October 2012

When Helen was 9 months pregnant, a coworker told her, "the best thing about having two kids is that you really appreciate having just one." At the time, it seemed like kind of a cruel thing to tell someone when it's entirely too late to have just one.  But one year later, we can both appreciate what she was saying: when you're hanging out with two kids all the time, you forget that they each have their own personalities. While it's fun to see them playing and giggling together it's pretty cute to see them on their own as well.

This month we didn't do much at all, but Helen and Ava did go on a mommy-daughter date and you could tell she's never felt so special. Ava had "Ava-skeeters" (ebelskivers) at a restaurant and went shopping, and didn't have to share at all :)

This month James finally went from wobbly steps to wobbly strings of steps. He also started stacking blocks and rings. But lets be honest, the most exciting achievement this month was a full night's rest for all as James FINALLY slept for 11 hours straight.

12 Things About James

1. James falls on his face at least once a day. Most falls are due to poor balance but a good portion are due to sister abuse.
2. James used to eat anything but now throws all his food on the floor. Brody has a new-found interest in the boy.
3. James loves to dole out high fives. It makes him giggle.
4. There's nothing better than a hug from James. He lays his head on your shoulder and pats your back.
5. He now ventures down stairs backwards
6. James really likes tunnels. His teachers recently had to rearrange the classroom so that he would stop climbing through the cubbies and landing on his head.
7. He also loves to sit in baskets...wicker, laundry, you name it, he'll climb on in and hang out for a while.
8. After a few weeks of hating the pool, James is now a regular little goldfish. Swimming is the highlight of his week.
9. James has added "B" to his alphabet, and can now say book, bottle, and ball.
10. We're not sure James will ever learn to fully walk.  He took a few steps five weeks ago and got his fill of the whole thing.
11. James has seven teeth and sports a high-fashion gap between his front teeth.
12. Our little guy barks at both our dog and the neighbor's cat. When he wakes up, James woofs until we bring Brody in his room to say good morning.

I am One

Rollin' with my Gnomies

What's not to love about Halloween? Maybe the crazy rush to get back from work, pick two kids up at school, feed them and dress them in funny outfits all by the unofficial start time of 6 pm. Was it worth it? Of course it was.

James = garden gnome

Ava = kangaroo. Not pictured: joey in her pocket

Today in James

What a clever little sausage.

September 2012

Hot diggity, this boy can walk! Well, not exactly, but he has taken his first steps and he's so incredibly proud of himself he claps while he's doing it.

Other than bipedalism, the big news this month was the start of school for both Ava and James. James started daycare at Ava's school and Ava has, of course, been taking her role as big sister quite seriously by picking out his clothes and blankets for school, placing them in his cubby each day, and reading him and his new friends a story during drop-off time. Ava also started preschool this month and for the most part the transition has been fairly smooth. It's the same school, so as far as we can tell the only difference is that it's upstairs with more kids (or "friends" as they call them), fewer teachers, more structure, and more learnin'. For Ava's part, she's tried to maintain continuity with the last two years by screaming like a banshee when she's dropped off and refusing to leave at the end of the day, so our experience has remained the same.

Other than that, September was a really fun month with a day trip to the coast, lots of swimming, and a block party to beat all block parties. We have pictures and videos of both so we'll try to be good blog stewards and get all of it into some new blog posts soon. Until then, enjoy the pictures from this month...

Today in Ava

Helen: Ava, we don't ride the baby.
Ava: He's okay with it.

Baby Tricks!

Let me help you out here. I believe the phrase you're looking for is, "Oh my god. How cute is that kid?!"

August 2012

Ava and James are like two peas in a pod these days. If we wake Ava up in the morning, she screams that it's too early and demands that we leave the room. But then she requests that James stays and immediately transforms from Little Miss Grouchy to animated kindergarten teacher. They squeal with delight when they see each other. A little while ago when James closed the hallway door and got stuck, he immediately called out her name and she came running around the corner to help him.

James is turning into quite the little prankster. He's all about throwing his water bottle from his high chair to see how many times you'll pick it up. He also quite enjoys blowing a raspberry (a "Bronx cheer" to some) with food in his mouth. He is fond of tipping the dog water over, trying to dip his hand in the toilet bowl, and pulling plugs out and trying to stick his fingers in the sockets. To be clear...YES, we are watching him but he's very very fast and the king of misdirection. He often starts crawling in one direction (like away from the dog bowl) and then makes a swift sharp turn (to the dog bowl).

