ONE

Esther turned one year old last Friday. I still can't believe how fast the time has gone by. It seems like yesterday that we were FLYING down the freeway trying to make it to the hospital, rushing inside, almost delivering in triage, and then three pushes later, out she came. Her life, much like her birth, has been a whirlwind. It has all happened so fast. Here's what she's up to...

- She LOVES to eat. Brian lovingly refers to her as the garbage disposal. She literally will eat ANYTHING. She already eats a wider variety of foods than Noah. And if you are eating something and not sharing with her, get ready for the screeching. She eats all table foods, no baby foods or formula. She is getting to the point where she doesn't want to be fed anything becasue she wants to do it herself (aka applesauce, yogurt and anything else that requires a spoon and is very messy). She eats breakfast, lunch, and dinner with a couple snacks in between. She does not like to go very long between eating sessions, and she will let you know when she is ready for more. In almost every other aspect of her life she is very laid back and not in any rush to accomplish new things, but when it comes to food... She is quite advanced. :)

- She is pulling up. She started doing that over Christmas. In the last few days, she has started letting go and standing on her own for a brief time. She can also walk, very slowly, behind our little push walker thing or with someone holding her hands. Slowly but surely she is getting there. I think she at least has a taste for walking and seems to want to do it.

- She takes two naps a day most days. Some days, she will scream or play through her morning nap, but most days she sleeps at least for a little bit. I am not ready to let go of the morning nap just yet. I just keep thinking about life in May and know it will come in handy then. She goes to bed at night around 7:30-8:00. Once she decides she is ready to go down, SHE IS READY. She does not want to play, she doesn't want to read books, she doesn't want to rock. She just wants you to put her in the bed and walk away. She has always been very good about going to sleep. She sleeps with her pacis. She likes to have one in her mouth and one in her hand. She seems way more attached to them at night than Noah was. Should be fun to take them away some day. :)

- She says a few words. I think she says Mama nad Dada, but it is never on command. She definitely says "Uh-Oh," "Go," and "Yea!" I think she says something that means banana also. We have been told that she also says 'ball,' ' hey,' and 'book,' but we have not witnessed these. Apparently she becomes much more talkative at my friend's house. I guess she figures we are stuck with her and there is no need to try to impress us. :) She also is very good at pointing to what she wants.

- She is very shy around people she doesn't know and large crowds, which is very different from her brother, but around us and those she is familiar with, she is pretty animated. It kind of makes you feel special when you see how quiet she is around others and know that if it were just you, she would be talking up a storm.

- She loves her family, but especially, her brother and her Daddy. She prefers me over others, but if Brian is around she does not want me at all. We were in a restaurant the other day and I was holding her. She saw him across the room and started fussing, pointing at him, and trying to get down. It is pretty sweet to watch her with Brian and see how excited she gets when he is around. Her other favorite person is Noah. They love each other so much and love to antagonize one another maybe even more. Esther seems all sweet and innocent, but the first thing she does when Noah wakes up, is go after his prized toy and act so proud of herself and victorious when he is screaming and crying that she is taking his stuff. It is a tiring but funny battle to watch.

- Her favorite toy right now is a purse that she got for her birthday that plays music and has a phone, mirror, bracelet, and credit card in it (starting her off early). She loves to pull all the pieces out and put them back in. Her favorite one is the phone and she loves to take the bracelet on and off too. She LOVES to dance. Anytime music is playing, she is dancing and when it stops, she will scream to let you know that she wants it back on.

She has been such a joy to have in the past year. She has always been sweet and kind of quiet, but in the last few weeks, we are really seeing her personality emerge which is so much fun. She makes us all laugh. So far, she is not nearly as strong willed as her brother, but she definitely has a mind of her own and is not afraid to let you know it if you are doing something she doesn't like. I love this stage where they are developing into their own person and can't wait to see what she will be like. We love you so much Esther and can't wait to get to know you even better!!!

