January 20, 2016

Friday was a big day, the kids got to see Francis's lab. They were very excited, though the trip didn't go as planned. First off the boys skipped nap (I tried), so when we arrived on campus at 3:30, Robert had passed out in the car. Francis carried him as all 5 of us walked over to the Lab. William was super interested in everything. Francis patiently explained things and I took a few pictures. It was a nice time. Well, one of the demonstrations involved a heat gun (think high powered hair dryer). When it was set back down (as we were getting ready to leave), William reached for the same spot on the table and the heat gun and Williams hand met mid air with the hot tip brushing across the edge of William's right hand. The next couple of minutes are a blur, but as William's skin on his hand blistered and turned white, we knew we would be heading to a doctor. We tried the nearby urgent clinic, but they quickly turned us away and sent us to the ER of the hospital (which was thankfully also close). There was no wait, and after an examination, it was determined to be mostly a second degree burn with a little first degree burn around the edges. The whole burn is roughly the size of a quarter, but I know it hurts. we got him all fixed up with burn cream and bandages and brought him home. At the end of all of it (after screaming a crying for an extended period), William announced, "This was a great day! I got to see Daddy's lab and even though that accident happened, I'm going to be ok!" He's a great kid. They all are. The blister is still deflating and hasn't popped. The doctor said it will be around a week before he can leave it unbandaged. 

Robert still has a great affinity for the green Mr. Potato head light saber and we lost it yesterday. Not good. Poor kid went around all day (even after we looked for HOURS) saying "Yoda" (what he calls the light saber) sadly and whimpering. It was sad enough, Francis and I actually went ahead an ordered another "Luke Frywalker" so we have a back up in case this one is never found. It was cheap, and he's worth it. I'm still hoping it turns up though. Robert's love of singing has developed even more since Christmas. I have to keep on my toes, because he will start singing and want me to join in. It takes me a while sometimes to figure out the song he is trying to sing, but I usually get it. His two favorites are happy birthday and Rudolf the Red nosed reindeer, but he'll try to sing any random song he's heard  if the fancy strikes him. He's in underwear more and more and having less accidents all the time. He's my cuddle bug and wants to be touching/loving on/cuddling me in some shape or form most of the day. It love that he loves me and he has even started to tell me so even when I don't say it first. Talk about melting my heart!

Hannah is sitting up for longer periods and doing her best to keep up with the boys. She tries to chase them in the walker, but still has a ways to go. Her grabbing is spot on. I can't have anything within reach of her without finding at least one (if not two) little hands on it in the blink of an eye. Everything goes in her mouth...except baby food. Baby food is met with surprise and disgust at first and if I continue, crying. She likes to gnaw on things, so she will suck and chew on anything I but in the mesh teether. Banana's, grapes and bread seem to be her favorites. She's got an opinion about it and she won't let you forget it, but she is still easy going as ever. Not sure how that's possible, but that's the way it is. Oh! Although she occasionally says "ma" or "mama", mostly still makes random (though frequent) sounds. On Monday when Francis was leaving, I was standing by the door holding Hannah. Francis said goodbye, kissed me and then said goodbye to Hannah. She reached for him with so intentionally that I was surprised (usually her arms just wave about) and said "Da!" with delight. Francis and I both smiled and encouraged her to do it again, but she just laughed and started babbling. She knows her daddy. It totally made his day.

One last thing. We cut cable and are now just using an antennae for TV.  We got a Tivo to record shows and have access to Netflix and Amazon Prime so don't feel too bad for us. It's saving us close to $70 a month and we are trying to spend less. I'm missing some of my cable shows, but I know I'll forget about them soon enough. The biggest draw back is that ABC (the network channel) is not coming in like it should. Sometimes it's perfectly clear and other times it's a pixilated mess. Francis has been working on the problem, but so far no solution has worked. It seems silly (so silly I probably should delete this paragraph), but I do want to find a reasonable solution. Ok, no more complaining for me! 

Till next time! 

January 13, 2016

We seem to be adjusting to the new year ok. I'm ready for things to start up again though. I like having a schedule.

