Different Every Day

Josh always says that when he's working a lot and doesn't see the kids for a day or two, that when he does finally see them they seem to have grown and changed in just those couple of days. I think he's right. Even being with them every day I can see it. Audrey not as much now that she's older, but in the boys it is definitely true.

JJ is talking a lot now. He's at the point where he always has something to say, but you have to really listen to know what he's trying to tell you. Otherwise it just sounds like baby talk and babble. We were on a walk today and JJ said, "I see a bird! A little bird there!". I was surprised and so proud - both of him, and at the fact that I was paying enough attention to realize that's what he said. He has such a tiny, sweet little voice. Its funny, he and JJ argue all the time about how he pronounces things wrong. It really bothers her and he doesn't realize he's saying anything wrong, so they'll just sit and go back and forth about who is saying it right. Haha. He can now say all our names in the family, including his own.

He is still our little comedian. I videotaped him the other night at dinner, he was being so silly and making faces and doing anything to get a laugh from Audrey and I. I love that about him. I think he really loves being the star of the show and I am excited to watch him grow and see if he continues to be that way. His love of his big sister hasn't waned at all...he follows her everywhere and now that we're in the new house, he's always in her room. When she lets him, that is. She gets annoyed and sometimes she just wants to play alone. I understand that so I try to let her have her room as "her space", but it does upset JJ that he can't play with her ALL THE TIME. I remind him that Nathaniel is here and wants to play but that just pisses JJ off. I guess "Bebe" (that's his name for Nate) isn't old enough or fun enough yet. They do wrestle, and man, JJ gets really rough. I found JJ yesterday sitting on Nate's back and pushing his face into the floor. And Nate was just laying there, kind of fighting back but not really all that bothered by it. While this is kind of funny, unfortunately it has become obvious lately that our sweet Little Baby JJ has a bit of a mean streak in him. He's always had a temper - he used to actually crawl around the floor looking for things to throw when he was only 9 or 10 months old - so it isn't something that's recently developed. He plays well with others but only as long as he gets his way. So that's something we'll be working on with him.

Nathaniel is starting to walk. He's standing unassisted and taking a step here and there. I've seen him take 3 consecutive steps but once he realizes he's doing it, he plops down. Still nervous I guess! I'm ready for him to just do it already. Its not that I want him to grow up fast or that I'm rushing him, but that it would be a lot easier if he'd walk. Right now he wants to get down and crawl around the playground and then gets dirt and mulch all over his hands and then puts it in his mouth...yuck! And I have to hold him when we're in public places since he can't crawl around on the floor and get covered in germs..so yes, walking would be easier, I don't mind chasing them if it means they aren't getting germy hands and then putting them in their mouth. He's becoming a real little person with personality - this feels like it took a while, probably because he was fussy for so long. Like JJ, he has a little temper. When he doesn't get his way, he'll throw himself on the floor and writhe around crying. He'll put his head on the floor and cry like its the worst thing ever that I won't let him play in the toilet. Its hard not to laugh. I have to wonder if their temper is a boy thing? Is it something I am doing wrong? Is it genetic??  Anyways, he's nearing his first birthday and I am so unprepared! Third child...I've at least got a date selected for his party. :) So that's a start. I'll order invitations this week, but I think we're just going to do it kind of low key. BBQ/Cookout with family and some close friends. Party planning stresses me out which i know is why I'm not on top of it this time around.

Audrey is doing soccer right now, I don't think I have shared that on the blog yet. It is a 6 week class that some school parents organized for the kids after school one day a week. I didn't know what to expect because if Audrey doesn't want to do something, there is no convincing her to do it. I didn't tell her about it until the day of her first class. I can happily say that she's enjoying it! She hasn't complained one bit about it and she participates for the entire hour. She even asks us to kick the ball around with her at home. The final class is next week, school finishes at the end of May, and then gymnastics finishes up in June. I am putting her in a week long summer camp at gymnastics, but aside from that, she won't be doing any organized summer activities. I might look in to swim lessons..but overall we're just planning to take it easy and see what comes up. I'm looking forward to spending some time at our new pool!

