Kids

I just realized how longs it's been since the last time I posted anything on here. The kids are ever changing and grow more excited about Sofia's arrival with each passing week. Here are some updates.

Reagan -
At 4, he is always coming up with interesting and funny things to say especially when they involve Sofia. He is also very curious and wants to know about EVERYTHING - how things work, how they are put together, how to spell words, etc.! It can get a little tiring with all the "why's", "how's", and "what if's".

• (May 26, 35 weeks along) This morning Reagan wanted me to help him with something while I was sitting in the recliner eating my cereal. I set my cereal bowl on top of my belly and Reagan thought it was just the coolest. This is what he said, "Wow mom, you can use Sofia as a table! If I had a belly like that I would use it to set stuff on ALL the time!"
• (May 24, 35 weeks along) Reagan was awake by himself for a bit this morning and he said a couple of funny things that involve Sofia. He was sitting on my lap and was putting his hand on my cheek when he said, "Mom, you feel really warm." Then he put his hand on my forehead and my neck, saying, "Wow, mom, you are really, really warm. Are you feeling ok or are you sick?" I told him that baby Sofia was keeping me really warm, which lead to the next funny thing. Reagan was talking about how much he loves baby Sofia and how he can't wait till she pops out (he asks almost daily when she is going to get here). I talked to him about how babies stay in their mommy's tummies for about 40 week (I talked to him about this earlier the next bullet point) and then told him that Sofia had been in my tummy for 35 weeks. We counted together how many weeks there were left between 35 and 40, he got very excited when he discovered there were only 5 weeks till 40. Then I told him about how he, Evie, and Amelia all stayed in my tummy for 41 weeks so it could be longer than 5 weeks before Sofia came out. I asked him how many weeks he thought Sofia was going to stay in my tummy since everyone else had stayed for 41 weeks, he replied with a silly grin, "45 weeks I think." Then he started laughing.
• (At 28 weeks along) Sofia is borderline hyper today, which the kids LOVE because they like to feel her moving around. Reagan told me, "Maybe she is excited because God is going to let her out of your tummy today." I told him that she needed to stay put for another 11-12 weeks. He told me that was a really LONG time. I told him that babies are supposed to stay in their mommies tummies for 40 weeks or so until they've grown enough to come out. I told him that she'd already been in my tummy for 28 weeks and only had 12 left to go. He put his hand up on his forehead, sighed, and said, "WOW, 40 weeks! That is like more than 100 years!" I think we need to work on his math just a little more. ;o)
• Reagan has started following in Jared's footsteps where impersonations are involve. The other day he was walking around the house talking in a higher pitched and kind of squeaky voice for almost 30 minutes. I couldn't figure out why until he came into the kitchen by me and said, "Mom, listen. I can talk like _______ (a girl in his Sunday school class at church)."
• He can spell and write his name, "mom", "dad", and a couple of other things.
• Last night (May 25), they had the King's Kids awards program at church and I really didn't think much about it because Reagan is only in the Lambs & Flyer's class (3-5 year olds). So when they started giving out certificates I was excited for him (he got one for attendance and another for finishing his Lamb's book). Then they announced the "Flyer of the Year" trophy (the child with the most points) and Reagan had tied for the trophy with 15,400 points, saying 36 goal cards!

  

  Reagan and his Trophy

Evelyn -

We've discovered the Evie is ALL girl and a very girlie-girl at that. She LOVES pretties, frills, and being pampered. She is also very emotional, which can be a struggle to deal with at times because the littlest thing will put her in tears. 

Evie is our "giant" girl as I call her. She was just shy of 40" tall at her 3 year check-up and is only about 1.5"-2" shorter than Reagan (who is just above average for a boy). She's wearing size 5 in most things now and I am constantly having to change out her clothes due to growth spurts.

Evie turned "3"

 A couple of weeks ago, we got to make our very 1st visit to the ER (I know that's pretty amazing considering the fact that we have 3 kids 4 and under). Reagan decided to slam a door not realizing that Evie's finger was there. The door ended up cutting 3/4 of the way through the tip of her finger, chipping the bone, and ripping the nail off. She got a few x-rays and 4 stitches. Thankfully the doctor said the nail should grow back and her finger should get back to almost normal.

