Outside Part 2

I couldn't download all the pictures on the first blog so this is continued.  Tor got some time with Brock outside also.

Bridget was down for her nap and Jillian was playing in the sandbox when she got some sand in her eyes.  I put in some drops and had her sit with me in the deck chair.  It took only a couple minutes and she was out.  Sophie was too.  Then Tor went down for his nap and all three were napping at the same time!  So I sat down with Jillian and Bob said I had a nap too.....ahhh...

Tor loves being outside.

Tor loves to sit outside and watch the girls and dogs.  He is getting so good at using his hands that you have to be careful when you're eating or he'll grab it.  He can pick up what he wants to have and now loves tabs on things.

Here is the morning wake up.  The girls want to watch a cartoon.  Bridget wanted to hold Tor and he sat with her for a long while, sometimes watching TV, and Bridget did a great job of being gentle.

More Food

Sometimes you think, why didn't I think of this sooner.  With all their sand cooking I remembered their kitchen in the house was light and portable so I put it outside by the sandbox.  They spent a lot of time making all sorts of goodies and now they could bake them and wash the dishes. 

Sandbox is Great

Jillian and Bridget spend a lot of time in the sandbox.  The theme changes weekly and lately it's been food and drinks.  Today Jillian gave me a choice of many foods she had prepared, so I chose the salad and she handed me the rice mixed with salad.  I took a spoon and pretended to eat every last bite and she grinned at me, like you know it's not real.  A few days ago I had my choice of Starbucks drinks.  Today Bridget was in the mix, picking berries and making a blueberry cake.  She put the berries on the top very carefully spaced in a neat circle too.  We thank Papa Ken again for the big load of sand he delivered when we got the sandbox.  Best investment made!

Big Boy at the Table

Tor got to sit at the dining table with the whole family for dinner for the first time. Now that he's had lots of practice sitting up in his activity center, we figured he'd be fine in the high chair. He did good there, but was so excited to finally be up with all of us, that he was leaning all over the place. Still, he had a great, big smile on his face! The girls were also very excited to have their little brother join them ... in fact, they argued over who Tor would sit by. As this photo shows, Bridget was the lucky one this time.

Soccer Practice

It was Jillian's first soccer practice with her new U6 girls team. We really like the fact that they practice so close, next to Olympic Elementary. There are 5 girls on Jillian's team, and 2 coaches. Jillian doesn't know anyone on the team, but that didn't stop her from having a fun time with the other girls. She did pretty good at the soccer drills, and she listened to directions (which she reminded Daddy that she's always doing good at that). When practice was over, she yelled out "I love soccer!"

Fun Day

Bridget cracked us up Thursday as she stood there circling her arms backward like a volleyball approach.  When I asked what she was doing she said she was practicing her moves.  Next she drops to the floor and does leg lifts.  Who knows what's going through her head?  Funny girl at times.

The twins and Rielee came to play.  Rielee and Jillian are quite the organizers.  First they got all dressed up and then it was school time.  Jillian is apparently the teacher and Rielee has Sophie who was the student.  ( I hope the stick was just a pointer.)  Meanwhile, Bridget and Ava are content to play with blocks.

Next it was everyone to the playfort and the new slide.  Jillian and Rielee had fun going down together.  They all did it and had fun.

Lastly, they ended up out front riding on everything.  These are a lot of scary drivers, but no accidents.

During all these activities of the big kids Tor enjoyed watching them do everything.  He loves to be outside with all the girls.  Also, now he likes to sit in his high chair in the kitchen watching what's going on.  He enjoys this driving toy, as when he pulls a lever or turns the wheel, the little man in the car does roaring sounds and moves and Tor's eyes get wide watching it.

Solid Food

Tor had his first taste of solid food this evening. Mommy made him some rice cereal with formula and fed it to him after his bottle. The first couple bites, Tor wasn't so sure about it, chomping his lips and giving a concerned look. But then he started getting excited and opening up for more. We found that he's already pretty good at eating solids, as most all of it stayed in his mouth and went to his tummy ... there was very little mess, and not much scooping it back in. After Tor was done, he had a very satisfied look on his face.

Final Swim Lesson

Besides Tor enjoying the new swing, the bar is fun to swing on and go over to the other side.  She can't quite do a pull-up yet but she's working on it. 

Bridget and Jillian wanted to paint some rocks that they had washed, for a present to someone that shall remain nameless, for Valentine's Day.  When Bridget has a project she is patient and thorough, making sure she doesn't leave a spot unpainted.  It seems at times she doesn't have any concentration skills but when she is doing something she likes to do she is all business.

Here is Bridget at swim lessons Thursday going in without the instructor holding one hand.  She will usually go under when she does it this way but it doesn't seem to bother her.  She has learned to be very comfortable in the water. 

Jillian couldn't go to the final swim class since her and Daddy were going to school for Jillian's readiness testing for Kindergarten.  They have a free swim on the last day and Daddy would usually go in the water with them so Ty got this opportunity.  At first Bridget didn't want to go without Jillian and she wasn't sure about Ty but she had a great time playing ball and swimming with Ty.  They spent most of the time in the deep end which wasn't so crowded.

