Life Lately

Life lately has been pretty hectic mostly due to busy work schedules for both Matt & I.  But we are hanging in there.  I wanted to do a quick update for the memory book.

I think our days at restaurants with Eric are becoming numbered, so we have been trying to sneak in a few family brunches this summer before his screaming and refusal to sit in the high chair gets worse!

Speaking of Eric, this is one mamma's boy (what's that you say? was that always my secret plan and dream?  no.  that's crazy.  what are you even talking about? ;) )  Mamma is the one he wants for bed, feeding, playing, holding.  Generally everything.  And I'm not mad about it AT ALL.

Eric is all settled into his new class and really seems to love school.  More than Olivia ever did (or frankly still does!).  I told Matt that while they are alike in many ways, the departure at school is different.  Eric gives me a big hug every morning and then goes back to eating breakfast.  No tears, no fuss.

My little Olivia, on the other hand, hugs me tight, won't talk to anyone else, and begs me not to leave and/or to pick her up early.  While I am able to distract Eric with food and leave the room peacefully, Olivia is not so easily tricked.  Thankfully, her teacher stepped in and offered Olivia a "job" of checking in all the kids on the clipboard when they arrive.  There couldn't have been a more perfect distraction.  So now every morning she still clings tight to me but eventually loosens her grip when Miss Kathy hands her the clipboard.

Eric is getting used to the routine at school and I think he will miss having Olivia when the summer is over.  But he knows where his class is, he finds a chair and sits down waiting for me to get his breakfast ready.  And when we come to pick him up, he no longer cries but happily crawls/walks to me and point at his backback. He then hugs his teacher and we leave.  I sort of love it!

But Eric's first love - Miss Shatavia - is making sure he doesn't forget about her.  Every so often she will sneak him out of his new class for a little one-on-one time and send me adorable pics like this.  (Note:  When I showed this to Matt he sadly commented that Eric has never looked at him so lovingly!)

Eric is finally doing the sign language sign for "more" and its been hugely helpful.  He is verbal in the sense that he yells and makes sounds all the time.  But unlike O, he isn't really talking so sometimes its pretty tough to understand what he wants.

He has a few more words.  He doesn't make the "b" sound - but says "doll" for ball.  Except he says it like "dddoooooooolllll."

I also think he says "du" for duck because he loves the moving/singing duck my parents got him for his birthday.

We have been reading more books and we have one with pictures of different things.  One of the pictures is of a telephone.  Before I even noticed it, he started holding his hand up to his ear like a phone and then hurriedly went over to the toy box to find his phone.

The telephone and sun glasses are 2 of his favorite toys.  He is obsessed with these glasses such that we have taken to calling him "Shades."

With his increased abilities in walking, we got him a few pairs of shoes which he LOVES!  Every morning he gets so happy to sit down and have us put them on.  If we tell him its time to put on his shoes, he will hurry to the laundry room and point to his basket - he knows exactly where they are and then sits down and points madly to his feet until you put the shoes on!

From the time he was a newborn baby, Olivia has referred to him as "screamy weemy" and that title is still good.  Screaming is his favorite thing to do.  He thinks it is hilarious.  Probably because we dramatically act scared when he screams.  The other night we put him to bed and he stayed awake for probably 5 minutes screaming and then cracking up at himself.  This is also how he gets the attention of complete strangers until they scream back or say hi to him....

We also taught him Ring Around the Rosy. 

These Dean kiddos go crazy for that one.  I think we probably sang that song 1 million times when Olivia was this age.

I think Olivia has been enjoying her summer off and is starting to get a little anxious about school starting.  This babe of mine is a worrier just like her mamma.  She worries BIG.  She constantly calls our name to ensure she knows which room of the house we are in.  When we put her to bed at night, she has to know the 2-3 potential rooms we will be in.  If you ever even think about opening the door to go outside, you better tell her first because if she hears the alarm she will basically burst into tears with fear.  She worries about "bad guys" a lot.  A few weeks ago Matt was out of town and she was in bed with me.  She asked me how she could know I was her mom and not a bad guy tricking her.  I told her a few things about her - day she was born, stuff when she was a baby - didn't satisfy her.  She was genuinely worried.  Finally she just got quiet and I told her it was time for bed.  A few minutes later she said "If a bad guy comes in here, he will probably get me first because I'm closer to the window.  So I will just go with him and you can stay with Eric."  It was the sweetest, saddest conversation.  This girl.  Similarly, I was putting her to bed one night when Matt was playing tennis.  She asked me where he was playing and I told her our local neighborhood tennis court.  She seemed relieved and said "Okay good.  I can ride my bike there and I know where it is.  I've been 100 times."  But then she got quiet and a few minutes later goes "Oh no!  But how will I take Eric on my bike! I don't have a seat for him!  And how will I be able to see cars coming?  This is going to be really dangerous!"  We are working on thinking about what is giving us anxiety/worry and the idea that sometimes our brain can start spinning out of control.  Ugh.  I just love this girl of mine so much and her great big heart!

