Mother's day 2020

Each year, I try to take pictures with each of the kids on Mother's Day. Here are the pictures from this past May:

Theodore was first to get a picture with me. He's always available!

Lincoln was the next most available. I love his smile!

Cecil took some cajoling to come over and smile.
Later, we played Carcassonne together as a special Mother's Day activity.

Daddy made Levi laugh for the picture!
I believe we did a puzzle together for our special activity.

Growing!

I love Spring! I love the flowers, the promise of new life, little bitty plants in the garden--all of it! Here are some pictures from our spring this year.

Heading out to the garden!

Pointing out the watermelon seedlings :D

I promise he's not trying to look grown up! He's just proud of our green blueberries

Grandma Laura's roses are really something!

This gorgeous rose bush was cut down several times in the name of the hedge, but just kept coming back! This year is its most beautiful yet. We're going to find a way to keep it from getting chopped this year.

This bush has gotten so big! 

Cucumber

Zinnias--to attract pollinators! (don't worry, I'm going to thin them)

Carrots! (also going to be thinned)

Levi's trying to point out a developing pear.
We're finally going to get pears this year! (I planted the tree at least 4 years ago)

Can you smell this picture?!
Look closely for the photobomber.

Just precious.

He looks so worried!

Levi cleared out this area with just loppers and brute force!
Before, the area was impenetrable and you couldn't see the fence back there.

The thorns on these trees are vicious. It's called Callery pear and it's an invasive species.
These trees made up bulk of what Levi cleared out, along with a fair amount of privet.

This is similar to what the other area looked like before it was cleared out.

He likes to nibble on the clover

 I have to say, my garden is coming along nicely, but I love my crop of boys even better!

Sunday Surprises

This past Sunday as I walked into my church building with my family, a newlywed couple of just a few weeks also walked in. Levi and Cecil had gone ahead and hidden around the corner, and jumped out at us while saying "BOO!" Austin and I pretended to be surprised. It was pretty cute.

I could see that this newlywed couple LOVED it. I imagine they were thinking about how their family could have a moment like that one day. It really helped me to highlight that sweet moment. They happen all the time--especially with our fun-loving boys trying to scare us! Cecil regularly waits in the dark in the van to say "BOO!" to me when I put the younger kids in their car seats. It's so predictable that I think I would be more surprised if he didn't make a sudden loud noise when I open the door to the van!

That Sunday morning, I was stressed from the tension of getting 4 energetic young children ready for church and out the door, but this couple saw the adorable part. If it wasn't for them, I might not have seen it.

The whole time we walked down the long hallway to the chapel, our boys were being pretty cute just by being themselves, and it was wonderful to see it through fresh eyes. Lincoln stopped at the water fountain to ask for a drink (as he does) and Levi had to be told to walk in the church. All this could be seen as obstacles to getting to the chapel reverently and ready to worship, but seeing my family through the eyes of this couple gave me new appreciation for the enthusiasm and zest for life that children have.

Father's Day 2019

Father's Day started out pretty well for us. We went to Stake Conference, and the older boys handled the 2-hour meeting really well! It helped that we had new activity books for them with a special coloring mechanism (they're called Water Wow by Melissa and Doug and I totally recommend them for keeping littles busy! Lincoln even enjoyed them for a while!)

The password of the day was "Happy Father's Day!" and it was cute to see/hear Austin asking for the password and the kids' chorus of "Happy Father's Day!"

Austin has been teasing the kids for the last month that they'd have to fan him and be his foot rest, so this happened...

Neither Levi nor Cecil wanted to be the foot rest, but then Cecil suddenly volunteered. It was super duper cute. Right after I took the pictures, Austin thanked Cecil for being so sweet and told him that he didn't need to be a foot rest anymore. Levi made the fan himself!

Mother's day 2019

We had a nice quiet Mother's Day here. Lincoln was sick, sick, sick, so after church (Austin stayed home with Lincoln) we just lazed around and spent time together. I took some pictures with the kids, Levi gave me a card, Austin made the meals and also cleaned the kitchen, Cecil gave me a hug and said, "Happy Mother's Day!" and Lincoln gave me the best snuggles all day long (too bad it was because he's sick!).

