For now, here's a peek at our youngest little mango! (This picture was taken in late August!)
:)
Thursday, October 7, 2010
Mobile blogging test!
For now, here's a peek at our youngest little mango! (This picture was taken in late August!)
:)
Sunday, July 4, 2010
Soon?
Maybe I should have mentioned in my last post that "coming soon" was a relative term. :) Where oh where did the past month GO?
Even now as I sit down to type, the baby (8 months old now!) is starting to fuss. Figures.
Ok, 20 minute break to feed baby and put him down for a nap. Now where was I?
Right. Catching up... Will I ever be caught up? Maybe when my kids are all in school full-time? That will be in about 5 years.
********************
The above was written a couple of weeks ago already. Seriously, the Summer is flying by so fast I can't believe it. Between a bored 8-year-old, a tantruming 4-year-old, a strong-willed, potty-training 2 & 1/2 year old, and a newly-crawling 8-month-old, life is chaotic to say the least.
What have we been up to? Here it is in a nutshell. Yes, the condensed version is all I seem to find time for lately. Sorry.
Seth has been job-hunting. He was a contractor at a company that no longer renews contracts beyond 2 years, so as of June 30th, he has joined the Unemployed. No fun there. He spends hours searching for jobs, tweaking his resume and writing cover letters. He has had several phone interviews, but so far no face-to-face interviews. So he is busy searching and doing all that. It takes a lot of computer time! (Therefore, since that takes priority, most of my computer time lately has been from my phone, and I don't do well with typing on that little iPhone keyboard, so this is a treat to use the laptop uninterrupted for a bit!)
Ethan is bored. He is always asking if I will play a game with him, or if he can play on my iPod, or if we can go to the beach / park / library / restaurant , etc. We have been going to the beach quite a bit. I need to get him in swimming lessons. He loves the water and wants to learn to swim. He also loves science and wants to do science projects around the house. He is always asking if we have vinegar so he can make a volcano, or blow up a balloon, or make crystals, etc. He is reading about space and wants to look at the moon through his telescope. He is interested in cooking and wants to help me bake (which I haven't done much of due to all the warm, humid days!) Yesterday he told me he thinks he'd like to be a chef when he grows up. Although this may come from watching Ratatoullie a lot lately!
Kibby misses school. She always asks to "go to school and see Ms. Julie" (her teacher this past year). She also wants to go to church several times a week. She was evaluated at the Clinic again, this time by a psychologist. (She was referred back in January but it just took this long to get her in! 6 months!) Anyway, the Clinic did some testing and decided not to redo the ADOS test for Autism that the school district had already done over the Winter because after reviewing the report saw no reason to re-test. That meant only 2 hours at the appointment instead of four! Yay! The recommendation was that Kibby stay in Special Ed preschool with the speech therapy included, but to consider adding Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA) therapy as well. From what I understand this is a pretty intense one-on-one therapy, recommended for 20-25 hours (or sometimes up to 40 hours) a week with a qualified therapist. They work on developing adaptive behaviors while decreasing target behaviors by breaking goals and tasks down into smaller tasks for the child, and rewarding each small success, thereby increasing the likelihood of the child repeating the desired behavior. (Does that make sense?)
So we are looking into that for her. There are waiting lists and insurance hurdles, so it's been a process already. We are also looking into getting her a caseworker to help us navigate all of this, and to get the most help for her right now when she is young.
Ruby is 2 and a half, and is our drama queen, silly entertainer, and definitely a strong-willed child! She loves to watch movies, play outside, go to the park, to church, and to go swimming at the beach. She always asks for her "swimming soup". I love that so much I don't want to correct her! Is that bad? :) She is currently learning to use the potty, and isn't too thrilled so far. She will hold it in and beg for a diaper. Um, yeah. It's a work in progress, but I thought it might be easier to train her now before Ean starts walking!
