It's a Love/Hate Kinda Thing

Whenever I bring Ezra in for a check-up, they ask how Ella is adjusting to having a sibling. I think they want to make sure he's safe, etc. Lately, she seems so torn between loving and hating her little brother. It's all love for him, truthfully, but she's so jealous of any attention he receives. It's confusing that he has all of these "new" toys - her old baby toys. I encourage her to play with him, but she's a bit grabby. Both kids seemed to be going through a real "mommy phase" as well, which can be an adventure. Lately, Ella is either overwhelming Ezra with love or pushing him down. He takes it fairly well, but is starting to really vocalize his displeasure. As I've mentioned before, sweet Ella loves playing together and never wants to play alone. Would you believe that I gave her a choice the other day - Play alone or take a nap - and she chose a nap. Toddlers are truly an adventure! I adore her, but she is certainly giving the terrible two's a bit of a try before her 3rd birthday!

Ezra's world has completely changed now that he can sit up. It's much easier to play with 6 months+ toys when you can sit and use them. Ella, Ezra, and I must have spent at least an hour the other day in his room simply trying out all of his toys. Honestly, they didn't seem like that many toys when Ella had them. I remember constantly seeing new kinds of toys that were supposed to help with some new developmental stage when Ella was a baby and thinking, "I need that." Now, I look around and think, "Wow. We have a lot of baby toys."

Here's some fun photos of our past week together. Do you ever feel like your kids will wonder where you were in all the photos? Behind the camera! I'm determined to get some photos of Tim and I over the holiday weekend.
Our local library program has a summer reading program that includes toddlers. Ella reached the 4 hour mark and we went to the library to get our reward. Since McDonald's is the sponsor, she received a coupon for a free ice cream cone.

Ella loved getting an ice cream cone and thoroughly enjoyed eating it - as you can see!

This farm toy entertained both kids for quite some time.

I love seeing the kids have a great time together!

Ella was a bit grabby, but here Ezra was able to explore the toy a bit.

Some big sister love!
Ezra's got the toy all to himself after being pushed down by his big sis. Now he really went for it!

What's this do? Can I get it in my mouth? Poor Ella is in time out in the background for pushing, in case you're wondering.

Big smile!
Ella loves to get down with Ezra during tummy time, which is so helpful. Ezra rolled over during tumy time just the other day!

I want to play with him!

Ezra now has the hang of sitting up and is enjoying a whole new view of the world. In the past week, he's learned to tumble onto his belly and lift himself up to see again. He actually has little patience for tummy time and I sort of have to force it on him. Ella was the same way about tummy time and didn't crawl until 1 because she sat up so early and just reached for everything she wanted. I think Ezra will be a bit more inspired to move as he watches Ella run around.

Sitting up
Still "discovers" his hands on a regular basis. They're fantastic traveling toys!

Sitting on the couch like a big boy.

Love that grin!
Ella is incredibly energetic - I think she skips or runs a tiny bit everywhere she goes. She loves playing with friends, mom and dad, and Ezra. This is wonderful, except she hates the idea of playing alone. She gets excited when Ezra's awake and says, "I want to play with him!" I can just imagine the fun to be had at our house when Ezra's mobile!
We filled the pool up with dish soap - tons of fun!

Ella and Brynne after playing beauty shop.

On another note, it seems like this year's been full of surprise baby announcements. My sister Merilee just had her surprise baby yesterday, a little girl named Cora. I can't wait to see pictures of her! A few other people have announced unexpected pregnancies recently. I have to admit, I have a real fear of having a surprise pregnancy and two babies super close together. The opposite thing seems to be a trend in my family, though. There's 10 years between Meredith's youngest and the one above, six between Merilee's, and six between McKinzie's. Hmmm.... I'm just excited to be at the stage where I can start leaving Ezra for longer stretches. My plan for 2010 - a summer without being pregnant or nursing! Cross your fingers for me. ;0)

Thoughts at the Wheel: A Father's Day Post for Tim

My thoughts often drift to my husband as I'm driving in the car. I'm not certain why. Perhaps it's a time of peace to focus my thoughts on something other than my kids and maybe it has a bit to do with love as the main theme of most songs. Whatever the reason, I always think the kindest thoughts in the car. If I've been frustrated, it melts away. If I've been unkind, I long to apologize. At the wheel, I think of romantic cards to write and sappy things to say. Honestly, it's wonderful. I had another one of those moments yesterday and decided to write a Father's Day post filled with my "thoughts at the wheel." Here are my thoughts on Tim with photos of our life together, in no particular order.

