Potty Party

Just writing it is jinxing it, I know, but today we are one week accident free with Ellie! To celebrate we went to Panera for bagels and got her some play food at Toys R Us. Hopefully we are finally diaper free (well 2/3 diaper free I should say )

Spacesuit

Today Ellie pointed to a spacesuit costume and called it a "blastoff dress."

Blackberry

Today Eric told me I should get one!

27 Days

Today Eric said "Your birthday isn't for 27 days." It is actually in 28 but I was shocked that he was so close so I asked how he came up with that and he responded with
"I start at 31 and count backwards 3 because it's October 3rd so 31-30-29-28, wait actually it's in 28 days."
I think that is pretty advanced thinking for a four year old.

Secrets of a Mom

The other day I had to take a shower with a dirty car seat! There was no other way to take the covering off. Now it is sparkling :)

I love baby food. I always taste James' food to see if it is hot and for some reason I really like the baby rice cereal and bananas.

Ellie the Cowgirl

Ellie rode the horse today on her class field trip to the stable. She had such a fun time. She fed carrots to the horses by throwing them over the fence and screaming "there it is horse."

Help me please... I need a Dictionary

Today Eric and I were talking and for some reason I said "You are awfully good at that." And he said how can I be awful and good at the same time!!!

Did someone say...

it was easier to potty train a girl than a boy. Not quite the case around here!

Obama/McCain

So yesterday while the kids were sitting in the kitchen having some hot chocolate (rainy and cold), I told them they could watch some videos. I meant videos of themselves but when I turned on the computer yahoo news was on and Eric saw the pictures and he said "are we going to watch videos of Barack Obama and John McCain."

James' 6 Month Update

height: 27.5 inches... too big for his baby carrier :( 75th percentile
weight: 16.13 lbs 40th percentile

doing great... eating fruits.veggies.oatmeal.rice.formula.nursing

rolling over. not sitting yet but close

Imagine Eric and Ellie's faces when the doc said "we can give them flu shots while they're here."

Picture it: a tiny HOT room with three kids all getting shots. Not the ideal way to spend an afternoon. Ellie was amazingly the only one who cried.

Back to School

So Eric and Ellie are in preschool. Ellie goes Tue/Thu and Eric Mon/Wed/Fri. It is so nice for them to have time alone with me in the mornings and they both adore school.
Last night Ellie made us sit down and she read us an entire book that they have at school. Only 2 days and she is already playing the teacher.
Eric told me "you know school is a little bit more fun than home, there are more people and more things to do." I had better make things a little more exciting around here :)

Bad Pitch!

So due to peer pressure from her brother, Ellie decided to take up baseball. After she missed the first ball she said "bad pitch" and then continued to say that each time she missed!

Just Around the Corner

Andrew ran into Olympia Sports to get some soccer shin pads for Eric. While Andrew was in there Eric said "You know, there's always an Olympia Sports just arpund the corner."

Our Trip to Asheville

We came back on Saturday from our long road trip to Asheville. We had such a great time, things couldn't have been better... well maybe a little more sleep for the kids :)

We started off on a Thursday Morning (8:30am) and got to Philadelphia around 3. We stayed overnight and the next day until about 4. The kids slept in the car for about 3 hours then we stopped for dinner and finished the drive to Roanoke Va. (arrived 11pm) The next morning we woke up early (8am) and drove straight to Asheville and got there around 2 after stopping for lunch.

The kids had so much fun playing with Marley, Ally, and Ayden. They keep talking about Grandmom and Pop Pop and Auntie Tina and Uncle Mike and Grandpop and Ros and Grandpop and Aunt Barbara and Uncle Ted. I wrote like they speak.. listing EVERY person. Too cute.

We went to the Nature Center and Arboretum. The big hit for the kids was the Farmer's Market because Grandmom bought them ice cream. One night Grandmom and Pop Pop babysat so we could go out and when we walked in the door the kids were screaming "No.. go back out."

Ellie is in love with Tina and Mike's house. She said that she wants to "live on a hill like Auntie Tina with 3 dogs and 1 cat."

The kids got a kick out of sleeping in sleeping bags. They did miss out on naps though, it was too hard to calm them down in the middle of the day.

