Talking, Walking, and Climbing

Much to the delight of all those around him, Noah has started talking!

He has so much to say and plenty of emotion to go along with it all.  I just love his sweet little man voice- even as babies boys and girls sound so different.  A few of his favorite words are-

Taa-taa!

Hiiiiiiiiii!

Doo-doo (naturally this is the big kids favorite one to hear)

Cookie

Cheese

Ball

Buh-bye

Uh-Oh! (His favorite)

He's also climbing on everything- no matter how many times he falls off the table, he climbs right back up again.  He can't stand to be left out of whatever might be going on up there.

The same goes for food- if there is anything on anyone's plate that he doesn't have, he grunts and groands and points and says "Ehhh!  Ehhh!  Ehhh!" until he gets it.  He was especially impatient waiting his turn for the sacrament bread in church this morning.

He just keeps growing.  He sleeps and sleeps, then wakes up looking five inches taller and a month older than he did when he went down for his nap.  He's cutting his canine teeth, so a rosy complexion and runny nose is his signature look these days.  He nearly has a full set of teeth in there!

When he is awake, he is running around non-stop.  He can always convince someone to join him in a game of "chase" around the kitchen island, and is always delighted to find a smiling face around the corner.  He loves to sit and study his picture books, and will climb right onto the table and sort through the Lego box with Adam.  It's so fun watching his sweet little personality blooming, and he is completely adorable when he pouts out his bottom lip and sobs giant crocodile tears when he doesn't get his way.  For now.

Conversations

Emma, on the injustices of breakfast- Adam get de syrup! I wanna get de syrup!

(I hand her the bottle.)

Is too heavy!!!

*****

Adam hates hates hates being alone ever anywhere ever.  So he often convinces Emma to go places with him.

A- Emma! Come to the basement with me! Come with me! 

E- No!

A- Come on! Come with me!

E- No! You be fine, Adam!  You be fine!

*****

A true compliment from Adam- Mommy I love you more than meatballs! 

*****

A- Okay Noah- do you want to play Eye Spy or Kiss the Baby?... Mom, Noah and me are playing a game. Okay Noah, you spy something purple?  Is it that picture?  It is!  Yay!  Okay, now it's my turn...

And later- Mom! I need to show Noah my cars.

M- I really think he just wants to look at you. To babies, faces are the best toys of all. 

A, whispering- Noah, faces aren't really toys.  Mommy's just tricking.  I'll go get my cars.

*****

M- We're not having cookies right now.  You may have zero cookies. 

E- I do!

M- You want zero cookies? 

E- Yeah! I do!

M- Great!

*****

Constant conversation between any three of my eldest- I'm looking at Noah right now!

No, I'm looking at him!

I am!

I am!

Moooommm!  Emma said I can't look at Noah!

*****

I observed that most of my conversations with my older kids lately include the words, "Be quiet!  Get out!  Stop doing that!"  Between the two weeks off for Christmas, two days of cancelled school for extremely cold temperatures, and an extra day trying to figure out who has the nastiest cold, it's been a long break for all of us.  I have to say, though, that the kids can be quite helpful and are always... generally... occasionally thrilled to have specific chores to do other than their usual cleaning up their toys, rooms, and unloading the dishwasher.  Look at those smiles!

Being 19 Months....

Emma Grace is so full of personality.  She talk talk talks all day long, unless she happens upon her beloved "pac" then she is silent and rolls around happily on the ground like she's about to fall asleep.

Some days are better than others- usually she is full of smiles and giggles and nonsensical strings of words that she thinks we understand.

Other days there is no juice in the house...

The love for juice and the pac are two things that I haven't dealt with before.  Adam and Leah both rejected a pacifier around four months, and I try to offer juice only sparingly.  Water is the beverage of choice for the rest of us.  Emma does not appreciate that.  She knows what she wants and she wants it now!  We had a lively conversation at lunch yesterday that went something like this-

M- I'm making peanut butter and honey sandwiches.  Who wants one?

E- Ah do!

A- I want peanut butter (he doesn't like the honey)

M- Okay, here you go.

E- Butter!

M- Yes, I made you a peanut butter and honey sandwich!  Eat up!

E- Butter!  Butter!

M- Oh, you want only peanut butter?  Okay (scraping the honey off the sandwich)

E- Butter!  Butter!

