Ruby is 2.5

Our big girl turned 2.5 on January 9th! She is at such a fun age, and her personality is really starting to become evident! Below is a bit about her!

Ruby with her rock basket-showing me her new PJ's

Babies go with us everywhere-this was to basketball practice. The girls always take their clothes off for some reason. We never have clothed babies around.

Ruby with her baby holster. You can also see here she is wearing Annie's boots-that she put on herself, so they are on the wrong feet!:)

One day recently at Let's Play-definitely not a baby anymore!!

Loving the outdoors! Adores playing outside, swinging, sliding, and anything at the playground!

-Perhaps the biggest thing about Ruby at 2.5 is that she's fully potty trained! I was dreading this and so I kept putting it off, but once we put our all into it, she was super easy and fast! It just took a few days, and just a few small accidents, and that's it! She gets a tiny treat as a reward, and that is motivation enough for her! She is so proud to wear big girl undies like her sis, too. I still put her in a nighttime diaper, but I really don't need to because she always wakes up dry. I'll use up the pack I guess! She wants to do it all herself, and will pull up her undies and pants herself. She sometimes takes everything off, then wants to put it ALL back on herself. One morning she did this before church. Then when I was getting her out of the car I noticed they were on inside out. I went to fix them and noticed her undies were in a wad down in one of the leg holes! haha!
-Ruby loves baby dolls, and she plays with them often. She is constantly going in to her room, turning on the noise maker, getting the stool to turn off her light, and laying her baby (all wrapped up) down for a nap! Sometimes it's on the floor or in the little baby crib. She comes out and whispers, "Shhhh. Baby's sleeping". She loves when I play along and we will creep back in together for her to show me her sleeping baby. She also has a bitty sized baby that she wants to keep in her undies, but we tell her no! We let her keep it in her pants like a holster, and she is very adamant that the baby face toward her like she's sleeping. That's what she's doing in the picture above!:) She takes a baby with her to the car most of the time and holds it in her car seat. Another favorite thing for Ruby is to put her baby in the stroller or shopping cart (sometimes 2 babies-with blankies and other gear of course) and make laps around the house. Annie does this with her quite often-they can have lots of fun together doing this type of thing.
-Another highlight for Ruby right now is rocks and chap stick! She loves both so much! She carries around a little basket of rocks (in first picture) all over the house, and will stop and pour them out, look through them, and put them back. She is very protective of her rocks-a sibling better not try to claim one (they are actually Annie's and Henry's rocks from various places we've collected over the years, but oh well). She also adores chap stick, and we honestly have to secretly confiscate it because she gets so obsessed and it becomes a big mess (she was putting it all over her doll's lips and it became a big mess). She isn't content with just her own lips, either. It ends half way up her face, and once she was rubbing it all over her forehead! She got some in her stocking, and Grandpa and Peggy gave her some, too. She added those to her little rock basket, and, oh my! It has been her focus! She has to put it in a special place before nap and as soon as she wakes up, the very first thing she ask for is her rocks and chap stick! This type of thing reminds me of her bro-singularly focused and into collecting. It cracks us all up!
-She tries to use her manners and will say "Thank you!" for different things...booboo bandays, when a door is opened for her, when a mom gave her cake at a party, etc. She is so cute to give compliments, and will say "I love your ___________"(fill in the blank with whatever!). We were visiting Grandma, and she told Grandma that she loved her sweater. Grandma didn't hear her, so Ruby looked up and said, "Grandma didn't manner me!" Ha, ha! I guess she wants others to use their manners, too!:)
-She buckles her top buckle herself. When she hears the click, she says, "Got it!"She will ask us to "unbuckle" stuff for her-meaning she wants us to open it (like candy or chap stick). She went through a little stubborn streak (October) and wanted to sit in real chair rather than high chair. We try to let her, but things still go more smoothly when she's in it! Sometimes it's not worth the fight, though! She went through a phase of furrowed brow, but luckily it didn't last! She was throwing fits to not hold hands to cross the parking lot, etc. Very 2 year old behavior!:) She was saying, "No, I do it!" quite often.
A few more things...
"Mom, mom. Can I???"
"I want some-ping else"
"Oh man!"
"What YOU doin?'"
"Do you hear me?"
"Chewy, chewy bubble gum. Do it really fast!!"
"My nose is so yuck!!"
"It's coming out!!" (talking about her diaper or when she needs to go potty!)
"I had a burp in my seat." (talking about gas)
"My tummy and my back is full!!" She was also getting being full and being hungry mixed up, so we had some very confusing conversations.
-Very sad flu shot. Saw the big kids get them, and kept whispering to me, "Don't want it. Don't want one!" Then when it was her turn she just lost it before anything bad had even happened. After that she freaked out in Sunday School class because the lesson was
-So proud to get late bday present from Elijah. "Por me?? Por me, mama??" Then that night she prayed and thanked God for "My present and my shirt and my Elijah." She threw major fits when we made her take her new shirt off to get PJ's on, and I had to promise she could wear it the next day.
-Beach trip in Oct and she talked about playing in the sand the whole drive (didn't have memory of our other beach trips!). As soon as we go to the beach, she squealed in delight and fell down in it and rolled around. It was in her face, her hair, everywhere! She is quite the beach bum and doesn't mind being sandy, wet, and windblown!
-Santa pics in our house all show the girls crying while sitting on his lap. She studies the pics and will talk to me about them-"We crying." she would say,  so I asked her why. Santa's nice! Then she said, "He's scary. He's big. He's a monster!"
-She loves to play doctor. I will be her patient, and she will say, "I'm gonna doctor you. Can I doctor you, mama? I gonna shot you. You get a sticker and a treat."

