Somehow I missed it!

Somehow amidst all the craziness around here, I forgot to mention a very important anniversary- the day Yabetse Tesfaye became Yabetse Daniel Grimes, our boy! Confusing, I know, since we call him Esias Tesfaye, but that is his legal Ethiopian name until further notice.

Happy Court Passing on May 4th! After 6 tries, you became our son! And not a moment too soon!

Why Do These Things Always Happen at McDonald's?

Why oh why do all the weird things happen at McDonalds? So today we had a lovely playdate with some friends (Rechkemmers who I watch and Lumbs, my new vertiginous friend), and since it was getting close to lunch time and we were still 20+ minutes from home, I decided to take the kids to McDonald's on the way home. We went in because I needed to change E's diaper and thought that would be more relaxing than tossing nuggets over my shoulder and hoping Elly caught them. So we went in and I was SuperMom carrying tray and Esias and drink and pushing the high chair to our table...ok that has nothing to do with my story but I just feel proud of myself when I do that :) Anyhoo...after we were all done, I promised Elly if she used her manners, she could stand in line and ask for a different mermaid toy. She was waiting in line and Esias was sort of making a circle around and around the others in line. He caught the eye of a 70ish lady who patted his head and tried to get a smile out of him. Originally he was wearing a onesie with a jacket over it but we got warm so he was only wearing pants and a tight onesie. The next lap around the lady leaned over to him, grabbed at him and intentionally pulled on his feeding tube (that sticks out of his shirt) and said, "What's that under there, hmmm?" in a baby voice, as if to play with him. She literally pulled on it. I quickly leaned down and said, "He has as feeding tube!" and she stopped, and said, "Well that's not a plaything, is it?" It was very awkward! I was glad it didn't hurt Esias because I know she would have felt awful (and so would he) but still...note to the public- don't pull on appendages of children who aren't your own! That could have been a big disaster had the G-tube decided to come out!

Newest Pics of the kids

Esias looking preciously drooly in the sunshine.

Yogurt beard.

Eden is a jump-ropin'-maniac.

We got a call last night from our neighbors: Rainbow Alert! she said. Sure enough, there it was. Gotta love neighbors like that.

My beauties right before the American Girl Fashion Show. Some sweet person donated tickets and two dolls (!) to our children. It was amazing! They were so excited!

All the girls. Below- the girls at home with their new dolls!

Good News!!

We had Esias third (or fourth?) swallow study Friday and the news was EXCELLENT! They SP and the MD did not see any aspiration in his swallow. It was done only using the spoon. This is a bit confusing to me, since the other times we did it, they used a sippy type cup and a bottle, so I am not sure why they only used a spoon. I asked and the tech said it was so he didn't get too much in his system. Anyway, he didn't aspirate it at all! It was tons of improvement, so they are allowing us now to start slowing incorporating liquids by mouth. We are using a slow flowing sippy cup for him and HE LOVES IT. He thinks he is the man. We don't even have to thicken it! Woo hoo!

As for chewing, he is still quite immature in the way he moves his mouth. So we might have to seek more intense occupational therapy for him. Apparently there is a clinic here in our town that can do that, but we have to check with our insurance to make sure they will cover it first. Right now, we see an OT once a month and she basically tries to teach me how to teach him and that is not moving forward very quickly. But the good news is that he can eat and wants to, he just can't chew hard things yet.

So all in all, great news on Friday! This does not mean we will take the tube out right away but we don't have to rely on it as much which is nice. We will still do his night time feedings just to make sure he is getting the right nutrients. He still cannot eat meat or things like that, so this pediasure is just a little extra boost for him nutritionally.

My Girls Are Funny.

Yesterday as I picked Eden up from school, I asked the always anti-climactic question of her: "How was school?" Usually she says, "fine, " and that's that. Yesterday she said, "Good! We got to bring home our sculptures this week. We worked on them for two Fridays." Thinking there was probably a whole lesson attached to the sculpting, I got excited..."What did you learn about?" I always loved the Caulder mobiles...my mind starts wondering and Eden says, "We didn't learn anything mom. It's not really objective."