M- What?  I don't know what you want.  Adam, what is Emma saying?

A- She wants only butter.

M- Oh!  You want butter?

E- Butter!

M- On bread?

E- Toast!

M- Okay, butter on toast.  Here you go.

E- (licking the butter that hasn't melted off the bread) Butter!  Butter!

M- There is butter.  It just melted so you can't see it.

E- BUTTER!  BUTTER!

M- Okay, naptime!

It's amazing to me that we are having conversations at all, let alone ones in which she places mealtime orders and rejects the items I get wrong.  Sheesh!

She has an unequivocal love for "Daddy" and asks for him all day long.  We Skyped with him for 5 minutes this morning just so she could see his face and wave to him.  And now I'm "Mommy" (not mama) a name I love, but prefer not to hear in the middle of the night, especially if I'm being called in to locate the beloved pac.  But the snuggles and kisses are always lovely- day and night- and Emma Grace is altogether growing up too fast.

No!

For as much as I come to detest this word in the toddler years, it continues to be one of my favorite "first words".

I also adore how emphatically Emma says "yes!" when asked if she wants her "pass"- her pacifier.

Happy Birthday To You!

We sing happy birthday around here a lot, mostly because of this adorable little cutie.

So Much To Say

Emma has started chatting up a storm.  Most of what she says is nonsensical, but Leah can get her to parrot just about anything she says.  It's adorable.

Some of her favorite sayings are

Ahh-oooh?  (Hello into the phone)
Oooey Goey (What we call out when we see Christmas lights)
Lah-Lah (Leah)
Ahhh! (I want some! always in unison with her brother and sister)
MMMMMM!  (Me! also always in unison with the others)

And on more mellow days, she sounds like this-

But most of the time, it's, "Ma!  Ma!  Ma!  Uh!  Uh!  Uh!"  The girl definitely knows what she wants.

Things Boys Say

Adam chases Emma around the house calling, "Get that booty!  Get that booty!"

We were playing a game that required putting balloons inside little holes.  When Adam was struggling, he said, "Get in there, you little rascal!"

*****

Adam brought a pint-sized Buzz Lightyear to church.  When he started playing with it too loudly, Jason took it and put it in his suit coat pocket.  Adam said, in a muffled voice, "Hey! It's dark in here!"

*****

Play with Buzz Lightyear and Zurg, "Can I marry Emma and that can be her and this can be me?"

*****

"I don't like this music!  You should shut it off so it doesn't freak Emma out!"  (We were listening to the Tangled soundtrack.)

*****

While reflecting on the joys of nursery- "Sometimes we have bubbles in nursery and sometimes I get to pop them and sometimes I don't.  Sometimes the other kids pop all of de bubbles and I don't get any.... It's hard being little."

Adam continues to absorb everything I am teaching Leah during homework time.  He can count up to 34 and loves to quiz me on numbers.

While holding up one finger and two fingers- "What's dis"

M- "It's 3."

A- "No!  One and two!  What is it?!"

M- "Oh!  It's 12!"

Tricky little fellow.

*****

While trying to convince him that he does not need to come into our room in the middle of the night- "You need me!  I needed to come and check on you to help you and Daddy out in de night."

No, at 4:30 in the morning, all we really need is sleep.  We'll see how my efforts to bribe him with the promise of a toy if he stays in his bed go in the morning.

Welcome Home

We're gearing up for another week without Daddy.  The last time he was gone, we made these videos to welcome him home since he got home in the middle of the night.

Leah's- sincere and simple

Adam's- ends with "in the name of Jesus Christ, amen".

Emma's- lots of screaming from Adam- 

Mine- no wonder the kids occasionally freeze up when a camera is shoved in their faces!  It's awkward.

Side note about the word awkward- someone in Leah's Primary class used the word and now Leah is trying desperately to figure out how to work it into her vocabulary.  She just can't quite grasp the concept of it, so she ends up saying things like, "What if we made lemonade but forgot to put in the sugar?  That would be so awkward."

And Adam has adopted the phrase "for real", only it comes out "fo wheel".  So he says things like, "Emma was chewing on dat book and she was about to rip da pages... fo wheel."

So Many -Isms

Adam to Jason- I don't like your hair.  I like blue and green, but not black.

