smile

Children are so honest, so you know when they say something that it's truly from the heart. I hope this Chloeism makes you all smile :-)

Chloe: "I love you, Daddy."

Chad: "I love you too, sis."

Chloe: "I like your 'mile." (Chloe tends to leave the beginning "s" sound off of words)

...our week in review...

this little girl is, in a word, a ham!
does this little stinker look like her dad or what?! well, she's squishier, rounder, and chubbier, but still 100% Chad!

Chloe definitely has a head full of thick, beautiful hair! Almost everywhere we go someone comments on her hair :-)

thankfully this little bug is growing some hair- Chad attempted a faux-hawk, but her measly little strands just didn't want to stay standing! someday, someday her hair will be more than short and thick...

Berkley LOVES to be naked; in fact, it's hard to get her dressed these days :-)

Chad, Chloe & Berkley sledding at the Elementary school

notice how Berk's foot is IN the snow- WHOOPS!!

* us girls *

Chloe had a blast (well, at least at first before she started getting cold)! To our surprise, she went down the hill all by herself!! We did have fun playing in the snow, but I am hopeful that snow days are OVER! Bring on spring :-)

Berkley trying her first bites of cottage cheese.

To our dismay, she doesn't like it! We'll keep offering it to her, but she is definitely FAR from her sister on this matter (if you'll recall, Chloe CHOWED down her first helping of cottage cheese)!!

a few more random Chloeisms

This little girl has more random, funny sayings for me to share! You don't think she takes after her mama, do you (as in the AMOUNT of talking she does)?!

1. Berkley was chewing on a wrapped up cookie that Chloe was planning on eating after finishing her lunch. Well, Berkley sort of chewed a small hole in the wrapping, but Chloe decided to eat it anyway. After eating for several minutes, Chloe takes a bite and says, "Mama, I just ate Berkley's slobber!"

2. We were driving down to Wal-Mart when she said this little thing:
"I like hills. They make me feel wiggly!"

3. Discussing the fact that she could look for another outfit for her Barbie. CAUTION: this one is Really random:
Chloe: Maybe a beach outfit, a BIG beach outfit.
Me: Oh, that would be fun!
Chloe: Yeah, and I can have a whole beach family!

Ah-ah-ah-CHOO..... giggles!

Berkley 9 month well-visit

Berkley had her 9 month well-visit today! She is definitely growing like a weed :-)

Here are her stats:

Head circumference: 18 1/2 inches, 95 %

Height: 28 inches, 75%

Weight: 21lbs 6.5oz, 90%

Dr. McKenna said that she's just perfect, which we already knew! She had a Hep B & a flu shot, and let me tell you, this girl is a tough nut! They gave her the shots simultaniously- her response was first a stink face, then a weak little "waaah," then silence! What a trooper! We're so happy to hear that she's growing well, but it is sad that she's growing up SO fast!

pulling to stand & playing

FINALLY got a video of our little turkey pulling to stand! And now I have to battle again since she's beginning to walk across our couches! Wish me luck with that one (it's only taken, what, 2 1/2 weeks and a handful of videos to capture this milestone)!!

Chloeisms

1) Chloe comes strolling into the bathroom unannounced while I'm going to the bathroom...
Chloe: Are you pooping, Mommy?
Me: No, I just needed to pee.
Chloe: (gasp) Did you pee on my pee?!
Me: Well, that depends. Did you flush the last time you went to the bathroom?
Chloe: No, and I didn't wipe either!

2) Chloe said this cute little ditty while she was dressing up like a princess...
Chloe: I'm going to wear this crown!
Me: Wow! Look, your crown has a big pink heart in the middle!
Chloe: Yes... and it has sparkles and even real diamonds!

3) Oh, how I have debated whether or not to post this Chloeism. It is a VERY good one, but it still makes me a little mortified thinking about it. Some of you have already heard this one, but it's simply too funny to not post. Oh, from the mouths of babes! Enjoy :-)

Chloe (while she was sitting on the potty): Do you remember when I was in the bathroom with Gid?
Me: Yes, and I still can't figure out why you ended up in there. Were you just playing when he came to use the bathroom and you just didn't leave?
Chloe: Yeah. And he had like a stick on his bum.
Me: What?!
Chloe: Like a stick, but on his bum.

Only one words describes this: HILARIOUS

Hahahahahaha! This picture cracks me up every time! As I was cleaning up the house, Chad, Chloe & Berkley were playing. Chad calls to me, laughing, and says, "You've got to come see this! We put Berkley in the stroller." I stop and think, 'What stroller?' Then, this rolls out! It was so hilarious! Hope it made you smile; it totally had us rolling, and it made our day :-) Enjoy

it is definitely (and unfortunately) winter outside, but....

Gasp! I know you're all waiting for the end of the comment, but it is foreshadowed here...
... and it is winter for sure (ugh, more snow... GROSS)...

