Ghengis Grill

We used to be so good about eating Chinese food on the 11th each month, but we've been lax since we got our approval (before we even left for China). We do eat more Chinese food though because I actually cook some now. But we still try to go out occassionally.

We took the kids to Ghengis Grill (it was Logan's first time, but Sophie's been before). Logan took these first 2 pictures.



I love the little girl in the background. I'm sure if they took any pictures they would have ended up with the same thing, since Sophie was looking over the wall at them.


I took all these pictures with my cell phone and got to play around with some of the special effects.

Logan liked his bowl.

And Sophie loved hers (and Daddy's and Logan's and Mommy's)!

A Day in Our Life

I decided I needed to do a "Day in the Life" post mostly because some days I just feel like we haven't done anything (or at least nothing productive). So here it is in bulleted form (because that's how I kept track of it during the day):

• everyone up by 8am


• the kids watched 2 shows while hanging out in mommy's room and eating cereal


• at 9am got dressed and ready to run errands (grocery store and UPS)


• done at store by 10:30 ( I had created shopping lists for the kids, cutting out pictures from the weekly ads and taping them to a piece of paper)


• I unloaded groceries while the kids played with the tray activities I had set up on the tables


• 11am Sophie requested a TV show while I did dishes and few other chores


• 11:30am playtime with mommy


• 12pm more play while I got lunch ready


• lunch at 12:30pm


• naptime at 1pm after potty and a story


• I got some TV time and did some cleaning


• Logan got up a little after 3 & moped around (which is normal for him) then decided to do some activities before asking for TV


• Sophie up at 4, little snuggle time then TV while I put away laundry & Logan played in his room


• 4:30 snacktime while I made dinner for tomorrow


• 5pm outside time


• 5:30 back inside for play while I started dinner


• dinner at 6:30


• Logan ended up in his room for playing at table so Sophie got to play on the computer


• Logan finally decided to join us and got to play on the computer too


• 7:30 ice cream outside


• 8pm got kids ready for bed


• 8:30 kids in bed

Logan Randomness

Here's some stuff of about our Logan.

1. We visited some friends this summer who have a play area upstairs. The kids got quiet, you know...too quiet and so this is what I found when we checked on them, Logan had helped Sophie climb into their baby's crib then got in himself. (Thanks for teaching her that trick.) Then he stuck his legs through the slats...and got STUCK! He has really knobby knees so it took a lot of maneuvering to get him out. And yes, I did leave him stuck to go get the camera and take a picture. Sophie's just crying because he was.




2. Logan does NOT like to sing or dance, AT ALL! Most of the time he doesn't even want anyone else to sing and dance. But one day in the bathtub after I told them to put away the toys, I hear what sounds like a tune. Because of his speech it took me a while to figure out what he was singing, but once I did I had to let his teachers know. He was singing the "Clean-up Song". Love it!


3. Both kids enjoy playing with Sophie's dollhouse. The other day Logan put Dollhouse Mommy and Daddy in "timeout, 2 minutes" because they had been standing on the table. I love that they were doing what Sophie is usually doing when she gets time out and that they got her time (if Logan gets time out it's for 4 minutes).


4. I don't think Logan has figured out whether he really likes having a little sister or not. I never know if they are going to play together well or just fight or if they are going to want to be in separate rooms. But I do love to see them enjoying each other, like this day when he let her ride on his back.

5. I've always thought it was strange how some of the kids shows will ask questions of the viewers, even pausing to give them time to answer. If you don't know what I'm talking about watch just about anything on Nick Jr. and you get the idea. I guess I found it weird because I'd never seen a child actually respond...until last week. Logan has started to answer the questions and respond. I still think it's cheesy but I love that he's talking and practicing his speech.

6. Speaking of Logan's speech, he has come so far with the speech therapy. I don't always notice the progress but others have pointed it out to me. Lately, he has gotten extremely frustrated when I don't understand what he's saying. He also gets mad if I don't repeat what he says. This is because I typically repeat everything he says, if I understand it (to confirmation that I do understand it and also to give him another opportunity to hear it said correctly). I think he has figured out that if I don't repeat it, it means I don't know what he said. And my general, non-specific "um, yes, I see" or nod of the head just doesn't cut it anymore).

7. Like so many children I know Logan also demands to see every picture immediately after its taken. He has finally learned that he has to be still so I can take or else there's nothing to see. But if he sees the camera, he will immediatly say "I want to see it", smile and wait for me to take a picture. Good thing he such a cutie!

8. I talked in a previous post about Logan's sleep issues. He is a little obsessed with "night, night". If I talk about almost any activity during the day he wants to know if night night happens after it. For example, coming home from summer camp (where he's just woken from nap 30 minutes earlier), I'll say, "we'll have a snack as soon as we get home". His response, "and then go night, night?" I can explain that he went night night at camp and no he doesn't have night night after snack. He'll usually press me for what is going to happen after snack, only to then ask again about night night when I tell him the next activity. As you can imagine, this could continue until "yes, then night, night!" Thankfully, I can typically distract him from continuing down this line by starting to sing and "car dance"...both things that drive him crazy.

Summer Time = Water Time

Logan likes to pick up the sprinkler and spray his sister, but sometimes he gets a taste of his own medicine.


Watering the plants with the sprinkler.


Chillaxing...with her feet in the water.

Uh, oh! Here comes Trouble.

Followed closely by Trouble 2.

Demonstrating how cousin Kalyn goes down the slip and slide.

Sophie chooses to skip the slipping and sliding and just runs.

Popsicle break!

