Tuesday, August 30, 2011

Random Pictures of the Kids

He's looking so OLD now!  I mean that first picture looks like we're shipping him off to enlist or something with a little boy buzzcut! :-)

We took a bunch of random pictures at bedtime, when they were all in pajamas.  I love how they all turned out!

These ones with Daddy are my favorites!  Even if Isaac looks a bit terrified that Ellie's gonna strangle him. :-)

From earlier in the day -- Ellie woke up at 5AM yesterday morning, so you can imagine how tired she was by 2 in the afternoon.  Tired enough to fall asleep up to the computer while eating a sucker, that's how tired.  :-)

Ellie's First Day of Preschool

Ellie has been anxiously awaiting starting preschool ALL summer -- she could NOT have been more excited this morning!

The first picture is Annie & Sarajayne on their first day of the same preschool two years ago -- the other three are of their younger sisters, Ellie and Kate, this morning.  Is it just me, or do Annie & Sarajayne seem younger?  Ellie's always seemed younger to me than Annie, at the same ages, but in this picture I think both older sisters look way younger than their baby sisters at the same age!
All three siblings -- this was as good as it got :-) I never got one of all three kids actually looking at the camera at the same time.
These crack me up -- Ellie is the world's biggest cheeseball, and when a camera is in sight, she just lets loose :-)

Saturday, August 27, 2011

My Little Squash & Due Date Wishes!

So, I got my weekly pregnancy update email today.  I was informed that my 22 week old fetus was now about the size of a squash . . . or just around 11 inches and about a pound.

I've been reading my 'fruit sized' updates for the last 12 weeks or so, informing Annie and Ellie that their baby was now the size of a kiwi, then an apple, then a small cucumber from Grandma's garden.  But today, the stats just stopped me in my tracks for a second, as I caught my breath.  My baby isn't the size of a squash.  My baby is the size of Quinn.

Our friend Quinn was born last May at an unbelievable 15.5 ounces and 10 inches long.  
 
It was kind of amazing to think that the tiny kicking little boy inside my stomach, who's barely letting himself be known through little flutters and an occasional decent kick, is no smaller than Miss Quinn herself when she was born.

Defying any odds stacked against her tiny self, she's grown into the most amazing toddler.
Quinn and Isaac earlier this summer.
And now here we are, about 15 months later, and it's Quinn's official Due Date Day!
Had this fiesty wonder not came into the world 15 weeks early, she's be celebrating her first birthday right about now.
I think Quinn's gonna make a lot of the 15 week head start she got on life -- she's already right there with my kids on my list of genius children I adore :-) 

Happy Due Date Day Sellers Family!



Friday, August 26, 2011

Mr. Talkative


So, I know I won't remember everything, but I was realizing I've never made a list for myself of some of the stuff Isaac is saying right now. So, here's what my pregnant, overly tired brain can come up with . .

He wakes up first thing in the morning, exclaims a happy "Mama!" when I open his door, then immediately starts to point down the stairs with an enthusiastic 'Ouhsa! Ouhsa!'  (Which translates to, "Outside! Now, already! We're wasting time indoors!")  The kid loves to be outside.  The only thing he possibly loves more is eating, so I can usually distract him with one of his other two favorite things.  I can usually snag his attention with 'Ah-psa' -- which started as 'applesauce' . . . the first time he ever used it he was asking for applesauce, but since it has kinda come to mean any and all food.)  (It's kind a confusing, and you can't really see it in how I've spelled them out here, but his 'outside' and 'apple/food' words are actually pretty close sounding . . . enough that sometimes I'm not sure which one he's asking for.  At that point it's easiest just to feed him a banana out on the back porch.)  :-)  He also signs and says 'mo' for 'more', as well as signs and says 'cahka' for cracker (or cookie, cereal or hard crunchy things of all varities.)  And an occasional 'wa' for a drink of water.  So, there's eating that trumps outside usually.  There's also nursing. Which he excitedly claps about and squeals "nuh!"  He almost never asks to nurse, he just excitedly exclaims it when it's time to nurse (usually first thing in the morning and right at bedtime, sometimes before a nap if I'm feeling like both of us need to curl up in bed and unwind a bit before he goes down), but today he was feeling sick, walked up to me, curled up against me and looked up and asked, "Mama, nuh?"