We love you, sweet Ruby Jane. You are a delight and a perfect ending to our family. Can't wait to see what the next bit of your life brings!

Henry is 6.5!

 A lot happens in 6 months when you are 6! Here is a bit about our boy.

Henry is a sweetheart. He is very tenderhearted and thoughtful. He loves to give gifts and will work and work on something, then wrap it just perfectly to give it (usually to me or someone else in the family). He is artistic and musical. He uses all of his free time to draw or color and is always singing and humming. He will listen to music and pick it apart mentally, then the next thing we know he is singing it word for word perfectly. It is pretty amazing! Many people stop us and tell us what a great voice he has. He took piano classes this summer (8wk session), and would love to continue that when he gets a little older. He enjoyed it!
He also took golf lessons this summer, and has continued that into the school year on and off depending on the weather. Our friend at church is a teacher, so it has worked well. He and Steven will go out in the yard and hit fairly frequently, and it's amazing to see the improvement he's made!
 He played soccer in fall-very spur of the moment! Annie wanted to play, but he hadn't shown a whole lot of interest and said he didn't want to again (our 2 ayso experiences haven't been the best), then at the last minute we offered it one more time, and he said yes. He did great! He was one of the older kids on the team, and I think that helped boost his confidence. We saw more aggression our of him than before.He also played baseball in spring and had a good experience. There were times when he enjoyed it, and times when he didn't. Baseball demands a lot of time, so it was kind of exhausting! What he should probably be in is swimming-he is an awesome swimmer, and it comes very naturally to him! He is a little fish-we are looking into a swim team for him.
Henry lost his first tooth in July! He was so excited-pulled it himself, and immediately said he wished it had happened at school! He lost the bottom one right beside it just a few weeks later. It really changed his look! Another reminder that he is growing up....I had to swallow hard when it happened:) He learned to tie his shoes right as he turned 6, so that's helpful! We also got him an alarm for school this year, so he gets up himself and gets going in the morning. This has proven to work well for him. For some reason he pops right up with the alarm, but when we were waking him he was struggling to wake up.
Henry started 1st grade in August and is teacher is Mrs. Padgett. He is always happy to go and is learning a lot. He says his favorite classes are art, Grammar, Science, and handwriting (he has beautiful cursive when he gives his best effort!). I homeschool him on M/W, and we are at home full time on these days which is a change from other years. It has been good! I can add that he is a good little math student, and that he is improving greatly in reading, but it is not his favorite still. I am hoping this will change! He loves to be read to (more Boxcar Children, Stewart Little, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, The Mouse and the Motercycle are a few), but he'd rather not read himself. We will continue to work on this! Steven helps by teaching Henry his Monday math lesson on Sunday which lightens our load on Mondays. Then on Wednesday my mom has been coming to entertain the girls while we do school which is a HUGE help! He's making some good buddies at school-Abby, Sarah Elizabeth, Thomas, and Jackson are a few.
A few other little tidbits
Special relationship with cousins-especially Layna (major fort building occurs with those 2)
Iowa (this was actually in March, but I'm not sure I wrote it down anywhere)-played and played with Grandma DeWitt (bells, colored together, made up a story/play, hide and seek)
Anne Poodle Noodle
Worry Eater-I'll tell you my worries after I dream
Saw a doughnut place called "Heavenly Doughnut Company" and said, Mom, they're God doughnuts!
He likes older kids
We were sitting down for dinner one night and I was telling Steven my tummy had been feeling kinda funny that day, and I didn't think Henry was even paying attention. He looked up hopefully and said, "Baby?!?!" (sorry to burst your bubble there buddy)
There's so much more, but I will stop. We love you, little dude! You sure are a sweet guy. Can't wait to watch you continue to grow and learn.