Three Years Old

Noah turned three on Monday. I can't believe it has already been three years since he was born. I can remember coming home from my doctor's appointment where she told us that she would like to induce me because my blood pressure was high and crying. Crying because I was afraid and didn't know if I was ready for the challenges of being a parent. I can remember loading in the car that night to go to the hospital. I remember family coming in that night and the next day. I remember the excitement of the next day and the anticipation of your arrival (I had a really good epidural so it was actually fun and exciting). I remember how long that day of labor was and being so tired of waiting at the end of the day. I remember you finally coming and how hard it was and then you were here. I remember the next hour being a blur as they took you out of the room to resucitate you because you weren't doing very well after your tight nuchal cord. I remember you coming back into my room with lines in, wide eyed, and looking like you were ready to eat. I held your hand and then they took you to the nursery. Your Daddy was really nervous and worried about you, but I knew you would be okay. I got moved to my other room and pretty much passed out from exhaustion, but your Dad went to check on you because he didn't want you to be alone and wanted you to know that we were here for you. It all seems like yesterday... and now you're three.

The last three years have been some of the best of our lives. They have not always been easy. You have definitely been a challenge along the way, especially in the last six months, but they have been very rewarding. Just when I am at the height of my frustration and don't think I can handle anymore, you will melt my heart by snuggling up to me and saying "Mommy I wuv you." One night recently, Daddy was at work, Esther had been screaming in her bed, and you kept getting up. I was tired because we had been working on potty training which is EXHAUSTING. I was at the end of my rope and just started crying. You got out of bed, once again, saw me crying, and said, "Mommy you are sad? My teetee in the potty will make you happy." I couldn't help but laugh through the tears. I love you so much Noah.

Here is what you are up to these days:

- As I said before, you are a challenge. You never want to do things because we suggest them and have to figure things out on your own. We keep telling ourselves that someday, your strong-willed, independent spirit is going to make you a great man and leader, but for now it can be very trying and difficult. It is hard to be patient and watch you struggle through things, but I am learning.

- You go to "school" one morning a week and you love it. Everytime we drop you off, you just march on in and never look back, but you are always super excitd to see us when we pick you up.

- Your vocabulary is pretty amazing and you can annunciate quite well. It always makes me laugh when you break out some new word that you have heard somewhere that makes you sound so big.

- You love your family. In the past, you were definitely a Daddy's boy. I feel like recently you enjoy your time with Mommy more, but as soon as Daddy gets home from work, Mommy is once again forgotten. I love watching you wrestle and play with your daddy. You also love your sister. Bringing Esther into the family was a hard adjustment for you, but you love her so much now and miss her when she is not there. It is still hard for you when she goes after your toys. You try to stop her by pulling on her legs, screaming at her, or just tackling her, but you are getting much better at sharing with her. Inspite of your quarreling, you are so protective of her. If ever anyone gets too close to her, you are always there to make sure she is okay. She is so blessed to have such a good big brother.

- You continue to be a picky eater. You love mac and cheese, yellow rice, spaghetti, most fruits, and most vegetables. You still refuse to eat anything potato, don't care for fried foods, or casseroles. It still makes cooking a challenge, but we are all healthier because of it I am sure.

- We are working on potty training now. You have pretty much got it down, but you still do not like to poop on the potty. Slowly but surely we are getting you warmed up to it. It, like most changes with you, has been a huge challenge.

- You love to play with trains, cars, and airplanes or playing soccer, teeball, or 'golfballs' outside. You love playing with all your dogs and bears that you sleep with. Every morning, you come into our room carrying 'Baby Doggie' (Your favorite), 'Mommy Doggie' (a plastic dog with a pull string), Wishbone (the bear we bought for you in Gatlinburg, your second favorite), and polar bear. You quickly deposit them and run back to get 'Daddy Doggie' and 'Brian Doggie'. You have such original names. :) Every night, we have to make sure they are all in your bed, along with your giant shark. There is barely enough room for you left in the tiny toddler bed you are still sleeping in.

- You still take a nap most days, but you can go without. You just start getting crazy and have to go down early that night.

