Little Bits

Isabella as she likes to be called at school
- has two bottom teeth that are loose
- learning how to snap her fingers
- can hit a pitch without a tee
- can dribble
- has only missed one problem on a math test
- has "read" the most books in her class
- can do her homework almost independently
- coloring skills are great and free form drawing is detailed

Rees
- talks in paragraphs
- knows almost all of her letter sounds
- loves tangram puzzles
- loves to sleep in sister's room
- eats seafood, sushi, fish
- very helpful
- very independent
- can get her own laundry and bring it to the laundry room

Clean up

I was finishing school work on the couch and watched Rees take huge amounts of toys out of the toy drawers, but was too involved in my work to stop. When it was time clean up she looked at me before I could say anything with those cute dimples, "Mommy you clean up." We then went through this non-verbal, pointing who needed to clean up and at the very same time we elected Izzy to which made us smile.

Best Friend

Every single night we read a book to the girls and then give them a few minutes of snuggles. Izzy and I love to snuggle till we both fall asleep and then I slip out and she just keeps softly breathing away. The other night she said, "Mommy, you know parents can be your best friend. You are my best friend." I then had to quickly thank her but also state, "Mommy loves being your best friend but I am also your Mommy and will tell you No too." So my little girl who is growing too fast loves me. I figure I have about 7 years till she hates me, but this blog post will be proof that at one time she loved me and considered me to be a friend.

Speech

As two working special education parents, we never thought we would be faced with being on the other side of the table. Over the summer Izzy developed a stuttering out of the blue. As a 5 year old she had developed her speech normally with no irregularities. We are "very" observant parents just because we are in the field. This new change was an alarm to us that something is not right. We brushed it off at the beginning of the summer to her just thinking faster than her brain could go, but as the summer progressed and now into the school year it is definitely more than that. We have been at family and friends house's, out in public or in a restaurant, or at her school, and we hear it in all environments. She will stumble over the first word "L-l-l-l-like" or "Wh-wh-wh what are you doing?" The worst is to watch her try so hard and then get frustrated and either shut down and say she forgot or put up her hands in frustration and cry. It is heartbreaking. She is so smart and has so much to tell us but when it is so hard to form those ideas sometimes she would rather just be silent. Then on the opposite spectrum we have Rees who is really smart and has a super highly developed vocabulary. She will correct or answer her sister, because well, she's two and has no idea that her sister is struggling. Rees will probably just be that bossy younger sibling who will finish all of her sister's thoughts. So just before Christmas break we find out the results of her school district's formal testing and since we have an independent evaluation that was submitted for review and with the 6+ speech and language teachers I have talked with personally, she will qualify which is a blessing for us. She needs support. She needs to "attack those words and beat them up" as Paul and her chant every morning before school.

Thanksgiving Trip

We are so lucky to be able to have family live in Southern California where we can avoid the cold and have fun. We started our trip at the Living Desert in Palm Springs with Mi-Ma, Grandma Pat, and Grandpa John. Izzy and I rode a camel (yes! A camel), feed a giraffe, and saw all kinds of really cool animals. We only got to see half  the park and look forward to our next visit. Then we went back to Grandma Pat's and had a simply, but lovely pre-Thanksgiving dinner. Our visits are always too short. We then hurried home to be met by Auntie Kari and Fernie who drove all night literally, to be with us. Thursday we spent Thanksgiving at Grandma Schlueter's. Our favorite parts were having 9/10 cousins there, the 3 great-grandchildren together for the first time, great food, seeing Grandma, and just talking and hanging out. Friday we went to the Discovery Science center. We had so much fun we bought a membership and will be able to use the reciprocal membership for all of the museums by our house, too. That night we all went out for a family sushi night. We ordered like 15 rolls, noodles, and Saki. Yummy. Izzy was so proud of herself that she ate seaweed. They both ate all of the sea food rolls. Traveling with the girls has become easier. We can make it down there in one stop. We love being at Mi-Ma and Grandpa's. The girls are so spoiled when they are there. We miss them and hope someday they come move up here someday (hint, hint).

Rees is the Boss

This kid is anything but easy. I should have known from the start. From the moment she was born with that cord around her tummy, then the loss of some ounces after birth, then the GER, then RSV, Hand-Foot and Mouth, Stomatitis, the chin.... Today Izzy was telling her to do something. I didn't find it appropriate for Izzy to be the Mom. So I told her, "Izzy you are not the Mommy." Rees yells back, "Yeah, I am not the Mommy... I am the Reesie."

Starbucks

We were out and about and decided to go to Starbucks. Izzy said when we were driving up, "I want a Grande Mocha." Who is this kid???? And no she did not get a Grande Mocha. She got a Grande Vanilla Frappuchino Soy with whip split into 2 cups. Got to love America.