**Annie is 4.5**

Annie turned 4 and a half over Thanksgiving. She is getting so tall, that everyone thinks she's at least 5, but it's still a shock for this mama! Annie is still a spunky, sassy, sweet little girl. Below is a little about her at this age. She's lots of fun and growing like little weed!

Annie is a great sibling. She is a little mama through and through and is so caring toward her little sister. She helps me with things like unbuckling Ruby, helping distract her when she's sad, or picking up things she's dropped. She's a good little reporter and lets me know when Ruby is into something she shouldn't be or needs something. She and Henry also have the best time together playing and imagining. She get into all kinds of mischief together-particularly building forts or playing babies or family or hiding from me. I try to let them have at it, but sometimes I have to put a halt on their play when I hear doors opening that should be or the sink turning on...
Henry says he wants to be an architect, and Annie says she wants to be a unicorn trainer. That is a really great way to describe the difference in their personalities! She is all girl-loves anything princess, unicorn, all make up, lotion, getting her nails done, etc. She is a real girly girl. She loves babies (dolls and real babies), stuffed animals, anything cute and cuddly. At the same time, she can be a tough cookie and plays hard outside and doesn't mind getting dirty and sweaty. She is more interested in riding toys than Henry and will speed down the driveway on her zebra. She also loves the battery powered Jeep and drives it all over the yard.
She played soccer this fall (first time for her to do a group sport) and she was great! Had a good attitude and was a great listener. She's a good runner and has some aggression that her brother lacks! She also started ballet this fall and takes once a week. She loves it!! I am amazed at how well she does (because sometimes at home she lets her true colors show I guess!) at ballet! She listens and follows directions. She is a great example to the others there, and she is always happy to go. She loves to dance around the house and show us what she is learning. She loves to put on her ballet gear and would stay in costume all day if I would let her. She may end up doing ballet for a while-we will see! She has a recital in May and is so excited about it already.
Annie goes to PreK at my school on T, TH, and F. She loves it and does great there! She loves her buddies Connor and Owen, and she learns so much! She has rest time there in the afternoons, but does not sleep. She will still have rest time at home, too, on M/W and usually does fall asleep in her own bed. She probably still naps 2-3 times a week (usually once on the weekend). She naps REALLY well if Steven will lay down with her. She is such a snuggler, and she loves to do that (so does he!). She still has to sleep with her blankie and stuffed animals (her favorite one varies depending on the week). And she loves her Hello Kitty pillow and mermaid blanket.
Annie writes her name well and knows all the basic PreK stuff she should know-coloring in the lines, cutting, sorting, colors, numbers, letters, and many sounds.  She learns different verses at school and she also learns all the little jingles about vowel sounds, etc. We have decided to wait and let her go to PreK one more year, so next year I plan to work with her more seriously to get her ready for Kindergarten.
Annie is still a sassy girl and can have quite the attitude, but is also very tenderhearted and loving at the same time. She is maturing, and we can see a lot of change in her each month. Annie does not seem to be a performer like her brother (he's always ready to sing or recite for you or a stranger). She needs to know you and has to be in the right mood to perform. She also doesn't love new people and when people give her compliments out and about or smile at her, she isn't sure how to respond. We are working on this! But I think it's just part of her personality. She really loves one on one time and craves that quality time with the ones she loves. She needs hugs and demonstrative love!
She cries big time over getting her hair brushed-it hurts according to her-but she starts the waterworks before I start the brushing! She certainly has a dramatic streak about things like this. Annie wakes up happy, especially if she is allowed to wake up on her own. She is SUCH a talker and will start earrrrrly with saying so much and so loud! We are constantly working on volume!
She has started loving to bake! She asks me all the time! She's had so much fun baking with her buddy Nora Kate at her house. She loves to help me cook meals at home now, and she is a great helper with cleaning at home, too. She will go super fast when I ask her to clean her room or help clean the living room or playroom, and she does a great job! She has the task oriented focus that some other children lack in this house! She also loves to get a wipe and clean whatever I ask her-it's great!
Annie still has all her own 'isms' and the crack us up. Some recent things she's said are:
What in the goodness??
Good lands!
I feel my heart beep!
Mommy? I just love you! (just the 2 of us sitting together)
When they are a different color, they speak a different language.
There's so much more, but I need to stop. We love you sweet Anne girl, and can't believe you are on your way to being five! You are growing up way to fast for this mama! 