Can't wait until our next trip!!! Although, this went a little too well, next time, who knows! Pics as always, coming soon :)

Off Limits

Or in Ellie's words "Eric, Mommy said that toy is off lemons."

1st Dentist Visit/Spring Onions

Today was Ellie's first dentist appointment and Eric's 3rd (yes he's counting) Ellie was all excited and insisted on going first, then when the hygienist was about to start Ellie jumped off the chair so we let Eric go first. Eric loved every minute of it, especially wearing sunglasses so the light didn't get into his eyes. After watching him Ellie went next and did great. It cracks me up how they call flouride "special watermelon jelly" and toothpaste "princess paste."

And the Bad Mother of the Year Award goes to... ME! Well it wasn't exactly my fault, but I am supposed to have eyes in the back of my head. We were outside playing and went in to make dinner. I put James in the exersaucer and put some veggies from the garden on the sink to wash for dinner. I went into the red room to put on the TV so the kids could watch Curious George while I made dinner and the next thing I know I hear Ellie laughing and James making funny sucking noises. So I go in to find her trying to feed him spring onions...OMG!!!!!!! He actually liked it and was laughing. I picked him up right away and there was nothing in his mouth, thank god, but he reeked of onions! I think she has been paying attention when I have said "we're going to try rice cereal, bananas, carrots..etc." So she was just trying something new. Ugh... can't leave her alone for a second!

Mentioning food, at the pediatrician's advice we started James on rice at 4 months. He has no problems eating it and practically jumps out of the highchair when he sees it coming. So I started with bananas for a couple days, then apple, and now carrots. I can't believe how much he is eating but the other kids were early too.

Rain..Rain..Rain

August has been the rainiest month. Eric said the other day "I don't like August, it just rains too much." We try to run outside in between storms and play a little baseball or ride the trikes around the block.

Today my darling 4 year old told me (in the pouring rain as I was strapping him into his car seat) that I looked like a "wet dog."
Thanks a lot, Eric!

Three Musketeers

Can't get much cuter than that!

One of Our Favorite Things

The kids and I LOVE going for walks right after it rains. Today I let them jump in all the puddles, even the muddy ones, and put them in the bath afterwards.

Mini-Fan

We usually have the AC on so the kids have never really used fans too often. Ellie walked in our room last night and saw a fan I just plugged in and said "I like your new mini van mom." I had no idea what she meant until I saw her looking at the fan. I corrected her and then she said "I like your mini fan."

More Bad Parenting!

So Eric watches the Red Sox a lot on NESN and one of their commercials is for a super absorbent cloth. He saw Andrew's car washing cloth in the car and Eric said "hey look, we have a Sham-wow."

Accident Free

Ellie's 1st Day with NO ACCIDENTS and me not having to ask her to go to the potty. yay!!!

"Bug Light"

Today at lunch the kids were doing "cheers" with their milk cups when Eric said "Ellie, let's pretend our milk is bug light." Are we bad parents!!!!

Watermelon/Sleep...maybe

Tonight Eric told me "Mom, this is the best watermelon I've had in years."

I just put James down in the pack and play alone for the night with just a musical fish soother and HE FELL ASLEEP. I realize this should have been accomplished way before 4 months but he always falls asleep in the swing, bouncy swing, our lap.. so this is a big step!

Loooong Day

James' has the cutest smile ever! I think this is so he can cry every time we put him down and get away with it. I just can't let him cry it out, I hate hearing him so sad.

Eric's new Pastime

Much to my dismay I found the bathroom trash can full of pee today. He finally admitted it... YUCK!

Potty Training Day 4/James' Cast

Still in underwear... still having accidents but no backtracking!

james got his cast off! His foot has a few blisters on it but he is doing great. His phys therapy is now once per week too.

No Apologies

Eric was playing and ended up hitting Tia (Uncle Jon's mom Patty's dog) yesterday. We said it was ok but he had to say he was sorry and he pointed out "why would I apologize to a dog."

Potty Day 2

Ellie potty training! Hooray... finally!!! Yesterday was "U Day" (underwear day) I've had the day on the calendar for a couple weeks so she knew it was coming. I put underwear on her yesterday but she wouldn't pee all day until Eric, not me, went into the bathroom with her. She had a couple accidents but I stuck to my guns.. no more diapers! Today we did the same thing and she peed and pooped on the toilet, even peed at the Chateau and Nanny's house. 2 accidents today but she isreally starting to announce when she has to go.
Not to be outdone, Eric just got out of bed to tell me he went to the bathroom at night.. usually he does this without an announcement.
They are getting so big. I am so proud of Ellie and relieved too!

