The close of the summer...

Many a day has passed since posting last. I apologize to my 2nd born...sorry Evelyn. There just does not seem to be enough time lately to gather my thoughts...at least not enough to formulate a witty, entertaining, sentimental blog post...The kind I like to compose late at night, when all is quiet. It seems that the past few months, there has been very little of just that....quiet. Life is scheduled and busy and chaotic and fun and chaotic and challenging and amazing. And tiring. So tiring. Since I last posted the following things have happened along with 27,000 other things that I won't be able to list...

1. Ford graduated from law school. Can I get a hallelujah?
2. Evie started talking. I mean real words. Lots of them.
3. Summer break started.
4. Ford began studying for the bar exam.
5. We moved out of our rental and into my parents' (move #4 since moving to MI) while Ford mostly studied for the bar exam and worked just a little.
6. Ford took the bar exam...and thought it was really hard.
7. Evie grew.
8. Amelia grew.
9. Evie got more teeth.
10. Amelia got her first loose tooth biting her corn on the cob on the 4th of July.
11. Evie caught her first fish.
12. Amelia got her hair chopped.
13. Evie continues to grow the cutest mullet ever.
14. The girls and I got swine flu after attending the Ingham County Fair. While this could not be proved...I'm sticking with it.
15. Amelia turned 5. She was sick on her birthday. Major downer.
16. Amelia lost her first tooth the next day.
17. We moved out of my parents' and into a HOUSE. OMG. (Yes, I said OMG and by the way..move #5) It's a rental, but it's a house, people. And everyone has their OWN room. And there's a swing set out back. Sigh...
18. Evie grew some more, and began speaking in sentences...like my favorite "I yuh you mama."
19. Ford started his year long clerkship with a federal judge. Fancy.
20. Amelia started her 3rd and final year of preschool.
21. By the grace of God, we all managed to survive law school and the bar exam.
22. We had a great summer with family and friends and took trips north to Mackinac, Cross Village and Houghton Lake.

I just might be back at this. For the two of you who still check to see if I am alive...

An Unfortunate Streak

Oh so many things. Let me start by saying that tomorrow, Monday April 23rd, is Ford's LAST day of law school! He still has finals but no more classes. It's truly hard to believe. Can it be real???
Next, it's been a rough week for little Evelyn. She took her first trip to the emergicenter...she's fine but it was eventful. She's a little trooper, but she suffered a deep and nasty cut between her thumb and first finger. How? Well, sadly this mishap happened during a moment of happy and synergetic play between two sisters. The girls were playing together with a toy top, Evie watched while Amelia pumped it vigorously to make it spin. Evie reached in and grabbed it at the wrong moment. I knew it when I saw her face. It was deep. There was blood. She wasn't happy. I grabbed her and raced to the kitchen sink. As Ford and I were tending to Evie, I turned to see a very pale and quivering lipped Amelia, her big browns flooded with worry. Now I had two kids in need. I gently assured Amelia that Evelyn was going to be fine. She couldn't hold it in any longer. She burst and then confessed while wailing, "it's my fault, I did it to her!" Guilt. My heart went out to the kid. I hugged her tight and told her it was NOT her fault and that it was just an accident. She didn't believe me. I hugged her some more. She sobbed. Now two kids crying.
So, time to divide and conquer. This was one injury Boo Boo Bunny was not cut out for. Ford had Evie duty and I stayed home to take Amelia's mind off of what was about to go down at the emergicenter. A tough decision for me...what child to be with? I'm the mom, I'm supposed to be with them when they get hurt. But let's face it, Ford is better emotionally when it comes to trauma...as he put it "when they get (badly) hurt it gets you straight in the heart." He's right. I learned this about myself my very first day of motherhood. I don't do well when my babies are in (physical) peril. I sort of crumble. Thought I'd be better at it and for sure better at it by now. Guess I'll have to work on that.
By Ford's account, it took two people to hold Evie down (she is amazingly strong) while the doctor poured hydrogen peroxide directly into the wound, inspected it and decided that while the cut was deep, gluing it would suffice...no need for stitches. Whew. Three or four layers of glue later, and only after the doctor left the room did Evie stop crying and immediately began giving Ford the business about what the heck just happened to her. While babbling, she began pointing toward the door, he asked her if she wanted to go home, she giggled nervously and nodded her head, like "heck yeah I want to go home!" She didn't cry about it again. Didn't even care about her bandage. On with life as usual. Keeping the band aid dry for 5 days was a bit of a challenge but we did it. She's healing nicely. Amelia seems to have healed as well.

Then two days later, Evie tripped and smacked her head HARD on the bottom crossbar of our dining room table. Even Ford reacted with an loud and unsettling "WHOA!!" I fully expected to pick her up and see blood pouring from her brown bone. But alas, spared again...just a nasty goose-egg. I have learned in my 4.5 years that those are quite common and usually harmless at this young age. Good to know. Dr. Frank in Nashville had his share of visits and calls from us after most of Amelia's bad head bonks. God made those little heads hard for a reason. Real hard. Good design.

