April 19

Another month has gone by with my Little Sweetie and I can certainly say that, for the most part, it just continues to get sweeter!

Little Sweetie and I have had a wonderful routine so far this year and I love it.  It reminds me of the good routines Little Buddy and I had when he was younger.  Of all of our adventures, though, I think Tuesdays with Little Sweetie are my favorite.  On Tuesdays we go to the library, then ride the troller, and then get lunch (many times with a friend).  Sometimes we throw a walk by the waterway in there too.

     

     

Checking out the selfie stand at the library before story time!

She's listening intently to the story.  I'm staring intently AT THESE CURLS!  :)

     

Picking some books to check out!

Checking out the ducks on the waterway through her binoculars she made at the library!

Blowing bubbles as we wait for the trolley!

But even when it's not Tuesdays, our days together are full of fun!  She loves going to the park, helping me with errands, meeting Daddy for lunch, going to her My Gym class, and just playing games!  

     

     

The weather was so nice this month!  Glad we got to take advantage of it.  We had a great time working out at the park, followed by picnics and duck feeding, and playground/sandbox time!

Always nice to have a quiet shopping partner in Target.  ;)

Lunch time with Daddy!

Ready for surprise time at My Gym!

     

     

"Momma, play more fishing with me?"  She's really getting pretty good at playing games!

She also enjoys group potty and book time with Big Brother every night!  Every day has it's own brand of excitement around here!  

This month has also had it's own fun experiences, like Opening Day for the Astros, taking our bluebonnet pictures and getting a special zoo day with Daddy!

These are two kids who are ready for baseball season!

Last year, our hearts were too heavy to find time to do our annual bluebonnet pictures.  I missed doing them, but my mind was in other places and time just got away from us.  I am glad we were able to take a morning for it this year!

     

     

The many looks of elation when someone finds out that she gets to go on a special date with Daddy to the zoo (while Momma gets some work done around the house)!

     

After a day of looking at the cool animals and playing on drums, someone finally fell asleep on Daddy on the train ride.

Height and Weight 

Up to 34 1/2 inches and alternates between 29 and 30 pounds!  We just can't get her to break that 30 mark consistently (which is the mark we need her to hit in order to turn her to forward facing in the carseat).  Our little peanut, indeed!

Personality

I will have to say that Little Sister's "drop of the hat" temper tantrums have really jumped in frequency this month.  Ay yi yi!  Someone is just learning that life doesn't always go the way you want it sometimes!

Developmental Milestones

Lots and lots of gains still!  Honestly, her language blows us away.  She speaks long sentences, has original ideas, and is using pronouns and tenses.  Some of my favorite phrases include "Momma, I have a great idea!  We should eat more chocolate eggs for lunch!" (fair enough), "Please, I can has this? (while trying to talk me into getting something she either shouldn't have or something she's trying to convince me to buy her!), and "Please, you can help me?" (always, little one.  Always.).  

Fine motor is also doing great!  She can take off and put on her shoes correctly (although she then has a tendency to take them off and put them back on incorrectly--she likes them that way, she tells me) and she's taken a shine to helping Daddy work with his tools.  She was a great help to him as he was fixing sprinkler heads the other day!

"Dad, this one needs tightened more.  Don't worry, I'll do it for you."

Fun Tidbits

She is definitely her own unique individual!  Lately, things are too loud for her (the rodeo, baseball games, her brother), so we purchased some sound-muffling headphones for her.  They've really helped her enjoy going to traditionally loud events (the soccer game went much better with the headphones ready to go once she felt the cheering got too loud).  And they sometimes help her with traditionally non-loud events.  Like lunch.  

     

Don't mind me.  I just wanted to eat my ham off of my upside down bowl while wearing my headphones.  Just a normal day here!

Have a good night, 

LSM

Little Sweetie's Momma

Family Date Day: Dynamo Edition

After nearly a year of trying, we finally made it to our first professional soccer game!

Little Buddy had gotten very interested in soccer last summer, so we had made arrangements to take him to see our local MLS team, the Houston Dynamo, last year.  Unfortunately, the day of that game, both kids woke up sick and we didn't make the game.  But, we got a redo today!

     

It was a Friday evening game, so we left right after Little Buddy got home from school.  It was very crowded and the kids were both yawning in the middle of the first half, but overall I think they had fun!  We remembered to bring Little Sweetie's headphones (everything is "too loud" for her right now) and I know those helped with her enjoyment of the game.  We enjoyed some popcorn and hot dogs and then called it a night after the first half was done.  We are hoping to go to another game, maybe one of the Dash's, that isn't quite as crowded, but overall we are counting this as a success!

Good night, 

LSM

Little Sweetie's Momma

Happy Easter Weekend!

It's the most wonderful time of year in the Houston area...no, not Christmas!  It's Easter and it's made exceptionally wonderful by the fact it's perfect weather.  Not too hot and no mosquitos!  Oh if only it were like this all year long!  We made the most of it by being outside as much as possible!

Friday was wonderful because both Little Buddy and Daddy were off from school and work, respectively, so they got to hang out with Little Sweetie and I all day!  We went and played at the park and then went to the All Ages class at My Gym so both Little Buddy and Little Sweetie could join in on the fun!

     

     

Everybody is loving life at the park!

Little Buddy surveying his My Gym kingdom.

Saturday started off well!  We had the plan of dying Easter eggs, having the kiddos play with Daddy while Momma had her haircut and went to the grocery store, and then an early bath and bedtime so that we could get to the early Easter Mass the next morning.  Sadly, even the best laid plans can get messed up...

Easter egg dying went well...

     

But then a trip on the patio led Little buddy to get a gash above his lip.  Thankfully, he only required Derma-bond instead of stitches, but it ended up being a late night for the kids.  Our hope for making early church was vastly diminished.

But then, an Easter Miracle!  Daddy and I managed to get everyone up, out of the house, and to church in time for 7:30 AM Mass AND to actually get seats at the service, no less!  And then the kids actually BEHAVED!  Yes, they may have just been too tired to cause trouble, but we might start gong to 7:30 AM Mass regularly if that's the case!  Little Buddy and Little Sweetie definitely deserved the treats that the Easter Bunny left around the house while we were gone.

Happy boy after Church!  Still can't believe how good they were (Little Sweetie refused to participate in the pictures)!

     

     

They loved finding their baskets and eggs!

The new Peanuts movie was in Little Buddy's basket.  I'd say he was pleased!

Finished the day with our annual picnic and egg hunt with our Texas "family."  Love our awesome friends!

     

Little Sweetie was very into it this year!  She was excited to count her loot!

So minus the stitches, I'd consider it a fun and successful Easter weekend.  I will admit that being around our friend's older children can be difficult.  It's hard to see the gap between Little Buddy and his peers that, three years ago, wasn't there.  Last year, I had a panic attack and this year I felt pangs of sadness that he could no longer play with his friends the way he used to.  But then I saw how much fun he was having just being there, around his friends, playing and felt comforted to have the opportunity to be around so many people who love and understand our sweet boy.  What's more, Little Sweetie had a wonderful time!  Now that she is growing up, we have to be mindful of making sure that she has plenty of opportunities to socialize and interact with her peers, even if her brother cannot.  And I need to remind myself that for a Sanfilippo kid, Little Buddy is doing amazing and we are so proud of him!  Easter is a time of faith and hope, and we continue to have both of those!

Hope all of you had a blessed Easter, 

LSM

Little Sweetie's Momma