All My Children

While waiting for the doctor at her check up this week, Eloise entertained herself by drawing on the exam table paper. She drew a picture and said it was Daddy. We're practicing parent names (in case of emergency), so I used this opportunity.

What's your daddy's name?

Michael Wymer

And mommy's name?

Uh-Nay.

And your big sister?

Marlee June Wymer. And my dog is George.

Do you have a cat?

Yes. Bogey. And that is all.

That's all? Don' you have a guinea pig?

Oh Yeah! Sidders! But that's all, Mommy. That's all my children.

The Salamanders are NOT my children.

The Shells

Marlee wrote and illustrated this story completely on her own. She had no help.



[The Shells
Once upon a time, Detective found the shells.
The End. By
Marlee]

Our Great Outdoors

Our yard has undergone some improvements! Last week we got a fence. This...

Turned into this!

I'm so happy with it. I wanted something that would provide safety and privacy without blocking our sunlight...and I think I got it! You may have noticed a few extra children in the picture above. That's because our dear friends, the Ma Family, were down for a little visit. The Mas are the kind of friends that drive 11 hours to visit for a few days. The kind of friends that are actually happy to help you improve your home, even when it means spending hours digging a patio!
Our big side yard got some attention as well. The dirt from the patio excavation filled holes and flattened slopes. Then we started our orchard. We planted a fruit tree that grows four kinds of stone fruits and six berry bushes! The girls were happy to help.

George keeps an eye on the progress.

It has been so fun to get out and play in the dirt. The work itself is fun, and even better is the feeling of putting down some literal roots! I can't wait to watch our little tree grow as the girls do, and I know we'll make so many memories in our new yard.

A New Reader in the House

Marlee is reading. Sure, she's been "reading" for over a year (sounding out words), but now she's READING (reading books without sounding out words aloud). Still, it's a challenge for her and flat out exhausts her. We usually have her practice her reading just before bedtime, because it's generally quiet and because it wears her out in time for bed.

Tonight, she was practicing a book recommended by her teacher. It was challenging, full of consonant blends and complicated words. By the time she got to the last page, she was over it. She couldn't read it, wouldn't even try. Around the same time, she (TMI) said she had to go to the bathroom. I suggested she take the book with her and try to work out the last page in peace. I explained that she would have to finish the book before doing anything else.

A minute later, I hear, "...frustrated....don't....can't read...mad...tired...you ask..." I asked Michael if she was talking to herself, and he said Eloise was in there. Next thing, Eloise comes out with the book in hand, turned to the last page, and says, "What does this say?" Michael read it to her, and she went running for the bathroom. Then we heard Marlee say, "Good job. Did you find out what it says?"

Blog Slackers Anonymous

Hi, I'm Renee. It has been 5 months since my last blog post.

Parent-Teacher Conferences

Seriously. I have GOT to get better about posting here. I fill my facebook feed with sweet pictures of the girls, funny things they've said, and tales of recent accomplishments. From there, my memories disappear into e-blivion. :(

Michael and I had parent-teacher conferences at the girls' school today. Marlee is in her Second Year Primary, and Eloise is in the Toddler Community in Montessori school. Both conferences went well. We really didn't have any concerns about Eloise, and her teacher confirmed that she is doing really well. No separation problems, socializes well, participates and works. If anything, she needs to be attending more, so we will be moving her to three mornings in January. She also said that Eloise "holds her own" and "doesn't let anyone mess with her." Ha! No surprise there.

We did have some minor concerns about Marlee, but they were mostly put to rest. Our main concern was that she seems to have plateaued when it comes to reading. She has been reading for over a year, but she doesn't seem much more advanced now than when she was three. She says she doesn't like practicing the Moveable Alphabet, which is the work for her age that promotes phonics. I was frustrated. Then I learned that in true Montessori fashion, her reading is at a standstill (though by no means behind) because she is interested in and focusing on math works. She has mastered the binomial cube and is practicing the trinomial. She has mastered number rods and will start gold beads next week. Her teacher told us that Marlee is so advanced that she is considering inviting her to join the Third Years in the afternoon work cycle (normally reserved for kindergarteners) beginning in January. However, Marlee will have to do some maturing. Right now, she often has to be reminded to choose works, and is quite chatty during work cycle with her two best friends (the three of them are the self-dubbed "Sparkle Team.") I'm not really concerned or eager to have her stay the full day. She'll most likely just start next year as normal. Still, it's nice to hear how well she's doing...even if she is a bit distracted!

We left the school feeling awfully proud of our girls, and as always, thrilled with Montessori. I'm still waiting for that windfall that will allow us to keep the girls in their school through elementary :)

Not Ready.