- You love to help out in the kitchen. You always take out the silverware and it surprisingly always ends up in the correct spot... You are pretty meticulous like your mom. Anytime I am making anything, you are always there pulling a chair up to help. You like to help me switch the laundry over and you always take care of Rudy, making sure he has plenty of food and treats. You try to help out with Esther too and as much as it is not normally helpful, it is very sweet.

We love you! Happy Birthday!

Potty Training Day One... A Battle of the WIlls

Today began day one of potty training at the Hughes house and it may be the final day for a while. We'll see.

Noah: "Mommy I'm too sick to potty."

Me: "You're too sick?"

Noah: "Yes Mommy. I'm so very very sick. I can't go potty now."

9 Months

Time is flying by. Esther's life so far has been a blur.

- She crawls. She started crawling the day she turned 9 months. In typical Esther fashion of being content with her current circumstances, it took her a while to realize that she could use it as a means to get around, not just get the toy that is two feet from her. Now at 10 months tomorrow, she is much more mobile.

- She takes two naps and usually goes down around 7-7:30 at night. She requires much more sleep than her brother ever did. I feel like at this point, we were pretty confident that Noah would sleep through the night, but that is definitely not the case with Esther. One, she is a very light sleeper and any tiny little noise will wake her. Two, anything that happens to her seems to affect her sleep. She gets sick, she won't sleep. She's teething, she won't sleep. Her world is altered in any sort of way, she won't sleep. I realize that this is the case with most babies, but it just seems to be extreme with her. I literally cannot remember the last time we slept all night without being disturbed. I am pretty certain it was before she was born.

- She likes to talk a lot and is quite loud about it at times. It definitely makes it difficult to keep Noah from yelling in the house. He doesn't always understand that it is okay for her to be loud, but not him because he is a big boy and knows better. :)

- She takes four bottles a day, but I am pretty confident that if we never gave her a bottle again, she would be just fine with that. I remember being nervous about weaning Noah off the bottle, but I am kind of excited about weaning her. Bottles are a struggle.

- She eats food three times a day. Usually yogurt for breakfast and maybe a little oatmeal or something like that, baby food for lunch/dinner. She loves Cheerios, but other solid/table foods are not her favorite. She just kind of holds them in her mouth and then starts choking on them later... aka, I fed her tiny pieces of banana for breakfast one morning. Probably close to an hour later, I was changing her diaper and she started gagging. When I looked, she had a wad of banana plastered to the roof of her mouth. Silly girl, just swallow!

- She is so happy pretty much all the time.

Although we are very tired these days, life with Esther is good and I can't imagine it without her anymore. It is definitely more trying, not necessarily from her because like I said she is always so good and so happy, but more from the interaction of her and Noah. It has mainly become that way since she started crawling. I don't know how many times a day I have to get on to Noah for taking things from her, not sharing, yelling at her, hitting her,laying on top of her... The list goes on and on. Hopefully sometime in the near future, he will just accept the fact that she can move now and choose to be excited about that and play with her instead of constantly fighting her. Wishful thinking I know. Anyway, back to Esther, we are so thankful that God has blessed us with such a sweet baby girl and look forward to each day with her.

Hand Foot and Mouth and Baby Doggie

Our kids look leprous. They have Hand, Foot, and Mouth Disease. We had some friends over for dinner a couple of weeks ago. THat night their daughter got sick. Three days later, Esther did. Then three more days later, Noah did. Our kids were kind enough to pass it along to some other friends' kids and there parents. So now almost every baby and toddler at church has had it. THey really did pretty well. They each had a couple rough days and nights and then they were fine... Minus the blisters and sores ALL OVER their faces, hands, and feet. So for the last week, they have felt fine, but we couldn't really do much because we didn't want to pass our cooties on to even more innocent children. Noah feeling well + being cooped up in the house = Noah going crazy = Mom going crazy. :) Thankfully their leprosy is almost gone now and we will be able to venture out.

