Hair by Emma

Seriously thinking of chopping my hair off. Long hair is easy to just brush and be on my way so I've always kept it long. But I'm thinking if there is less hair to pull maybe it will break Emma and Sam's habit.

The littles

I sound like a kid myself ;)

Taxi Service

I can't wait till these kids can drive themselves! Oh what a happy day that will be.

"Christian can you run to the store for a gallon of milk after you pick up your siblings from school?"

2 years later

"Oh miss M*, run to the store and pick me up some tampons." BUHAHAHAHAH!!!

At least I'm not having to drive to the Jr. High 4 times a day now! Exposure therapy, yeah I get the idea. But dropping her off for one class, then picking up for lunch, dropping her off for a second class, and finally picking up at the end of the day was EXHAUSTING. Poor little Emma thought we lived in the car.

"Come on Emma, we have to drive to school."

Every time her response would be...

"No I stay with Dadda."

"Dad's at work."

"Stay with brubber!"

No Christian's at school."

"Stay with dog."

Sigh, poor little miss having to be toted around everywhere.

Bedtime and Morning Songs

Good Night Baby - Emmalyn's Version

Good night baby it's time to go to sleep, we've turned the page on this day and now it's time to sleep.

Good night, baby, it's faster than it seems, I used to be the baby and my mom sang to me.

Good night, Good night. I hope you have sweet dreams. The world loves little babies, and you're the world to me.

Good night, Good night. I watch you as you sleep. The world loves little babies and you mean the world to me.

Night Night - Wenzel bedtime song. Sang to my babies Christian, Maddy, and Sam.

Night night MaDalyn, night-night MaDelyn, night-night MaDelyn, see you in the morNing.

Ga, Ga, and Grandpa say night-night, Ga-Ga, and Grandpa say night-night, Ga-Ga, and Grandpa say night-night, see you in the morNing.

Night night ChrisTian, night-night ChrisTian, night-night ChrisTian, see you in the morNing.

Mama and Dada say night night, Mama and Dada say night night, Mama and Dada say night night, see you in the morNing.

Night night SaMuel, night night SaMuel, night night SaMuel, see you in the morNing.

Ga, Ga, and Grandpa say night night, Ga-Ga and Grandpa say night night, Ga-Ga, and Grandpa say night night, see you in the morNing.

Would repeat verses changing up the names that would say night night (cousins, aunt, uncles, pets).

Morning Song - With zooming nose touch gesture

Good morning, good morning, good morning, good morning, good morning to YOU (pointer finger zooms to touch nose), good morning to YOU (pointer finger touches nose again)!

We're all in our places with sun-shining faces. Good morning to YOU (nose)! Good morning to YOU (nose)!

repeat.

My kids always hide their faces so I couldn't find their noses. Silly kids, Mom will find it!

Fun in the mud

Sam "Can you give me a dream?"

Every night at bedtime Sam asks me for a back-rub and a dream.

Last night

S -Tell me the story of me.

M -  (Sigh)  on May 15th 2008 you were born. Doctors had to be sure you were ready to come out and join the world. After poking a needle in me that was this long (---------) , they decided you were ready, and the time was set for you to be born the next day.

S - A needle THAT BIG!

M - Yes, and that needle made you MAD! You must have thought "FORGET this place, it's no longer safe and fun, I'm outta here!" You wanted out NOW! I have never felt so much pain. Christian, and Maddy when they decided to come out didn't hurt mommy so bad.

S - Heheheh, I was strong!

M - Yes you were, and I knew that you wouldn't wait very long! So grandma drove me to the hospital VERY fast. We were just at the doctor's office, but the hospital you were to be born at was 20 minutes away. I did not like grandmas driving, she hit every bump and took every turn very fast. OUCH!
Meanwhile everyone got the call that you were coming fast. Daddy was at work dressed fancy, Christian was having at play date with aunt K and the cousins, and Maddy was with GaGa at the zoo.
Maddy had just gotten a snow cone that she had begged GaGa to buy, but had to throw it away.

S - Is that why Maddy hates me so much? We should buy her a snow cone for her birthday!

M - That's a great idea, she would love that!

S - I don't know what her favorite color is, so we'll just get rainbow. Then she'll like me.

M - Maddy loves you, she was so happy to hold you for the first time. I'll show you pictures tomorrow that show happy she was!

S - Did daddy hold me too?

M - Yes daddy was the first one to hold you. Back to my story.... Daddy got there in the nick of time! And grandma went to go buy a camera, but the doctor told her there was no time. Off I whet to go have little Samuel.

S - I thought I was a big baby.

M - Nope, although you were very strong you were born tiny. But everyday you grow bigger and stronger.

S - Will I be Superman someday?

M - I'm sure you will!

Make a wish

 Take a penny and turn around, close your eyes then make your wish. Throw that penny over your shoulder, and look for the day your wish comes true. - Brandalyn

No he would not tell me his wish - "It won't come true!"

Teaching little Emma how to make her wishes. 

 "I hope it comes true, I hope it comes true!"

I think Emma wanted to go swimming with the fishies :) We had to keep an eye on her!

I too wanted to make a wish. So I asked Sam what he thought I should ask for. "Wish to be Wonder Woman!" 

Nap Time Solution.. ABCmouse.com

Time and time again I have to come up with new solutions for getting Emmalyn down for a nap every day. Sam no longer naps, so I'm always trying to figure out ways to get Emmalyn down (which takes anywhere from 5 min to an hour) while keeping Sam occupied. Once again I needed a new plan. Hoping this one sticks!

