Ahhh...

After 5 days without A/C, we finally got a new furnace & central A/C unit.  It took a work day to get installed, but hopefully our house will be cool tomorrow.  It's so humid here the installers told us it would take a day to get all the humidity out of the house.  The poor girls' bedrooms are the worst, but aside from running floor fans & dressing them cooly, there's not much more we can do.

Baylee has fussed going down the last 2 nights.  Really weird considering what a good sleeper she usually is.  Last night, she started screaming at 9pm.  I got her up & we read her princess book & then she went right to bed.  She did the same thing tonight, except at 8pm.  I tried reading the princess book again & putting her down, but she continued to cry.  Not sure if she's testing us, but it's not very relaxing.

In exciting Livy news, her two lower teeth have broken through the surface!  She seems to be in better spirits, or at least she's not as drooly.  I've been feeling around for the upper teeth, but nothing so far.  I can't see white either, so it may be a while.  Livy is taking solid foods like a champ.  We've tried all the orange veggies (carrots, sweet potatoes, & squash), green veggies (green beans & peas), yogurt, & we're working through fruit (pears, bananas, & apples so far).  Hopefully she'll eat them in mass quantities soon so I get a break!

Po-po & Ye-ye Visit

This week, Daddy is in Canada fishing with his two college buddies.  Mommy couldn't handle the 2 girls alone for a week, so she called in for reinforcements--Po-po & Ye-ye!  It's very cute--Baylee can now say Po-po & Ye-ye for my parents & Grandmama & Grandpa for Mike's parents.

We've been keeping busy here.  Music concert at Parkers' Lake on Monday; Block Time for Baylee on Tuesday & Livy's 6-month check-up; one of my new mommy friends is a photographer & offered a mini photo shoot on Wednesday, so there are some pics of Po-po & Ye-ye with their girls.   Here's a preview of her work:

                
Livy's stats are almost exactly the same as Baylee's at 6-months.  Very similar height & weight.  Funny since it seems like Baylee was much heavier or at least looked a lot more pudgy!

Yesterday, we discovered that the A/C unit's fan blades were cracked & warped to the point that they were rubbing against the metal plates.  Luckily, Ye-ye figured this out & we quickly turned off the air because it would have started a fire for sure.  We have to wait until Tuesday to get a new system put in, but hopefully it will work much better than our old one.  Apparently the old A/C was original to the house or 35 years old!  This would probably explain why Mike always complained that it was hot in our upper level.  It took all day, but I found someone to install a new HVAC system for us on Tuesday.  Unfortunately, it's going to be hot all weekend, so we're going to have to deal with the heat.  One of my friends loaned me a portable A/C, which works pretty well.  It's nowhere near as cool if we had central air, but it's infinitely more comfortable than when we didn't!  The poor girls only had floor fans in their rooms & in the early evening, it was like a sauna in their bedrooms.  The portable A/C can cool their room in about 15 minutes making it tolerable.  We are so spoiled by modern conveniences.

Po-po & Ye-ye leave tomorrow & Mike gets back in early evening.  The following week we'll be back in the grind.  Hopefully Baylee will make the transition easily.  She's been getting a lot of attention from the grandparents for two weekends in a row now!

Aurgh!!!!!

Sorry I haven't written anything about the girls in a week.  Our June has been pretty hectic.  Taking advantage of the beautiful weather, we went out for a few park playdates.  Baylee got to see her ECFE friend, C, another boy her age a couple of times.  She hasn't seen him since March when we were last in ECFE.  They were cute together.  Neither child was talking much in March, but now they are saying sentences.


Grandma & Grandpa came to visit us the first weekend of June.  We went to brunch on Sunday at our favorite spot, 3 Squares.  They have call ahead seating, which is key with our kids.  The beautiful weather continued, so we took Grandma & Grandpa to Noeremberg Gardens.  Baylee was very excited to see Grandma, especially when she found out that Grandma brought her lots of princess toys!  Every day she clamors for her princess bubbles.  Never thought there would be a toy that combined two of her favorite things--princesses & bubbles.  We were sad to see them go on Monday, but I'm sure we'll see them again soon.


