He celebrated by going to work. We did at least make it to dinner on the weekend. Sorry it wasn't your best birthday. At least you got some wakeboard bindings.
Happy Birthday Troy!!! I love you.
Monday, October 18, 2010
Troy's 31st Birthday
Troy celebrated his 31st birthday in September. I attempted to use my creativity in making him a cake. That's always a risky business. It's supposed to be an ipod with his balloon maker app. Can you tell? Didn't think so.
He celebrated by going to work. We did at least make it to dinner on the weekend. Sorry it wasn't your best birthday. At least you got some wakeboard bindings.
He celebrated by going to work. We did at least make it to dinner on the weekend. Sorry it wasn't your best birthday. At least you got some wakeboard bindings.
Sunday, October 17, 2010
Sadie at 6-8 months
So I started this post when Sadie was 6 months. Then, I decided to wait until she got her stats. Normally, you get those at 6 months, but my parenting skills are losing in Round 2 and we didn't get in until 7 months. Then life happened and suddenly she is almost 8 months. Ooops. So, anyway, here is a post about our sweet Sadie.
As of today, here are some things she can do - sit for quite awhile without help. I still put pillows behind her 'cause she falls every now and then. She can rock on her hands and knees. She scoots around by pushing forward on her legs. She hasn't figured out the alternating motion for crawling yet, but it is close.
She eats all sorts of solids. She is not a big fan of veggies or meats. She loves fruits and grains. She is definitely more picky about foods than Erica. She still has about 4-5 bottles/day (6oz each).
She sleeps typically from about 7:30 -5:30. Not bad, but I wish she would make it until at least 6am more often.
She is very happy still and we are so grateful for that. She is starting to notice when we leave the room and is getting a little fussy about that sometimes. Let's hope she does not have as much separation anxiety as her older sister. Don't want to do that again.
She really likes to be outside - just sitting in the grass or going for walks in the stroller. She seems to be pretty content wherever she is.
She is very interested in the textures of things. She is entertained for hours each day by checking out new objects. She loves to touch and feel things. Sand is one of her favorite. She doesn't put too many things in her mouth though.
She does not have any teeth yet. I've been thinking that they were coming for about 4 months, but still nothing.
Her hair is lightening up, but it does not look like she will be as blonde as her sister.
She takes 3-4 catnaps/day. I am trying to transition her to 2 longer naps/day, but that doesn't always work with our schedule.
As of today, here are some things she can do - sit for quite awhile without help. I still put pillows behind her 'cause she falls every now and then. She can rock on her hands and knees. She scoots around by pushing forward on her legs. She hasn't figured out the alternating motion for crawling yet, but it is close.
She eats all sorts of solids. She is not a big fan of veggies or meats. She loves fruits and grains. She is definitely more picky about foods than Erica. She still has about 4-5 bottles/day (6oz each).
She sleeps typically from about 7:30 -5:30. Not bad, but I wish she would make it until at least 6am more often.
She is very happy still and we are so grateful for that. She is starting to notice when we leave the room and is getting a little fussy about that sometimes. Let's hope she does not have as much separation anxiety as her older sister. Don't want to do that again.
She really likes to be outside - just sitting in the grass or going for walks in the stroller. She seems to be pretty content wherever she is.
She is very interested in the textures of things. She is entertained for hours each day by checking out new objects. She loves to touch and feel things. Sand is one of her favorite. She doesn't put too many things in her mouth though.
She does not have any teeth yet. I've been thinking that they were coming for about 4 months, but still nothing.
Her hair is lightening up, but it does not look like she will be as blonde as her sister.
She takes 3-4 catnaps/day. I am trying to transition her to 2 longer naps/day, but that doesn't always work with our schedule.
Sadie's stats
26 inches (40%)
26 inches (40%)
15 lb 11 oz (28%)
42 cm (23 %)
Erica's stats (had her 3 year appointment at the same time)
35.8 in (20%)
30 lb (43%)
At their appointment, Erica got one shot and cried for the next 45 minutes. Sadie got two shots and cried for about 45 seconds.
Thursday, September 30, 2010
Papa: December 23, 1923 - September 29, 2010
Goodbye Papa. We love you and will miss you. We are so glad you get to be with Nana again.
Thursday, September 23, 2010
Great Aunts
My girls are blessed with many great aunts and great-aunts. We were lucky enough to have Aunt Molly (Troy's sister) come visit us for the week. We are so excited for her little girl to arrive at Christmas. Yay for girl cousins.
