Vacation

Two tired girls are taking their naps, the laundry is in the washer, and I just finished unpacking the last suitcase.  It's official.  Our vacation is over.

To keep this post as succinct as possible, I will forego a day-by-day vacation description and instead provide a top 10 list.

Top 10 Things That Could Have Gone Horribly Wrong, But Didn't:

1.  Having to pack almost everything we own to take ourselves and 2 children for a week to Pentwater, Michigan.  We never could have fit everything if we didn't have a van.  Lucky for us, we do...and it all fit.

Just not the kitchen sink

2.  6 hours in the car with a 2 year old and a 3 month old.  It could have been a L-O-N-G trip.  Instead, there was sleeping.  There was playing.  There was coloring.  There was snacking.  There was video watching.  Fortunately, there was minimal crying.  Hooray for my road trip troopers!!

Playing with Dora characters

 

Taking a little road-trip rest

3.  Living in a house with 7 other people (3 uncles, 2 aunts, and 2 cousins).  Staley and Adelie LOVED playing with their cousins, reading with their aunts and uncles, and always having someone to provide attention.  And Zach and I loved the shared meals, conversations, game playing, and movie watching.

Cousin book time with Aunt Carrie

Hanging with Uncle Ethan

4.  Staley, Adelie, Zach, and I all sharing a room.  I envisioned sleepless nights.  Instead, both girls slept great (except for Staley's 2-hour wide awake time from 1:00-3:00 a.m. on our last night).  Adelie didn't wake Staley with her early morning feeding and Staley didn't wake Adelie when she got up in the morning.  We all slept soundly.

5.  A 3 month old on the beach.  Luckily, Adelie was her usual easy self.  She hung out in her cabana, enjoyed the company of aunts, uncles, great-aunts, great-uncles, cousins, second cousins, third cousins, grandma, grandpa,...  She napped every day on the beach and woke up happily smiling.

Cabana fun with Aunt Melissa

 

6.  A 6 hour drive and spending a good portion of each day on the bathroom-less beach...with a newly potty trained 2 year old.  Staley did great.  We brought her potty chair in the car (and yes, we did pull over to the shoulder for her to go to the bathroom to avoid having to make an extra stop), and her potty chair made a daily trek down to the beach.

(Someday she'll hate me for these pictures.)

7.  Two cold, rainy, overcast Michigan mornings.  Staley and her cousins got to enjoy a story time at a local bookstore and some strolling/shopping in a nearby town.  And both days cleared up to provide more time on the beach.

Story time

8.  A 4 year old, two 2 year olds, and an infant with only a small living room and a few of their favorite toys.  Lucky for us, the cousins played GREAT together.  They ran around in the yard, read books, colored, played trains, played princesses, went to the playground, watched videos, and took baths together.  Every morning, Staley couldn't wait to get out of bed and play with her cousins.

Adelie and Elliott

Liam and Staley

9. Spending our days and some evenings with my whole extended family (my aunts, uncles, cousins, and their kids.)  It could have been overwhelming.  Instead, my family ROCKS and it was great!!  We kept up all our usual Pentwater traditions--spaghetti night, smores night, and lazy days at the beach.

Adelie and Grammie

10.  Our first Pentwater week as a family of 4.  There were many things that could have gone wrong.  Instead, it was a perfect Michigan week.  We got to spend part of every day at the beach, which both girls loved.  We got to enjoy time with family, immediate and extended.  We had beautiful weather, great family time, and lots of fun.

Beach babe

 

Chilling in the cabana

Staley spent hours burying herself in the sand.

Adelie 'swimming' with Daddy

Good-bye Pentwater...

 



...until next year.

Hmmmm...

Staley:  "Lila calls her blanket 'dee-dee'.  I think I will call my blanket 'wee-wee.'"

Let's hope it doesn't stick.

