Happy Holidays

It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas!  It snowed all day around the Tudor House today.  Tyler is so excitied.  This is the first major snow of the season, and only the second snow so far.  It was really cold and blowing like crazy today so we didn't go out to play.  I'm sure it will happen sometime tomorrow, either during the morning at preschool or at home in the afternoon, or possibly both.  I updated the sidebar with a picture of the house decked out in its Christmas finest.

We are enjoying opening a new door on our advent calendar each morning.  This year we have a pop-up advent calendar from Eric Carle based on his "Dream Snow" book.  We also added the story to our collection, and have been enjoying reading that.  I had the pleasure of being Guest Reader at preschool last week and "Dream Snow" was the book that was chosen for the event.  It was a lot of fun reading to the class.

Last Friday we went to a reading of "The Polar Express" at the local Barnes and Noble.  After the story Santa Claus came in and the kids had the chance to sit on his lap and tell him what they would like for Christmas.  Tyler quite enjoyed this and was happy to wait his turn so that he could inform Santa that he would "like three (more) large dinosaurs and one smaller one." 

Emma wanted nothing to do with Santa.  She started screaming when he came down the escalator, and really lost it when he walked past on his way to the chair.  Tyler will have to pass along her wish list for her this year.  We were glad we figured this out when we did and not after waiting in a long line to see a mall Santa. 

Hopefully this weekend we will finish getting the indoor decorations up.  Our pre-lit tree doesn't seem to be so well lighted this year, so no ornaments on it yet.  I did finish knitting Emma's personalized stocking, so she will have a stocking with her name on it this year, just like the rest of the family.  I'll post pictures of the decorations as soon as they are ready.

Hope everyone is having a Merry Christmas!

Catching Up

So I realized the other day when I was posting about the stitches that I hadn't posted in quite a while. Things had gotten really crazy around here! I didn't post for a while because the hard drive in the computer was full. At first I just couldn't download pictures, but towards the end the hard drive was so stuffed to the gills that even surfing the Internet was painful. We purchased a new HP Pavilion PC with a 1T hard drive during the back to school sales in early September. (Let's see how long it takes Paparazzi Steve to fill this one!)

So, what was my excuse for not posting once the computer problem was solved? I started a new job, and Tyler returned to preschool. Life got in the way! So, here is a quick recap on what we have been up to.

I was offered an assistant coaching position with Mercy Crew, which I accepted. I'm officially in charge of the novice team, but I help out where ever I'm told. I now have one-day weekends (if I'm lucky!), but have a lot of fun travelling with the team to the regattas. I'll be going to Boston for the Head of the Charles in two weeks. After that it's off to Philadelphia for the Head of the Schuylkill regatta. I'm really excited for that one because I'll get to catch up with one of my former athletes who is still rowing and a senior at UPenn this year. Philadelphia will be the novices' first trip, so that should be exciting...

Tyler returned to the Woodbury Preschool the week after Labor Day. He was so excited to be going back to school. In the last weeks of summer he noticed that a few leaves in the tree in our front yard were changing. He insisted that meant that fall was here and he should be going to school. He is in the Monday, Wednesday, Friday AM class this year and just loving it. This year's class has 14 students, 7 girls and 7 boys, all four-year-olds. The teachers for the class are the same as last year, Mrs. Maya and Mrs. Cheryl. The aide from last year (Mrs. Theresa) has taken a new position, so this year we have Ms. Marlene. There is also a student teacher for the first few weeks of school, so there are four adults and 14 kids, a 3.5:1 ratio. Charlie the Tortoise (class pet) is very active in the morning at drop off and has really piqued Tyler's interest. Tyler selects a new leaf from the backyard every morning to bring to Charlie. Tyler has already drawn some pictures at school! We will get to see them on Curriculum Night. Can't wait!

Emma continues to grow like crazy. She is beginning to assert her independence. She wants to try to dress herself, particularly the bloomers she wears under dresses. She also insists on feeding herself, using utensils, and drinking from a big-girl cup. Yes, it's getting really messy around here. She says more new words each day. Right now one of her favorites is, "all aboard!" She says this whenever the show Dinosaur Train is on. We have also started going to a co-op music class together on Wednesdays while Tyler is at school. She loves to play with the instruments and dance. She even knows many of the movements already and joins in while we sing. It is really cute.

