Little Miss Lily has fully gained control of her trunk and can actually sit and play. It is amazing and delightful and so nice. Of course, we don’t leave her on hard surfaces because she is prone to falling over and bonking her forehead/chin/cheek.
She also has amazing balance skills and can hold herself up if she’s propped. I’m excited about all of these things because soon, that means I’ll be able to feed her ‘toddler food’ instead of mushy, blended ‘baby food.’ Her brother remains a big fan … except, when he’s not. He is so happy to see her in the mornings – and she is so happy to see him. She kicks. She squeals. And then they start to interact and it’s just luck of the draw if it goes south or, if the angels sing and they play nicely together.
Jamisen has a wide network of friends. He is super friendly and outgoing. One of our goals with him is to raise a good husband so to that end, both Chris and I encourage him to cook with us, to clean and to craft with us. Chris even built Jamisen his very own pint-sized craft table at the perfect height for our little toddlers. Yes, he has made soap with me and loved it.
Jamisen and I love craft time. I spend most Friday mornings at home (not to worry – I make up for those “lost” work hours at night after the kids have gone to sleep) with him, working on a variety of crafts. I call it my “Pinterest Mommy” mornings. Kiwi Crate has been helpful for me on the mornings I haven’t had time to plan a craft. Sometimes, we invite little friends over and have play dates around crafts. I gotta raise this boy into a crafty husband, right?!
Everyone told me when Jamisen was born that it would go fast. Only now that I have a little baby at home has that really sunk in. As pressing as work issues seem, going back to my touchstone value of ‘family’ and remembering all of your advice over the last couple of years keeps me at home on Friday mornings. I know that I’ll look back on this time with fondness and nostalgia.
2/9/2014 – A postscript: I woke up far too early this morning and my first thought was that this blog post was a wee bit cheery and only was sharing the fun things about my life at home. So, for the record, my life with two kids is perfectly normal – as in “not perfect at all.” I slept walked through the early morning hours with Lily (she was up for an hour last night asking for milk and comfort) and Jamisen (who was also up for a different hour in the middle of the night because he wanted a charger for a non-operable cell phone that he is insisting on keeping on his bed; yes, you read that sentence correctly). I’m weary and I’m terrified because I hear that never goes away. The kids have both been sick this week. Lily had a “two slug cold” and Jamisen had a hacking cough. I judge the severity of colds by how much thick yellow and green mucus is flowing down faces at any given time and she had a doozy “two slugger” this week. Jamisen got bit and scratched at school so now I’m convinced he’s going to contract flesh-eating virus through his open wounds. And, I make choices every evening about if I should clean the house, floss my teeth or lay out my outfit for the next day – because, there’s no way to get all three in. I own a “magic camera” (for the record, it’s a Sony Cybershot DSC-RX100) that makes these kids look like perfectly behaved angels. The perfectly posed snapshots do not mean that our life is not a completely messy, normal, laughter and crying filled existence.
Love the idea of taking pics with the chalkboard reflecting the growing ages! My baby girl is due in August, I also have a little toddler boy, and I’d love to try your idea too! Where did you find those cute little chalk boards? I’m sure I’ve seen them around, they work beautifully for this kinda thing–uber cute family by the way…
Hi Melissa,
Anne-Marie is so clever and always has fun crafty things she does up her sleeve!
You can find similar mini chalk bards on Amazon or at http://www.etsy.com/shop/BradensGrace.
🙂 ~Kevin with Bramble Berry
Hi Anne-Marie,
You have the cutest kids. They are so happy & healthy looking. I really enjoy seeing them grow.
I have a question for you. In this latest picture of Lily, she is holding a stand alone sign that looks like you can write on it with chalk. I would love to know where you purchase those price signs. If you could help me, I would be very grateful.
Thank you so much & keep posting these wonderful pics of your family & children!
Hi Joanne!
The kids are just darn adorable! It’s so much fun having them visit us in the office.
In regards to the chalk boards, you can find them on Amazon or I did find another site that sells them as well. http://www.etsy.com/shop/BradensGrace.
They’re super cute and can be used for so many different things. 🙂
~Kevin with Bramble Berry
Cute little ones, new to this soaping game, but as a dental hygienist I am going to say floss once daily, doesn’t have to be at night, flossing helps fight gum disease, which is a major risk factor for heart disease and a whole host of others, also teaches the wee ones too! You gotta be healthy to see them stride across the universe doing amazing things!
Jamisen watches me floss but getting him to floss might be a challenge. Do you have any tricks for toddler flossing?
When my stepson, Dustin, was somewhere between 3-4 years old he became very interested in flossing. I always floss my teeth after dinner & before bed and he would always watch me do this. So, one evening I broke him off a piece of floss & showed him how to do it and we started flossing together every evening. I am very big on starting good dental care very early and always took him to the dentist for regular check-ups. I am happy to report that between the regular routine of dental flossing & dentist visits, Dustin never had a cavity until he moved from home at the age of 20 years old!! Of course I had no control over him after he moved from home!! 🙂
You just have to make it fun and stick to a routine! Good Luck!
Your children are beautiful! I have a son who is 28 months old and my daughter is 9 months old (born May 7th)! It seems like she’s doing nearly everything sooner than he did, maybe because she’s always watching him and is so determined to be like her big brother!!