We had some really nice family time on the couch. Levi has recently finished reading the first Harry Potter book (!!) and watched the movie, so he made a wand for himself and was casting spells on all of us. We took turns being petrified and levitated. Austin joined in and was pretty successful at sabotaging Levi's spells by either blocking them with his hands or saying words almost the same as the ones for the spell, but not quite. When Levi and Cecil working together were finally able to keep him from using his hands to block the spells at the same time Levi was able to say the petrification spell without being messed up, Austin fell down and the boys laughed with joy, and Lincoln even cracked a smile and let out a tiny laugh despite feeling so bad.

Cecil got out our baby doll and Austin had him hold it like a new baby. Cecil was very gentle and careful; it was so cute! Then he wrapped the baby in a blanket and carried it around for a while, placing it on the couch and re-wrapping it at intervals. At one point, he asked for a diaper, which I coached him on putting on the doll but he mostly did it himself. I told him that he was getting good practice in for one day when he's a daddy, and that seemed to make him feel extra special. 

I also mentioned that when the new baby is born, Cecil won't be big enough to change his diaper, but Levi probably could! Levi seemed pretty taken with that idea and wanted to get some practice in immediately, and changed Lincoln's diaper! He even thought to give Lincoln a toy to hold without me saying anything. I was pretty impressed! I don't think Lincoln will cooperate so well in the future, but this time he seemed so taken with the novelty of Levi changing his diaper that he just watched and listened in fascination.

Cecil was pretending the hat was Cappy from Mario Odyssey. That means you can control
whoever's wearing it, even if it's a bad guy!

Poor sick Lincoln showing the camera his nose (I'm not sure why...)

Levi wanted a silly picture! He did smile normally for later pictures, but for some reason my camera had stopped working, so you don't get to see those!

The Big(ger) Boys

Here are some fun pictures of the older boys from February!

"My googly eyes are looking at you!"

The aquarium at the Columbia zoo (and a fish face!)

Even though the lighting was terrible, I couldn't pass up the photo op.
I remember having my picture taken in the very same place when I was a kid!

We didn't expect it to be so cold the week we visited, so we had to borrow heavy coats
from the girl cousins (and they were just the right size!)

At the penguin exhibit. The brochure next to his hand is the map, which both
he and Cecil were enamored with and referenced often.

The weinermobile was at our grocery store! We stopped for a quick tour and photo-op.
We have a toy version that Levi went bananas over when he was little, so it was extra exciting to see it in person!

When he finally came out. When I told him it was time to go, he said, "But what about the ride?!"
It was very spacious inside. I counted 7 seats, but there was room for a lot of other stuff if need be.

Cecil took this picture for us! 

Levi has had a bit more practice with pictures, haha

Choo-choo!

Lincoln repeated everyone and chimed in with his own "choo-choo!" It was pretty adorable, what can I say?  :D

 

I came downstairs to get everyone ready for church one Sunday and there they were, dressed all by themselves! They know that they get a free screen time on Sunday mornings if they get themselves ready for church (including breakfast). It had been harder for them to do it ever since we started meeting at 9 am at the beginning of the year, but there they were!

Store

Levi and Cecil were playing store today. Daddy kept asking if he could buy a hug, but Cecil said the store didn't sell those. Cecil kept offering food instead. Eventually Daddy ordered a sandwich.

Later, after Daddy had time to be doing something else, Cecil asked him what he could get him from the store. Daddy said, "I would like some solitude, thanks." Cecil quite cheerfully and confidently says, "Oh! I can get you that!" and runs off to his store.

Baffled, I wait to see what he says when he comes back with the order. Cecil runs back to us with his hands cupped. "Here's your solid food, Daddy!"

Daddy took it graciously and then he and I broke down laughing. Oh, I love these kids!