Today as we were getting ready for the American Girl Fashion Show (explanatory post to come), Eden and Elly were excitedly picking out dresses. It is a bit chilly today so I had them wear undershirts with their summer dresses. Elly had one on but then the only one left for Eden was the smaller one, so I had her trade. Eden said, "Here Elly, I have another undershirt with your name on it!" Elly said, "MOM! This shirt has my name on it!" I looked at Eden and we both laughed. Eden said, "Elly, that doesn't really have your name on it, that's just an expression!"

Peanut Butter and Jelly

This week has been pretty exciting at our house because we found these
two baby squirrels that had fallen or otherwise gotten out of their
unattended nest in our backyard. We watched for a few hours to see if the mother came
back, but she did not, so when night fell we got ahold of a wildlife
rehabilitator to take care of them (after I googled "found a baby squirrel"). They were very weak and dehydrated and the specialist lady thought their mother must have been
gone for a while. The girls were really excited to have them in the
house but i was not in the business of raising wild animals, so they
had to go. Not before they were named Peanut Butter and Jelly Grimes!

Now We're Talkin'

So several times I have moaned and whined about Esias not speaking. Well, he's starting to make word sounds now! Hallelujah! Slowly but surely, he's progressing through all the steps. Here are the words/sounds/signs he does now:

Signs
Help
Bread
Food/Eat
Sleep/Bed/Goodnight
Bye Bye
Hi
Horse
Cat
Bath
More
All done/gone
Up
Down
Out
Shoes
Thank you

Words/Sounds
KUH- truck
KAH- car
KA- cat
Kuh (again)- train/track
GUH- go
UH- yeah/yes
MUH- more
EH-OO - thank you
DA- daddy

No mommy yet, dang it!

He can also do Itsy Bitsy Spider, Patty Cake, wave hello and bye bye, blow kisses, vroom cars and trucks around the room, vocalize his displeasure in anyone failing to pay attention to him...etc. etc. Just like any old 22 month old!

He is also very interested in his tube and likes to "help" us flush the line with the 10cc syringe. We fill the syringe with water and then have to shoot it into the extension part of his tube to keep it clean. He likes to put the syringe into the tube end and then push the plunger down and then pull the syringe off. Quite helpful! He will also sign "all done" his pump beeps that it is empty and then hand us the syringe to do the after-feeding flush.

Another thing that makes me so proud of him is how he is socializing so much better. He recognizes people that are familiar, like my neighbors, and waves when we see them. He will go a little ways away from me in public places but quickly wants to find me if he gets scared or nervous (like today when an airplane flew overhead). I try to watch to make sure I am there if he needs me. But I do want to start giving him some freedom and allowing him to explore and learn like a two year old should. He's doing so well and I am soooo proud and thankful that I am his momma!

Edenism

Can this be the first Edenism in a long while? When I was titling it it did not even "fill in" the title for me. Ah it makes me sad that she is growing up so and is not saying so many hilarious things.

The other day she was in the bath and she and Elly were each pulling at one of Esias' arms. Dan said, "Girls, stop fighting over your brother. He's not a hockey puck."

Eden said, "Hockey puck? Not hockey puff?"

"Yeah, hockey puck." Dan said. "Did you think it was 'hockey puff'?"

"Wuull, uh, yeah when I was a baby..."

The Grimes Report

I am not as good as I used to be at posting baby-book-esque facts here regarding these precious ones. So I will attempt to catch up here!

Eden Lily Grimes
Age: 7.5 yrs.
Weight: I think around 54 lbs
Height- not sure! Let me get back to you after Esias wakes up and I can look at our chart on the door.
Wearing size 7/8 in girls clothes and 1.5-2 in shoes.
Eden is reading very, very well. She surprises me with her ability to read. We have not worked that much with her but she loves to read and a pencil and paper are her favorite toys for sure.
She is still our sensitive, creative, thoughtful, and occasionally ornery one.