We have had a couple of late nights in a row. Saturday, we had some friends over and the kiddos were up playing until after 11. Last night, we went to the drive-in, and the girls watched their dvd player while we saw Bridesmaids. Again, Marlee was up until past 11. Needless to say, she slept in this morning. When she woke up, I said, "Good Morning, Junebug! Eloise will be so happy you're awake. She's been asking for you."

She replied, "Mommy, I am NOT ready for Eloise yet."

I get it, kid.

What's Going On

Hi Everyone! Once again, I'm way overdue for a post around here. Things have been crazy to say the least. Take our normally super-busy life and throw in a home renovation and a few illnesses and...well, you get the picture.

Our house is coming along slooooooooooowly, but we expect it to be finished in the next week--only 2.5 months after we started our "4 week project." I'm looking forward to not having contractors around almost as much as I'm excited about the finished product.

Marlee is out of school for the summer, and I'm loving having the girls all day! We have lots of crafting and adventuring planned for the next couple of months. I'll do my best to take pictures and share stories, but I think we all know I'm not so great about that these days!

Singing

Eloise has become quite the little singer. She sings along to many songs, but her favorites are Twinkle Twinkle Little Star and the theme to The Cat in the Hat Knows A Lot About That...she can sing those all by herself! We couldn't figure out where she learned Twinkle Twinkle. We don't sing it much at home, but I learned that Papa sings it to her when they swing at the park!

Oh, and she sings the alphabet! Her accuracy varies, but it's pretty good :)

It Starts

My sweet sweet Marlee June had her feelings hurt. And it hurt me. Like physically hurt me.

She was quiet in the car the other day. She is rarely quiet in the car. Suddenly she says, fighting back tears, "Nobody ever picks me for napkins."

"What, Baby?"

"On birthdays. Nobody ever picks me."

Turns out that when a child in her class is having a birthday celebration, he or she chooses a friend to pass out the napkins to go with the birthday muffins. And no one ever picks Marlee. Heartbreak.

I told her that they probably didn't know how much she wanted to do the napkins. This apparently sparked a conversation with her friend Maya, whose birthday is this week.

"I asked Maya that may I pass out her napkins because we are favorite friends and she said I could."

Oh, Maya, please remember your promise and choose Marlee on Thursday.

**UPDATE: It was Tuesday, not Thursday, and Maya chose Campbell. Tears at carpool :(

Chatter

THINGS MARLEE JUNE SAYS

"I see perfectly fine, thank you." -when told that eating carrots would help her see better

In a conversation about Chinese New Year

Me: You know where China is!

MJ: Yes, Asia.

Me: And where is Asia?

MJ: It's just it's own place.

Me: In which hemisphere?

MJ: It's in two hemispheres.

Me: (Racking my brain to think if east Asia crosses into the Western Hemi. I later found that it in fact does, but that's irrelevant.) No, sweetie. Is it in the East or West?

MJ: I know, Mommy, East! But you forgot Northern Hemisphere, silly!

Touche.

I am weaning Eloise, and was trying to distract her when she was wanting to nurse.

"Don't say that to her mom! If she is thirsty, you give her milk!"

THINGS ELOISE SAYS

"I want snack."

"That's mine phone!"

"I want juice, please."

"This mine chair."

"I call Papa."

"Giggy's here!"

"Daddy's in shower."

"Where's Marlee?"

"It's my turn!"

"I LOVE YOU!"

Well That's Sad

I just received a notice that my blog background has been retired. I have to pick a new one, or I'll be sporting an error message February 1. I really like the look of this blog...so much that I designed the girls' bedroom after it. But alas, nothing lasts forever. Here's to a new year, a new look.

A Fancy Day

Last Saturday, I took Marlee to see Beauty and the Beast at the Fox Theatre. We began our day with brunch at Livingston restaurant at The Georgian Terrace Hotel. Marlee could not believe all the food and that she could have whatever she wanted. And seconds! Our server was very nice and treated Marlee like royalty. She ate that up too, of course.

Brunch

Before the Show

Mrs. Potts Facepaint

Loving the beautiful theater!

Unfortunately, we had to leave a short while into the second act...Marlee said she wasn't feeling well. Before we even made it home, she had started vomiting in the car. Despite the sad end, we still had a fun and memorable day!

Pitching In

In an effort to keep our home neat and running smoothly--an effort that is so far failing, but an effort none the less--and to teach our kids responsibility, independence, and citizenship, each has her own chores.

Eloise's are pretty simple...

-diapers in the diaper pail

-dirty clothes in hamper

-put away silverware from the dishwasher

-brush teeth

-clear her dishes from the table

Marlee's are a bit more involved...