... inside my girls (specifically Chloe) seem to think that it's summer! Oh, how I wish this dream were true!!

It looks as if Berk is using the Mr. Potato Head arm for a phone! Too cute!!

For reasons unknown, Chloe occassionally decides that stepping into our pillowcases (with pillow intact) and walking around is amusing. Here is a picture of that proof!

Chloe's rendition of a monster! RAWR!

Aww! Love this little girl, who coincidentally isn't getting any younger. Still can't believe this baby is growing up!!

Chloe begged and pleaded to try on her Easter outfit the other day. And yes, to all of those realizing what I did AFTER the fact that I bought my girls Easter outfits this early, it is only 2 months early! I'm beginning to think that we'll just use them for church and wait until it's closer for actual Easter outfits- they're too cute to wait around for that long :-)

The summer clothes escapade began when Berkley pooped out of her winter attire. I then made the decision to try this new one-piece we bought for Berkley at Carter's. Well, I've come to the conclusion that it's a good thing I tried it on when I did because if she continues to grow as she has in the past, I'm not sure that it would even fit this summer!

Gorgeous

Her big blues match her big belly! Haha :-)

This is all thanks to Chloe! If you'll all look back to the days when Chloe hoarded things in carts, purses, her kitchen drawers, her backpack, and VARIOUS other places, then you'll get a sense of where this is coming from! Instead of hoarding in places, she has decided that hoarding things in HUGE piles all over my house is a better idea! I beg to differ!!!

I belong to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints

Six years ago I was baptized and confirmed a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. It was one of the single greatest decisions I have and will make in my entire life. I remember entering the waters of baptism reflecting on the words spoken just moments earlier by Sol, Chad's brother-in-law. He explained how baptism is like Christ's death and resurrection: entering the water symbolizes the end of sins and coming up out of the water is the start anew, a new life in a manner of speaking. After Chad brought me up out of the water, I remember feeling the Spirit so strong. I had never felt so clean, so holy in my entire life. Although I knew my decision was the right one beforehand, this was a further testimony to the decision I made.

My life has been so blessed through the gospel and the further knowledge I have gained regarding God, Christ, the Holy Ghost, our premortal life, and our life to come. I have honestly never felt so spiritually whole. I remember having some unanswered questions before Chad started sharing some simple truths that the Church teaches, and I am so elated to say that those questions have been answered and all the holes that I had before have been filled. I'm so thankful for the spiritual foundation my parents gave me (I am eternally thankful Mom & Dad); without it I wouldn't have had the desire to draw nearer to my Father in Heaven, the yearning to know more about Christ and where we came from, and the want to find the answers to the questions that I had had for quite a long time.

I belong to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, and I could not be more happy about it :-)

sucker love

To put it simply, this baby L-O-V-Es suckers! Her flavor of choice: well, she doesn't exactly have one yet, but she really enjoyed this cherry one. Babies and suckers are far from the ideal situation for parents: sticky on faces, coloring on clothes thanks to slobbering, hands full of stickiness from switching hands and actually grabbing the sucker to chew on the stick (Berkley's favorite move, which also happened to be Chloe's when she was a babe)! But, they sure do love doing it themselves and reaping the tasty, sweet reward :-)

pictures from a party

There was a birthday party at the Taylors' for Christine today, so we decided to take our camera and snap some pictures of the kids who were there enjoying the food and fun! Chloe & Harley cheesing it up at the table!
Not really sure what she thought she was doing, but she certainly had fun doing it! I think it was a way of reluctantly agreeing to take a picture :-)

Harley showing me her pretty smile!

Berkley looks mildly miffed in this picture! It's as if she's saying, "What in the crap are you doing, Mom?!"

Aww! What a sweet baby :-) You might be wondering who the foot belongs to: it's Chad's, and yes, Berkley was chewing on it!

Wyatt playing with the "dress-up" mirror! Haha! I suppose he's preparing for his sister coming in July :-)

Owen looking fierce!

What a mischevious face, Hayden!!

Chloe running around like a maniac, as usual!

An instrument loving baby & a snow storm

This baby LOVES instruments. If we'd let her, I know she'd certainly play them all day! She already knows exactly where the instrument basket is; she purposefully crawls over to it, pulls herself up, and rakes at it in hopes that it will just fall down to reveal all its goodies. Here she is "eating" the gravity stick. Yes, I know, it's not exactly "instrument" material, but it makes noise and adds a nice sound to the "bands" we create with her big sis!
Shaking the maracas with fury! Haha! Her face is so hilarious in this picture :-)

Playing a range of instruments: the piano (which is likely her favorite), the bongo drum, and the tamborine, which she is scratching here! It made a surprisingly interesting sound. Kudos, Berkley!