Elly Lyn Grimes
Age: 4.5 yrs.
Weight: 44 lbs
Height- same story!
Wearing size 6 in girls (small) and 11 in shoes
Elly Lyn is the biggest snuggler of all time. If you are lacking in physical touch, come to our house. She will waller all over you. I have to literally tell her to get off of me at times. We call her the Heat Seeking Missile because she will just make a beeline for the next warm body to snuggle.

Esias Tesfaye (tes-FIE) Grimes
Age: 21 months
Weight: 26 lbs I think
Height- no idea!
Wearing anywhere between 12m (pants) and 24 months (one piece outfits). I think he has a long torso and short legs! His shoes size is 4 or 5. He has chubby little tootsies.
Esias has gotten 16 teeth since we got him and eight in this past month. He is a teething maniac! He is starting to get his gigantic molars and canines too. All these teeth change his look but of course he's still as cute as he can be!

What in the world?!

I just had to have the "we don't go potty outside" conversation with my daughter. The old one. What in the world? She's making a playhouse and apparently got a little carried away. Never thought I'd say those words to her!

Gorgeous Weather

We enjoyed every minute of yesterday! The kids and Dan went to the park all morning and Dan gave Esias his first taste of 7-UP (yeah, he is not suppose to drink) and he was hooked for sure. He cried when it was over! My sis and I did a little Goodwill Hunting yesterday (scored 6 works shirts for Dan) and then ended up at the farm (Darin and Katy's) for supper. It was a little chilly, but we visited the mini-donkeys, horses, llamas, chicks, ducks, roosters and hens, cats, and the pig whose fate is not good tonight (sausage). Four wheeler rides were the hit of the night by far. The girls could easily never leave that farm and be just fine. Come to think of it, I might do ok there myself!

Birds, Bees, and Recipes

Mom and Dad, you might die reading this and wonder what kind of hippie Earth mama you raised. Sorry. Bear with me. Love you :)

Ok, so this might not be a conversation you'd have with your kids. That's ok. We've decided to be pretty open with ours about the facts of life. Dan grew up in an open-book household and my home was pretty traditional but we decided early on we wanted to be frank with our kids about s*x and not make it a big taboo thing. We don't want it to be this big dramatic talk or no talk at all. A wise friend told me that the "birds and the bees" should be shared somewhere around 1st-2nd grade to avoid learning about it from friends at school. Eden is in that range.

We haven't sat down and had a formal explanation, but we do try to answer questions as they come up, as honestly as possible while still being age appropriate and God-honoring. Like when Dan had his vasectomy, the girls were concerned and wondered why he had a bag of frozen veggies on his crotch. So, we told them that Daddy got a surgery so that we can't make babies anymore. She began asking a few more questions at that time and I think that was the first time she realized it took a daddy as well as a mommy.

Ok, so today, Eden and Elly heard the word s*x on tv. (I use the asterisk to avoid getting hits for people searching that word). She asked, "What does s*x mean, anyway?" We've talked about the word "s*xy" and how that is not an appropriate term to use to describe ourselves or each other except if you are a husband and a wife, then it's ok just between them. So, now she's asked the question...so staying true to the decision Dan and I made together (though I wanted to dodge it like crazy, but I thought that would make it more of a big deal, and I wanted to keep it nonchalant), I mustered up some courage and said, "Well, it's something that a husband and a wife do and it is what makes babies. God made it just for husbands and wives." I paused for a bit. Eden said, "Ok, so it has to do with private parts." I said, "Yes." (and secretly wanted to die). She seemed satisfied with that answer and not weirded out at all. I went on, "You know, if you ever hear any words or see anything that is confusing, you can always ask mom and dad and we will tell you. You don't have to feel embarrassed." She answered, "Ok," and went on playing. I said, "Do you have any more questions?" Elly said, "Yeah, I have one. How do cooks and chefs know how to make all that food?"