Hannah and I were sick the past couple of days, but are doing better now. Francis took some of each day to work and do his research from home so I could get some rest. It's hard to be waylaid, but I needed to stop and regroup and recuperate. Thanks honey. Yesterday morning while I was feeding the dogs, William sprayed Robert in the face with Shout (the stain pretreater) that I was using while doing laundry. We spent the rest of the day flushing out Robert's eyes (he kept rubbing them) and even made a call to poison control. Finally after a good long flushing (the 4th time) and making him not rub it for an hour, his eye started looking better. Yeah, yesterday was rough.

Hannah is sitting up more and more, talking more and more, making sure you pay attention to her, grabbing things with greater accuracy, eating as much table food as she can get her hands on (but baby food is not so desirable), mastering the walker, standing holding onto my fingers, and getting around by a combination of rolling and dragging herself with her arms. she is keeping us on our toes! the boys are so kind and patient with her (she has ruined a couple of their things on accident). They do things to make her laugh and try to include her in their games when possible. Mostly she likes to watch them play and the love to have her watch. Such happy kids, these three.

Robert is in underwear all the time except overnight. He is doing great. I think he's had one accident all week and that was somewhat my fault. He even went twice for his teachers on Sunday. They and we were both very excited and Robert was very proud of himself. His favorite thing to do right now is pretend to be Yoda and hold a small green light-saber belonging to one of the Mr. Potato Heads. It's super cute and his imagination is fun to watch. William plays the "bad guy" and they have mini duels. Someone is bound to get hurt eventually, but for now they having a ball.

William had his first ice skating lesson last night. We got a deal on 8 lessons and William is super excited to learn how to move like daddy. Francis said he did great. He learned to stand up from sitting on the ice and moved along the ice on a dotted line. Francis said he was miles ahead of where the other kids are and took tons of pictures. He was one proud dad, to say the least. Hockey here we come!

I am attending a meeting on Friday the 22nd called Homeschooling 101. Pray that I would have direction on if this is where God is leading us for school next year (and if not, where we are supposed to be). Thank you in advance.

That's all for now. The fun never stops around here and I must re-enter the fray!

January 7, 2016

Happy New Year!
It's been a great 2016 so far. Non of us made it to midnight New Years Eve without falling asleep. We put the kids to bed after we watched a Netflix cartoon countdown and had some sparkling grape juice. We had a couple poppers and threw confetti. I think Francis and I enjoyed it even more than the kids.

New Years day we had donuts for breakfast. We hung around the house and enjoyed each other.  Hannah got the hang of her walker, moving it all over the place at will. She also started sitting up more, but still falls over after a while.

 Saturday Francis's parents came up and brought us the Christmas decorations that we bought on clearance (including a very large, very cool tree). We all met up with Cyndy, Chris and Abby at Chick-fil-a for lunch which turned into a three hour period of laughter and fun. We thought only an hour had passed, so we were quite surprised when we got back in the car! We are going to try to cut cable in order to save money, so Francis and his Dad ran cables and mounted an antenna.

Sunday afternoon (after church), we all attended the birthday party of the boys' friend Jackson. It was a construction party and we all had a great time. Monday we started "school" again. The boys got a bunch of new school supplies for Christmas and they were ready to go. I am getting a good system working, and I hope it holds. The boys play and I get everything set up, then I baby wear Hannah (who refuses to be left out) so I have both hands to help the boys. We do calendar together, and then both boys do their designated tasks (it takes them 15 minutes at most to do them) and then they get to choose another "school" task to do. I don't push them or make them do it, but they love it. We haven't officially settled on Homeschooling for next year, but if they keep up this enthusiasm, it will make the choice easier. It is so fun to watch them learn and have fun.

Yesterday we went to the library where William made me read the same (semi-long) book over and over before we checked it out and brought it home. When we got home he asked me to read it again. I smiled and told him that he might be ready for chapter books soon. He asked what a chapter book was and then said he wanted me to rad him one. I waited until nap time pretty sure that a book with no pictures would put him to sleep. I chose The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe- one of my personal favorites and kid-friendly too. to my surprise William didn't fall asleep. At the end of each chapter he would ask me a bunch of questions about the story and then say, "next chapter please!" I eventually had to take a break, but he kept asking me between tasks so I would read a chapter here and a chapter there. At bed time I realized that there were only 10 paged left...so we finished reading. He LOVED it. Today he begged me to read the next story (A Horse and His Boy). He wanted to read it instead of going to the Children's Museum (we went to the Children's Museum because everyone needed to run off some energy). We are 4 chapters into the book now. He begged me to go on just now, but my jaw hurts! At the pace he wants me to go, we'd read all 7 of the Chronicles of Narnia in a week! He just sits and listens with his eyes transfixed on some far off place. He's certainly my child if he loves stories so much.

