Wow...

OK well my little break turned into a long break. My Mom came to visit in there and I was too busy playing tourist and going on date nights with my hubs then we all got sick because we were so upset she was leaving and were trying to guilt her into staying. Sick babies don't usually make photogenic babies so my little project is on hold but I will finish as soon as we swing back into routine!

So here are my sick babies being really sweet for the moment.

Taking a Little Break...

I need a few days off from the class so I am taking a little break while I get the babies off bottles and while I'm sick. Here is a little tidbit from tonight though.

Tate Stood Up and Took His First Steps!

Please ignore the screaming.

What I Love To Hate

Capturing something that I “love to hate” was really difficult for me.  I wish I could say it was because I just can’t see the bad in anyone but, truth be told, I tend to think that I love the people in my life despite whatever they do that happens to drive me up the wall.  My feeling is that it is not their fault I have an inclination towards a certain set of social rules or guidelines so I just try to ignore it or work on a compromise. Now that it is finished, I appreciate that this exercise turned the tables on me and made me find the good in something I usually despise.

Here is Tate systematically droppin Cheerios off of his tray onto the floor.  Eat one, drop one, eat one, drop one.

Very regularly, everyone has to change clothes after meal time.  (Sidenote: as previously mentioned, we don't have a dryer.)

I absolutely HATE meal times with our kids right now.  It is so messy.  SO MESSY.  I can't stand it.  I love having my house perfectly clean.  I had accepted this would not be the case while my kids were young, however, I find sticky stuff on the walls and I find green beans on the floor when I haven't served them in three days and I just can't stand it, I CAN'T STAND IT.  (Please no comments about how it is only going to get worse.  The Lord gives us what we can handle and you don't have the right to override his authority on this one.)  Despite the skin crawling feeling I now get at the dinner table, I do love that my children are becoming more self sufficient and I marvel at the fact that one year ago I had to hold their neck but now they can hold their own cup… even if they do usually throw it across the room.

This is one of my husband’s drawers.  He just cleaned it out because I asked him to about a week ago.  As previously mentioned, I like things tidy.  I cannot stand disorganization in my home.  (I don’t care about your house; if I come over and it is a wreck I do not judge just don’t ask me to help you find your keys.  If you ask me to help you organize I will probably get really excited and jump up and down but that is just because I am a crazy person that thinks throwing stuff away is fun.)  My husband is probably the most disorganized person I know.  I find it really frustrating because his mind is so organized whereas I find myself scattered a lot and I can’t understand why such an organized mind can’t translate organized thoughts to an organized storage closet.  I have never really fought Trey on the drawer thing and the reason is: the day of my father’s funeral I went home to my mom’s house and systematically opened every drawer that belonged to my father taking a mental picture of each one.  They were totally disorganized and contained every scrap of paper, gum wrapper or free t-shirt my mother hadn’t been able to trash before he stashed it away.  I loved those drawers.  I saw my father in them.  To this day, when I look in Trey’s drawers I remember my Daddy and I love that Trey unknowingly gives me that reminder.

The Park!!!

Today we went to the park for the first time.  We have been meaning to go for a while but between finding a day that was realistic to take the babies into the wild and a day Trey was home was a logistical nightmare.  Tate is still crawling so I defiantly need a second adult when I go but also, Trey really wanted to be there for the first time the babies explored the magical park.­­­ 

I Love What You Wear

The focus for today in my photo class is "what they wear."

When Trey puts on his jacket and hat the babies know he is about to leave.  They run over and hug him.  So sweet!

There above the burp cloths are the clothes I have laid out for Tate and Ellie tomorrow.  Trey gets them ready in the morning but if I don't pick out their clothes I don't get to complain if they are wearing, say, a brown top, grey shoes and blue socks.