Three Months

Adelie celebrated her three month birthday yesterday here in Pentwater on our family vacation.  She is my growing, changing, smiling, laughing, mellow, sweet baby girl.  She weighs over 12 lbs and wears her size 2 diapers.  She is out-growing her 0-3 month wardrobe, especially in length.  She eats 6-7 times/day, takes 2-3 naps, and sleeps for 6-9 hours at a time at night. 

Likes:  Adelie is a happy infant.  She loves to interact with others, always smiling and laughing when people talk to her.  Going for walks, being outside, baths, diaper changes, dancing, and music remain favorite activities. She enjoys watching her mobile and ceiling fans.  Adelie loves her play mats.  Her favorite book is 'Baby Talk'.  And she loves her big sister!!

Big sister + play mat = awesome!

 

Dislikes:  Adelie's dislikes remain being hungry, tired, and cold.  Other than that, she doesn't usually complain.

Skills:  Adelie's skill repertoire is growing exponentially.  She has good head control now, both when upright and on her tummy.  She can roll from her stomach to her back inconsistently and rolled from her back almost onto her stomach on one occasion.  She loves to stand up when held.  Adelie is starting to reach out and grab objects.  She will hold onto objects for short periods of time, although still sometimes hits herself in the head or face with her rattles.  She loves to suck on her hands, and is beginning to get her thumb into her mouth.  She still has a smile that lights up the room and a laugh that fills my heart.

My 3 month old

Things I Love: Vacation Edition

 

Babies in bikinis



 

Girls dressed like giraffes

Family time at the beach

 

 

Halfway There

It's been a month since we started potty training.  It took Staley exactly one week to figure out the peeing in the potty trick.  Since then, she has done great.   I still make her try on regular basis because when she tells me she needs to go, she REALLY needs to go.  Unfortunately, pooping on the potty hasn't come quite so easily.  She generally knows when she needs to go, and we've had our fair share of successes.  She rarely has a pooping accident in her underpants.  However, Staley has decided that she prefers to poop in a diaper rather than in the potty.  The result of this revelation: she holds it until nap time and then regularly poops in her nap time pull-up.  Not only is this interfering with Staley's potty success, it also seems to be interfering with her nap.  My inconsistent napper had been napping regularly for the past several months, but has only slept during nap time once or twice over the past several weeks.  (And judging by her evening behaviors and tears, she does still need a nap.)

I'm at a loss for how to remedy this pooping situation.  We are using a sticker chart, and Staley picks out rewards she is working for.  She gets a sticker for pooping in the potty AND for a clean nap time pull-up.  I have her sit and try right before nap time.  We consistently remind her that if she needs to go potty during nap time, she just needs to tell us because we can hear her through the monitor.  (She definitely understands this concept as she has no problem telling us through the monitor when she wants a drink, a hug, a kiss, a blanket back on, or when she is awake.)  To look on the bright side, at least I know she has bowel control, and better in her diaper than her underpants.  However, I'd prefer potty use.  So if anyone has any suggestions...

"Oh, I Was Just..." Excuse of the Day

Zach:  "Staley, don't pick your nose."
Staley:  "Oh, I was just seeing what was up there."

Laughter is the Best Gift

Zach had a good Father's Day.  A beautiful day filled with church, lunch with family, a haircut, playing at the park, a nice family walk...  (He also mowed, but I don't know if that counts in the 'good Father's Day' category.)  He liked his desk organizer with a picture of the girls on it that I got him.  He loved his Father's Day painting that Staley made him.  (She would only paint in blue and orange, knowing that those are Zach's favorite colors.)  But his best Father's Day gift came from Adelie.  She gave him her first official laugh!! 

Every evening after Staley goes to bed, Zach and Adelie have some quality time together listening to music.  Adelie LOVES music and since evening music time is usually with Zach, her musical tastes are beginning to reflect those of her father.  Well, last night during music time, Adelie and Zach were interacting (talking, smiling, singing), and she laughed at him.  Three distinct laughs.  Zach was so pleased that he was the recipient of Adelie's first laugh.  What a great Father's Day gift!!

Official winner of Best Father's Day Gift 2013