Just For Laughs

I don't know how, but Ethan figured out that "the music truck" that comes by our house all the time is actually an "ice cream truck."

Discovery of the Week

Gavin has outgrown his bassinet so we moved him to the crib.  We found him all wedged up at the very top width-wise all red faced with crazy hair.  Now he looked so tiny sleeping in the big crib.  Anyway, I went in to get him this morning only to find him grunting because he had rolled himself over (back to tummy just like Ethan).  Then he got stuck and continued to do so after every nap.  Finally.  This has been in the works for quite some time now.

Family Fun

What's Memorial Day without doing some family fun stuff.  This weekend we kept busy and went exploring new places.

Saturday morning: Fairfax farmer's market
Saturday evening: Georgetown with lots of restaurants & shopping area and of course...

this water splay ground right by the Potomac River

Sunday afternoon: free day at the Fairfax Pool (near our house)

Gavin's first dip in the pool 

Ethan has been waiting for this day for a very long, long time

Monday morning: walking on a new trail by Eakin Community Park

Monday afternoon: went back with a bucket and shovels in hand to play in the bed creek behind the trail

Baby Boy VS Baby Girl

We volunteered to watch our friend's daughter, Adeline tonight so they could go on a date and can I just say what a whole new world it is having a girl!  Honestly, she didn't really do much or say much.  I held her.  I put her down.  She sat there and just stared at me like the.whole.time.  I just couldn't get over it.  What do moms with little girls do all day?!  It's no wonder they don't EVER need to get out of the house like we do on a daily basis.  And even though I've said that Gavin is an easy baby, she's like 10 times easier.  I have to say though that Adeline and her mom did look super startled (followed by an "Oh my!") upon seeing Ethan's crazy energy as he ran back and forth.  We didn't get out today.  Oh well, I didn't bother explaining...there's no point really.  Adeline also started crying when Gavin cried.  What a sweetheart!  This little girl got a taste of what life is like with siblings all in one night.  Haha.  So all this to say, yes we're done with kids...REALLY DONE!  And even though I woke up one random night to tell Brian about my idea of possibly adopting a 6 year old little girl.  Not kidding.  I kinda do want a girl and for Ethan's sake.  But yeah we're done.  Final answer.

New Things

Took Ethan in to the new ped today and half way there, I realized I forgot his IA immunization record back at home. Thankfully, the doctor took my word for it and gave me what I needed. He got Hep A & B and wailed during and some time after. Luckily, two Dum-Dums, a bag of M & M's and some Starbursts later he was good to go.

Then I came home and saw a letter in the mail saying that Ethan got in a preschool. Yay!  He will be attending Lord of Life Lutheran Preschool in the Fall on Tuesday/Thursday from 9-12 pm. So thankful for that because I know he needs it and so do I!

Discovery of the Week

It's Day 5 and Ethan has been waking up dry without his night time diaper. I'm impressed! We weren't sure how it was gonna go so we armed his bed with a zipped waterproof plastic sheet, followed by a regular sheet, then another waterproof fitted sheet and finally a another regular sheet. A friend of ours had shared this trick with us so we don't have to make the bed in the middle of the night. Just pull the first two layers off. Genious! So far, so good.

LOL

Brian's parents came out to visit for a week and that came with a perk.  They watched the kids on Friday night, so we could have 9 glorious hours to ourselves.  We caught the metro to downtown DC and I made the rookie mistake of wearing heels.  Apparently, that's what NOT to do because you have to walk everywhere.  As I looked around I realized, you either go for the comfort even if it doesn't match...nobody cares or wear flip flops and bring heals in your purse.  Luckily, I was able to find some cheap flip flops that saved my blistery feet the rest of the evening.  We walked to Chinatown and enjoyed a yummy dinner at Pho DC.  (The last time I had Vietnamese food was during high school back in Hawaii. It has been that long!)  Then onto Warner Theatre with 2 free tickets to watch Brian Reagan, a stand up comedian.  Not exactly my type of comedy, but he was still pretty funny and I caught myself laughing out loud until my cheeks hurt along with everyone else.  It was fun! Afterwards, we ended up a Puerto Rican restaurant called Rio for some drinks and dessert.  And then it was time to catch the metro home.  8 years and 2 kids later.  Happy Anniversary!

p.s. How come when you get a chance to stay out late (which is not very often), your kids decide to get up at the crack of dawn?

