The 5th of July

Because the 4th of July fell on a weekend this year, Andy got to stay home with us on the 5th of July too.   We decided to take advantage of more family time, including a trip to the park.  It was interesting because most of the kids were there with dads, instead of the moms that you usually see at the park.  I had fun people watching... and fun taking some pictures of Charlie as he ran around.

Charlie spent quite a bit of time on the swings, where he has been practicing swinging on his back and on his belly in addition to the usual seated position.  He has also been working on pumping to go as high as he can and jumping off at the end.

Charlie is also getting more brave with the rope climb structure that they have at the park.  He still requires some coaching from us on where to step next when he's coming back down though!

Meanwhile, Andy and I took turns entertaining Ephram.  Ephram was having a grand time in the shade of his stroller, playing with his sunglasses!

We left the park when it was time for us to go make dinner.  We had a great fourth of July weekend, and were all sad that it was over... but we also knew that our trip to California would start in just a few more days!

Fourth of July 2010

This is how my Fourth of July started... with a smiley three-toothed six month old ready to play.  It was a great way to start my day.  After we got Ephram dressed, and did a little photo shoot (see last post) Ephram and I headed downstairs to make a good patriotic breakfast... Blueberry muffins and strawberries.  Red, white and blue.  Then we went upstairs to wake up the other two boys in the house, who were both in great moods as well.

Our day passed relatively quick.  It was one of the cloudiest and coldest Fourth of July's that we have had in the twelve years we've lived in Washington state.  I think the only Fourth of July that was more dreary was our first one here... which we spent in the rain at Gasworks Park.  We stayed inside doing our own things, including baking snickerdoodles, until evening arrived.  When it was finally time for Andy to make dinner, Charlie and Boone went outside to help him and Ephram stayed inside with me while I prepped the cold foods.

Then I put Ephram in our front carrier, and we headed outside to join neighbors in our cul-de-sac.  This is the first year that I was not paranoid about our house burning down, for two reasons.  First, we have our new non-shake roof.  Second, it was cold and looked as if it could rain.  I was much more relaxed then normal and had fun watching Charlie run around with excitement... waiting for the sun to start setting so that we could have the real fireworks.

Of course, once this finally happened Ephram was out cold... and it was way past his bedtime.  I headed inside with him so that he could be warm and cozy while he slept.  Andy stayed outside with Charlie as the real festivities were about to begin.

Did I mind being inside during our cul-de-sac's show?  Nope.  This time last year I was stressed out and pregnant.  This year I was amazingly relaxed and admiring my peaceful six month old, who only stirred once during the hours of fireworks that ensued.  I also discovered that the show from inside my house is even better than outside.  I had a view of at least ten little firework shows from the windows of the house.  It was amazing.  The pictures below don't do it justice, but they may give you an idea of how bright it was in there.  The first two are out of my bedroom window, and the last one is out of Ephram's nursery window.

Eventually Charlie fell asleep outside, and Andy brought him in and to bed.  He was thoroughly entranced with the fireworks and still talks about it, and the sparklers he got to hold.  Andy headed back out to converse with a couple of the neighbors and see if he could help clean up a little bit.

When he came in an hour or so later, he told me that they had saved a house from catching fire.  Apparently, one of our neighbors roofs had a small blaze going that Andy saw from the street.  He went to go ring the doorbell in case anyone was inside, and another one of our neighbors climbed up on the roof to put the fire out.  It turns out that our neighbor was not home, so who knows how large the flame could have become before it was discovered.  This all made me that much more glad that my shake roof is gone!

I loved this Fourth of July and can't wait to pass more holidays with my family!

Fourth of July Photos

I have started a tradition of buying Old Navy's flag shirts for the kids on the Fourth of July.  This is the third flag shirt that Charlie has had to wear.  It is always one of his favorite shirts throughout the year.  This year, as I searched for a shirt for Ephram, they had this cute "My First 4th of July" one to pick from.  I figured these shirts presented a great opportunity for a mini photo-shoot so that we could remember what the boys looked like on the holiday this year.  The photo above was my favorite one of both boys.  Here are a few more I liked.  (I'm not a proud mom who thinks her kids are the cutest in the world or anything.)

This holiday also came a few short days after Ephram turned six months old... and, he decided to wake up bright and early at 6am.  So, I decided to take some photos of just him wearing his first "first holiday" shirt.

Yeah, I take a lot of photos of my kids... but how can I do any different when they are so cute?  It's a good thing they both like being photographed!