Ellie is 3 Now

Ellie turned 3 today. She had a huge party with lots of friends and family. She got a dollhouse and a bunch of girl toys. The best thing was making the cake with her, she loves baking. Daddy refilled her sandbox with new sand, she would spend forever in there playing. One of my favorite things about Ellie is that she can sit in the sand in a gorgeous dress without a care in the world.
We also got to show everyone our new kitchen today! It was a big hit. It is amazing with all the space and places to put things. It really has made a big difference.

Ellie has a wicked accent

Today I took the kids to the Science Museum with Kate and Enrique, who is up this weekend for Ellie's party. We spent some time trying to get her to say a few things like "four more doors", which comes out like "foah moah doahs". We could make a whole vocabulary lesson from her funny words. She is going to have the full accent if we don't stop her.

Tiny Little Memories

We took the kids to the Walpole fireworks tonight. It was fun, Ellie announced that the fireworks were "tiny little memories." We thought she was being very philosophical but then she said "little squares like my memory game."

Sweet Little Ellie... or not

Today I said "I love your dress, you look so pretty."
And she replied "well you don't mom."

Hardware

For the next couple of weeks, he will look like Eric did at this age. Not as severe though.

Raccoon Hair?

Tonight Andrew and I had wine with dinner and Eric thought it was juice. So I let him sniff it to prove it was wine and he said "eeewww that smells like raccoon hair." Where he came up with that I don't know.

Cry

Eric told Ellie if you don't give me a turn in that chair I'm gonna make you cry. She didn't move so he looked at her and said "cry" so she did.

Did I mention they were fighting over James' baby bumbo seat!!!

Afternoon Drinks

With the basement fridge accessible from outside now, Eric asked if he could go in and get a water bottle and I said sure could he get me a root beer. He came back a few minutes later and said "we're all out of root beer so I got you a beer." I didn't think a Miller Lite was appropriate for 2 pm on a wednesday but it was thoughtful of him anyways.

Long Afternoon Ahead

Ellie just informed me that naptime is canceled for today!

James' Foot Update

**James is getting his first leg cast or "boot" as we call it on June 25**

Went to Childrens today for James' appointment with Dr. Zimbler, the ortho who sees Eric for his clubfoot. James has clubfoot too but not as severe. It is called metatarsus adductus, defined as:

Metatarsus adductus is a foot deformity. The bones in the middle of the foot bend in toward the body. This is exactly what we saw on the xray,

Eric has true clubfoot or "talipes equinovarus" which is defined as:

The common ("classic") form of clubfoot. Talipes is made up of the Latin talus (ankle) + pes (foot). Equino- indicates the heel is elevated (like a horse's) and -varus indicates it is turned inward. With this type of clubfoot, the foot is turned in sharply and the person seems to be walking on their ankle. Eric's achilles tendon was actually too short and needed to be stretched.

While Eric had surgery, corrective shoes with a bar and casts for 5 months, James outlook is 1-2 months of casting and no surgery. James also has Torticollis, where one side of neck has weaker muscles, causing his head to slouch toward side which could develop a flat spot. Eric had this too, all we need to do is position him correctly and physical therapy.

Eric's doctor called him a "poster child for Children's hospital orthopedics" so hopefully James will be too.

All of these problems are attributed to "position in the womb" so I guess as a mother, it's one more thing for me to feel guilty about :)

Today James weighed 12 lb. 6 oz.

Harmonica

Actual song lyric: "I play the HARMONICA"

Ellie's Version "I play the KERMONITER"

Eric's Response "Ellie, it's not Kermoniter it's FRAMONICA"

Purple House

Ellie: When I'm bigger I'm gonna have a purple house and you can come visit me there."
Mom: "Wow! Are you going to have any kids in your purple house."
Ellie: "I'm gonna have kids when I'm big but I'm not sharing my toys with them."

Monitor

Eric made a drawing that looked like a rainbow with all of the lines red. I asked him what it was and he said "That's Ellie crying on the baby monitor."