He tends to call Greg 'Mama', whenever he's asking him for something.  Then we'll remind him, "That's Daddy," and he'll laugh and start clapping and repeatedly crying out, "Da da da da," amused by his own mistake.  If Greg walks into a room though and Isaac seems him, or if he hears the garage door go up around 4:30 in the afternoon, then he'll happily exclaim, "Dada!"  But it's funny how if he's asking for something he automatically goes with 'Mama' to ask to have his needs met.  :-)   He will also ask for Dad in the mornings.  When I bring him into my bedroom to get his diaper changed and nurse, he'll look around and ask, "Da da?" if Greg's still not there.  (Greg typically leaves for work around 6:30 . . . Isaac typically wakes up between 6:15-6:40 . . . so Dad's home a lot of the time when he wakes up, but not all of the time. And he definitely notices the mornings Greg is MIA.)

I think he says 'sissas' for his sisters, but I'm not sure.  But I know he walks around all day calling for Annie with loud hollers of, "Aaah-na!"  (The week she started school, he'd walk around the house just mournfully wailing her name.  It was sad and adorable at the same time.)  He refuses to even attempt to acknowledge Ellie with any kind of title or name, and usually takes a swing at her if she gets too close.  They don't quite have the same relationship him and Annie have :-)

He does say "Am-ma" for Grandma, and "Am-pa" for Grandpa. 

He says "ba" for several things.  Ball.  Bear.  (His giant stuffed bear is "Ba bar" for Big Bear.)  And bath. (These three things are tied for his next favorite things!)

He says "Buh-bowls" for a nearly perfect sounding bubbles.  The other day he happily was calling out, "Ba ba ba ba ba!" as I was walking him up the stairs to take a bath.  When he suddenly looked up at me and grinned and asked, "Buh-bowls?"  I just smiled back and said, "OK Isaac, you can have a bubble bath."




He says "Buh-bye" and waves enthusiastically as people leave.  He picks up the phone and holds it up to hear ear (usually facing the wrong way) and chats endlessly, sometimes even beginning his one-sided conversation with the world "heh-o".

"Buh" is for 'bus'.  He has a toy school bus he LOVES to play in, but he's also started noticing buses on his shirt, in books or outside that he'll refer to as 'buh' as well. 

He says 'dah' for dog and 'woo' for 'woof'.  Other animal sounds amuse him, but he rarely if ever will repeat them back to me.

He exclaims, "Whoa!" in a near perfect Keanu Reeves impersonation that could win awards, at nearly every cool thing he sees, or everything he knocks over.  He uses the word 'whoa' approximately 100 times a day, at least. 







One of my favorite things he's started saying is 'bub, bub, bub' followed by a pause than, 'bat, bat, bat'.  This comes from a little game we play when he's cuddling.  He curls up on my chest, and I rub his back slowly in circles while I chant, "Rub, rub, rub . . . " then start patting softly, "Pat, pat, pat", then dramatic pause followed by, "Tickle! Tickle! Tickle!" while I lightly run my fingers up and down his back.  He loves this little ritual every bit as much as I do, and I love that he asks for it by name now.  Today in the bath tub he kept patting his belly and exclaiming, 'bat, bat bat!'  He'll also now ask us to sing "Patty Cake" by asking for 'bat bat'.

I'm sure there's a dozen other things he's used here and there, but these seem to be the core of what I can think of him using on a pretty much daily basis.  He seems to be speaking so much more than his sisters did at this age (he also walked steadier from a much younger age) -- I'm kinda convinced he knows on one level that he's gonna be the baby for less time than they were, so he's picking up the pace a bit!


Monday, August 22, 2011

Comparisons

Isaac, Ellie and Annie -- all around 13.5 months old.  His sisters had a bit more hair than him.  But not much.  :-)

Friday, August 19, 2011

Tiny Dancers

After watching his sisters dance and sing on the stage at Thanksgiving Point in front of the waterfall, Isaac joined in the fun, making up his own little dance . . .

His inspiration:



Tuesday, August 16, 2011

Happy Birthday Bug!

