Big Kid Beds

I am two days late on my blogging, but I have good reason: we have moved the twins to "big kid" beds! Here's a picture of the last night we put our babies to bed in cribs...

This transition was made possible by Nana who was over on Thursday and Friday and helped me disassemble cribs and assemble the new beds while Tony planted beautiful flowers in the front yard. Nana stayed late on Friday to see the kids' reaction to their new room. I think they were both very excited and they were so excited to try out their new beds.

Harper has the trundle bed section of her day bed- she looks so small in a big twin bed. Harper picked out her own sheets and she was insistent that we get Doc McStuffins sheets. Harper squealed when she saw the sheets and kept saying "My Doc MucStuffins bed!"

Jack has a race car bed that originally belonged to my brother and was also used by my nephew a few years ago. Jack lit up when he saw the car bed and jumped up, laid down, and declared his bed "cozy"- I think it's a hit.

After we got the beds together, Tony and I steadied ourselves for a long night ahead of us as we put the kids to bed. The moment we shut the door, both kiddos were out of the bed and running around the room. Tony just looked at me and sighed- "here we go" I thought. Then the light flashed on and I ran into the kids room to explain -in a very stern way- that Jack should not turn on the light during bedtime. When I left, the kids were back out of bed again. We decided to let the kids run around and explore a little bit before shutting down their party.

Twenty minutes later, Tony and I went in, put the kids back in bed, stressed the importance of staying in bed, and I sat in the doorway for about 10 minutes reminding the kids to lay down periodically. After my ten minute stint in the door, the kids stayed bed the rest of the night and slept until 6:15am. I did take a trip in to make sure everyone was covered up before Tony and I went to bed.

Saturday Jack and I went to buy blackout curtains for Harper and Jack's room; Jack was pleased with himself for picking out the curtains (he was dead set on brown) and he chatted with me the whole time we were shopping. Harper decided to stay home and play with Tony while Jack and I ran errands. The day went pretty well, until it was nap time. Nap time did not go as smoothly as bed time the night before- it was like Harper and Jack had forgotten everything about staying in bed and calming down. In fact, they started wrestling with each other!

After sitting in the doorway for 30 minutes, I said forget it and put the kids in their old pack and plays. This caused both kids to yell and scream...the screaming went on for 25 minutes, until Tony and I went into our room (where the pack and plays were) and laid down with the kids- I thought this would quiet the crying...wrong...it made the screaming worse until they worse themselves out and finally fell asleep two hours after nap time started.

Saturday night, thankfully, we went out to dinner with our friends and got to enjoy some much needed adult time while the kids played. Dinner was leisurely and when we got home, the kids got on their pajamas, we did our bedtime routine, turned out the lights, and they did not get out of their beds at all and slept until 6:45am. Tony and I were thrilled! Here are some shots of the kids at dinner- too cute.

Knock on wood- the big kids bed have gone okay since then. We have had a couple of small hiccups, but nothing too big- please say prayers that this trend continues. We even got them to nap in their big kid beds on Sunday.

 After stressing how important it is to stay in bed, both Harper and Jack now stay in their beds until someone comes to get them in the morning. Here's a shot of Jack sitting in his bed waiting for us to come get him. He played with his toys and kept saying "wake up , Harper!"

In other news this week, two little ones had their first experience with crime and punishment. I came home to find that Harper and Jack had colored on the wall...and not just a little bit. So, I got out the magic eraser and we had a quick lesson on cleaning. I thought this would be a good punishment, but Harper and Jack fought over whose turn it was to clean- they loved it...so much for punishment!

The kiddos also got to play a lit bit in Tony's new truck- they were happy to honk the horn, pretend to drive, and play with the radio and air conditioning.

I have a feeling that this is what we're going to be looking at in about 14 years.

One final funny thought this week:
-My mom and I were trying to figure out where they originally bought the race car bed. I said "it was a kids store that is now defunct. They tried to compete with Babies R Us" to which Jack yelled out "It's Buy Buy Baby!"  My mom and I looked at each other and burst out laughing- how in the world did know what Buy Buy Baby was in the first place, and how does he know that this store competes with Babies R Us?  sheesh! What a smarty :)

And a picture of Miss Harper in her pig tails- I love this girl so much.

