  We will definitely be going back as it was a great activity for the kids and grown ups.








July U of D Get Together

On Tuesday, July 17, 2012, we attended a get together with my counseling friends at Casey's parent's pool.  In attendance were Casey, Maribeth, Nick, Amy and Susie.  The big kids tried out their puddlejumpers for the first time.  Andy and I were getting ready so Gwen and Cole followed everyone else out to the pool and went right in.  Apparently within seconds Cole realized that he had no idea what he was doing and started to freak out which scared Gwen and they both ended up making quite the scene.  Thankfully they settled down long enough to try again.  Gwen took to it right away but Cole insisted that we hold onto him for awhile.  REid loved splashing in the water.  I think he was thrilled that he was doing something that the big kids were doing.  He seems to be super proud of himself recently when he can play with the big kids.

Andy and I had fun catching up with everyone.  I love that it always seems as if no time has passed when we get together and that our kids enjoy playing together.




Tuesday, August 7, 2012

Boys Day at The Helicopter Museum

On Saturday, July 14, 2012, Gwen and Mommy went to cousin Laura's wedding shower.  Daddy, Cole, Reid and Pap Pap hung out at the local helicopter museum.  From the looks of the pics, they seem to have had fun :)




1st Bowling Experience

There is a cool free bowling program at our local bowling alley so I decided to take Cole and Gwen to try things out.  We met up with our friends, Christine, Will and baby Abby.  I tried to explain as much as i could to the kids before going to the alley.  By the time we got there, they were talking about the lanes and what color bowling balls they were going to use.  They did a great job.  Gwen even managed to get a strike and two spares!  The big kids lasted for 1.5 games and then enjoyed delicious grilled cheese sandwiches (Gwen's favorite!) for lunch.





Silly Kids!

Yes, we have our stressful moments but these three kids bring us so much joy.  I remember that daily as they engage in imaginary play and show us how much they are learning.

 I'm pretty sure Reid will not find humor in this when he is older but i think he makes a cute little girl in Gwen's tutu.  And for the record, he enjoyed crawling around in it :)
 Gwen drew a picture of our family with chalk.  That's Daddy, Mommy, Reid, Gwen and Cole.  Cole has a sad face because he was having a rough time when Gwen drew the pic.
The big kids decorated the gates with these magnets and informed me that they had worked hard to "decorate the christmas tree".

Twin Love

I love this pic of Cole and Gwen.  They can be the cutest little buddies.  Noone told them to walk next to each other on this zoo trip.  Noone told them to hold hands.  They just did and it melts my heart :)

1st Fireworks

On Saturday, July 7, 2012, Mommy surprised Gwen and Cole by taking them to see their first fireworks show.  We met up with our neighbor friends (Adam and Sawyer) and their mommies.  We put our blankets down on the corner near our house and enjoyed our time together.  Within minutes of being there Jackie handed Cole a cracker to throw at the ground.  He didn't knwo what it was and tried to put it in his mouth.  Other than that incident, things went smoothly.  We ended up leaving before the finale as Gwen was very tired and Daddy called to tell me that Reid had woken up.


Here is my neighbor, Amy, playing "Going on a Picnic" with the kids while we waited for the fireworks to start.

Our 1st Drum Circle

On Saturday, July 7, 2012 we went downtown to participate in our first drum circle.  I had heard wonderful things about this free program and our family had a blast.  The big kids jammed to the music and even Reid enjoyed tapping on the drum.  When it was his turn to introduce himself and everyone started saying his name, he shied away by nuzzling his face into my shoulder.  




Please Touch Museum

On July 4, 2012, we took our first trip to the Please Touch Museum in Philly.  We met up with Eileen and Ian and had a fun filled day.  The kids started off kind of slowly and did not seem thrilled but after they had full bellies they got there playing on.  They loved the little supermarket, hospital, McD. etc.  Reid snoozed in the stroller and before we knew it we realized that we had been there over FIVE hours.  It is crazy how we used to strive to hang out for TWO hours when the twins were younger and now we have to wrap things up after five hours.  It is certainly nice that they are more flexible as far as schedule go these days. 



 Gwen taking care of a baby at the hospital.
 Cole enjoying picking up balls with the mini construction equipment.