Molly smothered the girls with attention and helped me out a ton at home. We miss her tons and wish she lived closer. She even made little stuffed bunnies for each girl.
Thanks to Molly, we were all able to get away last weekend to visit the beach. I'll do a separate post about those adventures. We miss you Molly!!!
Molly smothered the girls with attention and helped me out a ton at home. We miss her tons and wish she lived closer. She even made little stuffed bunnies for each girl.
Thanks to Molly, we were all able to get away last weekend to visit the beach. I'll do a separate post about those adventures. We miss you Molly!!!
3 Three III
I have about 4 million blog posts in my head. I will attempt to get 4 of them done in the next week or so.
First up - Erica just turned three. Yeah!!! We had the obligatory professional cake decorated by TegTap Company (aka Dada). If you can't tell, it is a pink princess.
An elaborate serenade by family and neighbors. She still doesn't know about birthday parties with friends. We are trying to keep her in the dark as long as we can about that.
She was lavished with riches...
...and jewels.
In all seriousness, it was a great day and we had been talking about it for over a month. She loved celebrating and is already looking forward to next year. She even scored a few presents from her awesome baby sitter.
Here are a few highlights about Erica right now for those who want a more in depth coverage. We have a doctor's appointment tomorrow, so I will get stats then.
First up - Erica just turned three. Yeah!!! We had the obligatory professional cake decorated by TegTap Company (aka Dada). If you can't tell, it is a pink princess.
An elaborate serenade by family and neighbors. She still doesn't know about birthday parties with friends. We are trying to keep her in the dark as long as we can about that.
She was lavished with riches...
...and jewels.
In all seriousness, it was a great day and we had been talking about it for over a month. She loved celebrating and is already looking forward to next year. She even scored a few presents from her awesome baby sitter.
Here are a few highlights about Erica right now for those who want a more in depth coverage. We have a doctor's appointment tomorrow, so I will get stats then.
- She threw her pacifier in the garbage. This was also talked about for at least a month. She does better when she has time to prepare for things. She did fine the first night and I thought we were home free. The next couple of days, she cried and said she missed her pacifier. We didn't cave and she seems to be doing better now. She did ask if she could have it back when she turns two. I assured her she could.
- She attends preschool 2 days a week and absolutely loves it. So do I. She loves learning, loves the friends and I think especially loves the snacks and play time. She is the youngest in the class, but seems to be doing ok as far as I can tell.
- She is about to finish up her first ballet class. She thinks it is the greatest thing ever. Her first dance recital is on Saturday, I will post some pictures of it later.
- She is OBSESSED with princesses and princes. She requests multiple "Erica/Ariel stories" everyday. This essentially involves Erica taking the place of Ariel, Ursula tying her up with seaweed and Prince Eric saving her. I'm getting a little concerned about such stories. She never seems to remember the part where Ariel saved Prince Eric. Hmmm.
- She finally walks into nursery and doesn't look back. I never thought this day would come and now that it is here, it doesn't seem like all the separation anxiety was as big of a deal.
- She is about 95% potty trained. We still have an accident every now and then, but she does pretty good.
- She loves Barbie/princess toys, books and movies. She likes to do art projects. She loves to jump on the trampoline, swing, swim, dance and do gymnastics.
- She is getting a lot better about playing on her own and not needing mom for every little thing.
- She says a lot of funny things since she has started preschool. The other day she said, "I just can't resist" without any understanding of what that means.
- She repeats herself a million times. It is really trying my patience and I'm not dealing with it very well.
- She does great with Sadie. If Sadie is playing with something Erica wants, Erica will take it away and give Sadie something else to play with. She loves to make faces at Sadie to get her to laugh. She is getting better about using a quiet voice when Sadie is asleep. She loves to do things with Sadie like take a bath and eat. Now, if only we could get her to nap with Sadie.
Overall, this has been a great year for Erica. We didn't have a "terrible" age two. I hear three can be worse. She is by no means the perfect child and we have our typical struggles, but she is a good kid and we love her. We are grateful for the spirit she brings into our home. She is a little joke-ster and a sweetheart. I am looking forward to watching her grow more this next year.
Friday, August 27, 2010
Prechildren v. Postchildren
(Inspired by a great article a friend just sent me about why you are so busy when you stay home with kids all day long.)
