Faith 15 Months Old

Faith is back to sleeping through the night again! When we moved back home from Nanny's I let her cry it out for a couple of nights. Now I don't hear a peep from her until 7 ish. It is great. I feel so much more rested.

I'm trying to cut down her nursing. She is typically still nursing 4 times a day - once when she wakes up, before each of her two naps, and again before bed. She asks for milk frequently throughout the day, but I don't give it to her. For the past few days, I have cut out her feeding prior to her first nap. So far she is not putting up too big a fight over this. I'd like to cut her back to just morning and night within the next month, and then gradually wean her completely. The only problem is that she won't drink milk from a bottle or sippy cup. I've tried breast milk, cow milk, soy milk with vanilla flavoring, and formula. At least she eats plenty of yogurt and cheese. She also gets milk in her cereal and oatmeal.

Faith is getting more and more attached to her binky and lovey. She likes one lovey in particular, a pink one with a bear's head, but any lovey will do. She gets upset when I make her leave them in her bed. I'm trying to only allow her to have the binky when she is in bed or in the car. I want to try and avoid her having it in all the time, especially when she really starts talking.

Faith has added to her vocabulary. She now signs hurt, pats the ground when she wants you to come and play with her, and said "shh" for shoes. She understand everything you say to her, and can follow directions when she decides to cooperate.

We started Music Together class again. Faith is really enjoying it. She participates a little more at this age than Bryce did. He was more into observing, while she rocks back and forth to the beat and does some of the hand gestures.

Another bottom tooth came through earlier this month. Now she just has one more bottom tooth and two top teeth that need to come in. Then no more teething until her 2-year old molars.

At her 15 month check Faith weighed 20 lbs 0 oz, fully clothed, including shoes. This puts her in about the 15% for weight. She was 30.25 inches tall, which is in about the 50%. Her head circumference was in about the 25%.

Christmas

We divided Christmas a little different this year. The weekend before Christmas we went to Grammy and Gramps' house to celebrate with them. It was wonderful being able to spend some quality time with them and Hannah without having to worry about rushing off to go someplace else. The kids had a great time.

Christmas Eve the Garcia's, Tom and Julie all came to my mom's house for the afternoon. We had appetizers and opened presents first. The boys each got bikes. Mason got a bike meant to teach balance. It doesn't have pedals. Bryce got a big-boy bike with training wheels. Faith got money to go towards lessons. Nathan and I were given a couple's massage at Silverado Country Club - this will be very nice. After presents, we quickly got dinner on the table - delicious black bean soup that Tom and Juli brought, a salad and french and corn bread. Yummy. Unfortunately dinner was a little rushed because we didn't want to be late for church. Tom and Julie went with us which was great. After church we came back to my mom's and had dessert.

Christmas morning waking up at my mom's was great. It was so nice not to have to pile in the car and go anywhere. The kids were able to stay in their pj's and not feel rushed. The kids opened up their stockings first. Next they got to see what Santa brought them. Next we had a wonderful breakfast and then opened gifts. Bryce wasted no time opening his gifts. He was very into it. Faith took her sweet time. After everyone was finished, she still had several left to open. She opened them throughout the rest of the day. The rest of the morning was spent relaxing and playing with new toys.

I think by nap time, the kids were tuckered out. Bryce took some of his favorite new Toy Story characters to sleep with him.

That afternoon we played with more new toys and helped get dinner ready. We had a wonderful Christmas dinner.

Once again Bryce and Faith received more gifts than any two kids need. Among Bryce's favorites were his bike, Toy Story Characters (the big ones and the little figurines), Buzz Lightyear wings, and his Little Mermaid doll. Faith loved her baby, music set, necklaces, cd player, and books the most.

This Christmas was tough not having Pawka. He was missed a hundred times throughout the day and during the entire Christmas season. Not having him there really makes you value the time you do get to spend with family and to cherish every moment.

Bryce 3 Years 6 Months Old

It is hard to believe that he is now closer to being 4 than 3. That seems so big to me. He is starting to get a pudginess back to his face, which helps him not to look too grown up, but everything else about him seems to be heading towards being a big boy. Sometimes he likes to be a big boy and is happy to get dressed, go potty, put his shoes and socks on, clean up after himself when he gets down from the table, feed himself, etc. Other times he tells us he can't do things and whines until we help him. I think he mostly wants help when he feels like he needs extra attention or when Faith is doing something that requires my attention.