Happy Birthday To You

I really think the babies had a fantastic day.  Trey and I played on the floor with them all morning.  When they went down for a nap I ran to High Street Kensington to pick up some cupcakes and got home before they woke up.  We scrounged up some lunch and then shot the videos below.  We then got them dressed and swept them off to a big indoor play area where instead of drinking coffee with the adults, we rolled around and played.  Frankly, I think we had a better time than any of the other parents there.  They had bottles on the (stroller) ride home then another nap.  They were pooped.  I made dinner and when they woke up we ate and opened gifts.  They played until bed time and seemed thoroughly pleased.  I am now pooped and am about to retire for the evening.  Can’t wait for my Mom’s upcoming visit, we may just have to have a birthday rerun. 

Oh How My Love Has Grown... and so Have You!

The inspiration for the day is then and now. I plopped myself in today's picture for growth comparison and symmetry. :-) Today happens to be the first birthday of my favorite kids so I think it is only appropriate that I focus on them. Now, technically I didn't shoot this picture but I did style it, set the camera, position myself, the babies and my husband and tell him when to take it so I think I still get credit because really he just pushed the button right?

Then: Tate and Ellie at 6 Weeks

Now: Tate and Ellie at One Year

I Love How You Look

Today's assignment in the free eClass I'm taking was to find that shot that captures who your loved ones are.  You can find out more here and sign up if you're interested.

I don't know if you can capture "Trey" without something to read in his hands.

Yesterday I caught Tate sad but he is the most fun when he's happy.

Ellie was pensive today and kind of off in her own world.  Maybe she was reflecting on the last year.

Just a side note...

these are the last pictures you'll see of Tate and Ellie in their first year of life.

They turn 1 tomorrow!

I Love What I Do

I am taking the free photography eClass offered by hosted by Willette Designs called The Joy of Love.  (Sign up and take it with me, it will be so much fun and it is not too late!)  The inspiration for today was to catch someone you love doing something they do and the focus on the lesson was on light.  Here are the results of my day looking for the people I love doing their thing.

Trey...

loves to bathe the babies every night.

It is their special one on one time.

He has a special song he sings while they look in the mirror.

I think it is their favorite time of day

Ellie...

loves to splash in the tub.

She also loves to suck on her paci. 

She loves to eat her cheerios!

Tate...

well, he doesn't love waking up from nap time,

but he does cry every day when he wakes up.

He loves to stare at me while he drinks his bottle. 

He loves to chat it up when I'm changing his diaper!



We're back in London!

It has been a long time and I have been really bad about blogging oh for the past few... months.  We're back in London now and after waiting a month and a half for internet I am going to try to get back to it to keep our family and friends updated.  Lets catch up with some videos...



Fancy Free



Pillow Pit and Wave Bye Bye



This Little Piggy

To: Daddy *** From: Ellie and Tate

Daddy, We miss you and things aren't the same with you gone.

Ellie: You live in the computer and that's fine but I would really like someone to tell me how to get in there with you.  I love talking to you and I get really excited whenever Mom talks about you. 

This is the face I make when Mommy talks about you.  If the computer is in view when she is talking about you, I look at it and do whatever I can to get over there so I can talk to you.

  

Oh, and Daddy.  Could you please talk to Mom about the ruffles, dresses and bows?  Seriously, I'm crawling now.  All that stuff gets in the way.

From Tate:  Dad, please come back.  Ellie thinks you live in the computer and it is really annoying.  She gets all excited when she sees you instead of crying to tell you to come back and play with us.  I know I can just see you but you aren't really there and when we talk it reminds me of how much fun we have together. 

Do you remember this look?  I make it when you blow on my face.

I get really happy when we talk about you.

This is how I sleep now.  I try to stay awake by sitting, cause I can do that now all by myself, and when I get tired enough I just lay down face forward.

Sometimes it is a problem because my foot falls asleep and turns all red and I wake up screaming.

We love you Daddy!

Play Time

We have been having so much fun watching Tate and Ellie get more interactive not only with each other but with Toys also.  It is amazing to us how strong they are getting so quickley.

I've Been Getting Complaints...

So the point of this little blog is to keep family and friends updated while we were in London.  I haven't felt so motivated to update because we have been surrounded.  I recently been admonished for neglecting non-Houstonians so I will try to remedy the problem.

In an effort to make it up to you I give you some Gigi time.  More to come soon, I promise.

