#3 and #4

I'm a little behind (shocking, I know!). Lily got tooth #3 (front top right) a little over a week ago, and then tooth #4 two days ago (front top left). She is very facially expressive. She tries to repeat a lot of things. She tries to keep up with the boys. She hits me several times on the legs when I tell her "No, I can't pick you up right now." She is starting to get into 'real' trouble. Gone are the days of many many warnings, stern voices, and light taps on the hands or behind.

Austin is still practicing writing his letters and numbers most days. He likes getting a silly band for his hard efforts.

Justin is still, well, Justin. And he only cares about a silly band for a minute. Gummy bears tho, that's an entirely different story. I think they have helped us potty train him. He does GREAt at home, goes almost all the time by himself, and still no diapers at night or nap. The problem still remains that he doesn't know how to ask someone to go...like at church where that ability is necessary.

It's re-official (is that a word?)

Lily's first tooth went away after it showed up a couple of months ago. It is back today. We figured it was coming because she has been very cranky and chewing her fist. She was a different kids today.

She has also been putting my cell phone and the home phone up to her ear.

And I swear she nodded her head 'yes' when I asked her if she wanted a cheerio yesterday.

She has spent all day standing, bouncing while standing, picking things up and standing.

And she's up!

Today was the big day for Lily to stand up w/o holding onto anything. She did it first for Grandma Sue in the living room. But during the course of the evening she did it many more times, some of them even on beds. She recognizes this is new for her, and she seems very tickled. It also appears that the tooth she cut a couple of months ago went back under the gum. However, this week also seems to be a big teething week as she has been very cranky and chewing on her fist.

Spit bubbles and standing alone.

Lily has realized she can make spit bubbles these past couple of days. Great timing when she also has a cold. yuck Today she has regularly been pulling up with the help of something, and then letting go to stand alone. Big girl!

9 month check-up

Lily had her 9 month check-up Thursday, and all is well. She is 18#11oz and 29" long. We still aren't doing any vaccines until 18 months, and the boys never had their iron checked while I was nursing, so Lily didn't either. So, it was uneventful....my favorite kind of doctor visit.

Tonight, while I was laying on my back in bed w/Lily to my right and Justin to my left, I was telling them the 3 Bears story. Lily has always had a funny fascination w/that story, but tonight it got really funny. As I told the story, she got closer and closer to me (which isn't saying much since she was already right beside me where she can nurse). I was almost at the end (and she was right in my face) and I had just said, "...and the baby bear said, "somebody's been sleeping in my bed..." when Lily popped me in the nose. It caught me so off guard that when I was finally able to react, all I could do was laugh hysterically. Guess you had to be there :)

Lily crawling, and a few funnies (or not so much?)

Austin to daddy in the car one night: "Daddy, which way did we turn?" Daddy, "Left." A-- "I wanted to turn right." D-- "That's the way we go to church, but tonight we're taking the highway." A-- "But I wanted to take the low-way."

Austin to me in the living room while pretending he was going somewhere: "Bye, I am going to hell." Mommy-- "We don't pretend to go to hell, it's a very bad place." (edited version) A-- "No, I mean hell at home."

She's a big girl now!

Lily will be 7 months in less than a week. Today was her first time in the highchair. I don't put the kids in the highchairs until they can sit up mostly unassisted. This week she passed that milestone (in the bath tub, no-less). So, for lunch she had lots of Italian wedding soup that I made (mostly just the orzo, smidge of chicken and spinach...not lots to you and I of course) and probably 2 cheerios (in tincey pieces). She was quite a trooper. A couple of weeks ago when she started really getting around by army crawling, she was also doing the bear stand. I thought she might start walking before crawling or sitting up unassisted (not really, but you get my drift). This week she has been crawling on all 4's more each day. She also does a lot of a partial bear stand w/one arm off the ground, as if she is getting up (which she doesn't). Time to put the gates up! She has been crawling off of cushions onto the floor for awhile, but this past week she has made progress in climbing up....using my body to help. She may start out on her back, then roll to her belly, then crawl up onto my arm, then up to my shoulder, then up to my chest or belly or side, then she stands (while hanging on of course). I also need to move the recycling paper box, which she found, and can get into, and makes a mess, AND eats it if given time.