Sweet Baby James

At 9 weeks old James is 11 lbs 8 oz. and 23.5 inches tall. He has grown 4 pounds since he was born. He is still nursing every 2-3 hours which is tough for me but I know he needs it. He is a sweet baby who loves to be held and being warm. He likes the swing, has no interest in toys yet. His favorite calming activity is staring out the window or going outside. He likes to be carried around in the Baby Bjorn and taking baths.
The ortho (Dr. Zimbler) thinks James may need a few casts like Eric had because he is too strong for his brace and can move his foot inside it. Whatever happens we know how great Eric's foot turned out so we aren't too worried.

Finally Some Sleep

James is on a more normal schedule these days, so there is some sleep to be had. Unfortunately I am up doing stuff until after 12 every night, so I am always tired.

Eric's Special Night

The Celtics are in the playoffs and Eric is getting into watching sports more. Lately he has been watching baseball and basketball, understanding the names, and memorizing the players by number. He know every member of the sox and most of the Celtics. Today I told him that if he behaved and took a nap, I'd take him to watch the Celtics at Jon and Lindsay's place, because i knew they'd watch. So he did what we told him and then asked about it and clung to me all afternoon, waiting for the game to start. We went over to watch and he pretty much paid attention the whole time. As the game went on, he got more interested, and by 11:15pm he was jumping up and down in front of the TV yelling "score" when they made a shot, and even during replays. Even though they lost, he didn't stop cheering until we left. Even in the driveway and the ride back, he was talking sense. At one point he reminded me that "college kids go to bars" and told me he already knows everything. Now let's see if he sleeps any later than 6:30 tomorrow.

Science Museum

Took E&E to the museum today while the house got cleaned up. They of course loved it and dragged me all over, never spending more than 30 seconds looking at the same thing. I got us tickets to the butterfly exhibit and the 3-d theater, both of which were fun. Ironically the most iteresting thing all day was the magnetic bead art, wich wasn't really scientific. I had to make excuses up just o leave than station. We had a snack, ran up the musical staircase, weighed ourselves on Jupiter, then left. So far the membership seems like a good idea.

1st Sleepover

Tonight we went to Lindsay and Jon's to celebrate Lindsay's 26th bday. We put their PJs on before we left and Andrew joked that we'd pick them up tomorrow. The kids liked the idea and so they stayed over on a mattress. They had sooooo much fun and didn't miss us at all (sniff sniff.) Lindsay and Jon are great babysitters... of course the kids cam home spoiled and wanting a dog :) The kids can't stop talking about how much fun they had. Thanks again guys!

Boy Wonder

Eric never ceases to amaze us. Today we were playing on the computer and not only did he take over using the touchpad mouse, he was able to navigate through the entire webpage and reached the highest level of the puzzle game he was playing. Then he amazed us even more by reading numbers like 752, 345, 621.. all of the scores in the game.

All 3 Sleeping

As a mom of 3 I don't have much time these days. Amazingly, all 3 are asleep, fed and bathed. I can finally have my tea and I feel accomplished having swept the floor, put the toys away, and set the coffee pot for tomorrow. Lots of caffeine these days. Having 3 kids is so rewarding and I really feel like James has been a perfect addition to our family. I was very scared and am still overwhelmed on an hourly basis but I actually do have peaceful times like now. Maybe I can squeeze in a shower before James wakes up... big maybe :)

Ellie's Typical Phone Call

Hi (Kate, Enrique, Nannie, Denise and Linda, Grandmom, etc)
I'm doing good.
My mom's doing good.
My dad's doing good.
Eric's doing good.
My baby named James is doing good.
Bye.

James Drew Gregory

On Monday, March 24, Andrew stayed home from work to help out with the kids. We took them to music class and the park and then spent the afternoon napping. At 4:30 I started having contractions 5 minutes apart. i called the hospital and they said to come in so Lindsay came over to take care of Eric and Ellie. We went to the hospital at 6pm.
When I got to the hospital I was dilated 4-5cm and was thrilled to hear we weren't going home! They guessed he would be born close to midnight. I did get an epidural and they broke my water. Dr. Terrazi was the doctor on call and he was great. After 4 hours I started pushing at 10:00 and James was born at 10:30. We spent most of my labor reading a baby name book and finally decided on James.
It was the first time I didn't have stitches or tears so I am having a much better recovery. Since James was born so late I stayed 3 nights. Andrew and I even got to have a "date" in the hospital, he brought us dinner and a movie.
James is an adorable baby with fine light brown hair and a cute dimple on one side. He barely ever cries and has been sleeping pretty much since birth. Eric and Ellie have adjusted great so far and can't get enough of him.
We are so happy with the new baby and how smoothly things have been. Can't give enough credit to Andrew, he really has taken on a lot of taking care of Eric and Ellie and the the house.

