31.7.08

I tried...

I keep trying to type a post to go along with this photo, but Eli keeps sabotaging my efforts. I think it's time to give up and just leave you with a picture. :oI~

30.7.08

Alternate Identities and String Cheese

Lila and I have somewhat-recently discovered a kids' TV show called "Signing Time". The show teaches sign language and has hideously catchy songs that will get stuck in your head for days. The two main kids on the show are named Alex and Leah. Today, Lila has decided that she is Leah and her stuffed pig, normally known as Piggie, is now Alex.

She has been referring to herself in the third person all day. For example, "Leah is going to put some shoes on so the litter doesn't get on her feet." and "Are Leah's fingernails long?" One time, I accidentally referred to her as Lila and she corrected me. "No, I'm Leah!" Yes, of course. Excuse me. :oI~

On a different topic, I've discovered something odd about Charlie. Yesterday, I was eating a piece of string cheese and he started shadowing me and meowing like he thought I had something for him. I told him it was just cheese and let him smell it. Our cats, with a couple of amusing exceptions, have no interest in human food. Charlie has a weakness for peanut butter cookies and Cordelia can't resist barbecue potato chips.

Anyway, he sniffed the cheese and then kept hounding me, so I finally pulled of a small piece and gave it to him. He ate it and then started begging for more! I gave him one more piece, told him he was done, and thought no more of it. Today, Lila ate most of a piece of string cheese and then left a hunk on a plate on the coffee table when she went down for her nap. I looked up a bit later to see Charlie standing on his hind feet by the table and trying to rake the cheese off onto the floor! I guess he likes string cheese.

18.7.08

Fever

Poor Lila has one of her fevers today. My first clue this morning should have been when she wanted to sit in my lap and snuggle for more than 30 seconds. I didn't figure it out, however, until she started complaining of being cold. That's a sure sign that her temperature is on the rise. She didn't seem to feel bad this morning, but she's been much more puny this afternoon.

Earlier, I asked her if she wanted to call her Daddy at work - she has recently started to enjoy doing this and Doug gets a kick out of it - and she said yes. The following is an exact transcript of her side of the conversation (doug's side is pretty accurate - i had him on speaker phone - but i don't remember his exact words)...

[phone ringing]
Doug: Hello?
Lila: I have a fever.
Doug: ...what?
Lila: I have a fever.
Doug: You have a fever? How sad! I'm sorry you are feeling bad.
Lila: I just wanted to call you.
Doug: Well, I'm glad you called me. It's nice to talk to you.
Lila: Just be on your way home.
Doug: Oh, I'm not on my way home yet. I still have to work for a while.
Lila: Bye.
Doug: Bye-bye.
[lila closes phone]

17.7.08

What do I always talk about...?

Please behold the cuteness of my children's legs and feet. And take special note - Eli officially has chubbbbby thighs! WooHoo! [squeeze squeeze]

It was a degree or two below boiling yesterday, so we went out in the backyard. Lila and I both felt it was too hot (i could tell lila was hot by the way she started whining at me), but Eli had fun. He just lay there on the blanket with this little smile on his face. Maybe he was thinking, "Finally, I'm warm!" I'm pretty sure he thinks we're polar bears. And we don't even keep the house as cool as we'd like it! Anyway, I decided it was time to give up and come back in the house once I realized I was losing my battle against the random ants that kept finding our blanket and trying to attack us.

Lila has just spent the past half-hour putting "bandaids" all over my face, arms, legs, feet, neck, clothes, etc. These are actually stickers - most of them from Halloween. I look rather alarming, I fear. I took a picture, which I will post in due time.

Now I'm going to give Lila an early bath in hopes that Doug will agree to go to Chuy's for dinner... :)

15.7.08

Kids

This is a photo of my daughter, Fashion Statement Peeler. Rollers in her hair, a melon-pink outfit, navy blue pajama socks, and red shiny shoes that are two sized too big. All she needs to complete the outfit is a terrycloth robe. The rollers were our second failed attempt at curling her hair. The first attempt ended when she couldn't tolerate sleeping in them. This attempt ended when she insisted on removing them because they were "hurting." Oh well. We'll try again when she's older...

Eli had his two month check-up with the pediatrician yesterday. His latest stats are as follows:

Weight: 11 lbs (30th %ile)
Height: 21.5 in (5th %ile)
Head Circumference: 40 cm (50th %ile)

Translation: He's short and he's got a big head! :o)~

They checked him over and said he looks fine. He got his shots, which he hated, naturally. And everyone told me how much he looks like Lila (she's got a very large fan club at that doctor's office). Tomorrow, Lila goes for a follow-up visit with her Infectious Disease doctor.

