When we went to the waterpark at Kings Island on Monday, Ella observed a man in his swimming trunks. In a louder voice, she pointed out "He's naked." I tried to explain that he wasn't naked but that he had his swim suit on. And tonight when Vic was changing out of his work clothes, she pointed out that he was naked. He still had his underwear and tshirt on, but to Ella he was naked. He told her that he was changing into his comfy clothes. And she said "let's get naked." Isn't she funny?
Yesterday, Ella, Carson & I went out for lunch. We were planning on Gold Star Chili (had to mention that for out-of-towners), but the free kid meal didn't start until dinner. So, we went to Buffalo Bob's (chicken wings). As we pull up to the restaurant, Ella says "I'm full." I proceed to rationalize with her. You can't be full - we just got here. She giggles and again says, "I'm full ." She was literally full of animals as she had stuffed all of her plastic animals in her pants.
So, today we had lunch at the house and I must say she was a great eater (4 chicken nuggets, a jar of carrots, Ritz crackers and a bag of fruit snacks). When I asked her if she wanted water to drink because I am out of milk (desperately need to go Kroger), she replied no. I asked her what she wanted, expecting her to say CapriSun or apple juice, but she replied "beer". I asked her what she said and she repeated "beer". I then tried to explain that only daddies drink beer and she accepted that explanation. When I shared this story with my dad, he said that I could try the trick he used on my sister, Amy. Amy was sniffing around my dad's beer and he asked her if she wanted some. She said yes and he poured the beer over her head. I don't think she asked for beer anytime soon after that.
And lastly, as we were rushing out the door to get to a doctor appointment for Carson in Crestview Hills with only 40 minutes notice, I asked her to get her sandals and bring them to me. Surprisingly, she listened. She seems to listen when things are urgent/important which is a good thing. As I buckled Carson in his carseat, she started cheering/chanting "Go Carson, Go Carson, Go Go Go Carson." And then she bent down and looked directly in his eyes and said, "what do you think about that?"
As far as the doctor appointment, his ears checked out fine (no ear infection as I had thought) and given a clear bill of health. There's a possibility he might be teething. It looks like he is very close to 12 pounds so great weight gain. He is still very constipated even with a teaspoon of karo syrup in each bottle so the doctor suggested dropping the karo and switching to a stronger mix of prune juice. We had been giving him diluted prune juice(3:1) to him, but only when he was backed up. Now, we are giving him 2 oz of diluted prune juice (1:1) every day. If that doesn't produce results, we will give him 2 oz of pure prune juice every day. I've never had prune juice in my life but I must say it looks and smells very disgusting. I don't really know how to serve it either, but he's been getting it lukewarm.
For those of you that haven't seen Carson in a while, here are a few pics that give you some perspective (6 days vs. almost 6 months). He is growing well, but still not on a normal chart. He reaches for our noses and mouth. Carson can "catch" the bird on his playmate; Ella loved this, too. And he is really fascinated with a Lamaze ladybug book (Ella loved this, too.) Sara - I bet James would love this! : ) Did I mention that he loves to snuggle with his blanket? So sweet...
And about me...I am pondering (I've been pondering for months) my choices of double strollers. I've looked around in Cincinnati and the Graco DuoGlider/Quattro Tour Duo and a few jogging strollers are my choices. I love the Peg Perego Aria Twin, but it is a side by side and doesn't accept carseats. After some extensive research, I have it narrowed down to 5 choices. None of them are cheap and none of them are available locally. Although I like the Graco Quattro Tour Duo, I can't lift all 39 pounds of it. That's more than a third of my weight. I would also have to buy a new Graco carseat if I wanted it to snap into the stroller. I loved this feature with Ella.
I have looked at everything online, but I have a hard time forking out that kind of dinero without trying it first. Besides, return shipping on a stroller is bound to be expensive. So, we're considering a weekend trip to Chicago. We checked for availability in Ohio, Kentucky and Indiana. Maybe I need to open a stroller shop. We can also look at a high chair/toddler seat for Ella and bedding for Carson. He is still sleeping in our bassinet/playard in our room, but soon he will be relocated to his room which has yet to be decorated. Here is what we are thinking (be sure to check out the additional pics at Land of Nod with tracks painted on the walls - too cute:
We had previously purchased the Gap dots bedding, but I could only find one sheet and they don't have coordinating curtains. I think the chocolate brown is going to be difficult to match. Would love to know what you think...
Last but not least, here are some cute pics of Ella in the bath and Carson sucking his thumb:
