6 months

Doesn't he look like a toddler in this picture? He is growing up so quickly!

Weight: 19lbs 5 1/2 oz.
Height: 27 1/4"
Again, he's a perfectly proportioned baby and comes in at the 75% for both height and weight.

He has been discovering his voice more which sometimes involves high pitch screaming that embarrasses me. But, most of the time he says "Dada" when he's happy and "mama" when he's upset and sad. I don't think he necessarily knows what he's saying because he says Dada all the time, even when Jeff isn't around. Though Jeff would like to think differently.

He loves to shake his head "no" and "yes." Again, he doesn't necessarily get the answer right but it is fun asking him questions that make him sound like he's the smartest baby on earth...

Sullivan, is Bush our current President and he shakes his head "no." See, he is the smartest baby ever!

His new found talent is clapping. It was adorable to watch him connect those fist for the first time and then have him try again and again. He claps slowly, but he succeeds. He even gave the girls a standing ovation for their Tavaci concert.

Eating chunky food has become his favorite past time. Whenever I am eating and holding him, he tries to grab my food. I've been feeding him/letting him feed himself the soft dissolvable baby foods first to make sure he could handle solids and I've been slowly introducing chunky pears, bananas, real rice, beans etc.,.

He is a pro at sitting up and rolling over. He's pretty mobile with just those. It seems like most of the time when I set him down in a sitting position, he gets on one foot and his hands and starts to sway back and forth. If I remember right this is how both girls started learning how to crawl. He also loves doing planks (just his hand and toes touching the ground). As I write this, he pulled himself up from a laying position to a sitting position (time to move the crib mattress lower).

Another Tavaci performance

We had another Tavaci performance on Saturday. Can I just tell you how much I love Tavaci...it is such fun program! Jeff had the opportunity to perform (along with 2 other Daddy/Daughter combos) a song from Annie called Together Forever. It was so cute! I got a little teary eyed watching them. What a special memory that Jeff and Kammi have now.

Both my parents and Jeff's parents and sisters came to watch, however I missed taking a picture of Jeff's family. :( Thanks for coming and supporting the girls and Jeff.

Mother's Day

At the end of the day as I kneel to pray, I always ask Heavenly Father to help me raise my children in a way that would make him proud. I am, in fact, in charge of his spirit children while on earth....and that stresses me out, it causes me a lot of pressure and worry. I try my best, but most of the time I fail and feel inadequate as a Mom.

I know that I can't be perfect as a Mother, but I do know if I follow these exemplary mothers then I can't go wrong...


Also, to all of you who sacrifice so much so that families like mine can be blessed with children...thank you so much! We just found out that Kamryn's birthmom is pregnant with a baby girl (she has 4 yr. old twin boys as well) and we are so happy that she is doing so well. Sullivan's birthmom is also doing well, but it is still so new that I am sure she could use the extra prayers right now!

So, Mother's Day ended up being a weekend full of fun for me. At Lowe's they offered a craft for the kids to make for their mom. They were supposed to make planters, but they didn't have any left so the girls got to make tetherballs.

Jeff sent me and the girls to go get manicures for part of my Mother's Day gift. It was relaxing and I loved that the girls got to go with me and experience this. They were able to pick out their own fingernail polish: Kamryn chose purple, London chose pink and I chose Red.




Jeff also bought me a pair of running shoes...I needed a pair pretty badly!
We hung outside most of the afternoon on Saturday. Sullivan loves to be outside. Check out his one dimple, he's a cutie!

Saturday night was spent cleaning up Kammi's vomit and trying to make my sick child as comfortable as possible. I was kind of bummed that I had to miss church the very next day. Jeff called me half way through the meetings and said he was coming home so that I could attend sacrament meeting (he was even supposed to conduct). I was so happy! It was so nice to be able to listen to the talks and not wrestle with kids the whole time. I'm so grateful that he decided to do this for me...I needed it!

We switched roles and he went back to church to finish up all that he needed to. When he got home, he grilled me the most delicious top sirloin steak this girl has ever tasted. The sides included garlic potatoes, salad, bread and for dessert...homemade icecream. He spent most of his day slaving in the kitchen and we spent about 15 minutes devouring it (not very fair)...it was SO good! I appreciate being spoiled today and getting a break from my normal duties. What a great MOther's Day!

Went on a field trip with Kamryn's first grade class. The kids thought I was hilarious because I took pictures of everything, even me...


We tease Kamryn that her teeth are going to look like beaver teeth if she keeps sucking her thumb. Well, she finally saw what real beaver teeth looked like. I think she is scared.



