Mikayla went swimming for the first time today!! In true Mikayla fashion she floated happily around the pool, sucking on her fists. The older two were thrilled to get back to the pool as we have only been once in the last three months. And no, I wasn't crazy enough to attempt this alone. Sean worked late today so we were all able to go this morning.




Caileigh practicing her Highland Dancing. This girl just LOVES to dance. After having me film this she says, "Oh no Mommy, I forgot to do my best!!"


Mikayla enjoyed a quick "play date" with herself before bed tonight.


I am letting the older two attempt to sleep in the same bed tonight. They are on their last warning. Better go check.........

Happy Birthday Nanee!!!

We hope you have a super, fantastic day!!

3 Months

SUCH a happy baby you are!! You rarely cry and if you do it is after much warning and for a very specific reason. You love to watch your brother and sister play and sit on your play mat and kick and reach. You love trying to stand and are quite strong. You dislike tummy time. You are asleep for the night between 6:30-7 and are sometimes up twice and other times you sleep through. (until 5) You still sleep during the day in your swing or the car seat if we have been out.

Your hands are quite fascinating for you to watch and they are constantly in your mouth. You love to be held facing out so you can suck on your hands and observe the world around you. You are a delight to be around and we love you very much!


Mikayla and Kendie (Caileigh's baby)



3 Month Stats:
Mikalya Weight 12 1/2 pounds Height 24 inches
Caileigh Weight 13 pounds Height 24 1/2 inches
Aiden Weight 17 lbs 12 oz. Height 26 inches

Comparison

Mikayla

Caileigh

We went to get a pet fish today! He/she still doesnt have a name but there have been some pretty creative suggestions being passed around.



Thank you Aunties for Mikayla's new name blanket! She just loves it and so do I.

Nanee and Bupee are visitng and we enjoyed the sunshine yesterday and took a walk to the park.

Some of the best ideas.......

Things have been a bit challenging lately. I have been sick on and off for the last 3 weeks, nobody is sleeping and it seems that Caileigh is exploring her "two" side. In an effort to cheer everyone up today, I decided to fill the bath tub with finger paints. I figured that the kids would love getting to paint themselves, and each other. Their reaction certainly wasn't the one I was expecting. After a little while, Aiden did manage to embrace the idea and have fun.
Caileigh, unfortunately, never did.


In a further effort to cheer my "big" girl up, I took her out for a date this morning. Just Caileigh and Mommy got to go out, cruise the mall, grab an ice cream and spend some much needed alone time together. Aiden got to spend the hour at Grandma's having special time with her and Mikayla. Aiden will get his special alone time tomorrow when Daddy or Mommy take him to Gymnastics.

Caileigh comes to me with dishelved hair, hat on backwards, dirty shirt and jeans, filthy yellow boots and says to me, "Mommy, take a picture of me, I look GREAT!"

Another self dresser (blue shirt, black pants, brown socks) enjoying his train set complete with almond boulders and raisin pebbles.

Miss Mik

Saturday my good friend joined us for a playdate. Since they moved away, we have only seen them once. It was great to see the changes in both girls.
The big girls! (14 months apart)

The little girls (2 months apart)

These days it seems that Caileigh will nap about 3 out of 7 days. I tend to prefer that she doesnt nap because it makes bedtime a breeze and Sean is often not home during this process. The downfall is that there is no "quiet time" and the afternoons can sometimes be challenging. This particular day Caileigh had woken up extra early, refused nap and then decided to change her mind......


Today Caileigh was pretending to make playdough morsels for her good bear friend that she decided to name Mr. Dough. Aiden got in on the action and the two of them spent 1/2 hour making little snacks that her friend could eat. Aiden then got the idea to go upstairs and build Mr. Dough a new house. Caileigh exclaimed, "Oh Aiden, Mr. Dough will be so happy!" They ran upstairs and used all the blankets and pillows in the house to create a cozy den for Mr. Dough to live in. It was really neat to see the kids playing creatively for such a long time!

