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Thursday, April 30, 2009

Medicine Fog

I have been fighting my first cold of the season this week. I've done very good to stay healthy through MOST of the winter but think my exposure to Sophie and the "germies" that come from her day-care got the best of me this past weekend. Nothing I can't handle but just a good run of the mill cold.

This morning, I was in such a medicine fog that I only put on one earring. I got to the office and for some reason, reached up to my left ear and felt it was BARE! That is NOT something that I do on a regular basis and I remembered putting on my right one so I could only blame it on my "state of mind" or lack there of.

So here I sit, bare earlobes and all, with one silver earring on my desk in my office, patiently waiting to take it home and return it to the jewelry box from whence it came.

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Tuesday, April 28, 2009

Happiness Is......

A friend and a warm blanket

Monday, April 27, 2009

Our Weekend With Our Visitor

To call our weekend "Busy" is an understatement. Entertaining THREE children under the age of 4 1/2 was quite exhausting but we had so much fun! We couldn't have asked for nicer weather so we spend a good majority of our time OUTSIDE.





The boys had SO MUCH FUN with Sophie. I think Mason was loving the fact that he wasn't the youngest anymore and he really took Sophie under his wing and was a huge helper! He was always making sure she had her sippy cup, getting me pull-ups and helping her up the garage steps.

Saturday morning, Sophie decided to give us a little "scare" waking up with a 102.3 fever but after a little Motrin, she was back to sleep and as good as new for the rest of the weekend.

Saturday, we took a trip to Longview Farms Park to play at the playground and see the horses. Sophie was FATALLY FASCINATED with the horses and couldn't get enough of them. She was sad when we left and said "Bye Hos!" the whole way home. Satuday night we stayed in and ended our night with a bath and an early crash (we were ALL exhausted) - especially Tim and I!











Sunday was pretty much a carbon copy of Saturday, throw in a trip to the grocery store and lots of playing outside. All in all, I'd call it AN AWESOME weekend and one that we'd do over in a heart beat!



We were sad to see Sophie leave last night but know that she's only a short trip down Hwy 40 away from us but told her that she can come back and spend the night ANY TIME SHE WANTS!
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Friday, April 24, 2009

Visitor - Night #1

Well.....our first night with Sophie went surprisingly well. As I said yesterday, this was the first time that she's been away from Hank & Tricia overnight so we had no clue what to expect. She really wasn't too phased by the change and had a great time playing with the boys outside after dinner.

They played some soccer (Sophie tried her hand at goal tending but didn't do so well) and then they hit the swing set, slide and sandbox. The sandbox was by far her favorite!

Mommy and Poppa will be glad to know she slept ALL NIGHT LONG and only cried "Mommy" for about 5 minutes before she fell asleep. In our house you get a big fat "High 5" for being a SUPER SLEEPER so Sophie and Mason were in the same "Super Sleeper" category this morning.







Tonight is pizza night at Chez Riley so I know Sophie will enjoy that - and we'll play more outside since we're due for a 90 degree day here in St. Louis!

That's my report for now - have a great day!
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Thursday, April 23, 2009

Visitor

While I'm so excited that I can't see straight, I'm a bit nervous at the same time. My brother, Hank, and his wife, Tricia are headed to Las Vegas for the weekend and leave today. They are leaving Sophie with Tim and I while they are gone, so we'll be the parents to THREE children for 3 days. Eeek!!!

Sophie seems to be very comfortable around Tim, the boys and I and at our house so I'm not too concerned about that. I just wish I knew what she was going to think tonight when it's "YaYa" (my nieces and nephews call me "YaYa")putting her to bed in a strange room and not her Mommy and Poppa. Is she going to cry? Will she sleep all night or not? All these things..........

But one thing I am for sure is that I am going to LOVE having a little PINK PRINCESS in my house for three days and I know that the boys are going to have a blast with her as well! I can't wait! She's such a love bug and so sweet I could just eat her up!

