Bieber Fever

Eli had a great birthday! It involved his cousins coming to visit, so he was in heaven! Both my kids are enamored with their cousins. They are the best thing that has ever happened to Eli and Cora! They are all so amazing with my kids. They want to help with everything...feed the baby, play with the baby, etc. They play with Eli and give him lectures when he's doing something wrong :-). For his birthday, Eli got to have waffles with chocolate chips for breakfast, hot chocolate at Starbucks (where we saw 2 other people with birthdays), and a birthday party with his cousins. It doesn't get much better than that! We had cupcakes and made homemade drums and decorated them for an activity. This weekend my nieces started playing Justin Bieber songs on the computer (if you don't know he is the biggest craze for tweens right now). My mom encouraged it (he really is a great role model for kids) and the next thing we know the girls are making Bieber Jibjab videos, and we were headed to the Justin Bieber movie! It was a lot of fun to have an outing with my nieces and nephew without having to wrangle my kids! The movie was actually wonderful and really encouraged kids to follow their dreams. By the end of their visit, we had heard "Baby" by Justin Bieber hundreds of times and both MY kids were singing the song! Cora would come running into the room dancing if she heard them start playing it. It was hilarious! Poor poor Joel. He is going to go crazy now with all the Bieber Fever in his household! P.S.-Cora has 4 teeth in on the bottom now and 2 (an incisor and front tooth) in on top!

Eli is THREE!!!!!!

My son is three. I can hardly believe it! I have teared up so many times the past couple of weeks because it just blows my mind that he is so grown up and such a little man. He has taught me so much in these three years. I can't believe how selfless I am now and how much time I've spent loving him, playing with him, teaching him, laughing with him, crying with him, and worrying about him. Three full years of learning and making mistakes but being rewarded hundreds of times during the day. Oh, what a passionate energetic spirit he has. It is a challenging personality, but he has stretched me and brought me more joy than I could have ever imagined. He is smart, a quick learner, and SO affectionate and empathetic. He favors the Corman family in looks, snorts and throws his head back when he laughs, and is so accident prone (he is my son after all). He lives for outdoor adventures and physical activity of any kind. At three years he is doing the following:

1. Using longer sentences finally. He has been so slow to talk, but is finally saying four or five word sentences and will attempt to say anything we ask him. I still have to translate often for other people, but usually I know exactly what he's saying all the time.

2. His favorite sayings right now are "do it by myself", and "just pretending", as well as using "really___" or "a little ___".

3. He is very affectionate to us and Cora, as well as his cousins. He gives lots of kisses, hugs, and snuggles. He always asks if we can have a "snuggle snow day" aka snuggle on the couch

4. He loves Exploration Place, wrestling, hot wheels, swimming, baths or showers, marble mazes, parks, slides and water slides, playdoh, reading books, being told stories, playing outside in the sandbox, going for walks, playing Memory and Go Fish, and watching youtube videos.

5. His best friends are Seth and Jesse Horst, his cousins (especially Korey), and Jaxon down the street.

6. He knows his shapes, colors, letters, words for each letter, matching, size comparisons, cutting (still needs work), and is able to write his name.

7. He enjoys art and any type of learning.

8. His favorite music to dance to is Maroon 5

9. He is on a gluten free diet, which has helped his digestion issues completely

10. He is the best eater I've ever seen for a toddler and will eat almost anything. He loves all fruits and veggies and I am so grateful because I can cook whatever I want and it is eaten! He loves picking broccoli and tomatoes out of our little garden and always stops to smell the flowers.

11. He is Daddy's helper and is stuck like glue to Brandon when he is home from work. He loves helping Brandon with projects around the house or running errands with him.

12. He is completely potty trained (has been since 2 1/2) and only wears a diaper at night (even though he usually wakes up dry)

13. He has adjusted wonderfully well to being a big brother and is amazing with Cora. Once in a while he will get too rough, but for the most part he helps me out a lot and brings her toys, shares, and loves on her all day. He calls her "Bora", "Baby", or "Baby Judson"

14. He picks up his toys and does little chores around the house like switching the laundry and putting dishes away.

15. We still struggle with him lashing out when he gets mad or frustrated and hits or screams, but it has been getting better the more he is able to talk and express himself with words.

16. He is singing more and more every day! It is so fun! He wants to sing "Jesus Loves Me" every night before bed and he sings with us and always goes off pitch on the high notes.