Which brings me to Ean! He started crawling a couple weeks ago, and is getting to be speedy already! My gut is telling me he will not walk at 9 months like all of his siblings, and I have to say that makes me happy a little. :) I am NOT ready for that yet! Even though it's exciting to see them reach new milestones and it might have been cool to say "all my kids walked at 9 months" - I now know that they already are growing too fast and won't mind my baby slowing down a bit! He is starting to try to pull himself up on furniture already, though, and we have found him pushed up onto his hands and feet (instead of hands and knees) when crawling, which I find amusing. I should point out that he doesn't actually move then. He stays that way until he remembers how to get back down on his knees or topples over. :)
He likes to "dance" when he hears music, too. When he is crawling and hears music, he kind of bops up and down a little. It's hard to describe exactly, but so cute.
Whew! The laundry is calling once again, as Ean just overflowed his diaper in the baby swing. (Yeah, he still likes the swing! Unreal, but the weight limit is 25 lbs, and he doesn't try to climb out of it, so we've let him enjoy it as long as he wants to so far.)
Until next time! Forgive me for not proofreading - if there are typos I hope you'll all understand! I still have photos to post, so the next one will probably be mostly cuteness and less words. :) Hope you're all enjoying your Summer!
Even now as I sit down to type, the baby (8 months old now!) is starting to fuss. Figures.
Ok, 20 minute break to feed baby and put him down for a nap. Now where was I?
Right. Catching up... Will I ever be caught up? Maybe when my kids are all in school full-time? That will be in about 5 years.
********************
The above was written a couple of weeks ago already. Seriously, the Summer is flying by so fast I can't believe it. Between a bored 8-year-old, a tantruming 4-year-old, a strong-willed, potty-training 2 & 1/2 year old, and a newly-crawling 8-month-old, life is chaotic to say the least.
What have we been up to? Here it is in a nutshell. Yes, the condensed version is all I seem to find time for lately. Sorry.
Seth has been job-hunting. He was a contractor at a company that no longer renews contracts beyond 2 years, so as of June 30th, he has joined the Unemployed. No fun there. He spends hours searching for jobs, tweaking his resume and writing cover letters. He has had several phone interviews, but so far no face-to-face interviews. So he is busy searching and doing all that. It takes a lot of computer time! (Therefore, since that takes priority, most of my computer time lately has been from my phone, and I don't do well with typing on that little iPhone keyboard, so this is a treat to use the laptop uninterrupted for a bit!)
Ethan is bored. He is always asking if I will play a game with him, or if he can play on my iPod, or if we can go to the beach / park / library / restaurant , etc. We have been going to the beach quite a bit. I need to get him in swimming lessons. He loves the water and wants to learn to swim. He also loves science and wants to do science projects around the house. He is always asking if we have vinegar so he can make a volcano, or blow up a balloon, or make crystals, etc. He is reading about space and wants to look at the moon through his telescope. He is interested in cooking and wants to help me bake (which I haven't done much of due to all the warm, humid days!) Yesterday he told me he thinks he'd like to be a chef when he grows up. Although this may come from watching Ratatoullie a lot lately!
Kibby misses school. She always asks to "go to school and see Ms. Julie" (her teacher this past year). She also wants to go to church several times a week. She was evaluated at the Clinic again, this time by a psychologist. (She was referred back in January but it just took this long to get her in! 6 months!) Anyway, the Clinic did some testing and decided not to redo the ADOS test for Autism that the school district had already done over the Winter because after reviewing the report saw no reason to re-test. That meant only 2 hours at the appointment instead of four! Yay! The recommendation was that Kibby stay in Special Ed preschool with the speech therapy included, but to consider adding Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA) therapy as well. From what I understand this is a pretty intense one-on-one therapy, recommended for 20-25 hours (or sometimes up to 40 hours) a week with a qualified therapist. They work on developing adaptive behaviors while decreasing target behaviors by breaking goals and tasks down into smaller tasks for the child, and rewarding each small success, thereby increasing the likelihood of the child repeating the desired behavior. (Does that make sense?)
So we are looking into that for her. There are waiting lists and insurance hurdles, so it's been a process already. We are also looking into getting her a caseworker to help us navigate all of this, and to get the most help for her right now when she is young.
Ruby is 2 and a half, and is our drama queen, silly entertainer, and definitely a strong-willed child! She loves to watch movies, play outside, go to the park, to church, and to go swimming at the beach. She always asks for her "swimming soup". I love that so much I don't want to correct her! Is that bad? :) She is currently learning to use the potty, and isn't too thrilled so far. She will hold it in and beg for a diaper. Um, yeah. It's a work in progress, but I thought it might be easier to train her now before Ean starts walking!