Bryce has been so sweet lately. He has been listening, following directions, and being such a joy to be around. When he starts to have a behavioral issue he quickly changes his attitude. He has had very few time-outs and has been so fun to be around. I love it. He has also been extremely sweet to Nanny, giving her loves and cuddles.

Bryce got all the Toy Story characters for Christmas and is even more hooked than before. I thought he would like the larger sized figures best, but he tends to play with his little figurine set the most. His favorites are Buzz, Woody, Zurg, and "Small Little Bo Peep" as he calls her. He often plays with this set and his Peter Pan set at the same time. Tinker Bell and Buzz have races to see who can fly faster.

We have a new rule with dinner. If I make something new, or something I don't think he likes, he has to have 5 bites and then I'll give him something else like mac n cheese, chicken nuggets (which he just started to eat) or a sandwich. I don't want food to become a major battle ground, but I also think he should try new things. So far it seems to be working okay. We often have to feed him his 5 bites because he will tell us he can't do it. Funny how he has no problem eating the stuff he likes on his own.

Naps are still hit and miss. I'd say he naps about 3 days a week. This just makes planning so tough. He is getting better about staying in his room for quiet time if he doesn't fall asleep.

Faith 14 Months

Faith's

Faith's sleep schedule, and mine has been very interrupted over the last couple of weeks. When we got back from our Pismo Beach trip we temporarily moved in with Nanny to help her through the holidays. Faith bounced back and forth between sleeping in the crib in our room to sleeping in the pack n play in Bryce's room. When she was with us, she'd wake up at some point in the middle of the night and would not go back to sleep. I'd bring her to bed with us and she'd insist on nursing ever couple of hours. When she was in the room with Bryce she would often wake up around 3 or 4 and not go back to sleep, even if we let her cry for an extended period of time. Again, when I'd finally get up and bring her back to our bed she'd want to nurse on and off. While I know this was a bad habit to get into it seemed easier than allowing her to cry and wake the whole house up. Once we move back home again, I'll have to let her cry it out for a few nights to get back into a good routine.

Often when Bryce and I eat breakfast Faith isn't all that interested. I'm not sure if she just doesn't like breakfast foods that much, isn't hungry first thing, or if she is full from nursing when she wakes up. However, since we've been staying with Nanny, she'd eat a little of the breakfast I give her and then later in the morning, when Nanny would eat she would insist on getting in her lap and sharing her cereal. It became their morning ritual. After a few mornings of this Nanny wised up and starting pouring herself a larger bowl to accommodate Faith's demands. Other than her two breakfasts, her eating pattern hasn't changed much. She'll still eat just about anything and nurses 4 times a days, not including the middle of the night. When she is finished eating she doesn't just tell you she is finished (she signs this). Instead she rubs her filthy hands in her hair and throws every crumb on her tray to the floor. It is always a big ordeal to clean up after her.

Lately she has been going through another Mommy Phase. She wants me all the time. She walks around saying Mama, Mama a gazillion times. While I love that she wants me, it can also become a little much. If I get up before Nathan and leave her with him she screams and throws a huge tantrum until her brings her to me or until I'm finished in the shower.

Faith gets into more things than Bryce or my niece and nephews ever did. She is so busy and she loves to go right for the things that are off limits. She is constantly digging through Nanny's desk drawers, emptying out the pantry, removing all the Tupperware from the cupboard, and pulling out all the sandwiches bags from the drawer. When you tell her no, she looks at you and keeps doing it. When you remove her, she throws a fit. She can be a real handful.

Bryce 3 Years 5 Months

Bryce is still loving school. Most of the time he still tells me that he plays with Dax and Garrett. I'm encouraging him to play with other kids too. While I haven't personally observed these kids, from what Bryce tells me they don't always play nice and often have "potty talk." He still doesn't like to do a lot of the art work because he doesn't want to get his hands dirty.

Bryce is doing so well with his letters and sounds. When he is in the right mood, he can tell you the name and sound of just about every letter. He can also string a couple of sounds together. Unfortunately, even though he knows these things, he doesn't like to sit down and practice. I realize he is really young still, but I would love it if I could teach him even more. I'm trying to come up with fun ways to keep him interested.

Bryce's behavior has improved a little. He has been having less time-outs over the past couple of weeks.