Amelia - 

Miss MaeMae (aka Meli, Amelia, etc.) is a very quirky toddler and a girl of few words. She entertains herself very well and LOVES to look at books. She will sit on the floor in front of the kids' bookcase and look at books quietly for 30-45 minutes at a time. She can be very silly or very serious but almost always good natured. She is a food fanatic and enjoys cuddling. She does some really goofy things like what I have pictured here.

Amelia likes to put her thumb in her mouth and a plate, bowl, or cup on her head when she is finished eating or bored.

Sofia Grace -
I've had a very different pregnancy with Sofia than with any of the other kids. First, I started out this pregnancy a full 17lbs less than I was at the beginning of my pregnancy with Reagan. I've only put on about 16 lbs this pregnancy so I'm excited to see what I'll weigh after she's born. I have experienced some interesting things like awful morning sickness, hot flashes, horrid heartburn, etc.
Sofia is very active like both Reagan and Amelia were. I also think that she is going to be another extremely long baby like Evie was (22" at birth) as she is CONSTANTLY stretching and I still have another 5 or so weeks to go. I am really looking forward to meeting her but not ready for the extra tasks that a newborn brings. Reagan and Evie can't wait for Sofia to "pop out" and ask daily if they can feel her move or how much longer she'll stay in my tummy.

Jared and I -
We are doing well and staying busy. Jared got promoted to Office Manager at the end of last year and we got to go for a week long West Caribbean cruise on the largest cruise ship in the world (the Allure) back in February. It was absolutely amazing and I'd recommend it to anyone! We've gotten closer to being debt free and should hopefully reach that point by Christmas of this year. We've already paid off almost $30k in less than 3 years!
We are working at getting in shape physically and being more health conscious in the decisions we make. Jared had lost 90 lbs in 14 months and has been able to keep from gaining any weight during my pregnancy. I am really looking forward to getting back into my workouts once Sofia gets here. :o)

Growing

It never ceases to amaze me watching the kids grow and develop, whether physically or mentally.

 

 At the Farmer with the kiddos.

 

Reagan is so inquisitive about anything and everything. He also remembers things pretty well. He is a logical thinker, which makes life interesting. He wants you to explain everything and sometimes struggles when the answer to his question is "Because...." He is starting to "outgrow" his naps, which means that I have to get more creative with ways to keep him busy so that he doesn't come up with his own ways to be busy. He likes to take charge of things (already quite the little leader) and be the center of attention. He's always telling us that he wants to be up on the platform at church. :o) Reagan fears almost nothing and has injured himself doing daring feat on several occasions. He is also my "big" helper when he chooses to be one.

 Reagan decided that her needed another place to put his hangers, so he used his toy hammer (yes, it was plastic) to pound a small screw driver into his bedroom wall.

Reagan pulling the girls in the wagon on one of our family walks.

Evie is our girlie-girl. She LOVES her pretties, dress-up dresses, and walking around on her tiptoes like a ballerina. She can also be very emotional, which has been interesting for Jared and I. We have to deal with her in a completely different way than we do with Reagan. She is also extremely tall for her age, she is wearing size 4T/5T clothes at 2 1/2! Evie can be very skittish of new people or things. She is also very anxious when in crowds. Evie is also not a fan of heights, etc. and she is also very uncoordinated like her mother.

 

Amelia is such a goofy little girl. She likes pretties but also enjoys wrestling with Reagan. She already likes to "bother" her siblings. If she discovers that something annoys Reagan or Evelyn, she will do it all the more. Remind you of anyone? (Maybe daddy or uncle Jeff...) She can be very cuddly one minutes and very independent the next. Amelia is a bit more on the stubborn side. For example, she had a vocabulary of about 15-20 words a month ago but now refuses to say all but, "go", "num-num", "woof-woof", "Jo-Jo" (Gma & Gpa L.'s dog), and "na-na" (no-no). She started doing this after we tried getting her to say things like "please", "down", and "out". She now chooses to grunt, point at, and whine for things that she wants even when you refuse to let her have her way until she "says" what she wants. If you ask her to say a particular word, she will look at you, smile, and proceed to either shake her head "No" or say, "Na-na" (no-no). She has also started getting taller and thinner, she now comes to Evie's shoulders when just a few weeks ago she was shorter than them.

 

 Amelia being her daring little self. She climbed up there all by herself.

Falling asleep in the highchair at lunch. 

(This is a fairly normal occurrence when she is going through a growth spurt.)