First trauma

Tyler had his first trip to the Emergency Room this afternoon. He was sitting in the recliner chair in the living room watching a PBS Kids TV show, apparently got a little antsy and decided to exit the chair head-first over the side, right onto the magazine rack. All I heard was thump, SCREAM! I was sitting nearby using the computer at the time. I came around the corner as he was standing up and saw the blood running down his face. Not good. I knew immediately he was going to have to get stitches. I went right into First Aid Training mode, found some tissues and began putting pressure on the wound. I got Tyler to calm down so I could use the phone to call Steve and the pediatrician. We were told to head to the Emergency Room, so I started to pack everyone up for the walk over there. Luckily the nanny arrived just then, so I could leave Emma with her (I was supposed to be on my way to coach rowing practice). So I scooped Tyler up and headed over to the hospital. It is surprisingly convenient to be able to walk to the hospital!

In the Emergency Room, before stitches

The staff in the pediatric emergency department at Strong Memorial Hospital was very helpful. It seemed funny to have the third year medical student come in and explain that he was going to gather info and then present it to his Resident or Attending physician. We knew the system already thanks to all of our neighbors. I knew he didn't have his M.D. yet because he had a short coat! We had many different doctors/future doctors come in to ask us questions (everyone was very concerned about the possibility of a concussion) and give care. While we were waiting for the topical anesthetic to work a Radiology Resident asked if he could practice his ultrasound technique on Tyler by looking at his heart and gall bladder. Tyler agreed, and had fun watching his heart beat. His gall bladder was hiding.

The Wound

Steve and I had the soul-crushing job of holding Tyler down while they put the stitches in. It took three stitches to close up the gash. The lidocaine injections were worse than the actual stitches.

All Better

We made it out of the hospital by 4:30PM. Came home to make a quick dinner and have a quiet evening. We actually went over to the playground for a bit, but kept it low key. He will have the stitches for about 5 days. We were given a suture removal kit, so we can take them out ourselves. I think we will get a little professional neighbor help. We just keep changing the bandage and putting more antibiotic ointment on the wound. So far it seems to be healing pretty well. I see a bit of Mederma in our future...

Storytime at the Library

Afternoon Fun

Spent the afternoon in the backyard, playing with the hose.

15-month check up

Emma had her 15-month visit to the pediatrician's office today. Happy to report that everything went really well. She continues to be as healthy as a horse. The kids surprised me - both were very cooperative for the appointment. Tyler had a lot of fun checking out a kids' atlas of the world that they had in the examining room (trying to remember this when Christmas rolls around).

Emma was a very compliant patient. She held perfectly still while her height was measured, and then measured again to confirm that she had indeed grown three inches since her last appointment. Yes, somehow she grew three inches in the past three months! Emma also sat nicely on the scale to determine she had gained a pound since her last check up. She was so good while the pediatrician did her exam: sat quietly letting the doctor look her over, opened her mouth when asked to see her teeth. She barely cried when the nurse administered the three shots she had to get today (MMR, chicken pox, and DTaP/IPV/Hib). What a little trooper!

Here are Emma's current stats:

height: 32 1/2 inches 95th percentile
weight: 22 lbs. 10 oz. 49th percentile
HC: 46.3 cm 51st percentile

Strawberry Fields Forever

Today we went on a little adventure to a pick-your-own strawberry patch. We were going on a hunt. No, it wasn't a lion hunt, although Tyler kind of thought so... We were hunting for these:

We had a great time. We arrived at the field a little after 10:00AM. We were assigned a row and in no time we were picking away. Be fore we knew it we had picked 12 quarts of delicious berries. We were on our way home in less than an hour!

After lunch the berry projects began. First we made strawberry jam. I had not made cooked strawberry jam before, so it was a fun experiment. I hope we like it! Next was one of Steve's favorites: strawberry bread. We'll be eating that for breakfast tomorrow. If we are lucky we might have some leftover for lunch or breakfast the next day, too. I finished the afternoon's activity with a batch of biscuits and cut up some strawberries to have for dessert tonight. We still have 6 quarts remaining. We will cut up and freeze some so that Steve can have strawberry rhubarb pie for his birthday, and will make a berry pie to eat. Tyler says we have to eat some fresh berries for breakfast, too. If there are any left after that we might need to get creative...