As for baby tricks, James has been expanding his vocabulary a great deal. James was oddly silent for the first 6 months--we even asked his doctor about it at his 6 month appointment but she shrugged it off to him not having the opportunity to speak, with Ava clogging the airwaves as she does. Now that he's started talking, he just won't stop and says all sorts of stuff all day long. Here is his current dictionary, which all revolves around his solid 4 letter alphabet of A, D, M, and N: mama, dada, aya, ah duh (all done), nigh nigh, di di (bye bye), nom nom, dah-dah (doggie).

Family Circus

There is absolutely nothing our children love more than silliness. Especially animal noise silliness.

Climb Every Mountain

Last week Ava went bouldering--you know, like they did when you were a kid--and she kind of kicked ass. The adrenalin rush didn't stay at the gym, however. Now she's climbing our bookshelves, scaling our dining room buffet (using drawer pulls as footholds), and using her planter box to catapult herself over the side of our porch. She's a climbing machine.

I Learned it by Watching You

The student becomes the master...

Straight Talk with Ava

We just found some old Ava-isms in our "drafts" file so we posted them here because she makes us giggle. She's a pretty sassy girl and has no qualms telling it like it is.

Here are some more recent ones:

• During a heated discussion about plumbing: "You should talk to Grandad in a gentle voice."
• "You should ask me why I'm upset. I'm an upset person."
• While teaching her imaginary friend how to rock climb: "Hold on tight, Leo. Hold on tight to your dreams."
• "James, you think it's funny that I got peanut butter on my shirt?" Walks out, disgusted.

Today in Ava

"Hey, Layna (neighbor friend). I got a new haircut for preschool. They're not going to know what to do with me!"

Touching Moments

At first I saw this picture and I was like, "Ohhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh."

And then I looked a little closer and I was like, "Oooooooooooooooooooooooh."

July 2012

This month Brian's parenting dreams came true as we finally cracked open a hefty box of real Legos "for Ava" to play with. Moments later "Ava" had created a stunning display of jets and marine craft, complete with headlights, retractable roofs, windows and working doors. By the end of the work session, Brian--who generally would prefer that we don't own many possessions at all--declared that what we needed were more Lego sets. His creativity is being stifled.

July also began Ava's countdown to preschool. We are very excited to see what preschool is all about. Ava has been giving us previews, like when Helen ties her shoes and Ava announces, "Momma. When you get to preschool, you can do that all by yourself." We made a countdown chain of stars, which we ceremoniously reduce by one each evening.

James now has three baby teeth which he likes to use to bite cheeks. When he's not inflicting bodily harm, he's opening up cupboards of pans and attempting to pull everything on to the kitchen floor. There is absolutely nothing he can't get into and nothing he won't put into his mouth. In keeping with our general, "it takes a village" approach to parenting, we have taught Ava the signs of choking and practiced the screaming that we expect from her, should she hear gagging noises from James. You might say we're relying too heavily on a 3 year-old, as evidenced by her asking Helen to "keep an eye on James" while she "goes potty."

Wiggity, Wiggity, Wiggity Wack

 

 "Put the Jump song on. I LOVE the Kris Kross."
- Ava

Big Sis. Little Bro.

Outta My Way Greenhorn!

June 2012

Somebody once told us that when you have kids, things are very hard in the beginning, and then they get easier, and then get hard once again when the second child gets mobile. In our house right now, it's absolute anarchy. James seems to have catapulted from chubby ball sitting on the floor to Olympic medalist (the event is unclear) in a couple of weeks and we are far from prepared. Every moment of the day is spent either sweeping his throat for a foreign object, gasping as a sharp corner narrowly misses his eye socket, or counterbalancing a bar stool just as it gets ready to crack his skull. In our spare moments, we're daydreaming about baby helmets, infant cages, and weighing whether our friends and neighbors would judge us if we installed some sort of a stake-in-the-ground tether system.

So about June, we say this: we're glad we're all still alive.

