Fifteen Months (Oliver's Monthly Photo)

Oh. my. goodness.  What a little toddler Oliver has become!


He is so communicative now.  He nods yes and shakes his head for no and signs please, thank you, and all-done.  If he is really desperate at night in his crib, he'll say ma-ma and da-da, but those are basically the only circumstances under which he'll say those words.  He did say cup ("bup!") the other day, pointing to some tea cups on the shelf.  So that's one of his words!  And he says this ("dush") and that ("dat!").  He's a little behind in the language department, but that's ok.  He's doing awesome in dexterity and gross motor skills, and I'm sure he'll catch up with words at some point.



The boy can use a fork like nobody's business.  He doesn't even get frustrated with it.  He will continue to try to stab a piece of food 4-7 times before setting the fork down and picking it up with his fingers.  But most of the time he's successful after a few attempts.  It's really interesting to watch.

 

He still loves water and loves his bottle.  He has a definite preference for bottles over sippy cups.  I'm not in a hurry to get him off bottles.  He's adorable, walking around with his bottles, and they are a huge comfort to him at nap and bed time.
 

He loves holding his elephant by the tail.  It's his favorite, favorite way to hold the elephant, and most nights if we peek in on him after bed, he's got the elephant in his right hand... holding him by the tail.

He loves--loves--to dance and jump and spin.  Whenever Lucy or Elliot's TV show theme music (Strawberry Shortcake or Bo on the Go) comes on, he dances and jumps and spins until the music stops.  He looks so proud of himself and pleased.  It is so cute.



Most mornings, not long after waking, we go on a walk in the triple stroller.  He's come to anticipate this, and now he usually finds his elephant and walks over to his seat at the front of the stroller and waits to be put in.  It's really cute.

He's definitely finding his footing as one of the kids.  He likes to follow them and do what they do and is upset at night time when they go to bed together (in our bed), and he has to go sleep in the "green room" where his crib is.  He loves to cuddle with them for a few minutes after brushing teeth, before going to his crib.



He's very good at "apologizing" by offering "sweet kisses" when he's hurt someone.  If he hurts me, then he gently strokes my cheek and offers a silent, open-mouthed kiss to make it better.  It's too cute.



Oliver, we love you and are so proud of all the little accomplishments you've made these past months!  What a smart, sweet, funny little boy you are! 

34 Weeks and Counting

 

"You never regret having the pictures, but if you don't take them -- you might wish that you had," is something I've told lots and lots of people over the past two years of having a photography business.  And it's true.


But wowsa I was not sure about taking these pictures!  A friend named Nicole and I swapped photo favors, and these photos are the result of her end of the bargain.  I might have gotten the better deal.  I love them.  I'm so glad to have them.



My only tiny regret is that I didn't get one of just me with Elliot, but individual kid pictures wasn't the goal to start out with, so I don't feel too bad about that.  I have a great one of just me and him from when I was pregnant with Oliver, and I'm happy with that.



My maternity gown came from a friend (whom Nicole also photographed), who purchased it from Etsy.  I made Lucy's "dress" to go with mine, and I got the boys' clothes from Old Navy.



 The most stressful thing about this session was planning the wardrobe.  It is SO easy to do stylized maternity really weird, with clothes that don't go together or are odd for the environment they're photographed in, or weird posing, etc.



Anyways, I'm happy to have these and grateful to Nicole for taking them.  We will soon be a family of 6, but for now I must say we have really begun to find our footing as a family of 5, and I'm glad to have this short phase documented.

Donuts, Romps in the Rain, and Stomach Viruses

Getting donuts has become almost a weekly treat.



Usually Daniel takes one kid or another as a special thing, but the other day I took all three.



It was really fun.  Oliver had never been before, so he was not happy that he couldn't immediately eat all the yummy things visible through the glass. 


 I don't suppose there's  really a way to adjust the expectations of a 16 month old.  At least he did perk up when we got home.


I've embarked on a photography challenge more ambitious than any other I've attempted. 
 

It involves the submission of 150 images that are graded on a scale from 1-7 in seven different categories.  
 

As part of the preparation process, I've joined a group of other aspiring photographers, and we critique each other's images. 

It's been really fun, but it's caused me to view my photos (and the others' in the group) much more critically. 



And it has certainly expedited the learning of some material I've been meaning to get around to for a while but just haven't had the energy for. 



I'm hoping it doesn't ruin my enjoyment of photography, the way serious critical attention toward your shortcomings sometimes can. 



I don't think it will, though.  I think it will open doors that I didn't know existed before, and I'm hoping that through this process I will grow in good ways.



