"I Play Minute"

Tuttle response to being asked to do something he does not particularly want to do is currently, "I play minute." This is most common at mealtime or naptime.

Yesterday while it rained and poured, we did just that. We "played minute" all day! Sometimes the most special pictures are not taken at a holiday or special event. They are just the everyday moments that will be over in the blink of an eye. Can you tell I am getting sappy that Tuttle and Maggie are growing up WAY TOO FAST?

I cannot get enough of that smile!

 

Tuttle is very interested in dressing up in costumes and playing with action figures right now. I decided to take down the train setup because he was ignoring it and pushing it to the side to make room for his super heroes. This was a VERY sad decision because the train used to completely consume his playtime. I am hoping if I get it out again in a couple of weeks that he will have a renewed interest.

I created an art project for Tuttle, Maggie, and Ellie to do yesterday. It was Maggie's first time with finger paint. I think the pictures prove that it was a success. :)

Will someone please tell me where the Pause Button is located???

Cookout and Catching Up

Val and Paul invited us over Sunday afternoon for an impromptu cookout. Jonathon and Stephanie were there, so it was the perfect relaxing end to our weekend. The Burkes are always the best hosts, and the burgers from the Green Egg were very yummy! The blueberry mimosas were a nice touch, too!!

Baby Charles (Maggie's boyfriend) just cracks me up with all his rolls! I could just eat him up. He was close to twenty pounds at four months, and Maggie was close to fourteen pounds at six months! She needs to big, strong man to protect her! :)

Val knows the way to Tuttle's heart. She put on Mickey Mouse for him to watch. He was a zombie.

 

I wish we could all get together more often. I absolutely LOVE Val and Stephanie, and Jay always enjoys catching up with Paul and Jonathon. 

Val showed me how to put together photos on PicsArt, so I made this collage of Maggie from month one to month six. She is such a big girl now!

  Just Because....

I wanted to make a little list of some of my favorite things Tuttle is saying/doing now. I understand most will not appreciate the cuteness, but he keeps me laughing ALL DAY LONG!

• Whenever he sees something he owns at home (a book at the library, a toy at Target), he points to it and says, "Mommy, this, too."
• Jay played a video game in front of Tuttle for maybe 30 minutes one Sunday. The character climbed walls, rode a horse, and occasionally fought people with a sword (nothing bloody). Tuttle is OBSESSED with the game now. One of his Happy Meal figures is now named "Daddy's Game." Tuttle will climb on top of play structures at the park and announce that he is playing Daddy's game. He begs Jay to play it now. 
• Tuttle is also very into football now. He lines up his Little People, Wonder Pets, and other action figures very carefully and then pushes them all together in one swipe. He announces that they are playing football. If Tuttle hopes to play football one day, his career will be short lived if he just falls down all the time. :)
• We are officially at the "No, My Turn" stage. This includes buckling his seatbelt, turning on/off the light in the bathroom, opening any kind of package, turning on his music/sound machine for bed, and taking off his shoes. Just to name a few.
• One of Tuttle's favorite books is The Napping House. At the end the little boy falls down and "bumps the granny." This has turned into Tuttle mimicking the little boy by standing on the couch or recliner and body slamming the poor individual lounging. Daddy and Aunt Peach are usually the ones taking the abuse, but we can sometimes get him to "bump the Smelly" (our chocolate lab). Bella is not amused. 

Never a boring day at the Thorne house. We would not have it any other way.

Mystery Reader

Yesterday Jay surprised Tuttle at preschool as the "Mystery Reader" for his class. This was also an important day for Tuttle because he brought snack for his friends, so he was line leader for the day!

Tuttle was a little surprised to see his daddy, mommy, sister, and Ellie in his room during circle time, but I could tell that he was proud of Jay for reading Green Eggs and Ham (Daddy's favorite selection) to his friends. Since Jay always reads the book with funny voices, the class was cracking up laughing! :)

Tuttle was a little off because his teacher had corrected his behavior during recess for pushing his friends. He does like to get in trouble. Unfortunately watching football on tv has resulted in Tuttle trying out pushing/tackling moves on his buddies. He only does it while he is excited and running around, so his intentions are not to hurt, but it is something we are discussing at home and will not allow to continue at school.

That being said, Tuttle was clingy and ready to head home. :(

I loved that Jay got a glimpse into Tuttle's normal routine. Daddy works so hard that he does not get to see Maggie and Tuttle very much during the week. This was the perfect opportunity to spend some special time with the kids. We love you, Daddy!

Happy Six Months, Maggie Ruth!

Margaret Ruth Thorne has been a part of our family for six months now.