Here's the store! The truck in the front is their cash register, and the magformers are the money.
I didn't even try to get C to make a normal face!

Two year old pretending

Today, Cecil has been doing a lot of new things, specifically pretending more than usual. He pretended to make dough in the bread maker (long story as to why it was in his reach and why I let him play with it...), pretended to give candy to a toy, and pretended to clean with a mop. 

He also has been putting words and concepts together. I love how he uses "no" to tell me something is the opposite of the other word he uses. For example, he and Levi like to squish balloons from Levi's birthday party so they are pear-shaped. He would squish one to look like a pear, say "Pear!" get a reaction from me, and then squish the pear-shaped part down to make it shaped like a normal balloon again and say, "Pear. No." It was soooooo cute!

Cecil knows so many words now, I don't even count them. He is constantly using new ones. This morning, he put some blocks together and said, "Build!" -- one more new word.

He and Levi are also playing together really well lately. Cecil knows the drill that if he accepts something that Levi offers him, it means that he needs to give up whatever toy he has in trade. He also has learned (mostly from observation!) that he doesn't want me to get to 3 if he's doing something that I've told him not to do.

My baby is turning into a little boy, and oh! it's exhilarating to watch these little people learn, grow, and discover.

Cecil's first words

Cecil has had several "words" for a while, and recently he started trying out some new ones.

signs:
-more
-all done
-sleepy
-hungry
-diaper change
-thirsty
-milk
-water
-yes (nod)
-no (shakes head)

vocals:
-ma (mama)
-da (daddy)
-Kkk! or ka (kitty/cat)
-'ot! (hot)
-mo (more)
-meh (pacifier-don't ask. I don't know why he calls it this!)
-ar! (arf, barking like a dog)
-uh-huh (soooo cute!)
-ow

Yesterday, he repeated a lot of words after us. Here are a few:

-wall
-castle (didn't sound like castle; I don't remember what it was)
-sock
-shoe
-food
-bowl
-box
-ball

Cecil: 10 months

Is Cecil really 10 months already??? It seems like it was just yesterday that he turned 9 months...

Welp, here are his latest and greatest!

• Only camel- and classic crawls. Does not army crawl any more. 
• Eats solid food 2-3 times a day (usually while I'm cooking or while the rest of the family is eating). He likes black beans, potatoes, and avocados, among others. He doesn't particularly like sweet potatoes.
• Stands for a second or two (this started today)!
• Puts everything in his mouth
• Still 24 lbs/24 month clothes
• Has SIX teeth! (and has since right before 9 months)
• Smiles easily
• Has climbed onto the fireplace and the steps
• Has fallen off of the fireplace and steps (he doesn't climb the steps anymore, yay!)
• Knows how to get around obstacles we put in his way
• Recognizes the phrases "are you hungry?" and "are you done?" He probably knows some others but I just haven't noticed them yet.
• Opens up cabinets and drawers to get to what's inside

Cecil is such an easygoing baby. He still always needs to burp after I feed him and will cry if I put him to bed without getting all the burps out. He doesn't complain about things that are bothering him unless they are REALLY bothering him. He likes riding in the stroller on walks and exploring the places we go. He likes to be around us more than he did before and will actively seek out company.

Cecil: 8 months

Today, Cecil started clapping! He just did it out of the blue--I didn't show him first. He did clap again after I clapped, though. Here are some other things that he's learned to do lately:

-army crawl. He started shortly after turning 7 months, and still does it now even though he knows how to do the more classic crawl
-classic crawl. This one started just before turning 8 months.
-camel crawl. He does this most when he's on a rough surface, like our deck or front walkway.
-eat some food. He doesn't do well with pureed food, but he does like the more solid things like cantaloupe, bananas, and those puffs they make just for babies.
-sits up from laying down or crawling with ease (he did this before he started crawling)
-wears size 24 mos clothes
-is not as chubby as he was
-has 2 teeth! (he's had them since around 7 months)
-he'll crawl to someone or something that he wants. This is perfect for melting a parent's heart and getting them to pick him up. He'll crawl over and just stare at the parent he wants to pick him up until we do so. He is irresistible!
-pulls up and will move along higher surfaces like the couch, fireplace, or steps.

