Big Boy Bed

I needed a good excuse to sit down, and realized it has been a long time since I have blogged.  Life is busy - and I've been crazy busy reorganizing my entire house!  About a month ago, I started to feel very anxious about my house - feeling like there was something I was supposed to be doing, or something.  Like Heavenly Father was trying to tell me something but I couldn't quite put my finger on it.  I've been feeling like we're outgrowing the house (which we are) - the house is 997 sq.ft. with 3 bedrooms and 1 bathroom.  A master bedroom, all three kids squeezed into one room, and an office/playroom/sewing room that was just not working out.  I couldn't get on top of the messes being made.  So, after much prayer and consideration, I realized that we just need to work really hard to make our limited space work - be smart about it - sacrifice!  So, we decided to give Ian his own room.  The office/playroom/sewing room was not working, so let's get rid of it!  For the last week, we have been moving furniture, and rearranging all three rooms in the house.  Here's a summary of what has taken place:

*bought a smaller, simpler headboard and footboard for our bed (solid oak sleigh bed still for sale - $200obo)
*moved the TV out of our room (!) will replace it with a flat screen someday...
*moved an entire dresser from our room (now storing some clothes in boxes under the bed)
*moved the computer desk and sewing table into the master bedroom
*removed crib (which is still for sale - $50) from kids room
*got the girls' old toddler bed out of the rafters and painted it green for Ian
*moved all of the girls' toys into their bedroom (now that the crib is no longer in there)
*rearranged closets in Ian's room and master bedroom

There is still a lot of work to be done (and a lot of stuff to be thrown away or stored) but man I feel so good about the progess so far! 

Ian (who is almost 15 months old) LOVES his new room.  He can't tell me he loves it with words, but his actions are pretty clear.  The first couple nights he was in his big-boy bed, he was in the room with the girls.  It took about an hour each night to get him to settle down and go to sleep.  This is typical when you first make the transition from crib to bed, but last night was his first night in his own room and he did not get out of bed ONCE!  Eric tucked him into bed, and we never heard another peep out of him!  Same story with his morning nap today.  I tucked him in and he was out.  I think he really values the quiet (I don't blame him - his sisters are just too much sometimes!!)  This morning when he woke up, he immediately started playing with some of his toys and I just heard cute sounds coming from his room.  He is so happy!  And so am I!

I never thought that losing our "extra" room would make me feel so much better, and feel like I have MORE space than before, but I do!  It is such a great feeling.  I really wish I had "before and after" shots, but for now, this picture will have to do.  Ian fell asleep on the floor yesterday.  I think he was admiring himself in his cute little mirror and wore himself out!  ;-)

Ian's Walking!

He hasn't decided to walk exclusively yet, but he has some seriously good balance - and likes to walk when he is not in a hurry. Speaking of not being in a hurry - I am not in a hurry for this kid to grow up. Why is it going so fast???

Arkansas Trip

I had the opportunity to go see my Grandma and Grandpa Bledsoe (my dad's parents) in Arkansas last week. My parents go out every year to visit, but I hadn't been out to visit since I was 10 years old!  Grandma and Grandpa paid for my plane ticket, and Ian was able to sit on my lap on the plane - the girls and Eric stayed behind.  I had such a lovely time.  Grandma was worried that we would be bored, but it was so relaxing.  I learned some new crochet techniques, visited Hobby Lobby for the first time, and discovered the fabulousness of FLEA MARKETS!!!  Here are some of my favorite pictures:

 The whole crew after church (this is the view from my Grandparents' front porch!)

 Four generations

 Ian with his Great Grandparents

 We went for a nature hike in the woods - looking for critters, enjoying the quiet (their property is 15 acres!).

 This was taken in Hot Springs, AR on our way to the airport. It was raining, but the colors in the trees were beautiful!

I found some great deals at the Flea Markets...what fun!  We had two thunderstorms unlike anything we get here in California.  On two different nights, I was awakened by a VERY loud clap of thunder that just about made me jump out of my PJs!  The lightning was nearly constant lighting up the sky.  So fun! 

