Little Buddies

I just started watching our neighbor's little girl, Annalie, on Tuesday mornings. It really just covers her brothers' school day, from 8:30 am - 3:00 pm, when their afternoon babysitter picks her up.

This is a GREAT thing for both of them. Annalie (Annie), is about 9-10 months older than Piper. It's fabulous for Piper to have this regular one-on-one time with a slightly older child who is developing typically. She actually extremely verbal, so this is a great example for Piper too. This is also great for Annie as she'll get good playing time with another girl as well as a child younger than her. 

The first day Annie was just excited to play with all of our "things," the little kitchen, play-doh and the outside sandbox and swings. She went from one the other so quickly it made my head spin. Piper also tried to play with her as she does with Morgan. Annie did not like how Piper wanted to tickle her and wrestle with her. That's what Piper does with Morgan since their interaction is more physical than verbal at this point.

The second Tuesday we got into a better "groove" and I was able to keep them focused longer on tasks and they really played better together. It was so nice to see them both in the play kitchen with the dolls, food, shopping carts...nice pretend play!! These are things Morgan does not do a lot of and Piper doesn't always like to do it alone. Thus she ends up playing Morgan's "way" more than hers. Not to be so negative about Morgan, they have a nice connection of their own, but seeing an neuro-typical (NT) child play is very different. Piper was very sad when she woke up from her nap that afternoon and Annie had gone home. She woke up and pointed to Morgan's room (where Annie napped), saying "An, An!" When I told her Annie wasn't there, she plopped back down in her crib and cried a little. I was sad for her...but secretly thrilled that she felt emotionally connected to Annie. It was so sweet.

Overall I think we're going to have a lot of fun with this arrangement! It's good for all of us!

The loved sitting in this little car together. The door doesn't quite close. Can you see that they're almost the same size. Piper is not big for her age, Annie is just little, but it makes Piper look enormous!

Piper's goofy "smile"

Annie had their car's cup holders all loaded up!



Morgan is THREE!

Morgan turned THREE on Sunday! She woke up to see streamers and balloons. We told her it was her birthday and she said "Birthday time for Morgan!" She always gets a huge smile on her face when we sing happy birthday to her. She started opening a few presents in the morning. She really like to play with each gift after opening it, so the presents lasted her most of the day.

We had a nice, casual gathering of friends and neighbors in the afternoon. It was the perfect size for Morgan to handle, a few kids she knows as well as Gramma and Grampa A who arrived on Saturday. We had such a good time! Here are a few pictures of the kids at cake time.

Such a pretty Birthday Girl

Blowing out the candles (with a little help from Mama)

Mmmm, the frosting on this candle tastes good, but where's the cake?

Believe me, she enjoyed it. She savored it so much she was the last kid at the table and she devoured every bit of it and the ice cream. Her friend Taylor (and her Mom and Dad Trevor and Amy) stayed for dinner. As usual, Taylor didn't want to leave that night and Morgan didn't want her to leave either. All in all she had a great birthday! We can't believe she's three. We are blessed that we have such a wonderful little girl!

Portland - Part Three

We had been telling Morgan all week that we were going to the Zoo that weekend. We went to the Woodland Park Zoo in Seattle a year ago and she wasn't all that interested. We were curious to see how she would do this time. The Oregon Zoo in Portland was beautiful! The kids had a great time and Morgan did seem to enjoy seeing the animals this time.

The eagle's nest

Checking out some fish with Daddy

In the farm exhibit

As tall as a polar bear?

Three girls and a hippo

After the Zoo fun and a nice nap (whew, they were exhausted!) we headed down to West Linn to see our friends Bob and Danielle. We knew Bob and Dani from our Golden Gate Community Church days in San Francisco. Dani had grown up in West Linn and they moved there about the same time David and I moved to Spokane. We had a wonderful time catching up and spending time with their two boys Nate and Cody. We wish we could have had more time with them.

Who are you? Says Nate.

Of course Morgan has to check out all the new toys

Nate flirting with Piper

This was a crack up! Morgan and Cody playing with their Mama's phones...techno kids

Bob, Cody and Danielle...Nate-Nate had gone Night-Night

What a great trip! I think we will be making it an annual jaunt. Now we are preparing for a trip to California in less than a week. Yikes! This trip was good prep for the next one...and this one will include flying with two kiddos. Wish us luck!

Spirit Lake

Our area has a ton of beautiful lakes. That's something I did not appreciate so much growing up, since I was so used to the bay and ocean being the closest bodies of water. Many people here have second homes on lakes and rivers and spend much of the summer there. It is great fun for the kids.

Our spontaneous friends Amy and Trevor asked us Saturday morning if we wanted to head up to Spirit Lake, about 40 minutes Northeast of us in Idaho. After a bit of contemplation we decided to ditch our regimented selves (the ones who adhere to toddlers and baby's nap times) and go for it!

