22 months

I need to hurry up and get this posted before it's long-overdue! Just a bit ago, Lincoln added a number and is now 22 months old. He's growing tall and lean, but with some nice chunky ankles still :) The last month was a big one as he got his first hair-cut and learned how to chew gum, all in one day! I looked back and it was this exact time for Sidney when she gave up her pacifier, and I'm thinking that Lincoln needs to follow suit. If he can chew gum, he doesn't need a pacifier! So my goal is to ditch it on Labor Day. Stay tuned.....

As for the rest of life,

* Lincoln is talking more and more, picking up words that he hears and repeating them often. Some of my favorite sounds come directly from his mouth. The way he says "yea" in a high pitch tone can be most adorable, as if he is saying "yea mom, of course!". I love it!
* he is all boy. everyday. Trucks, buses, lions and lawnmowers are some of his favorite things to see and discuss. The world stops in its tracks when the medic-helicopter flies overhead our house. Sadly I had hoped we would see one at the hospital when they visited last week (sad because it means someone is gravely needing medical care). But boy would he have loved it!
* he sleeps with his rear up in the air and his arms/legs/feet tucked underneath his body. Boy is it ever sweet. 

*and in that crib of his, he is joined by 2 special blankets, a small "lovey" blanket and recently, a special stuffed puppy that travels everywhere with us! He spotted the thing as I sifted through the stuffed animal bin to discard some. And he hasn't let go since. It was Regan's dog "Parker" and we all call it that still. 

* he is sweet and snuggly and still loves to run his fingers thru my hair. 

* he asks to go on the potty all of the time, but never produces results. In hopeful it will make a good transition to true potty training soon. 

I know there's more, but that's all for now! Love you big boy! 

Back to school

And just like that, summer is over. Well, in terms of the school year it's over (I'm still hanging onto this awesome heat and we're living it up as much as we can!). 

The girls were nervously excited for 9/1, their big day to return to school. Regan has a slew of friends in her 4th grade class, so many that I almost feel bad for her teacher! Totally kidding. I'm so proud that she has a bunch of different groups of friends; girls she met in kindergarten, all the way on up. Some she knows only from sports activities, others have been in her class 2 or 3 times already. It's a good skill to have different friend groups and I hope she continues on that journey. She came bouncing home after her first day and announced the best part of it all was...."meeting a new friend"! Way to go kiddo. 

Sidney on the other hand, had only 1 girl in class that she knows from last year. Sidney's teacher unfortunately has been suffering from a rare ear infection and has wound up with a hearing aide for the first day of school (and this is a guy probably younger than me!). Despite all of that, she is really excited for first grade and couldn't wait to tell us about her first day: all of the stories they read and.....meeting a new friend! Super proud of her for branching out and discovering new relationships. 

Of course, what's the first day back without a picture together with our awesome principal and mascot-Stripes!

Welcome back girls! Here's hoping for a most wonderful 2015-16 school year! 

Great MN Get together!

As per our usual routine, we headed over to the State Fair on the second day of the fair. It was a lot of fun and we were blessed to be joined by both sets of grandparents as well as Hope. We had so much fun going on rides, eating food, people watching, eating food, and taking in all that the fair has to offer.

Ryan's sole request was to find the massive tornado (representing the number of bags thrown away every 5 seconds instead of recycled). We spent quite a bit of time exploring the Eco building exhibits. 

My mom, Hope and I got our blood sugar checked....we won't talk about results ;) Blame the food, right!?

We went on loads of rides!

My mom and Hope took the girls on the sky-ride, which totally blew me away. My mom, the one who barely mustered up enough nerve to climb the Eiffel Tower after we traveled all the way to Paris went on the sky-ride. My mom, the one who's heart skips a beat when anyone leans over a railing went on the sky-ride! Oh the things you do for a grandchild :)

We saw animals, including the big pig. The really big pig and his...errr, well, see for yourself. lol. Grandma Sheri sent Sidney my way when she asked her "what's between his legs??" For those wondering, I told her the truth :)

Lincolns face cracked us up. He spotted the pig in my phone as I snapped the picture. His expression says it all! 