All else is well. I am struggling with another cold/cough but the kids seem to finally be healthy. Mikayla is coming up to 3 months and just weighed in at 12 pounds. Two of my dance students got 2nd place medals in a recent competition!

Sleep Update:
Our bed, 3:30am, need I say more?
(Note: I sleep on that sliver of bed on the right hand side. Could explain my sore neck today)

We haven't been able to see Buppee for several weeks so today we took him to Strong Start and then ventured out to Lund for lunch. It was great to have this time together.

My girls seem to have mastered the innocent look.


Aiden doesnt even attempt to try.

I hesitate to generalize between girls and boys, however, it has been my experience that girls are much more fine motor oriented. Although Aiden can and has written his name, Caileigh is much more interested in practicing on a daily basis. Everyday she wants to write shopping lists and other important info.(her words) Here is an example of her art from today. She doesn't say "M" and then draw one but she does recognize that she is writing letters and is purposeful in doing so.




T.V. time is over.......gotta run.........

The kids were upstairs having "group quiet time". This essentially means that they aren't having quiet time but are playing together. This can often involve a lot of noise and excitement. Today there was a lull in their play and it seemed unnaturally quiet. I was very worried and went running up the stairs. I was pleasantly surprised to find this. Aiden was helping Caileigh to read the book!


Dion (our cat) has sure come a long way from his fear of the kids. I suppose 3 babies in 3 1/2 years is enough to desensitize him.
Mikayla absolutely LOVES to lie down flat. If she is starting to fuss, you can lay her down and she starts to kick, smile and coo. Changing diapers is always a pleasure and she also enjoys playing on her playmat.

A friend just lent me a fabulous cookbook called, "Deceptively Delicious". It is filled with wonderful recipes that have vegetables cleverly pureed and added without anyone guessing. Today we made muffins that used pureed carrots. Tomorrow morning I am going to try the oatmeal (which is my kids favorite and we eat almost everyday) with pumpkin and peanut butter. I am also going to puree cauliflower to go in our macaroni and cheese tomorrow night at dinner. Another interesting recipe, which I will have to try before I believe, is brownies with spinach! The writer promises that once the brownies cool, you will not be able to taste the spinach..........I will let you know!
Having some tummy time.

Sean is heading out of town tomorrow but will be back Friday night. Hopefully the weather continues to be nice and we can get outside for some walks. We are planning to go to Strong-Start and I also promised Aiden a few trips to Space.

Happy Birthday Auntie Jean

Have a wonderful, great day!! We look forward to seeing you when you come!!

Mikayla has found her hand and she LOVES it!! We have had no luck with a soother (tried 2 kinds) so it is nice that she can entertain/soothe herself now.

Aiden really enjoyed himself at the hockey game. They arrived home after 1st period because Aiden was so exhausted from all the screaming and cheering. He says he would like to play with the team next year. Perhaps we better work on those skating lessons again!!

Aiden is sleeping in his fort tonight. I had to dig through the blankets to find him because he is so wedged. He was pretty excited to sleep in there but it will be interesting to see if he lasts all night. It is VERY hot under all those blankets! It took a lot of work for Aiden to build this because he hurt his hand in Sunday School and has been gingerly holding it in the air all day. It is only a minor surface scratch but it has been proving to be quite traumatic. Perhaps after a good sleep in his special fort, he will feel better. One can only hope.

Today was a gorgeous day. Sunny, yet quite cool. We went to Strong Start (parent participation drop-in) for the morning and then head to the park for a picnic lunch and play. It felt amazing to soak up the sun's rays although after an hour we were starting to feel cool. We head home for quiet time, another play outside and then playdough, bath, art.



After this busy full day, Aiden and Sean just left for a hockey game. Aiden is so very excited but it will be interesting to see how long he can stay awake for. Caileigh is the late night party animal and Aiden is always asleep by 7:30 and sometimes even asking to go to bed as early as 6. Do you see the "blankie" in the photo? Hopefully it's 3 feet of length doesnt get dragged through the arena!!

In other very exciting news, my baby has enough hair for a hair clip!!! Both Aiden and Caileigh were nearly bald so this is so exciting!!