New Day, New attitude

I suppose, in order to make up for being so amazingly good yesterday, the kids decided to give me one of the worst hours of my life this morning. We tried to go to a playgroup with a group of kids (and moms) we've played with MANY times. It was at a new-to-us house, but there were so many fun toys. Walter and Adele decided they were being tortured, so they screamed and hung on me for 45 minutes before I finally decided to give up and pack them home.

NOT fun.

So I decided to do a quick blog post of some recent videos showing my kids playing nicely to remind myself they aren't always so horrid.

Walt's favorite game these days is putting away toys.



The other day I caught a video of Adele happily playing in the other room.



We were given these stuffed animals for the kids' first birthday, but the kids only recently realized they were dinosaurs. They love dinosaurs. I just barely managed to catch them on video all simultaneously playing along to the dinosaur song.




And here's Gordon playing sweetly by himself for a couple of minutes.

Vandeleur Walled Garden

At the entrance to Vandeleur Walled Gardens

We'd been trying to head out to the Vandeleur Walled Garden for months, but something always happened. We'd even planned on going yesterday and the kids woke in the worst mood.  This morning, however, Jeff said we should just head out and I'm so glad we did!

http://vandeleurwalledgarden.ie/

We piled into the car after lunch and hoped the kids would sleep on the way out. Adele and Gordon got decent naps, but Walt barely closed his eyes.  However, they were SO good on the whole 80 minute trip.

We arrived and put the kids in the strollers.which turned out to be a good thing. In the actual gardens, they ask you to stay off certain areas (and on the paths) and the kids would've been everywhere. We walked around for a bit, then headed back out to a courtyard where they had a play area for the kids. We let them loose and they had a blast.

Then we piled them back into the strollers with snacks and walked around the gardens some more.  We only stayed a couple of hours, then hit the road home. We spent more time driving than anything, but the kids were so good the whole day! And the Vandeleur Walled Gardens were gorgeous and so peaceful.

Heading into the Garden reception area

The doorway to the actual walled portion

At the far end of the Gardens looking back towards the entrance

A lane among the trees

Gordon and Adele playing in the sandbox in the courtyard children's area

Walt found this box of game pieces and spent a long time taking them all out, then putting them back in again.

All 3 kids in the sandbox.

Adele got the game pieces from Walt and proceeded to carry them around for the next 20 minutes.

One of the buildings in the courtyard

Gordon is just fascinated by plants.

Walt -- always trying to escape

Letting the kids play their first game of giant chess

Pretty flowers

Pretty flowers

Pretty flowers

Pretty flowers

Proof that Jeff was with us, plus a great view of the flower beds in the garden

Developmental check

Today the kids had their first appointment with the Public Health Nurse for a developmental check.  We arrived and I found the building to be just a little office inside, so I ended up bringing the kids in sitting in their stroller.  Walt did NOT want to be there and even though he had a snack (and I brought toys) he proceeded to cry and tell me 'all done' while pointing at the door.  So, overall it wasn't my favorite morning.

Adele did fine until 5 minutes before we left and Gordon was mellow Gordon this morning, so he was fun.

She asked a lot of questions and looked over the kids medical and shot records. She agreed with the doctor's assessment in that the kids are up-to-date on all their shots until they start school. I'm not sure how this will change when we move back to the States, but we'll deal with that then.  She also then filled out forms for each child individually and asked me questions about their walking, vision, hearing, and communication.

We discussed my only concerns (Adele's walking and Walter's speech) but she said that both kids are on track for their age in those areas and when they come back at 3/3 1/2 they'd reassess.  Adele and Gordon were ahead of the curve on communication in her assessment.

She also did a height and weight check.

Walter

34.65 inches (85th percentile)

26.5 lb (50th percentile)

Gordon

35.43 inches (90th percentile)

30.1 lb (90th percentile)

Adele

32.68 inches (25 - 50th percentile)

24.7 lb (25 - 50th percentile)

Growing like crazy

Tomorrow we have our first appointment with the Public Health Nurse which is where they do developmental checks. I'll be interested to see what I learn and what she asks about the kids.

In the meantime, these are a few other photos and videos from the weekend (and today) that I didn't put in the other post.

Gordon wore one of my hoodies, too, but he had Jeff take it off before I could snap a photo.

Adele posed like this a few times, but this was the first time I got the camera out in time.

I wanted to show how curly Adele's hair is in the back now.

Here's Gordon reading along with one of his favorite books.


Since the kids were little, I've been warning them about the floor (especially in the bathroom) being slippery. So now Adele and Gordon say "Whoa, slippery," all the time.


We haven't tried spoons in a while because the kids have been sick and I just got tired of the mess for a while. But I tried it tonight and the kids have really improved since the last time.

A gorgeous day

Today was the first truly gorgeous day that we've had in a while. It was warm (68ish) and sunny and NO rain. I would've loved to pack the kids in the car and go to the coast, but once again, they are sick. They aren't THAT sick, but they aren't sleeping well and are super crabby.

So they went down for an early (but long) nap today and after they woke we ate lunch and went outside to enjoy the weather.

Three kids a-running

Walt working on 'up' and 'down'

Walt getting some mommy love

Lots of smiles!

Adele and Mama playing "Ready, Set, Go!"

