Holy Cow...they've changed so much!

Where have I been? Bright is a crawling machine & now stands up wherever he can get a grip. Sette Sette is reasoning & talking through everything, not to mention, remembering everything including the things I've promised days ago. I cannot believe that I let this much time pass in my blogging but I do hope I can get back into it. I skipped all of October & most of November. If I could remember anything from those 2 months I will definitely share it, but it was a blur.

So here goes. I know Bright has had Croup too much & I'm not a fan. He has also blown my hopes of easy teething. We've been working on his two front top teeth for weeks & weeks, maybe since I last wrote & he shows signs of only one of those teeth possibly making it through anytime soon. He's told me in the wee hours of the night, that is all he wants for Christmas. Me too!

Sette has grown in ways I had never expected. Last night while tucking her in, she responded to my "I love you" with an "I love you so much too". This isn't the first time, but it still gets me with her warmth & hugs that accompany those words. She is constantly surprising me with her knowledge of this or that & has far surpassed my hopes for her in her second year of life.

In the midst of all the good things, she is born with that same sin nature we all have. She has found in the last 2 weeks that Bright may not be so "sweet" anymore. Jealousy had reared it's ugly head in a few random hits or pushing him down or even stealing his toys. I knew it would come, but had hoped it wouldn't be now when all he wants to do is play with her. I think she thinks she will always be the only one who gets spanks for disobeying or has to do timeout for hitting or throwing fits. I'm pretty sure she sees him as the golden child & has decided she much rather he be reminded that she is, in fact, bigger than him & suffer the consequences. I'll keep talking to her & reminding her that she is my big girl & I love her so much, but that Bright is still really little and not a big girl yet like her...I'll worry about the girl/boy talk later! KIDDING...it was just funny to write.

I hope you enjoy these pics that show just how much they have changed & grown. It really is going TOO fast!

Enunciate!

I was making lunch today & had sat baby Bright on the floor of Sette's & his room to read a book. While I was slicing away at an apple I could hear Sette reading "Goodnight Moon". She must have been having trouble with baby Bright paying attention because I heard, "Bright - Ton" in a stern, yet rather perfect way. The 7-month-old must not have cared, because she kept calling him by name trying to inform him that she had a job to do while I was making lunch. The handful of times we've actually called him by his full name must have stuck with the little teacher's helper as she tried to reign in her lone student. It made me proud, as well as shocked at her recall.

On the same note, Sette loves to talk...what 2-year-old doesn't? But she has grown accustomed to enunciating quite a bit & I know she isn't hearing it from me. Her dad, on the other hand, has gotten picked on down here in the south for being such an articulate speaker. Regardless, it makes me beam with pride that my little love bucket can pick up on word uses & regurgitate them properly.

Finally, one more note. She is such a little pretender. I just love when I catch her pretending with Bright or playing with her toys creating voices & actions for each of them. Yesterday she made creatures out of Playdoh giving them names & speaking for them. Today she played with a set of toys she just got from her Aunt Abby. They were tiny Dora characters & Bright received tiny Blue's Clues characters. She had them all lined up & was feeding each carrots & other goodies. They of course followed her lead accordingly & she was quite pleased with herself. I want to encourage her so when I "catch her" I try to join in the play hoping her sensitive soul will never be embarrassed. Today we gathered her toys in a bucket & took them to nap with her. So she & the crew napped in mama's bed on mama's pillow (the only place I can get her to nap lately & not wake up baby Bright).

Crawling

Just to note, baby Bright crawled today in nursery....well, sort of. More than I've seen at home & I didn't have a camera handy. He was lifting hands & knees to move, just not in sync yet. By the time I got my phone out to use the crude video screen, he flipped over & was done trying. humpf! hopefully I'll get some new pics or video in the next couple days.

Praying for a playroom

We had a busy day last Saturday with friends selflessly helping us clean up our mess & get our house staged to put on the market. We still have to put it on...long story, but I cannot believe how much harder it has been to live without the things I thought I could. Now, most of the stuff we put into storage was no big deal, but the toys & the baby Bright depositors....ugh! Sette almost made me cry when she went into her room the next day looking for her car. I followed her only to find her standing where it used to be & not knowing what to do. I then quickly showed her a toy she still had. Since then we've had about 3 additional instances of "missing toys". The places to safely put baby Bright have disappeared too, but this has only made the time he spends in the pack-n-play much more frequent. He will never be able to sleep in that thing if necessary, all he has done is play, play, play in it for the past week.

I am actually glad I've had a week to realize what I will need to do to keep the house visitor friendly. It isn't terrible but I have a checklist....dog cage outside, dog goes with us in car, throw toys in bins, make sure beds are made, hide unfolded laundry (unless I've surprised myself), make sure the toilet is presentable (boys are dirty), sweep through if necessary, etc. In the whole process, I've also realized this would be a good list to do daily regardless....shocker, right?!

So I will keep you posted on our housing progress, but to say the least, I am praying for a playroom.

Poop

Bright has been backed-up. At night he has just been crying & crying for days so Dave & I set out to un-stop the boy with a tiny suppository. The instant we put that suppository in, he started smiling. Then after several minutes, he unloaded & I mean completely let loose. After laughing through this experience, I have some fun tips for you all to keep in mind if you ever encounter a backed-up child.

Tip #1: Do not think this will be a SMALL mess that can be completed on an open diaper, on a towel, on your lap.

Tip #2: A closed diaper is not a bad idea & probably would have made this story null & void.

Tip #3: Following that tips #1 & #2 were not heeded, do not hold child over self in any way...no matter how much you think they need comforting.

Tip #4: Have a husband with a strong stomach aid in this process. Not one who leaves & exclaims he "can't handle this" & is sorry, but "just can't".

Tip #5: Have the bath drawn ahead of time & extra towels to lead to the bathroom. You may end up doing this whole process alone.

Kid Pics

Sette loves to take pictures & I mean using the camera, not posing for pictures. Shown above are some of her latest masterpieces.

I kiss booboos now!

This morning Sette surprised me by requesting to potty & not wanting to wear her diaper afterward. She has not worn a diaper all day & has had no accidents. I'm so wrapped up in baby Bright & other things (& we've been down this road before) that I haven't even thought to ask her, but she keeps telling me when she is going to go. She also doesn't want me in there while she goes (my independent girl), so I usually stand in the hallway...still able to see (& cheer when finished).

With all this diaperless activity, she has been running around with no padding to speak of. oh, & one more side note, I am a klutz...& have knocked my children over just by moving toward them before. So right after breakfast I walk past Sette to get to the highchair with Bright's food. Of course, there are toys on the floor. I end up knocking her down & she lands on a weeble (a hard plastic round person...he weebles, but just won't fall down). ANYWAY, she starts to cry & I ask her where she got hurt (mistake #1). She points to her bum & asks me to kiss it. So I proceed to kiss a cheek (mistake #2). Then she says, "no, not that one, the other one." Then I correct my mistake & ask if she feels better & she says..."Yes, all better." Oh, the healing powers of a mother's love...

The pics show her washing her hands in the tub.

I'm hoping this girl is potty training herself.