Update

If you're interested in checking on the progress of Aron's coworker's premature baby, Lydia, here is the link. I'll also put it on the side to check her progress.

http://www.caringbridge.org/visit/lydiahermann

Can you believe she's 5??

I found this cute picture of Ella from over the summer. Doesn't she look like a little Nature Girl?

I went to my first parent/teacher conference last night. Aron stayed home with the kids while I went by myself. I must say I was a little nervous about what to expect. I tried to get a picture of Mrs. Lori the pre-school teacher but Aron didn't think it was the best idea (he actually used words like "creepy" and "weird" to describe my wanting to get a pic of her for the blog. To me it's not any different than another Mom wanting to get a picture for a scrapbook or something, right?).

It went pretty well. I expected her to say that Ella was on course academically but was behind socially and is shy.

BOY WAS I WRONG!

Well, I wasn't wrong about the being on course academically but Mrs. Lori set me straight about the shy part. She said that she's relatively quiet in the big group when we drop her off in the morning. She'll play with a few other kids (the usual suspects are Elizabeth and Maci). Once Ella's class is separated and taken into their classroom, Ella is very social and outgoing with the other kids. She is especially outgoing and social with her best buddy who is a boy whom I'll call Jordan Catalano** (I know Tori will understand this reference). Mrs. Lori says that the two of them just sit there and laugh at their own little inside jokes and they both think the other one is hilarious. She says that she's learned that she can't sit them directly beside one another during the academic times of class but other than that they have a great time together. Ella's mentioned him quite a few times at home but be careful asking her about him because she gets kind of embarrassed about it. I think she's got a little crush on Jordan Catalano.

Academically, she's doing great. She finishes her work quickly and accurately. Mrs. Lori tries to have "advanced papers" ready for her to do once she finishes because the other kids are still working. (Jordan Catalano also needs these advanced papers). Mrs. Lori tested all the kids before the conferences and Ella didn't know or couldn't do just a small amount of things. These were things like identifying a pentagon (She might just have a problem with name recall of a pentagon, though, because later on in the test when she was asked to draw a pentagon with no prompts of what it looked like she was able to draw one with no problem) and skipping. Ella was described as very artistic (I could've told you that. She's amazing when she draws) and has advanced scissor skills (I, too, was advanced in scissoring at her age. I could cut like no one's business. Ask me to glue something, though, and it was all over. Extra glue was sloshing around, getting all over stuff). She was the only one in her class able to cut a complicated set of lines on a paper Mrs. Lori showed me. Mrs. Lori is impressed with her ability to remember things when shown only one time. Ella is also asked to help show the kids sign language (learned courtesy of Monday school) to the other kids in class.

My little baby's all grown up!

**As always, names are changed

Belated Halloween Pix

Yes, I know it's almost Thanksgiving and I never got around to posting Halloween pix (bad blogger). Here ya go and quitcher bitchin' bout it.

Wiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii!

I'm ok with punching Uncle Jeffy but how do it do it with these?

Daddy's punching Uncle Jeffy, too?


Seriously, guys, still not understanding how to take these sticks and hit Jeffy. Why can't a boxer can't wear a ballet leotard? I like to think outside the box.
I'm done with this now, Daddy. Someone landed a punch at this exact moment. I'm not sure who it was.

Uncle Jeffy, Aunt Robbie, MyMy, and Chase brought over their Wii to play with us. Our family was novice Wii'ers but had been looking to get in the game for a little while (at least I had... Aron has a Wii at his work so he can do it whenever he needs a "creative break." Can you tell I'm in the wrong profession?).

Part of Ella's difficulty with the game may have been her blatent lack of aggression. We had to teach her how to punch and that she actually wanted to beat up on Jeffy.

Again, I took a video sideways. Sorry. It's still entertaining.

I think Santa may have to bring this for Christmas this year for me. I mean, for the KIDS. That's what I meant, the kids. It makes me think of the year that Santa brought Jeff and I the Atari 5200. I don't really remember asking for one (maybe Jeff did). What I do remember, though, is the fact that Santa was kind enough set it up to our large wood-framed television (you know you all had one. It sat on the floor and was about 5 feet wide and 5 feet deep with a dial to turn the channel. The screen was about 20 inches and the rest of the thing was wood. Awesome) before he went on to the next house. In fact, he was even nice enough to stick around and play a while on the system (clearly, he was entraced by the 5200's superior graphics) to make sure it wasn't a lemon and drink 3/4 of a can of Coke. I remember that the controller's and the box itself were still warm to the touch the next morning from the prior night's use . I remember my Dad being painfully sleepy the next day and I remember Mom being all crabby about the fact that "Santa" really shouldn't have been up so late into the night and that he wouldn't be so tired for Christmas day and could be awake to watch the children enjoy their gifts if he just would've come to bed. It's amazing how she always knew just what Santa needed on his Christmas vacation.

But enough about me

I forgot to tell everyone that we need some prayers/positive thoughts sent a friend's way. Aron's coworker's wife prematurely delivered their baby late last week at just 27 weeks (normal is 40 weeks). They've called her Lydia and she weighs less than 2#. She has a mild hemmorhage on her brain that they're hoping will stop. They'll be half-living at the Riverside NICU for the next several months.

Thoughts, prayers, or whatever you've got are welcome.

Not fair, not fair, not fair

I took this week off work so I could accomplish two things. 1.) I need to have some oral surgery to have a dental implant (click "dental implant" to learn more) put in. I made this appt two months ago and really want to get it started now because it's a multiple step procedure. Do I really want to get a titanium rod shoved into my jaw bone? No, but it's necessary to get my teeth looking normal again. 2.) I wanted to catch up on some things around the house. You know, organize some closets, catch up on laundry, that kind of thing.

