This is what life is like in our house after dinner. The kids always get all wound up and play together. Very loud, but I love it!
Thursday, March 31, 2011
Saturday, March 26, 2011
PIctures and More
I got to go with Nate on his walking tour of Philadelphia field trip. It was a fun day! We saw some cool things and learned some too! The kids were most interested in the gift shops though. We saw the US Mint, Independence Hall, Liberty Bell, Christ Church, Carpenters Hall, Betsy Ross's courtyard, and Franklin Square. So glad I got to spend the day with the Nate :)
Brad took the day off to be with Grace. She adores Daddy. Runs to him when he comes home, etc. But it was obviously a stressful day for Grace since she broke out in hives even while medicated. We are now 100% positive that her chronic hives are brought on by stress. The first time they appeared was when I was gone for the whole day. The next time they started (and stayed) was when we had company over. She has been on Zyrtec every day since then. The one time I forgot to give it to her, she was covered the next morning. Well, yesterday she broke out again and we have increased her dosage. Then we had some friends over tonight that Grace had never met or hasn't seen since summer, and they got even worse! She is definitely itchy. I feel so bad for her. I know hives aren't horrilbe, but it is a visual reminder to us that she is under stress :( Poor baby.
This man looked awesome for being over 200 years old :)
Liberty Bell
Christ Church Steeple... it was the tallest building in Philadelphia at one time. Really beautiful church. Coolest part was that during the tour, Nate sat in the same pew that George Washington used to sit in.
Grace trying to put her sunglasses on Dora! But I think she wishes Dora didn't move around so much :)
Grace's boo boo toe. She dropped the Wack-A-Mole game on it! I felt so bad for her the first day, but the girl knows how to milk it. She is constantly saying "how" (Oww) and looking for me to make a fuss over her. Of course I do :) But we are going on a week now. All good things must come to an end. Cute piggies though :)
LIfe is rough! Grace enjoyed her mid-morning milk laying in the sunroom soaking up some sun!
We had some friends over for dinner this weekend. The kids had there own little party with Shirley Temple drinks!
Grace is going to be a thrill seeker. She insists on watching the Zaboomafoo episode with dinosaurs but then hides here and peeks around most of the show. It clearly makes her nervous or uncomfortable, but she just can't seem to stop watching it :)
Check out the videos below too :)
Brad took the day off to be with Grace. She adores Daddy. Runs to him when he comes home, etc. But it was obviously a stressful day for Grace since she broke out in hives even while medicated. We are now 100% positive that her chronic hives are brought on by stress. The first time they appeared was when I was gone for the whole day. The next time they started (and stayed) was when we had company over. She has been on Zyrtec every day since then. The one time I forgot to give it to her, she was covered the next morning. Well, yesterday she broke out again and we have increased her dosage. Then we had some friends over tonight that Grace had never met or hasn't seen since summer, and they got even worse! She is definitely itchy. I feel so bad for her. I know hives aren't horrilbe, but it is a visual reminder to us that she is under stress :( Poor baby.
This man looked awesome for being over 200 years old :)
Liberty Bell
Christ Church Steeple... it was the tallest building in Philadelphia at one time. Really beautiful church. Coolest part was that during the tour, Nate sat in the same pew that George Washington used to sit in.
Grace trying to put her sunglasses on Dora! But I think she wishes Dora didn't move around so much :)
Grace's boo boo toe. She dropped the Wack-A-Mole game on it! I felt so bad for her the first day, but the girl knows how to milk it. She is constantly saying "how" (Oww) and looking for me to make a fuss over her. Of course I do :) But we are going on a week now. All good things must come to an end. Cute piggies though :)
LIfe is rough! Grace enjoyed her mid-morning milk laying in the sunroom soaking up some sun!
We had some friends over for dinner this weekend. The kids had there own little party with Shirley Temple drinks!
Grace is going to be a thrill seeker. She insists on watching the Zaboomafoo episode with dinosaurs but then hides here and peeks around most of the show. It clearly makes her nervous or uncomfortable, but she just can't seem to stop watching it :)
Check out the videos below too :)
Videos
This video cracked me up. I turned down the TV and the horsey ride came to a halt!
