Changing Every Day

Ok, I'm at the point again where I am so far behind on posting pictures that I keep procrastinating more.... so to break the cycle I'm going to just post some updates on things the girls are doing and how they are changing.

REILLY:

*will be ONE in less than 2 weeks. having children makes the speed of life seem to increase exponentially. I cannot believe it has been a year since we met her. I remember the day i went into the hospital so clearly. Labor was induced w/ pitocin, my water was broken an hour later, had my epidural in place and the drugs pumping into me shortly after that.... the last hour of labor got pretty painful (although never to the point of tears - w/ Halle I cried for hours I think...no, I'm sure), I pushed through 3 contractions (less than 15 min) and she was here! Pretty sure Josh shed a few tears after seeing baby girl #2, just like he did when Halle was born. I think I cried too, but less this time because I was just so happy and relieved that it went so much smoother! She was a fairly easy baby, no colic or reflux or other health problems (besides having her frenulum clipped to fix her tongue tie). Sleep training is the hardest part of having a newborn for me (well, that and lack of sleep for me). Looking back though, we are so glad we endured the hard weeks and months early on for Reilly's benefit and ours. Two good naps a day (with exceptions for trips, events, etc) and 11-12 hours of sleep at night (usually uninterrupted). She was a bit harder to get to that point than Halle was though. She didn't sleep through the night consistently until around 8.5 months! There is always the light at the end of the tunnel, and we are there now, but when you're in the midst of sleep deprivation it seems like it will never end!

*She has been crawling since 8 or 8.5 months, pulling up since 9.5 months (I think), but still content with crawling as her mode of transportation. :)

*She can say Dada, Mama (but not nearly as much!), kitty (go figure...both our girls LOVE the kitty), uh-oh (first word other than dada and mama), and she even sings "e-i-e-i-o" quite clearly when we sing Old McDonald. That is the cutest thing. They have a DVD that plays that song and as soon as it comes on she turns her head and will say 'e-i-e-i' (usually leaves off the "o").

*Her first two teeth came through on 9/11. I am so happy she is getting teeth. I'm glad she'll soon be able to chew real food w/out it being mashed or torn up in tiny pieces. But the gummy smile was so cute. I will miss that.

*Her hair is just now starting to lay down a bit. The "just stuck my finger in a light socket" look is fading away. I have mixed feelings about this as well. :)

*She doesn't like sitting in her high chair. She's not a huge eater, but still probably eats more than Halle who eats next to nothing. Maybe they are trying to tell me something about my cooking. I don't blame them.

*She is such a sweet baby. She is so independent most of the time. She'll just crawl around playing contentedly by herself. Guess that's a 2nd child thing. She is just used to not having all the attention, whereas Halle still wants someone to play with her all the time! Even when Halle pushes her or does something else to show her displeasure with Reilly for getting into her toys, Reilly will usually just move on to something else or persist with little or no fuss.

HALLE:

*she is 2. :) That probably says it all. Haha, no really, it usually bothers me when people talk about 'dreading' certain ages with their kids. Seems like 2 always falls into that category. Yes, it is challenging. Moreso every day in fact. But I keep being reminded, and reminding myself, that she is a human being with a sinful nature and she is just now learning how to express all those selfish desires that we all have, the difference being that she does not yet have the power of the Spirit within her to conquer those thoughts and desires. So the challenge is teaching her that sin has consequences, but that love has no boundaries, in hopes that she will recognize her need for Jesus when she is older. I am learning more about my own sin now that I am a parent than I ever knew or could have imagined before I had kids. It's funny how convicting it can be to correct your child in a wrong behavior when I find the root of that behavior (selfishness, pride, etc) still resides in me.

*We started officially potty training on Tuesday. She is really doing pretty well. The first couple days she really resisted and I almost quit...but the last few days she's done great.

*She is talking and repeating SO MUCH. It is just incredible to see the huge leap in language development that has taken place in the last 2-3 months. When she turned 2, she was barely stringing 2-3 words together...like it was a rare occurrance. Now she can pretty much communicate whatever she wants and regularly repeats new phrases and sentences she hears from us and others. And I am really glad we don't have TV. There is not much worth repeating on there and I can only imagine the challenge it would add to this stage.

*She is still sleeping well...although more like 11-11.5 hours is the norm now instead of 12-12.5. She still takes her 2-3 hr nap in the afternoon too, although she can get by without it if need be...but the evenings aren't a fun time when that happens.

*She still loves playing outside on the swings, slide, and in her sandbox. When we go for walks, she has started wanting to walk with us instead of riding in the double stroller with Reilly. She loves painting with watercolors...I think she might have a talent there....but maybe it's just a biased mother's eye. :)

*She can write the letter "H" and "Q" and "O" and draw a smiley face. She can recognize her name (written). She can say all her letters and their sounds, count from 1-20 (with a few bumps after 14), use her fingers to count 1-5, and can identify all her colors and several shapes (square, circle, diamond, oval, triangle, rectangle...and we even practiced trapezoid)!

*I think there is a good likelihood she will be a lot like me.... pretty smart, not liking to make mistakes, easily frustrated by doing something wrong, sweet and easy going with others but often more stubborn w/ us at home, and loves positive reinforcement...but gets a little embarrassed with too much attention.

These girls are awesome. They wear me out, but even when Josh and I get a chance to get away for a few hours I can hardly wait to go pick them up again.