M-Day, Memorial Day, Updates on Kids

A lot has been going on … Ronin can say “I saw a school bus” and “Where is my choo-choo-train?” He can also tell me that his “baby” “needs bottle for a nap!” He likes to kiss her on the head and thinks she is “soft like kitty-cat.” Ronin has become increasingly obsessed with Cars and Trains and now identifies the other kids in his day-care as “friends!” But he calls the train his “best friend” or sometimes “LaQueen” (Lightning McQueen from Cars) as his best friend. “Both!” he will say. He loves chicken and turkey and “beefy-beef” and will ask for food by name. He loves his “fish crack-ers” and wants everything with “apple juice.” The most impressive words are “transporter, refrigerator, and excavator.” He can spot any type of truck on the road and tell you what it is. He calls me “Mommy” now and tells us to wait for him as “I am coming!” He wants everyone with him all the time and hates when Sean and I are not in the car together. He loves his hair to be combed and brushed as well. His favorite animal, Leno, is a big pal of his and he feeds her fish crackers to her. Then he crawls around and moews. He can count to 3 and loves the number 14. He is interested in band-aids and boo-boos but will not let us actually place a band-aid on him as he doesn’t like the “sticky!” “Flowers smell GOOD!” and Poopey diapers are “P.U. or smelly and icky!”

He now says his name – thank G-d!

Now Autumn is the talker. She said “dadadadadadada” and “hihihihihihihi” and now she is working on “aaaaaa”. Sometimes she mixes it up and says “hi-da, hi-da, hi-da, hi-da, hi-da, hi-da, hi-da, hi-da.” She smiles a lot. She also has a sneaky smile and glance that can make you do whatever she wants. She loves her baths and wants constant attention (no surprise there.) She eats with gusto and loves sweet potatoes. She grabs the spoon and won’t let go. She eats all orange, yellow and green vegetables and just started on bananas. She sticks out her tummy when she poops like she is proud of what she has accomplished. And she is just a happy sweet delicious little girl.

Mom’s Day

Sean took Ronin to the Bronx Zoo for a reptile safari and Ronin got to pet a lizard. Sean got some great pictures. Autumn and I had some special mommy daughter time and after the kids naps we had a BBQ with Steve, Tamar and Romy. Ronin and Romy played deliciously together and a good time was had.

Memorial Day

Again another fun packed weekend w/ activities. We went over to my mom’s and played in her backyard (which is now a playground.) We visited Paul who was in town with his wife, Becky to visit Paul’s parents. Got to show off the kids and had a great time.

This weekend we are going to have a BBQ with Godmother Nikki and see Sex and the City (for Nikki and Candi only.) We are also going to play with the kids and on Sunday go to the Bronx Zoo and test out my new walking ability.

Mother's Day Update (more to come)

Autumn is adorable.
Autumn’s 6th month birthday is today. And her 2nd tooth appeared on Monday May 12th. She has become quite the mouthy squawker but since she sleeps through the night I simply cannot complain. All last week she said “dadadadadadadadada” and this week it seems to be “aaaaaa” but not the sound the letter. And she is preciously cute. But she makes you work for the smiles. Ronin was more mild-mannered at this age. Autumn will make all men work for it. Good Girl.

Ronin is a dreamboat.
Ronin was evaluated yesterday for his speech development. The daycare had noted that he appeared “markedly behind” the other 5 children who were all born within 5 days of him. The process began and while I was in the hospital Sean had the 1st meeting with the coordinator. Six weeks later he was evaluated. And he knocked their socks off. He opened the door with Sean and said “Hello Ladies” and then smiled. They were instantly charmed. The psychologist placed a puzzle in front of him and asked him to look at some circles, squares and triangles. The object was for him to place the pieces in the correct places and to see how long it took him to do this. She couldn’t hand him the pieces fast enough. He then proceeded to whip through these puzzles where placement and reasoning were the key. The doctor handed him a circle and he said Blue circle round and then finished the puzzle in less then a minute. They asked him to point out what turns and he said ME and then turned around. The doctor noted that he understood he was being tested for about 40 mins and he wasn’t bothered by the experience. Sean and I think he liked showing off. They asked us if he “pretend played” and we explained that just yesterday he also handed Leno (the cat) a god fish cracker (which he can say) and she ate it off the floor and then placed one on the floor for himself and then ate it. Then he crawled and meowed. He now says telephone (3 syllables) and we got the first 5 word sentence on Sat - "Cheerios in bowl with milk."

Minor Update

Autumn just had her 5 month appt at almost 6 months so she was treated like a 6th mother. She is now 27 ½ inches (they measure her 2x as she grew over 2 inches in a month) and she is now 14 lbs 12 oz. If she is lying down on her back she presses her feet down and pushes herself across the room – this is VERY early movement. She also is taller than Ronin was at this age. She is healthy and wonderful and working on her 2nd tooth.

Ronin is doing great and we are waiting to hear about when his hernia surgery is – most likely June.

Tom and Amanda welcomed their 3rd child on May 1, 2008. Zachary joins the clan at 5 lbs 6 oz, 19 inches long. He is a fighter and doing well. He was born a preemie – but at a great weight!