Little Chef

Helen loves to cut things. With knives (here she's using a dull butterknife) or scissors. At school, part of the practical life skills is cutting carrots. She's cut herself a few times but I believe they monitor the kids fairly well.

I've not had the chance to do much cooking with the girls and Helen in particular. They've had a ton of practice setting the table and are great helpers with putting out dinner plates, forks, drinks etc.

I'm looking forward to having more time to find recipes we can all work on. It's best if there are a few jobs for each of the girls and they do not have to do the same thing. They are becoming competative so it's not fun when they argue over jobs. We all did make a brocolli and rice casserole (Helen's favorite) together with no fussing. Everyone was able to do a few jobs and it was very satisfying.

First Day of School

Carys and Helen are at the same school this year in the same classroom. I'm not sure it's been as productive as having them in different classes, but there are other reasons for that as well.

Carys seems protective of her little sister as she is protective of the other little kids. She is definitely the mother hen, sometimes to her detriment. Her challenge is focusing on herself and her work first and helping others when she's completed her tasks. She is a social butterfly.

Helen's challenge is following the montessori rules and picking work that's appropriate for her age. She is very independent spirited and will try to do work she's not ready for. This will serve her later but right now, she has to learn the steps to put things together.

Helen 10 Day Update

The recovery period for Helen's procedure is 10-14 days. I thought we might have a shorter period because she seems to heal so fast. I was wrong. She's had good and bad moments and some really good moments recently but she is still recovering and in pain during certain times of the day. Particularly at night sleeping. I'm thinking maybe because she's not distracted by anything and acutely aware of pain and her need for sleep. She did not get any pain meds last night because we were trying to see if she needed it and we were feeling like we were starting to overmedicate her. Turns out we should have given them. I've spoken with the ENT nurse and have it all straightened out now so she should get a good rest tonight.

The pics are from this summer. We found another great hangout, the Morton Arboretum. It's not as convenient as the zoo but has some great little trails where you can pack a lunch and forget you are part of the big city. In addition, it has the BEST kids playpark. I'm sure we took more pics, I'll dig them up for later posts. It's good to remember how fun summer is as a motivator to get through winter.

Update on Helen's Surgery

She did excellent on Halloween and the next day. So well that we began spacing her meds 6 hours. But there is a relapse period we were aware of but forgot about momentarily and she started to feel the affects of her surgery and the scabbing that occurs at the surgical site. She'd eaten well and did not complain until we put her down for bedtime, she was boohooing a few hours later. We could not be sure she was awake but decided to give her the meds an hour early. She would not have ANY of it. I think she may have been caught halfway asleep and was in pain AND mad that we were trying to wake her up. After much crying, I was able to rock her and calm her down. Once she started snoring, we were able to administer the meds.

Today she's doing well with a little fussiness this morning that she did not sleep well. I tried to have her nap today, she would have none of it. Hopefully tonight will be restful.

She's staying out of school a few more days until she no longer needs meds and can eat regular food.

Halloween 2008

Carys and Helen had a great Halloween (these pics are from their Walkathon parade last week- pre surgery). Helen was a trooper and went trick or treating and did not fuss when I told her she had to wait to eat her candy. I did bring some hershey kisses to ease the candy moratorium.

We had the usual clan there with the little kids getting bigger and ready to trick or treat too, Silas, Kerala and Claire. It was a kids chaotic paradise. Carys totally got away with eating some candy I would not normally allow. I have a feeling once we have three, she'll try to take advantage of the chaos a little more as little kid would. I'll have to work with her on that.

In the end, we went home with a smaller amount of candy than we have had in past years (I was happy about that).

Bribery, Coercion and Fear

Everything we've done this past few days has included a bit of bribery, coercion and today a healthy dose of fear.

One of our main issues is keeping Helen hydrated when she does not want to drink or swallow anything. No matter how sweet or novel the drink or food is. So we had to attach a stipulation to everything she did. Want to watch a movie? Drink this juice first, yes, all of it. Want to play with this toy? Eat this jello first, yes, all of it.

Today she got wise and danced around for quite some time. We had to bring out the big guns and add a bit of truthful fear factor. If you don't drink this, you'll have to go back to the hospital and get another drink for your hand (How the nurses so cleverly refer to an IV). This motivated her but surprisingly slowly too. We had to make a realistic looking phone call to the Dr. at one point. It's a shame that some people are only motivated by fear at times.

I'm hoping tomorrow will not be as much of a struggle. And yes we are managing her pain with meds every 4 hours so it was a bit of pain and her personality.

