Haircut

BEFORE AFTER

Whew!

It has been a while since I have actually typed in any of the blogs, so I thought I would a take moment and reflect on this past year. Wow!! So much has happened. To start with, this time last year I was walking everywhere in hopes that Colin Daniel would come out to play. My mom came out thinking he was coming early, and soon found herself out here for a month. I loved the company and finding things out about her that I might never have known if it weren’t for those long walks to encourage labor.
I realize that no woman has ever been pregnant forever, but it sure felt like he was taking up permanent residence in my uterus. He made his existence known through heartburn, Braxton Hicks, constant rumbling around in there, and the look of anticipation on his daddy’s face. Goodness knows we aren’t hurting for any estrogen around here, and by God’s grace, we are now balanced out with the ‘boyness’ that is Colin. He came and our world grew by one and more wonderfully complicated.
As I type, he is getting into the clothes drawer and turning his head around to give me a smile that could melt the iciest heart. I learn so much from him even at his age.
The things I learned include the following:
*Smile and the whole world will smile back.
*Laugh and it will be contagious.
*It can be lots of fun to make a mess.
*It is not nice to bite hard when giving a kiss.
*Don’t get frustrated when you can’t do something; try harder.
*Only cry if it really hurts.
*Sleep is important for everyone.
*Have fun even if you are just having your diaper changed.
*The world is a beautiful place to explore.
*It is good to be Colin (and Colin’s mommy).

Ironically, I have learned these things from Chris as well. Another ‘man’ has captured my heart.

Captured!

Blizzard of '08

Walking

New Pictures

Malena Time

I just wanted to show Gracie and all that she is. With all of Colin's new skills, she is having a hard time these days. This is her spotlight moment.

Candid Caity

Caity is always "on". She is performing even when she thinks no one is watching.

Colin speaks

Battle Of The Wills

I spent my morning coaxing Malena to take her cough syrup. She said that she would take her tablespoon of syrup without any problems, so I poured the measuring cup onto the spoon, as in the past, and place it near her mouth. SPLAT! It went over me and the floor. The previous warning about the step (our naughty corner) obviously did not matter to her. I said as calmly as I could, "Go to the..." She was already half-way there. She knew the consequence and was willing to take it. I thought that this would be a short lived battle because the rest of us were in the kitchen doing school and she was missing out. Wrong!

I went back every three or five minutes for one hour and fifteen minutes and the same reply came out of her sweet mouth. She kept her tears to herself when she thought I was not listening, but to my face she merely stated that it did not matter if she would miss out on the rest of the day's events.

I searched the 'wisdom' of the Internet, and found a whole lot of bribing, spiking food, and force as appropriate methods to giving unwanted medicine. At one hour and sixteen minutes, I told Malena what was going to happen. I would walk into the playroom and turn on Word World and walk away. She would then take her medicine all by herself and let me know when she finished. It worked! She was happy and I was happy.

At that moment that I realized Malena, as the middle child, doesn't get to do things just for her, just by her. She is constantly having to mold into what others around are asking (Sometimes yelling) at her to do, and what others want to do to her. This was just beginning of this independence struggle. We have already moved on to the battle of bath time. That is what I will take care of right after I publish this.

Update

For those that care, check out the 'We Are In Trouble Now' entry as I have figured out how to put the better video on the post. It is brighter and minus Jesus at the end of the video.

We Are In Trouble Now

Colin continues to increase his mobility and the future looks to hold nothing but chasing, tackling, and fun!

Wisdom

There is an e-mail going around about a first grade teacher and the wisdom some of her students showed when given the first part of well-known proverbs to complete. The idea was given to me to try this with Caitlyn. The following is a few of the 27 that she did this morning.

1. Don’t bite the hand that you don’t know.
2. A miss is as good as a Mr. (This is the same one that is found in the e-mail)
3. Love all, trust God.
4. Happy the bride who has a sobbing boy.
5. Two’s company, three’s a family.
6. When the blind lead the bind, they will find a way to climb.
7. There are none so blind as me.
8. A penny saved is one penny.

9. Never underestimate the power of the principal.

10. Children should be seen and not naked.

New Do

So the haircuts were not as drastic as I thought they would be. We had a very convincing hairstylist that talked Caity out of chopping her hair all off. She decided on funky layers and bangs. Malena got some layering in the back to show off her curls while still growing out her bangs. Colin is the same, but I had to add 'little man' because he is just cute. All the pictures were taken right after a roll on the ground of sibling playtime, thus the frizzy hair. They are currently doing the same as I type and I must say that Colin is a tough little guy. He is chattering away and likes to tell his 'jokes' which we all laugh at because his laughter is infectious. He has attempted a few more steps and even a few at a time. For right now that is enough. Our whole world will change when he is on his feet.

11 Months And Not Happy

It has been an eventful few days here at home. It started the day after Valentine's Day when I woke up very sick. I went through the motions and with much help from Chris, I am finally feeling half normal today.

Colin started to get a cold this weekend and this morning it went into his chest. He celebrated his 11 month day getting his first breathing treatment at the doctors while the big sisters sat by his side trying to calm him down. He was--- shall we say--- quite vocal in his displeasure of this treatment. The good news is that it has been determined to be nothing more than a nasty chest cold.

The bad news is that big sister Malena has been hiding in corners this afternoon, and I was too busy to investigate her sudden desire to be in the corner. She has been secretly coughing. I just caught her in the act and she broke down saying that she doesn't want to go to the doctor. So Colin's breathing treatment traumatized her too. Poor thing!

We are going to go get haircuts today for our girls. No, not little man. We want dad to be with us for that momentous event next weekend. I will post pictures tomorrow of the newly coiffed big girls. Caity has said that she wants a change. Uh-oh that sounds like I did right before I got the 'Annie' do in first grade, the 'Dorothy' in third, and the boy cut in fourth. I have a feeling this is just the beginning of the hair fun with Caity.

Love You!

HAPPY VALENTINE'S DAY!

Bath Helpers

Happy Birthday Bro!

OK to clarify, Jason is not anywhere close to 40. Caity thought that I was 50 at one point in time, so consider the source. Colin has learned to click his tongue and it amuses him so much. Malena... oh Malena that is for another posting. Caity is the same wonderfully complicated little girl. We have just entered the "fun math" section, so it is not so bad right now. In her mind, the fun math is anything to do with geometry and problem solving.

Happy Birthday Uncle Mike

It has now become a 'cool' thing to sing happy birthday on the blog. Caity tried to make a card, but she threw it out because it was not perfect. We love you and hope you had a great brithday!

New Pictures

Here are some pictures from last week. Have a great day! Colin has taken a step and held it for a few seconds before falling, and he discovered that his knees are a nice transition from standing to sitting.

Evening Entertainment

It's been a bit since I have blogged, so I thought I would show a typical evening in our home. We had lots of excitement today with the tornadoes in the area, but it is calm once again.
The video is just a snapshot of our evenings. Usually their are many turns to perform while the other sister practices patience and good listening skills.