Joseph's1st Catch, Leah's 1st Dive, & Hannah's 1st Popcorn!

It's officially summer in Milwaukee! (at least for a few days). All the kids have skinned knees, a slight rosiness to their cheeks, and tank tops and shorts ready to go. Though the day did not start out this warm....as you can see we brought our sweatshirts to go fishing at Greenfield Park today. It was Joseph's first time. In preparation for this event, Jay took Joseph to Cabella's yesterday to pick out a fishing rod. A lovely batman rod was selected, and it didn't take Joseph long to snag his first fish....a tiny ugly catfish! He caught two more after that (Jay 0 Joseph 3) and he was quite pleased with himself. Meanwhile I rolled the girls around the walking path and then we all met up at a playground a few hours later and that's when the heat started kicking in. So we did some swinging and some sliding (real crowd pleasers), loaded everyone back into the minivan (much to the disappointment of the little ladies), kicked up the a/c, popped in sesame street, and headed home. Then we dusted off the old kiddie pool, turned on the sprinkler, and let the kids loose. Leah and Hannah weren't so sure what they thought of the whole water play set out before their eyes, but Joseph tried to show them how to run through the water, and then when they moved on to the pool the girls were much quicker to partake. Leah even got so excited that while trying to drink the pool water she actually ended up taking her first dive! She plunged headfirst into the cold water and flopped to her back right away and was in a pretty good panic when I lifted her up to standing position. But after we asked Joseph to show her that it is ok to get into the pool (that is after all what it is for) and he put his bumper in it and got all wet, she quickly calmed down. Hannah observed the chaos and decided she'd rather stick to playing with cups and buckets. Needless to say everyone was very hungry for lunch and ready for naps by the time the morning was over. We did a little bit more playing outside later but mostly stayed in the cool basement, and after Joseph finished practicing writing his name we let them all sit down to watch Lilo & Stitch together. That is when Joseph came up with the idea to pop some popcorn and asked if he could share it with his sisters. What a surprising request! Not the popcorn....but the suggestion of sharing! Actually his first question was, is Lauren coming over? (That is our babysitter) Usually this means he gets popcorn and they watch a movie together or play games....so we figured the popcorn question was coming next. And so that is how the kids ended their memorial day, and now two are down and one to go as we head into the final hours of the evening. Then Jay and I will sit down to some grilled kabobs, and perhaps a chilled glass of something. Ahhhhh summer.....good to see you.

Girls

We've noticed lately that Hannah and Leah are exhibiting signs of being little girls. We of course already knew they were girls, but now they are starting to act like girls. For example, they are infatuated with shoes. They both get so excited when I bring a new pair out of the closet for them to try on. And each morning one of them gleefully exclaims "shoes? shoes? shoes!!" as we are changing diapers and putting on clothes. They also go over to the dresser and try to pick out clothes, but as we all know I like them to be coordinated so for now I am still in charge of the outfits. (how long do we think this will last?) Sometimes I let them wear my bracelets until I can distract them with something else and get the bracelet back on my own wrist, and the other day Leah even asked for a "pretty" to put in her hair. (translation: barrette. But I tell them how pretty they are when I put something in their hair so I think this has led to an incorrect understanding of words) Both girls are also very into hats, and recently were very disturbed when I would not let them wear their winter hats to school on a 60 degree day. Many tears were shed over this travesty. They run around inside with whatever hats they can get their little hands on, and both of them were very excited to put on sunhats Sunday when it was super nice outside. (our one day of summer and sun so far) Contradictory to this girly behavior, was their reaction to a bubble bath last weekend. I guess I've never put bubbles in their bath before, but I thought it would be a fun activity for them and instead it turned a usually enjoyable experienced filled with much glee and laughter into a torturous washing with many tears and cries of "all done". Seriously, from the minute they entered the tub they were crying and trying to stand up and escape. Very abnormal bathtub behavior for both little ladies. And so, the bubbles shall be reserved for big brother only, who can appreciate the happiness and joy that only a bubble filled bath can bring. Girls, they can be so hard to figure out sometimes. :)

Little Developments, Big Kids!