Gordon

The boys and the view

Adele playing with the flowers

Walt showing Daddy where to go

Everything around the gazebo was blooming

If you can't tell, Jeff is taking the photo at the top while I was taking this version of the same shot.

Play time

This week, Gordon has decided to say "vegetables", "porcupine", and "icicles." It is absolutely adorable. He adds extra syllables, but the words sound correct. Well, except for the extra syllables, obviously.

Adele has added "celebrate" to her list of words.

Walt says "up", "mama", "dada", and "all done" quite consistently.  He's attempting to say "chicken" and he's said "juice" a few times, but I can't get him to repeat it.  Mostly he says a lot of 'eh, eh, eh' while pointing at things that I won't let him have. 

We pulled bowls out of the cabinet for something new.

I decided to try a photo with my new camera app. I love the view behind them.
I also love that we got into the mid-60's and they could wear short sleeves.

Feet! From l to r, Adele, Walter, and Gordon.

Watch out! We have a traffic jam!

I took the kids outside today.  And we played with bubbles!
Bubbles is another of Gordon's favorite words.

I read these books to the kids in the bath. Today, Adele decided to take over
the task. The boys were cracking up as she read to them.

The hangers kept the kids entertained for about 20 minutes. Fun!

Blocks, balls & giggles!

Everyone seems to be on the mend. Gordon and Jeff are dealing with some peripheral symptoms hanging around, but the worst is hopefully over. For this round anyway!

This morning it was a race to keep the kids entertained. First we played with blocks. I noticed when I take the kids to the creche, they have them play with their blocks on the table. So I've been trying to do that.  When Adele starts clearing the table with big arm sweeps and the boys try to throw the blocks over to the kitchen tile, I know they are done playing.

Blocks!

 Later we took a bunch of balls out to the hallway. Initially, this started as a "Ready, set, Go" game where we throw and chase the balls. But they are just learning to kick the ball, so we spent a long time saying, "Kick, kick, kick." Then we kick and chase the balls up and down the hallway.

Balls!

Finally, I took the kids in the tv room and turned on Sesame Street. Otherwise they try to keep go, go, going, and their bodies aren't quite recovered yet. So then they just get mad. They haven't figured out 'rest' yet. Silly toddlers!

Walt gave me some good giggles.

Night of the Endless Vomit...

Last night was like a horror movie.  Gordon, Adele, and Jeff all came down with some stomach bug (or they ate something bad) and it was just endless.  I changed bedsheets like 5 times, pajamas 5 times, and the kids were up and down until after 11pm.  I felt just awful for them. Jeff lasted until after the kids were finally asleep. I don't know how I would've done it if he'd been sick at the same time.

I feel awful because Walt had been sick the day before, but I thought he had a mild case of food poisoning (his symptoms were a bit different) so I kept our playdate on Friday. We had 5 adults, 7 toddlers, 3 big kids, and 2 babies in the house. I hope none of them were exposed! It was a blast while they were here, though.

The other day, I mentioned on Facebook we were just being mellow at the house. Then I realized this video captures what I think is mellow and I don't think it would fit most people's description. LOL!



Friday I brought out plastic bottles for the kids and they invented a new game or two.




Walt eventually decided he'd give bowling a try.

Busy Blog Post

The kids have been sick and Jeff and I followed in their footsteps. So things have been a little crazy around here. Mostly because I've been napping during their naptime, which means leaving a lot of things undone. Like blog posts. LOL. I've been posting some of these photos to Facebook, but not all.  

All 3 kids are communicating more every day. They are capable of following complex instructions. Gordon and Adele are starting to parrot Jeff and I with easy words or end-of-sentence words. One morning I walked into the room and Gordon quickly began rattling off all the words he knows. It was pretty cute.

We've been working on numbers, letters, and animals a lot. 

We've also started watching a few potty-training videos. The kids aren't showing the signs of readiness, but I'd like them to become more familiar with what the potty will ultimately be used for.

Not feeling well, so we cuddled up in our blankets.
They now have these blankets in their beds, too.

Waiting our turn at the doctor's office. Adele ended up on antibiotics.
All 3 of them were given eye drops and ointment. No fun!

Playing blocks

Today was no-shirt day during Sesame Street time.

Playing on Mom & Dad's bed has become a fun thing to do after baths.

Just so you know, Adele was the ringleader here and in the case of the disappearing shirts.

We often spend 20 minutes a day reading our Duck & Goose books.
They like to trade, by giving their book to the other kid, then taking that kid's book for themselves.

We got almost 30 minutes of peaceful playing when we bowled and played with plastic bottles.

Walt is always looking for new spots to sit.

Walt sat himself at the table, then asked for his rings, and he proceeded to take them apart and put them together about 5 times in a row.

I took this photo because they all decided to sit in someone else's chair.

A common place to find the cat. He'll sit just on the other side of that box.
The kids love to stand there and talk to him.

Lunch. This is the only way my kids will eat their veggies right now -- in puree form.

Adele and Walt love their new bibs so much, they ask me to bring them down for play time.

See? Always looking for new places to sit.

Utensil fun.

Walt was trying to get Adele or Gordon to play trucks with him all evening. Finally, Adele gave it a go.  The noise you hear is Gordon. It is a sound I have been listening to for days. He doesn't appear to be sick, but he *might* be teething. In any case, he is very whiny and throws a fit at the drop of a hat.