We ate lots of food, and I cried a few tears. While I felt that we did an amazing job of finding safe foods for Lincoln, it made me so sad to have fear as we walked around, careful to avoid any possibility of a reaction. When he fell asleep we darted to the Cheese Curds and the girls ate some ice cream. This is our reality, and it breaks my heart. I stumbled across a booth set up for (children) with food allergies. As I chatted with the family manning the booth  my mom came over to listen. I introduced her and jokingly commented that "grandparents, the ones most at risk for causing a reaction" (though I know my mom is overly cautious and won't even touch an allergen food when she babysits!). Well, it was good for her to hear first hand, this family admitted that "both sets of grandparents have caused" their little guy a trip to the ER. YIKES! So now I have more fear. Even so, we found Lincoln a plain hot dog (not exactly healthy) and he ate the ENTIRE thing. Later for dinner he ate a whole hamburger too! This boy can eat I tell you!

In the end, we had a grand ole' time once again and will spend the next 364 days looking forward to next year!

Thanks for a great day! 

Waffles

Everyday we hear new words coming out of Lincoln. Most recently, he announced that he (like the girls) wanted "waffles" for breakfast. Plain as day, we heard it and now we can't get enough of his "wabble". Click HERE  for a glimpse of our dialogue.

Lincoln's first hair cut

At just over 22 months, we finally made the decision that it was time for Lincoln to get his hair cut. I couldn't bear to cut off those curls and I successfully convinced Ryan to delay it over the summer. Then last week, the humidity broke and his curls turned into a stringy mess. So it was time. 

Before

We took him to Kids' Hair and we all voiced our hesitation as we walked in. I had scheduled the first appointment so the place wasn't even open when we got there. As we waited outside, the girls asked for a piece of gum and Lincoln begged for one. I gave him the tiniest piece and he chomped away as we walked in. I was pretty certain that he wasn't going to sit still, and was even concerned he was going to scream once we got inside! 

I was in love with the stylist because the first thing out of her mouth was "you're not going to cut off all of those curls!".
Perfect! 

And instead of crying and screaming, Lincoln patiently sat, chomping away on his gum as she clipped away. It also helped that there was a small TV playing Mickey Mouse (which he's rarely seen) and was a complete distraction. 

Just look at this sweet boy, with his fresh haircut! He's the sweetest thing ever.

Click HERE to watch a video (the gum chewing is worth your time).

After 

Fall ball

Fall ball is upon us. The weather is right for it, but the calendar still says August. Nonetheless, these two sweeties are 2 weeks into their respective teams and are both having a wonderful time. Regan has made the jump to 10U this fall and it is a whopper of a leap (more later). Sid has embarked on her very first softball experience and has jumped right into fastpitch, skipping over any previous ball experience (including t-ball!). 

Unfortunately with 2 different age divisions and 2 totally different teams, it also means we have to split our time between them all. 

Lincoln and I took on Sidney's first game today (both girls had double headers about 10 miles from each other). She is so darn cute out there and is learning so much. She put her heart into it, is enjoying the team experience, and told us that she had oh so much fun today!  

Their team name is the Bulldogs, and I gasped when we arrived to see their mascot hanging out behind the bench. A real bulldog! Gosh darn he's awesome! Ryan could not wait to switch games, just so he could see the dog! 

For the next game, Lincoln and I headed over to Regan's 10U game and Ryan passed us on the highway heading to Sidney's game. We waved. Side note: is this how it's going to be with multiple kids in activities!? 

The big move in softball is from 8U to 10U. While in 8U, the rules are modified significantly (thank goodness!), and there's no stealing, no running on pass balls or overthrows, no bunting, no running on a dropped 3rd strike, etc. But the biggest of them all is live pitchers, no more pitching machine! Wowzas. 

The girls move up during fall ball to the next division to play where they will be during the following summer (confusing I know). So this fall, Regan and most of her former teammates and friends made their leap. We have a study guide at home with all of the rules and though we review them daily, she's still got a long way to go. 

But we're making progress and most of all, she had a great first game(s)! 

