An extra half hour...

...means some extra time outside! And since Lauren has been working so hard on her sitting-up skills, she even got to spend some time on the blanket with her toys while Joshua dug up my flower beds.

And one from this morning for good measure.

Goodbye 1996!

1996 was a fine year. I'll recall chanting cheers of pride with the rest of my graduating class in the Lewistown High School gym for all of my days. "Ninety-six! Ninety-six! Ninety-ninety-ninety-ninety-ninety-six!" Fashion, however, left quite a bit to be desired. Both in terms of clothing (I could scan in some yearbook photos here for dramatic effect, but I believe I'll spare myself the humiliation) and apparently in terms of home decor.

Not only was I graduating high school in 1996, but I would also come to own a home that was being constructed just as I was tossing my cap and giving my salutatorian speech. And the nice folks who made the construction decisions certainly were smitten with the home styles circa the mid-nineties. And when I say that, I mean that they loved mauve and country blue.

When we first saw the house, we couldn't help but be knocked down by the amount of mauve and blue---- stencils, light fixtures, bathroom colors, and the kitchen. We've effectively removed it little by little and piece by piece. And this past week was the time for the 1996 to be removed from our kitchen. Oh happy day.

Here's a look at Joshua working in the kitchen after they had removed the old countertops. He was "all up in the business" of the contractors who were working at the house on Friday. And by that I mean he was under the sink with the plumber and right beside the carpentry contractor who was attaching the counters and backsplash. As you can see, his Longaberger basket full of tools was at his side. And yes, it does irk me to no end that he is using one of my favorite baskets as a tool box. In case you wondered.

After an extra month-long wait and a couple of thousand scolds of Joshua to "get out of their way" and "get out of the kitchen", this is what we ended up with. New counters. New sink and faucet. As I'm sure you'll notice, the rugs don't come anywhere close to matching, but I need to get some new ones. I've since added (thanks to my mom who most certainly knows how to outfit a kitchen) towels and placemats for the table that match perfectly. I believe it's safe to say that the apple didn't fall too far from the tree in terms of wanting things to go together....hence my issue with Gymboree.

So that was Friday.

Saturday was a long awaited day....the day that Mom, Libby and I were headed to the Hotel Hershey to enjoy a morning at the spa courtesy of our husbands who were so thoughtful as to purchase gift certificates for us for Christmas. What a special day we had. The chocolate massages were heavenly, but I'll tell you that what I most enjoyed was being able to just talk to mom and Libby (albeit over the whir of a Medela pump during some of the time) without having to interject something to the children. Not one sippy cup was filled during our day together. Not one potty chair emptied. Not one diaper changed. We just got to be grown ups. We giggled. We ate sandwiches and whoopie pies out of Mom's packed cooler. We spent too much money at the outlets. We had a ball. And we're already hoping that the guys will make this an annual event. That one will go down in history as one of the most fun!

And to wrap things up, here are two pictures of Lauren. Have I mentioned how smitten I am with her?

An update on our little runt...

When I last posted, I was about to embark on a cold turkey intervention with Lauren by taking away her miracle blanket. I have to say that I have never failed more horribly at anything in my entire life. Except maybe gymnastics when I was about nine. And Accounting 211 at Penn State.

In the interest of full disclosure, I will admit that I am weak, and perhaps I have enabled her. All I can say is that she was awake screaming 7 times between 9:00 pm and 11:30 pm on the evening of my last post. She finally fell asleep (on her tummy) from 11:30 until 2:00, at which point the screaming began once again. I caved at 5:15, wrapped her back up and watched as she magically closed her eyes and then had the gall to smile at me. It was at that point that I got in the shower and started my normal morning preparation, grumbling at my inability to stand firm and my stupidity for thinking that standing firm with a newborn is even a good idea.

