Hey Keri, look at this! Willow's been sending her cousin some advice via baby telepathy. Awyn has taken a great liking to her fingers. She doesn't always find them when she's fussy though, and still likes her pacifier too. The fingers seem almost more like play than comfort because it's a pacifier she wants when she's falling asleep or cranky still. 

Peaches! Sam asked for peaches by name, so I cut some up. They were going yucky, so I had to cut out some bad spots. They tasted great though, and he had to share his snack with Mama. 

I liked this because they are sharing the chair fairly well. But Sam's holding Awyn's pacifier, and she looks rather like she'd like it back. This devolved to his pushing at her to get her to move off his chair. 

Sammy loves his cinnamon playdoh. Cinnamon makes it smell interesting, and a little whole wheat flour gives it a great texture. Don't use too much whole wheat or it doesn't really smell like cinnamon. 

Off to Alpine

Today we're just going out and about. We're running low on diapers,and no matter how far I try to stretch them out by using cloth, I still need them at night and for travel. Besides, Awyn has just about grown out of the covers that Melinda gave me, so I'm going to have to get some new ones. Sam doesn't quite fit his cloth diapers either, but they don't make them any bigger than I can find, so I guess we just need to work harder on potty training. He pooped in the toilet again, but suddenly isn't interested in going potty. When we ask, he says no, and if we pick him up and take him because we know he's going, he throws a tantrum. We don't want to force the issue. Actually last time he pooped in the potty, I had him sitting on the big potty. He said/signed all done, I asked him if he still needed to pee, he said no, so he got himself all wiped up. He flushed, then washed hands, and ran off before I could put another diaper on him. While I was getting the new diaper, I heard an UH OH from the study. Sam was standing on the green rocker peeing on it. Sigh. At least he signed potty while doing it. For those grandparents with sergers, a bunch of little cloth squares for cloth wipes would make great gifts... I'm thinking flannel or terry cloth. I guess absorbancy doesn't matter. Yes, I have lots of baby wash cloths. I don't want to use too many of them on their butts, because then I won't use them in the bath. I have some large hemp wipes, but they are a little rough on a tender tush.

Sam plays wiyh his first ever play-doh. I guess I'll be making some soon. I have several recipes. I like the cinnamon version. 

Sam decided to join his sister this morning in her mobile gazing. He was also trying to avoid getting dressed. 

Awyn enjoys her mobile for the last time... 

The last mobile... 

Last night we enjoyed cuddle time together. 

Mobile Destructor

We now have two broken mobiles. Sam destroyed his old mobile while it was hanging over Awyn's crib, and now the mobile that Eric's parents gave us gave up the ghost with a loud SPROING! sound. I don't want to buy another mobile as Awyn is 3 months old and there really is an age limit on them. What I'm now looking for is a lamp like the one my nephew cole has. It has a revolving lampshade and if I remember it right, it casts stars and moons on the walls/ceiling. Any suggestions? I'd buy her a wonderfully expensive remote control mobile/light thing, but they cost too much and she's our last baby, so overly expensive baby investments aren't happening for something like a mobile.

Here at last is a picture of Ceniza, or at least I think that's how to spell it. I call it Sneeza, as it really makes my allergies go crazy. This bush really isn't blooming very much, but I think you can sort of see some of the small purple flowers on it. The tall plant right next to the jeep is called ocotillo, and I think Captain Kirk should be running past it whenever I see it. It is such an odd plant! It only has leaves when it rains, and then they drop off whenever it dries off and all you see are a few thorny sticks coming out of the ground. It also can be called fence plant. It was popular for fences because when you plant the ends into the ground they'll keep leafing out and blooming. 

Here Sam has fallen asleep in the jeep on our way home. Because of this 30 minute nap I am not getting his 2 hour afternoon nap. We've only done 5 time-outs so far. Mostly he just laughs at me and goes right back to doing whatever's getting him in trouble. 

This shot is just to show how green it is here right now. We all went for a jeep ride this morning. We drove out to the pine canyon trail and walked for a while. 

Last night we had company over, including Awyn's little buddy here. He's two weeks younger than she it. She grabbed his hand all on her own and we just had to get a picture of them together. They are so close in size it's kind of scary. Neither one is average. Isn't he a cutie? 

Here Sam is getting out his "Cocoa". Daddy started him on the path to chocolate milk, and now he asks for it all the time, and if I'm too slow, he gets it out himself. This time I'd caught him sitting on the floor in the middle of the kitchen licking the syrup out of the cap. 

Awyn is enjoying the excersaucer. She can't do much in it yet, but she likes sitting upright in it, so we've officially put it out in the living room. 

Fly Lady?