There are plenty--plenty of photos of my kids and family that are imperfect, and I don't think I will love them any less after I complete this process.



On a totally different note, the kids adore playing in the rain and splashing in the puddles.



We babysat my niece Hazel the other day, and after watching her bigger cousins for a bit, she decided she wanted part of the action.  Since it was nice and warm, I let her crawl out into the rain and feel the drops for a few minutes before we all got dried off and into clean clothes.  It was nice. 


This--as it turned out -- was mere days before every child (including Hazel) pictured above came down with a stomach virus. Yuck.  Those are the ups and downs of caring for children, though.  Donut runs, delightful romps in the rain, and stomach viruses.

The Finished Bunkbed Playroom

It's been a while since I did a post like this, but it occurred to me that I never actually posted a finished set of pictures of the kids' closet-bunkbed-playroom.  So I thought I would!

 
The concept for this room was pretty simple: toys out of reach to help keep it tidy, beds in the closet (to maximize floor space), and no clothes.  I designed this room--in my mind--when Lucy was at a developmental stage where she loved to remove all the clothes from her dresser drawer.  I have had a hate-hate relationship with laundry basically since becoming a mom, so walking in on "rest time" and seeing my freshly folded hard work all undone on the floor got old real quick.  Plus, when are you supposed to put away the laundry, if not during rest/nap time? 



So, with all those things in mind--Daniel set to work building the bunk beds.  I was about 6 months pregnant with Oliver then, so bending over to build the beds was a nonstarter.  Daniel did a fabulous job with them, and they were finished in time to get Lucy and Elliot settled in them before Oliver's birth. 



I'm sad to say the kids aren't currently sleeping in them--because of frequent night time wakings that make sleeping in our bedroom on the floor more practical.  But eventually, they'll be back in the bunk beds, I'm sure.
 

For the shelves, I bought some plywood, painted it in colors to match the bedding, and anchored each one to the wall with L-brackets Daniel found online.  I love that the toys are high up and that the kids have to ask permission to play with the next thing.  It helps keep clutter minimized, and I love that each toy has a place to belong at the end of the day.  It is a constant battle, keeping the amount of "stuff" manageable.


Mom made these cute curtains the week after Oliver was born.  She used the valence from the bedding set and attached it to some coordinating fabric she found.  


 I love making those paper-covered wooden letters.  It's such an easy project to do with the kids.  I should blog a tutorial about it some time.



If you have a 2-year-old in your life, that light switch extender is a great birthday gift.  They have improved our lives quite a bit.  No longer do the kids wake us up in the morning just to turn on the light.  They can do it themselves!  Actually, motion-detector night lights in the bathroom have also been a game changer.  I love those things.



One thing that is missing from these pictures is Lucy's play clinic (Doc Mcstuffins, of course).  It lives in the bunk room, and she spends a lot of time in it.  She adores it. 
 

It didn't make it into the other pictures, because I'm using these for a guest blog on a home-improvement/DIY site for mommies.  But it looks like this, and she loves it.
 

I hope you've had a great week and that you have a good weekend!  I work this weekend, so I'm sure it'll go by fast. 

Step Stool Frustration, Laundry, Writing, and Partner Dependability

I'm not sure what his end goal was, but it involved this step stool.  BOY was he frustrated. 



I'm enjoying this new phase of life, where the kids are actually able (if they're willing) to load laundry into the washer, add the soap (thank you, Tide Pods), and push the start button. 

 
It is an amazing site to behold.  Makes me want to take back all my complaints about having to do my own laundry as a kid (while my friends' moms continued to do theirs).  

My maternal perspective on this is so very different from my childhood perspective.  If the kids can reach it, they absolutely can do it.

Lucy's been enjoying her "reading lessons."  They always end with "writing time" -- when she practices writing two letters.  

 

Actually, we refer to them as "sounds," instead of letters; it helps her keep straight what the letters actually sound like, so that she remembers that R is pronounced, "rrrrr," as opposed to "Arrr."  

We've been experimenting with some grippers to improve her pencil marker grip, and she really likes them!  

Actually, Elliot really likes them, too.  

He practices his writing, too--since he's decided that napping is for chumps and now sits sort of quietly beside us while we do Lucy's reading time.

 I've been wanting, all summer, to get a picture of Lucy's adorable freckles.   They are so cute.



This is an actual text conversation with Daniel from this past week.



I think he saves my sanity on a daily basis.  A good friend recently said something about how dependability is attractive, and it is SO true.  I am so thankful for a parenting partner who's got my back.