Seems like we don't have any babies around the house anymore, everyone is getting so big and looking so much older. (though Hannah and Leah are still in cribs and we're keeping them there as long as possible!) Joseph is definitely taller, though not quite tall enough for all of his 4T pants. And for the past few months he's been going to swim lessons every week and is getting more comfortable with floating, and trying to swim. Though he does get cold, and after 20 minutes always asks "how many more minutes are left"? We're hoping to stick with it year round, and then sign him up for soccer in the fall or winter. He loves to kick a ball around the alley. Even Hannah has the kick and run going on. Both girls actually know how to put their coats on all by themselves now. They get it wrong every now and then (note Hannah frustrated with her upside down attempt), but are very proud of themselves when they get it right. And Joseph can even zip up his own coat, and next, we are going to attempt tying shoes. He just got his first pair with shoelaces (we shall see if he ever gets a second pair with shoelaces!) He's had spider man shoes waiting in the wings for quite some time, but his feet aren't quite big enough for them yet. He's been very excited to wear them, but every other month when we get them out to try, we're not quite ready yet and I end up buying another sale pair that aren't nearly as cool. Everyone is still taking the afternoon nap, though everyone wakes up at different times. Usually it's the girls first, and last weekend they had an encore late afternoon nap as emotions were running high. Hannah actually passed out, while Leah just chilled out. When I went in to get them and let Leah out of her crib, she ran straight over to Hannah's crib to try to wake her up! (wondering what it will be like to have them share a room when they are not trapped in cribs????) Leah kept saying "Hannah, Hannah!", and when that didn't work, she started knocking on the crib like a door. Was pretty cute. But it didn't wake her up. She was probably exhausted from all the fun she had with cousin Oliver this weekend! It was great having them all run around the house this weekend....can't wait to see what kinds of trouble they get into when they're older! I recall my cousin Jenny and I doing a few things that our parents didn't enjoy, but it makes for some pretty great memories. I mean who doesn't laugh at wet toilet paper stuck to a bathroom ceiling? ;)

Today's Story

Joseph walks into the kitchen and sees two black garbage bags full of stuff on the floor.

Joseph: "Mommy, are those from the attic?"
(he had seen Jay and I taking things out of the attic last night)
Me: "No Joseph, those are from the bedroom. They are old clothes that Daddy and I are getting rid of."
Joseph: "Are Woody & Buzz in there?"
Me: "No, we're not getting rid of any toys, just clothes. Woody and Buzz are still downstairs."
(now we are walking out to the van with the two bags in hand)
Joseph: "Are you sure? Because at Andy's house, he put all the toys in bags, and they were going to go into the attic, and then got put in the car".

For those of you not familiar with the movie, this is the storyline from Toy Story 3. You can see why Joseph was concerned. :)

Mothers Day with a Hot Mess and the Zoo!

We had what is now becoming our traditional mother's day breakfast at Cafe Hollander down in the village area of Wauwatosa. Popular with the kids because of the river and train tracks right outside the windows, and one of our favorites because of the fabulous hot mess....and they open at 8am. (key factor for Conway breakfast outings) We finished just as the zoo was opening and since it's been so cold this spring we haven't gotten out there as much as we usually do, so it was nice to enjoy the sun even though you can see we were wearing winter coats. The girls and I ended up taking ours off shortly after the photos as it did end up getting above 60 degrees, and hopefully we can actually pack them all away this week (I'm skeptical, as I've thought that for over a month now). Then after naps we had our afternoon snack at Baskin Robbins. They are still my favorite choice for ice cream. How can you resist all the flavors? I went with an old favorite, Pistachio Almond, and a new treat, Gold Rush. I highly recommend both (gold rush is lemon flavored with cookies). Jay was not as impressed as I was, but that's because he is a DQ fanatic. He and the girls did enjoy some soft serve though, and Joseph had a strawberry cone with sprinkles. We then hit a park afterwards and instead of the usual zone defense, this time we played man on man with Hannah and Leah, and searched for Joseph every few minutes when he wasn't near. On a playground he never goes far, but we didn't have him in neon colors so he's harder to spot amongst the jungle gyms of slides and tunnels. (We may end up putting the kids in florescents for state fair this year. Despite my hatred for the colors I'd rather do that then make them wear a harness) Today has been a nice family day doing things that we all enjoy, whereas yesterday I spent most of my time relaxing and shopping with friends while Jay stayed home to entertain those not old enough for facials and wine. Turned out to be quite a nice mother's day weekend, and I'm looking forward to more good weather sometime soon!

Recent Moments Worth Remembering

• Leah walking into her bedroom with a hunk of 3 day old donut in her mouth (how did rosco not find that?)