Just when we all thought that winter was potentially coming to a close, that blasted groundhog changed fate! Chloe was concerned when she woke up and found Chad gone. She asked where he was, and after I told her she replied, "Can I go outside to help daddy shovel snow? I think he needs some help." So, out she went at 7:30 in the morning to help. She was so happy to help clean off the snow-covered Jeep!

Ugh! This snow literally makes me SICK. Believe it or not, our yard was completely greenish brown no more than 10 hours earlier!

Sleep Situation

While some of you may know Berkley's sleep situation, I'd guess that many of you do not. We thought at first that Berkley was following in her big sister's footsteps-- sleeping wonderfully at night. At 2-months of age, Berk was sleeping a 6-7 1/2 hour stretch overnight, which was amazing, especially for a breastfed baby. However, our luck changed right around 3-months.

Berkley started having really severe gas pains overnight causing her to wake FREQUENTLY. It was so rough not only because we had become accustomed to sleeping for much longer periods, but mainly because we wanted to help her and really couldn't do much. After repeated trips to Dr. McKenna in search of answers, we came up with a few possible solutions: 1) gulping in a lot of air when crying (even though we didn't allow her to cry for long periods whatsoever) due to separation anxiety, 2) an issue with my milk's quality, 3) the amount of milk I was producing perhaps wasn't meeting her demands (which came a little later) .

After a few weeks of ruling out these scenarios, we came to find that Berkley was in fact not getting enough milk. However, she continued to wake night after night even after we solved that problem. As she was approaching 8-months (yes, that's right, we dealt with gassy wakings day in and day out for 5 solid months), the gassiness ceased, but the wakings did not. We wondered if it had become a habit of being succored back to sleep and feeling comforted when she woke.

Let me take a step back to explain an aspect of my parenting that I've found differs LARGELY from many other parents' practices and advice. I've never been a proponent of the cry-it-out (CIO) method. Why, you might ask? Well, there are many reasons. First and foremost, I feel that as parents we need to feel comfortable, and the thought of letting any child of mine CIO brought (and still continues to bring) feelings of discomfort. Second, CIO simply doesn't coincide with my personal theory of children. I look at children like little adults, as human beings with real, valid feelings, needs, and desires. In other words, my children, and all children for that matter, are just like you and me. To better understand where I'm coming from, consider this: you are asleep and for some unknown reason you awaken to find yourself alone in the dark, perhaps even disoriented. You call out for your spouse, but he/she doesn't reply. You call again, wondering where they are or what they are doing. Still no response. You begin to feel uneasy, worried, scared, and VERY alone. You cry and continue to call, and still you hear nothing. I would want Chad to respond to me, and I know that he would never leave me to soothe myself back to sleep; therefore, I would never respond to my children in that way.

Well, with Berkley sleeping poorly we continued to pick her up to comfort and "parent" her back to sleep. After a few weeks with little to no success, we decided that we'd try keeping her in the crib and soothing her back to sleep by gentle pats, loving rubs, and quiet "shhh"s. A week into this attempt, we were frustrated that it wasn't working either. We were both tired, at our wits end, and our relationship was suffering. One of us (typically me) was constantly attending to Berkley overnight, which allowed little time for us. I reluctantly called our pediatrician's office and asked one of the nurses what to do. She informed me, as several had done with Chloe, that we should lay her down awake and let her cry, even if she cried until she threw up. What she said next shocks me even to this day: if she did vomit, they advised that we clean her up, clean the bed, and place her back in without any talking or consolation! To me, that sounded inhumane, and I refused to ever let it get to that point. However, we did decide to try CIO.

The first few nights were wonderful! Then we had several bad, a few good, a weeks worth of bad, a couple good, an ok, another good set of bads, one good, and then back to where we had started. This was when I started to truly lose my mind. Not only was this method not helping my sweet baby, I felt absolutely horrible letting her cry without attending her need for me. I know that many could say that she was "manipulating" me, but in my mind she was (and still does every time she cries) communicating a discomfort/fear/or otherwise negative feeling. Chad and I both disliked the feelings we experienced in letting her CIO, so we decided that without the success we were told we would receive that we would change our ways and not let her CIO again.

I can honestly say that we haven't let her cry it out again after those dreadful three weeks! A good friend lent me a copy of The No-Cry Sleep Solution by Elizabeth Pantley, which was so helpful and reassuring. I always relish information that meshes well with my philosophies, and her ideas and research most definitely does. She explained that society often has this theory that babies should be sleeping through the night after 2 months. However, she describes that through her research that a mere 5 hour stretch is considered sleeping overnight, despite our preconceived notions. I first read the book and obtained so much comfort from it. We proceeded in our comfort zone and continued to go to Berk when she woke overnight. We've had a MUCH better couple of weeks, though each night is a little different. She's teething now, and it appears as if she's coming down with a cold, which has caused some setbacks. I decided to buy Pantley's book, and as soon as we overcome this cold and the tooth she is cutting, I plan to use her methods for helping Berkley to sleep longer overnight. I'll post an update on her sleeping again in a couple of weeks to explain more if/how her gentle methods have helped Berkley. Wish us luck!!