That's all for this week...oh yeah, and school is out for the summer! I can't wait to spend some time with the people I love the most. Happy Summer!

Sickness Strikes Again

This week started out well, turned sour, but ended on a high note (thankfully).

Nana was with us again this week to help with the kids while Durinda was off work. Monday and Tuesday went by smoothly; the kids played and had fun with Nana- we played outside, went on walks, and even tried out "airplane" and both kids loved it.

Wednesday the sickness hit. I was at work when I got an email from Tony telling me to check my phone, that Jack was sick. I looked at my texts and saw that mom had texted to let us know that Jack had thrown up. I quickly called to find out that Jack was eating breakfast, stopped eating, got a funny look on his face, and then got sick. Mom had hustled him to the bathroom where he got sick a few more times, mom gave him a quick bath, and since then he had been laying on the couch. My mom said Harper was very concerned about him and spent most of the day checking on Jack and making sure he had a bucket close to him.

On Thursday morning, Jack seemed to feel better and Mom, Tony, and I thought that maybe Jack just ate something he didn't agree with. This theory was put to rest on Thursday morning when, after breakfast, Harper started throwing up. I got another email from Tony saying that Harper was sick this time, and I made another frantic call home to my mom. She said that she'd already bathed Harper and Jack was now offering Harper the bucket he had used the day before (it was thoroughly cleaned). As you can guess, Thursday night was not fun at our house.

Friday morning we had officially made it 24 hours without anyone getting sick, and Harper was acting like a new woman, but Jack was acting worse than he had been 24 hours earlier. Harper was eating lots of bland food, but Jack was picking at his plate. We put the kiddos down to bed and hoped that Saturday would bring two well toddlers.

Saturday morning Harper got up bouncy and happy and ready to go, but Jack was acting lethargic and fussy. I went to the gym and when I got home, Tony said he thought Jack needed to go to the doctor; Jack had developed a rash that was spreading across his face and the back of his neck. I offered to take Jack while Tony played with Harper.

Jack and I loaded up and headed to see the pediatrician. The boy who usually sings and chatters in the car didn't say a word on the entire 20 minute drive. When we got to the doctor's office, Jack snuggled against my shoulder while we waited.

The doctor looked Jack over- he was very brave and sat in the chair all by himself during his check up. The doctor gave him a strep test-negative (yay) and said that we'd have to let the virus run its course. We spent the remainder of Saturday laying on the couch with a boy who did not feel good while his very bouncy sister ran circles around him.

Sunday morning we thought Jack felt better, and we met some friends for breakfast. Jack played and ran up and down the sidewalk with his friends, but was quick to crash when we got home. Here's a shot of us after breakfast (notice Harper and her tongue hanging out)

But Sunday afternoon when he awoke from his nap, Jack cried and cried and cried- 15 minutes of crying and fussing. I was sure he as dehydrated and was frustrated with him because he would not drink anything- it only made him cry more. I was thinking we'd have to take him back to the doctor when Tony offered Jack something to eat. Jack quickly took him up on his offer and he ate a whole English muffin and two french toast sticks...then he smiled and laughed and felt better. That boy just needed some food!

After three days of picking at his plate and not eating much, Jack was super hungry! We put the kids to bed Sunday night, and I felt more confident that Monday morning would be a good morning for Jack...and it was. The little guy woke up this morning smiling and laughing and we finally turned the corner and are now a house without sickness once more.

Having sick kiddos didn't keep us from doing some cool things this weekend though.  When we had pancakes, we let the kids try their hand with the toddler knives (sounds a little dangerous- but the knives are very blunt). They both enjoyed using their new silverware and have asked to use it again since then.

Harper and Tony spent some time building towers on Sunday. This is a Harper original- she built it all, Tony was merely the crane. The best part about watching Harper built was watching her line up each block for stability; if one of the block was "off" she would reposition it before adding another to the top.

Jack also worked both "name puzzles" all by himself this weekend- despite feeling yucky. I was impressed that Jack was able to separate the letters for each puzzle and get all the letters in the right way- here's the finished product.