Eric Turns 4

We had Eric's party at the Blue Hills Trailside Museum which turned out great! The kids and I made a green snake cake with a bundt pan. Eric had a bunch of friends, some from school. They had time to look around the museum and then had a snake/turtle demonstration. The big hit of Eric's bday was the real turtle from Auntie Lindsay and Uncle Jon which he named "Mack" after the Cars movie.

Climber.... scary!

I still can't believe what eric did this morning... we let him go downstairs to play and he got a chair and put a stool on top of it to climb onto the hutch and get a pack of snakes for his bday party from the very top! we found out after the fact and he showed us exactly what he did... so no more solo play downstairs anymore!

The Big ?

So today Eric asked me "How do moms get babies in their tummies?" For now he was okay with "when they really want to have a baby they start to grow one in their tummy." Can't wait to see what he asks when his baby brother is actually here!

Our Names

Ellie calls us by our first names when she wants our attention. She calls me Anrew.

Contractions

Today I was having contractions so I went to the hospital. I was dehydrated from being sick so the IV stopped them. The baby is healthy and happy and kicking away. Now if only we could find a name for him. 8 more weeks but who's counting :)

Xylo-phone

Ellie loves musical instruments. She was playing with a xylophone and asked me "Is this a piano Mom?" I said "No that's a xylophone" so she said "Oh" and picked up the stick part of it and held it to her ear and said "Hello..Dad"

Christmas Vacation

We have had such a fun Christmas vacation. The week before Christmas we had 2 snowstorms so the kids finally got to make their first snowman. (Andrew's first too!) Andrew's mom was here for a week and it was awesome to have her here. We went to the Museum of Science and the Rainforest Cafe and did lots of Christmas shopping. Every morning they would come down the stairs and see if Grandmom was up. Luckily she's an early riser.
The kids were so excited on Christmas morning. The favorite gifts this year were clothes and a stroller for the Tricia dolls, cars for Eric, Tinkertoys, a Dora Lego house, and puzzles. Andrew and Eric have been puzzle addicts this vacation. They did 4 ocean puzzles (500 pieces each) that they are going to hang up in Eric's room.
We also went bowling with Dad and the kids. Ellie calls it "balling" and was more impressed with the snacks but Eric really got into it.
Andrew and I went away overnight and Auntie Lindsay and Uncle Jon took them to the Children's Museum and the mall.

I Like My New Bed Dad!

That's all Ellie keeps saying over and over. She is very excited because she just moved from a crib to a toddler bed and Eric is in a twin bed. They were so adorable, jumping up and down and arranging their new big beds.

Let it Snow

Today we had our first big snow of the season... about 8 inches. When I picked Eric up at school the first thing he did was to try to catch the snowflakes with his tongue. Ellie is very excited about her pink flowered snow pants, she was no problem to get geared up to go outside. Eric, the more cautious one, was not too happy about putting on snow pants but finally came outside with us. They both took turns shoveling and loved stomping in the snow. It is supposed to snow again this weekend so we'll have plenty of time for a snowman!

Personalities

i thought I would write about the kids' personalities so I can see down the line how much they stayed the same from 2 and 3 years old.

Eric at 3: very smart, amazing memory, loving, stubborn, huge vocabulary, talkative, comfortable with adults, rough on the playground, tentative about trying new things, lets Ellie take the lead, very good with numbers and letters
loves: singing, animals, vehicles, stories, building towers and pyramids, puzzles

Ellie at 2: very smart, talkative, loving, sweet, notices how people look (i. I like your shirt mommy), girly: loves purple, pink, bracelets, dresses, artisitic, go-getter, adventurous, has no fear, very friendly
loves: crayons, baby dolls, stories, dancing, building with blocks

The Pledge

I can't believe at 3 years old Eric has learned the Pledge of Allegiance. Andrew and I were shocked when he just started saying it one day.

