Omar led worship at Crossroad Church today. Since we only had the Honda to drive, and we were concerned about fitting kids and equipment, William went to church with Grandma and Grandpa, and we just took Joy with us.
Joy had a wonderful time. We walked around a little before service started, and she smiled and giggled at everyone she met. I took her upstairs to the "cry room" for the service. She seemed to really enjoy the view, looking out over everyone's heads. And she loved the worship! It was half an hour past when I expected her to be hungry, and she was just bouncing up and down on my lap singing along. I'm pretty sure she recognized Daddy's voice, and when he started praying, she got really excited and prayed right along with him! When the pastor got up to speak, she finally lost interest in the service and decided she was ready to eat. Such sweet, innocent enjoyment of worship. I hope she never loses that spirit.
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On a side note, I am grateful that we have found a wonderful babysitter in Katy. I was worried about some one being able to juggle both kids, but she seems to do it with grace. William has already gotten attached to her. The first night she watched them, he woke up in the morning and asked, "Where's Katy?" Tonight, we got home right after he went to bed, and I went in to check on him, and he said, "Katy bye-bye?" and wanted her to come back and say good-bye to him.
Then he tried to get out of bed and tell me, "I don't sleep no more!"
Sunday, January 16, 2011
Wednesday, January 12, 2011
The Terrible Two's
William is at a very difficult age right now. I have a feeling this is where a lot of parents give in and start letting their kids run the show, because it is exhausting to just keep fighting. For instance, this morning when I dropped him off at daycare, William was so whiney. He wanted cereal, and I told him he had to ask nicely. He knows that means saying please, so he walked over to Miss Christy, and snapped/growled a please at her. I stepped in before she could say anything and told him that was not asking nicely. Then he tried to avoid the issue by saying he was tired, and followed me around whining at me while I put Joy's things away. Finally, I told him I wasn't enjoying his whining, and I left the room, and he burst into tears (I went next door to the toddler room to put his things away). When I came back in, I sat down and made him look me in the eye and quit crying, told him that he can't whine to get his way, and made him say sorry. Then I cuddled him on my lap for a minute and sent him back over to Miss Christy to ask nicely for cereal. This is a typical scenario for William now, and it is so tiring, and even when it ends with him doing what he was supposed to, I still feel so defeated when it's over. We're also dealing with the back talking issue, now. It seems to be a difficult concept for him to grasp: it's ok for us to tell him no, but he can't do that to us.
Lucky, he is still an absolutely adorable kid and it is so much fun watching him try new things. Yesterday, I was pushing him in one of the bucket swings at the playground, and he said, "No mommy, don't help. I push!" And then proceeded to hit the front of the swing with his hand in an effort to "push" himself.
I love my boy. And I have a feeling that if we can endure and get through this phase, we're going to have one of the sweetest, most polite little boys ever.
Lucky, he is still an absolutely adorable kid and it is so much fun watching him try new things. Yesterday, I was pushing him in one of the bucket swings at the playground, and he said, "No mommy, don't help. I push!" And then proceeded to hit the front of the swing with his hand in an effort to "push" himself.
I love my boy. And I have a feeling that if we can endure and get through this phase, we're going to have one of the sweetest, most polite little boys ever.
Sunday, January 9, 2011
Disneyland
Omar and I went to Disneyland yesterday to celebrate our 4th anniversary. We had a great time. We rode some rides and walked around a lot and ate food. There was no wait for Pirates of the Carribean, and only a 10 minute wait for Indiana Jones. We had to wait a bit for the Mattahorn, and the longest line was 45 minutes for Tower of Terror. It was my first time riding Tower of Terror, and I loved it! If the line wasn't so long, I would have done it again. We did not take the kids; they stayed with Grandma. We bought them souvenirs, though. Joy got a princess dress, and William got a Lightening McQueen t-shirt and jacket. Since I didn't have Joy with me for the day, I had to take the breastpump. It worked really well. We rented a locker on Main Street to store the pump, and two times during the day, I retrieved it and walked around the corner to the Baby Care Center. It's really nice; they have a large changing area, high chairs, and even a small kitchen with sink and microwave. They also have a private nursing area with big wing back chairs, and in the corner of that is a little cubicle with chair, table, and electrical outlet for pumping.
Despite the wonderful facilities, I'm glad we didn't take the kids. For one, it's good for our marriage to get away on our own for a bit now and then. For the other, they are too young for Disneyland. We get a lot of people wondering why we haven't taken William to Disneyland, so let me explain. There's no doubt that William would have a great time, and even Joy would probably be entertained by the decorations and colors and so much going on. But we saw so many examples yesterday of why we don't take the kids: parents trying to juggle strollers, diaper bags, backpacks, and food; one parent going on a ride while the other had to wait on a bench with the baby; and most importantly, kids that quickly got too tired and whiney and crying. Right now, the kids require too much stuff to go anywhere, and they don't have the endurance to last long.
