SMILE!

My baby just started smiling last week. I have been busy taking on my obligatory role of the Paparazzi, and snapping mad amounts of pictures.

Oh, and his dimple? Most definitely the sweetest thing ever.

Smiling, my very favorite milestone.

BIG SISTER

My Liv Grace is so very proud to be a big sister. She is constantly taking care of Nathan - or at least that is what she likes to call it. When he cries she enjoys resting her head on his stomach in a rather rough fashion and saying "it's o.k. baby, it's o.k." When he is in his car seat, crying as I am trying to get all the other monkeys ready and out the door, she crawls up on the table and rocks him ever so not gently in order to calm him down. When she hears him crying in his crib after waking up from a nap she stops in her tracks and shouts "Oh, baby awake!!" and races to his aid by running into his room turning on his light and yelling "it's o.k baby, it's o.k." This usually results in him crying louder from the shock of the lights in his eyes and his sisters loud yelling. And on the rare occasions he is sitting nicely in his bouncy chair not crying out to be held, she feels the need to attempt to grab him around the waist, pick him him up and hug him. As you can imagine, this does not go over very well.

So you get the idea, she loves her brother, but the way in which she shows it is a bit on the rough side.

Today when I was attempting to get a nice picture of my Nathan for his Baptism invitation I was making, I was surprised to see her being so gentle. As I was snapping away, she was ever so softly saying "hi baby, hi..." and stroking his head very softly.

Maybe hearing me say "Gentle Liv, not so rough Liv, settle down a bit you are freaking him out Liv..." are starting to sink in. Just maybe....

SLOWLY BUT SURELY, WE'RE GETTING THERE...

Miss Liv has been using the potty chair here and there for the past few weeks. I say "here and there" as she seems to decide when she feels like going in her pants and when she feels like going on the potty chair. At times she will walk on up to me and say "Mommy, potty" and make her way into the bathroom, drag her potty chair out to the living room, take off her clothes and diaper, plop her little bottom down and go. Just like a pro - like she had been doing this sort of thing forever. Other times she will walk up to me and say "Mommy, potty in diaper" and she will stand there with such a look of concentration on her face as she is literally going to the bathroom in her diaper. Little stinker.

So lately I have been making a little bit bigger than usual deal out of when she decides to use the potty, so as to make her want to ditch the diapers for good.

This morning she was apparently in the mood to use the potty chair, and Ava was in the mood to document the celebration using my camera.

Here my girl is, sitting on the potty, with her "smile Liv" grin on her face.

Soon after this, she hopped up off the potty chair to proudly show us that she had indeed gone.

We clapped, laughed and yelled out lots of celebratory things such as "Yay!!" and "You did it Liv!!!" and "Good job, you are such a big girl!!"

After slipping on her big girl Dora underwear, she decided the celebration was not over. Apparently all of the clapping, and words of encouragement were not enough for my girl. So it all continued on, Ava and I shouting out "Yay! Great job! Wooo-hooo! We are so proud of you Liv!!" We clapped some more and even added some jumping around to the celebration.

We did some hugging,

and some more jumping,

And we ended the whole celebration with a sucker and a little ride on her favorite horse.

All of this before 8am this morning.

Needless to say, Miss Liv was very proud of her accomplishments on the potty chair.

I'm hoping that a few of these types of celebrations will do the trick and get my girl to use that potty chair of hers all of the time. 'Cause doing this too often is simply going to wear this Mama out.

TO DO LIST

The "to do" list around this house seems to do nothing but grow bigger and bigger. As I add items to that list I always make sure to let the Mr. know about it by casually saying something like, "Gosh, you would not believe how many light bulbs are burnt out around the house. We should really take some Saturday afternoon and replace them all." Or "My goodness, the kids' bedroom doors make such an awful creeky noise when I close them at bedtime. What do you do to get rid of that -- WD40? Maybe I can pick some up." Or "When you find the time could you look for whatever tool we need to finish taking down the trampoline?" [Cause I already did the backbreaking work of removing all the springs and the outer safety cushion by myself.] Or "Darn it, Lucas tried to get his Karate bag down by himself and broke off the trim on our built in's. Can you bring home a nail gun from the shop so we can fix it?"