100,000 miles, No more blue and on the move, and Ohhhhh

The van turned over 100,00 miles sometime this week. I don't think I have ever owned a vehicle, from new, that has done that.

Lily no longer has any blue in her eyes. She is definitely going brown like her mama. And, for the past couple of weeks she has gone from rolling and twisting everywhere to actually army crawling forward, and with pretty good speed if she has a purpose. She has been up on all 4's and rocking a lot, so we will see when the crawling goes upper level.

And Justin, he is just so stinkin' cute sometimes. When we read stories at night or for nap, he will repeat the last couple of words you say. Then, I will say "yes" and he says "ohhhhh". But it's the pitch he uses, it's so cute. And today for the first time at nap time he said "change my poopie". I can only hope this is going somewhere good.

First laughs, Found fingers, Finally mobile?, Finally sentences, and a Golf ball

Lily began laughing out-loud , for the first time, a couple of weekends ago. Matt was making faces at her while she was lying on the bed. (I believe that is the same way Austin began laughing out loud.) This past Saturday night I caught her staring down her fingers, for the first time, as if they were little aliens. That always cracks me up. (Side bar: Austin said to me the other night, "Mommy, do you crack me up?") Anyway, Lily started rolling from her back to her right side yesterday. Still just 1 roll 1 time.....I thought.....until today when I laid her on the floor, head facing the kitchen, between the living room and the kitchen. (I have found that if I turn the hall light on she sorta hangs out there for a bit w/o fussing.) We sat down to eat dinner and I would glance over at her just to see what she was doing. (I can't talk to her too much or watch her too long if she is watching me because then she tends to start crying.) At one point when I looked at her, she was gone. Part way down the hall, head facing down the hall, on her belly. I have no idea how she did it. She was wriggling a lot. But while I watched her for several minutes, she didn't actually get anywhere. So, did she roll several times to get there? Did she wriggle around just enough to push herself there? Got me.

Justin has been talking in longer sentences for the past couple of weeks, and answering with the right words to certain situations. For instance, when I call his name now, instead of coming to me he answers back "What?" When I tell him to do something, or not to do something, he asks "Why?" And, 2 days ago I was pretty sure he was trying to tattle-tale on Austin, due to the words that I understood in his very long sentence "Austin.......Justin....." and the ever-popular tattle-tale pitch in his voice. That was confirmed when the very next day he came to me crying and very clearly said, "Austin pushed Justin down." Oh boy, here we go!

A few nights ago when I was in bed for the night, in between Lily and Justin, I was reading something. As I lay there for awhile, I was a little preoccupied with a slightly uncomfortable feeling in my lower back. I assumed it was just the tag and seam of my pants being in a jumbled mess. When I was certain the kids were asleep, I got up to do some work, as I often do. I reached back to fix my pants when what do you think I found? Yes, a golf ball. Thank you Justin.

From the freezer to freezing.

That's me with my head in the freezer, using my hair dryer to defrost our "frost free" freezer, sitting on a cooler full of frozen food, holding what soon became a sleeping baby. The picture says it all.











A very cool zoo pic from this past Monday, the warmest day of the week (the news said). I froze, and the ENTIRE rest of the week was nicer than Monday. Thank you God for a family day at the zoo .

Lily at 4 months

She weighed in at 14#9oz and she was 25" long. The Dr. took notice of her extremely sculpted abs as she watched her do stomach crunches during her check up (that's what she looks like she is doing as she raises her head up as far as she can while lying flat on her back).

I am SOOOOOO behind!

I hope none of these are duplicates!

One of the boys (I believe Justin) w/his foot across Lily, sleeping, when she was only a couple of days old. I knew it was a sign of things to come!










Lily's first bath at 6 days old.