Classroom Jobs

Rees has been fascinated with her new role or teacher helper she has been given in class. First she was "Line Leader" and told me that she needed to go out first through the door. Then she told me how to walk (with her hands behind her back), now we are "Snack Helper". Tonight she needed her picture taken because she was the "Snack Helper" and she couldn't do things around the house because, yes you guessed it, she is the "Snack Helper." I even heard her and Izzy fighting over turning on the light. One was saying "Well I am the Light Monitor at school" and the other "I am the snack helper." Equally important jobs. I just fear when Rees goes to school tomorrow and she is not the Snack Helper. They better find her job quick.

Photo Book

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Spring Break

One of Izzy's bucket list items has been to ride a ferry boat. Well, we were able to check that off. We went from Balboa to Newport Beach. Yes, that long passage over is a THRILL for kids. We even saw seals.

I didn't feel like risking my life on the Ferris wheel so I sent Auntie Kari up. This was another bucket list item for Izzy. So check that one off too. She had her hands up the whole time trying to rock the seat. As you can see, Kari only raises her hand to wave while clutching for dear life with the other.

I can completely read Rees's mind... ready..., "Why does my sister get to go up there and I have to sit here?"

We ate lunch at Ruby's on the Pier and got to stare at the amazing ocean while eating. We even saw seals and dolphins. Quite an adventure!!.

Water Fun

We had a surprisingly warm April so we got to play in the water. 

Here is a series of pictures we had fun taking.

Hand Foot and Mouth

We were so lucky to get the elusive Hand, Foot and Mouth disease this last April. It started out as a sudden fever and then white spots on the back of her mouth. I thought for sure it was Strep Throat. The doctor swabbed her but was convinced it was not just a cold. The next day, we broke out in, come to find out not as common, a whole body covering of the rash for Hand, Foot, and Mouth. So exciting. We are lucky it wasn't itchy and we just kept it covered and had no problems we thought. It went away after about 2 weeks. Around that time her feet started to peel huge sheets of skin. It was so gross to see her picking her feet. It looked like a sunburn. About two weeks after that and we are still dealing with it 3 months later, she has had 4 toe and fingernails peel right off. It looks like she slammed them in doors, but you can watch the progression of them starting to fall off and then see the new one growing in right underneath. I had to read on the web all about this because our pediatrician had never seen it before. Luckily, other mommies in cyberspace had this same side effect with their kiddos.

Just Some Fun Pictures

We went to a cool birthday at the Sacramento Children's Museum. 

Izzy loved being with her school friends.

Rees at the Museum.

After dinner pictures with the girls.

This is her "Cheese" face. Hilarious!!!

South Yuba Hiking

We decided to take the kids on a winter hike on a trail in the South Yuba Recreation Area. However, we took a little small wrong turn and went from a 1.5 mi hike to a 6 mi hike. We got excited to go see the river below us (which was more like a small creek) and then we decided instead of going back up the super steep side of the hill we would continue to follow the trail. Well after about 2 hours of following an access road and trails, meetings others on the trail, we got to an AWESOME wooden bridge that went over a waterfall and back to where we had originally intended to be. It ended up being worth the long walk and we definitely would go back to just do the "easy" quick walk.

 (I wouldn't normally use a picture like this, but she is so stinking cute and the runny nose was just her at this time of the year. It seems like any pictures we take in the Winter, 

her nose is running).

Natural History Museum of Los Angeles

Picture with Rees outside of the museum and with the Coliseum in the background (Go USC!)

Daddy and Rees

Our Izzy

Rees

 

Our Girls

Izzy examining the dinosaur with Henry

Nothing says Dinosaur Museum like a Baby T-Rex. They have a really great scavenger hunt that our kids could do and were rewarded with prize at the end. We had a great time with our friends seeing the museum, watching the Dinosaur show, and then having a great BBQ lunch. We wish we lived closer to them.

Our Belle

Our wonderful 5 year old, finally got her check-up. We have been waiting for two months to see our Pediatrician who was on leave. Well she's back and we just saw her. I have been waiting to find out exactly how much this kid weighs and how tall she is. I am happy to say we are still at the top. 97% for weight. Which is always a concern and talked with the doctor. She had already charted out the information and was actually very happy with Izzy's progress. Izzy actually only gained 6 lbs in an entire year!!! The doctor asked what we had been doing and then I have to ramble on that we are active more because Rees is older and then oh, yeah she does gymnastics, dance, and music along with full day preschool. Poor kid never stops. The impressive score was her height. She is 1/4 inch from exactly 4 feet tall which puts her at the 99.25% percentile. She has grown 4 inches every year for the last 3 years. So a 4 inch growth and 6 lbs. She passed her vision and hearing and even hopped on one foot right across the room.

