Tuesday, November 30, 2010
Loved
As I was rocking Emery to sleep, Ashton curled up close, kissed her on the top of the head and whispered, "Emmy, you're a love-a-bug." in her ear. He stood up then curled back down and whispered, "That means you're loved."
Thursday, November 25, 2010
Happy Thanksgiving
Isaac's Family Prayer:
Dear Heavenly Father, thank you for this day. I mean, no (giggle), not thank you for this day. Thanks for this THANKSGIVING day. Thank you for the FAT TURKEY. Thank that we could watch Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back. In the name of Jesus Christ, Amen.
That pretty much sums it up. :) Here are a few pics from our Thanksgiving Day:
Today was a landmark for our family. It was our first Thanksgiving alone. Not our first Thanksgiving without extended family, but our first Thanksgiving with just us, and it was wonderful, especially as we have so much to be thankful for! Emery is four weeks old today. A few days ago, I walked into the living room just as Emery was waking. In a few minutes, she was surrounded by three boys and myself all making silly faces and wishing her a good morning. It is wonderful to see how much the boys love her!
Holidays have become more fun because Isaac and Ashton are starting to really 'get' holidays and tradition. The boys have spent the past several days singing morbid songs about how awful it is to be a turkey in November and just about peed their pants when we pulled the turkey out of the oven. Isaac, of course, had to analyze the anatomy of the turkey and give us a survey of which parts had been removed and what was present in each layer as Aukai cut the turkey.
I did learn, one big reason why people do Thanksgiving in groups; it means they don't have to cook as much! Considering we have a new baby, the kids were off school yesterday and Aukai spent about 14 hours yesterday working on the upstairs, Thanksgiving dinner was quite the feat. So, I have to brag for a moment. Here is a glimpse of our Thanksgiving feast:
-Honey brined turkey - for those of you in Rochester, yes this is Wegman's recipe :)
-Homemade cranberry sauce
-Stovetop stuffing (hey, you have to cut corners somewhere)
-Mandarin salad with homemade dressing
-Cranberry fluff fruit salad
-Rolls
-Mashed potatoes and gravy
-Baked sweet potatoes
-Homemade pumpkin pie (made from freshly roasted pumpkin)
-Sparkling grape juice
We even pulled out the china for the first time with the boys. Isaac looked at me flabbergasted and said, "I didn't know we had those dishes!" They really enjoyed having a fancy dinner with fancy goblets. :)
Happy Thanksgiving!
Tuesday, November 23, 2010
Thursday, November 18, 2010
Bath Time
Emery's cord stump fell off on Monday (3 days ago). Ashton was so excited, he grabbed it and ran upstairs to show Aukai. I was excited because I no longer have to answer repeated questions about what it is and why she has it.
Better yet, Emery was finally able to get her first real bath yesterday! Not quite sure what to think, she spent most of the time wearing the purse-lipped stare she dons when really focused (bottom pic).
And a few more.
This is the outfit Emery came home in, courtesy of my Aunt Cassandra. Didn't get any good photos of her in it at the time, so these are to make up for it. :)
Fancy that.
I was looking through pics of rooms with Isaac. He excitedly gawked at the various photos. About 1/3 of the way through he said, "Oh that one! I really like that one. I think I really fancy the light."
"Isaac, did you just say 'I FANCY that light'?"
"Yup."
OK. Well then. I guess that's the new lingo? Either that or my Britt genes are really paying off.
On the flip side, Ashton has become quite the fashionisto, at least when it comes to Emery. He insisted she where a dress today, and later woke her up "because I had to fix her bow." Oh Ashton.
"Isaac, did you just say 'I FANCY that light'?"
"Yup."
OK. Well then. I guess that's the new lingo? Either that or my Britt genes are really paying off.
On the flip side, Ashton has become quite the fashionisto, at least when it comes to Emery. He insisted she where a dress today, and later woke her up "because I had to fix her bow." Oh Ashton.
