First Day at Mother's Day Out

Today was the boys' first day at Mother's Day Out since we all had colds last week. I packed the boys lunches last night to make our morning routine a bit easier.  I tried to get a few pictures this morning before their first day of "school" but they just weren't having it.  Although they've been playing with their backpacks (or "packpacks" as they call them) for weeks now, they were more intrigued by what was in them.  They opened their lunchboxes (which they usually just use to tote their cars around in) and found their packed lunches.  They were very upset when I had to take them away so we could get in the cars and go!

 

 

 

When we got to the church, Brandt started playing with toys immediately and Carter just wanted to hang out with me.  I got him playing with some legos and while they were both preoccupied, I slipped out. I heard Carter start crying.  I peered in through the little window in the door and saw him with his back turned to me and he was crying so hard!  This made me start bawling and all I wanted to do was go in and comfort my sweet little boy, but I knew better.  I left with Elina and with mixed emotions of whether or not this whole mother's day out idea was good.

Carter when he was playing with Legos before I left.  These pictures are so blurry because Elina slimed my phone right before I took them :)

Brandt already having fun with toys.

After I left I was able to run to the bookstore (so much fun with only one child!) and I got PottyWise so we can start thinking about potty training.  Then I met up with another medical widow friend, Amanda Eichenberger and we had lunch at Very Vera with our little girls, Elina and Vera



Miss Elina and her first time sitting in a high chair at a restaurant!

Her new cheesy grin

So cute!

After lunch it was time to go back at pick up the babes. When I arrived, they were both crying and once again it broke my heart!  We'll try again next week and hopefully it will go better!

Elina at 8 months

I've been so bad at writing a monthly post for Elina.  Poor child.  She has such a fun personality and enjoys attention wherever she can get it...unless she doesn't know the person.  Last Sunday we put her in nursery for the first time and she cried unless she was in a stroller being pushed around.  She definitely has a major case of stranger anxiety!

Here's more about our little princess:

• She says "Da-da" quite often.  Once again I lose out to "da-da."
• She crawls everywhere!  Her crawl style is a version of the army man crawl where she lays on her belly and brings her legs up toward her sides and then pushes forward. Because I'm constantly being pulled in different directions by the boys, she is often left behind in a room and crawls all the way wherever the boys and I go.  I make it a point to be really excited when she finally reaches us to let her know how proud we are of her and she gets the biggest smile!
• She has developed the cheesiest smile. It is kind of a smile/angry face hybrid
• No longer eats baby food.  She has to eat whatever we are eating. Today for lunch, she ate a half sandwhich.  She doesn't even like it cut up!
• Can crawl to sitting.  The boys were closer to 10 months old before they started doing this.
• Yesterday, I saw her pull herself to her knees.  She's growing too fast!
• Has finally learned to drink from a sippy cup!  This is huge for me because now I can leave her if I need to.
• Makes the funniest noise at the dinner table if she wants more food.  She'll raise both arms, purse her lips and start breathing loudly out of her noise.  This is our cue that she wants more of something and we better get it before she really gets mad!
• Loves receiving attention from her brothers.  Carter is usually really good with her and gives her toys and shows her how to play with them. She wants to do anything her brothers are doing: sandbox, watching a movie...you name it.  If they are doing it, she wants to as well.

First Thoughts on Augusta

Likes

• People here are friendly.  You always hear about how people in the South are friendly and it is SO true! I was trying to explain to my sister how people are different and friendly and I explained that people will just strike up a conversation with you when you are out.  She ask, "Isn't that weird that people you don't know act like they want to talk to you?" and at first it definitely was! Now, I've gotten used to it and you really notice when someone isn't friendly.
• One of the biggest things we noticed since moving to Small Town, USA is that it is overwhelmingly Christian here.  What a big (and welcomed!) change from Phoenix and Chicago.  Places shut down on Sunday and you are expected to go to church! And yes, there is a Baptist church on nearly every corner!
• This kind of goes along with the last point, but the Sunday services at a few of the local churches are broadcast on TV on Sunday morning.  How cool is that?!
• The town is very family oriented and there are many different programs for children and moms.  We've already joined:
• a Mother's Day Out program.  Whoever the woman was to think up this program is a God-send and a lifesaver! For a few hours each week, the boys are going to go to First Baptist Church of Augusta. I'm going to sign up Elina in a few months when she is no longer nursing.  Anyway, this will allow me to go to appointments, grocery shopping, clean the house, even take a nap!  Today was the first day the boys were supposed to go, but they caught a cold.  Can't wait for next week!
• MOPS.  I joined a Moms of Preschoolers.  We've already met some of the other mom's at a playdate and just love them.
• Side by Side.  This is a Bible study/support group for wives of those in the medical field.  I belonged to the chapter in Glendale, AZ and it was such a huge support for me when Eric was in medical school. I'm excited to meet the other medical wives in the area.
• We've been thoroughly impressed with the food here in Augusta.  Although we don't eat out/order in food often, the places we have tried has been good!  There is any type of food, too!  We've got an Indian and Thai food place just down the street! Oh, and Eric and I had a hankering to make pho over the weekend and we were able to find ALL the ingredients to make it!
• Everything is so close, I fill up my gas tank 1-2 times a month.
• Our neighbors are awesome!  We've already commissioned their teenage son to cut our grass.  With Eric's work load, we figured it would be good if he didn't have to worry about the lawn.
• The kids' pediatrician is so nice.  She's definitely a Suth'n lady and is dolled up with major amounts of jewelry the way the ladies wear it here.  All the kids loved her and she's in a brand new office that is no nice.
• There are about 21,534 country music radio stations here and they are all good! Much better than KNIX or KMLE back in Phoenix that would only play the same 5 songs.

