Wednesday, May 9, 2018

Olivia is 32 Months Old

At 32 months old, Olivia is 38 3/8" tall and weighs 30.8 lbs.

Olivia is both a really easy child and a really spoiled child!  She is easy because she plays extremely well independently.  She absolutely loves playing with dolls or Barbies (or anything she can act with) and Play-doh.  She typically eats completely independently and goes to bed without a fight.  HOWEVER, she can get into moods where she only wants to be carried.  Being the baby of the family, I have no other children I have to carry so I typically end up carrying her.

Olivia transitioned really well to her big girl bed (the lower bunk, shared with Nathan).  She has so much room that she hasn't even come close to falling out.

Olivia's favourite foods to eat are apples, oranges, strawberries, roasted potatoes, sausage, chocolate icing, hagelslaac, chips, and candy.

She loves Nathan (most of the time) and absolutely idolizes Kayla. 

Olivia still loves her baby (and other babies).  She now sleeps with her baby and a doll bottle filled with water at night.

Potty training has gone pretty good for Olivia.  She is 100% dry at night (and has been for the last couple of weeks) and so she just wears panties to bed.  During the day she is pretty good, considering I don't ask her to go to the bathroom too often, and just rely on her to let me know.




















Oma vs Grandma

Nathan had an interesting conversation with my Mom today (she was babysitting him while I was working).

He said that his children would call me "Oma" and his wife's Mom "Grandma".  When my Mom asked him why, he said "because that's how our family does it."

Crazy thing is that it's true!  Jon's (the husband's) parents are Oma and Opa and my (the wife's) parents are Grandma and Grandpa.

Even when my Mom said that I probably liked Grandma better, he was pretty confident in his "plan".

How does he even think of these things?!?!?

Nathan is 4.5 Years Old!

Nathan.  You are now 4.5 years old, but I feel like you are six. 

You are as big as a six-year-old.

You are socially confident like a kindergartner.

You are as smart as a six-year-old.

You have grown up far too fast for my liking.  Every time I see a really cute baby/toddler picture on the digital picture frame I say, "Awwww!  You were so cute!".  You hate it!

At 4.5 years old you weigh 47.4 lbs and are 46 1/8" tall.  You wear size 6 clothes and size 12 or 13 shoes.

We have started teaching you how to read.  Since Matthew and Kayla started learning to read 1.5 years ago, you were exposed to what sounds letters make and how to spell words.  You have been listening and absorbing everything they say/do/learn, and so it wasn't surprising when reading started coming quite quickly for you.  Matthew and Kayla's teacher allows Matthew and Kayla to take the beginner book-in-a-bag books home for you.  We never make you sit down and read with us.  When we do read, you initiate it and it's only for a few minutes at a time.  I don't want you to learn too quickly!  You are looking forward to pre-kindergarten day and then kindergarten in the fall.

You enjoyed playing soccer this year, and did well at swimming lessons in the fall.

Your favourite things to eat are:
Breakfast:  Corn Pops and a banana
Lunch:  Two (or three, on occassion) slices of bread with either chocolate icing, hagelslaac, or dutch cheese.
Dinner:  Rice and "Chicken on a Bone"
Anytime:  Any fruit.  Homemade cookies and muffins.  Seriously...you ask for them non-stop when I make them!  You easily eat three muffins for snack or five for breakfast/lunch if I let you.

You love Parker.  You smother her, which she despises so she "growls" at you, and you don't even seem to notice.

You love Olivia, too.  She is usually accepting of your hugs and kisses, which is nice for you.  She hates it when you try to put your arm around her in the car and so it sits on top of her carseat with your fingers dangling in her hair.

Nathan, you were pretty excited to get a bunk bed and to sleep on the top.

You love playing with your cousins, but can be quite moody and so sometimes you just would rather play by yourself.  You still have a soft spot for Carly.

You always choose the blue cup and plate.

You have been doing really well at eating during dinner time.  For a while you only wanted to eat with help.  We were helping you for a bit, but since then only will help you with one bite.  You seem to have gotten over that phase and typically feed yourself your whole meal.

