Busy, Busy, Busy--There's so much to do!!

Well, it's been quite a few days since I've written a journal entry.  Things have been a little busy for the Greenwoods, but that's OK since it makes the days go by a little faster.  We have been enjoying the beautiful weather by going outside.  I can't wait to plant some flowers in our pots and front garden.  We might need to slow down a little to be able to do that.  I think after Easter things will be a little quieter.  I feel like one of the songs that is on Josiah's toys.  It goes, "Busy, Busy, Busy! There's so much to do!" Here are a few things that the kids have done since the last time I wrote.

Josiah:

*A couple of Sundays ago, we were at church.  Normally, we get Josiah out of the nursery during the music time and then bring him back when it's time for the sermon.  Well, on this particular day, he started "singing."  Of course, he wasn't saying the words, but he was really trying to sing along with Chris.  It was one of the sweetest things I have seen!

*One evening he was playing with play dough.  He was trying to cut out some shapes.  He was having a hard time, so he made this frustrated sound.  Well, the next morning when Mommy and Daddy didn't get him out of bed as quickly as he wanted, he made the same noise.  It was all we could do not to laugh. 

*We had a nice spring shower one afternoon when Josiah and I were outside playing.   I decided we would stay outside and play in the rain. We did that for a little bit until it started thundering.  We had so much fun getting wet together!

*Last Friday, we had an Easter party at our house.  We invited friends from church and my MOPS group.  There were 7 boys (including Josiah) that came over with their moms.  I was able to bring out some of my old Easter activities from teaching.  We all had a lot of fun fellowshiping and making crafts. 

*Josiah has been sleeping in his big boy bed since last Monday!  Five days into it, he decided that he was going to get out of his bed.  He did it so quietly that I didn't even hear him until he stepped off from the stair.  I got this panicky feeling because I knew someone was in our house.   He came around the corner and gave me a big smile and said, "HI!"  It was all I could do not to laugh at his sweetness, but I knew if I did he would think he could get out of his bed.  So I stopped feeding Sophie and brought him right back to bed.  We had a talk about how he needs to stay in his bed until Mommy or Daddy come and get him.  Praise the Lord, he hasn't gotten out since then! 

*Last night, we gave Josiah a cupcake for dessert.  Josiah is ALL boy in every sense except he doesn't like to get his hands dirty.  Well, I put the cupcake on his plate and he started eating it like you do in a pie eating contest.  He had us in stitches as we watched him eat his cupcake.  He was very successful in not getting his hands dirty.

*He is off from swim classes this week because of spring break, but each night during bath time, he shows us all that he has learned.  We have signed him up for the April class, so Josiah and Daddy will continue their special time. 

Now for Sophie:

*Sophie is starting to "stand" when we hold her on our lap.  She is so much stronger than Josiah was at this age. 

*She slept 7 hours lastnight!!!  Don't know how long it will last, but we sure did enjoy it!

*She has started taking a bottle every afternoon when Chris gets him.  She is quite the eater!  She will suck the bottle dry and then will nurse until she is full.  She is so different from her brother when it comes to eating!

*Last Sunday, we decided that it was time to just let Sophie cry herself to sleep.  I was in her nursery trying to put her to sleep.  I was trying things that had worked previously (rocking, nursing, sitting her on my lap), but nothing was working.  Chris finally came in and told me to put her down.  That we've tried everything, she was dry and burped, so we just needed to let her cry.  Well, amazingly she fell asleep on her own.  So it's been over a week and she's been putting herself to sleep at night--and during the day.  I guess a part of me was afraid that if we tried the putting her down that it would be crying for hours like it had been, but I'm so thankful that Chris encouraged me to put her down. 

The next couple of weeks will be busy.  Chris' dad and step-mom are coming into town for Easter.  Then my mom, sister and niece are coming for my niece's spring break.  Chris will be going on a youth trip the next weekend and the weekend after that he will be going to presbytery.  Then after that we will be heading to GA for a week.  I guess April is going to be just as busy as March!  I'll try to post pictures and journals when there is some down time.  Until then, we pray that everyone has a wonderful Easter and remembers why we celebrate it--Jesus LIVES

Pencil and Paper

Well, it's getting harder and harder for my ol' brain to remember all that the kids do between each journal entry, so I've started writing down what they do on a piece of paper and hope I can remember what my notes say! If I'm not careful, I won't be able to win any of my disagreements with Chris! 

Sophie:

*Well, she went to her 2 month check up on Monday.  She now weighs 10 pounds 3 ounces and is 22.75 inches long!  She got her 2 month shots, and Chris said she did fairly well.  We were definitely spoiled that day because she went to bed around 5:30pm and didn't get up until 9:00am the next morning--well, except for eating! 

*She has put herself to sleep quite a few times during nap and a couple of times at bed time.  Still not much of a pattern with her yet, but we are working on it. 

*She does wake up full of smiles for us each morning and her brother wants to be the first to kiss her.  She is definitely loved by him.  I will have to save these cute little journal entries and remind them how much they loved each other when they are in their teen years! 

