4 Years Old

I have a 4 year old.  I was talking with some friends the other day who also have sons that recently turned 4 and it sounded so strange to talk about 4 year olds and know that Luke is one now.  For some reason it makes him sound so much older (you are allowed to laugh at me)!

Here is a list of Luke's life right now:

*Luke is able to recognize most letters now and he loves to spell things out but will still ask us to do that occassionally for him.  He is also starting to sight read.  There are a few books that he is very familiar with and he will "read" them to us.  This is really exciting for us.  A favorite activity has become going to the library every two weeks to get new books to read.

*Luke's imagination is still going super strong.  It is sooo fun to listen to him interact with whatever he is playing with and hear the stories he comes up with.  He typically has some plot that involves being nice to each other, sharing and rescuing someone.  

*Luke is still into cars and his trains. The major difference with those is that they are now upstairs in our gameroom and he plays with them more on his own.  Luke has always played well by himself and continues to do so.  I am also able to trust him now being upstairs by himself.

*Other top activities: playing with/interacting with Hannah; reading stories; playing monster or bonk with Dad at night is still probably in his top 3 favorites; riding his new big wheel; collecting/watching bugs; playing outside with or in water.

*Diapers are no longer a part of Luke's life.  He will occassionally have an accident during the night but that is even few and far between.  Hooray!!!

*Luke has adjusted well to having a little sister.  He is a terrific helper and he is the first to comfort her if she is upset.  I do foresee some sibling issues arising involving toys and whose is whose but Hannah isn't mobile enough for it to be a big problem yet.

*Luke's eating habits are in general very good.  I wish he would try/like a few more veggies and some fruits but we're much improved in this area.  He recently just started enjoying strawberries and isn't always reluctant to try new things now.

*A few challenges Luke is currently facing include listening, following directions and whining.  This has improved greatly in the last two months but it can still be a big struggle.

*Luke is a big time home-body.  I could ask him ten times if he wants to go out and about for the day and nine of the responses would be no.  My boy loves to be at home, hang out in his pj's all day and just play.  I can't really blame him; he takes after me greatly in that regard.

*Luke's favorite TV shows include Word World and SuperWhy.  We only watch children's shows on PBS.  PBS shows for the most part are very educational and I attribute some of Luke's new letter and word knowledge to these shows.  Luke also really enjoys watching movies.  We've been watching more movies lately since he has given up his nap and we need some down time in the afternoons.  

*Luke's schedule is as follows: up between 8:00 and 9:00 (or if he's not up by 9 I wake him up); no more nap (he gave it up with no warning about 2 months ago much to my dismay); and bedtime is between 8:30 and 9.  I tried having quiet time in his room when he gave up the nap but he would end up falling asleep and then staying up at night until 10 or later.  

*Luke is a kind, determined, tender-hearted, easy-going 4 year old who is a joy to have as a son!  I love my munchkin to pieces!

Random Stuff

There are always those little tidbits that I don't want to forget but don't deserve a whole post.  Here are a few tidbits of late.  

*Wednesday night we had ribs for dinner at my dad's.  As I put Luke's plate in front of him he said, "Mom, I don't want the fossil."  It was so matter of fact.  And it was absolutely hysterical!  We all died laughing.  

*Hannah is SO close to crawling.  She's up on all fours rocking back and forth whenever she's on the floor.  She launches herself forward with both feet to get to a toy that is just out of reach.  She has even moved both legs forward at the same; she just needs to figure out moving one leg at a time and she will be absolutely everywhere.  And we will be in big trouble!

*I can't believe that LJ is 4!  We've had a great birthday week.  There will be a birthday post soon :)

*Luke loves cards that make noise or play a song.  He got two for his birthday.  The first was from Aunt Sarah.  It makes monkey sounds which is very appropriate because she calls Luke a crazy monkey.  The second was from Troy and I and it plays the "Move It" song--one of LJ's favorites.

*Hannah has this ear-piercing screech.  It can really hurt the ears.  I'm hoping she doesn't hang on to it because it is awful.  She also is doing a deep throaty growl of sorts.  It doesn't hurt the ears so it's much funnier.  She usually makes it if she's upset or frustrated by something.