If there's one thing I learned with Joshua it's that transitions like this work best when I don't try to impose my timelines onto him. I could cite multiple instances--- the bottle, his pacifier, moving him out of his crib, having him stay in children's church without me there, potty training--- all of which end the same way. In his own time, things go pretty darn smoothly. I don't know what I was thinking to assume that Lauren was going to be any different. And so, it appears that we'll wean s-l-o-w-l-y from the miracle blanket.

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Yesterday, Miss Lauren had the pleasure of going for her six month checkup at the doctor's office. We were a few weeks late in getting there...but it didn't take long of sitting in a jam packed waiting room to figure out why it was hard to get scheduled for an appointment. I will say that I was sitting across from a very sophistocated Mom who was working on an iPad and it has sparked in me an intense desire to have one of my own. For what, I'm not sure. But goodness, was that thing ever cool!

Anyway, Lauren's dislike for the pediatrician's office has now been firmly cemented in her adorable little mind. At the sight of the exam room, she broke out into hysterics that ended only when I picked her up. They began again when she got within a foot of the examining table.

In terms of stats, I will sum it up by saying that we officially have a runt on our hands. Or a leprechaun. Or the Mayor of Munchkin City. She weighs 13 lb 5.5 oz and was 25.5 inches long. Her weight puts her at the 5th percentile, down from the 25th when she was born. And her length puts her at the 35th percentile, down from the 50th when she was born. Both have steadily declined over the past six months. The nurse was concerned. The doctor was not. He told us that she's well within normal range, she's hitting developmental milestones ahead of schedule, she's generally happy and content and a good sleeper (ahem) so we're not to do anything differently. He must have seen the panic in my face when we talked about her eating habits and he assured me not to change a thing and that she just might be little. I suppose that's not a bad thing. She'll get to wear whatever size heels she wants to the prom and she won't struggle to find a boyfriend who is taller than she is.

I can't honestly tell you that it doesn't shake me a bit to have her be so small, as though a chubby, roly-poly baby is the sign of a good mother. That doesn't even make any sense. But I'm struggling a bit with the same insecurity we all face as moms. Are we making the right choices? Are we giving our kids the absolute best? Could we do anything different or better to give them more? I have to knock that off....because it's not productive at all. But I do think it's normal.

My sweet girl earned herself two shots, even though she was still at the tail end of the sickness that we have had (and effectively shared throughout Mifflin County on our visit home at Easter). She seemed to be doing fine until I sat her in her high chair to eat some cereal and carrots last night around 7:00. All of a sudden she broke out into hysterics and I realized that she had spiked a fever. I gave her some Tylenol, ditched the solids for the night and attempted to get her into her pajamas so that she could just cuddle to sleep. It was then that I realized that her right leg wasn't moving at all. It was just hanging limp and she screamed bloody murder at the approach of a hand anywhere near it. Once she nursed for a good long time, mostly for comfort I believe, she drifted off to sleep and slept pretty well. I did need to give her some more Tylenol around 3 because she was getting warm again. She seems happier and not as fevered today. Her legs are moving fine, so that's good news.

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And Joshua. Oh Joshua. He's doing great. Loved a trip to Camp Victory this weekend to visit with our Key Club friends. He was officially tasked with gathering twigs for the camp fire and did an outstanding job. I honestly think he'd still be there if we would have allowed him. He has been full of anectdotes and stories lately too, but any specific ones are escaping me at the moment. I'll have to put a just-Joshua post together here soon.

If you made it this far, God bless your heart. More to come soon!

It's the end of an era.

It's a sad day. I'm somewhere between a state of mourning and a state of feeling like I'm staring at a freight train as it's about to flatten me.

The day I've been dreading has come to pass---- the day when we need to say goodbye to our cherished friend, Miracle Blanket.

My love affair with these sewn together flaps of pink fabric began just a few short days after bringing Lauren home from the hospital. It has been my rock, my source of good sleep, my only sanity some days as I have a great sense of security in the fact that, more often than not, when Lauren is wrapped up like a cocoon she's going to drift off into dreamland (and stay there) without too much incident. I count on it like I count on having to argue with Joshua to get him to eat his dinner. It's as sure a bet as just about anything.

