Entertaining the toddler I

I'm hoping to do a series of posts about things I do daily to keep Joey entertained and challenged a bit. I bought a set of fun foam beads at Walmart. I also picked up some pipe cleaners because I didn't think Joey had the dexterity to string the beads on the sting provided with the beads. Yesterday we made some bracelets together. We had a great time! (I even snuck in some labelling of the colors and shapes as we strung the beads!)

Danny and I learned the hard way that it is wise to give Joey a limited number of beads at a time. Yesterday I filled the lid with beads for us to use.

Here's Joey working on his bracelet.

Joey showing off his finished product.

My finished product!

Homemade bread

On Saturday, my ABF (Adult Bible Fellowship, or Sunday School class) had a ladies get together and were given a bread baking lesson by my dear friend, Andrea. We had a wonderful time and the results were wonderful! I made one regular loaf of whole wheat bread and two small "tea sandwich" loaves with the excess dough. I used my Pampered Chef style bread tubes to make the tea sandwich style bread. Joey has LOVED this shaped bread and finished the second loaf today! I made a scalloped loaf, which Joey called "flower bread" and a heart shaped loaf. My pride is really in the regular sandwich loaf which I cut into today. It turned out beautifully! Baking bread is a great women's gathering activity because it allows for lots of chatting breaks while the bread rests.

This is Joey enjoying a "flower bread peanut butter sandwich" for breakfast (at his request.) He would eat peanut butter morning, noon, and night if given the option! The bread tubes make the bread an excellent size for toddler sandwiches. No crusts, either!


This is my loaf of regular sandwich bread. Beautiful, no? The decoration on the top is supposed to be a M heart D, but it didn't turn out very clearly. It's very delicious, though! Especially topped with some honey butter!

Have you ever? (My answers are in red

HAVE YOU EVER...

01. Bought everyone in the bar a drink
02. Swam with wild dolphins
03. Climbed a mountain
04. Taken a Ferrari for a test drive
05. Been inside the Great Pyramid
06. Held a tarantula
07. Taken a candlelit bath with someone
08. Said “I love you” and meant it
09. Hugged a tree
10. Bungee jumped
11. Visited Paris
12. Watched a lightning storm at sea
13. Stayed up all night long and saw the sun rise
14. Seen the Northern Lights
15. Gone to a huge sports game
16. Walked the stairs to the top of the leaning Tower of Pisa
17. Grown and eaten your own vegetables
18. Touched an iceberg
19. Slept under the stars
20. Changed a baby’s diaper
21. Taken a trip in a hot air balloon
22. Watched a meteor shower
23. Gotten drunk on champagne
24. Given more than you can afford to charity
25. Looked up at the night sky through a telescope
26. Had an uncontrollable giggling fit at the worst possible moment
27. Had a food fight
28. Bet on a winning horse
29. Asked out a stranger
30. Had a snowball fight
31. Screamed as loudly as you possibly can
32. Held a lamb
33. Seen a total eclipse
34. Ridden a roller coaster
35. Hit a home run
36. Danced like a fool and not cared who was looking
37. Adopted an accent for an entire day
38. Actually felt happy about your life, even for just a moment
39. Had two hard drives for your computer
40. Visited all 50 states
41. Taken care of someone who was drunk
42. Had amazing friends
43. Danced with a stranger in a foreign country
44. Watched whales
45. Stolen a sign
46. Backpacked in Europe
47. Taken a road-trip
48. Gone rock climbing
49. Midnight walk on the beach
50. Gone sky diving
51. Visited Ireland
52. Been heartbroken longer than you were actually in love
53. In a restaurant, sat at a stranger’s table and had a meal with them
54. Visited Japan
55. Milked a cow
56. Alphabetized your CDs
57. Pretended to be a superhero
58. Sung karaoke
59. Lounged around in bed all day
60. Played touch football
61. Gone scuba diving
62. Kissed in the rain
63. Played in the mud
64. Played in the rain
65. Gone to a drive-in theater
66. Visited the Great Wall of China
67. Started a business
68. Fallen in love and not had your heart broken
69. Toured ancient sites
70. Taken a martial arts class
71. Played D&D for more than 6 hours straight
72. Gotten married
73. Been in a movie
74. Crashed a party
75. Gotten divorced
76. Gone without food for 5 days
77. Made cookies from scratch
78. Won first prize in a costume contest
79. Ridden a gondola in Venice
80. Gotten a tattoo
81. Rafted the Snake River
82. Been on television news programs as an “expert”
83. Gotten flowers for no reason
84. Performed on stage
85. Been to Las Vegas
86. Recorded music
87. Eaten shark
88. Kissed on the first date
89. Gone to Thailand
90. Bought a house
91. Been in a combat zone
92. Buried one/both of your parents
93. Been on a cruise ship
94. Spoken more than one language fluently
95. Performed in Rocky Horror
96. Raised children
97. Followed your favorite band/singer on tour
98. Passed out cold
99. Taken an exotic bicycle tour in a foreign country
100. Picked up and moved to another city to just start over
101. Walked the Golden Gate Bridge
102. Sang loudly in the car, and didn’t stop when you knew someone was looking
103. Had plastic surgery
104. Survived an accident that you shouldn’t have survived
105. Wrote articles for a large publication
106. Lost over 100 pounds
107. Held someone while they were having a flashback
108. Piloted an airplane
109. Touched a stingray
110. Broken someone’s heart
111. Helped an animal give birth
112. Won money on a T.V. game show
113. Broken a bone
114. Gone on an African photo safari
115. Had a facial part pierced other than your ears
116. Fired a rifle, shotgun, or pistol
117. Eaten mushrooms that were gathered in the wild
118. Ridden a horse
119. Had major surgery
120. Had a snake as a pet
121. Hiked to the bottom of the Grand Canyon
122. Slept for more than 30 hours over the course of 48 hours
123. Visited more foreign countries than U.S. states
124. Visited all 7 continents
125. Taken a canoe trip that lasted more than 2 days
126. Eaten kangaroo meat
127. Eaten sushi
128. Had your picture in the newspaper
129. Changed someone’s mind about something you care deeply about
130. Gone back to school
131. Parasailed
132. Touched a cockroach
133. Eaten fried green tomatoes
134. Read The Iliad - and the Odyssey
135. Selected one “important” author who you missed in school, and read
136. Killed and prepared an animal for eating
137. Skipped all your school reunions
138. Communicated with someone without sharing a common spoken language
139. Been elected to public office
140. Written your own computer language
141. Thought to yourself that you’re living your dream
142. Had to put someone you love into hospice care
143. Built your own PC from parts
144. Sold your own artwork to someone who didn’t know you
145. Had a booth at a street fair
146. Dyed your hair
147. Been a DJ
148. Shaved your head
149. Caused a car accident
150. Saved someone’s life