*Luke and I were talking about the sunset the other day.  He recounted the sunset he and Sarah saw together on the beach last May--they got way to much ice cream and walked to the beach to eat it and it made a mess.  I was amazed that he remembered that from over a year ago without any prompting.

Photo Shoot

Troy and I got a new camera (an early 10 year anniversary gift).  It's a digital SLR and it's awesome!  I am anxious to have the time to sit down and play with all the settings and learn about everything it can do.  I'm also really hoping that Troy and I can take a photography class together soon.  Meanwhile, I have the camera set on auto and it takes really great photos in auto.  Because it's so much fun to use, I had a spur of the moment photo shoot with Hannah and Luke (mostly Hannah because she still isn't mobile) on Sunday afternoon.  These are unedited pics.  Enjoy :)

 And they're done :)

4 Year Old Questionnaire

I thought it would be interesting to see what Luke had to say about life right now as a 4 year old.

How old are you? 4
How tall are you? really big
How much do you weigh? I don't know.
Can you guess? I don't know.
What is your favorite toy? a car
Favorite book? Dinosaurs
Favorite movie? Barney
 Me: You never watch Barney.  LJ: I watch it all the time at my house. (He has never, ever watched Barney when I have been around.  I would guess his favorite movie would be Cars or Ice Age.)
Favorite TV show? Super Why
Favorite food? McDonald's (big sigh from Mom) (I asked him this one the other day and he answered granola bars and fried okra.)
Favorite fruit? cantaloupe
Favorite snack? fruit snacks
Favorite drink? chocolate milk and kool-aid
Favorite activity? sleep (I can vouch that is probably true.  He is very hard to wake up in the morning.)
Favorite color? green and brown
Favorite sport? basketball
Favorite song? Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star
Favorite animal? elephants and giraffes and monkeys and zebras and tigers (lots of favorites)
Favorite game? Trouble
Favorite outfit? green shirt
Favorite holiday? Mother's Day (so sweet) and then with more prompting...All of them
What do you need in bed when it's time to go to sleep? all my animals
Best Friend? Benjamin (McBride)
When I grow up I want to be? a T-Rex giraffe
Nicknames? Munchkin, Lukester, Dude, Kiddo
Thing I am really good at? practicing (I asked practicing at what and he said as he was swiveling his hips around, skating.  Not sure where that one came from either).

Some other stats:
Clothing size: 3T or 4T
Shoe size: 9 or 10
Height:  39 inches
Weight: 33 lbs

(I know there are a few missing answers here.  Luke got tired of answering questions and I wanted to get this posted on his actual birthday.  I plan to come back and edit where needed.)

Sleepy Babies

Aren't they just the cutest?!?!  Luke's picture is from December 18, 2008 and Hannah's is from June 26, 2012.  I love having such similar pictures of each of them.  You can certainly see the resemblance between them.  Love my babies!!!

Lego Party

We had Luke's 4th birthday party this weekend.  His official birthday is tomorrow and I'm planning a special post for then but for now here are the party details.  The guests included Grandma and Grandpa Johnson, Grandma and Grandpa Hogancamp, Aunt Kristi and Cousin Wesley, the McBride family, the LaGroue family and Leslie and Sawyer Saenz.

The Party went like this:
*Play outside until all the guests arrived
*Build Legos
*Break open the pinata
*Lego toss game
*Open presents
*Eat lunch
*Sing Happy Birthday
*Eat cake and ice cream

Six Months Old

Today Hannah is 6 months old!  It seems that time just goes faster and faster.  I'm happy to report that we've had several changes in the last month some very good and a couple very difficult.

*Schedule: This is one of the very good changes.  I don't want to jinx it but Hannah is slowly but surely establishing a schedule.  It goes something like this: up between 8 and 9 with a very short feeding shortly after; about 10:30 eat again and take about an hour nap; after this nap is her happiest time of the day; eat solid food for lunch about 12:30; nurse again about 2 and then another nap--this nap varies greatly in length--sometimes it's very short, 30 minutes, and sometimes quite long, over 2 hours; depending on the nap length she will eat two or three more times before we have dinner; one of the most fussy times of the day is when I'm fixing dinner and she is usually in the Moby wrap with me which sometimes puts her back to sleep; she will eat 3-4 more times before going to bed for the night between 10:30 and 11:30; she also will take a catnap or two during the evening hours although I don't let her sleep for very long after 7.  

