Out of the Mouths of Babes...

Julia had been asking to play downstairs for awhile, maybe a half an hour. The game was on and I wanted to see Manning lose so I told her that we could go downstairs as soon as the game was done. There was only five minutes left; who knows how long that would take. She was quite patient and eventually the game was done and she mimicked me when I raised my arms in triumph. Before heading to the basement I grabbed the book I'm reading - being down there for more than a few minutes gets boring because Julia goes through and plays with the different toys pretty good by herself, just needing some comments and replies to her statements from the adult down there with her.

Once down there, she immediately went for the many bins of fake food that she has to compliment her kitchen set. I settled into the little rocking chair that we have down there. It's cold in the basement and colder in that chair - it's a faux wicker thing that is made to be outside. The chair used to be in Julia's room, but when Finn came along it got relegated to the basement to make more space. As I began fanning through the book to find my place (bookmarks are for losers), Julia was asking me about whether or not I like different types of foods and if I would like that as part of the meal she was making for me. I was reading, she was talking to herself about the different foods and sometimes saying things that I felt needed a response, so I would give one. After awhile she moved onto some toy musical instruments and then her chalkboard. After drawing a chocolate chip cookie she exclaimed that she made an "M". I looked up and there was a few sideways straight lines that really did look like a tilted "M". I'm sure that it was an accident, but she was proud of making it and I was proud that she recognized it. I gave some generic, but genuine praise and went back to reading.

She moved back over to the food and started talking again. It wasn't anything that sounded like I need to reply to it, so I just kept reading. After a few moments, something she said caught my attention.
"...to help me go to sleep at bedtime."
"What was that, Julia," I responded. She had stopped playing with the food and was looking at me.
"You used to rock me at bedtime so I could go to sleep."
I immediately knew what she was talking about and why, but I wanted to hear her say it. I wanted to hear more from her memory. I wanted to hear her version of what will always be a pleasant memory of those times with my young daughter.
"What do you mean?"
"You would rock me because I didn't want to go sleep."
"Rock you where?"
"In that chair," she said, pointing at me.
"We would rock you in this chair?"
"Yeah, you would rock me to help me go to sleep because I didn't want to go sleep."
We looked at each other quietly for a few moments and then Julia told me she wanted to go upstairs. We put things away and went up.

That particular memory, which I'm sure neither of us had thought about in a long time, was brought back to Julia when she saw that not-so-comfortable chair in the basement. Her words brought back the same memory for me. I'm sure it meant different things for each of us, but it was pleasant for all. Not only was it a good memory that rose to the surface, but it was a feeling that we, as parents, had done some things right so far.

Rockin' in a Winter Wonderland

Ok, maybe not rockin', but "Building Snowmen and Sledding in a Winter Wonderland" didn't sound quite as good.

After we had gotten some snow, Julia wanted to build a snowman. The snow was too powdery and so it didn't pack very well. What she ended up with instead was more like a snowblob. But, she still liked it a lot!
Julia also got to sled down a hill for the first time. We had pulled her around the yard in previous Winters, but this time we went to the park and she got to really go fast. We were pretty surprised that she wasn't scared and she actually went down several times by herself. Finn had to stick to staying on flat ground though. Here he is enjoying being pulled around.

Happy New Year!

Let's have a look at some Christmas pictures of the kids, shall we? That's kind of a rhetorical question - you don't get much of a choice since you chose to come to this blog, unless you have a slow internet connection, in which case...if you don't want to see the pictures, quick! close your browser window before they load!

To everyone who's still here...



Julia enjoyed "helping" Finn open his presents. Next year, he probably won't appreciate her generosity quite so much since he'll have a better understanding of what's inside the gift wrapping.

Our blogging New Year's resolution is to make sure we get least four entries a month. And to keep them chock-full of links!

Flower Girl Preparations!

Jason and Tracie -- look out! Your future flower girl has picked out her outfit for your wedding. Do you love it?! Julia was very proud of the outfit she pulled together. It consisted of a couple dance leotards, tutus, gloves, and a ribbon crown. Later in the evening, she added 3 more leotards/tutus and her ballerina slippers. It was a sight to behold! What a fun spirit she has...if only we all had the confidence to pull off such an ensemble!
As I think back, Julia had a lot of "pink" in her weekend. Let me explain another pink incident... We read her the Dr. Seuss story "Bartholomew and the Oobleck" for a Saturday night bedtime book. While I was making some Christmas candies, I noticed a recipe for oobleck in my Family Cookbook. This got me pretty excited, so I told Julia all about it after we got home from church on Sunday. What a fun (yet messy) experience! Of course, Julia decided her oobleck had to be pink, instead of green like Dr. Seuss.
Check out the oobleck dripping from Julia's fingers! She must have stood on her stepstool playing with this stuff for 30-45 minutes! Overall, I'm awfully proud of myself for coming up with such a fun activity - pretty good, wouldn't you say?! HA!

Crawling? We show the video, you decide.

