More Summer Scenes

Challenges continue with trying to upload the video of the girls that I am dying to share with everyone....I think I'm going to have to cut out some footage or slice it into "Hannah and Leah Part 1" and "Hannah and Leah Part 2". But until then....here are more pictures of the family over the past few weeks. Trying to get a photo of the girls is actually much easier than trying to get one of Joseph actually looking at the camera without a goofy face. Here's the latest attempt at all three of them!

Fun in the Sun

I have been trying to post a video, but for the moment have given up on that. Here are some shots from last weekend of the kids enjoying the park and the pool. Even though Hannah is crying in one pic, she really did have a good time.
(The photos are always labeled with who is who, so if you mouse over a pic you should see the name of the file on the bottom of your web browser. Else click the photo to enlarge it and see the title).

Crazy Town

Let's see....where did the craziness begin. I suppose for Joseph it started with the fall he took on the playground at schoolyesterday that resulted in a huge lump on his forehead. But for me it began with lunch at qdoba. As soon as I had finished my salad I knew something was amiss. I avoided hurling at the dentist but exploded after returning home, and continued throughout the evening. After drifting off to sleep, I woke up to Jay saying "didn't you hear the sirens?" We turned on the tv to see what was going on, and then decided to move all sleeping children to the basement due to the tornadoes that had been spotted around southeastern Wisconsin and the craziness going on outside our windows. After getting everyone back into their beds and seeing pictures of the destruction in other towns, I at last drifted off to sleep and was pleased in the morning to find that my stomach issues had subsided. (Though I was starving since I hadn't eaten since 1pm the previous day) And since I had to keep fasting for blood tests this morning, I sat at the kitchen table, not eating, but catching up on work emails and chatting with Joseph. And then in slow motion I see an accident unfold in front of me. Joseph fell off his chair and the chair then toppled on top of him. And then there was blood. And while I was trying to figure out where the blood was coming from and if it would warrant a trip to the emergency room, Jay was outside unloading the back of the 4runner, watching a case of pop hit the ground and explode, and discovering that in his haste to grab all perishables out of the car last night during the storm, he must have pressed the button on the key fob to roll down the back window. It was about this time that I located the "laceration" on Joseph's head and knocked on the kitchen window to catch Jay's eye. And off they went to the ER for stitches. I could hear the sounds of cans crunching and sprite splashing as he drove off down the alley. I then quickly got ready and took the girls to daycare, arriving at the doctor's office just in the nick of time. Many hours have passed with much playtime and eating, and no vomiting, so I think all is back to normal in crazy town now. Though I don't think I'll be eating at qdoba again anytime soon, and I'm strongly considering doing breakfast on the floor.

Ode to Dad

If the kids could write this is what they would say....or at least it's my adult kid-like version of what they would say.

We appreciate that instead of spending the day relaxing, you made it about us. Even though you slept in (after being woken up at 5 by little ladies) we still had plenty of time to make it to breakfast by 8. We took the "happy van" to cafe hollander (and not the big bad truck), but one of us was not all that happy. One of us might have even said "it is my burger king daddy, I can have it my way". And later on the way to the zoo that same kid might have said "I am being happy, I'm not a bad moon". But we all had fun at the zoo, and might have gotten so tired by riding the train and seeing the zebra and getting scared by the robotic dinosaurs, that several of us went to sleep in the stroller on the way out and one of us got to be carried by you. That sure was nice of you dad. And instead of resting your body like we did when we got home, you decided to work on lowering the cribs. You even noticed Hannah's puke from a few weeks ago and wiped it off. We're not sure what else you did while we were sleeping, maybe you played that game on your xbox that you aren't allowed to play while we are awake? After we were up and fed and changed, then you took us and mommy to the pool. Oh my goodness dad, you must be tired. Maybe you should take a bathtub and go to bed early tonight, with maybe just one book.