Which brings me to Ean! He started crawling a couple weeks ago, and is getting to be speedy already! My gut is telling me he will not walk at 9 months like all of his siblings, and I have to say that makes me happy a little. :) I am NOT ready for that yet! Even though it's exciting to see them reach new milestones and it might have been cool to say "all my kids walked at 9 months" - I now know that they already are growing too fast and won't mind my baby slowing down a bit! He is starting to try to pull himself up on furniture already, though, and we have found him pushed up onto his hands and feet (instead of hands and knees) when crawling, which I find amusing. I should point out that he doesn't actually move then. He stays that way until he remembers how to get back down on his knees or topples over. :)
He likes to "dance" when he hears music, too. When he is crawling and hears music, he kind of bops up and down a little. It's hard to describe exactly, but so cute.
Whew! The laundry is calling once again, as Ean just overflowed his diaper in the baby swing. (Yeah, he still likes the swing! Unreal, but the weight limit is 25 lbs, and he doesn't try to climb out of it, so we've let him enjoy it as long as he wants to so far.)
Until next time! Forgive me for not proofreading - if there are typos I hope you'll all understand! I still have photos to post, so the next one will probably be mostly cuteness and less words. :) Hope you're all enjoying your Summer!
Wednesday, June 9, 2010
Coming Soon...
Yesterday I had to go to a mandatory training for work. Seth took the morning off, and my parents were visiting, so it worked out perfectly for childcare so I could go. The topic was Autism. Some of the people my company supports have some type of ASD so it was meant to educate the employees on the subject.
To be honest, I didn't learn much that I could use at work. What I did take away from it was a lot more personal, since Kibby was diagnosed with Autism in February by the school district. (She goes in later this month for more extensive developmental testing through the clinic here, so we will soon have their input as well.)
I will post more about what I learned in a future post. (Soon!)
Also coming up, look for a birthday post! Yes, Ethan turned 8 over the weekend! :)
Until then,
To be honest, I didn't learn much that I could use at work. What I did take away from it was a lot more personal, since Kibby was diagnosed with Autism in February by the school district. (She goes in later this month for more extensive developmental testing through the clinic here, so we will soon have their input as well.)
I will post more about what I learned in a future post. (Soon!)
Also coming up, look for a birthday post! Yes, Ethan turned 8 over the weekend! :)
Until then,
Wednesday, June 2, 2010
Out of the Mouths of Moms
So, today I see that MckMama posted another "Out of the Mouths of Moms" post on her blog. I LOVE this. Honestly, I should really start keeping better track of the things I hear myself saying to my kids. I was just thinking the other day: "Oh, that would be a GOOD one for a Out of the Mouths of Moms post!!"
And so here's my chance to write about it.
Except I can't remember most of them! Ugh! I'm going to designate a notebook for just this!
Here are some that I do remember...
"Because it's not okay to play outside without clothes on! Yes, even in the pool. That is what your swimming suit is for. Yes, I know I have to wash it, but that doesn't mean you can go without one! Here's a towel. Let's cover up and go inside and put some dry clothes on. Yes, because the neighbors do not need to see your bare bottom." (Repeat a few days later. Sigh.)
"No, Baby Ean doesn't like it when you poke his eyes. Yes, that is why he is crying. You wouldn't like to have your eyes poked at either, would you? No, you wouldn't. No, really, you wouldn't. It would hurt. Hey, stop poking your eyes! WHAT DID I JUST TELL YOU?!?!"
"Sorry, we can't have your birthday party at Sea World. Yes, you're right, it would be a little pricey." (We live nowhere near Florida!)
"Because that what Kleenex is for. Yes, I know I can just vacuum again, but I don't want to. Please get a Kleenex."
"No, Ruby, that isn't Yoda. It's a picture of your cousin!"
"No, we don't eat Play-Doh. Because it's not food. I know it's purple and you like purple, but it is still not okay to eat it!"
"Please put your clothes back on." (repeat several times daily).
"Kibby, we don't talk like that. No, I don't think princesses talk like that, either. Why is that funny?"