It's A....

BOY!!!! I thought for sure we were having a girl because I have been so sick. But now it makes sense, all the meat and salt cravings. We had a 14 week ultrasound and the tech said "we usually can't tell the gender at this stage." And then all of a sudden at the same time we noticed that it was obviously a boy!
We told the kids and Eric said he wanted a girl and Ellie said she was having a sister.. sorry baby boy!

Cousin Mikey is Born!!!!

Baby Mikey was born on October 12, a little early! We are so excited about having a new baby in the family. Here is his own blog
mikeycsworld.blogspot.com

Potty Time Age 3 1/2

Today we were driving in the car and I let Eric look through one of my catalog of kids' stuff. He told us he really wanted the animals on the animal page. So Andrew said "If you poop on the potty, you can have them." Eric told us he would do it right when we got home. We laughed it off but sure enough, he did it! After months of trying everything, he did it all on his own. Andrew was off to buy those animals!!

Apple Picking

We took the kids to Honeypot Hill with Mom, Julie, Lindsay, Rachel, and Jon. They had a blast!!! They loved the hayride and got a kick out of Jon climbing the ladder into the trees. We caught Ellie biting every apple and putting them back into the bag. The highlight for Eric was feeding the goats.

First Day of School

Today was Eric's first day of school. He was very nervous and cried when we dropped him off but his teacher called after 20 min and said he was fine. He loves the trains and sitting on the carpet. He said even though he liked it, he's not sure if he's going back!

Cute Sayings

Eric always tells people " Do you want to know what I'm into? I'm into snakes, lizards, dinosaurs and horses."

He loved "dinosaurus rex."

What a PAIN IT IS

We were out to eat and Eric kicked his shoes off under the table. So when he had to go to the bathroom (for the third time) I said "See what a PAIN IT IS to keep putting your shoes back on." And he responded "Mommy, did you just say Penis!!!"

Ellie's 2 Year Checkup

Ellis is 26 lb 7 oz.
She is 33 inches tall.
She got a big bruise on her arm from her shot.

Eric's iron is still low, he had it tested again at the lab so hopefully it is just genetically low.

Birthday Girl

Here's a pic of Ellie celebrating her birthday in Asheville with her cousins. They did a great job decorating the cupcakes!
i can't believe Ellie is 2 now! She is such a chatterbox, counting, singing.. the kids are so much fun.

A-B-C

On Friday we were getting in the car after getting hot running around outside with Erics friends, Katelyn and Matthew. Eric said "Mommy, I'm so hot, you gotta turn on the ABC."

Potty Time

Eric wore underwear for the first time last Tuesday. He has been in underwear since then except for nap and bedtime. An accident here and there but otherwise he is doing great. He does say "I only want to pee in the potty... no brown stuff." Ellie calls underwear "diaperwear."

Weight Update

Ellie 22 Months 25 lbs 6 oz
Eric 38 Months 33 lbs

This week Eric had the croup and Ellie had a double ear infection.. yuck!!!

Eric Can Read (sort of)

Eric asked me to read him the Rainbow Fish so I said "let me just go get some water and then I'll start", while I was in the kitchen I heard him start the story by himself. Andrew snuck out the video camera and we taped him reading the entire book from memory. It was so amazing how he remembered every word on the page.

Cute Things

The kids have been doing and saying so many cute things lately. They are amazing! So smart and sweet.

Ellie: found a little green shamrock on the the floor and carries it around singing Happy Birthday

Eric: has been helping Andrew garden lately and they were searching for "vermiculite" to use in the dirt mix and it has become Eric's favorite word

Ellie: was at the library music show standing in the middle of all the kids singing and jumping and getting all the attention

Ellie: instead of no says "no way"

Eric: convinced Papa that 1 and 1 make 11 not 2

Wedding

The wedding was, or course, beautiful. The flower girl and ring bearer stole the show! It was the sweetest thing when they announced "Flowergirl Miss Katelyn Flynne escorted by ringbearer Mr. Eric Gregory." They marched out so proud of themselves. At rehearsal they just ran around so we were a little nervous.
Eric loved riding in the limo. He was amazed that they had cups and a TV inside.