The night before we headed home to Lewistown to celebrate Easter, I was terrified to find Lauren on her tummy in her crib, albeit fast asleep and looking quite comfortable. She was, however, still wrapped in her baby straight-jacket, and would have been unable to roll herself back over if she needed to. Once assuring that she was breathing, I rolled her over and of course woke her up. I declared that we would no longer use the Miracle Blanket anymore and quickly retracted that statement upon Lauren waking up 30 times between 11:00 and 3:30 am the first night we were at my parents' house. She hasn't been rolling over, so I thought we were smooth sailing.

Until last night. I couldn't keep her on her back for anything. She was resting comfortably and sleeping well, but she just kept finding her way back to her tummy, despite the fact that she had no movement whatsoever in her arms. It's not so much the tummy sleeping that freaks me out, but more that I can't be sure she could get herself out of trouble if she couldn't breathe. And so, I believe the time as come to begin the process of seeing what night sleep is going to be like at our house sans Miracle Blanket. As I type that, the tears are rolling down my cheeks and hitting the keyboard. (Not really, but I feel like I want to cry....plus it sounds more dramatic, doesn't it?)

I've begun a strict caffeine regimen in preparation for what tonight holds. If you wish to pray for me, it would be appreciated. God and I are already in deep talks about this. And who knows, maybe she'll surprise me and appreciate the freedom of movement and sleep BETTER (as in, skipping the feeding in the middle of the night), but I'm a realist and I have to tell you that I'm not counting on it.

Farewell Miracle Blanket. It's been a good run.

Was that a weekend or WHAT?

My camera is just about to burst with pictures from the Easter weekend. Somehow it feels like we squeezed about a month's worth of activity into three days. And maybe that's why I'm so tired! But it was a fantastic weekend and a fabulous couple of days with my family.

Our plans were a little up in the air when Joshua took a turn into the under-the-weather club on Thursday. By a stroke of good luck, I was able to get him an appointment at the doctor's office on Friday morning to have them take a look at the sore throat and sore ears he was complaining about. One prescription for pink antibiotics later and after a few doses of Tylenol, he was on the mend. We were so glad that we were able to get him some medicine so that he could still make the trip to Lewistown. He had been looking so forward to it for so long.

Since Joshua was under Daddy's care at home, I decided to still go over to our church's Maundy Thursday service. Oh am I glad I did. My Easter blessing was being able to be there, and have some time for quiet reflection as I shared Communion with the rest of the church. It was a really special service that I will definitely make sure that I attend each year. Lauren was relatively good until it got close to her sleepy time, so we left a little early. But it was worth it by a long shot.

We spent most of Friday afternoon out in the driveway letting the kids play. And play they did! There was no shortage of ball throwing, dirt digging, Gator riding, bubble blowing and everything else that you can find to do in Nana and Pap's driveway.

Saturday we all got dressed up to go to have our pictures taken at Mom and Dad's church. They're doing a new pictoral directory for the church and were offering sittings at no charge. My mom wanted to try and get a whole family shot, which we actually succeeded in doing. It was a bit of a circus, but actually could have been A WHOLE LOT worse than it was. All three of the kids were relatively happy. We were all pretty tired after the photos (as you can tell from Lauren's picture!) but started our outside playtime again as soon as dress clothes had been exchanged for play clothes once again. Joshua and Pap also had their first guitar lesson on the Martin backpacker. Pap would play the chords while Joshua strummed with his guitar pick that Pastor Dave gave to him last week. He was so proud of himself!