Most often I get a grunt as a response, which lets me know in his own special sort o' way that he is too darn busy to get to that sort of stuff. The sort of stuff that I have to look at/deal with on a daily basis. The sort of stuff I can't take care of on my own as I either need assistance with said stuff, or I am not physically capable. And that just sucks.

Anyway, my frustration has been building over this growing to do list of mine, and it all came to a head last night. No, I did not yell, rant, scream and throw a tantrum about all that needed to be done. I have done that before and it really gets me no where. I instead decided that the to do list needed to be revised a bit. Not only did it need to be revised, it simply needed a new home as the paper it was initially written on was a bit tattered and torn from being stuck to the cabinet wall, neglected for so very long.

So I sat down on the couch with paper and pen in hand, wrote out that list, and slapped it right back up on the cabinet wall.

I walked back to my couch, red wine in hand, breathed a sigh of relief and got to watching my show. Turns out letting my aggression out on paper worked quite well.

FASHIONISTA

My girl loves clothes. I find her upstairs in her and Ava's closet on a daily basis trying on different outfits. On occasion she decides to wear something that actually matches, and goes together. But most days she throws on whatever seems to suit her fancy at the time.

Sometimes you will find her in a striped pair of stretch pants with a polka dotted shirt, other times she will go for a cute dress with jeans underneath, and every once and a while she enjoys going the comfy route and wears a pair of pajamas. And when she is feeling especially whimsical, you will find her wearing a combination of all the above. Yep, the girl likes to do the whole layering thing, which I have to say, is in style. But she just needs to work on her execution of that style a bit.

Example? This is what she decided on wearing today:

Pajama bottoms adorned with various colorful animals, her pink leotard, and her sisters knee high red and blue peace sign socks.

Further proof of how much work we have to do as far as teaching the girl some sense of style. Or I guess you could look at it as her making her very own fashion statement.

WORRY IS MY MIDDLE NAME

I am a worrier. I worried before I had kids, I worry even more [if that is even possible] now that I have kids. I worry about everything.

I worry that they are getting enough to eat, I worry about whether the food they are eating is healthy and good enough for their little bodies, I worry about them getting snatched away from the bus stop from some nasty stranger [a bit over the top, I know], I worry about how well they are doing in school, I worry about them making friends, fitting in, and feeling like they belong, I worry about them getting hurt, picked on or bullied, and I worry about whether I am raising them well enough so that they grow up to be strong, well rounded adults. You get it, worry is my middle name.

So when they started school this year at St. Croix Prep I was a wreck. I had pulled Ava out of Lily lake in March of last year to start school there [which meant she only got 2 months of this new school stuff under her belt], and now Lucas was starting the year off there as a first grader. Everything was going to be new for them - school, classes, teachers, friends - everything. They seemed just fine with it, but it was all too much for this Mom to handle.

I sent them off on the bus for their very first day of school and much to my surprise, I did not even cry. I spent the day busying myself with household chores and playing with Anthony, Liv and Nathan. When they arrived home I didn't give them much time before I started in with the questions. "How was it?" "Do you like your teachers?" "Did you have a good day?" "How was lunch? What did you have?" "Did you make any new friends?" "What did you learn?"

They both stood their staring at me as if I were crazy as they were hit with a myriad of questions. And I guess I don't blame them, as I was acting a bit crazy. But I am a Mom, so I figure I am allowed to be crazy every once in a while. Plus, my craziness is due to the fact that I love them so damn much and want nothing but the very best for them.

Anyway, I didn't get many answers to those questions. I got a few "It was alright's", some "I don't know's"and a couple "good's". All standard I-don't-want-to-answer-your-questions-Mom answers, but that was o.k. I decided that if I were patient and kept asking as the weeks passed by I would get some answers.

Turns out those answers still did not come after 2 weeks of them being at school.

I was feeling a bit bummed that my kids did not want to fill me in on what was going on, when the Mr. offered a suggestion that could help in getting the kids to communicate with me. He suggested [ever so gently] that I stop asking them so many darn questions, give them some space, and time and when they are ready to talk, or if they feel the need to tell me something, they will.