Growing Boy

Gavin turned 3 months

Kaika the Big Brown Dog

Our pooch turns 6 today (that's 45 human years).  I think he's just happy he didn't get left behind.  Notice the leaner physique?  He definitely has gotten more walks out here than he did back home.  Happy Birthday, Kaika!

Mamma Wisdom of the Week

So what do you do with a child who doesn't sit still let alone SIT at the dinner table? Well, we came up with some guidelines that attempt to balance discipline and making meal time "fun" without force feeding.

1) We start out eating together.
2) Must remain seated the whole time he's eating. None of this take one bite and get down.
3) If he doesn't want to eat, then he can either go to his room or play downstairs quietly until we're done.
4) No snacks until dinner is finished.

Sounds pretty reasonable?  We think so.

Just for Laughs

Chip clips + lil' bro = this

"Continue On"

This is for all you Mammas out there! Happy Mother's Day!

A woman once fretted over the usefulness of her life.  She feared she was wasting her potential being a devoted wife and mother.  She wondered if the time and energy she invested in her husband and children would make a difference.

At times she got discouraged because so much of what she did seemed to go unnoticed and unappreciated.  "Is it worth it?" she often wondered.  "Is there something better that I could be doing with my time?"

It was during one of these moments of questioning that she heard the still small voice of her heavenly Father speak to her heart.  "You are a wife and mother because that is what I have called you to be.  Much of what you do is hidden from the public eye.  But I notice.  Most of what you give is done without remuneration.  But I am your reward.

Your husband cannot be the man I have called him to be without your support.  Your influence upon him is greater than you think and more powerful than you will ever know.  I bless him through your service and honor him through your love.  Your children are precious to Me.  Even more precious than they are to you.  I have entrusted them to your care to raise for Me.  What your invest in them is an offering to Me.  You may never be in the public spotlight.  But your obedience shines as a bright light before Me.  Continue on.  Remember you are my servant.  Do all to please Me.

-Roy Lessin (taken from A Wife of Noble Character)

Brian got me this for Mother's Day and two thoughts went through my head: "Aww, they're beautiful!" and "I hope I don't kill it."

Growing Boy

Finally made to the pediatrician today for Gavin's 2 month check up.
Height: 25 1/2 in (96th percentile)
Weight: 13 lb 10 oz (68th percentile)
While there he also got the DTaP vaccine and didn't even know what hit him.  Ethan also did super well the whole time and was an awesome big brother.  However, we will need to look for a different office because the receptionist there was really rude & cranky and the doctor wouldn't allow us to do our own vaccination schedule.  I miss Dr. Omar our old ped from back home!

Day to Day

Here's a typical day for me with the two boys compared to what I used to do with just Ethan here. Lots more free time then that's for sure.

7:00 am: Ethan wakes up, I go in and hang out with him on his bed then play together for an hour
8:00 am: wake Gavin up, feed him, change his diaper, sit on the bouncer while Ethan and I eat our breakfast
9:00 am: Gavin goes down for a nap while Ethan watches video and I do my quiet time
10:00 am: stay home and clean or get out of the house (for a play date, the park or the library)

11:00 am: feed Gavin, change his diaper
12:00 pm: Gavin goes down for a nap while Ethan eats his lunch
12:30 pm: Ethan goes down for a nap while I eat my lunch and get on the computer to catch up on emails, etc
1:00 pm: nap for me (if I'm lucky)

2:00 pm: wake everyone up, feed Gavin, change his diaper, hang out on the activity mat
3:00 pm: Gavin goes down for a nap
3:30 pm: Ethan watches video again or play outside with Kaika while I try to get dinner going early