Coast to Coast

Grandma and Grandpa Rabold came out to Portland from Savannah for a 10-day visit this month. At first glance, the timing was unfortunate--the same week as their visit, James moved into the "stranger danger" phase of development. Just to prove he could give his sister a run for her money, he spent an entire day screaming his head off.  But over the days of their visit, he succumbed to their loving grandparently presence and rewarded their persistence with the development of some new tricks. While they were here, James went from dragging his big ole body across the floor to fully crawling. He also started clapping, pulling himself up on furniture and generally became a menace in our completely un-babyproofed home.

While Layne and Gary were here, we took a trip to the Oregon coast with both sets of grandparents. Oddly enough, Layne and Sue celebrate the same birthday so it seemed like a birthday field trip was in order. Although it was rainy, dreary and cold (it is still the Oregon coast in June), it was a rugged good time. Just to make sure it was, the adults drank lots of wine. Here are some pictures of the whole gang:

Fanciful father-daughter spin shot

James's first ocean toe-dip. That water averages 58 degrees in June...James was not impressed.

Who needs warm weather? We have starfish!

Birthday girl #1

Birthday girl #2

We mentioned it was rugged, right?

Dining al fresco, Oregon coast style.

Life at the Frat House

I swear we've had these same exact conversations with drunk friends...

• "I'm just going to pee on this grass so I don't have to go all the way inside."
• "James and I are playing drinking games. When you're done with dinner, I can show you how to play drinking games."
• "Ava, where are your pants?"
• "I threw up in my bedroom. Just a little bit."
• "I don't drink wine. It makes my body sick." 

What are we playing here? Quarters?

Going the Distance

We've been playing "Eye of the Tiger" pretty much constantly for the last three months, just psyching James up for this exact moment.

No, really we would prefer that he just stay stationary for a while and make our lives a whole lot easier. But the heart wants what the heart wants. James's heart wants to be on the move.

Ava's First Joke

Ava's been all about jokes lately. In fact, her favorite joke is to just lie about something. For example, she might insist she has washed her hands when she clearly has not, and then add, "I made a joke," in an oddly low voice when we call her out on it. But she's also been trying her hand at some actual jokes, as well:

Since Ava refused to take her finger out of her mouth for this performance, we'll transcribe for you:

Ava: I have a dog with no nose.

Helen: How does he smell?

Ava: Awful.

May 2012

In typical Portland fashion, summer came and went in May. It was nice while it lasted, though. James got some air to his chubby legs. Ava played in wading pools and started a garden in her very own raised bed (thanks, Rodders!). Then, of course, it rained and we jumped around in puddles.

James spent the entire month scooting backwards through the house, all the while screaming and looking quite distressed. By the end of the month, his hard work paid off as he was finally able to commando crawl his way forward to any number of choking hazards that Ava calls toys. While a newly mobile James has Ava feeling even more territorial than usual, she has found a unique way to exert her dominance by ripping toys out of his hands and telling him, "No, Jamesie. That is too small for you. You will swallow it and you won't be able to breathe. Oh, NO, Jamesie. That is too small." And so on.

James also began taking some reliable naps during the day which allowed Ava and Helen enough time to get some learnin' on. We blew up Ivory soap, cooked play dough, simulated rain, painted with milk, practiced our scissor skills and built towers out of big boxes.

We also advanced to some moderately complex pretend play with elaborate story lines. A favorite of mine is "Goldilocks" where one person sleeps in Ava's bed and the other sets up different sized bowls for porridge, goes for a walk, and comes home only to stumble upon Goldilocks. Everyone looks appropriately stunned and then Goldilocks jumps out of bed and runs out the front door screaming "You'll never see me again!" But Ava's favorite, by a wide margin is, "Now I'm the teacher" also known as "Now I'm the momma." James is generally the baby in this game but Ava will also accept a stuffed animal substitute in a pinch. James lies helplessly on the floor as the momma leaves for work and the teacher takes care of James. When momma returns from work the teacher provides a written dossier of James's day, along with some anecdotes about his activities. Then everyone switches roles, except for James because, of course, he's the baby again.

Today in Ava

Ava: James, you're a chunky boy!
Brian: What does that mean, Ava? Chunky boy?
Ava: Jamesie, your hands are chunky, your feet are chunky. Your head's chunky too.

I guess she does know what that means.

