Chicago

Before I get into our trip last weekend to Chicago, I wanted to share Lucy's new favorite toy - a little basketball.  She holds it whenever we let her, including in the stroller when we go for walks so I wanted to capture a few pictures of her holding it.  Her hair has gotten quite a bit longer so she's been sporting a "top of the head" ponytail at night.  

 We went into Chicago last week and had a great, but busy time.  We started our weekend with a trip to the Children's Museum at Navy Pier.  The museum was great and both kids had a great time.

 After lunch, we headed to Shedd Aquarium, which was pretty cool but very crowded.  Charlie was especially excited to see the sharks, the beluga whales and the penguins.  The aquarium had a "pretend that you're a penguin" display next to the actual penguin's habitat, which included a floor-to-ceiling fake rock.  I leaned over to wipe Lucy's nose and when I stood back up, Charlie was at the top of the rock structure, inches away from the ceiling.  I was wondering where the stairs were that he used to climb to the top when an aquarium employee came over the speaker system asking for the parent/guardian to remind the children that penguins cannot climb rocks and that everyone needs to stay on the group.  What a stinker - a fast, climbing stinker.

 On Friday night we enjoyed pizza with Sam, Angie, Kendall and Jack, which was great.  Saturday was Cubs game time!  Angie and I had to laugh as we walked to Wrigley that with the strollers, diaper bags and kids, BJ and Sam were hardly recognizable to their previous Cubs' game experiences.

 A quick family photo - clearly Charlie still has to work on keeping his eyes open for pictures.

 I think that Lucy is a Cubs fan - she was great during the game.  Happy to sit on our lap and smiled constantly.

 Because the game coincided with the Kentucky Derby, we received "Derby-esque" hats upon arrival.  The hat provided endless entertainment for Charlie and Kendall.

Speaking of Kendall and Charlie - these two were some popcorn-loving fools.  I think that they both ate their weight in popcorn.  At some point, they were deliriously giggling and shoveling popcorn in their mouths while standing a few inches apart.

We stopped for some great ice cream on our walk back from the game and although Lucy wasn't interest in the ice cream, she was happy with the company.

 Following the Cubs game, we spent the night with our friends Dave, Laura and their family.  As I told Laura, we weren't at the best versions of our selves (tired, dirty, etc.) and I don't think that my camera even left our car.  It was great to catch up with Dave and Laura, to see how their 3 oldest kids have grown and to meet their daughter Jordyn.

Finally, I had a great Mother's Day today.  It was a pretty low key day, but we went out for lunch and enjoyed time outside this afternoon.  The daycare did a great job of helping the kids with cards for me - Charlie's class made magnets for their moms and completed a questionnaire regarding their moms (he said that my favorite food is meatballs and my job is to wash tables - hilarious) and Lucy's teacher included a cute photo with a sweet poem.

We look forward to seeing our moms over the next few weeks!

8 Month Update

I blinked and Lucy turned 8 months' old earlier this week.  She continues to be a source of pure happiness and is often referred to as Baby Ludy (by Charlie who struggles with the "s" sound), Lucy Jane, Little Miss, Short Stuff and Girlfriend (when I'm feeling particularly feisty). 

Other than an initial rebellion when I switched her to formula last month (which is when I started the "girlfriend" reference such as "girlfriend, this is what you have to drink so drink up"), she is still easy-going.  She is a rolling fool and doesn't like to miss anything.  I don't know her length or weight now, but she is still able to wear 6 month clothes, so I'm guessing that she hasn't had a huge growth spurt.   Lucy loves books and music but her favorite activity continues to be watching Charlie or Copper.  She falls asleep around 7:30 and has been waking for a bottle around 5:30 before falling back asleep until 7:00.  The 5:30 bottle at 8 months old is a little challenging since she had been sleeping 12 hours, but since the formula strike of March, she still isn't drinking as much during the day as she previously was so she happily takes an 8 oz. bottle at 5:30. 

