Firsts and Lasts

We had a sick week this week.  Caroline came down with a fever Sunday afternoon which spread to Henry on Monday evening and to Josiah on Wednesday morning (around 2:30 a.m.).  Fortunately everyone was fever free all day on Thursday so we were able to make it to our CC homeschool group on Friday.  Since they were not able to do much or go anywhere, Josiah decided it was the perfect time to sharpen all 72 of his colored pencils.  He had to empty the shavings three times to his delight.

However, most of the middle of the week looked like this:

Since Caroline was sick for the shortest amount of time, she gets the most "air" time this week.  She has been saying more and more words.  She says, "baba" for bottle, "-ish" for fish, "da" for dog, and "more."  She also has been putting two words together and will now say, "Hi Daddy (or Mommy)" and "up please."  These are all welcome sounds as opposed to the screaming and pointing that makes up most of her "vocabulary."

She went into her closet one day and got out the old Bumbo seat.  It is a foam (?) seat that is made to help babies sit up before they're able to do so on their own.  So she takes it from room to room and plops down in it.  There's not much else to do but sit in it, so sit she does.  It is always good to see her sitting because this week she has figured out how to climb to the top of the bunk bed and sit on top bunk.  She knows she isn't allowed to do it so if she sees/hears me coming she rushes up there in a somewhat unsafe manner.  So we have had to put up the baby gate again.

She sat in the elephant calling for the boys on the other side of the gate.  They brought her dolls, but what she wanted was to climb the bunk beds.  

She enjoys pretending to cook in her kitchen now.  She uses it as a real kitchen and will make me items such as lego tea and boiled waffles.  She smiles when I pretend to eat/drink it, so I know she's trying to do it correctly.  From the picture you can see she wears the Lowe's apron while she cooks.  It is always on backwards in case she needs to use it as a cape and rescue one of the boys.  She is very friendly with them and when she wakes up in the morning, she'll wave and say "Hi 'Siah" over and over until he acknowledges her.

Because the boys were sick all week, I was sometimes attending to them while not paying attention to Caroline.  She loves to get in the pantry and rearrange the shelves.  One day I was looking for her after checking on the boys and found her in there.  This time she had opened up her formula container and was eating the powdered formula with the scoop.  I cannot imagine how badly that tasted, but she was quite content.  And on that note, tonight she'll have her last bottle.  We have enough formula for one more bottle and we're not buying anymore.  Since it was recommended that we stop them 7 months ago, it's high time.  I have no idea how Monday night will go without a bottle...

Caroline loves to greet Todd when he gets home from work.  Lately, however, she does so by saying "Hi Daddy" with shirt raised.  She is constantly showing off her belly.  She'll pick up her shirt and slap it a little.  This weekend she started lifting up her shirt and pressing it against the cool dishwasher.  Todd hopes it is only a phase.  Although, it does get hot at the zoo in August....

Saturday night Caroline got her first haircut.  I always do the boys hair and the last couple of times she has sat down on the step stool and I would pretend to do her hair, too.  Some of it is straight and some of it has curls, so it's sort of jagged looking.  I wanted to even it out a little.  I barely trimmed it so it isn't noticeable.  She loved it and kept coming back in the chair for more.  So different from the boys.  It is a task getting them to sit up and sit still for it.  Josiah will sit there the whole time telling me how boring it is and how he hates his new haircut.

At our CC homeschool group this week, Josiah's presentation was a hit.  On Monday he drew the pictures and came up with the idea of doing a movie.  So we made a screen out of a wipes box and he taped all his pictures together to make a story.  When he gave his presentation, he didn't just explain the pictures, he scrunched down behind the box and pretended to be Cubbie Bear and say what Cubbie was doing.  The kids and moms all really liked it.  The pictures are all Cubbie Bear from his Awana book last year.  Cubbie's friend is Timothy (wearing the crown at the end).

Picture of an apple in the bubble

Cubbie saying "no" with a bug on his head

Timothy wearing a crown

This week they started learning the tin whistle.  He learned proper finger placement and how to blow on it correctly (e.g. not as loud as you can).  They also had PVC pipes that they decorated as a case for their whistle.  He had a lot of fun decorating it with the colorful duct tape.

Josiah sporting his new CC shirt and his tin whistle case.  Henry doing his impression of Caroline...

Henry had a fruit phase this week:

"Smashed up blueberry"

Strawberry

Grape

Peach

Henry also made himself an X-men suit:

I knew Josiah was better on Thursday afternoon when he made a new costume.  This is Darken 714.

He also made a suit of armor for the armor of God.

Ephesians 6: 13-17
13 Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand. 14 Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, 15 and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. 16 In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. 17 Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.