Breakfast of Champions

Helen had a yummy looking breakfast. She did not manage to eat much but with a bit of prodding she did finish her juice box. Fluids are the most important thing right now and that's what we've been pushing.

Helen had quite a spread at the hospital and luckily we prepared at home to have the same options. I probably overdid it a bit and we will have a LOT of pudding and jello left over. But I did not want to run out of suitable food for her.

I was a bit jealous when I read that twinkies are an acceptable food item for her. For some reason I've been craving twinkies and Poppy has pretty much made it clear he does not want me eating them. If only I had seen that list before her surgery, I would have stocked up for sure:)

Helen Surgery Follow Up

Helen was a trooper the day of her surgery. Actually, I think we all were. In solidarity with her, we abstained from eating until she was prepped to go for surgery. We were delayed and she did not go in until 4:30. Carys and I did not make it until 4:30 but we left to eat about 30 minutes before that because they told us it would be another hour.

Helen was a true champ. I think she was definitely distracted by her hospital gown and the patient advocate who stopped by to show her pictures of the sleeping room and give her bear a bubble gum flavored mask and stint for his arm. The highlight of her visit for both girls was the saline bag connected to IV tubing. They played with that for at least 30 minutes.

Finally, once she was in surgery, I believe it took less than 1 hour from start to finish. Then came the hard part, recovery.

Once she was in the recovery room, she was disoriented and did not want any water or popsicle the nurses were trying to give her. I showed up a little early and they let me in anyway. Helen cried for some time and they did give her a bit of morphine for the pain. Finally once I asked if she could snuggle in my lap, she was calmed and fell asleep. We were there about 45 minutes and when the nurses were assured she was not having any reaction to the anesthesia, she was wheeled to our curtain covered cubicle in the overnight surgical observation section.

We had very spartan accommodations and I know now why Children's is eager to rebuild next to Northwestern. They need some serious updating in their accommodations. But Helen did not care about that. She slept, fussed about the IV and cried about her throat. It was difficult to distract her from the pain but she did seem comforted if I held her. She took her oral meds well and during the night had a few sips of water a bite of yellow jello, a sip of grape juice, and a few licks of a grape popsicle. I think she was a bit disoriented through the night and did not fully understand where she was. Luckily, we packed her nighttime music on my IPOD and brought a travel speaker. It saved us from countless noises and random TV's being on and children crying. Basically we had a little bit of calm behind our little curtain for the night.

Morning was easier AFTER she had her IV taken out. She was highly agitated during that procedure. Vanilla pudding was the first thing that she ate more than a bite of but it was the chocolate pudding that allowed the nurse to release us once she ate the entire cup.

We are home and are settling into watching a few movies. Helen is on strong pain medication so she can eat more during this period of swelling. Once a few days have passed we'll be mixing in some regular tylenol.

We thank God our prayers were answered and Helen seems to have come through this and is on her way to recovering fully. We just have to watch her for any rambunctious play that could dislodge the scabs forming in her throat.

Surgery

Helen has surgery scheduled for tomorrow at 1:30. Please pray that her doctors perform at their best, the surgery goes well and she heals quickly.

Play Doh (or in this case just colored dough)

When Carys was Helen's age, she did not really care about play doh and especially if

I was not intently playing alongside.

I think because Helen can focus on this kind of project and Carys has someone to play with, they are in harmony for about 35-45 minutes before I have to intrude and judge who has too much of one color or instruct them that play doh does not belong on the windows but on the table.

We started to confine the play doh to the porch b/c as everyone knows or finds out, it makes one heck of a mess.

These pics are at the beginning of a session, note the colors have not been "blended" yet.

Home

Our house is smallish and cozyish. Looking back at our old furniture, we are grateful for the hand me downs from family and friends but we did not know how to make it ours. Since I'm staying home we sacrificed another giant loan payment for new furniture and work in the basement. While we may have set ourselves back a couple of years ridding ourselves of school loans, we finally are making our home feel like home.

The girls have a craft table in the basement now, so I still won't be thrilled when they decide to paint themselves instead of the paper. It's virtually kid proof and a fun space for all.

I'm sure you see more pics with the new furniture and basement but for now, I'm having fun digging up the old pics from this year.

Bunnies!

I know I'm probably going too far back but I wanted to share some pics and moments with you. The easter baskets were mainly craft material; stamps, paint, play doh, pens etc. There were a few Cadbury eggs for the chocolate enthusiasts in our house, which now equals ALL of us. Poppy shared his love of chocolate with the girls from the time they could chew. Carys has developed a respectable sweet tooth.