Baby #4 must be continuing to grow. I already feel like I am starting to "show" at only 7 weeks pregnant. Waistbands are starting to feel uncomfortable when I sit and clothes that were big on me a few weeks ago are starting to fit in the waist area again. Reagan likes to touch my tummy and tell me, "Mom, I can feel the baby." This usually makes me laugh and I have to explain over and over again that the baby is still too small for him to feel it. He is also convinced that this one is a boy, as that is what he prayed for.

There are days that I definitely struggle with everything that comes along with the job of being a "Mom", but a majority of the time I am thankful for these little wonders that God has entrusted to my care.

Busy, Busy, Busy

It been pretty busy over the last 6 months. In June, Jared graduated from WBBI with his Associates degree. Then he spent much of the summer working on stuff for his Ordination (I've got some pictures below). In August, he was ordained by Wyldewood Baptist Church. Miss Amelia turned 1 and is walking like crazy now. We've been really busy with church activities and family things this fall.

This week we found out that baby #4 is on the way and should arrive sometime the end of June. Then next week we will celebrate our 6th wedding anniversary. :o)

Pictures from Jared's Ordination

 Jared reading his doctrinal statement to the council.

Members of the Council

Brother Workman giving the charge.

Us after the council's vote.

 Prayer with Brother W. R. Workman

Prayer with Pastor King

 Terry Rushing praying with Jared.

Prayer with Jonathan Shore

Prayer with Ron Davidson

Beka's parents with all the "Sahlstrom" grandkids

Imitation & Learning by Example

Over the last week or two, I've been noticing Miss Amelia doing things that she has seen her brother and sister do. It really makes me laugh sometime. :o)

• Amelia went through a little phase for about a week where she refused to eat her bananas unless she got to hold them with the peel on, just like her brother and sister.
• Bath Time Imitation - I always put a washrag in the tub with the kids because I want them to start learning how to wash themselves. During her bath on Saturday, Amelia took the washrag and was trying to wash her feet.
• Today at breakfast, Amelia picked up her bowl, which didn't have any milk or liquid in it, and started "slurping" her "milk" out of it. After she was done, she kept chuckling to herself in excitement. This all took place right after Reagan and Evie finished off their cereal and drank the milk out of the bowl.

Watching how Amelia picks up on things that Evie and Reagan do reminded me of the importance of being a good example to my children in everything I do because they learn more by what we do than what we say.

Reagan is a good example of this principle. When we go shopping, he will sometimes ask if we have a coupon for a particular item or if he wants you to buy something for him he may tell you, "But it will be free after coupons."

Miss Amelia Ann is 1!

Yesterday, our little Meli-girl turned the big "1". She is learning and growing a little more each day.

She has lots of different "names" - 

o  Evie couldn't say "Amelia"  right away, so she called her "Mae-Mae" and it stuck. She also used to refer to her as "Mia", and now calls her "My Baby".
o  Jared and I generally call her "Amelia" or "Meli".
o  Reagan calls her "Meli", "Amelia", or even "Melia".

Things she can do -
o  She is crawling proficiently now, and on all fours vs. the combo army/caterpillar crawl she used to do.
o  She can pull herself to a standing position.
o  She walks around furniture and when holding someone's hand, and she pushes Reagan and Evie around the house on the walking toys.

o  She says a few words: Daddy, Momma, nanna (banana), na-na (no-no), daw (she says this every time she sees a dog), dat (that), bmpa (Grandpa), du (duck), go-go, baba (bottle), and num-num (she says this almost the entire time she is eating).
o  She claps and waves all the time, and gives kisses. :o)

Her Favorite Things
o  Her thumb (which we are trying to get her not to like)
o  Her favorite game is "peek-a-boo" but she also like playing "hide and seek".
o  Her favorite toys are stuffed animals (her monkey especially) and books.
o  Walking (with help), she loves to walk but can't do it on her own so she will follow us around the house until we stop. Then she will climb up our legs and try to grab our hands so we can walk her around the room.
o  Food - pretty much anything as long as she can do it herself.

Amelia is really starting to exert her independence. She has started wanting to feed herself using utensils and sometimes refuses to eat unless she is allowed to do it herself. She now has 4 teeth and I think she's working on 2 more. Her hair has some definite redish/orangish tints to it and we're looking forward to finding out exactly what color it will end up being. It's hard to tell exactly which side of the family she looks more like as I think she's a good mix of both. She loves to follow Reagan and Evie around the house, and they really do entertain her.

