Moments I wish I could stick in a canning jar and preserve forever...

Mcqueen: Mic! Help. Fish. (trying to "unstick" a fish toy)
Mic: (a few feet away playing with her baby) I can help, I can help!
Mcqueen delivers the toy into her hands and she finagles it free and calmly hands it back, no pulling, pushing, shoving, or fighting over who will play with the fixed toy.
Mcqueen: Tanku, Mic, Tanku
Mic: (moving back to her own game) Your welcome.

This was a real life conversation had by my two and four year olds yesterday! This is not a typical scenerio in my life...I think of it more as a glimpse of hope. God letting me know that there really is hope that, by the grace of God, my children will become kind, caring, helpful, Godly, law-abiding citizens someday rather than the bickering, selfish, stubborn kind of people that no one enjoys being around.
I had more to say about this, but it will have to wait, ...my intervention is urgently needed in the living room where trouble is brewing over who has rights to a chair...

What a Guy!

My little mister is the personification of language in explosion. It is such a blast! But yesterday really took the cake for me! We have a little book that teaches the alphabet in sign language, one letter on each page along with lots of pictures. He and I were pointing out objects that he knows--apple, baby, cat, car, dog, pizza, rabbit...etc. When we get to the page for "O" rather than point at something in the picture he pointed at the letter and declared "O!". And then just in case I didn't hear, he proudly repeated himself several times. All I can do is laugh! :o) I have no idea where or when my 1yr. 8mo. old taught himself the letter O. I have been working on the alphabet with his big sister...when he sleeps his afternoon nap in a seperate room!

And since I realized I've kind of been slacking on pictures here's a recent Sunday morning shot. They DO get along with each other...once in a while! ;o)

About Talking

My son is 1yr. 7mo. old. I have noticed that he is talking...a lot! So, I decided last week to try and write down everything that I heard him say. This is what I heard,
No
Mama
Papa
Hi
Hola
More
Stop
Ball
Hat
Voy
Fish
Moo
Boy
Milk
Brush
Jump
Stool
Baby
Bebe
Water
Agua
Down
Sock
Apple
Banana
Cookie
Bye-bye
Gracias
All Done
Coche
A Book
Ketchup
Hot Dog
Up-up
Abre
Backpack
Baa Baa
Meow
Tostada
Watch Dora
I Know

And this is not an exhaustive list of his vocabulary! I am very happy to see that while he definitely understands both, English is dominating his expressive communication so far.
...Even though I know that his big sister is not a fair point of comparison I cannot help but compare their development and just laugh in amazement at this kid. Its so fun to listen to him talk! He also talks in running sentences, but I usually don't understand a word of it yet. Its so much fun. Oh, and get this, his favorite song,...every single time I ask him what he would like me to sing for him next, he requests the backpack song from Dora. ...Hee, hee...don't ask!
I will say that we are definitely in the market for some boyish cartoons on DVD! : )

More Ramblings

My days just seem to run together lately...good grief! Has it really been over a week since I last posted anything? Well...I have all these great pictures...but they are still in the camera and so I can't post them and I have been nothing but busy, busy, busy with all that life entails. Its unbelievable how time slips right on by.
Last week we had another excursion to the hospital. We left home at 6am and got back at 5pm. Eleven hours! We saw the speech specialist who was pleased with Mic's general progress and gave helpful, practical tips for how to keep on working. I love appointments that go like that! And after a tooth and nail fight we finally got into the Endocrinologist (sp??? is that right in Eng.?) By the time I knew for sure that they would see us that day and that I hadn't wasted the whole day there in vain I was already tired. Then came a weigh and measure routine that was out of the ordinary and Mic came unglued. By the time we actually got to the doctor I was down right exhausted. This was an evaluation, so all we know for the moment is that she is tiny...oh wait, we already knew that! And that we will have massive blood work done before the next visit and then maybe we will know something new. And while I am dreading Mic's blood draw HORRIBLY I am still SO GLAD its blood and not urine that they want, but...I'll have to tell THAT story another day! : )
Mon. Feb. 9 we ended the second 15 day feeding therapy stint with Mic. I know I haven't really said much about it. ...I am having rough time getting my emotions processed lately in all that entails my baby girl's oral feeding. So...its easier to just try not to go there. ...except, ummmm, I have to deal with it all the time every single day, so there is no escape. Anyway, as soon as I can figure out how to use the graph maker (help Lorioux!!!) I will post her therapy graph for those who are interested in numbers. And we're fine,...really we are. There are some rescueable things happening, even good things. I just need to "deal" with this again and I'm struggling a bit. But even in my despair and struggle I have enough sense to know that "all things (really do) work for the good of those who love Him" and that He'll pull off something great in us just as soon as I can see straight again.
So in the mean time I need to run. We've got a killer week ahead with all kinds of fun and not enough minutes in each day. Tomorrow we see the ENT, and sometime this week my BIL will be swinging through to spend a day or two with us, and we somehow need to get another extra bed in here before that happens, and I need to blend up more BD, and, and, and........ ; )

COMING SOON:
The photo that I wanted to post BEFORE Feb. 14 of the valentine I got from GOD!!!!!!!

Loving the language!

This morning two little rascels were in my bed with me. Mcqueen got me square in the forhead with the cell phone, "accidently". It really hurt for a minute there. I sat rubbing the spot and groaning a bit. Mic reached over patted my hand and said clear as a bell, "Don cry, mommy, you OK, you OK". ; )

SPEECH

Good things are happening in our house in the realm of speech! PTL

A couple sundays ago while we were getting ready for church Mic was watching her Cedermont Kids video.....and.....(drumroll) "sang" along on Jesus Loves Me!!! There is something about coordinating tones and words or actions and words that she just hasn't been able to work out yet, but she was hitting at least three or four words of the song right on time along with the viedeo! ....yes, I cried...

She also struggles with stringing understandable words together unless its on a "repeat after me" basis. However, there was a morning last week that I had to go into her room before she was up and accidently bumped the light switch. She rolled over in bed a little bit anoyed by the light and asked, "wha mommy doing?" And that is officially her first independant three word sentence ever!

And finally, the photo below...

She has hated binkys ever since her first surgery in her mouth around 3 mo. of age. But yesterday she asked me for her speech toys box, pulled this out and started sucking on it, pretending she was a "baby". ST told me to include it in her box becasue the sucking motion will help with.....I can't remember what, but something to do with speech development. I said, "well, she hates them, but I will throw it in there just for kicks". And lo and behold! Mic had a blast playing, and I got to check speech therapy off my list for the day. Hooray!!!

And while we are bragging, little Mcqueen has me floored as well. Within the last two weeks he has added, Uh-oh, "mo" (more), and No to his repertoire. We have been dealing with big sis' speech delay for so long that this feels to me, like a one yr. old doing rocket science. Yep, I'm feelin' pretty proud!

P.S. If you are confused by my son's nickname you need to watch "Cars". A funny side note, we planned that both their names start with "D" but that both their nicknames starts with "M" is a total coincedence.