But, we discussed it a lot yesterday, and we decided that we will probably take William for his 3rd birthday this year. Just William. He'll probably enjoy having Mommy and Daddy all to himself just as much as he enjoys Disneyland. It'll be so much fun; everything we did yesterday, I wondered what William will think of it. Next year, they are opening Radiator Springs in California Adventure, and we'll definitely have to take William to that.
Oh, and he has to have a chocolate covered frozen banana.
Despite the wonderful facilities, I'm glad we didn't take the kids. For one, it's good for our marriage to get away on our own for a bit now and then. For the other, they are too young for Disneyland. We get a lot of people wondering why we haven't taken William to Disneyland, so let me explain. There's no doubt that William would have a great time, and even Joy would probably be entertained by the decorations and colors and so much going on. But we saw so many examples yesterday of why we don't take the kids: parents trying to juggle strollers, diaper bags, backpacks, and food; one parent going on a ride while the other had to wait on a bench with the baby; and most importantly, kids that quickly got too tired and whiney and crying. Right now, the kids require too much stuff to go anywhere, and they don't have the endurance to last long.
But, we discussed it a lot yesterday, and we decided that we will probably take William for his 3rd birthday this year. Just William. He'll probably enjoy having Mommy and Daddy all to himself just as much as he enjoys Disneyland. It'll be so much fun; everything we did yesterday, I wondered what William will think of it. Next year, they are opening Radiator Springs in California Adventure, and we'll definitely have to take William to that.
Oh, and he has to have a chocolate covered frozen banana.
Monday, December 27, 2010
William Stories
William has been very entertaining this last week. I'll see how many stories I can remember. In no particular order:
I was cleaning out Joy's nose with the bulb syringe one morning, and she was screaming and crying, so William came running over and said, "No! Don't do that! Don't do that to baby!"
Last night, I was rocking William before bed, and he asked me to sing the Wheels on the Bus. When I started singing, he started beat-boxing through the entire first verse.
In Sunday School, William was trying to put his sippy cup in the seat of the car, but the car was on its side so the cup kept rolling out. William got very frustrated and yelled at his sippy cup, "No! Water in timeout!"
William just fell over and told me his bum-bum hurts.
Joy was giving me a hard time about going to bed, so I decided to let her cry just a couple minutes. William was still awake, so I told him baby was going to cry for a few minutes, but she was ok and I would be right back. Downstairs, I listened to Joy cry over the monitor for a few seconds, and then we heard William: screaming back at Joy. I had to go take Joy out, and Omar had to put William to bed again.
I had Joy laying on her tummy on the floor while I did a few chores. As I walked past, I stopped and said, "Hey Joy, how you doing?" William ran over and told me, "Baby pooping!" I checked her diaper, and he was right!
William is starting to articulate more complex thoughts. He was holding his Lightening McQueen in his hand and told me, "Lightening McQueen is red. This is not green. This is red. Chick is green."
Ok, that's all I've got for now. =)
I was cleaning out Joy's nose with the bulb syringe one morning, and she was screaming and crying, so William came running over and said, "No! Don't do that! Don't do that to baby!"
Last night, I was rocking William before bed, and he asked me to sing the Wheels on the Bus. When I started singing, he started beat-boxing through the entire first verse.
In Sunday School, William was trying to put his sippy cup in the seat of the car, but the car was on its side so the cup kept rolling out. William got very frustrated and yelled at his sippy cup, "No! Water in timeout!"
William just fell over and told me his bum-bum hurts.
Joy was giving me a hard time about going to bed, so I decided to let her cry just a couple minutes. William was still awake, so I told him baby was going to cry for a few minutes, but she was ok and I would be right back. Downstairs, I listened to Joy cry over the monitor for a few seconds, and then we heard William: screaming back at Joy. I had to go take Joy out, and Omar had to put William to bed again.
I had Joy laying on her tummy on the floor while I did a few chores. As I walked past, I stopped and said, "Hey Joy, how you doing?" William ran over and told me, "Baby pooping!" I checked her diaper, and he was right!
William is starting to articulate more complex thoughts. He was holding his Lightening McQueen in his hand and told me, "Lightening McQueen is red. This is not green. This is red. Chick is green."
Ok, that's all I've got for now. =)
Monday, December 13, 2010
Our First "Overnighter"
We took both kids on a little overnight trip to Santa Clarita this weekend, for the Howard Christmas Party on Saturday night, and then Titus's dedication on Sunday morning. I was so proud of how both of them handled all the new situations.
