Wimpy, Wimpy, Wimpy

There are a couple "spray parks" here in town that have all the fun water spraying out of the ground, pipes, all sorts of fun stuff. I thought the girls would really enjoy going there, since both of them are little fish. Boy, was I wrong! We showed up, got all lathered in sunblock and I was set to get some great pictures of the girls having a blast in the water. Ha! No such luck. They were practically terrified of it. Ellie would run through a sprinkler occasionally, but then run right back out and just watch the other kids. The only time I could get Katie wet was if I was holding her- otherwise she would start crying when one attacked her. Instead they just wanted to play on the slides and the swings. We could have saved ourselves the trip across town and gone to the park a block away to do that! Then they just wanted to sit on the bench and eat their snacks. It really was quite amusing, but I couldn't believe it. Wimpy little girls! Brad is bringing Jacob (8) and Emma (4 1/2) here next week to visit, so we'll take all the kids again and see if it helps to have cousins to run through the water with them. Here are the pictures I did end up with from our outing as well as a few others I've taken the last week or so.

What Have I Done?

Yesterday I went shopping at Kohl's for some much-needed clothes. My post-pregnancy body isn't compatible with my wardrobe, so instead of wearing sweatpants until I lose the baby weight, I decided to buy clothes that actually fit. And of course I always happen to mosey on by the baby section. They were having a great sale (of course) and I bought Katie the shirt and shorts that match Ellie's. I also found some pajamas for Ellie. I just love pajamas- I could spend all my money on them, they're so fun.

So to get to the point... I got home yesterday and showed Ellie her new pajamas and she started screaming and jumping for joy. Not the reaction I was expecting, but quite amusing. She insisted on trying them on then and there. This isn't that unusual- she goes through at least 4 outfits a day. But then I pulled out Katie's new clothes and Ellie about lost it. She was yelling and screaming (happily) and went rushing to her room to get her matching outfit. I have come to accept the fact that Ellie is a lover of clothes and of matching... everything. Wherever we go she points out, "look mamma- pink, my favorite" and somehow it goes to "look, it matches me". But yesterday when I pulled out Katie's clothes she started pulling off her shirt to put the new clothes on before I even asked if she wanted to try them on. And she loves to put on shoes. Mostly because it means going outside, but how did my girls pick up on all this? What have I done? :-D I have to admit, I love to dress my girls matching- it's just so cute!

It's Raining, It's Pouring

Okay- so is there any way that life could get more difficult around here? I guess I need to be careful asking that question, but really- it has been a rough couple of weeks (which partly explains why I haven't found the time to write in here). About two weeks ago all of us were hit by the rush of allergens in the air. Not only did Katie have an ear infection, but she had a really bad head cold to go with it. We finally got Katie over that ear infection about 1 1/2 weeks ago. Then at the beginning of this week my head started to really hurt. I'm talking about pressure behind my eyes, my cheeks... even my teeth were throbbing. I was in so much pain and nothing was taking the edge off. To make matters worse Katie started her blood-curdling screaming again and that is not very compatible with a severe headache. Finally on Thursday I called my ob/gyn and told her how miserable I was and she prescribed an antibiotic to get rid of the sinus infection I had (wish I had done that days before!). I'm still waiting for it to heal me. The pain has subsided, but isn't completely gone. Then Friday we decided that Katie just wasn't doing very well and we took her to a doctor in town (ours was out of the office) and found out she still had an ear infection. She got her yummy pink medicine again to try to combat it for good. Yesterday everyone was miserable. I don't get sleep at night because Sarah's up every 2 hours. Katie was feeling miserable and Ellie was feeling downright ornery. Katie has a big lump on her forehead as proof that Ellie wasn't being very nice to her. We thought maybe a trip to Target to find a swimsuit for Ellie (she's already grown out of the one I bought her for this year) would give them a distraction. Nope- all three girls yelled and screamed the whole time we were there. Mom and I were ready to give the girls away yesterday, it was that rough. But then last night happened. About 2 hours after we put Katie to bed we heard her scream. I went upstairs to find that she had thrown up all over her bed. So, we stripped her bed, got her cleaned up and back to bed. About 15 minutes later, another scream and she had thrown up again. Yet again we stripped her bed, cleaned her up and Mom held her for awhile to calm her down. Every time we thought she was calm and ready to go to bed she'd throw up again. I think we went through that about 5 more times. I was running out of clean pajamas for the girl! Mom decided to keep her in the room with her and I guess they were up most of the night with her getting sick and rolling around all over the bed (she's not a calm sleeper). Then today at church Ellie fell asleep (which NEVER happens) and I'm afraid she might be coming down with something as well. The bigger problem with that is if she sleeps during the day she wants to party all night. She's still awake and it's way past her bedtime. This is getting more miserable by the moment! Then to top things off Sarah had a bad reaction to my milk the other night. She was up all night fussing and screaming with gas in her tummy. I was ready to quit nursing and put her on a bottle and call it quits. I had hit a breaking point, for sure. Since then she has calmed down and we'll stick with the nursing for now. But I told myself after our ordeal with Katie that if I had another fussy baby from my milk I'd not hesitate to stick him/her on a bottle.

