Popcorn!

Most Friday evenings are movie night around here. I let Ben choose the movie, and then we make popcorn and settle in.

This night, I'd bought him Cinderella, as he'd been requesting it for weeks (because Cinderella is his best friend Jessica's favorite). He was eager to get the party started since he had a new movie to see, so rather than waiting for Liv to go to bed like we usually do, we started early. Which meant Liv got to see the popcorn maker for the first time.

You can see from this face that she was mesmerized by the popcorn maker.

As is Ben, even though he's done this about 50 times. Some things never get old.

Mmm. Licking her lips in anticipation.

Finally, some popcorn. Even though she'd never seen the popcorn maker in action, Liv has had popcorn before, and she is very much a fan. (We are all big fans of the bag you buy at Costco--can't remember the brand off the top of my head).

Here she is signing "more."

Raiding the popcorn bowl for herself. I guess we weren't moving fast enough for her.

Split Lip

Apparently, it is a Tammaro rite of passage to fall and split your lip open. It was like deja vu when I got the call from Creative World telling me that Liv had tripped and hit her lip on a low shelf and split her lip.

I headed over to get her, then we headed to the offsite Edward ER a few miles from daycare. This is the same place I took Ben when he did the exact same thing at 2 yrs old. They are never busy, so you get in and out quickly.

Liv was not thrilled to be there. It was almost noon, and she'd missed lunch (because they didn't want to feed her while her lip was cut open) and she was overdue for her nap.

They told me she barely cried when it happened. She was happy and calm when I picked her up. She was saving the drama for the ER.

I was trying to get a good photo of her cut, but her bottom lip is so pouty, it is very hard to see the cut (which is good). You can see that the inside of her lip was swollen and bleeding and starting to bruise. Under the bottom lip, it was cut open and bleeding as well.

The doctors conferred and decided stitches (like Ben got) weren't needed. They used a glue instead. I was grateful that we didn't have to go through sedating her and the numbing shots to the lip like we did with Ben--that took years off of my life. But she still had to be confined in a papoose-type thingee while they cleaned and treated her lip. She was not a fan, to put it mildly! I mean, this is the child who won't lie down on her back for 30 seconds to get her diaper on. I have to put on her diaper with her on her stomach.

To add insult to injury, she wasn't allowed her paci for an hour while the glue dried. That was one of the longest hours of my life. She cried these heart-wrenching sobs, staggered loud breaths like she was going to hyperventilate. And she kept trying to get to my purse, because she saw me put her paci in there.

Finally, the paperwork was done and we were free to leave. She calmed down a bit, and fell right to sleep on our way home.

Once we got home, she woke up, shoved her weight in blueberries in her mouth for lunch, and then took the rest of her nap. She woke up like nothing had happened.

Poor baby is healing well. Now if she'd just take the antibiotic they prescribed, all would be well. Alas, Liv and meds are like oil and water--they don't mix. :-)

Liv's 15 Month Well Visit

Liv had her 15 month well visit yesterday. We switched doctor's offices, and Mike and I were both very happy with the new doctor. He was incredibly nice, very good with Liv, despite her antics, and gave her a very thorough check.

She is 21 lbs 7 oz (51%) and 30.5 inches (44%). Everything checked out well with her. He was unconcerned with her laryngomalacia, as long as we feel it is getting better (which it is, though it is definitely still there).

I also brought up our concern that she is not walking yet, but lately she has been taking 3 or 4 steps. He felt that since she is making progress, we shouldn't worry. We are going to reasses at her 18 month, if she isn't walking by then. I mentioned that her feet really turn out, and that maybe that is why she struggles to walk. He said it could be a factor, but he checked her feet and range of motion on her ankles, knees, and hips, and they were all fine. He said it is just the way she is made, and as long as she starts walking soon, it is fine. Likely, she will correct this on her own as she gets older.

During the entire appointment, Liv was wanting down to explore, getting into everything (including the garbage which was hidden away in a cabinet), crawling around like a crazy woman, clapping for herself, grabbing at Dr. Lo's medical tools, and just generally acting like our sweet, crazy Livvie Lou. He told us she had quite a personality and was a sweetheart, and that he would not likely forget her. :-) At one point he sat back and jokingly wiped his brown and said he'd had his workout for the day now. I had to laugh because that is exactly how I feel after spending time with her too--she keeps you on your toes!

We were also concerned that she doesn't say many words, but he said that at 15 months, 4 or 5 words is all that is expected. Liv says hi, daddy, mama, and doggie, so he was happy with that. She also signs "more," which is super cute. Ben walked and spoke so much earlier, that my perspective is skewed. He jokingly told us that Ben is ruining it for Liv. So true; I'll stop comparing them all the time. Liv just marches to the beat of her own drummer.