Over a year ago, Chad brought this interesting handout home from his Priesthood meeting at church titled Babies deserve humane care from parents. It was written by Valerie Hudson, a researcher at the BYU Family Studies Center. She affords the example of a teething 10-month-old (not far off from my own situation) who wakes numerous times at night and a mother who continually goes to comfort him. She explains that doing so has "taught him a profound lesson in humane behavior." She continues, saying, "How we treat our infants and toddlers is the foundation of their value system. It is a powerful act of communication about the most important matters of life." She adds that researchers have found that the way in which parents treat and respond to them allows children to "... form a conception of God. As you can imagine, children in the study believed God was like their parents, and that God's behavior and feelings toward themselves was fundamentally the same as their parents' behavior and feelings toward them."

What she says next is truly why I go to my kids when they wake in the night upset, afraid, or otherwise uncomfortable: "So, at 3:45 a.m., your 10-month old is learning about life, God, and about you. Can I trust my Mom or Dad to come when I am in pain, even though I have cried out many times already? Will God respond when I am in pain, even though I have called on him repeatedly? Or does loving response wear thin after a while?" I know that despite the number of times you call on Heavenly Father that He will respond, and that the Spirit will be there to comfort and guide you. As parents here on Earth, we are responsible for these sweet, tender little spirits who came to us from God to receive a body and a life here with our families. It is our duty to look after them as God looks after all of His children, with love, care, and compassion.

I hope that his post hasn't bored any of you; I figure if you lost interest it was a LONG time ago and you stopped reading anyway :-) I just felt the need to get out all of my feelings about our sleep situation with Berkley and explain how I parent a little differently than many people, including trusted doctors and family members alike. If I've learned anything from my education and becoming a parent, as a mother, father, grandparent, or caretaker of young children, you HAVE to feel comfortable with the manners in which you deal with those children in both positive and so-called negative situations. Take comfort, look to the Lord, and, one of the most important messages here, LOVE your children :-)

thursday play dates

For the entire month of February we get the pleasure of watching my friend Melanie's daughter Taya while she attends Relief Society meetings at the nursing home in Preston. We've had lots of fun with her, and today I decided to take a few pictures! She loves Chloe's dress-up shoes, but she was getting so frustrated trying to keep them on her little feet! Well, at least she kept them on long enough to snap this cute picture :-)
Berkley loves our instruments; in fact, both Chloe and Taya spend quite a lot of time playing with them, too! We always blow into the recorder, and sure enough, Berkley starts panting and getting excited until we put it up to her mouth. It's hilarious because she always says, "Oo oo" into it as if she's really playing it. So cute!

Chloe was jamming out to her own music. Haha!

Look at the full pout... LOVE it!

Our "piano" was the most popular item. I think all of them were upset with one another at one point thanks to this hot little item!

A cute, but failed attempt at getting a spectacular picture of my girls.

Give this baby one of Chloe's plasic silverware (or any, for that matter), and she'll be entertained for a while :-)

Such a cute picture!
This little girl cracks me up. When she gets mad or frustrated, she squeals, "Dada! Dada!" There hasn't been one Thursday that didn't involve her going up to my t.v. numerous times and saying, "Moo moo," a.k.a movie! Too funny!!

A budding artist

What do you see when you look at this picture?! At first I wasn't sure, so I asked Chloe to tell me about it. She said, "Look, Mommy, I wrote my name. C-H-L-O-E." And was she ever right! You can really make out the "c" and the "h." This girl truly knows more than I ever imagined she would :-)
What a beauty! I love this little girl so much! At least once every day she tells me that she loves me and that I'm her "friend!" What more could a mother ask for?!

Chloe received Colorforms from my grandparents for something (too many holidays and gifts... they all run together), and she absolutely adores them! This is a fun booklet that came with it that provides ideas for creating. Here is the picture that Chloe insisted on creating....

... and here is her finished product! I think that is VERY impressive!

Chloe's first airplane! The scribbles above it are the clouds and sky and the lines below are the lines that planes leave in the sky when they fly. What a young whipper-snapper!!

I love this smile; it's as real as can be. Definitely genuine.

And another airplane. This girl doesn't go on airplanes a lot, does she?! I love her attention to detail- the tail, the wings, and just the overall shape. It's one of those children's pictures that you look at and think, 'Wow, it really does look like an airplane!'

Chloe truly has a love of art: painting, coloring, stamping, doodling, stickers, cutting paper, Magic nuudles, and the list goes on! Enjoy these few pictures of her and some of her artwork that I think is simply amazing!