Dislikes

• It is HOT!  Very hot!  It gives Phoenix a run for its money with the heat plus humidity.  It really will be so much nicer when it cools down.
• Shopping here is limited.  We have everything we need, but it would be nice to have an Ikea, Nordstrom's and all the other big city stores here.  Oh well, with Eric's pint sized resident's salary, we really wouldn't be shopping there anyway.  They are building a Costco that should be completed in November.  We are VERY excited about that!
• Because it is such a small town, it is rather difficult for our family to come visit.  That is probably the biggest bummer!
• The roads here are ridiculous.  I guess I'm biased, though, because I'm used to the grid system back in Phoenix.  No roads here run North/South or East/West.  They all turn into a road called by a different name or change direction.  Very strange to get used to.
• There are some major ghetto areas.  We don't live near them, but they are all around the hospital where Eric works. 

Overall, we really like Augusta so far and am really glad this is where Eric matched!

Pop and Maw-Maw Come to Visit!

And the boys have been talking about it since they left.  Pop, Maw-Maw and their car are brought up in conversation quite often.  They also like to "talk" to Pop on the phone.  They pick up the house phone or my cell phone and say, "Pop, Hi!  Pop, Bye-Bye!"

Eric's parents visited a few weekends ago. I tried to get the boys excited about the visit by talking about Pop and Maw-Maw and how they were going to come over to our house. It was priceless to see their reaction when they saw Pop and Maw-Maw drive up. It was like they were saying, "Could it really be them!" They love their Pop and Maw-Maw so much and have such a special bond with them. 

The weekend was filled with visiting, playing, hugs and kisses, piggy-back rides, snuggling and rough-housing.  The children just couldn't get enough of them!

Getting rides from Pop

Swimming at the hotel pool

Pop tried to tire out Brandt...his attempts were futile :)

Carter "jumping" into the water

Big Girl!!

Holy moly they are sitting!



This picture was taken as we were getting ready to take a drive to Strom Thurmond Lake.  It's only 20 minutes north of us and was a great place to let the boys play in the water...for only 3 bucks!

We had such a good time when Pop and Maw-Maw were here.  Can't wait until they visit again!



Murphy's Village

Last weekend, we took a family drive to see Murphy Village.  It's only a 15 drive from us.  The article I linked to is about the best one I've found to explain the Irish travelers who live there. In the article it explains the lifestyle of the people.  This post I found explains how they build these huge homes and then live in a trailer for a year to let the demons leave the new home. 

It was very interesting and kind of spooky to drive through this neighborhood. Oh, and ALL of the homes had religious statues in front of their home.





A trailer home



A boarded up home

Another boarded up home.  The homes are also boarded up while the gypsies are traveling the country during the summer.  They come back in the winter.

All boarded up!

Here you can see a trailer behind the mansion.

A trailer home with a statue just to the left of the porch

Boarded up!

Such beautiful homes

From our last days in IL...

I found a few pictures from a few days before we left Illinois.

The kids loved to sit with Pop in his chair

Elina hanging out with Mimi when she got into town to make the big trip with us

I love him!

The boys got tons of tractor rides before they left

Brandt upset that his turn was over!

Elina's angry eyebrows crack me up!  She is her mother's daughter!

Grandma...or Maw-Maw as the boys are now calling her...with Elina

Having some evening fun with Pop and Maw-Maw!

More Random Pics from My Camera

The little men having a "nack"

Miss Elina hanging out while I unpack her room

Lil Miss again

This is what our windows look like in the morning.  It's just a little humid here :)

These kiddos are the best company anyone could have!  One morning (apparently while we were unpacking...wait a sec, that box is still in the dining room!), we were being silly and trying to get our spoons to stick to our noses.

Mr. Brandt giving it a shot

One morning, I found Brandt had gotten into my makeup and had put on lipgloss! Ha!

The boys store their valuables in their cars.  One day, I found salad dressing they'd gotten from the fridge in their car!

I was cutting up a lemon one day and the boys were bugging me for a taste.  I gave them each a wedge and later found them trying to feed it to Elina!

Whenever the boys can, they like to throw all of our shoes into our bathtub.

Oops! This pic came out sideways.  This is Eric at work! I can't believe the amazing things he has the skill of doing.  He impresses me everyday with his determination to learn this specialty.

The little men can be kept busy for quite a while when they "wash" dishes.  It's a good way to get Mommy to mop the floor!

Homeade cheez-its.  They are so easy and way better than the boxed ones!

Lil Miss in her handstand pose.  She is now fully mobile and follows her brothers everywhere!

Eric's mom sent this adorable jumper.  I was playing around and added a "sweat band" and "leg warmers" for fun.  Does she look like she's about to go excerising circa 1982?

Elina is completely off of baby food except for cereal in the morning.  If you try to give her pureed food, she gets really mad.  She wants to eat whatever her brothers are eating.  She'll even eat whole crackers!

A few weeks ago, we converted Brandt's crib and Carter likes to get in it with him :)

Carter likes to wear his daddy's shoes