photos by request

G.G. (short for great- grandmother) has requested some more pictures. Actually, in my birthday card she wrote "Send more pictures!" So she's pretty adamant about it :) I got some really nice ones this morning. Annabelle is sitting up fairly well, so Rebekah can easily hold her in her lap, and as you can see, Annabelle wants to crawl right now! She woke up at 3:45 a.m. today, not hungry or crying, just getting up and trying to crawl. I wish I could have slept through it, but she was also very noisy. Every time I tried to feed her and rock her and put her back down, she just got up on her hands and knees and tried to crawl around in her bed. She didn't go back to sleep until 5:30, and I just stayed up after that. I will not be fit to speak to this afternoon.

on the lake

This week I began my last year as a twenty- something. Shannon gave me a cake and a balloon, both of which Rebekah has enjoyed immensely, and he also gave me a bouquet of sunflowers. Those made me smile because he gave me sunflowers for my birthday the year we were dating. Last weekend we rented a pontoon boat for a couple of hours and spent the afternoon on the lake. It was such a nice, relaxing time. Poor Annabelle didn't know what to think of her little life jacket, but she eventually snuggled down into it and went to sleep. Shannon and Rebekah actually ventured off the boat into the water, but Rebekah wouldn't let go of the ladder. Shannon tried to encourage her to get out into the lake, but to tell the truth, I was glad she was too scared! If you ask her, though, she went swimming and she wasn't afraid because her life jacket kept her up.

leap of faith

Here's the big news: Shannon quit his job.

His job as a restaurant manager was good for a long time, but with the kids now, he is away too much. That job will always demand many nights and weekends, and we have decided that it will be better for us to find something in a different industry. This is not a rash decision, but it is a difficult and stressful one, and it will carry a lot of changes and sacrifices. We have decided not to buy the house, and we will move back to the university town that we have come to consider home over the past four years. We have signed the girls up for a Montessori school and we have a lead on a rent house. He's got a few more weeks to go, then it's moving time.

We are blessed to have the support of friends who will once again live close to us. We are so happy to return to our church and have had calls from many members of our Sunday School class with everything from words of support to job offers, and always prayers.

We don't know what the future holds, but we know that this is the best move for our family.

revolving blog title

The blog has another new title: Sarah, Shannon, and Some Silly Sisters. I think we'll stick with that one. It's appropriately cheesy (despite the flawed alliteration--maybe we can convince Shannon to drop the "h").

We have big things to tell, but we're not quite ready to make the announcement (no, it's NOT another baby! Two silly sisters are quite enough for the moment!). Please pray for us as our family continues to go through big changes.

Bekah's first haircut

Rebekah got her first (professional) haircut last week. I brought her into the salon and told her how exciting it would be to be a big girl and get a beautiful haircut. But Rebekah would not have it. She hid behind me and kept repeating, "I don't want a haircut." When I asked her why she didn't want a haircut she said in the saddest voice, "but, Mommy, I have curls." The poor thing thought that if she got a hair cut she would have curls anymore! And she is quite proud of her curls because everyone who meets her tells her how cute they are. After ten minutes of begging and bribing (notice the sucker) and promising that her curls would still be there, she finally consented if I would sit in the chair and hold her in my lap. The stylist cut off the split ends and cut her hair into layers that made her curls spring right up like Shirley Temple. She looks so cute! After it was over, she decided that getting a haircut was pretty neat, and she called both sets of grandparents to tell them how beautiful she looks. She has also been asking to go back to "the haircut place" so she can be beautiful again. When I told her that she didn't need another one, she thought for a moment and said, "Mommy, you need to get your hair cut. It's not beautiful." Nice. I didn't take it too hard. She usually has lots of sweet compliments for me, so I let this one slide. She told me right after that that she hopes we can be best friends forever, so I'll hang on to that one :)

Bouncy Belly

Annabelle (or Belly, as she has come to be called around here--but Shannon says we can't keep calling her that because she can't go to Kindergarten with a name like Belly) has a new toy--Johnny Jump-up! She wants to stand up all the time, and my arms get tired, so I thought she'd like it. The first time I put it up, she just sat on her bottom. Rebekah jumped all around her trying to show her how to jump, but Annabelle just laughed at her. Rebekah can make her laugh out loud better than anyone! She did seem to enjoy sitting up and watch from a different angle, though. Poor Rebekah wanted to get in it so badly, but we had a nice talk about all the things that she can do that babies can't, so she finally felt better. The next day Shannon adjusted the height on the Johnny Jump-up (duh) so she had to stand instead of sit. She still wouldn't jump, though. She scooted around and pivoted on her toes, but she still seemed happy, so I think the toy is a success despite the lack of actual jumping. With a little more practice and sister's help, I'm sure she'll be bouncing soon. For now, it's a great chew toy.