Little Leah Strong Like Bull

Both the girls grab and pull at everything, but Leah seems to be the dominant one in most of these situations. One day Hannah was folded over with her face on the floor with Leah's hand on top of her head. When I walked into the room Leah looked up at me with a chew toy in her mouth and a "who me?" look on her face. I didn't get that on film but I did capture a few shots the other day of a similar situation. This particular morning she was infatuated with the buttons on Hannah's shirt, and despite being pulled away from Hannah several times kept going back for more! Though this time she didn't pull Hannah to the ground to get what she wanted. (did I mention that Leah is the smaller one?)

The Rules of Me

The other night as Joseph was playing with his Cars coloring book and mess free markers, he said "Mommy, these are the rules of me. I am in charge." (clearly he is repeating things that Jay, his teachers and I have said....but he's using quirkier language that sounds quite laughable coming out of a three year old's mouth) After some discussion we concluded that Joseph could be in charge of coloring, but that I was in charge of everything else. The next night, Joseph reminded Jay that he was in charge of coloring, and I reminded them both that I am still in charge of the 10,000 other things going on. :)

8 Months Already?

The girls are 8 months old already? How can that be? They've changed a lot over the last four weeks. Going to the zoo and actually being awake enough to see some animals. Sitting up and playing with Joseph every morning before school. Scarfing down oatmeal and cereal like it's the best tasting mush on earth and having a watermelon picnic at daycare with the other babies. And of course.....their first stomach virus. But we're all clear of that now and at eight months of age Hannah and Leah are both playful and curious, eager to get in their stroller for a walk, and enjoy shoving anything they can get their hands on into their mouth. They love to be around people (especially Joseph) and they both really love to bounce. They burst into hysterics when tickled by Daddy, and usually calm down quickly when held by Mommy. And while they are similar in some ways, they have just as many differences. Their expressions and personalities make them easy to tell apart if you have a hard time at first glance. Take crying for example (something common to most babies!) Hannah's cries seem to be more an expression of sadness while Leah's tend to be outbursts of anger. And then there's the look they get when playing. Leah appears as though any toy she has is some complicated puzzle she's trying to unravel while Hannah has an expression of "oh boy a toy! a toy! this is the best toy in the world!" They both have beautiful smiles, Hannah's is the biggest I've ever seen and Leah's brings out a special sparkle in her eyes. They both are early to bed and early to rise, but Leah drifts off with her thumb in her mouth while Hannah prefers the pacifier. And you never know who's going to wake you up in the morning but you can usually tell by the sound of the voice who it is! (Leah has a little rasp to her and Hannah sometimes has a bit of squeak!) Before you know it they'll be actual words coming out!

Random Weekend Ramblings

A few weeks ago Joseph went to the grocery store with me. I usually let him pick something out but this time I'm not quite sure what I was thinking. Somehow I figured it was best to have him pick out one huge cupcake instead of buying a package of six much smaller ones. (If only he had wanted an apple that day.) Today we went to the zoo in the morning, and checked out a few animals that aren't part of our normal routine like the birds in the aviary and the spider monkeys. (Joseph's favorites are still the sea urchins, anemones, and jelly fish). We realized when Leah woke up that she had a temperature, so we came back home and everyone took naps. Leah in fact still has a temperature and I'm keeping my fingers crossed that it breaks soon. It will be extremely difficult for everyone if that doesn't happen, as that means she must have something other than teeth coming in and it of course prevents us from going to daycare on Monday. She threw up for the first time which I actually think was from me over stuffing her at dinner since she didn't eat as much throughout the day. We were both covered in a mixture of formula and pureed mac n cheese with veggies. (Too bad I didn't get a shot of that for the blog.) The day wasn't bad though, Joseph and I spent a little bit of time at the pool before it rained. He is getting more comfortable with going under water and had fun practicing his floating and kicking. While we were doing that, Jay got to relax and play a little xbox while the ladies napped. Last night I enjoyed "dining out week" in milwaukee with friends and sat outside and had a three course meal for $20. This was followed up with sex and the city at our fabulous ipic theater. Tonight will be equally enjoyable with the husband, hopefully relaxing on the couch catching up on the office or modern family. Or maybe law and order. (Ah law and order.....you will be missed.)