Friday, November 12, 2010
Ashton and Kindergarten
Ashton came to me this morning with the following announcement:
Ashton: Mom, I need 3 shots today.
Me: Oh really, you want three shots. You don't need any shots.
Ashton: No Mom, REALLY, I need three shots.
Me: Whatever for.
Ashton: I have this allergy that makes it so that I can't do secret codes and something else.
Me: Well that is a problem, and what was the other thing.
Ashton: It makes it so I can't eat ANYTHING.
Me: Well that will make you hungry.
Ashton: Yeah, and guess what else, the three shots will count for KINDERGARTEN, so I can go to Kindergarten after I get the shots.
A month ago, our pediatrician told Ashton that in order to go to Kindergarten, he will need 3 more shots. Translation in Ashton's mind, "Once I get three more shots, I can get a cool backpack and go to school on the bus with Isaac!" He hasn't stopped asking about the shots since. He had to have his CBC checked last month and announced that "This is one of the shots for Kindergarten. Now I only need two more!"
Fast-forward to this afternoon during our parent-teacher conference at his preschool. Cognitively, he is right on target. He is doing great with his gross motor skills, struggles a bit with writing, but is overall doing great. He has already met most of the milestones necessary to start Kindergarten. So what is the concern? His overall readiness to sit still in a class of 20+ kids. He is a bit, umm, distractable. He likes to daydream, requires frequent reminders to stay on task, and is always curious and taking in the entirety of his surroundings. (Those who know me well would say he didn't fall far from the tree.) Sounds like a typical 4 1/2 year-old boy, right? Exactly, but that is a problem when you turn five 1 month before the deadline, and you are the only typical just-turned-5-year-old in your class.
When I moved into St. Louis, I learned about a trend to keep younger kids back a year before starting school. Initially, I thought this was ridiculous. The deadline here is almost 2 months earlier than in NY, and why would you hold a kid back from the opportunity to learn? The flippant answer that I was initially given was "for sports." Sports?!?! Are you kidding me? Then I spent the last month on a rotation analyzing children's development. For part of this, I spent a morning at a daycare discussing and observing the normal developmental progress of children, including Kindergarten readiness. We talked about how some younger kids may be ready in some ways, but they may be lacking the maturity to sit still and cope with the structure of school. Others may need a little more time to develop cognitive, motor or social skills necessary to be successful. In other words, some kids just need time to be, well, kids. This is especially important in a city where they have full-day Kindergarten, something I believe helps parents with busy schedules, but does our kids a gross disservice.
Perhaps more important is what it will be like to be (in some cases) almost 2 years younger than peers when you're 12 and developing your first sincere crush or 16 and dealing with the pressures of drugs and sex. The teacher who led me through the daycare exercise said that her own son (who she chose to hold back) has since thanked her as he has seen the younger kids struggle with social pressures. It is hard to say no to people when you are smaller, younger, and socially less mature. This could be a problem considering that Ashton (unlike his older brother), sees rules as a convenience meant to be bent according to his immediate needs.
And then I think about Isaac. He is the youngest in his class (He meets the St. Louis deadline by 6 days). He dreaded going to Kindergarten each day, even though his teacher was amazing and it was only a half-day. He is just starting to like first-grade, but that has been a struggle. Why? "It is just TOOO LOOOONG!" His teacher says you can just tell that he is on the young side, meaning he has difficulty completing tasks until the last minute, likes to daydream and needs a little more prodding. I sometimes feel that he missed out on time to develop through play and time at home. That said, he is reading a grade level above his peers and has no behavioral problems. Would he be completely bored if he were still in a Kindergarten class?
Now I could just say my kids have inattentive-type ADHD (a definite possibility considering their genes), or I can accept that they are both trying to hold up to the expectations posed to kids almost a year (and in some cases almost 2 years) older than they are.