What's Livvie enjoying these days? Her dollies are top. She loves to hug and carry around dolls. Her paci is a must, of course. She also loves to climb on tables and the ottoman. If there is a table, she wants up on it. She still loves being carried around. Recently, she's really into "row, row, row your boat" and likes me to sing it while I pull her up and down. She loves to listen to Frozen music in the car--she screeches with excitement like she is singing along.

Foods--Blueberries are still tops, along with most fruit and eggs. She likes to eat anything Ben is eating, just because it is Ben. She adores the two munchkins we give her on "Friday doughnut day." She still has milk in a bottle once or twice a day. We are working on cutting that out. Usually it is just before bed, but she doesn't seem to be as interested lately, so we may be able to get rid of it now.

Sizes--Size 3 diapers, though she is ready to transition to size 4 soon. 18 month clothes; she can still wear12 month dresses, but they are a little short, so they work more as shirts. Size 4.5 shoes. We got her "real" shoes instead of Robeez to see if that would help with walking.

(This picture is obviously not in the timeline with the others, but it showcases her new big girl shoes and her love of sitting on tables/counters.)

Sleep--Still an awesome sleeper. She goes to bed around 7:30 and gets up between 6-6:30. We still just place her in her crib, say goodnight, and leave. She goes right to sleep on her own. Sometimes I'll take her up with her milk and try to rock her while I feed her--she generally wants nothing to do with that. She just turns toward her crib and stretches her arms out, asking to go to bed. So cute. She naps once a day at daycare (11:15 - 1:15), but at home she still takes two naps usually. About 10-12:30, and then 4-5.

Our sweet, happy, crazy Livvie Lou is doing great. Can't wait to see what is in store for us next with her!

(Notice how her foot here is turned out and her toes are scrunched up? That is how she has her feet most of the time, even when she is trying to walk...)

Around the House

These days, time for projects around the house is pretty limited. But I do have a few updates to share.

We finally purchased a new fridge and dishwasher about a month ago. Both are Kenmore Elite. Our old appliances were white, so for now we have a mismatched stove/micro, but I'm okay with that. I think we'll replace those within the year or early next year. For now, they both work fine (and let's face it, our oven doesn't get a lot of use), so there is no rush other than the aesthetics.

It is true what they say, stainless shows fingerprints much more than white. As you can see here...

I love the french door layout. Everything is at eye-level. No more forgotten and spoiled veggies in the bottom drawer. We moved our old fridge to the garage, so now we have a place to keep soda, water, extra juice boxes, etc. It is nice to keep this fridge clutter-free, with just what we use on a regular basis.

Same goes for the freezer. Most stuff is still out in the garage freezer. But we've got the essentials--popsicles galore, vanilla ice cream, and steam-cook veggies. Ben's faves! And Mike's very favorite Palermo's Italian Sausage thin crust pizzas. I'm not much of a pizza fan, but Mike claims these are almost as good as takeout. So give them a try if you are looking for a good frozen pizza. I get ours at Target.

Here is the matching dishwasher. So quiet. And the dishes are so much cleaner. My heart is just so happy with these two new additions to the family. :-)

I also bought a new Dustbuster. I hate the suction on our Dyson's attachment. The vacuum itself works great, but I feel like the attachment doesn't cut it. So I got this. I had a Dustbuster years ago, and I felt like it wasn't powerful. I looked on Amazon, and this one was the best seller and had good reviews, so I'm hoping that means that they have improved its performance. So far, so good. But we just got it a few days ago... But it is so nice to just grab this to clean those crumbs and things under the table after the kids eat, rather than lugging out the big vacuum.

I also finally made more progress on the kids' bathroom. I took down the towel bar and bought these hooks back when I was on maternity leave with Liv (who's now 15 months). I was originally going to use a painted board under the hooks, but that seemed like too much work once I started, so I just put the hooks directly into the wall using anchors. Now I just need to fill the holes (from when I was going to use the board and started drilling pilot holes) and paint. As you can see, I tried out the paint color in Ben's room, but it looks too purple in this room. So the hunt continues. 

Ben actually hung his towel without being asked after his bath last night, so we might be on to something.

That's about it, besides decluttering the guest room in anticipation of Grammy and Grampy's visit at the end of the month and moving things around in the master bedroom. And removing the doors/clearing out the closet by the garage in the hopes of making more of a "mudroom" out of it. I'll post if it ever gets done...

Out and About

Here are pictures of some various outings with the kids in the last week or two.

Mike was gone all day one Saturday for his brother's bachelor party, so the kids and I kept busy in order for me to survive the day. Ben needed a hair cut, so we headed over to his appointment at Kidsnips. How handsome is he? He has been going there since he was 6 months and is so good. He sits politely, moves his head as needed, and is such a sweetie. I usually let him pick out a toy on our way out. Today, he chose this Volkswagen bus.