New House

Our big move is over! We've been here for two weeks now and we're really starting to settle in. The settlement was delayed a couple of days and that was a huge curveball. We had finished packing and then had to unpack a bunch of stuff and repack it a few days later. Moving with kids is not easy! I am so so so glad we hired movers. I can't believe we even considered doing it ourselves.

Since we have the garage, we went ahead and asked the movers to keep a bunch of boxes out there. I wanted to keep the house mostly free of boxes and only open them when we are ready to unpack and put them away. It took us a few days to unpack and that was hard to have boxes everywhere. The kids were climbing on them and trying to go through them. On top of that, we didn't have a washer and dryer until we'd been here for 9 days. There was laundry everywhere! Thank goodness that's over with. We still have A LOTTTT to do in the garage, but we're working on it. One day I'll actually be able to park in there. Possibly after the yard sale this month. We just have so much stuff.

I think the kids are happy here so far. They seem happy, especially Audrey. She is SO SO excited to have her own room. I wasn't sure what to expect because she's shared a room with JJ for so long, and knowing Audrey, I thought we might have some trouble getting her to sleep without him with her. But to my surprise she was fine! I think the novelty of it outweighs any feelings of loneliness or scared (of the dark). She spends quite a bit of time up in her room playing. She loves that she can close and lock the door when she doesn't want the boys to bother her. This is not so great for JJ - he always wants to be by her side - but I think its good for audrey to feel she has some space of her own.

JJ was the cutest ever when I showed him his new room. He walked in and I said, "This is your room, JJ". He turned to me, hands clasped in front of him and said, "MY room? Ohhhh, Thank you mommy!". He looked so sweet and excited. He was not so thrilled the first night at bedtime when he realized he was alone, but after that first night he's been fine. We ordered Audrey a new bed, so Joshua got her old bed. That's right. My boy is in a big bed now. He's been climbing out of his crib for months, so it makes sense for him to be in a big bed. The plan is to try to get Nathaniel to sleep through the night so we can start putting him in the crib in his room with JJ. I'm not sure how or when that will happen...

They haven't mentioned the old house very much..if at all..since we've been here. We've walked to the park almost every day, and have gone out back to ride bikes every day too. I really like having the alley back there. We've met several neighbors and there are lots of other kids playing out there on the weekends and evenings. We don't spend as much time in the back yard as in the garage/alley. I love how many families there are out walking and riding bikes and spending time at the playground. We even ran in to another family from the kids' school on a walk one night. I do feel bad for josie. She used to have a huge yard to run around in and chase squirrels. And now she really does not seem to like being outside. The yard is too small to run in, but she doesn't even want to sunbathe. Maybe she's still adjusting.

Overall, we love it. We have so many things here that we didn't have before - storage, our own bathrooms, more usable space, the list goes onnnnn...But I have to admit that I was a little sad to leave the old house. Audrey and our neighbor's daughter had just become best friends and played together every day for hours. It was hard to tell her she won't see her friend anymore. It was really, really hard to walk one final time across the backyard. I cried the ugly cry while I walked past the playground set out back. That's where Audrey and JJ learned to climb and swing, it was their fort, their airplane, their train, their clubhouse. Seeing the spot of worn grass where their feet dragged beneath the swings, and the dirt where they landed at the bottom of the slide. It really felt like I was walking away from the baby years of our family. That's the house we brought JJ and Nathaniel home to. I know it was just a house, and a house I (mostly) hated, but there were a whole lot of memories there. And I'm a sentimental person so of course this was hard on me.

I know that this new house will soon feel like home for us and that' we'll love it here. I'm working hard on making it feel that way for the kids, and I think it already does. We're excited for this new chapter!