chez scoville

the everyday

2012-01-26T13:58:00.001-07:00

Things are finally starting to calm down around these parts. The kids have all been doing a great job of entertaining themselves. They play their little hearts out all day long. I can't believe they are getting so big. It should be noted that both Max and Ian are OBSESSED with the Broncos. Which is crazy because neither of them have ever seen a football game. Max wants to wear his jersey every single day. Even Ava points out broncos paraphernalia everywhere we go. "MOM!!! Look! that's a bronco horse!!! And Ava loves to "do the dishes". She pulls the chair up to the sink and cleans away any time I let her. Here is a glimpse into the funny things they say...

Ian: "Dad, is mom allergic to mouses?"
J-P: "Uh, yeah. Probably."
Ian: "Oh, is that why she screams?"

Max: "Mom, did you know that a lot of boys like sports?"
Me: "yeah..."
Max: "Like Jason, he looooves sports. Mom, do you know what sports are? It's like the Broncos. And games...like basketball and baseball. Those are sports mom. Have you heard of them?"

Ava: "Mom, first I have to do this (picks up toy), and then I have to do this (picks up game), and then I have to do this (picks up something else), and then I can become a true princess.
Me: "Oh...really?"
Ava: "Yeah. Dora taught me that."

super heroes + new couch

2012-01-16T15:32:00.000-07:00

We piled our Christmas money together and finally bought a couch for our living room. My mom has been asking to see it for like a week now. Sorry mom. Here it is complete with our very own superheroes. They spend most of the day in costume. Pretending to get the "bad guys", wrestling, giggling, building, destroying, running, climbing, and ordering each other around. They have such a great time together that they rarely even ask to watch TV anymore. Which I am thrilled about.

Merry Christmas!

2011-12-25T19:58:00.000-07:00

This has been "the best Christmas ever" according to Max and Ian. They have been discussing Santa Claus and the logistics about how he gets around all month. They argue about how he has time to get to all the houses, which one of them is going to get coal for being naughty, if Santa has magic powers like superheroes, etc. They are starting to understand the true meaning of Christmas as well, which makes me happy. Some things I want to remember about this season...

-Ava dancing around the house singing snippets of Christmas songs over and over. "Jingle all the way, jingle all the way, jingle all the way!" and "Ho, ho, the mistletoe...Ho, ho the mistletoe..."

-Ian (in true Christmas spirit) telling Max that me has to share his toys with him because "Jesus said we have to share with everyone". And Max responding with, "No Ian, that's not true. He just said we have to love everyone."

-Ava waking up one morning after the tree had been up for a couple of weeks and randomly saying "Hey dad, did you see the Christmas tree? It's just beautiful."

-Max wearing his Santa hat everywhere we go.

-Explaining on every snow day that "No, today is not Christmas. Just because it snows does not mean that it's Christmas." And without fail, the next time (and every time) it snowed they all asked, "Is today Christmas?" Only to be sorely disappointed each time. It didn't actually snow on Christmas, but we are still covered in a thick blanket of white. Much prettier than dead grass I suppose.

White Christmas

2011-12-25T19:32:00.001-07:00

We had our first white Christmas this year. It snowed last week and the kids have been out playing in it every day. It's too dry to build a snowman, but they could spend hours digging around with their little snow shovels. Notice Max dodging the snowball his Dad chucked at him in picture #2. He is not a fan of snowball throwing. He inherited that from me. I am no fun in the snow. In fact, I took most of these pictures from inside, nice and warm in my layers of thermals.

Outtakes

2011-11-29T16:37:00.001-07:00

I realized today that we are not going to get family pictures taken in time for Christmas Cards this year. So after school I dragged everyone outside in attempt get a "kid" picture. Total fail. Ava didn't stop dancing around, and I couldn't get them to look at the camera at the same time. We'll try again another day.

I have been meaning to write down a few funny things the kids have said lately...

The other day Max was sitting at the table doing his homework. Ian was sitting next to him working on "homework". Ava walked by the garbage can and after seeing an old worksheet in it, she pulled it out and said "oh yeah, I forgot, this is my homework" and sat down and started scribbling on it.

One night after Ava turned two I asked her how old she was. She blurted out "twenty!" without pausing to think. When I said "no you're not!" she started laughing so hard she couldn't catch her breath. Like she had just told the best joke ever. Then I said "Ava, you're two!" She immediately countered with "no I'm not, I'm three!!!"

After seeing "transformer" on Max's Christmas list, I asked him which one he wanted. He immediatey responded with "Octopus Crime!"

Today at Home Depot, they gave us a flyer to come see/take a picture with the Grinch on Saturday night. When I told Ian and asked him if he wanted to go, he turned white and with obvious panic in his voice said "but mom, I hope it's not a real one!"

This morning Max set his breakfast down right next to Ian and said "I'm going to sit by Ian, because he's my best friend. And I love him." I wish I had that one on video.

Two!

2011-11-06T20:03:00.000-07:00

Ava turned two a couple of weeks ago. Life has been so busy and crazy that I haven't even been able to wrap a present or bake cupcakes until today. She didn't get an elaborate tea party this year, as all of our attention has been dedicated to making our house liveable, and dealing with all the curve balls life has been throwing us.

I haven't even scheduled her two year check-up (stats to come), but I do know that she is a big girl. Tall and skinny. Already growing out of her 2T clothes. She is too smart for her own good, and talks like a grown-up much of the time. She has also developed a penchant for expressing an extreme range of emotions within a small time frame. When she is mad she will pinch, bite, hit, and yell " I don't like you...you're dumb!" Two minutes later she will wrap her arms around you in a tight-as-possible bear hug and say "I love you! You're so pretty!", as she plants a fat kiss on your cheek. I don't know where she learned the word "dumb" (nobody else in this house uses it), but we can't get her to stop saying it. "Mmm...don't like that shirt mommy, it's dumb!" Or, "I don't like this store, it's dumb!!!! Want a go home!"

Despite the occasional undesireable vocabulary, she is such a delight to have in our home. She gives the sweetest hugs and kisses. Her enthusiasm is contagious. Her creative play is genious. I love to listen to the conversations between her dolls, or the way she "reads" her books. I love the way she plays with my hair and whispers secrets in my ear. I love the way she screams, squeals, and hyperventilates with excitement when her daddy walks through the door. I love her encouraging motherly words... The other day we were searching high and low for her snow boots, then I finally remembered that they were in the car. When I told her, she said (with all the demeanor of a 20-year-old) "Hey! Good thinking mom!" Another day after helping frustrated children get their gloves on, I quickly put mine on and was immediately applauded with a "Great job mom!!!! You did it!!!"

Happy Belated Birthday to our sweet little sugar plum! We are elated to have you in our family!

halloween

2011-11-01T16:28:00.001-07:00

Halloween crept up on us this year. I normally like to come up with homemade costumes ahead of time, but this year we were lucky to have costumes at all! Things have been super crazy around here, and I had to run to the supermarket (yes, the supermarket) a couple hours before trick or treating to buy Ian a costume. Luckily they still had a few left. The boys are obsessed with Marvel Comics these days, so that influenced their costume choices. Aunt Marlene sent Ava a pretty princess dress for her birthday (thank you!), and that took care of her costume. It's hard to believe that we have been here a little over three months and still aren't settled. Hopefully soon...

And these were the best shots I could get...the boys are fighting/wrestling in most of the pictures and Ava was casting spells with her magic wand.

Ava- 22 months

2011-09-12T14:58:00.002-07:00

How can it be that my baby is almost two! She is a delight to have in our family, and I don't know what I would do without her. Things that I want to remember about this age:

-She changes her clothes about 30 times a day. Roughly every 5-10 minutes. She tells me, "MMM...don't like this shirt. I need a new shirt." And so forth.

-She takes her diaper off the second it's no longer dry. She says, "Mommy, i peed. I need a new biaper!", as she hands it to me. Or she says, "I pooped. Change my biaper. My bum hurts."

-She loves to sing and dance. She will spend an entire day singing "the itsy bitsy spider" while twirling around in circles until she falls down. Then she giggles, gets up, and does it again.

-She loves to follow her brothers around the house and boss them around. One day Max was playing quietly outside by himself. She poked he head out the door and yelled "Hey Max! NO fighting!!!"

-One day I forgot to strap her in her car seat. She didn't say a word, just waited until we were on a very busy street, quietly climbed up the back of my chair, poked her head around to face me and said "Hi there, mom!!!" I almost crashed and she couldn't breath she was laughing so hard.

-She can count to 13 without help. Then it's "16, 14, 17, 13". Counting is her favorite part of hide-and-seek.

-She says please and thank you without being prompted. She also spontaneously tells us that she loves us. Melts my heart.

-She talks really well. She surprises us everyday with her vocabulary. She will randomly come up with ideas, and I have no clue where she gets them. The other day she said, "Mommy, how bout when daddy gets home, we make doughnuts?" Which was interesting because I have never made doughnuts.

-We battle everyday over outfits (when we have to leave the house). She refuses to put on things she doesn't like, and never wants to wear anything weather appropriate. She is very skilled at dressing herself. She will even change her pajamas three times before she goes to bed!

-She always refers to our house as our "new house". She will say "I don't like new house, mommy." Or, instead of saying "I want to go home", she says "I want go to new house". One day I was changing her diaper and she said "Um, don't like new house. Want build nother house!"

-She is my best eater. She loves food liker her Momma.

-She climbed out of the crib after her nap a couple weeks ago. When I saw her walking down the stairs, I said "Ava, how did you get out of your crib?" She thought about it for a minute, then said "Mmm...Jump!"

p.s. The only way I could get her to stay still was to give her a cookie...I took a lot of pictures without realizing that the camera was on manual (all blurry). By the time I figured it out she had no more smiles or patience. And she ripped out her pretty barrette.

Mt. Evans

2011-09-12T13:12:00.000-07:00

J-P's business school friend from Kazakhstan came to visit us this weekend. His name is Sasha. He is a scientist(physicist), who did the international MBA program at Duke. He brought us some fantastic gifts, including some matryoshka dolls that Ava loves. Ava did not, on the other hand, love Sasha. She wouldn't look at him or talk to him the entire time. She is super shy and doesn't really like any men other than her daddy and her grandpa. It was pretty funny. They went to climb Mt. Evans on Saturday (14,265 ft), and when we were looking at the pictures we pointed to J-P and asked her who it was. "That's daddy!!!" When we pointed to Sasha and asked her who it was, she said "Ummm, that's nothing!!!" She wouldn't acknowledge him until he walked out the door today to go home. She said "thank you for the baby dolls!!!", and finally smiled.

preschool

2011-09-12T12:10:00.000-07:00

Today was Ian's first day of preschool. I am doing a co-op with with some friends from church. Ian has been begging to go to preschool for a couple of years now (he talked really early). He wears his backpack to take Max to school everyday, and he wears it to pick him up. He wears it to the park, and he wears it to store. The day after we bought it, he put it on as we were running out the door to take Max to school. "Mom!! I think Max's friends are going to LOVE my backpack!!!" He has worn it proudly everyday since, always looking around to see if people are noticing it.

This kid still LOVES to talk, and follows me around the house all afternoon chatting up a storm. He is always on the go. I don't think he stops talking or moving all day long. He is my best entertainment.

Berry Picking

2011-08-21T20:15:00.000-07:00

Last week we drove to an organic berry patch with some of our new friends. The kids had a blast riding the tractor to the strawberry/raspberry fields, chasing the free-roaming chickens and pigs, and eating just about as many berries as they picked. Whoops. It was so nice to squeeze in a fun outing before Max had to go to school. Afternoon kinder is not turning out to be that bad after all!

First Day

2011-08-21T19:45:00.002-07:00

Max's first day of school was a few weeks ago. I was very sad to leave our schedule-free life of spontaneity behind and enter this new phase of life. Max, on the other hand, had zero apprehension. Just 100% unabashed excitement. He absolutely loves kindergarten. He comes home everyday with stories and details about his day. He already has several "best friends" that he loves to play pirates with and chase girls with at recess (yes he is already chasing girls...at least he tells me about it, right?).

I am thrilled that he is doing so well. Especially after chatting with other parents that are picking up/dropping off their kindies and telling me that they hate school, cry all morning and say they don't want to go because they don't have any friends. Max has come SO far in the last couple years. I am so glad that he is thriving. And I am also so glad that providence brought us to such a wonderful area. We live a rock's throw away from a bus-free, blue ribbon elementary school that is supposedly one of the best in the country. I am overjoyed that my children have the opportunity to go to such a great school. And I love the bus-free atmosphere. Reminds me of my days in Beverly Hills USD.

Ian BEGGED me to let him stay with Max at the school. "Please mom, I want to go to kindergarten too...Please!?!...I already know my ABC's--watch this A, B, C, D...." After much begging, wailing, pleading, etc., I was able to drag him out of Max's classroom. It's going to be a long couple of years before he gets to go!

Family Reunion

2011-07-31T18:12:00.001-07:00

We had a Scoville family reunion in July. Our moving company was a tad late getting here with our belongings. We missed the first day of the reunion, and literally locked the door immediately after they brought in the last box and jumped in the car. We were so exhausted. I spent a few hours in a laundromat the night before so we would have clean clothes to take. It was awesome.