So what is a mom to do? Do I defer and give him an extra year to 'just be a kid' at the risk that he will be cognitively bored when he gets to Kindergarten? Or do I push ahead at the risk that he will be socially behind and dread going to school each day?
What would you do?
Ashton: Mom, I need 3 shots today.
Me: Oh really, you want three shots. You don't need any shots.
Ashton: No Mom, REALLY, I need three shots.
Me: Whatever for.
Ashton: I have this allergy that makes it so that I can't do secret codes and something else.
Me: Well that is a problem, and what was the other thing.
Ashton: It makes it so I can't eat ANYTHING.
Me: Well that will make you hungry.
Ashton: Yeah, and guess what else, the three shots will count for KINDERGARTEN, so I can go to Kindergarten after I get the shots.
A month ago, our pediatrician told Ashton that in order to go to Kindergarten, he will need 3 more shots. Translation in Ashton's mind, "Once I get three more shots, I can get a cool backpack and go to school on the bus with Isaac!" He hasn't stopped asking about the shots since. He had to have his CBC checked last month and announced that "This is one of the shots for Kindergarten. Now I only need two more!"
Fast-forward to this afternoon during our parent-teacher conference at his preschool. Cognitively, he is right on target. He is doing great with his gross motor skills, struggles a bit with writing, but is overall doing great. He has already met most of the milestones necessary to start Kindergarten. So what is the concern? His overall readiness to sit still in a class of 20+ kids. He is a bit, umm, distractable. He likes to daydream, requires frequent reminders to stay on task, and is always curious and taking in the entirety of his surroundings. (Those who know me well would say he didn't fall far from the tree.) Sounds like a typical 4 1/2 year-old boy, right? Exactly, but that is a problem when you turn five 1 month before the deadline, and you are the only typical just-turned-5-year-old in your class.
When I moved into St. Louis, I learned about a trend to keep younger kids back a year before starting school. Initially, I thought this was ridiculous. The deadline here is almost 2 months earlier than in NY, and why would you hold a kid back from the opportunity to learn? The flippant answer that I was initially given was "for sports." Sports?!?! Are you kidding me? Then I spent the last month on a rotation analyzing children's development. For part of this, I spent a morning at a daycare discussing and observing the normal developmental progress of children, including Kindergarten readiness. We talked about how some younger kids may be ready in some ways, but they may be lacking the maturity to sit still and cope with the structure of school. Others may need a little more time to develop cognitive, motor or social skills necessary to be successful. In other words, some kids just need time to be, well, kids. This is especially important in a city where they have full-day Kindergarten, something I believe helps parents with busy schedules, but does our kids a gross disservice.
Perhaps more important is what it will be like to be (in some cases) almost 2 years younger than peers when you're 12 and developing your first sincere crush or 16 and dealing with the pressures of drugs and sex. The teacher who led me through the daycare exercise said that her own son (who she chose to hold back) has since thanked her as he has seen the younger kids struggle with social pressures. It is hard to say no to people when you are smaller, younger, and socially less mature. This could be a problem considering that Ashton (unlike his older brother), sees rules as a convenience meant to be bent according to his immediate needs.
And then I think about Isaac. He is the youngest in his class (He meets the St. Louis deadline by 6 days). He dreaded going to Kindergarten each day, even though his teacher was amazing and it was only a half-day. He is just starting to like first-grade, but that has been a struggle. Why? "It is just TOOO LOOOONG!" His teacher says you can just tell that he is on the young side, meaning he has difficulty completing tasks until the last minute, likes to daydream and needs a little more prodding. I sometimes feel that he missed out on time to develop through play and time at home. That said, he is reading a grade level above his peers and has no behavioral problems. Would he be completely bored if he were still in a Kindergarten class?
Now I could just say my kids have inattentive-type ADHD (a definite possibility considering their genes), or I can accept that they are both trying to hold up to the expectations posed to kids almost a year (and in some cases almost 2 years) older than they are.