This week has been a bit of a struggle.  Livy is teething pretty hardcore, so she's a little bit fussy.  She doesn't like the taste of baby Tylenol (the generic version since the name brand has been recalled) & she hasn't wanted to nurse, so there's not much I can do for her.  I can feel the 2 lower teeth just barely breaking through the gum & I can see the white on the upper teeth.  Hopefully they all break through soon.


Baylee has also started to push Livy over or kick Livy with her foot.  I don't think Baylee is being malicious (maybe a little, but I'm going to believe otherwise!), but wants to see what (1) Livy reaction will be & (2) what my reaction will be.  I've tried redirecting Baylee & saying "gentle hands," but she hasn't stopped.  I'm sure this is why the second child is much more resilient than the first!  Baylee has also started to throw a lot more temper tantrums again.  A lot of it I think is a control issue.  Ahhh...the terrible two's!


I've had a week long migraine/tension headache.  Mike is leaving Sunday early evening for Canada & my parents (AKA Po-po & Ye-ye) will be arriving as reinforcements.  I thought I might relax a little with my parents up, but I've filled the calendar up with appointments because they can watch the girls & I can do errands in peace.

Memorial Day Weekend Fun

We started our long weekend fun on Friday with our first beach trip of the season.   We met up with Baylee's friend J at West Medicine Lake.  We got there at 9am, so the beach was empty except for us.  Baylee & J ran back & forth in the water, never getting deeper than mid-calf.  When they were bored of running in & out of the water, they began playing their jump-jump game.  I brought out our travel UV tent for Livy.  We bought this travel tent/bed when we went to Jamaica with Baylee & I haven't used it since then.  Livy sat happily in the tent watching Baylee & J play.  Needless to say, the tent will get a TON of use this summer!


Aunt Linda & Uncle John were kind enough to invite us up to their cabin for the long weekend.  We haven't been up to the cabin since before Livy was born, so we were dying to get back up to the lake for some R&R.  Well, driving with the two monkeys is anything but relaxing.  Livy abhors her carseat.  Every time I strap her in, she begins her mournful cry.  She doesn't let up until we reach our destination.  I think she has a little bit of separation anxiety.  At this point, I'm so used to it, I don't hear her cry anymore.  Baylee on the other hand has to have a snack, sippy cup, & a toy in the car.  This is fine, except when she's done with the toy/snack or has dropped said toy/snack.  Not even 5 minutes in, she starts clamoring for something neither Mike nor I can understand & she completely melts down.  By the time we reached the cabin, we were ready for a drink!


While we were there, we had a great time!  I managed to read 2 books (The Assault & Super Freakenomics), which never happens at home.  We took a relaxing pontoon ride--both girls were excellent--& Mike did some fishing.  Overall, it was a great weekend.

Outdoors Playdate

Today, we went over to one of our mommy friends' house for an outside playdate.  Baylee spotted the bubble wands & bubble maker & was in absolute heaven.

Livy sat in the shade grabbing toys on her blanket.  I'm so impressed with her ability to sit up!  Even when she falls back, it is very controlled.  And, she tries to sit back up.

Here are the pictures from our playdate.

Livy also ate some squash today!  She eats solids so much better than Baylee.  She doesn't open her mouth every single time to take some, but I can shove the spoon in her mouth & she'll swallow whatever.  Baylee used to spit everything out.  I'm very excited about the prospect of Livy eating solids.  Maybe I'll get a break soon & I won't have food issues with her.

Potty Training?

I am debating whether I should start potty training Baylee.  She's almost 2 1/2, which is a good age to start, but I don't think she's ready yet.  Baylee's not remotely interested in the potty.  On the other hand, she has recognized that she had to poop the last 2 times.  She always says "Big poopie" or "Big eewie," & she's always right.  It does crack me up though.