Jason- Well, I have white hair, too.  Do you like white hair?

A- Where's the white hair?  I don't see it.  Oh- there's a white hair, and there's a white hair, and there's a white hair, and there's a white hair, and there's a white hair, and there's a white hair, and....

J- Do you think I should color the white hair to match the black hair?

A- No.  I like the white hair.  You should keep the white hair and cut off the black hair.

*****

Leah, on my birthday- Mom!  Look- 30 on the ruler, just like you're 30!  I hit 30 moles on whack-a-mole, just like you're 30!  You're 30!  You're so old!  You're practically a grandma!

*****

Adam, contemplating his lunch- I need to eat my food.  And then it will go into my tummy.  And then I will be full up.  And then it will turn into my poops.

Later, when we are changing a dirty diaper- Can I see my poops?  Let's put my poops in the toilet.  Then they will go down the hole in the toilet and into Bear Land.  And then the bears will eat my poops.

(Now if that doesn't make potty training seem exciting, I just don't know what would.)

*****

Adam, after watching me try on my new birthday clothes- No, you take those pants off!  You put that pretty skirt back on!

*****

Leah, in the car- Mom, how do people stay on clouds?  You know like how Heavenly Father and Jesus live on clouds?  How do they stay there?

M- Heavenly Father and Jesus live in heaven, and we don't know quite where heaven is, we just know that it is somewhere else in the universe... not in the clouds.

L- Well I think they just live in the clouds.  But how do they stay there?

*****

Once as I was buckling the kids into the car, Leah was complaining about being cold.  I said "I don't have a blanket.  All I can do is warm you up with my love."  Leah and Adam both immediately shot their legs out for a good rub, and the phrase really stuck with Adam.  He constantly asks me now to "warm me up wif woo love" or "nuggle me up wif woo love."

*****

Leah, after learning the difference between half-day and full-day kindergarten- "But full day kindergarten would be so boring!  I don't want to stay at school all day!  I would miss you!  And Adam and Emma!  I want to be home with you!"  (She'll be doing half-day kindergarten)

And if Emma could talk, she would say, "I think I love food!  Table food, please.  None of this baby food here.  Su comida es mi comida!  Hand it over!"  (Because if she were talking at 7 months, it might as well bi-lingual, no?)

Talk Talk Talk

What I would give to follow Adam around with a recorder for a day.  He has so much to say!  We had a rare one-on-one lunch date yesterday-little sister was asleep and older sister was at a friend's house- so I took a few minutes to write down the things we were talking about. 

Balancing on the edge of his booster seat- "I'm Humpty Dumpty!  But I'm safe..."  (sitting back down) "Okay, I'm done falling off the wall now."

Holding up one grape- "I not dat many" (picking up another grape) "I dat many!"

Holding up five crackers- "I not dat many" (putting three down) "I just dat many!"

"So Mom, what is your favorite Christmas song?  Mine is Jingle Bells and Rudolph the Re-Ro Reindeer."

"I get some grapes for woo." (as they bounce all over the table) "Whoa!  Theys wobbly!"

"Oh!  I hear Daddy's airplane.  It not going to our house, just to our earth... Dat is a good museum with the earth that spins and spins faster and faster!"

His favorite- "pomogramit juice".

He is mastering the art of whispering, and loves to put it to the test whenever I am trying to put Emma to sleep.  Yesterday he came into her room while I was nursing and asked in a stage whisper, "Mom!  Can I come in?"  I nodded yes, he propped himself up on the ottoman and said, "So.... how are you?   Do you like sharks?  (I nod yes) Do you like whales?  (I nod yes) Do you like alligators?  I have so many teeth!  I like an alligator."  (glancing over to his sister) "Emma doesn't have teeth.  Too bad!"

Adam loves to hurry into Emma's room whenever she wakes up from a nap to tell her "Goo Morging!"  He came back out today and reported, "Emma's eating da magazine."  I hurried in and sure enough!  He had set her up with some reading material to make her a little more comfy.

Conversations

Leah is fascinated with the definitions of words.  She wants to know why it's called Christmas, why it's called TV, why it's called breakfast.  Some are pretty easy to explain, others (like tape or crepe paper, not so much).  My life is like a never-ending game of Balderdash.  We had pancakes for dinner the other night, but we couldn't just call that dinner.  So breakfast for dinner is officially called "Break-din" in our home now.