One of the teachers let us use this blow-up elephant sprinkler for the summer.

I bought these water squirters at the dollar store. We had a great fun family night squirting each other. As you can see we didn't even bother to change into our swimsuits.

The kids love to fill plastic cups with water from the sprinkler and then pour that water on each other (and me).

Abbey's Playtown

I've posted pictures before of this great place near our home called Abbey's Playtown. We've been several times this summer. Including one visit with just Sophie and another where Maw Susan went with us. Logan is harder to get pictures of because he just keeps on moving (or is in the train bounce where I can't get a good shot).

Here's Sophie trying out the pink motorcycle.


Playing in the kitchen, serving up a great meal.


Would you like pepper with that?

Sophie Randomness

These are just a few random moments with Sophie.

1. We visited some friends and the kids got to play with the dress-up clothes. Sophie doesn't have any dress-up stuff and her preschool room doesn't either (but she will next year). She enjoyed wearing this princess dress with the hard hat.


2. One of the first phrases Sophie said was "fix it". It could mean turning on the music, or refilling her cup, or just about anything else. I think it started in the car with the DVD player because I would ask Logan if I needed to "fix it" meaning hit the play button to get it started. One day I turned on the tv in the morning for Sophie and ESPN was on showing football stuff. The first thing Sophie said was "fix it". She's in for a rough time when her daddy becomes completely football-obsessed.

3. We use stickers A LOT! With all the doctor's visits we had with Logan, they have become a staple whenever we have to wait. Specifically, putting stickers on each other. The kids will choose a sticker and then put it somewhere my face (or Paul's). One afternoon, Sophie took all the stickers from a sheet we received as a gift from a "pen pal" in Japan and stuck them all over my hand. I called it "Toddler Henna".


4. We decided to take advantage of the cooler weather this weekend and go for a walk in the neighborhood. Logan pulled Sophie in the wagon for part of it but then she decided she wanted to walk...or more accurately RUN! She tripped and ended up scraping her face. It didn't look this bad at the time. Poor Sophie Rose!

5. Sophie loves television! I have tried to limit her watching but some days it just doesn't work. She wants to watch tv first thing when she wakes up (both in the morning and after nap). She will ask for specific shows and movies all day long. At first all she wanted was Fresh Beat Band. She even created a sign for it when she couldn't say it. Then it was all about the "bear" (which sounded an awful lot like beer). Bear is Kung Fu Panda in Sophie-ese. For awhile the only thing she specifically requested was "Susan" aka Monsters Vs. Aliens (so named because the main character's name is Susan just like her Maw Susan). Now she's an equal opportunity watcher. Some days it Kai-Lan or Wubbzy, other days it's Benji or Rapunzel. Of course, I'm stilling trying to find ways to limit it all, everyday.

6. Sophie loves all things soup. Paul usually orders soup at Italian restaurants and Sophie's been known to finish his bowl. We even ate at a Mexican place that brought out the beans in a large bowl with a lot of liquid/juice. Sophie took one look and announced she wanted "soup". She ate it up, even slurping it straight from the bowl.

7. When Logan first got here, Sophie resorted to biting him a few times. I was really worried she was doing it at preschool too, but the teachers assure me that's not so. I think with Logan she was just trying to communicate the only way she could at least the only way she thought he understood. I know that it's normal for her to do it, but we still worked hard to stop it and she hasn't bitten in months. Until we were visiting the cousins. She bite Kalyn twice while we were there, almost breaking the skin. I think it was just frustration, since they are both the same age, but I will definitely make sure her teachers know so that they can keep an eye out.

I Spy Bottles

This is another idea that came from Productive Parenting. I've been collecting the items for it for months and finally sat down and created them. They aren't completely finished. I need to get some gorilla glue to secure the lids and I'd like to add some cards with pictures of the items that are inside (I took pictures just need to print them and laminate). But the kids have enjoyed just looking at the different things inside.

Celery Printing

I had 3 bunches of celery so to speed up the cutting time, I just chopped the bottom of all the stalks instead of pulling each stalk off first. I started to discard the bottom but decided to let the kids use them for painting. The first thing I realized is that I need to get the paints out more often...they loved it. The next thing I noticed was that the prints actually looked like roses. I had used green paint (because celery is green), but I can't wait to do these in pink or red or yellow to create roses.

Nighttime Antics

Logan seems to be adjusting well, although our night times are interesting. This has been the least consistent aspect of the transition. Meaning the routine and what he wants changes about every 3-4 weeks. Here are just a few things we've seen: side table light on, side table light off, no nightlight, door open (this one is the only thing that hasn't changed until recently), no star wars sheets, star wars sheets okay, various stuffed animals that must be in the bed or not at all, must be wearing socks. For the most part he's slept through the night, okay may half the time he's slept through the night and the other half he'll get up once, but will go back to bed easily. About 2 months ago we figured out that instead of coming to our bed and waking us up, he was just laying back down and going to sleep...on the floor in our room, on the chair, on the couch. We tried several things because I didn't want him roaming during the night. Thankfully, we've found a solution, but not before I found several (almost 40) photos on my camera, most taken during his nighttime escapades. Below is what he was apparently doing while we all slept.

He would also go into Sophie's room and put toys in her crib. Such a sweet brother! Rummage through my bag for gum and Sonic peppermints. Midnight snack, I guess! Pour himself a glass of water. But not without spilling some first!

I am very glad that we have found a solution that we all can live and sleep with. He has stayed in his room and not woken up during the night for the last 3 nights. Oh, great, I probably just jinxed it!