We found a small strip of sand next to a "resort" (in quotes because this resort was neither large, nor luxurious), slathered the girls with sunscreen and waded in.

Morgan and Taylor getting their sunscreen on

The resort manager gave Morgan a "Dum Dum" lollipop...it was coconut flavored

Piper patiently waiting her turn

Spirit Lake

Amy and Piper

Morgan, David and Taylor in her tube

Morgan LOVED the water! She had to be held back to get her sunscreen on. She waded right in, not bothered by the cold at all. Long after the rest of us were done, she would keep going back in saying "Mama water too!" over and over until I went in with her. Piper cried for a while when her chubby toes hit the cold water, but with some gradual dipping and swishing she adjusted and did a little kicking and splashing.

Trevor wading in (it was cold at first dip, but warmed up)

Morgan and me

Piper sitting pretty

Our Dear Friends

As mentioned in the previous post, we had some dear friends, the Chen's, come for a visit this last weekend. They were in town for a wedding and we jumped at the chance to have them stay with us for the weekend. Their 18 month-old little girl, Leilani, is so precious and sweet. We loved seeing her interact with our girls.

I have known Kathy since Jr. High School. Can you believe we were cheerleaders together in the 8th grade? She is such a wonderful friend and I have loved keeping in touch with her over the years. It hasn't been easy, but we've managed somehow. Kathy and I also went to church together in San Francisco in our twenties and early thirties. David and I were introduced by mutual friends who were involved with Golden Gate Community Church and Kathy and Pete met while attending there too. Great memories.

We had a lovely time catching up and were even able to visit with the Tait's, another old "Golden Gate" family who now live in Spokane too. Here's a few pictures from our wonderful brunch at the Tait home.

Loving catching up, Danell, David, Pete and Time (Piper too, of course)

Leilani and Morgan hanging out

The Tait Family
Danell, Jeremy, Colin, Clive and Tim

The Chen Family
Pete, Leilani and Kathy

The Allendorf Family
Piper, Meg, David and Morgan

Catch up

Aack! It's been over a week since I blogged. Sometimes the days just get away from me. Here's a list of some things that have been going on since I last checked in:

- Piper started crawling on her hands and knees! "Real" crawling I call it. It's still about 25% of the time, but good progress! She even likes to pull up to her knees on the fireplace hearth and bathtub... thus we are making some adjustments to counteract little miss "grabby hands." She's pulled over the diaper basket on her head a few too many times.

- Aunt Ali came for a visit over Memorial Day. Morgan was much more interactive with her this time. She let Ali read her LOTS of books and made visits to the guest room to try on her Aunt's pretty jewelry.

- We had our dear friends Pete and Kathy come to visit Spokane for a wedding this weekend. They stayed with us and we had a great time catching up as well as meeting their 18 month-old precious daughter, Leilani. With baby #2 on the way for them we had LOTS to talk about. I have some pictures I'll post soon.

- We're venturing into more "finger foods" for Piper. She really likes to hold them in her pincer grasp, but not eat them. She has munched on a few peas and carrots...but much of it comes back out as she is still getting the hang of chewing them and swallowing.

- We are still waiting for Piper's upper two front teeth. Two weeks ago at her 9 month appointment the Dr. said they looked like they were coming soon, but they are nowhere in sight. she's even drooling a ton and got a runny nose... but still no teeth.

The milk thief strikes again!

So, the milk thief struck again this morning! For the second time, one of the caregivers from the childcare at the gym came into my yoga class to ask if Morgan had any allergies. She had swiped someone else's sippy cup...again. Apparently she pulled a bunch of things off a shelf as well. This is her thing lately. First thing every morning she pulls every book off her shelves in the bonus room. Then she steps on them and slips all over. What a goof.

Another item from the childcare today...I went to pick her up when my class was over and she was sitting on the floor with some other girls. One of the caregivers said "she's playing with the big girls." Sure enough, There were about six girls who were 3 or 4 years old and Morgan. They were all gathered around a little doll bed playing together. One of the bigger girls stood behind Morgan and was patting her on the head. It was like she was their little mascot. She seemed very pleased with herself to be a part of their group. She was so involved in whatever they were doing, it took me longer than usual to get her attention. Hey, you...Mommy's here. What a difference from a few months ago though. I'm so happy she has a good time there, whoever she spends her time playing with.

Kisses

Morgan's friend Elijah and his Mama, Migdalia came over on Saturday night to watch the Shock game. They were playing in Boise and we planned on watching the game via streaming video on the computer. We had a great time! We barbecued some burgers and Morgan and Elijah played while we gathered around the computer monitor.