We made it without falling asleep on the drive. Barely. We were a little worn out and I didn't document the event with nearly as many pictures as I should have. We had a very nice time in Midway. It's such a beautiful place. J-P's cousins were very generous and allowed us to stay in their beautiful vacation home. It was so nice to all fit under the same roof. We went for a lovely hike (forgot the camera), swam in the beautiful pool (notice the views of Mt. Timpanogas), played games, chatted, and went for a tour of J-P's late grandmother's property and neighborhood. Luckily we remembered to get a picture of the siblings and grandchildren. It was a much needed break from all of the moving hoopla.

p.s. I love the cousin picture of Ava screaming. Perfectly captures what happens if she is more than a few feet from me. Her separation anxiety is intense. More on that later...

Dardo

2011-07-31T17:43:00.001-07:00

While in Santa Fe, we stopped to visit my great uncle Dardo. He is from Uruguay, and quite a character. His house is in the historical district of Santa Fe, and is about 100 years old. He is an artist and his partner is an architect, so the interior of their house was very unique. I should have taken pictures.

Santa Fe

2011-07-31T17:34:00.002-07:00

We made two whirlwind trips through the middle of the United States. We stopped through Santa Fe twice. Once on the way home from looking for a house, and then again when we moved. The old adobe architecture was picturesque. We went and bought some breakfast at the health food store and had a little early morning picnic on the plaza next to the monument. If you look closely you can see that someone scraped the word "savage" off of the stone. I will agree that the term "savage indians" isn't politically correct, but it was sad to see a centuries old historical monument defaced. The second to last picture is the governor's palace. It's the oldest government building in the United States. Native Americans sit under the roof and put out all of their artesania (what's the word in english?) to sell. My mom bought Ava the turquoise bracelet in the last picture. Ian took that picture, by-the-way. Along with a thousand other pictures. He is sort of obsessed with cameras these days.

Max's Birthday

2011-07-31T17:06:00.002-07:00

Max turned five in June. His party served as a going away party of sorts. It was a crazy-busy time, as we were in the middle of getting ready to move. I can honestly say that month was one of the busiest of my life. But we pulled off a party, homemade gluten-free cupcakes and all. Phew. It was a magical birthday for him. He loved every second. And we loved spending time with family and friends. We miss them so much already.

picking peaches

2011-05-28T11:48:00.002-07:00

Things I will miss about Arizona:

-picking organic peaches at a local farm (in May!)
-hiking in the desert
-trader joe's and cafe rio
-swimming 6-7 months out of the year
-good friends
-being close to family
-warm weather

Things I won't miss:

-scorpions

Yes, we are moving. To a much colder state. One that neither of us has ever lived in before. Those that know me well know that I am not a fan of cold weather. I am one of the few that actually like hot weather. Living in Arizona is like having a free sauna. Just think of all the detoxing that goes on in the month of July...not to mention all the vitamin D! But I love to experience new things and visit new places. So, I am putting on a positive attitude and looking on the bright side. And extending an invitation to anyone that wants to come visit...

18 months

2011-05-15T21:13:00.004-07:00

Ava is 18 months old, but don't tell her that. She thinks she is four or five. She is full of enthusiasm, excitement, and opinions. Lots of opinions. "No, mommy! Deeeeez pants. Jeans!" She is already trying to usurp control of her wardrobe, and it makes me sad. She likes jeans (skirts, shorts), "jammies", and anything lime green. She has one pair of lime green leggings, and a pair of lime gingham shorts and always requests them.

She copies everything her brothers do. She always wants a red plate, because that's what Max asks for. If I give her a different color, she screams "noooooo! red!". She loves to look for letters and yells out "H!!!!", etc. She only sometimes guesses correctly. She surprises me with her vocabulary everyday. Today she told me her hands were "dirty" and wanted to "wash". I didn't realize the water was hot until she yelled "hot mommy! burn!". Her favorite things to say are "watch out!" (when she pushes her brothers around), "jump down!", "sit down, mommy...nurch!" (yes she is still nursing), "read book", and many more. She is a little parrot and is constantly repeating everything she hears. My favorite thing she says is "oh". She says it so adult-like. If I tell her that her purse is cute, she replies "cute?...oh." Or she will ask me where Max is, and when I tell her he is in his room she says "room?....oh." Her intonation is funny, as if she were saying "huh, ok, I get it".

She loves Dora, and can spot her from a mile away. If we pass anything "Dora" in a store she hyperventilates, flaps her arms, and yells "DORA!!!!!". After we pass said Dora paraphernalia, she puts on a sad face, turns, waves, and says "Bye-bye Dora!!!! Bye-bye!!!!". Sadly I don't share her enthusiasm for Dora, and the only Dora item that has made it into our house is a toothbrush purchased by her father. J-P has a huge soft-spot for his little "sugar plum".

Her 18-month well-check went well. In contrast to every other appointment, she was a perfect angel. She happily let the doctor examine her, and when it came time for the shots she didn't even flinch. No tears at all. The nurse yelled out "Wow!!! You didn't even blink! You get two stickers!! Tell them to give you two stickers!!"

Here stats:

height: 32 3/4 (75%)
weight: 22 lbs 3 oz (25%)
head: 18 1/4 (50%)

I get so many comments about how tall she is so I was wondering if she would be in a higher percentile, but I think she must look tall because she is lanky. She definitely has her daddy's body.

More pics here.

cilantro

2011-05-04T15:36:00.001-07:00

I did some editing/transplanting in the garden this week. It was long overdue. I harvested lots of giant beets and dug out the cilantro that had gone to seed. Cilantro grows beautifully all winter long here, but it goes to seed with the first hint of hot weather. I thought it was so pretty, and I couldn't bare to throw it away. I stuck it in mason jars all around my kitchen. It has been making me happy all week. My kitchen makes me happy too, now that it is as white as can be. It puts me in a good mood, which is good since I spend most of my day in it. I will be very sad to leave it when the time comes.

take two

2011-05-02T22:28:00.002-07:00

We tried another round of pictures in Easter outfits tonight. We still didn't get any where they are all looking at the camera at the same time. And in the majority of them they are giggling, sticking their tongue out, or running away from me. At least there was a little more light. Here are a few more on flickr: http://www.flickr.com/photos/chezscoville/

Oh, and can anyone tell me how to change picture size in the updated blogger? I am so not good at figuring this stuff out...

outside

2011-04-29T14:40:00.001-07:00

Here at chez scoville we have to hide the handle that turns on the hose. We even have to hide the pliers because the boys have figured out how to turn it on with those. We have the hose under tight lock and key. But at least once a week the children get creative and figure out a way to turn the water on. And then they make their favorite thing: mud. Mud is the bane of my existence. I feel like a very significant portion of my adult life has been spent washing mud off of clothes and children.

Ava LOVES being outside. She loves playing in the mud and "working" in the garden. And by working I mean picking everything. Our baby zucchini plants have been among the saddest fatalities. And ironically, she doesn't like to be dirty. She spends her five minutes in the dirt, and then comes running to find me. "Mama!!!! Dirt-eeeee...wash!" Throughout the day she will discover little scabs and scrapes on her legs. She immediately points them out and says "dirt-eeee! wash!".

making me smile

2011-04-26T15:40:00.006-07:00

Max is really into writing lately. It's his favorite thing to do. He used to fill pages with random letters, but now he is more interested in making words. He will grab a paper and say "mom! how do you spell________?" A few days ago I found a card that he had written the names of all the people in our family in. I couldn't help but laugh that he had included his favorite stuffed animal "burrito" as part of our family. This morning I found him cutting out little papers, writing the alphabet on them, and then taping them together. "I'm working on an art project mom...these are clues to a treasure hunt." This afternoon I asked him if he wanted to run to the store with me. He said "yes!, but let me make the list!" He grabbed a paper and started writing down (with a little help) all of the things he thought we needed. This is what he told me the list said: "maple syrup, carrots, chicken, bananas, frosting, fish".

When I picked him up from preschool earlier he was rattling off about how they are going to celebrate his birthday in May (because it's a summer birthday). "Mom, I have to bring cupcakes, ok? Because that's what you eat when it's your birthday. Do you know what a cupcake is? It's kinda like a muffin, except a cupcake has frosting and a muffin doesn't. We need to get some frosting, ok?" We'll see if his friends eat the wheat-free, dairy-free, soy-free cupcakes I send. And I probably won't mention the fact that I use duck eggs. I figure his "birthday" is the one time a year that he shouldn't have to eat something different than the other kids. It makes me sad that he never gets to eat their birthday treats.

Easter Outtakes

2011-04-25T14:06:00.016-07:00

Things have been crazy around here lately. We have been in survival mode for a few weeks. Easter snuck up on me. Luckily I bought Easter outfits last year (on clearance), or my children would have had nothing to wear yesterday. We did not dye eggs, we did not have a fancy egg hunt, or plant wheat grass for our traditional Easter centerpiece...but we had clothes. And despite not having a working fridge, we managed to throw together Easter dinner for J-P's mom and sisters.

J-P had his back surgery last week and is still in recovery mode, despite seeing gradual improvements each day. Luckily his mom came down to help, because I am quite positive I would not have survived without her. I have had a lot on my plate, and having an extra person around made things bearable.

As usual, we didn't get any perfect pictures. Mostly blurry. Ava's shoes were off, the pretty handmade flower ripped out of her hair, and the boys were wiggling and belting out "cheeeeeeese" (while making funny faces) for the duration of the shoot. I meant to put their clothes back on and take some more pictures outside when the lighting was better. But that didn't happen.

diagnosis

2011-03-28T15:51:00.007-07:00

I took Max to a developmental pediatrician today to have him evaluated. He is doing fantastic and is a completely different child than he was a year and a half ago, but I wanted to make sure he is ready for kindergarten. As much as I dislike labels, I knew he would need one in order to qualify for accommodations in the public school system. I didn't want to send him out into the jungle without help if he needed it.

I had been stewing over the pages and pages of paperwork and surveys, making J-P re-read everything I wrote to make sure I answered everything appropriately. I didn't sleep all night and had a huge stomach ache in anticipation of what they might tell me. And let me say that I was caught completely off-guard by what they diagnosed him with.

After two hours of intense examination, interviewing, testing, etc. the doctor looked at me and said, "I can tell you are worried about Asperger's. I will tell you right now that he doesn't have it. I don't even have to add everything up to tell you that he isn't even close to having it." She proceeded to tell me that he is nowhere close to having anything autism related. At least not anymore. And she explained why in great detail. Which I appreciated.

After calming my autism fears, she changed the subject. She mentioned that he was exhibiting lots of facial tics. She said upon first glance she could tell that he had them, and he continued to have them throughout the whole two hour exam. "Oh, you mean how he squints his right eye and grimaces? He only does that when he is nervous, anxious, or upset," I replied. She seemed very concerned and continued to grill me about different tics, and tried to uncover any vocal tics he might have. I told her that a lot of people in my family have facial tics, like my brother, aunt, grandma, great-grandma, etc. I had no idea it was a big deal. She quizzed me about every person's tic, and I did my best to mimic them while she recorded it furiously on her paper.

In the end, she diagnosed Max with a tic disorder. She explained that some people's brains are just wired that way. Unfortunately, people with tic disorders are especially prone to OCD and anxiety, which explains why Max had such a hard time with those things when he was little. Her recommended treatment was fish oil, magnesium, and B vitamins. She was very impressed that I was already giving him all of those things, and even more impressed that I knew about and was giving him inositol. Apparently it has proven very effective in treating OCD/anxiety. One thing I also learned is that tics are very common in people with ADD, which luckily Max does not have (knock on wood).

The pediatrician said that he is above average developmentally. His skills are on par with a five-and-a-half-year-old (he won't be five until the middle of June), so he is definitely ready for kindergarten. And that was even after he got docked several points for drawing a duck when the doctor instructed him to draw a person. He thought it was the funniest thing ever and couldn't stop giggling.

mud

2011-03-26T13:50:00.004-07:00

I read a book last week about brain development that made me feel like a very good mom. Most of it went way over my head, but the part about activities that stimulate brain development in children made me feel great. Making messes-check. Exploring outdoors and digging in the dirt-check. Who knew making messes was essential to brain development? Let me tell you, there has been a lot of brain enrichment going on around these parts via mess making. In fact, if making messes stimulates brain development, I just might be growing the smartest children in the world.

I have finally resigned myself to the fact that this season of life involves messes. Lots of them. And even if said messes are pushing me over the edge, at least they are enriching the minds of my sweet little children. Today I left my post at the kitchen sink for a brief moment to see what the boys were throwing at the window. When I turned around to see Max's muddy artwork on the windows I had cleaned just a few short days ago, I took a deep breath. Ok, I took several deep breaths. And then I reminded myself that all these shenanigans are fostering brain development.

saturday hike

2011-03-19T12:06:00.005-07:00

We woke up and decided to drive to the mountains a few minutes south of our house to do a little hiking. J-P has been mountain biking there, but it was the first time we have all been as a family. We always drive to "better" locations for our hikes, but we really should take advantage of the proximity of the San Tan's more often.