She gobbles up rice cereal and a few vegetables (sweet potatoes, carrots) and bananas, but still doesn't love much of a variety.  We're at that point that where she loves to blow raspberries when her mouth is full of food so a bath generally follows supper.

We liked going for family walks last week when the weather cooperated so I'm hopeful that we'll be outside soon.

I don't have any recent pictures of Charlie to share but in the last few weeks he told me that my breath was stinky and that my suggestion that it was time for his bath/books/bed was "not a very good idea" so he has the honesty down pat but we need to teach him some sugar-coating techniques.

Easter 2013

We started our Easter celebrate a few days early by coloring Easter eggs.  Charlie was a little excited...

Coloring Easter eggs was one of those activities that I assume will be loads of fun and take some time.  It was loads of fun, but start to finish it was probably 10 minutes.  Quality minutes, but still 10 minutes.  God bless day care because I don't know how I would keep Charlie engaged 7 days a week.

We had an Easter egg hunt at a local elementary school with my side of the family.  Below is a picture of Grandma and Grandpa Gehl with the Gehl grandkids (minus Lucy who had just fallen asleep and was cozy inside the house).

 An action shot - it's amazing the difference one year can make.  Charlie was really excited about the Easter Bunny and we practiced the hunt by hiding eggs around the house for a few days.  He kept asking why the Easter bunny was coming to his house and I didn't have a good answer.  Seriously, how is Easter connected to a giant bunny that delivers goodies?  I told him not to question a good thing.

 Even big boys needs a little help sometimes so it's nice to have an army of cousins willing to help!  All of the grandkids were lucky to walk away with some age-appropriate treats, some cold hard cash and a giant chocolate bunny from Uncle Marty. 

 We celebrated Easter on Saturday evening with BJ's family and true to form, the camera stayed in its bag.  A good time was had by all and the kids were lucky enough to receive more Easter goodies.  The Easter Bunny has stepped up its game since the early 80's.

The Easter Bunny officially visited Charlie and Lucy Sunday morning while we were in Cascade.  I failed to snap a picture of Charlie with his basket, but he received some bubbles, a kite, a book and (of course) M&M's.  I took a picture of Lucy with her in-tact basket when we got home.  She was lucky to receiving some stacking cups, a few bath toys and Gerber puffs.  The Easter Bunny appreciates the kids that are too young to have standards.

Charlie's room at daycare celebrated SuperHeroes and he was in heaven.  His obsession with Spider-Man was in full effect as he was in character one night after his bath and refused to break.  BJ was trying to help him put his jammies on and he kept announcing "I am Spider-Man" and project his web at BJ.  The problem is that he can't make the "s" sound and he was stark naked so we couldn't help but laugh at him, which only infuriated "Pider-Man" even more.  I tell you what, if his persistence and determination for certain activities can be applied to constructive activities, he will be fine.

BJ and I were supposed to have date night last night, but our sitter canceled an hour before we were supposed to leave.  We were bummed because we were looking forward to eating at a restaurant that didn't pass out colors and a coloring book with our menus.  We decided to order a meal to go and recreate date night at our kitchen table.  As we were trying to eat, the following things were happening: Lucy was banging one of her hard-surfaced toys on her high chair; Copper was flinging his chewy at my feet, taunting me to chase him; and Charlie was in the bathroom making a deposit.  We've had some bad dates before, but never have we had our meal interrupted to go wipe the bottom of a fellow diner.  One of those nights that I'm sure we'll miss when the kids are out with their friends and we can go to any restaurant that we like.
We spent as much time outside this weekend as possible and it felt great!  Charlie rode his bike, we went for multiple walks and we even stopped by the park.  Fresh air makes for tired, but happy kids!

Shoo Flu and 7 Month Update

Our household is climbing back from the depths of the stomach flu hell.  It all started sometime last Monday afternoon and Copper remain the only "man" standing throughout the week.  I washed my hands and used Purell so many extra times this last week that I am surprised that I still have fingerprints.  At some point I wondered if it wouldn't be easier to just burn the house down instead of trying to rid it of all of the flu germs.