"No, Daddy did not puke. Please stop saying that. I don't think Daddy has ever puked. What in the world brought that up?"
"Why did you yell at Ethan to 'go to China'? Are you mad at him? Do you even know where China is? Where do you learn this stuff?!"
"Yes, I know you tooted. Because I heard it. What should you say? No, not that. Do you remember what to say? No, not that! (sigh) Please say excuse me!"
"Yes, Baby Ean is cute when he sneezes, and I know the sudden bright light makes him sneeze, but you can't keep turning on the light when he is trying to sleep just so he will have a sneeze-attack. Because it's not nice, that's why!"
Okay, so maybe I remembered more than I thought I would!
What have you heard yourself saying lately that you never thought you'd hear leave your mouth? Please share! :)
Saturday, May 8, 2010
Sisters
Proof that they don't always fight:
Kibby is learning to tolerate her sister, and even play with her. It's what I've been hoping for, that they would become best friends. It's heading that way... Of course they still fight and squabble over things on a daily (even hourly) basis, but I am starting to see more love and caring between them, too.
If Kibby gets an owie, Ruby wants to kiss it all better. If Kibby accidentally hurts Ruby, she is now saying, "sorry, Ruby." without prompting. Heartwarming.
This may not seem like much, but even a few months ago, Kibby mostly wanted nothing to do with Ruby. She would ignore her or fight with her, but very rarely show her any love, interest, or compassion. To see this starting to change does my heart good! :) There is hope!
Sisterly love. :)
Tuesday, May 4, 2010
Happy Half-Birthday, Ean!
Yesterday my baby turned 6 months old. Wow. I don't know where the past half year went. It seems like I just brought him home from the hospital a few weeks ago! What's strange is that now that six months have passed, and I look back, there were times when I thought time was d.r.a.g.g.i.n.g. I remember thinking at times that I couldn't wait until he was doing this or that... like holding his head up better, or learning to self-soothe, or sleep through the night, or roll over, or play in the exersaucer. (Ok, so mainly the sleeping through the night thing...) :)
But now, today, it is bittersweet. The year is going so fast suddenly. Before I know it, he will be running and climbing with his siblings. All of our kids have walked within a week (either way) of the 9-month mark, so it really seems unreal that in 3 months it's a very real possibility that he will be walking, too. Again, Wow.
Here's a rundown of what he is doing now:
* Sitting up for longer and longer periods of time without support.
* Smiling at EVERYONE. (He's such a charmer!)
* Pivoting around on his hands and tummy when we put him on the floor.
* Playing with his toes a lot.
* Putting all of his toys in his mouth.
* Trying rice cereal (but he doesn't really like it!)
* Wanting to stand up on our laps when we hold him (as opposed to sitting in our lap).
* Babbling and talking more and more. He "says" quite a few different sounds.
* Usually sleeping through the night! (HOORAY!)
But now, today, it is bittersweet. The year is going so fast suddenly. Before I know it, he will be running and climbing with his siblings. All of our kids have walked within a week (either way) of the 9-month mark, so it really seems unreal that in 3 months it's a very real possibility that he will be walking, too. Again, Wow.
Here's a rundown of what he is doing now:
* Sitting up for longer and longer periods of time without support.
* Smiling at EVERYONE. (He's such a charmer!)
* Pivoting around on his hands and tummy when we put him on the floor.
* Playing with his toes a lot.
* Putting all of his toys in his mouth.
* Trying rice cereal (but he doesn't really like it!)
* Wanting to stand up on our laps when we hold him (as opposed to sitting in our lap).
* Babbling and talking more and more. He "says" quite a few different sounds.
* Usually sleeping through the night! (HOORAY!)
I took a video of him in the backyard on Easter, and I'll try to post it here:
It was his first time feeling the grass under him, and he didn't think much of it. And he let us know! :)
Here is our sweet boy today. Er, yesterday, actually.
Happy 6-month-birthday, Ean! We love you very much!
Saturday, May 1, 2010
Well Hello There!
Yes, I'm alive!
Life is so chaotic lately that I feel as though I barely have time to breathe some days. Everytime I blink someone needs a fresh diaper, or a drink of water, or has made a mess to clean up, or is in tears because Mommy said, "no more movies today!"