Shannon's birthday

I found a USB cable, so now you're due a run-down of what you've been missing.
Shannon turned 34 last month, and in honor of the event, I made the same Superman cake he had when he turned six. I also made him a chocolate pizza, which turned out really cute.

boxed up

Don't let the silence fool you--a lot has happened in the past couple of weeks. Our worldly possessions are now boxed up in a storage building, and we are in the condo. Lots of family came down to help us move. The girls started daycare. Shannon turned 34. I have taken lots of pictures, but we find ourselves in a predicament--we can't find anything! It's a miracle we have the computer up and running. The printer is not plugged in because we had to steal the power cord to plug in the TV. I've got lots of cameras in arms' reach--video, digital, 35mm, and APS--but not a USB cord in sight. I found my laptop, but not the power cord. I bought Rebekah a new nap mat for school because I had no idea where to even look for hers. Until the next day when I found it in a duffle bag in the bedroom, in pretty much plain sight. But we're managing just fine. We went swimming in the pool (well, Shannon and Rebekah did--I can't find my swimsuit!), and we plan to rent a boat next week and take a spin on the lake. Unfortunately Shannon can't use the golf course that is literally six feet out our door. It's a private club and there are signs telling us that we are not allowed to set foot "in or near" the golf course, even though the golfers drive their carts right up onto our sidewalk looking for stray balls. But the course does make for a lovely view from our gigantic window. I took special pleasure in watching yesterday as a sudden thunderstorm drenched the golfers. I have much to report, but I have to get to work--school has started!

Some crafty things

Worries over moving have led to insomnia, so what better time to blog? As always, my busy schedule has not prevented me from making little things here and there. Crafting is my favorite means of stress relief.

I've saved all of Rebekah's broken crayons for her whole life, and recently I melted them and made them into new fun shapes. I also made some tractor crayons for James. This is super easy. Just sort the crayons by colors--all the various shades of a color will mix into one shade--and melt them down. I used a pickle jar and set it in a pot of boiling water--they melt fast. Then pour the melted crayons into candy molds that you can get at a craft store for less then $2. Warning--I lost the purple ones because I put too much water in the pot and when it bubbled it knocked over the jar. So not only did I lose all the purple crayons, but I also had to wash them out of my pot.

I have also been saving wine corks for years and I finally did something with them. I painted a plain wooden tray, sliced the corks in half, and glued them down to make a wall decoration for the kitchen. If I were to do it over I wouldn't have cut them--that was tedious--but you'd need a lot more corks.

My favorite crafts lately have been greeting cards. I have found that I spend less time making my own cards than I spend at the store picking one out. I like doing these because if I need to wind down after the kids go to bed, I can just get out my box of supplies and make one. It's nice to be able to have a completed project in one sitting. Here are some I did for Mother's Day. The one with the picture of the girls is my favorite. Click on the picture to see more detail.

Yummy!

Annabelle had her first taste of solids today, and boy was she happy! Rebekah was not interested in eating from a spoon until she was at least seven months old, and she never liked cereal, so we didn't expect much. But Annabelle was raring to go. I made some very thin rice cereal, and at first she couldn't seem to figure out how to close her mouth, as you can she in the picture. Once she got the hang of it, I couldn't get it in fast enough, and I mixed more cereal in to thicken it up. She ate the whole bowl! Her eating habits are so different from Rebekah's. When Rebekah was a baby, she would nurse all day long if I let her. A feeding session would last forty-five minutes, and she was happy to live on milk for most of her first year. Annabelle nurses for five to ten minutes and is done. I fed her a bottle with a stage 2 nipple, and she guzzled it down, but Rebekah cried when we gave her a stage 2 even when she was a year old. Rebekah cried the first time we tried to give her cereal or baby food, but I could almost hear Annabelle thinking, where has this stuff been all my life? The funny thing is, Annabelle is growing at almost the exact same rate as Rebekah did. I guess babies just know what they need and are good at telling us about it.

making lemonade

We're taking our lemons and making lemonade. We are moving into a resort condo on Lake Conroe until our house is done. It's furnished, all utilities included, and a month to month lease, so it's ideal for our less-than-ideal situation. It's on a golf course and it has a swimming pool, so we can pretend like we're on vacation for awhile (except for that whole work thing). All of our stuff is going into storage, so I have the task now of figuring out what we need on hand and what we can live without for an undetermined amount of time. And now back to packing.

