Playing with the Fishes

Claire

As much as I want her to start talking in real sentences, I really don't want her to grow up because she is very cute most days. She has tantrums when things don't work like she wants them to, but most the time she is learning and playing really well. We've been practicing matching colors together and organizing things like her big Legos, and she is so smart! There are a few times she picks on her sister because she is smaller and doesn't want to share what she is playing with and she tries to hide that she is being mean. I know better, of course. Her favorite foods are our homemade pizzas, chicken nuggets, bacon, and graham crackers, so I've been trying to think of ways to get a better diet for her.

Shay 

Still taking at least two naps a day and is a happy adventurous girl the rest of the day with the toys, books, dirty laundry, or any food that has fallen on the floor. She was sick a couple days during the last of the week and woke up in puke 3 mornings in a row, but was fine during the day. Then during the weekend she had diarrhea and a running nose and was extra tired and cuddly. We spend a good half an hour cuddling after one of her naps on Saturday before daddy and Claire got home from the aquarium.

Chris

We went out on a date with Chris's friend and new girlfriend on Saturday for dinner, desert, and a game night. Spending time with friends is pretty important for us right now, since we don't have much time left around this area. We've found it in our budget to go out for a fun night and had a lot of fun playing Codenames and teaching our friends how to play. I miss having game nights and a good couple as friends to have game nights with since its a fun home activity for a date. Then of course was the aquarium with Claire, but there is a whole section for that on its own.

Aquarium

We are calling this Chris and Claire's first daddy-daughter date because they went all alone to meet up with her aunt and uncle and see the fishes. Claire was very excited because she got to wear her backpack with the leash and we kept asking her if she wanted to go see fishys and she would say "ya!" I heard that she got pretty crazy running around after enjoying the sharks and touching areas but it was better than the last time we went and she gave up and laid down on the floor. It was also night for Chris to spend time with his brother to celebrate his birthday, again, while we are still in this area and can.

Recent Craziness

Claire

I know she is hyper and has a lot of energy but some days it is out of control and I don't understand how she can nonstop run around. She was very excited when I set up a sort of fall zone to protect Shay from falling and hurting herself off the couch. She spend a full 30 minutes jumping around from the couch to the extra mattress on the floor and back thinking it is her own personal bounce house. There are some fun times that she plays with Shay and can make her laugh including trying to pick her up and wrestle her. They play in the bath all the time and their favorite games are follow mommy everywhere she goes and pull out all the toys and books so there isn't a free spot of carpet.

Shay

This little sunshine can be so cute when she is happy and playing with Claire or being giggly while being tickled. We've been trying to get her to sign to communicate when she is sill hungry and when she is done, but she hasn't caught on and I realize I should have started a while ago but didn't want Claire to regress into signing again. Shay learned how to make a new sound this week of clicking her tongue so that is 3 fun sounds to make with her. As I mentioned, I created a fall zone around the couch because she hates when I am sitting there relaxing and she can't reach me. She still ends up going to the edges of the couch and tries to climb over the arm rests so I'm still working on preventing that.

Chris

We got the schedule for his first year at school this week and are able to plan more effectively what needs to be done when. He says he is excited to get back into school mode and be working everyday on what needs to be done a little ever day instead of having days off in a row and working 12 hour shifts all week. I'm excited for a more normal schedule as well and hopefully we can make things work out the way they need to be before his school starts so he can focus on his studies. As of right now we know when semester beginnings, ends, and breaks that we will get between the semesters...if we have money.

Baking

I looked in our freezer early in the week and found some bags of raspberries that have been there for 2 years so I defrosted and found that they were still good. I decided to look for some desert recipes to use them up and found out that cheesecake is one of Chris's favorite desserts. It was a no bake cheesecake too so even easier! As soon as it cooled in the fridge and we tried it, I wrote it down in my recipes for use again because it was a hit! It didn't even last 4 days which was good for me since having that and the raspberry cookies I made wasn't good for my calorie count. I did get 2 slices and Shay and Claire liked to attack when I had them so they weren't all for me.

