Over half way to THREE pt. 2

I didn't think of it as I typed the title for the previous post, but it certainly has double meaning. Not only is Norah past the 2 1/2 mark, but we're also past the halfway point in this pregnancy. Sunday I was 20 weeks. Can't believe how fast it's gone! Of course, I'll probably end up being "late" again so this won't quite end up being halfway. That's okay.

Also, Tim finally went to Redimed this morning after being so sick for several weeks. It turns out he has sinusitis and bronchitis. It's wiping him out completely and he's really struggling to finish the remaining work he has this last week of the quarter. I'm doing my best to help out where I can as a typist! ;) The doctor prescribed two antibiotics, one for each ailment, and wanted to write Tim a note for several days off work. Well, it's finals week, so Tim will just end up pushing through it and getting the rest he needs next week. Once again, I say, it's been a LOOONG, nasty, sick winter. The girls are fighting colds as well, and I'm keeping a close eye on it to make sure they don't end up with bronchitis like Daddy.

Over half way to THREE!

Some days I don't even know how to describe Norah. She's SO independent, has a short temper, and is very stubborn, which can make some days extremely frustrating for Mom (I'm usually not "Mommy" anymore, sad!). On the other hand, she is beyond helpful, very imaginative, loving, and FULL of energy and life. I know she's only 2 1/2, but she is very mature and developmentally (at least cognitively) well ahead of many children her age. When Norah has a bad day of tantrums, I often have to remind myself that she is acting her age, which is so uncharacteristic for her. Most of the time she acts well older than her age. Linguistically alone, I am blown away! She is truly a first born in every stereotypical sense of the word. I understand her so well, but our similar personalities make some things quite a challenge. She is a brilliant little girl, and I am so blessed to be her Mommy. I love you, Norah Jean Chase!

Here are some Norah facts at 2 1/2 years old:

• Norah enjoys helping me with everything she can. She loves to fold washcloths and diapers and gets a big thrill out of anything I let her do in the kitchen.
• She spends most of her day bossing around the other 2 year old I do daycare for, but I try to keep her from getting out of hand. She's such a little mother!
• She takes great care of her babies and has picnics for them and sets up their beds all over the toyroom. Most days we have to play with the lights off because they're sleeping. Well, duh! ;)
• Norah talks about our new baby very often, and already uses "that voice" (you know, the one adults do when they talk to babies) when she talks at my belly. According to Norah, the baby WILL be named Sleeping Beauty.
• Norah talks and chatters about anything and everything NON-stop! Sometimes the sheer volume of words coming at me is exhausting.
• Norah is a great story teller and remembers the littlest details from whatever event or activity or happening she is recalling at the moment. We are amazed at the things she brings up that happened months ago that we haven't mentioned since.
• Norah can't understand why Maggie wants to actually play with whatever scene she's set up with her little princess figurines or her table of food she's set out. She'd rather set it up just so and leave it all beautiful to look at.
• Norah is already outgrowing 3T clothing for height. Pants are especially bad. I'm gathering 4T and size 4 (in the GIRLS dept!) things for her for Fall. Thank goodness capris will work for Spring and shorts in Summer. Waistbands are still loose, of course. She's my skinny little jellybean.
• Norah LOVES church and frequently demands that Sam play church with her. She sings made up songs (and real ones too!) and practicing praying, etc. She does very well participating on Sundays. She sings hymns, prays, and sits and stands when she's supposed to for the most part.
• She's in a phase where she doesn't want to hug or kiss Daddy except at bedtime. She loves to respond, "No kisses for you!" or "We don't do that, Daddy."
• We have to be very careful what we say around the house. Norah repeats anything and everything. We don't use bad words, but Norah's got quite a few grownup phrases in her vocabulary like, "You're driving me crazy!" and accurately uses words like probably and actually. Grammatically, she's advanced as well and understands that the -ed ending means past tense, has comparatives and superlatives under her belt, and has never had difficulty with pronouns like some kids do well into school age. (I'm such a proud English geek!)
• Norah loves to color and write and trace, etc. She's going to be a great student in a few years... if her teacher can get her to be quiet long enough to teach her anything. She'll be the one who's bored in class and causes trouble, I just know it.

This was really fun to brag on Norah for a little bit. :-D All these wonderful things! I'm going to come back and read these on rough days. Remind me, won't you?

Happy Baptism Birthday May-Goo!

52 Sundays ago we were rejoicing with family and friends as Maggie joined the family of God. Tomorrow, the 21st, is the actual date though. What a special weekend that was for us. We are so blessed to have wonderful sponsors for Maggie who made the trip from IN to CA to be a part of her baptism, even though they didn't have to. And both families were there too! We also had our church family in attendance of course. That was one rockin' potluck! :)

If any of you are reading this, thank you thank you thank you for making that such a wonderful and memorable time for us. We are truly blessed by God to have you in our lives!

Maggie's Birthday Weekend

Maggie's birthday weekend started off with a bang when we got home from Bob Evans Friday night to discover water in our crawlspace and a soaked carpet in our laundry room. My family was on their way from Wisconsin and we had Maggie's party the following day. Yikes! Thankfully we have some wonderful friends here, one of whom came over Saturday morning with tons of tools and a Shop-Vac. He and Tim spent a good part of the day working on it. They finally got the toilet fixed late Saturday night and Roto Rooter did some pipe work on Monday.

That situation made for a long weekend! But it was still wonderful celebrating Maggie and her first year of life. She is so delightful! She is smart and sensitive, and adores her sister. Maggie took her first steps a couple weeks ago, but is still hesitant to do much on her own beyond 3 or 4 steps without Mom or Dad right there with her. She loves walking though, and giggles the whole time. Maggie doesn't say too many real words, but enjoys having long conversations in jibberish. She acts certain that we understand her. It's hilarious to see her at mealtime trying to let us know what she wants. We'll find out next week what her 1 year stats are at the doctor's office. I do know she's got a fast metabolism, just like her sister. It seems like she has hardly gained any weight at all in the last 3 months, but the girl eats anything and everything in sight! Here are some photos from her party and beyond. :) Happy Birthday Margaret Emma!

I made this cake. It was so much fun to decorate! Strawberry, chocolate, and funfetti flavors provided a good amount of options for our party attendees.

Maggie's birthday breakfast was pancakes with strawberries and cool whip. We had bacon and sausage too, but she didn't go for that.

We gave Maggie a few presents from us before her party.


Grandma got Maggie a Bitty Baby just like Norah got for her 1st birthday. We won't get them mixed up though since Norah's is well-loved for the last year and a half. At this moment, both girls are sleeping with their dolls for the night! :)

I had a lot of fun dressing Maggie up for her big day!

Maggie was very interested in the WHOLE cake. She'd have sampled (or devoured) the whole thing if I had let her.

While she loved the cake, Maggie wasn't too keen on the ice cream. That stuff is cold!

She sure enjoyed making a huge mess after she'd gotten her fill of frosting.


We went to Texas Roadhouse after Maggie's party and Norah was thrilled to ride on this saddle.

Doesn't it look like she's thinking, "Only 20 more years!"

Norah's ready for some Superbowl fun!

Maggie too! GO PACKERS!

Now that Maggie's 1, she was thrilled to enjoy her sister's favorite lunch - peanut butter sandwich!