new skills

 

Charlotte has just discovered how fun, and funny this can be. She loves to get a laugh out of anyone, and so repeats anything that makes you laugh or smile. In addition she has ahd quite the language explosion over the last two months. She can say just about whatever she wants to or tries to. I look forward to being able to include some funny comments soon.

a big baby

 

Charlotte still loves to hold Timothy. But now she says "a big, a big baby, a big boy"-we then reply, yes , yes he is a big boy. Timothy eats it up anytime his sister is being sweet to him-she laughs, he laughs.

dancing with gleeeeee-weeeee

Charlotte loves to dance and so does Isa. They have also recently been hit by the dress up bug. Combine dressing up and dancing and it is a party!!! The girls had so much fun yesterday that my cheeks hurt from laughing at them and with them.

rolls of fun

 

 

 

Man, I love these rolls. I love how much he is looking like Reid. And I love how his sleep is getting better and better.

potties with friends

Charlotte and her friend Isa are both in the thick of potty training. Here they are sharing some quality potty/reading time together. Pretty darn cute.

If you want to stock up on handmade for next X-mas

Check out a few etsy shops:

Mountain Aven Baby for clothes
Woman Woodworker for deals on wooden vehicles
Manic Muffin Totes fun pillows
Aurelia and Annalise for shoes
Natural Kids Toys for, you guessed it ;o)

Okay, I am done now-expect pics of kids coming back soon.

do you want to buy or sell handmade toys after Feb. 10th????

Usually I stay off my soapbox here, but this legislation demands a little attention. Just take a quick minute to read and decide for yourself.

There is forthcoming legislation that will take action as of February 10th that threatens to bankrupt tens of thousands of independent toymakers and importers. If you hope to buy local and/or handmade products for children under 12 after mid-February, you may want to keep reading below and take action now.

The Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act (CPSIA), set to take effect on February 10th, will require all product makers to have their products tested and safety-certified, at an estimated cost of up to $4000 per individual design. This move is certain to drive countless independent toymakers,and clothing makers out of business.

The Handmade Toy Alliance says that the law could be improved by exempting small businesses and by recognizing that certain manufacturing processes shouldn't require lead paint testing. (Like if your toys aren't painted or don't use plastic.) If we don't take action the law will remain unchanged. And come this February you can expect your store shelves empty of handmade goods or those from small companies. FYI: Walmart was implemental in getting this bill passed-hmmmmmm.

Here is a good link for taking action-please don't wait!!!! At the very least just go to the site and sign the petition:

:: Handmade Toy Alliance: How You Can Help

Jump

Well after trying for days on end to upload this video and cursing at my slow dinosaur of a computer, I finally resorted to a slower but more reliable method. If you are tuning in and don't see the video yet-that is because it is still loading-going on 1 hour!!! In the meantime....

Timothy certainly enjoys his jumping seat (which you will see if I can get the video loaded). He sits in it and bounces for 30 minutes to 1 hour at a time. He loves it so much that he cracks himself up (of course he wouldn't do it on camera). I may have said this before, but Timothy laughs so easily. You just have to make a funny noise or face and he laughs. In general he seems to be more emotive than Charlotte was at his age. For all that good humor he also has a temper.

He gets angry if a toy is taken from him, or if he doesn't get his food quick enough,or if he is just plain tired of being in the car seat. He has also had some stranger anxiety lately. This is a new experience for me to witness. We were in the grocery store and he rode in the cart on the other side of the checker while I was paying-oh the look of terror on his face. Also, he is no longer okay with unfamiliar people holding him. Which is a bummer for me-and has all just surfaced in that last week or two. Needless to say, I don't think he will be the social butterfly that his sister is-at least not for a while.

All of this separation anxiety has also caused sleeping problems for him-and so for me. Hopefully we will remedy those soon. A friend suggested that I put a shirt or something in his crib that smells like me. By golly it works-he clutches it while he sleeps. I think tonight I am going to cuddle with one of his crib sheets and put that on his bed tomorrow.

On top of all this, I finally realized (or admitted) around Christmas that Timothy seems to be suffering some major mucus problems due to my dairy and soy consumption. So I have given them up. For those of you who are familiar with my love of cheese, this has been no easy task.

It has made a huge difference. It no longer looks like someone turned on a yellow slime faucet in his nose. People are not as afraid to come near him ;o) and I am sure he feels much better too. I am hoping to reintroduce goat milk products. In the meantime I am taking calcium supplements and drooling over the gobs of cheese that Reid gets to eat.

As for Charlotte, she seems to be doing well. Lots of toddler behaviors and attitudes. We have implemented time-outs with mixed results. And I have found that ignoring annoying behaviors like screaming and whining seems to work. And showering her with praise for her good behavior goes a long long way in improving her jealousy or acting out. She is also completely in big girl panties now, except for sleeping-yeah for us!!! One less in diapers.

Whew-well that was a long one. I have been wanting to write more script on our blog, but do not always have the time. Maybe this will become a new habit-journaling on our blog. I have got to find out if there is a way to save all this journaling-anyone know????

More Boots

So here is a first trial pair of boots. These can be worn 2 different ways. They can be worn with the cuffs up like traditional boots or with the cuffs down more like a shoe. The uppers are wool felt and the outer sole is faux tooled leather. The sole is stitched under and all the seams are on the inside. I am going to make a couple more trial pair, each slightly different. The next pair (or two) will have seams on the outside and a rubber crepe on the bottom-stay tuned and wish me luck.-rene

more sledding with Isa

 

 

sledding

After the bath continued

 

 

 

Charlotte asked for pictures of her to be taken after she noticed me snapping them of Timothy. So here she is posing for photos in her new robe.

After the bath