5:00 pm: feed Gavin, change his diaper
5:30-6:00 pm: dinner time while Gavin hangs out in the Moby Wrap
6:00 pm: Gavin goes down for a nap
6:15-6:30 pm: Ethan's quiet time (color, read books or play by himself) while Brian and I catch up
6:30 pm: family walk or run errands

7:00 pm: feed Gavin, change his diaper and clothes
8:00 pm: attempt to put Gavin down for a nap - his fussy time & we usually ended up holding him or putting him on the swing
8:30 pm: put Ethan to bed

9:00 pm: change Gavin's diaper, feed him and put him to bed
9:30-11:00 pm: pay bills, catch up on miscellaneous stuff and maybe some time together (if we're lucky)

Next day: repeat!

Brotherly Love

Just Chillin'

Fairfax Civil War Day

Fairfax held their 12th annual Civil War Day so we thought it'll be a good idea to brush up on our US history.

 Ethan with Gen. George B McClellan & Gen. Ulysses S Grant

 

Learning all about spinning & olden days children's games

 

The best part of the day: the wagon ride! 

Later that night, Brian's cousin and girlfriend came over to watch the boys so we could actually go on a real date.  It is looong overdue since I honestly don't remember the last time we got to do that.  Full of excitement for a night out, we headed to old town Alexandria where shops & restaurant lined the cobblestones streets.  It was really neat!  We had the yummiest seafood at The Fish Market and then later drinks & dessert at The O'Connell's.  We spent the rest of the night strolling along the Potomac River and enjoying the beautiful evening.  Thanks Ryan and Jenny!

"Twittering" on Blog

A girl from my MOPS group last year wrote this and almost made me cry: "I was just thinking earlier today that I really missed our group from last year.  It was really special and a lot of that was because of you."  Totally made my day =0)

Don't Look Back

Every now and then (since our move here), I would go along with my day and then out of the blue it would hit me.  I'm feel homesick.  That happened this morning.  I don't know why, but I gotten to thinking about our old house and how much I miss it.  Like the nice deck that Brian refinished.  The lush, green grass in our backyard.  And definitely our new bathtub.  Now don't get me wrong.  I'm thankful for what God  has provided here: the 5 bedroom house is more space than we ever need and the fenced in yard for Ethan and Kaika.  But it just doesn't feel like home.  I feel like I'm living in someone else's house - so foreign and temporary.  Then I got to thinking about our friends and the weekly social interactions we have with them.  How much I miss that and I know Ethan does, too.  I'm pretty sure he's tired of us.  Haha.  Anyway, the whole thing just brought me to that place of loneliness that I hate.  The same place I felt that first semester at UNC, having moved 3,000 miles away and not knowing a soul.  It's a sucky feeling.  So I cried and then I prayed...and now I feel somewhat better.  I guess it just comes with the territory and the quickest to get over it is to look forward and keep on keeping on.  And focusing on the fact that God brought us here to do the work for His Kingdom.  So with that, any changes just takes time...

"...Forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead" - Philippines 3:13

Discovery of the Week

Looks like we have another thumb sucker =0)
Also, you can't tell from the pic but Gavin's long lashes (courtesy of Brian) are coming in and growing fast!

All In the Same Boat

We went to an in-home play date today and I'm quickly learning that this area is a transient place where there are a modge podge of people from all over the country that come and go all the time.  Part of it is because there are a lot of military or government jobs which changes a lot.  I'm not "new" because everybody is new and nobody knows each other.  So really there's no reason to be shy and that I just need to jump in.  It's such a strange concept but encouraging at the same time. Please pray for that ONE friend I can connect and go deeper with.

On the same note, I'm finding that people here are much friendlier than back home. It's strange to hear (since that's what the Midwest is supposed to be known for), but I've never had so many random people come up and talk to me before. I've gotten a lot of either "Welcome to Fairfax" or "Let me know if you need help finding anything" (and they really mean it)!  Even the DMV people are super helpful & friendly and that to me says a lot.