And just in case you're wondering, what does it look like to attend a ball game with Lincoln?...something like this :) Toys, snacks, more toys scattered around a blanket, because it's safer to sit there than on a bleacher! He was a trooper and did so well cheering on his big sisters! 

This happened

Lincoln loves all of the ride-on toys we have accumulated over the years. Being the 3rd child, we have many options stored away in the garage and back shed. I pulled out a (non-pedaling) trike a while back and he just couldn't figure it out. So it sat collecting dust for a few months...til recently.

He begs for his trike almost daily and we often go down the block, turn around, and repeat. For those that know the area, we live in a very hilly neighborhood. So going any further than the end of the block produces a bit of a challenge on the way home. Well tonight, after getting home from our family anniversary dinner (and I'm still in fancy clothes and sandals), I could not convince him to turn around. And so, rather than pick him up and risk a scene, wearing my fancy clothes, I just kept following him. And following. And following. He tipped himself over 3 times and scrapes his poor toes as he drags them on the ground after each push, but he just kept laughing! We made it all the way down to school (about 5 blocks downhill) before I text Ryan asking for a ride home :) thankfully, after much teasing, he showed up, horn blaring! 

Click HERE to watch our little man roll! 

Sid's summer gymnastics meet

Sidney has a love for gymnastics. Actually, she likes a lot of activities, but for the bulk of summer, it's been gymnastics. She moved up a level from spring to summer, so she has had a lot of learning to do: front handsprings is the biggest. Her gym is amazing, and we feel fortunate that they have taught her so much over the course of the years, always making it lots of fun. 

At the end of summer, she participated in a meet, again, in this new level she had achieved. Given that she took First Place in the spring meet, she had some incredibly high expectations. And we were feeling a little nervous that she was going to be let down. 

So we gently had a few conversations with her, relating her gym experience to things she could understand. Gently explaining that she may not win first place, or second or third for that matter. 

At times, she stomped her feet and ran off. And other times, she accepted our pep talks. No matter what, we are proud of her! 

Well, let's just say that little girl proved us all wrong one warm summer night in August. She went and placed 3rd in the meet! Climbing up on the podium, she was so proud of herself, and that's the best emotion that anyone could have asked for! 

Congrats Sidney! We love you :) 

The little things

This month is just slipping by all too fast. We are living it up and soaking in every last ray of sunshine this summer. I haven't found much time to sit at my computer, this because all of our waking moments are spent outside. Even in this recent dreary weather of cold, rain and wind, I'm outside with Lincoln. Side note: After watching me pace the sidewalks with Lincoln pushing/riding on multiple toys, the neighbors came out and commented "can't get him inside, huh?" I'm really starting to worry about winter!

Here's a little snippet into some of our fun moments over the last few weeks: 

Lincoln simply adores when they send a tractor to the park across the street for mowing day. 

We took in a Circus Juventas show as a family of five. It was loads of fun and incredibly entertaining to all of us! 

The girls have had lots of playdates and it's even better when a friend comes over that loves to play with both of them! 

We got dressed up fancy and went to a wedding with an outdoor reception. In 95F heat. Then I suggested the kids stand by the flowers for a picture, and Lincoln took my request a little too literally. It's like "Where's Waldo"!

At the wedding, Ryan socialized with some high school friends, and I took the kiddos on a long walk around the park and pond, stopping for a few selfies along the way!

Post swim, pre-rain snuggles. And he asked for this all by himself as he commented he was "colll" aka: cold. 

Here's hoping for a nice warm up before we jump into fall, school, and eventually.....S#@$. It's practically a curse word to me :) Please summer, hold on a bit longer! 

Growing and learning

With each child, I have always received (and actually read) the weekly emails about their new developments and abilities. This third time around, those emails serve as a reminder of things to help Lincoln master that are developmentally appropriate (ie: he's mastered use of a spoon and it's beyond exciting!). Ryan never read the emails and stopped getting them altogether at some point along this journey of parenthood. So he gets super shocked to discover Lincoln can do something. 

