Mr. Six Month Old

One boy, who sleeps THROUGH THE NIGHT!
Two teeth.
Three sisters.
Four fingers on his right hand (I had trouble there!).
Five bibs a day--check out that drool.
Six months old.

Ho Ho Ho

Isabel emptied a 3/4 full bottle of shampoo into the bath water when I wasn't looking. Lily didn't exactly tell her to stop. At least they had fun, right? There were bubbles on bubbles!

I heard "Ahhhh!!! I have soap in my eyes!" about 50 times. We needed one of those emergency eye wash stations from Chemistry lab. They both looked like they went through a very traumatic experience after it was all said and done, very bloodshot, irritated eyes.

Allergies

My allergies are terrible this year. I am sniffly and sneezey. My girls ask me all the time "Why are you crying Mom?" because my eyes are so watery. I am going to bed almost every night with a sinus headache. It has been years since I have felt this bad--high school maybe (it's been 10 years!).

I found it very strange considering the cool summer we have had, things are not flourishing like normal (my garden can prove it). Then it dawned on me this past weekend! We haven't turned on the air conditioning at all this summer, except a day or two. Most summers I live in filtered air most of the day and all night, but this summer I am breathing in all those allergens around the clock.

Which is worse? Popping Claritin or closing up the windows and turning on the air? I am not sure either.

Baby Madeline

Russ and Jenny had a little girl last Thursday (July 23). Isn't she cute?

Bee's Arrival

There's a Bird On My Head. AHHHH!!!

Cate posted her pictures of the Milwaukee County Zoo Summer Exhibit today. I thought I should post ours too (we went last Thursday). I concur that the Wings From Down Under exhibit was great! Isabel is so funny.

Potty Talk Continued

Lily: Mom! Gus just woke up from his poopy nap. (he he he)

Mom: Lily! We need to work on your language. It is not appropriate to say "poopy nap". How about this instead: Mom, Gus just woke up from his nap?

Lily: Why can you say it then?

Mom: What? I call it a "poopy nap"?

Lily: You said Gus was pooped when you laid him down in his crib.

Mom: (rolling her eyes) It is an EXPRESSION!!!!! (f-i-g-u-r-a-t-i-v-e-l-y pulling hair) He's pooped. He's tired. It doesn't mean he is poopy!!!!!

Lily: Oh. (big smile)

Mom: (big smile)

Horseback Riding

Lily and Abbott


Chris on Tucker and Lily on Abbott

Lily and the cowdog. Doesn't she look strange in jeans?

For Lily's birthday gift Chris and I wanted to give her something that she could not share. Lily has such a generous spirit. She will always gladly give you half of whatever she has. Claire and Izzy often take advantage of her kindness. Jeannette gave us the idea of a horseback ride. Lily was of course thrilled with the gift, and the excitement has been building for weeks for this day to finally come!

The stable requested that she wear jeans for the trail ride. Lily was very concerned, "Mom I don't have any jeans!". I assured her that we do own jeans in her size, and this morning I went upstairs into the attic to dig in the bins of clothes and brought down a pair that would fit her. I handed her the pants and then she asked how to put them on.

"Come on Lily. They're pants!"
"Mom, don't yell. This is my first time wearing jeans."
"Really?"
"Yes! This is my first time."
"Lily. You're five. This is your first time wearing jeans?"
"Yup. How do I put them on?"

When I asked her how her ride was, she was very excited to tell me that the horse had gas and was still laughing about it. She is definitely five! Her potty humor is in FULL SWING!

While it was her first time in jeans, Lily is very proud of the fact it wasn't her first time on a horse. When she was two, she rode a pony at the State Fair. Isn't her two year old expression the cutest? I love this picture of her!

Vampire

At last night's softball game, Claire excitedly pointed to the man standing behind the catcher. "Look Dad! That's the vampire!"

Tooth

Cherry Pie

"Mom? How come whenever you make cherry pie the smoke detector goes off?"

"(Grrrr.) I don't know, but thanks for pointing out the correlation."

Bee Update

Bee slipped into its chrysalis on Saturday. We all gathered around to watch it happen--it only took about 2 minutes! It was so amazing. Butterfly Bee should emerge on or around July 21st. Exciting!

Pandora

I am sorta obsessed with Pandora internet radio. It has been a nice change from my usual conservative talk radio, which has been too depressing to listen to lately.

I highly recommend my favorite station: Michael Buble.

Meet Bee

Lily found this monarch caterpillar on a walk last weekend. It has been so fun keeping this guy hostage! The girls have been raiding our neighbor's yard for milkweed leaves. I'll keep you posted on his progress.

The caterpillar has a number of aliases: Bee, Nibbles and Munchie.

Get in My Belly

Kinda looks like a baby. Come here! I'm gonna eat you! I'm bigger than you and I'm higher on the food chain. Get in my belly!

Parade Pictures

Parade Pictures

Happy Birthday Lily!

HELP!

Birthday Eve Interview

As we frosted cupcakes (must work on piping skills), I interviewed Lily on the past year, the year ahead and on all of her favorites.

Favorites

Food: Chicken wings/ Spinach Noodles/ grapes
Color: Red or purple
Movie: Cinderella
Ice Cream: Chocolate with sprinkles
Stuffed animal: Rose Kitty
Mom: (rolling her eyes) "I only have one Mom!"
Article of clothing: Dresses
Hymn: Entrust Your Days and Burdens
Best Friend: Claire or Sophia

Best thing about being four: I am almost Izzy's age. 2+2=4. (I didn't really understand the logic either.)

Best things about the past year:

learned how to zipper and put on seat belt
learned how to put on tights, socks, and shoes by self
counted to 100
started Sunday School
Blue Harbor Waterpark
Gus was born

Things you want to do when you are five:

Learn to READ!!!