I did some Googling & I found a book on stress-free (HA!) toilet training, a Princess Potty book (how perfect is that), & a Disney Princess Magical Sounds Potty with a removable seat that fits onto a regular toilet.  I've been told it's MUCH easier to toilet train in the summer compared to fall/winter.  I just don't know if I have the time to start training right now.  I still have to get Livy eating solids & that is a slow process.  I can't have a diaper-free toddler roaming the house when I'm trying to feed Livy & I certainly can't stop every 15-20 minutes to get Baylee to sit on a toilet.  Baylee may have to wait a little longer & just tell me she's ready.  The experts do say that at three, kids can say more sentences & understand their bodies better.  Maybe a year of reading books will help prep her?  I just want to process to go smoothly & that we don't have temper tantrums about it.  Baylee throws fits when we introduce foods, can you imagine what would happen if she threw down about potty training?  Ay yi yi!

Crazy Monday Evening & Tuesday Fun

It was 95 degrees yesterday in Minne, so naturally everyone had their A/C on, which led to our entire neighborhood having an electrical outage!  I think the power went out around 3:00pm & wasn't restored until close to 7:00pm.  The girls were in the middle of their nap, so I didn't want to wake them up unless the temperature started to climb rapidly.  Thankfully, they both woke up within a half hour & we headed over to our friend A & R's house.  I wasn't going to take a chance with the girls overheating in this weather.  Since we didn't have power, I couldn't cook, so we met Daddy for dinner at Potbelly's.


Today, we got our new carpet for the fireplace room.  The installers were going to call me on Monday to give me a 2-hour window.  I was expecting a late afternoon time frame because that's how it ALWAYS works out.  Well, we were the 7am slot!  I had already called LifeTime to make arrangements for Livy at the daycare for 9:30, so clearly we weren't going to make it to the gym.  I was bummed thinking we were going to have to stay indoor all morning, but surprise, surprise, the carpet was done in an hour forty-five.  We then called our friends S & J to see if they still wanted to do something, so we headed back to Parkers Lake.


Baylee & J had a fun morning jumping, holding hands, & chasing one another.  S (J's mom) thinks that Baylee makes a scene about "bees" because she wants my attention & for me to coddle her.  If we don't acknowledge the "bees" or distract her right away ("Jump Baylee jump!"), she usually forgets about the "bees."  I hope we move past this stage.  The kids also collected rocks this morning for fun.  :P


After our park outing, I still had a little bit of time before the girls had to go down for their naps so we went to the grocery store to pick up some items we needed for dinner.  To distract Baylee from demanding every snack item she sees going down the aisles (thanks Cub Foods for putting fruit snacks in the coffee aisle), I found a Cinderella princess wand for Baylee to play with.  Well, Baylee thought the wand was the BEST thing ever!  She wouldn't relinquish the wand during her nap!  I'm not even sure Baylee napped she was so enthralled by the wand!  When I went in to get Baylee, she was staring at her wand in the same manner I must have been staring at my engagement ring the morning after Mike asked me to marry him!  Good times with toddlers.


BTW, Baylee can say "Ni -hao," which is "Hello" in Mandarin.  She'll also repeat other random Chinese words when prompted.  Talk about being a sponge at this age!

Monday Meet & Greet

I help organize a mom's group in Plymouth/Maple Grove & this morning was our 2nd Meet & Greet event at Parkers' Lake.  Usually, Parkers' Lake isn't the best place because it's so windy being right on the lake, but today, it was perfect.  By 7am, the weather was already starting to feel muggy.  It is hot & sticky right now.  I was hoping we'd have another mild summer this year, but it's not looking to shape out that way this year.

As soon as we stepped out of the car & onto the pavement, Baylee began her "bees" freakout.  She probably spent the first 45 minutes sitting next to me under the shade looking out for bees.  Thankfully, her friend J came over & started jumping by her & she got up to play with him.  J & Baylee have their own special game where they start jumping & then "fall" flat on their butts giggling.  It's super cute.  After a little bit of jumping, they ran over to the toddler playgym & began to follow each other up, slide next to each other on the racer slides, used the steering wheel to "race" one another, & slide together down the twisty slide.  They wait for each other & hold each other's hands.  You can tell they are good friends.  I just wished I had my video camera to document it!

