Playing School

Natalia has hit the age where pretending is the name of the game and anything relating to Sunday School or Preschool is where it's at!



Since our basement now houses all of the "noisy toys" (as Mommy calls them) or the things that could create messes when Mommy's back is turned (her easel, crayons, etc.), we've turned half of our space down there into a playroom. It's a bit cold since it's unfinished, but Natalia loves it. We just require that she wears her vest or a sweatshirt and footwear. (I know--it's the dead of winter but this child sometimes runs around on our wooden floors barefooted!)



The other day she wanted to practice her shapes...in theory at least. :o) I told her to pretend she was the teacher so I could take a picture.





Notice her triangle in the lower left corner? I'm still not sure if it was intentional or coincidental. She started it just below the hanging circle on the vertical side.







I'm looking forward to doing more intentional "preschool" activities with her soon here at home.


Any ideas?


Those of you who have a child in preschool, homeschool, or work with little ones, chime in. I'd love to know what skills I can introduce to her now since she's chomping at the bit.

Bleary Eyed, But Blessed

Yesterday's snow may have inconvenienced some of you, but it was a God-send to me. It meant my hubby was home for the day. I joked to him that I could stand a mid-week snow day every week! (As long as school would still get out in early June!)



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I'm realizing that no two children are alike. (I know...DUH!)


It's hard not to expect Adam to eat and sleep like Natalia did at this age. He is his own little person and will do things at his own pace. And I know for a fact that Natalia was an easy baby. I knew it then, and I'm realizing it afresh now.


I guess I just thought Adam would be passed the point (at almost 6 wks old) where he'd want to nurse every 2 hours round the clock. (That report a few weeks back of him going 3-4 hours was short-lived.) Sometimes I know he's just wanting comfort, but most of these past two weeks he's just plain hungry! And he's definately filling out as a result...especially in his cheeks. (Looking more like his big sister's baby pictures too as time goes by.)


I'm so grateful he's a good eater--just really tired. BUT, despite my bleary eyes it is a tremendous blessing. (especially because we're saving money by not having to buy formula!)


And as he grows I am astounded at the love I have for this little man of ours. How silly it was of me to worry I wouldn't enjoy having a boy as much as I have my girl!



His husky cry, the way he furrows his eyebrows like his daddy, his grins, grunts and coos, the way he scrunches up and snuggles into my neck, the sweet smell of his milky breath...and his cute little tooshie. :o)

This Cracked Me Up!

If you need a good guffaw, snort, or tickle to your funny bone, head on over to this post.

You gotta' read it simply to understand the title! :oP

Whoo Hoo!

G o S t e e l e r s !

At least ONE of the two teams we were rooting for have made it into the Super Bowl. I know my hubby would have really enjoyed seeing his beloved Eagles there, but you gotta' hand it to the Cardinals. Not only did they play well, but I especially respect their quarterback Kirt Warner and the way he takes every opportunity to share his faith.

Want to hear something funny? The Steelers made it to the Super Bowl when Natalia was about 5 weeks old. Adam will most likely sleep through it too--just at 6 weeks old! If only Kreider still played for them!

To end this post I thought I'd share this link with you all. It's a really funny music video that was shared at the Marriage Conference our family of churches hosted in Hershey this past weekend.

Growing

It's hard to believe Adam is 4 weeks old already!

WOW.

We had a busy day yesterday. My mom and I braved the frigid temps to take both kiddos to their well-check appointments. Natalia was due for her 3 yr. appointment and Adam, his 1 month. I honestly don't know what I would have done if my mom hadn't been able to come along.

I am so thankful that Natalia hasn't had to be in a doctor's office once since last January, though it did spook her a bit to go yesterday. She balked from the very beginning when she was getting weighed and measured, but we had a great doc who gently persisted in winning her over. She made him work for it, but they were buddies by the end. Her flu shot was no fun, but even the nurses got smiles afterwards when the word "sticker" was mentioned. :o)

I'm glad Mom is scheduled to be in attendance once again next month when Natalia is due for her 2 hour-long cardio appointment. Fun Fun!

Adam is a whole 2 pounds heavier than his birth weight and 1 inch longer. He's eating like a horse in my opinion. The doc was happy with those numbers and it puts Adam relatively in the middle for percentiles.

Finally, here are some cute pictures from this morning. I'm hoping to post a new pic every month on my sidebar since babies change so quickly. Enjoy!

