Big Sister Love

Sam LOVES Sophia

Sophia LOVES Sam

They make quite the pair.  I loved having Sophia home last Friday and Monday....she was my best helper!!!! She truly has the magic touch...when all else fails....if I put Sam in Sophia's lap.....he almost always calms down!

Sam can be stingy with his smiles...but he gives lots to his Big Sister.  Tonight when we put Joseph in bed Sophia asked if she could hold Sam.  We placed him in her arms while she was sitting on her bed.  When we came back in...she had tucked him in right next to her and they were holding hands.  Sam was just smiling at her...with those adoring eyes.  So sweet....and though I didn't have my camera handy...it's a memory I won't forget!

I'm so proud of this little girl.  I was a bit worried when we brought Sam home....she had been soooo excited about this new baby, but  rebelled a bit just by acting up a few times ... I think all she wanted was a chance to snuggle and love on this little guy all by herself.  Not only is she a great big sister...but she is also a great student.  Her report from her teacher on conference day last week was glowing.  And today she came home and told me she volunteered and was chosen to read a reading at Mass this Friday.  The reading is VERY difficult...words I barely can pronounce.  She told me she was nervous and asked if I thought she would do okay....I told her I had no doubt she would do wonderfully!  Not even seven yet...and already so grown up!  So thankful I have her!

Running on empty

Our little man has been with us for a little over two weeks now.  Hard to believe how quickly your world can be turned upside down.  We are slowly getting settled in with our new little one....while still trying to keep up with Big Sister and Big Brother.  Sam is already in love with Sophia and Joseph.  He loves to stare at Sophia's blonde hair and he is usually remarkably quiet when she is holding him.  I think he misses her when she is at school:)

Joseph is the best big brother.  He is constantly telling me..."that baby is so cute."  He doesn't quite understand why he cries so much, but he is always willing to be my helper during the day.  Learning to talk in a quiet voice has been his biggest challenge.  

Brett and I are exhausted....we are slowly getting used to running on little sleep....Sometimes the last thing I want to do is pull out my camera....BUT.... I have never been too great about documenting things when the babies were newborn.  SOOO... I am making every effort to do this with Sam.  

Here are a few pics I snapped of him when we had some mommy and Sam time the other afternoon.  

http://www.flickr.com/photos/59600694@N02/show/


And of course when Mr. Sam is napping....I have my buddy to keep me busy!  Joseph has been such a big helper....and always finds something he wants me to do with him (especially when I have a mountain of laundry to fold:))   This week he has been really into playing the "Sorry" game.... I thought I could trick him and make him think that the game was over once one player got ONE of their pawns in their Home space. But nope....he is too smart for that...he knew the game wasn't over until all 4 pawns made it home!! Darn!

Of course I have to get a little baking in when I can...and Joseph was so excited to help this morning....He asked if he could wear a chef hat...  I guess I'll have to get him one!  Here he is making some cinnamon breakfast muffins with me.  You'll have to check out www.cookieconstruction.blogspot.com to see the end result ( hopefully I will have time to post pics soon!)

Step one and two:  dip muffins in butter (yes that is a bowl of melted butter mmmm) and roll in cinnamon sugar mixture

Step three:  Bat those insanely beautiful eyelashes

Step 4:  Sneak a taste

So besides the car rides to school and birthday parties....we pretty much have been homebodies!  Tomorrow I will venture out for Sophia's conference and Sam's 2nd doctor visit.  Hoping the doctor has some advice for Sam's tummy troubles....and hoping his weight has gone up!!

Need to get busy on the room changes upstairs and the car situation....and need to find a size 13.5 Twinkle Toe tennis shoe for S before her heart breaks!!!!!  Looks like one of those energy drinks may just be calling my name:)

Welcome Home!

We are home!!! And with a new little addition!  It has been a whirlwind.....happened so fast....we still haven't caught our breath!!! We are already sleep deprived.....a little out of sorts....but already so in love with our new little man!  

I admit... I didn't get the lighting right on these pictures.... so...black and white it is.  The expressions on Sophia and Joseph's faces, though, tell it all!

Welcome home Samuel William!

Proud

So... it has been a few weeks since I have posted...but that is not to say that life has been quiet and mundane around here.... Lots going on...Never a dull moment.  The last few weeks have been full of ups and downs.  C'est la vie...right?  Besides the adoption roller coaster....much of our time has been consumed by intense potty training sessions....and (knock on wood) I think we may just be turning over a new leaf. I think my little man is FINALLY getting the hang of it.  I just about melt...when he potties and then says.."mommee...are you so proud of me?"  I think I just need to carry a video camera on my hip....just to capture all the funny things he says during the day.  

I also forced myself to fill out the preschool registration form for next year....oh... how I will dread sending this little guy to school next year...even if it is for 2 short mornings a week.  He has become my sidekick....my buddy...my grocery shopper....even my cleaner!  Love...love love him...and I will miss our time together tremendously next year!!!  

Of course... he does keep me on my toes...if I'm not watching he will  allow Willie to eat his leftover snack...ziplock bag included, he will press the buttons on the washer when it is still going, he will roll down his car window when it is 21 degrees outside....and yes... he will even stick sister's small Polly Pocket toys up his nose (lesson learned: can NOT clean and vacuum and take my eyes off him unless he is napping!!!)

I am also beaming  over Miss Sophia's acting abilities.  The first grades at her school had their E-I E-I OOPS musical performance last night.  The play was about a group of farm animals who were upset that their cow did not moo.  She was quite the performer....singing with her mouth wide open, dancing....and doing all the moves with not one ounce of stage fright.  She is fearless.  She even had a short speaking part...and rambled it off perfectly.  I am so proud of this little girl.  I desperately wanted to get some good pictures during the performance so you could see the excitement in her face...but I was sitting too far away:( and didn't have my close up lens.  So you really have to look for the little cute blonde girl in all of her yellows (dressed like a chick).

