so, here are the pages for mclayne's book so far. i just need to add more journaling. i thought it would be neat to turn my own handwriting into a font for that...

mclayne eating "dinosaur eggs" with her new sunglasses...elton john is back!
giving cole some love
fishing with a deflated balloon on a string, magnet, + little metal "fish"...she would cast the balloon into the box, hook a paper clip, and run around showing off her catch. i think she's ready for the real thing!

just what the doctor ordered

even though mclayne and i have been pretty sick lately, we all decided to go on a walk today while the weather was good (80 today and snow tomorrow?!). my fever and bronchitis are back and mclayne has hand-foot-mouth virus and a mysterious cough. luckily, besides the fact that he has completely stopped growing, cole has stayed healthy. i think the warmth and sun was just what we needed...well, that and a lot of motrin!

breakin' up is hard to do!

yesterday we threw a little party to help mclayne say goodbye to her crib. we don't seem to have much luck with special occasions - sick on christmas, a bad mood on her birthday, and yesterday...BOTH! but it did help make the transition a little easier. it also helped that we basically turned her big bed into a crib. we made one rail that runs the whole lenght of the bed and another that's a litte shorter so she can get in and out. slap on the bumpers and voila...a big girl crib!

trying to make weight...

i just can't keep up with cole's appetite on my own, so i decided to call in reinforcements. he has a few extra ounces of formula before bed and little cereal in the mornings (as of yesterday). i mixed up a super soupy (say that 5 times fast!) bowl of cereal, and he pounded it! he has his 4 month check-up in 2 weeks and he's eating like a football player trying to make weight!

my silly girl is growing up

laynie has been busy doing all kinds of silly things...


first, we have hat-stuffing. she will fill her hat with just about anything and then walk around trying to balance the huge load on her head. yesterday i think she realized it wasn't the best way to carry things around and she asked me, "mom, where's my rescue pack?"
her attempts to accessorize cole are also very entertaining. i love his face in the corner picture...he's looking around like, "ok, who did this to me?!" luckily he doesn't seem to mind at all.
the other day i heard mclayne laughing...she had laid down right at cole's feet so his usual non-stop kicking was landing on her head. she, and i, thought it was hilarious!
the last picture is of mclayne this morning. she was trying to swaddle a cow with a washcloth. she was struggling a little and as i reached out to help she said, "no, i do it myself!" what? i can't believe it...she is really growing up!

not another evil genius...

cole has grown quite fond of his hands. he chews on them, tries to stuff them in his mouth, stares at them. last night i caught him staring intently at his hands while clasping, caressing, and kneading them together...i'm sure he was plotting to take over the world. not really, we all know mclayne is the real evil genius!

nothing but sweetness...i was way off!

time to really potty-train?

over the past few months i have been slowly introducing the idea of potty-training to mclayne (see previous "whachou doin' withose pannies on yo head?" post). i had been using a little padded seat that just fits onto a regular toilet. to me, it seemed a little awkward/dangerous, so i bought a little stand alone toddler toilet to use also. now i think i'm ready to get serious about this, but have a lot of questions...if she's the right age, treats/no treats, diaper/no diaper...etc. since several of you have successfully trained your cute kids, i am calling on you for advice. you know...what age you started, how long it took, what things worked for you, things you will do different the next time around, things you have heard others try. any help would be greatly appreciated. i can't wait to get some pointers...actually i can't wait until she's potty-trained even more!


eventhough this looks like laynie is pushing out something huge, she has yet to attempt pooping in her toilet. she did tinkle about 10 times all in a 3 minute span. drip by drip we'll get there!

we heart chatham...

ryan went back to work on monday after a week of being sick and found this...the first issue of an M&F subscription, which i was conned into buying last year from an inner-city single mom from philly, with a picture of his head...gotta love chatham! man, i'm such a sucker when it comes to door-to-door solicitors! i have since donated to the construction of a before-school breakfast center in guatemala and bought easter toys from the local avon lady... i tell you, i'm weak! but seeing this made it all worth it!!

more easter pics