James at 6 Months

Length = 29.5 inches (99th percentile but that's only because that's as high as percentiles go. Check out the graph, below.)
Weight = 21 lbs .3 oz (94th percentile)
Weight for length = 45th percentile

Length for Age Growth Chart:

Here's a quick primer, if you aren't familiar with these. The curved lines represent the growth of a child over time (months, seen on the x axis). The bottom curve is that of a child in the 5th percentile and the top curve is the 95th percentile. You can't see the label on the left (y axis) but the height is listed here in centimeters. You might wonder why they are using a chart with centimeters when they actually measured his length in inches and there is a readily available chart in inches. You should ask them because I certainly can't tell you the answer.

Long story short, not only did James start above the growth curve, he's continuing to grow at a rate higher than other boys.

Possible future family portrait:

 

Rabold Family Singers

What we lack in talent, we make up for in heart.

April 2012

It's almost time for the May wrap-up and we're just getting around to recapping April, so we'll keep this brief. We had a couple of milestones, the biggest of which involved James. He started daycare a couple of days a week (whaaa) and his massive size led him to outgrow his infant car seat, a full 12 months earlier than Ava did. Tallest. Baby. Ever.

We spent lots of time outside...swinging, sidewalk chalking, partying, painting and, on one occasion, searching for dyed Easter eggs. James is starting to become more mobile and Ava is starting to become more independent, so it looks like Spring should be fun.

6 Month Birthday Edition - 25 Things About James

1. James still sleeps in two-hour increments.
2. The only place you can get a hand around James's leg is at his ankle. If you have bigger hands than us.
3. James wears 12-month clothing.
4. James sleeps in our bedroom because of item #1 on this list.
5. James has brown eyes, like both of his parents.
6. He has one tuft of hair on the top of his head. There is just enough to make a fauxhawk.
7. This boy LOVES his sister. He smiles even when she is dragging him across the room by his head.
8. James has a fold in the middle of his bottom lip that you can only see when he sleeps.
9. James also has folds everywhere else.
10. His cheeks are perfect for kissing. They are big and squishy.
11. He can pretty reliably sit up by himself. Until Ava pushes him over because "he wants to be on his belly."
12. James has achieved forward motion in his scooting and seems close to fully crawling. He has started tucking his knees under him and is ready for action.
13. James eats lots and lots of food. His most impressive feat was eating two apples in one sitting. He also loves pears and green beans, but could go either way on carrots, peas, avocado, and sweet potato.
14. You have to eat quickly around James. He will steal your food. While sitting on Helen's lap, he once pulled her plate towards him, grabbed her fork, and stuck it in his mouth in the time it took the family to gasp.
15. Overall, James is a very happy fellow.
16. James knows the sign for "feed me" and likes to use it when he can.
17. James hates the feeling of grass.
18. He just moved into his big boy car seat and promptly threw up on it. It has lost its new car seat smell.
19. Ava's classmates are always happy to get a visit from James. They like to pat him on the head and hold his hands.
20. James has never left the city of Portland.
21. Our boy is too heavy to hold for any length of time. The physical strain has aggravated past injuries of Helen's and created new ones for Brian.
22. James likes to hear Helen sing.
23. James likes to hear himself shriek.
24. Ava is James's stylist. She chooses his outfits to match her own and is very disappointed when he is wearing something that she can't find in her own closet.
25. He likes to play with a beach ball, which Ava rolls to him and he kicks back to her.

 

I Am 1/2 Today

 

Ava Draws a Baby

 

James, as Sidekick

Act I:  

Earlier this week Helen, Ava and James were driving home, listening to Ava's favorite music, when we stopped for gas. When Helen turned off the ignition, the music stopped, Ava began asking why her songs weren't on anymore, and James started to cry.

Ava: James doesn't like this project.
Helen: No? James doesn't like this project?
Ava: No. (Then, whispering) I don't like it either. Now turn my music back on.

And then she flashes her biggest grin.

Act II:

Ava: I love James. He's my friend.
Helen: Awwww. He's my friend, too.
Ava: No. Daddy's your friend.

Act III:

Ava: Who rocks the house? James rocks the house. (We don't know where she got this one.)

Wakeful James

This is James, at midnight, showing us that there's really no bad time to be a cute baby. Keep an eye on Brian, passing out in the background.