We christened Brooke's roller coaster in the driveway on Saturday afternoon. I'll tell you what---- if I was little enough to ride on it, I would have! Once the little car got rolling down the ramp, it went ripping down the pavement! Pap stood at the bottom of the hill to catch the car before it ran away down the BIG hill, but the kids giggled and had a blast. And then, Gator rides continued. We strapped Brooke and Joshua into the Gator with a bungee strap. Brooke absolutely cracked us up--- she was giggling like she had never had more fun in her life, smiling ear to ear and waving at everyone as they went around in a circle together. It was precious. Along with all of this outside fun, we also had a chance to visit with Pappy Ray, Pappy Fred and Freda, and Grandma, Bill and Aunt Pat. Pap's garage makes an awesome gathering spot to watch the kids run amuck, and that's just what we did.

Brooke's love affair with Lauren certainly hasn't cooled off. She just can't get enough! And Lauren is seeming to really get a kick out of Brooke too. The more Brooke kisses and hugs her, the more she wants to touch Brooke and smile at her. I just loved seeing the two of them together this weekend, and hope so much that they'll always love each other this way. I don't know what I'd do without my cousins....and I just hope and pray that they'll have the same kind of relationship with each other and their extended cousins one day. Who knows...maybe our Cousins Day tradition will go on into the next generation!

Saturday night marked the second annual Easter egg hunt at Nana and Pap's house. There were lots of pictures, none of which were good enough to post here. There was a whole bunch of running around and egg collecting, just as you would suspect there should be. Suffice it to say that we have enough candy to last until three Easters from now. Maybe four. It's a lot! The kids had a great time, though, and it was lots of fun to watch.

And THEN it was Easter! Doesn't it feel like we already had a full weekend BEFORE the holiday even got there? I was lulled into a false sense of security by being awoken by Lauren early in the morning. I thought for sure we'd be up, dressed and ready for church long before we needed to be. So maybe I got a little lazy. I don't know, but I did panic when I looked at the clock and noticed that it was 10:10. I was dressed, but both of the kids were still in their pajamas! And church started very very soon (like we were supposed to LEAVE the house at 10:10). So, a whole bunch of rushed panic happened in the next 15 minutes. We did manage to make it to church and were able to sit with the rest of the family, so that was good. However, I was sweating and very frazzled. A small price to pay, I guess, for having gorgeous little munchkins for Easter Sunday.

We managed to snap a picture that is slightly better than the one we took of Joshua and Brooke (both crying, I believe) last Easter morning. Perhaps with a few more years of practice, we'll get a good one. We were so excited to be able to add Anna into the photo! Are these kids not precious beyond words? I just wanted to eat them all up!

After church, the real whirlwind began. It's always a nightmare when we try to get ready to leave my parents' house. No matter how hard we try to make it less chaotic than the last time, it always is MORESO. The baby needed to eat. Joshua needed to change out of his church clothes and eat some lunch (this is a meltdown point on the best of Sunday afternoons, so you can just imagine how it went with a tired, cranky, still not feeling well little boy after the commotion of Easter Sunday). We had to gather up and pack all of our stuff. We all had to eat lunch. It was a mess. And I'll tell you that the only reason we get to keep coming back to my parents' house at all is that they're saints and they love us regardless of the three ring circus we bring to their otherwise calm and reasonable lives. Even though they'd never say so, I just know they're relieved to see the Highlander rolling down the hill pointed in the opposite direction of their house!

We returned home mid-afternoon to start the unpacking, putting away and laundry doing. Needless to say, I'm still working on laundry and finding homes for things that got shoved into things that they didn't belong in. But that's the fun of a weekend trip. Joshua ate about 17 pounds of Easter candy and modeled his bunny ears like a pro to keep us all in the Easter spirit amidst the rushing around. Goodness, I love him!

So that's the Easter weekend recap. See what I mean about it seeming more like a two week vacation? Weekends like this make me remember how lucky we are to have opportunities to spend time with our family out of town. It also makes me wish that we were able to do it more often, but we sure do make the most of it when we have the chance to be together.

I hope your Easter was just as blessed. And I hope you had far less laundry to do than I did!