Smiling Sophia

Lots of pics 'cuz we can't get enough of these smiles. The last set were taken today.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Reading is a Dangerous Activity

And I had just finished telling you all about the spit wads, too!

We have a DK book called Children Just Like Me, which features children all around the world and what their daily lives are like. I have been reading it to the girls to help expand their understanding of the world and what life is like for children in other countries.

A few days ago we read about Celina, an Indian who lives in a village near the Amazon in Brazil. Meredith was particularly interested in the paint that Celina puts on her body, an ancient tradition in her tribe.

 

After reading about Celina, I went to put the baby to bed. Sophia had hiccups so I held her for a while before putting her down. Then I went to change out the laundry. Then I came downstairs and saw Meredith and Clara holding hands, so sweetly. I told Meredith how proud I was of them for playing so nicely while I was busy. That’s when I saw that they were headed for the bathroom. Meredith smiled (again, so sweetly) and closed the door. That’s when I realized something was up.

THIS is what I found. I laughed so hard. I didn’t have the heart to be angry. They were just playing Brazilian Indians.

 

 

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On a side note, Sophia is six weeks old today. Here's are darling baby.

 

The latest and greatest ...

Here we are, dressed up and ready to go to the homeschool convention. (Too bad I gave my denim jumper to Goodwill like ten years ago.) I cannot believe I am a homeschool mom. And we even joined HSLDA!! It was so weird to fill out that application!

 

Today we weighed Sophia because she has a head cold and I took her to the doctor. She is 11 lbs., 9 oz. She has gained 2.5 pounds in the last 2.5 weeks!! Meredith is seriously a big help to me. Here she is burping the baby for me. Clara even helped give Sophia a bottle last week when I was in a pinch and needed to make dinner! I put the baby in the swing and said, "Here Clara, you feed her." And she did GREAT!

 

Here's daddy and baby:

 

Facial Expressions

We are starting to get some good smiles from baby. We haven't been able to capture any huge smiles but I love Sophie's grin in the second-to-last picture. And you can see the one where Clara has her hands on Sophie's head--the look on her face is like, "Oh great! What are you going to do to me this time?"

 

 

 

 

 

Kids with Free Time

Just in case you were wondering, here is what my preschoolers do during those hours when their mom is tied up with a baby:

1) They make spit wads. Truly! I had read them Miss Nelson is Missing, which came with our Sonlight curriculum this year. On the first page, the book describes the school children acting up and making spit wads. Meredith asked what that was and so I told her. (I am very honest with my children. Maybe this isn’t always the best plan of action.) Yesterday I heard giggles coming from the front room and this is what I found.

 

2) They spend about an hour a day drawing pictures. Meredith probably spends two hours a day drawing pictures. Meredith is getting really good. (Yes, I am such a biased mom.) Someday soon I’ll post some of her art work. But Clara has really turned a corner recently and is drawing things that actually look something remotely like the object she intends them to look like. Here is one example of a Clara drawing.

 

3) They play with dolls a lot, and dress up.

 

4) Meredith does very, very random things. I cannot tell you all the random things I find around the house. She loves to tie stuff. Anything that can be tied, will be tied. She also really loves arts and crafts. And since her mom is really lame (er, I mean tired and busy) and doesn’t do as much with her as she would like, Meredith has to be really creative. Maybe this will work out for her, actually. Because I don’t help her a lot, she is probably going to be this super, ultra-amazing, incredibly gifted arts and crafts person. And she will owe it all to me. Here she is, making a “scarf,” she said.

 

New Cousin!

We are so happy that little Samantha Christine Schrage has made her appearance! Our children finally have a cousin! Kevin and I are now officially an uncle and aunt. We are overjoyed. And congratulations to Shannon and Jeff!

Last night after Samantha was born, I asked Kevin how it felt to be an uncle. We talked about how there is more fullness-of-family than before. It’s an absolutely wonderful feeling. We already love Samantha so much, even though we haven’t even met her yet.

And we look forward to another cousin when Megan and Kc welcome their little boy into the world next month. It will be so fun watching the three babies grow up.

Update on Three

A while ago I speculated on how life would be with three children. Here is the verdict: It was more difficult on me physically to be pregnant with two preschoolers, than to have a newborn with two preschoolers. I’m really very glad to be on this side of pregnancy. Except for being tired from being up throughout the night with a baby, I feel so much better.

The most challenging thing now is that I’m a lot busier. I have no time to take naps. There have been a few days when I think I’ll get lucky and be able to squeeze one in. But, inevitably, the baby needs to be fed again or there are other fires that need to be put out. Each day, I go from one thing to the next thing with my mind in a fog.

I have risen to new heights in multi-tasking abilities. I thought I was pretty good before but lately I’ve had to learn to be better in order to survive. My multi-tasking prowess is especially evident when I have to nurse the baby and take care of the issues that arise with two preschoolers in the house—cleaning up spills, nurturing wounds, breaking up fights and disciplining children, changing loads of laundry, etc., all while breastfeeding. You should seriously see me in action! I am woman, hear me roar.

