Honesty

Mom: Sylvia, you threw half of your dinner on the floor.
Dad: That's okay. She'll eat most of it when she gets down.
Martin: Oh good! I do that too. I didn't want to say anything, but if we're being honest I'll go ahead and let her graze off her floor mess. 

Merry Christmas

I just discovered this really cool, free app that takes video clips and pictures and sets them to music and makes it into a movie for you! I'm pretty pumped about this Christmas video from this morning!

Merry Christmas!!!

Stats

10 months.
27 inches
19.5 pounds

Sledding Season!

I want to do a post about Aubrey's adventure birthday party because it was AMAZING, but all the photos of her blowing out candles are on Martin's phone and I keep forgetting to transfer them to the computer so I keep putting off posting about this glorious event (you can't write about a birthday without cake photos).

Last week when there was gorgeous amounts of beautiful snow and perfect sledding weather (read: sunshine, no wind) the girls and I decided to enjoy the weather. I don't think the differences in Aubrey and Sylvia's personalities could have shown through any more clearly than they did in that short hour and a half sledding experience.

Here's a rundown of the morning  timeline:
8:45 AM: Aubrey is REALLY excited about the snow. She is begging me to go sledding. We pick up the kitchen and start putting snow clothes on. Sylvia is crawling around and going with the flow.
9:00 AM: We are outside. Aubrey is SUPER excited. She's making snowballs. She's throwing snow in her face. The world is great. Sylvia is super chill and happy. Her and I make mommy and baby snow angels next to each other.
9:15 AM: Aubrey really wants to ride in the sled. She's pretty excited still. Sylvia is still happy as a clam.
9:30 AM: Aubrey is NOT HAPPY. She is cold. She wants to go in the house. Sylvia seems content.
9:35 AM: Aubrey is in the house by herself "playing" the piano. A very happy Sylvia and I are still frolicking in the snow.
9:45 AM: Aubrey is inside. Sylvia falls face first off the sled into the snow. She is still happy. No cries. No tears.
10:30 AM: In the name of naptime, Sylvia happily retires to the house and to bed.
10:35 - 11:30 AM: I go outside to do some decorating on the porch. Aubrey is happy but coming in and out. Never staying out for too long. Refusing to stand in the shade.

Insta-dump

My sister-in-law/one of my best friend, Ingrid, is in Afghanistan. Thanks to the internet, we get to talk quite often, but not nearly at our normal pace of 1-2 times a day.

On Thursday, Ingrid sent me this message:

Post more instagram pics!!!!!!

So, I obliged and got a little obsessed with posting pictures over the last few days.

Helping me change the sheets

Quiet time

 

Follow along here, if you'd like!

A Really Long Winded Welcome

Still looking adorable, even with a food covered face!

 

Martin's brother Gabe used to hate watching children eat. He hated it so much that in typical brother fashion, Martin would text messy pictures of Aubrey eating as she learned to take her first bites just to get under his skin. Then Gabe started dating Jenna. And Jenna had a baby. And one day we were all at Mimi and Poppa's and Gabe was FEEDING THE CHILD! That's the moment I knew it was the real deal. 

After that solidifying moment, I had no doubt in my mind that one day this would come, but a formal congratulations is in order for Gabe Bruning and the future (other) Mrs. Jenna Bruning!


And yes, we're aware that Martin and Gabe are best friends and like to do everything the same. Hence: the same truck and wives with the same name!

Rookie Move

Giant mess. Result of a rookie parenting move on my part

If you stop by our house while I'm making dinner on any given night, you're likely to find Aubrey in Sylvia playing in one of two places. The recycling or the cupboard with the plastic bowls and storage containers.

Aubrey: Mom, can me and Sylvia play with the dishes?
Me: First you have to pick up all this recycling on the floor.
Aubrey: Oh. I'm sorry I made a mess, mom.
Me: (rookie mistake) It's ok to make a mess. You just need to clean it up before you make a new mess.

fast forward five minutes. Aubrey has all the recycling cleaned up and is inside the cupboard tossing all the dishes onto the floor.

Aubrey: I'm making a new big mess! I'm making a new big mess! This is my house!

At this point in the game you'd think I'd have learned not to tell my kids it's totally fine to make huge messes, but I haven't. She cleaned this mess up after dinner and moved on to shoveling out the toy shelf in the living room all the while singing Sylvia needs some toys. It was a really productive night.