Anyway, before the flu hit, we spent the last month waiting and hoping for nice weather.  When that never happened, we spent a lot of time working on new puzzles, having dance parties, playing balloon volleyball, making Lucy laugh, and reading Curious George stories over and over and over and over.  So far, Charlie is killing it on the dance floor.  The other night he put both hands on his behind and demanded that we "shake your bottom" - I have no idea where it came from but he pretty much mastered the major form of dancing that I've witnessed in the last 15 years.

Charlie and Lucy continue to do well and, minus the flu this past week and some ear infection issues for Lucy over the last couple of weeks, both are happy and healthy.  Lucy continues to laugh the loudest for Charlie and he continues to engage in any shenanigan to make her laugh - they are two peas in a pod which I hope continues forever.

The kids were being sweet one night after their bath so I tried to snap a decent picture.  Charlie is still sporting his black eye from running into a "friend" at daycare, but there's something sweet about kids in footy jammies.

Before The Great Flu of 2013 hit our house, Lucy turned seven months' old.  She's still a little peanut, as evidenced by the fact that I snapped her "7 month" picture when she was wearing the same jammies from her "5 month" picture.  Lucy is still doing great - she loves sitting on the floor and watching Charlie run around like a mad man; reading books; singing songs; trying to get Copper to acknowledge him; eating rice cereal, bananas, sweet peas, carrots and pears; and waking up (she gets so excited when she wakes up - it is too cute).  We took her back to her pediatrician this week to recheck her ears following an ear infection and she weighed just over 14 1/2 pounds so she is still a little thing, but she's a good eater and good sleeper, usually falling asleep around 7:30 and sleeping until 7:00.  She's a social little thing so I think that she'll really like being outside and going for stroller walks. 

Charlie was being "hilarious" while I was trying to take her picture and she couldn't help but watch him, so I wanted to include the picture below.

 I hope that my next post is filled with pictures from outside that do not include winter coats/hats/gloves!

6 Month Update

It's hard to believe that Lucy is half-way to her 1st birthday.  She continues to be a little peanut - just over 13 lbs. which is 12% and 24.5 inches long, which is only 5% so she is a little person!  She did great at her 6-month check up yesterday, but I was surprised to learn that she had a double ear infection.  She hadn't been fussy at all, so I'm hopeful that we were able to start the antibiotics before she started to feel any pain.

We tried rice cereal and some fruit the other week and she wasn't overly interested, but I'm sure that will change pretty soon.  Lucy continues to love to watch Charlie run around like a mad man and he has the ability to generate the biggest smiles and loudest laughs.  Otherwise, Lucy still sleeps like a champ and she usually goes to bed around 7:30 and sleeps until 7:00.  She loves to play on her tummy with toys and is excited to see her "friends" every time that we put her in her exersaucer.  Lucy also smiles whenever she sees Copper and, not surprising, Copper refuses to acknowledge her existence.

A couple of random things that I want to remember about the kids right now:

• I will randomly use Lucy's full name "Lucy Jane" so Charlie has started to do the same, but he believes that her middle name is "James".
• Charlie loves to have a dance party after dinner.  We usually play a few Mumford & Sons songs and he shows off his sweet dance moves that are a combination of robot-like moves and somersaults.  He upped the expectations tonight when he put both hands on his behind and said, "Mom - now wiggle your bottom."  I have no idea where he comes up with these things but I can appreciate a good dance party like the next person.
• Charlie has started to ask a question and then demand a yes/no answer.  "Can I have a snack, please?  Yes or no?"  He gets straight to the point.
• Lucy loves her bath and laying on the changing table - she turns into a little Irish jig dancer and her legs go crazy...perhaps in anticipation of joining Charlie's dance party some day soon.
• Charlie continues to self-report his misdeeds from daycare but I've started to question the legitimacy of his stories.  He told me the other day that SpiderMan hit him at school and he saw a lizard.