So what is a mom to do? Do I defer and give him an extra year to 'just be a kid' at the risk that he will be cognitively bored when he gets to Kindergarten? Or do I push ahead at the risk that he will be socially behind and dread going to school each day?
What would you do?
Thursday, November 4, 2010
My Dad, by Ashton and odds and ends.
1. Ashton filled this survey out at preschool:
My dad has BROWN hair.
His eyes are BROWN.
My dad is 20 years old.
My favorite thing to do with my dad is PLAY VIDEO GAMES.
My dad likes to wear JEANS AND SHORTS.
My dad likes to PLAY POOL.
My dad's favorite food is SPICY THINGS.
I love my dad because HE PLAYS VIDEO GAMES.
2. Ashton just asked me, "Mom, what will Emery be able to do in one week. Talk and what else?"
3. Those who have seen our house know that Aukai is far from a clean freak. That said, there is one thing he is very particular about . . . dishes. This has become painfully evident as I don't believe I've loaded the dishwasher to his specifications once since I've been home more. A couple days ago he said, "Heather, I don't think I'm going to let you do dishes anymore." Isaac walked over, put his hand on Aukai's leg and said, "Dad, everybody is good at different things. Mom is really good at this . . . " *Tries to touch his nose with his tongue.*
Thanks for sticking up for me kid. :)
My dad has BROWN hair.
His eyes are BROWN.
My dad is 20 years old.
My favorite thing to do with my dad is PLAY VIDEO GAMES.
My dad likes to wear JEANS AND SHORTS.
My dad likes to PLAY POOL.
My dad's favorite food is SPICY THINGS.
I love my dad because HE PLAYS VIDEO GAMES.
2. Ashton just asked me, "Mom, what will Emery be able to do in one week. Talk and what else?"
3. Those who have seen our house know that Aukai is far from a clean freak. That said, there is one thing he is very particular about . . . dishes. This has become painfully evident as I don't believe I've loaded the dishwasher to his specifications once since I've been home more. A couple days ago he said, "Heather, I don't think I'm going to let you do dishes anymore." Isaac walked over, put his hand on Aukai's leg and said, "Dad, everybody is good at different things. Mom is really good at this . . . " *Tries to touch his nose with his tongue.*
Thanks for sticking up for me kid. :)
Wednesday, November 3, 2010
Introducing:
Miss Emery Rose Riordan
Born: 10/28/10 at 8:15 PM
Weight: 7 lbs 7.7 oz.
Length: 20 inches
Top 10 reasons life is wonderful right now:
10. I love that, despite my anxiety about an induction, the birth was close to perfect. After 3 hours of pitocin and less then 15 minutes of pushing, I heard her first cries. It felt surreal. I still don't think I worked hard enough to really have a baby!
9. I love that I can finally take a deep breath! I am surprised each time a yawn feels like three normal breaths. I can eat a full meal without feeling nauseated, bend over to tie my shoes and sleep on my stomach! I could go on a run, but I don't think my OB would be too happy with me at this point. :)
8. I love her little baby grunts, the softness of her beautiful dark hair, and her wonderful newborn smell.
7. I love the birthmark above her eyebrow, the milia on her chin, her slight widows peak and every other little quirk that makes her Emery.
6. I love waking up at 1:00 AM to cuddle simply because she wants to play instead of sleep. I love that it has taken me 6 days to get this post up because I can’t bear to put her down.
5. I love breastfeeding again.
4. I love the way the boys want to hold, brush, dress, change, and play with Emery, how they don't understand why she doesn't think they are hilarious, and the way we have to continually remind them why she can't have that cheese, applesauce, yogurt or jaw breaker that they want to share.
3. I love that Aukai really does seem to love her as much as I do, that as he put it "It is hard to quantify love," and the way I feel slightly jealous when it is his turn to hold her.
2. After seeing so many sick babies, I love the reminder that most babies are in fact normal and healthy.
1. I love that it is finally starting to sink in that we really get to keep this healthy and perfectly beautiful little lady!
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