Elijah loved the "popping" toy. It is similar to a lawn mover toy he has at home. Morgan is holding her favorite book of the moment, "Moo Moo Brown Cow."

Don't you love Elijah's Shock jersey?! It has his name on the back.

David and Migdalia glued to the monitor. The Shock won!

The highlight of the evening. The kids in their jammies. They were showing each other how they can blow kisses!

It looks like Morgan is kissing Elijah's hand...but most likely she is licking it. Yuck!

Our little "Duh"

We were visiting with the McDevitt's last night and Morgan found the perfect costume...a "duh" (Duck)! She looks pretty cute, don't you think? Kirsten also had to check out Morgan in her costume. As soon as Morgan was done with it Kirsten insisted I help her put it on too. They were too fun!

Tummy Update, Giggles and Games

Morgan is feeling much better today. We didn't have any further "episodes." She had a simple diet of diluted apple juice and saltine crackers all day yesterday and this morning she had some half-strength formula with no problem. This afternoon she had her usual sippy cup of formula for lunch. She's been happy and very cute, so we think it might have just been an isolated episode. I felt some on the back of her gums and they seemed a little 'bumpy." I don't usually feel back there, so I don't know if there are 12-month molars coming or not. Just a guess.

I've noticed the last few days that random things seem to make Morgan giggle. They aren't full-out laughs, but little giggles when she's playing or when she gets your attention. I heard a little giggling from the backseat on some car rides yesterday as well. She had her little toy cell phone along for that ride and that seems to be pretty funny to her lately.

We've got a weekend full of football for Daddy (going to a high school game tonight, watching college games tomorrow and pro games on Sunday). Luckily this involves some of my friends and Morgan's friends so we'll have fun too...not that I don't like football, but it seems to be the theme of the weekend this time around.

Tummy Troubles

Morgan woke up this morning not quite herself. I noticed as I was changing her diaper that she'd "urped" a bit on herself in her crib that morning. Just a little spit up, not too concerning.

Then, I figured something was off when I made her a bottle and she really had little interest. Usually she gets all excited, dumps whatever she is playing with and hurries over to me. She took her own sweet time this morning, and once she finally cruised her way over to me she drank about 4 ounces and wouldn't eat any more. I let her go off and play. About twenty minutes later she was playing in the corner beyond the couch where I can't see her. She seemed content enough, making a little fish toy play music. Then I heard an unmistakable hiccup sound followed by a "splash" of sorts. I peeked over the edge of the couch and sure enough, she was tossing her cookies. Poor baby.

Morgan is napping now, I decided to wait on any further feeding for a bit to let her tummy rest. We are lucky enough to have a neighbor (and friend) who is a pediatric nurse practitioner. I gave her a call and she gave me some great advice.

When she gets up, we're off to the store for a few supplies. Let's hope this is a one-time episode and she'll be on the mend.

Elijah's Birthday

We had the privilege of attending our friend Elijah's First Birthday party on Saturday. We had a great time and Morgan got to play with her buddy too. Here's a few photos of some playtime they had with his new toys.

No, we will not come out from under this table. We are hiding from you.

Now, Morgan, you cannot play with this toy, it is my favorite!

Mom, Morgan's sitting on my new toy!

Oooh! A hippo computer!

Here Morgan, let me show you my Blog. You'll love it!

Happy Birthday Elijah! Thank you for inviting us to your party! You'll have to come to Morgan's in just a few weeks.

Morgan's Dedication

Morgan was dedicated to the Lord on Sunday, October 12. Our church does this as a short, but sweet ceremony after the greeting time in the service. We went up on the "stage" of the church (our church is HUGE, with a big auditorium. Very modern, no stained-glass for us). My sister, Ali was in town. She graciously accepted our invitation to be Morgan's Godmother. We also had some close friends and our life group (small group) come up front with us. Our pastor, Joe, introduced us and had David introduce our family and friends. Then Joe prayed for Morgan and us. Morgan did very well, just checking everything out. She got a little wiggly during the prayer, but I managed not to drop her. Hee hee. She also got and official certificate of her dedication and a sealed letter to open and read on her 12th birthday. I'm totally curious what it says...maybe I should ask instead of trying to steam it open?

After the service we invited our friends back to our house for some hang-out time and food. Here are some scenes from the day. We had several babies there that are close in age to Morgan. I had the pleasure of being pregnant at the same time as their Mommies. It was nice to share that experience with them and have them continue to be great friends as our babies grow up.

Morgan and Elijah

Showing off her pretty dress from Grandma and Grandpa B

Morgan, Taylor and Elijah playing...notice Morgan is moving the other babies' hands AWAY from her toy. She was being very bossy. She does this to me sometimes when I try to play with her activity table too. Somebody needs to learn how to share.

Kirsten, Taylor and Elijah

Our wonderful friends