Eating Take Two

They're eating much better after three weeks.

Mood Swing - Part II

I have too many captions for this video.  It is one of my favorites.



1.  "I love my Daddy's face when he hasn't shaved!"
2.  "When I yell it means: "give me my paci!"
3.  "I love kisses!"
4.  "I can have mood swings like my brother."

First Bites

This post is about three and a half weeks late but I am finally getting my act together with putting video on the blog. I had been uploading everything to Facebook to share with friends and family but became really frustrated with it. A lot of times I would wait 30 minutes to upload a video only to find it never processed. I have created a youtube account and will embed from there. We had read to let the baby play with the spoon before you introduced it in the meal so there is a video of that also. Tate looked like he was ready to feed himself from the first time he had the spoon in his hand. His hands are still very much a part of the process much to my dismay. I now undress him before he eats. I now realize the rice cereal should have been MUCH thinner but it works out, they will take a lumpier consistency really easily.

Tate Playing with the Spoon



Ellie Playing with the Spoon



Tate's First Bites



Ellie's First Bites

Weights, Measurements and Eczema – Really Exciting, I Know.

Warning: The following information only has the remote possibility of being interesting to the Grandparents but the pictures at the end are pretty cute.

What I expected: Well baby checkups from a doctor every month or two wherein the babies would be weighed, measured, have their reflexes checked, get vaccinations and I would get to ask questions about feeding, sleeping patterns, rashes, stuffy noses, etc.



What is the case: I am supposed to bring the baby to “Baby Clinic” once a month on a Monday between 1:30 and 3:30 PM. No appointment, just write down your name and wait. When your name is called you are led to a room full of chairs with two scales and a table with two changing pads. There are usually three Health Visitors sitting in some of the chairs talking to mothers. I bring the babies in undress them, weigh them, then argue with someone to measure their length. (Them: “That’s done at your GP’s office” Me: “No, they won’t do it, they said they used to but when you set up down here you took all their equipment and they don’t even have a way to measure the babies.”) Put the babies back into the stroller and talk with a health visitor.


How it pertains to my story: There are several health visitors at the Baby Clinic I am assigned to and only one will give you anything other than what I find when I look on the NHS website.


My story: The first week I went to the Baby Clinic a Mom I had been chatting with in the waiting room whispered to me as she left “get the blond one, she’s the only one who is helpful.” To that mother I am eternally grateful. I now systematically take my time dressing and diapering the babies so I can time it so that I get to conference with this particular health visitor. It has worked two out of the 5 months I have had the babies.


When they were a month old, I brought them in and said “Every time I bathe them they breakout all over then peel. I am only bathing them once a week and I am putting lotion on them everyday but it is still happening. I am pretty sure it is eczema because I had it and it looks like the same as what used to cover the back of my knees.”

“No, worries, just rub a little olive oil on them. They are just new babies, they will grow out of it.”

The next month I come back and again say “the babies are still broken out from head to toe. They are cutting themselves from scratching; I think we need more than olive oil.” I am reprimanded for wanting to overmedicate my children and lectured about the harmful effects of steroid creams and given a bath substitute called Aqueous cream. I am told to rub it all over them following their bath and one other time a day. I do this for two months and at each baby clinic tell a new health visitor that Ellie turns red and screams when we put it on her and show them where my daughter’s neck is bright red and weeping and they say just to keep up the Aqueous cream and she will grow out of it.

Yesterday, I went in to have the babies weighed and measured. I rejoiced when I saw that the blond lady was there. I rushed Ellie to her and showed her that now the backs of her knees, inside of her arms and neck were all bright red and weeping. I explained how I was using the Aqueous cream, doing a lukewarm bath everyday and even putting Diaper cream on the areas because the jar said it helped with Eczema. She told me I should talk to my GP and get an oil based lotion instead of the Aqueous cream. I got really excited that I was being offered something other than olive oil. After a few more minutes of talking about it she asked if Ellie ever turned red when I put the Aqueous cream on her. I said “YES! I keep saying she screams when I put it on her!”


