Seth is 3 years 8 months old!

Oh, boy – another tough month for our boy.  Not just tantrums and unreasonableness, but such anxiety.  The poor thing.  He has started having accidents almost every day this week and I’m not even sure why.  He is also falling all over himself.  And I keep trying to find him around 3 or 4 because it has suddenly gotten too quiet to find him underneath tons of blankets and usually with cushions over his face.  I don’t see how he can breathe, but I think I usually find him quickly after he falls asleep.  He also is terrified to sleep at night and will only sleep on the couch.  He sometimes refuses to go preschool, but I can usually con/trick him into the car and he will go in the door once we get there.  Last week he wouldn’t go to Sunbeams and stayed with at church the whole time.  He would just sit at home and play cars with me and read stories all day every day if he could.  He never wants to eat his meals and only wants snacks – I don’t think he ate even one bite of dinner last night.  Poor kiddo.  What a time!

Seth is the ultimate rule follower.  If there is a defined rule, you better follow it and so had better everyone else.  He is surprisingly good at being quiet when I am putting Logan down for a nap – all I have to say is “Quiet play time” and he will go and play quietly in his room.  Yay!

Otherwise, not much seems new this month.  Seth had the flu, but not too bad.  But with sickness, colds, and Katsu being out of town a lot, we mostly were homebodies this month.

Fun Things This Month

• International Night at the school – families sponsored booths and had snacks from their home countries. Andrew and Seth went with Katsu and tried all the different foods. They loved it!
• Setsubun – we threw jelly beans at a bemasked Daddy.  Seth is still not so sure about this holiday.  For a week or two, Seth would still tell me that he does not like “that holiday where you throw jelly beans”.  I think the Goblin kind of freeks him out.
• Super Bowl – we ended up being home the whole day because everyone was sick, so we made a party of it with lots of snacks.
• Donuts with Dad – Seth really looked forward to this event with Katsu.  I think he thought that Katsu would be bringing donuts and Seth kept putting in requests.  And then that morning, true to form, he was “sick” and didn’t want to go.  But he had a great time!
• Valentine’s Day – Seth was excited about writing his name on all the valentine’s (he’s getting better) and picked out Batman ones.  He seemed to have fun at his party and was super excited to bring home his valentines and candies and share them with Andrew and Logan.  He still likes to pick out his favorite ones and show them.  We had a some chocolate at home for the boys on Valentine’s Day as well.
• Magic House – with just me and the boys.  Seth had lots of fun – I should take them every month.
• Zoo – two or three times.  Seth likes going on the carousel and seeing a few of the exhibits, but then he gets bored.
• Chinese New Year Party – we went to our friends party again and it was fun.  Seth was pretty hesitant to go and play with the other kids at first, but he finally got over his fears and had fun.  They loved the food, of course!  I think they enjoyed the fireworks, too, but one got a little close to the boys and so they got scared and came in.
• Black History Month at Andrew’s school – Seth got a little bit bored, but enjoyed it.  There was some performances by the 5th grade and then a play based off The Three Little Pigs.  They even brought home little pumpkin pies.
• Snow – it was a bit too icy for snowmen, but the boys built a snow fort with Katsu and also walked to the park and went sledding.  And you can never have too many snow ball fights!  Seth keeps wandering off whenever we go outside to run through the snow and is in love with Andrew’s old boots.

Andrew is 5 years 9 months!

Boy – what a month.  I feel like I forgot most of it because the last week has been awful.  Andrew caught the flu – Influenza B, to be exact.  So much for his flu shot this year.  Generally, he seemed to have lots of cold/cough going on in January and then last Friday, he was sent home from school with a fever.  We thought he was having issues with his asthma before, but I guess it was the flu.  By Saturday, his fever was up to almost 104 and it stayed there for the next week.  Only this Friday did his fever finally go away.  Saturday was AWFUL – he was hot hot hot and throwing up all the time and it just got worse and worse.  By dinner time, he was throwing up and coughing and sitting by the toilet and just screaming and crying that he couldn’t breathe.  We called the nurse's helpline and they told us to give him three albuterol treatments in an hour but they didn’t seem to be helping at all.  We were giving him medicine for the fever and it wasn’t lowering the fever at all.  So, the nurse told us to take him to the ER.  Katsu carried him to the car because he said he couldn’t walk.  By the time I got down there to take him to the ER, he seemed a bit better and was talking by the time we got to the ER.  I think the meds had finally kicked in, but I took him in anyways.  He threw up some while we there, but gradually got better, especially after they gave him some ibuprofen.  I think they were somewhat unimpressed and kept telling me he had a virus (and two ear infections).  But if they had only seen him at home … anyways, they did a chest x-ray because his chest sounded not quite right, but thankfully no pneumonia.  So, we spent the next week with him and Katsu and Seth at home.  We all took Sunday off from church and enjoyed celebrating Setsubun and the Super Bowl, but mostly were all in bed (except me, I got sick only at the very end of the week).  Basically everyone got sick.  And poor Andrew had his fever for a week!  We took him back to the doctor on Wed. to check him out because he still had a fever.  That’s when they tested him for the flu.  Anyways, the poor boy.