14.7.08

stabbing, gagging, and hurting

Lila tried to put her eye out with a fork last night. For the past few months, she has become a fabulous puppeteer. Anything that crosses her path, or even parts of her body, can suddenly develop a personality and start speaking to you. We've been dining with Baby Fork at every meal for quite some time now. At dinner last night, Baby Fork got a little out of hand and stabbed Lila in the eye, drawing blood. Thankfully, he didn't get her eyeball, but it couldn't have gotten much closer. Baby Fork received a firm talking-to and a time out.

Oh, I tried another flavor of yogurt. I got strawberry with fruit on bottom (Brown Cow brand). I found it less repulsive than the vanilla flavor I tried a few days ago, but only slightly. I forced myself to eat half the cup, then had to stop because I was starting to feel like I might gag. I tried. Now I'm officially giving up. I just don't like yogurt.

Ugh, and while I'm complaining... I've been having some sharp lower back and pelvic pains. It started on Wednesday and has been getting slowly worse. (my back is hurting rather a lot as i type this.) I saw my OB/GYN this morning and she ruled out bladder, uterine, and kidney infections. Now I'm scheduled to have an ultrasound next week to see if I have an ovarian cyst. I'm not remotely worried, but please pray with me that the pain will go away because it's interfering with my already-interrupted sleep.

10.7.08

Yogurt? Ew!

I decided yesterday that I was going to try yogurt for the first time in... as far back as I can recall. I have always avoided it on principle - I don't like eating things that, as stated very clearly on the label, are alive. However, since I am currently trying to lose the rest of the weight I gained while pregnant, I've become more adventurous. I bought a box of Cream of Wheat last week and found it to be relatively edible. I also found that it makes my throat swell up. This week, I have been very intrigued by the yogurt commercials that claim to be a delicious way to cut fat out of your diet.

So, I pulled out a small container of vanilla yogurt (HEB brand). Doug is always saying how good it is and Lila just eats it right up. I took one bite and found it completely repulsive. It was tart and didn't taste remotely like vanilla, at least not to these taste buds. I sat there for a moment, recovering, and decided that I couldn't make a judgement based on the first bite.

I gathered my nerve for a few minutes and tried another small bite. I didn't find it any more appealing than the first. At that point, I felt no guilt in putting it back in the refrigerator and eating a pita with hummus instead. Oh well, I did try... And maybe - MAYBE - I'll try a different brand with a flavor that might mask the ickiness a little better. I make no promises, however.

3.7.08

Lila

This is a photo of Lila resolutely NOT looking at the camera.

I'm still not sure of the cause of Lila's discipline problems for the past several days - most likely a combination of factors - but she was much more her normal self today. Thank goodness! In fact, I don't think she got one time out today. It's so nice not to be whined at all day long!

Oh, there are a couple of funny things that she's been saying lately. The first one is something she started saying about a month ago. She uses it anytime we tell her something is about to happen and she doesn't want it to (e.g., a bath, doug leaving for work, etc.). She will say, in a fantastically drawn out whine, "Nooot a gooood ideeea!" The only reason it's not annoying is that it's so funny.

She's also started singing the song Pop Goes the Weasel, only her version is, "Plop goes the diesel..." I haven't corrected her because it cracks me up so much.

And one more thing about Lila: She floated on her back in swim class this morning - all by herself! That is major for her! She loves the water, but has always hated being on her back in it. She floated on her back and when the teacher told her to, she rolled over and put her face in the water. Amazing! The girl is just amazing!

2.7.08

Eli

Whew! The Boy has been a handful for the past several days. He just finished another one of those phases where he doesn't sleep much during the day and spends most of his awake time crying. He was spending a couple of hours in the evenings crying at full volume. After a day like that, you start to feel like the connections in your brain have snapped so that you can't think straight!

Now that he's back to normal, he's being very cute again. Doug and I are starting to get smiles out of him, but no one gets a bigger one than Lila. He gives her big grins and loves to stare at her. He already thinks his big sister is the best thing ever! Another small but cute thing he's started doing is grabbing a fistful of my shirt and holding on tight while he's eating. I've always loved the hijinks of a baby's free hand while they're nursing. It's like the hand has a mind of its own sometimes. The shirt-grabbing doesn't sound that exciting, but it looks very sweet!

His next appointment with the pediatrician is still a couple of weeks away. That's the visit where he'll get his first round of immunizations. I suspect that he's not going to like that very much. (ya think?!?) I always love finding out how much they've grown though. And having everyone in the office tell me how beautiful my children are! :o)~