For at least a month now, Finn has been pushing himself up on all fours. He then starts to rock back and forth like he's getting ready to start crawling. But instead of crawling, he usually just lays flat and pulls himself around on his belly using his arms. He's also gotten quite adept at sitting himself up from various positions. Below is a video where he may be taking some of his first "crawling steps" - you be the judge. Also, there's a quick shot of Julia at the table in her Snow White dress and having a snack.

Click here for a link to the video.

Julia's been doing great too. Sometimes though, a few minutes after being put to bed, she'll fuss and complain about her legs hurting. We're not quite sure if it's a way to get attention or if she's got a case of The Seavers. Otherwise, she's enjoying pre-school and her daycare friends and she really likes seeing Christmas decorations. Here she is after her dance recital hugging a snowman decoration that she saw.

A Happy Thanksgiving

I hope that you enjoyed your Thanksgiving as much as we did this year. The kids seemed to enjoy their holiday, so that means that Torey and I did as well! Funny how that works!

Just as many of us tend to contemplate what we're thankful for at this time of year, I did some reflecting on this subject as well. When I asked Julia what she's thankful for throughout our travels, the first answer I got was "pink and princesses," then "Mommy and Daddy and Finny," and then "Finny Binny." It's great to see her realizing all that she is thankful for. Overall, I came up with "I'm thankful for the joyful little moments in life." Here are a few pictures from our Thanksgiving vacation that demonstrate what I mean:

Observing Julia laughing, playing, and strengthening her bond with my cousin, Alexis.

Watching Grandma Ruth's face light up while snuggling Finn!

Appreciating the relationship that Julia has with her uncle/godfather and future aunt.Listening to giggles between Finn and Grandma Phyllis.Studying the concentration that puzzle-lovers commit to the task at hand.

And let me tell you, the list goes on! Thank you to everyone who helps to bring those joyful moments into our lives...

I also wanted to share with you the recipe for Pumpkin Pecan Pie that I made for the Thanksgiving meal at my parents' house. It survived the road trip, tasted yummy, and was pretty easy to prepare too!

Up Close and Personal Friday!

She may appear large, but she's only three!

Here are the kids, snuggling together on the couch. Having happy kids sure is great!

Finn has been eating a lot lately! He'll snarf down a a whole container of 2nds baby food and barely blink. And this one time, last Spring, he grabbed my Arby's Beef 'n Cheddar sandwich right out of my hand and took a big ol' bit out of it! Yeah, I know, the one with the onion bun! Er...maybe that last part isn't quite true...considering last Spring Finn was hanging out here, next to his sister:

Insulted by a Three Year Old

After we finished reading Julia her bedtime books this evening and were saying goodnight, Julia said "Goodnight cute Mommy". So I asked her, "Well, what am I?" I realized this was slightly dangerous - who knows what a three year old might say. I figured (or maybe foolishly hoped) that she would get stuck on one thing, like little kids are prone to do, and just stay with "cute". That's an adjective I can handle. But no. She replied with a smirk: "Goodnight big, stinky Daddy."

I didn't take offense to it because I knew it wasn't true. The proof is below. As you can see, if I was stinky, Julia wouldn't be sitting so close to me. Plus, there aren't any visible stink lines.

Just to make things fair - here's a picture of the other two people in my family (also no stink lines (We do bathe regularly!)):

6 Month Statistics!

Today we had Finn's 6th month doctor appointment. His stats were as follows:

Weight: 16 lbs 10 oz (45th percentile)
Height: 27 in (75th percentile)
Head Circumference: 43.5 cm (50th percentile)

In comparison, Julia's 6th month stats were:

Weight: 17 lbs 5 oz (87th percentile)
Height: 27.5 in (97th percentile)
Head Circumference: 42.5 cm (50th percentile)

Finn cried a little while he was getting three different shots, but was happy again right after they were done - due, in part, to his sister. While Finn was getting his shots, Julia was singing "Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star" to him. He always calms down when she does that. It was especially cute because she kept singing it as we were leaving and the nurses all smiled. She even kept it up through the waiting area and made most of those people grin too. She'll never realize that she very well may have brightened someone's day who wasn't feeling very well.

Here is Finn from a few weeks ago with Grandma Colleen and Grandpa Dayton.


P.S. Finn popped out his first tooth yesterday! It looks like this: __

Halloween is Spooktacular!

As you can see, we had two Care Bears residing at our house this Halloween. Julia was Funshine Bear and Finn was Bedtime Bear (Julia calls them "Sunshine Bear" and "Sleepy Bear," respectively).

Below, Julia is talking on the phone after getting ready to go out trick-or-treating. While talking to him, Julia sang Uncle Jason the Care Bear song, just in case he didn't believe that she really liked them.


Julia had fun walking around our neighborhood trick-or-treating. However, she did not like anyone wearing a mask. And by "not like" I mean "would nearly break down crying out of fright". But her courage prevailed and she came home with a nice bucketful of treats.
Be sure to read the title again - it contains the best pun ever.