*****

Christmas is a time for celebrating.  Leah declared, "Mom!  We can have a pancake breakfast to celebrate Jesus' birthday!"  I think He'd like that.

*****

While decorating for Christmas, we reviewed the concept of a nativity.  I gave the name of each piece of the nativity as Leah studied them.  "This is a wise man... this is a wise man..."

Holding up the third character, she asked, "And is this the foolish man?"

 *****

Leah asks me to define words all the time, and then tries to use them in her conversations.  She wanted the definition of "scolding" and seemed to like my definition of "getting upset with someone because they aren't doing what you want them to do".  The next day, while lamenting over the lack of packages that were arriving on our doorstep with her name on them, said, "The next time I see the mailman, I am going to scold him!"

Conversations

 

This is Bucky, Adam's pet caterpillar.  He was fuzzy, cute, and durable.  We kept him for almost 24 hours before returning him to the wild to be reunited with his family.

*****

When Emma was born, one of our Indiana grandmas brought Adam and Leah balloons.  Adam let go of his while we were standing outside, and it floated up, up, up into the sky while Adam tried desperately to catch it.  I have never felt so stuck to the earth as I did at that moment, helpless, held back by gravity while I watched Adam cry.  We took him inside and talked about where balloons go when they float into the sky.  To the sun? Or the moon?  Or maybe an airplane flies by and the pilot reaches out and grabs the balloon and takes it to the airport?  Later that night our Indiana grandma came over with a new balloon for Adam- identical to the one he lost earlier that day.  To his delight, Adam concluded that "Leah drove to the airport and got my balloon for Adam!"  What a great hero he sees in her.

 *****

A few years ago, Leah looked up to a bright shining crack of sunlight peaking through a sky full of gray clouds.  She asked, "Mom, is that heaven?  Is that where Heavenly Father lives?"  I saw a crack in the clouds the other day and that conversation popped into my head.  Leah often muses, "What do you think Jesus is doing right now?"  If it's bedtime, I like to think that He's watching Jason and I struggle to get the kids through scriptures, prayers, and into bed, and laughing.

This is what my living room looks like several days a week.  It's a fort, a bird's nest, a pirate ship or a prison for bad guys.

 *****

Leah brings home a craft from preschool every day.  Last week she brought home an owl mask.  Adam is afraid of owls, but that didn't stop her from putting on the mask and chasing him around the house while he squealed (with delight or terror, I'm not sure).

"It's a trail of clues leading to the mystery of the golden slippers, not a pile of forks."

*****

Adam, after eating three cans of mandarin oranges with Leah, showed me his fingers- "I'm sticky, Mom!  I'm sticky like octopus!"

 *****

Adam, sitting in a laundry basket

M- Where are you sailing?

A- To Afwica!

  *****

While cleaning up his room before naptime, I asked Adam if we should send Mr. Butler in to clean up his toys. 
M- He loves toys!  He loves cleaning!  Is Mr. Butler our housekeeper?

A- No!

M- Who is our housekeeper?

A- Ummm.... Mommy!

*****

Adam has started asking "why?".  Only he says, "Because why, Mom?" every time.  A conversation in the grocery store went something like this.

A- We have pretzels?

M- Sure, we can have pretzels.  Put them in the cart.

A- We have apples?

M- Sure, we can have apples.  Put them in the cart.

A- We have donuts?

M- No, we don't need donuts.

A- Because why, Mom?

M- Because donuts aren't on our list.  Put them back.

A- We have cookies?

M- No, we don't need cookies.

A- Because why, Mom?

M- Because cookies aren't on our list.  Put them back.

Etc., etc., etc., until it's time to leave the store.

M- We're all done.  It's time to go!

A- Because why, Mom?

M- Because we got everything on our list.

A- Because why, Mom?

M- Because we got everything and now we can go get in the car.

A- Because why, Mom?

M- Because we need to drive in the car to go get Leah.

A- Because why, Mom?

M- Because she's almost done with preschool and we need to pick her up.

A- Because why, Mom?

M- Because we need to pick her up.

A- Because why, Mom?

M- Just because.  Let's go!