Baby Doggie... Noah has never really been attached to a stuffed animal. I have given him stuff to sleep with, but he has never really cared. He has always preferred to sleep with cars and aiplanes (very cozy I know). Well a couple of weeks ago, I left his stuffed dog and pillow at my friend's house who keeps them on Mondays. No big deal. He doesn't really care about the dog anyway, right? WRONG. Ever since that day, he will not go anywhere without the dog, lovingly referred to as Baby Doggie. Baby Doggie is a girl, which I think bothers Brian a bit, but I figure the only baby he is around that much is a girl so it makes sense. We'll see if it is just a phase or if his love for Baby Doggie sticks. :)

Mother's Day Out

Noah started going to Mother's Day Out one morning a week this semester. The picture above was him on our way to school. Not too excited. That morning I told him it was time to go to school and he looked at me and said in the most pathetic voice, "I not want to go to school. I want to stay here and clean the floor." One, I'm not sure what he is talking about. No I do not make my 2 year old scrub the floor. Two, as tempting as that sounded, we had alreadu paid a deposit. Cheapness won out and we loaded up and headed to school. He greadually got excited on the way there... Until it was time for the drop off. He ran inside so excited and then flipped when it came time to go in his classroom. He flopped on the ground and started screaming. They had to scoop him off the floor, drag him in, and then promptly told me to leave. Thus not a lot of pictures. :( When I picked him up that afternoon, he was pretty happy and they said he was great. The next week was a completely different story. Still not too excited on the way, but once we got there he was ready. He walked right into his classroom and said, "Mommy you leave. You not come in here." I told him I had to come in to bring his stuff in and he responded again with, "No, you leave." 2 years old and already too big for his Mom. Today was the fourth time he went to MDO. Last night he was so excited about going. What a blessing that his independence won out over his rigidity and resistance to change.

Half a Year- My how time flies!

Our baby girl is 6 months. The other day, I was looking back at old posts of Noah and it was so fun. And so good to remember that it wasn't all kicks and giggles. I felt really bad that all I have to show for our little girl is one entry... Her birth. So I am going to try to be better so that one day we can look back on her life too. She is such a joy to have as a child. When people see her, they always ask, "Is she always this good?" Now people would ask this question about Noah as well, and the answer would be "Not especially" or "Come to our house around naptime." With Esther, we can honestly say, "Yes, she is" or maybe "Even better." She truly is the best baby ever. She has made the transition from one to two much easier than I expected. Here is what she is up to:

- She sleeps all night. She usually goes down between 7 and 8 and sleeps until around 7 the next morning. We thought we were going to have to give her some tough love and cut out her night feed, but she did it herself. Yea! She takes two naps a day now. She probably should still take three a day, but she just refuses. She gets pretty tired in the early evening, but thankfully just when she is at her fussiest, Daddy comes home and puts the wind in her sails.

- She loves her exersacuer and her jumperoo. I keep trying to figure out which one she likes more so that I can put one up. They take up so much space! No luck yet. She seems to love them both equally.

- She can sit quite well. She has never been the most active of babies so sitting is right up her ally.

- She can roll over both ways now. She rolled from back to front for the first time at 7 months (Yes, she is 7 1/2 months old now).

- She still eats like a champ. She drinks four bottles a day (5-6oz) and eats solids 3 times a day (breakfast, lunch, and dinner). She has slowed down some on the bottles since starting solids. She is a little slower in taking them. I think she just gets bored with them... And very distracted!

- Speaking of distractions, she LOVES watching Noah and would much rather follow his every move around the room than drink a bottle. She laughs at everything he says and does... which is just what he needs, more encouragement. :) She is definitely his Ed McMahon.

- Her other favorite person: Brian. As I mentioned before she gets so excited when he comes home from work. We all get excited. It is pretty much the best part of our day.

- She laughs and smiles all the time. And she is quite the flirt.

Stats:

Weight: 7.98kg (17lb 8.9oz, 75-90%)

Length: 64.9cm (50%)

Head: 41.3cm (25%)