Just one of those days...

We were up and down all night last night with Anna and Lizzie. They just did not want to sleep for some reason. I think it's possible Lizzie was not feeling well. Fortunately, today neither one of them has any outward symptoms of any illness, so I guess they just were in the mood for a sleepless night. That, of course, leads to one exhausted mommy. It's just going to be one of those days. None of us has even gotten dressed. I don't have the energy to care if I'm letting Scott and Anna watch too much t.v. (I'm sure that I am!) or worry if they've eaten all their food groups today (I'm sure they haven't!). Oh well. One lazy mommy day probably won't do too much harm, right??

Legos and Doctors

It's been a while since I had a 'real' post. Last week was kind of a busy week. Elizabeth turned two months old; we finally made it to a free family night at the Children's Museum; and the girls had a doctor's appointment.

The first Thursday of each month the Children's Museum in Indy is free from 4-8 pm. We have been meaning to take advantage of this for some time because it is considerable expensive for admission. Last week was perfect timing because they have just opened a new Lego castle display. Scott's two favorite things are Transformers and Legos, so this was a very nice exhibit to see. Aside from having various building stations set up, there were displays of some castles and medieval items made of Legos. The castle shown, Neuschwanstein Castle in Bavaria, was my favorite. This is my all-time favorite castle, so I was excited to see that there was a model of it. There were several others and a hedge maze. Also there was a knight that stood about 6 feet tall and a dragon that was just as tall but much broader.

One of the other exhibits they currently have going is a Comic Book Heroes exhibit. It was not a highlight of our trip (there isn't as much interaction, just a bunch of displays), but there was a batmobile that Chris enjoyed seeing. It was one of the nine used in filming of the two most recent movies, Batman Begins and The Dark Knight. It was pretty cool looking. The picture didn't turn out great, I apologize. It was so dark in there, I just couldn't get the flash right.

Anna really enjoyed riding the carousel and playing in the tree house. She also says she enjoyed the dinosaurs, but they scared her and she 'cried at daddy.' That is how she has been relaying the events of the night.

Friday, Elizabeth had her two month well-child check and I am pleased to report that she weighed 10lbs 3oz so she has gained almost 4 pounds since she was born. It's always good to confirm that what they eat does more than just come straight out! And she's smiling a lot now and has 'giggled' at me a few times. Chris is joking that he doubts she does this because I am the only one who has heard it. That happens with all the kids. I am here all the time, so I am the first to experience everything, but Chris doesn't think it really counts until he sees it for himself.

Anna also had to get weighed and measured at the doctor last week. Since we had to switch doctors and the new pediatrician hasn't been seeing her since birth, he has been wanting to check her size every couple of months to make sure she is growing well. She's pretty small for her age. Friday she was 33 1/2 inches tall (which is pretty reasonable) and weighed 22 pounds. The doctor was pleased because for the first time since we've been going there, she actually made it up to a line on the growth chart. She is now at the 2nd percentile. I haven't really been too concerned, I figure she's just petite. She actually has grown a bit and gained some weight at each of the four times we've had her in there. And she is our best eater. I could devote a whole blog to how much she loves 'trees.'

Chris is traveling again this week for work. He left this morning for Columbus, OH and won't be back until Thursday or Friday. I do doubt whether I can make it through the week with my sanity! I plan to go up to my mom's tomorrow and stay for a couple of nights. She and my sister live right by each other so it is really nice to spend the time together. The kids love having so much time to play with their cousins.

Ju Ju Be Giveaway

I am addicted to Ju Ju Be bags. They are hands-down the perfect diaper bags. And with so many styles and patterns, they can be used for absolutely anything beyond diapering. You should check them out if you're not familiar. I only have one right now, a Citrus Sorbet BeAll, but DH says I can order more as a new baby/christmas/v-day gift so I am planning on also getting a Midnight Eclipse Packabe and (hopefull) a Blue Bouquet BeSmart. The BeSmarts are being discontinued so you can get them for 40% off at www.littledudesanddivas.com. If you like the bags, you will definitely be excited about a giveaway sponsored by LD&D. You can win the BeSet (a set of three small hand bags) in one of the new patterns for summer. Check it out over at From One Mommy to Another's blog.

Glorious Snow!

We have been hoping all season for a good snowfall and it finally came. We have enjoyed the snow a lot--the kids love it. Chris was able to take the day off yesterday and today to play outside with them. Here are some pictures of our snow fun!Anna loves her new snow boots! She didn't take them off all evening Monday after Chris brought them home from work.

Chris made the kids a snowman yesterday and today he was a bit snowed in.