* Tim is a wonderful father. He comes home from work, eats dinner with the family, spends time with the kids before bed, helps put them to bed, then finds a moment for himself. I can't express how much that means to me.

* Tim is truly one of the best men I've ever met.

* I love how parenting is shared at our house.

* I hope both of our children develop his best character traits: kindness, patience, intelligence, faith, and sincerity.

* I hope our daughter marries a man like Tim.

* I hope our son grows up to be the kind of man his father is.

* I love the way Tim treats my mother and has true affection for her.

* Being teased by Tim is wonderful because it's never cruel and you'll always be safe.

* Even the things that he does that make me feel a bit crazy don't really bother me that much.

* I love his blue eyes.

* I like myself best when I'm with him.

* I know that some people have given me a second chance because they know Tim loves me. "If he loves her, there must be something more." He's that good of a guy.

* Some of my favorite times spent together are late at night when we should go to sleep, but we talk instead.
* I love how play time with Dad is always done with such enthusiasm.

* Tim has incredible determination and can be so stubborn. But his persistence often pays off. Watch out if he decides you should be doing something!

* I like how I cook and he does the dishes.

* I'm grateful for my previous boyfriends: the jerks, the mean ones, the "bad" boys, the kiss-but-don't-commit, etc. They helped me see how incredible Tim truly is.

* I didn't know marriage could be so great. No, really.

* I know why Ella yells "Daddy!" with delight when Tim comes home. I feel it too.

* I like how sometimes Tim will just listen to me talk. There are days spent entirely with children and it just gushes out of me.

* I love how he encourages me in whatever I'm pursuing and shows genuine interest.

* I know it's corny, but I hate the idea of living without him.
* I feel like I've discovered so much about truly living since I met Tim and I am grateful every day.
* Sometimes I wonder how this guy was single at 24. Lucky me.
* And the list could go on and on.
* Looking for photos of my husband was so much fun and I am feeling so nostalgic right now! I loved seeing photos of our family over the past 5 years and remembering the wonder of it all.

I love you, Tim! Happy Father's Day!

6 Months!

We went to Ezra's 6 month check-up yesterday. They always ask, "Is your husband tall?", which makes me smile. He definitely didn't inherit his height from me! Ezra certainly is tall. He's 29 3/8 inches (97th percentile) and 20 lbs (90thth percentile). His head is finally catching up in the 75th percentile. He is such a chubby, cuddly guy!

Ezra's generally good humored, but he was in an especially good mood yesterday. He smiled and charmed the doctor and nurses. I was so glad when he only cried out a tiny bit for the shots and did great for the rest of the day.

Like every mom always says, it's hard to believe our little guy is already 6 months! I love this age. He lights up whenever he sees me and his smile seems to say, "That's my mom!" It's such a pleasure to watch him grow and change. I love how he and Ella interact together. While it presents many challenging, spending my days with a toddler and a baby is such a delight!

Grandma Cathy's Visit

We enjoyed my mom's 10 day visit so much! Ella loved doing everything with Grandma and always requested grandma's help with eating, getting in/out of the car, storytime, bedtime, and basically any other time. Lot's of work for Grandma, but a great break for mom. Unfortunately, Ezra was sick for part of the week and even kept both mom and I up an entire night with his crying. Poor guy. Poor us. Despite his sickness, we had fun shopping, playing, and simply enjoying each other's company. Our visits together are never long enough and it was so difficult to say goodbye.

We visited the Magic House Children's Museum in St. Louis before taking mom to the airport and had tons of fun. Even Ezra enjoyed watching all of the people from his baby bjorn. Ella, unfortunately, fell asleep on the way to the airport despite our best efforts. Grandma roused her enough to get a hug and a kiss. When Ella woke up about 30 mins later, she said, "Where's Grandma?" and cried when she realized Grandma left.

Thanks for visiting, Mom! We can't wait to see you again!