Unexpected but Pleasant Improvements

We weren't planning to buy a new dining table and chairs. The set we had was ok... but not great. Then we needed to get some furniture for one of our rental properties, including a table and chairs. Steve began scouting Craigslist and came across an amazing set: mission style, light oak, perfectly matched to our china and curio cabinets (which are great and we love). So preparedness met opportunity and we now have an awesome table and chairs for ourselves. Plus our old set is going to the rental house, making the tenants happy and helping to generate more income for us. It's a win-win-win situation!

Isn't it pretty?

Guess what Emma can do....

Emma has been learning many new things since her birthday. On Mother's Day she decided to take her first steps. In the beginning it was only 4-5 steps, from one person to another. The next day she decided she could venture out into open space. By Wednesday she was a full fledged walker. She even stands up in the middle of the floor. Another new thing is climbing EVERYTHING! She climbs the stairs, up on chairs, onto the coffee table, into Tyler's bed, and anywhere else she can find. This causes trouble! Emma is compensating for all this trouble by learning to communicate. She says uh oh, dada and mama, and is trying to say ball. She also shakes her head yes and no, and uses her hands to gesture her signs for eat, more, all done, and drink. She loves to point and grunt at things. Emma is also enjoying car rides facing forward now. It's a little sad that her little face isn't reflected in the rear view mirror anymore, but it is much nicer getting her in her seat now that there is enough room for her legs. She seems to think it's pretty neat that she is doing something like her big brother. Tyler was really excited for her, too.

Here is Emma on her first forward-facing trip, taking Tyler to preschool.

Emma's Birthday

We celebrated Emma's 1st birthday on Sunday. For dinner we had salmon, roasted potatoes, peas, rolls, and cake (of course!).

That year went by quickly!

Signs of Intelligence

Emma has begun using some "baby signs" to communicate with us. She can now express her wish to "eat", "more" and "all done" in a way we can understand, without shreiking! She usually throws in a good squeal or two just to make sure she has our attention, but this is still quite an improvement over previous methods of communication.

Welcome Spring

We saw these daffodils outside of preschool yesterday afternoon. What a welcome sight. We are crossing our fingers and hoping that we have seen the last of the snow for a while.

Look what Emma can do!

I bet you weren't expecting hula-hooping to be the featured skill...

She was having a great time with it at the Strong Museum yesterday. She is also learning a few more "regular" skills, like crawling, standing, and walking. She is finally getting a handle on a normal, forward-moving crawl. She likes to stand while holding onto things and is beginning to let go once in a while. All steps are still taken with assistance.

It finally warmed up

It finally made it into the 60s today, our last full day in Florida. Since the temps were now above freezing we decided to get icecream. Tyler had "Superman".

Daytona Beach

We've been at Daytona Beach since Monday afternoon. It was pouring rain when we got to the hotel. Tyler didn't care, he wanted to go out on the beach anyway. Steve obliged his request and they went out in swim trunks and t-shirts. Once they finished on the beach they hopped in the hotel's outdoor heated pool. Tyler complained that the water was too hot at first, but then he got used to it and had fun splashing around. Those swimming lessons sure are paying off!

Yesterday we went to the Turtle Sanctuary, caught up with my Grandma Bluett, and went on a boat ride. Here is Emma at the turtle sanctuary:

Day 1, Part 1

Waiting

Florida here we come!

We're on our way to Florida to visit Grandpa Goerlich at his winter home. Crossing our fingers for some warm weather. We'll see how lucky we are... the forecast looks a little chilly for Florida. It'll certainly be warmer than Rochester.

We got checked in and through the security check point without too much trouble. Tyler didn't appreciate Little Foot going through the x-ray machine, but we got through it.

Thanks to Grandpa Dude for the ride to the airport, and for taking care of Clover (with Grandma Honey) while we're gone!

Test

Trying out a new feature.

--Heather

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