She loves to be a little helper, and is constantly bringing me things (like my shoes when we’re getting ready to go), saying “here you go, Mommy.” She’s also starting to talk more in full sentences, and the conversations I overhear between her and Eva are adorable:
Amanda: “Where we go, Eva?”
Eva: “We’re going to the store.”
Amanda: “Oh, we go store?”
Eva: “Yes.”
Amanda: “I ride cart?”
Eva: “Yes, Amanda, you can ride in the cart.”
The extra weight in front means that I usually have a backache by the end of the day, and the Relaxin hormone has definitely kicked in at this point, loosening all my ligaments and joints. Whenever I sit down, my hips tend to settle into an odd position, so I have to grab onto something and wait for them to get back into place before I try to walk. It’s so weird to stand up and not have my legs under me. Dave gets worried watching me, thinking I’m going to fall.
Then it was taking baths. One too many incidents where Amanda pooped in the tub, and Eva would scream every time we tried to put her in the bath (whether sister was there or not). We just had to keep putting her in and deal with her crying until she finally came to the conclusion that there really wasn’t anything to be afraid of. After that, it was swimming pools. I still have no idea where this one came from: she’s never had a traumatic experience in the pool, but she wouldn’t go near Aunt Nanci’s for the life of her. Then her little friend Madeline had her birthday party at the community pool, which has a huge kiddy section that’s only 1-2 feet deep. She saw other kids walking and splashing around in the shallow water, and decided she wanted to try it, too. Before long she was running around confidently and asking me to take pictures (of course, I forgot the camera)! The next time we went to a friend’s house with a kiddie pool, she couldn’t wait to jump in.
The last one she conquered was this weekend. I’ve tried to get her to go #2 in the toilet for months, dreading the prospect of having to change THREE sets of poopy diapers once the baby arrives. We’ve tried every encouragement and bribe in the book, and the one she seemed most excited about was getting a “Lightning McQueen” pillow and blanket for her bed. Still, it wasn’t enough to get her to go anywhere besides her training pants. Even with training pants, she’d fight it and try to hold it in for days. I bought her a book that’s designed to help kids who hold it in, called “It Hurts When I Poop.” She enjoys the book, but it still wasn’t enough to convince her that she could “let go” like the boy in the story.
The garden has exploded, but since the ground was only newly broken last month, most of the growth has been grass and weeds. I tried to weed it myself in short spurts, but wasn’t getting very far with a big belly and achy back, so I hired my friend Angela’s 15-year old to weed it for me. He did a great job, and now you can finally see the veggies starting to sprout. J
The biggest challenge this summer will probably be Dave’s surgery, if he decides to go ahead and do it. He went in for a sleep study last week, and the diagnosis is that he definitely has sleep apnea, caused by a deviated septum and oversized tonsils. No wonder he’s been having trouble with frequent waking and insomnia! They want to operate on his nasal passages in order to help him breathe better. Dave isn’t sure he wants to go ahead at this point because our share after insurance would come to about $5000. Also, the recovery time is supposed to be around a week, so it either HAS to be done before the baby comes, or will have to wait until the baby is at least a few months old.
Whew! I finally have a chance to sit down and write! This has been a busy week. Eva had her birthday party, our friends are moving into their new house, and my mom and brother are staying with us while attending a homeschooling conference in Portland. Eva’s party last weekend was a blast. We invited all our friends from small group and had almost 40 parents and kids there. The theme was Disney’s “Cars” (of course), and we barbequed hot dogs and hamburgers while the kids ran around playing in the backyard. Unfortunately it was cloudy and a bit chilly, but at least it didn’t rain! Eva was spoiled with great presents from all her friends, aunts, uncles and grandparents. I can’t believe she’s actually 4 years old! Where does the time go??
We had a great time at the end of May visiting friends and family in SoCal. We hadn’t been there since last August, so it’s been a long time in coming. We hit a glitch at the start of our flight when we ended up sitting on the tarmac for an hour (with no A/C) because they had to test a motor that controlled the wing. Great confidence builder. At least we were prepared with a backpack full of toys for each girl, plenty of snacks, and our portable DVD player. Thank goodness for that!
We stayed with Amber and X while we were there, and spent much of the time visiting with Grandma Geri , Aunt Nanci and Uncle Gary. Michayla and cousins Allen and Haden are getting so big, we hardly recognized them! Grandpa Gordon drove down for an afternoon, and Aunt Laura flew in from Arizona for a few days to see the nieces. It was nice to visit with so many friends; we spent an afternoon with JK and her new baby girl, Abrielle, Chappy & Misty had us over to meet their new son, Carnelle III, we went out to dinner with Phil & Laurelle, and my friend Marva drove all the way down from Pasadena just to visit for an afternoon.
Dave and I left the girls with Aunt Nanci on the first Sunday so we could attend my cousin Joshua’s wedding in Pasadena. It was the first time we got to meet his lovely new bride, Suzanne. I can’t believe how much all my little cousins have grown (makes me feel old, LOL). It was nice to see so much family, even if just for a few short hours. Uncle Glenn and Aunt Sally had flown out, and my mom and brother Caleb had driven down just for the occasion. It was a beautiful outdoor wedding (apart from the circling helicopter) at gorgeous old hotel called the Castle Green in Pasadena, and the reception was held in one of their beautiful banquet halls. Later in the week we drove up to spend some more time with Aunt Gayle & Uncle Mark and give them a chance to see the girls.
We took the girls for an afternoon at the beach, and things went pretty much the way I expected. Eva is bold and fearless when it comes to meeting new people, but timid when it comes to new experiences like the swing at the playground. Amanda, on the other hand, is always ready to try something new, but very cautious with people she doesn’t know.
As I expected, brave little Amanda wanted to dive headfirst into the waves, and we had to keep an extra close eye on her to make sure she didn’t go in too deep. Dave would hold her as the water swished around her and let her kick her legs in the surf as she squealed with laughter. Eva, on the other hand, was more timid of the water and wanted to be held safely high above the water level, or else stayed several yards up the beach. They both enjoyed playing in the sand and sun, and had a great time.
Aunt Nanci’s pool was a big hit, at least with Amanda. She loved to kick her feet in the water and even try to “swim” by holding onto the top step and kicking one leg. Aunt Nanci got her an adorable set of water wings and flotation vest that she could wear. We tried to get Eva to go swimming, but she wasn’t interested.