Getting up in the morning
Prechildren: Set your alarm. Snooze if you feel like it. Eat some cereal. (Total time: 10-20 minutes)
Postchildren: Get up anywhere between 4:30-5:30am. Rush into the baby's bedroom before she wakes up the toddler. Feed her a bottle. Change a poopy diaper. Toddler wakes up before you get a chance to snooze again. Make breakfast for the toddler with the right kind of cereal and milk in a sippy cup. Take toddler to the potty. Eat some cereal. Put baby back down to sleep. (Total time: 3 hours)
Showering
Prechildren: Hop in the shower and shave your legs if you feel like it. (Total time: 20 minutes)
Postchildren: Put a movie on for the toddler and hope that she doesn't destroy anything while you are in the shower. Check on toddler and hope that she doesn't wake up crying. Shower as fast as possible. No chance of shaving your legs. (Total time: 10 minutes)
Walking Out the Door
Prechildren: Grab your keys, wallet and phone. Walk out the door. (Total time: 1 minute).
Postchildren: Pack up diaper bag for the children. For the baby you need to fill up bottles, the formula container, make sure you have a clean burp cloth, change of clothes, enough diapers and wipes. For the toddler you need snacks, a water bottle and a change of clothes in case she has an accident. If it will be a longer trip, you need a blanket and pacifier for the baby to help her sleep. You need some activities for the toddler (i.e., DVD player, ipod, crayons, etc.). Make sure toddler has gone to the bathroom. Feed the baby before you go and change her diaper. Grab your keys, wallet and phone. Strap both kids into their car seats. (Total time: 1.5 hours).
Running to the Post Office
Prechildren: Get the package. Take it to the post office. Mail it. (Total time: 5 minutes)
Postchildren: Try to manage a package, a car seat, a toddler and a diaper bag (filled with all the things listed above). Hope people are nice enough to open the door for you. Mail the package. On the way back to the car you have to stop and look at the red diamond sticker in the window, do a balance beam walk along the curb, talk about the "hot air balloon" hanging above Quiznos and why you can't ride in it, but you can go drive by it. Strap kids back into the car. (Total time: 25 minutes)
Grocery Shopping
Prechildren: Drive to the grocery store. Buy your items. Put them in the car. Drive home and put them away. (Total time: 1 hour)
Postchildren: Drop toddler off at dance. Rush with newborn to the store. Park near a stray cart so you don't have to haul the 25 lb. car seat very far. Put baby in and rush through the store before dance is done. Baby starts crying. Debate whether to feed her, decide you don't have enough time, give her a pacifier and hope it works for 10 more minutes. Decide not to get half the things on your list because you don't have time. Rush out to the car and throw the groceries in. Mash the banana and probaby break a couple eggs. Drive to pick up toddler. Baby is screaming. Drive home. Baby is sleeping. Leave the car running. Take toddler to the bathroom. She pees all over the freshly cleaned toilet seat. Change her clothes. Get her something to eat. Bring in some groceries. Baby wakes up. Put frozen food in freezer and cold stuff in fridge. Leave remaining groceries strewn around counters and hope husband will help put them away when he returns home. (Total time: 1.5 hours)
Lunch
Prechildren: Make a sandwich. Eat it. Read something while you eat. (Total time: 15 minutes)
Postchildren: Make a hot dog for toddler just the right temperature. Cut it up into little pieces. Stick a straw in the juice box and drink some of it so it won't squirt all over her fresh outfit when she grabs it. Spoon feed baby some chicken mush. She doesn't like it. Try some pears. She eats only half of it. Give her a bottle. She spits up some of it on your clothes. You don't bother changing because you know it will happen again before the day is over. Read toddler some books and tuck her into bed. Put baby down to bed. Make a sandwich. Eat it. Read something while you eat. (Total time: 1 hour, 15 minutes)
Blogging
Prechildren: You don't have time to blog. (Total time: 0)
Postchildren: Begin a blog post. Internet stops working. Restart computer. Start typing. Both kids wake up. Keep typing anyway. Go put pacifier back in baby's mouth. Hope toddler falls asleep eventually - at least she is staying in her room. (Total time: 30 minutes)
Cleaning House
Prechildren: Do 2 loads of laundry. Wash a few dishes. (Total time: 30 minutes)
Postchildren: Do laundry for 4 people. Wash bottles and dishes. Clean up toys. (Total time: 1 hour, 30 minutes)
Dinner
Prechildren: Make dinner. (Total time: 30 minutes)
Postchildren: Toddler wants to eat at 4pm. Give her a snack to hold her off. Baby is awake and needs to eat again. Feed her a bottle. Place baby on floor with some toys to entertain her. Toddler wants to help make dinner. She insists on dumping everything into the bowl herself and stirring. She needs her hands washed. Baby is crying and needs to be moved to the Bumbo for a change of scenery. Toddler is done helping, but dinner is not ready. You put a movie on for toddler to entertain her while you finish. Eventually dinner gets made. (Total time: 1 hour, 30 minutes)
Bedtime
Prechildren: Watch a movie and/or read a book. Go to bed at midnight. (Total time: 2 hours)
Postchildren: Feed baby, change her diaper, turn on her ceiling fan, turn on her humidifier, make sure she has a pacifier and blanket. Set up bottles to use during the night. Turn on white noise maker. Put her to sleep. Replace pacifier every 5-10 minutes until she is asleep. Read toddler books, brush her teeth, take her to the bathroom, put on her pjs, say prayers, turn on her night light and white nosie maker. Explain to toddler why she doesnt need to be scared. Return to toddler's room to get her a drink of water. Return to toddler's room again for some nonsensical reason. Eventually toddler falls asleep. You are too tired to watch a movie or read a book. You go to sleep at 9:30pm (Total time: 2 hours).
