Allison's Room!

Since I posted pictures of Will's room last week, I thought I should show off "Baby Sister's Room" too :-)Enjoy!

School Days

A week into our A Beka preschool and Will and I are both loving it! He is continuing to learn colors, can count to ten pretty much on his own, say most of his alphabet with prompting, and recite Luke 18:16.

While our mornings are spent in constructive playtime (aka school time), Allison hangs out with us in her bouncer or lounges in the stuffed bear chair. Of course, Will and I take plenty of little breaks just to smile at her and tell her how much we love her.

Baking Day!

Saturday has always been my "Deep-Clean-the-House Day" when I dust, vacuum, mop, etc. It's always nice to have everything spic-and-span for Sunday morning! Today, I began a new tradition...spending Sunday afternoons baking for the week to come.

Since we always try to get a good walk in early in the day, it's often hard to get a good breakfast in, too. Especially with Will's little pre-school time our mornings can get quit busy! Today, I decided to take some steps to simplify our morning routine. After making up a batch of Blender Batter Pancake batter (http://www.suegregg.com/recipes/breakfasts/blenderbatterwaffles/blenderbatterwaffles.htm) I made some "Sausage Pancake Rolls" using turkey sausage links and my new Corn Dog Maker. The idea is very similar to the store-bought Pancakes & Sausage on a Stick except they're made with whole grains and I didn't put them on a stick.

Another thing I made were pancake/fried egg sandwiches. This idea came from the McDonalds Egg Griddles that I love so much. After pouring some batter on a hot griddle, I placed a fried egg in the middle and topped it with more pancake batter. They didn't turn out quite as nicely as I was hoping (the edges didn't seal) but they're still delicious! To make the eggs, I used an egg-poaching pan that Jason bought for me a couple of weeks ago. It made some beautiful, light-colored fried eggs just the right size and shape for sandwiches.

Since we have our own chickens and get an abundant supply of fresh eggs, I'm going to try another new recipe...Make-Ahead Breakfast Sandwiches. (http://webcache.googleusercontent.com/search?q=cache:http://www.recipezaar.com/recipe/Make-Ahead-Breakfast-Sandwiches-120416) Instead of canned biscuits, I'll use my whole-wheat Yeast Biscuits...I can't wait to see how they turn out!

All of today's baking will be individually wrapped and put in the freezer to keep fresh. On busy mornings, all we'll have to do is grab what we want, pop in the microwave, and presto! a nice hot breakfast to go.

Will's Big Boy Room

As we were getting ready for Allison's birth, we wanted to make sure that Will felt special and included, too. That's why we made such a big deal about him moving from the "Baby Room" to a "Big Boy Room." Those first several weeks, he was so excited that everyone who came by had to go see the "Big Boy Room." As he'd head through the kitchen and across the living room his little feet would get faster and faster until he was practically trotting. Bursting into the room, he'd let out a huge squeal.

He still loves his "new" room, although the squealing has stopped...I hate we never did catch it on video...

Baby Love

Will is napping right now and I'm relaxing in the den with the sweetest little girl cuddled up asleep on my chest. Any doubts about my ability to love another baby as much as I love my first-born disappeared the moment my little girl was placed in my arms. She started smiling at us last week and nothing can bring such joy to this mother's heart.

As I did with Will, I started implementing the Baby Wise method of scheduling. Of course, I've modified it slightly to fit our family's goals. With Will, I modified it a little TOO much and got in the habit of holding him until he fell asleep...and he often spent his entire nap time right in my arms! Although it provided many good memories, it also hurt us in the long-run because to this day, at 22-months, he still expects us to hold him until he slips off to sleep.

When Allison was born, I was determined not to make the same mistake and so, for the most part, my little girl has learned to put herself to sleep in her crib. Thanks to tips we discovered in The Baby Whisperer naptimes for Allison are usually cry-free: we just swaddle (key!) and the tuck into bed. Still, there are times like today when I just get the urge to cuddle with my baby and so today I did just that...sit and cuddle with this sweet little girl and I am enjoying it immensely! Somehow, this special time relaxed me more than anything else in the world...maybe that's why when Will woke up asking for ice cream instead of saying "After supper" I said, "let's go get some!"

Pre-School!

Today was Will's first day of home-school pre-school! We are using A Beka's 2-year-old nursery program. I'm really impressed with it! Today, we are learning counting and colors using M&M's. Will thinks that is great fun!

I know he's still young so we're trying to take a laid-back approach. More like "instructive playtime" than actual "school time." Since the color of the day is "yellow" he'll be eating lots of bananas, hard-boiled eggs, and maybe even some squash. Does anyone have any other ideas for a yellow-themed day?

Little Allison is co-operating well, eating and sleeping right on schedule. She is such a GOOD baby! I can hardly believe she's already 6 wks old. It seems like just yesterday that Will was her age.

Bringing everyone up to date...

I can't believe it's been over a year since my last post. Facebook took the place of my blog for many months but my goal is to slowly ease out of facebook and back into blogging.

"Little" Will is now 21 months old and growing fast! He is talking up a storm and loves to mimic everything we say and do. Right now, he is completely enthralled with his new "Baby Sister."

Yes, there is a new baby in the house! Little Allison Leigh Thigpen joined our family on June 26th at 10:17am. She weighed 6 pounds, 5 ounces. Today, at six weeks, she is 8 pounds and 6 ounces.

Over the next several days I'll try to post pictures and more "in-depth" updates but for now, welcome back!