You can't see it very well, but there is a little pile of snow in front of Anna. She said said she was making a snowman.Anna was so happy with yesterday's little bit of snow.

Scott is king of the hill!Anna really wants to be able to make snow balls.

LOST is back!

It's finally here--the start of the fifth season of LOST. I watched the series premiere of this show four years ago and was hooked from the start. I haven't missed an episode and have been reviewing the dvd's the past few weeks while feeding the baby so I am totally set for the new episode tonight. I love the mystery and confusion. I enjoy not being totally sure of what's going on or where things are heading. The possibilities are fascinating and I love searching for new theories. This is the only tv show I am really into, but for the next four months I will eagerly await each Wednesday evening.

Scott did it!

After letting the issue rest for the afternoon, I began to ask a few questions this evening about Anna's hair cut. I asked her why she would cut her hair, not really expecting to get much of an answer. She responded first by telling me that the scissors cut her hair. I acknowledged that, yes, she did indeed use scissors. Then she said, very simply, "Scotty did it." I was a bit surprised, as this was the first time he had been mentioned in connection with the incident. So, knowing that she could be making this up, I turned to him and asked him if he did. He told me that he had, in fact, been the one to cut most of her hair! I was quite stunned, as it would not have occurred to me in a million years that he would have done this. She was the one with the scissors in her hand when I walked down on the scene after all. But, now that I think about it, there were some things that just didn't make sense that I was too upset to be concerned with at the time. Primarily, they had not been left alone for very long and that was a lot of hair for her to cut in that time. She can use the scissors, but not very efficiently. Also, most of her hair was piled up in the middle of the table, and not strewn about the floor around her. And of course, there is the fact that it was a mostly even cut, except for a couple of wisps in the back that were missed. Here I had been thinking all day that it was a good cut for a two-year-old, when apparently it was done by a six-year-old. He has been punished, but I do have to chuckle a bit now when I think about it. He told me, "I just wanted to see if she would like a hair cut." Chris and I, along with her aunt and Grandmas, are sad about the missing locks, but on Scott's behalf, I will say that Anna seems pleased with her new do.

Tuesday returns with a vengeance

Last week I blogged about how I dislike Tuesdays and then last Tuesday turned out to be a pretty dull day. Today I let my guard down and had no expectations for the day, good or bad. I made Scott and Anna lunch and then turned on Balto, which was airing on HBO. Generally a movie we don't own holds their attention pretty well. I had to come upstairs to change Lizzie's diaper. She began to seem drowsy and the older ones were being relatively quiet downstairs so, assuming they were simply enjoying their movie, I held Elizabeth for a bit while she began drifting off to sleep. It was such a nice, peaceful few minutes.

Suddenly I was brought back to reality when Scott excitedly hollered at me from downstairs, "Mom, I can cut my hair!" In a flash I realized what was going on. I had purchased a two-pack of safety scissors (a complete misnomer, as nothing is safe in the hands of a two-year-old) last week, thinking it would be a good idea for the kids to develop good scissor skills. Apparently, Scott had gotten his scissors out, which could only mean that Anna had hers as well.

I know that Scott knows better than to cut his hair so I instantly made the conclusion that he had probably only made one snip to his hair, which he then immediately confessed too. I, correctly, figured that he was only doing this because he was seeing his little sister get away with cutting her own hair. Why he didn't tell on her, I will never understand, as he is a fabulous tattle-tale.

By the time I safely put the baby down and rushed down the stairs, it was too late. Anna had already cut all of her hair, save for two wisps in the back. She cut at least six inches off all the way around.

I was devastated. I admit, I have always been, probably too much, very proud of her beautiful, silky, long blond locks of hair. They are no more. She has given herself a bob. Here are the results.


These were taken immediately after the deed was done.













Here is the result after a bath. It's not nearly as bad as it could be. Actually, for a two-year-old, it's not bad at all. Maybe one day she'll be a beautician. In the meantime, I will still be mourning her beautiful, long rings of gold.

Tuesdays...

Tuesday is my least favorite day of the week. It is, naturally, a little difficult to roll out of bed on Monday, but usually Mondays are a nice change of pace from the busy weekend. But Tuesdays feel like they never end and the weekend is still so far away! Hopefully today won't be too bad.

Anna did sleep better the last two nights. She did not want her light off on Sunday night and consequently laid in bed awake for two hours before she finally let herself fall asleep. But she didn't wake up after that. Last night, she fell asleep on the couch before we had a chance to get her in bed, but she slept fine after we moved her. We did have her light off in her room and kept a light on outside her door. Twice we turned the light off when we got up with Elizabeth and Anna started to wake, but once the light was on again, she went right back to sleep. I hope the worst of our troubles are behind us.