Robert is doing ok with his cloth underwear. He does the pee just fine, but I still have to watch him sometimes for the other. It's hit or miss and depends on how much fun he is having. He'll get it eventually. He is getting very chatty about everything. It's fun to hear his thoughts. He also told on William the other day. William owed up to it and even congratulated Robert for telling me (which was pretty funny). Now William can't get away with pushing his brother around, that's for sure.

Hannah girl is growing so fast. She had her first food on Tuesday (other than the mashed potatoes my mom gave her on Christmas day). She had Sweet potatoes. She didn't seem very enthusiastic and shuddered with each spoonful. she has since tried bread (in a mesh chew thing), bananas, apples and regular potatoes (also in the mesh thing), and a taste of peanut butter off my finger. She seems to prefer the sweet. We are trying to give her more "table food" type baby food and hope to help her transition more natural to eating with us (which will also save time and money on baby food). She wants to be like her brothers so much, I have a feeling straight baby food won't cut it for long anyway.

We LOVED having Francis home last week and even this week since classes haven't started, his schedule has been a little more flexible. That has been the best thing about Francis going back to school: the kids and I get more time with him. He's the best.

That's it from our corner of the world.

December 31. 2015

Last post of 2015. A good but full year. We had a baby, moved, Francis quit his job to finish school, and we had kiddos turn 2 and 4. Crazy.

We've been out and about so writing on here has been impossible. Christmas was great. One of the best in fact because we got to see both sides of the family.

We headed to Dallas the Tuesday before Christmas (with a sick but recovering Robert) and made it in time for dinner. Sweetie and Papa were glad to see us as was Aunt Dani. Wednesday, Francis was able to go golfing with his Dad while the boys, Danielle, mom and I decorated cookies. The boys also drove the Gator around the yard. Robert's getting to be a good driver (though William disagrees), but his dismount while William is driving gets him run over every time. Some how he thinks it's funny. William is learning the ins and outs of driving on Papa's land and at one point got the Gator stuck in a ditch such that my dad had to tow him out. This meant William got to drive on the road as he followed Papa back to the house. He was super proud of himself. Danielle and my dad also assembled a small trampoline with a handle that plays music for the kids to play on for years to come. Not an easy task but it was well used. Aunt Camille and Mom and Pop Noble arrive Wednesday and we had a wonderful dinner at Rudy's before chatting the night away by tree light.

Thursday was Christmas Eve. I put together the program for our Christmas eve service, and in addition to every one already there, Christian, and Chad arrived with the twins. The babies have grown since last I saw them, and they are as cute as ever. Hannah took an interest in them, and kept staring when they came in range. Speaking of Hannah, she loved everything about Christmas. She smiled, laughed, chatted and was so content, it was like she'd always been there. Sweet times. After a wonderful ham dinner, we all gathered in the living room (this was the first time have Christmas as Sweetie and Papa's new house) and had our service. Pop prayed, Dad played the piano, Mom Noble did a devotional, Francis read the Christmas story in French, Christian read it in Italian and Danielle and William read it in English. Aunt Camille sang what child is this, Danielle and I sand a duet called, "You're here", we sand many carols and ended with Robert leading us in Happy Birthday to Jesus, a candle lighting and singing of Silent Night. It was a special time focused on the Jesus and the love he showed when he came that first Christmas. Then there were presents. Hannah sat in a walker and watched everyone open presents. I'm proud of the boys; they were so thankful for all they received. I opened Hannah's presents with her and she was very intrigued with both the gifts and the cardboard surrounding them. She won't remember her first Christmas, but I always will. She got toys, clothes (including beautiful dresses), a bow holder,  stuffed animals and a few "busy" toy activity/ luvie blankets.