Back to Work

Claire

 She is so happy all the time and usually shows it by screaming, but normally by running around and laughing. She has broken that fork habit and now just shuts herself in her room so Shay can't come in and play with her toys. Then when I come and open it and let Shay in, she takes the toys she is playing with out and shuts her in! Other times they play well together and she can get her sister giggling and smiling because of her goofiness. Claire hasn't had a normal nap schedule for a while but this week has been even more crazy because they are all over the place or not at all. Sometimes if we have a lot going on she doesn't nap and other times she fall sleep on the couch!

Shay

Our sweet girl has grown two more teeth! They popped through early in the week and I only got a picture by tickling her in the right spot. She likes to use her teeth a lot now when biting food and everything she can get a hold of that shouldn't be bitten. She mostly likes finding tissues, wet wipes, or dirty diapers to eat so I'm now really good at throwing them away immediately after changing them. She is such a playful girl but has learned to whine at me when Claire isn't sharing so I know of the injustice. Her communication is all grunts, growls, and squeaks right now with happy squeals when she is playing by herself. Altogether, my two girls make me the happiest mommy ever while at the same time drive me crazy.

Chris

My husband is such a hard worker and does so much for our little family by working his 12 hour shifts that are often during the night. We have been able to work out together everyday this past week even though he worked 3 days in a row! He watched the girls when I worked and is a great home keeper while I'm away making sure the girls get fed even if they are in PJs the whole day. I get to come home to his handsome face and he asks me how my day was and it is so precious, then we get to spend time working out too.

Working

I was able to substitute twice this week and I'm more even more set on teaching in middle school as my favorite age group. So many people tell me I am so brave to want to teach that age, but it is by far the easiest and best age of students for me! Having this unique outlook on middle school is good and I'm glad their are other teachers that like elementary and high school. I didn't think of it while I was in school, but I do like being a substitute and even though I want to be a teacher some day, I'm glad I have this experience. I like being able to work a few days to keep sane and practiced, but also have a lot of time to spend with my family while my girls are young.

New Years Shenanigans

Claire

This little stinker has gained a new habit this past week, instead of taking 3 forks from our drawer and carrying them around, she takes all of them out. She hordes them in her room and hides them in her stuffed animal bin, but I've thwarted her 2 times so she has only completed the action 2 times and we are even. Other than that she just loves to play with her new toys she got from Christmas like the bike and Legos that end up all around the house. She was excited to get back to the park the times we were able to go this past week, and she is just so precious! These terrible twos aren't too bad.

Shay

This week Shay turned 10 months! Time has just flown by and she is starting to balance on her own feet and being able to stand for a long time which is so exciting. She will probably be taking her first steps soon but might not use walking as her main way of getting around for a while because she can cruise when crawling. She loves eating the food we give her and letting her do the work frees up my time and makes her happy. She still follows Claire and I around when we go into different rooms, but she also does a lot of her own exploring too. In her adventuring, she likes to get into the books that are reachable and pull them all to the floor so she can read them. She also has the most adorable laugh when you get her started and she starts growling matches, too. She will pop her head up above the edge of the couch and either growl or raspberry at whoever is sitting there but be smiling the entire time. If she could, she would climb up by herself, but she likes to be up on the couch with us making us nervous by crawling back and forth.

Chris

We have now been married for 4 wonderful years! I know a lot of people say there are ups and downs but I happily say we have a lot more ups than downs over the last 4 years of marriage. We have worked hard to let each other know we love each other and our favorite saying from the last year is "I'm always on your side" to let each other know we are there to cheer each other on. It is good to know when we are feeling alone or vulnerable (especially during board games) that we always can count on each other for support and we will help overcome the others weaknesses together. I joke about being his secretary because I'm better at handling calling for appointments and scheduling and he is my rock who keeps me grounded when the world seems to be spinning.

New Years

We started a new tradition this year for our anniversary and New Years Eve, chocolate fondue, and I hope we expand in the years to come when there are more people to stay up and share it with. I liked in my family that we all played games and snacked until midnight, but I haven't done that much recently because I know I'll have a child waking up in the morning. For now we just had a caramel chocolate fondue that was super yummy but a lot of sugar and we crashed and fell asleep instead of staying up. We can say that we have gone to the gym everyday this year so far (Sunday's not included) so we are working that chocolate off!