*She does spend more time awake during the day.  We are trying to find a careful balance of how long to let her stay awake.  We've found out that if she stays awake too long, then she gets over tired and then night time is a bear! 

*She has discovered that she can make noises now.  The other night she was saying, "Ahhh!"  After a couple of times doing it, she realized that it was her and she kept smiling and saying, "Ahhh!"  

Josiah:

*Well, he has gone back swimming and REALLY loves it!  He's getting to the point that he doesn't want to get out of the pool.  I need to go get him a wet suit shirt because he gets so cold when he is in the pool.  He usually comes out with blue lips!  He is putting his face in the water, kicking his feet, lying on his back, jumping off the side of the pool and "swimming" on his stomach (Chris is holding him). 

*He is definitely a very observant child.  It is amazing how he knows how Chris and I do things.  The other day, I was brushing my teeth.  When I got done rinsing my mouth, he grabbed the hand towel and gave it to me to wipe my mouth.  Then he was taking a shower the other day.  After I got done washing him, he took the soap and wash cloth and started "washing" himself.  When we get a package in the mail, he goes to the kitchen and points where the scissors are because he knows we need to use them to open the box. 

*Chris had a sad moment the other day with Josiah.  We were walking Chris to the door because he was leaving for work.  Out of the blue, Josiah said in his soft voice, "Bye-bye, Daddy!"  He had never said that to anyone before.  It made Chris sad because he realized that Josiah knew he was leaving.  I told him to not get sad until he says, "Daddy, don't go!" 

*The other night we were getting dinner ready.  Josiah asked for "Fluff," so I made him a Fluffanutter sandwich.  To our surprise, he actually wanted the sandwich and ate 1.5 sandwiches that night! 

*One night we were reading one of our library books before he went to bed.  It was a book about a hat.  This is one of his words from his reading program, so I figured I would see if he could read it.  Sure enough when I pointed to the word, he read "hat."  There was a sentence that said, "No hat!" and when I pointed to that he was able to read those words. 

*One afternoon, Josiah was standing right next to me.  I asked him, "Do you want to draw with Mommy?"  He looked at me, tilted his head and said, "What?"  At that moment, I thought, "Isn't he too young to be doing that?  I thought this didn't start until his teenage years."

*Josiah is quite the comedian.  The other night we were at the dinner table, and Josiah was eating goldfish.  He held one up to feed to Chris like he has so many times in the past.  He got it right to Chris' mouth and then put the goldfish in his mouth and started laughing.  We both looked at each other and started laughing with Josiah.  If we're not careful, we might have a class clown on our hands. 

As you can see, we are staying busy and entertained.  Well, I should get going and try to get a few things done while the kids are napping

Leaps and Bounds

Well, it's time for our "weekly" update.  Josiah and Sophie continue to grow leaps and bounds. 

Josiah's updates:

*The other day he was sitting on the counter and he got ahold of the soap.  He started "pushing" the bottle to get some soap out and then was rubbing his hands together "washing" his hands.

*(My favorite of the week) Sophie as lying on the couch and started crying.  Josiah walks over and takes one of her hands in his.  He started "talking" and then said, "Amen."  He obviously saw her upset and knew to pray for her.  It did my heart good to see all the praying that we do for others has effected him and that was his first response. 

*He did sleep in his big boy bed for one nap, but hasn't done it since.  We'll keep trying though.

*As you might have seen, we got a new van.  Josiah is LOVING it.  He sits up above the window now, so he can see everything that is going on.  When we got out of the van for the first time, he started crying.  Now, when we go outside, he wants to go in the van.  I guess both Mommy and Josiah are enjoying the new van. 

*He started his swim class.  Surprisingly, he cried when he first got into the pool.  As much as he loves the water and loved swimming last summer, we were really surprised.  By the end of the lesson though, he didn't want to get out.  So we think he is going to like his lessons.  (Pictures under Josiah's March album).

*Josiah held Sophie for the first time.  It was the sweetest thing ever.  Since then, he asks to hold her. 

*He also has started flossing his teeth.  I decided the other day to  try it.  He NEVER wants to open his mouth for us or the doctor to look into, so I wasn't at all expecting him to let me floss his teeth.  Well, he did and wanted me to keep flossing his teeth.  It has even inspired me to keep flossing my teeth with him.  Our next visit to Papa T should be a good one!

*On Sunday, Josiah did a craft during Sunday School about when God fed the Israelites manna.  Well, his craft had a tent with some "manna" (oatmeal) sprinkled on it.  When we picked him up, I was making a big deal about his craft and asked him what it was.  He pointed to the "manna" and said, "Food."  I had no idea what the lesson was about, but read the slip we were given about his lesson and sure enough he was right!  It was amazing that he remembered his Bible lesson. 

Now, for Sophie:

*She was having tummy time this week.  She lifted her head and turned it back and forth.  There are pictures in the March album for you to look at to see how much she enjoyed it. 

*She has really picked up on smiling.  It's not just a reflex now.  She smiles when we talk with her.