James has Ava's shrieky voice on his list of things that he loves. Since Ava's the only one in the house that can reliably make him laugh, we've resorted to embarrassing mimicry. 

"March, Larch. Hey, that rhymes!"

It wasn't an incredibly busy month in our world. Not that we need to assign blame, but if we did, we would point our finger at the groan-inspiring rainfall. Portland went all-out with 7.89 inches of rain, making this the rainiest March on record. Ever. Which means if we had placed James outside in a bucket at the beginning of the month--and James were able to stand--he'd be up to his knee-caps in rainwater by now.

For us, this translated into lots and lots of indoor time. And that translated into lots and lots of time for Ava to say things like, "Man, fan. Hey, momma, that rhymes," and "Fire, tire. Hey, momma, that rhymes," and "Almond, salmond. Hey, that rhymes." She's pretty impressed with herself.

All the indoor time also provided us with ample opportunity to devise a strategy to combat James's sleep issues. Our latest plan led us to introduce solid foods with the hope that eating so much would tire him out (results: TBD). Ava has enjoyed this next step in sisterhood, and has been quick to pick up the technique. She sweetly places the spoon in front of James for him to take. At least until she gets bored, at which point she jams it down his throat.

Go by Bike



Nothing says morning commute like boots, jacket, mittens, full-body rain suit, wool hat, helmet, and sunglasses. 

A Day in the Life - March 19

James, Ava, and 6-week old Quinn

We're working with a 24-hour clock these days.

• 7:30 a.m. - Ava wakes up. Brian gets up and feeds her breakfast of granola, Os, yogurt, and watered-down juice.
• 8:15 a.m. - Brian wakes Helen up. Brody, as usual, is the last to wake.
• 8:30 a.m. - Brian goes upstairs to work for the day. Ava helps Helen diaper and clothe James.
• 9:00 a.m. - Helen's feeling ambitious and invites Ava to make pumpkin bread from scratch. This is familiar territory for Ava and she skillfully scoops, levels off and counts ingredients. James is in his "command center" and is quite joyful.
• 9:15 a.m. - Ava loses interest in baking. Plays with James and his excersaucer.
• 9:30 a.m. - James loses interest in the command center. Yelps loudly. Bread goes in the oven.
• 9:35  a.m. - Helen feeds James.  Ava "reads" a book to herself. The title is The Habit. It's an anti-smoking book from the 1970s and I'm not sure where Ava got it, but we'd like to offer a sarcastic thanks to that person. Luckily Ava can't read so she doesn't know it's about death. Instead it's about silly, somewhat friendly monsters.
• 9:45 a.m. - James is swaddled and goes down for a nap.
• 9:50 a.m. - Sharon and Maisie come over to play.  They color, play instruments, and Ava places all of her belongings into a laundry basket and pushes it around the house claiming it's a garbage truck.
• 9:51 a.m. - Helen requests that Ava stop pushing the garbage truck around. Ava explains that she can't take her toys out because they're "stinky."
• 10:15 a.m. - Cara and baby Quinn come over to play.
• 10:45 a.m. - Snack of pumpkin bread and oranges
  
• 11:00 a.m. - James wakes up from his nap and greets his visitors.
• 11:30 a.m. - Maisie and Sharon depart
• 11:35 a.m. - Helen feeds James. Ava sits on the couch and demands that both of the babies sit on her lap. There's more diapering all around.
• 12:00 noon - Lunch of paprikash.
• 12:30 p.m. - Ava begins "quiet time," which is loosely interpreted to mean doing anything you want at any volume you want, as long as you don't come out of the bedroom.
• 12:40 p.m. - Brian comes downstairs to grab lunch and eats upstairs while he continues working.
• 12:45 p.m. - 1:30 p.m. - James asleep in Helen's arms.
• 1:30 p.m. - Cara and Quinn depart.
• 1:35 p.m. - Ava asks if quiet time is over. Helen says no.
• 1:35 p.m. - Helen feeds James.
• 1:40 p.m. - 1:41 p.m. - Helen eats lunch.
• 1:45 p.m. - 2:00 p.m. - Quiet time is over.  Ava has another snack while Helen cleans the kitchen.
• 2:00 p.m. - James plays on his playmat. Ava and Helen sweep the floor.
• 2:30 p.m. - Ava and Helen clean Ava's room.
  
