First Steps

James took his First Steps today!!! He has been walking holding onto things for quite some time now but today he walked without holding onto anything. He took four steps at most but just give him a little time and he will be moving (running) all around. It was a lot of fun and he was squealing the whole time.

Here is James holding onto his Bear. He sleeps with his Bear and waves good-bye to it when he wakes up in the morning. It is really cute. Jim discovered that holding onto the Bear seemed to give James what he needed to walk on his own. Jim started off holding onto the Bear with James and then would let go.

WATCH OUT!!! James took a lot of falls but he always laughed. Funny Boy.

And here he is taking some steps on his own. What a Big Boy!! He was so excited. Sophia gave him a hug each time he would walk on his own. It was so cute. Of course though, Sophia then wanted to "do it like Brother". Anytime he does something that gets attention, Sophia then has to do it. She pretended today that she didn't know how to walk and needed help learning. Instead of a Bear she held onto a pink blanket.

Then today we also played outside in the "pool". James did not like getting splashed in his face with the cold water but after a while he loved it. He also liked playing with the sand/water table but he ate the sand and learned that it was not good. They had sunhats that I bought them (Sophia matched her swimsuit of course :) ) However, the sunhats did not stay on long. Sophia decided hers was dirty and needed to be cleaned. She cleaned the hat (as well as James, Jim and mine) in the "pool" water.

On Saturday Sophia and I went to some yard sales. She made quite and impression on many people because she found a baby with a car seat and stroller that she had to have as well as a purple feather boa. She had to push the baby around the neighborhood while we looked for good buys. Anything that we bought she had to put under the stroller. It was so cute. Here is a picture of her at home with the boa and baby stroller. James likes to push the stroller too.

Brrrrr Zoo

Today we went to the zoo. It was okay weather when we left but 15 minutes later it was 37 degrees and sleeting! We went through the zoo anyway. We intended to do only the inside animals but the outside animals loved the weather so we stayed outside in the rain/snow and watched them. The Alaskan Brown Bear Cubs were playing with each other and then tumbling with a log in the water right in front of the window. The lions were chasing birds. The polar bear was pacing around. The seals were swimming and talking. It was exciting! We (Jim and I) were soaking wet even though we had an umbrella but the kids were warm and dry inside our limousine stroller. We ended up spending 4 hours at the zoo and when we came home James took his first 2 1/2 hour nap! How nice!

Cinderella

Has anyone ever thought it was weird that the mice in Cinderella wear clothing but no other animals do?

Sounding Off on Bathrooms and Plates

Here's a couple of questions...why are bathrooms SO LOUD?!! Sophia has been sick again this week (we are still waiting for blood work results but so far we know she has a UTI) and as a result she has been very clingy. This is not the problem. The problem comes when it is bath time and I can't give her all of my attention because I also have to take care of James (Jim is working this week). She has been screaming so loudly that I know my hearing has been damaged. It doesn't help that bathrooms have the tendency to echo and enhance sound. I think builders should put in sound proofing in all bathrooms. This could benefit people on so many levels!

My other question is...why hasn't anybody developed a plate for children that will actually stay put on the table. There are many suction-bottom plates on the market. I think I have bought every single one of them. So far I have not found a single one that works. James, my adorable, sweet, handsome, loving, messy, destructive little guy, has turned dinner time (and play time) into ... a very creative activity. What doesn't make it into his mouth gets caught in his bib. However, what he decides to do with the food he doesn't want in his mouth gets put into his hair and also thrown around the room. When he is done throwing the food, he picks up his plate and tosses it on the floor. Interestingly enough, being somewhat OCD, this doesn't bother me too much (of course as a result I don't feed him red jello or any soups). However, it would be nice if we could do away with the plate throwing. None of the plates with the suctions on them work and I think maybe Jim and I should develop one. You would think it wouldn't be that hard to do but it must be because no one has come up with a good one yet.

Happy Easter!