Ruby is 2!

Ruby turned TWO on July 9, 2018. Hard to believe that our baby is TWO! I think this means we don't have a baby anymore! We did all of her celebrations prior, so her actual day was just a our family having a fun day with our big girl! The kids love to help her celebrate.

We moved her car seat to forward facing. So exciting!!

Our sweet girl

Her personality is a bit shier than her siblings, but she is such a chill girl and such a jokester when you get to know her!

We painted toes and fingers on her special day-one of her very favorite things to do! I put her in the same dress that Annie wore when she turned 2:)

Steven got home a little early and we opened gifts-peppa pig riding toy, a swim doll, and I don't remember what else! Ha!

We told her we could go get ice cream for her bday treat. We always order one and make the kids share, so getting their own was a big deal!! She was SOOO cute waiting in line for hers. The siblings received theirs before her, so it made her wait seems so long!:) That counter seemed a million miles high!

When she finally got it, she was in awe! :)

Our family-Happy Birthday, dear Ruby!

In hindsight, chocolate was a bad idea-July is HOT, so it melted fast! We quickly transitioned from cone to cup!

She was too cute feeding herself and took it so seriously!:)

9/11 we took Ruby to her 2 yr appt. She was a little unsure walking in, and as soon as she realized it was for her, she BROKE DOWN! She just started crying her eyes out! She's been to enough appointments for her siblings to know that sometimes it doesn't end happily!

She didn't refuse anything, just cried while obeying! Annie was so cute helping her sis-she's very compassionate. If anyone understands being emotional, it's her! Ha! We laughed about this photo, because it's how we adults feel when we step on the scales! She checked out all healthy and was 34.5 inches tall and weighed 30 pounds-75% in height and weight. Big girl! 