So Hank and Tricia.....if you see this.....thank you for trusting us with Sophie for the weekend. We PROMISE that we'll take very good care of her and return her in the same condition that you left her in. But I can't take responsibility for any new stuff that she might learn or pick up from her cousins or Uncle Tim this weekend! I have heard talk of teaching her about Chocolate Chip Mini Muffins from two of the three of them (wink wink) - Love Ya Guys, feel free to call us whenever you want and we'll see Mommy on Sunday night.

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Tuesday, April 21, 2009

A Visit From The Binky Fairy

When Jack turned three years old, Tim and I decided that it was time for the binky, that he had become so attached to as an infant, to go away. I had heard from a friend that she had her child mail their binky off to the Binky Fairy when the time came to make the transition as smooth as possible; so we figured we'd give it a go when the time came. With Jack, it was a HUGE SUCCESS!!! (here's my blog entry about it HERE)

Well, with Mason, we have been through the same process. About two months ago we started prepping him for it by telling him that when he turned three that he wouldn't be a baby anymore and that only babies needed binkies. So, when it was time, we'd send his binky to the Binky Fairy so she could give it to a new baby to use. He has seemed okay with the whole thing. He's got his "blues" that are his blankets and he's more attached to them than he is with binky (Binky is not allowed out of his room, where the "Blues" are).

Tonight was the night.......we addressed the envelope to the Binky Fairy and had the ceremonial "putting the binky in the envelope" and then took it out to the mail box and put the flag up so the Binky Fairy would know that it was in there for her.

Here's it is in pictures for you! I'm so proud of him - he did it with NO ISSUES! Now.....how bedtime goes tonight may be another story but we'll see.....check back for an update tomorrow!







WEDNESDAY MORNING UPDATE: I can't tell you how proud we are of Mason! Last night went amazingly well. He wimpered ONCE to Tim when they were reading a book about Binky but Tim was able to quickly change his focus and that was the last that we heard about it. He slept ALL NIGHT LONG without a peep. Yes, that was only night one, but it just goes to show us that he was ready! It was time! We've never been ones to rush ANYTHING in our lives (those of you who know us well can atest to that) and that has always been our philosophy when it comes to parenting. It seems to work for us!

So I can shout a big YIPEE!!!! We are Binky FREE!!!!

P.S. - Yes, I did run out to the mail box and get the envelope after everyone was asleep so that I can save it to show him when he's older!

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Three Year Check-Up

I always love going to the boys check-up appointments. It's so nice to go to the Pediatrician for no other reason to find out GOOD stuff about one of the boys. For the longest time, we were literally at the Pediatrician's office once a week, with one of the boys for sick visits (At one point I asked how many visits it took to get our FREE visit!). The frequency of those visits has of course slowed down significantly (which is nice) but I so enjoy seeing Dr. Laquita Graham, who has cared for both Jack and Mason since their first days.

Mason had a GREAT check-up today. He was so relaxed and comfortable with Dr. Graham. He carried on somewhat of a conversation with her and showed her how he can spell his name for her, name his colors and count to 10. Tim and I were of course, very proud of him!

As for his stats:
Height - 37 1/4" (45th%)
Weight - 31 lbs (45th%)

Last year his stats were:
Height - 36" (85th%) I think that was a bit generous - he grew more than 1 1/4"!Weight - 27 lbs (45th%)

Only thing that we left with requiring a follow up is that we will be having Mason tested for allergies. The poor kid CONSTANTLY has sinus issues so we're going to see if there's something up that might be causing them. Other than that.....he's good to go for another year!

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Monday, April 20, 2009

P-A-R-T-Y !!!

We had a great birthday party for Mason on Saturday. The weather did not cooperate with us but that's okay, we just made due with what we have. We cleaned up the "WIP Kitchen" and made use of the space so we weren't so crowded inside. On the menu was pizza from Papa Murphy's, Diego Birthday cake and Mint Chocolate Chip Ice Cream (all requested by the birthday boy).

I still can't believe that he's three.......really makes me sad.....but obviously not something that I can prevent from happening.

So here is a glimpse at our celebration. We missed not having Moots & Big Top, Bear & Belle, the Hognon clan and Mimi but know that you all were with us in spirit!























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