At six months, Maggie

• is 13 pounds, 10 ounces (8%)
• is 25.5 inches tall (29%)
• eats 4-6 ounces every three hours and a jar of baby food at lunch/1-2 jars at dinner
• has tried green beans, peas, bananas, apples, pears, sweet potatoes, squash, mango, berries, and mixed vegetables
• wears 3-6 month clothes, but 6-9 month clothes do not completely swallow her. We are in a clothing limbo right now with most of her 6-9m clothes being spring attire, but Maggie is starting to grow out of her winter 3-6m clothes. A small shopping trip might be in my future! :)
• goes to bed at 7pm and wakes around 7am. The last two nights she slept straight through, but she has been waking once between 4-6, eating a 7 ounce bottle, and going back to sleep until about 7am.
• sleeps on her tummy and loves tummy time during the day
• still takes 15mg of Prevacid to control her acid reflux
• takes a couple cat naps in the swing or carseat in the morning, but Mommy is sleep training her to sleep in her crib at 1pm while everyone naps. She is lasting a little over an hour. She usually grabs a 30-45 minute nap around 5pm, as well.
• has mastered sitting up without any support in the last week which opens up a whole new way to play! She enjoys simply looking around or grabbing at toys on the floor next to her.
• can roll all the way across the room although there is no real purpose to her movements. She just prefers not to stay in one place for long.
• has successfully stayed in the nursery for church the last four Sundays. This is a HUGE deal because she never lasted more than 20 minutes at the YMCA nursery while Mommy worked out.
• loves going on walks in the stroller or carrier attached to Mommy
• gives EVERYONE the biggest smile! :)
• loves her big brother more than anyone. If Mommy needs to get something done, Maggie is 100% happy sitting near Tuttle while he plays.
• continues to get her Daddy more and more wrapped around her finger

Half a year has FLOWN by! Please slow down, Maggie.

We love you!!

Preschool Pajama Day

Today was Pajama Day at Tuttle's preschool. I do not really think he understand what was going on this morning when I dressed him, but I know he enjoyed the day with his friends. His teacher told us that the kids snuggled in a bear cave in the classroom and drank hot chocolate at snack time.

While he looks like a big boy most of the time now, I think pajamas still make Tuttle look like a baby. :) 

Tuttle is starting to get annoyed with all the pictures I take of him. I guess it was only a matter of time. I did get almost three years of solid photos!

Maggie got in on some pajama action last night, as well. She was practicing her new favorite skill: sitting up like a big girl! She has almost mastered it in just a few days. Could she be any cuter?

The cold has returned, so we are staying bundled up at home this afternoon. Sometimes a lazy day at home is just what you need, especially when you get to watch three babies pretend and explore!

Our Weekend

We usually have weekends FILLED with commitments and activities, but the last few weekends have been relatively quiet and uneventful. We have enjoyed that a lot. It has been so laid back that I almost forget what we did all weekend!

One of our resolutions with the new year has been to start going to church again with a goal of attending at least 50% of the Sundays for the year. This is a lofty goal because we have not gone at all for almost a year. I am proud to report that we have gone the last FOUR Sundays in a row! We tried out the early service at 8:45, and it is the perfect fit for our family. We are already up by 7am, so I just get the kids dressed quickly, Jay grabs a Starbucks coffee on the way to church, and we are happily in our pew on time. Maggie does well in the nursery since it is early in the morning, and Tuttle loves his little Sunday School class. We reward ourselves after church with eating out for breakfast.

I snapped some shots of the kids before church yesterday. 

Grandmama and Grandaddy came by for a quick visit after church. Jay and I were able to go to breakfast by ourselves while Maggie and Tuttle stayed at the house. That hour of adult time is such a treat for us!

We enjoyed a little time outside before naps.

Thanks for stopping by, Grandmama and Grandaddy! :)

You Make Me Smile!

This little girl makes me smile.

Only one small potty accident in FOUR DAYS also makes me smile. 

Yeah, Brother! :)

Little Big Girl

The last week has been pretty low key at our house. It has been raining, raining, and raining, so the kids and I have been stuck inside more than usual. I am looking forward to a weekend of sunshine.

Do you know that day when your child magically changes from a little baby to a big girl? That happened to Maggie this week. Honestly, the first four or five months were hard. Not as hard as many parents have it, but between the colic/acid reflux/lactose intolerance/does not like to take naps during the day, it was a difficult time for me. Maggie is now on effective medication, smiles constantly, can play independently, and sleeps much better!

We started solid foods. She was not a fan of rice cereal (much like her big brother), so I went straight to fruits and vegetables. In a matter of days, she started eating a jar of baby food at lunch and dinner. She LOVES peas and green beans, but she has also eaten bananas, apples, pears, sweet potatoes, and squash.

