A fun week
>> Tuesday, October 28, 2008
We had a busy week last week as Ryan was on vacation so that he could spend some time with the kids and so that we could take a mini vacation ourselves.
So rather than just carting the kids around and 'getting things done' we did fun things almost every day.
On Monday, we went to a nearby farm for their pumpkinfest. And although it was a little cold, Austin had a great time running through the pumpkin patch, getting lost in the corn maze, riding the wagon, climbing on the hay stacks and playing in the treehouse. And Alex, well, she just enjoyed be outside and watching her brother.
Then, on Tuesday, we took the kids to Fantasy Fair at Woodbine Mall. Fantasy Fair claims to be the largest indoor amusement park in Ontario and it didn't disappoint. Austin loved all the rides and playing in the play structure. And even Alex was able to go on the train and carousel (with one of us of course). The nice thing about going on a Tuesday afternoon, is that it wasn't crowded and we never had to wait to go on any of the rides.
More photos from both days, as well as other October photos, can be found in the new slideshow posted on the right.
On Wednesday, we took the kids to my parents house where they spent two days with grandma and granddad. From what I've been told, they had a great time playing outside, walking through the nearby forest and going to another nearby pumpkinfest. My parents must have done a really good job at tiring them out, because I was told they both slept like logs that night -- even Alex, who won't sleep more than three to four hours at a stretch for us right now, slept for NINE hours for my parents. I'm convinced her bottle must have been spiked! (Just kidding!)
While the kids were at my parents house, Ryan and I went to Niagara Falls. First, we headed over the border for a few hours to do some shopping -- where even though the dollar is pretty poor right now, the deals we found made the shopping worth while. Then we headed back to the Canadian side where we checked into a hotel, had a nice, long, uninterupted dinner at the Keg, did some gambling at the casino and slept in late the next morning. Before heading back to Toronto, we stopped at a winery in Niagara-on-the-Lake for a tour. In all, a very nice and very relaxing time.
Finally, on Friday, we took a short trip to the zoo after Austin's swimming lesson.
In all, a relaxing and fun week.
Read more...Alexandra's 6-month checkup
>> Saturday, October 25, 2008
Last week, I took Alexandra for her six-month checkup and she weighed in at 15 lbs, 15 oz and is 26 inches long. This only partially confirmed my thoughts that she's smaller than Austin was at the same age.
At Austin's six-month appointment, he weighed in at a hefty 18 lbs 6 oz, but was just 26.5 inches long. So, Alex is pretty much just as long as he was, but two and a half pounds lighter! I forgot to ask the doctor what percentile she's in, but the doctor did say she's growing well.
Unlike the way Austin grew however, she still fits into many of her 3 to 6 months clothes today (whereas Austin had upgraded to the 6 to 12 month size by the time he was 5 months old). Thank goodness a friend has been loaning me the clothes her daughter has already outgrown; because all of my 3 to 6 months clothes for Alex were summer clothes. And it just doesn't feel right to buy that size in fall/winter clothes when she's bound to outgrow them very soon.
Other than that, Alex has moved on from eating just cereal to also eating sweet potato and carrots. So far she loves them both, and can't get enough of them. She opens her mouth wide when anyone brings the spoon towards her -- even Austin, who loves feeding her! Right now, she's only eating two meals a day (lunch and dinner) but after a few more vegetables, we'll probably get her started on breakfast as well.
One thing's for sure, she sure is growing up fast.
Austin's taking swimming lessons
>> Monday, October 13, 2008
I signed Austin up for swimming lessons this fall and so far they're going really well. It's a city-run program designed for toddlers. They're private lessons and each lesson is only 15-minutes long -- which is great, because that's about his attention span some days!
At the first class, I walked him out onto the pool deck and the instructor asked me if he'd ever been swimming before. I said yes, but only with mom or dad. She said, ok, and asked Austin if he wanted to jump in. He immediately said 'yes' and jumped in to her waiting arms without ever looking back at me. He then spent the lesson learning to float and to kick his feet while holding on to a flutter board.
The second lesson was much of the same, except this time, he was really excited to be going and talked about swimming in the pool non-stop during the car ride over.
If the classes continue to go well, I think I'll sign him up for a double-lesson class (30 minutes long) in the winter.
More milestones...sitting up and eating cereal
>> Wednesday, October 08, 2008
These pictures say it all:
In the last three weeks, Alex has mastered the art of sitting up to play. It started with her proping herself up on her arms and looking around. And within days she was sitting on her own and grabbing at toys. She does still fall over from time to time -- usually when she's trying to grab something out of her reach -- so I still tend to sit behind her or pack pillows around her.
She loves playing in this new position -- especially since she hates lying on her back or stomach to play. Because of this, she's been spending a lot of time in her excersaucer and jolly jumper -- anything that allows her to be in an upright position to play. But now that she can sit, it's a whole new world for her.
The other milestone Alex reached last week was she started eating cereal. So far, it's just been a small amount at lunch time, but she loves it. She took just one bite and she immediately opened her mouth wide like a baby bird asking for more. She was definitely ready for it too, because in the last few weeks she had been grabbing at any food I may have near me while I was holding her.
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