17. He still sleeps with his beloved "Doggy" that he has had since he was a baby.

18. Still says, "Dadjeeya" for "yes" once in a while, but is slowly losing it and has moved on to "yeah"

19. He absolutely adores his family and asks to see "Bum and Nana" and "Donna Grams and papa" all the time.

20. He weighs around 30 lbs and is short...no surprise!

Cora 9 month appt.

Cora had her 9 month appt. today. I am SICK of going to the doctor or taking kids to the doctor, but at least this time we were all HEALTHY! Her stats are as follows: 25 1/2 inches tall (5%), 17 lbs 13 oz (27%), and head size 17 1/4 inches (30%). She was impressed with her walking and talking skills. I had a wonderful birthday brunch, and we got a ton of projects done in the beautiful weather!

Here are a couple teaser pictures my friend sent me! I can't wait to see the rest! I had a birthday brunch at my house today with my girlfriends, mom, and sister. It was wonderful to eat good food and just spend time with the girls! Brandon took the kids to Exploration Place for some fun, so I could relax. He is always so great about helping me get a break once in a while! Oh how I delight in my kids, but absence makes the heart grow fonder ;-). I have been really enjoying Eli's singing lately. He sings his own versions of quite a few songs like Jesus Loves Me, ABC's, Praise Him, McDonalds/Kentucky Fried Chicken/Pizza Hut song :-), Old McDonald, etc. He has this really high singing voice and he always goes off pitch on the high notes. It is SO cute! I catch him singing on his own and I love to just hide and listen. Every day he is saying new things (today he copied my mom and said, "BUMMER!") and making longer sentences. It is hilarious!

Spring

We are getting a lovely taste of Spring. It's warm, sunny, and everyone is in great moods breaking out t-shirts, flip flops, and heading outside. It is much needed! I know it is just a taste, and I am sure there will be more Winter weather (there always is), but I can pretend right??? There are crocus coming up in my garden, so that is the first sign! We have been spending every spare second outside and enjoying every bit of it. The kids have enjoyed playing ball, helping me clean the garage, playing in the sandbox, the park, walking, picnics, etc. I even have been doing a little veggie garden planning in my mind. I want to make sure Eli gets to be more involved this year...possibly giving him a couple of "smart pots" for his own little garden. He's already asked to plant broccoli and tomatoes again, which is a given! I'm factoring in Cora as well this year and thinking of adding some spinach for her. Doesn't this feel so good??? On another note, Eli had a three year screening yesterday by Parents as Teachers. He passed with flying colors. It was hilarious to watch him doing all these little tests for an hour. He did great! Areas he needs more work are definitely scissor cutting and writing with a pencil (he loves markers so he doesn't push hard enough with a pencil when he writes). I am proud of him!

Happy Birthday to Me...and Happy Valentine's Day!

I feel like my heart is just bursting at the seams with love this Valentine's Day. As hard as it is to be a parent, the joy far outweighs the frustration. I literally just have to stop and sit for a moment sometimes because I'm so overwhelmed with love for my kids and husband. I have everything I've ever dreamed of, and it's a beautiful position to be in. We had a very enjoyable V-Day and B-Day. Eli sang me Happy Birthday several times, we made heart masks, and had my brother Will over for a special dinner. We got Eli popsicle molds to make juice pops for his gift, and he has been loving them! Eli said Brandon was his Valentine, so I snagged Cora to be mine! I let Eli go pick Brandon out a shirt to give him and Eli was very adamant about a shirt that said, "Ireland...National Drinking Team". I got a good chuckle out of that, but managed to steer him towards a different one. Eli was so excited to give Brandon his gift and loved that Brandon wore it! My favorite part about my birthday was the WEATHER! We are having a wonderful warm spell, so the kids and I have been walking and playing outside. Thank you God for my lovely present!

9 Months!

There are no words to even describe my love for this little girl. Having a daughter is such a special thing, and I am so blessed to get to experience it! She takes my breath away and charms me every second of the day with her beautiful spirit and joyful personality. We all are so in love with her! We all can't resist her chubby cheeks and big blue eyes. She is smothered in kisses all day long by Eli and I (which is probably why we are all sharing illnesses ha ha). Eli calls her "Baby Judson" or "Bora". He is just as enamored as the rest of us! Her whole goal in life is to copy whatever we do or say. Exploration is her daily activity of choice! At 9 months Cora is:

1. Saying: Mama, Dada, Nana, More, Poop, Peek-a-boo, Bye-Bye, and Bath

2. Walking (can go clear across the room on her own and from furniture to furniture)

3. Crawling: She crawls with one leg under her in a kind of scoot

4. Throwing fits: She will get mad if you take a toy away from her or something she's not supposed to have. She also gets upset now if Eli wrongs her in some way, whether it's stealing a toy or accidentally bumping her or hurting her. She will yell, growl, or cry. She is VERY sensitive and gets her feelings hurt very easily.