"Care to do alittle Salsa dancing?"



"...or a number from Tchaikovsky's Swan Lake ballet?"


"...La Vida Loca then perhaps?"


"I couldn't be more thrilled about taking another picture. All of that dancing wore me out!"

4's

So much for being observant...my buddy Libby tagged me over at her site back in November! (She probably even told me and my pregnant brain forgot all about it.)

ANYWAY.

Here are my 4's:

A. Four places I go to over and over.
1. the rocking chair in Adam's room
2. the desk in our kitchen (it's where everything happens)
3. the grocery store (it varies each week--most of the time it's ALDI's, & GIANT)
4. ...I'm having a hard time coming up with a 4th! Guess it's no secret what season of life I'm in right now, is it? :o)

B. Four people who email me (regularly).
***I don't text or email those who have Skype since the chat mode is so easy and convenient--and FREE!
1. Pete (we Skype during the day)
2. Lisa (another Skype buddy)
3. Our CareGroup leaders
4. the babycenter website

C. Four of my favorite places to eat.
1. Symposium (it's classified Mediterranean but has alittle of everything and the place Pete and I usually choose for special nights out)
2. Panera
3. Five Guys (Pete and I just tried it for the first time a few weeks ago--it's now on my favorites list!)
4. La Tolteca (though it's in MD and alittle too far away now...boo hoo...so that leaves either El Serranos or El Rodeo for authentic Mexican.)

D. Four places you would rather be.
1. in my bed
2. in a rustic (but clean!) cabin somewhere with snow outside, a good book, a fire, and my hubby
3. wherever there's no nasty germs to be caught or shared
4. getting a back massage

E. Four TV shows I watch.
1. Thomas the Tank Engine
2. Sid, The Science Kid
3. Sesame Street
4. whatever NFL or NHL game Pete's watching
***When I actually sit down to watch something these days I usually only catch parts of it: Cash Cab, Cosby Show reruns...I am looking forward to Season 3 of Friday Night Lights being reaired after it's DirectTV stint. Oh, and my brother-in-law got me the box set of "Sense & Sensibility, Persuasion, and Miss Austen Regrets" for my birthday. Yea! :o)


Join in if you'd like!

Coveting Your Prayers

We're approaching Adam's 1 month milestone, and he continues to do well. The challenges have been mostly confined to the rest of us. Pete and I have been wanting to introduce the bottle to him so that when the need arises he will take it. I've been really struggling to establish a supply of extra milk this last week--further complicated by his growth spurt and wanting to feed every two hours some days and then Natalia and I catching nasty colds last Friday. Though Adam's nursing schedule has returned to a more manageable pace, Natalia and I continue to struggle to regain our health.

Please pray for us.

I know that in the grand scheme of things, it IS just a couple of colds, but when you combine it with the physical demands of breastfeeding, trying to protect and care for a newborn, and patiently handle a toddler who is beginning to react to having a sibling around...it's been really hard.

I was encouraged though this morning as I read Spurgeon's MORNING AND EVENING reference to Peter's desperate cry, "Lord, save me!" as he began to sink into the water.

Spurgeon reminds us that sinking times are praying times with God's children and that short prayers are long enough. Our sense of need for Him is more important than our verbiage, and just as the animals hurry to find protection from the storm, we should hurry to the mercy seat, pray, and find our security in Christ. Our situation may change little, but the strong arm of Jesus will hold us firmly in His grasp.

Hold me up, Lord...that's my prayer this morning.

Bragging Rights

I am blessed to come from a very creative and inventive family. Designers, craft and tradesman, artists, writers, musicians, teachers...

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I already introduced you to my younger cousin Lindsey. She amazes me with her watercolor pieces. If you haven't checked her out yet go here.

My cousin Janell designs and sews her one-of-a kind purses and bags. Check out her "indie + a little swagger" creations at jalmodovar.

My youngest brother Ryan just recently completed a set of acrylic paintings for our bedroom. In addition to his artwork he works as a jewelry maker/designer. I don't know how he does it...when I draw, I mostly reproduce what someone else comes up with.

And my other younger brother Joe is very gifted with his hands as well. He's technically a mechanical engineer, but has finally been able to combine his love for design with his woodworking talents to make guitars.