The next morning, Christian and Chad returned with the twins and Danielle and Camille came back from Danielle's house. Christmas lunch was made by the most amazing cooks. Before we ate, we opened stockings. Robert got big boy underwear (which he has now worn successfully for two days), and candy, which the boys ate right away. Christmas lunch was delicious. Thanks to my mom, Hannah had her first food: mashed potatoes. She was less than thrilled. I have a video. Merry Christmas Hannah; you got to eat food. We haven't tried again since then, but we likely will soon. After lunch, I got my customary coke float, and got to hold the twins and Hannah at the same time (and all sleeping!). It was wonderful, and all too short. The boys played some board games before it was time to go.  We headed out around 2:30 to Francis's parents' house to begin Christmas Part 2. When we arrived, Abby, Cyndy and Chris were there.Christmas dinner was also noteworthy, ending with Jesus Birthday cake and chocolate fondue. We read the Christmas story once more and sang. Then a second round of presents. It is worth noting that the kids only got one present per Christmas celebration (2 total) and they were totally ok with that. This time, the boys got a bunch of Wild Kratt gear and Hannah got more girly baby things.  All three got a gift card to Build-a-Bear from their Aunt Cyndy, Uncle Chris and Abby. Funny enough, Hannah slept through everything, so we had to do some of it (open presents) a second time when she awoke. After the kids went to bed, the adults stayed up and talked and laughed, until we were all tired. I went to bed with my face hurting from 3 full days of smiling.

Saturday morning, the whole Phillips clan headed out tot he mall to use the Build-a-Bear gift cards. William and Robert chose dragon's from How To Train Your Dragon, and Hannah and Abby got corresponding Anna and Elsa Teddy Bears. A great time was had by all and the boys' dragons even have light sabers (crazy, I know!). We eventually left the mall after lunch and they kids napped while Francis's parents and I began a (card) game of 500. Before we finished though, Chris and Cyndy were ready, and the four of us went clearance Christmas decorations shopping while Nana and Grandad watched the kids. We got a new tree for a fraction of the cost (ours was on its last leg)! We got back in time to feed Hannah, before heading out again on a date night. While driving, the warning sirens started going off all around us. I checked my phone, called my dad and when he said we were clear, we hurried to the theater. We saw the new Star Wars. Such a fun movie! The food was good (Studio Movie Grill) and the company (Francis) delightful. Thanks for watching the kiddos Nana and Grandad!

The weather was wretched throughout the next day  (including two bouts of hail) so instead of leaving Sunday, we waited and left Monday morning. This meant one more day of playing with my in-laws. No one complained about that to be sure! Our trip home was smooth and we have since been unpacking and putting things away. Francis has had the week off since the University is physically closed, so we have loved having him around. Today (New Year's Eve), we went to the Chilrden's Museum to ring in the New Year at noon. They did a balloon/confetti drop, the kids made hats and poppers and everyone cheered. It was so fun. Hannah watched with amazement and even sat up for a long while watching. She's getting good at moving around, and not just in her walker. I anticipate a crawler all too soon.. But not until 2016. It's going to be a New Year in less than 12 hours. So long, 2015...I am so glad I experienced you.

Till next year!

December 16, 2015

Good news! It seems William's lying has ended as quickly as it began. Since I last posted, William has not (intentionally) lied and has even corrected himself later when he found out something he said was inaccurate. He has also learned the difference between lying and kidding (when you are kidding you tell the person the truth quickly after and it has to be a joke). Hi sense of humor loves to kid so he was relieved that joking around is ok. He is loving this time of year and has memorized most of what the angels say in Luke 2. he wants to be part of the Christmas story reading this year, Big boy!

Robert has started singing and it's adorable. Favorite tune? Happy Birthday. He keeps singing it to Jesus and my heart melts into a puddle. Robert's favorite word is "too".  No matter what I ask William, Robert repeats it with the word "too?". He doesn't want to be left out and who can blame him. He's getting so big. He's grown almost an inch since September. He's trying to catch up to William!

Hannah girl is growing too. I put her on my hip today and she managed pretty well holing herself up. A hip baby already?! She's sitting up here and there and is so attentive to all going on around her. Nothing's gonna get by this girl. She's smiley as ever and has an easy, jovial laugh. Her brothers do everything to make her laugh, and the sound of children laughing rings through the house like bells. It's not always sunshine and daisies over here (in fact most of the time, its not), but sometimes I think I get a little glimpse of heaven.