 *****

Leah has added the word, "like"to her vocabulary, along with a fierce glare that I do not appreciate.  Her stories go something like this- "Adam, um, fell off his crib and he, like, hit his face.  But he's okay.  He just, like, bonked his nose like this."

*****

Adam has started to defend his name.  

M- Hey there Mr. Man!

A- Don't call me Mr. Man, you call me Adam!

*****

In a conversation about Disney World, I asked Leah how much money she thinks it costs to go there.  Her guess was "44".... not dollars or cents, just 44.  My kids have no concept of money.  I'm okay with that.

Adam-isms

He talks so much, I forget to write it all down.  

***

At his birthday dinner with his glass held high- 

"Cheers!  Everyone- cheers!"

***

"Rapunzel! Rapunzel! Let your hair down!"

***

In response to my exaggerated tears while chopping an onion- 

"Baby sister kicking Mommy?"

***

The over-used but melts my heart phrase of the week- 

"I can't do it!  I can't do it!"

***

A few less than desirable phrases- "Geeet off!"  "Move!" 

We're working on manners, and his "Excuuuuuse me" is just adorable.

It Makes Me Happy When...

my kids chant for more "cooked carrots! cooked carrots!"

Adam counts.  It ususally goes like this- "1...2...3...4...5...14...15...14...15...30!"

Leah puts stuff in her carseat's "coupler".  (cupholder)

Adam asks to wear his "swim soup".

Leah says she likes my "tummy yaki chicken".

Leah and Adam play nicely together- 

even if Adam ends up looking like this!

The Grazer

I think I can actually hear the parents of my childhood laughing with sweet revenge as I coax Adam away from the table after his 45 minute lunch.  Just like his mom, this boy loves to take his sweet time when it comes to meals.  So yes, my parents wish that I would have a child just like me when I grow up came true, and yes, it is incredibly annoying!  At least he's eating though.  Some of my other children prefer to pop up and down from the table 14 times before they are done, and then ask for a snack 20 minutes after I've cleaned up the meal!  I'm not sure which is worse!

Another favorite pasttime- playing in the car!  This boy will crawl around the car, happily pushing buttons and shoving as many CDs into the player as he can fit for as long as I will let him.  Makes for easy unloading of the groceries, although yesterday I discovered yellow crayon scribbles on the ceiling of the car.  In the words of Jason, "We just can't have nice things!"

Check out those flats!

Adam loves saying the prayer.  With a little prompting, he can get through each word on his own.  This morning he decided to take a variation on the norm-

M- Dear...

A- Dear...

M- Heavenly...

A- Heavenly...

M- Father...

A- Fruit snack... (giggle, giggle)

As for the belly debate in the last post, I think I'll be sucking in both sides from now on.  Today Leah informed me, "Mom!  Your bum is big and round just like your belly is big and round!".

Thanks, sweetie.

Tuesday

I made eggs and muffins for breakfast.  After spying the cheese, Adam could think of nothing else.

M- Adam, do you want milk or water to drink?

A- Cheese!

M- Milk or water?

A- Cheese!

M- I know you want cheese.  You can have cheese on your eggs.  Do you want to drink milk or water?

A- Orange juice!

It's another one of those days...

Words of Babes

Talk, talk, talk.  There is a lot of talking going on around here all. the. time.  Adam is trying out dozens of new words every day, and while I don't always understand what he is saying, he makes it clear when I get it wrong.

A: Moneee!  Moneee!

M: Monkey?

A: No....

M: Money?

A: No....

M: Melanie?

A: Uh-huh!

Leah loves to get Adam to say things, too.  They were taking turns bearing their testimonies the other day, and Leah was prompting Adam with each word of his.

L: Say...

A: Say...

L: Ummmm....

A: Ummmm...

L: I'd...

A: I'd.... (and so on, all the way to "Amen")

Leah's testimony went something like this- I know that God loves me.  And I know that when I die my mom and dad will die, too.  (What?!  Says who?!)

*****

Leah is very concerned about the fact that she will not get to marry Adam when she grows up.  She told me that she would be very sad if she grew up and married someone else and didn't get to see her brother every day.  I didn't have the heart to tell her that things change when you get older, and you grow to be okay with the fact that you don't get to see all the members of your immediate family every day. The thought was actually pretty sad to me, too. 

