A Fun New Discovery

We recently got out the exersaucer for Haley and returned the play mat that we had borrowed from our friends.  I think it’s safe to say…

…she likes it!

Playing Around

Almost as soon as I opened up my camera Christmas present, I charged up the battery so that I could start playing with it.  One of the things I discovered is when the camera is on auto and you go to take a close-up, it automatically switches to macro!  LOVE it!  Most of these were taken at my in-laws’ house on Christmas Day.

Me: (blond moment) “Wow, that fruit looks so good, it looks fake!”

My sister-in-law: “It is fake.”

I got this for Christmas from my Mom.

I LOVE Christmas decorations!

My favorite picture of them all:

Back to Blogging

When I decided to take a break from Facebook, I was undecided about whether or not I would extend that break to blogging, but it turns out that I did.  I haven’t had much time to blog anyway.  There are always other more important things to do.  There’s almost always something to clean, cook, a kid or 3 to spend time with, Jared who I also need to spend time with, etc.  The break was good and needed.

Kiera has progressed when it comes to drawing.  It makes me smile that the arms come out the side of the head because that’s exactly how I used to draw people when I was her age!  I think that was supposed to be Winnie the Pooh and Piglet, can’t you tell? :)  She likes writing names but places the letters wherever she feels like (below is Mom).

The last picture: the circle with the line on the left is an apple, that ovalish thing on the right is a pear and on top is an upside down cake with 3 candles on it.  I love her drawings!

She’s becoming more independent, like wanting to make her own sandwich, pour her own drink, use the remote for the t.v., etc.  Oh, and I have I mentioned that I have to register her for KINDERGARTEN next month?!  Half of me jumps for joy while the other half wants to just sit and cry because my baby will be starting school and out of my care 5 half days/week. 

Blake learned to use a breast pump, ha ha!  He continues to make us laugh a lot.  The other day, I was saying good night to him and I told him that I love him and he said to me, “Love you, dude!”  Hilarious and totally random!  He eats vegetables and likes them, which is miraculous and Kiera is starting to eat veggies, too.  Cue Hallelujah Chorus.  He likes to do things he sees Kiera doing, like drinking from a regular cup, spreading honey on his bread with a butter knife, carrying the milk jug to the counter, except he often makes messes.

Haley Joy is growing and changing all the time!  She is over 5 months now and she is 25.5 inches (75th percentile) and 14 pounds (just under 50th percentile).  She started rolling from her back to her stomach at the beginning of the month, so we can’t leave her on the couch unattended anymore.  She started teething, so she wants to be held more often now, too.  She’s not very fussy, though, and continues to sleep very well, praise God!  Her talking is developing as she now says, “Ma ma ma ma” and “Ba ba ba ba…”  Just for fun, here’s a comparison of Haley, Kiera and Blake at similar ages.

I don’t know if Haley was in a growth spurt, but she wanted to breast feed every 2 hours and I was just exhausted, so I started her on rice cereal last week Saturday.  I mix it with breast milk and she’s not pumped about it, but I’ll keep trying and I’ll probably start baby food next week.  I’m thankful that breast feeding has gone so well, but I’m also thankful that I won’t be her only food source anymore.  I don’t know how much time I’ll have to blog in the next coming weeks, but I do hope to catch up on posting pictures and videos.  Ta ta for now!

New Toys

This Christmas, we were blessed beyond what I could have imagined!  Besides all of the family we got to spend time with, we were lavished with incredible gifts.  The kids opened up one of their gifts and inside was a picture of a full-sized trampoline with a net around it.  They aren’t in season right now, but come spring, they will get a trampoline!  My jaw dropped and I was SO excited!  The kids totally didn’t understand and tossed the picture aside, ha ha!  I had put a top of the line Canon pocket digital camera on my list just for fun and I got it!  I couldn’t believe it!!  CNet rated it one of the top 5 cameras on the market and another website said it’s one of the world’s best pocket digital cameras.  Here is a picture of it:

The photos are night and day compared to my 6-year-old Canon camera that I had before.  I didn’t want a big dSLR, but I still wanted something that takes professional-like photos and this one does!  It has a flash that pops up when needed

and it only uses the amount of flash that it needs, depending on the lighting.  I can take crisp, clear macro shots without any blurring and I don’t have to try to hold the camera as still as I possibly can!  One of the best things: peoples’ faces aren’t white from the flash.  It has an incredible low light setting, too, that sets it apart from other cameras.  When I opened up the gift, I thought, “This isn’t what could possibly be in the box,” and it was!  Again, I almost had to pick up my jaw from the floor.  We were going to save up some money so that I could buy this camera sometime this year, but now I don’t have to!  God continues to bless us in so many different ways! :)