Dingle Dangle

What Ellie calls a rectangle :)

Ellie Can Count

3-5-6-7-8-9-10-14

We Have a 3 Year Old!

Eric turned 3! He had an awesome time. The night before his birthday we had our only real snowstorm of the season.
It also snowed the night before he was born so it brought back memories. On the night of his birthday we took him to
Bugaboo Creek, a fun restaurant with talking animals. He had a great time and loved the restaurant staff singing and bringing him a cake. He is eagerly awaiting his Thomas the Tank engine party on Friday

Ring Bearer

Julie and Mike are getting married, yay!! Eric is the ring bearer and he describes it like this "I'm gonna bring the rings and the pillow for everyone to sleep on." Ha!

Ellie's Dictionary

Eggy=Eric
Eyyee=Ellie
Macadee=Mac&Cheese (used to be macabuncabunca)
Dadidah=telephone
Eindy Deindy=Baby Einstein
DDD=DVD or any TV
Barndee=Barney
Diggety=digger
Jackety=jacket
Brocabee=brocolli
Bebbies=strawberries, blueberries, raspberries
Uppity=upstairs
Under(unda)=tunnel
Bubbadye=butterfly
Bugabee=ladybug
Bumbadee=Bumble Bee

Eric Lost a Tooth

When we were at Lindsay's house watching the Patriots game, Eric fell off the couch and hit the coffee table. He lost one of his top teeth. Now he will have a hole there for the next few years :( He doesn't seem too fazed. 3 new cars seems to be worth a tooth for him. He got xrays today and his mouth is okay.

Counting

Ellie thinks every number is "numba 9" or "eighteee." She copies Eric a lot lately. Eric knows all his numbers and letters and will be going to his preschool open house in a couple weeks.

Tough Girl

I took Ellie for her 15 month checkup and the doc asked me how she was doing. I said fine, except she had a runny nore for about 4-5 days. Well he checked her out and she has a double ear infection!! No fever, cring, sleeplessness or anything. He said some babies handle it better than others. Now she is on amoxicillin. She is 21 lb 10 ounces and 31 inches long.
The kids had macaroni for dinner and I love making that for them because Ellie calls it "maca-bunca-bunca-bunca"

I'd Be Happy To

I asked Eric to help me put his books away in his room and he said "I'd be happy to." So sweet.
He is getting smarter by the minute. The other day we were driving and he said " we have cans and bottles?" because we were driving on the same road where we always return them.
Ellie is a chatterbox these days. Some of her words are: duckadee (just her favorite word), biddee=banana, appida=applesauce, ducky, doggie, puppy (most animals) beeba (zebra and giraffe)

Numbers

Eric is 29 months.. he can count to 10. He calls 12 "two teen". He notices the numbers everywhere we go and carries his number puzzle with him.

We've Got Another Walker

Ellie started walking! She is taking steps, turning corners and getting into everything.
We are having such a fun summer that there has been no time for blogging.
Eric is such a chatterbox and loves it when anyone visits. Tonight he visited 3 neighbors and ran into one of his little friends on a walk.
He calls his sister Ellie Belly or Ellie Boo and moves quickly from kisses to sibling rivalry.

Happy Birthday Baby Ellie

Ellie Rose turned 1 year old today! She celebrated with a party on Sunday with a lot of friends and family. She liked the cake but didn't get too messy and she crawled around and played with all of her gifts.
Today we went into the North End and to see the USS Constitution with Grandmom and Pop Pop. Ellie and Eric behaved so well. They loved riding the train. Ellie entertained everyone by screaming ba..ba..ba...ba...ba the entire time! We had a funny time at the restaurant when Eric wanted a binky but refused to use Ellie's purple one. When Pop Pop produced a "new" purple one a little later Eric took it, no problem. Too funny! They both loved eating pasta and Italian bread.
Ellie is surprising us every minute with new words. She can say Daddy, Mum Mum (the cracker, not the person,) Eric (Ikey), Ellie, dog, duck, bike, baba, yucky. She is getting braver and leans over and lets go and stands for a few seconds. She took a step the other night.
Tonight we ate brownies and sang to Ellie again. We even had to sing a sound of "Happy Ellie's Birthday to Eric."