London registered for kindergarten. As soon as we walked in the door, she shut down and would not say a single word. I had to take her to 3 different stations where they tested her for her kindergarten readiness. I had to be hands on to help London communicate while being tested and I was also struggling with a tired baby at the same time. It was frustrating. I felt a tap on my shoulder and turned to find a lady that works at the library. I don't know her too well, we just see each other when I go to the library and we chat. She loves Sullivan though and when she saw my need she came to offer to watch Sullivan for me while I helped London through the testing. Usually I brush offers like this off because I hate putting people out, but I really needed the help and I was just so grateful that she was there to help me. So, I take London to the different stations and they worked around her shyness by asking questions like "is this the letter M?" She'd always nod no and ended up getting more right than she should have :) Ha! I could see them joting down notes like "doesn't talk, extremely shy." If they only knew my London...give her a few weeks and she will be singing and dancing to the whole kindergarten class.

And a post just isn't a post with out my chubby baby making an appearance. The girls tested out their baby doll stroller on Sullivan and it held up well. He loved being pushed around and almost fell asleep while doing so.

Ready for Kindergarten

This post is more for me than anything, but read on if you'd like. I've been dreading this day for quite awhile. London has been needing some immunizations so that she can attend kindergarten in the fall and if you know anything about London she hates all things doctor. I scheduled the appointment around Jeff's lunch time so that he could go with me and help out. He has a way to make things all better (isn't that my job?). Also, I needed him there to hold her down. When I took Kamryn in for her kindergarten shots, I had to hold her down myself and that girl is sooo strong. I almost let her go and who knows what she would have done to that nurse if I had. So, London got a check up and she is a very healthy kid. The doctor said it was normal to have as many night terrors as she has, which was music to my ears. I can't wait for her to grow out of that! She weighs 40 lbs. and is 42 inches tall which leaves her in the 50th percentile for both. We had to give her a few tests that were kind of fun while we waited for the immunizations that included naming some colors, telling us what she uses a cup for, jumping over a piece of paper etc.,. We got through 2 pages of these little tests and their were no more, so I guess she is mentally/physically/socially on track for her age. I guess this is kind of an anticlamatic post because I don't have any funny/cool story to go with London getting her immunizations. She got poked 4 times in both thighs and cried. She was treated to McDonald's immediately afterwards. The next time she will need a shot will be when she is 11 yrs old and I am hoping by then she will overcome her fear of all things medical.

This is the post that never ends

5 months old!
Sullivan has been quite the joy to have around. We love him so much! He is still doing well with real food and eats his tub of Gerber's baby food when we sit down for meals. He also eats 6 oz. of formula in between those feedings. I am loving his schedule, especially now that his naps are longer yet fewer. He has grown and is now in 6-9 month clothing and wears size 3 diapers. I really, really need to go shopping for some new clothing for him, he's growing out of everything. I really want some plaid shorts, so if you've seen any cute plaid baby shorts please let me know! We did weigh him on our scale, but he hasn't gained weight so I am thinking he is just getting longer. He sits up a lot better now and he rolls from place to place. I almost forget he is getting mobile and when I come to check on him and he is somewhere other than I leave him, my heart starts to race a bit. He has been blowing raspberries and drooling like crazy. For a few weeks he was doing this little dance move like he was shaking his head no, but with some sassiness behind it. It was so cute. I wish I would have gotten it on video! Anyway, I had to sub for the sunbeams class and so I passed him off to a friend who happened to be sitting in the front row of Relief Society. It was Easter Sunday, so the lesson was quite spiritual and I felt bad but Sullivan had everyone cracking up with his little dance. I wish I could have seen it!
A picture to compare:

3 weeks

5 months old

Most people take pictures of their child in a car seat, or by a bear...but, not me. Ugh, I apologize that the only picture I have to compare is one of Sullivan taking a bath. I am sure I have other appropriate pictures, I just can't find them right now.
The turtle
Sullivan has been doing the turtle move for a few weeks now and does it automatically after I lay him on the ground. He will not relax. If I don't pick him back up from this position, then he just rolls over. He definitely prefers being on his belly now, though he'd much rather be held than anything. Jeff likes to hold down his legs so that he does a few sit-ups. He's quite strong and has done 3 in a row so far. It is so dang cute!


The local drive-in opened and we took advantage of going to watch two movies together without needing to get a babysitter. We just put the seats down and made a bed for the girls to fall asleep in and Sullivan fell asleep in his car seat. It was so nice, though I think I've finally got to the age where staying up late is difficult. We watched Push and The Knowing. Right now we don't have cable and really knew nothing about the movies before seeing them, other than the PG-13 rating...we didn't know what to expect. I kept expecting Push to get better, but it never did. And, The Knowing was enjoyable until the aliens then it got a little weird. I just hope the next time we go better movies will be playing.

On the way home, Jeff was pulled over for a suspected DUI (he took an extra wide turn at 1:30 in the morning). I was cracking up! I told you we are too old to stay up past midnight!

Since Sullivan was born during the winter months he hasn't been outside much. Spring has finally arrived (lets hope it stays) and we've been able to go outside quite a bit lately. He loves to go outside and doesn't even mind sitting in the grass. When the girls were babies, they literally freaked out every time I tried to put them in the grass. Yay for laid back baby boys!