Lately the most trying thing for our family is dealing with some of Sophia’s burp/gas issues. She cries a lot at night because of the pain. I am trying to eliminate dairy, broccoli and onions from my diet to help with this. So far it seems to be helping a little bit. It’s made me realize how much eating the foods I like bolsters the quality of my life. It also has made me realize how much food I eat mindlessly. I’ve never had to be careful with my diet before. I would put dressing on my salad without even thinking. I can’t do that anymore.

I asked Kevin, “What if I had to do this forever? If I had to live the rest of my life without being able to drink mochas, would life even be worth living?” He said, “Yes, you would just have to learn to like soy mochas.” Thanks, Kev.

Growing and Visiting

 

 

 

 

The picture below was taken a week ago. The pictures above were taken today. Our little girl is growing and changing every day!

 

Melissa and Meredith have played for hours and hours in the snow!

 

 

After her first "real" bath. Third-borns get a lot of sponge baths!!

 

Fat Cheeks

Sophie's cheeks are getting fat (both sets). ;-) When I'm holding her on my shoulder I love to rest my chin against her soft, plump cheek (the facial set). She still has that sweet-smelling newborn skin, too.

Sophie is already starting to get a very light blue ring around her pupils, so we predict another blue-eyed Koons girl! She's very alert when she's awake and she is constantly craning her neck to see stuff. At her three week doctor appointment last Thursday, she weighed 9 lbs., 1 oz. and everything appears very healthy. We feel very blessed.

Here are some pics I took today of my baby girl:

 

 

 

 

Snow and Ice

Several mornings last week we woke up to the most beautiful ice formed on all the trees and bushes behind our house. Breathtaking. We've been getting a lot of snow here, tho' not as much as our friends in D.C.!!

 

 

 

How to make Snow Ice Cream ...

First, you pray that it will snow lots of white, fluffy snow in your backyard. Then, you collect the snow in a big bowl:

 

Then you add sugar:

 

Then you add vanilla, while your little sister eats the extra, spilled sugar:

 

Then you add milk, while your sister is still trying to eat all the spilled sugar:

 

Then you stir it really, really good:

 

Then you get to enjoy it, preferably with sprinkles:

 

A Real Live Baby Doll

 

 

 

Life After Birth

After dinner last night Kevin and I were taking in the scenery—the brightly colored newborn paraphernalia that now dots our living room, toys scattered by playful preschooler hands, dinner lovingly prepared for us by someone else, served on paper plates. We have probably killed three trees in the last month with all the paper products we are using.

Clara had been smiling and making her little toddler jokes, which are funny not because of their content but because of how she says them. And for a full 30 minutes, we had been trying to convince her to just take “three more bites.” We are constantly amazed at how torturously slow she eats dinner.

Then we looked over at Meredith, who was lying on the floor. She is the third person in our family to get the flu bug this past week. I was first in line. Then it was Clara’s turn. I had never been so sick in all my life. I had no energy. Kevin had to carry me from the bathroom to bed. It was really awful. Thankfully Sophia finally took formula because there was no possible way I could breastfeed her. Poor Meredith looked so bad last night, lying pale and limp on the floor.

We groaned in anticipation of another long night, feeding a newborn, and helping a sick child to the bathroom. And Kevin really couldn’t afford to lose more sleep, since he has some pressing deadlines at the office.

I asked Kevin, “So, are you doing okay?” He got a twinkle in his eye and quipped, “Yeah, just living the dream.” With that comment, I lost it and started laughing my head off. He joined in and we both had a really good laughing session.

Seriously, though, after having the flu with an 8-day old baby, I don’t see how things could get worse. So, I’m cautiously optimistic that life is going to be okay now. I feel that we are starting to get back into the swing of things. Yesterday I got all three kids ready for an early morning departure and things went surprisingly smoothly. (Granted, I did do most of the prep work the night before!) Sophia is doing well and gaining weight. I’m starting to get my energy back. Heck, today I even fit into a non-maternity pair of pants. Life is good!!

One thing I want to say is that there is no possible way that I could have gotten to this point so quickly without the outpouring of love we have received from friends and also Kevin’s mom (and dad too!). Kevin’s mom, dear Laura, has bailed me out numerous times—taking the kids for the afternoon or day, and also helping to make sure I was cared for after getting the flu. I am very blessed to have had her there for me.

I am also completely overwhelmed at how many meals we have received, and are still receiving. One person who brought a meal is someone I hardly even know—I’ve only ever had two brief conversations with her. Yet, she made this amazing meal that was obviously prepared with care and concern. Another person works full time and has two small children and I know it must have been a hardship. We have had church friends, three different neighbors, and also my MOPS friends bring us dinners. I am blown away by how generous people have been. All in all, it adds up to about 20 meals.

With each meal I receive and eat, I am more determined to give back more than I receive. It has made a big difference for me and my family. Thank you everyone—not only did you meet a physical need, you also inspire me to bless others more.