Halloween 2013

A little ladybug, a terrific knight and a handsome stud. Pretty photogenic crew

A few days before Halloween, dressed up as "practice":
Aubrey: Come on mom! I will be Aubrey the Knight and you will be the knight mommy. Follow me. I will lead the way.
There is a dragon in here. We need to be careful. I will lead the way.
Oh! There's a prince in here. Hello Prince. Hello. Oh, it's a friendly dragon? The prince says its a friendly dragon. Come on, let's keep going. Hello, dragon. Hello. Can we pass? You can pass. Ok thank you. Come on, mom, let's pass.

A few moment before leaving for trick or treating:
Aubrey:  I can't wait for Halloween! I can't wait for Halloween! I can't wait for Halloween!

Five minutes later at our first (of three) house:
Me: Aubrey, can you say trick or treat?
Aubrey: (hiding behind our legs) I don't want to say trick or treat.

Ah Ba Va

Sylvia has gone from silent to constant babbling in the last few weeks.

Sylvia: Ah. Ba. Va. Va. Ba. Ba Ah.
Aubrey: Mom! She's saying V! She's saying the letter V!

Dinner Training

After a few weeks (let's be honest, probably closer to months) of feeding Aubrey a peanut butter and jelly sandwich or noodles for dinner in the name of not wanting to argue - I finally decided enough was enough the other night and Martin and I came together as the united front of eat what we're eating or go to bed. This is going pretty well, with the exception of the night that Aubrey shoved food into her mouth without really swallowing it until she puked.

Aubrey: I have to go poop
Me: Well I guess you should have thought about that before you decided to sit at the table being such a baby about dinner. Finish that plate and then you can go to the bathroom.
Martin: Wow! You're good. I'm over here thinking I'm really tough and then you go and refuse bathroom privileges.
Me: Oh, she doesn't really have to go. She just pooped before her bath. It's a trick to leave the table.
Martin: I wish you hadn't told me that because I was really impressed.

after Martin comes down from putting Aubrey to bed.

Martin: She wasn't lying. That's the biggest turd I've EVER seen come out of her.

Sylvia let's out a cry from upstairs (we're also in the midst of attempting to train her to fall asleep without a bottle and sleep through the night)

Martin: Oh kids, give it up! 
Me: Ha!
Martin: I like to think my parents' had this lighthearted banter when I was bad as a kid, but I'm pretty sure they didn't
Me: Why are you pretty sure they didn't
Martin: I don't know. I just think they were all stern and pissed even after I was in bed.

Dishes: A favorite toy in this household

Play Pals

Lately, Aubrey's favorite thing to do is drag ( literally) Sylvia into the playroom and play with her. Usually she tells her stories or makes her dinner. Or tells her stories while making her dinner. 

Aubrey: Sylvia, I'm making lots of crazy things. Pizza and macaroni. This is my really good macaroni. 

The other night I was working late and Martin sent me this text message accompanied by this photo. 

Aubrey: dad, me and Sylvia are going to my playroom. 

And if she's not dragging her she's carrying her under the armpits and proclaiming mom, I can barely carry Sylvia. She is so heavy. 

At this rate Sylvia is going to be one tough girl!

 

Earthtones

Setup: Martin is getting LASIK eye surgery at this very moment. I am sitting in the car with a sleeping Sylvia waiting to be his driver. We've spent the last three hours at the eye doctor mostly waiting around for his consult. I dressed Sylvia in a brown shirt with pink writing on it today. It's caused some confusion.  

Patient 1: oh look! He's so cute!

Patient 2: yes. He is being so good

Martin (whispered to me) : you had to go with earth tones didn't you? 

An hour or so later. A whole new set of patients. 

Patient: aren't you so handsome. Yes you are. You are so handsome. Hi handsome! Hi handsome! Hi handsome! 

Martin: brown was a bad choice. 

 

Lunch

Setup: Aubrey loves to make everyone lunch in her play kitchen (best roadside find ever!).

Aubrey: Here's your lunch!
Me: What is it?
Aubrey: Oooh. It's a cupcake.
Me: A cupcake for lunch?! We need to eat some fruits and vegetables.
Aubrey: Oh. right! Here's your fruits and vegetables.
Me: Thank you! What type of fruit is this.
Aubrey: I think it's chocolate cake.
Me: That's not a vegetable! A vegetable is something like salad. or eggplant. or squash.
Aubrey: Um. Mom. Stop talking.

Apparently doesn't want to hear the vegetable talk.

Clearly not Aubrey, but due to her lack of speech this cutie is making limited appearances on here!