This summer she has continued the "model making" activities she learned in school - getting into the recycling pile to create different projects.  Her friend Millie recently came over for a playdate and they spent the whole time creating this intricate fort/bed situation.  Its such a great activity that uses parts of her brain that are so creative and innovative.  It also uses SO.  MUCH.  TAPE. ;)

She is also doing a tennis camp at Westside 2 days a week, which she has really loved.  Its on the indoor courts and we have another friend named Olivia who was randomly in her same class, same group.  Throw the ability to wear a tennis skirt in the mix, and this was a no brainer.  Eric and I get to hang out together for an hour while we wait for her to finish and then we all usually eat dinner at the club.

 Mutual grilled cheese lovers

At the beginning of the summer she begged Matt to take the training wheels off her bike.  We were both shocked but she basically figured out how to ride right away.  Since then she spends most of her free time outside riding her bike (and Eric spends the time yelling for her at the window!)

The other activity that took a big portion of her time recently was assembling this 488 piece Lego Set that we bought her at Legoland.  I'm gonna be honest - I never played with Legos like this when I was little and neither did Matt.  I didn't really "get it" when I've heard friends discuss their kids obsession with legos.  Honestly, I'm still not sure I get the attraction.  And I SURE AS HECK didn't think my daughter would be one of those - sitting there patiently and following directions for hours at a time to build a camper van seems very "unlike" Olivia.  But she did it and she LOVED it!  And she did 75% of this by herself.  Matt and I helped her a little in San Diego when she first got it and then Sofia helped her a little too one night.  But she did most of it herself.  Matt and I were SUPER impressed!  She is already asking for another set for her birthday, so I guess I need to start thinking about lego storage.  Good lord - all the little pieces!

She is doing soccer again through Cathedral House and recently had a "show off" day for the parents.  Matt and I went to watch and as we were leaving she whispered to me in a desperate voice "Mommy, PLEASE PLEASE take me to lunch."  I exchanged glances with Matt and before we knew it, she had wormed her way into our lunch date!  It was pretty cute though - she was SO happy and kept saying "Wow, this is such a treat!"  We went to a little food court by my work and she is now obsessed with that pizza and has begged me to surprise her again for lunch one day.

Olivia and I also went on a special mommy-daughter date to see Pinkalicious with Casey and Annabelle.

We recently headed to Dallas for a quick weekend and went to the Crayola Experience.  Its a huge open space with different activities/attractions most of which include crafts, and puzzles using crayons, Model Magic, paint, and markers.  All the big kids love art, so it was a great time for them.

They made their own crayons, colored with wax, played with playdoh and we left with happy and tired babes!

Melted wax drawing (of course in the Kinkaid colors)

On our way out of town we met up with Matt's high school best friend, Jon, and his family.  Olivia was very smitten with his 2 year old daughter Abigail!

These two have also been playing "together" a bit more.  Especially on our Fridays off together which I have tried to keep as low-key as possible!  Eric has been into the play kitchen and the Little People so - for a certain length of time - Olivia will invite him into her imaginary world and they will create a village or play restaurant.  But eventually Eric unintentionally messes up her stuff and then he's banished! ;)

Finally, to beat the summer heat, there is usually ice cream in our fridge these days.  Olivia incorrectly assumed that anyone wants her orange sherbet when there are obviously other delicious options Matt and I would choose!  (PS.  If you  haven't tried HEB's swoon ice cream - do it!  That carton of Texas Brownie lasted about 2 days!)

That's our life lately. We have about 3 weeks till school starts so we are beginning to think about getting back into a routine. Uniforms, backpacks and school lunches all loom large in the not so distant future. We have a few fun things planned to wrap up the summer but before we know it, it will be Fall (and our Fall calendar is for some reason already PACKED!). So I am going to try and be very intentional about soaking up the sun and fun of summer as long as we can!

13 months with Eric

At 13 months, Eric is still a pretty happy guy who still seems more "baby" to me than "toddler."

He loves his bottles now and drinks more whole milk in a day than I think he probably should.  Like Olivia, he cannot be bothered with prayers, books or cuddles at bedtime until he has had his bottle.