Aunt Therese bought this "My first 4th of July" onesie for Lily, and when she was 6 days old we got a 4th of July Ty Beenie baby at an event we attended....how appropriate!













Our family and Matt's sister Therese and her daughter Savannah went to the Ohio State Fair one night. This is just 1 picture of Austin & Savannah riding one of many rides that night. Matt went on several w/them. The kids had a BLAST!











The boys were pretending to be crocodiles. Grandma Paula says they aren't going to be very happy w/me when they see these pics in the years to come.













COSI
Justin is a structural engineer in the making! Look at that bridge!













OK, maybe not.











Justin was fascinated w/putting balls up in the air, and they stayed there. He played at that spot for a long time.













BFF'S FOREVER!!!!! It's Lydia on the left and Lily on the right, or is it the other way around? No matter, they each get called the others name often, even in their own homes!










Sadly, this was the first and last time the boys were in our little baby pool this year, in AUGUST!











This was just last weekend at a birthday pool party. The boys had a blast playing in this kids pool.











How cute! Not posed!!












Imagine seeing this guy in your backyard! In the city! Sadly, he couldn't fly away w/the squirrel, so after making sure it was good and dead, he left it under a pine tree and flew away.

Lily update

She will be 6 weeks old tomorrow. Wow how time flies! She is gaining weight with NO problem, as did her brothers (at 25 days old she weighed in at 10#15 oz.). her 1 month b-day she smiled at me while watching me and in reaction to me talking to her. The 4-5 week mark turned out to be pretty big: following you with her eyes, laying on her belly for 5 min. with her head up the whole time and no crying (neither of her brothers would go on their belly for this length of time let alone w/o crying), staying awake longer and just hanging out in her bouncy seat or swing WITHOUT crying, and lots of baby talking/cooing. I just LOVE those sounds! Especially with 2 talkative boys, I can appreciate the cooing even more. I will try to post some new pics soon. The biggest difference is she has less hair than when she was born. She is losing it from the front back, just like Justin did. Austin was the only one born w/more hair and didn't lose any of it except a small patch on one side. If she wasn't in girly clothes she would look more like her bothers. As far as the results from her follow-up PKU goes, in 1 hour I found out she has a small degree of Galactosimia (sp?) and would need further testing done by a geneticist, we would need tested by the geneticist, she might have to have my milk supplemented w/soy milk, she and us didn't need to be seen by a geneticist because her percentage was so low that she would lead a completely normal life w/her 1 recessive gene functioning at 75% and only Matt or I carried the recessive gene so we wouldn't ever have a child w/full Galactosimia....any questions? Whew! Thank you Lord that it turned out the way it did.

Lily Renee' Bauer makes her debut!

Lily was born July 4th at 9am at home in water, just like her 2 brothers. They were both there and eager to play in the water and throw things in the water, as well as give mommy some encouraging hugs, kisses, and words of advice. Austin said to me several times, "Just breath mommy," and "Don't cry mommy, just pray to God." Lily was 7#14oz, 19.5" long, and I think she looks like Justin did when he was born.

More birth details: My contractions started at 3:30am and were 10 min. apart and 45 sec. long. After 1 hour, went out to the couch to continue watching time and length. I wasn't sure this was the real thing. After 2 hours of this, Matt came, got an update from me, and then asked if it was safe for him to go to the bathroom (you would have to know story of Justin's birth to appreciate that question.). I decided to call 1 of the midwives to see if she would be willing to come check me and give me her professional opinion. I didn't want to call everyone over if it wasn't the real thing and ruin anyone's 4th. After she got here at 6:30am and checked me, my contractions immediately started coming every 5 min. It was decided to call everyone else. Matt had already started filling up the tub w/water. By the time Lily arrived, the water had just gotten warm enough for her to be born into it. My water hadn't broken, so as I was pushing it felt like trying to birth a water balloon. Matt was able to help deliver her, which he hadn't been able to do with the other 2.

Altho water birth is far from pain free, I can't imagine it any other way.