FFF: Enoch sings his ABCs

I've had this video hanging around for about a month now, so it's probably about time to post it, huh?  Though Enoch has progressed in his ABC song since this video was taken, I am opting to post this one because it's pretty hard to capture such a calm, sweet singing little boy on video (as I somehow did in this one).  Happy Friday!   :)

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FFF: cuties and funnies

Photos from my phone demonstrating the cuteness & funniness that I am daily dealing with down South.  :)

 Karis is more than proficient at finding her feet now... and it is almost impossible to keep the girl in socks!  I'm continually losing them throughout the house, at therapy, in the car, at the grocery store...  I'm pretty sure that if this continues she'll be destined for a life of mis-matched socks.  ;)

Hugh just taught Enoch how to say "that's silly," and now he's saying it about the most random things... like earlier today when he told me that this little bus driver sleeping on the tractor was silly...

 My Big Boy sitting on the potty by himself.

There must be some type of magnetic force between these two because every time we entered the room, they were drawn to one another.

Sweet Girl having her Daddy time.

 Little Man putting his toy plates away with our dinner plates.

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My Potty Pooper

Last night Enoch officially pooped on the potty for the first time! No, I wasn't there (I was nursing Karis). And no, I don't have any photos (Hugh was too busy cleaning up the other poopy - the one in the bathtub - to snap any photos of my little pooper). But do you want to know what I DO have? One excited little boy who couldn't stop telling me about his brown poopy (his description, not mine). :)

As you may recall, Enoch has been peeing on the potty for months now but has refused (out of fear I think) to poopy on the potty. We have taken countless trips there when we could tell he was about to fill his diaper, all to no avail. Last night Hugh thiught he might need to go poopy before bath time, and so he tried to let Enoch go on the potty, but again, not much action happened, possibly because the bathtub was already beginning to brim with water and toys... So into the bathtub he went. After only a few minutes of playing in the bathtub, Enoch excitedly announced the arrival of a poopy - much to Hugh's surprise! Thankfully, Hugh acted quickly and put his wet little naked bottom on the potty where another poopy easily plopped into the water. Enoch was so thrilled to get to flush that poopy down the hole like a big boy! Hugh of course praised him to the hilt while wiping his bottom, and then my ecstatic little naked toddler just had to come tell his Mama. :)
Unfortunately it seems like the most exciting part for Enoch was pooping in the bathtub, not the potty, but we are hopeful that having jumped the hurdle of that first potty poopy may give Little Man more courage and excitement about future potty poopies... Until then, Daddy is going to be watching for UFOs: Unidentified Floating Objects in the bath water. ;)

posted from Bloggeroid

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FFF: Enoch lately

I wanted to post up a few videos of what life with my not so little Enoch is like these days.  I am really enjoying this stage of interaction, learning, excitement, imagination, and energy.  (**other moms of toddlers should see note at the bottom**)

One of our newest toddler investments has been a play kitchen.  Ever since Enoch got to play with one at a friend's house a few months back, it has been on my "to buy" list.  I was so thankful the Lord allowed me to find one used in excellent condition for 1/3 the price of new in our small town!  Enoch has spent many hours already cooking for me and feeding me.  He loves bringing me spoonfuls of ice cream, pasta, milk, cheese, bananas, and any other food he's ever tasted and liked... and he conveniently gets them all right out of the fridge's water dispenser (quite the imagination, huh?).  Hugh also noticed that as soon as we put the kitchen up he knew exactly what each appliance was and how to use it (observant guy in Mama's kitchen, huh?).  I have to admit, the kitchen is probably as much entertainment for me at this point as it is for Little Man because I just enjoy interacting with him and the kitchen.  :)  Here's a video:



Of course, Enoch has also been playing with his Daddy lately.  They still enjoying wrestling, reading, playing the guitar, going outside, counting, etc.  The video below is of Little Man running to his Daddy and being lifted up high, which is one way that Enoch loves to welcome Hugh home.



And lastly, Enoch has also been learning the words to a few more songs lately.  One of his current favorites is the Fruit of the Spirit song, which we sing everyday, multiple times... and I love it!  This verse (Galations 5:22) was so hard for me to memorize before I had kids, but I swear that putting it to music makes it just stick in your brain!  Of course, Enoch doesn't know what most of the words actually mean yet, but we have been talking about love, patience, gentleness, and self control, so I'm sure he'll be picking up the meanings to those and the others soon... until then, I'm just excited he's beginning to learn and memorize what God teaches us from the Bible. 