Disclaimer: WE DO NOT TIE UP OUR CHILDREN. THIS WAS A ONE TIME EVENT INITIATED BY NATE AND LOVED BY GRACE! I MAY HAVE HAD TO SAY THE WORDS, "SHE IS A NOT A DOG" WHEN A LEASH WAS CONSTRUCTED. NO ONE WAS INJURED OR UNHAPPY IN THE FILMING OF THIS VIDEO, EXCEPT AIDAN WHO DIDN'T GET WHAT HE WANTED.... TIED UP!
Daddy is so funny! He was peeking around the corner and that is all it took :)
Disclaimer: WE DO NOT TIE UP OUR CHILDREN. THIS WAS A ONE TIME EVENT INITIATED BY NATE AND LOVED BY GRACE! I MAY HAVE HAD TO SAY THE WORDS, "SHE IS A NOT A DOG" WHEN A LEASH WAS CONSTRUCTED. NO ONE WAS INJURED OR UNHAPPY IN THE FILMING OF THIS VIDEO, EXCEPT AIDAN WHO DIDN'T GET WHAT HE WANTED.... TIED UP!
Daddy is so funny! He was peeking around the corner and that is all it took :)
Wednesday, March 16, 2011
New Toys
Grace is always making a fashion statement! She loves the train engineer cap. Today I put a princess crown on her and it lasted all of 3 seconds.
Grace got her new trampoline! I love how she "helped" the boys put it together :) That would be her in the center with Nate's Ipod Touch :) I think she is checking email.
I love the energy she put into this for about 10 seconds! She really isn't all that interested in it and won't hold the handle much when she does venture on it. Hopefully over time she will get into it. Otherwise it was a waste of money and floor space! We did move it to the playroom.
Behold.... a smile!
Our wonderful, generous friends and neighbors, the Kraynaks, passed this down to Grace today! She LOVES it! She still needs some practice, but is very impressive with her driving while thumb sucking.
Grace got her new trampoline! I love how she "helped" the boys put it together :) That would be her in the center with Nate's Ipod Touch :) I think she is checking email.
I love the energy she put into this for about 10 seconds! She really isn't all that interested in it and won't hold the handle much when she does venture on it. Hopefully over time she will get into it. Otherwise it was a waste of money and floor space! We did move it to the playroom.
Behold.... a smile!
Our wonderful, generous friends and neighbors, the Kraynaks, passed this down to Grace today! She LOVES it! She still needs some practice, but is very impressive with her driving while thumb sucking.
Wednesday, March 9, 2011
10 Months Home
I started this post on Wednesday, our 10 months home date, but had trouble with a video I wanted to upload. It's there, but I can't figure out why is doesn't center on the screen. Move the mouse around until the play button turns red.
Grace's behavior is so much better again! I better knock on wood :) After my last post, we spent the weekend giving Grace lots of OT and attention. Brad was great with her since I was still in a lot of pain. I'm sure my inability to sit on the floor and goof around was part of the problem. I got a new prescription and my back is doing so much better, therefore our whole week was better. I enjoy her so much more when I'm feeling good. Someone had asked if Grace can communicate what she wants or needs, and she is doing very well. She adds words every day, I've lost count :)
We have our 1 year post placement visit tomorrow. I CAN NOT believe it is approaching one year since Grace became ours officially! It still feels so new in some respects and other ways it feels like she has always been here. We need to have up to date height and weight for the PPR. So I took Grace to the doctor's office just to get that done. Are you ready???? The girl is weighing in at 34 lbs!!!! And her height is 36 inches! She is so big for her age and it is so weird since most babies from orphanages are tiny. I totally have been watching what she eats, but she is still a growing machine! She loves fruits, so thankfully that is a common snack for her. My boys are so thin (they get that from their daddy) and can eat anything they want. Although I am sort of the food nazi with them too. Sure, have some cookies, after you have a piece of fruit. Grace is allowed the occasional ice cream, cookie and chips, but I really try to avoid them with her. I don't want to deprive her of all things yummy, though :)
Tomorrow night Brad and I are actually going out to dinner by ourselves!!! I can't wait! Aunt Denise and Uncle Andy are coming over and that always means McDonalds for the kids!
I forgot to post about Grace's visit to the opthamologist back in January. She has one eye that every once in a while will drift out. (very random and occasional) We tried patching for one hour a day but that was a bust. The girl just ripped it off every time. But we did do drops twice a week to blur the good eye and make the other eye work a little harder. We had her follow up yesterday and for right now we aren't going to do anything else for about 5 months. She seems pretty good right now. The doctor does think she will need glasses by kindergarten.