Goodbye Gwen

One of Charlie's little friends will be moving to Colorado soon.  He will be sad to see her go.  Actually, we'll all be sad to see their whole family go.  Gwen's mom was one of the first friends that I made in Washington.   We will definitely miss them when they are gone... but we are also excited to hear about their new adventures.

Another one of Gwen's friends had an idea to throw her a surprise going away party.  How cute is that?  We met with a few other little kids at a McDonald's to surprise her.  I think she was more confused then anything at first, but what four year old doesn't enjoy being celebrated?

I actually remembered to take my camera out for a brief moment... that must mean that things are getting more normal for me!

Ephram was there too... on his best behavior while at dinner.

Afterwards we piled back into the car and were headed to a Jump Planet.  But Ephram had tolerated as much as he could, and he melted down.  Feeding, cuddling and singing didn't soothe him - so we headed home.  I had to promise Charlie we'd go back to Jump Planet again soon.  Now he keeps asking me when Gwen is leaving.  I think he secretly hopes we can have another party for her!

Charlie's Haircut

When Charlie came to live with us he had a buzz cut.  It was not pretty.  So I let it grow out.  And grow and grow and grow.  I just kept giving him bowl cuts ... and not great ones, because I've never been good at cutting hair.  Especially not boy's hair.  When I cut Charlie's hair in May I decided it would be the last time... the next time he would go get it cut by someone who actually knew how to do it.  That time came in June.  And then a couple more weeks lapsed.  And his hair was longer than it has ever been.  Interestingly, in those couple of weeks I got more comments about how cute his hair was long than I ever have.  It was uncontrollable by the time we finally headed out to get it cut.  Here are some before pictures.  No, I didn't even bother to comb it that day... I figured there wasn't a point since it was about to be cut.

Charlie was so excited to get his hair cut.  And Ephram was napping.  I thought my timing was perfect.

Then we pulled up to the place closest to us.  I unpacked Ephram, got out the stroller and we all went in.  A little sign by the register said that their credit card machine was broken and that they were only accepting cash that day.  Yeah.  I don't carry cash.  And if I happen to have any, it's never more than $5.

Back into the car.

We drive down the road to the next place.  I unpack Ephram, get the stroller out, we head in.  What?  A 45 minute wait?  Seriously?  It was 11am on a Tuesday morning.

Back into the car.

We keep driving down the road.  Charlie is saying, "Mom am I still going to go to the cut shop to get my hair cut today?"

"Yep, we're still going to get your hair cut at the hair salon today."
"We have to turn around to go back to that cut shop!"
"Actually, they're called hair salons and luckily, there are a LOT of them on this street!"

We pull up to the next place that I see.  This time I am smarter.  As I get out of the car I peek strategically in the window.  I see no signs by the register.  I don't see anyone else getting their hair cut.  I unpack Ephram, get out the stroller and we head inside.

"Our stylist ran to get lunch and will be back in thirty minutes."

Back into the car.

"Mom, I need to go back to that cut shop to get my hair cut!"
"Charlie, there's one more hair salon across the street.  Let's try it.  If they aren't there we'll do it tomorrow."

We drive across the street.  I just take Ephram's car seat out this time.  Because he's napping and I don't want to wake him up.  I carry him in.

"One cut for your boy today?"
"Yes!"
"We'll be with you in about two minutes."

Finally!  And as an added bonus, this place had a little car that Charlie could sit in while his hair was cut.  He was almost too big for it, but he had fun making the wheels spin.  Charlie did really well while his hair was being cut and said that there was a "jungle" on the floor when he saw all of his hair there.

And Ephram slept almost the whole time, waking up happy about 5 minutes before we loaded him back into the car.

I think Charlie's new cut makes him look even older.  He does too.  He keeps telling us that he's ready to be 5 now!

Ephram at Six Months

Time seriously has sped up for us, and Ephram celebrated his half-year birthday on the final day of June.  Our little tyke is changing so swiftly we can hardly keep up.  Here is some information about Ephram at his six month birthday.  (And yes, his seven month birthday is only a week away... hopefully I'll be more successful at blogging about that one sooner!)

The Stats:
Height - 26 1/4 in (40th percentile)
Weight - 18 lbs, 11 oz (70th percentile)
Head - 46 1/2 cm (98th percentile)

Ephram has continued with his growth.  He has jumped percentiles in height and head circumference.  His doctor is very pleased with his progress and we were all reminiscing about our rocky start and remarking about how Ephram is a very different baby today.  Where I used to struggle so hard to get him to be interested in eating at all, now he would eat all day if it were possible!  His head is also quite large.  The sunglasses and hat we first bought for him are already too small...  he definitely inhereted the Boyce head size.