**Note for other moms of toddlers:  Please don't get me wrong in assuming that our days are only full of songs, fun, and smiles... Enoch is still needing daily correction and discipline, but I try not to let those times weigh me down or discolor the joyful times.  And I must say that I really have found that when I'm consistent in discipline and pro-active in thinking through how we will spend our time together and ways I can set Enoch up for success, we all thrive.  So although I definitely don't want this post to seem like we only wear rosy colored glasses in the Medal household, I do want to say that I am really enjoying this phase, and I'm sure I'll be fond of reminiscing on it later as well, hence all of the videos.

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FFF: Lunch & Bowl

At the close of the Fall Semester, the faculty in Hugh's department took a break from work and went bowling over lunch to have a little fun.  They've done this now a few times since Hugh's been working there, and he really enjoys it since it's a good change of pace.  The head of department sent out this overview of this most recent lunch & bowl, and I just had to post it because it's somewhat comical considering that everyone in his department is so laid back.  [The bracketed text blocks are my comments.]

Well, it was an exciting afternoon for the 3^rd Semester ISE Faculty Lunch & Bowl tournament. Things started slowly, but as the first game progressed competition began heating up as Hugh and Burak were neck-in-neck throughout the game making it a final frame decision between the two. However, the surprise came when one of the newcomers, Lesley, came out of nowhere to take the lead in the last two frames of the first game ending as victor with the high score of 132, followed closely by Hugh and Burak with scores of 127 and 125, respectively.  [Hugh told me that he and Burak really were shocked when Lesley beat them on the first game because they thought the girls were just messing around on the other lane!] The rest of the pack (Kari, Sandra, and Mengqi) were battling it out with each finishing within 2 points of each other, except for Linkan who topped their score by 10 points showing no shame in the process.

Following a healthy lunch of nothing but fruits and vegetables [yeah right!  The bowling alley only serves greasy, carb-filled foods...], the second game began with a bang and finished well with everyone showing improvements in their scores. Burak ended the day scoring an all-time career high of 141 (see attached picture of the scoreboard), while John scored his first ever “turkey” [John is head of department who wrote this up]. With the competition turned up in the right hand lane, Hugh stepped up to clinch the victory for the day with a high game of 159. 

To honor the event, a trophy was presented to the winner, Hugh Medal naming him as the “champion” (see attached graphic). This trophy will be proudly displayed in Hugh’s office until the next semester's competition in the Spring where he will need to defend his title to keep possession of this coveted award.

Thanks everyone for participating and making this a fun event. I am looking forward to next semester’s “Lunch & Bowl” tournament. 

Here's my champion who "clinched the victory" holding his "coveted" trophy.  haha!  We'll have to wait and see if he's able to step up next semester and defend his title.  ;)

  

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Look who just drank out of a straw cup!

Guys, I'm so excited! Karis just drank almost 4 oz out of a straw cup! This is such a big step for her because for the past few months she has refused to drink anything that wasn't straight from the breast (due mainly to the fact that I was I incredibly inconsistent at giving bottles).



That's one Sweet Girl and one excited mama right there! Granted, a little bit of the milk did get on the burp cloth as she was sucking, but I think she has officially discovered the secret that straw cups have purpose and that she can work them... which is worth celebrating, for sure!

As a side note, our speech therapist recommended skipping over the sippy cup stage and working on straw cups because they are more helpful for oral development. She recommended the playtex straw cup in this picture (which we already had for Enoch) because it is made to help parents teach their kids how to suck on a straw. So far this cup has helped both of my kids learn to use a straw, so I think I'd recommend it as a good starter straw cup (though it does typically leak for me so I don't use it long term).

posted from Bloggeroid

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FFF: Karis at 6-7 mos

Here's a condensed update on Karis at 6-7 months.  I'm still working on an update on therapy... these longer ones just take so much more time and thought to write out... and extra time certainly isn't growing on any trees down in Mississippi this time of the year, so I appreciate your patience.  :)

First, a picture of the sweetest little smile/laugh I've seen around...

Although Karis has been smiling for a few months now, only in the past two weeks have her smiles become more social and her laughs more frequent.  And talk about soaking them in, this mama's heart just loves seeing those sweet gummy smiles and hearing those deep belly laughs.  Here's a tickling video:



Based on those sweet smiles I've been getting lately, I've been telling Hugh that I'm pretty sure we have quite the social little girl on our hands.  She loves being held and talked to (even by strangers, which was not true of Enoch), and sometimes when I lay her down and leave the room for just a minute she will yell at me to come back.  haha.  She also loves to give kisses these days... multiple ones at a time with her sweet little hands squishing your cheeks together and her wet little mouth planting big ones all over your face.  :)  

Here are some other basics about our Sweet Karis Girl:


Eating- Sweet Girl is still nursing, usually 5-7 times per day.  At around 6 months my milk supply started dropping (I think), so I stopped block feeding and began nursing her on both sides each time she was hungry.  (I also increased my pumping from once per day to twice per day so that my body will continue making enough milk.)  At around 6 months, I also began introducing solids to Karis' diet.  That didn't go so well due to her tongue thrust (basically spitting everything that entered her mouth back out), so at around 7 months we started seeing a speech therapist.  She has helped us tremendously, and now Sweet Girl is actually eating some basic solids once per day (mainly fruits & veggies).  We are also currently working on introducing a straw cup... again, I'm hoping to most more on this soon!!

