Sickness and Success

Last night as I was getting ready for bed I heard a terrible noise coming from Autumns room. I found my baby wheezing and coughing with a terrible seal bark sounding croup. We propped her up and moved her and the humidifier into our room. I knew she would be alright, but I always get scared when one of my kids is sick like that, especially when they are so little. Between her coughing and my worrying, neither of us got much sleep last night. It appears the Chuck-E-Cheese virus has claimed another victim.
Thankfully the weather was nice today so I loaded the girls into the stroller, Hudson hoped on his bike and we headed up to the park. As things usually go with Hudson’s bike riding lately, I was ready to throw the thing in the bushes by the time we reached our destination. The kid won’t just ride his bike anymore. He spends his time trying to find ways to balance on it, make the thing jump or any other concoction he can think of that usually ends in him getting hurt. As I mentioned before I had had enough of his bike riding. Then out of no where it hit me that he was bored and needed more of a challenge. He must be ready to take his training wheels off. I probably should have realized this a lot sooner, as it would have saved us both some frustration. When we got home we took off the training wheels and after a couple tries he got it. Hudson can now ride a bike! He is so proud of himself and so am I. I just hope it takes a while before he gets bored of this and needs a bigger challenge.





 Hudson is so excited that he doesn't need these training wheels anymore!





We all enjoyed a little sunshine at the park.




Sweet sickly little teddy bear.



Sick little Ellie

This winter we have been lucky to be so healthy.  I think back on last winter and I don't believe we made it even a two week stretch from September to May without someone being sick with one thing or another. I have felt so blesses that this winter we have been so illness free. Lately however, I have watched all of my friends become sentenced to the confinement of having sick children, and I knew that our healthy days were numbered.  We hung in there for a lot longer then I thought, but I'm pretty sure that Chuck-e-Cheese was an  epicenter for infectious diseases, and no body is strong enough to fight the germs of that many children confined in such a small space.  Sadly my little Ellie has been claimed as the first victim.  She has spent the past week with a really bad cold.  It's always sad to see one of the kids sick, but for a few days every time she coughed it would cause her to throw up and that was about as awful as it sounds.

 On top of feeling aweful, she has also been really sad to not get to go with Hudson to all the fun things she usually tags a long for. Thankfully it has been warm enough to go out for walks so we have been able to make a few trips up to feed the horses who live nearby.  She sure loves "ponies" right now, although I wish she was a little less fearless when it comes to feeding them.  Sometimes she is so busy trying to get the food to them I'm scared she is going to lose a finger or two.  They do really cheer her up, so compared to happiness, I guess fingers aren't all that important. Ha Ha (I wish there was a text to identify that I am in fact joking.)

I was looking at our most recent family pictures hanging on the wall and I started to feel bad that I don't have one with my little Autumn in it.  I mentally started planning a trip to get some type of portrait when I remembered what a nearly impossible pain it was to get even the two kids to look at the camera and smile at the same time.  The thought of trying to get all three of these munchkins to smile and look on cue filled my heart with terror, anxiety, and pity for whoever the poor soul would be trying to accomplish this great endeavor. When you add Jake's inability to fake a smile and the stressed out snappy beast I would certainly turn into, I think we better just save the poor photographer and give up any aspirations I have for a new family portrait hanging on my wall. 

Almost 5 months old, and SO much fun!

Due to Ellie's cold, we have had to spend more time at home without the distraction of friends this week.  Hudson has been practicing his older brother antagonist skills.  When he found this water gun that also shoots small plastic balls in my cabinet I knew it was a recipe for disaster.  Ellie filled the role of the over dramatic little sister quite well herself.

How I view Hudson



How Ellie views Hudson

 Hudson and Jake got out for a boys night to do a little climbing.

Hudson was pretty proud of his spider man skills.

V-A-L-E-N-T-I-N-E

Hudson has been singing this song all week and I wanted to document it. 