Milestones:
First blew "bubbles" - 22 Weeks
Able to sit (with support) - 23 Weeks
Moved into 9 month clothes - 23 Weeks

One of the first outfits we were gifted was a 9 month one-piece from my sister.  I think I was only 4 or 5 months pregnant when she sent it.  I remember looking at it throughout the pregnancy and imagining that my baby would someday be big enough to fit into it.  It seemed huge.  Now he wears it and it fits him perfectly.  It is so amazing to me how quickly a baby can grow!

Teeth:
Ephram had 3 teeth on his six month birthday.  His third, a top lateral incisor, came in the day he turned six months old.

Food:

Breastmilk
Rice Cereal
Peas

I gave in at five and a half months and started solids.  Ephram was so ready for it, and so close to the six month recommendation, that we decided to go ahead.  As solids were introduced, Ephram cut out his use of formula except for an occasional bottle.  So for milk, he is almost exclusively breastfed now.  This is another thing that I never would have imagined when he was a newborn.  The first vegetable he ate were peas.  He hated them.  We tried four more times and he would purse his lips so that he wouldn't have to eat anymore.  His expression as he tasted them was quite hysterical.

Favorites:
Itsy, bitsy spider (song)
Peek-a-who (book)
Jumperoo (activity center)
Ball (toy)

Nicknames:
Bug (I've started saving "monkey" for Charlie and using "bug" more for Ephram. It fits him well.)
Boo-boo
Remy

Here are some pictures from the two weeks before he turned six months old.

Yard Work

We love our backyard but are quite behind on yard work.  The past year has been so eventful that we have let it go more than we should have.  Over the past month we've been making a concerted effort to reclaim our yard.  Charlie has had fun helping with us and really enjoys pulling weeds.  He has been getting better at it, but even I was surprised at the size of this weed that he pulled out!

Pride and Prejudice

Confession #1: Although I consider myself a lover of books, I have never loved Pride and Prejudice.  Gasp!  I can hear the murmuring of any book lovers reading this.  Not love Pride and Prejudice?  How could it be?  Well...  I read it in 8th grade.  Maybe I was too young to understand the story.  But ever since then, not only had I never again lifted it from a shelf... I had also avoided all Jane Austen novels.

Confession #2: Postpartum has been very difficult for me.  I have really struggled, and am not going to go into it to great detail.  Suffice it to say that I have battled some postpartum depression and anxiety and just in the past month have felt an "awakening" of sorts.  I suddenly have found myself actually wanting to be out and about.  Problem is, when it has been so long since you have had a social life... they don't just materialize out of thin air.  Especially not when you have two kids that constrain your time.

Solution: Visiting teachers stopped by and just mentioned that they had recently started a book club.

The catch: They were meeting in three days to discuss the first book... you got it, Pride and Prejudice.

I found myself so excited at the idea of being out for an hour or two without the kids, and being part of a book club again, that I decided to attempt to read the book.  I really do love books, and I especially love book clubs.  So I figured it was time to visit Elizabeth and Mr. Darcy again, hoping for the best.  The library's copies were all checked out so I went to the book store and bought a copy.

In the past, before Ephram, reading a book in three days would not have been an issue.  But I really wasn't sure how I was going to squeeze it in between all of the baby care stuff.  The answer was easy.  I turned off the television.  Instead of watching tv while I fed the baby, I read my book.  I even read it outloud to him and to Charlie.  The result?  A very pleasant three days that included hours of more reading time then I would have otherwise had.

The surprise?  I loved it.  I couldn't put it down.  I even gave up my precious sleep one night and read it until 2am.  I was absorbed in this world that suddenly seemed to relate to everything going on around me.

Did I finish the book?  Not before the book club meeting.  I still had two chapters to go.  But it didn't matter.  I still had plenty to discuss about the book.  And I hurried home to finish it the next day.  Then I watched the BBC version of it, because it happened to be the version available on Netflix's "Watch Instantly".  It last five hours, and I watched it while I was nursing Ephram over the next few days.

I can't believe I ever disliked this book.  I think I need to read the rest of Jane Austen's works now!  But first I am reading the book for this month... Same Kind of Different as Me, which is proving to be just as good.