Sometimes out of the blue Bryce will bring up Pawka and tell me that he is really sad because he misses him, but happy because he is in heaven with Jesus. He asks a lot of questions about heaven and who will get to go and when. He also reminds us that Nanny really misses Pawka too, and that we need to give her extra loves because Pawka isn't here anymore.

Bryce is totally obsessed with Toy Story. We got him Toy Story 2 on DVD and he wants to watch it all the time. He rarely plays with his Car movie cars and hasn't watched the movie in weeks. He is sure that Santa is going to bring him all the characters from Toy Story. He also still likes Peter Pan, but this too has taken a backseat to Toy Story.

Faith 13 Months

Faith is doing great. This past month she has started to communicate even more. She is signing more, and will shake her head yes or no to just about any question. However, more often than not she will tell you no. Some of her new signs include please, birdie and thank you.

She is one tough cookie. Bryce likes to get low to the ground, grab Faith around her middle, or sometimes her neck, and wrestle with her. She often falls to the ground with a loud thud, but doesn't cry. She just rolls over and wrestles with him. We try to encourage Bryce to wrestle with her gently, since she is such a peanut, but it doesn't often happen.

Faith is still throwing some good fits as you can see from the picture. Thankfully once she screams for a couple of minutes she normally reverts back to her happy self quickly.

She is really loving playing with her new doll and stroller. She pushes it all around the house. She also loves playing with whatever Bryce happens to be playing with.

Her feeding and nap schedule hasn't changed in the last month. Thankfully she still eats whatever I put in front of her. She is getting better at using her spoon. She still uses her hand a lot, even with things like cereal w/ milk, yogurt, and soup, but we're encouraging more use of the spoon.

Soda Springs Trip

Nathan, the kids and I headed up to Soda Springs mid morning on Thursday the 12th. Pops and Julie were already there. Packing was simplified since all we had to worry about were our clothes, Nathan's bike, and a few toys for the kids. Pops and Julie took care of everything else, including all the food and drinks.

The house we stayed at was very nice. Since we were the only family joining Pops and Julie for the first two nights, we were able to have Faith in her own room, which made our first two nights much more restful. The following two nights all four of us were in one room. Bryce slept in a bunk bed that ran perpendicular above our bed. He thought it was really neat to sleep up high.

The first afternoon Pops and Nathan went for a little bike ride. Julie took Bryce outside a helped him to build a snowman, which Bryce named "Mr. Tall Foot." The rest of the day was spent relaxing and playing with the kids. That evening we celebrated Tom's birthday. Rather than having a cake, Julie put candles in some chocolate chip cookies. Bryce thought that was great. Each night after he wanted to know if we could have candles in the cookies.

The next day we went sledding. We drove out a long dirt road, covered with snow, until we found a good spot. It was very beautiful as we had a view of the surrounding snow-covered mountains and valleys below. Bryce had a blast. As he barreled down the hill he would yell "heave those halyards" or "man the long cannons" both lines from Peter Pan. At the end of one run, he tipped forward off the sled and landed face first in the snow. I was sure it would be the end of sledding for him, but he stood up, brushed off the snow and was ready for more. He carried the sled up the hill on his own without complaining at least 40 times. Faith also enjoyed her rides down the hill and equally enjoyed Julie pulling her around on the sled.

That afternoon Nathan and I went on a long walk through the neighborhood while the kids slept. It felt good to get out of the house and get a little exercise. We were hoping Em and Justin would be coming up that evening, but unfortunately Justin got bogged down with work and they weren't able to make it.

The next day we hung out at the house until Julie's kids arrived. We really enjoyed getting to know them and the kids played really well together. Julie had told me that Caitlin and I had a lot in common and that our family structure reminded her of Ryan and Caitlin's. Meeting Julie's daughter, Ally, and her boyfriend was also great. That afternoon we went back to the same place we sledded the previous day. The snow had melted quite a bit, but there was still enough left for sledding. The kids all enjoyed it. On the way back Joey's car got stuck in the snow. The guys had to go back and dig him out. Later in the day Nathan and I went on another walk around the neighborhood

The following day the guys went on a bike ride and us girls and kids stayed home. We played in the snow and the kids made another snowman. That afternoon we all went for a walk. Julie prepared a wonderful Thanksgiving dinner that afternoon. We ate until we were stuffed. Tom and Julie gave each couple a wonderful poetry book, and each kid received a blessings book.

We left to come home the following morning. Pops and Julie - thanks for a wonderful trip.