Annabelle's stats

Annabelle is four months old today! She is not a happy girl right now because she has a little cold and a bit of a fever, and she had four shots today. She weighs 15 lbs. 10 oz., almost double her birth weight, and she is 26 inches long. Like her sister, she is in the 90th percentile for weight and the 95th for height--we have some big girls. She will not lie on her back when we put her down. She rolls right over onto her tummy before you know it. She tried to roll off the scale and the exam table today. At night I still swaddle her to sleep because if I don't she rolls right over and pushes her head up and looks around. It's like she doesn't know how to be still, even though she is so sleepy. The doctor said that since she sits up so well, we might try to give her solid food. I remember being really anxious to give Rebekah solid food, but the thought hadn't even crossed my mind for Annabelle. Now I'm excited about the idea, and I think we'll try it tomorrow. Maybe she'll spread out her feedings a little--she rarely makes it two hours without wanting to be fed. Of course, she sleeps twelve hours a night, so I certainly can't complain.

look at the tickers

This is only true for a couple of days, so look now. Rebekah is 3 years and 3 weeks old, and Annabelle is 3 months and 3 weeks old. Just thought that deserved acknowledgment.

The Blog has a name

Finally, the blog has a title. In anticipation of our move to the land where everyone has two kids and two cars and all the houses look alike, we give you Suburban Utopia. (Title inspired by a recent viewing of the movie Over the Hedge, which could have been written about our neighborhood. Except in the the movie, they have electricity.)

Need advice

Bad news--the house is not ready, so we have to move into an apartment for a time until the electricity is in. (To clarify the problem, the whole street is new and has no electricity at all. There are ten houses all built and ready to go that don't have electricity.)

I'm concerned about how Rebekah will respond. She is excited about her new house and has seen it a few times, but we will have to live somewhere unfamiliar to her and then move her again to the house she's been looking forward to. How can I explain this to her in terms that she will understand? What can I do to make the transition easier for her? I have some ideas myself, but I would also like to hear any suggestions you might have.

Thanks. And pray for us--this is stressful and we're trying hard not to let it worry the kids.

Bekah-isms

According to Bekah, in the day time the sun is in, not out. At night the sun goes out and the moon comes in.

Also, she uses word ol' as an adverb to amplify her chosen adjective, as in, big ol' bug. She also repeats adjectives to amplify them, as in, big big bug. Separately, those are not that funny or unusual. But it was pretty funny when she saw a "big big big ol' ol' ol' ol' wasp" outside.

fussy girls

It has been loud in this house. The formerly pleasant and content Annabelle has lately become Miss Fussypants. She fits right in with her big sister, Miss Sassypants. Between the fuss and the sass, Mommy is tired. But now that they are asleep, the house should be peaceful until about 5:00 a.m. That's when I can expect Rebekah--that's right! the three-year-old!--to wake me up to start the day. The three-month-old will not awaken until 8:00. I put Annabelle to bed and she stays there happily for eleven, even twelve hours. I put Rebekah to bed and she wakes up three times before midnight. What's that all about? I'm hoping the fussiness and the early waking are phases that will pass in the next few days. The sassiness? That is here to stay.

moving update

The progress on the house is still stalled by the utility companies, and we don't have a move-in date yet. The good news is that we can stay in our rent house for a few more weeks, so hopefully that will give us enough time to get into the new house. The problem is the rain, and it's not letting up any time soon.

Thanks to our good friends Courtney and Tom, who babysat the girls, we were able to go out for our anniversary dinner on Thursday. We both appreciated the chance to enjoy being together and to get our minds off the stress of moving for a while.

babytalk

Annabelle has something to say.

Five Year Anniversary

We haven't done anything to celebrate yet, but Shannon brought me some flowers last night. Since we've been married, we've had two kids and moved five times. I'd say it's been a busy five years!