So to raise money for the adoption, one of the things we’re going to do is hold a yard sale. Paul said I can sell what I want (Yay!!) so the baby boy clothes and all the baby stuff is going.

We told the agency we want a girl under 2, but are a little flexible, so I’m pretty sure we’ll get a baby that’s not quite a baby anymore

It’s going to be in May. We’re going to talk to friends to see if they have anything they want to get rid of…they can donate it to our sale. So far we have a friend donating a couch, and 2 others said they have stuff for us. This way we’re helping people get rid of things they don’t want anymore, and we’re getting help without asking for money…it’s a win-win!

It’s very exciting to see it all beginning to fall into place!

Today I started teaching Pierce how to write his name. We’re starting easy, just the first 2 letters, and adding a letter a day. I forgot how challenging it can be to teach a kid something so simple!

I’m not the type of person who pushes very early education…I think kids need opportunities to learn but they need to have time to still just be a little kid.

He was pretty excited to start, but after a few minutes got frustrated he couldn’t do it as well as he wanted and tried to quit. So, like a good parent, I bribed him

We’ve taught our kids when they’re done with a dish, to load it in the dishwasher. As soon as they understand language, that’s one thing they learn. Same with throwing trash in the trash can.

Dean loves watching me do laundry. He loves throwing clothes in the washer.

So today our darling 21-month-old decided to put a few ideas together.

He put a couple shoes in the dishwasher. Pierce’s shoes. He (Pierce) went to put a dish in the dishwasher and laughed and said, “Why did Dean put my shoes in here?”

Funny thing was, if I were going to put shoes in, I would have put them in in the same way he did.

Then I noticed a pink comb in with the silverware. Good place for a comb as well.

I just don’t know whether he meant to be funny (he’s a goofball) or if he really thought he was helping. It was cute, either way, and Pierce and I quietly put the shoes and comb in their proper places.

So after much thought, prayers and consideration, Paul and I have decided that we’re going to adopt!

We don’t feel our family is complete quite yet and trying-to-conceive hasn’t worked out. We’re in the process of picking an agency and we’re just hoping and praying we get accepted and can be on-the-way through the process soon. It’ll take a while, a “hurry up and wait” kind of thing, but we’re ready and excited.

Thanksgiving went well at our house. My sister, bil, and their 2 kiddos were a fun addition to our home this year.  Turkey thawed out and was the best one I’ve ever had, thanks to my sis and bil.

So now we’ve got the tree up and decorated, the Christmas decos out, and about half of the presents wrapped and under the tree.

Pierce woke up this morning and asked, “Is it Christmas yet?”

It’s gonna be a long month for that kid!!

My daughter got off the airplane at midnight and home about 2:30am. Lucky for me, dh is the dropper-picker-upper at airports. I don’t like the traffic and he doesn’t mind much.

So this morning Pierce went up and jumped on her to wake her up   He’s so happy his sister is home. And she’s happy to be home. There have been a few changes since she left (Dean’s walking, new swingset, the carpet ripped out on the stairs and some other little things) so he had fun showing her around. Gab said she felt like she was getting a tour of her own house and it was fun.

So our family feels normal again! It’s amazing how much difference one person can make.

Dean loves beds. As in nice mattresses and big fluffy pillows. He gets on beds and rolls around, laughing and is just generally hilarious.

Every night we put him in his crib. And you know how cribs are…firm, flat mattress, nothing allowed in the crib other than baby.

So every night he would wake up in his crib and want to come to bed with me. And I need my sleep. I’m pure evil without enough sleep. So I would take him to my bed where he’d snuggle up against a pillow and sleep very well. After months of this, I thought I had spoiled him.

I was wrong. He just loves beds.

We got a mattress, put it on his floor (put the crib away), put a side rail up (even though he’s only inches from the floor), put it against a wall with his toybox at the head and another wall at his feet. So he’s kinda boxed in but can get out easily.

The first 2 nights of this I went in when he’d fuss at night like normal. Except I layed down with him in HIS bed instead of mine.  He fell back to sleep and I went back to my bed.

The last 3 nights he’s slept all night, on through until morning. 8am. No waking up. Nothing.

So at 13 months, we’re done with the crib. When he’s a little better at climbing and not falling, we’ll set up the rest of the bed for him.  But for now, YAY!!!!!!!

Today is registration for fall soccer. Gab missed the deadline last year but she played the 2 years before. She’s excited to get back in the game.

And the extra-exciting part is, Pierce is old enough to play!! He made the age cut off by 6 days…we were so close to not getting him in this year. Good thing he was born 2 weeks early

I’m totally stoked for this. The little tiny kids are always so cute on the little field, swarming the ball like a bunch of moths to a flame. And Pierce is such a complex kid…I could see him pouting on the side or right in the middle kicking the ball.

This fall will be plenty busy, for sure. With 2 of 3 kids in soccer, we’ll constantly be at the practices and games. But it’ll be so much fun. Can’t wait to see them play!!

Yesterday we were walking out of our local pharmacy (me and the boys). It’s the kind of place where they know you by name, your kids, what’s going on in your life, etc. Very friendly and nice people.  We walked out and went towards the post office.

I yelled out to Pierce, who was running ahead on the sidewalk, to be careful and not run into the parking lot.  He stopped and turned around to acknowledge me. Then he took a step…right down 3 hard concrete steps. He rolled a bit then landed at the bottom right on his forehead. For a brief second I hoped he’d be ok.

Then I took a closer look. He had a big scrape on his head and it was starting to bleed. He also had a scrape on a leg (where it hit the edge of the step) and one on the opposite knee. I sat next to him on the step and hugged him then carried him (and the baby) back into the pharmacy to get some first aid spray. (Our bottle we had expired.)

They saw us walking in and immediately came to us asking what happened, seeing the obvious. The cashier took the baby from me so I could take care of Pierce better and we went up to the counter. Another lady got us a wet paper towel so I could clean the boy off and after a couple minutes we were ready to go. The cashier carried Dean and my purchase to the car for me.

When we got home, Pierce said his owies were feeling better. But they certainly don’t look better. Poor kid.

Baby boy is 10 1/2 months and I’m finally getting him off the bottle. I’ve tried before a few times, just giving  him a cup, but this time I decided it was final.

Last week I put apple juice in a cup and still let him have the bottle for milk. After a week of getting used to the cup, I gave him his cup with milk in it Tuesday evening and it went ok. But he still got his bottle at bedtime.

Yesterday he only got the cup up until bedtime, when he still got his bottle. He didn’t drink nearly as much as normal, but he ate more. I remember Pierce doing the same thing every time we switched (bottle to cup, cup to straw). So I know it’s just a passing thing. Not worried.

So today is day 2 of no bottle (except bedtime). Hopefully he’ll drink a little more today and be more used to it. He’s not a fussy kid or high maintenance (unlike his brother) so I think this will be a relatively quick transition.

Dd was gradual with the switch. I did it by 11 months with her. Pierce liked his cup at 6 months, so we switched by 7 months.

Just the first of many transitions and changes! Off the bottle by 1, off the pacifier by 2, potty trained by 3.  One big thing a year is enough