And so, the toast gets forgotten in the toaster. The beds go unmade. The laundry piles up (partly thanks to our dryer breaking for a week!), the emails go unread, the dishes get done every other day at best, and, the blog posts go unwritten! Some days we even just have breakfast for dinner because it's so much simpler to make!
You'd think that things would go more smoothly around here with only 2 kids home 4 mornings a week now that Kibby is in preschool. But no. Mornings are a rush of trying to pry children from their pillows, get their faces washed and hair combed, backpacks and tummies filled, shoes found (matching ones, even!) By the time I get the two older ones out the door, the baby is crying and the toddler is awake, and *poof* goes any hope of spending some time online!
So here I am, trying to get a post up after a 2-month break. And it has taken me 2 days to type this much.
Some things I want to mention before I get back to the diaper-changings:
1) Anyone notice the updated picture in the heading? The other picture was 18 months old already and was missing Ean! So I had a few minor changes made to my blog. Danielle (The Design Girl) updated my pic, created a button for me, and switched the layout to a 3-column. Much nicer, I think! Thanks Danielle! :)
2) I changed my blog address. We are no longer FIVE mangoes, so I didn't feel that address was appropriate anymore. I am still having trouble getting things worked out to link from my old address to this new one. Some Blogger issue, I am told?
3) Angie Smith's book, I Will Carry You, is out! Yay! For those of you familiar with Angie and her story, you may have been waiting patiently with the thousands of us... and it's finally available. Angie is the wife of Todd Smith of Selah, and her book is about their daughter Audrey Caroline. If you or someone you know has experienced the devastation of losing an infant (or child of any age), I know Angie's story will minister to you as she shares her journey through grief and where her strength and hope come from. I think God is going to do great things through this book. Angie has a gift for writing and relating to others in a way I never will, and I love her heart and willingness to share her story.
4) More posts coming SOON. I promise they will be less wordy and definitely cuter. :) Also coming up is an update on Kibby and how school is going for her, and Ean's 6-month post. (WOW!)
Life is so chaotic lately that I feel as though I barely have time to breathe some days. Everytime I blink someone needs a fresh diaper, or a drink of water, or has made a mess to clean up, or is in tears because Mommy said, "no more movies today!"
And so, the toast gets forgotten in the toaster. The beds go unmade. The laundry piles up (partly thanks to our dryer breaking for a week!), the emails go unread, the dishes get done every other day at best, and, the blog posts go unwritten! Some days we even just have breakfast for dinner because it's so much simpler to make!
You'd think that things would go more smoothly around here with only 2 kids home 4 mornings a week now that Kibby is in preschool. But no. Mornings are a rush of trying to pry children from their pillows, get their faces washed and hair combed, backpacks and tummies filled, shoes found (matching ones, even!) By the time I get the two older ones out the door, the baby is crying and the toddler is awake, and *poof* goes any hope of spending some time online!
So here I am, trying to get a post up after a 2-month break. And it has taken me 2 days to type this much.
Some things I want to mention before I get back to the diaper-changings:
1) Anyone notice the updated picture in the heading? The other picture was 18 months old already and was missing Ean! So I had a few minor changes made to my blog. Danielle (The Design Girl) updated my pic, created a button for me, and switched the layout to a 3-column. Much nicer, I think! Thanks Danielle! :)
2) I changed my blog address. We are no longer FIVE mangoes, so I didn't feel that address was appropriate anymore. I am still having trouble getting things worked out to link from my old address to this new one. Some Blogger issue, I am told?
3) Angie Smith's book, I Will Carry You, is out! Yay! For those of you familiar with Angie and her story, you may have been waiting patiently with the thousands of us... and it's finally available. Angie is the wife of Todd Smith of Selah, and her book is about their daughter Audrey Caroline. If you or someone you know has experienced the devastation of losing an infant (or child of any age), I know Angie's story will minister to you as she shares her journey through grief and where her strength and hope come from. I think God is going to do great things through this book. Angie has a gift for writing and relating to others in a way I never will, and I love her heart and willingness to share her story.
4) More posts coming SOON. I promise they will be less wordy and definitely cuter. :) Also coming up is an update on Kibby and how school is going for her, and Ean's 6-month post. (WOW!)
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