Joy was a typical baby; she can eat and sleep (and poop) anywhere. She had no problem sleeping in the hotel; we brought her playpen, so that was a familiar spot for her. She had a blow out during the Christmas party; Omar passed her off to me real quick when that happened, and I had to change her out of her cute party outfit. Then during the dedication Sunday morning, as the pastor started praying, I heard Joy start pooping, and she kept going and going, and I figured I needed to get her out of there. I changed her diaper in the car, luckily it all stayed in her diaper. She did it again right before we left when she was laying on her belly playing with Titus; she thought it was pretty funny, too. And then to top it all off, when we got home and I went to change her diaper before bed, I found even more poop!
William impressed me this weekend with his memory and comprehension. When we were getting ready to leave home, I asked him if he wanted to go see Uncle Adam and Aunt Erin, and he said, "Yeah! And baby Titus!" When we got there, he remembered that last time we were there, Erin gave him some cheese, so shortly after we arrived this time, he went and asked her for cheese again. He also remembered that when he had to poop last time, he hid behind their table. Only this time, they had moved the table out for the party. After telling me he needed to poop, William started asking me where the table went. I didn't get the connection at first, but once I figured it out, we tried to offer him different places to hide, but no luck; he didn't poop until the next day at Red Robin when he hid behind the stroller.
William had a little more difficulty with the hotel than Joy did. Omar pushed one of the beds against the wall for a safer place to sleep, but William was apprehensive about sleeping in a new place. While we were getting him ready for bed, someone was knocking on another door out in the hallway, and it really concerned William that someone might be out there. He kept saying that they shouldn't knock on the door, and Omar had to take him over to show him that he locked the door. I had to lay down with William until he fell asleep. When he got up the next morning, he said, "I don't like knock on door. Don't unlock the door, ok?" Then while we were getting ready, William managed to find the one un-bumpered corner in the room and gave himself a good size knot on his head.
At church the next day, Omar took William to the nursery after the dedication. William cried when Omar left him, but per caregiver's report was fine once they went out to the playground. And when Omar picked him up, William was all smiles and told me, "I went to the park. I like it!" William was so well-behaved during lunch, despite a long wait. But poor guy was tired after being up so late and all the new things; he fell asleep right after leaving the restaurant, stayed asleep from the car to Adam and Erin's bed, woke up going from bed back to car, but fell right back asleep again. Both kids slept most of the way home.
Overall, a good experience. I would do it again, except I would plan to be in the hotel room earlier to give the kids more time to settle down and get to sleep in a new place. And of course, it was great to see Adam, Erin, and Titus, and especially to see Titus dedicated (or at least partly, since I had to make a quick exit with Joy in the middle). It's good to spend time with family.
Joy was a typical baby; she can eat and sleep (and poop) anywhere. She had no problem sleeping in the hotel; we brought her playpen, so that was a familiar spot for her. She had a blow out during the Christmas party; Omar passed her off to me real quick when that happened, and I had to change her out of her cute party outfit. Then during the dedication Sunday morning, as the pastor started praying, I heard Joy start pooping, and she kept going and going, and I figured I needed to get her out of there. I changed her diaper in the car, luckily it all stayed in her diaper. She did it again right before we left when she was laying on her belly playing with Titus; she thought it was pretty funny, too. And then to top it all off, when we got home and I went to change her diaper before bed, I found even more poop!
William impressed me this weekend with his memory and comprehension. When we were getting ready to leave home, I asked him if he wanted to go see Uncle Adam and Aunt Erin, and he said, "Yeah! And baby Titus!" When we got there, he remembered that last time we were there, Erin gave him some cheese, so shortly after we arrived this time, he went and asked her for cheese again. He also remembered that when he had to poop last time, he hid behind their table. Only this time, they had moved the table out for the party. After telling me he needed to poop, William started asking me where the table went. I didn't get the connection at first, but once I figured it out, we tried to offer him different places to hide, but no luck; he didn't poop until the next day at Red Robin when he hid behind the stroller.
William had a little more difficulty with the hotel than Joy did. Omar pushed one of the beds against the wall for a safer place to sleep, but William was apprehensive about sleeping in a new place. While we were getting him ready for bed, someone was knocking on another door out in the hallway, and it really concerned William that someone might be out there. He kept saying that they shouldn't knock on the door, and Omar had to take him over to show him that he locked the door. I had to lay down with William until he fell asleep. When he got up the next morning, he said, "I don't like knock on door. Don't unlock the door, ok?" Then while we were getting ready, William managed to find the one un-bumpered corner in the room and gave himself a good size knot on his head.