"Yucky" Cheese's

The kid’s wildest dreams came true this week when they were invited to a birthday party at Chuck-E-Cheese’s. They spent the week telling everyone who would listen, including strangers at the grocery store, that on Saturday they would be going to “yucky cheese’s” (as Ellie calls it). They were so full of excitement that they could hardly stand the wait.  When Saturday finally did come, we made the drive to Yucky Cheeses and stepped into a crazed sea of children with the defining sounds of classic music being murdered by Chuckle’s animatronic band that could barely be heard over the roar of children.  Honestly, Autumn cried in my arms a good deal of our visit and I could hardly hear her.  I may have not been impressed, but the kids thought they were in heaven. Hudson is already requesting another visit for his next birthday.  Thank goodness birthdays only happen once a year!

Ellie was obsessed with this pony.  For some reason Pony's are the her new favorite animal.....this week anyway.



Hudson loved all the driving games....so did Jake. 
Hudson is lucky his Daddy gave him a turn every now and then.


My girls looked pretty cute on Sunday in their little matching dresses; unfortunately they are equally difficult to photograph.  Ellie barely holds still long enough to get a picture; and Autumn will not smile if she sees a camera.  She has such a cute smile and I have only been able to catch it on film a couple of times.

Autumn has been really cuddly again lately.  She has started to sleep through the night, but now prefers to nap during the day in our arms rather then in her own bed.  I'm not complaining.  I know my snuggle days are numbered.

Love Love Love that funny fuzzy hair!

We were lucky to get enough snow for another fun day of playing in it. I for one am loving this winter. We get to spend time at the park enjoying the sunshine some days; and build (rather small) snow men the next.

Hudson is quite the sledding dare devil, each time he tries to come up with ways to make his trip down the hill a little more exciting.  Maybe I need to take him to a bigger sledding hill.

 Our last snowman's face was made out of carrots and chocolate.  I had to keep replacing it, because the kids kept sneaking bites.  Fortunately they left this one alone since we made it out of random berries we found on the bushes by our house and I'm not sure if they were poisonous or not.

It's already February

I love that last week we went sledding and this week we enjoyed 60 degree sunny days at the park. I don't know if we could get any luckier? We even got our Jake back after two weeks of hardly seeing him at all, due to a huge project. My luck must have run out quickly though since yesterday I got a pretty big ticket for an expired vehicle registration and today our microwave decided to die. Such is life. We have had a pretty good week all in all.

State College has been quite a sad place due to the passing of Joe Paterno. Everywhere we go I see big memorials for him and the radio if filled with excerpts from past speeches he has given. His voice and face seem to be everywhere. I have no connection to the man, but find myself near tears at times from it. The grief from the whole situation and his death is just omnipresent. The kids did enjoy one perk from the situation however. Because of the memorial, all the city buses ran free, and we took advantage of it. The kids thought it was so much fun to ride around town on the big buses. They certainly entertained the other riders with their excitement and lack of volume control.

The kids also got to go to a birthday party at a really nice gymnastics gym. Hudson was actually the one who was invited, and I spent the week preparing Ellie for the fact that she would not be joining him for this big event. Hudson was just as excited for the party as he was for the fact that it was just for "big" kids and Ellie would not get to go. However, when I went to drop him off, Ellie did what she does best and worked her magic on one of the parents and got invited to stay. Hudson was not pleased. They both thought it was the most fun ever and have spent the week talking about doing gymnastics and practicing their moves at home.

My little Ellie is just such a funny girl. Jake and I have been taking a couple parenting classes and I have noticed how often we describe her as "crazy", (affectionately of course). She just has so much personality packed into that little body of hers that she always seems to leave a lasting impression. Everywhere we go she seems to charm people. It’s a good thing she is so cute or else I don't think we would get invited to anything.

This past Sunday Jake and I were enjoying sitting together on one of the rare occasions where neither of us has a teaching calling and there is a fifth Sunday combined third hour at church. Suddenly we heard a not so little voice in the back of the chapel exclaim, "I need to go potty!” The chapel filled with laughter as I jumped up to find her waiting for me with an embarrassed looking nursery worker. My Ellie is always good for a laugh.

She is so cute right now and I just hope I can remember at least some of the silly little things she does when she gets older and they disappear. Like the way she hops around like a bunny all the time, or the way she blows kisses and says hi to everyone she sees. I love to hear her have little pretend conversations with all of her animal toys, or watch her light up when I read her a book. I don't understand how she can be so girly and feminine one minute and then tackle and pin her brother on the ground with a crazy giggle the next. She is such a joy and Jake and I feel so lucky that we are the ones who get to enjoy everyday with her. We are so blessed.