*Stats: I don't know for sure what Hannah's weight is right now.  She was 15 lb 11.5 oz at her 4 month check-up so I would guess she's between 18-19 pounds.  She has her 6 month check-up with the doctor on Monday so we'll know for sure then.  She still wears some 6 month size tops but most of her clothes are now 9 month size.  Pajamas are all still 9 months in size but these are starting to get a little snug especially the brands that run small.  Her hair is continuing to get longer and there is now enough to actually say she has some hair.  It's appearing very light in color and sometimes there is a hint of red. Her eyes are still blue.  Hannah now has two teeth as well.  The first one, her bottom right front incisor, came in on June 8 and the second one, her bottom left front incisor, came in on June 20.  These were very difficult for her especially the first one.  It took over 3 days for it to break through and it was a very long 3 days.  Her second one was not as difficult although she was still fairly fussy for a few days.

*Food: Hannah is still really enjoying solid food which she is eating once a day although I think the doctor will us on Monday that she can start having 2 solid meals a day.  At this point Hannah has added squash, pears, bananas, peaches and prunes to her diet.  Her interest in our food is amazing to me.  Luke was never as fascinated as Hannah is when we eat.  As soon as her body is ready for more solid "real" food I know she is really going to go to town.  I could be wrong but I don't think I'm going to have to worry about what Hannah eats like I did with Luke.  Hannah is still nursing between 7-10 times a day as well.

*Activities: Hannah's activities haven't changed too much.  She still loves to move or be held and move.  She spends most of her awake time either on the floor or in her exersaucer.  Most activities still have short time spans unless Hannah is an unusually happy mood.  One of her most favorite activities is watching Luke play.  She delights in seeing Luke at most any time.  Another favorite activity is watching one of Luke's big balls bounce around--this causes her to laugh hysterically which in turn causes those around her to laugh as well.  Hannah still prefers to be in someone's arms or have someone very close by rather than hanging out by herself.  

*Mobility: Hannah is now consistently rolling onto her tummy.  In fact it seems that she enjoys her tummy more than her back now although she still likes to scoot around on her back.  She has rolled from her tummy to her back just a few times.  Also just within the last week Hannah has starting sitting up on her own much better.  She will still topple over occassionally but she is enjoying this new way to play with her toys.  Hannah continues to amaze me with her strength.  She actually scares me at times when she is in the bouncer because it rocks back and forth so hard.  She is quite good at standing while only holding onto your fingers for help.  It is also very apparent that Hannah wants to crawl.  While on her tummy she kicks her legs with all her might and you can just tell that she wants that to move her.  I'm predicting she will be crawling within 6-8 weeks.

*Favorites: I would say this has all pretty much stayed the same from last month with some new additions.  I am still Hannah's favorite person but she has a smile for anyone that says hello or interacts with her but she is starting to show some seperation anxiety.  Other favorites:  being outside, playing with my necklace while in the Moby wrap and actually just being in the Moby wrap is a favorite (she lights up when she sees me putting it on), watching the ball bounce around, chewing on anything she can get in her mouth, and playing with Luke.  Hannah also really enjoys bath time :)

*Events: This last month has seen several firsts for Hannah--going to the swimming pool; eating several new fruits; enjoying her first "real" bath with Luke; sleeping in her crib on her back for a nap; getting her first teeth; celebrating with Dad on Father's Day and developing a more consistent schedule (aka Mom making her cry herself to sleep more).  The next month will bring more food, celebrating Luke's 4th birthday and some alone time with Mom as Luke spends time with Troy's parents.

As a quick side note: we had 6 month pictures taken today and Hannah wanted no part of it.  She would not smile for anything.  I'm really hoping to be surprised with at least a few smiles when we get the proofs back from the photographer.  Most of her expressions probably resemble the first picture below.

And now more pics (I couldn't choose just a few because she has so many different expressions):

No more of this laying on the grass Mom!