Four Months

Today my Abby is four months old. It's hard to imagine. It's gone so fast. I know it will continue to go faster than I will be able to take in. Sigh. She's so beautiful.

Joey's expressing his love and jealously more and more clearly and frequently with her. He calls her "Abby" "sis-r" and "baby." He loves to give her kisses and hugs. He often asks to hold her.
Both Abby and Joey cry when the other cries. They show lots of empathy for the other's state of being. Most of the time. :)

At the beginning of the month, we were a bit worried about Abby not lifting her head enough when put on her tummy.
After some practice and investing in a Bumbo (which she and we love), she's doing great! Today she spent her first significant time in the Exersaucer. Abby is so interested in the world around her, especially what Joey's doing. I have a feeling this won't ever change. Abby has a smile that lights up her whole face and all of those around her as well. She's beginning to giggle, too! She continues to be an awesome sleeper. Often sleeping ALL afternoon and then ALL night! Abby has discovered her hands in the past few weeks and they are an endless source of entertainment. Today at nap time, she sucked a pacifier and held another while she fell asleep. She's becoming more and more adept at grasping at things around her.

It hasn't been the easiest adjustment, going from being a mom to one to a mom of two. But, it's been worth every moment of frustration. Your smile makes the world around us disappear. I love you, my Abby girl.

It's official...

...Last night I ruined instant chocolate pudding. Yes, 5 minute, add milk, mix, and put in the fridge pudding. What went wrong? Well, I decided to try a tip I read on Works for Me Wednesday about mixing powdered drinks (I've also heard this for adding cornmeal) You add just a bit of liquid to the powder to make a paste and then the paste easily stirs into the rest of the liquid. BUT, apparently pudding mix has an addative that causes it to begin to congeal as soon as it gets wet, so as I tried to make a paste, I got clumps and by the time I added the rest of the milk, it wasn't able to absord any more liquid.

Dork. Yes. I. Am.

What does this blog need?

Pictures of the kids!!! Abby wasn't quite as fond of the glasses as Joey was.

Allowing regression

This morning I had two babies on my lap. Abby was nursing on the boppy pillow and Joey began acting out, throwing his cup across the room seeking my attention. I decided to try my experiment again, allowing Joey to regress for a few minutes and be Mama's baby who needs attention just like Abby. So, because I had a bottle sitting next to me (I had tried to get Abby to take it earlier and she refused.) I allowed Joey to lie on the boppy at at Abby's feet and I fed him the bottle. He was my baby again for a few minutes.

I worry a little that this technique will backfire and he won't want to be a big boy again, but I predict that he enjoys his "big boy" toys and food too much to stay in baby mode for long. So, I allow a few moments during the day for him to safely regress with Mama's guidance and permission. After he finished his bottle (yes, it had about 2 ounces of breast milk, no, it won't kill him) he balked at being burped like Abby and was ready to be a big boy again. Next time he wants to regress, I may put formula in the bottle. I think it will discourage him from actually drinking the bottle, but will allow the cuddling and attention from Mom he desires.

The other "guided regression" we did last week was swaddling and being held in my lap after Joey had watched me do the same for Abby before I put her down for her nap. That cuddling was very enjoyable for both of us!

I could be damaging my child forever, but I doubt it.