And here are some pictures of the kiddos this morning with Tony- I love to seem them so happy and feeling better!

And a couple with Momma :)

Two final things that must be mentioned tonight:

1. We are moving the kids to "big kid beds" this weekend, so I took them into the guest room to show them the pillow they'll get to use in their big beds. While in the guest room, Harper saw some baby books that I had boxed up to give away. Harper asked for one of the books and I said, "No, Harper these books are for babies and you're a big girl. We are going to give these books to a baby." She said "okay", which surprised me, but what surprised me even more was Jack's reply: "Give books to baby Braydon! Just like my pacifier!" If you'll recall, we "gave away" Jack's pacifier in January and he STILL remembers that we put it in a box to give to Braydon. Tony and I were laughing and I said "that sounds likes a great idea, Bud. High five for good ideas!" Jack quickly slapped my hand and said "that's blastastic!"- a tag line from one of his favorite cartoons. Tony and I started cracking up...what a cute and funny boy; so glad he's feeling better.


2. I would like to take this last moment to wish a very happy birthday to our girl, Abby. Harper was very excited today is Abby's birthday and announced "today Abby birthday" to anyone who would listen. We made Abby chicken broth rice for dinner (with her additional food) and sang "Happy Birthday" to Abby and ate cookies in her honor. I can't imagine what life would be like without our spotted girl; I know our family would certainly have a hole in it without her. Happy birthday, Abby Girl; we love you!

May Visitors

This week has been full of visitors and fun. My mom, Nana, has been staying with us while Durinda is off for two weeks. The kids really enjoy playing with her, and I know that she enjoys playing with them. This week they drew all over the sidewalk in chalk, took a walk around the block, colored, marched in a marching band, built towers, and so much more. I was thankful to be able to take a walk with them.

On Wednesday afternoon, Uncle Tanner came over to see us before he headed off on his post-grad trip. The kids were so excited to see Tanner- Jack had been talking about tickling Uncle Tanner all week. They liked climbing on him and building towers with him, and watching a video on Nana's computer. We were all sad to see Tanner go, but we'll get to see him when he gets back next week.

On Friday Pop came over to get Nana and Papa came up from Houston for the weekend. Harper loves Papa so much that she was giddy when he came through the door- she ran to meet him. Jack loves Papa so much that he insisted on wearing his "I love Papa" shirt. Needless to say, Papa spent most of his time with a grandkid on his lap or running around him trying to get his attention. Papa and Tony did get to do a few things around the house for us, and the whole family came out to watch me do
"Murph" an annual Crossfit workout on Memorial Day.

Jack decided he needed to do pushups with us while Harper was much more content walking around with her Papa- that girls loves her Papa.

In general news, the kids had a few milestone "firsts" this weekend- nothing major, but achievements nonetheless:

We went to dinner Saturday night and Harper and Jack sat in booster chairs for the first time- they have sat in booster seats in a booth before, but never in a chair. Now I guess we know we won't need high chairs anymore.

The kids also had cereal and milk for the first time this weekend. They've been eating dry cereal for a long time, but this was our first venture out with milk; it was a little messy, but I think they liked it. (side note- Harper is objecting to me taking her picture, not to the cereal).

Harper and Jack (with the help of their dad) also built their first fort on Saturday morning. They were so happy to show me around their new digs when I got home from the gym. Jack was sad when we had to take it down, but Harper found a new place to hang out.

Harper also helped me in the kitchen on Sunday; we made homemade granola- yum!

The biggest news of the weekend, however, is that Tony got a new truck! He has been driving a car with out air conditioning for 9 months or so, and he found a good deal on this truck, so he has a new ride. Jack was very excited and kept saying "daddy has a new car! It's a pick- up truck!" Harper liked climbing through the cab and checking everything out.

So, I guess that's all for us this weekend. Nana is coming back tonight to spend this week with the kids and I am counting down the day until school is out (9...if you were wondering).  I'll end with a sweet picture of Papa on a walk with Harper and Jack this weekend. I look forward to many more walks like this one.