3.5 Years old and 3.5 months since my last post.

 

Yikes... its been way to long since I posted.  My little baby is 3.5 years old today.  She is growing up so fast

• We moved Sara to her big girl bed and it is big, I didn't realize how thick the mattress and box spring were until Marc assembled her new bed.  It is the tallest bed in our house!
• Her sleep has improved and most nights she stays in bed, but will often call out in her sleep for Mom.  I am a super light sleeper and end up getting up at least once a night, usually to put blankets back on the kids. 
• Sara has completed preschool and will head to full day pre-k next year.  Although she seems so young.  She is so ready for this.  She wants to do everything Evan does.
• Since January she has learned all of her letters and has taught herself to write most of them.
 
 

• She can write Mom, Dad, Evan, and Sara.  She loves to write and I am spelling constantly for her.
• She can say the entire alphabet and count to 13.
• Sara is still a fantastic eater, just not at meal time! 
• Breakfast is one of the following: a pineapple or strawberry Greek yogurt, bacon and toast, fried or scrambled eggs, cereal with milk, fruit, or sometimes she asks for vegetables and dip!
• Lunch is pizzas on triscuits (she loves to help make these), soup, vegetables with dip, fruit, crackers and cheese, bread with jelly, spagettios.
• Dinner is easy she will typically eat whatever we do if she doesn't eat she will at least sit with us.  I don't make a big deal because she eats so many fruits and vegetables throughout the day.  She loves turkey, roast beef, and chicken.  Her favorite is gravy!
• Sara loves Popsicles and freeze pops.
• We struggle with the Gr sound grandma is yamma, and the the l sound, like, is yike.  Although she struggles her comprehension and vocabulary are extensive.
•  Lately we play lots of doggy, and baby.  Sara loves to pretend she is a dog, and likes to be fed treats, be petted, and lick my hands (yuck!!)
• She plays with her dolls and loves to dress them take them for stroller rides and play mommy.
• Sara is very adventurous and is learning to ride a two wheeler and a scooter.  She will probably master this before Evan. 
• Daddy is Sara's favorite, and she has him wrapped around her fingers.
• We love to have our nails and toes painted.
• Her clothing of choice is dresses and she wants to wear them no matter what the weather is. 
• She also loves to match head to toe in the same color.  She often dresses herself with great pride and is hurt when we laugh at the combinations.  A few weeks ago it was 70+ out and Sara was wearing a red cardigan with crystal buttons, with red fleece pants, and a red Christmas headband in her hair.  I didn't fight it but after a few comments from neighbors she was willing to change.  She also wants to wear head to toe orange!
• Sara is a good helper and will help me clean up and dust. 
• We have a bit of a temper at times.  She will stomp away and hide for a few minutes and then come and tell us she is sorry. 

My Dad is back in Roswell with colitis and sepsis.  I told Evan and Sara that Grandpa was so sick that they wouldn't even let him have a drink or an ice chip for 2 days.  Evan was so upset by this that he whispered to Sara.  I asked what he was planning.  He told me in a whisper Batman voice that him and Sara were going to break Grandpa out.  I asked how they were going to bring him home?  He told me they would get him and help Grandpa walk.  I said Grandpa is too sick to walk.  Evan told me they would steal a wheelchair.  I asked if you were going to use the bat plane?  He said they would use my car.  I asked who would drive, he said that I could drive them there.  Grandpa could sit next to me on the way home.  This story completely made my Dad's day and hopefully week.  Today they transferred him from ICU to IMC, hopefully he'll continue to improve quickly. 
     So on top of my Dad being in the hospital and trying to visit, we have been juggling babysitters daily.  My sitter quit unexpectedly in April and my mom was going to watch Sara for the remainder of the year.  Well my Dad has spent 3 of the last 4 weekends at Roswell.  We have a retired teachers aide who watches Sara and is wonderful and a friends daughter is done with college and fortunately has watched Sara each time I have needed her to.  4 more weeks of school to go, Evan has 2 1/2 weeks to go, I'm ready for summer!

5 Years OLD!!

Wow, each year when the kids birthdays pass, I am amazed that I'm a Mom, and that the years are flying by.  Luckily Evan is still Mommy's boy.  I dread the age that this ends. I brought him lunch at school, a happy meal that he shared with his best friend.  We had a family party on Saturday.  On Sunday Evan was invited to a bowling party for a classmate.  Wow, 21 kids, plus some friends and everyone brings a gift.  This kid had more than we had in our house at Christmas.  I am hoping these are not the norm in the future. Although the students in the current kindergarten class at Evan's school each have a birthday party and invite the entire class.  Yikes pricey and crazy!
     Evan had a great  birthday and was so grateful.  He thanked me over and over again for his gifts, his cake, his balloons.  His favorite cousin wasn't able to make the party and I thought he would be disappointed but he handled it well. 
    Tomorrow I am volunteering at Evan's Valentine party.  Can't wait to see how adorable the kids are. 
    We had Evan's 5 year Dr appt.  He is 35 lbs, clothed and in the 11% for weight.  He is 41.5 inches and in the 24% for height.  The Dr asked him to write his name, and he asked her in big letters or little letters.  He drew a stick person for her and then continued to draw a house, sun, and tree.  She told me he is completely ready for Kindergarten, no surprise there.  He received 3 shots, and did pretty well after crying for a minute.  He still says his arm is sore, I'm assuming from the DTAP. 