Been Awhile

Izzy- Izzy is our sensitive, funny, and naive little princess who is helpful, loving, and wild. I know I can't believe all of those adjectives fit, but they do. She doesn't want to hurt anyone and really feels bad when she gets in trouble. She is hilarious. Some of the ideas and things that come out her mouth. Yesterday, her word that she was focused on was "realized". She uses it correctly and only barely knows what it means. She is a smart cookie. She can count, knows all her letters upper and lowercase (except for V which stumbles her), can add and subtract with manipulatives, writes her first and last name, knows her address, can tell you months and days of the week, and knows all kinds of facts about animals and dinosaurs. Izzy loves to dress up and can often be found in a dress with a tutu as a fancy hat. She is extremely helpful around the house and with her sister which is a big help. Wild, well, I don't know if wild is the exact word that I am going for but silly sure is. Any girl who can confidently tell you she was born to be a peacock, is definitely silly.She has 6 more weeks of preschool and she will sure miss going to school and seeing her friends and teachers. I am looking forward to having her at home with me this summer. Izzy is in gymnastics, dance, and music during the week. Luckily, dance and music are provided at school in addition to he school day. She has her dance recital next month and I am sure the costumes are coming especially since they were so expensive!!! Kindergarten starts in August and she is all set to go. Hopefully they are ready for her. She is a good student, just needs lots of boundaries. Izzy is also beginning to read. She can pick out sight words. I can't wait to hear the words, just a few minutes Mom, I am almost done with this chapter. Ahhh, family reading sounds so great.Some of our favorite books are obviously any princess book, but lately we have enjoyed the Magic Tree House books. I even recruited teachers at my school to let us borrow the next books since we were going through them so quickly. Izzy is also becoming quite the artist. I found her the other night copying a picture she liked from a book. She loves to watercolor and paint. Her favorite thing to paint are bird houses. We have three ready to go out for this summer. She still loves playing in the mud and riding her bike. I am hoping this summer we can work on riding without training wheels. She went swimming last weekend and was able to tool around the pool with just a noodle so I think she is becoming more confident in the pool too. She is a great eater. She would tell you her favorite foods are pizza, spaghetti, and sloppy joes. She does like burritos, soups, and chili too. She still drinks soy milk and doesn't like any food that is white.

Rees- What can I say about Rees?? She is a spit-fire. She I affectionately refer to as Bi-Polar Betty. She is the sweetest, happiest, loving kid and THEN she can be ornery, stubborn, and strong within seconds. Got to love Rees. I have recently tried to figure out, what does Rees like? Honestly we have a hard time. She doesn't really like toys, doesn't watch movies. Really she just loves to be around adults, help with household jobs and do chores (her favorites are opening the doors for the dogs, closing the dishwasher and pressing the buttons, and putting things in the clothes basket. She does love bubbles. Maybe that is her one thing that she LOVES!!!! She likes animals like her sister. She can count, not in order. But I do hear 11, 12, 13, 14 or some combination of 4 numbers in order. Or I will start counting and she will tell us the next number. She also likes to us the phrase I want to write my name. She recently discovered watercolor painting. I am sure this summer she will love being in the sandbox and pool, chalking and painting the driveway, and riding her new bike. Rees is a talker. There are times I can count 7 word sentences. She will tell you EXACTLY what she wants including whether she is hungry, tired, or does not want what you are giving her. She just started this back and forth with me that goes something like this, "Rees why don't you ...". She replies back with, "P-cuse". She gets that there is a reason why she doesn't like it. She just doesn't know the reason. So cute. She has been practicing potty training for a few months now and goes pee on the potty all the time. When we are at home we wear panties, no diapers. Hopefully we can really get going this next month or so and just be done. Rees loves to eat all of her sister's favorite foods as well as all of the white foods. She just recently started not liking some textures, but overall she is a great eater.Rees has been going to our friend Donna's house. It is awesome for her. Donna is so great and takes her all over Sacramento. She also has her kiddos, so I think that Rees's language has increased because of them. Donna says that she is great and her house. So there is hope that Rees will be good in school starting in August. I look forward to Rees being with lots of other kids and learning some boundaries. Currently, it is Reesies way or the highway which she hates when she doesn't get her way.

Photo Book

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Izzyism

Izzy and I were reading one of her princess books in bed tonight and we got to the word "horrified". I asked her if she knew what it was and this is how she described it. "Horrified is when....a mom sees her kids jumping on the furniture or standing on a table." After a long chuckle, I agreed with her. She is so right and so smart!!!

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December 26th Disneyland--Our 2nd Trip

What can I say??? We love Disneyland. We are already planning our next trip. We have so much that we still haven't seen and things that we want to do again. Two of our highlights of this trip was the Character Breakfast. Those were just a few of the characters we met. The breakfast was awesome. Too bad we didn't get more time since we wanted to go hit the rides. We sure could have spent longer filling up. Our other highlight was going to the Bibbidi-Bobbidi-Boo Boutique. Izzy was transformed into a Diva Princess. She was so pretty. It was fun to see her trapse around Disneyland all glammed up. Many of the employees would call her "Princess". Paul and I got to go back later that night, sans children. It was fun to see Paul get so excited about the rides. I enjoyed going without children.