This was Ian's first time on a plane, first time meeting his Great Grandparents, and he was such a good boy.  I think Grandma and Grandpa really enjoyed having him around...he provided some great entertainment. 

Next May, my grandparents will celebrate their 70th (!!) Wedding Anniversary.  They are hoping to come out to California to celebrate.  I am hoping that I will be able to return to Arkansas again next year.  (A HUGE thank-you to all my friends/family who helped by watching the girls while Eric was at work - you guys Rock!!)

For lots more pictures, go to http://picasaweb.google.com/kmetler

Monkey Boy

I know I've been posting a lot about Ian, but I just really can't help myself.  I've put together a bunch of pictures I've captured of him over the last several weeks.  He has become quite the talented climber.  I thought Anna was good, but Ian is taking it to a new level.  He'll be 11 months in a couple days and he is just so adventurous.

Using my purse as a pillow in the shopping cart at Winco.

 He pulled himself up onto the ottoman, then climbed up onto the rocking chair!

 This is Mr. Snuggly at Haylie's soccer game on Saturday.  It was COLD out there!

I brought in a storage container to get winter clothes out for Anna.  It got turned over on its side, and little man climbed on up and checked out the goods on the cabinet.

 This picture was catching him on his way down...but he had his chin all the way up over the top of the cabinet.  Oy.

Usually he's trying to climb OUT of the playpen...here he is trying to get IN! 

 We call this "Jail Baby". 

 First Haircut!

He tries to climb out of the high chair now too.  Even when I strap him in, he can wiggle his pants off and turn around.  SCARY!

We had to put Anna in a big girl bed when she was 14 months old because she was trying to climb out of the crib.  Ian has not tried to climb out of the crib yet, but I have a feeling that day is not far off...Love love love my boy!

Ian = Too Big

Ian is 10 1/2 months old already.  Time is going by too quickly.  I feel like I missed out on the whole newborn thing with him since he was so big at birth (9lbs. 6 oz.).  However, I am so enjoying every moment with him.   Well, maybe not every moment.  He has been teething and not handling it well (I don't blame him).  He has gotten 4 teeth within a matter of a couple weeks.  He has 2 on top and 2 on the bottom now.  Anyway, I thought I'd write down some fun things he does / has been doing because I'm so bad at documenting this stuff!  When he is not teething, he is a very happy, smily, content little dude.  He's been pulling himself up on everything since about 8 months.  Started crawling between 8 and 9 months and is now moving on to climbing.  Yesterday he managed to pull himself up, climb up onto our ottoman, then onto the rocking chair.  We had to take Anna out of the crib at 14 months and put her in a bed because she was climbing out of it...I have a feeling Ian is headed in that same direction.  Over the last couple of days he has been standing next to the couch or whatever he happens to be holding on to - and he lets go and just stands there - perfectly balanced.  He's very tall, but his weight gain has actually slowed and he's not in the 90th percentile anymore.  Probably because he's so active now.  It is certainly not a lack of food.  I have never witnessed a baby eat so much!  My girls, who have always been tiny, never ate like this!  I'm a little scared for my grocery budget as he grows even more.  I have been teaching him some baby signs - so far the only ones he knows are "More" and "All Done".  When his food is gone, I sign all done and usually he starts crying!  "More" is definitely his favorite sign...and I have a feeling that will also be his first word. He signs "More" and says "MMM" "MMM".  I have an appointment for his first haircut on Friday.  I'm not ready for that ~ every time I've seen a little boy get his first haircut, he instantly looks all grown up.  I have never been one to wish my kids would stay little - but for some reason I just want my little man to stay that way.  I kind of think he's the cutest thing on the planet and don't want him to grow up to be a smelly boy.  ;-)

PS. My friend Erin took these beautiful pictures of Ian. 