I call Isaac 'Bug' all the time -- but before my son, there was the first Bug in my life.  My baby brother Cody.  Or Cody-bug as we liked to call him.  Which annoyed my Dad.  Who prefer we try and think up a more masculine nickname.  Like Snake.

Today is Cody's birthday.  I won't see him today (or anytime soon), since he's off gallivanting through Uruguay.  He's on an LDS mission, with a bit more than a year left.  He's having an amazing time, we get to email with him every week, and I send him more pictures that he knows what to do with. 

I've been thinking about him today.  I miss him.  Mainly, I miss my girls' "Uncle Cody", who is one of their best friends and favorite people in the whole wide world.  He's been gone nearly a year, and they still talk about him all the time.  Anyone who dares try to play with them in the sandbox, be prepared to be told all the dozens of ways you're not as good at it as Uncle Cody.  Every single time Ellie says it prayer, it goes like this, "Dear Heavenly Father, thank you for the food.  Please bless Cody on a mission."  Every time.  (Even if it's not meal time).  

I'm a little sad he's not here with us on his birthday -- but at the same time, I'm thrilled that he's having the time of his life celebrating in an entirely different hemisphere, surrounded by new friends and a lot of fun people.  People kind enough to invite him over to help kill and roast a pig.  And a companion who bought a chocolate cheesecake.  It makes me happy that other people are looking out for him when I can't be :-)  (And frankly, if he'd been home with me, I would've NEVER let him kill and roast a pig -- so he's probably better off where he is.  I may have given him cheesecake though.)



Happy Birthday Bug!

Tuesday, August 9, 2011

It's a . . .

BOY!


OK, so most people might have already heard via facebook . . . but we had our ultrasound last night and got to see our healthy baby boy.  I think I was shocked.  Happily, happily shocked.  I really would've been happy with either a boy or a girl, but I'd be lying if I said I wasn't secretly hoping for another baby boy.  It'll just make life easier -- we have the two kids bedrooms upstairs, so having two girls and two boys simplifies the longer term sleeping arrangements.  And with this little surprise bundle of joy coming less than 18 months since Isaac joined the family, having them be two little buddies to entertain each other just makes me smile.  I also secretly was pretty convinced that because I had any kind of preference (again, would've been totally happy with a girl though!) that the punishment of said preference would be not getting what I wanted.  :-)  Thus my shock at the ultrasound tech's announcement of gender. I should've known it'd be a boy though -- and how should've I known, you ask?  'Cause of the name.  See, back in the days of my first pregnancy, I was convinced I was having a boy.  I really, really liked the name Annie for a girl (it was my nickname as a kid from my Dad, based on my middle name Ann), but try as we might, we could not come up with a boy name we both fell in love with.  Slowly, the baby in my belly secretly became Annie to me, which freaked me out, 'cause I was still so convinced it would be a boy.  But, lo and behold, we found out we were having a girl, and she's been Annie ever since.  Same story basically with Ellie.  Early on in our pregnancy, we were in a store, when a Mom called out, "Ellie!  Ellie Belly, come here!"  Greg melted, turned to me and said, "I want an Ellie Belly!"  (Although we were still debating Ellie or Lilly for awhile -- so that one wasn't quite as firm as Annie was, we never had a boys name picked out that we liked.)  Along came Isaac, and this time girls' names were elusive, and the boy name just stuck and we ended up with a boy.  This time around we joked about continuing our vowel name streak (A-E-I-and now O) with either the name Olivia or Owen.  I like the name Olivia, but it never really resonated with me this time around (although oddly, it was a name we'd discussed quite a bit for a past baby).  But Owen.  That name just stuck in my head.  I had a hard time not thinking of the baby as 'Owen.'  So, just from past experience, I should've known -- it'd be the name we liked.  (At least, I think Greg likes it -- he's been very mute about baby names this time, and he's never objected, and now the girls are calling the baby 'Baby Owen', so he may be stuck with it, like it or not at this point!)  :-)