• Joseph advising me one night before bedtime that maybe I should check my purse for his Grover, since sometimes I lose things there


• Hannah giggling and snorting like crazy while getting tickled by daddy


• Joseph's mouth and hands covered with chocolate and cheeks full like a chipmunk while struggling to get out "kiss and hug, kiss and hug, kiss and hug" as I was getting ready to leave


• Hannah saying she's all done but continuing to grab every spec of food on her plate with the hand not being wiped by the papertowl


• Leah not being able to control her excitement when she sees the double stroller or the wagon in the garage
  


• Joseph running into the room to tell Jay that he left crust in his underwear because he (Jay) didn't wipe his bumper good enough


• Hannah and Leah giving each other hugs, and Jay capturing it on film. Priceless.

Look at Leah!

That's what I kept saying outside while the kids were playing today before dinner. Joseph was out riding around on his new bicycle and both Hannah and Leah wanted to be just like him of course. But little Leah was climbing on top of everything and throwing her legs over every bicycle, tricycle and thing with wheels that she could get her hands on. She tried to take over Joseph's new bike, but didn't get very far since Joseph himself wanted to ride it. So instead she tried to quietly commandeer Joseph's old bike, and had herself on the seat with handlebars gripped before anyone realized what she was up to. After both girls attempted to ride the tricycle a few times and landed flat on their backs I realized they needed containment, so I got out the stroller and would you believe Leah could hardly stand waiting so she tried to climb in herself? What a little lady!

Hannah Lu said Thank You!

Last night after clearing dinner and drinks from the table, Hannah walked into the kitchen and said "cup peas" (peas is translated to please), and after taking a big gulp handed it back to me and said "tank you" (I didn't realize what she was saying right away, but Jay did!) Other common Hannah words are up, down, no, nose, drink, ow-side, ow-we, hat, coat, more, mommy, daddy, Jo Jo (Joseph), e-ah (Leah), nuk, bunny, cow, duck and this morning she quite clearly said "socks and shoes". A key part of our morning routine that she usually enjoys. :)

Funny Weekend Updates

This weekend was full of little funny moments, and we of course don't remember even half of them but there are a few that haven't escaped us yet. We always have something messy on the weekend for lunch or dinner right before bath time, and Saturday it was ravioli. Then with the girls faces all full of sauce we tell them it's time for a tubby, which brings much squealing and excitement. So much excitement in fact, that as both of them were standing by the tub and I was taking Hannah's diaper off, Leah could no longer contain herself and took a head first dive into the air. Fortunately for both of us, I have cat like reflexes and caught her just before she reached the water. Not even a wet hair, and surprisingly, no crying from either lady. Meanwhile across town Joseph was enjoying his first trip to the toy store with Jay. They went to Toys R Us to pick out a new bike and of course he noticed lots of other things he wanted to bring home as well. He's grown so much that his knees hit the handle bars on his tricycle and bicycle so they are now on reserve for the girls. Though he insisted he was "big enough" to still ride his tricycle all the way to the park last weekend, so we did, and it was quite a funny site. He didn't quite grasp that sometimes you can be "too big" for something. He's definitely getting stronger and more confident, and swam by himself for the first time at swim lessons with the noodle under him to hold him up. We plan to start him in soccer at some point since that is his favorite alley past time. Hannah's also taken an interest in sports, and had fun throwing balls around the basement yesterday. Both girls also spent time dancing and stomping their feet on the ground (picture Flashdance walking in place like steps). Last night Joseph and I went down to a family party in IL, and on the way back Joseph asked if we could drive through the long tunnel with lights. It took me a minute, but eventually I realized he was referring to the tunnel in Wheeling. I wasn't up for driving 10 hours, so he then decided it would be a good idea to go to Bubbie and Papa's and have a nice big lunch at old macdonald's. I wasn't into that idea either since it was over an hour in the opposite direction, and so we continued on our way back home. Oh...and did I mention he also thinks he lives in Minnesota? We passed a police car at one point and I asked him to tell me what he says if he's lost and finds a policeman. His response was "My name is Joseph Dominic Conway and I live in Minnesota". We're working on correcting that one, though I'm sure Grandma wouldn't mind if he showed up on her door step!

4 Year & 18 Month Stats

Joseph

Height: 41.5 in (80%)
Weight: 36.5 lbs (60%)

Hannah

Height: 34 in (97%)
Weight: 26lbs 4oz (80%)
Head: 47.5 cm (75%)

Leah

Height: 33.25 in (90%)
Weight: 25lbs 8.5oz (70%)
Head: 47cm (60%)

Joseph is Four!

