Go Pack! Football (and baton) edition...

Football with Ellie was not so fun last year---but times have changed!  At the last minute today I decided to take Ellie to the State game, my parents had an extra ticket and I thought it would be a good opportunity for Ellie to see Zoe twirl.  She loved it.  She cheered when everyone else cheered, kept a watchful eye on the wolf mascots (all mascots are freaking her out right now) and loved seeing Zoe.

After the pregame show Ellie and I went down to walk around for awhile (the seats my parents have are great but very tight--not fun with a squirming two year old).  We shared some NC State ice cream and then found the most perfect seats I could imagine that we squatted at for the rest of the game.  It was just a little section of 3 seats at the very top of the lower section, under the overhang.  Ellie watched half-time and loved it and then promptly passed out and slept for the rest of the game.

8 months old!

Ruby is eight months old. She is growing up SO fast, I can't believe toddler-hood is right around the corner.  Craziness!

Getting too big for this bumbo!  She can pop herself right out of here!

I love that I'm home with the girls on Fridays.  I feel like it lets me enjoy this crazy fast time in our lives a little bit more.  It also gives me a day that I can do "mom" things...like go to the park, Marbles, and storytime at the library---not to mention trying to catch up at the house!

Ruby is moving around like a pro.  She still doesn't really keep her belly off the ground when she is crawling but she does just fine and can get anything she wants. She did start pulling up- the first time was last weekend when she was playing inside her "playzone" as we call it.  It seems she is at that in-between stage where she isn't very physically able to do things but she is no longer happy just sitting and banging toys together. And with Ruby's frustration comes a lot of vocalization...it is pretty hilarious. We joke that she is our little gremlin. She still is a very happy baby but is much more "needy" right now.  She loves to be held....but don't we all? :)

First time I noticed the girls were actually playing together.

 Everything goes into Ruby's mouth.  I kind of forgot how annoying that is!  We have had to majorly baby proof again...as we were past the stage where we had to worry about Ellie.  Ruby loves investigating what is in boxes and I've found that she much prefers a big tub of toys that she can look through or dump out over having toys scattered around her. 

We gave Ruby her first finger foods this month.  We first tried the magic dissolving "puffs"- she loved them and had not problem using her pinchers to get them to her mouth.  We've also tried bananas and avocado which had mixed reviews.  I think I'll have to buy some cheerios and give those a try too. 

First attempt at finger food- puffs!

1st bagel!  On a blanket at the park :)

That is one way to eat a bagel...

I'm pretty sure she says bye bye and waves.  It sounds more like ba ba ba but she really is doing it!  Sometimes she just moves her mouth and doesn't make any sound which is super cute too! We are trying to teach her to sign (we are starting with more and all done which were the most helpful when Elle was a baby) Ellie loves helping with this teaching process.

Sleep is still a struggle.  Not sure what we are going to do about that one but this girl just doesn't sleep that well.  She goes down and wakes up a bunch of times before she is sound asleep.  It usually doesn't take much- just getting her paci and rubbing her back but often she only wants to be picked up.  We can usually get her back asleep and back in her crib pretty easily but she wakes up again by about 3.  That time I'm lazy and I usually bring her back to our bed.  It is easier to me than fighting with her to get back to sleep.  We did the same thing with Ellie and it was okay...don't get me wrong, it was a struggle to eventually get her out of our bed but it did eventually happen.  Ruby still loves to be swaddled- weird- I know!

We have many names for Ruby...among them RuRu, Rubes, and our favorite "Little Sack of Sugar" that comes from one of our favorite songs at the moment- we know it from an Elizabeth Mitchell record (she is awesome!)-

Little Sugar (Little Saka Sugar)
Words and Music by Woody Guthrie

Jiggle, jiggle, jiggle, jiggle, tickle, tickle, tickle, tickle
Little sack of sugar I could eat you up.
Jiggle, jiggle, jiggle, jiggle, pickle, pickle, pickle, pickle
Little sack of sugar I could eat you up.

Hey, hey, hey, my little sack of sugar,
Ho, ho, ho, my little sack of sweet.
Hee, hee, hee, my pretty little angel,
Pretty, pretty, pretty, I could eat your feet.

Hey, hey, hey, my little honey bunny,
Ho, ho, ho, my little turtle dove,
Hee, hee, hee, my little sack of ‘taters,
So pretty, pretty, pretty, I could eat your toes.

Jiggle, jiggle, jiggle, jiggle, pickle, pickle, pickle, pickle
Little sack of sugar I could eat you up.
Jiggle, jiggle, jiggle, jiggle, tickle, tickle, tickle, tickle
Little sack of sugar I could eat you up.

Hey, hey, hey, my tootsie wootsie,
Wrangle, tangle, dangle, and my honey in a tree.
Ho, ho, ho, my butterfly fritter,
So pretty, pretty, pretty I could eat your nose.

Jiggle, jiggle, jiggle, jiggle, tickle, tickle, tickle, tickle
Little sack of sugar I could eat you up.
Jiggle, jiggle, jiggle, jiggle, tickle, tickle, tickle, tickle
Little sack of sugar I could eat you up.

