Shots

Tessa had her 4-Yr check-up yesterday. I can't believe she's four already. We celebrated in grand style in Jekyll Island (will post another one on Jekyll with some pics). We had a little Birthday party with the Rivers (Carla, Ben, Evan and Katy) and of course Omi and Opa were there as well. She had a purple cake (duh) with pink hearts all over and is still talking about her cake.

At four they have to get a round of shots. They do this at four now instead of five since so many kids start Pre-K at age four. I can't believe I'm saying this, but Tessa will be in Pre-K in the fall. Instead of surprising her with the shots, I figured I would prep her. I have been talking about them for a while and we talked about being brave and how important they are, etc. She talked about how brave Opa and Daddy were and that she was going to be brave as well. Monday morning all bravery went out the window. As she was getting dressed I reminded her we had her Doctor's appointment and she said she didn't want shots today, but would go tomorrow. I picked her up from school, it was nap time so she was still sleeping. On the way over she kept saying she didn't want the shots.

As the Nurse did a Vision Test and Hearing Test, she just kept saying "I don't want any shots". She got to wear a hospital gown, which she wanted to model (see picture below). Dr Beckford came in and checked her out. She said everything looked great. She's obviously advanced in her speech and social skills, so there are no concerns there. Then the nurse came back to give her the shots. She lost it. It was hard because I had to hold her arms so she wouldn't accidentally hit one of the syringes. She got two shots in each leg. She cried, screamed, and was scared. Afterwards, I told her I was very proud of her and I know that that was very hard for her. She said "But I wasn't brave, I was scared" I took her to Coldstone as a treat and she ordered Water Melon Ice Cream with Reese's Pieces and Oreo Cookie. BARF! But she loved it and licked the bowl clean. Of course, my little drama queen is now limping around in a very dramatic fashion when she remembers she got the shots. At school she was limping down the hall, but then saw Ellis running and suddenly and miraculously recovered and chased him down the hall. Then she had to limp again.

I just love my little mini-me so much. She is so smart, sweet, beautiful, sassy, dramatic, and funny. I love watching her when she sleeps because she looks so much like me. She does this funny imitating of my angry face that is dead on. Mike and I laughed so hard this weekend when she showed him my angry face. She loves Ellis and always wants him included in everything. They really are best friends and I hope it stays that way. I am just so proud of what a wonderful little girl she is and I am so lucky to have her. I can't wait to see what the future has in store for her. She is truly the light of my life and I am just so in love with her.

Stats: She's 35 lbs (50%) and she's 39 3/4" tall (50%). So she's right in the middle of the pack, she was on the shorter side for a while (35%) but has shot up in the last year.

Mother's Day

I had a very sweet, low-key Mother's Day this year. It was a rainy weekend, so we just hung out inside and played games and watched movies. On Sunday, my mom came over and we did some shopping. I needed some planters and plant for the back porch. It was a perfect, rainy Sunday afternoon of shopping. I also started coming down with a cold that wiped me out for most of the week. I missed one day of work and probably should have stayed home another day, but it just took forever to get over it.

Sometimes I love those rainy weekends, though. And the garden really appreciated a good soaking.

I finally planted everything this past weekend. Here are some pictures of my pretty deck

So Sweet

Last night during Tessa's pre-sleep brain dump, I couldn't help but just stare at her and wonder how beautiful and smart she is. When she pasued for a second I said "Tessa, you are so beautiful. Where did you get your beautiful from?" (OK - scowl at me you literary fanatics, I know that's not proper English, but I wanted her to understand my question).

She replied "Ummmmm, from the stars, butterflies, owls and cats". I LOVE THAT ANSWER. So sweet.

Jumping Jelly Beans

Soooooo......I kmow these things can be hoaky, but BabyCenter has this Height Predictor calculator and based on your shilds current age, height, weight and parents heights they guesstimate thier height at age 18. Ellis came in at a whopping 6'2" They said that there is a 50% he would be within 0.8" (+ or -) and a 90% he would be withing 2" of that height. At the shortest, that puts him at 6'. I guess we managed to breed the short genes out somehow. Tessa came in at 5'7", which is about how tall I am. I can't remember if I'm 5'6" and just wish I were 5'7" or if I'm really 5'7". I think 5'7" is the shortest a model can be, so if I'm 5'7" then I'm model-height ;) The calculator doesn't start until age 2, so I'm sure there's more chance of error the closer they are to age 2. But wow......6'