You still have a tough time getting along with your Dad.  You have a lot of fun with him, but you don't like to listen to him when he's serious.  If I'm around we can manage that fine, but when I'm out, you are out of luck and so there is more conflict. 

You have the worst habit of biting your nails!  Your nails are about half the size of what they should be, and it's disgusting! 

You love to watch Matthew play on the Wii, and then play yourself, too.

Nathan, you love the Avengers and have recently developed a love for Star Wars.  You love dressing up like a super hero and reading about them, too.

You know what "N", "E", "S", and "W" mean when you read the cardinal direction display in vehicles. 

You can easily count past 100.

I think you know how to form almost all of the uppercase and lowercase letters.  They may not be formed by the right procedure, but the end result looks the same.

You still sleep with your baby blanket, your baby, your puppy and a handful of other stuff animals.


















Thursday, April 5, 2018

Matthew and Kayla are 7!

Matthew is 47 5/8" tall and weighs 47.4lb.  He very comfortably wears size 6 clothes (some size 7) and wears size 13 shoes.  He has lost two teeth so far, with one wiggly one at the moment.



Matthew continues to do really well at school.  He is well liked by his teacher, and seems to get along with everyone in his class.  He is mostly friends with girls, and is not bothered by it at all.  He excels in math and in reading (he's one of the top in his class).  He is beyond easy readers and always reads chapter books.  His penmanship is not very good since he always rushes through his work, but his teacher doesn't seem to mind.  And he's one of the tallest kids in his class - can you believe it?



Matthew took ice skating lessons in the Fall as well as played soccer.  He started out loving soccer, but due to lack of commitment from his team his enthusiasm quickly diminished.  He made it to the end of the season because I told him he had to, but there are no plans for him to continue.



He loves physical contact/displays of affection.  He loves to cuddle (especially when he is tired) and loves having his back scratched.



He is a great movie/tv companion, especially when it is a comedy.  He will laugh so hard that he will fall of the couch.  It's more funny to watch him than to watch the movie/tv show!  It definitely brings a smile to my face.



Matthew has become much better at eating.  It's evident when he loves a meal, because he'll ask for seconds or make "mmmm" sounds while eating.  His absolute favourite meal is soup, whether it be tomato or chicken noodle or sinagang.  He also loves boerenkool or carrot stampot.



Matthew is obsessed with anything "Mario".  He absolutely loves the Nintendo Wii.  He thinks about Mario all the time.


Matthew is not afraid to speak in public.  For the Children's Church presentation at Christmas time he recited, from memory, John 3:16 for the congregation.  A couple months later he was asked to speak at a "Songs and Stories" night about what his favourite worship song is.




I haven't mentioned it in a while, but his eye (the one that drifts inwards at times) has gradually been improving.  His vision is perfect, so as long as his eye keeps improving he won't have to worry about eye surgery.  He continues to see a specialist every six months to keep an eye on it.


1. What's your name?   Matthew
2. How old are you?   7
3. What is your favourite color?   Yellow and blue
4. What is your favourite toy?   I don't know.  I don't have one.
5. What is your favourite fruit?   Kiwi
6. What is your favourite tv show or movie?   Is there a Mario Kart one?  "My Friend Rabbit"
7. What is your favourite game?   Mario Kart
8. What is your favourite animal?  Seagull
9. What is your favourite song?   "Say Something"
10. What is your favourite book?   Are there Mario Kart ones?
11. Who is your best friend?   Ummm.  I don't know.   Am I allowed to say Kayla?
12. Who are you going to marry?   Do not know.
13. How many kids are you going to have when you are married?   Do not know.
14. What is your favourite thing to eat for breakfast?   I really don't know.  Does it have to be in this country?  The bun things, like in the USA...Churros.
15. What is your favourite cereal?  I'll say Froot Loops.
16. What is your favourite thing to eat for lunch?   Can I say the same thing?  Churros.
17. What is your favourite thing to eat for dinner?   Soup
18. What is your favourite thing to do outside?   Play Mario
19. What is your favourite drink?  Pop
20. What is your favourite snack?  Fruit
21. When is your bedtime?   7:30
22. What do you like to take to bed with you at night?  My penguin
23. What is your favourite holiday?  Spring Break
24. What do you want to be when you grow up?   A teacher
25. Name one thing you do really well?   Playing Mario Kart
26. What makes you feel sad?   Do not know
27. What makes you feel happy?   Do not know
28. If you could choose a different name, what would you choose?   Jonathan
29. Where do you want to go on vacation?  Mexico
30. What is your favourite thing to do?  Run
31. What is your favourite thing to do with Mom?   Cuddle
32. What is your favourite thing to do with Dad?   Play Mario
33. What is your favourite thing to do with your siblings?   Play Mario together