• 3:00 p.m. - Everyone gets ready to go for a walk. Helen feeds James while putting on Ava's socks. Ava puts on a hoodie, a coat, and puts her shoes on the wrong feet. It starts to rain. Ava gets her umbrella.
• 3:30 p.m - Walk to the pizza store to get pizza dough. James is in the baby carrier, wearing a bear hat with ears. Ava is in her radio flyer wagon with her umbrella that looks like a duck. People think we are cute. They tell us so.
• 3:45 p.m. - Buy pizza dough. Ava thanks Helen for being patient as we wait in line.
• 4:00 p.m. - James, Ava, Helen have "circle time" along with Leo and Alex, who are real kids from Ava's school but who are only present in spirit. Songs are sung. We keep the beat by tapping James's belly.
• 4:30 p.m. - 5:00 p.m. - Another nap for James. Ava and Helen play "basketball," which is nothing like basketball but does, indeed, involve a ball. We pass it back and forth and talk about letters and numbers.
• 5:00 p.m. - Ava, Helen, and James put masking tape all over the wood floors to make different letters.

Helen's R had to suffer for Ava's (exceptional) E.

• 5:30 p.m. - Brian clocks-out for the day and is handed the children. Ava and Brian build a fire while Helen makes dinner.
• 6:00 p.m. - Ava feeds James his dinner of sweet potatoes. James and Brian require a complete change of clothing afterwards.
• 6:15 p.m. - Dinner. Pesto, goat cheese, tomato and arugula pizza with a salad. Ava has seconds.
• 6:45 p.m. - Ava feeds Brody his dinner.
• 7:00 p.m. - Both kids get ready for bed. Read books. Sing songs.
• 7:30 p.m. - Lights out for both kids. Ava continues to read to her babies because they have trouble getting to sleep.
• 7:45 p.m. - Brian walks Brody.
• 8:00 p.m. - Ava falls asleep with around 20 books in her bed.
• 8:00 p.m. - Non-kid time for taxes and blog posts. You're welcome.
• 10:30 p.m. - Helen feeds James.
• 11:30 p.m. - Helen and Brian go to bed.
• 12:50 a.m. - Up to feed James.
• 2:50 a.m. - 3:30 a.m. - James wakes up to eat. Then squeals at his toes for 30 minutes.
• 3:30 a.m. - We give up on James sleeping by himself and bring him to our bed, where he falls instantly asleep.
• 5:50 a.m. - Up to feed James.
• 6:00 a.m. - Alarm goes off for 40 minutes before we hear it.
• 6:40 a.m. - Helen gets up and gets ready for work.
• 6:55 a.m. - Brian gets up, gets James and his stuff in the car.
• 7:25 a.m. - Helen brings James to Nana and Grandad Edwards' where he plays for the day. Ava gets up just in time to wave goodbye. Brian gets Ava ready for school.

Lunch at the Academy

We secured a coveted spot at a top-notch in-home daycare with an adorable British couple. They send us cute video updates of his day, like this one.

Weights and Measures

The numbers are in...

James at 4 months:
Length = 27 inches (99th percentile)
Weight = 18 lbs 13 oz (99th percentile)
Weight for length = 70th percentile

February 2012

Leap Year or not, this February was particularly busy.

Visitors! Boy did we have visitors. Grandma Rabold,Tom, Emily, Ian, and Caleb all came to Portland, and we had a great time introducing them to James. Layne gets the Sixth Man Award for taking care of an 18-pound infant for two weeks while we were away at work. Ava had fun combing Ian's hair and violently hugging Caleb. Ava also enjoyed four successive sleepovers with Ian. Turns out the secret to getting Ava to go to bed in the evening is to wake her up for the day at 5 a.m. Thanks to Ian for that tip.

Milestones! Boy did we have milestones. Ava learned how to use the potty. James rolled over both directions. Helen returned to work. Not all were completely joyful.

Exhaustion! Boy are we tired. We still haven't managed to string together two "good" nights of sleep yet ("good" of course being a relative term; we're just looking for one uninterrupted stretch of three hours). As we rounded the corner on James's fourth month, we found ourselves being woken every hour. We're past that, which can only mean that we'll have some good news in March, right?

At 4 Months...