Yesterday, while Elizabeth was taking her long nap, I got out Play-Doh and played with Anna and Scott. Here are some pictures of our fun!

Anna enjoyed playing with animals. This was a bunny.

The whole play-doh safari Anna and I made became a mountain.

This was my masterpiece!

Scott had fun playing Legos in his play-doh.

Bedtime

Anna is not sleeping well. For the last few weeks. She has been waking up in the middle of the night crying about various things. Sometimes she is asking for a toy or a light, but usually she is just upset. Most often she will settle down and go back to sleep after one trip to her room and a reminder that she already has everything she needs, but last night this became a much bigger problem. She began crying around 3 am and the only thing I could ever get her to tell me was, "Leave my door open!" This would be a simple problem to solve except her door was already open . She gradually became more and more upset, her crying escalating to screaming and then kicking her bed over and over. By four o'clock, her light was being left on and her door open, she had finally settled down. At this time however, Elizabeth needed to be fed. I was sitting in the rocking chair just outside of Anna's door feeding the baby and assumed Anna must have gone back to sleep because I had not heard a sound from her room.

After a few minutes of enjoying the quiet time with the baby, I learned I was wrong about my assumption. Anna had begun "reading" aloud a story book in her room. Even though it was after 4 in the morning, I admit I was tickled by this. I went and told Chris about it and we shared a chuckle and I sat back down in the rocking chair. After a few more minutes, I heard Anna get out of bed. She had decided it was play time and was now playing with the noisiest toy in her room--an SUV for her dollhouse family that has a horn and blaring radio. By this time Elizabeth and I were wide awake so we went into Anna's room and enjoyed a bit of middle-of-the-night playtime. In a short time, I was able to redirect towards quieter toys and talk her back into bed.

The baby was still wide awake so I decided to go downstairs and relax on the couch and turn on the television. I enjoyed an episode of LOST on DVD and Elizabeth drifted off to sleep. About the same time, Anna began crying again. I heard Chris go in and tell her to quiet down and go back to sleep. His attempts were not successful so I put Elizabeth back to bed and stood in Anna's doorway until she went back to sleep. In summary, we were up for nearly three hours in the middle of the night, crying, playing, and having t.v. time.

At the store this afternoon I bought Anna a new nightlight. I have also cleaned up her room, hoping bare floors are less inviting in the wee hours of the morning. She had a good nap this afternoon so I know she will not be overtired for bedtime. I'm hoping last night will be have been the last time we go through all of that!

On another subject, Elizabeth is one month old today! I cannot believe how much she has grown but how small she still is.

The Holidays are Over

Well, the holidays are officially over in the Shearier house. I have finally taken the tree down and packed away the decorations. Usually I do this a day or two after Christmas, but this year I wasn't in a hurry. OK, to be completely honest, I was just feeling lazy and unmotivated. But, it's finally done. And it is nice how the house seems to actually increase in square footage after the tree is gone. I had forgotten how big our living room actually is. I think I could use a couple new pieces of furniture...

This coming week will be Chris's first full week of work in a month. I'm sure it will seem extra long to all of us. Hopefully we can easily get back in the habit of doing some schoolwork and eating a decent dinner every day. I've enjoyed not needing to cook a full meal with leftovers for him to have for lunch.

I hope everyone's first full week of 2009 passes smoothly!

This New Year

Happy New Year! Most of my friends on MySpace are now using blogger so I am joining them. It seems appropriate to start a new blog on New Year's Day. Because my two oldest children are staying with their Mamaw this week, I actually have a bit of time to get started.

I've never been one to make New Year's resolutions (it seems like setting yourself up for disappointment) but I think it's a good idea this year. For the past few years we have had an event we were planning for or expecting (a move, a new baby, or a new house). But this year there are no major events on the horizon to work towards, so I would like to focus on changing some of the everyday details of our life.

To start with, I would love to give each of the kids a little bit of undivided attention. Even if it's only a few minutes, I think they deserve to know there will be time for them, when they don't hear, 'Not now,' or, 'Quiet please--I'm putting the baby to sleep.' They should get a few minutes when they can tell me the whole story and I will look at them while they talk instead of hurrying them along with, 'Uh-huh,' and a head-nod.

This will be my first of many goals. Maybe by taking them one at a time, at the end of the year I can look back pleased with how I've grown as a wife, mother, and Christian, and not be disappointed with myself and putting the same things on a list next January 1.