At church the next day, Omar took William to the nursery after the dedication. William cried when Omar left him, but per caregiver's report was fine once they went out to the playground. And when Omar picked him up, William was all smiles and told me, "I went to the park. I like it!" William was so well-behaved during lunch, despite a long wait. But poor guy was tired after being up so late and all the new things; he fell asleep right after leaving the restaurant, stayed asleep from the car to Adam and Erin's bed, woke up going from bed back to car, but fell right back asleep again. Both kids slept most of the way home.
Overall, a good experience. I would do it again, except I would plan to be in the hotel room earlier to give the kids more time to settle down and get to sleep in a new place. And of course, it was great to see Adam, Erin, and Titus, and especially to see Titus dedicated (or at least partly, since I had to make a quick exit with Joy in the middle). It's good to spend time with family.
Wednesday, December 8, 2010
Joke of the Day
One of our nurses at work is pregnant and just recently found out she is having a baby girl. I was sharing this news with Estelle, when Debi walked past our office door. Evidently, she only heard part of our conversation, because she came in and said, "Julie! Are you pregnant?!"
Man, did I laugh at that one. Can you imagine if I was pregnant again already? Joy isn't even 4 months old yet! I don't want to completely rule out the possibility of any more kids ever, but for now, I feel our family is complete with just the four of us. Plus, after the complications I had with Joy, I'm not in a hurry to rush into anything like that again.
I've got my boy, and I've got my girl, and I've got a great husband, and for now I'm content with showering all my love on just them.
Man, did I laugh at that one. Can you imagine if I was pregnant again already? Joy isn't even 4 months old yet! I don't want to completely rule out the possibility of any more kids ever, but for now, I feel our family is complete with just the four of us. Plus, after the complications I had with Joy, I'm not in a hurry to rush into anything like that again.
I've got my boy, and I've got my girl, and I've got a great husband, and for now I'm content with showering all my love on just them.
Tuesday, December 7, 2010
William and Christmas
I'm not keeping up with this blog as much as I would like. By the time I get to the end of the day when I may have time to write, I'm usually just too tired to care or I can't remember what I wanted to write about or there are so many things to write about that I can't pick just one.
The other night, I was rocking William at bedtime, and he suddenly tipped his head back and smiled at me with so much love and happiness in his little face. I worry sometimes that because Joy needs so much attention right now, then William may not be getting enough. But he's been so good with her, especially now that she can smile and laugh a lot, he loves to get in her face and make her smile. Tomorrow, Grandpa will be in town, and William will have him to himself all day. That kind of thing is good for him, a little one on one attention.
I'm so excited for Christmas this year, because William will really be able to get into it. He's already super-excited about the Christmas tree. He's only tried to take a couple of ornaments off. And he's decided that the elf and Santa climbing the ladder on the tree are "William and Grandpa." William is getting a lot of Cars (the Disney movie) gifts this year; he watches that movie almost every day. His big gift is going to be a tricycle (and helmet); I cannot wait to see his face Christmas morning!
I'm trying to find time to read A Christmas Carol. I usually read it every year around this time, but I'm having trouble getting around to it this year. It's my favorite Christmas book. And of course, my favorite movie version of it is A Muppet Christmas Carol. I watched that Sunday night when I had an evening to myself. I tried to get William into reading the book "A Story a Day till Christmas," but he can't sit still long enough to get through a story. I also tried to get him to watch A Muppet Christmas Carol, but he asked to watch iCarly or Cars instead.
The other night, I was rocking William at bedtime, and he suddenly tipped his head back and smiled at me with so much love and happiness in his little face. I worry sometimes that because Joy needs so much attention right now, then William may not be getting enough. But he's been so good with her, especially now that she can smile and laugh a lot, he loves to get in her face and make her smile. Tomorrow, Grandpa will be in town, and William will have him to himself all day. That kind of thing is good for him, a little one on one attention.
I'm so excited for Christmas this year, because William will really be able to get into it. He's already super-excited about the Christmas tree. He's only tried to take a couple of ornaments off. And he's decided that the elf and Santa climbing the ladder on the tree are "William and Grandpa." William is getting a lot of Cars (the Disney movie) gifts this year; he watches that movie almost every day. His big gift is going to be a tricycle (and helmet); I cannot wait to see his face Christmas morning!
I'm trying to find time to read A Christmas Carol. I usually read it every year around this time, but I'm having trouble getting around to it this year. It's my favorite Christmas book. And of course, my favorite movie version of it is A Muppet Christmas Carol. I watched that Sunday night when I had an evening to myself. I tried to get William into reading the book "A Story a Day till Christmas," but he can't sit still long enough to get through a story. I also tried to get him to watch A Muppet Christmas Carol, but he asked to watch iCarly or Cars instead.
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