Kayla is 49 3/4" tall and weighs 54.2lb.  She wears size 8 clothes and size 1 shoes.  She has lost four teeth so far.  I called her "toothless" for a few months because it took quite a while for her upper permanent teeth to come in.  They are now coming in nicely!



Kayla also does really well in school.  She too is well liked by her teacher and by her peers.  She does well in math and in reading, being above average in both.  Kayla and Matthew had nearly identical report cards!  It's quite nice looking at her schoolwork because everything is so neat and the pictures are always coloured so nicely.  She definitely always tries her best at everything!  She gets along with everyone, but typically plays with Erin, Audrina, and Emmy the most.



Kayla had an awesome soccer season - she improved so much!  It was so much fun to watch her at practices and games.  Unfortunately, she never wavered from her "I hate it" attitude and so she was thrilled when the season was over.  She said she wants to play basketball instead, so I have her signed up for a class through the city for the Spring.



Kayla continues to be the easiest child in our family.  99% of the time she does as she's told, and does things when she's not told.  She is our biggest eater and is always the first one done.  She seldom complains about not liking something.  She has similar likes to me, so it's pretty easy to know if she'll like a meal or not.

She is a great help to Olivia when I'm too occupied to, and Olivia loves her for it.

When Kayla is tired, she will let us know and will ask to go to bed.  When she is overtired, she gets weepy and will cry for almost no reason.  Luckily, she is almost always in bed on time.



She is quiet and reserved when in unfamiliar settings.  She likes to have me there with her.



Kayla was the force behind us buying Parker.  Every since she met my cousins' puppies this summer, she has been asking for one.





Kayla can be so goofy.  It's so weird to see this quiet girl get really crazy, and it makes Matthew laugh so hard which just encourages her to continue.



 





 

1. What's your name?  Kayla
2. How old are you?  7
3. What is your favourite color?  Yellow
4. What is your favourite toy?   iPad
5. What is your favourite fruit?  DragonFruit
6. What is your favourite tv show or movie?  I don't know.  One I saw at Jackson's one time. 
7. What is your favourite game?   Mario Galaxy
8. What is your favourite animal?   Fox
9. What is your favourite song?   Chapter books
10. What is your favourite book?   I don't know.
11. Who is your best friend?  Erin
12. Who are you going to marry?   I don't know
13. How many kids are you going to have when you are married?  I don't know
14. What is your favourite thing to eat for breakfast?   Pancakes
15. What is your favourite cereal?  It's something that has crumbs at the bottom.  Frosted Flakes?
16. What is your favourite thing to eat for lunch?   BLT
17. What is your favourite thing to eat for dinner?   Soup
18. What is your favourite thing to do outside?   I don't know.  Playing with cousins.
19. What is your favourite drink?   Water
20. What is your favourite snack?   Strawberries with sugar
21. When is your bedtime?   7
22. What do you like to take to bed with you at night?   Light
23. What is your favourite holiday?   Birthday
24. What do you want to be when you grow up?   Zookeeper
25. Name one thing you do really well?   Writing
26. What makes you feel sad?   When I get hurt
27. What makes you feel happy?   When somebody tickles me
28. If you could choose a different name, what would you choose?  Rolley
29. Where do you want to go on vacation?   Paris
30. What is your favourite thing to do?   Play with brothers and sister.
31. What is your favourite thing to do with Mom?   Art
32. What is your favourite thing to do with Dad?   Wrestle
33. What is your favourite thing to do with your siblings?    Make food persons (I think she was referring to using tooth picks and fruit to make people)