     It was Sara's turn to bring juice to school this week.  I put the bottle in her , backpack, figuring my mom would carry it in to school.  My mom told Evan it was to heavy for her to carry.  She looked at my mom in shock and said Grandma (usually its Yamma) I have big muscles.  She then insisted on carrying it all the way to school.  Today was her valentine party and I called my Mom this afternoon to see how it went.  My mom said Sara didn't bring anything home and was crying that she didn't get any of the M&M's we made for school.  I felt terrible, she was so excited in the morning.  Of course I told her she would get lots of valentines and a few treats.  Well after having my study hall students make a few valentines for her, I decided to stop at the church that she has preschool at.  The kind secretary felt my pain and took me to the room.  Sara's lonely bag was in the coat room.  She was ecstatic to have it and to open and taste test most of her treats.  She loved the star burst!

We have good intentions...

To update the blog, but have been lazy.  Where has the time gone.  Marc's mom came to visit for 10 days in December and then the holidays seemed to arrive so quickly.
     Evan had  his first choral concert at school.  The concert was amazing.  We have a very large parish and the concert was held in the church.  Evan was front and center in his pre-K class.  He was smiling and having a great time singing.  He said Mom I was nervous but I told myself "you can do this Evan, you an do this!". 





     The holidays were fantastic, we were home for 12 days.  Most days the kids refused to leave the house.  The played so well together and Christmas morning was so joyful.  We spent the week creating Evan's new Lego sets.  We finally had one that was a bit to advanced. 

     Sara is all about princesses and loves to dress up.  We bought her a bike with training wheels and she immediately took off around the house on it.  She  begged to take it outside.  We had a few 60 degree days and she was able to ride a bit outside.  She is a very proud little girl. 
     We finally bought a new car, a Honda accord.  I debated the minivan but couldn't bring myself to get it, maybe next time. 
     January has brought out the stomach flu, colds, and fevers.  I feel like I have been sick for most of the month.  Today I was so desperate that I went and stocked up on some vitamins today.  I haven't taken any since I was pregnant.  Since I'm approaching 40, and not getting much natural vitamin D, thought it was time for a multivitamin and some Calcium and Magnesium.  I notice I am exhausted before I get my period each month, so hopefully the calcium and mag will alleviate this.
     Today was Sara's preschool conference.  Last year I was upset that Evan didn't have perfect scores, he sometimes ran in class, and could not do a somersault.  Well Sara had a great review although she didn't recognize the R in her name, or her shapes.  The teacher told me how Sara follows all the rules, procedures, and always participates.  She comes in with a smile each day.  Sara truly loves school.  Sometimes I am hesitant to send her early, she will always be the youngest in her class.  NYS has a 12/1 cutoff and Sara's birthday is 11/27.  I do feel she is ready and Sara can hold her own and wants to learn.  Her behavior in school is exceptional.  I volunteered twice in the past month and she is so well behaved.  I am lucky to have such great kids!  Evan should receive his report card this week.  I am curious to see the results.
     Evans teacher institutes  a red, yellow, green dinosaur.  Evan has been green all year.  Once the kids hit yellow or red they have to draw  the color in their notebook and the teacher sends a note home.  We went to a parents event on Saturday night and all the parents were talking Dinosaurs.  I wanted to brag that he has always been green, but bit my tongue! 
     Yesterday I gave the kids a bath and turned Sara's mermaid upside down to dry and she walked into the bathroom and saw it and said "What the heck is going on here?"  where do they get this stuff?  Evan told me last night that the Superhero's that have tight underwear can't fly! 
    As I am attempting to blog, because Sara fell asleep at 5:30, and will probably have me up all night.  Evan made me a garden out of Lego's because I didn't get a lot for my birthday (that was in October).  Having an evening with one child is way to easy!!

Happy Birthday Princess

  Sara is 3 today... whew!  that flew by!  Yesterday we celebrated her birthday at preschool.  It was my first time being a helper this year.  They decorate a birthday chair, let them throw confetti, be the leader, and have their mom their all day.  We had a blast and she was so well behaved.  She chose her friend Mandy to sit next to her during snack time.  Today we awoke to balloons on her chair, a musical birthday card, and one gift.  Evan had a very tough time with Evan having the attention.  He had a breakdown at the house and then at my moms before getting on the bus. At our sitters Sara had a gift of Princess squinkies awaiting her.  When Sara and I came to pick Evan up at my Moms, Sara received her presents from my parents, the coveted Cinderella mirror, she jumped up and down and was so excited.  Grandma also gave her some clothes and a $50 bill, and Sara clutched it and said now I can buy exactly what I want!  Where does she get this stuff?  We explained that the money has to go in the bank.  Well when we came home she managed to take the money out of the card and was crumbling it up to fit in her bank! 

