Mommy's Little Helper

As a mom I've discovered that boys like to "do" and always need to be busy, so as often as possible I keep Dayton busy "helping" me out. Now I put quotations around helping because more often than not, he is creating more work for me to do but he takes great pride in doing things himself and just loves to help with grown up things. He is always saying "ny do it", "nee do it", "Dee help"...so he helps with laundry and actually knows how to sort lights/darks AND use the proper settings on the washing machine...he loves to make his own meals and can pretty much make mac'n'cheese all by himself with a little help measuring the water...recently he's been helping me make baby food and popsicles...and yes, that is a picture of him doing the dishes. He also helps daddy wash the cars...well, mostly he just plays in the water and causes daddy to say "no" a lot. Now I know, he won't always be this helpful but I am hoping that he learns independence early and will one day thank me for it (or maybe his wife will thank me for it).

A Growing Girl - Snipets From Saige's 9th Month

Saige's 9th month came and went so fast...she's really turning into a ham and loves any attention you have to give her. She is starting to understand language and if you ask her to, she'll clap, wave bye-bye and dance. She is also starting to imitate sounds and I am hearing the beginnings of "uh-oh", "bye-bye", "shh", "doggie" and of course mama & dada. She has a total of 5 teeth now and does not like to get them brushed! Lately she is into pointing and pulling hair - oh and when she is sleepy she likes play with her eyelashes. She is always standing now and attempting to go down the stairs (though usually she somersaults down 2 stairs) and is trying to climb some things. She frequently lets go of things and stands there by herself and then realizes she's doing it and looks freaked out. While she still isn't ready to walk alone, she will walk endlessly if you hold her hands or give her something to push. She's mastered the pincer grasp and is constantly picking up dead bugs to examine. Things she currently loves include: her brother, attention, rice puffs, swimming, bath time with her brother, carrying things in her mouth & being free to roam. Things she hates include: being in the pack & play, her jumperoo or car seat, still most fruits, sitting on grass (you'll see from the picture below that she tries to walk on all fours to avoid the grass), wearing anything that makes crawling difficult (dresses) and the mama being out of view...oh and let's not forget sleeping (she hates to sleep). While that can be more than a little exhausting and aggravating for me, I can't complain too much because no matter how many naps she misses or how much sleep she loses at night, she's still just as happy as can be. We still love her so we're thinking we'll keep her a little longer.

What More Could A Mother Want?

We had a wonderful Mother's Day yesterday. As you can see, we went and spent part of the morning walking and playing on the beach. It was a beautiful day (as always) and Dayton had a blast playing in the surf. He has finally overcome his fear of the waves and loves the water splashing around him. You really have to hold his hand tight though because the big surf easily knocks him off his feet. Saige enjoyed her view and quickly fell asleep for it all. So much for a picture with both of the kids! Maybe next year. The rest of the day was pretty quiet and relaxing. Daddy was on diaper, dinner and dish duty. Saige actually let me get a little bit of sleep Saturday night. Many hugs and kisses to my wonderful, loving husband and kids...