Ava threw a royal fit in her fancy backpack, and insisted on walking by herself without holding anyone's hand. Little miss independent wanted to hike solo while holding her water bottle, but after two falls on jagged rocks we forced her back in. She screamed the rest of the way while the boys explored and filled their hats with shiny rocks for their "collection". Ian fell a few times, and Max was bummed that we didn't see any horses despite all the clues he found like horse poo and horse tracks. The fresh air and dessert smells were exhilarating.

Sunday pictures

2011-03-13T21:23:00.005-07:00

When we got home from church, I asked Ava if she wanted to take a picture. She ran out the back door, and searched high and low for her white chair. She was so excited that she said "cheee(se)!" before she had turned around to face the camera. Her excitement for pictures lasts about five seconds and then she runs off to play. She seems to be doing really well. I was scared to death to give both her and Max antibiotics, as they had never had them before and I was worried they would have a serious reaction. I have read way too many stories about children that get autism (among other things) after taking antibiotics, so I've been a tad paranoid. So far so good, knock on wood. I will continue forcing them to eat coconut yogurt, raw sauerkraut, and take probiotics. I'm just glad they are still too young to know how crazy I am. The love me no matter how much "sour white spaghetti" I put on their plate.

the poser

2011-03-11T21:07:00.004-07:00

I ran outside with the camera today to capture something cute that Ava was doing. As soon as she saw me with the camera, she quit doing aforementioned cute thing and ran over to her chair. She said "siiiii!"(sit!). I helped her onto the chair and she immediately smiled and said "cheeee!" (cheese!). I hadn't even taken the lens cap off of the camera yet. I have a feeling I won't be able to get too many candid action shots from here on out. She only stayed on the chair for a few seconds, and then quickly resumed her previous activity. As soon as I lifted the camera up to take a picture, she dropped what she was doing and ran back to her chair where she smiled on cue and belted out the appropriate "cheeee!" again. I tried several times to get a candid shot, but every time she saw the camera she ran to her little chair and repeated the drill.

16 months

2011-03-10T08:52:00.006-07:00

This my effort to document Ava at 16 months. I am still in a fog from that whole week of no sleep, but I forced myself to pull out the camera and take a few pictures yesterday. Getting a non-blurry shot is the hard part, as she does not sit still long enough for me to focus and get a good picture.

Ava is talking quite a bit. She picks up new words every day. While in the hospital, she screamed "Toe! Toe! Toe!" for the duration of our stay as she tried to pull the oxygen monitor off of her toe. I called J-P from the hospital and asked him if he taught her the word "toe". I knew I hadn't. His response- "yeah, we worked on a lot of things while you and Max were in the hospital".

In addition to her increase in vocabulary, she became VERY attached to J-P while I was away for three and a half days. J-P drove her to the hospital so I could run out and feed her three times a day. But that's all I saw her. She has a special place in her heart for the parent that didn't abandon her. Any time he appears, she squeals, jumps into his arms and wraps her arms around his neck. Oh how she loves her "da da".

She loves her brothers' toys the best. She fills up little dump trucks with dirt, and belts out the appropriate "vroom vroom" as she pushed them around. She takes buzz lightyear and flies him around the house while making space shuttle noises. She will play with her "babies" too, but prefers to play outside in the dirt like her brothers. She does, however, like to fill up her purse with treasures and carry it around the house.

Her favorite thing to do is read. If she had it her way, we would spend the entire day on the couch reading. She brings me books all day long and screams "Read! Read! Read!" One is never enough. Ten is never enough. She always wants more.

New phrases: "ah wa jink!" (I want a drink), "mo da da" (I want more da da), "beanie bean and max????" (where are Ian and Max?), "ah done!" (all done), jah (yeah), "nurch!" (nurse)...

She is also going through the "No!" phase. Full body exertion is observed with her head shaking and feet stomping tantrums. It's incredible that at such a young age she knows exactly what she wants. I only wish I were that decisive!

and...we're back. in the hospital.

2011-03-04T15:01:00.009-07:00

Five minutes after I got home with Max, I took Ava to urgent care. She was coughing, had a low grade fever, and I just knew she had pneumonia too. She had the same funky smelling breath that Max did (from the bacteria?). The urgent care doctor told me she was perfectly fine, just a slight cold. Oxygen saturation was great. No reason for a chest x-ray.

The next night she was still coughing, low grade fever, and faster than normal respiration. Same as Max. Still convinced that something was wrong, I called our pediatrician's night line. They told me I needed to take her to the E.R.

At the hospital her lungs sounded "great", but they did a chest x-ray anyway and sure enough...bilateral pneumonia. Luckily she has a much milder version than Max. Because she was borderline they gave me the option of admitting her or taking her home and watching her myself. I told them I would watch her oxygen saturation for 20-30 minutes and if she didn't drop I would take her home. After she fell asleep I laid her down on the bed and her levels dropped too much (from 95 to 85) and they said "sorry, we're keeping her".

Turns out that Ava HATES the hospital. I have been wrestling her the whole time while she squirms, screams, and tries to take out her IV. She tugs at her cords and yells "No! Noooooo! I don't! Mama! Mama, Nooooooo!" I am surprised they haven't kicked us out. She is doing really well, so I convinced them to let me unplug her so she could run around and play. She is currently rearranging the contents of the room, thus allowing me to write this update. They told me I could take her home tonight after her next course of IV antibiotics. Feeling grateful that she is ok and that I get to sleep in my own bed tonight.

home

2011-03-03T21:19:00.003-07:00

We got home from the hospital last night. Max and Ian had a very happy reunion this morning, and played their little hearts out all day. It's nice to be home. Max has to do some breathing therapy and finish his antibiotic, but we have definitely turned a corner. He is back to his normal antics, as evidenced by the above pictures. I heard him yelling-- "Mom!! I'm muuuuuddy!!" --and when I peeked outside I saw this. Luckily his dad was home to clean up the mess because I was way too exhausted to deal with it.

progress

2011-03-02T10:47:00.009-07:00

Max is having a grand time in the hospital. He loves having everyone dote on him, and smiles and bats his eyelashes appropriately. He loves unplugging all of his cords so he can go to the bathroom, and especially loves to push the button to call the nurse when his IV starts beeping. The crazy thing is that he doesn't seem sick at all. No fever, his breathing is great, his lungs sound great, no runny nose or congestion. He is laughing, giggling, and cracking jokes. His oxygen saturation is just lower than normal, and he coughs every once in a while.

I still can't believe he has pneumonia. It happened so fast. Last Thursday he started to cough here and there. He hasn't had a cold since he was 18-months-old, so I was a little concerned. He wasn't acting sick and had no other symptoms. Thursday night I drove the kids to Palm Springs to spend time with J-P. He was working in one of our favorite hotels, so we went to spend the weekend with him. Max coughed the whole way. I figured he must be having an allergic reaction to some peanut dust or something in the air so I gave him benadryl. It didn't change a thing. The next day he was still coughing off and on, and had a low grade fever. His fever came and went, as did the coughing, over the next two days. Max's appetite was poor, and his energy level was lower than normal so I talked J-P into leaving a day early.

We got home Sunday night. After J-P put the boys to bed I went in to check on Max. He was slightly warm. His breathing wasn't labored at all, but it was a little faster than it should be (43 breaths a minute). I told J-P I wanted to take him to urgent care. He resisted rolling his eyes and said- "He has a cold. Maybe the flu. He's fine." I made him call his brother (who is a doctor) to ask him what we should do. After a little more convincing, he let me scoop him out of bed and go to urgent care.

They didn't seem too worried and gave me the "he has an upper respiratory infection" speech. I asked the doctor about pneumonia, and if he thought he needed a chest x-ray. He said no. They checked his oxygen saturation, to be on the safe side, and it was really low. The doctor ordered a breathing treatment. As the nurse was asking me the standard "is he allergic to any medications?" type questions, I got a feeling I should tell her about his peanut allergy. Her eyes got wide, and she immediately put the breathing treatment down and walked out of the room.

She and the doctor came in and said that particular breathing treatment cross-reacted with peanut allergy and could cause a serious reaction. Which, considering the state of his lungs, might have killed him. Luckily the nurse was a former allergy nurse and knew about the cross reaction. They gave him the traditional albuterol (with oxygen), and his levels still didn't go up enough. The doctor changed his mind and decided to do an x-ray.

Next thing I know the doctor rushes into the room, and amidst what I presume was a panic attack, emotionally tells me that Max has pneumonia quite badly in both lungs and that he called an ambulance because he needs to be admitted to the hospital immediately. The nurse calmed him down and said that it would be easier for me to drive him myself.

They didn't believe me at the hospital that he had pneumonia, because he didn't have a fever and his breathing was fine. His lungs sounded "good", they said. As soon as they got a copy of the x-ray they admitted him in a hurry, started an IV, stuck an oxygen tube up his nose, and started blood work.

He is doing great now. He has been off of oxygen for about 12 hours, and we just stopped the IV to see how it goes. Hopefully we will be able to go home in the next day or so. I will have to admit that I am enjoying my little vacation from cooking, cleaning, and toddler crowd control. And it's really nice to be able to spend some quality time with Max. I sure love him.

max update

2011-02-28T23:09:00.003-07:00

We rushed Max to the hospital late last night after discovering that he has "pretty substantial" pneumonia in both lungs at our urgent care visit. The doctor panicked and called an ambulance after he saw the x-rays, but the nurse convinced him to cancel it and let me drive him myself to avoid the hassle. Apparently the hospital is brimming over with pediatric pneumonia patients, as we were in the hospital for almost a full 24 hours before he was even checked by a doctor. They told me he was "low priority" compared to the other patients.

I got about five minutes of sleep last night, as Max kept pulling out his oxygen tube in his sleep. His oxygen sat. dropped each time and his machine started beeping and flashing. I spent the whole night making sure he didn't pull out his IV or oxygen tube, it was awesome. Especially since the night before last I only got two hours of sleep because Ava was up all night with the stomach flu. Double awesome.

A room in the peds wing finally opened up late this afternoon and we were able to get out of the loud, cramped ER. Max has been a total trooper. Even with all the blood draws, IV insertion, tubes up his nose, etc. He has been so calm and well behaved. He only shed two small tears when his IV got clogged with blood and they had to backwash it.

Feeling very grateful for helpful family and friends, modern medicine, and pateint nurses. We are stuck here until he gets a little better and can go without oxygen/fluids. Hopefully we will both get at least a little bit of sleep tonight. Fingers are crossed.

burrito and whale

2011-02-21T17:10:00.007-07:00

The boys got plenty of great toys for Christmas this year. Ironically, the only ones they play with are two small stuffed dogs they got in their stockings. Upon first sight, Max named his "burrito" and they have since been inseparable. Ian named his "whale". The two of them make dog houses out of blocks, the play dog catch (using dogs instead of balls), they play "house" where they are the parents and the dogs are the babies/children. They put their dogs in "time out" quite frequently for misbehaving. They put them down for naps. They wrestle with them (and each other). They play dog pirates. They play hide-and-go-seek with them. Watching this explosion of creative dog play makes me more than happy. Although I will admit that I am secretly happy that Max's dog allergy will prevent us from ever getting a real dog.

miss sassafras

2011-02-20T20:55:00.005-07:00

Ava slept all the way through church today. It was so nice to be able to actually sit and enjoy the meetings, rather than chase her down the hall or feed her in the mother's lounge. Which is what I normally spend my time doing. In a little over two months she will go to the nursery and I won't have anyone to chase. Pretty sure that will compound by baby hunger. I was born with a serious case of baby hunger, and I don't think it will ever go away. No matter how old I get, or how many babies I have.

green

2011-02-19T14:02:00.004-07:00

We make smoothies a lot. At least every day. I do my best to rotate ingredients. We have a LOT of variety in our diet these days to prevent new food sensitivities from popping up. Rotation diets are supposed to do wonders for the food allergic, so we are trying it out. Anyway, today I was making a banana, mango, pineapple, and vanilla hemp milk smoothie. Right before I turned on the blender, Max stopped me. "Mom! Wait! What about the green stuff?!? You forgot the green stuff! Should I go pick something?" We picked a handful of kale and threw it in. Along with a tiny bit of raw honey to mask the bitterness. And it was actually really, really good. Long live the Shrek smoothie (as Max calls it).

planting

2011-02-15T15:51:00.008-07:00

This is what our day looked like. A lovely 80 degrees. I decided that it was time to edit the garden and prep for some more planting. I really wish it wouldn't have taken me five years of living here to figure out that I could grow greens all winter long. It has been delightful to be able to go outside to pick lettuce for a salad, beet greens, chard or kale for a green smoothie, cilantro for guacamole, bok choy for stir fry, etc. All fresh and organic. We have even had several cold nights (low 20's) and it hasn't phased any of the plants. My gigantic basil plant died with the first freeze, but everything else is frost hardy. Apparently you can even dig kale out from under the snow when you want to pick it.

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And I finally gave the blog a little face lift. I was craving something clean and simple.

isn't she lovely?

2011-02-13T23:03:00.007-07:00

Isn't she lovely...spikey, uneven hair and all?

Ava and the buzz cut, or why a 3-year-old should never play with scissors

2011-02-10T21:10:00.004-07:00

*raising her hands "as high as you can" as prompted by the Little Einsteins show she is watching...she is also saying "hi!", and exposing us to her unchewed gf pumpkin muffin.

