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| Olivia and Charlotte's first picture together!* |
About Me
- Kim
- Nebraska, United States
- A former full-time teacher living her life-long dream of staying at home. And homeschooling to boot! Comments make my day. Thanks for stopping by! kimlepper at gmail.com
Thursday, June 20, 2013
Friday, June 14, 2013
Just Because
When Samantha does her hair it involves ALL of her clips, for two reasons.
1) There is a better chance one will still be there by the end of the day.
2) Because they're there. Why discriminate?
Monday, June 10, 2013
Two videos for Grandma
So this is a post by Jeremy
I promised my parents that I would post up the video of Sam opening up here birthday gifts from them. This was about a month ago. I just remembered (was kindly reminded) to put them up, here they are.
This is Sam opening her gifts from Grandma and Grandad.
This is Sam opening her gifts on her birthday from other family.
Saturday, June 8, 2013
FOUR
I'm not sure how it is possible that every year gets faster and faster. I seriously feel like I posted her 3-year collage a month ago. I'm also getting later and later in posting about her birthday every year. And celebrating her birthday and getting her into her yearly appts. You'd think her birthday was on a different day every year or something that I couldn't get my act together by May 18th!
Oh well, I don't have her exact stats yet (her appt is the 14th of June) but she's roughly 33lbs and 34" tall. She had a MAJOR growth spurt this year. When she started school in August she was in 2T clothing. She ended the school year in 4T. I'm SO glad I didn't buy summer clothes last fall like I normally do, otherwise I'd have bought the wrong size.
The other usual stats:
Sleep- sleep is still fairly illusive, although I have to remind myself that she's come a LONG way. She will fall asleep in the car and on the couch or just cuddled up with me and we haven't had a night scream fest for months. This summer was off to a rough start due to her window being like a spotlight in her room, causing her 8pm-6:30am sleep cycle to streeeetch to 10pm to 6:30am. After a few weeks of losing those 2 hours of sleep she was a CRANK. Naps only made it harder for her to fall asleep at night. Sleeping in our dark room only made us cranky too as NO one was sleeping well. So a friend sewed some black-out fabric and Sam now has curtains behind her curtains that darken her room enough so that sleep at 8pm is part of the routine again. PHEW! The next step will be to get her to stay in bed after we leave. She has a hard time stopping. And the more tired she gets, the more she moves.
Bodily functions- A month or so ago I mentioned to Samantha in passing that if she could keep her pull-up dry she could start wearing her panties to bed. And voila she started keeping her pull-up dry. TOTAL shock as she has the bladder the size of a walnut. She will have an accident here and there, but if I drag her to the toilet 1/2 asleep before I go to bed, she can usually make it until morning.
Speech- If Samantha is awake, she's talking. I'm working really hard at talking to herself in her head as there are times when even whispering isn't appropriate or gets too loud. Now THAT's a hard thing to try and model, let me tell you. She's also into potty talk. I know that it's normal for this age AND that the more I try and stop it, the more she'll want to do it, but it was really getting out of hand. EVERY word or song involved the words poop or pee or potty. So I not only tried to put a stop to it, but tried to give her other fun words to say too like "chiuaua" or "pumpernickel" or "beebee". So far so good, however the potty talk has quickly been replaced with expressions like, "HUMPH" or "It's not FAIR" or sticking her tongue out. She did that to papa the other day and she's lucky I punished her first!
Eating- Sam is experimenting with the concepts of negotiation for dessert or declaring she doesn't like something, but she really has a hard time keeping up with these charades as she just loves all food. This is an area that we are seriously blessed with. Given the choice, she'll eat junk over fresh, but that's just because she doesn't get much of it at home. Even then, though, I think she's the only kid I know who will get half-way through a piece of cake and say she's full. Samantha is a fantastic eater. She has her preferences, but we have to say things like, "Ok, that's enough bell pepper, eat some of your hamburger too" so I'm not ever going to complain about how she eats!
The famous story at school is of her and another girl harvesting all the spinach in the greenhouse and eating it all. The other girl is a fairly picky eater, so it's very likely that Samantha ate the entire spinach patch herself!
Health update- Sam hasn't had a migraine for a few months (knock-on-wood) and has even been able to enjoy things like ice cream from Dairy Queen. We do have to be careful of severe constipation, as she sweats all.the.time (inside with the AC on and playing dress-up for example), but a constant supply of Gatorade has kept that under control. On the physical development side of things, the preschool has been amazing in that she's learned from the other kids how to walk (and even play a little!) on sand or wood chips. She also can climb any playground, jump off surfaces and catch herself if she gets off balance. I've just now reached a point where I've had to tell her NOT to jump off things (like 5 stairs at once), where as we use to celebrate her even climbing onto the coffee table.