Saturday was not heaven. That's an understatement if ever there was one. Francis needed to study for Finals, so I had to keep the kids out pretty much ALL DAY. Oh, and it was pouring rain most of the day. Not sure if you've ever tried to wrangle 3 small children through stores with no stroller (not worth getting it soaked, or so I thought), but it ain't easy. I took them to Sam's Club, Kohl's chick-fil-a, Gander Mountain and the Mall. At Kohl's there were no carts available, and the boys played tag through the clothes knowing I couldn't reach them because I was wearing Hannah on the front of me. A grandmother took pit on me and found an abandoned cart. Bless her! At the mall, the crowd was overwhelming. We were wet, tired and carrying Hannah had taken its toll. There was an area of fake snow for the boys to play in, so while they were occupied, I called Francis. I wasn't sure how I was going to carry Hannah and Robert (who no longer wanted to walk) back to the car. Awesome man that he is, Francis took a break from his studies, picked us up and took us out for dinner as a thank you. Ladies and gentlemen, I picked a good one! FYI Francis did great on finals, and I know his grades will reflect that. So proud of him!

A slice of heaven was experienced yesterday though. After putting the number on our calendar and reading Luke 2, William and Robert came in with blankets on their heads. "We want to be Mary and Joseph." William said. I asked how they were going to do that, and after some thought William decided they could be shepherds and I could be Mary. They brought me a blanket and we tied them on our heads. We got out a tent for a stable, and put Hannah (playing the part of Jesus) in her bouncer (manger) and wrapped her up. Then, oh then, the boys sat and gazed on Hannah much how I imagine the shepherds looked at Jesus. They cooed and whispered, touched and smiled. Hannah smiled (something newborn Jesus probably didn't do) and talked to them. This beautiful harmony of sounds is etched in my memory. I got a picture. It is one of my new favorites. For a moment I did feel like Mary as she "treasured up all these things and pondered them in her heart." (Luke 2:19).

Last night I went to another craft night. I must be a glutton for punishment, lol. This time it was all the ladies of Central Baptist Church. It was so fun to be around ladies of all ages and backgrounds, but I am currently all crafted out for like the next 20 years. My house looks pinterst-y for the first time ever. It will likely never look so put together ever again!

Till next time!

December 8, 2015

A lot of growing has happened in my house this week. Some good, some less good.

I'll start with the negative: William has started to lie. Up until Wednesday I never had to doubt what William said. I knew it was coming someday, but I still don't like it. William cut up something I had just bought. When I confronted him (about a 25cent piece of felt), he said Robert did it. I asked him how Robert did it and the response broke my heart, "I didn't see him do it, but I heard him with the scissors". Another lie. I finally told William that I was going to go pray about it and see what God told me to do. William then came clean that he did it. His punishment was he didn't get to go to Home Depot with Daddy and Robert to do the craft on Saturday. He hated that. He has since been caught lying 3 times and missed out on something fun each time. After his last consequence he stated solemnly, "Lying isn't good. It gets me in more trouble and God doesn't like it. I don't want to lie." I am hoping this was an epiphany, but only time will tell! He is such a smart and kind kid. I want him to use those powers for good!

 Thursday we did a craft (making a Christmas card holder) at MOMS group. It was truly stressful for me. so many choices to be made and then we had to decorate it. I am not crafty (pinterest is almost a dirty word to me sometimes because it reminds me of all the things I can't do). If you ever get something handmade from me, you know I must really like you. I made it through, and the holder is displayed on our fireplace. Whew! Thursday evening our church had "A Night in Bethlehem" for our preschoolers. The kids stepped into a scene from bible times inside the church. There was a petting zoo, bakery, stable scene, live actors, a market, bakery, florist and so much more. The kids got to make crafts at each stop (a fabric ornament, flower wrapping and a cookie), get a picture with Mary and Joseph, buy food at the market with gold coins, and play with animals. Most of all, the kids were able to picture what life was like in Jesus's time. The full size stable and manger gave my kids a picture of where Jesus was born that no model could have. We were able to talk with the boys about Jesus and why we have Christmas. It was so special.