Then she asked, "If Daddy's not your brother, then how did you ever find each other?"  Good question!

*****

M: Instead of a nap today, you and Daddy get to go on an Easter egg hunt!

L: No nap?!  But I will be so tired.... (huge sigh) I guess I'll just have to rest my head in the car.

 *****

I took Leah with me to visit some church members today.  On the way, I tried to describe the man of the house, who used to be her nursery leader.

M: You know Brother H.  He is a little older, has glasses, and is kind of bald.

L: Mom, I think you're talking about Grandpa Mark!  Yep- he's a little older, has glasses, and is kind of bald.

True, true.

*****

After months of debating and weighing pros and cons, we finally decided to check out the local preschool to see if it's a place Leah might like to go in the fall.  I have fully supported her decision to be a homebody (I take it as a compliment!) but the reality of life is that teaching Joy School could be pretty tricky with a 2-year old and a 1-month old in the group.  After visiting the preschool, Leah declared, "Preschool is my favorite place in the world!  I can't wait to go to preschool!"

I asked her if home was her favorite place, and she said, "Nope!  It's preschool.  And Joy School is my second favorite place in the world....  But I guess home could be my third favorite place in the world."  Gee, thanks for tossing me a bone, sweetie.

At least I know she'll be happy at preschool!

Just Thinking

I love packages!  Is there anything better than knowing that someone else is loving and thinking about your family just as much as you do?  We have so enjoyed the crafts, treats, and toys that have come in the mail this week.

I taught my last Joy School lesson today.  As is tradition, when it was over, I plopped down on the couch, put my feet up and exclaimed, "We survived!" 

Adam, who wanted to go outside, came over and said, "Swing!  Swing!"  That didn't get a response, so he started trying to lift me off the couch, and finally said, "Geeeeeeeeet UP!"

That worked.

This is the view outside my front window.  I love having so many beautiful flowers to look at!  The smallest, deep pink tulips in the back are my favorite.  Those are the ones Jason brought us from Holland.

 *****

I hate mommy/baby brain.  Tonight I walked down the stairs with the sole intention of turning up the heat, got distracted by the toys that needed to be put away, the toilet paper roll that needed to be put in the stash ((I fully intend to make something amazing with those rolls some day), stopped for a quick bite of caramel brownie, and walked back up the stairs with my arms full of jackets and shoes before I realized that I had completely forgotten to turn up the heat.  Gratefully, Jason went back downstairs and turned it up for me.  This happen to me several times a day.

Leah and I like to ponder about what the baby sister will come out looking like.  "Maybe she will have black hair like Daddy," she says. 

"Maybe she will have blue eyes like Mommy," I reply.

"Maybe she will have brown skin!" says Leah.

Uhhh.... there is a very small chance of that due to Jason's heritage, yes, but as far as Leah is thinking-

 probably not so much.

Say My Name

This video is a perfect example of Adam's talking ability- perfect diction and know-how, it's just a matter of whether or not he feels like saying the words.  I always worry that he is so quiet compared to Leah- not that that's hard to do with Miss Chatterbox around.  The poor boy can't get a word in edge-wise.  But Jason assures me that it's just the difference between boys and girls.

The Highlights

So, so, so many birthday wishes and phone calls throughout the day- thank you everyone!

I bought my favorite breakfast junk foods for a special treat.  Leah told me, "This is not a healthy breakfast.  This is junk food.  I would like something healthy for breakfast, please."  I promptly kicked her out of our family.

I had a doctor's appointment in the morning, and hearing that sweet strong heartbeat was probably the best present I got all day.

We had lots of friends over in the afternoon to help us celebrate.  I had tried to explain to Leah that grown-ups don't usually have birthday parties like kids do.  "But Mom," she said "that is what birthdays are all about."  She was right, so we had a party after all.  But I drew the line at games and presents.  Just chatting with friends was enough for a great birthday afternoon.  It was very cute when Leah's friends sang, "Happy Birthday, dear Leah's-mom."

Presents!  I only felt marginally bad when I told Leah that she couldn't have a single one of my See's chocolates- they were shipped all the way from Utah!

(It's never as fun watching someone else open birthday presents)

I had great help blowing out my birthday candles-

Adam even told me happy birthday!

It was a great day- hard to believe another year has gone by already.