Sam loves ABCmouse! In the past, he's always played in the mornings. But often we would need to remember, as mornings can easily go south. Hopefully, this new time will work out better!

Mornings with Emmalyn

My day starts with this little one twirling my hair around her tiny fingers. I open my eyes to darkness once again! Why does this child have to wake before the chickens? I wish I could say I welcome this and love waking up to my sweet Emma. But regret sets in that I stayed up late to savior some adult time! The hair twirling does not feel blissful. No, it hurts! 

I know from experience that there is no way I can get her back to sleep. Staying in bed will only result in more hair knots. With my other kids at this age, I felt more accomplished! I had taught them to appreciate the moment, fall back asleep, and keep their dreams alive! It's not working with this kid! So I take a deep breath because I've resigned...I HAVE TO GET UP!

Keep in mind the little one to my right is still fast asleep! Therefore, I "ninja" out of bed. I can only imagine how funny this must look. But trust me, he needs to stay asleep! Sam always needs more sleep...his mood depends on it.

Coffee is now my new best friend. I recently discovered how much impact it has on the start of my day. It gives me something to look forward to and makes that trip downstairs seem tolerable. "COFFEE MUST HAVE COFFEE!" I'm sure I must look like a zombie. Picture it...hair all knotted, no makeup, and I walk funny (my body contorted all night because I've been "sandwiched" between two growing kids).

So, coffee in hand and juice in Emma's, we head to the couch for snuggles and "Sponge-Bob." I love my alone time with my last little one! And with the hustle and bustle of busy life, it's nice to be still and enjoy her littleness. 

Yes, waking up sucks big time! But once the snuggles begin, I'm glad we're up. Later, Sam will venture downstairs and join us on the couch. I'll then have snuggles and hair twirling from both of my littles!

Now, if I could get them interested in Grey's Anatomy!

Grocery shopping w/ the littles

I never know who is going to accompany me to the store!

Bam Bam!

What a cheesy grin! Her costume is ready for the big night.

Exhausted Mama of 4 kids, and several pets

Wake up. "Get up! You can do this!!"  

Christian's ready. 

Get Sam ready.

Drive Sam to school... "Tuck and roll!"

"Coffee! STONG Coffee!!!"

Drop Christian... "Make good choices!"

Tug of war w/ M*... Negotiations, some classes ensure.

Make dinner if not in the crockpot.

Soccer!!!

Then, "Hi hon... let me update you." 

Nope, we've been interrupted.

Dinner, "hurry, eat, or you're going to bed!"

Bed for Emma. 

"Hello, love, let me update you." 

Nope, we've been interrupted, again. 

Bed for Sam.

Ahh, alone time... "let me update you!" 

Crap, now the big kids want to... 

Vent/talk/ laugh. "Hey, dad wanna play video games with me, after I've helped them with the homework I couldn't do earlier because Sam and Emma were bugging me?"

Cat and Maddy's bedtime... " I can't find the cat.. will you help me look for it?" 

Later I will need to open my bedroom door at ?? 4 am because the cat's finished lightly clawing at my daughter's face for attention MEOOOW... MEOW! "I will wake everyone else up if you don't let me OOOUT" I now hate this cat. 

Thank God Christian is independently on his own and takes off for school. 

9th Grade is a B*!! Good luck child of mine! 

4 am...Emma's rolling around knotting up my hair. "Binky, Binky!" 

Crap! I can't find the her frigin pacifier!!

I kick Sam in the face while trying to ninja out of bed, who's lying horizontally as he's sleep battling lego ninjas. I try to comfort him, telling him it's just a dream, and I'm here. An appreciative response, "I HATE YOU!"

https://trishtaylorcalligraphy.blogspot.com/#

FREE DOUGHNUTS!!!

Free doughnuts for everyone who dresses up like a pirate at Krispy Kreme's today!  Arrrg, we're gonna make out with a bountiful booty! 

Emmalyn 5 months old!

Loves to grab faces, which is very sweet unless she hasn't had her nails clipped.

Finally touches the ground on her walker (we got the shortest walker on the market)!

Even though we have a few gadgets... a swing, bouncy seat, walker, entertainer saucer, and bumbo chair, she would still rather be held in one of my many baby carriers.

Emma's started solids. So far, she's had sweet potatoes, pears, and peas. She wasn't very impressed with the peas but still ate the whole jar. She gets very excited and shakes when she sees the spoon come out.

Sold my nb dipes (which lasted till she was about 4 months)! It was a very sad day for me to pass along those cute tiny diapers! However, I love my new small-sized baby stash. Fuzzibunz smalls, and we're using our BG's one-size we had left over from Samuel. This week I'm trying my hand at night cloth diapering. I've purchased a Sustaniblebabish OS, the holy grail of night dipes. She's in it now.. we'll see if she can go all night!

Emmalyn has perfected the "pick me up I'm bored" cough. "Cough, cough," if no response, "cough, cough," if still no response, "WAAHH!"

We got our first laughs out of her that were not tickle-induced. Sam is the one who got her giggling. He's just so goofy it really cracks her up!

Still not rolling... but we haven't been exactly encouraging it either. We rarely put her down to practice. A) because her on the ground is a magnet for Sam to come hover. And B) I guess I'm just not ready for her to be mobile!!!

,

Emmalyn is growing up way too fast! I wish there was some way to slow her down!! 

Emmalyn Crawling

My cowboy