Getting up in the morning
Prechildren: Set your alarm. Snooze if you feel like it. Eat some cereal. (Total time: 10-20 minutes)
Postchildren: Get up anywhere between 4:30-5:30am. Rush into the baby's bedroom before she wakes up the toddler. Feed her a bottle. Change a poopy diaper. Toddler wakes up before you get a chance to snooze again. Make breakfast for the toddler with the right kind of cereal and milk in a sippy cup. Take toddler to the potty. Eat some cereal. Put baby back down to sleep. (Total time: 3 hours)
Showering
Prechildren: Hop in the shower and shave your legs if you feel like it. (Total time: 20 minutes)
Postchildren: Put a movie on for the toddler and hope that she doesn't destroy anything while you are in the shower. Check on toddler and hope that she doesn't wake up crying. Shower as fast as possible. No chance of shaving your legs. (Total time: 10 minutes)
Walking Out the Door
Prechildren: Grab your keys, wallet and phone. Walk out the door. (Total time: 1 minute).
Postchildren: Pack up diaper bag for the children. For the baby you need to fill up bottles, the formula container, make sure you have a clean burp cloth, change of clothes, enough diapers and wipes. For the toddler you need snacks, a water bottle and a change of clothes in case she has an accident. If it will be a longer trip, you need a blanket and pacifier for the baby to help her sleep. You need some activities for the toddler (i.e., DVD player, ipod, crayons, etc.). Make sure toddler has gone to the bathroom. Feed the baby before you go and change her diaper. Grab your keys, wallet and phone. Strap both kids into their car seats. (Total time: 1.5 hours).
Running to the Post Office
Prechildren: Get the package. Take it to the post office. Mail it. (Total time: 5 minutes)
Postchildren: Try to manage a package, a car seat, a toddler and a diaper bag (filled with all the things listed above). Hope people are nice enough to open the door for you. Mail the package. On the way back to the car you have to stop and look at the red diamond sticker in the window, do a balance beam walk along the curb, talk about the "hot air balloon" hanging above Quiznos and why you can't ride in it, but you can go drive by it. Strap kids back into the car. (Total time: 25 minutes)
Grocery Shopping
Prechildren: Drive to the grocery store. Buy your items. Put them in the car. Drive home and put them away. (Total time: 1 hour)
Postchildren: Drop toddler off at dance. Rush with newborn to the store. Park near a stray cart so you don't have to haul the 25 lb. car seat very far. Put baby in and rush through the store before dance is done. Baby starts crying. Debate whether to feed her, decide you don't have enough time, give her a pacifier and hope it works for 10 more minutes. Decide not to get half the things on your list because you don't have time. Rush out to the car and throw the groceries in. Mash the banana and probaby break a couple eggs. Drive to pick up toddler. Baby is screaming. Drive home. Baby is sleeping. Leave the car running. Take toddler to the bathroom. She pees all over the freshly cleaned toilet seat. Change her clothes. Get her something to eat. Bring in some groceries. Baby wakes up. Put frozen food in freezer and cold stuff in fridge. Leave remaining groceries strewn around counters and hope husband will help put them away when he returns home. (Total time: 1.5 hours)
Lunch
Prechildren: Make a sandwich. Eat it. Read something while you eat. (Total time: 15 minutes)
Postchildren: Make a hot dog for toddler just the right temperature. Cut it up into little pieces. Stick a straw in the juice box and drink some of it so it won't squirt all over her fresh outfit when she grabs it. Spoon feed baby some chicken mush. She doesn't like it. Try some pears. She eats only half of it. Give her a bottle. She spits up some of it on your clothes. You don't bother changing because you know it will happen again before the day is over. Read toddler some books and tuck her into bed. Put baby down to bed. Make a sandwich. Eat it. Read something while you eat. (Total time: 1 hour, 15 minutes)
Blogging
Prechildren: You don't have time to blog. (Total time: 0)
Postchildren: Begin a blog post. Internet stops working. Restart computer. Start typing. Both kids wake up. Keep typing anyway. Go put pacifier back in baby's mouth. Hope toddler falls asleep eventually - at least she is staying in her room. (Total time: 30 minutes)
Cleaning House