Play-Doh Professional

One of Bridget's favorite things to do at Grannie and Papa's house is to play with Play-Doh. She'll spend hours with it (if you let her). This contraption is a hair styling salon, and Bridget created quite the hairdo.

Tor's New Swing

Tor has a new swing at Grannie and Papa Woodruff's house. Even though he really hasn't ridden in a swing much before, he really seems to like it, even when he gets pushed pretty high.  And when it slows to a stop, he enjoys just chilling out and watching his sisters running around.

Good Ideas

Aunt Dianne comes up with the best ideas.  One day Jillian was throwing rocks in the pond, a no-no, so I asked her why she kept doing it.  She answered, "Because I never get to throw rocks in the water."  That was a good reason so I got a bucket of water and they threw in rocks until it was full.  But talking to Dianne she said she gives the twins soapy water to wash rocks in.  Aha!  This is even better because now the rocks are clean.  Cute pose again by Jillian.

Ty's House

 Jillian gave Ty instructions on how she wanted the house built and it was to have a roof which was no easy task.  I love Jillian's pictures now, as she's learned how to smile and look at the camera, which can't be said for Bridget yet.

 They were so excited to decorate the inside of their house and have snacks.  Jillian even put up signs outside the door that said no boys allowed, except she made an exception for Ty.

Tor is the happiest baby unless he's hungry.  He loves to interact and talk.  Tierney is making him smile and almost laugh.

Swimming Girl

Believe it or not, this is a photo of Jillian swimming with her face in the water!

A couple days ago, Daddy made a deal with Jillian that if she put her head underwater every time her swim teachers asked her to, then she could get a Glow Pet (something she's been wanting for a long time). Jillian was very excited about this, and couldn't wait to get to the pool and start going underwater ... she explained to us many times exactly how she was going to do it, and then practiced doing it at home. At swimming lessons, as soon as she was in the pool, she plugged her nose and closed her eyes and went under about half-way. Daddy told her how far she went under, so she tried again, going a little farther. This continued throughout the lesson until the end, when she put her head all the way under. Jillian was shaking from excitement about doing this. She ended up picking out a penguin Flashlight Pet. When we got home, she said that going underwater wasn't so bad.

Now, just a couple days later, Jillian is going wild about going underwater. She doesn't even bother plugging her nose, and she doesn't even think twice about getting water in her eyes. What a change! Her swim teachers are thrilled, and now Jillian wants us to watch her do all sorts of underwater tricks. This photo was taken at Rielee's pool, and after just a short time in it, she took off her water wings so she could go underwater easier. She was having so much fun getting her face in the water, she didn't want to stop.

Good morning

Here's a photo of Tor waking up in the morning, with a big smile on his face as always. He is very good-natured in the mornings.

By the way, this is a first attempt at posting to the blog from our new smartphones. Heather's old slider phone was failing, and we figured we could switch to Virgin Mobile and upgrade for about the same price. Seeing how easy it is right now to post, maybe there will be a lot more blog posts from now on?

Cousins at the Beach

Jillian was thrilled to have Rielee at Cousins at the Beach days.  The first day they spent a lot of time chasing waves when it was nice without the wind.

It was surprising how long Jillian kept playing Monopoly with Rielee, Auna, and James.  Somehow James managed to get all the girls' money by trading.  Jillian was willing to trade any property for some money.  Lessons in life.

 Daddy had built a wind break for Bridget to get behind when the wind picked up.  We couldn't figure out what she was doing as she would put her face and fingers close to the sand and just wiggle her fingers.  It must have felt nice.

 On Sunday Daddy and the big kids dug deep holes in the sand and made tunnels between them.  On one end of the hole the girls made their own kitchen.  They had a microwave, oven, refrigerator, and pots of something cooking.  They even stuck sticks in the sand for coat hangers. 

 Tierney left early before she got to go to the beach.  This moat wasn't very big but they all got on top, even Sophie.

Outnumbered

We were thrilled to have all three for the day, but outnumbered, as Daddy went to school to plan.  The girls got to watch a video while Tor got fed and changed.  It went great all day except for a short time of chaos and then mostly calm.  Ty came for awhile and played with the girls in the play fort.  Tor ate and then took a long morning nap.  Then Tierney came to play with Tor when he woke up.  She took him to the mirror to see himself.  He got wide-eyed when he saw his reflection.
 
Then Tierney took Tor to visit Aunt Robin.  When she came back, Tor was ready to eat and nap again, so Tierney did Play-Doh with Bridget while Brock played with Jillian in the sandbox.

Jillian spent a lot of time in the sandbox while Bridget was sleeping.  In this picture she is making a town with roads, a lake, waterfall, and river.  She had people all over, some buried in the sand to be found. 
Also, she was making sure I was doing everything right with Tor all day.  When I filled the first bottle she was upset because I put the powder in first and then the water.  She informed me that it was to be the water first and then the powder.  Later she asked if I was doing it right, after I fed Tor at least a couple of bottles.  When I teased her and said I put the powder in first one time she got very disgusted with me until I explained.