The Bible and The Bottle

These pictures warm my heart. All on her own, Sylvia sat down with her Bible and started "reading" to Drake. This Bible has been one of Sylvia's favorites since she was very young. The pages are crinkled and torn and taped back together which used to bother me. Now I look at it and it reminds me that my little girl wants to dig into God's Word all on her own...sticky fingers and all.
Sylvia has been asking to give Drake a bottle. However, it's not very convenient since I'm nursing and Drake usually only eats once between Dan getting home and Eric and Sylvia going to bed. I knew I couldn't keep putting it off because she was asking more and it had been quite some time since Drake had taken a bottle. So, we let her try it out one morning. This picture may look cute but shortly after, Drake decided that he was not a fan of the bottle and refused to eat. Dan ended up getting him to take the bottle after 30 or so minutes of crying (from Drake). Luckily, bottles have not been a problem since, and we're remembering to use them more often so he doesn't refuse it again. I do not want to end up with a baby who will not take a bottle.

Spring Swinging

Sylvia and Eric love to swing and, although you can't tell from the look on his face, I think Drake is going to love it too. Here he is trying it out for the first time.
Our neighbors moved our swings from the old house for us in exchange for our shed. The kids have already gotten a lot of use out of them this spring. Eric has started using the big swing although he still enjoys the baby swing. I appreciate the baby swing because it contains him while out in the yard. He got going a little higher here than mommy expected but he seemed to like it..
Eric doesn't let Sylvia do all the helping. He even gave Drake a few underdogs.
I took a few videos this day and this is my favorite. I love that Sylvia is helping the boys swing and Eric's giggles can't be beat. The runner up video includes Eric getting knocked over by Drake's swing after Sylvia gives it a big push. The video ends with Eric on the ground and Sylvia laughing.

Parkview Dance

Sylvia had the opportunity to take a dance class at Parkview this semester with Aubrey Smith. After her previous dance experience, I wasn't sure if I was going to sign her up. I went ahead a did hoping that she would enjoy it more being at church and with girls she knew. She had a wonderful time and is disappointed that dance is done for now. Parents were able to sit in and watch the last class to see what the girls have been working on. It was so fun to see all of the activities Miss Aubrey had planned. She did a wonderful job of keeping this moving with the age group she was working with

Stavia, Karuna, Sylvia, Olivia, Lydia, Elizabeth, Hannah, Bella, Naomi and Samantha were all in the class together.


Stavia, Karuna and Sylvia


Hannah, Elizabeth, Sylvia and Karuna going fishing for a fish or a boot.
Freeze dance



Sylvia and Olivia pairing up during freeze dance.

Sylvia talked a lot about how Miss Aubrey sprinkled water on them and they grew into flowers.
Miss Aubrey ended the class by letting each girl do a free dance across the room. It was very entertaining to see what each girl choose to do.


Our attempt at a group picture.

Finger Painting

Eric had his first finger painting experience last month. I've been hesitant to get the paints out for him because he doesn't stick with one activity for long and I never have any idea when Drake is going to wake up from nap. I decided it was about time this boy did some finger painting and his sister joined us too. These were taken right after nap and he was a little sweaty.
Did I mention that he's always on the move? Eric moved on to playing with buttons and coloring with markers while Sylvia was still finger painting.
Sylvia later cut Easter eggs and crosses out of the finger paint papers they made. We took them to Melrose Meadows on Easter and Sylvia stuffed them in the mailboxes of some of Great Nana's friends.

Not the Baby

Erickson has not really reverted to baby-like behavior since Drake was born although he is interested in all the baby things around the house. I still sometimes can't believe that he's not my baby anymore.

ta-da

Sylvia and Erickson were given a fun collection of St. Patrick's Day activities from our friend Emily. Included was a set of beads to make a friendship bracelet. Eric was so proud of himself as he strung the beads to make his bracelet. Also included were coloring sheets, a Eye Spy sensory box filled with reminders of the meaning of St. Patrick's Day, and leprechaun moustaches for taking funny pictures.

Nap Time?

We moved Eric to his big boy bed in February. Since then, nap has not come as easily as it used to. He occasionally falls asleep in the car or during lunch and I'm able to carry him to his bed for a nice quiet nap. However, if he's not asleep when I put him down it's a different story. Eric was in the habit of emptying out his dresser and all the stuffed animals in the room for a week or so. I'm thankful he didn't add the contents of Sylvia's dresser and the closer to the pile. He recently learned how to climb up on Sylvia's bed via the ladder and the bookshelf. Here's to hoping he gets used to napping in his big boy bed without making a mess first.