-self-care (dressing, teeth, hair, etc)

-setting table

-clearing her dishes

-feeding and watering George

-picking up toys (she's not very good at this, unfortunately. i get to distracted to always enforce. :()

-folding the dishtowels and rags we use in place of paper towels

Both girls love to help me when I clean...dusting, sweeping, washing baseboards, etc. Marlee loves to cook and is my designated sous chef.

I'm hoping that everyone's chores will become a habit, and I'll hear less, "Mommy will do it," which is often Marlee's response when Michael asks her to do something :(

What do your kids do to pitch in?

Dare Devil and Sweet Moment

I realized that one of the things that's taking away from my blogging is Facebook. I used to post cute things the kids did here, but now I do it there. In an effort to get back to blogging, here's a bit of cute to brighten your day.

A few weeks ago, Eloise slipped on the wet dining room floor while I was mopping. Rather than crying, she thought it was hilarious. Now, every time I get out the mop, she giggles and comes running. She tiptoes around the room, holding her breath, until she slips and lands on her little tush. Then she cracks up laughing, gets up, and starts over.

This afternoon, the girls were watching a Christmas movie during their quiet time. I overheard Marlee say to Eloise, "This part is a bit scary. We should hug each other." Aw!

Well, Hello There!

I know, I know. It's been forever. I haven't had much access to a computer, and that makes blogging a bit difficult. Today I unhooked the computer in our room that serves as our media center and hauled it into the dining room just so that I could say hello to everyone out there in blogland.

First things first, I uploaded a few new pictures to the Photo Site.
And Here and Here are some pictures from Marlee's class.

Now, for the updates.

E~L~O~I~S~E

Eloise seems to be much better these days. We've got her allergies pretty well in check, and her skin has started to clear up. On a not-so-great note, we recently found out that she has kidney reflux. This basically means that urine backs up into her kidneys. Normally, it's not a problem, but because she has had two urinary tract infections, the infected urine is getting to the kidneys, which could potentially cause kidney problems. It's fairly common and the sort of things kids often outgrow. We're meeting with a pediatric urologist soon to determine course of treatment.

Now that she's feeling better, Eloise is walking and running all over the place. Her vocabulary is growing daily, and this week she put two words together..."Eat Baby!" She said while feeding her doll, not as a command, but in telling me what she was doing. She meant "feed baby." So cute.


M~A~R~L~E~E J~U~N~E

Marlee has become quite the sassy silly little thing. She cracks me up on a daily basis. I usually post her witty comments on facebook, so if you're a friend there, you know what I mean. In the past couple of months, she started reading short words and can write her name beautifully without help. She wants to write lots of words and is always asking how to spell things. Her art has also undergone a metamorphosis, from fun abstracts to detailed drawings.

**Cute anecdote: When Marlee draws balloons, they always have a little red square at the bottom of the string. This is because our favorite Mexican restaurant ties on a bag of Teddy Gr@hams to weigh them down.**


R~E~N~E~E and M~I~C~H~A~E~L

We are going to see Harry Potter tonight. So excited :)

I continue to be ridiculously busy, but I recently crossed my breaking point and will be cutting back a bit. There are only so many hours in the day, and I only have one me. I'm looking forward to a few weeks of playing, crafting, baking, and snuggling with my girls. They are, after all, my number one priority!

Michael started running about a year or so ago, but he's been doing really well recently, and has beaten his previous best time in the last two races he ran. He's training for a marathon now. I'm so proud of him...I can't even run to the end of the driveway!

That's all for now, but I hope to be back soon!

Portrait Slide Show

CLICK HERE!

The password is our last name, all lower case.

One Year Stats

Eloise had her one year check up today!

Weight 19 pounds, 12 ounces>> 29th percentile
Height 29 inches>> 47th percentile

She is just about the same size Marlee was at that age.

We were referred to an allergist/asthma specialist. Eloise's chronic eczema, respiratory infections, and suspected food allergies are the "allergy/asthma trifecta" according to her pediatrician. She'll be tested for food and environmental (though not seasonal) allergies. Hopefully we'll get some answers as to what is irritating our little one!

Stepping and Spelling

Sweet Eloise is taking steps! She takes about four at a time before she decides that crawling is more efficient. She can, however, walk a long way holding just one hand. I wonder how long until we have an official walker?

Big Sister Marlee June also has a new skill...spelling! She has been spelling three letter words all afternoon, after an epiphany at the mall:
from my facebook:

marlee june, after being asked to press the "one" in the elevator: wuh- uh- uhn. wuh- uh- un. i know it, mommy! it's w-u-n! one! w-u-n!.....f-u-n fun! s-u-n sun! one, fun, sun...i'm spelling rhymes! she was giddy with laughter and SO proud. me too :)

So proud of my girls!

Sneak Peek!

We had the girls pictures taken on Saturday. We haven't seen all of them yet, but we do have a sneak peek!