Weeks ago, there was a sentence in one of those emails that he will likely be able to stack blocks up to 7 or 8. And so, we started working on this task and he would get so excited! I watched as his tiny chubby fingers would set each block ever so delicately onto his tower. And with each one, his arms would go into the air as if to declare "SCORE!". 

It wasn't long before he got real good! 

Ryan called me one day after he dropped the kiddos at their summer programming, with an excitement in his voice "Lincoln can stack blocks like 9 or 10 tall!!".

He was mighty impressed :) 

And the look on Lincoln's face when they all topple over is sure something! He just loves hearing the crash of the blocks and is eager to start all over again :)

The middle

Our dear Sidney is growing up before our eyes. She's funny and sweet, stubborn and strong-willed all wrapped up into a ball of energy! 

Apparently her lack of good sleeping as a baby was a preview of her 'not-so-great' sleep habits as a child. Sure, she sleeps through the night (thank goodness!), but she fights an 8pm bedtime like no other and is up at the CRACK of dawn....like 9pm-6:15am on a typical day. 

I'm seriously questioning this girls' actual hours of sleep during that time too, and here's why: she has lost a total of 5 teeth and THREE of them came out in the middle of the night. THREE!? Who loses a tooth in their sleep?, let alone three! The latest was at 12:34am (I know, because she wakes me up). She taps on my body, smiles with her hand out as I open my eyes and sigh "did you just pull out your tooth?". 

Girl! 

And then, she's got a little attitude too (coupled with chronic lack of sleep)....oh boy, talk about testing our limits! The other day, she grabbed Lincoln just as I was sitting down for morning coffee and asked him "do you want to go dance?". He jumped at the offer (the boy loves to dance) and they raced into the toy room. She glanced over at me (mind you, I was moments from my first sip of coffee), and declared "you dance mom. I don't want to", as she ran out to find something else to play. WHAT!? Little stinker. 

Thank goodness that she is just as fun and sweet as she is stubborn and strong-willed. 

We love you our sweet Sidney!

"mooor"

I just can't get over it. The way that Lincoln signs "more" is just adorable. Last night, as Ryan jumped off the diving board, Lincoln would sign "more" over and over. I quickly grabbed my camera and made poor Ryan keep climbing out and jumping so that I could get pictures and save this moment in my memory forever. His tiny chubby fingers are just so stinkin' cute as he begs for "more". 

A bit ago, I commented to Ryan that we really should teach him to say the word....boy was I met with objections! "No, I don't want him to stop signing it!". 

Although he's started to say the word "mooor", he still signs it and for that, we are all delighted :)

DQ Family Day

It's seems like Ryan hit the jackpot when he landed his gig with the headquarters of Dairy Queen a year and a half ago. An awesome manager, Dilly Bars for the kids when we visit, Bring Your Kids to Work Days, just to name a few. And then they go and plan this super fun Family Day each summer...during regular work hours! Bonus for me is that it's always a Friday which is my day off so it doesn't take much for us to round up the family and meet up with the crew. This year, they took us to Valleyfair and started off with a picnic just inside of the grounds (and no, we don't get served a DQ lunch...sniff sniff!). From there, we scattered around the park and enjoyed the rides. It was a wonderful day and fit perfectly into this family's idea of fun! 

Of course, we had to do a few big kid rides so that Ryan and Regan could have some fun....

And Sidney too! Though she wasn't as keen on the big rides this time and was happy to tag along with Lincoln on a few. 

Together they rode that train over and over and over again! I had a hard time convincing Lincoln to find a new ride. He LOVED it! And I was happy that she was short enough to ride along with him. 

When the sun came out and the temperatures climbed, we took some relief in the "ball area" and shot foam balls at each other. The girls thought they were cute behind this desk outside the balls. 

I got in on the riding action too, riding with Lincoln on any ride that required. Not to fret, I got on some big kid rides. I took Regan on the Corkscrew too...and suddenly, quietly worried that the whole thing would fall off the tracks, upside down into the ponds below. That's just as ridiculous as Ryan's statement that he worries Power Tower might just fall over....ahhh, we can both be a little anxious at times :) 

It truly was a fun Family Day and we feel so lucky to have two wonderful employers...and three very happy kiddos!