Shortly after I took this picture, he had moved over to the baby enclosure we have close
by and was standing up even more than he is here.

Playing well together

Levi and Cecil get along pretty well. I think a big part of that is that Levi is a people person and really enjoys having other people around. I also think some things that I've done have helped.

Referring to Cecil as "your brother" to Levi has made a big difference. He likes the possessive, and in possession takes greater care.

Involving Cecil in play also makes a difference. Cecil can't really engage in Levi's play, but I'll tell Levi that Cecil is interested or make the toy I'm playing with react to things that Cecil does. Also, if I'm playing a game that could involve talking to another person, then I try to involve Cecil (e.g. the "Where's so-and-so game. "Cecil, do you know where Levi went??). I believe this teaches Levi that it's okay to play with Cecil and that he is a good playmate. 

Treating them both with love and respect in front of each other teaches them to also treat each other with love and respect. Acting like I value Levi's needs over Cecil's or vice versa makes them treat each other unequally as well. So much can be taught and learned by example.

They had so much fun playing this game.

Brother love

Levi does so many sweet things for Cecil.

The other day when I put Cecil down for a nap, I covered him--just his legs so he wouldn't get too hot--with a light blanket. Levi noticed and pulled the blanket up a little higher.

Today, Levi was running around and making a silly raspberry noise. Cecil thought it was pretty much the greatest thing ever, so when he got sad later on, Levi made the noise for him again. Cecil cheered right up!

Levi really likes making Cecil laugh. He will take over the games I'm playing with Cecil so that Cecil will play them with him.

Sometimes when we're driving around, I'll hear Cecil laugh. When I look in the rear-view mirror, Levi's there just looking at him. Cecil is pretty fond of his big brother, too!

Cecil: 6 months!

He is half a year old already!
 

We tried baby cereal today, and he seemed to really enjoy it. He's still getting the hang of eating from a spoon, but by the end he was opening his mouth for the food when I brought the spoon up to his mouth. He ate every last bit that I made for him!

Other things that Cecil does:

-He can roll over to his side, stomach, and back onto his back.
-He can move from a sitting position to lie on his stomach, and does so purposefully
-He laughs when Levi makes faces at him
-He recognizes tunes/songs. When he's fussy with a burp, all I have to do is bounce him and start singing "Did You Never See a Laddie?" and he calms right down. (watch the video!)
-He doesn't fall when sitting
-He makes consonant sounds. He's "said" mama, dada, gaga, and some other ones.
-He likes blowing raspberries (especially if he needs to burp!)
-He wears 12-18 month clothes
-He is 23 lbs already!

Cecil: 4.5 months

Cecil has been learning so many things lately! The biggest one is sitting. He can sit for minutes at a time without support. The only thing is, is that after a while he'll fall over. I try to lay him on his back before he gets to that point, though.

Levi sitting @ almost 5 months

One thing that I feel has helped him learn to sit so soon is sitting in this activity center. And he has really liked it! He has gotten really good at grabbing the different toys on the center and can put some of them in his mouth. Of course he also likes looking at them. After about a month and a half of using it, I think he's ready for new toys.

He has a strong grip and strong arms. He's recently started making it very difficult to feed him because he'll grab my shirt and pull him to me when he's hungry. Except his arms get in the way...

Cecil has also learned how to roll on to his stomach. After about a minute (or even a few seconds) of this, he starts to cry.

He now wears size 9-12 month clothes and weighed in at 20 lbs last time I weighed him! Here's a comparison pic of Levi wearing the same onesie at about 16-17 months (almost 1.5 years)

Cecil also laughs a lot and enjoys spending time with Levi.

Cecil got to meet his Nanner! How fun.

He also got to meet Great-Grandma Izzy and Great-Granddad JC.

And he's just plain adorable. Look at those sweet eyes!