Morning 1?

Apparently Delaney is learning a lot about classroom management during her time at Kids First. She can often be heard lining up her "children" to follow her up the stairs, or directing them where to sit, or leading them in worship songs from the fireplace, or giving them time-outs.

This morning, Allan was misbehaving in some way (didn't hear why), but Delaney told him, "Daddy, that's morning one." I couldn't help but laugh, because she obviously hears Mrs. Kristen say, "That's warning one" quite a bit.

Getting Married

Delaney is infatuated with weddings and wedding dresses. Honey and Grandpa came over and Delaney declared that she wanted to get married to Honey. Whatever. So Honey put Delaney's blanket on her head as a veil and we had a short, intimate ceremony with only 4 guests.

After that, we decided to wrap the blankies around the girls' waists as long, beautiful skirts. They had fun dancing at the "reception".

Harper still needs to learn how to sit like a lady in a skirt. In fact, the way she walked with that blankie tied around her waist made her closely resemble a sumo wrestler - too cute!

Hanging Out in the Garage

Today was a cold, rainy day, but the girls still wanted to play "outside". I kept them entertained by blowing bubbles and pushing Harper countless laps around the garage while Allan organized things.

Reading with Honey

For a long time, Harper had no interest in books and I was a little worried. She's finally starting to enjoy them, but only has a certain few that she will sit through without throwing them on the ground. I love when I'm sitting on the floor and she grabs a book then backs herself into my lap with a plop so I can read it to her. Here is a picture of Honey reading one of Harper's favorites, Mirror Me.

Easter Egg Hunt #1

Erin and Josh hosted a brunch and Easter egg hunt for our small group today. We had a great time eating, hunting, and listening to Erin's kid-friendly version of Christ's death and resurrection. It actually made me tear up to hear our sweet kids yelling, "Jesus is Alive!!"

I wasn't feeling good that day and forgot my camera, but you can see some pics of the event on Erin's blog or Krista's blog. I'm sure we'll have a couple more egg hunts in the next week that I can capture.

Later, when Harper woke up from her nap and Delaney was still sleeping, she did her own version of an egg hunt called "dump out the bucket and fill it back up again". It kept her entertained for quite a while.

A Little Bit or Too Much?

Yesterday I smothered Delaney with kisses and hugs at bedtime then I asked her, "Do I love you too much?"

She said, "Yes, Mommy, you love me too much. I want you to love me a little bit because I only love you a little bit. I love Daddy too much."

So that's what I get for carrying her for 9 months and enduring 11 hours of labor? Not too mention providing her nourishment for the first 3 months of her life? Thanks. A. Lot.

Just Chillin'

Delaney loves Tuesdays because it means that Daddy gets to stay home and watch her all day. Today, she and Daddy sat on the front porch for a while eating popsicles and watching the workers build the house across the street.

Feeding Herself?

Allan let Harper feed herself her oatmeal this morning. He's braver than I am! I guess I don't give her enough credit, though, because she fed herself almost the whole bowl. Of course, Allan had to hold on to the bowl. It makes me laugh to think that we have pictures of Delaney at this age eating off of a plate. I would never dream of giving Harper her on plate right now! She is a major food flinger!

After Allan told me about her new skill I tried it for myself and, sure enough, she helped out with her mini ravioli at dinner. Go Harper!!

8 Years!

8 years ago today I married my best friend. I'm so thankful that God brought him into my life and love him now more than ever. Happy Anniversary, Allan! Thanks for being a thoughtful, loving, husband and an unbelievable dad to our girls!

We were married at First Assembly of God church in Granite City.

And had our reception at the University Restaurant at SIUE.

Band Concert

Some of our friends came over after church tonight. As usual, the hearth quickly turned into a stage for the crazy, mixed-up band! Lucas is upset about not having the instrument he wants, but Harper is kindly trying to share. Tyler was smart and stayed out of the whole mess. They have a lot more practicing to do before they have a real concert for paying guests!

Claire, Landon, Lucas, Delaney

Harper

Bracketology

This year Allan had Delaney help him fill out his March Madness bracket. He would say the two teams and write down whichever one she picked. Some choices made him proud (Duke) and some made him sad (Robert Morris over Minnesota). We'll see how she does!

And her winner is...

Robert Morris!! Doesn't look like she'll be winning the office pool.

Proud, Proud, Proud! - Warning - "Potty" Talk

I hope I'm not premature in posting this, but Delaney is potty-trained!! Last Thursday morning, she told us that she needed to go potty. Great! We seized that opportunity to put panties on her and send her to Honey's house for the day. I got two different voicemails that she had gone on the potty numerous times, told Honey when she needed to go, and had no accidents! I was "cautiously optimistic" that it could really be happening. Over the course of the past 5 days, she has continued to do a fantastic job! Besides nap and bedtime, she has only worn panties and had no accidents. She even wore them to church and on multiple trips to the store.

I think my proudest moment as a Mom occured Sunday morning. Delaney was playing in the basement and I was upstairs changing Harper. I heard Delaney yell, "Mom, come see what I did!" I thought she probably built a tower or something, but when I got downstairs I got a huge surprise. Delaney had gone poo-poo on the potty! She was able to pull down her pants, climb on the big toilet, poo-poo, and wipe all by herself!! I was so proud because pooping is one of the last hurdles in toilet training. Keep up the good work, Big Girl!!