Bonding

I think of Carys and Helen as two little excited electrons sometimes. Running into each other with energy but finding a covalent bond when they settle down. These moments are not so rare but rarer to be captured on film. It's sweet to think they are sisters and hopefully will have a bond forever no matter what.

Poppy Play

It's always fun to watch Poppy and the girls play. It's so rambunctious, lots of loud noises and running around the house hiding. There's always someone on Poppy's back or climbing on his shoulders. It's vertical, horizontal, chaotic and usually ends up with someone having a minor boo boo.

The girls (and Poppy) LOVE it.

Party by the Pool

Helen had a backyard pool party again this year. Her birthday is a great intro to summertime!

A Belated Birthday

Carys had a wonderful 5th birthday celebration. She had another dance party and a small cupcake party with the family on the BIG day. Time passes so quickly...

2008: A Year Almost Complete

Not that I intended to go almost an entire year without posting but it seems to be the case. We've been busy as have all our friends, who work, have kids and have time to post. I've decided I waste too much time by chilling out when the kids are in bed. But I can't stop myself. With baby number three, I think I'm going to be in overdrive for what I estimate to be another 2-2.5 years. At least I am planning on "staying home" with this baby. However, as Cullen said, with the after school activities for the girls, the baby will be sleeping more in the car than in the house.

Snow Angels New Year 2008

We woke up to a beautiful, snowy day. The girls played outside while Poppy worked with his "new to us" snowblower. After clearing the sidewalks, we headed over to the sledding hill. Poppy went down with Carys first after some hesitation on her part. She was scared of the ride and was a bit upset after getting to the bottom. She did not want to get hurt. Helen was ready to ride and really enjoyed her first run with Poppy. She was ready to go again until she saw the playground. After a quick stop at the slides, and a glove malfunction, Helen was ready to ride again. I'm told she did not enjoy the second ride so much. I think she may have gotten snow in her face.

We had hot chocolate and Christmas cookies when we got home. Poppy is not feeling well today, it's a shame because he worked so hard during this last week. At least he was able to enjoy the New Year snow with the girls a bit.

Carys's English teacher told me her favorite thing is making snow angels. She's really good at it.

Holiday Pageant

Carys's class put on another little play for their Holiday show. Carys played a monkey in the story of Momotodo, Peach Boy. She enjoyed being on stage with her friends and singing holiday songs. It was one of those moments, she looked so cute, I almost cried.

Graham Cracker Houses

Carys prepared all the twizzlers, mini kisses, gummies, jelly beans, chocolate covered raisins, gumdrops and dried cranberries we had for our graham cracker houses this year. Almost every picture I took captured someone chewing on candy or licking fingers. Tamra came up with the idea to use graham crackers and this year she made royal icing. We did not eat our houses but the kids decorated some graham crackers which were eaten after dinner with milk days later.

Happy Thanksgiving 2007

We had a wonderful Thanksgiving meal at Tiffany and Mike's house. The girls helped prepare rasberry sauce for Poppy's chocolate mousse. Also they washed and cut the green beans and mushrooms for the green bean casserole. Things moved a bit slower while they were helping but it was nice having some family time in the kitchen with us all working together.

I've still not managed to perform the Thanksgiving feast myself but I'm enjoying prepping the girls and by the time I'm ready, they will know how to make the sides so I'll just have to focus on the turkey. Just kidding, sortof.

We had the added bonus of a second Thanksgiving feast over at Lauren and Brad's house. The girls played with Dani and Hailey and we even trimmed the tree after a wonderful meal.

We are most thankful for God and his grace and our wonderful friends who give us more than we deserve.

Soup Warms the Soul

The weather is cooler and we love to make soup. I've already got tortilla soup, potato soup, and beef vegetable in the freezer. This year we're going to make chili, french onion soup, chicken noodle and pho. The girls love soup, some better than others. Basically anything with noodles or a good broth is well received.

Bathtime 2007

The girls still enjoy taking baths together. Although the bigger they become, the smaller the tub seems. I'm not looking forward to splitting bathtime up but I may have to soon since they are both a little rambunctious in the water.

Tower of Animals

Carys has been playing blocks again. This time adding more dimension and interest with skillfully placed farm animals. This is the boat for the animals, I believe based on Noah's Ark but Poppy would have to confirm this.

Halloween 2007

Carys and Helen had a great time trick or treating tonight. The weather was actually fairly good for once. No rain and it was not freezing cold. We had a merry gang of kidlets ready to brave the ghosts and goblins in order to get MORE CANDY.