Olivia, to Bryan, while holding her brother: “Isn’t it great having a baby?”
9 Nov
Harbingers of winter
Olivia, the self-proclaimed “best bird knower in the family,” is relishing the return of the Dark Eyed Juncos this fall. Bryan recently spotted a Red Breasted Nuthatch and a Yellow-Bellied Sapsucker (a name that sounds more like an insult, if you ask me), but I think I have the best spot of the season in this rather handsome Barred Owl.
Last night, Bryan had a dream that he saw an American Redstart here, but that hardly counts.
What’s flitting about your yard lately?
8 Nov
Room to grow
Owen measured 27.5 inches at his four month check up this week, a figure that literally put him off the (growth) charts.
He’s one long baby, and he has more than outgrown the bassinet. I’m still not ready to move him to his own room, and so he’ll sleep next to me in a pack and play until he outgrows that. We should have at least four or five days, I think…
By all accounts, everything is going (growing?) as expected. The doctor began to ask if he was eating well, glanced at Owen’s chart, and laughed given his 16 lb 5 oz weight. Indeed, he nurses like a champ. He’s sleeping from 8 pm until 5 am most nights, leaving us remarkably well rested.
Owen is full of sweet smiles and has retained his very calm demeanor. He loves to snuggle—not that we give him much choice: Unless we’re taking photos or sleeping ourselves, there’s a very good chance one of us is holding him. As such, we haven’t seen him roll front to back, but Diane assures us he’s well versed in this new little trick. He’s really starting to appreciate rattles, and his favorite toy is Waddles, which just happens to a be a hand-me-down from another sweet baby.
We have a couple of small hurdles ahead of us: a clogged tear duct (which we hope will resolve on it’s own) and a pretty impressive case of eczema. A few weeks ago, Owen started a prescription cream—it worked beautifully for two weeks, then just seemed to stop. Now, he’s a mess of breakouts, and our doctor said she’d never seen anything quite this bad. She referred us to a dermatologist, and so hopefully we’ll know more next week. In the meantime, we’re doing our best to keep this cute little guy as comfortable as we can.
6 Nov
Vote early and vote often
Olivia was disappointed; she thought we said we were going “boating.”
5 Nov
Overheard: All broken up
Ava: “Mom, is it true a high voice can break glass?”
Bec: “Yes.”
Ava, immediately excited: “Do you have a glass I can break?!”
—
Liv: “See my ‘O’ shaped rock, Mama?”
Ava: “That’s not a rock. It’s a Crinoid fossil….oops…”
Liv: “WHAT HAPPENED?”
Bec: “Well, now you have two ‘U’ shaped rocks…”
Liv, wailing: “AVA BROKE MY ROCK!!”
Bry: “That’s okay. It will only take 300 million years to make another one.”
31 Oct
Carving pumpkins with Dad
Bryan snapped these photos as the girls carved their pumpkins Monday night. We’re looking forward to costumes, trick-or-treating and several fun events today. More photos to come!
29 Oct
Mustache Monday
It’s spirit week at Ava’s school, and so she’s sporting a rather serious ‘stache.
It’s not spirit week at Olivia’s school, but that didn’t stop her this morning.
25 Oct
The day the Tooth Fairy moved in
A few weeks ago, Olivia came tearing downstairs, completely tripping over her limbs and words, frantic to tell us what she had just discovered in her room:
She wasn’t entirely sure what it was, but she loved my hypothesis: The Tooth Fairy was visiting so frequently, she needed to install her own special entrance.
While Ava stood by, arms crossed and a very skeptical look on her face, Olivia engaged me in what is most certainly one of my very favorite parenting moments to date. Her excitement was beyond measure, and she was immediately convinced that the Tooth Fairy was now living permanently within the walls of our house.
While Ava checked the exterior of our home for a like entrance on the outside, Olivia phoned Bryan (who was away on a trip for work). She could hardly get the words out, and I imagine it was quite a struggle for Bryan to understand exactly what was going on.
Both girls decided to take a closer look, peering into the tiny keyhole, hoping to find a few clues.
Ava wasn’t sure if it really was the work of the Tooth Fairy, or if instead I was responsible for this new addition. I told her that magic is all around us, and she just needed to embrace the fact that we were the happy recipients of something truly amazing.
She tested this theory by leaving a note for the Tooth Fairy by the door, instructing her as to the location of her recently lost tooth. She reasoned that if the Tooth Fairy found the note, and then found the tooth, she had indeed made use of this new entrance.
The following morning, coins were in place of the tooth, the note was gone, and there was a sprinkling of fairy dust on the the threshold of the door.
Ava was convinced.
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