Ian cut Ava's hair. Five inches off the top. I cried. Then I laughed. And then I threw away the scissors. It happened a few weeks ago, and I haven't felt like taking pictures or blogging about it. But I'm over it now and think her little pixie cut is quite cute. Despite all the comments I get about how she's "a cute little feller".

Ava is 15-months-old and full of spunk. And fun. And Energy. And drama. She is talking quite a bit. She lovingly refers to her "bruz" by their nicknames, "beanie bean" and "mac-mo". It's her best effort to say "eanie bean" and "maximo". She follows them everywhere, and plays in the dirt alongside them with trucks and dinosaurs. Her grandfather was horrified when he came to visit, and promptly requested that I "get her some dolls to play with". She has plenty of dolls, but would much rather do what her brothers do. They are rock stars to her.

The other day the three of them were playing in the boys' room, when all of the sudden it got very quiet and I heard the boys whispering something about Ava being on the bed. I rushed in to see what was going on, and found Ava on the TOP bunk, hanging over the ledge with a huge smile. I still can't believe she can summit the top bunk already. She has NO FEAR. So different from my careful boys.

She always reminds us that she is a girl with dramatic outbursts, despite her tomboy tendencies. When she doesn't get her way she stomps her feet, shakes her head, and even throws herself on the ground and "cries". The other day J-P didn't give her what she wanted, so she threw herself on the ground next to his feet and started crying. He immediately walked to the other side of the kitchen and started to do the dishes. She immediately stopped crying, walked over to where he was, and dramatically threw herself on the ground by his feet again and started crying. As if to say, apparently you didn't notice me. Let me make this more obvious for you. We still laugh about it on a daily basis.

She is saying quite a few words. When she has a BM she comes to find me, and with a very distressed face says "pooped". Whenever I ask a question (who wants to go to the store?, who wants a snack?, who wants to take a bath?, etc.) she comes running and yells out "I doooo! I do! I do!" It's completely adorable. In fact, she says "I do!" whenever she sees anything she wants. If I am eating a banana, she points to it and says "I do! I doooooo!" If we are at the store and she sees a toy she wants, she starts bouncing in the cart, hyperventilating, and saying "I Do! I Do! I Doooo!" If she doesn't want something, she is equally as dramatic. She shakes her head and says "Huh uh. No. Na Na Na NO!"

And for the purpose of recording, I will have to add that she holds her own with the boys. She bites, pushes, steals toys, scratches, and more. She also LOVES clothes. And shoes. She is always bringing us clothes and shoes to put on her, and she tantrums if we don't comply. At any given point of the day, she is usually wearing a pair of shoes and up to three sweaters. Sometimes hats or other random accessories she finds. Oh, and she is finally willing to keep a headband on for the first time in almost a year. But only if I tell her how pretty she looks. She immediately stops yanking at it and starts smiling and batting her eyelashes. I'm not kidding. Her love of clothes and "looking pretty" is definitely not something we've instilled in her. She has come up with that personality trait all on her own.

Other things I don't want to forget: how she sings "bye-bye baby" (rock-a-bye baby) to her dolls as she rocks them in her cradle. And how she immediately starts dancing and laughing whenever she hears music. She stomps her feet and spins around while yelling "dan(ce)!, dan(ce)!, dan(ce)!"

Ok, I think that's it. I'm so curious to see how she will change over the next few months.

an update

2011-02-10T19:36:00.005-07:00

"You have to look up Ian..."

Hello. We're alive. And well. It's been a busy month. Full of business trips, teething babies (all four molars, ouch!), the flu, family coming to visit, and more. J-P has been going to lots of appointments (physical therapy, acupuncture, cortisone/epidural shots, etc) to try and help his back. Nothing seems to be working that well, so he has an appointment scheduled with the neurosurgeon. His MRI showed bulging/herniated discs, and one that "is exploding over and dripping down his spinal column". Whatever that means. Between all the appointments and his busy work schedule, things have been a little crazy around here.

I have had a lot on my mind. Namely, kindergarten registration. And peanut allergies. And sending my highly allergic child to public school. In short, I'm terrified. I have been staying up late researching cures and treatments. And I'm trying everything. Right now doctors at Mt. Sinai Medical Center in NY are curing peanut anaphylaxis with a Chinese herbal formula. The formula is in stage two of clinical trials, but probably won't be released for another 10 years. I got a copy of the ingredients, and J-P's acupunturist said he would make it for Max. We'll see how it goes.

I have also been doing a lot of research on different health conditions for family and friends. During these late nights, I discovered something called a MTHFR gene polymorphism. And I think a lot of people in our family might have it. It basically means that we don't detox properly. Sooo...I have been doing lots of crazy things like driving all the way across Phoenix to buy a 50lb. bag of clay so we can take detox baths. I have been doing regular epsom salt baths for the kids as well. I have been giving Max milk thistle, among other things. I have also tweaked our diet a little more. I know, it sounds like I am certifiably crazy. But let me tell you, I have seen a HUGE difference. HUGE. The dark circles under Max and Ian's eyes are gone. Their moods are fantastic. They just seem healthier. Which makes me happy.

In other news, Max is still loving preschool. I thought he was going to explode with excitement over his Valentine's party today. He woke up, quickly put on a red shirt (per his teacher's suggestion), and asked me over and over "is it time for preschool yet?" He has also been saying funny things about babies. "Mom, I think we should get another baby. Because I like babies. And I think grandma likes them too. And I think we should name it Fleewah. Ok?" If only I had a magic wand to make our house bigger. Or turn the economy around. With our house being worth less than half of what we payed for it, we won't be going anywhere anytime soon. Which I try not to think about.

Oh, and if you have a curious mind and want to read about the MTHFR mutation, clay, etc. I wrote about it HERE.

the hurricane

2011-01-10T22:07:00.008-07:00

I always complain to J-P that all I do is clean. All day long. Everyday. Which wouldn't be a big deal, except that our house is never clean. At least not for long. I always feel like I'm sinking in quicksand when it comes to keeping the house clean. J-P's response to my grumbling is always the same. "You can't clean during a hurricane."

The Max and Ian hurricane is a powerful one. They can rearrange the entire contents of a room while I unload the dishwasher. And by rearrange I mean plunder and pillage. Destroy. Dump out every toy they own. More along those lines. I usually send them outside so they can release their creative energy without causing too much damage. But if you have seen our backyard lately, you would probably agree that it looks as though it has been hit by a hurricane.

Despite the messy house, I love the toddler stage. Really. The sweet hugs, the funny things they say, the innocence, the excitement. These two busybodies energize me and make my heart swell. Hopefully one day I will be able to let go of the mess that comes with them.

14 months

2011-01-10T21:32:00.004-07:00

Ava is becoming less of a baby and more of a little girl by the day. She is picking up new words and becoming more adventurous too. She is definitely not scared of heights. She loves to climb. Up the slide, up the bunk bed ladder, onto the couch, onto the bottom bunk. And she squeals with delight when she summits her climb.

She is very happy girl, yet very dramatic when things don't go her way. She has the throw-her-head-back, stomp-her-feet, throw-herself-onto-the-ground (although she is quite careful that her head doesn't hit the floor) routine down pat. I have always heard girls were more dramatic than boys, but now I can say that it's definitely true! Aside from the drama, she is incredibly sweet. She loves to smoother her brothers with hugs (and kisses if they let her). She still loves to snuggle. She squeals, screams, and runs to the front door to give her daddy a hug when she hears him open it.

Her new favorite word is "baby". She loves babies. And that includes her dolls (she finally has some!) and anybody under the age of two. She says "baby! baby!" whenever she sees a baby, a doll, or a picture of a baby or doll. She has has also added "poop" and "ouch" to her repertoire. And tonight she called Ian "beanie bee" (his nickname is "eanie bean").

Christmas 2010

2010-12-25T22:58:00.005-07:00

Santa treated us well and we enjoyed a wonderful day with family. Here is a virtual copy of our card (front and back) for anyone we might have missed. Merry Christmas from Chez Scoville!

Three

2010-12-20T19:48:00.005-07:00

Ian is three. I really can't believe how much a child can grow in three short years. His three year well-check appointment was very similar to last year. He froze into a silent statue for the duration of the visit. He was too shy to answer any of the doctor's questions, and only nodded in response. I had to reassure the doctor several times that Ian is a social chatterbox at home, and has been talking in sentences since 18 months. As the doctor walked out the door and said goodbye, Ian blurted out an expressionless "Happy-Thanksgivings-Merry-Christmas" as quickly and quietly as he could. That was the only thing he said the whole appointment. And as usual, no crying with the shots.

Interesting tidbits about Ian:

-He has been sleeping in the TOP bunk since he was 26 months old.

-He gets very silly/giddy when tired, but never cranky.

-He talks a lot, and narrates most of our day.

-He likes to throw in as many words as he can. For example, instead of saying "I'm hungry", he says, "mom, uh, I think it must be time for lunch or something".

-He loves to skip, gallop and dance.

-He loves to eat, and will eat just about anything.

-He knows the alphabet pretty well.

-He loves to take showers. As soon as he hears it running he quickly strips down and jumps in with whoever happens to be in there.

-A couple months before he turned three, I caught him standing on the kitchen table and peeing into his cereal bowl. I commenced with potty training immediately and it was a quick, fairly painless process.

Ian loves to make connections and ask questions. A couple weeks ago he came to me and said, "uh, mom...do you have a belly button?" When I answered in the affirmative, he asked if he could see it. I acquiesced. Then he said, "You have a belly button, Ava has a belly button, Max has a belly button, and Ian has a belly button...but daddy doesn't. He just has a hole." He is always coming up with little anecdotes that make us laugh.

His three year stats:

weight: 32 lbs (65th%)

height: 39 inches (84th %)

He is a very sweet, smart, affectionate boy with a huge helping of naughty. I could write pages about the damage he has done to our personal property with crayons and scissors. Pages. I am so curious to see what he will be like when he grows up.

big girl

2010-12-13T14:51:00.003-07:00

I don't remember the last time Ava crawled, it's been a few weeks. As soon as she figured out how to get back up, crawling became a quickly forgotten pastime. She has been sick for the past two days and screams if I so much as think about putting her down. But when she heard the word "outside" while Max was coaxing Ian out to play, she wiggled out of my tired arms and made a dash for the back door. I peeked out the door at the thermometer on the patio to make sure she would be ok without shoes on, and it said 86 degrees! Pretty wild weather for December, even for Arizona.

13 months of pure sweetness

2010-11-23T16:27:00.003-07:00

Ava started taking lots of steps right after I posted that she wasn't interested in walking. Well, she is definitely interested. She would be a full-time walker if she could figure out how to get back up after she falls. She walks for 10-20 steps, falls...and then crawls. Right after she turned 12 months she got brave enough to start taking steps. She took 2-3 steps, stopped, and started clapping and squealing out of excitement. The momentum from the clapping would knock her over. Every time. It was so cute.

Today I went into our room to talk to J-P while he was working, and I put Ava down to play (pull books out of the bookcase). She wobbled over to J-P as fast as she could and jumped right into his lap for a good long snuggle. It was so sweet. I really love having such a sweet snuggler. Although all three of them are pretty good snugglers these days. Some days I wish they would never grow up.

thankful

2010-11-22T10:32:00.004-07:00

Lately I have been really happy. Bursting-at-the-seams happy. All the time. Life is a party. Nothing can get me down (knock-on-wood). Really though, it's how I'm feeling. Life is good. And I am really happy. Did I already mention that? Among the things bolstering my fantastic mood: sunny arizona skies, an abundant garden, healthy children, good food (I am getting better at baking gluten-free every day), my new breakmaker (that has a gluten-free cycle and makes my life SO much easier--hooray!), designing Christmas cards, anticipating spending time with family and friends over the holidays.

I really love this time of year. Especially in Arizona where it's just cold enough to pull out the down comforter, wear cute sweaters, and drink hot chocolate (I have recently invented the best dairy-free/sugar-free recipe by-the-way), but not cold enough to cause bodily pain. Yes, the cold is painful to me. I really love the year-round growing season in Arizona. And I can't wait for our lemons and oranges to ripen. In my garden right now: basil, cucumbers, napa cabbage, swiss chard, bok choy, beets, cilantro, green onions, tomatoes, lettuce, and kale, and yellow peppers. It's only taken me five years here to figure out what grows best in the fall. Hooray for fresh garden pesto in November! Like I said, life is good. So much to be thankful for at chez scoville.

Family Pictures

2010-11-14T20:32:00.007-07:00

We had my talented friend Rachel (click for her blog) take our family pictures this year. We took them in an old pecan grove. She was very patient with our boys who, upon finding themselves in a magical forest, just wanted to run around and play with sticks. I am the most indecisive person in the world, and changed Ava's and my outfit about at least 10 times before we left. I won't tell you how many dresses I bought and then took back, it's embarrassing. I even enlisted the style help of my friend Chelsea, but didn't have time to purchase all of her suggestions. Ironically, I ended up putting Ava in an old sweater I found at a thrift store months ago. Right before we left I decided to make her some flower brooches because her outfit needed a little something (never mind that my outfit needed much more help). J-P did a pretty good job of not rolling his eyes during all the wardrobe changes and hot gluing. We had a lot of fun, and the pecan grove was amazing. Thanks Rachel!

