Art Imitating Life

My sister Katrina found this comic strip and passed it along. When I saw it I immediately called Brent and we both had a good laugh. We're having this one printed out and laminated for our fridge! (you may have to click on it to read it clearly)

First Words

To my surprise it wasn't Mama or even Dada. Ireland's first words were boo boo. Bright and early this morning I was hanging out with the girls in my bedroom when Liesel started jumping up and down saying "BOO!" to make Ireland laugh. She responded in kind with her own "booooo... booooo". At first I thought it was a fluke but after a few minutes it was clear she was trying to communicate with her sister. I love that her first words were a result of their interaction.

Now we're working on Mama :)

Dancing Queen

My mom often dances in the kitchen when she was in a good mood (which is pretty much all the time). She noticed Ireland really enjoyed it. Mom and Ireland often end up in matching outfits like they were on this day.

Which Witch is Which?

I know a witch is a classic Halloween costume some might consider boring. However, I was so excited to dress the girls as witches this year. Liesel got these crazy sunglasses in a happy meal not long ago and I thought they were the perfect touch because they kind of look like flying goggles. Don't you think witches would have protective eye wear when flying through the skies on their broom? While taking pics in the backyard I got some footage. I love how Liesel just stares at Ireland when she falls over. Yeah, she's NOT her sister's keeper.

We had a lot of fun at the ward trunk or treat. Surprisingly, Liesel was incredibly shy as she went from trunk to trunk. Maybe she felt like she was begging for candy? She seemed happy with her spoils though...
...as was Ireland

Hawkeye Fans

Game day in Iowa City is a big deal. I mean a big, BIG deal! Even the workers at the local grocery store are completely decked out in Hawkeye gear. I've gotten in the habit of dressing the girls in black and gold every Saturday. I noticed these tiger hawk stickers and thought they'd be a cute addition.

To get them off, the instructions said to just use some baby oil and rub with a washcloth. Turns out it wasn't that easy and both girls had bright, red cheeks for a couple of days. I'm glad I got pictures because we won't be using these again!

VROOM! VROOM!

After weeks of army crawling (with surprising speed might I add), Ireland seems to have her sights on a new form of movement. She's started the engine and her foot's on the accelerator.

Stay tuned for race results!

Baby Fresh

We were given strict instructions not to get Liesel's cast wet. After two days it was apparent we'd have to get creative. Mom covered her cast with a ziplock bag and covered a folded quilt with a towel so Liesel could prop it up. Sitting in the kitchen sink, she was able to look out the window on the backyard and field beyond while Mom sponged her down.

Now that Ireland is sitting on her own, Mom thought she might enjoy the same treatment. Mom really knows best.

There's nothing like a squeaky clean baby!

Sunday Best

Every time I do laundry I find myself setting aside clothes Liesel and Ireland have grown out of. It's a bit more painful with Ireland because I have no guarantee I'll ever pull them out again. Thank goodness for cameras! Here are some photos of the latest fall fashions:

This dress is very old. I don't think I wore it as a kid but

Reagan or Whitney did. I flipped out when I found the tights with red hearts and anchors on them. Ireland only got to wear it once. *sniff* *sniff*

Liesel rocking the mod look.

I gave her a zig-zag part to tie in with the dress pattern.

Liesel's cast kind of became an accessory. Lots of people didn't even notice she HAD a cast on because it coordinated so well with the outfit.

I love my girls!

For Brent

Thank you for the lilies you sent for our anniversary. They were beautiful and kept the bedroom fragrant for weeks. Thank you for being an amazing husband and stellar father. It feels like we've been married for so much longer than four years. We've been through a lot--both good and bad. I look forward to the adventures that lay in store for us. I love you with all my heart and soul.

Gimme a Break!

Per usual, Liesel climbed out of her crib and made her way into my room. Ireland had gotten up at 5:30AM but she was finally, finally asleep again. I'd had horrific nightmares and was exhausted to say the least when I heard my door creak open. I decided to lay perfectly still. When Liesel sees we are both asleep she lays next to us until there are signs of life. I'm guessing she actually started to fall asleep and then startled and that's how she fell off the bed. She's fallen off the bed before. She's fallen off higher beds. She's fallen head-first onto hardwood floors and this was carpet. But something was different. She sobbed and sobbed which is unusual for her. Typically if she's injured she can "shake it off" and move on. She doesn't really cry for attention. Something wasn't right. I made her a sippy cup of warm milk. She still cried. I put her in the bath. She was still crying. It had been over an hour since she fell off the bed and she kept asking me to kiss her boo boo. Dad volunteered to stay with Ireland and Mom agreed to drive me to the U of I Hospitals and Clinics. I'm glad I followed my instincts because she had two breaks in her wrist.

They say a coincidence is what happens when God chooses to remain anonymous. However, I felt the hand of the Lord at so many points during the day:

• A few weeks ago I mentioned to Brent that Ireland is overdue for her 6 month check-up. He called around to see which Iowa City hospitals would accept our Massachusetts insurance. Ireland is scheduled to go in on Monday and I happened to have an appointment reminder card. I knew if I went to U of I Hospitals and Clinics we'd be okay and didn't have to waste time. I also had the address of Pediatrics in hand.
  
• This hospital is the largest teaching hospital in the WORLD! It's really a good-sized village. No seriously, it's huge. Ginormous. Even with the address it could have taken us a while to find it but Mom knew exactly where it was so again, no time wasted.
  
• I made an executive decision to take her to Pediatrics and not the ER. Pediatrics is usually much better set up to help children and it was regular business hours. While I was there I realized our ER copay has recently gone up from $50 to $100.
  
• The doctor was already double booked for her first appointments of the day. Because we were there a tad earlier than either scheduled patient, she agreed to see us anyway.
  
• Because Brent had made the appointment for Ireland, we were already in the system. They just had to create a record for Liesel and transfer the same info. Again, time saved.
  
• Before leaving the house, I put Liesel's hair in pigtails and slipped in some of the huge bows I just bought when I was in Utah. Call me crazy, but we got a lot of mileage off of those bows. No matter where we went we didn't have to wait long before being seen. She got lots of extra attention which I think helped to alleviate her fears somewhat.
  
• Ireland was really good for my dad during the 4+ hours they were together. Now that I think of it, when Liesel fell off the bed and bawled Ireland woke up but made no sound. It's like she knew something serious had happened to Liesel.

I felt horrible holding her down for x-rays, especially when I found out it was a broken wrist. I've had a broken wrist in recent years and I remember how painful those were for me. That I was adding to her pain stung me to the core. You can even see part of my hand holding down her fingers in the x-ray picture. Casting was also no fun. Liesel cried big tears while I held her on my lap and a nurse held her arm in the air. Thank goodness I'd thought to bring along my iPod. I played Beyonce's Single Ladies and tried to convince her she was getting kind of the same thing on her arm only in pink! The doctor quietly told me normally they'd cast a child under sedation but since they'd already started... I interrupted him and said I could handle her crying if they could. The cast has to weigh about 5 lbs and it's twice the size of her arm. That night I gave Brent the full run-down on the days events and as soon as I finished telling him I burst into tears. I honestly never felt the urge to cry during it all but in retrospect it finally got to me. Brent told me he'd never had a broken bone. Both my parents also told me they've never experienced a broken bone. Well little Liesel at the tender age of 2 is now a veteran. Poor thing!