Other than the rambling items above, we are ready for some sunshine and to be able to burn some energy outside!

Go Clones and 5 Month Update

BJ, Charlie and Papa Steve have season tickets this year for the ISU basketball games and I'm not sure who is more excited - BJ for the opportunity to create a basketball/Cyclones fan or Charlie who usually gets popcorn AND ice cream during the basketball game. 

Charlie seems to be entering a pretty fun stage with some (not all) of the toddler tantrums behind me.  Some of his recent exclamations include "I don't believe it" (while slapping his hand on his leg) and "this is ridiculous" (oops - that one probably comes from me).  He continues to look forward to seeing Lucy every morning and will frequently ask what his "baby Ludy" is doing.  Luckily, the affection seems mutual. 

Lucy turned 5 months old yesterday and she continues to be a source of pure joy for our family.  The smiles are plenty and the cries are almost non-existent so it's easy to be smitten.  She continues to be a little peanut - she weighed 12.9 pounds at her four month check-up, which is roughly 16th percentile (Charlie was always in the 90th percentile during his first year), and she hasn't shown any interest in rice cereal yet.  Lucy loves her bath but her favorite pasttime continues to be "talking" and being talked to - the apple doesn't fall far from the tree.  She continues to be ridiculously happy and, for as many smiles as she gives each day, I can guarantee that she is the cause for as many smiles between BJ, Charlie and myself.

We had a fun weekend last weekend with my sister Molly and her family.  As always, Charlie and Lucy enjoyed the added attention and all of the love from their cousins.

Christmas 2012

It's hard to believe that Christmas has been here and gone.  We were snowed in on the Thursday before Christmas and Charlie was very excited to go outside and help BJ shovel snow.  It took at least 10 minutes to help him put all of the necessary clothing on and he was outside for all of 2 minutes.  I think that his love for the outdoors stops when the temperatures fall below freezing.

 We celebrated Christmas with my side of the family on Sunday the 23rd and Charlie was so excited to see all of his cousins.  A quick photo of the crew with Grandma and Grandpa Gehl.

 The picture below is indicative of the difference between Charlie and Lucy - Charlie was already sweating so he took off his sweater and Lucy was wrapped in an extra blanket because she always seems chilly.

 We celebrated with BJ's side of the family on the morning of the 24th and we were able to get a quick picture of the Supple grandkids with Nana Jan, Papa Steve and Great Grandma Kate.

 Charlie's excitement over playing with Max started to turn into more tackles than hugs - which was a surefire sign that he was headed for exhaustion....

 Lucy was just happy to lay on the floor and quick during the present-opening extravaganza.

 Moments later, Charlie was sprawled out in the middle of wrapping paper, muttering.  Someone needed to get that kid a nap.

 Thankfully, he was able to get a nap in on the ride back to Norwalk.

 Back home and fully rested, we made a fresh batch of sugar cookies to leave out for Santa Claus.

 And this is the point of the story when I have all of these wonderful pictures of Christmas Day and the Charlie and Lucy seeing their presents from Santa.  I did take photos, but I haven't been able to upload those photos to the blog and my head might explode if I spend any more time trying.  Despite any photo evidence, we had a great Christmas Day at home and ended the night by taking a drive through the Jolly Holiday light display in downtown Des Moines.  The only bummer of the day was when Charlie realized that Buddy the Elf left our house to go back to the North Pole with Santa.  Charlie was pretty sad, but we assured him that Buddy will be back next year (or earlier if we need to play the Santa is watching you card).

This past Sunday, Nana Jan, Papa Steve and Max came to spend the night in Des Moines.  Charlie got to spend the day with them swimming at their hotel and we snapped a quick picture before taking Charlie home for the night. 

Although our visits to Cascade seem very short and jam-packed, it's always nice to see family, a few friends and have our kids get to know their cousins.

Best wishes for 2013.