First Big Boo Boo

Eric has been so lucky to not have been injured at all yet. Today we went to the Sprinkler Park and he came running over telling me he got a bump. I asked where and he said "my ankle" and I kept looking but didn't see anything. So he sat on the bench wrapped in a towel looking very sad for about 15 minutes and then jumped at the chance to go home when I asked. When we got to the car his shorts pulled up a little and I saw he had skinned his knee which was hiding under his shorts. Poor little guy was so brave!

I'm a Red Sox

So much has been happening lately.
Eric has started calling Ellie Baby Elle. They are doing good. Already a few sibling moments like Eric pulling her down when she is trying to stand and Ellie laughing hysterically whenever he cries. They love each other so much. Eric invited her outside today, saying "Come outside Baby Aya, eat the grass."
We went to Chicago for the weekend and left them with Nannie and Papa for the first time. They had fun going to Castle Island and South Shore Plaza. It was time to have some time alone and the wedding was great!!
The cutest thing Eric has been doing is swinging his bat very seriously and saying "I'm a Red Sox." He winds up to pitch and pretends to slide into the bases. He wants to watch the Sox every night. Definitely a sports enthusiast.
Ellie's first word seems to be "Hi," she says it all the time. Maybe a social butterfly!

Baby Aya

I know sometime Eric will stop calling Ellie Baby Aya but I hope it's not any time soon. It is so cute to hear him say it. Whether it's "No Baby Aya" or "Love you baby Aya" it makes me laugh all the time.
Eric finally got outside with his friends today after 8 days of rain. He loves the sandbox and the swings. Ellie was trying to eat the grass so there is no way she's going in the sandbox for a while. She'll probably be walking by her birthday, now she is crawling everywhere and pulling up on everything. No teeth yet..

Upwords

I jumped in the shower while the kids were watching a DVD and came out to see that Eric found our Upwords game under the bed and had the tiles spread out everywhere!!! Now the game is his favorite toy. He stacks up the letters, lays them out on the board, recites the ones he knows. He even knows Ellie can't have the tiles and says "only on the bed" when he takes the box out. So far he can recognize A, B, C, O, U, Q, W, E and I. He can also count 1-4 now which is an improvement from 1-2-9-10.

Standing Up

Ellie can stand up in her crib now. It is still such a surprise to see her standing when we go in to get her. Today I heard Eric say "Good Morning Baby Aya" and the response I heard was her jumping up and down on her crib mattress. So sweet!

2 Year/9 Month Doctor Visits

Eric- 35 inches tall weighs 28 lbs. low iron but otherwise fine
Ellie-27 inches tall weighs 18 lbs. 10 oz. perfectly healthy

Uh Oh Milk Mama

Eric made a long sentence this morning "Uh Oh Milk Mama, Eric Gregory did it."
He said this after spilling his cereal milk all over himself and his chair.
In other kitchen news, Ellie is eating Cheerios, pieces of bread, crackers, and baby food fruits. She will not eat any veggies!

Laughing Together

Today in the car, Eric was kicking his legs and moving his head side-to-side singing and Ellie started laughing. So he kept doing it and they were cracking up laughing together. It was so sweet because it was really the first time that they really paid attention to each other without anyone else involved.

Happy Birthday to Eric

Eric had an awesome 2nd birthday. He wore his special green shirt with a car on it that he picked out himself. He had 5 friends over and they ate cupcakes and played with cars. Eric got Wiggles, Thomas the Train and basketball balloons.
We had his family party today and he was so excited! He ate more cake and clapped and sang along with everyone. He got so many presents but he seems to love his remote control car from Auntie Julie and his basketball from Auntie Carole and Roger!

True Love

True love is when a little boy falls asleep clutching a mini basketball and a mini football. Soooo sweet.

8 months and Almost 2

Only one more week until Eric's birthday! He is getting very excited. Ask him how old he will be and he says "one for baby Aya" and "2 Eric." He is starting to sing Happy Birthday and Ring Around the Rosy.
Ellie is 8 months now. She is starting to talk saying da, da, da, da. I guess Mama is never a first word! She has a little personality now.
Lately the kids have been playing in the pack and play together. I know Eric is a little old for this but he is jealous when she is in there so now they go in together.
Eric's latest phrases are: By the way, oh man, don't do that, please, thank you, welcome, and my favorite "love you" which he said for the first time on Valetines Day!