She told me that 5% of children have a reaction to the lanolin in it. She wrote down another bath substitute and an oil based cream. I went directly upstairs to my GP because I was so frustrated that I had been putting it on her for 2 months. When I got upstairs they told me that my doctor would call me tomorrow. I asked if there was no one on call that could write a prescription for something that had already been diagnosed and which the health visitor had told me my daughter was having a reaction to the former prescription. She said no, I needed to wait until my doctor called me tomorrow. I... wait for it... told her I didn’t have a phone. I had decided my daughter was not waiting another day.  (I almost feel bad for the lie but I felt worse that Ellie had been in pain for two months and wasn't getting the treatment she needed.) She told me to sit but I would have to wait. I told her that was fine. It was time for the babies nap anyway. I sat for an hour and a half. I finally got in to see the on call doctor and she immediately started writing prescriptions for what her 8 month old son used.


What made me furious: I asked the doctor if she had tried the Aqueous cream on her son. She responded without thinking that she didn’t because it doesn’t really do any good. (Cut to me smiling on the outside but inside going: AHHHHHHHHHH!) I asked why it was prescribed for my babies and that put her back on her NHS good behavior side and she explained that they tried to prescribe the least invasive (read cheapest) form of treatment first. The health visitor had also bothered to mention that they probably prescribed Aqueous cream because it was cheap.

Unless you are the grandmother of my children and you haven't already, this is really where you want to skip to the pictures.

The Stats:

Tate

Weight – 16 pounds 13 ounces (50th percentile)

Length – 2 feet 2 inches (50th percentile)

Head Circumference – 50th percentile

Just call him Marry Poppins because he is practically perfectly proportioned in every way.  Tate does have a long torso so we are already putting him in 6 to 9 month shirts.  The 3 to 6 month shirts show his belly.


Ellie

Weight – 18 pounds 13 ounces (a bit under 91st percentile)

Height – 2 feet 2.6 inches (a bit under 91st percentile)

Head Circumference – 50th percentile (I think it still has a little rounding left to do from the suction cup.)


In conclusion: The following pictures are currently the only way I can get them to nap for longer than consistently and exactly 38 minutes. Lay them like this and they sleep for 3 hours. I can’t go anywhere because they’re on my bed but I am not complaining.

Sunday Summer Picnics

One thing I have discovered that I love about London is how relaxed it gets when it warms up. There is not a lot of air conditioning to be found and suddenly in a land where personal style seems to be as important to some as brushing their teeth something wonderful happens. All of the black, layers and perfectly styled from head to toe city types are replaced by light colored, flowing, fresh faced beach hair relaxed types. It makes everyday feel like Summer holiday and the heat slows almost everyone’s walking pace. There is less bustle and less pushing but, admittedly, more B.O. on public transport. The other side effect of this is people throng to public gardens. It is wonderful to see hundreds of people resting on the grounds of Kensington palace.


Our church has some green space outside of it with lots of shade and several benches. One of our favorite things to do on Sunday has become having a picnics after the service. We still haven’t adjusted to the lack of air conditioned spaces and our house gets really hot during the midday. It is just nicer to be outside and I am not complaining for the excuse. It takes some planning and a lot of equipment but it is totally worth it to just sprawl out on the ground for a few hours.  I go out and set up while Trey goes to the store to get sandwiches , fruit, chips and carrots and hummus.

Ellie and Tate can be occupied for hours just laying around looking at the trees, birds and sky.

It is a special time where we are completely away from distractions.  No T.V., no computer, no work, no people asking us questions about London or the house.

The babies are especially loving to practice rolling over outside. 

It is so fun to see them want to get to something or interact with someone and just flip over and try to swim away.  Tate loves to be left alone on the blanket where he can see us but he feels like he has all the space in the world.

The tricky part is feeding the babies, especially now that they are eating solids.

Step 1: Undress your baby.

Step two: Try to feed your baby while you are both sitting on the ground.

Step 3: Give up (or your back gives up,) put your baby in the stroller and try to protect the stroller from the mess.

Only one more Sunday picnic opportunity left before we are in the States for 8 weeks. Here's hoping the weather stays nice!