4 Months

Weight: 14 lbs 12 oz

Height: 23.75 inches

Favorite toy: Skwish ball that she chews on

Talents: Grabbing things, chewing on fists, singing

Brenna can also push up pretty well and is getting ready to roll over, as you can see in the video. She still doesn't really like her tummy time. (In case you are wondering Ben is playing a video game. That is why he is so focused)

Here are some pictures showing how fat a 14.75 lb baby is. I've got pictures of Lauren walking in this outfit. Brenna is trying really hard to sit forward in this photos. Almost ready to sit by herself.

Brenna has the cutest smile. This dress is supposed to be size 9 months. It's a little big, but not much.

Budding Architect

When I met with Lauren's kindergarten teacher for her midyear report card she said Lauren really had a good grasp on spatial relations, shapes and colors. Lauren could easily and quickly sort items by color and then again by size and she would make very intricate patterns with colored geometric shapes. She is able to easily see how things fit together. That is not something she gets from me. Organic chemistry with its spatial symmetry and such was definitely a challenge for me. Perhaps she gets it from Ben since he is so good at 3D video games.

Lauren is also very good with numbers and math concepts. I think she'll be an architect. Yesterday she built some towers out of blocks and I had to take pictures because they were really unusual and creative. Maybe our little girl will make us millions of dollars some day.

His Excellency

I liked this book but it wasn't until the last 50 pages that I found it engrossing and compelling. Washington's second Presidential term was most interesting because of the crisis involved and Washington's approach and philosophy in dealing with them.

During the whiskey tax rebellion of 1794, Washington described the rebels as representing "a tyranny of the minority against the will of the majority, and that their only revolutionary principle was that 'every man can cut and carve for himself.'" (p. 224) Now doesn't that just make you think of the Proposition 8 debates and aftermath?

Washington truly was a remarkable man. He was very prophetic in his vision of what America was to become and quite honestly the only man of the period who could have successfully protected our nation during its infancy. I now need to read a book about Thomas Jefferson because his character takes quite a beating in both this book and in John Adams. Perhaps an autobiography is in order.

Mathew Visits and My Peace of Mind is Shattered

This will be Mathew and Kristi in a few years.
Getting ready for the new baby.

Matthew is a bit stiff in the video because he thought I was going to take a still picture not a video. He held his smile for a long time.

We all had fun seeing Matthew and it's a shame his conference was so efficiently packed. We didn't get to see a lot of him, but we did manage to have an adventure. When I picked him up today from his conference I forgot to grab my house key. Ben had a lunch to go to and locked the apartment. I realized this as I parked the car. So what did we do? Lauren broke into the house for us of course. It brought to mind the scene in the Oliver Twist movie we had growing up where Sykes makes Oliver break into a house and unlock the door for him. I took the screen out of the kitchen window and slid the window open. Then I lifted Lauren inside and she climbed down from the counter and unlocked the door for us. It was surprising how easy it was to get in. Now I feel a whole lot less secure at night. Oh well, at least we were able to eat lunch since we were all starving.

Brenna has a lot to say

She speaks most of her mind at night after two very loud children are asleep. It's a shame the light is to dim to make a good video of her then because it really is so cute to listen to her. This video is a decent representation of the chats we have at night before she goes to bed.

My Kitchen

My sister in law posted her kitchen with a challenge to see other's kitchens in their current state. Mine would be more cluttered and diasterous if there were room for more clutter. I can't wait to say good bye to this tiny kitchen. I'd give you a scale so you could see how big this actually is, but what's the point. It's just as small as it looks in the picture. Meal prep time is great because everyone wants to be in there with me. Brenna bathes in the sink so at least every three days one side gets scrubbed out really well.

Leprechaun Traps

Lauren came home from school yesterday insisting that Leprechauns were real. She was determined to build a trap and catch one. Her trap was pretty clever and she waited by it for a long time, but no little Leprechaun came. She didn't believe me when I told her they were just make believe. It's funny because she knows about Santa and the Tooth Fairy not being real. I finally tried to tell her that all the Leprechauns live in Ireland so they weren't here, but she didn't buy that either stating that they were everywhere on St. Patrick's Day so they could pinch anyone not wearing green.

Here is her original trap. She set a small box on the floor with the coin trail to lure the Leprechaun in. Then she piled the big boxes for her to hide behind. When the Leprechaun came she would throw the water gun at the trap and knock the box over on top of it.