Joseph has been waiting to turn 4 for a long time, and it finally happened! (last night we discussed that there was just one more bedtime and then it would be his birthday) In preparation, I of course started buying gifts on sale for him right after the holidays. Then Jay spotted the star wars cookie cutters in the Williams Sonoma catalog, and when I received the email that they were discounted, our birthday theme was set in motion. We made the dough together the other night, and Joseph requested that he be the one to crack the egg. Only we forgot to remind him that you don't lick raw egg off your fingers. Yesterday he got to go to one of his favorite places on a field trip, the zoo! And between that and the lunchable, it was of course a good day. Last night I finished up the treat bags, Jay made 40 yoda, storm trooper, darth vader, and boba fett sugar cookies, and Joseph went off to school a very happy camper and even got to listen to his favorite music in the car. I picked up McDonalds and hung some streamers up in the kitchen before Jay got home with the kids, so Joseph was very excited when he got home (except for when he and Leah were fighting over one of the balloons and it popped, but we won't post that picture). And then onto cakes and presents. He was only interested in the big globs of balloon frosting, and then was ready to move onto presents (while Leah and Hannah scarfed down every piece of cake on their plate and then some. For Leah that means licking her plate clean and for Hannah that means shoving wrapping paper and paper towels down as her third course) He got many things that he's always wanted that are his very favorites, and was quick to point out on the backs of packages what other things he would like next. As he gets ready for bed I hear Jay reading Oh The Places You Will Go by Dr Suess to him, and I can't help but wonder what our little man will grow up to be. He'll succeed, yes he will indeed, and I hope that the next 20 years don't fly by with such speed!

Joseph the Helper

Joseph can be quite the helper with his little sisters. Last week he caught Leah pulling Hannah's hair and told her "No Leah, that is not nice", which was a nice thing he did for Hannah (even though Hannah and Leah were both giggling over the pulling of the hair). He also did a nice thing for Leah, and helped her get her Bear out of her crib (clearly this could not have been accomplished without oven mitts). He then gave her a kiss afterwards. I may have prompted him to do that. Other days he is not quite as helpful, but I am trying not to think about that right now. Tomorrow night will be his third attempt at eating the same dinner (chicken pot pie and green beans) and I hope that he has learned that he is not getting his way on this one. Jay reminded me tonight while I was feeling lousy that our pediatrician once told us that kids don't starve from going to bed without dinner. Thank goodness!

Conway Week-end Update

This week has been full of yummy birthday leftovers, and on Monday night we had a nice dinner at home with Maggianos carry out and Baskin Robbins ice cream cake. Everyone had lots of fun getting spaghetti all over their faces (though we had to remind Joseph that yes, he does like spaghetti and meatballs) and in typical Conway Family Fashion, Hannah dove right into her plate of cake and gobbled it all down without a thought. Joseph carefully picked off all the candy pieces and ate them, and then said he didn't like the rest and refused to finish. Leah sat there for a while contemplating the cake, and then slowly and carefully dissected it to completion. Joseph had fun opening my presents (which we made sure to explain were presents for Mommy and not for Joseph) and commented on how very really cool my new brown slipper shoes are. Hannah played with the tissue paper while Leah was still making her way through her plate of cake. Jay also brought home gelato, which I tried to save for another time but he was just too excited about his flavor selections. Pistachio (a good old favorite), Tiramisu (which he new I'd like) and then, the surprise flavor. Black Pepper and Olive Oil. Not quite sure how to react to that one are you? I like that he went for something new and daring, but my rating on this one is that these are flavors best had on bread, not gelato. The rest of the week flew by, and yesterday I took Joseph to swim lessons and to Jump Zone with a friend while Jay hung out with the girls and gave them baths (they were squealing with glee in the tub when I got home with a very tired and crabby Joseph. A little too much activity for one morning I suppose). Jay is at the gym playing volleyball now, while Joseph is enjoying his movie pick of the day, Toy Story 3. The girls were watching at first but now they are riding around on their little vehicles and speaking in a language that I am not quite sure I understand. They are actually getting much more verbal, and use the words up, down, more, bear, bunny, cup, shoe, and NO quite a lot. Sometimes there is even a little head shake to accompany the NO. It's a word that all of us are quite familiar with, and Joseph uses it quite a bit with his sisters as well. "Hannah NO" and "Leah NO" are frequently said when he has caught one of them picking up one of the remotes or trying to take his grover. The girls don't say "Joseph NO" yet, but I imagine that is not far off in our future. Perhaps if we found another language that made NO sound a little bit more fun and fresh, we could teach everyone to say that instead. Do you think if I started saying Nashi (Japanese) or Meiyou (Chinese) that I would get more compliance to the word? Doubtful, but perhaps I should consider this for other uses.....