I knew all of this deep down, but for some reason I could not help myself. Whenever the kids would come home from school, my brain would say, "leave them alone, let them have a snack, do their homework, change and go play." My mouth would say "How was it? Did you meet any new friends today, what did you learn? Tell Mom all about it!"

And let me say this is not because I am a nosy, annoying Mom who has to be all up in her kids' business. It is only because I want to know if they are doing well, and feeling happy and confident in their new surroundings. And in their every day life for that matter.

I think my lovely husband could sense I needed something to make me relax a bit. Something telling me that the kids were in fact doing well. So he emailed Lucas' teacher to find out first hand how he was doing. [Boy do I love that man.]

Hi, Deb.

Thank you for the newsletter.

How is Lucas doing? He seems very happy at his new school but he can be painfully shy in the beginning.

Do you think he is adjusting well? Is there anything we need to focus on at home?

Sincerely,

Mr. Shelton

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Hello Mr. Shelton,

I'm glad Lucas is happy. I can see a little shyness in Lucas, but not a huge amount. He participates in class and mixes well with the other kids.

In the first week, I noticed him being very observant of where things are and how things are done (like lunch, bathrooms, going from classroom to classroom, etc.). He caught on quickly, and he seems comfortable this week. We've been doing some activities to get to know each others' names, and not only is he getting to know others, others are quick to know him as well. He's the kind of boy everyone wants to be friends with. He is actually getting a little too chatty with his new friends at his table in the classroom once in awhile - that's OK.

I think Lucas is adjusting just beautifully, and by the way he has integrated with the other students, it seems like he's always been here. Thanks for checking in, and for all you do at home. I'm so glad to have you back this year!

Deb

Just what this Mama needed to hear.

After seeing this exchange, I decided to send an email to Miss Ava's teacher as well to see how she was doing.

Hi Mrs. Chamberlain -

I just thought I would check in with you to see how Ava was doing so far this year. She started out at St. Croix Prep in March of last year, so it was an adjustment for her to leave Lily Lake and all of her friends there for a new school. She seemed to do well, but was not there all that long before the school year ended. She and Keelin, who is in another class this year, seemed to connect really well last year during the short time Ava was at St. Croix prep. I know she has mentioned she was bummed that she was not in her class this year. I just wanted to make sure she was doing well both socially and academically so far. I have asked her a few times if she has made some new friends, and who she plays with, sits with at lunch, etc but she does not tell me much. I am certain she is doing just fine, but I still wanted to check in with you.

Also, Ava has been asking me to volunteer in class ever since the first day of school, so I was really bummed that I was not able to help out this Thursday. I have 3 kids still at home with me during the day that unfortunately don't permit me to have much free time to come in and volunteer. But I wanted to let you know that I do have time on Tuesdays as the kids spend that day at their Grandparents each week.

So if you ever have any volunteer opportunities that fall on a Tuesday, please think of me!!

Thanks so much, Maria Shelton

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Hi Maria!

Good to hear from you! Ava is a delight to have in our class! She is definitely on the quieter side, but she has occasionally raised her hand to answer a question and add to the discussion. She seems to be getting along really well with Mallory Whitley (I don't know if she's mentioned her to you) and a few other girls in class. Being new to a school half way through is so hard! I moved when I was in 3rd grade so I completely understand how hard it is to pick up and try to make new friends and learn the academics. Ava's academics seem to be pretty good...she's in the Saxon 2 math class with Mr. Reistad and she scored very well on her Reading NWEA test. She's keeping up with the work and activities, too!

If Ava is ever feeling overwhelmed or left out she can always come to me or Mrs. Lynch (our EA). Mrs. Lynch is the one who monitors lunch and recess so I will also talk with her about Ava's social habits and who she's hanging out with!

I hope that helps! If you have any questions please feel free to e-mail or call anytime! Have a great Monday!

Mrs. Chamberlain


Needless to say, these emails have quelled my need for answers from both Ava and Lucas.

At least for now.

What can I say? I'm a Mom, I worry.

ON RACHAEL RAY, AND AAMODT'S APPLE FARM

I am feeling lazy this afternoon and rightfully so after spending the morning stripping beds, putting laundry away, doing a few loads of laundry, making a pot of beef stew -yum, yum, yum, and cleaning up the kitchen.