I've also been enjoying some spring shopping for Grace! It is getting dangerous! I can not wait for warm weather and a new wardrobe! Grace has outgrown most of her 2T clothes and looks like a poor girl half the time with clothes that are too small :)
Stay tuned for pics of Grace on her new trampoline (recommended by the OT)!!!! It just came and I can't wait to see her on it tonight!
Grace's behavior is so much better again! I better knock on wood :) After my last post, we spent the weekend giving Grace lots of OT and attention. Brad was great with her since I was still in a lot of pain. I'm sure my inability to sit on the floor and goof around was part of the problem. I got a new prescription and my back is doing so much better, therefore our whole week was better. I enjoy her so much more when I'm feeling good. Someone had asked if Grace can communicate what she wants or needs, and she is doing very well. She adds words every day, I've lost count :)
We have our 1 year post placement visit tomorrow. I CAN NOT believe it is approaching one year since Grace became ours officially! It still feels so new in some respects and other ways it feels like she has always been here. We need to have up to date height and weight for the PPR. So I took Grace to the doctor's office just to get that done. Are you ready???? The girl is weighing in at 34 lbs!!!! And her height is 36 inches! She is so big for her age and it is so weird since most babies from orphanages are tiny. I totally have been watching what she eats, but she is still a growing machine! She loves fruits, so thankfully that is a common snack for her. My boys are so thin (they get that from their daddy) and can eat anything they want. Although I am sort of the food nazi with them too. Sure, have some cookies, after you have a piece of fruit. Grace is allowed the occasional ice cream, cookie and chips, but I really try to avoid them with her. I don't want to deprive her of all things yummy, though :)
Tomorrow night Brad and I are actually going out to dinner by ourselves!!! I can't wait! Aunt Denise and Uncle Andy are coming over and that always means McDonalds for the kids!
I forgot to post about Grace's visit to the opthamologist back in January. She has one eye that every once in a while will drift out. (very random and occasional) We tried patching for one hour a day but that was a bust. The girl just ripped it off every time. But we did do drops twice a week to blur the good eye and make the other eye work a little harder. We had her follow up yesterday and for right now we aren't going to do anything else for about 5 months. She seems pretty good right now. The doctor does think she will need glasses by kindergarten.
I've also been enjoying some spring shopping for Grace! It is getting dangerous! I can not wait for warm weather and a new wardrobe! Grace has outgrown most of her 2T clothes and looks like a poor girl half the time with clothes that are too small :)
Stay tuned for pics of Grace on her new trampoline (recommended by the OT)!!!! It just came and I can't wait to see her on it tonight!
Tuesday, March 8, 2011
Having Some Elefun
Our neighbor, Meghan, was over today and the girls had a blast playing Elefun! Lots of squeals! I love it!
Friday, March 4, 2011
Drained
This has been an awful week. I'm too emotionally drained to go into too much detail. But Grace has challenged and tested me all week and I feel like I'm failing miserably. She is getting into all sorts of trouble and hitting constantly. The worst is when we are in public and for no reason she just starts to hit me with both hands. I never ever had to deal with this with the boys and I honestly have no idea where to go from here (except maybe the looney bin). Time out isn't working. I've started taking Dora and Diego privileges away. I think this is all toddler related but we are going to increase the OT we do at home. On top of her behavior, I have had back issues. I've been in constant pain for over a week. I did see a doctor once already and am going back tomorrow. I'm just so thankful the week is coming to an end and Brad will be home to help deal with our little bully.
And to add insult to injury, Brad and I actually had a date night planned for Saturday and Grace woke up with a slimy cold. And Aunt Denise is afraid of germs :) (She is training for a marathon, so we will give her a pass this time)
You'd never know by looking at her that she was such a stinker! Well, actually her eyes in the second picture kind of give her away :)
Grace has a real hard time keeping her shirt on :) Check out the new off the shoulder style. She even has the pose to go with it :)
She loves her new umbrella. Apparently it is a chew toy also.
And to add insult to injury, Brad and I actually had a date night planned for Saturday and Grace woke up with a slimy cold. And Aunt Denise is afraid of germs :) (She is training for a marathon, so we will give her a pass this time)
You'd never know by looking at her that she was such a stinker! Well, actually her eyes in the second picture kind of give her away :)
Grace has a real hard time keeping her shirt on :) Check out the new off the shoulder style. She even has the pose to go with it :)
She loves her new umbrella. Apparently it is a chew toy also.
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