Posing...pre-performance

Her biggest fan waiting for the show to begin...

Getting ready for her line...

"If you can't solve this problem, there's one thing left to try!"

And just a few more pictures that I just haven't had time to post.  During one of our many snow days....we found this fun little activity from this amazing blog where you use a pipe cleaner, and a mixture of borax and water to make a crystalized snowflake.  Here the kids are preparing the solution before we hung the pipe cleaner to soak overnight. 

Here is what we awoke to the next morning..

Can you see the crystals??? Pretty neat trick:)

And when the snow days were over and we were back to the school routine...we caught up on our memory game skills.  Joseph is especially fond of our new valentine's memory game.

It was refreshing to have some sunny weather and warmer temperatures today.  Sometimes we just need a little break from old man winter to give us the energy to "push through" till Spring.  Even little J is asking "When will it be pringtime so I can eat my "dramwich" (sandwich) outside?"

Growth

Just a year ago....our little guy looked like this....



Here are Joseph's 2-year stats:
Weight: 26 lbs 4 oz (26th percentile)
Lenght: 33 inches (14th percentile)


Today....our BIG 3 year old looks like this:

He had his 3 year well check this morning!  Sister got to tag along too....she's been a bit under the weather and we had her checked for strep...which was negative...whew!!! 


Anyway, little J 's three year stats have him at 
weight:  32 lbs (50%)
height:  36 inches (nurse said this was 15%, but doctor said 25%...so not sure)


He has done some growing this year!!!  Now I just have to get him interested in this whole potty thing....consistently....oh my....this may be a chore:)


He was so chatty with the nurses and doctor today that I hardly got a word in.  Sooo funny!  He remembered watching me have my blood pressure taken at my doctor and thought it was pretty neat that they did it to him too.  He was a bit upset that Sophia got to have her temp taken...so after voicing this concern to the nurse (whom he referred to as "Doctor") he got to have his taken too!  


This little guy is a charmer..and says the funniest things...and the sweetest things.  Today I was getting him ready for a nap and he gave me a hug and said " You're the best mudder in the whole wide world!"  Melts my heart!


The best part of today's appointment....NO Shots!! Yipee!  Now if we can just get Sophia and Daddy feeling better...we might be almost back to normal:)

Climb Aboard!

Birthdays are a big deal at our house....and it's always a rather daunting task for me to decide what kind of party we are going to have for the kids' birthdays.  Joseph kept going back and forth between a Lightning McQueen party and a Thomas Train party.  We opted for a train party since we thought a train table would be a really fun present for this little guy!  And since I'm not a huge fan of character parties... I thought we would just have a train party with a little touch of Thomas!

I have a TON of pictures to share...I guess I need to learn how to incorporate them all into a storyboard format....(begging for help here....)...But for now I'll just have to post them individually....sorry about the lengthy post...but had to capture it all!

First...the decorations!

The train carrying the party favors....Thomas cookies and lollipop cookies

The invitation...

We celebrated his birthday a day early... so everyone could be there!

Where  I wanted him to pose for  a picture...but he kept running off...:)

Okay...so I got a few...

A cute picture of the two of them (pre-party) watching to see what kind of truck the sponge capsule would grow into.

A few pictures of him I had taken over the past year...we hung them from the "Joseph" tree!

Love those Handy Manny pants...too bad he still prefers his diapers....oh my....need to get in serious potty training mode and quick!!

Next up:  some of the treats!

sugar cookies...of course

bite-sized sour cream pound cake cuppies....you can find the recipe here.

The chocolate cake with vanilla buttercream

The PRESENTS

What a lucky little boy...so many darling clothes and wonderful toys...so many people who love this little guy!  Here he is opening his new big wheel from Yiayia and Pappou (too bad he's still a little short...those little legs just can't yet reach those pedals!!!)  It won't be long though!

The talking train station from mama, daddy and sophia

And the big surprise unveiled beneath a lovely white sheet...  A TRAIN TABLE!
He was so quick to see it...that I couldn't take the picture fast enough (thus the blur :( )

Big sister showing him the ropes!!! Poor Sophia didn't feel great, but you wouldn't have known it!  She was pretty excited for her little brother!

Daddy did such a nice job putting it together!!  Too bad it doesn't look this neat and organized now:)

Tried to use some different settings on my camera here...big mistake....it would have been so cute with the right ISO and without that blur.  This mama needs lots more practice!!!

We decided to take the cake with us to Fritz's! Sophia and Joseph had never been here to eat...and it was such a fun treat for them!  Joseph was enamored with the train that moved along the tracks above to bring you your food.  It was so fun to watch his eyes light up and see Sophia get so excited when the train brought her food!  At one point....Joseph physically turned my head half way around so I could watch the train that was coming from behind me.  I guess he wanted to make sure I saw it!!!! SOOOO Cute!!

Watch out...look how close he got to that candle...but he got the job done!

We all had some pretty blue lips after eating this cake!

Joseph was just thrilled that all of his favorite people joined him for dinner!  

The Smith table....

The Kokoruda's minus Thea (who was taking the picture) and with Sophia!

The birthday boy's table with Auntie Eryn, Omi and Papa.  Can you see everyone's reflection in the window watching as he got ready to make his wish?  Thanks for the picture, Thea!

And of course...we can't forget Willie....who is always part of the fun!  Thanks Thea for getting this one...LOVE it!

Whew!  Hope you had a great day little Joseph!  You were so excited...well into the night!!!  Can't believe you are THREE.  Hope your year is full of fun!!!!! We love you sooo much!