Liv didn't need a hair cut (thank god, because she doesn't sit as politely as her brother), but she was quite content when they gave her a lollipop. Total mess, but kept her happy and quiet for 15 minutes! Remind me to keep a stash of these in my purse. ;-) (And notice she is wearing only one shoe. She will not keep two shoes on her feet.)

After Liv went down for a nap, we had lunch outside. Until a fly buzzed around and Ben wanted to go in. Oh my, it's going to be a long summer if he won't deal with flies.

Liv at dinner. I just call this one "BBQ Sauce." Enough said.

Monday, Ben had a dentist's appointment, and afterwards we always go on a "date." Liv is too much of a handful to bring with us to the dentist, so I just take Ben and go back to Creative World for her later. Plus, it is nice to have some one-on-one time with him. I told Ben we could eat dinner at Chipotle after his appointment and sit on the high stools. He always wants to sit on them, but Liv is not old enough and the highchairs are too short.

We did sit on the stools, but toward the end he got cold (the AC was really cranked up), and so we decided to sit at the tables outside and eat, which was actually much nicer, in my opinion.

This weekend, the whole family (even Dee) headed to Panera Bread for breakfast. It was a nice morning, and Liv was in a relatively mellow mood for a change, so we figured we could eat outside and bring Dee along.

Check out Liv's flock of seagulls hair-don't.

Not sure why Mike looks so grumpy. My incessant need to take photos, or perhaps he is just eyeing Liv's eggs with longing?

 Dee scarfing down some eggs that Liv threw on the ground.

We were quite a scene, I'm sure. Luckily (or unluckily, I suppose), Ben was up at 5:30, so it was pretty early when we arrived, and there weren't many people around.

Lesli commented that I am never in the photos because I am always taking them. True, very true. So here I am. The elusive Mom. "They do exist!"

Notice who's in my lap. The highchair lasted about 10 minutes. Which is actually like an hour in Liv time, so I shouldn't complain.

Of course, since she was on my lap she decided to drink and then spit her milk out. Funny that Mike got a photo mid-spit. Thanks Liv! Mom loves smelling like sour milk all morning.

At this point, breakfast was over and Ben was ready to head across the parking lot to throw a few coins in the fountain. Not to be out done, Liv threw a penny three times and never once did the penny make it into the water. Next, she tried to climb into the fountain. I have no pictures because I was too busy wrangling her.

Golf

Mike is teaching Ben his love of (obsession with) golfing. Recently, Mike got Ben his own club and has been taking him to the range on the weekends. For safety reasons, only when Liv is napping do we let him putt in the backyard with it.

Check Ben out!

And a video of him in action. Bubba Watson, eat your heart out. ;-) (Bubba is Ben's favorite player.)

Shenanigans

Ben and Liv decided that it would be fun to flip her stool upside down and ride it around the house like a motorcycle. Okay...

Here is a quick video of them in action. You may be able to tell from the dialog that Friday is doughnut day around here. Ben knows his doughnuts!



And Liv has finally realized that she can climb up the stairs. She's fast, but she doesn't seem very interested. We don't even really have to worry about keeping the gate closed. Whereas with Ben, if he could get near the stairs, he was climbing them.

Water Play

Saturday afternoon, Ben got into his bathing suit. For no apparent reason. So I suggested we pull out the water table. This was Liv's first time using it. She was a fan!

At first, she just wanted to check out all the toys. As Ben was opening up the bucket, he told her "Don't worry, Bean. There are plenty, so we can share."

This week they kick off summer camp at Creative World, which means water play days on Tues/Thur, so both kids needed water shoes. Ben's been asking for crocs, so I picked them both up a pair the other day. How cute is she in her little pink crocs?

Ben found the mini watering can and decided to give the flowers a drink.

Liv loves her dollies. She spotted this one on the table (it talks so I tried to hide it from her so she wouldn't get it wet). I should have put it up higher, because she spotted it, and then I couldn't pry it out of her little hands.

Luckily, dolly stayed relatively dry and is still functioning.

Then we had an incident where Ben misunderstood my suggestion and sprayed Liv in the face with the hose, so she was done. We snuggled in a towel for a few minutes, then she wanted in her own chair, and eventually up on the table (this kid loves to sit on tables). What a ragamuffin.

Here is the video of our "misunderstanding." I told Ben I wanted a video of Liv playing with the hose, so could he spray it at her? He took me literally. I meant "toward" her but said "at" her. Ben acts like such an adult sometimes that I forgot he is only 4. Not his fault. Bad Mom. Poor Liv.

Thank goodness the hose nozzle was on the mist setting and not jet!