I know the hat casts such a dark shadow on his cute little face, but better that then a sunburned head!

We recently had a parent teacher conference with Kamryn's first grade teacher. She is doing outstanding as usual. She is the only one in her class to still have a 100% in spelling on the year. Kamryn is also doing very well in Math and Reading (Third grade, six month level). Her teacher proceeded to tell us that Kamryn's only issue in 1st grade is reading too fast. If that is all I have to deal with right now, I'll take it! We attended Stake Conference this past Sunday and the Bishop greeted us all and asked Kamryn what she was hiding under her shirt. I was shocked to see that she snuck in a book to conference, but I was secretly proud too!

London, London, London...what a kid she is! She has been making up words and actions and then asking me if I know what they mean. For example:

London: Mom, know what this means? (twirling a frisbee)
Me: Um, no.
London: It means to stop talking.
Me: Oh, okay.
London: Try it, talk now.
Me: Okay, I was thinking that after we do our errands that we should...
London: (Starts twirling her frisbee so I stopped talking, she smiles big as she walks away)

Also, last weekend Jeff and I had quite the time trying to get the girls to clean up their room. They just did not want to do anything, so they hung out in their room most of the day. During lunchtime, London whispered in Jeff's ear that Kamryn was being a "butter act." He prompted her to explain and then she states that "Kamryn does nothing, like how butter acts." Clever girl, but if you can't say something nice, you don't say it at all.

We finally have Sullivan's court date scheduled for Thursday June 11. Unfortunately, our temple will not let us schedule our sealing date until after the court date. The next fast and testimony meeting is on the 4th of July weekend and so that doesn't work out very well for us. We really want the sealing/blessing to be that weekend of June 13,14. I am sure it will work out, I just hate that I have to wait till after the court date to schedule things. We will be having family coming from out of town and I need to know the exact weekend so that they can prepare accordingly. I will keep the blog updated as things progress, but as of right now June 13 we will be sealed as a family and on June 14 Sullivan will be blessed.

Update on our house...we were supposed to start building March 1, now it is almost May. Ugh! As of right now, we are waiting for financing to go through but we should be breaking ground the first week of May (cross our fingers). Lately building a house has been no fun!

Easter

Before we get into our Easter doings...
Can you see it? Look a little closer...my boy has his first faux hawk :) I'm so proud!

What a fun Easter we've had this year and it isn't even over yet...we still have yet to dye eggs. We celebrated all week long with little lessons and activities.

We made tombs out of snowballs and nilla wafers.

The Easter bunny decided to bring goodies to the kids on the day before Easter this year. I thought this was a great idea since Jeff has to leave so early to Bishopric meetings on Sunday and I wanted happy kids for Easter, not sleep deprived cranky kids. This ingenious idea soon came back to bite me in the bum. As Kamryn announced "The Easter Bunny came" I hear London say "Mom, I know it was you." She wouldn't let it go either. She kept bugging me about me being the Easter bunny. Even on Sunday I mentioned that they get to wear the shoes that the Easter bunny brought them and she said "It was you Mom."
So to fix the little problem...As the girls were on an Easter egg hunt, they found a few pieces of candy along with the note that said "Hoppy Easter", from the Easter Bunny and that seemed to satisfy London.
And, just so you know...the tooth fairy has forgotten to visit twice and don't even get me started on Santa.


Sullivan's first Easter. He almost didn't fit in the basket! :)

I was subbing in Sunbeams when in walks a pale London and her teacher who tells me London doesn't feel well. I snuggle with her while trying to finish the lesson and she is sweating and just not looking so hot. I grabbed the secretary and had her keep an eye on the class while I search for Jeff to tell him that I need to take London home. But, the fresh air did some good and she was starting to look better and even opened her candy filled egg and ate a skittle. That is when she tells me that they watched a movie about Jesus dying and that she saw blood on his hands. This is just weird to me that she gets so sick when she sees blood.

In the car on the way to church.

The Hunt
Normally we do the public Easter egg hunt as well as doing a little Easter egg hunt at home on Easter morning, however a few years ago we went to one and Kammi ended up getting two eggs and London didn't get any at all. I didn't care that Kammi only had two eggs, I was so proud of her and she was happy. I wasn't happy that people were greedy and pushed my timid London to the back so she didn't even get one egg! I saw parents helping pick up the eggs for their kids and continued to do so even after they had quite a few eggs. It was so frustrating and heart breaking to see my little girl with tears in her eyes because she didn't get an egg. Luckily, big sis came to the rescue and gave London one of her eggs. Ever since that incident, Jeff is anti public Easter egg hunts. I agree, somewhat...I want to try again since the kids are older. I remember going to public Easter egg hunts when I was little and I loved them. I just hate the thought that my kids are missing out on things like that. Maybe next year:)


Even Sullivan finds one

The Loot

Jeff made doughnuts during General Conference weekend...they were yummy and I wish I didn't have to limit myself to eating just one.