Lucy in 2013 (so far)

Not to be forgotten, Lucy is growing like crazy!  She's going to be six months old on Tuesday, and I can hardly believe it.  In many ways, I feel like Lucy and I are finally starting to hit a good groove together.  I'm meeting her needs, and she's starting to sleep on a consistent schedule... (that's all I ask!  Sleeping on a consistent schedule!)

It's so interesting to me to look at the differences between Clara and Lucy.  For instance, Clara has always been a bit slower to pick up on talking and language.  She didn't babble much as a young baby, and has remained a quiet toddler.  Lucy.  Oh my goodness, Lucy is a talker.  She's just crazy social.  While Clara was content to play by herself quietly, Lucy wants to be engaged.  It's great that she's a second kid, because Clara is great at engaging with her and getting her to play (making the demands on mom easier... yay!).

On the other hand, Clara made up for her lack of interest in talking by moving.  That girl was an early sitter, an early (and vigorous) crawler, and was running at 11 months.  Lucy doesn't seem as interested.  She's about six months old, and although we practice daily, she doesn't sit up on her own yet.  I'm not worried, but I find the contrast between my two girls (one a mover and quiet, the other a talker and content to be still) fascinating.

Oh, and I cannot tell you how excited I am that they really seem to like each other!  It's amazing!  I'm sure things are going to get more contentious as Lucy gets a bit more willful, but for now, it's so perfect.  Clara loves having an audience, and Lucy loves being an audience.  Lucy doesn't care if Clara takes her toy, and Clara loves to take her toys (sigh....).

I adore Lucy's dark hair and long, dark eyelashes.  I'm sure this is mostly my mother's bias, but I can't get over what a pretty baby she is.  I mean, it's ridiculous.  That skin, those cheeks, that DIMPLE, those big eyes with beautiful dark eyelashes.  Ridiculous.

While Lucy is turning 6 months old this week, we're still just barely venturing into solid foods.  Honestly, I'm lazy.  Even after goign to a baby food making party (and now I have TONS of homemade baby food!  Yay!) I'm still slow about actually pulling out the food and heating it up and spooning it in for Lucy.  And she hasn't taken too kindly to anything I've given her.  She's interested, definitely.  She's always grabbing at my food when I'm eating, and she's fasinated to watch us eat at dinner, but if I try to spoon anything for her, she makes the funniest faces, and then refuses to open her mouth.  I'm sorta waiting until she can sit up on her own, and then I think I'm just going to give her basic finger foods, I don't think she likes the spoon to mouth thing.

She is such a happy baby who loves to interact and play, and we sure do love her.

Clara in 2013 (so far)

Clara has really hit that hilarious toddler phase.  As cliche as it sounds, she really does make us laugh every day.  More than that, she amazes me every day.  Here are some fun things she's been doing and saying:

1. She loves her princesses.  Like, wow.  LOVES her princesses.  Her love of princesses came out of nowhere.  We don't own a princess movie.  We don't read princess books.  But somehow, she saw the figurines and knew exactly what they were, and she plays with them every.single.day.  And I love it.  I love that she's found something she loves.

2. She loves wearing "princess dresses."  She asks to wear a princess dress every day.  She gets so excited on Sunday, because it means she can wear her prettiest dresses.

3. Clara loves nursery, and every morning she asks if she can go.  The reason we survive Sacrament Meeting is that we can say, "In a few minutes you can go to Nursery!  So be quiet so you can go!"  Works like a charm.

4. She has seriously surprised me with how quickly she picks up music.  I know some people are surprised saying, "But you're a musician!  Of course your kid is musical!"  But I really didn't  feel that way, because I'm not a naturally talented musician (meaning I don't pick up songs and melodies by ear easily).  Clara, on the other hand, picks up melodies quickly and remembers them for days.  And she learns so many songs through nursery that I have never, ever sung for her.  It's so amazing.  But my favorite thing is when I sing her a song, and she cuddles in and says, "I like that song, Mommy." *melt*

5. Clara adores Lucy.  She loves to make Lucy smile and laugh.  When they have been playing together, and Lucy gets a bit overwhelmed and needs me to pick her up, Clara get's upset and says, "Lucy lay down!" and pats the place where she was, right next to her.

6. Daniel Tiger's Neighborhood is her favorite show.  She asks for Daniel Tiger every morning.  She named her stuffed bear "Tiggy" after Daniel Tiger's stuffed tiger, Tiggy.  Cute, right?

7. She is so so so sneaky.  If I'm not careful with her pacifier, my phone, or any delicious food, she can get her stool and get it on almost any surface.  It's my life very complicated.

busy season has hit...

.... and honestly, I'm not sure if I'm ready!  Things get crazy for Jordan at work every year between March and the first few weeks of June.  He often works 10 hours a day, and there will be many days where he works 14-16.  It's not my idea of a good time.  Frankly, it's not Jordan's idea of a good time, either.  We just have to push through, and know the majority of the year, he works a relatively easy schedule.

To ease this time for both of us, I decided to go to Alaska for the entire month of May and into the first  week of June.  That way Jordan can work 14 hour days and not feel guilty, and I am not stuck at the house by myself with kids for days on end.  Also, my family hasn't met Lucy yet (except Robin!), and I know they are just dying to see her.  And finally, if I'm going to get on a plane with my 2 little kids, the trip better be totally worth my time!  The great news is that on my way there, my sister Robin and my beloved aunt Renee (with her new baby) will be with me for my flight up.  All I have to do is survive my trip back alone with two kids.  I can pretend that's never going to happen, right?

We've started to add some really great things to our house to make it a home.  The biggest thing is our new, amazing, beautiful piano.  I love it.  Oh, how I have missed having a piano.  It makes me feel connected to the world I used t be apart of.  It makes me excited to teach my kids music, and to play the primary songs so they know every single one.

I've started to teach a couple of voice lessons.  My first student is this great gal I managed to recruit off of craigslist, and she's pretty much a perfect voice student.  Practices, doesn't want to sound like Kesha, comes to me with perfect questions that lead into great voice lessons... really, amazing.  Really, the only drawback is that she's really nervous and won't sing in front of me!  We finally discovered a system that I think works for us: she records herself singing at home and sends it to me.  It's been fun to be problem solving and thinking about singing again.

Jordan's in mourning that BYU football is over.  BYU Basketball doesn't really cover it, especially on this down year.  He's also disappointed the Jimmer is way under-utilized for the Sacramento Kings.  Free Jimmer!

The weeks are going by so quickly.  Soon, busy season will be over and we can function as a normal family unit again.  Yay!