Livy has learned to sit on her own.  She has an amazing sense of balance for 5 1/2 months.  I think Baylee didn't sit on her own until 6 months, & that was early.  Livy will lean forward on her arms & then flip herself onto her belly for some tummy time.  Today, she even began to push off with her little feet in an army crawl.  She wasn't really crawling, but you could tell that she wanted to go-go-go with all the other kids.  Baby girl is growing up way too fast!  Now, if only her teeth would break through the surface so the drooling would stop.

Beautiful, but busy weekend!

We had a great, but really busy weekend.  I need a weekend to recover from our last weekend!  I kicked off my weekend Friday night with a surprise baby shower for my friend, A at Bacio's.  A is now 37 weeks pregnant with a baby girl, G, that will be Livy's future best friend.  :)  We managed to pull the surprise off with a week's worth of planning, with A's hubby in on the secret.  He was so sweet wanting to pay for everything!  I'm glad we were able to throw her a shower & that it was a complete surprise to her.

Saturday was a bizarre weather day.  We thought it was supposed to be super nice all day, but it was stormy in the morning, so the girls & I stayed indoors while daddy went fishing.  It was good day for him to go fishing.  Thankfully, it cleared off in the afternoon because we had a BBQ planned with our friends.

On Sunday, Mike went trout fishing while I hit Lifetime again to take Baylee to the pool.  Baylee likes the water, but I think she prefers having her friends there too.  When it was just the 2 of us, she would just walk around the water, splash occasionally, but she wasn't a little maniac like she usually is.  Livy was excellent in daycare, so I hope that stays that way!  I capped off my Sunday with a Mom's Night Out at Don Pablo's.  It was my first MNO without Livy!  Mike had to call me home because Livy didn't stay asleep as hoped, but I at least got away from her for 90 minutes.

Fun in the Sun!

Another beautiful day in Minne!  We spent the morning at Clifton E. French Park with our friends.  About halfway through, Baylee inexplicably saw a "bee" & began to freak out.   She did the same thing later in the afternoon when we were outside.  She's okay in the grass, but the cement/asphalt ground she always claims there's "bees."  Sometimes there really is, but most of the time, there's nothing.   I really hope that she stops being fearful because it's going to be a L-O-N-G summer otherwise!

I think Livy is teething.  She's really working her lower lip, drooling, & really fussy, which is unlike her.  I've tried peeking in her mouth & it looks like her lower gums are white.  Hopefully her teeth pop through. Poor girl.

A Sunny Monday--Another playdate at the park

I think spring is finally coming around!  It is supposed to be sunny & close to 80 all week.  Originally, we were going to meet our friends at the Kiddieland at Ridgedale Mall, but because the weather was so nice, we changed our plans to go to the park instead.  For the past year, Baylee has loved being outdoors.  Just out of the blue, she has developed a fear of ants.  Or, as she likes to call them "bees."  Any time she spots a dreaded "bee" she leaps into the nearest person's arms & then she keeps her eyes peeled to the ground looking for "bees."  I'm not sure how she developed this fear of ants, but bugs are definitely scary for her.

Also, one of her new words is "spooky."  Whenever we go to the garage Baylee says "spooky."  The funny things kids pick up.

Weekend Fun!

The girls & I had a busy Saturday.  We woke up early to do a "Mommy & Me" photo shoot as a Father's Day special for Mike.  Here is a sample of the pics.  After the photo shoot, we were ambitious enough to drive downtown to try out Hells Kitchen as a belated Mother's Day brunch.  We sat in the main room & right next to the stage where a jazz trio was playing.  We tried the lemon ricotta pancakes & the restaurant's famous bison sausage bread, which was delicious.  The food there was good, but we'll stick to 3 Squares, which is closer to us.  After the girls' afternoon nap, we went back to the city near Lake Nokomis to hangout with one of Mike's former co-workers.  He & his wife have 2 kids as well, a son J, who is 18-months older than Baylee, & a daughter M, who is 3-months older than Livy.  It is funny watching Baylee with older kids.  She always seems to defer to them.  Yet, when she hangs out with kids her own age or younger, it seems to me that she has an alpha dog mentality.  Anyway, J is Baylee's kindred spirit.  They are both energetic & have high highs & low lows.  They were very cute playing together.  We had a great time & hopefully they'll come out to Plymouth to hangout with us sometime soon.


