Jan 25
This morning I thought Arya looked cute with her jammies, bed head, and little doll so I thought it would be a good opportunity to take a cell phone snapshot for my mother. It’s a quick way to update her on what the kids are up to a couple times a week, and she loves sharing them with her friends at work.
But what I saw in the camera today astounded me.
Where did my little baby go?
All I see is a toddler.
Nov 1
Arya, Aliza, and any future Schumann siblings are truly blessed to have such a wonderful older brother.
Nov 1
I never liked Halloween as a kid. Not being American, my parents never did the costume and trick or treating thing – and I never really wanted to, either. We usually wore our normal clothes and always went to the fall festival at church. I got plenty of candy to satisfy my sweet tooth, and winning at the cake walk is a lot more satisfying than freezing your tail off knocking on doors.
Anyway. I don’t think I missed out as a kid, but I had a blast with Xander this year. He was finally old enough to sort of understand the season. He loved seeing houses decorated with ghosts, jack-o-lanterns, and (his personal favorite) skeletons. Because I never pass up an opportunity to fill Xander’s head with useless-now-but-useful-someday trivia, he learned the scientific names of all the bones on his skeleton shirt. And most importantly, he learned that Halloween is fun but it’s not real; it’s just pretend.
In mid-September, I couldn’t decide what the kids should dress up as, and Xander just didn’t understand when I asked him what he wanted to be. But then he played over at a friend’s house who was wearing a Sheriff Woody costume. Somehow, the concept of Halloween clicked with Xander and he decided to be Luke Skywalker. Arya’s Princess Leia costume only made sense.
Some pictures of our weekend with the fall festival at church, and trick-or-treating with Xander’s 3 favorite girls and one adorable dog:
Oct 30
We managed to get moved over the weekend and it was a relatively unstressful event. Our movers were troopers, and did a great job!
Because of our drawer system, Xander was able to put away a lot of his own boxes:
I had to turn Xander’s girly room into something a little more manly. Thankfully it was much easier to do than it will be to turn Arya’s creepy bunny room into something that won’t give a toddler girl nightmares. But that’s another post.
Here are the kids after church today:
On the drive to the new place, as the movers were hauling the very last load from our old house, I got this wave of sadness. The day we moved to Arkansas, Xander was 18 months old – still a baby. Now he is a talking, reading, potty-trained, robot-obsessed, gymnast, history buff, preschooler! Xander did so much growing up at 503; it was the house where we really got to know him. I’ll miss living in the place where all those memories were made, but I’m looking forward to creating some new memories with Xander, Arya, and their new sister at 7000.
Sep 28
Arya is now a 1-year-old! I know everyone says this, but it really does seem like just yesterday when we brought her home from the hospital. It’s been a fast year.
Arya’s measurements at twelve months: 17 pounds (5th percentile), 28 inches (12th percentile), and an 18-inch head in the 67th percentile! (It’s okay to laugh at her large head; that was my reaction when her doctor told me.)
The kids and I were in Georgia the week before Arya’s birthday, so we had a party for her at my parents’ house. It was a fun time for both our families to get together and celebrate her special day.
I love it when my brother is around, because it means I don’t have to take my own pictures of gatherings:
All the Schumann siblings minus Rob.
Lego people make great teething toys.
Hanging out with Grandpa
And Gram
Big Cake.
Smash Cake and fake smile.
Smiling for the cameras (and there were many).
Grinning because it’s cake time.
The most ladylike cake eating ever.
Two fingers.
Xander gets a fork and helps.
All cleaned up and in Granddad’s arms.
Sep 16
The kids and I have been in Georgia visiting family since Sunday evening. It’s time to get some sleep before my long drive in the morning, so until I can make a proper post, here is a picture:
Aug 27
Summer is almost over, and Fall is right around the corner. This is my favorite time of year: the wind blows a little cooler, the nights are a little darker, the kids are a little older, and change is in the air.
This fall is most definitely going to be a season of change for the Schumanns.
But I’m getting ahead of myself.
Here is a quick recap of the end of our summer:
The Busted Lip Incident.
Xander and I didn’t make it to church that morning, but he was the sharpest looking kid in the ER.
A road trip to Kansas City for the National Worship Leaders Conference. I was an extra set of listening ears and note-taking hands, so Rob could be in two seminars at once.
And lots of cousin and great-grandparent time for the kids.
Playgrounds,
spraygrounds,
and water parks.
Good clean fun.
Good messy fun.
And two kids who love each other.
It’s been a blast of a summer. Now on to the fall and the changes that will come with it.
We’re ready for you.
Aug 15
Oh the thumb-sucker’s thumb
May look wrinkled and wet
And withered, and white as the snow,
But the taste of a thumb
Is the sweetest taste yet
(As only we thumb-suckers know)
-Shel Silverstein
Jul 25
Our little girl is now ten months old!
Arya’s doctor said she didn’t need to come back for monthly weigh-ins after her 9 month checkup, so I don’t know how much she has grown in the last month. She has, however, started to fit into some smaller 3-6m onesies and tees. Her little waist still needs 0-3m pants, but she is beginning to get too tall for them. The wonderful news is that Arya now wears a size 1 shoe. No more newborn booties for us! It’s a daily struggle to keep myself from buying every cute pair of shoes I see.
Arya loves to mimic. If she see her parents or brother do or say something, she has to try it herself. Her favorites are wiggling her tongue, waving and saying hi or bye-bye, and clapping. She loves to sing with us, and we love to sing with her.
She is still not interested in crawling on her knees. The belly crawl gets her around, so why change? She likes to be helped up to stand, but has yet to attempt to pull herself up.
This is probably the final month of Arya being able to wear her polka-dot bodysuit because she’s getting too long. 8 months in the same clothes – amazing!
Jul 10
Rob is currently in Guatemala on a mission trip. He left on Saturday and will be gone until next Saturday evening, which means this will be the longest time I’ve been home alone with the kids. So far it’s no different from the times he goes on 3-day trips, but I’ll see what happens to Xander’s mood in a few days.
To force myself to be productive, I made myself a schedule of chores and activities for the the week. It’s amazing how much time there actually is in the day when you decide to be deliberate.
Because Rob’s internet access is limited, I’m going to be blogging every day so that he can catch up on us.
Saturday the kids and I played with Mega Bloks and Lego Duplo pretty much all morning. Xander is starting to make some great structures!
After our nap, we took the dog for a walk to an awesome tire swing in our neighborhood (see previous post). I don’t know who put it there and keeps the grass cut, but I’m glad it’s there.
Where were the daughter and the dog during all the swinging?
Arya was just hanging around…
And Sansa was just enjoying being out with her pack…
A fun time was had by all.
