A green tea, a long walk, and a swing

This morning, while Finn and Layla napped, Kate and I washed and sanitized the infant toys and equipment and prepped lunch for the big kids.... Sesame Noodles w/ tofu, mixed greens, and carrots. I used my new hand blender to mix some of the greens and carrots and set some of the tofu aside for Finn to eat when he awoke.
The big kids were downstairs "secretly" at work on my birthday surprise. They walked over to Thriftway to get all of the supplies they needed to make some cupcakes after nap. They made sure to get some blue frosting, of course, because blue is the coveted color around here.
After the babies were awake, changed, and fed and the big kids were happily singing and dancing with our music teacher, Bonnie, I bundled up Finn and Layla and we headed out. First we walked to Cafe Ladro so I could get a big green tea to sip and then we headed to the Pea Patch, which isn't much to look at right now, but has an interesting pathway to stroll along. We were greeted by two big friendly dogs out for their own walk, much to Finn's delight.
I hadn't intended on such a long walk today but we were so close to Lincoln Park at this point that I decided to venture in. Finn and Layla looked up at the huge tall evergreen trees and watched as crows and seagulls came near us to see if we might have a little snack for them. I tossed the rest of Finn's rice cracker and he stared in amazement as they swooped in to fight for it.
The park was empty today so we just strolled along quietly until I noticed a new yellow swing at the swing set that would be perfect for Finn. After getting him out of the stroller and strapped in I gave it a small push. He wasn't so sure at first but he eventually enjoyed slowly moving back and forth.
It was starting to get pretty chilly so we headed back for home. Layla was tuckered out from all the excitement and fell asleep in the infant carrier while Finn reclined back in the stroller to watch the cars drive by. Life's simple pleasures.
One of the reasons I love my job..... being with people who are seeing everything with new eyes makes me stop and notice things I rarely remember to see anymore.

Layla gets soooo excited!

Layla, five months, is solidly sitting up now. Lately she has really begun to grab and hit anything she can get her hands on. She gets so excited moving her hands, arms, and legs as quickly as she can! She makes me laugh every day!

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Finn, nine months, is already pretty steady on his feet. He has been taking steps here and there and cruising around the furniture for a while now and I expect he will be walking solidly in the next month or so. I found this push toy at a resale store the other day and thought it would be perfect. I was right, Finn LOVES it!! He is very quick at it and speeds back and forth across the house, screaming and smiling!

Reid eats an apple

Reid, 15 months, is learning new words and signs every day. Even though he may not be able to fully express himself yet he does comprehend language a great deal. It's exciting watching his brain at work learning. Enjoy!

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The Five Senses

The Preschoolers downstairs are focusing on learning about their five senses this month. The Centipedes, with some help from the Beetles, practiced feeling their way around the yard in a blindfold to experience what life would be like without sight. I love how Jennifer presented this simple activity in experiential learning. They learned how to verbally help thier sight-challenged friends navigate the yard and it looks like they had fun doing it.

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Thriftway Tour

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They are all napping at the same time... whoo hooo!

Don't get me wrong... I have so much fun hanging out with the Dragonflies. If that is all my job entailed it wouldn't really matter so much what time they napped. However, throughout my day I have phone calls and emails to answer and return, preparing lunch for the big kids, and cleaning duties, etc.... so I am quite pleased with the recent linking up of my youngest three babies (Layla, Grace, and Finn) nap schedules. They have all recently began to nap from 10-11:30/12:00 and again from 3-4:30/5:00. It's been kind of a bummer for Reid but he is enjoying his time downstairs with the Beetle class and some individual attention from me; as well.
Today after taking Finn, Layla, and Grace out for a neighborhood walk early this morning from about 9-9:45 they were all ready to come home, get unbundled, and go down for a morning nap. I was able to cook the sweet pepper pita pizzas and green beans that Kate had prepared while we were on our walk and get some office work done.
They all woke by noon happy and well-rested. Grace and Finn enjoyed some steamed cauliflower and yellow squash for lunch and then we played hard and happily on the floor with colorful scarves, cardboard stacking blocks, and puppets. Grace is crawling now and pulling up to stand on everything so she and Finn had fun exploring the house together and getting into everything.
By 3pm they were all ready to go back down for another nap and I was able to clean their toys up, load their bottles and dishes into the dishwasher, and vacuum the floor.
I'm feeling really good about today and I like the new nap schedule and hope it sticks.