Wicked

I learned something today.  A 2x4 is not 2 inches by 4 inches.  Nope.  It's 1.5 inches by 3.5 inches.  Apparently this is common knowledge for some.  Not me.  Not Rachel (my sis-in-law who partnered with me on this project).  So, I am rather lucky this project worked out the way it did.  I ordered the vinyl lettering (www.milesofvinylforyou.com - FYI, this company is here in Clovis) to fit a 2x4 thinking that it was ACTUALLY going to be 4" wide.  Anyway, here is the latest.  Total cost = $10

 (Click to make the picture larger)

The ribbon on the Letter "I" is just kinda' hanging there because I thought the "I" block was a little boring - still gotta' figure out what to do there...

Here is the inspiration (saw it on Pinterest, for sale on Etsy for $20 + $10 shipping)  This one is a little bigger, but I think our copycat version is pretty darn good.

Thanks for doing this with me, Rachel!

Progress

I figure I'm going to have it all figured out right about the time the kids leave to go start their own families...even then I'm sure I will still be very confused. However, I have made some serious progress this week! I have often referred to Anna as my "Anna-mal" - she's a little bit crazy, a lot sassy, and a lot stubborn. She has personality for miles, and can be a super-sweet girl when she wants to be. I tend to compare Haylie and Anna (as I think most parents tend to compare their children to each other) and they couldn't be more different. Haylie has always been quiet, shy reserved and obedient...in most ways. We've had our struggles, for sure. Anna has always been loud, outgoing, etc. I am not saying she is bad, but it has taken me some time to get used to it after having a quiet one like Haylie.

Since Ian joined our family in December, the family dynamic (obviously) has changed drastically. Anna is now a "middle child" and we are all feeling the effects of that! I am learning a lot about both girls and *thankfully* learning how to manage the new dynamic. After much observation (especially during my C-section recovery and Christmas Break) I realized that Haylie, in her quiet way, was provoking a lot of Anna's outbursts. Duh. I was punishing Anna for hitting, but not realizing that Haylie was also in need of punishment for saying mean things, or otherwise provoking her sister. It felt good to make that realization and stop blaming Anna for everything!

So in spite of my best efforts, Anna has still been having some anger issues: growling, screaming, stomping her foot, etc. I am so grateful for my 6am walks with my friend. I feel so much more clear-headed in the morning and we like to say we solve the world's problems in that 50-minute timespan. We have discussed, at length, some things to I could try at home to help Anna to not feel so displaced. Side note: I can tell she is suffering from the whole middle child syndrome thing, but she only takes it out on Haylie - thankfully, not Ian. So, one of the things we talked about was getting some alone time with Anna. Sure, ok...how am I supposed to do that in the middle of summer when all the children are home and I'm nursing a baby, etc, etc.? So it didn't happen for a while. On Tuesday, Haylie was invited to go play with a friend and Anna really wanted to go to...then the light bulb came on! "Anna, Haylie is going to go play with her friend, do you want to do something special with Mommy and Ian?" Her response? YES! I asked her what she wanted to do and it took her no time at all to decide that she wanted to go to the zoo and feed the giraffes. So I decided that we would do just that. I asked her to keep it a secret from Haylie and would you believe it? She totally kept it secret! I did not know a 3 1/2 year old could do that! So we went to the zoo and I let her be the guide. I let her make all the decisions about where to go and what to do next. We had the. most. lovely. day. It has been sooo long since I have felt that much love and compassion towards Anna and I was so grateful to have that opportunity to feel that way again. She was sweet and kind and happy as could be. Wow, we both really needed that alone time! Not surprisingly, we have had a great week - she still has her typical 3-year-old fits, but I really think that I was able to reassure her and let her know that I haven't forgotten her in all the chaos of family life. I feel like we have really come to a greater understanding of one another. What a blessing! Here are some pictures of the day - she wanted me to take pictures of her all over the zoo, and I was happy to oblige.

Feeding ZuZu (sp?) the giraffe

Hangin' on Nosey the elephant

Sittin' on the boy on the turtle

Tackling a giant lizard (I have no doubt my Anna could win that fight!) ;-)

On our way out...my sweet, wonderful, happy, spunkly little Anna and me. I love her so much and am so grateful that she is part of our family. I can already see that she is going to be a smart, strong, confident woman who will be incredibly successful in life. I love you Anna Banana!