We always say Eric must have a cuddle quota that he has to meet each day because he really is just the snuggliest little guy.  He is happiest sitting on your lap, just laying his head on your shoulder.  He constantly comes up to me for hugs and kisses.

Books are one of his new favorites.  I credit school with this new found love.  I got this picture one day from his teachers saying that almost every other baby had crawled off bored with the books, except for Eric and a friend!

During the day he loves to bring a book to you, have you read 1 page and then shut the book and go get another.  But at bedtime, he is more focused for some reason.  Once the bottles/prayers/etc are over, I usually sit in the rocker and we read at least 2 books.  Favorites are Dear Zoo, Goodnight Moon and The Wonderful Things You Will Be.

Speaking of school, we are finally settling in to our new class and I can leave now without him crying.  As long as I get him breakfast, he's fine.

I am really trying to soak up this summer because I think things will only get more complicated from now - with summer nannies/camps.  But for now, I've got both kids at a school they love with teachers who I know love them.  We have settled into such a sweet routine where Olivia and I drop Eric off together - she scurries around the room putting away his backpack/bottle/etc while I get his breakfast ready.  Then we both give him hugs and kisses and go to her room (which happens to be right next door).  And each night at pick-up, I get a report from her on how he was that day.  They have recess at the same time so she always tells me who he sat next to in the baby buggy, where he played, and who he played with.  I just love knowing she's close to him.

And while I know he is happy at school, each afternoon as soon as I open the door, he starts crying and crawls to me as quickly as he can!  (Note: This is probably his new favorite teacher in his new class - Miss Tamisha.  She was actually Olivia's teacher when she was in Kindergarten but she moved down to the baby classes so Eric has her.  He took to her immediately and most days when I go to get him he is either sitting in her lap or right next to her!)

And speaking of breakfast, Eric's interest in food has peaked lately.  Like his sister, he really loves a good snack - especially Pirates Booty.

While he will also tolerate some healthy foods - fruits and veggies - his real love is for anything cheesy.  A cheese stick is okay, but give him a grilled cheese sandwich or a quesadilla and this guy will eat for days!

He also discovered graham crackers at school, and his teachers told me he has to have one in each hand or he yells at them!  On this particular day we left before snack time was over so he held onto these graham crackers with all his might.

We have seen a small amount of jealousy/sibling rivalry lately as to who gets to sit in mamma's lap.  Like Olivia, Eric has a certain affection for mamma and constantly want me to hold him or sit in my lap. 

Olivia is okay with this, as long as she can sit on my lap too.  Eric on the other hand tends to be a bit more possessive - he will try to push her off or bite her.  Hoping he gets better about sharing his mamma..(who, as Olivia likes to point out, was her mamma first and she was born first, and if he doesn't like that, he can go sit with dada!")  (Also - my children like to be shirtless on Sunday mornings apparently)

Given his need to be carried so much, I've gone back to wearing him more and he usually loves it for about 15 minutes and then wants no part of it.

A nasty stomach bug went around Houston and tore through Eric's class.  Unfortunately, it took down all of Casa Dean.  We ended up taking E to urgent care because he could not stop throwing up and we were worried about him being dehydrated.  Luckily he was okay within about 24 hours.  Poor little buddy.

Toys are a mixed bag - on any given day he prefers the phone or remote to almost anything.

He does like this little pop up toy though and he's pretty persistent and patient to put the little sticks in.

Eric is slowly getting more and more confident in his walking.  We even have shoes now!  I suspect it won't be long before we are chasing after him.

We have been outside a lot lately - mostly swimming but sometimes running errands.  Sunglasses and hats are a big hit to distract him!

He still is pretty limited in words.  While he has no problem letting us know what he wants - he doesn't really say "mama" or "dada" with any regularity yet.  He does say "wa wa" and it definitely means he wants something to drink.  He also says "day" for "yay" and he will clap his hands.  And of course - "Ah" is still Alexa.  So, I guess he does have a few words - just maybe not the traditional baby ones!

Regardless - this baby is so LOVED!

And I would be re-miss if I didn't at least mention Olivia.  We try really hard to be intentional about spending time alone with her and one of the best ways I've found is to have a "big sister date night."  It serves a couple of purposes: first it obviously gives us time with her, it gives all of us something to look forward to, and it gives she and I an extra bonding in our "getting ready" time. On the days we go out, she is SO excited - like literally almost squealing in the car as we back out of the driveway.  She is mature and grown-up and agreeable.  She is willing to try new places; acts like a grown-up; and is so sweet and thankful during our time together.  It really is one of the best nights of the month!