Please take a moment to check out Joe's website at Stauffer Guitars to see the beautiful guitars he's made. Those of you that play guitar will find a link there to my cousin Anthony's website, StevieSnacks. He offers free previews of lessons and loads of practical help for the aspiring musician. (He and Joe just co-designed Anthony's newest guitar.)

Enjoy!

:o)

Pictures Of Our Peanut

This post will be short on words (I know, I know--when has THAT ever happened?! LOL)

Just wanted to share some pics from our week...he seems to be growing into the nickname "little man". Even Natalia calls him that from time to time. :o)

I thought these expressions were funny...forgive the blurry and yellow appearance.

More Festivities

This last weekend included more Christmas dinners and get-togethers. It actually was nice having last week "off" and the busyness confined to the weekends. It helped in terms of a certain someone having her naptime restored, that is. :o) (I wish I were talking about me, but alas...)

On Saturday, the 3rd, we gathered with my mom's side of the family at my parent's place--all 29 of us (and that wasn't everyone). We had delicious pulled pork sandwiches along with other yummy things, lots of conversations, the great-grandkids running around, and a "now you have it--now you don't" gift exchange. Pete and I ended up with a huge chocolate bar, a car air freshener, and 7 pair of black socks, all labeled with a day of the week! HA HA

On Sunday we had our immediate Stauffer family Christmas. Ryan and Sarah were in from Philly, Joe's family was finally all healthy and back to their normal rambunctious selves, and once more Dad and Mom had a hoppin' household. Roast beef, cheesy mashed potatoes, "succatash" (baby limas and corn), homemade applesauce, Christmas cookies...YUM!

We figured the kids weren't going to nap with the prospect of gifts looming, so we worked off our lunch with our traditional name exchange and extricating the kids toys from their packaging. Are all of those wires, zipties and tape strips REALLY that necessary? :oP

After it was all over and the paper trash was cleared away, the kids settled down to watch Morgan's new Strawberry Shortcake DVD.

Their eyes look alittle glazed over from the lack of sleep and excitement, wouldn't you say? HA HA

Natalia, of course, had some funny one-liners in the midst of it all. She was overheard sometime in the course of the afternoon talking about pictures that she was going to put on her "bwog"--she had gotten a Vtech play laptop computer from Grandma and Grandpa and was furiously typing away!

What a girl!

Alittle Of This, Alittle Of That

Well, the Pampers have been a HUGE improvement folks! Not a leak since! (Thanks to all who chimed in--one more reason I love blogs!)

Adam is doing really well, and his mommy too. The last two nights he has woken up regularly at 3 and 4 hour intervals instead of 2, and is falling to sleep better afterwards instead of being awake and fussy. This means Daddy is getting more sleep too! Cheers all around!

I feel pretty much back to my normal self aside from the altered sleep schedule of course. What a huge blessing that has been. It's more restful sleep than what I was getting the last 2 months of pregnancy, that's for sure.

Natalia is doing pretty well with having her brother take so much attention from Mommy. She's been real sweet and gentle with him, often rubbing his head and saying, "I like him." And you know how she's been practicing with her baby doll (calling him Baby Adam) since June? Well, ever since we brought her brother home from the hospital, HE is our baby Adam. The doll baby has resumed his original status as just a favorite toy.

We had such a great day yesterday. One of my college roommates, who is a dear friend to both Pete and I, was able to come with her daughter for a short visit before heading home to Virginia. It was so special to spend time with her again. Her daughter and Natalia had a great time playing together in the basement while we visited.

Adam, Julia and Natalia

Natalia, Julia, Carolyn and Adam

Then in the evening we were able to get together with our friends, the Zimmermans. We usually spend New Year's Eve with them and so it was special to be able to do that again. Kaleb and Natalia are at the age now where they can go and play by themselves quite peaceably, which is really nice. They both LOVE Thomas the Steam Engine and all things train, so Natalia was thrilled to be at Kaleb's house to enjoy his company AND his train set. ;o)



Two funny quotes to finish this post. While my sweetpea is surely sweet, this is her spicy side on display.

As Pete was sitting on the couch the other day, he told her not to touch his cell phone which was laying beside him on the ottoman. She quipped, "Relax, I'm just calling your mom."


And as we were driving home last night, she was singing her little heart out and said,
"Mom, I wanna' sing the song Single Boys."
I asked, "Do you mean Jingle Bells?"
"Yeah! Yeah! Jingle Bells!"


OH DEAR. :o\