Jessi, are you still here?

Hi all. Just thought I'd post a few pictures from January.

These are a couple from Jessi's last morning with us. Addison and Lily agreed to be in the picture only if their new Christmas clocks could also be in the picture. Their clocks are toy clocks that talk and are designed to help them learn how to tell time. The clocks have taken on a life of their own. Addison and Lily are quite nurturing towards them. Their clocks sleep with them (along with just about every stuffed animal and doll they own). Clocks are frequently dressed up in the new dress up clothes that Santa brought. In this picture the clocks are wearing Mike's Hawaiian shirts one of which is known as "black dress". Clocks are also cheered as Addison and Lily help them go wee-wee in the potty. And Clocks are brought toys to play with as Kelsey who is sitting right next to the clock is ignored and is lucky to keep any toys she is playing with.

These pictures are of Addison and Lily's new favorite "costumes". They consist of fleece jackets. Lily added a fleece aviator hat to her costume to complete the look. These pictures could only be taken if Molly, Maggie and pink bear would also agree to be in the picture.

Thanks to modern technology and the internet, we've had a couple of web video conversations with Jessi. During one such "visit" from Jessi, Addison and Lily decided they wanted to sit next to Jessi. While this is endearing and quite cute, I think Jessi got a little bored of looking at the fireplace in our living room. Lily was also quite happy to be able to give Jessi a hug.


Kelsey's new fun thing to do is play Peek a Boo or "Where's Kelsey?" She sits in her high chair, clasps her hands together and lifts her hands to her forehead. Then you have to say "Where's Kelsey?" "Where's Kelsey?" She sheepishly grins and looks at you. Then she'll suddenly take her hands down and joins in "There she is!" with a sort of loud "AHH-AHH-AHH".

Wife of the Year, Dad of the Year and one Funny Kid

First Wife of the Year 2008.

In our living room we have a Tivo box with remote, DVD player with remote, TV with remote and a cable box with a remote. Our set up is such that two wires from the Tivo box drive the cable box like a remote. Those wires are frequently knocked out of position by the lady who comes and cleans our house. So we are frequently re-aligning the wires. Well, one evening Mike started to go about the task of realigning the wires. As he was moving them, he was using the Tivo remote to see if the Tivo box would change the cable box channels. He was getting quite confused, because the channels on the cable box were not changing as he would expect. After a bit of frustration, Mike realized that his loving wife was behind him on the couch with the cable box remote making the cable box change channels too.

About 2 1/2 weeks before Christmas, Mike seemed a bit flustered after spending a bit of time on his computer. I asked him what was up and he said that he wasn't sure one of the gifts he had purchased for me would be arriving in time for Christmas. A few days later, he basically said it was still up in the air. Then, shortly thereafter he said he thought it would get here, but he would have to pick it up in Columbus. Hmmm. All this and he also expressed concern that I might not even like it anyway. Mike was heading to Phoenix, AZ and was flying out of Dayton. He got notification that the present was in Columbus, so he was going to pick it up on his way to Dayton. Well, from Phoenix Mike called and said he had tried to get it, but when he went to pick it up it was actually lost and "they" were trying to track it down. The next day we received a call at the house. I answered. The lady on the phone asked for Mike, and when I said he wasn't available, she said "There is a package here that he needs to come and get through customs." "Customs?" I said. "Yes, it is some sort of gilded mirror." she said. (Please note I did not ask what it was). So now I have some idea of my present...but why Mike had to get a mirror from some other country I was dumbfounded by. That night I spoke with Mike and let him know that the package was again in Columbus awaiting pickup. Mike said "Did you ask what it was?" I replied "No, I didn't ask, but she said it sounded kind of like a puzzle." Needless to say, my little prank did cause Mike additional angst. But in the end, he was able to get the mirror and on Christmas day I was surprised to see a beautiful mirror that we saw in Capetown, South Africa. Excellent present, Mike, and well worth the additional gray hairs.

Now, for Father of the Year.

Truly Mike is a wonderful father. His three girls love him dearly. But here's the story. On Christmas Eve we attended a children's service at our Methodist Church. Gram, Pop and Grandmama drove separately and arrived at the church well ahead of us. The day was cool and we were running a bit late, so we devised a plan that Mike would drop Jessi, Addison, Lily and me off in front of the church. Then he would park the car and bring Kelsey in. Well, Jessi and I had just gotten Addison and Lily's coats off and we were settling in when Mike came in to the church to join us. I took one look at him and said "Where's the baby?" A look of horror came across his face and he dashed out of the church. Yep, he left Kelsey in the car. Fortunately, the car wasn't far from the church, it wasn't too cold outside and Mike found Kelsey was pleasantly enjoying her solitude.