A bit about her at this age!
-Stubborn eater, but I don't worry to much about it bc she's a healthy looking girl! She will fairly often refuse dinner and go to bed without eating anything. I can match her stubbornness. Some new things she has eaten are baked beans, guacamole, and she had an amazing time gobbling strawberries when we went strawberry picking in May. When I ask her if she wants water or milk to drink, she says, "water AND milk!" Of course the few times she has gotten a special drink like juice or chocolate milk, she guzzles it.
-She is such a talker, and has her own little vocabulary. She can pretty much say whatever she needs to say to get her point across. She calls feet-peet "my peet! My peet got wet!!" , swim-tim "I'm gonna go tim", says Imunno for I don't know and ugg for hug. She calls finger-pinger and fun-pun "It's pun!!" or "It's punny!!" Calls her belly button her "tummy button." pain gun for penguin. She says "yes" and "yes, please" often and accurately. A few other phrases...yeah! Me too! Ok! My turn! Ruby's turn!! Watch this! Thank you, mama! Thank you, dada! That Mommy's coffee? No, YOU do it. I CAN'T!! If I ask her if she needs help out of her seat, she says, No, I help YOU. She's also been talking about the potty lately and will tell me she needs to go poop. I tell her just to go ahead-I'm not ready to potty train her yet!
-She is an independent little thing, and we appreciate it for the most part! If she gets hurt, she will immediately say, "I'm ok, I'm ok!"-so different than her sis who immediately looses it whether she is actually hurt or not. She wanted me to take something from the backseat from her while driving, and said, "Here ya go, here ya go. LOOK" when I didn't look right away. Says, "Can I have that? I want that" and gets very passionate about brushing her teeth-"I do this, Daddy. I'm doing this" about putting toothpaste on her toothbrush. She's also said, "Give that back, mama!" when I've taken something away. She likes to "watcha movie" and will ask for George. Then when I get up to do work in the kitchen, etc, she says, "What are you doing, mama? Sit DOWN!" "go Blazers!! Go Bubba!!" (cheering from stands at brother's baseball games), "excuse me!" and pushes her way through wherever she wants to go (our crowded bathroom especially),
-She loves peek a boo, pat a cake, and hide and seek. She will say "here I come!!" over and over even though she doesn't really know how to play. She certainly thinks she does! She also loves to say, "Ready? Go!" while standing against the wall, and then take off after go and run across the room. She says bye bye to whatever toy she has in the car when we are getting out-"bye, bye baby!" or says bye to whatever food is on the table when she leaves-"bye, bye chicken!" One time I got ready during her nap to go out for a girl's night, and when I went in to get her up, she said enthusiastically, "I love your dress!"
-She loves school and goes on T, TH, and F this year. I see her a lot and hear her in the halls and she is so happy-squealing, talking, and laughing. She waves at everyone as they stroll by in the bye bye buggy. She has lots of buddies, but will tell you about  Reid and Piper and Charis, and Annie's friends Connor and Owen. The teachers talk about her knowing her colors and counting. She will fill in the next number if we say 1234, she will say 5! She will use a pointer and point to posters like she's reciting something (seen it in prek!). She loves to be read to and also to sit and look through books. Her very favorite teacher is Mrs. Faith, and she gets spoiled on Fridays with her by special snacks and stickers and getting her nails painted
-We have a sweet bedtime routine. She sleeps (still in crib) a good 11-12 hours at night and about a 3 hour nap every afternoon btw (about 1-4, sometimes less). We read books, then she loves to sing songs while being rocked-usually twinkle, Jesus loves me, whole world in his hands, rock a by baby, and go to sleep are her favorites. We pray each night, and she started out with just listing who she is thankful for....bubba, dada, Annie, mama, ruby, then she says, "I love you Jesus, Amen!" She also wants to kiss everyone night night, which we can't always do (this could go on and on!). When she first started asking the would make the kiss noise and say the person's name to ask to kiss them. So, "mmmm, Bubba!" and then "mmmm, Dada!" as we would go around the house to the next one on her list.
-Doing bubba's hair, "Sit down! I'll be right back." (loves being in charge)
-Wouldn't pet the baby gorilla book of baby animals. Acted scared!:) Went to zoo and loved all the animals except the chimp!
-Fireworks-"Don't like it. Too loud." so I asked her if she wanted her earphones and she said  no. Later she looked up at me and said, "Pretty!"
-Occasionally shaky upon wake up. Once in morning was pretty severe so consulted doc. Said fairly normal to wake up with low blood sugar and just to watch it.
-So scared of John Zorio at my bday in May! It cracked us all up!
-Obsessed with shoes on and off, also with putting our shoes on us. She loves to find Annie or Henry's shoes and put them on and walk all over the house in them.
-Obsessed with the forbidden bathroom drawer with all the toothbrushes, etc. Will catch her in there brushing her teeth at odd times. Loves chap stick, lotion, tissues, taking things to the trashcan.
-Now that she's a walker, she really is a little collector and reminds us of Henry. She has something clutched in her hand often (rocks especially, but any little treasure she can find).

There's more, of course, but I must end this random list! We certainly love you, Ruby Jane! You are a sweetheart!!