More pictures on flickr.

new bikes + park day

2010-11-14T16:30:00.004-07:00

We spent most of Ian's birthday bike shopping and going on a bike ride to the park. My parents were in town and the weather couldn't have been more perfect. Fall in Arizona is lovely. I'm not sure who is more thrilled about the new bikes, the boys or their father. I'm sure he is counting down the days until they can go on real rides with him. On the way home from church today, we were talking about the new bikes and Max said, "yeah, now all I need is a bike outfit". No doubt referring to his father's spandex cycling ensembles. J-P and I couldn't stop laughing.

moose party

2010-11-14T15:29:00.006-07:00

My sweet little Eanie Bean turned three. I have been asking him for the last month what kind of party he wanted to have, and EVERY time his response was the same: I want a green moose party! I had no idea how he knew what a moose was. I was sure he had it confused with another animal. Every time I asked him what present he wanted, his response was the same: a moose wrapped in a box. I looked and looked and couldn't find a toy moose anywhere. I would wait a couple days and ask him again, hoping he would forget about the moose. He never did. His moose excitement grew, as did my perplexity concerning his moose enthusiasm.

One day I was deep cleaning his bedroom, and I found a small toy moose under his bed (pictured above). I quickly remembered that we picked it out of the grab-bag section at goodwill months ago. That was the last time I had seen it. I found Ian and said, "look what I found!" With the most exuberant little smile I have ever seen, he exclaimed "my MOOSE!!!!!" I had no idea he had such an affinity for moose.

My hopes of planning a fabulous green moose party didn't come to fruition, as we have been really busy and had family in town. On the afternoon of his birthday, I started making his cupcakes. He looked around the room and said "mom, where's my flags?" He was referring to the last minute birthday banners that I usually throw together for birthdays. I quickly pulled out every last sheet of greenish paper and did the best I could. Max and Grandpa walked to walgreens to pick up some party supplies and candles (thanks grandpa!), and we pulled off the green moose party before the day was over. One of these days I'll get my ducks in a row and be able to plan ahead. Ian's cousin Braden gave him a stuffed moose (from his personal collection), and his smile/expression when he opened it was the most priceless thing ever. My camera wasn't fast enough to capture it. I don't think I've ever seen him so happy.

Happy Birthday Ian, we love you!

typical day

2010-11-01T22:02:00.005-07:00

I love this picture because it captures a typical day here at chez scoville. Ian, who I can never keep clothes on (he has to take them ALL off every time he goes to the bathroom, then never takes the time to put them back on). Max, who puts a polo shirt on backwards every day. He then argues that he has it on the right way, and that my idea of putting the buttons in the front is wrong. Some days I can convince him, some days I don't bother. Both boys always with a sword or a shovel in their hand. If not they have a kitchen utensil that they are pretending is a sword or a shovel. A good portion of our silverware is strewn around the backyard. And then there is Ava, always following her brothers and trying to get in the middle of the action. Laughing at their shenanigans, and then screaming loudly when they abandon her.

Today Max was unfolding dinner napkins and placing them in a strategic pile on his bedroom floor. When I asked him what he was doing, he replied "oh, I'm just making a bed for the next time someone brings us a baby." It was really cute. Feeling relieved that he is still too young for the 'where babies come from' speech, I said "Huh. Do you want someone to bring us a baby?" He smiled and said "yeah". If only it were that easy!

Tonight I started to help Max with a project he has to do for preschool. He has to make a poster showing his favorite color, place, what he wants to be when he grows up, etc. I don't ever think to ask him these questions (except his fav. color, which changes daily), and I was really surprised by his responses, and by the fact that he happily yelled out each answer immediately without even taking one second to think it over. I thought I would post the answers here so I don't forget what he said.

My favorite color: pink and gray

My favorite food: chicken meatballs

My favorite place: the playground

My favorite animal: elephants and horses

When I grow up, I want to be: a missionary

My favorite thing to do: (i already forgot what he said for this--will post edit)

If I had one wish, I would wish for: a star

He is growing up so fast.

12 months

2010-11-01T20:56:00.009-07:00

Our sweet little sugar plum (what daddy calls her) is a whole year old. Her personality has blossomed and she is definitely sugar and spice and everything nice. She is the sweetest, best snuggler and would prefer to spend much of her day with her limbs wrapped tight around you like a monkey and her head rested on your shoulder. She give the BEST hugs ever. To be sure. But only if she knows you. Otherwise she will wiggle and scream her way back to familiar arms. She has the worst separation anxiety of the three. The boys never really had it.

She loves to play with her brothers. She can growl and roar and vroom cars. When she sees the boys she shrieks, yells, points and says "bro-bro". They are her favorite people. She also loves her "da da". Most of the time. The other day she was particularly clingy (teething) and wouldn't go to J-P at all. She shook her head vigorously and put a vice grip around my neck when I tried to pass her off. J-P attempted all of his sweet talk to lure her away, but nothing worked. It wasn't until he said "Ava, do you want to go outside and go down the slide?", that she jumped out of my arms and flung herself in his direction. Needless to say, going down the slide is her favorite thing to do. She is our first adventurous child.

Although she is a skilled climber, she has no interest in walking. She has taken as many as five steps, and can stand for long periods of time. I am hoping she walks soon, partly because she is wearing out all her pants, but also because I am so excited for her to wear the cute shoes I have bought. I'll admit it. She is saying a few words. "Mom, Da da, uh-oh, bro-bro (brother), this, that," Today she was walking along the cabinets in the kitchen, and when she got to the oven door she patted it twice and with a big smile said "hot!" She also says "hi" when talking on her play phone.

Her stats:

height: 31 inches (95%)

weight: 20 pounds (25%)

head: 18 inches (65%)

I had no idea she was so light. She is the same size that Max was at four months. Exactly heavy enough to turn her carseat around. Phew.

Halloween 2010

2010-10-31T21:21:00.009-07:00

My favorite thing about Halloween in Arizona is that nobody has to wear a coat over their costume. It's perfectly pleasant outside. I remember freezing every year in Washington as a kid. I could barely feel my toes when I got home. This year I made the costumes. I ran out of time and didn't get a top made for Ava's witch costume. I shouldn't have spent a big chunk of the afternoon figuring out how to sew her felt hat and velvet flower embellishment, because she wore it for a total of two seconds. Oh well. It was my first time sewing a tutu and leggings. Tutus are much harder than they look. No wonder everyone just ties strips of tulle on elastic. The boys play "pirates" every day, so I figured their costumes could double as dress-up clothes.

Ava's Tea Party

2010-10-30T21:10:00.020-07:00

One of my biggest fears in life was that I would never have a daughter. I wanted one so badly. Since the day I saw her kicking around in the ultrasound, I have been the happiest girl in the world. I love my boys dearly, but there is something special about having a girl. Right after I brought her home from the hospital I was stung by a scorpion. My immediate thought was, "I finally had a girl, and now I am going to die. I knew this was too good to be true."

I have always loved all things feminine. Some of my happiest childhood memories are smelling the soaps and lotions that my dad brought me from Crabtree and Evelyn after business trips, and flipping through the pages of Victoria magazine that my grandma always got me a subscription for. I have been dreaming of planning the perfect tea party my whole life. I knew that Ava's first birthday would be my first chance to have one. I was hoping to pull off something 'a la Marie Antoinette' complete with a vintage vibe and glittery butterflies.

But alas Ava's first birthday came and went, and nary a thought was put towards planning a party. Life has been too busy. Last night I decided I would regret not planning a pretty party to celebrate one of the happiest years of my life, so I ran to the dollar store to buy some pink tablecloths. Then I ran to Costco and bought flowers. I woke up this morning, polished my thrift store silver, and pulled out my dusty tea cups. Then I pulled out my cookbook and picked three recipes at random. I only had to run to the store for eggs. We just invited family. Partly because last minute text message invitations violate etiquette, but also because I didn't want to force people to eat our dairy-free, gluten-free food.

The Menu: chocolate cupcakes with chocolate frosting, banana cupcakes with maple vanilla frosting, chocolate chip scones with fresh raspberries, chocolate covered strawberries, and meringues. Hot apple cider, sparkling lemonade, Martinelli, and San Pellegrino to drink.

Happy Birthday to my sweet, beautiful little girl. We love you to pieces.

(more pics on flickr)

crazy hair day

2010-10-27T08:53:00.003-07:00

Yesterday was crazy hair day at preschool. Max was so excited. I had to snap a few pictures while he was eating lunch because we were running late and didn't have time for a photo shoot. In fact, I did his hair while he was eating. The reason for the delay? As I was getting Max ready for preschool I realized that it was "black" day and after a quick inventory of his wardrobe I discovered he does not own any black clothes. We made a mad dash to Walmart, came home, whipped up lunch (from scratch like always), and barely got him there on time. Preschool is so crazy that I can't even imagine how my life will change when he goes to real school.

Max has reminded me several times that he has to wear his Halloween costume to preschool on Thursday. He loves preschool. But he loves just about everything these days. He is so happy all the time. Last night at my birthday dinner-date I was lamenting to J-P about how miserable my birthday was last year (three-day-old baby, scorpion sting, husband across the country, and multiple meltdowns by Max).

That led to a conversation about the dramatic changes we have seen in Max over the last year. We are so grateful for the inspiration we have received to help him, and thrilled with the positive results of our interventions. Thrilled, gleeful, bursting with happiness that Max is doing so well. He is incredibly social, his creative play has exploded through the roof, his vocabulary is fantastic, he can recognize/write the entire alphabet, and all of the behaviors that previously worried me are gone (insert huge sigh of relief here).

sunday pics

2010-10-10T20:06:00.004-07:00

The lighting is perfect when we get home from church, so I will have to start taking more Sunday pictures. Here is today's sampling. The only child that will stay put (the grass is too itchy to crawl in). She's a mighty sweet thing.

eleven months

2010-10-01T12:09:00.003-07:00

How is my sweet little lady almost a year old already? So hard to believe. At eleven months she is: babbling a ton --uh-oh, dat (that), bu-rah (brother), ep (yep). She is the absolute sweetest thing in the world...most of the time. On the rare occasion that she doesn't get what she wants, she is the most dramatic little eleven-month-old I have ever seen. Drama with a capital "D". I'm not sure if she has a strong personality, or if it's just a girl thing. I'm guessing she has a strong personality because she can tackle her brothers to the ground. They are scared of her. She is definitely my most fearless child.

She can stand alone for about 20 seconds, and has taken one step but she always falls after that. She gets very excited about standing alone. She lets go of the couch and starts clapping and smiling, and then the excitement usually makes her lose her balance. Her favorite thing to do is give her brothers and daddy hugs before she goes to bed. She squeezes them, rests her head on their shoulder, and says "ooohhhhhhhh". Cutest thing ever.

lately

2010-09-30T16:33:00.005-07:00

I have been reading a lot lately. There are piles and piles of books in this house. I am averaging about a book every two days. All part of my research quest to conquer food allergies and other health issues. When I am not reading I am cooking. Three meals a day. From scratch. We are talking grind-your-own-flour and soak-your-own-beans kind of scratch. I am really trying to put variety into our diet, which is excruciatingly challenging being that we have to avoid wheat, dairy, soy, corn, eggs, pork, peanuts, and nuts. Because life wasn't hard enough, I have decided to cut out all artificial colors, flavors, and preservatives. I am also trying to buy mostly organic.

And since organic applesauce is four dollars for a tiny little jar, I decided I would just make my own. So I bought a pressure canner. I have been canning fruit and beans and finally feel like an official grown-up. Canning has always intimidated me, but it really isn't hard at all.

Anyway, the point of this post is to say that I am using my dormant twitter account (I'm more of a facebook girl) as a widget on my new blog to tell the world what we are eating for dinner. Or lunch. Whichever sounds more appetizing. It seems like every day a new friend calls to say that they are going off of dairy or wheat (for everything from colicky babies to preventing miscarriages) and have no idea what to cook. I will also add tips, tricks, recipes, shopping guides, and my latest interesting research finds to the blog as I find time. Much easier than sending out emails. I have learned so many crazy/interesting things in the past month or two, and I will slowly add links/book reviews to the blog too.

And for those people that keep asking me how to get to the blog, click HERE (click on the word "here"). Sorry, i wasn't trying to be subtle before. I'll eventually get a button on here but I'm too busy cooking to do things like that. Cheers to healthy eating!

tagging

2010-09-28T11:09:00.005-07:00

When I taught at an alternative jr high school on the west side of Salt Lake City, I was exposed to all of the current urban vernacular. Most of my students were straight out of jail, and all were gang members. I was in a one room school-house with 13 convicted criminals. By myself. My only instructions from the principal (who worked at the alternative high school downtown) were this: "if a gang fight breaks out, or if gang members show up with weapons, DO NOT call 911...we don't need the bad press."