And our Funny Kid

Generally Addison and Lily do not have sweets. At Halloween they each enjoyed just one lollipop each. On birthdays, they've gotten a small bit of cake. And even during Christmas when they got a bag full of cookies at our Kindermusik cookie exchange, they didn't have too many cookies. But they did have a few days of cookies after lunch. Then the week after Christmas, Jessi and Mike were giving the girls lunch. Kelsey and I showed up in the kitchen towards the end of their meal and to my surprise they both had a cookie. I asked (knowing the answer was Daddy) "Who gave you the cookies?" When there was no answer, I repeated "Who gave you the cookies to eat after your lunch?" Very quietly Addison answered "Santa"

New Year...New You

Oh my gosh. I can't believe that it has been 2 months since we've posted anything. And the last post was pictures from October! The New Year brings a resolution from Mike and Teresa to get healthier through regular exercise, healthier eating and weight loss. But seems it should also include posting to this blog. It is such a wonderful way to document our children's lives with milestones and stories we do not want to forget.

Well, first let me write down a few things about Kelsey. She is now 8 1/2 months old. Two days ago she weighed 19lbs 12oz. She continues to be a wonderful baby. She is very content and could sit all day long with a few toys around her and her sisters running around entertaining her. With her laid back attitude, she's been resistant to moving about too much. We posted a while ago that she was rolling over. But really that was that she could roll over. Not that she would choose to do so on a regular basis. So far her 8th month has been a big one though. At 8 months 2 days her first bottom tooth showed up. It was the bottom left and looked REALLY crooked. At 8 months 7 days we were able to get Kelsey rolling again. It required putting something that she wanted just out of her reach. Oh and it couldn't just be a fun toy. Usually something she shouldn't have was the most effective way to get her to want it (i.e. a small object she could choke on, a sharp knife, Jack's slimey ball). At 8 months 9 days her bottom right tooth pushed through. Fortunately as both bottom teeth continue coming in, it appears her bottom left will straighten out.

Some of you may remember Lily's first word...NICE...in response to a burp...as in...NNN-IIII-CCC-EEE! Well, Kelsey's first word? Burp. At first I was sure that it was just impressive that she was getting the b and p sounds together. But after a few days of consistently hearing "bup" followed shortly there after or preceded by a burp, I'm pretty sure this is her first word. She also says DaDa, and Adda (Addison), and Ja (Jack), and PahPahPah (Peoopee). She also likes to pretend she is a dog by panting. We are using sign language to try and promote that with her.

Perhaps our only complaint about Kelsey is night time sleeping. She usually will wake up one time between 8p and 7a to nurse. On a few special nights she will sleep until 5 or 6 in the morning. On some not so special nights she will wake up at midnight and decide it is fun to be awake. Mommy does not think it is fun to be awake then. Especially if after Kelsey going back to sleep at 2a she decides to wake again at 6:30a.

Kelsey is taking two naps a day. Usually around 9:30 and again around 2:30. She is quite easy to put down for naps. Read a book, tell her it is time for sleep, lay her down in her crib, turn on her jungle mobile, and leave the room. She may talk for a bit, but she puts herself to sleep. Night time is a different story. If I leave the room before she is asleep or mostly asleep, she screams bloody murder. Fortunately most nights she goes to sleep pretty quickly, but this is one issue I'd like to get sorted out soon.

Kelsey has been eating baby food since she was 5 1/2 months old. She likes to eat a variety of foods and will even gladly eat green beans. Around the time of the appearance of her first tooth we started giving her food that she can pick up on her own. She is quite good at picking up milk soaked cheerios one at a time. She's even getting pretty good at picking up banana pieces even though they are a bit slippery.

Kelsey is kind of pulling up to standing, but so far only uses mommy for pulling up. But she will stand at her Leap Frog Learning table for quite a while and even moves around it a tiny bit. She has developed a love for walking holding on to someone's hands, but she still walks a bit like Frankenstein.

I'd say Kelsey is a long way from crawling. When on her stomach she will turn herself around, but she doesn't roll over on her back and she is not getting up on all 4s. She does kind of scoot herself backwards, but she hasn't figured out propelling herself forward using her legs. Truth be told she doesn't get as much practice at this as she should...did I mention she is very content sitting?

Well, Kelsey is waking from her morning nap now. Jack woke her by barking and over the monitor I could hear "Ja. Ja. Ja."

More later. I have several funny stories to tell and Christmas info to relay. And updates on what Addison and Lily are up to.

Teresa