The Potty Princess proudly displaying the completed Dora sticker chart and Super Why laptop that she got as a reward.

I'm also super proud of Harper because she slept through the night both Saturday and Sunday nights. Two nights in a row - we're in heaven around here!!

Chalk

Here's a picture of Harper's first experience writing with chalk. Unfortunately, her first real experience with chalk was when she ate some at her 1st birthday party.

Delaney wrote these letters on her chalkboard wall in the playroom. You can see that Allan modeled them, then she tried to copy them. We didn't help her at all! Pretty good, don't ya think? BTW, Uncle Kenny and Aunt Julie will be proud to know that she wrote the first 4 letters with her left hand (a surprise to us!), then the E and F with her right. Maybe she'll be ambidextrous?

Tickles and Giggles

Fun times playing with the girls in our bed. I've written before how we spend more time as a family in our bedroom than any room in the house! We love lazy days.

Toy Room

Here are a few fun pictures of Delaney and Harper playing in their toyroom. Thanks Daddy and Mr. Rob for the cool design!

Ever the bossy big sister, Delaney is trying to hold Harper still for the picture.

Kind of dark, but you can see the pretty flower stickers I hung up. Both girls love playing babies.
Delaney is dancing and Harper is strutting. They both have some good hip action!

Harper's 1 Year Check-Up

Today we had Harper's 1 year check-up with Dr. Hulsen - better late than never. I always make a list of questions so I don't forget the topics I want to discuss. This was my longest list ever - 13 questions! Delaney was a textbook baby (not perfect - she just followed all the norms of development) and Harper is so not a textbook child! I know, I know - shame on me for comparing the two.


Here are some concerns I had:


1. Milk - Dr. H says that for Harper, getting her to drink milk is more important than getting rid of the bottle. This week we are to give her milk in her bottle (breaking a rule of mine) so that she gets used to the taste and drinks it willingly. Next week we are to take away the bottles and give her only milk in a cup to drink, not even water. Dr. H says that she will drink milk when she is given no other options and she will not dehydrate herself that day. Let's hope Harper goes along with the plan! She's supposed to have 16 - 24 oz of whole milk a day.


2. Sleep - Harper is in bed up to 12 hours a night and has only been waking up once at night. We still give her a bottle, although we are slowly reducing the number or ounces. Dr. H says we are on the right track and she is not concerned, especially considering that Harper has had neverending teething and 3 sinus infections in the past months and that she goes to sleep without a bottle for naps and at night. Another question I had was if we should go in and give her her paci at night (I already knew the answer to this). She literally laughed out loud and said, "Jen, right now Harper is digging through your purse to find her paci. She is playing you. If she were 4 months old and helpless, I'd say go in. Considering the fact that she starts the night with 7 pacis in her bed and throws them out one by one, I'd say you are enabling her."


OK, got it, Tough Love. If we can't handle tough love now, how on Earth are we going to do it when they're 13 and really need it??


Enough with my concerns, here are some highlights from the appointment:


Harper has 5 words that she says regularly (Mama, Dada, hot, shoe, and tickle - she can also sign "more") and she only needs to know 1 word to be on track developmentally.


She is way ahead of the game as far as both fine and gross motor skills go. She can do stairs, stack blocks, do shape sorters, nesting cups, etc. Her walking on her toes is not a problem right now.


Harper loves to imitate. Two of my favorite things she does are "love" her baby by holding it tight and rocking back and forth and pretending to wash and dry her hands. She rubs her hands together every time she sees me wash mine or put hand sanitizer on. Oh yeah, she also likes to try to put on her own shoes. I think she's adorable!


Her stats are:
Weight 24.8 lbs (92%)
Height 30 1/4 inches (80%)
Head Circ. 18 1/2 inches (85%)
Her height and weight are becoming more proportionate.


All-in-all, Dr. Hulsen said Harper is a beautiful girl and is doing great! I'm so proud of her!


Here are a few pics of her on her actual birthday:

She got to have a cinnamon roll for her b-day breakfast.

A Cheesy smile

Two phones because she was expecting lots of calls from people wishing her a happy birthday.

The Swingset is Back!

Since Spring looks like it's here for good, we got the playhouse from behind the bike store and set it up today. Yeah!!

You know you're a redneck when you put your playhouse in the middle of the street! Yes, Allan and Delaney were actually playing in it!

Having a snack.

Claire came over to play today!

Harper loves being part of the commotion.

Delaney is a happy girl!

The Zoo

Today was in the mid-50's, so we took the girls to the zoo (along with half of the St. Louis population). We got there around 9:45 and stayed til about 12:45, so I consider the day a success. Harper did great in the stroller for that long and Delaney was so good about listening and staying near us when she was out of her stroller. It started getting crazy crowded around lunch time, so we were glad to get out of there when we did.

Daddy, Delaney, and Harper looking at the penguins.

Harper is waiting to watch the Sea Lions get fed.

Delaney has the best seat in the house!

Josh, Erin, Landon, and Brody met us there later in the morning.

Delaney and Landon by the hippos.

Delaney is into making these silly poses and faces now. Nice. It's hard enough to get both girls looking at the camera at once! Harper was trying to take full advantage of her time out of the stroller!

We let the girls run around in the grass by our car for a few minutes before loading up.

Mommy and her two monkeys.