Oh, and for those who hadn't read about it on facebook -- we took Annie to the ultrasound appointment with us, despite it being REALLY late.  Then, we let Ellie stay up late with Grandma who was baby sitting at home.  Annie was excited about seeing her baby brother first, and got progressively more and more slap happy while we were there (stopping the ultrasound a few times 'cause the tech and I couldn't stop laughing).  (She was totally being egged on by her Dad too, who was telling her funny stories, just to make her more goofy, I'm convinced.)  I let Annie be the one to call Grandma Karine and Ellie to tell them the big news.  Grandma was very excited.  Ellie on the other hand, started crying.  Then sobbing.  For like the next 10 minutes, and when we got home she was still inconsolable.  My Mom had been trying to explain all the benefits to the new little brother in our family, and how she'll have a new little girl cousin born just a few months before, but this just made her sob harder and wail, "But I want a girl baby of my own!"  My Mom pointed out that she has a sister already, which made her miss Annie who wasn't home yet, and she sobbed about wanting Annie there.  My Mom pointed out how much fun Isaac was and she cried that he was not fun at all.  It should be mentioned that it was two and a half hours after her bedtime, and she seems a bit better with the news today.  Not quite happy, but not hysterical.  :-)

Dinosaur Museum

It's that magical time of year where Greg's work hands us a pile of family passes and we go and try and see as MANY of them as possible in one month!  Saturday it was the Thanksgiving Point Dinosaur Museum with the kids, my parents and my sister Star.

The new Physics exhibit near the entrance of the museum was a favorite among everyone . . . in fact, I was worried we wouldn't be able to drag Greg out of there!
Here's Annie, Grandpa and Isaac playing with the balls . . .
 Annie and Ellie repeatedly ran through the 'star tunnel', and got more and more excited each time they did it . . . here's Annie after coming out of it the fifth or sixth time . . .
 Isaac and Aunt Star
 I think the only reason we were able to get Greg away from the Physics exhibit was the promise of the erosion tables . . . it's a favorite with all my kids :-)  Here's Ellie working on building an island for her dinosaurs . . .
 Aunt Star comparing Ellie's size to the fish -- the fish won . . .
 Aunt Star and the girls . . .
 Ode to Shark Week (it was still Shark Week when the pictures were taken, at least)
 Ellie pouting 'cause Aunt Star (the horrible person she is) totally forgot to bring her grape lip gloss with her . . . Ellie was beyond disappointed . . .
 Isaac was a huge fan of the tiny guard rails that worked well as hand rails if you're under 30" tall . . . it was like, "It's about time they start accommodating us short people!"
 I absolutely LOVE this picture of Annie and Grandpa . . .
 Mommy and Isaac digging for dinosaur bones . . . or smuggling gravel out in Isaac's diaper . . . one or the other . . .

Monday, August 8, 2011

Family Party

Saturday night, we met up with Greg's extended family for a fun family night.  The kids had SO much fun at the park we were at -- although, unfortunately, there weren't any other kids their ages, so all the pictures of them playing in the park don't include any of the rest of the family.  But just imagine lots of other cool people were there too, they were just over talking on lawn chairs instead of tire swings.  And I don't tend to take as many pictures of adults in lawn chairs as I do children in tire swings :-)

 I liked this one, 'cause it's Ellie bugging Isaac, Isaac looking pissed and pushing back, and Annie posing sweetly for the camera -- it pretty much sums up a lot of our days :-)

Isaac hanging with Daddy and Mommy 

 Ellie clearing all the cantaloupe from the fruit tray when she thought nobody was looking . . .

 Annie posing for pictures -- the girl does love posing.





I was kind of amused that the only other children there were two little girls just younger than Isaac -- and in the four hours or so we were there, you never heard either of them so much as fuss or make a peep.  Isaac, on the other hand, was screaming at people, throwing stuff when he got angry, and tossing his head around in a dramatic, 'I'm tired and angry' fashion.  (Not the whole time, but more often than I'd prefer.)  :-)  (He did spend a chunk of his time trying to schmooze the chocolate cake and Cheetos from anyone who had food -- he can be very charming when he wants to be!)  Driving home, Greg and I were discussing how our beautiful, amazing children have never been described as calm or mellow or even-tempered.  :-)  Although, I do think (especially after talking to the surgeon this morning) that Isaac's fluid and gunk filled ears were the biggest culprit behind his general pissiness. 

Isaac at the Hospital

We checked in bright and early . . .
Isaac was one very grumpy baby this morning.  He screamed at anyone who approached him.  The poor kid has seen too many doctors lately!
 Once we were in the waiting room, he calmed down a bit.  First, 'cause he saw Elmo on TV and was mesmerized.