Google, google, google, a coo and a cuddle,
I kick your foot, like a bicycle pedal;
Pretty little hoot owl and a one-eyed frog,
So pretty, pretty, pretty I could gobble you whole.

Jiggle, jiggle, jiggle, jiggle, tickle, tickle, tickle, tickle
Little sack of sugar I could eat you up.
Jiggle, jiggle, jiggle, jiggle, tickle, tickle, tickle, tickle
Little sack of sugar I could eat you up.

Little sack of sugar I could eat you up.

 

Potty Training....

Potty training is going full swing in our house. It is hard work! Ellie really is pretty good if we remind her regularly and don't just put a pull-up on and expect her to tell us when she has to go.  Unfortunately this whole thing comes with a new set of trials and tribulations. Here are a couple of my favorite potty training memories so far...

At the very beginning (many months ago!) I decided to try the method of just putting underpants on Ellie and setting a timer every 20 minutes to get her used to using the potty but also to feel what happened when she forgot. They say pull-ups are to diaper like and actually can make the whole process harder. So one of the first days that we tried potty training Ellie had on her underpants and had an accident. I didn't make a big deal of it, just reminded her that next time she should try to remember to use the potty and I cleaned it up. Well she wanted to help so I got her a wipe and let her help me wipe the floor. I didn't think twice about it but not 3 minutes later she is standing in the same place and makes herself have another "accident" on the floor just so she could clean it up!!

Early on in the experience we realized that you have to check for yourself each and every time to make sure she hasn't already pooped when she tells you she has to go! We had a brown carpet in the bathroom and on one occasion I was helping her use the potty and didn't realize that she had notified us a little bit late of her need to go. I guess some poop plopped out of her pull-up on her way to the potty and I didn't see it. Well Jason was next to help her and he didn't see if camouflaged in our brown rug and stepped right on it. Yuck!

A couple nights ago Ellie was having a crazy night and was running all over the place. She at one point stood in front of the potty and said "I go potty like Dada!!" She stood for a long time trying to figure out exactly how she could do it and luckily didn't actually try to go but I couldn't contain myself :)

 We celebrate all potty successes!  Candy works wonders...we let Ellie have one jelly bean for every success.  Well this has been going really well for pee but for some reason Ellie had this major opposition to pooping in the potty.  TMI---I know! So we talked about it and told Ellie that she could pick one toy (whatever she wanted from Target!) the first time she pooped in the potty.  This promise went on for a few unsucessful weeks but tonight it finally happened.  We were all super proud of her (including herself!) and hope that this is a good sign for the future.  So as we promised we loaded up the car and headed off to Target.  Ellie really wanted to carry the basket all by herself and picked out a super fun play-doh ice cream factory (We all know she is ice cream obsessed!)  

Mother's Day Stepping Stone

We finally had a chance to make our 2011 Mother's Day Stepping Stone.  I'm really happy with how it came out. We had a great time making it- mixing the concrete and putting it into the mold and then decorating.  The very last step was to put the girls' hands in.

I think it turned out really well and it will be a wonderful tradition.

Big Girl Bed

Eleanor has finally taken the big jump. She is sleeping in her "big girl bed." I have to admit, I'm pretty sad. Of course I'm super proud of her for deciding it was time and for sticking with it but it also is a pretty significant reminder that she is, well...a big girl.

We were thinking it would be nice if Ellie made this transition before Ruby was born but she had other ideas. She was pretty fond of her crib and requested it anytime we discussed the options. Her bed has been set up in her room for almost a year and has gone relatively untouched. But something changed last week and as we were rocking (she still loves that which warms my heart) I stood up to put her down and she quietly but firmly demanded "big girl bed" and she has done that same thing every night since.

We have been really diligent about making sure she goes to sleep by herself for both naps and bedtime and it is working so much better than the rocking for an hour and sneaking out of her room. A long overdue change.

Now if we can just figure out how to get two little girls to sleep together in one room. Yikes! Suggestions welcome...

Eleanor's Library Card

It is a big day in our house!  Eleanor got a library card.  She is really proud of it and checked out a big armload of books to mark the occasion. She even signed it with an E! 

Experimental Ellie

Ellie did a study with the Duke Learning Lab this morning.  It was fascinating (which I have to admit is probably why I signed her up to do it, well that and the free admission to Marbles!)

They were studying how/when children learn how to use tools.  The student warned me that two year olds have not really been able to figure this out and that it really isn't until they are around 4 that they have been successful at completing the task.  So with that they got started.

The lady showed Ellie how to use a tool (she used a ruler) to get a small stuffed animal out of a plexiglass tube (by pushing it from one end out the open end) she then showed Ellie two tools and asked her if she could use them to get the bunny out of the tube.  Ellie said yes!  She grabbed a tool and tried and tried and tried...but the tool didn't work.  They had two similar looking items but one was just stuffed and wouldn't work as a tool, the other was different color and would work.  Ellie eventually got frustrated and declared "I can't do it!" so the lady suggested she keep trying.  With that something sparked and Ellie grabbed the other tool (the red one)- and it worked.  Yay!  So that was cool.