We have been practicing sitting up without assistance. She can successfully stay upright for about 30 seconds if there is something in front of her that she is interested in, causing her to lean forward slightly. It is still a work in progress.

Both Maggie and Tuttle was been lazy bones in the morning for the week. Maybe it is the rain? Maggie makes it until 7:15 or so (She typically eats a quick bottle sometime between 5am and 6am), and Tuttle has been sleeping until 7:30. There is something about the magical hour of 7am that does not feel like you are up too early. 

Tuttle has gone TWO DAYS now without an accident! YEAH! I bought a new potty seat that attaches to a regular potty, and I literally take it everywhere. I hope this will create some consistency with going in public. I even leave it with his teachers at preschool and church. Hooray to no more diapers! We are venturing to the pet store to check out the animals after naptime as a reward for staying dry at school today. :)

On a sad side note, Tuttle did receive his first spanking two days ago. He has started to get very distracted when he is given directions. After a warning to come eat lunch, he refused and had to deal with the consequence. Although eating lunch is not that serious, it is more about the fact that many of my directions have to do with safety issues like getting in the car when I am loading all three kids up to go somewhere or not running through the kitchen after I mopped. I have started telling Tuttle to put on his "listening ears" before I am giving specific instructions, and this has helped keep him focused on following directions.

Jay and I are looking foward to another relaxing weekend with the babies.

Potty Training Success!

I know most do not care about updates on Tuttle's potty training, but when you are potty training a 2.5 year old, it consumes your life, and you THRIVE on a glimmer of success. :)

This morning Tuttle had THREE huge accomplishments.

1. He woke up with a dry diaper after sleeping for about twelve hours and drinking two sippy cups of milk in bed.

2. He sat on the potty right away and peed A LOT and most actually made it into the potty. (The potty is currently in our kitchen, so he will be so isolated. This morning I let him watch a television show while he sat, so he could aim better.)

3. After I took a shower, I checked on Tuttle to see if he needed to sit on the potty. He was already at the potty trying to pull down his underwear. He insisted he do it himself, so I left him alone to do my makeup. A minute later I hear Tuttle announce that he did it. I looked, and he had peed again ALL BY HIMSELF. This is big!

Tuttle is such a big boy now. 

Maggie is growing like crazy, too. Although she does not nap very much during the day, she is getting GREAT at sleeping through the night. She goes to bed between 6:45-7:00 and sleeps about 12 hours. She sometimes wakes up to eat around 3 or 4, but she goes back to sleep until close to 7. Some nights she does not wake up at all. It is crazy to think that I am finally sleeping through the night after almost 6 months of interrupted sleep!

I could not ask for a better job to spend all my time with my babies while they grow up.

Potty Training: Day 4

We have stayed dedicated to potty training for four days now. Four long days. Tuttle sits on the potty every fifteen minutes  (I use the kitchen timer.), and I allow him to play computer games on his Kindle to bribe him to stay longer. Today I saw some light at the end of the tunnel. 

1. We took his potty to Jack's house for a playdate, and I made him sit right when we arrived. He peed on the potty! I won't mention that majority ended up on the bathroom floor because he successfully went while sitting on the potty!!

2. He woke up from his three hour nap with a dry diaper.

3. I caught him trying to poop in the playroom, and I quickly grabbed him to sit on the potty. Now it is the second day #2 ended up in the potty!

He is going to preschool in underwear tomorrow. His teacher has been warned. 

Tuttle understands that we are wearing underwear now during the day while he is awake. He seems to have a positive attitude about our new venture. I can happily report that he will not wear diapers to college. :)

Sam's Fire Station Birthday Party

** I used my new iPhone 5 for the blog photos. I loved how convenient the phone was, but the quality does not compare with my SLR. Lesson learned.

We had been looking forward to Sam's birthday party for weeks now. Sam is Tuttle's first friend, and that is convenient because Sam lives right across the street! :)

Sam held his party at the local fire station. Tuttle dressed the part in his firefight rain jacket and boots. I was very impressed with how interactive the firefighters were with the kids and how open they were to letting the kids explore their equipment.

Tuttle could not get enough of climbing into the trucks, holding the hose and spraying the water, and wearing the gas mask. He was constantly running from one thing to another!

Sam got in on the fire hose action, too!

After the fire station we went to Sam's house for pizza and cake. Tuttle did not hestiate to cram an entire piece of cake into his mouth with his hands. I looked like I am raising a cave man. 

Tuttle took a four hour nap when we went home. I spent the afernoon at the spa with Grandmama and Aunt Peach. It was the perfect Saturday for both of us!

Happy 3rd Birthday, Sam!

On a side note, we are FULL ON potty training now. I am dealing with many accidents, but Tuttle is having a positive attitude about wearing underwear.