Then for some added comfort, he stuck his entire arm down my shirt . . .
And cuddled with Dad and his Beary Blanket . . .  

And finally, found some toys and cheered up and explored a bit . . . just in time for them to come and get him and take him away to surgery . . .

It was only about 30 minutes or less before we met up with him again in recovery where he was sucking down a bottle of glucose water.  When he finished that he started screaming so I tried to latch him on to nurse, but apparently he wanted fluid a bit quicker than I could supply, so he downed an entire 8 ounce bottle of diluted apple juice, then some more water, then he decided he wanted to nurse.  I was kinda surprised, since nursing is usually the go-to for comfort at this stage for my kids, and Annie nursed non stop for 20-30 minutes after her first surgery, but apparently thirst was a more pressing issue.  I think Greg enjoyed providing the non-Mommy comforting though . . .


They warned us he'd be kinda tired and wouldn't have much of an appetite.  Of course, he'd finished off a pack of graham crackers before we got home, then some applesauce, squash, a blueberry muffin and he nursed again all within 15 minutes of being home.  Then he was off -- climbing on toys, jumping onto his big bear, running from one ball to another . . . I think the mass amounts of gunk they removed from his ear is already making him feel better -- plus they said it'd improve his balance and hearing . . .
He finally took a nap, and is now up and playing with his sisters (plus, he just said 'Annie' about as clearly as I've ever heard it), so all in all, I think this was a huge success . . .

Sunday, August 7, 2011

They Grow Up So Fast . . .

I know this is technically just another 'First Day of Kindergarten' type of post . . . but I was looking at the pictures of Annie & Sarajayne on their first day of Preschool two years ago vs. them last week getting ready to catch the bus to go to school . . . time flies!





And just an FYI, but Greg, Isaac and I (and our trusty babysitter Aunt Lacy) will all be waking up freakishly early in the morning to get Isaac to the hospital by 6:15AM so we can get tubes in this kid's ears already and hopefully magically turn him back into a cheerful kid, and not the super grumpy clogged-ears baby that's been screaming at all hours at our house over the last several weeks (er, months!)  Wish us luck!

Wednesday, August 3, 2011

First Day of Kindergarten

We woke Annie up a bit early, to the smells of her favorite breakfast food . . . which today was specially called "Kindergarten-Annie Pancakes", complete with pureed fruit and whipped cream.  
Isaac enjoyed them immensely:
 She was dressed and ready to go with plenty of time to spare.  She was so excited.
And even more excited as we met up with her fellow Kindergarten students on our way to the bus stop.
The three of them were giggly and excited and giddy with the sheer anticipation.
 And all the older kids at the bus stop were so cute with them -- promising the girls and their Moms alike that they'd make sure these three made it to their class room when they got off the bus.  
Here's the first graders, the newbie Kindergarteners and three younger siblings who were just wanting to be a part of everything:

Waiting in line for the bus:

Bye Mom! 


 
Annie seemed to have fun.  But, since I'm pretty convinced they have all kids sign some kinda confidentiality form the first day of school (since from the beginning of Preschool Annie has come home on the first day all, "I don't remember what we did . . . it was good," and has been unable to ever tell me more beyond that) we have not gotten a ton of info out of her.  She seems to have enjoyed it.  There is a drinking fountain INSIDE THEIR SINK.  That seems to have left an impression.  It was definitely the highlight of her day.  And the bus ride.  Both bus drivers seemed to get a bit lost (getting them to school a tad late, meaning they didn't get to line up with their classes, but instead make a mad dash to catch up with their classes who were already inside . . . and then they got home about 10-15 minutes late, which was making us three 'first time Elementary school' Moms just a teeny bit nervous.  Their normal bus driver in the morning is supposed to be back soon -- and hopefully the Kindergarten bus driver bringing them home worked out all the kinks on her route today). 
Unfortunately, the rest of the day Annie was a tiny woman possessed, screaming and flailing and freaking out left and right.  We will probably avoid playing with friends tomorrow after school and have a nice movie afternoon instead, 'cause I think someone is a tad overwhelmed and tired, even if she won't admit it.  Maybe a couple someones.