Thursday January 15th

Today was a pretty mellow day. Finn is the only little guy here today because Layla goes over to hang with Jennifer and Grace at thier house on Thursdays. Finn enjoys being downstairs with the big kids. He loves crawling all around and pulling himself up to stand on everything. They do get a little frustrated with him at times. We hear alot of, "Jena, Finny's trying to get my book. I said stop but he won't listen!" They're learning that he's still a baby and they need to be gentle with him and ask for help. They all call him "Finny" which is pretty cute.

This is a few pics and a little slideshow of the boys from a few days ago:

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Wednesday January 14, 2009

It's nice to have these video clips on days that I just can't quite get to the note writing. Carrie or Jennifer usually come upstairs to give me an hour break in the afternoon or I can sometimes find time if they all nap at the same time (RARE!) but today I had to do some handiwork and fix the paper towel dispenser downstairs, fix a shelf that needed re-anchored to the wall, and wash the big kid's dress-up clothes.
So.. a brief note, all four kiddos had a good day. We got out in the buggy for a nice long walk to Lincoln Park. Layla and Grace both fell asleep on the way back.

Yesterday Grace and Layla were both snotty with a cold so I decided a spa was in order. They loved it:

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Monday January 12, 2009

Grace is home sick with a cold today. Kate is also home with a sore throat, which seems to be the first symptom for most people who have this latest bug. Scott and Layla are both suffering from it; as well, though both feeling better today than this past weekend. I am taking my usual ridiculous amount of vitamins and supplements plus a few more for good measure and repeating the mantra "I am not getting sick. I am not getting sick."

Reid and Finn are now on opposite sleep schedules, which is too bad because they are both quite bored when the other is sleeping. Finn is on two naps/day still and Reid has recently transitioned to one nap in the middle of the day. Today Reid and Finn did get to spend an hour together this morning sorting and reading books with Jena. We rotated out new books because we had read all the current books many, many times. I was probably getting more bored than they were. Infants and toddlers love repetition so I did keep a few of their favorites in, "Brown Bear, Brown Bear", "The Big Red Barn", and "Mr. Brown Can Moo" all stayed and we added "Baby Beluga" and "The Wheels on the Bus". Reid was excited about the bus book immediately and already knew some of the hand motions, perhaps he sings that song with his parents or his big sister Claire? We also chose some books with images of real babies.
All of the Dragonflies enjoy looking at real photographs of faces so I've been collecting photographs of their Beetle and Centipede friends from downstairs so we can talk about them and point out familiar people, places, and things. We'd love any photos you happen to have of family pets or relatives. Reid is figuring out where his nose, ears, mouth, and other body parts are and we talk about faces that look happy, sad, or angry.
While Reid was napping (Carrie and Jennifer listened for him on the monitor) Jena took Finn and Layla up the street to Layla's naturopath to pick up some vitamin d drops and probiotics. It was so nice to get our for an hour walk in the fresh air. Finn relaxes in the stroller and watches the buses, bikes, people, and dogs go by. The city is building a park down the street so we stopped to watch the construction equipment at work. Layla enjoys the ride as long as we keep moving.

Pirate Play- The Centipedes and Beetles

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Tasting Lemons with the Beetles

The Beetle class (Ruby, Jackson, Nola, Quinn, and Dorothy -all 2yrs) came upstairs for circle time with me this morning so Carrie could have some plan time. Carrie had introduced them to the letter "Ll" yesterday and they had purchased lemons, limes, and latkes from Thriftway. We decided to try some of the lemons and this afternoon for snack they made the latkes.

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Tuesday January 6, 2009

Finn was so bummed that Layla had a party in her crib today while he was taking his morning nap. He even kept his shirt spit-up free all morning so he'd look dapper but he unfortunately crashed out before the party really got rolling. He's having a party in his crib tomorrow to try and one up her. Thankfully, because of some new trash cans, his pad no longer smells like a kitty litter box so I think the chicks will come.

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Monday Dec 5, 2009

Happy New Year! Back to the grind after a fabulous ten days in Mexico.... but at least it's not snowing.
Kate and I were excited to see all of our babies again this morning. Reid is walking cautiously and carefully, Finn is cruising around all the furniture and daring to stand alone at times, Grace is up rocking on all fours and spinning 180's on her belly, and Layla is almost sitting unassisted but is perfecting falling over. Fast forward about three months and they will all be moving quickly in opposite directions!!

Grace and Finn "helped" me clean out some kitchen cabinets today. Who needs toys? They were thoroughly entertained w/ tubs of sippy cups parts.

Happy New Year!

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