Say Cheese!

Finger foods are a fav for Andrew. He is very good at picking up cheerios (old hat), pieces of meat, banana, bread, etc. This particular day we were trying shredded cheese. He loved it but what a mess!

(Please disregard the middle finger...I think ~hope~ it was unintentional)

So Big

Two months shy of THREE years old. I can hardly believe it. Katie is growing up before our eyes.

Since early summer, there have been a lot of "Big Girl" Moments.

#1 Big Girl Moment: No Binky effective July 8th

The summer started with Katie's first visit to the pediatric dentist. She got at "A+" on dental care, but she told us that it was time to lose the binky. Hmmm... The pediatrican didn't have a problem with it. Their philosophy was "Three C's" - car, crisis, crib. I was OK with that. To me we were ahead of the game, Katie had only been allowed the binky in her crib for well over a year...Sort of...there were always exceptions. Like, in the car or upstairs only when Katie took it out of her crib I was too lazy to take it away. :) I think I was in denial that she didn't need it any more, that she was still a baby (my baby, to be exact). That, and I feared NEVER sleeping since we now had Andrew who was up 3 times a night at 5 months old. Anyway, like most things it went a lot better than I thought it would. Only a couple hours of tears the first night.


#2 Big Girl Moment: Potty Trained effective September 5th

We started in May. Actually our baby sitter initiated the process. Me, again, didn't think she was ready. Apparently she was. After one week, she was completely #2 trained...sorry for those of you saying TMI but it is a big deal as a parent to not have to change THOSE diapers. It took a few months and some regression after spending a week with Katie's 11 month old cousin Charlie (at the time) but now she's got it. No more accidents. Next step, staying dry at night. Not a huge deal to me. Afterall, she is only 25 pounds so she can probably stay in a diaper until she is seven! (just kidding)


#3 Big Girl Moment: Toddler bed effective September 28th

99% of Katie's friends have been in toddler beds for months. Me again, stalling. I was terrified that I would hear the pitter patter of her feet all night and that she would STOP napping. Andrew as most of you know, does NOT sleep through the night. Not even close. So, I rely on naptime to myself nap from time to time. Especially after one of his "I think I will stay up for hours around 2am nights" -- Argh. Again, Katie was ready and surprised us both. She loves to climb in and out of her bed and cross your fingers and toes, she has not gotten out of bed yet at naptime or nightime.

More Big Girl Moments:
Dressing herself, pedaling her tricyle, starting preschool, singing silly songs that she makes up the lyrics to...And, many more to come!

Love you Katie!

Katie riding her trikeToddler bed

Oh Where, Oh Where, has my Cheerio Gone?

Pretty uncanny....Both of these pictures were taken at eight months old...
Different location (of the cheerio), but same dilemma.

Katie

Andrew

Monkey See, Monkey Do

Andrew finds himself in strange predicaments pretty much every day. He likes to crawl under things like the Exersaucer, Leapfrog Learning Table, chairs, tables, etc. Most of the time he gets stuck. Today, it was the bar stool. He, of course, couldn't get out, but before that, I got a picture. And, as usual, big sister joined in the silliness.

How time flies

The first few weeks of life with baby #2 were exhausting to say the least. Very tired from surgery, very sleep deprived, and very emotional to say the least... But, if memory serves, that wasn't what made it so challenging. It was Katie. She LOVED her new baby brother. Too much some days.... She constantly wanted to hold him, change him, cover him with blanket after blanket. Etc...


The novelty wore off as I expected it would. Now, at just 7 and 33 months, they are friends. They laugh at each other, bug each other, but most of all share a strong mutual love for each other. It is endearing.


But just the other day Katie made me have a flashback. She asked to give Andrew his bottle. She hasn't asked to do this in months. I was a little scared that she might tease him or try to squirt it in his mouth, but I said "yes" like a patient mother would do. She did a great job and they both got a few chuckles out of it.

I got the camera to document just one more moment that made me smile.
.



Andrew at a couple days old



Andrew at a couple weeks old



Andrew 7 1/2 months old, Katie 33 months old

Discovering the Dog Dish!

This speaks for itself. Andrew is into EVERYTHING!

One Two Three UP!

Andrew is upright...And, like his sister, once he got it, he GOT it. He first pulled up mid week last week and now he stands on everything....train table, exersaucer, crib, people, stools, sofa...











Next milestone is cruising. Please god, give me a couple more months until he is completely mobile!

He's got it!