Ellis 2-yr Stats

Ellis had is 2-yr check-up and the Doctor said he was PERFECT! Duh. I don't need a fancy degree to tell you that ;) He's 36" tall which puts him in the 87% for height. I wonder where he got that height from? Mike and I are kind of short. Bobby, Mike's son is tall and I know both of my grandfather's were tall, so maybe there's a recessive tall gene somewhere that we got jipped on. He weighed 28lbs and 7oz which puts him in the 49% for weight. The doctor was very pleased with those numbers, she said they like them to be long and lean. Although I have seen his Buddha belly stick out after dinner and I' not sure how much leanness is going on there. She was overall very pleased with his coordination and speech development. Bonus was that he didn't have to get any shots, just a little prick in the toe to check his Iron levels, which were perfect of course.

Next up is Tessa's 4-yr check-up in a month and she is already talking about shots. This should be interesting........

Ellis

Today is my little man's Birthday, he's two. I so clearly remember going to the hospital when I was in labor and his birth, but then again so much has happened in these last two years. He is talking up a storm now (when Tessa allows it) and wants to do and copy everything Tessa does. This includes wearing her purple fairy wings and drinking from the pink sippy cup. His personality is very different from Tessa. He's a little more cautious and isn't quite as comfortable around strangers (it takes him 5 minutes to warm up to someone versus Tessa 0.1 nano-second). He loves to cuddle and give hugs, he loves playing with his Daddy, and has the cutest little smile and these smoldering brown eyes. He's obsessed with cars and trains...aka anything with wheels or tracks. They are still his favorite toys. He does a great job going to bed. We read a book or two, and then I lay him down and say goodnight. Sometimes he even waves at me and says bye-bye oe night-night and that's it. I don't hear a peep out of him. He is also more sensitive and gets upset a lot easier than Tessa does. Sometimes I don't even know what he's upset about. He will throw himself on the floor or throw whatever he has in his hand. And if he's not holding something he goes and finds something to throw or knock of the coffee table. Part of the issue is communication, he can't quite communiate yet what he wants or doesn't want or what is bothering him. Hopefully this phase will pass soon.

He's transitioning into his new classroom this week. He will be in Jr. Pre-School I with Mrs Martha and his best friend Coen (who's birthday is three days after his) is moving with him. He's excited about all of the new toys and play equipment. He loves eating on his own, although it's quite messy and stresses me out majorly. Mike keeps telling me to relax but the food everywhere drives me bananas. Now potty-training is a whole other story. He has absolutely no interest in it. I ask him if he wants to go, he always says 'No'. He won't even sit on it. Part of moving up to his new class is that they work on potty training, so we'll see how that goes.

On Sunday we were sitting out on the grass and he had just woken up from his nap. He was still tired and just stayed curled up on my chest. I leaned back with my hands on the grass and he sat up and looked at me. The wind had blown some of my hair into my face, and he reached up very gently and pushed the hair back out of my face. My heart just melted right there on the spot. Seriously how sweet and romantic. If we can keep him on the right track I know he will grow up to be a McDreamy and just be the perfect husband for someone (although I am secretly already jealous of the heifer that is going to steal him away from me...........Mike just laughs at me when I tell him that).

Happy Birthday, Moose.

Earth Day (Ellis' early B-Day)

We celebrated Ellis' Birthday a little early this year (on Sunday - Earth Day) since Kirsten was still in town and Dad was home from the Hospital, and of course Mike was home. We had lunch over at Omi's and some cake. Aunt Kirsten got Ellis (and Tessa) a cool picnic table for their Birthdays. We wanted one for our deck and the kids loved it, although with no straps it allowed Ellis quite a bit of freedom during meal time. That might take some getting used to. Opa loved the cakes and loved feeding some to Ellis, who happily obliged Opa and ate plenty. Those guys are two peas in a pod when it comes to desert (although as most in my family will attest, put a bowl of ice cream in front of me, serve with shovel, please). The weather was perfect.

On Tuesday Ellis gets to have cupcakes and a balloon with his class. It was so funny, when I picked him up today, I was talking to one of his teachers and said "Tomorrow is somebody's Birthday, and Maddox, a class mate of Ellis', said "something gibberishy....CUPCAKES" I don't think they care who's Birthday it is as long as they get cupcakes.