This weekend was a fun one! Especially since Jim has been working too much but had the weekend off. We started off on Friday with ladybug, butterfly, and snail pancakes. I make my pancakes from scratch so they are whole wheat and have flax seed in them. Yummy!!After breakfast we spent the next 3 hours at Gymboree class. Then we went to Mom and Dad's. On Saturday the Easter Bunny came. It was the first Easter Egg hunt for James and he had a fun time. He loved finding the eggs. Both of the kids got around $3.40.

Saturday early evening we went home and had a good night's sleep. On Sunday we went to church (James looks sooooo cute in a tie!) and the Easter Bunny came again. We are so lucky! Then Sophia and I made Easter Egg cookies and the Beeson's came over for dinner. It was a fun day!

First Haircut

For James...definitely not Sophia. Sophia says that she wants hair long like Mommy's and that is just fine with me. James on the other hand HAD to get his haircut. It was getting too long and not the kind of long that is trendy. It was thin and wispy and in his eyes all the time. He had a piece that went from the crown of his head down to the back of his neck. I decided before Easter he could have a nice haircut. He now looks like a little boy!! He was soooo good too. I took him to my hair salon, DL Lowry. He got a little cape and even got his hair washed in the big fancy sinks like Mommy gets done. Then during the haircut he sat very well on my lap. We were there for 45 minutes and the whole time he was a sweet little angel. Of course it helped that the place was full of women...what a flirt!!!

Here is James just before he gets his hair washed. You can't really tell from this picture but his hair is really long. The woman's name is J. She is my hairstylist as well.

He has his hair washed and combed. Now, do we cut it really short or keep some length to it?

Here is in getting his haircut. This is an action photo.

All done! What a handsome little boy!!

Here is again at home having lunch after his hair appointment. I know I am biased but come on...how adorable is that face!!!!!

Vomit and Diarrhea

You guessed it...our week has been full of vomit and diarrhea. Monday was good though - the kids and I went to Gymboree, which is always fun. Then on Tuesday I had my check-up with the oral surgeon. My test results came back as inflammation/irritation and NO cancer cells - YEAH!! My lymph node is still swollen though and hurts but I guess it will go away soon. I got our of my appointment early (the doctor was an old classmate of Jim's so we didn't have to wait at all and was in and out in no time) so I took the kids to Stride Rite. After buying 6 pairs of shoes, we went home (Sophia and I like shoes).

Everything was normal until that night. Sophia woke me up saying, "I have to pee!!!". I was so happy... no more night time diapers!...that is what I thought until I opened the door to her room and was hit with a terrible smell. Yep...diarrhea. We went to the bathroom where she then vomited. Luckily it was in the toilet. The funny this was she didn't cry or anything. Sophia acted like it was no big deal. She went back to her room and slept until 7. Then it started. Diarrhea, vomit, diarrhea, vomit...vomit some more, diarrhea. And it stunk!!! She not longer thought it was a big deal anymore either. When her stomach hurt, she let me know...as well as the neighborhood. It always seemed that James would scream and cry at the same times too. I think it was either sympathy crying or he was scared because she was crying. Sophia got really sick and dehydrated. Jim even got concerned around Friday (it takes him a while before he gets concerned about medical things). Well, now it is Sunday. She is still vomiting and diarrhea but she is laughing at times and played with my high-heels tonight. I think tomorrow will be a better day.

In the middle of all of this, we had an open house today between 3-5. It went well. Despite it being Palm Sunday, Spring Break, and storming out, we had about 8 couples come. 3 were interested. Apparently one man from Chicago really liked the house but he has to show it to his wife first. Another couple had already seen the house and came again. They need to sell 2 other houses first (I guess he owns one and she owns one and they are wanting one together). The kids and I just drove around until Sophia vomited again. I saw it coming though and had a bag ready. After that I decided driving around was not a good idea so I took the kids home. We still had 45 minutes left to our open house so we sat in the car in our garage and watched a movie until the showing was over and everyone left. Now I am sitting here wondering...why are we selling the house again. I LOVE our house in the spring and summer.