And Then What?

After making our star wars cookies and playing in the basement, the kids had pizza and broccoli and then Leah pulled Hannah's hair for the first time, and then we discovered spots on Hannah's tongue and around her mouth and in her diaper (welcome back thrush, good to see you), and then Joseph delivered cookies to his friends Ruthie and Regan, AND THEN Jay and Joseph built a fort with lincoln logs, AND THEN Joseph had fun hiding from Jay upstairs (in the usual spots under his covers and behind the futon) and now that brings us to bedtime.

Getting Ready for Spring & Birthdays

Today is a cold, wet, and rainy day....but that is ok because it is cleaning away all of the nastiness that was underneath the snow all winter long and hopefully will help things turn green now that spring is almost here. Slowly I am starting to clean out closets and Jay gets to organizing different areas of the basement. We had to get out our lighter jackets earlier in the week, though after a day or two returned to the heavier ones. But while it was warm we actually had all the kids out playing after school one day, and the girls loved running around in the alley with Joseph and our neighbors. For the first time in, oh I don't know, FOREVER, they didn't go nuts crying for dinner right away. A glimpse hopefully of what our spring and summer will look like. We're hoping to get them out more in the evenings with the nicer weather, though they still have their limits. Like clockwork they start to meltdown around 6:30, which I think is around the time they started getting fussy last night during the big Italian feast with my family as a pre-celebration of the fact that I am once again getting older. Thankfully we brought our favorite stuffed animals...Bear (Leah) and Bunny (Hannah). Joseph is still a big Grover fan, and that's who travels with us, but his bed is filled with other favorites like Yurtle, Shark, a Blue Duck and a Blue Bunny. All three kids passed out on the way home (and I may have snoozed through south Milwaukee) and arose before we did this morning. Since the girls are approaching 18mos and Joseph is almost 4 we took everyone for pictures today, and those appointments are getting more and more stressful for me. Three kids coordinated, clean, hair in place.....and happy. Hair and happiness usually prove to be the most difficult. We got everyone haircuts yesterday, as Joseph needed a redo (straight thin hair is impossible it seems) and the girls needed some shaping despite my attempts to just "let it go". And happiness....well if only there was something I could do to prepare for that other than full bellies and clean diapers. Hannah was the hardest one this time around (and I think that was true of last time as well) and group shots....well they are just ridiculous...but we'll keep trying! Stay tuned for shots to get posted this spring! Now everyone is napping and once the silence breaks we plan to make star wars cookies (per Joseph's request) and play in the basement (and then what?). Well I'm not sure, but we'll have to think of something. Joseph likes to know the order of events for any given day, and I'm pretty sure it was me that turned him into this planning oriented little dude. And now I'm off to exercise (or maybe lay on the couch...it's a toss up between the two) and think about "and then what".

Zone Defense at Discovery World

We took a quick trip sunday morning downtown to Discover World, and decided to let the girls run around the great lakes exhibit and the aquarium. Joseph was so excited to show them around, and was running all over the place shouting "Girls, girls....over here!!!! Hannah, come look at the fish! Leah, come crawl in the cave!" And between trying to keep Joseph in sight and each of us trying to keep up with our assigned little lady (the I'm on Hannah, you take Leah approach) we were quite busy trying to make sure that no one wandered off, fell down stairs, or jumped into the open water exhibits. When we got down to the aquarium Joseph wanted to keep moving at his fast pace and show all the cool things to his sisters, but the girls came to a quick stop at the first open view exhibit in the floor. I remember Joseph sitting down on his butt and scooting across the first time he did it, Hannah and Leah instead froze and didn't want to move forward. They eventually crawled across, and then Hannah would get wobbly legs if you tried to put her down on the glass floor. Leah eventually decided that it would be best if she crawled on the narrow strip of carpet to the side of the glass, and we had to pick Hannah up in order to continue on and see all the fun things that Joseph wanted to show us.