5. Responding to "no": She already knows what it means and will give me this look when I say it.

6. Eating finger foods herself: She is moving beyond baby food now and eating chunkier things as well as small table foods such as bread, chicken, puffs, cheerios, pears, peaches, etc.

7. Wearing 9 month, 12 month, and 12-18 month clothes

8. Waving: She will wave and say "bye-bye", it is the cutest thing ever! It's a hand closing kind of wave

9. Loving playing in the sandbox and outside with her brother messing around with the grass, leaves, sticks, etc.

10. Doing this snorting/sniffing thing. She scrunches up her face really tight and sniffs just like my brother did when he was a baby. It always gets a laugh out of us.

11. Signing "more" when she wants more food, snack, or song/game

12. Sharing: She loves to share whatever she is chewing on or playing with and will shove it in my mouth face for me to try too :-)

13. Turning book pages and enjoying reading all of Eli's old books

14. Pulling up on EVERYTHING and cruising. I purposely put her in the middle of the room with toys and she will crawl as fast as she can to any near stairs or whatever she can get her hands on and pull up and take off walking. It is dangerous because of our wood/tile floors. I always spot her if she's walking, but a few times she's caught me off guard!

15. Doing the whole "indian yell" with her mouth

16. Called many names such as: Cora Bell, Cora Bella, Cora Ellie, Cora Eleanor, Cora Lou, Cora Dora, Bora by Eli, Mini Brandon, Little Observer

17. Still oozing with sweetness, kisses, hugs, and snuggles for us all!

Where I've been...

It all started with a visit from the grandparents, a date night for Brandon and I to Il Vicino, and then a surprise visit from my sister's family. What a weekend! We got to take my nieces and nephew sledding for the first time and have an impromtu birthday party for ME! After everyone left though things went from wonderful to bad pretty quickly. Eli already had developed a cough and cold symptoms. Next, I came down with Influenza, which I have never had before, and was the WORST thing EVER! I literally was up all night with a 103 fever shaking, sweating, and going insane. I even went to throw up and passed out as usual :-). It is like combining the stomach flu AND the worst cold ever. Sucky! Next to go was Cora. She developed the same virus as Eli and started getting a nasty cough. This was all topped with a visit of 8-12 inches of snow and -14 degree weather. Took the kids to the doctor to discover Eli had wheezing in his lungs and Cora was headed that way, so we were sent home with a nebulizer to do breathing treatments (3 a day for Eli, and 2 for Cora). Eli seems to be responding to the treatments and is coughing a lot less, unfortunately Cora is at the worst stage and having a terrible time trying to sleep without coughing. I have to hold her upright for naps and I slept with her propped up next to me in the guest bedroom last night. Trying to take care of the sickos while having the respiratory flu has been rough. Today, I am finally feeling better. Someone sent us two pizzas tonight. God bless you! Can't wait to get back to LIFE again! Cora's 9 month update is coming soon!

Dentist

Eli went to the dentist for the first time today! I was so proud of him! I could tell he was a little nervous about going, but I had prepared him completely for what was going to happen (he took doggy along for support but never had to get him out of my purse). He was excited to go to the "big building, fourteenth floor" and ride the "elevator" to get "clean teeth". He started opening his mouth the second he sat in the chair waiting for them to clean his teeth. It was so cute! He followed the hygienist's instructions and had a great checkup. He got a little nervous when she told him about the floss, so they skipped it. He was perfect and they said he was the easiest kid they'd ever had. He was so excited to pick out a car and a new tooth brush. The second we got home he wanted his new tooth brush and ran into the bathroom to brush his teeth. Our dentist said his teeth look wonderful, and that it looks like he's going to have adequate spacing for his permanent teeth to come in. Good news! I feel like we've checked another "health" thing off our list. After this Winter of health crisis, it's wonderful to feel in control of everything right now. He is doing wonderfully on gluten free, and I am busy adjusting recipes and cooking new things to try out. I have been super thrilled to find that Betty Crocker has some gluten free baking mixes that are delicious. We've tried the cookies and cupcakes and are hoping to try the brownies this weekend for Super Bowl. With gluten free items it's always hit or miss and not much in between. We are learning! I was so happy after talking to his doctor this week because she said just to continue gluten free since he's doing so well and not do further testing etc. Big sigh of relief! I'm happy that he's feeling good and doing well!