I've signed up for something that I know with give Eric shudders. In fact, I recall him telling me not to sign up for it a few years ago. But since I'm going to use my hotmail address, it won't gum up our regular e-mail. I'm going to try FlyLady.net A friend in Fort Smith first tried to get me hooked on it, and as I wasn't ready to try it. This website promises to help me learn how to keep my house clean, among other things. I like the terms it uses, although some of you might think it ridiculous. First term I'll define, and I think it says everything about my house, CHAOS: Can't Have Anyone Over Syndrome. My house isn't fit to be seen. When I do get it clean, I don't have the right ingredients in the house for a brilliant dinner, so I feel too self-conscious to offer the invite. I'd love to have other kids over to play with Sam, but I'm ashamed of how I keep the house. Eric does the best he can to help, but there is really only so much that can be accomplished after dinner and before bed. I'll let you guys know if it is working. In the mean time, anyone else who feels overwhelmed is welcome to join me...

Three Months Old!

Can you believe that Awyn is three months old? Sometimes it seems as if she's been here forever, and others like she's brand new. She is growing at an amazing rate, and is grabbing things and shoving them into her mouth whenever possible. Sam still thinks she's wonderful, but does exhibit jealosy symptoms from time to time. He is only two after all. But I think he's a pretty terrific big brother.

Here is a true conspiracy developing. Notice how they have their heads together as they plan the overthrow of their parents... I set Awyn in for a minute to do somthing in the bedroom, and Sam just had to climb into the crib with her. He can get in there all by himself. Also back down, but that usually ends in tears. 

Daddy and Awyn take a nap this afternoon/morning. I think they both look adorable here, so I couldn't resist posting it. Can you believe she's three months old today? 

Awyn is showing Sam how cool her new play thing is. She thinks the mirror is neat, and seems to warm up to this turtle. There's a long story behind this plaything. Maybe sometime I'll write it up... 

Sam's turn! He thought Awyn was having so much fun that he's taking over her toys. This is a continuing theme... 

Awyn really likes her play gym, at least when her brother isn't trying to butt in on her fun. Also, she gets a litle cranky if she thinks we aren't paying attention. She plays really well until she realizes that I've stepped out of the room or out of sight. 

Here Sam is teasing Awyn by taking away her pacifier. He's also whispering plans of world conquest in her ear and she's pretending to be shocked! 

Come swim with me! Actually this picture is just to show off how green our backyard is. We have a lot of grass back there right now; Eric actually has to mow!  

Sam in his new little plastic swimming pool. It was unbelievably difficult to find this thing. I looked in 3 cities on mulitple occasions. At the beginning of summer they were everywhere and we didn't have room in the van. Then they disappeared just as soon as we wanted to buy one. This was at the True Value Garden center store in Alpine. 

Sam got a balloon at the restaurant we ate dinner at last night. 

Tough Decision

After thinking about it all weekend, well all summer too, I've decided that my current job with the Coop isn't going to work out this school year. I started back to work last week, and was going to give it a month or two to see how things went. I had just one deal-breaker, and that was the hours I was willing to work. The school district doesn't want to count my driving time as part of my working hours, so I would have to leave the house no later than 6 in the morning and I wouldn't get home until 6 or 7 pm. That's just a little too long for a part-time job. My commute was 4 hours/day. I didn't get my local schools, which was one of the main reasons I accepted the job in the first place. Now this was for a logical reason, and I am not arguing against my supervisor taking over those schools. There will be at least one student who really needs her particular skills. And there will only be 4 children in those two schools needing speech services. So it made sense that I go to Presidio. My objection to driving that road was noted, but dismissed. This morning the director of the Coop called me and told me that I absolutely had to be at the school in Presidio from 8-4, as that was implied in my contract (implied, not written) unless I would be willing to switch to an hourly rate. I wouldn't be making as much money. Mileage was going to go up a little, maybe as high as $.40/mile, but gas prices just went up to $2.75 and are expected to climb to $3.00 by the end of the year. My reasons are many, and Eric and I both think this will be for the best. I'm planning on signing up to sub at the local schools, although I won't make any money at it; all my money would go to pay the babysitter. Haven't heard anything about the VUA position I applied for, so I'm not going to count my chickens yet. I will have to pay back my July paycheck, except for 2 days worth. I will be sending back the electric breast pump I ordered as soon as it arrives, as my sister's is just fine for occasional use.

All that being said, Sam has a new word. He says Yucky. It's cute until he mixes it up with yummy and applies it to dinner.

The Spud Game...

I'm going to post this again, to see if we can get it moving a little more than it has. Right now my potato is stuck in Fayetteville. Feel free to pass it along to someone else...

http://www.passthepotato.com/potato-3.php?potatoid=050717133836-497373

Thanks!

This was taken Wednesday. I'd set Awyn up in the chair and Sam just had to climb up as well. He's very possessive about this chair. He'll push me or Eric out, but Awyn is allowed, so long as he can rock her, hold her, tickle her, kiss her, play with her... This lasted for about 5 minutes before she let out that "HE'S TOUCHING ME!" scream.