As you all well know, James is a good deal larger than Ava was. And while we all know this conceptually, we've been trying to find a picture that really proves it. This isn't the best comparison but hopefully you get the point.

4 month, 6 days

4 months, 3 days

Let's Get This Potty Started

Back in February, we had our most rewarding parenting experience yet: a potty training marathon weekend! Honestly, we've spent a good deal of time over the last 18 months in the bathroom with Ava, gently trying to introduce the toilet. This technique was great for Ava in so many ways. She got to sit on a comfy throne, read lots of books, and exert lots of control over her helpless parents. She didn't pee and she didn't poop and that was just fine with her. After all, that's what the diapers are for, right?

Cooking her famous barley soup. In undies.

Reading a book. In undies.

Eventually it became clear that in order to get rid of Ava's diapers, we would just have to, well, get rid of them. And so we did. With Brian's mom, Layne, in town, we figured we had numbers on our side. The time had come.

Blowing bubbles. In undies.

Our adventure started with a trip downtown to H&M to pick up some underwear. It was exhilarating and we bought one of every pair in her size. Then we boxed up all of the cloth diapers and put them in the basement. Then we spent three days in undies and a t-shirt (well, the adults wore pants), feeding her juice at every turn, and letting her watch a congratulatory YouTube video whenever she used the toilet. She had one big accident, a couple of small ones and then spent the rest of the weekend watching all sorts of chimpanzees spinning until they got dizzy.

Mowing the neighbor's lawn. In undies.

3rd position. In undies.

While we were at it, we figured we would go for the gold and get her out of nighttime diapers as well. Even though we were waking her up every two hours (true story) she still managed to soak the bed every other hour for a week. She's a miracle child! But, just when we were sure nighttime potty training was out of reach, we heard Ava race to the bathroom on her own, use the toilet, get up on her step stool to wash her hands and then run back to bed without our help. We are convinced there is no better sound in the world.

Checking email. In undies.

Roughhousing. In undies.

Swim Babies

James graced the pool with his chubby rolls today and we learned that he is remarkably buoyant. That didn't stop Helen from pushing his head underwater, though. Despite the way this face reads, he actually enjoyed the plunge:

Yes, that is a man boob.

Ava refused to pose for this picture. She is no puppet.

Ava refused to smile for this picture.

Turns out Ava likes the pool, too. Here she is floating down the lazy river:

One and a half hours of swimming later, he's still happy.

Mr. Giggles

Sure, Ava is funny. But not that funny.

Today in Ava

Ava: Mama, you wear underwear. I wear underwear. Grandma wears underwear. Now James is the only friend wearing diapers.
Helen: What about Daddy? Does he wear underwear?
Ava: No, Daddy doesn't wear underwear. Daddy wears bok choys.

Dancing Queen

For those of you accustomed to parents over-hyping their children, this will be a breath of fresh air: Ava is one of the worst singers known to man. She does, however, have some sweet dance moves. Check it:

January 2012

January was action-packed. Here are the deets:

• Ava turned 3! She celebrated with pink pee (and a visit to the ER - she's fine) and had a bunch of her buddies over. This was very exciting because the kids played by themselves, allowing us to talk to adults about adult things, like how the kids were playing so well without us.
• James started to laugh. Not a full-fledged belly laugh but a cute wide-mouthed gasp.
• Brian was out of town for two weeks so Helen moved in with the Edwards gang. Thanks for that! It just goes to show that the gifts of parenthood just keep coming!
• Aunt Paula and Uncle Joe visited to meet James and celebrate Ava's birthday. We had many a pretend pizza party during their stay, and learned all about penguins.
• Ava was a party animal: school birthday parties, friends' birthday parties, friends' baptisms. She now knows that she likes cupcakes, and she had her first lollipop.

Weights and Measures

The numbers are in...

James at 2 months (a few weeks ago):
Length = 25.5 inches (99th percentile)
Weight = 15 lbs 11 oz (99th percentile)
Weight for length = 50th percentile


Ava at 3 years:
Height = 34.5 inches (5th percentile)
Weight = 25.5 lbs (5th percentile)
Weight for height = 20th percentile

Oh, the Abuse

Being the last-born in each of our families, we've long believed that the youngest in the family is the toughest. Now we know why.

Sleeper hold

Eye poke

Steam roller

Leg rest (at 8 days old)