But then, yesterday a fever set in with no apparent symptoms other than extreme crabbiness...she did seem more sleepy than usual. An infection? The beginning of a cold? Today, though the fever broke, we noticed red spots around her mouth and a few on her bum, a decreased appetite (although ice-cream was not a problem tonight)...I'm suspecting hand, foot, mouth disease. Sounds nasty but relatively common in children. Amelia had it at 12 months and with same progression of symptoms. A trip to the doc tomorrow to rule out anything else and then we deal. Let's hope this is the end of this unfortunate streak...did I mention we all had the stomach bug last month while Ford was on his spring break? Even the babe. THAT was a real doozie. To remind myself (years from now and several stomach bugs later) of this first bout of family stomach virus I will just quote Amelia yelling as she is running through the house and while Ford is running Evelyn to the kitchen sink (a little too late I might add) while I am lying on the bathroom floor unable to assist but listening to it all..."I'LL GET THE GREEN BOWL, I'LL GET THE GREEN BOWL!!"

Bottom line is even the second time around, these injuries and illnesses are still hard on baby AND mama. And daddy. And sister too. I am smarter than I was the first time around, and there is something to be said about that, but my heart doesn't ache for them any less.

Washing Machine Dance

When Evie hears the washing machine, she dances her special "washing machine dance" which she made up on her very own. She's inspired by rhythm and the washing machine gets her every time...

Pebbles...

It's been a while...I realize. What I will remember about this time of life, (ie. last semester of husband's law school; a busy and talkative, 4.5 year old attending and LOVING 1/2 day pre-school 5 days a week; and a 14 month old to CHASE, feed, play with, hold, pick up and kiss superficial boo boos after falling 227+ times a day, coerce into napping twice a day along with well, just everything else that happens in LIFE)...it boils down to this...I AM TIRED. Once everyone is asleep I have a few quiet moments to ponder what I might do before I crash...so so many things that I could do before I crash...and unfortunately, writing a new blog post is far down on the list. I am feeling a little guilty about this, but I will remember to remember that this time of our lives is tiring. But so rewarding and sweet and funny and all worth it.

I don't often post about the trials we face in our daily routines. Keeping it light, you know...but that's just not always reality. Let's face it.
Anyone who knows Amelia knows she is smart. She is fiercely independent. And she is particular. We've struggled with clothing in the past. The way it feels, how it fits...basically overall comfort. And there were many a costume changes daily, so many changes, can't even count how many per day. This was a hard one at times...I won't go into detail but just know...it was HARD. I am happy to say, that this once very large hurdle, has become but a pebble in our path. Amelia has matured and overcome most of her issues with this one, to the great relief of her parents. A mere phase. Thank the LORD.
That's not to say that we, meaning her parents, are not on edge every now and again when we see Amelia (who has picked out her own outfits since she was 1.75 years old) pull something out of the closet or drawer that has proved challenging in the past. And by challenging, I mean, sit down, take off your coat and shoes, we're not going anywhere for at least a half an hour...
Today, Amelia pulled out the tights. Tights. Seem innocent enough? Not in the history of this house. Tights belong in a group of fashion-wear that, well, just never should have been invented, apparently. But none-the-less, we have a pair or two in the sock drawer, as Amelia has always understood their fashion value, of course.
And feeling fashionably inspired this morning after a long and luxurious shower, Amelia decided on a frilly short-sleeved shirt and matching purple skirt, and...tights.
Now, Amelia had a tummy bug yesterday and stayed home from school today to recoup. No need to dress up or even dress for that matter...jammies would have been fine. But Amelia likes to look her best. Ford walked by her room and saw her quietly sitting on her bed attempting to put these infamous tights on by herself and he saw her struggling...key word here...quietly. However, out of habit, I'm sure, he immediately leaped into "diffuse before the explosion" mode.

Ford: Amelia, honey, you aren't going to school today, you don't need to put on tights. Just put on something comfy.
Amelia obviously had her mind made up and continued with her plight.
Ford: Amelia, why don't you just take those tights off?
Amelia, sweetly and calmly: Dad, be your own mind.
(I believe she meant to say "mind your own business").

She happily wore those tights all day, even though the crotch was sagging most of the time and gravity had caused the ankles to bunch after just a few hours. I even hate when that happens.
Amelia? Fine. (Proud of you, Amelia). :)
A corner has been turned.
And yeah, Ford, be your own mind.

Sweet...

Sometimes the sweetness can be overwhelming.

