Callie Beth is 2 and a half

Little Miss Callie Beth is half way to three!  Wow!  It is such a treat watching this little girl grow up.  Boy do we love this (not so little) girl.

• She truly has such a big heart and wants to make everyone happy. 
• She has TONS of energy and loves to be a little dare devil!  She loves to jump on and off couches and beds.  She really has no fear and loves to be a monkey and climb.  She loves to be swung around and upside down.  She plays pretty rough with Daddy.  This little girl definitely has some athletic ability. 
• She is VERY independent
• She loves her baby dolls and plays such a good mother to them.
• She also LOVES her baby brother.  It is so sweet to see her light up around him.  She is affectionate to him and a great helper to Mommy. 
• She honestly rarely throws fits.  Yes, she is a little stubborn but she handles situations pretty well these days. 
• She loves peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, avocados, Mac & cheese, strawberries, granola bars, applesauce, eggs, and sausage.
• She is a little too smart for us sometimes :)
• She LOVES to read and be read to. 
• She has a good mix of girly-girl and tom-boy in her.
• She loves to run and play chase / tag.  She will actually ask for her “running shoes” and then go out and run laps in the drive way.
• Her favorite show is still Dora the Explorer.
• She helps unload the dishwasher, take clothes in and out of the dryer, folds clothes, and puts her own clothes away in her drawers. 
• Lately, she is gathering (or we call hoarding) everything.  And there really is no way to know where things might be.  I have found juice and her phone in the back of the coat closest.  We couldn’t find a pair of her shoes and it turns out they were inside Jake’s shoes.  The list can go on and on.  But when it is bedtime and she asks for something particular to sleep with, it usually means we might be looking awhile. 

She was posing on her own??? Not sure where she learned it!This is her “grumpy face”

Blackberry Pickin’

We have bunches of blackberry bushes on our property.  We went out to pick some and Callie Beth loved it.  She is great at finding the perfect ones!  Funny little girl won’t eat them though…she prefers the strawberries in the back yard (a lot like her Momma).

Jake’s elk 2011

Jake got his elk two weekends ago!  Yay!  That means he won’t be MIA anymore AND we will have a freezer full of meat! 

Ben is 5 months old!

Ben is 5 months old today!  He continues to be such an amazing baby and I truly can’t believe how fast time is flying. 

Here is what is going on with Ben these days!

• He rolls over both ways. 
• He can spin all the way around when on his belly
• We are working on sitting up.  He does great on our laps.  He tries really hard to sit up on his own but either just topples over or tires to eat his toes.
• He is about to cut his two bottom teeth.  It won’t be long!  He constantly has something in his mouth and the drool is like a faucet. 
• He loves baby oatmeal!  Rice cereal was really hard on his belly so we switched.  He has been having it for dinner for a few weeks and we just started giving it for breakfast too.
• He usually goes to bed around 6:30.  He gets up to eat once, usually between 1 and 2 and goes right back to sleep.  I wake him up around 6:30.  He still can’t be up for more than two hours during the days which makes his naps sporadic. 
• His eyes are still blue.
• His hair is almost all out.  He just has that little patch right on top.
• He LOVES toys now and will grab anything near him. He loves his little book that makes crinkle noises and he can suck on the ends.
• He loves the exer-saucer and the jumper-roo.  He also really enjoys his playmat still. 
• He thinks his sister is fascinating!  He loves to watch her and smile and laugh at him.  And Callie Beth can always get Ben to smile.  So sweet to watch.

I have to put this next picture in there….This shows what it is like taking pictures of a 5 month old with a 2 and a half year old around.  If she isn’t distracting Ben, she is trying to get in the picture or mess up the picture :)  Hello Mickey Mouse I am so going to miss that tooth-less smile!!!Wasn’t so sure about opening eyes too wide outside…

Working Mom

I went back to work this past week and today was the first day of school!  This summer and my time with Ben and Callie Beth truly FLEW by!  It is always a super busy week getting ready for a new school year so that helped keep my mind off things. 

When it was time to go back to work after having Callie Beth, I dwelled on it the entire week before.  I cried several times a day and it was all I could think about.  It really ruined the last week I had with her at home.  I swore I wouldn’t do that with Ben…and I didn’t.  I knew I had to go back to work but I refused to let myself think about it.  I was still a mess the night before and his first day at daycare (which is understandable). 

Both kiddos are at the bank daycare full time.  Callie Beth has been going two days a week all summer.  She loves it and she really needed that time away to play and socialize with other kids…but I must say she misses Tia and Grandma!  That gave me time with Ben and to get stuff done around the house.  One thing that really helped ease my mind with Ben’s transition is knowing he has big sister there (who always makes him smile). 

Ben had a great week!  He is teething so he has been a little more needy (I wouldn’t even say fussy) than normal but still an extremely happy and easy baby.  Callie Beth LOVES having him there too.  She is such a good big sister. 

This will be an interesting school year.  Our school district passed a bond back in May.  Part of the money is being used to get rid of all our portables and build a new wing for new classrooms, cafeteria, and office.  They will remodel the old office and turn them into classrooms.  Construction started back in June which means the portables are gone.  So for this year, our school is split between two locations.  We are still one school just operating in two different places.  It will be an adventure but it will all be worth is next year! 

Let’s hope for a great school year! 

Who’s Who again…

And…Up top….the order is Ben then Callie Beth.  Ben must have a bigger head because we could not make enough room in the hood to make it look like Callie Beth’s picture :)

Bottom….CB, Ben, CB, Ben.  Ben has more hair (but will be bald soon….it is falling out by the handful) and Ben is definitely not dainty like Callie Beth was.