She's a very content little girl and we've really enjoyed having her around this last year. :o)

Differences

Over the last couple of months, I was reminded again at how different the 3 munchkins are in personality (and yes, Amelia has even started developing her own personality at almost 11 months).

Reagan loves to win and gets very upset when he loses ANYTHING (even the race to see who can finish their supper faster, which has become a nightly "game" that we play to get the kids to focus at mealtime). He also wants to be the only "big kid" sometimes and gets upset when he discovers that Evie can now do some of the things that only he was "big enough" to do before. Reagan is sooooo curious about everything and wants to know how everything works, is made, etc. He is also like a sponge with any and all information. For example, on Saturday mornings we let the kids have just a little bit of coffee (it's really more milk than coffee but they don't really care) for breakfast. This past Saturday I happened to have chocolate milk in the fridge, which is a rarity, and so I asked the kids if they would like to have chocolate or regular milk in their coffee. Reagan piped up, "Chocolate, mom. Because that would make it a mocha." Now neither Jared or I can remember explaining to Reagan that when you add chocolate to coffee it makes it a mocha, but somehow he knew. He is also very strong - in opinion, personality, will, etc.. Whenever he chooses to do something it is never half way, which can be difficult at times when he decides to do something that he is not supposed to do. I know that if/when he gets saved this will be a great asset. Reagan is already a leader, and actually has been since about the time he started to walk. Sometimes, when I am trying to let Evie learn how to do something on her own, Reagan will jump in and just tell her how to do. Then I have to remind him that Evie needs to learn things on her own just like he did, which he does not like. He is also almost never shy.

Evie is very tender-hearted and sensitive to how people are feeling. She doesn't like to see other people cry and tries to comfort them as much as she can. She is also very repentant because of this. She can be quick to tears but just as quick to flash a smile. Evelyn will tell us that she loves us, and give hugs and kisses many times throughout the day. She can be very shy around strangers (unless Reagan is with her and then she will talk to anyone that he talks to). She is truly a follower most of the time and Reagan uses that to his advantage on occasion by telling her to do things that he thinks may get him in trouble for doing but wants to see for sure without being the person to get disciplined. She is not as "driven" as Reagan. If she isn't able to do something right away she just tells you that she needs help, i.e. she'd rather have you push her on the tricycle than learn how to pedal it. But in some things, she can be very quick to tell you, "I do it MYSELF!" She already has that strong desire to mother things (I didn't realize how fast little girls develop this). She takes care of her "babies" very well - feeding, changing, hugging, putting to bed, etc. She has a miniature stroller and a baby doll that she always wants to take along when we go for walks.

Amelia is still developing her personality but there are some things that I have noticed. She LOVES attention, but especially from Reagan and Evelyn. She's very content and easy going most of the time, but when she decides to be upset you'd better be ready for a battle if trying to calm her. She laughs and smiles easily and freely. She is already starting to express her independence in little things - she wants to feed herself, stand by herself, etc. I am looking forward to seeing more of her personality as it develops.

Both Reagan and Evelyn have wonderful imaginations already and I really want to continue to encourage this.

I also made an observation about their "security blankets". All three of my munchkins had/have "security blankets" that deal with their mouths. For Reagan, it was his Nuk. For Evelyn, it was a specific bottle. And for Amelia it has been her thumb, which has been by far the hardest to deal with.

Oh, How Fast They Grow

It is hard to believe that it has been over 4 years since we found out that we were expecting Reagan, and now we have 3 little ones! The munchkins are growing up so quickly and time seems to just race by.
Today, little miss Meli is 9 months old and is growing so fast it seems. She got her first tooth on Saturday and I think another will soon follow. She started clapping about a week ago. Amelia has also started growling at people and things, but just in fun. She will usually smile and start laughing right after she growls. Unless, of course, she is growling at me for not getting her food to her fast enough, then she is seriously growling!
Last week, Evelyn turned the big "2" and no, it hasn't been terrible. She is really developing intellectually. Evie recently went from being able to count to 5, to counting all the way 12! When people hear her talking they think that she is older than 2, but I think that is more because of Reagan than Jared or I. She watches and listens to Reagan intently, and tries doing or saying anything and everything that he says or does. Evie is also getting really tall. She is wearing 3T in most things and even a few 4T skirts/dresses. She loves her baby sister and is always giving Amelia hugs and kisses and telling her, "Love you, Mia."
Reagan has started "adding" fingers lately. Every time you tell him a number (i.e. "we will do xyz in 7 minutes"), he will ask you to show him how many fingers that number is. Then he will say something like, "5 fingers and __ fingers is __." He has been trying desperately to get Evie in trouble lately. Reagan will tell Evie to do things that he knows she is not supposed to and then he will smile and laugh when she does them and gets into trouble. Typical older brother, I think. He has also figured out that if he wants Evie to do something that she does not want to do, all he has to say is, "Evie don't...," and she will do it. Like the other day, he wanted Evie to try pulling him in the wagon. After asking her to pull him 3-4 times, he told her, "Evie, you get in the wagon and I will pull you." Evie said, "No, I will pull you." Then he smiled and jumped in the wagon without any hesitation, and she struggled to pull him around in he driveway.
Things have been busy lately. Jared will be done with classes next week and I've picked up a June wedding (altering 8 dresses). We are hoping to put a garden in this year and I'm praying that God keeps the rabbits out of it!