SO there we go. Samantha at 4-years-old! I do hope Charlotte gets at least bi-yearly updates...I'm already slacking in the belly-shot tradition.
Oh well, I don't have her exact stats yet (her appt is the 14th of June) but she's roughly 33lbs and 34" tall. She had a MAJOR growth spurt this year. When she started school in August she was in 2T clothing. She ended the school year in 4T. I'm SO glad I didn't buy summer clothes last fall like I normally do, otherwise I'd have bought the wrong size.
The other usual stats:
Sleep- sleep is still fairly illusive, although I have to remind myself that she's come a LONG way. She will fall asleep in the car and on the couch or just cuddled up with me and we haven't had a night scream fest for months. This summer was off to a rough start due to her window being like a spotlight in her room, causing her 8pm-6:30am sleep cycle to streeeetch to 10pm to 6:30am. After a few weeks of losing those 2 hours of sleep she was a CRANK. Naps only made it harder for her to fall asleep at night. Sleeping in our dark room only made us cranky too as NO one was sleeping well. So a friend sewed some black-out fabric and Sam now has curtains behind her curtains that darken her room enough so that sleep at 8pm is part of the routine again. PHEW! The next step will be to get her to stay in bed after we leave. She has a hard time stopping. And the more tired she gets, the more she moves.
Bodily functions- A month or so ago I mentioned to Samantha in passing that if she could keep her pull-up dry she could start wearing her panties to bed. And voila she started keeping her pull-up dry. TOTAL shock as she has the bladder the size of a walnut. She will have an accident here and there, but if I drag her to the toilet 1/2 asleep before I go to bed, she can usually make it until morning.
Speech- If Samantha is awake, she's talking. I'm working really hard at talking to herself in her head as there are times when even whispering isn't appropriate or gets too loud. Now THAT's a hard thing to try and model, let me tell you. She's also into potty talk. I know that it's normal for this age AND that the more I try and stop it, the more she'll want to do it, but it was really getting out of hand. EVERY word or song involved the words poop or pee or potty. So I not only tried to put a stop to it, but tried to give her other fun words to say too like "chiuaua" or "pumpernickel" or "beebee". So far so good, however the potty talk has quickly been replaced with expressions like, "HUMPH" or "It's not FAIR" or sticking her tongue out. She did that to papa the other day and she's lucky I punished her first!
Eating- Sam is experimenting with the concepts of negotiation for dessert or declaring she doesn't like something, but she really has a hard time keeping up with these charades as she just loves all food. This is an area that we are seriously blessed with. Given the choice, she'll eat junk over fresh, but that's just because she doesn't get much of it at home. Even then, though, I think she's the only kid I know who will get half-way through a piece of cake and say she's full. Samantha is a fantastic eater. She has her preferences, but we have to say things like, "Ok, that's enough bell pepper, eat some of your hamburger too" so I'm not ever going to complain about how she eats!
The famous story at school is of her and another girl harvesting all the spinach in the greenhouse and eating it all. The other girl is a fairly picky eater, so it's very likely that Samantha ate the entire spinach patch herself!
Health update- Sam hasn't had a migraine for a few months (knock-on-wood) and has even been able to enjoy things like ice cream from Dairy Queen. We do have to be careful of severe constipation, as she sweats all.the.time (inside with the AC on and playing dress-up for example), but a constant supply of Gatorade has kept that under control. On the physical development side of things, the preschool has been amazing in that she's learned from the other kids how to walk (and even play a little!) on sand or wood chips. She also can climb any playground, jump off surfaces and catch herself if she gets off balance. I've just now reached a point where I've had to tell her NOT to jump off things (like 5 stairs at once), where as we use to celebrate her even climbing onto the coffee table.
SO there we go. Samantha at 4-years-old! I do hope Charlotte gets at least bi-yearly updates...I'm already slacking in the belly-shot tradition.
Tuesday, June 4, 2013
Bigger Bump
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| 24 weeks with Charlotte |
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| 24 weeks with Samantha |
Saturday, June 1, 2013
Big Brother to Arrive in August
About a month ago all the teachers received an e-mail about an impromptu "concert" being held by a foreign exchange student who was going to play the piano for the first time in 6 years. Aparently he's amazing. I was unable to hear him play, but Jeremy did and said he was very impressed. Shortly thereafter another teacher sent out an e-mail telling everyone that this young man was looking for a host family the following school year. He's from Korea and both he and his brother are sent each year to my high school for education (going home each summer). Jeremy and I have talked about hosting for a couple years now, but health and employment issues have taken priority in the past. Thinking it was waaaay off in the future, Jeremy promised in December of 2011 that we could host the fall of the next-next school year (so fall 2013). After getting this e-mail about this young man needing a home I forwarded it to Jeremy with the following message,
"PLEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEASE?!?"