Prechildren: Do 2 loads of laundry. Wash a few dishes. (Total time: 30 minutes)
Postchildren: Do laundry for 4 people. Wash bottles and dishes. Clean up toys. (Total time: 1 hour, 30 minutes)
Dinner
Prechildren: Make dinner. (Total time: 30 minutes)
Postchildren: Toddler wants to eat at 4pm. Give her a snack to hold her off. Baby is awake and needs to eat again. Feed her a bottle. Place baby on floor with some toys to entertain her. Toddler wants to help make dinner. She insists on dumping everything into the bowl herself and stirring. She needs her hands washed. Baby is crying and needs to be moved to the Bumbo for a change of scenery. Toddler is done helping, but dinner is not ready. You put a movie on for toddler to entertain her while you finish. Eventually dinner gets made. (Total time: 1 hour, 30 minutes)
Bedtime
Prechildren: Watch a movie and/or read a book. Go to bed at midnight. (Total time: 2 hours)
Postchildren: Feed baby, change her diaper, turn on her ceiling fan, turn on her humidifier, make sure she has a pacifier and blanket. Set up bottles to use during the night. Turn on white noise maker. Put her to sleep. Replace pacifier every 5-10 minutes until she is asleep. Read toddler books, brush her teeth, take her to the bathroom, put on her pjs, say prayers, turn on her night light and white nosie maker. Explain to toddler why she doesnt need to be scared. Return to toddler's room to get her a drink of water. Return to toddler's room again for some nonsensical reason. Eventually toddler falls asleep. You are too tired to watch a movie or read a book. You go to sleep at 9:30pm (Total time: 2 hours).
Sunday, August 22, 2010
My Fairy Princess
You would think that such a girly title could only mean that Nancee is writing this post. Well, actually, if you knew Nancee you would know that she isn't girly enough for such a title. And since Erica thinks that "flowers" start with the letter "G" and all Sadie can do for communication is grunt and spit, that leaves Troy as the author by reasonable deduction. Yes, I shelved my space ship shoot-em-up game to make a Fairy Princess app. And I happen to be proud of it.
Check it out in the app store!
Also check out my new website for all my apps, www.tegtap.com
It started with us trying to find a good princess game in the app store for Erica, only to find they were all lame. In these other apps, the princesses just stood there in the same motionless pose the entire time, and the clothes all had the same pose. Plus it was hard for Erica to navigate. So I tried to fill that empty princess app void by making a cool, 3D-animated, interactive, easy-to-use princess dressup game. Thank you, Nancee, for getting me my wacom tablet. I wouldn't have been able to do the artwork in this app without it.
Here are some screen shots:
For a little while, it creeped up to be the #105 ranked app in the Kids Games section of the app store today! Thanks to all my family and friends who have helped spread the word via facebook, blog, email, phone, word, and/or telepathy. I really appreciate it. It would be great to get the extra visibility that comes from being in the top 100.
Thanks for checking it out, and tell iPhone/iPod/iPad owners with little girls about this app... or any iPhone owner who secretly likes fairy princesses.
Check it out in the app store!
Also check out my new website for all my apps, www.tegtap.com
It started with us trying to find a good princess game in the app store for Erica, only to find they were all lame. In these other apps, the princesses just stood there in the same motionless pose the entire time, and the clothes all had the same pose. Plus it was hard for Erica to navigate. So I tried to fill that empty princess app void by making a cool, 3D-animated, interactive, easy-to-use princess dressup game. Thank you, Nancee, for getting me my wacom tablet. I wouldn't have been able to do the artwork in this app without it.
Here are some screen shots:
For a little while, it creeped up to be the #105 ranked app in the Kids Games section of the app store today! Thanks to all my family and friends who have helped spread the word via facebook, blog, email, phone, word, and/or telepathy. I really appreciate it. It would be great to get the extra visibility that comes from being in the top 100.
Thanks for checking it out, and tell iPhone/iPod/iPad owners with little girls about this app... or any iPhone owner who secretly likes fairy princesses.
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