Our bedtime routine includes standing in front of the crib holding Evie and swaying gently back and forth in the quiet, darkened room to soft music. She takes this as her cue to settle in and get snugly. Her own routine involves adjusting her lovey upon my shoulder (or Ford's), laying her head down on my shoulder, and often patting my arm while she starts to doze. Tonight she did her normal routine and I had one of those moments where I felt extra happy and grateful just to be holding her, feeling her little hand pat my shoulder and listening to her soft breathing and sucky sounds. I spent a few seconds trying to ingrain that feeling into my brain...knowing this stuff doesn't last forever. I whispered "night night sweet baby, I love you...can mommy have a kiss?" She picked up her head, smiled behind her sucky and giggled softly. She nodded her head as if to say, 'Sure Mama, you can have a kiss.' Then she leaned in and I kissed her soft cheek, she turned her head away without a sound and laid back down on the lovey, upon my shoulder...and went to sleep.

Love this laugh...

Evie and I stayed in today while Ford took Amelia to the sledding hill. Great sunny day but pretty cold. Caught this moment of hilarity on tape while we played in our tree tent set up indoors...fully equipped with sleeping bag, books and toys. Evie loves it in there. Check her out.

Happy Christmas, Happy Birthday and Happy New Year!

I can't even believe the whirlwind of events that have taken place these past few weeks! So much activity and so much to be thankful for. Let's start with our birthday girl...
Evie is ONE! One whole year with sweet little Evie rounding out our little family. Joy, laughter and amazement are the 3 main words that come to mind when I think of her. She is growing leaps and bounds and like her sister, tends to act older than her age. She is testing out her legs lately. She took her first step on December 13th with Amelia and I there to witness the exciting event. She has been practicing ever since! She's speedy with her walker and loves to just stand up and balance. She just hangs out for a while, standing, pointing at things, making her talking sounds. Speaking of speaking...she's been working on her vocabulary! Dada, mama, up, duck, wawa, uh-oh, Santa, soft, star, grandpa, sister (some of these words sound a bit like "dada" but we know the difference), she says "huh?" with her hands turned up when she is perplexed or looking for someone. She also makes a multitude of animal noises...monkey, dog, horse, bear, lion, rooster. She is great at communicating, with words and with sign language. She laughs, almost with relief, when we understand and say back to her what she is requesting. And what she is usually requesting is food or milk. Those signs she has mastered.
She thoroughly enjoys food. She hums her food songs while eating. She has different songs for different foods. I thought today, I wonder if she will always hum while eating. After lunch today, Ford was changing Evie's diaper in the bedroom and she must have been asking him for more food as I heard him say to her..."Evie, you get three meals a day, and a few snacks. Got it? You just ate, kid." I had to laugh out loud.
It's great fun watching Evie and her sister develop their relationship. They love each other so much and yet, like sisters do, they fight...often. So far, for the most part we have been letting them work it out on their own, unless someone gets physical. It's usually Evie. We are teaching her to be "soft" and "gentle" but she is automatically on the defense when big sister comes around as Amelia at times displays her senior status...likes to show who's boss. I often over-hear Amelia saying things to Evie like, "Evie, if you do that again, there is going to be a consequence." But, truth be told, Evie can hold her own. Let's just say, I'm not all that worried about her. We've got two strong-willed little ladies on our hands. Should make for some interesting teenage years.
We introduced cow's milk to Evie this past week. So far it's a no-go but I said the same thing about solid food 6 months ago and look at her now. She spits the milk out and makes terrible faces.
She's got 4 teeth now, 2 on top and 2 on bottom. Cuteness.
I had an Amelia deja-vu moment with Evie yesterday. Ford was trying to read to her before nap and she was not sitting still, as usual, for book-time. This is common with Evie and book-time, she's much too busy and has too much exploring to do. So I said to her "Evie do you want milk?" She laughed and made the sign for milk. I said, "okay, but first you have to lay down and finish book-time with Dad and then you can have milk." She totally laid down and waited for Ford to finish reading. Stinker understands everything we say. Amelia often shocked me like that at this age as well.
Christmas was fun and crazy and exciting and full of memorable moments. Amelia was so excited for Santa to come and was amazed at all of the magic Christmas brings. Love seeing Christmas through her eyes. She was the most enthusiastic present opener this year, announcing each gift with a loud and truly excited voice. She was just as excited for her sister's birthday and did not forget about Evie's important day despite all the Christmas activity. Amelia LOVES to give gifts and I love to watch her give them. She talked for weeks leading up to Christmas about all of the things she wanted to buy for Ford and I. A very giving girl and I am thankful. I got a bright pink sweater and a Rudolph ornament from my sweet girl on Christmas morning.
Amelia has had a fun and exciting Christmas break but misses school terribly and I am so glad for that! She cannot wait to go back tomorrow. What a blessing to have a child so enthusiastic about school, and what a blessing to have her enrolled in such an amazing pre-school with teachers we've missed very much. I've already cried about Amelia's graduation from ONS. Sigh...
Here's to a fantastic and exciting and blessed New Year! Hopeful for good things in 2012.