Now I know what you are all thinking, "Um, Kim? Won't you have a newborn in October? WHAT in the world are you doing!?"
And to be honest, we really have no idea what we are doing, but we have an empty bedroom that won't be used for Charlotte or Sam (we plan on them sharing once Charlotte moves from our bedroom). And I hate having that room empty. Plus, after four years of constant doctor visits and hospital stays and moves, things have gotten a little dull around here, so why not throw a teenager in the mix?
But seriously, when God wants something to happen, he lays it all out for us, paving it with gold and planting beautifully shaded trees on the side. HK (the future big-bro) is, according to all the other parents and students who have met him, responsible, a great student and amazing with kids. When I met him and told him about my four-year-old and the new one to come his first response was, "I babysit!" I laughed and told him we wouldn't expect him to be our babysitter, but I'm sure Samantha will love playing with him. He doesn't do the cell-phone thing (thank GOODness) and his schedule at Pius matches pretty much what I spend there anyway (he's a wrestler-something my dad will eagerly follow I'm sure). His previous host family (who knows my family and had to make a hard decision not to host him another year due to extended family responsibilities) were relieved that he'd be going to a home where he could continue to practice and grow in his faith, as he was just baptized a few months ago. The best part is, if things work out, he'll probably stay with us for TWO years, since he returns each year and is only going to be a Junior.
So anyway, there you have it. Christmas pictures for the grandparents will be quite fun this year with THREE new kids to add.
"PLEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEASE?!?"
Now I know what you are all thinking, "Um, Kim? Won't you have a newborn in October? WHAT in the world are you doing!?"
And to be honest, we really have no idea what we are doing, but we have an empty bedroom that won't be used for Charlotte or Sam (we plan on them sharing once Charlotte moves from our bedroom). And I hate having that room empty. Plus, after four years of constant doctor visits and hospital stays and moves, things have gotten a little dull around here, so why not throw a teenager in the mix?
But seriously, when God wants something to happen, he lays it all out for us, paving it with gold and planting beautifully shaded trees on the side. HK (the future big-bro) is, according to all the other parents and students who have met him, responsible, a great student and amazing with kids. When I met him and told him about my four-year-old and the new one to come his first response was, "I babysit!" I laughed and told him we wouldn't expect him to be our babysitter, but I'm sure Samantha will love playing with him. He doesn't do the cell-phone thing (thank GOODness) and his schedule at Pius matches pretty much what I spend there anyway (he's a wrestler-something my dad will eagerly follow I'm sure). His previous host family (who knows my family and had to make a hard decision not to host him another year due to extended family responsibilities) were relieved that he'd be going to a home where he could continue to practice and grow in his faith, as he was just baptized a few months ago. The best part is, if things work out, he'll probably stay with us for TWO years, since he returns each year and is only going to be a Junior.
So anyway, there you have it. Christmas pictures for the grandparents will be quite fun this year with THREE new kids to add.
Friday, May 31, 2013
I have lots of moneys
Samantha has been begging to go out for ice cream. She even specifically ate all her ice cream at home so that she could say, "Welp, we are out of ice cream. That means we have to go buy some." And by "buy some" she does not mean buying some from the grocery store. Only dairy queen or cherry on top will do. It may or may not have something to do with the fact that the last time we went to Dairy Queen, she did not get any because of a class-A scream fest she demonstrated in the car.
Anyway, I made a chore-chart and money value chart, and we'll see how this goes. We're still working on setting the table and putting her clothes away (chores that are required and do not earn money) but maybe this way she'll learn some value of money and hard work. Except that she gets a KICK out of helping and using the spray bottles til her hand can squeeze no more. Oh well, only time will tell!
Anyway, I made a chore-chart and money value chart, and we'll see how this goes. We're still working on setting the table and putting her clothes away (chores that are required and do not earn money) but maybe this way she'll learn some value of money and hard work. Except that she gets a KICK out of helping and using the spray bottles til her hand can squeeze no more. Oh well, only time will tell!
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| Need to buy a jet dry mop to add one more chore... |
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| There is a second page with "book" "big toy" and "nail polish" |
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Ram Sam Sam
Lil Sister
Genevieve