Needless to say, it's been a rough couple of weeks. I have no idea how I'd do this if I didn't have Mom here to help out. I'm sure I'd figure it out, but it has been a huge help to have her around. Now we just need Dad to come back and give us one more person to tag-team with! It's a good thing I love my girls, because there are days...

We were able to get some great finds at garage sales this weekend. We found all sorts of things we never knew we couldn't live without! :-) We got Katie a little bike, which she thinks is great. We also found a play table like the one the Tolmans have with the blocks (which Katie loves), a wooden cradle for dolls, some water shoes for Ellie, a table and chairs set for the girls, a push toy for Katie and a couple other little things. I don't think we spent more than $40 for it all. I'm not a huge garage sale person (I feel weird going through other peoples' things) but we did well this weekend. We can't get the car in the garage anymore, but we have lots to play with :)

On a more positive note, the girls are getting so big. Ellie and I went on a walk this morning (she rode her bike) for almost 40 minutes. I am so impressed she was able to go that long! She does great on that bike. We probably went too long (I'm feeling pretty sore tonight) but it felt great to finally get some real exercise. We also tried out her new umbrella and boots. It was pouring rain, so we got her all put together just in time for the rain to end. So instead she and Katie splashed in puddles. Oh well! Katie still feels miserable, but she's such a sweet little girl. And Sarah just keeps growing. Plus, I'm thinking she'll inherit those beautiful blue eyes from the Elgans just like the other two girls. I took a bunch of pictures today to send to Steve to show them off.

I was also able (with Mom's help) to finally finish our picture boards. We started this months ago, but we put together boards where we have pictures of each of the girls with Steve displayed. The girls LOVE them. They love to see pictures of themselves with their daddy. I'm glad we did that.

I've added quite a few pictures lately, adding them to the same folder every few days, so just head to the main site and you can check them out.

Ellie's Third Birthday Party

April Showers Bring May Flowers. That was our theme for Ellie's birthday party we had yesterday. Technically her birthday isn't until Sunday, but my dad leaves for Italy on Friday and that was the only time he had free to celebrate with us. It's just hard to believe that she's actually turning three years old. Is it possible that I've been a mom for that long? I keep telling her that she's not allowed to grow any more- she needs to stay my little girl forever. She always gets a kick out of that. But it's true! She's growing much too fast!

So yesterday was Ellie's day. And what a day it was! To start off, Ellie was taking full advantage of still claiming the "terrible twos". She would not stop pushing her sister over or hitting or just plain harassing her. I was ready to give up and call it all off! Needless to say she spent a portion of the morning in time-out. It didn't help that Sarah and I were up all night again the night before. There were of course cute times as well. She dressed up in her dance outfit and did some dancing for us, which is always a treat. She loves to dress up! Steve was able to call and wish her a happy birthday which she thought was great. He actually told her "happy birthday" and she started to sing the birthday song to herself. He decided to join in :) She's so funny. I love that Steve has access to a phone and can call to make our days even better.