*She has also started cooing when we talk with her.  It's neat to see her starting to interact with us. 

*She is also starting to track with her eyes. 

*This week, she was lying on the couch again.  Josiah came over and was "talking" to her.  She obviously liked what he was saying because she started smiling at him. 

*She is sleeping around  4 hours at night.  We did get a couple of treats of 6.5 hours, but that isn't the norm at all.  We've had some trouble getting her to go to bed at night, but the last three nights she has been in bed by 8:30pm, so we feel like we are heading in the right direction.  We praise the Lord for helping her to get to sleep at a decent time. 

 

Need My Space

 Well, the Greenwoods have purchased a new van.  Well, not a brand new van, but new for us.  We went on Carmax. com to look for a van and then went to test drive a couple.  We started with a 2009 Honda Odyssey and decided that it would be way too much.  Then we drove a 2008 that was owned by a smoker.  We didn't want to take the chance that the smoke wouldn't come out.  So our dealer did some research and found  a 2007 Honda Odyssey, but it was in Charlotte, NC.  We had the van shipped up to us and it got here 5 days later.  We went back to Carmax and test drove the van and decided that it was perfect for us.  So we ended up getting it.  We have taken it to our mechanic, and he said that we got a great car!  Chris asked me what I thought of having a van, and I told him that "I'm glad that I'm moving out because I need my space!"  I was referring to packing the kids up in the Camry all the time.  Our double stroller took up most of the trunk space--now I can have it in the back with room to spare!  Josiah is liking his new van.  He actually started crying when I took him out of it.    We  feel very blessed to be able to get a bigger vehicle.  It's amazing how much you need to pack up when you have two kids.  Please look in the "March 2010" Family Albums to see pictures of our van.

6 Weeks, already?

Well, we can't believe that we have been parents of two for six weeks!  Where has the time gone?  It just  seems like yesterday that we were deciding whether we wanted to have my water broken.  Things are going well for the Greenwood family.  Sophie is still having a little trouble with sleeping, but we keep working on trying to find her time to go down  to sleep each night.  Last night, we did put her to bed around 5:30pm and she slept for 15 hours!  So we are going to try it again tonight and see if it her time to go to bed.  She did an awesome job of sleeping 3.5 hours, eating and going right back to sleep!  She is getting to be quite the strong little girl.  The other day I went to  get her up from her nap, and she had turned herself sideways in the crib.  She is definitely a little stronger and more active than Josiah was at this age.  She is awake more during the day and has started giving us smiles.  Her eyes continue to be a bright blue, so we are hoping that they stay that way.  Even though we have times that we are exhausted at night trying to get her to go to bed, we are very thankful that she is a part of our  family.  Josiah...well, let's just say the trying twos have entered the Greenwood home.  He is really testing to see if  boundaries are really boundaries with Mommy and Daddy.  We've had to put him in time out more than  normal and even had to give him a spanking here and there.  Once he realizes that we mean what we say and say what we mean, his sweet little self comes back.  We would much rather get his behavior under control now than later on.  He continues to make us laugh and just impress us with his knowledge.  *The other day we went outside and it was a little windy.  He must have gotten a little cold because all of  sudden he was saying, "Brrrr...." *A couple of weeks ago, Chris brought Josiah to the church for a youth fundraiser.  Parents dropped their  kids off and were able to go on a date.  Well, in the foyer one of the youth helpers saw a bug and started  screaming.  This past Friday, we went to the church for a worship service.  We walked into the foyer and he kept pointing up at the ceiling.  I thought he was pointing to the flags hanging in there, but then he started  saying, "Bug. Bug. Bug."  I couldn't believe that he remembered that from two weeks ago!  *We have a Noah's ark that has 14 different shaped animals that you put inside of the ark.  Well, the other  day, he started putting the animals in the correct places.  I was interested in seeing how many he new, and he got all 14 right!  It is absolutely amazing the things that he can do.  *We tried to put him in his toddler bed.  Well, let's just say that it didn't go so well.  We got his bed all set up with a bed rail early in the morning and let him look at it.  We even had him help us put the railing together  and on the bed.  Well, when it came time for his afternoon nap, he just started screaming.  We tried to calm  him down and encourage him to nap in his bed.  Each time I said the word "bed," he would start sobbing.   Well, needless to say I guess he isn't ready for his big boy bed, so we put the crib railing back on for him.   We weren't at all expecting him to react this way, but we aren't going to force it.  *Lastnight, we had some friends come over for dinner.  The wife has watched Josiah a few times for me.  A  few times she has brought her pug over to play with Josiah.  Last night, they didn't bring him and Josiah was  beside himself. He kept going to the door and barking like a dog.  Then he brought Amy to the window and was pointing to their car and barking like a dog.  They felt so bad that they hadn't brought Leo with them.  Again, I was amazed that he put the connection together that Amy brings Leo.  Well, that is all that is going on for the Greenwoods.  Please continue to keep us in your prayers as we  continue to figure out Sophie's sleep schedule and we go through these trying times with Josiah.