Easter

Once again the Easter Bunny was very generous to the McDowell children.  When the girls woke up, they hunted for 64 eggs all over the house!  They also had Easter baskets.  Bailey got the movie Tangled, an egg spinner, a huge lollipop, and a chocolate bunny.  Emily got Bambi, an egg spinner, a huge lollipop, and a chocolate bunny, too!

In the afternoon we went to Mimi and Grandpa's house for dinner.  Mimi and Grandpa gave the kids baskets, too!!

We had a great Easter this year!

Our Pool!

We are getting a pool!  This morning the men showed up with the truck to dig the hole!  It was very exciting.  I will try to get lots of pictures and describe their progress.  Hopefully we'll be swimming by my birthday!!

Here's what the patio looked like before they arrived:

We'd (and when I say "we" I mean Will, Dad, and Uncle Bobby) moved the hot tub and other stuff over the weekend.  Yesterday the girls and I dug up the strawberries and cucumbers we had growing in the garden and transplanted them into pots.

Bailey was very excited to see the tractor being unloaded.

After they drove the equipment around to the back yard, they started breaking up the patio, which was pretty scary stuff!! They basically used the backhoe to pick it up, then dropped it a bunch of times so it would break into pieces.

I left to get Emmy from school and to go to the zoo, and when we got home around 4 pm, we saw this:

And here is the view from my back door right now!

Backyard Fun!

This week has been so hot that I opened the sprinkler Uncle Brian and Aunt Melissa gave the girls for Christmas.  They had so much fun playing with it and cooling off!

3 months old!

Liam is three months old!  I can hardly believe it!  He is such an angel.  He is happy most of the time.  He really loves to "talk" to me, especially when he's on the changing table.  He says, "Ah, goo" and I say it back to him and he laughs.  He is a fantastic sleeper--better than his older sisters ever were and better than Bailey is still!!  He sleeps anywhere from 8-12 hours at night, with a typical night of 10 hours.  I think that's fantastic.  He is super cute, too! :) He adores his sisters but especially Emily.  When he hears her voice, he turns to look for her, and when she enters his field of view, he smiles.  She loves him, too, so it's a great match!

We haven't started rolling over yet.  I wonder if it's because he's SO big... maybe all that extra mass makes it harder, LOL.  He is approximately 18 lbs already!  At this rate he'll be bigger than Bailey by the time he's one!

Liam also loves his bath.  I took a video (it's g-rated) of him in there.  It's not a totally accurate portrayal of how much fun he thinks the bath is because he was super interested in the camera, but you'll get the idea.  Giving him his bath is my favorite "chore" because he is so happy in there.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7jJpW5fqMPk

"I sorry"

Well, tears are flowing in the McDowell household today.  Bailey has been having a tough time listening lately, and today was one of our worst days yet.  It all started at the library this morning, where B was speaking VERY loudly.  I said, "Bailey, you must speak softly in the library."

"OKAY!" she replied.

We did that a couple times until I finally got frustrated and said, "I was going to take you to the mall today, but you just aren't being a good listener!"

"BUT I WANT TO BE A GOOD LISTENER!!" she yelled.

Needless to say, we did not go to the mall.  Unfortunately, her bad behavior continued through Target, while picking Emily up at school, and at home during quiet time.  She didn't stay in her room during quiet time, and then she refused to clean it up afterwards.  Finally, after the 30th or so time that I asked her to clean up, she yelled, "NO!" So I said, "Okay," and went and got a trash bag.  In seconds I had everything from the floor of her room into the bag and I took it away.  She was hysterical, crying that she wanted her toys back.  After she calmed down, we talked about what happened.

"Bailey, do you know why Mommy took your toys away?"

"I don't know."

"What did Mommy ask you to do?"

"Clean up my room."

"And did you clean it up?"

"No."

"That's why I took the toys away.  Do you understand?"

"No."

We had this entire discussion again, several times.  Then I said, "Bailey, do you have something to say to Mommy?"

"I sorry, Mommy."

"Why are you sorry?"

"I sorry that you take away my toys." (LOL)

"No, you are sorry that you didn't obey Mommy.  You're going to have to earn your toys back by being a good listener and making good choices."

I am not sure any of this actually made an impression on her... hopefully it did, though!  I am looking forward to this phase being over, that is for sure!

THANK you, Mommy!

This morning I was folding laundry and I happened to have Bailey's bathing suit--her pink polka-dot bikini--in my laundry basket.  She saw it and said, "Oh, THANK you, Mommy!  My 'polky-nut babin toot!'" LOL! :)

Recent Adventures

This past weekend we went to the Saratoga Springs Resort and Spa at Downtown Disney to visit Aunt Theresa and Uncle Matthew.  We all had a wonderful time.  Daddy and the girls went swimming while Mommy and Liam relaxed in the shade.  It was a beautiful day and a very nice visit with family.  Here are some cute shots we got:

"You know what?"

The other day I had the funniest conversation with Bailey.  We had been talking about going to the zoo and she was very excited about feeding the animals. 

"The animals are hungry!" she said.  "I want to feed them!"

A little while later, we were cuddling on the couch and I whispered, "You know what?"

"What?" she whispered back.

"I love you," I whispered.

A few minutes later, Bailey turned to me and said, "You know what?"

"What?" I replied.

"The animals are hungry!" she whispered.  LOL!!

2 months old!

Liam had his two-month checkup yesterday (hard to believe it's been two months already!!).  He's 23 1/4" long and weighs 15lbs 6.5oz!  He had to get six immunizations: 5 shots and one oral vaccine. :(  But he did great!  Here he is at the doctor's office:

I'm also thrilled because on Monday night he slept from 9:30pm until 6:30am!  On Tuesday night he slept from 9:00 until 5:30!  I'd heard about babies that sleep through the night but honestly I thought they were just a myth! :)

Firsts

Just wanted to share some pictures of some of Liam's "firsts."