Friday we had a playdate making gingerbread houses. It was so fun to see the boys creativity. Robert is more of a "good enough" builder at this point and William puts in more thought. It will be interesting to see if they continue that when they are older.

Saturday, the boys and Francis put up the Christmas lights (after Robert and Francis got back from Home Depot). I am very impressed with our neighborhood's light displays and feel we might need to up our game for next year. But the kids are satisfied, so all is well. After nap time, we went to "Christmas in the Park" at central Park here in College Station. Oh wow, it was amazing! They had inflatables, hay rides, a snow hill to tube down, free cookies and cocoa, food, shops, and lights galore. When it got dark, the whole park lit up in a beautiful display! What a day and evening we had! We ran into so many people we knew too. I love the small town feel here, and the big town opportunities. It's so nice.

Back to growing. Robert has grown up so much this week. He is communicating so well and looks  much more like a preschooler than a toddler all the time. On Sunday Hannah woke up from her nap fussing. Robert, distressed, got me and pulled me to Hannah. Up until this point, he usually is kind but not overly fascinated with her. He told me, "mommy, Hannah! Get Hannah!" I picked up Hannah and she quieted. Then Robert asked. "Mommy hold her please?" "You want to hold her?" "Yes hold her please." Robert put out his arms and after sitting down, I handed over Hannah. Robert said sweetly, "Oh Hannah, sh sh. Sweet baby. Hannah!" He cooed for a good 5 minutes and it made my heart happy. Since then he wants to hold, talk to, and play with her all the time. He's such a great brother!

Hannah's second tooth came in on Friday. We are both very relieved. She had her 4 month check up on Wednesday. She is now 14lbs 4 oz, 26.25 in long and has a big head like the rest of my smart kiddos. she is getting more coordinated with her crawl, but it is still arms or legs and not both working together. She can sit up for a couple seconds, and the doctor said we can start solid food. We will likely wait just a little bit though as the holidays will be a hectic time to start. Hannah is so interactive. She laughs at us and talks. She is such a joy. If she'd sleep a little more in her crib, though, I certainly would not complain. We'll get there though someday!

I think that's all for now. Pray for Francis as he starts finals on Friday. He has meetings on campus with people from UT, NASA and Boeing this week, so I don't know when he will have time to study. Till next time.

December 1, 2015

ah, December.

So I left off with last Wednesday. I will try to make this as brief as I can. Last Wednesday my in-laws took the kids and I up to Grapevine Mills mall again, this time for the Aquarium. The boys had fun looking at all the animals (Hannah slept again). I think Nana and Grandad had fun too. William and I completed the scavenger hunt, earning us each a medal. Robert promptly took my medal and wore for the next 3 days straight. hehe, not sure what to make of that but he sure was pleased! Wednesday night the kids and I ate with my Dad, his parents (Mom and Pop), my Aunt Camille and Danielle. It was fun and the boys got to drive the power wheels Gator around the garage before we left. It was a fun day!

Thursday was, of course, Thanksgiving. We packed up the car (Francis arrived the night before) and headed from my in-laws to my parents' house for the day. My grandparents, aunt Camille, parents, Danielle, Christian, Chad and the twins were all there. It was great! The boys drove the gator all over my parents' land before it started to rain. William has become a decent driver in just a week of practice. Lunch was DELICIOUS! Thanks everyone! Hannah tried to get her hands in my food but I managed to keep her out. She loved all the attention, snuggled with anyone willing and was an angel. All the kids were great!  After lunch, Christian took a nap and Danielle and I got to do a photo shoot with the twins. It was my first time to do pictures of someone else's kids, but I think they turned out cute (if only because the subjects were so adorable).

Thursday night we headed back to College Station through quite a storm, and Friday we drove up to San Antonio. It's a long drive, but we made it. We spent the weekend with Francis's family fighting the cold and rain. We managed to go to the children's "Doseum", have dinner with Santa and go see a couple of shows at Sea World. we came back Sunday morning.

I've spent the last couple of days trying to put up Christmas decorations, and trying to get the house back in order. I know it will take about a week to get everything reset, maybe longer with Christmas stuff in the equation, but in the mean time the clutter is making me nuts. My kids and husband come first though, and so I'm trying to temper my urge to clean everything in sight right this second with spending meaningful time loving on them.

Till next time!