Hudson loves so sing to Autumn.




Some babies suck their thumb; Autumn prefers to suck all her fingers at once.



Here and Gone

One magical night as I was getting the kids ready for bed they peeked out the window and found that it was snowing outside.  They were so excited I knew there wouldn’t be any sleeping until they got a chance to enjoy it a little.  We went outside and filled up a big bowl with the beautiful new snow and brought it inside. We made our first snow man of the season while staying cozy and warm in our PJ’s.  He might have been teeny tiny, but we were so happy to finally get to make him.

 For two fun filled days we enjoyed playing in the snow with rosey cheeks and huge smiles. When the warm rains came and washed it all away I might have been ready, but the Hudson and Ellie were pretty heart broken. I'm sure the snow will be back soon, and I know two little kids that will be excited to see it.

Hudson really got into sledding.  He loved to run and jump onto the sled as it slid down the hill.
Ellie was pretty adventures herself.  She would get so excited when the sled spun around to make her slide down the hill backwards.

Hudson is a very sweet big brother.  He really loves Autumn....sometimes a little too much.
 I have to remind him often that Autumn needs some space. I'm a little worried she may not ever learn to roll over herself, because all she has to do is let out a little squawk and Hudson run to her rescue and rolls and does the rolling for her. 



Sweet baby Autumn is now 4 months.  She had to go to the Dr and have her shots this morning, so she has been a little sad today.  She is sleeping sweetly on my lap right now. I love to watch her and hear all the beautiful little noises she makes. Even her cry is pretty sweet.  She loves to take baths and kicks her leggs and giggles as she splashes the water.

4 month measurements:
Autumn 14.6 lbs; 24 3/4th inches long
Ellie 16.1 lbs; 26 1/8 inches long
Hudson 17.8 lbs; 26 1/2 inches long



Desperately seeking SNOW!!!



♫♫Let it snow, let it snow, let it snow.....Please. How sad is this? The kids are so desperate to go sledding they sit in their sleds in the house. Meanwhile, outside the window our hill awaits, covered in lovely green grass. All they can talk about is how they are going to make snow men and go sledding and drink hot cocoa. Every morning they run from their beds yelling “did it snow, did it snow?” Each time, they let out huge sighs of disappointment to see the green grass taunting them once again.  I know one of these days it will actually snow, and you can bet it will be quite a festive day at our house when it does.



  The kids got a big shock this week when we had a knock at the door and found Gram Wendy standing on the other side.  Jake and I knew she was coming but we let the kids be surprised.  They were overjoyed and had a lot of fun playing with her.  They even got to have a “slumber party” where they all camped out in the living room one of the nights. Judging by how grumpy they were the next day, I’m guessing they had a lot of fun and not much sleep.  I think Gram Wendy might need to sleep for the next week straight just to get caught up from a few days at our house.  It was so nice to have her visit and we were all sad to see her go.

Another fun surprise came when I took Hudson to his first swim lesson on Saturday.  It had been about nine months since he had been in swim lessons and when his teacher saw how well he was swimming they moved him into the advanced class. He is a few years younger then the other kids in his class and when he stands next to them he only comes up to about their shoulders. He looks so stinkin cute! I was so proud of him, and it was fun to see him be so proud of himself.  It was such a fun feeling to share his accomplishment with him.  No wonder parents can't help but brag about their children. What an awesome little man he is!

Autumn started to giggle for the first time this week.  If heaven were a sound, it would sound like her laugh. She is still a little stingy with it though.  I haven't been able to recreate yet for Jake, and I know he is sad to have missed it.  He is once again very busy. Although he has less classes this semester, he has twice as much teaching responsibilities, plus his thesis to finish, and job hunting to dive into. The next few weeks he is also participating in some landscape architecture competition involving urban land reclamation.  I don't know a lot about it, except it seems to require a lot of his "spare" time, ha ha. If anyone knows how to get the most out of their time it is Jake.  We are sure lucky to have him.