We all had bus passes, and I was crazy enough to take the criminals on frequent field trips. By myself. They always managed to steal things from the library (think staplers and millions of mini pencils). On our weekly escapades I picked up on what I thought was the latest gangster lingo. I felt so hip. One day while riding in the car with my then boyfriend, I said "so, do you want to hear the latest word on the street for 'cops'?" "Sure", he responded very unenthusiastically. "Pigs", I replied as if I had unveiled some super secret code. He started laughing so hard that he had to pull over so we wouldn't crash. I felt really dumb. He relayed the story to any person we came in contact with for the next few days, and every time hysterical laughter ensued. The kind that causes people to double over and cry. I had no idea that word had been around for-ev-er. Anyway...the word back then for graffiti (my students had never heard that word) was "tagging". They always pointed out their "artwork" as we marauded around town.

Now I have two little criminals. Max and Ian have determined to deface every surface in our home and surrounding property with their own personal brand of "tagging". I am not kidding when I say that every surface in our home is covered in letters and scribbles. Walls, doors, floors, furniture, windows, cabinets, appliances, counter tops...even our patio and fence. J-P and I have spent most of the week cleaning, and they have spent most of the week strapped in time out. No matter where we hide the crayons, they always seem to find them. Sometimes they find an old crayon in the backyard or under a couch cushion and go to work. They can deface an entire room in the amount of time it takes for us to use the bathroom or change Ava's diaper.

teeth

2010-09-16T14:25:00.005-07:00

Ava's second top tooth is now poking through. I've always thought baby teeth were odd/funny looking, but she pulls it off ok. She is getting more vocal by the day. Ma ma, da da, bah-ah (brother), bah-bah (bye-bye), BA! (bath). She LOVES her brothers and is contstantly giving them big hugs. She crawls over to them, wraps her arms around them, and rests her smiling head on their shoulder. Maybe it's a girl thing. My boys were not this affectionate at all.

Her new favorite game is chase. When I say "Ava, let's go take a bath", she shakes her head and then crawls away from me as fast as she can while giggling loudly. She has gotten good at shaking her head for anything she doesn't want to do. Sadly.

Eanie Bean

2010-09-07T21:56:00.005-07:00

I really love this kid. Between taking care of a new baby this past year and trying to figure out Max's allergy issues, he hasn't gotten the attention he should have. He has been doing a great job of drawing attention to himself lately...pulling every terrible-two tactic imaginable. Even permanent black marker on my white kitchen cabinets. Sigh.

I'm now trying to make up for it by spending special time with him while Max is in preschool. He is so smart, and loves to figure things out. He can grab his dad's iphone, and pull up his favorite youtube bicycling video in just a few seconds. He has a great memory. If something is missing, I always go straight to him because he remembers where everything is...even if it is in a really obscure place.

Right now he is trying to figure out familial titles. I was sitting on the couch talking to a friend the other day, and he came over, looked at her and said very matter-of-factly "Mary Ann is my mother...and that's Ava. She's my daughter". It caught me off guard. I had never heard him say my name, and only ever heard him refer to me as "mommy". Today when he was looking for Max he said "mommy, where's my daddy's other son?" And then at lunch he said "Mary Ann?...are you...mommy?" After I responded in the affirmative, he said "Your name is Mary Ann, but we just call you mommy." As if he was thinking out loud--putting it together.

Yesterday he pointed to a word with two lower case "i's" in it. He said, "see these i's, they stand for Ian!" Which amazed me because I haven't started to teach him letters (bad mom, I know), and he has only seen his name with a capital "I". TV I'm guessing?

I love to watch the wheels churn in his cute little head as he figures things out. Sometimes I forget that he is still two.

Happy

2010-09-07T21:27:00.006-07:00

Tonight as I was rocking the baby to sleep (my favorite part of the day), I couldn't stop thinking about how happy I am. Life is good. My children are happy and healthy. They are funny, smart, and good natured. Nothing makes me happier than watching the three of them play together. Which they do quite well now. Ava thinks she is part of the team, following the boys around and "vrooming" cars with them. I am finding so much joy in the small things--a sweet, unexpected hug, the funny things they do and say. Motherhood is a very spiritual experience. It makes me happier than anything else in the world.

lately...

2010-09-01T12:58:00.006-07:00

Max: Look mom, my arms are black!
Me: So that's where my mascara went!
Max: (uncontrollable giggling)
Me: Uh oh. You can't go to preschool looking like that.
Max: (wide-eyed, panicked) Don't worry mom, I'll wash it off before it starts...I promise!

I have been very overwhelmed lately. I am on a mission to do the impossible: cure my family's allergies. I have been spending every spare second I have (and some I don't) reading, researching, scouring the internet, joining online discussion groups, looking into alternative treatments.

My conclusion: something is making us sick. The explosion of food allergies, ASD (austism, asperger's, ADD/ADHD), autoimmune disease (M.S., fibromyalgia, celiac, crohn's, u.c., diabetes, arthritis, asthma), cancer, infertility, etc. is making my head spin.

My friend's 3-year-old son is going in for a colonoscopy because they suspect ulcerative colitis/celiac. Three years old! --My sweet little 3-month-old nephew had to be hospitalized due to complication of eczema. --Way too many of my friends have only been able to get pregnant with the help of medical intervention. --My sister-in-law teaches the 3-year-olds at church and has two children with autism in her small class (It amazes me how inspiration in our church works...nobody knew she has a masters in special ed and more patience for children than anyone I know).--I lost track of how many of my relatives have asthma.

Just the other day I was in the waiting area at our ped's office, and glanced over to the "sick" side. I saw a girl whose face was red and swollen like a tomato, and her entire body was covered with hives. It was the worst allergic reaction I had ever seen. I rushed over to her, ready to pull out my epi-pen and save the day. "Honey, can you breath ok?" She couldn't talk, just glared at me and continued to itch furiously. Her mom was clueless (like I used to be when I told our ped. that Max's hives were flea bites--he had to hold in the laughter as he explained allergic reactions to me).

In short: something is wrong! Something has to be causing all of this, and I am determined to find the root cause. I will do anything I can to prevent my family from acquiring these illnesses (since we seem to be genetically susceptible). I started a blog to organize my finds (with tabs). And so I don't have to email them all to my mom, she can just check the blog (are reading this mom?). I will try to post recipes (or links to recipes) for those out there that are struggling with the same issues that we are.

10 months

2010-09-01T09:56:00.004-07:00

Ava is ten months old. Already. I can't believe it. I completely forgot about her 9 month appointment (the first doctor's appointment I have ever missed). They couldn't fit her in until she was 10 months. So, we have 10 month stats instead of the traditional 9 month stats.

height: 30 1/4 in. (96%)
weight: 20 lbs 5 oz (57%)
head: 18 in. (82 %)

At ten months she is: speed crawling, cruising around the furniture, walking with her push toy, waving, clapping, pointing, saying "bah, bah, bah" when she waves to us (bye-bye), calling me "ma ma ma" (although not as often). She "sings" when we sing to her or when she hears music.

She LOVES her brothers. She follows them around the house and tries to get in the middle of whatever they are doing. Her development has skyrocketed since I changed my diet, which makes me both happy and sad. I really hope food allergies are not in her future. We are doing everything we can right now to prevent them.

She is my best snuggler and gives the sweetest, tightest, longest hugs. They melt my heart. And she basically gets anything she wants because of aforementioned melted heart. The other day she crawled over to me, pulled on my shorts and grunted (she does this when she wants to be picked up). I picked her up and she gave me the sweetest, tightest hug. Then she wanted me to put her back on the floor so she could continue playing.

She got her first two teeth at 9 months, and is currently cutting her first top tooth. Which makes me super sad. No more gummy smiles. She is growing up so fast.

first day

2010-08-17T16:47:00.003-07:00

Today was Max's first day of preschool. He has been SO excited all year, and I have used it as leverage for good behavior at home. "Only little boys that are nice to their brothers get to go to preschool", "only little boys that listen to their mommies get to go to preschool". Not sure what my next disciplinary tactic will be, perhaps I will have to start reading parenting books. He has been dying to go "school" since he learned of it's association with backpacks and school buses...two of his very favorite things.

The first day was a success, and definitely lived up to his expectations. The two little ones fell asleep on the way home, and then Max and I snuggled on the couch and he told me all about it. I hope he will be this open/willing to talk to me in ten more years. And may I also say that I love the age of four? Max is blossoming into a delightful boy. He is helpful, polite, listens and follows directions, gives me hugs and tells me he loves me (without me saying it first), and walks around singing primary songs. A much needed breath of fresh air when there is a wild two-year-old in the house. My only hope is that school continues to be a positive experience for him. It's a rough world out there.

four generations + more allergies

2010-08-11T09:31:00.004-07:00

I forgot to post these four generation pictures we took at the Smith family farm in New York. The boys were tired/grumpy after the tour and running around in the heat. Oh well. I'm glad we remembered to take them.

I also thought I'd mention that we finally got around to having J-P's doctor fax over his allergy results. He has a high level fish/shellfish allergy, was isn't a surprise. The doctor called to tell us about that one. But it turns out that he also has allergies to eggs, wheat, peanuts, pork, and corn (but dairy was completely negative). I am determined to get to the bottom of this allergy epidemic. I have read that those with a propensity for developing food allergies will become allergic/sensitive to new foods if they eat them too often, and that the root cause is digestive malfunction. I have also read that low level/hidden food allergies are responsible for a slew of health problems and chronic diseases.

So, I have ten books on hold at the library so I can try to figure this out. I bought a bucket of raw local honey to see if it helps us with seasonal allergies. Anybody have luck with using it? Also, has anyone had any food allergies "cleared" by a naturopathic doctor? Does it really work? I have always thought it was hokey, but at this point I am willing to try anything.

swamp monster soup

2010-08-06T08:58:00.006-07:00

It's been a crazy week. On Monday I lost Ian. At Walmart. Quite possibly the worst 5-7 minutes of my life. He ran off while I was talking to a friend. He is not one to run far, and usually stays where he can see me. If I don't chase after him, he always comes right back. This time he ran into the clothing section and turned a corner. I quickly ran after him. I looked around the corner. Nothing. I checked all surrounding areas. Nothing. I started yelling his name (he ALWAYS comes when I call his name). No response. I started running around the store, searching and yelling like a crazy person. He was gone.

After a couple minutes of running and yelling, I went to get help. The assistant manager said, "oh, would you like me to go help you look for him?" Completely annoyed, I blurted out "NO, I want a page...he is two and he is wearing bright orange shorts!" After a barely audible page (I wanted a code adam), I kept searching and yelling. A couple of VERY long minutes later, a female associate came walking towards me holding Ian's hand. Blissful relief.

Ian didn't see J-P until he got back from his bike ride the next morning...

Ian: Daddy, I missed you yesterday. At Walmart.
J-P: Did you get lost yesterday, Ian?
Ian: Yeah. I did. At Walmart.
J-P: Uh oh.
Ian: A lady found me, daddy. At Walmart.

In addition to recovering from the stress of losing that little turkey, I have been making more food changes. I have noticed that Max's meltdowns (although now few and far between), are directly related to what he eats. So I started a food journal. High oxalate foods like blueberries, chocolate, and parsley, I found out this week, are BAD. I always know when he has a reaction because he gets dark circles under his eyes (allergic shiners), itches/rubs his face, and cries. I have endless amounts of patience for researching, cooking, and figuring out what foods are best for our family. I have very little patience for whining and crying.

So...I am on a mission to optimize our health. To improve our digestive system function and increase our well being. No more sugar (just honey and maple syrup). No gluten, dairy, or soy, and very little corn. No processed food. No cans. Mostly organic. I have been fermenting vegetables and trying to make coconut kefir. I have been using nutritious, easy to digest grains like millet, sorghum, buckwheat, quinoa, and amaranth. I'm even making my own coconut milk (which makes delicious smoothies), and giving the kids coconut water. As soon as it cools down a bit, I'm going to plant a big garden. Buying organic is expensive.

Convincing the kids to eat healthy is also a creative venture. I made a smoothie with fresh coconut milk, a banana, frozen papaya, mango, and pineapple, a squeeze of lime, kale (great for detoxing), and a dash of maple syrup. All I had to do was put it in a bowl and call it swamp monster soup and they slurped it right up.

the sacred grove

2010-08-05T15:04:00.005-07:00

After our family reunion we drove to upstate New York to visit the sacred grove, and other church history sites. It was interesting to walk through downtown Palmyra, and see the four large stone churches on each corner of the only intersection. The perfect picture of religious confusion. We visited the original print shop where the first copies of the Book of Mormon were printed. We went to the top of the Hill Cumorah. We saw the Smith family log cabin (a reproduction built to scale after 20 years of research). It was a special day, to be sure. My favorite part was walking through the sacred grove and thinking about that day in 1820 when a simple prayer was answered. It was a special experience, even if we did have three toddler boys running and screaming through the grove. To learn more go here.

niagra falls

2010-08-05T13:52:00.004-07:00

After the reunion we drove to Niagra Falls. It was beautiful. At least I thought so, J-P was not impressed (the downside of have visited all the wonders of the world). We walked around for a little bit, took some pictures, and got back in the car to head to upstate New York. I will have to say that the Canada side was much nicer than the U.S. side. Which surprised me.

canada and the reunion

2010-08-05T10:03:00.005-07:00

At the end of July we all flew to Toronto for a McDonald family reunion with my Dad's family. We had SO much fun. Toronto is an amazing city. We had fun navigating the subways (not so easy with strollers!), walking around downtown, soaking our feet in Lake Ontario, eating Persian food (have I ever mentioned my love for Persian food?), and seeing all of the old buildings/architecture.