Call of Duty

Setup: It's 1:20 in the morning. I'm attempting to break Sylvia of her terrible habit of waking up for a bottle every. single. night. at 12:00, 3:00 and then 6:00. It's a tiring affair. She's been awake and crying since 12:30 AM. I have finally decided that she is not going to cry herself to sleep and I drag myself out of bed and, after changing her diaper, go downstairs to prepare a bottle. I come back upstairs to find Martin leaning over Sylvia's crib in an attempt to coo her back to sleep.

Me: Hey. Way to respond to the call of action.
Martin: What? I heard her crying.
Me: She's been crying for 50 minutes .
Martin: Well, I just heard her and got up.

We give Sylvia the bottle and go back to bed.

Martin: I know you didn't say it - but, you're welcome.

36 Weeks.

Update: this post somehow got reposted from when I was 36 weeks pregnant with Sylvia. I am NOT pregnant again.  

Here I am at 36 weeks and I'm actually feeling spectacular! There was a time during the holidays when I honestly thought I was going to have the baby at any second but the last few days I have been feeling so well, I think I could probably be pregnant for a while. Which is a good thing....because apparently I may not be 36 weeks.

I mean, I guess we're still calling it 36 weeks and they're not changing my due date or anything, but when I went to the doctor this past week my stomach didn't "measure up" to be as large as it should at this point in my pregnancy so my doctor immediately sent me for an ultrasound to ensure the baby is large enough and there is enough fluid in my uterus for the baby to live healthily. What I found out is - there is plenty of fluid. And also, the baby is on the small side but not alarmingly small. I haven't spoken with my doctor about the findings yet, but what I gleamed from the ultrasound technician is that the baby is just slightly smaller than Aubrey probably would have been at the same stage in my first pregnancy meaning that this baby might be a little smaller than Aubrey or I might go a little bit late with the delivery.

In other news, I've been meaning to share this story for about a month now in a pregnancy post and just haven't done many pregnancy posts until last week when I completely forgot to add this anecdote.

Me: (after visiting the doctor one Monday morning): So guess who I saw at the doctor today?
Martin: I don't know, who?
Me: (names an acquaintance) And guess who was with her?
Martin: No idea.
Me: Her husband.
Martin: Oh, well.....good for him.......When is she due anyway?
Me: She's having a C-section on Friday.
Martin: Well, of course he's going to be there! This is the end!
Me: When I was pregnant with Aubrey I went to the doctor on my due date and you didn't join.
Martin: I soon as I said that previous statement I knew I was going to regret it.

A Little Bit Cranky

Setup: Aubrey is attempting to "play" with Sylvia by getting her to crawl faster by pushing her butt forward until she falls forward face-planting onto the ground, repeatedly. She then decides she wants to hold Sylvia and lays on the floor on her back with Sylvia laying across her chest crying her eyes out.

Aubrey: Why is my sister crying. I think she is a little bit cranky.
Me: I think she's crying because you are hurting her.
Aubrey: Yeah. I need to be a little gentle. Then she will not cry. I am sorry Sylvia. I will be gentle.
Sylvia: continues with a slight wimper.
Aubrey: I told her I was sorry and she is still crying! I think she is just a little bit cranky!

Discovering

Aubrey is definitely really into exploring and discovering things. Anything really. She routinely pulls toilet paper rolls out of the recycling to use as telescopes and walks around the house with her hands cupped around her eyes as binoculars. All her made up stories and playing house typically involving someone being saved somewhere, and she's declared she is going to have an adventure party for her birthday - with ice cream and cake and salad (her words, not mine).

But around here, Sylvia is the one making the real discoveries these days. As she crawls better and better every day, she continues to find, discover and uncover more and more objects around her. Watching her inspect, hold and play with things is so exciting and I can't wait till she starts talking and walking so I can see as much into her psyche as I do into Aubrey's stream of consciousness (which seems to always be turned on) on a daily basis!

Some Pictures

 favorite toy

 going to find her sister

moving and shaking

 cool girl

my girls

Six Months

Yesterday Sylvia had her very first, Half Birthday. And while I've never really been one to celebrate half birthday's this one is noteworthy since she's a baby and everyday is noteworthy.

A few fun facts about my six month old girl:
She is 15.5 pounds and 25.5 inches tall, putting her in the 50th percentile for height and weight (or as Martin so nicely says, she's shaping up to be a very average middle child)

She's in the 100th percentile for general disposition (there is currently no barometer for this at the doctor's office, but both Martin and myself are pretty positive it's true.)

She is doing some sort of crawling thing. It's not a very competent crawl, but she can move across a room (after a while) and she's on her hands and knees.

Her dimple is adorable and I want to gobble it up.

Yay!

Yay for silly faces!

And older cousins!

And loving aunts!

And drop-in visitors!