It took just two weeks since he started his floppy crawling and now he is totally coordinated and moving FAST!

Katie's first day of Preschool - August 26th

Katie started "My School" today. She will be going Tuesday and Thursday mornings from 9:00am - noon. Her first day was a success. Minimal tears and she didn't want to leave when it was time to go.

Here are her fellow Appleseeds:
Posing for a picture before we left.
Walking into school.

One for the rehearsal dinner slideshow

I am sure this won't be the only time Andrew is subjected to his big sister's game of dress up!

Got to admit, he does look good in that headband :)

Fun with Pop

Andrew has been waking up at least twice a night for the last week or so, I have lost track. And, some nights is up for at least an hour in the wee hours of the night...it is exhausting. I should mention, too, that most days, Andrew starts his day by 5:30 am (yesterday 4:45am) and Katie is generally up by 7:00am. No rest for the weary.

So, to keep me sane while Ned was in the Netherlands this past week, my Dad came for a visit. Katie loves her "Pop" as she calls him. He wants to be Grandpop, but Pop seems to be sticking. Katie gets to be the trend-setter since she is the first grandchild I suppose.

We had a great visit as always. Here are a few pictures of York Wild Animal Kingdom.

On the Move

At Just six and half months old, Andrew started crawling. We can hardly believe it! I thought I had at least until September until I had to organize all Katie's small toys and baby proof a little more...not the case.

He started crawling the week of August 10th. He learned to go tummy to sitting August 16th. And, just a week later, he has almost mastered both. He can get across the room in seconds especially if he spies Tucker or a toy of interest.

Ocean City, NJ

To celebrate my Mom's birthday (we won't say which one) on August 15th, we headed to Ocean City, NJ for a little R & R. It was a great time. The weather couldn't have been more beautiful. Great beach days every day.

We suspected that Katie would love the beach, she always does. But, it was a toss up for Andrew. Just 4 weeks earlier we were at Newfound Lake and (sorry Andrew), but it was kind of a pain in the rear to have a non-sitting infant on the beach. Someone had to hold him at all times and the water was too cold for his tender little toes. It is amazing how quickly babies change. Now, Andrew is sitting very well on his own and doing a drunken-like crawl. He loves the water, a nice 70ish degrees and loved the sand between his toes. He was much happier on the beach and so were WE!


Like his sister the last two years, Andrew ate sand. Wet sand, dry sand...he ate sand. This is him checking out the waves.















Ocean City has a nice boardwalk with rides. All the kids (even the big ones enjoyed this one). That is Rich and Carolyn in the back with their son, Charlie (almost 1 yr).

Katie rode the fire engines, boats, cars, carousel, teddy tilt a world and (much to Aunt Carolyn and my dismay) a hot air balloon ride that spun just a little too much.



I Hope the volume is loud enough for you to get the gist...

Katie is Andrew's biggest and best source of amusement! Anything she does and says makes him CRACK UP. Katie was jumping and splashing in this little pool so much that Andrew's face was soaked. You think he would cry from the salt water....Nope, he thought Katie was hysterical.

Good friends, Good times

Somewhat last minute, the kids and I decided to join Ned on his business trip to the DC area. It was great to see our friends Tom and Karen Sroka and their kids .Lucy is the exact same age as Katie and Dean is 5 months older than Andrew. Here are a few pics of the kids.



We also had a quick visit (too quick, as always) with my friend Courtney and had a chance to meet the newest member of her family, Anna and play for a brief time with Lily. Here is a picture of Andrew and Anna. Katie would not pose for the picture. (Check out http://www.foxisraelfamily.blogspot.com to see a picture Katie and Lily too)

What Would Simon Cowell Say?

Hopefully the PJ's and the bedhead won't affect Katie's chances of getting past the judges on American Idol!

I vote "YES" on Katie. She is a star in my book!

Andrew's Half Birthday

Today, July 24th, marks Andrew's half birthday. Just six months ago he was born at 8:39am and became part of our family. It is hard for me to believe life without him. There are so many things I love about him it is hard for me to begin. But, since it is his half birthday, I feel like it is appropriate to reflect on life with Andrew so far...

Well, how to say this...the first few months were difficult. To be exact four. Andrew literally cried for 2-4 hours straight every evening. If he happened to miss even 1 evening, he would make up for it by crying for hours straight in the wee hours. Not sobbing...I mean inconsolable heart-wrenching crying. Many of you witnessed this scenario and it was u-g-l-y. No bouncing, bobbing, white noise, singing, dancing or any routine could or would quiet him down. I am proud to say, we got through that. Whew...