After a couple days in Toronto we drove to my aunt's cottage on Lake Huron. One of the most amazing places I have ever been. It was designed by my late uncle (an amazing architect), and had floor to ceiling windows throughout. The lake was beautiful and crystal clear. We spent our time relaxing, eating delicious food, swimming, chatting, exploring, playing bocce, searching for fossils (there were lots in the rocks), roasting marshmallows, hiking, playing games, going for boat rides, and chasing our children around. Thanks so much for having us!

Check out more pictures on flickr.

Pasco

2010-08-05T09:45:00.004-07:00

We spent a few weeks in Pasco with my family so we could escape the blistering Arizona heat. The boys loved exploring my parents' forest (backyard), playing at the river, "working" with grandpa, picking raspberries, and quality cousin time.

the beach

2010-08-04T22:02:00.006-07:00

Time to start recapping our summer adventures. We spent the fourth of July weekend in Sequim, WA with my grandma. I've been going to her house for the fourth for years. I absolutely love it there. I spent my much of my childhood down at the beach by my grandma's house, hiking, exploring, making forts, walking through tide pools, climbing cliffs, etc. It is very fulfilling to watch my own children do the same. The sights and smells of the forest and the ocean are so invigorating. The boys had a blast.

four

2010-07-19T21:32:00.004-07:00

Max had his four year well-check today. When I told him about the appointment, he got frustrated and said "Mom, I don't need to go to the doctor! I don't have ANY allergies and I don't need ANY shots!" When I reassured him that he didn't have to have any more shots until kindergarten, he willingly got in the car. Poor boy has had way too many skin pricks in his short life. Last month when he had his annual blood test for allergies, it took them 5 minutes of digging around to find a good vein. He was a tough boy and didn't even flinch. Shots and needles don't phase him anymore.

His peanut allergy is now off the charts (level 6), which scares me to DEATH. He has developed a level 3 soy allergy, which is also discouraging. The good news is that all the healthy eating he has been forced to do since birth has done his body good. He is rarely sick. I've never had to take him to the doctor for an illness (just allergies and injuries) He has never had an ear infection. He doesn't get colds. He has never taken antibiotics. Although I would take ear infections and colds over a peanut allergy any day.

Weight: 37 1/4 (58th %)
Height: 41 1/4 (65 %)

I'm wondering if he would have grown more (he is usually in a higher percentile) if I hadn't reintroduced gluten to his diet in the last year. When he was a baby, he went several months without growing at all. His thyroid and growth hormone were out of whack and we were taking him to specialists. After one month of going off wheat and dairy, everything normalized and he started growing again. I'm feeling a little guilty about not thinking that decision through, but hindsight is 20/20 I suppose.

Cousins

2010-07-15T22:39:00.004-07:00

Today was our last day at grandma's house. We couldn't let the summer fly by without a photo shoot with matching clothes.

milestones

2010-07-13T22:36:00.004-07:00

Ava has pulled a few tricks out of her hat since we've been at grandma's house. Crawling, clapping, and calling me "ma-ma-ma-ma" have been added to her repertoire of skills. We will be baby proofing the house as soon as we get home.

strawberry pie

2010-07-04T16:21:00.006-07:00

The best strawberries in the world grow on the Olympic Peninsula right next to the ocean. It's a family tradition to go pick them every fourth of July. The boys had a blast running through the strawberry fields, stopping here and there to pick a few and throw them in the bowl. To celebrate the occasion, grandpa declared that we would eat fresh strawberry pie for lunch. Nobody argued, although I did give the boys salmon sandwiches and BBQ kettle chips too. For good measure. We have been making lovely gluten-free baked goods (pies, bread, cookies, etc.) with sorghum and millet flours, using recipes we adapted from this cookbook. Delish.

eight months

2010-06-23T14:15:00.004-07:00

Our pretty little lady turned eight months old today. She is almost crawling (has taken a couple "steps"), but definitely mobile (rolling, scooting). She is our most fearless child, the only one that doesn't scare when daddy throws her in the air. She loves to babble as I'm putting (jiggling/rocking) her to sleep. She tries her best to keep her eyes open and her mouth running until that very last second when she finally drifts off into dreamland. She really is the sweetest thing ever.

picking strawberries

2010-06-21T10:58:00.008-07:00

Dear Daddy,

It is FREEZING in Washington. Check out the winter clothes we have to wear to play outside. We have been picking strawberries and playing outside all morning with grandma. We love it here. Can't wait until you come.

Love,

Max, Ian, and Ava

four

2010-06-12T22:47:00.006-07:00

My firstborn turned four today. Hard to believe. He has been excitedly awaiting this birthday for months now, asking about it every day. I had been meaning to plan a very cool dinosaur party for him, complete with games and invitations, but it crept up on me and I scrambled this afternoon to throw some decorations together. He beamed as he watched my last ditch effort and said " are you making this banner special just for me for my birthday mom?...thanks mom!" The party was magical for him. I don't think I have ever seen him so happy. I suppose part of it is that he finally feels good again. And I couldn't be happier about that. Happy Birthday Max, we love you "lots and lots and lots and lots"!

p.s. and yes, those are gluten-free/dairy-free cupakes, in case you were wondering...

mini-me

2010-06-10T13:16:00.003-07:00

Today I channeled my 'inner fifties housewife' and wore a skirt. It is HOT around these parts, so I sewed some cool skirts to help us weather the heat . Out of vintage, thrifted pillowcases no less. Approximate cost for the whole project: 75 cents including elastic. This was a trial run, I will be making more with thicker elastic/better fabric. They are very easy, click here for the tutorial. For the locals, Sas fabrics in Tempe has amazing selection/unbeatable prices for elastic.

After we put them on Max said "you look beautiful mom...and amazing, great job!". It is so nice to have my sweet, happy boy back. This gf/cf diet is definitely here to stay.

Sunday

2010-06-06T17:22:00.008-07:00

Every Sunday we go through the same routine. Wake up, eat, get ready for church. Every Sunday I pick out Ava's outfit, and decide she needs a new headband to go with it. So I make one. Every Sunday. And it ruffles J-P's feathers in a major way. Mostly because there isn't time on a chaotic Sunday morning for those sorts of things. The goal this week is to plan ahead. Or to forget about headbands.
This afternoon the boys got to sample my first attempt at gluten-free chocolate chip cookies. I will have to say, they were AMAZING. Best chocolate chip cookies I have ever made...gluten or no gluten. I ground my own amaranth flour (instead of sorghum) and millet flour, and used mostly turbinado sugar (evaporated cane juice). I also used smart balance light instead of butter. Recipe here.

7 months

2010-05-30T15:51:00.005-07:00

Sometime during our conversion to this new gluten-free lifestyle, Ava turned 7 months-old. I can't tell you how much I love having a sweet baby girl around. Even if she does prefer to be held, entertained, or nursed for 99 % of the day. I am happy to oblige.
I am very happy to report that she is sleeping in her crib ON HER BACK for the first time in her life. She has had reflux since the second she was born, and has spent every night in the swing. I have tried several times to move her to the crib, but the whole waking-up-every-10-minutes-all-night-long didn't work for me and back to the swing she went. She is even sleeping until 4:30 and then nursing and sleeping until 6:30. Which is nothing short of a miracle.
In the past week she has also decided to stay on her stomach for more than a millisecond. I was worried she would never crawl because every time I put her on her stomach she would flip over before I could even set her down. Now she is even scooting, mostly backward and in circles...but still. It's progress. I only wish I would have gotten my act together on this food elimination thing sooner.
In other news: still no sign of teeth. She is also overdue for her third haircut (a record at chez scoville). She has taken well to solids, and will eat anything as long as she is hungry.
And she loves her mama better than ANYONE else. The other two didn't have much trouble with separation anxiety. She gets her feelings hurt if I try to pass her off to her dad when she's sad. And by "feelings hurt" I mean complete and total hysteria. Which resolves to peaceful silence the moment she is back in my arms. Oh how I love her. Drama and all.

a couple more things...

2010-05-27T20:12:00.004-07:00

As far as shopping goes, the best resource is trader joe's. They have the only affordable prices on things like rice milk (we also buy it at costco), coconut milk, and gluten-free food. Their brown rice pasta (we like the penne) is the only rice pasta that doesn't taste like cardboard. Trader Joe's also has wheat-free cheerios and dairy-free chocolate chips. You can buy dark belgium chocolate at TJ's and use it to make flourless brownies.

The only chicken bouillon I have found that is dairy-free is organic "better than bouillon" that comes in a jar. I use it in everything, especially beans/rice. Sprouts (for the locals) has fantastic gluten-free, nitrate-free sausages that are made out of chicken instead of pork. We like chicken apple and spicy italian.

There are tons of gluten-free things at our walmart. They even have betty crocker cake and brownie mixes that are gluten-free. I am sure we will be seeing more and more mainstream gluten-free products due to the explosion of food allergies, autism, and celiac disease.

Our dinner tonight: Penne (brown rice) with garlic, tomatoes, spinach, chicken italian sausage (sauteed together) and watermelon smoothies. For the smoothie I fill the blender up 3/4 of the way with watermelon, then the rest of the way with frozen strawberries and add the juice of one lime. You have to try it, it's divine.

Oh, and if Max wasn't allergic to peanuts and eggs, I would make pad thai every other day. My mouth waters just thinking about it.

what we eat

2010-05-26T15:35:00.006-07:00

First, I will admit that the gf/cf diet isn't as daunting to me because I quit buying dairy products three years ago.

What we eat: fruit, vegetables, corn, rice, potatoes, quinoa, oats*, beans, meat (mostly fish) and eggs. We also go through a lot of rice milk and coconut milk. Some sample meals below...
*most people on a gluten-free diet don't eat oats because of cross-contamination with wheat.

BREAKFAST: Steel cut oats or oatmeal with rice milk and honey/brown sugar. We often put in raisins while it's cooking and add a little cinnamon. I try to cut up fruit or make a fruit smoothie. We also eat potatoes and eggs (not max), or corn chex/rice crispies (generic corn chex have gluten) with rice milk and a banana when we are in a hurry. Rice milk does not taste bad in cereal.

SNACK: Smoothies, fruit, chips and salsa, hummus, bean dip, guacamole, popcorn, dried fruit, kid's cliff bars (cheapest at sam's club, target), applesauce (no sugar added)

LUNCH: Lots of soups and stews (chili, chicken with rice/vegetables, italian sausage with potato, black bean, chicken tortilla, lentil...), "tacos" with (soft) corn tortillas--we do many varieties, beans and rice, leftovers from the night before, salads...

DINNER: Thai chicken curry (coconut milk and veggies) with rice, pot roast, salmon with asparagus + rice, turkey meatloaf with mashed potatoes, sushi rolls (with cooked salmon), salmon cakes, rotisserie chicken with roasted potatoes/vegetables, polenta with tomato sauce, beans and rice with avocados + tomatoes, salads, etc. I try to get inspiration from countries that don't eat wheat or dairy. I use a LOT of garlic.

DESSERT: Rice crispie treats, Belguim dark Chocolate, Kettle corn, "Ice Cream", pina coladas, gluten-free cookies on occasion, etc.

I use Rice milk (we stay away from unfermented soy products) and a butter substitute (smart balance light is dairy-free, and earth balance is great...we stay away from toxic things like crisco and margarine) in things like mashed potatoes, rice crispie treats, etc. and can't tell much of a difference. We eat smoothies with almost every meal. I have a vitamix (a blender with magical powers) that does many tricks. I use it to make the kids ice cream out of Rice milk and frozen fruit. I also freeze coconut milk and make chocolate coconut ice cream.

I will say that going off gluten and dairy is PAINFUL. I almost died on day three of this diet. My cravings were so bad I had the shakes. I ate SO much, yet I was never satisfied and always hungry. Over a week later I'm fine and actually craving vegetables instead of cinnamon rolls. I have already noticed a difference in Ava (she no longer screams her lungs out in the car, willingly stays on her tummy, and does a lot more babbling), so I'm motivated to keep going.

The theory is that when one does not produce sufficient enzymes to digest gluten (wheat protein) and casein (dairy protein), the partially digested proteins form peptide opiates (think heroin, morphine) that create a euphoria, yet are toxic and harm the brain. They also disrupt digestion and the absorption of other nutrients. These peptides have been found in the urine of people with schizophrenia, autism, and celiac disease. Anyway, children with Autism Spectrum Disorders, food allergies, ADD/ADHD are notoriously picky eaters. Many are addicted (as are many people in general) to wheat/dairy combos (because of the euphoric feeling) like cereal, mac n cheese, pizza, quesadillas, cookies and milk, grilled cheese sandwiches, bread with butter or cheese, goldfish crackers, cake and ice cream, etc. It is theorized that alcoholics suffer from celiac/gluten intolerance as there is gluten in beer.