So I am now sitting on the couch watching Rachael Ray who is, by the way, speaking with a specialist about Menopause. It's a cooking show and she is spending 15 minutes talking about Menopause. I guess I really shouldn't be surprised, as a few months back I saw an episode where she had yet another specialist on talking about urine. Yes, urine. More specifically the different colors it can be and what those colors can mean. Did I mention this was a cooking show? Weird.

Anyway, I am getting tired of her, so I have decided to ignore the T.V. for now and post some pictures from our fun day at the apple orchard this past weekend.

LIKE FATHER, LIKE SON

Cute little tie onesie made by my friend Anne: $8.00

Shipping to get that little onesie to my doorstep: $3.00

Lounging around, watching some T.V. after a long day at the office [AKA a long day napping, and nursing] in said onesie....

Priceless.

FOR DADDY

Daddy has been away on a little guys boat trip this weekend and the kids have been missing him. I was trying to think of something we could do to get the kids minds off of Daddy being gone. It did not take long before I decided that it would be a great idea for the kids to make a video for him and we could post it on Facebook for him to see. And not just any video folks; we were going to put on a dance video.

The kids took some time preparing and getting their "moves" down before I announced that it was time for the performance.

Drum roll please....

PHOTOBOOTH FUN

I love my Mac. I just recently discovered the photo booth option [ I know, I know, I am slow] on this beautiful computer o' mine, and I have to say I love that too.

The kids and I have spent the weekend messing around with it and have had quite a lot of fun doing so....

ART WORK

I will never, ever tire of the art work that my monkeys bring home from school each day. It is something I look forward to each time they come running off of the bus and hand me their backpacks for me to go through.

The past two days Lucas has come home with some really great stuff.

The front: My favorite part of this summer was... Tubing. Not so great on the spelling, but the picture gave away what he was attempting to write. Him in the tube, with Dad in the boat pulling him along. How wonderful is that picture?

the back: I went to the movie theatre. I think half way through attempting to write "theatre" he gave up - hence the "Dr". I love, love, love the photo that goes along with this one. People sitting in their theater seats eating popcorn - notice the kid in the last row was ever so gracious as to share his popcorn with the kid in the middle row.

Day 2 he came home with this little gem.

In first grade this year, I would really like to... Play outside whenever I want. Accompanied by a picture of what I assume to be a playground.

When he arrived home with this second piece of artwork I mentioned to him how much I enjoyed it all. I also ever so casually asked if his teacher was letting everyone complete these little assignments all on their own. Meaning without any help when it came to spelling, punctuation, etc. I am certain you can guess what the answer to that question was.

JUST LIKE HER SISTER

My Liv loves to dance. Anytime a catchy song comes on you'll find her shakin' her little booty and waving her arms in the air dancing away to her hearts content. When driving in the car she will yell out "louder Momma, louder!!" whenever she hears something she fancies. When I turn it up she giggles and waves her arms in the air and moves her head from side to side to the beat. So very cute to watch.

What has been not so very cute lately is her need to dress up in Ava'a dance attire each time she feels like rockin' out. Why? Well, tights are expensive and she will more than likely put a huge run in them which would result in me needing to buy a new pair every other week. And her leotard will most likely get stretched to hell and ruined one of these times as she cannot seem to figure out that both legs do not go in one of the leg holes. Silly little girl.

After dealing with having to take off tights and leotards that did not belong to her while she was in the throws of a huge tantrum what seemed like 100 times within a week, I decided I needed to buy her her very own dance attire. So off to Target I went where I dropped $16.99 for my girl to have her very own leotard so as to avoid dealing with her wearing her sisters all the time.

Needless to say, I think she really enjoys her new dance outfit. She spent the entire day yesterday roaming around the house in it. Playing little people, dancing to Katy Perry's California Girls and Justin Beiber's Baby, Baby, Baby song that Daddy put on the Ipad for her, watching cartoons, dancing to her favorite tunes some more, playing outside a bit, dancing some more. You get the idea.

I decided I needed to snap a few photos of her dance routine that she performs while listening to these songs. These Godforsaken songs that I would most definitely not shed a tear for if I were to never, ever hear again.

So without further ado, here they are:

Pretty spectacular, no?