The Leprechaun didn't come right away so she decided to get sneaky. The purple things by Spencer are some speakers and behind the boxes is the microphone that goes with them. Next to the purple speakers, propped up by the pen, is a little Leprechaun she drew and cut out. This decoy Leprechaun is going to tell the real Leprechaun that the coins are safe and he should go get them from the box. She also decided to use the sword to tip the box over since her aim with the pistol was not very precise.

There's Always a First

None of my other kids did this.

Prophetic Purchase

I like to shop clearance sales.

I hate paying full price, especially for clothes.

Therefore, I buy my children's clothes a year in advance.

I buy summer clothes in September during the Labor Day clearance sales and winter clothes around President's Day in February. I get some amazing deals, but I have to anticipate what size my kids will be the next year. Last August I bought a "Mr. Men" shirt for Spencer. I wanted Mr. Mischief but no luck. Immediately after Spencer's cast came off he started tickling people. He would randomly go up to people, even complete strangers and start to tickle them. He never did this before. I guess either I anticipated him, or he molded to fit my penny pinching purchase.

I really think Spence looks like my brother Jon right here. Not sure what Lauren looks like.

Tickle fingers!!!

Interview with Lauren, Age 5

I saw this interview on a friend's blog and her children had such funny answers I just had to ask my kids the questions. Spencer just said 'I don't know' to each question, but Lauren answered them all.



1. What is something mom always says to you?
Lauren - It's time to go to bed.

2. What makes mom happy?
Lauren - Eating edamame

3. What makes mom sad?
Lauren - When Spencer poops on the floor. (thank heavens that stage has passed!)

4. How does your mom make you laugh?
Lauren - Telling jokes

5. What was your mom like as a child?
Lauren - I don't know

6. How old is your mom?
Lauren - 30

7. How tall is your mom?
Lauren - 30 feet

8. What is her favorite thing to do?
Lauren - Cook

9. What does your mom do when you're not around?
Lauren - Go to the grocery store

10. If your mom becomes famous, what will it be for?
Lauren - I don't know

11. What is your mom really good at?
Lauren - Cooking

12. What is your mom not very good at?
Lauren - Killing spiders

13. What does your mom do for her job?
Lauren - Taking care of me and Spencer

14. What's your mom's favorite food?
Lauren - Edamame

15. What makes you proud of your mom?
Lauren - Cooking mac and cheese

16. If your mom were a cartoon character, who would she be?
Lauren - Cookie Monster

17. What do you and your mom do together?
Lauren - Homework

18. How are you and your mom the same?
Lauren - We both know how to play music

19. How are you and your mom different?
Lauren - I have blue eyes and she has brown

20. How do you know your mom loves you?
Lauren - She cooks mac and cheese for me

21. Where is your mom's favorite place to go?
Lauren - To the grocery store


Almost every answer has to do with food. Hmmmm. . .perhaps that is because I asked her these questions while boiling a pot of edamame, which I then consumed all by myself. Lauren was having a big snack too. A peanut butter and jelly sandwich, two granola bars, one edamame bean, some goldfish, and some wheat thins with easy cheese. I think she's getting ready for a growth spurt.

3 Months

Brenna is now three months old. She likes people singing to her and smiles when she sees someone, especially first thing in the morning. She talks a lot, in her own way, but never when I try to make a movie. Brenna can grab things like hair and she has a really good grip. I think she is already getting some teeth. She has been drooling a lot, she bites her fists all the time, and she even has started to bite me while nursing. I have tried looking at her gums and I don't see any bumps, but I can see the tops of the teeth that will be coming in. Maybe they are just moving up and won't come through for a few months yet, or maybe they'll pop through at the end of the week. Either way our little baby is a bit more fussy than before. She is sleeping pretty well at night and seems to be getting a routine down. She wakes around 6 am and then takes a nap between 9 and noon. Then she has another nap in the afternoon and goes to bed around 7 or 8 pm. She eats maybe 3 times a night, though I don't often count the feeding around 11 because usually I'm still awake.

Brenna and her guardians

She likes to bring her hands together a lot. Note Spencer's tongue. At least it isn't in his nose.

Fat, chunky arms. She has almost four rolls of fat on each leg.

She wouldn't smile for me