Quite Ellyquent, Part 23

Lately Elly has been hilarious. When Dan is gone, I tend to make different meals than when he is home because he doesn't love my typical *cream-of-something-soup* concoction. Last week when Dan was traveling, I made tuna and noodles. Eden, Elly, and Eden all ate it right up, and Elly declared, "Mom, you really nailed it with this one!"

Her allergies are acting up a bit and she said this morning, "When I cough, it feels like my throat is going to wiggle and come out. And the bones in my throat are going to break and turn into sugar--sugar that you can eat!"

Daycare

Esias decided to wear one of Elly's crowns. Don't worry, Dan knows about it and he was totally cool with it.

I think he looks hilarious here with his nasty dirty bib, cheesy grin, and tiara.

E-man loves to read this book I made free on Shutterfly.com about how we became a family of five. He just points and smiles and laughs.

Little front end loader action in the sunny entryway.

This is one afternoon during daycare when the kids were watching Electric Company.

You can see, Luke felt the need for head protection.

Zi Zi in a rare moment of sitting still.

Miss Ells-a-Bells.

Another day (I think) Kate put all the toys on a blanket in the middle of the floor and it kept them occupied for the longest time.

Easter

Mon-Wed last week Dan was gone for a business trip and Tuesday night I got a funny pain in my back and low groin area. I finally got Esias to bed around 10pm (he hated going to sleep without his daddy) and I went to bed. Wednesday morning I woke up with a little more intense pain. By Wed. night I was definitely using Lamaze techniques but dealing with pain that ultimately will not result in a cute little baby is just no fun. Since I have had this before, I am fairly certain I've got a kidney stone on my hands, or rather, in my kidney. I am going on Day 7 and I am not a happy camper. The last one I had lasted two days...this little bugger is holding on. The pain is less intense than it was but now I'm just downright annoyed!

Ok, enough of that. We spent Easter with the parents riding bikes, eating, playing, doing a treasure hunt, and lots and lots of whiffle ball. We did some egg dying and then we started what will hopefully be an a tradition. We did a Resurrection Eggs activity. Easter is one of those holidays that is difficult to keep focus. Christmas is bad enough, why do we have to make Easter all about eggs and candy? I think I am going to start calling it Resurrection Sunday instead :) So anyway, I hid little items relating to the Resurrection story inside 12 plastic eggs. Each of the bigger kids got to pick three eggs and then open then in sequence as we read the story. They opened bread (Jesus said the bread was like his body, broken for us), coins (Judas betrayed Jesus for 30 silver coins), purple cloth (the robe Jesus wore), a string (scourge), thorns (crown of thorns), a cross (Jesus carried), nails (pierced his hands and feet), a sign that read "Here is the King of Jews," a sponge (that was offered to Christ on the cross), a spear (that pierced his side), a rock (that sealed the tomb) and the last egg was EMPTY! We read the Resurrection story out of the Jesus Storybook Bible which is my absolute fave. I hope we do this every year and let the kids sort of take over and do it for us. It was really nice and the kids liked it.

Easter morning at my parents' is always a flurry because all 12 of us are trying to get ready at the same time. We ended up getting to the church on time but Brynn reinjured her knee in the pew and had to be taken out of the service before it even started. Oh, such is the life of the Stanton girls! If it's not one thing...

Church was good and the kids behaved as well as can be expected after the excitement of the injury. We left there and went to Grandpa Lee's for a minute and then to Grandma Dort and Grandpa Lloyd's while my mom prepared the house (read: decluttered from all her house guests!) for forty something people who were coming for Easter dinner. The Stanton Easter was good as usual. Lots of whiffle ball, again. Lots of my cousins made it back which was great. The kids had a blast, the weather was awesome, and only a few sand burrs acrued on our socks.

Here are some pics.

Getting ready for Saturday's scavenger hunt.

Go Team!

One clue was in the horse barn.

To the spooky forest!

Easter Sunday pics-

Esias found cheese crackers and then didn't care a thing about eggs.

These last two of my precious little ones were just too cute not to post - Elly and Esias were clearly glad to be home.