We finally got Katie down for her morning nap and I took Ellie out birthday supplies shopping. We went to a party store and Ellie got to pick out all the decorations for her party. She picked the balloons, cups, plates, napkins, streamers and potted flowers. I found the necklaces :) For some reason Ellie has become obsessed with pink. Everything that is pink is wonderful. Hence the pink everything for her party. She even decided she wanted a pink flower cake with pink ice cream. Yeah- she's been going a little overboard! I tried to brainwash her to believe that purple was the best color... didn't work. We had a great time while we were out together. It was actually a great opportunity for Ellie to have one-on-one time with me. We don't get a whole lot of that anymore. She did great and was really cute about picking everything out. Once we got home we ate lunch and tried to get her down for a nap. She was just much too excited about her party to sleep. She just sat in bed for about an hour singing songs to herself until we finally let her come out. During that time I was making the cake and wrapping presents while Mom put together one of the chairs.

Unfortunately the Ellie monster re-emerged until Dick and Sybil arrived. Then Ellie was on fire. She gets absolutely giddy around those two. It's actually quite amusing to watch. She's charming and energetic and talkative and just hilarious. We had a great dinner with Ellie at the head of the table. She really enjoyed that. She was sure to be a part of every conversation that happened during the meal. Then the best part- the presents. I think we did great with what she got. I found the greatest bath toys- it's a tub garden. I'll get a picture of it to post. They're just stick-on foam pieces that make up flowers and butterflies. Absolutely adorable. She got a matching game, which she really enjoys. We also found a cute gardening set for her to use when she works in the garden with Grandpa. Then the adorable ladybug boots (and there's an umbrella on the way that matches) which signify the "April showers" part of her theme. So, so cute. The best part by far are those Adirondack chairs. Mom and I found those over a month ago when we were shopping for Katie's birthday. I saw them and just could not pass them up. I absolutely love them. The girls already have had a lot of fun with them as well. Ellie of course chose the pink one as hers. Dick and Sybil brought Ellie the kitten t-shirt she's wearing in the picture with them. She loves to go over and visit their kitties, so it was a perfect gift for her. (I guess technically MacGyver the dog gave her the shirt- we told the Smiths they weren't allowed to bring Ellie a gift because they've showered her with so many lately. They found a way around it by claiming their dog gave the present- funny.) Steve has sent a gift that should arrive any day now. I'm anxious to see it and I'm sure Ellie will be happy to have more presents to open :) After opening presents we had cake and ice cream, which Ellie tried a bite out of each color of the cake (mostly eating only the icing). By then we were all worn out and after the Smiths left both girls crashed hard. I have to say that I feel the evening was a huge success. Ellie had an awesome time and she loved her gifts and the company. That makes me feel good :) Happy Birthday Ellie!

It was a very busy day. Birthdays are so much fun, but it takes a lot of effort to make them go smoothly. I didn't get any rest during the day and I had picked Ellie up once or twice while we were shopping and I have paid for it today. I am really sore. Recovering from a c-section is really frustrating. There is so much I want to do and after 3 weeks I feel like I should be doing more to pull my weight around here! Unfortunately I tend to over-do it and then have to take the time to recover. I am so anxious to heal completely!

First time out

Okay, so I thought we were doing pretty well juggling three girls. That is, until we had all three girls at church for the first time today. It was a nightmare. Ellie kept yelling for fruit snacks and candy (I didn't realize I had all these goodies in the diaper bag still) and Katie kept trying to run away. Every time one of the girls would fuss or cry Sarah would start to do the same. Mom finally took Katie out and Ellie had a meltdown because I wouldn't let her go as well. In the end I was left alone with Sarah while Mom and Dad had the other two girls in the hallway. It's a good thing we had one adult to each child! Then Ellie wet her pants in nursery. There are some days where you wonder why you even try... All the drama aside, it was great for me to get out and be in Sacrament meeting today. I really missed not going to church the last couple weeks. Plus, I had to show off Sarah to everyone.