Oh wow, you have your hands full! =) That’s even closer together than my two are.
I agree – Lily seems like she is progressing faster than Jamisen did – she’s scooting already (!) and just can’t wait to play with her big brother.
Your post (before and later) warmed my heart right up. You are a good momma.
Aw, thanks. We try =)
Thanks for letting us know it isn’t all roses and… soap. But if you’re like me (and I know you are), those kids are the most precious little people in your world. The sleepless nights and the scratchy-eyed days are worth it, because you know you’re raising kids who will be fabulous adults. Happy, healthy, and able to meet the challenges coming up. Way to go, you!
Oh they are the most precious things in the world to me. I just wrote a girlfriend who sold her business and asked how she was doing – and she told me that the stress had decreased in her life by a bundle because she wasn’t constantly feeling split between her two loves. The little ones make me smile – Lily saw her first squirrel today and just was silent and in awe. Her little mind was definitely blown. They are so lovely (as I write that, having a decent night’s rest and a cup of tea in front of me …. perhaps ask me again tonight around 8:30 p.m. when Jamisen STILL doesn’t want to go to sleep and Lily is crying because her brother woke her up….) =)
Wow, Lily is growing up so fast! She’s adorable, and Jamisen is such a cutie, too! It must be exciting, watching them both change and grow so much. I hope the kids get to feeling better soon – having a cold is no fun. 🙁
Just today, I was reflecting on how much Jamisen has grown up in the last few months. His language skills are what have really grown by leaps and bounds. It’s hilarious when he repeats things that make no sense for a 2 year old to say, like “You’re a piece of work!” Of course, that won’t be funny when he’s repeating a swear word!
Aww, I cannot really explain this but your little “Peanut” seems to have grown into herself. I do love that you and your husband have a goal to raise your son to be a good husband. I do not know how many times I have asked my husband did his mother not teach him that when he was young. And I am still catching him up on some things he should have learned. Of course Lily will have to learn to change a tire, just in case there is no one to call or she does not have AAA. I love that you garden too, because they can get that exposure of producing their own food that they know where it came from and what is in it. ML
Funny, I totally learned how to change a tire when I was 16! =) She really is growing up fast and has quite a charming personality with a determined streak.
Yes, this year’s garden will be bigger and better than ever (!). We’re just getting ready to plan it and I’m going to blog about the process more this year.
Thanks for posting.
So cute, she looks like my twin 10 month old granddaughters. They were born 3 months early and weighted under 2 lbs. They are just now sitting. When i saw your posting “she sits” u
are describing my twins! They ars two months older and they are still having issues with grasping. Its wonderful to watch babies grow.
Ah, twins. Yes, they come with their own special set of health issues if the babies are born early. I hear that they do catch up though eventually so hopefully that’s the case with both of them for the rest of their developmental milestones. Babies are so cute no matter what they do. Aren’t we lucky to have them in our lives? =)
Wow, how time fly’s. She is getting soooooo big and is a beauty 🙂
So big – and so heavy. She’s still at the stage where she wants to be held all the time (sweetie!) and you definitely notice her solid heft after about 10 minutes =)
How adorable she is!!!!
Wait Lily, your portrait is going to arrive soon! 🙂
I can’t wait to see it! YAY! =) It will have a place of honor in our home.
Hello Anne-Marie , thank you for stopping by blog a couple of weeks ago!! It made my day!!! your daughter is as adorable as ever!!! My daughter is nine and while I was cleaning my spare bedroom I came across a few photo albums when my baby was a baby, needless to say I was in tears pretty fast! They grow up so fast enjoy them!!! ~ Francis
Oh so sweet – I’m sure that I’ll be just like you in a few years – crying when I see their photos. For now, if I cry, it’s generally out of exhaustion (ha!).
Congrats on getting your daughter safely out of toddler years and well onto teenage years. It goes fast, doesn’t it?
What a lovely family you have!
Thank you! We feel ridiculously lucky and blessed to have two healthy kids.
Awww, she is soooo cute!
Thanks! =) I think she’s pretty adorable but I may be just a tinch biased…. =)
Ok….. this is too much cuteness! As the mother of a 17 and a 13 year old, I miss the old cute baby days. Enjoy them while they last as the months and years fly by.
Thanks Ann-Marie for being such an inspiration as a family woman and a business owner and keep those adorable pictures coming!
Blessings! 🙂
Oh, I miss the baby days too! I feel so nostalgic for when Lily was just a teensy tiny little girl – and even more so for Jamisen who seems like a towering monster when I put him next time her =)
You are so right – time does really fly. It is incredible that Jamisen is almost 3 years old.
She is so cute!! My little guy is about 4 months younger than her, so I can see my future in some of your updates. It is so cool that you are raising your son to be able to do anything. I plan to teach my boy to cook and clean and craft (the 3Cs) as well. He needs to be able to be a complete human being, and not dependent on others for the basics (my Dad taught us girls how to take care of ourselves, and it only seems fair that boys should be raised the same way).
Oh so fun – they grow ridiculously fast. I already cannot believe my teensy tiny baby girl is sitting up. She’ll be crawling soon (sob) and then, it’s all activity and motion from there. Congrats on your little one!