Now, Andrew is fun, funny and such a charmer. Here are a few snipits into his demeanor...

1) I love when he is looking at me from across the room smiling and I don't realize it for a few minutes. When I turn to look at him, he has this huge grin on his face as if he is trying to say, "about time you looked my way." I love it.

2) I also love that he LOVES his sister. She makes him grin and laugh the most. She rolls with him on the floor, tells him silly things and he EATS it up. He does big belly laughs at her that just make my heart melt. I am hoping this mutual love continues well into their adulthood.

3) I love it when I nurse Andrew and he pops off and gives me this look as if he is thinking "OK, good, you're still there" and then gives me a little smile. To me, it is him saying "Love ya, mom."

4) I love it (and know that Ned hates it) that I can settle Andrew down when no one else can.

5) I love his coos, whimpers and even the poutey cries. I love the "conversations" we have when no one else is listening.

6) I love how ticklish he is. Head to toe...anywhere and everywhere I can get him to giggle. His giggle is contagious.

7) I love his thighs so big and so meaty. They are like big turkey drumsticks. You are my little turkey.

8) And, those big blue eyes couldn't be prettier.

I love my boy.

Happy Half Birthday Bubski (a nickname Dad gave him) and it fits.

Green Goatee

Andrew had his first taste of "real" food. I say "real" because have you ever seen jarred peas??? He seemed to like it despite the green goo sliding down his chin.

Another milestone for Andrew. His first veggie!

Just for fun...

Check out the side by side comparison of Andrew and Katie. Both are 6 months old trying their first food. (Katie had sweet potatoes).
































We see some similarities in their feature... Both have a round face, same nose and their smiles are similar. Hair is completely different. Andrew is blond or strawberry blond (the jury is still out) and he has an occasional curl right on top. And, he has blue blue eyes. Katie's coloring is darker...hazel or brown eyes depending on what she is wearing and light brown hair that curls only in humidity.

Newfound Lake Vacation

As the Go-Gos song says..."Vacation, all I ever wanted, Vacation had to get away...." Boy, was it. Newfound Lake was such a getaway for all of us.

We swam in the lake every day. The temperature was probably about 70 degrees. It was clear and calm with a sandy private beach. And, as most of you know, Katie is a fish. She has absolutely no fear of the water. The first day, no the first hour, she told me she wanted to jump off "that." "That" was the floating dock. Can you believe that at 2 1/2 she wants to swim out to the dock (at least 30 ft from shore) and jump off of a floating dock! And, that she did! Several times. Andrew too loved the water. This was his second water experience (The first being a heated pool over the 4th of July) and he loved it. He rode on the raft with mom and splashed in the sand.

Mid week we went out on a motor boat, all of us... Tucker too. We had a beautiful tour of Newfound Lake. Katie even drove the boat.












Lastly, and probably most exciting to Katie was the Scenic Winnipesaukee Train. For about the last 8 months or so Katie has been into trains. She loves to "chase" trains...aka find train tracks and watch trains go by. For the last 6 months, we tried to catch the 8:57am train on her way to school on Wednesdays. Most of the time we were successful, but every now and then we were running late. Those were sad days in Katie's world.

So, imagine how excited Katie was to ride a train. We chose the one hour ride (rather than the 2 hr) from Meredith to Weirs Beach (and back). I thought she might hyperventilate when we boarded the train. She was so excited. Every time the whistle blew, Katie said "do you hear that, that's us" It was adorable. I tried desparately to capture her saying that on video, but for those of you have/had toddlers know that cooperation is not their middle name.

Happy Birthday America

This weekend was the Fontecchio (Ned's Italian roots) family reunion in Saratoga Springs, NY. BBQ, brunch, dinner and a trip to Lake George! We really packed it in and a good time was had by all.

Even Steven...

As Andrew starts to move and get more animated with his personality, he seems to be soaking up the camera and video camera more and more. And, Katie is noticing. The other day, she was swinging while Andrew was taking his afternoon nap and she said "mommy, get the camera. I want to see myself singing." (We always look at the pictures and video after shooting them) With that, she busted out her ABC's, a rendition of "what's the weather?", and "itsy bitsy spider."

She is pretty good at her ABC's for 2 1/2, but always seems to get "s" and "x" confused. Give her a break, though, they do sound a lot alike.

Check it out...