Farah added to the night time prayer, "Dear God, please make all of my clothes loose."

October 2013

Well, I think Blake really is potty trained. He hasn't had an accident all week and today is Wednesday. This is going so much better than I expected. The first week he was perfect at daycare, but bad at home, this week he's done well both at home and at daycare.
Lenah has been having a bad rash and has been fussy in the evenings both yesterday and today. We're afraid it's a food reaction (maybe dairy?). I'm going to change her diet and see what happens. She's also had diarrhea on and off for the last two weeks. In better news, she said "hot" tonight. She definitely tries to say other words as well, such as "dad," but she can clearly say "duck." She is also turning into a climbing machine, but still not walking.
Farah:

Very fun day

Today was an exceptionally good Saturday. I ran the Zombie 5k race at Clearbrook park with Kristen. After surviving the zombie apocalypse, I went back in time with my family to the Civil War. Heath, Joyce, Ron and I took the kids to the Cedar Creek Battle reenactment in Middletown. I loved all of the period costumes, plus there were soldiers on horseback, real cannons, and the re enactors' authentic tents and cook fires. The battlegrounds were full of tents selling period items. Farah got a beautiful handkerchief, fan, and parasol.
One funny moment between the race and the reenactment was when Blake came downstairs naked and glistening. He had coated himself with Vaseline from Lenah's room. I called to Farah to see what her brother had done. She gasped when she saw him and said,"you look beautiful!"
In less exciting news, potty training sucks! I think he's doing well and he turns around and pees all over the place two minutes after going on the potty. He does so well at Trisha's house; I don't know what her secret is!

Fall 2013

This fall Lenah has said her first word, duck, as in the plastic duck in her tub. Blake has started potty training; it's going great at Trisha's and not so great at home. He's good for at least one major poop in his pants each night. Farah is doing well in kindergarten and has a huge crush on a boy named Braeden. Tonight she wrote a list of things she liked about him and drew a picture of the two of them holding hands.

A few cute things to write down before I forget:
1. One afternoon in early October Farah was still up after the others went down for their nap. Blake had been a handful and we speculated that he would be a difficult teenager. This came from the fact that she had been playing teenager all day, which is her most favorite pretend game. Farah said that Lenah would be a good teenager. I reminded her that we really didn't know what Lenah would be. Just because she is a good baby doesn't tell us what type of teenager or adult she'll be. Farah agreed, and said, "yeah, she could end up being Spanish." Hmm...well, that's probably one of the few things we can guarantee won't happen. She continued, "we'd all be like, what are you saying, we can't even understand you!"

2. On the day Blake turned 2 1/2 years old (October 12th), he was so funny all day. That morning he told me, "you coffee smells fabulous!" When Heath tried to change his diaper after lunch he screamed, "I'm too busy right now!!!!" At naptime, he just started walking up the stairs saying that he needed to rest. He went into his big boy underwear after naps and did great that afternoon and the next day. He will start to refuse to get on the potty until you remind him that there's a treat involved. Unfortunately, the potties are all designed for girls. He's got to push his little boy parts down so he doesn't pee on the floor, or I have to help out to make sure there's no mess. I was trying to help him that first day, and he said, "No, stop! She doesn't like that." He had no idea what was so funny. One more cute, but not so well behaved Blake moment, came when I asked him to repeat what bedtime book he wanted to me, since I couldn't understand him with his binki in his mouth. He shouted at me, "I just told you, Little Critters!"

Quick update on all of the kids:
1. Farah is doing well in kindergarten. The teacher told us in conferences that she is a great listener and helper. She saw her silly side once and was shocked, of course we weren't! She still doesn't like dressing for the fall weather. Last year she hated panties, any waistbands, and socks. This year she's okay with panties, as long as she can wear them around the top of her thighs instead of her actual bottom. She is fine with pants, as long as they're the soft legging type pants, which is fine by me, but she hates shirts, unless she can pull the straps off of her shoulders. She has ripped many a dress and shirt by tugging on it incessantly. It looks like the Incredible Hulk has been dressing her lately.
Farah is still highly imaginative and plays great by herself. She's a good big sister and very helpful. I would definitely describe her as sensitive, sometimes to the point of being over dramatic, artistic, and intelligent. She has friends and gets along well with others, but she definitely relishes her alone time. She and Blake bicker, but they can get along very well too. She and Lenah adore one another.

2. Blake is a very funny little guy who is developing quickly. Just recently I've noticed a change in his reasoning and language abilities. He's just starting to seem older to me. He can pedal his tricycle, as of late August/early September. It takes a very long time to get around the cul-de-sac still though. He has a great imagination, he loves books, and he plays well alone or with others. He often plays monster truck, pretends to be a dinosaur, or enjoys flying his toy planes around. He adores Brent and Avery, and I think he'd move in with the Curtis family tomorrow and never look back. Blake is extremely cuddly and sweet. He can be very caring and compassionate, but he also has a hellacious temper. He can scream louder than anyone I've ever met when he's offended. He has a very hard time taking no for answer. He's also a total sugar addict. If you ask him what he wants to eat at any time of the day, the answer would most likely be "ice cream." I would best describe Blake as funny, charming, and temperamental.

3. Lenah really makes me wonder what kind of kid she'll be. She's seriously the most laid back, sweet natured baby I've ever had the pleasure of knowing. She is also really developing in leaps and bounds in the last few weeks. She reaches for me now, she understands more words and simple commands. She does get frustrated and doesn't like to have things she's chewing on taken away, but she recovers quickly. She has a bit of a sense of humor. One day when I was taking out the trash and all three were playing quietly, I came back in to find that someone had left the gate opened and Lenah had made it to the top of the stairs in the short time I was gone. She was at the top laughing hysterically! She is also very easy to make laugh and very cuddly. She has the best happy face (pictured above), she scrunches her nose and snorts.
Lenah is also a fabulous eater and has very healthy tastes, unlike her brother! She does beg for any sweet treat that her siblings might have though. Lenah is sweet, adaptable and cuddly with a sense of humor. Actually, I would say that all three have the sense of humor in common and their ability to play well on their own. They all also enjoy books (they get that from me!).

For Halloween this year Farah is planning on being Clawdeen Wolf (from Monster High), my fear is that this is really a hooker costume with werewolf ears. Blake is wearing his wolf costume from last year and Lenah will be a lamb-very symbolic.