Wednesday, December 18, 2013

GRANDMA WALDO




Grandma Waldo passed away on December 4th. She was 97.
I've been avoiding this post for two weeks because words just don't do her justice. 
I didn't know her well, but I'm thankful to have known her just a little. She was kind, gracious, faithful, quiet and full of wisdom. Once in while, she'd surprise me with her sense of humor.
There was one day that I was having an especially hard time with Ava and I asked her how she survived raising all those kids. All she said was, "I just took it one day at a time." Simple. 
Thank you, Grandma, for your faithful example.

BUSY, BUSY, BUSY

Lots going on here lately in the Waldo house. One big adjustment is that the girls now sleep in the same room and Jaina is in a big girl bed! The first night was pretty hilarious. It ended up with Ava back in her old room but for the 20 minutes that I spent on the stairs listening, I almost couldn't hold back the laughter. Jaina was kicking the wall and jumping all over the place and Ava was yelling at her. "Jaina! Lay down like a normal person! Jaina! Go to sleep right now! If you don't go to sleep I'm going to come over there and spank you! Jaina! Lay down like a lady! Just do what I say! Lay down the normal way!! Hahaha! I made a rhyming word! Jaina! Go to bed!!" All the while, Jaina is saying "NO! NO! NO!" I went in a couple of times to settle it down but it didn't work. Jaina sleeps with the door shut and Ava sleeps with it open and I think the whole thing was just too much. The next night went much better. I convinced Ava to sleep with the door shut and after about 10 minutes, they both went to bed. Jaina is doing awesome in her bed. The first night, I went in a couple of times to rescue her from falling out of bed but after an awesome tip from my sis, I put a pool noodle under the fitted sheet and it keeps her safely in bed. The one thing that I'm having a hard time with is that Jaina now wakes up with Ava at the crack of dawn.....no more quiet mornings.

All of Jaina's teeth have come through. (Well, except for the two year molars). So glad to have the whole teething thing mostly behind us.

She can say "baby" and "stop" but it sounds more like "top".

She thinks that tooting is hilarious. :)

Ava has been reading. She asks us constantly how to spell different words. I love to watch her learn...it just feels like she's growing up way too fast! 

Ava asks for regular milk in a big girl cup and then runs to get a straw "so she doesn't get her lips all wet and full of milk."

"Dad, what can I be when I grow up?"
"How about a princess?"
"No, I'm already a princess!"

"Mom, unfortunately, I just don't know why it happens that way. I mean...." 

 Ava had a spur of the moment visit with the dentist during our last trip there. We were waiting for Donald to finish up and so Ava had time to get her teeth cleaned! She was freaked out. Miss Tammy did an awesome job explaining everything to her and by the end she thought it was the coolest thing ever. Bonus? No cavities. :)

Little Mr. is growing and so am I. :) I'm just about 26 weeks and he moves constantly! I'm just about at that point where it's starting to get uncomfortable but so far so good! Dr. moved my due date to April 1st. Ha.




We went to see the strangest thing in Houston the other day. It was called Adicks Studioworks. We exited off the freeway... passed Target...made a couple of turns into a warehouse district...pulled into a big vacant lot...and there they were - huge heads of the presidents with the Beatles standing 30 feet tall right in the middle. It sure seemed pretty random but amazing at the same time...the detail was incredible!


In two days, we get to drive to Minnesota to be with my family for Christmas for the first time since I moved out west. 2005 was my last winter there. Only one other time have we been back for a holiday and that was in 2009 for Thanksgiving, right after Ava was born. Needless to say, I'm looking forward to it. And...they have snow. Lots and lots of snow. Ava is so excited to see the snow. I better quit typing and start packing! Yipeee!!!!

Sunday, December 1, 2013

JAINA MAE: 18 MONTHS



  • 27 lbs 12.5 oz (90%)
  • 33.5 inches tall (95%)
  • head size: 19.25 (95%)
  • size 7 shoe
  • size 5-6 diaper
  • 2T clothes
This little munchkin is a handful. Her favorite word is "no", she still doesn't eat meat (although Grandma claims she ate it when we were gone), she loves shoes, babies and airplanes. When she wants to get my attention or show me something, she points and says "Mama" or "Mom." She seems to be interested in how things work. She is constantly trying to fix the handle on the play kitchen. She wants to do everything that her sister does. She doesn't say much...just a handful of words but she understands everything we say and responds accordingly. She's stubborn as a mule...could be why she refuses to talk....or maybe it's because she has a big sister who does all of the talking for her. Either way, I predict that one day the words are just going to come pouring out and we're not going to be able to keep her quiet. :) She points to her diaper and says "Mama" when she goes potty and sometimes she runs to the bathroom but of course she's already gone in her diaper but I let her sit there just for fun. :) All of her canine teeth have come through!! Yay!!