Read THIS. And more explanation Here.

p.s. This is my favorite lunch lately: I sautee crushed garlic in olive oil for a minute then add chopped tomatoes (vine ripened) and spinach. I sautee that for a while and then dump a can or two of white (great northern) beans and cook a little longer. Add a dash of salt and a dash of cayenne. I brush oil on a stack of corn tortillas and stick them in the micro for a minute. Then we have "tacos". Sometimes I add mushrooms or spicy chicken italian sausage. I make up different "taco" recipes all the time. The kids love them.

eliminating gluten + dairy

2010-05-24T13:48:00.006-07:00

We are now a gluten-free + dairy-free family. A lot of people have been asking me questions, and I decided the easiest way to provide people with an explanation would be to put it here.

-----------------------------------

When Max started smiling at three weeks-old and belly laughing at six weeks, I happily checked "autism" off my list of worries. He was a very healthy baby, and was always off the charts for both height and weight. When I mentioned to my pediatrician that Max was very gassy and a little on the colicky side, he immediately told me to take dairy out of my diet. I thought he was crazy. Max had no visible signs of a dairy allergy (I had no idea eczema was a sign), and I was addicted to cereal, yogurt, ice cream, and cheese and unwilling to make dietary adjustments.

When Max turned 12 months-old, I weaned him. Not long after, he started to have allergic reactions to mac n cheese (which he had been happily eating for 3 months with no problem). Allergy tests showed possible allergies to wheat, dairy, eggs, and nuts. We eradicated them from his diet. His eczema disappeared overnight and he started gaining weight again. I read every book available from the library about food allergies, and quickly noticed that most books claimed there was a link between autism spectrum disorders (including ADD/ADHD and asthma) and food allergies/sensitivities. I considered myself lucky that I only had to deal with allergies.

When Max turned three, we took him in for his annual allergist appt. Testing showed that he was no longer allergic to wheat. I almost exploded with joy. I dusted off my wheat grinder and resumed baking. I added pasta back into our diet. Eating was suddenly much more enjoyable. Bread became Max's favorite food. And his nemesis. I only wish I would have made the connection before now.

Max has always had a touch of anxiety/OCD, but his symptoms started becoming more pronounced. He started biting his nails until they bled, and grinding his teeth. He started having frequent meltdowns and tantrums. He started to growl and scowl. He became very irritable. He was suddenly less empathetic and more defiant. He started to obsess over dinosaurs. He would go crazy if his clothes/shoes weren't perfectly adjusted, or if he didn't get his way. Potty training was an impossible nightmare. I could go on...

I did some research. I didn't think his problems were autism related because he was very smart, very verbal, and did fine socially. I read this article from the new york times, and started giving him fish oil and inositol (vitamin B-8). He stopped biting his nails and his anxiety resolved, but the other problems remained. My mom (a teacher) went to an asperger's conference and called me as soon as it was over to tell me that Max was definitely somewhere on the spectrum. After talking to her, I knew she was right.

Not sure what to do or where to start, I bought this book. I also did a lot of research and decided to put our whole family on the popular gluten-free/casein-free diet, and put max on probiotics and digestive enzymes. It supposedly takes1-6 months for your intestines to heal and nutrient absorption to resume, but we saw drastic results in just two days. And i mean DRASTIC. Instead of pouting and scowling, he was smiling and happy. Instead of pulling away when I hugged him, he wanted to snuggle with me for the first time since BIRTH. Instead of crying for 20 minutes at the dinner table because he didn't get the color plate he wanted, he quietly ate his dinner and said "this is my favorite dinner mommy, thank you...I love you mommy". He was suddenly easy-going and affectionate. I was so happy I cried.

I quickly became obsessed with reading about gluten. My curious mind wondered what other problems gluten might be causing for us genetically challenged folk who don't produce the enzymes to digest it (or casein) properly. I was shocked to see that many of the ailments that have been linked to gluten are things that plague both of our extended families.

Here is a list of some things that gluten intolerance has been linked to (although just because you have one or many of these symptoms does not necessarily mean that gluten is the culprit): Schizophrenia, autism/asperger's, OCD, anxiety/depression, reflux/heartburn, migraines, IBS, food allergies, asthma, ADD/ADHD, fibromyalgia, endometriosis, unexplained infertility, irritability, miscarriages, alopecia, eczema, melanoma, cancer predisposition in children, insomnia, fatigue, cold/canker sores, acne, learning disabilities, bipolar disorder, explosive behavior, PMS, ulcers...

I have spent hours on end reading about celiac disease, and the link between gluten and a whole host of neurological/psychiatric disorders. I have googled every health problem that I can think of on both sides of our family, and every single one has been linked to gluten. I'm not kidding. From kidney stones to insomnia, asthma to infertility, acne to ADD. I was racking my brain to make sure I didn't forget anything. I suddenly remembered that my brother stuttered as a child. I started laughing. Surely stuttering is not linked to gluten! Then I googled "gluten and stuttering" and lo and behold...dozens of people claim that going gluten-free resolved their stuttering issues, dozens of websites claim that there is a link between gluten and stuttering. Here is one of the many:

http://ezinearticles.com/?Food-Allergy-and-Stuttering-Link&id=1235725

While I realize you can't believe everything you read, there are two sides to every story, yada yada...I really think my little family needs to give this gf/cf diet a good whirl. Just to see.

tutu cute

2010-05-17T21:35:00.003-07:00

My friend gave Ava this super cute pettiskirt. I can wait to see her dance around the house in it.

six sweet months

2010-05-09T17:02:00.003-07:00

Sweet little Ava is six months old. We finally made it in for her well-check on Friday. She is as healthy as can be. Her stats:

height: 28 in. (95th percentile)
weight: 18 lbs 13 oz (90th percentile)
head: 17 in. (50th percentile)

We love to kiss her cheeks and make her laugh. She loves: her brothers, her mommy, sitting, the mirror, chewing on her toes, and music. She hates: the car seat, being on her tummy, loud noises, and when her mommy doesn't pay attention to her. Special skills: crawling is a long way off (she refuses to stay on her tummy and does a twist mid-air if I try to lay her down on it), but she did wave at me yesterday. In the mirror. It was the sweetest thing ever.

p.s. ian (the always-vying-for-attention middle child) always interrupts our photo shoots by jumping on the bed/knocking Ava over.
p.p.s. i got way too many "how old is he?", "he's so cute", "what a chubby boy" comments yesterday while ava was wearing a brown floral shirt. today i made a huge bow for her to wear to church since she would be wearing navy blue (didn't want to confuse anyone)...but an 8-year-old boy still asked me how old "he" was. oh well.

mother's day

2010-05-09T16:06:00.006-07:00

I always take mother's day into my own hands. Usually I just go get a pedicure, but this year I dragged the whole family to Scottsdale so I could do some shopping at H&M. We had a lovely evening--strolling through the outdoor mall, indulging in high-end window shopping, soaking in the sun, and listening to Zee Avi. We stopped at Whole Foods to pick up Izzes, sushi, and a pan au chocolat (with raspberry). J-P didn't complain once about shopping (his least favorite activity), and watched all three children while I stood in the mile-long line to try on clothes. It was oh-so-nice.

Like I have said before, this stay-at-home mom gig I have rocks. I love, love, love being a mother. Seriously, I love it. I have never been so happy in my entire life.

p.s. this is me without make up...i love my children even if they did give me pink eye again, and forced me to throw away all my eye make-up again. I forgot to get more yesterday.

creative play

2010-05-05T22:29:00.003-07:00

Some afternoons I let the boys tear the house apart. When I have things that need to get done (and naps are not going to happen), I debate...turn on the TV or let them play? Keep my house clean + impede their cognitive development, or let creativity reign? Yesterday was a play day.

Overhead:

Max: (as he pulls his shirt over his head) Look Ian! I am a BIG, scary wolf! Rrrrrrr! You're a dinosaur, ok?

Ian: No Max! I'm not a dinosaur, I'm a BIG, scary polar bear! Roooaaaar!

- - - - -

Ian: (as he puts a makeshift sword up to Max) Max, say you're a COD FISH! Say you're a COD FISH! Hahahahahaha!

Max: No Ian, that's not how you play. This is how you play--I'll be the captain, you be the hook, OK?

peach picking

2010-05-01T14:57:00.004-07:00

We decided to head to Schnepf farms to pick peaches today. A completely lovely way to spend a Saturday afternoon. The boys sampled about as many peaches as they picked, and ran around looking for rocks and sticks. Ava and I strolled around and sampled peaches (it's allowed) while J-P did most of the picking.

p.s. facebook fans get a discounted price

sunday pictures

2010-04-25T16:02:00.005-07:00

Max (always holding a dinosaur) and Ava

Ian (who never stops talking) and Ava

I tried to snap photos of all three children after church today, lest the boys read this blog one day and feel bad about the overload of Ava pictures. But, to be honest, the only reason I have so many pictures of her is because she can't move yet. She is the only one who stays still long enough to have her picture taken. And she will be crawling in the next few months so I have to take them while I still can. Anyway, the boys argued about who got to sit on her right side until I solved things by taking two separate pictures.

Ian is constantly talking to Ava, and is easily frustrated when he doesn't think she is listening. He grabs her face with both hands and says "Ava! Did you hear me, Ava?" He is also constantly analyzing their differences. "Mom, Ava doesn't have eyebrows, but I do. And she doesn't have a pee-pee, but she has a bum just like me! And her poop is yellow mom, but mine is brown. Uh, what color is your poop mom? Oh, it's brown? But what about dad, is his brown too? Mom, Ava poops in her diaper just like me, but Max poops in the toilet. Mom, Ava is just a little baby, but I am a big, HUGE boy...(and so on and so forth)"

another sunday another dress...

2010-04-18T15:43:00.005-07:00

Ava has way too many clothes. Most of them are gifts, scattered with hand-me-downs and thrift store finds. You would die if you saw all the dresses in her closet. Although she doesn't "need" it, I couldn't resist this blue number when I saw it at Nordstrom Rack last night.

She couldn't keep her tongue in her mouth for our post-church photo shoot. It is sticking out in 90% of the pictures I took. She can even touch the bottom of her chin with it...still trying to figure out if this is normal for her age or rare and unusual talent. She can also sit for a considerable amount of time without falling over. Not bad for five months.

(she fell over after a solid two minutes of sitting shots)

tootle bug

2010-04-15T16:08:00.004-07:00

You would never guess by looking at these pictures that she spends most of her day making loud, flatulence-style noises with her tongue. She loves sitting (but still falls over occasionally). She loves any attention she can get from her brothers (which isn't much). She loves eating (as you can tell). Her chubby legs in leggings = my favorite thing ever.

kitchen overhaul

2010-04-12T16:13:00.004-07:00

Making some progress on our kitchen overhaul. Now we need to find/install some back splash tile. I was going to go with simple white-ish subway tile, but it's hard to find in this southwestern-everything-is-stone state. When I asked the guy at the tile store to help me find the subway tile, he looked at me like I was an idiot and told me that it is very outdated and that I wouldn't find it anywhere in Arizona. I will find some, but I'm not so sure that I'm set on it. Any suggestions?

cake mix catastrophe

2010-04-12T14:42:00.004-07:00

These dark brown eyes melt me. And I can't blame him. I love chocolate too.

pretty ava

2010-04-11T15:37:00.003-07:00

This morning I put a dress on Ava that I had been saving for Easter (I know I'm late). I couldn't even button it. She is getting SO big. The first six months of having a baby are my fav. Mostly because there is lots of snuggling and not a lot of messes. I am not looking forward to feeding her real food in a few more weeks, and especially not looking forward to the transition to smelly diapers. Why can't they stay little forever?

these two

2010-04-09T14:51:00.002-07:00

Seeing the world through the eyes of a two and three-year-old is quite entertaining. Today I'm loving Ian's obsession with fire hydrants. He explodes with enthusiasm when he sees one. Like it's the coolest thing EVER. "Mom, LOOK!!! It's a fire hydrant! A yellow one!"

Yesterday Max got a container of strawberries out of the fridge and started eating them while I was feeding the baby. Ian woke up from his nap and walked into the kitchen. When Max saw him he said "Ian, come eat strawberries with me! But these strawberries have weeds in them. First you have to pull the weed and then you can eat it...like this!" I had a large pile of "weeds" to clean up off of the floor when they were finished.

the room: sneak peek

2010-04-07T16:24:00.003-07:00

The progress on Ava's room has been slow. I have been painting, thrifting, searching craigslist, sewing, and so forth. I scored great deals on a pink rocker, antique bed, and antique mirror...all lucky finds. The yo-yo mobile I made lasted about two days until one of the boys climbed into the crib, pulled it down, and destroyed it. Sigh + deep breath. Oh well. I don't love the lamp (spray painted goodwill find), and will probably make a different shade as I don't like how it turned out. The letter is my first experience with modge podge. I still have a long way to go. More pics to come...

yellow dress

2010-04-07T16:04:00.005-07:00

I was sorting through some photos today and found these. Some friends gave me this outfit for my shower, and I was so excited when Ava was finally big enough to wear it to church. For the record, she is around four months old wearing a size 18 month dress. Thanks to a grumpy post church mood, these are the only pictures she isn't crying in. Thanks again!

go duke

2010-04-06T16:36:00.005-07:00

This is what Max was wearing when I woke up this morning. J-P swears that Max requested to wear it, and that he had nothing to do with it. Max has been outside shooting hoops in his Duke shirt all day. I don't follow college basketball, but in the hope that Duke winning the championship helps J-P get a job...GO DUKE!