Size-  Karis is just about to outgrow her 9 months clothes now and is still long-legged with shorter arms, meaning she typically has her shirt sleeves rolled up at least once.  ;)  She's still in a size 3 diaper and weighed in around 16 pounds and 26 inches at her 6 month check up. 

Sleeping-  Karis typically takes 2-3 naps during the daytime (still not very scheduled though) and sleeps from 6:30 pm until 6:30 am without much fuss.  She hasn't mastered the skill of falling asleep by herself yet, but we continue to work on it, just at a slower pace than we did with Enoch.

playing with Enoch

Playing- Sweet Girl is quite the player these days!  She's quite the wiggle-worm, and she is very determined and adventurous.  Right now her favorite things to do include: putting toys in her mouth, watching Enoch play, sitting in laps and being talked to, getting (that's what we call her grabbing whatever is in front of her, whether a toy, face, table, or whatever), rolling, being worn in a wrap (on mama), pulling hair, being tickled, and reading books (which she also likes to get).

Sitting up

Milestones- Karis is doing great with rolling now, she can chain roll where ever she wants to go.  She's still learning how to pivot on her belly as well as how to sit unassisted and how to crawl.  I am convinced that her PT is really helping with these skills.  As for OT, Karis is definitely showing improvement as well.  She's able to pick up toys from a table and grab them when they're presented to her.  Right now in OT we are working on other skills like transferring objects from one hand to the other, the pincer grasp, and games like peek-a-boo.  Most of these things are challenging for Sweet Girl right now though because she  really only has one goal with anything she can get in her hands: to put it in her mouth.  ;)  Our OT says it's just a phase though, so we are continuing to work with her, trusting that soon she'll move past the teething stage.

Here's a video of us working on sitting up unassisted. I think it's so cute how hard she works at getting her blue mirror (one of her favorite toys right now)!

Schedule-  Surprisingly, Karis' schedule is pretty similar to the one she was on at 3-4 mos only she has dropped out the late afternoon nap (3 per day now) and she goes to bed earlier (between 5:30-6:30).  Her naps are typically still pretty short (45 min each) and irregular, as I mentioned above.  I'm really hoping she gets into a better routine soon though because her therapy happens at the same time twice per week.  Right now the timing works out well because Enoch is napping at home and usually Karis has just finished a nap so she's alert and happy, but man it's a bummer on those days where she's had spotty naps all morning and then when we arrive at therapy she decides she would rather sleep than work.  :(  And so we're working toward a more regular nap schedule... 

Overall, we are still enjoying Karis so much!  It's so fun watching her grow and develop, and we are thankful for everyday we are given with her.  One of my favorite times with her is early in the morning when she first wakes up to nurse and is warm and snuggly in her fleece sleeper.  I love just holding her, nursing her, and rocking her.  :)  And the boys are no less in love.  Enoch loves giving her kisses and hugs (still!), and Hugh is really enjoying playing with her as well as accepting every wet kiss she offers him.  :)

 

swinging outside (another passtime she enjoys)

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New Year's Thoughts for Moms

I was really encouraged by this post today over on The Gospel Coalition by Christina Fox:  The New Year for Your Children.  In it, she describes a few different ways that moms (and dads as well, I suppose) can try to engage their children about Jesus and the gospel throughout the new year.  The one that I think is the most important for me to work on was the fourth:

Ask the Lord to help you be sensitive to his promptings. Above all, be in prayer, asking God to show you what your children need to learn. Make it a daily prayer that he would make you sensitive to teaching moments as they arrive. Seek God's wisdom to guide you as you teach your children about who God is and what he has done for them through Christ.

Personally, I continue to be amazed at how much children understand, even when they're young toddlers.  I'm regularly reminded of this with Enoch, and I realize that even the most basic things I tell him are shaping his view of the world around him.  For example - why does the sun rise?  why does it rain?  why should he obey his parents?  why should he be gentle with his baby sister?  It can be so easy to explain these things away with the shortest, simplest answer possible, yet the Lord often reminds me that it is in these small moments and rather mundane lessons that He can be glorified when I point my children's hearts to Him. 

I do pray, as Christina Fox recommended, that the Lord will continue to make me sensitive to the little opportunities to point my children back to Christ whenever they come my way (and that I would also have the patience and wisdom required as well). 

Hope you enjoy the post as much as I did! 

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