Here is his first time in the swing:

His first football game (watching with Daddy and Grandpa Buddy via phone):

His first trip to the zoo (I guess he wasn't impressed):

 His first SuperBowl (he finds it as exciting as I do, I see):

Anchor Baby

When I was pregnant, one of the major news stories was about people having "anchor babies," which meant that they would deliver their babies on US soil, therefore making the child a US citizen.  The idea was that the (illegal) immigrant parents would be allowed to stay in the United States because the child was a citizen.  So Will started joking that Liam was our anchor baby.  For Christmas, I had a onesie made for him:

But Liam was definitely NOT happy about being involved in this little joke:

Smiles

Liam is really smiling now! It's funny how happy a baby's smile can make you feel!

This morning I was changing Liam and Bailey came into the room.  "I poop!" she announced.  So as I was changing her diaper, I was talking to her about being a big girl and using the potty.  Her response?  "No.  I want a diaper 'cause I a baby. I a baby wike Wee-um."

She also did NOT want her picture taken. :)

Liam's First Valentine's Day

Liam celebrated his first Valentine's Day today! Here he is at our friends' house--we went there after school for lunch and play time.

Emily and Bailey at the zoo

Today we went to the zoo with Mimi and Grandpa.  Emily and Bailey had a great time!  They got to see some birds up close, including a falcon; fed the 'aminals' in the petting zoo; posed in the butterfly garden; and checked out the cheetahs, lemurs, snakes, and elephant before heading home.  It was a fun day!

One Month Old!

Liam is officially one month old!  He is doing great and growing like a little weed!!  He is 21 1/2" long and weighs 13lbs 1 oz!  The doctor said he is "perfect" which really made me happy and proud.

 

He loves to "play" on his mat and with his sisters--looking at them is probably his favorite activity right now!  Last week he smiled at me, which made my day.  Hopefully we'll start seeing a lot more of those adorable grins soon!

Liam is also a good sleeper.  He sleeps 3-5 hours at a stretch at night, and usually goes back down pretty easily after being changed and fed.  He's up most of the morning and then naps most of the afternoon.  He especially loves to be held while he's sleeping but he also sleeps well in his crib, carseat, or swing.  He is not too fond of the bouncy seat.

Emily and Bailey love their baby brother.  When we took him to the doctor for his two-week checkup, B climbed right onto the table with him, got into Dr. Lewis's face, and said, "That my baby brother!  What you DOING to my baby brother?" LOL!!  And today I was feeding him and she noticed that I didn't have a burp cloth.  So she said, "Where the white towel?" and went and got one for me!  Emily loves to give him kisses and wants to hold him all of the time. She is also great at finding his binky and helping me get anything I might need for him.

All in all things are going well and I think we've all adjusted to being a family of five.

Taste buds

Emily is learning about the five senses at school this week.  Today when she got home she told me all about the sense of taste: "Mommy, I have these things on my tongue that are BUDS!  And they help me to taste if something is sweet, sour, salty, or pepper!" LOL :)

Liam is here!

William Kenneth McDowell V joined our family on December 31, 2010.  He was born at 9:22 pm and weighed 10 lbs 2 oz!! and was 20" long.  He has stolen our hearts and we are all just thrilled that he is ours!

Poor Liam got off to a rough start.  Because of his size, he suffered from a condition called TTN, which basically meant that he had excess mucus in his lungs.  The pediatrician explained that for most babies, that mucus is squeezed out during the birthing process, but because Liam was so large, he had larger lungs and therefore more mucus than other babies.  So shortly after he was born he was hooked up to all sorts of monitors and even an oxygen tube to help dry some of that out. The doctor was concerned because he was breathing too quickly and he wasn't getting sufficient oxygen saturation.  

After nearly 36 hours of treatment, his breathing improved and they started letting him eat.  Liam had to get a feeding tube down his throat :( and they gave him small amounts of formula to see how he would tolerate it.  Finally, he was deemed well enough to leave the nursery and stay in my room with me.  I was thrilled--and so were the girls, who FINALLY got to meet their baby brother!

I started nursing him right away to make up for lost time.  He took to it like a champ but because we'd been apart so long, I didn't have any milk yet.  Overnight he became dehydrated and developed jaundice. He had to return to the nursery and was placed in phototherapy to help eliminate the jaundice.  It was more formula, too, although I was allowed to nurse him first and then they supplemented him with formula. 

On January 3, I was released from the hospital but Liam had to stay.  Leaving without him was one of the most difficult things I have ever had to do.  I went back to the hospital that night after the girls were in bed and spent about five hours with him. I held him and nursed him as much as they would allow.  The next morning I went back and I was overjoyed to hear that he had been released, too!  We went to see his pediatrician that day and she gave him a clean bill of health.

We are all adjusting to our new family member but we couldn't be happier.  The girls love him--Emily wants to hold him all of the time and Bailey keeps saying, "That my baby brother!"  If I come out of his room without him, she'll say, "Oh, no! Where's Liam?"  Overall he seems like a very content baby.  He's sleeping and eating well and I couldn't ask for a cuter child! :)  We are so blessed!!

Frosting

This morning I had the following conversation with Emily:

"Mommy!  The grass is all WHITE!"

"Yeah, it got really cold last night so we got some frost.  Cool, huh?  That's the closest we get to snow down here."

"Look! Jake and Julie's [our neighbors] yard has frosting, too!"

Emily's 5th birthday PARTY!

Emily had a great birthday party at My Gym.  They played all sorts of games and also got to spend some time exploring the gym and doing whatever looked like fun!  Miss Alyssa and Miss Shannon made it a fun time for everyone.