As of today, I haven't been able to do anything around the house because I've been running a fever, have a cold, and have a horrible sore throat that make it hurt to swallow anything at all. I'm going to call the doctor's office this morning to see if I'm going to still be able to go through with the surgery tomorrow. My guess is that they will say no.

**Update**
I went to the doctor and I have strep throat so I'm unable to have the surgery tomorrow. If I could say curse words without it hurting like a mother, I would. Alas, I cannot so I will have to resort to the old standby----(*&%@#)(%*&@#$@()$&*@^*(!&!!!

Biggie boy

Whatchoo talkin bout Willis?

Luke went for his 3 year check up last week. He's at the 50% for height (I can't remember the exact measurement) and the 25% for weight (29 1/2#). The pediatrician said he was looking good (quit hitting on my kid, doc), was doing age appropriate or better than age appropriate things (we don't like labels like "genius," doc), and is healthy as a horse. He's got some 4 year old skills mostly related to his verbal reasoning skills and overall speech/language development. His coordination is pretty good for a 3 year old, especially a 3 year old boy (boys tend to lag behind girls in most every way when they are little). He's still having difficulty verbally expressing his emotions (duh) and finding a healthy outlet for his anger (hands are not for hitting, Luke) but he's working on it.

Age 3 (and the month or so prior to age 3) has been difficult for Luke so far. Very often, he turns off his "listening ears" and replaces them with "I'm going to pretend not to hear you and do whatever the heck I want and who do you think you are to stop me" ears. This especially happens in front of other people because he knows we tend to be more lenient on him when other people are around (he's starting to know how to work us without getting in more trouble than he's willing to be in). There has been an increase in time outs for the little guy, lately, and he even got a little hand smack from Aron at his own birthday party (Luke kept trying to put his grubby little paws in his birthday cake after repeatedly being told no). He's also picked up a new hobby--picking at his sister. He loves to push her buttons until she flips out. This has been great (insert sarcasm here). As a result, I wear my crabby face with an increased frequency and feel like my head will pop off and steam will pour out. They don't tell you about these things when you sign up to have a kid. They need to put that in a handy little brochure or something--you know, kind of like what you get when you buy a toaster and such. (I think I need a vacation.)

On the flip side, Luke can also be very sweet. When you ask him what's in his heart, he will tell you "love." He's very snuggly especially when he's sleepy before his nap or at bedtime. When he talks about his Grammie or Stevie or Poppy or Lindy Bear, his little face just lights up and you can tell they mean something very special to him. He loves food with a passion I've never seen before. It's like he just can't help himself when he's around it. I still find food squirreled away in my living room (which is awesome, BTW) and can occasionally find him tucked under the kitchen table with some sort of forbidden snack (lately it's been his Halloween candy). He can be cute when when he's in the tub pretending that he can swim like a dolphin. Or when he's playing around and pinching me with what he calls his "grab nabbers" (his hands).

I think I'm being punished

Yesterday for Ella's birthday, Aron and I got her a My Little Pony remote control motorcycle (I couldn't find the exact item she got but this is pretty close--as always, click on the link to view product). Last night she looked up at me and said "Mommy, I wished for a long time that I would get this and now I have it. I saw it on a commercial. I'm so happy." I never even knew she wanted it! I went out on a limb when I grabbed it at the store thinking that she liked My Little Pony and I thought it was cute. She never, ever asks for anything. Whenever any birthdays or Christmas or whatever gift-giving holidays come around, I'll ask her what she would like and she always says "I like whatever (insert Santa, Easter Bunny, Mommy, whoever) brings me."

Now here's where I went wrong. I asked her if she could think of anything else she liked.

She did have something else that she wanted. She wants a Hasbro Baby Alive Wets 'N Wiggles Doll. She's so excited because you feed it a bottle and it goes peeps in a diaper that you get to change.

Great. One more thing that I have to monitor for peeps. Good times.

Happy 53rd birthday, kids!

Ella decided she wanted to open her presents while wearing her recital costume--who wouldn't want to wear red sequins and such just to hang out?

Football in the foreground...football in the background.

Just kidding! We had a combined birthday party today for Luke and Ella with Aron's family. Ella's half of the cake was purple and Luke's half was blue. Ella helped me make the frosting by adding the food coloring. Mini-Martha in the making!

For those of you interested (Jim), it was a 3 layer vanilla bean cake with blackberry filling and cream cheese frosting.

Ballet dress up

Ballet also had a dress up day last week. Ella continued her reign as princess. Here's a pic of her ballet class. Cuties, huh?

This is mostly for you, Auntie T. Here's a video of Ella's dance.

Lori hour

Ella and Luke love going to story hour. They also had a dress up day last week. This time, Ella chose to be a princess (there was different little girl that was a skunk this time) and Luke reprised his role of Cowboy Luke. Ella's the one in the pink dress and the kleenex in her hand. Luke is right in front of her with the brown vest on by Miss Lori's knee.

See Spiderman in the crowd? That was Ella and Luke's friend, Mason.

The most unhappy skunk this side of the Mississippi

Last Monday, Ella's Monday school had a dress up day. All the kids were to dress up like an animal. After all the kids got there, the teachers let the kids have a parade around the church. It was very cute.

We didn't have an animal costume so I borrowed one from our old buddy, Sam (Thanks, Con!).

I tried really hard but could not get my little skunky-kins to smile for the camera. Ah, the memories.