Mike went fishing Sunday morning with the husband of one of my mommy friends, so I called my friend to see if she & her two boys, L & D, wanted to hangout with us to pass the morning.  We planned on going to the Original Pancake House for breakfast & then to Plymouth Creek Park.  Amazingly, breakfast went about as well as it could with 4 kids under 5.  :P  Baylee enjoyed a chocolate chip pancake while mommy had OPH's famous fresh strawberry waffle.  We burned off those calories at the park where Baylee chased L & D.  It was a fun morning with our friends!

Grove Cove!

This morning, we met up with two of Baylee's friends J & L for a morning of fun at the Grove Cove.  The Grove Cove has an indoor leisure pool featuring a zero-depth beach area, water spray activities, a 130-foot waterslide and a tot slide.  Since the Grove Cove is part of LifeTime Fitness, I was able to leave Livy in the child care & take Baylee to the pool.  I think Bayls really enjoyed having some one-on-one mommy time.  She splashed around with her friends, went down the slide several times, & jumped into the water (it was ankle deep).  She also knew not to run away from me or go too deep.  And I was impressed--Livy did really well in child care!  I'll have to take advantage of it some more since we get 2 hours/day of child care at the gym.  Hopefully, I'll be able to get into shape by summer's end.


The girls have also synced up their nap schedule this week.  They are both going down around 1pm & napping until 3 & sometimes later.  I love it!  I finally have some downtime all for myself.  Normally, I'm scrambling around tidying the house, but today, I'm taking a coffee break & blogging.

Daily Challenges

It's been cold & rainy the past 2 days, so we've been stuck inside in the mornings.  Not being able to get out makes it for long days, but it also means that we get to read books, do some coloring, & play in our playroom.  :)

The past few days I've been really working with Baylee on polite words.  Otherwise, she sounds like a little dictator all day: "Open this," "MORE," "Need ___," & so forth.  Now, if I say "Baylee, what's the magic word?" she'll say "Please."  Sometimes, if I pause long enough, she'll tack on "please" on her own.  Next on the list is "thank you."  She'll say it maybe 25% of the time, but baby steps.

We're also working on expanding Baylee's food choices.  Despite eating everything while I was pregnant & breastfeeding, Baylee will only eat fruit, carbs, chicken nuggets, & yogurt.  Yesterday, she actually ate some real chicken!  Her friend Jackson was eating some chicken & she decided to try it herself.  Once she had a bite, she kept asking for more!  I hope this trend continues.

The rainy weather has also forced us to work on Livy's sleep schedule.  Unlike Baylee, she flat out refuses to nap on schedule.  When she's awake, she's usually very happy, especially if someone is holding her.  I just try to put her down every 3 hours so she gets used to working on falling asleep unassisted.  I'm really hoping she learns quickly so I can get a break!

Happy Mother's Day!

Mike says I am always on the computer, so I figured I might as well use my time to write about the girls!


Yesterday was the first Mother's Day we celebrated with Livy as a part of our family.  We went to Noeremberg Gardens by Lake Minnetonka in the morning.  It's one of our favorite spots with its beautiful flowers & views of the lake.  Not too many people venture out here so the lack of crowds is another bonus.

Here's a picture we took of the girls & me.

Here's our first family pic since we brought Livy home from the hospital!  Thankfully we all look good.  :)


To cap off the day, went out for Indian food for dinner.  Our dinner was delicious (masala dosas, chicken mahkani for me, & chicken josh for Mike), but service was ungodly slow.  Baylee was about as good as we could expect given her 2-year old attention span & Livy was a little angel.  What a wonderful Mother's Day!
More Mother's Day Pictures