Then the lady let her do it again...and Ellie immediately grabbed the red tool and rescued the bunny.  They did this a few times and she had no problems.  Then they gave her two identical looking tools- Ellie grabbed one and tried it, but it didn't work.  So she switched it immediately and the other worked just fine.  For every trial after that she touched the tool first to see which one would work (she could tell by how hard it was) and rescued the stuffed animal.

It was really cool.  The lady emphasized that she was pretty gifted at this task for a kid her age.  It was a little scary but then I reminded myself that she has no idea what color her shirt is and that kids are gifted in all different ways!  I apologized for providing an outlier to her study (I am a scientist after all) and we were on our way.

What a cool job...to try to figure out how kids learn.  It is so weird and cool and just fascinating.  And the best part of our day? We got to spend the rest of it at Marbles...and Ellie got free admission for her study participation.  

Check out her "E"!

Happy 4th of July!

Not sure what Ruby was thinking about but this picture is hilarious...

Carrots!

Ruby tried carrots today (her first non-cereal food!) and she seemed to love them.  Of course she got them EVERYWHERE but that is how it goes.  Plus it makes for some super cute pictures!

Terrible 2 1/2?

So I read a book that suggested that 2 is a pretty great age but 2 1/2 is a difficult one...

uhhh- "fixing" a hole in the wall with a set of keys and a pacifier of course!

Ellie talks up a storm.  She says full sentences without blinking.  She questions almost everything and loves to discuss what is going on.  The most common phrases out of her mouth are "WHY?" and "I do it MYSELF!"  That's how they learn, right?!

School is still going really well.  She has adjusted to going and is starting to figure out the whole nap routine.  She is the shortest napper and still wants to be rocked to sleep but the teachers are being super nice about that.  She still loves to have her "Sue days" and it really helps her to have that familiar routine that she loves so much.

Watering bean plants in the school garden

Typing at school!

We've been busy this summer playing outside at all the local parks (We love finding new ones) and swimming.  We found a new sprayground right down the street that is super fun.  Ellie has also spent some time out with her water table and she still love love loves bubbles!

 

Ellie is still loving art- she will sit down and draw for very long periods of time and absolutely loves to paint!  She enjoys building towers and is really very good at it.  Right now she will spend hours playing pretend with her baby dolls, kitchen, or little people.  She has elaborate conversations on the "phone" and makes up conversations between her figurines.  It is pretty much awesome. 

Check out those letter "Es"

Taking Baby Jesus for a tractor ride!

 I'm amazed at how caring and sweet Ellie is to her little sister.  She seems to really love having a baby sister and is patient and gentle with her.  We are curious how this will change as Ruby starts moving around and can get her toys.  The relationship is pretty mutual--Ruby things Ellie is pretty much the funniest thing she has ever seen!

Playing horsey with Ruby....

Ellie and Ruby had their 1/2 year doctor's appointments together this morning (convenience of having almost the same birthday!)  Ellie weighed in at 31 pounds (between 50 and 75th percentile) and was 36 inches (50th percentile).  She didn't have to get any shots (Yay!!) but did have to get her finger pricked, for which she was amazing- sat perfectly still and didn't cry at all.  That is a strong cookie!  Best news yet- she doesn't have to go back for another 6 months when she is 3!

 So we don't think there is much terrible about 2 1/2.  It does however require much parental energy, creativity and patience.  It is amazing how much personality, opinion, and knowledge Eleanor has already!  We love it!

Making banana bread

Doctor Eleanor playing at Marbles Museum

Reading on the hearth...her "bed"

Scientist Ellie checking magnifying her Ritz cracker and gems!

6 months old!

I can't believe a half a year has passed since Miss Ruby Kate came into our lives.  She is a true bundle of joy- happy all the time!  At her check up this morning Ruby was 15 pounds, 2.5 ounces (50th percentile) and 26 inches long (75th percentile) her head was right on track for Hamilton size at 43 cm (75th percentile).  She did great- hardly even cried for her vaccines.

Ruby is sitting really well now.  I love how straight she sits- with perfect posture!  She spends a lot of time sitting on the floor with a few toys and is happy for quite some time.  She has also started rolling and trying to scoot a lot more to get what she wants.

We have had a fun and busy month- we took trips to the pool and lake, Marbles museum, a Mudcat's game, and even a train trip to Charlotte.  We also celebrate Ellie's half birthday yesterday and Father's Day.  Ruby loves to be along for the ride.  She is quite happy in her car seat and especially loves to suck on her toes!!

We joke that she is stingy with her laughs...you really have to work her to get her to chuckle.  Smiles aren't so hard but laughing requires much work.  We have been pulling out "new" toys that had been put away and both Ruby and Ellie are having fun discovering and rediscovering them.  We kind of forgot about the exersaucer but we weren't too late.  Ruby has a pretty good time bouncing around in it!