Just some really cute pictures

It's hard lately to get the girls to smile for the camera, and I have lots of pictures to prove it. Little Boy has always been a challenge, smile-wise (and otherwise, too, now that I think about it!) So these pictures are a bonus. I think when the weather gets nicer, and there's lots of natural light, we'll get more smiles because they love to be outside, and they hate the flash in their eyes!

"I love my daddy!"

"I love my daddy, too!" 
"Hey!  What's this on your shirt?"

"Da-a-ad!"

"Sometimes I can be a very happy girl!" 
"Seriously!  What's on your shirt?"

Balloon Dance, take #1

"This is how you do the Balloon Dance!"

Big Brother took this sweet shot.

We're still here...

It's getting tougher to get this girl to pose.  She gets mad, and turns away from the camera.

Reading books is a good winter activity.

His smiles were so fleeting, they were difficult to catch.

No problem getting this one to smile!

A pretty cheerful disposition, overall.

The princessa is not finding things to her liking, lately.

She will unbend, occasionally, given the right circumstances...

"Brothers are such a pain..."  I like how he's balancing on the other toy.

Well, it feels like a long winter, mostly because we had a storm with snow, fog and freezing rain, that lasted for several days, off and on. Most of the roads are pretty clear this week, though.

The other thing that makes it feel long is that the little kids all got sick, and there were snotty noses aplenty. Try keeping up with that! It's enough to reduce a grown adult to a quivering, sobbing blob of jello. Sleeves and foreheads aren't the only things coated. Think also of couches and every big person's leg (if they're within grabbing and wiping distance. One perfects a little twirling defensive move, while grabbing for the kleenex box.)

Not much outdoor play, so we've been working on preschool-type activities. We've had no luck going to Sunday school, partly because apparently when Dad and Mom aren't present, good behavior is optional, and partly because there's no ability to sit at a table if a meal isn't present. Diving and climbing on the table is fun, but not for the teacher and other students, so we're having a crash course in learning to sit quietly and color or draw, until you're allowed to get up. I was surprised to discover that they have approximately one minute tolerance for sitting. I thought it was longer, but no. So, the timer is set for 15 minutes, and everyone has to live through the torture of waiting to be released.

We're also focusing on speech lately. There aren't too many options for speech therapy around here, so I've been researching everything I can find. We've been doing exercises for strengthening tongue and cheek muscles, and lots of encouragement for babbling. The kids all understand a lot, but are reluctant to communicate verbally, other than by squawking. The girls can sometimes follow two-step directions, and everyone is encouraged to use sign language. Apparently, movement and proprioception is big in language development, so we've been doing a lot of that also. I feel that we're making progress, but it's slow, and I'm so impatient!

Finally!  This girl can grab some air!  We've been working on learning to jump, and although you can't tell from this picture, both feet really do leave the surface.  Two more to go.

I finally gave up on cutting his hair, because unlike normal people, each of his hairs has a nerve ending, so it's excruciatingly painful with each snip of the scissors.  I guess I just decided to pick my battles.  He's starting to look like a little boy, but he's still  so tiny!

Some new fun

We got this new friend at our house, who's a lot of fun.  He's kind of old, and he's been through a lot, but he still has plenty of heart!  You can tell he can go as fast as the wind, and he'll take you anywhere you want to go...

Riding this horse is good for a whole body workout, and I love it when the kids are super-active, especially when it's because they're having fun. They really rock this horse, and it moves all over the room! Sometimes they rock gently, and sing to themselves for a long time, and sometimes they climb on two at a time, and that's fun, too.

David and I took the kids to a bounce-house (no pictures, sorry) and that's a real whole-body workout. I got in a few times with them, and I could feel every muscle in my body working! They never did figure out how to bounce, but they still had tons of fun. All the walking on the uneven surfaces, trying to balance, and crawling was super good for them.

A few random pictures

This is what happens if he gets away from the table without getting his hands and face wiped!  He's getting pretty mobile, and able to get himself down.  And, of course, everyone loves laundry baskets...

She did most of the decorating this year.  I like the ladder outside the window.

Just chillin', looking at a book.  They can be rough on books, but they love them so much, and they have tons of them.  Thrift stores and garage sales are such a great source for kids' books.

'Tis the season to play boardgames...  Actually, card games are popular right now, as well.  No puzzles this year, though.  Not for a few years, I'm thinking...

One of our chicks who's left the nest flew home for a visit.  Not literally flew, you understand... Actually, not even by plane... You know what I mean!

This was our official Christmas photo.  Little Boy was crabby, and out of about thirty shots, there was only one in which he looked a bit pleasant.  No one else looked good in that one, though, so --too bad!-- I used this one where everyone else looks good.  If you can't be bothered to smile, then you take what you get!