After church I took a few pictures of the girls. Katie is wearing the dress my sister, Cynthia had given to Ellie on her 1st birthday. We were noticing today that both girls barely fit in their dresses. I thought I had clothes plenty big for this summer. Both girls have just hit huge growth spurts and are growing out of things faster than I expected. I think I might have a reason to go shopping again! :) Ellie's in a 4T dress and Katie is in an 18 month dress in the pics, FYI. We were fortunate to inherit a swing set from our neighbors across the street and surprisingly Katie does great on the swings. She was upset when I made her come in the house this afternoon. My girls love the outdoors!

Three under 3

It really hit me the other day that I have three little girls under the age of three (Ellie turns three on Mother's Day). It's absolutely nuts. But at the same time, I already love it. The girls are so good together (for the most part) and I can tell that Sarah is going to join right in when she gets old enough. Having said that, I also must admit that it's been tough. I finally hit rock bottom last night and lost it emotionally. Sarah wouldn't sleep because of her stuffy nose and I was absolutely exhausted. Put that on top of post-pregnancy hormones and I was a mess. Sometimes crying just feels really good. I am grateful to have parents here who love me and are willing to sacrifice their own sleep to help me out. Dad gave Sarah and me a blessing and then Mom took Sarah for the night (minus feedings, of course). It helped immensely. Besides being sick, I felt much better today about everything.

On another note, I wasn't quite sure how I would feel about nursing Sarah. I went a year with Ellie and loved it. I went only 3 months with Katie then bottle-fed her. And I have to admit- the bottle sure was convenient! I was afraid I wouldn't enjoy nursing after that experience. But it's been great. Aside from her horrible reaction to taco beans (lots and lots of gas) she has done awesome. I haven't had to eliminate anything from my diet and she is a champion nurser. I really couldn't ask for a better baby. The other two girls had troubles with my milk, so it's a huge relief to have a baby that can actually tolerate it. I can't say enough how blessed I feel to have this beautiful little girl in our family. I wouldn't trade her for anything. Steve's girls... I love it. I just wish he were here to enjoy it with me.

We've added pictures the last couple days (be sure to use the slideshow function- the thumbnails keep cutting off heads and feet). Oh- and I've been able to buy more baby clothes because Sarah doesn't fit in any of the 0-3 outfits we have. Awww... so sad ;)

Sarah's 2-week appointment

We made the hour-long drive down to Monticello again yesterday to have Sarah's 2-week check-up. It went really well. She's up to 6 pounds 4 ounces, so that's another 5 ounces in just over a week. She's still a little jaundiced and the nurse thought that should start to go away in the next week or so. She encouraged more time in the sun for Sarah, so we'll see what we can do. She didn't get measured (the nurse last week measured her at 18 1/2, and she measured her twice to be sure. So either the hospital measured her short or she just grew. Who knows?) We decided to put off her hepatitis shot until her 2 month appointment. No point in torturing her if we didn't have to. She did great during her checkup. She is such a good baby- I feel like I don't deserve to have such a good one!

While we were there we decided to have Katie checked out as well. Both girls had gotten the sickness that is going around here- a 24-hour bug that has a high fever and leads to a runny nose. Well, for Katie is wasn't just 24 hours long. She has been absolutely miserable the last few days and I figured it had to be more than just feeling grumpy. So at the doctor, Katie wasn't quite as cooperative, but at least she got checked and we were able to find that she has an infection in her ears. The nurse prescribed an antibiotic and something to clear her head as well. Katie weighed in at 22.1 pounds. Hopefully these meds will kick in soon so she can start to feel better. I'm really ready for her to be happy and stop screaming! The amoxicillin is bubble-gum flavored, so she likes to take it :)

Ellie then insisted that her heart and ears get checked and she get weighed like the other two girls. She was 31.4 pounds. She's a funny little kid. (And now it's easier to understand why it doesn't feel like I'm holding anything when I hold Sarah!)

The last two nights Sarah has had a hard time breathing while lying flat because she has mucous stuck in the back of her nose/throat. I tried to clean out her nose last night, but I didn't get it all. Looks like she just has a stuffy nose that she'll have to get over. We were up for a couple hours last night battling it again. But hey, otherwise she's a perfect baby, so I can't complain too much.