      My Aunt came over and brought Sara some wonderful books and a leap frog Dog.  We bought Sara the Little Mommy Doctor Doll and a pack and play set and some doll clothes.  Evan and Sara had a blast playing with the doll and making her better.  She talks and her head turns red when she has a fever.  Hopefully we will play with this often and it won't just be a novelty.  The kids love to play with the Fisher Price Doctor set so I hope this works the same way.  Marc tried so hard to be home.  Yesterday he woke up at 3am to go to Staten Island he made it home at 8pm, and planned to be home tonight.  At dispatch this morning he had to go to Philly, so I videotaped and took lots of pictures. 
     Sara has come a long way the past few weeks, she says her alphabet, identifies 8 letters, counts to 10, and sings lots of songs.  She is a great problem solver and has a incredible memory.  When she talks on the phone she always ends her calls with I love you so much!  She does tell Marc I love you the mostest!  Dad is preferred over Mom by a long shot.  She is a easy child to feed.  She loves raw vegetables, especially cauliflower, peas (in the shell I buy at Wegmans), carrots, celery, and broccoli.  She would prefer vegetables raw rather than cooked.  She will also eat chicken, steak, and loves roast  beef.  She will not eat any ground beef. 
     Sara is still in her crib, we have tried the toddler bed and she climbs out over and over again and tells us she needs to check on us.  She has never climbed out of her crib.  Naps seldom happen, if she falls asleep in the car or in front of the tv she may take one, but then doesn't fall asleep until 9:30, or 10:00 pm.  She has been completely potty trained since June.  We still use a sippy cup only out of convenience but she is completely capable of using a drinking cup. 
     Sara is my child I have to watch.  I never know what she will get into.  Evan has always been the complete opposite and I never had to worry.  Now I need to worry when she disappears or it quiet for to long.  Last week it became very quiet as I was getting ready in the morning.  She had went in her room and climbed behind her chair and I found her unwrapping a tampon.  I keep waiting for the day she gets into makeup or nail polish.  I try to be vigilant but she is very resourceful in getting what she wants.  She will dump the clothes basket and use it to climb up on.  My parents laugh because I was always climbing up on the counters.  My mom used to tell me she was going to come to my house some day and walk on my counters.  When we were little we were playing hide and go seek and I climbed on top of the fridge!  Sara has acquired my climbing abilities. 

      Marcs mom is flying in on Thursday and staying 10 days.  Saturday we will have Sara's birthday party. 

3rd month of school already??

The weeks fly by, as much as I like my school year to go by quickly, I hate the idea of my babies growing up.  Sara is getting so big and verbalizing everything.  Although she has amazing verbal skills she is very stubborn about learning.  She can finally count to ten, recognize her colors, she is not catching on to numbers and letters.  She can identify a few letters and numbers but has not interest in them.  I have tried flash cards, foam letters, reading, magnets, writing, a letter a day, and still she will tease and tell me everything is "S" or "X, Y, Z".  I guess its so frustrating because by 2 1/2  Evan could identify all letters and numbers.  Her problem solving skills, balance, and fine motor skills exceed Evan.  She can completely dress herself correctly.  Evan still wants me to put his shirt on. 
  Oops I started this post a few weeks ago and never finished.  Well Sara can tell me whose name in her class goes with the letter but she doesn't name the letter if I show her B - she tells me Brett, M- Mandy.  I guess she learns very differently from Evan!

Surprise!

No, I'm not pregnant.  As much as I love my children, 4 pregnancies have been enough.  Today Evan had a half day and I picked him up during my lunch.  When we opened his backpack he had a letter addressed to Marc and I.  Well he was chosen for Student of the Month for the character of behavior.  I am such a proud Mommy today, out of the 21 students in his class he was chosen for this.  Evan is very well behaved in school, unfortunately if he is tired or hungry this doesn't carry over to home. 
     I also had his parent teacher conference this afternoon.  His teacher had nothing but positive things as far as his academics go they only negatives were that he had a hard time identifying lowercase q, and a hexagon.  Other than that he is exceeding all the goals for pre-k.  Last week he asked us how to write I love you, and then wrote us each a note with it on it.  He also wrote I love you Santa Claus this weekend after I had written it for him to copy.  He is a little sponge at school.  I had some concerns about his socialization because he tells me he doesn't always play with the other kids.  His teacher told me he will often ask the kids that are to shy to play with him.  He avoids the loud obnoxious kids.  Evan will often complain to me that the kids are very loud, and I'm glad he avoids this group.  I know that there are a few kids that should have IEP's and the parents refuse to have them tested.  I'm sure one is on the autism spectrum and the other is very defiant.  Hopefully they won't continue at our school next year. 
    Evan has a half day again tomorrow so I'll pick him up and take him to Sara's sitter for the afternoon.  I made the mistake of promising happy meals, something that is no longer a cheap lunch.  Tonight I said lets go for pizza, thinking we would just get two slices.  The kids asked if we could get french fries and then Sara decided she didn't want pizza.  So our cheap date turned into $18 for chicken fingers, fries, a slice of pizza, and two drinks, I knew I should have just popped a frozen pizza in the oven!

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