The Kiddos

I know that it has yet again been "FOREVER" since the last post and much has happened.

Reagan is FINALLY daytime potty trained, and we're working on nighttime training. Since being potty-trained, he has developed a bit of an obsession with what makes him a boy, which is a whole new adventure for me having grown up in a family of only girls!


We recently took Reagan along for a college/career activity. We went to a Green Bay Blizzard game (IFL), which they won by 1 point in the last 9 seconds of the game! Jared bought Reagan a "Yeti (the team mascot) Claw"  and he was having a blast with it. He also managed to eat 2/3-3/4 of a tub of popcorn ALL BY HIMSELF! He had a bit of a tummy ache the next day though.

Evie Sue is really developing a large vocabulary (it helps that Reagan's is even bigger and he never stops talking). She is finally getting some hair, but almost never lets me put "pretties" in it. We've started working on potty-training with her but she recently decided that she will only use the potty if she has her seat (the little kid toilet insert). She is quite the little giant for her age, she won't be 2 till next month but is already almost completely in size 3T (and some 4T) clothes. She is also only a couple of inches shorter than Reagan.


A group of moms-with-small-children (from church) went to the N.E.W. Zoo in Green Bay. I took the kids and they had so much fun! They can feed the giraffe, goats, llamas, etc. Here are pictures of Evie and Reagan feeding the giraffe. 

     

Also, the geese and seagulls were horrible when we were eating lunch so this picture is of Evie holding on to and protecting her sandwich. (She loves her food and generally will not give it up for anything.)

Amelia Ann is growing like a weed. She was 29.5" long and weighed 18.5 lbs. at 7 months. Meli is even outgrowing her 12 month clothes. At 8 months old, she has been rolling over for a couple of months now. Recently, she started waving "bye-bye", saying "Dada" (which Jared rubs in when he gets the chance), and just this week, getting up on all fours. No crawling yet, which I am fine with, but she has figured out how to get where she wants to go while in the walker or when she is sitting up on the laminate floor (she just rocks back and forth until it scoots her to what she wants). She LOVES to go for walks in either the wagon or the stroller, and Reagan likes to be the "big boy" holding her in the wagon.

Jared will be done with school at the end of May and graduation is set for June 6th. We are both getting really excited for the school phase of life to be basically over. I was thinking about it and one of us has been in school since we got married five and half years ago.

We have also been in the process of remodeling the living/dining room and it has come along nicely. We still have some finish work to do, but for the most part it is done. Here's a list of the things that we have done:

• Tore out the old greenish, brownish shag carpeting that was in the living, dining, and hall area, and replaced it with honey oak laminate flooring.
• Widened the doorway between the hall and dining room, and trimmed it out to mimic the pattern of the French doors on the opposite wall (between the dining room and entryway by the garage).
• Repainted the living, dining, and hall walls in Sandy Beach Beige (everything was white before), and the trim in Sand Dollar.
• We added 4 can lights in the living room, 3 can lights and a ceiling fan in the kitchen, a new light fixture in the hall, and a new light fixture on the front porch.
• We finally bought drapes for the living room windows and found a decorative curtain rod that was long enough for the big picture window (it is 11' 4" wide and most decorative rods only come in up to 10' lengths).
• We replaced some of the base boards and the heat vents (a big long bulky one for 2 smaller ones).
• We also replaced the trim around the doorway between the dining room and kitchen.
• We bought matching rugs to go under the dining room and coffee tables, as well as one for front door.

Things look sooooooo much better, and as Jared puts it, "Our house is looking more like a normal modern house."