Plus, he missed two other days of school in January with his coughing/asthma.  Of course, both days I totally regretted it because then he and Seth were at each other’s throats the whole day.  I told him he was not staying home again, but then he was home a whole week.  No wonder I have been going crazy this month.  Andrew hasn’t been in school!

Andrew was SO sad to miss school.  By the end of the week, he was crying because he missed his class so much.  And he missed their Chinese New Year celebration, which I felt really bad about.  So, we promised him that when they were better, we would take them to the Chinese Buffet to celebrate the New Year.  We went to a new place just down the round on Saturday and the boys loved it.  They were skeptical at first (they always are of new buffets), but it was even better than the other one and they loved it.

Otherwise, Andrew is learning to read at school.  He is starting to bring home books to read – he brought home one and it seemed really easy to me.  Andrew loves to read easy reader books at home.  He has taken home the King School Series books from the library and loves them.  He picks out like 10 at a time and then orders them in order of level and wants to read them all.  He does pretty well, but the highest levels 12-14 are hard for him.  I think he is about a level 8 or 9, which is mid 1st grade, they say.  I can tell that he is getting a lot more fluent.

Andrew has been loving hearing chapter books.  He was reading My Father’s Dragon at school and has been telling us all about it.  I wasn’t familiar with the books, so I didn’t know what he was talking about and Andrew couldn’t remember the title.  But it turns out Katsu loved them when he was little and we even have a Japanese board game based on the books.  So, the boys have loved playing it with Katsu.  We read the 2nd and 3rd books this week off my Kindle.  We have also found a much better selection of books for the Kindle at the library, so we have started reading some more chapter books for Andrew – a series about a boy named Andrew and also the Junie B. Jones series, which Andrew has seemed to enjoy so far.

Andrew has been learning a lot about China in school this year.  For social studies, they learn about the holidays, so they have been getting ready for Chinese New Year.  It is fun to hear all the things that Andrew has learned.  They also did the 100th day of school.  Andrew insisted on writing the numbers out from 1 to 100 and bringing that.  I didn’t think that was exactly what they wanted, but he insisted, so he brought it in.  He was excited because the principal got everyone a cookie with the number 100 on it.

Andrew’s new favorite hobby is Sudoku.  I guess his uncle must have taught him the basics when he was here, because he saw one in the newspaper and wanted to do it.  He has finished a couple now and seems to really enjoy it, though he needs some couching and which number to work on next – he can do it all himself, though.

Andrew also LOVES to be on the computer and would spend all his days away at abcya.com.  I can not entice him to build Legos at all, which I was hoping he would get into.  Besides the computer, he mostly like crafts, reading, and making forts, and playing with the car racetrack.

Fun Things This Month

• A couple beautiful days at the park, but otherwise, the month has been really cold.
• A new session of swim lessons.  Andrew is doing really well.
• Incredibles movie at the History museum.  It was going to be a me and Seth date, but he wanted the whole family to come.  Andrew enjoyed the snacks and the movie, but was pretty non-plussed by the underwear exhibit we saw afterwards.
• Seeing lots of planes at the airport from taking Katsu to and from the airport.
• Loop Ice Carnival – the kids LOVE this.  Businesses in the Loop have coolers full of ice with either dollar coins or chocolate coins inside.  You throw them on the ground to get the treasure inside.  It was a gorgeous day and the Loop was packed and most of the coolers were already empty, but the boys got a few.  We also checked out the ice sculptures that were in front of the businesses, ate out for lunch on Katsu’s treat and Andrew and Seth both went down the ice slide a couple times.  It was a super fun day and gorgeous.
• International Night at the school – families sponsored booths and had snacks from their home countries.  Andrew and Seth went with Katsu and tried all the different foods.  They loved it!  Andrew eats so slow, so of course he couldn’t finish it all.  It is so funny watching him at school where he has to say hi to every single person he knows.  And I love his little facts about school.  Like Ms. Jackson-Terry is the principal because she has the longest name.  Love it.
• Setsubun – we threw jelly beans at a bemasked Daddy.  Andrew, of course, has it all figured out that the goblin is really Daddy, but still enjoyed doing the holiday and throwing jelly beans and eating them.  He kept saying Chinese phrases instead of the Japanese ones.  He was excited to tell his friends at school about the holiday.
• Super Bowl – we ended up being home the whole day because everyone was sick, so we made a party of it with lots of snacks. 

Logan is 15 months old!

And boy am I worn out!  What a busy age!  Logan is in everything and everywhere.  As much as you try to continually watch him, I can not count the times where you hear a little cry and think – oh, no, he shut a door again and who knows how much mess he has just made in said room.

He also has great problem solving skills, if we want to put a positive spin on it (as opposed to the diabolical – just kidding).  He has discovered the bathroom step stool which he carries around wherever he wants (especially the kitchen) and then he can reach the counters and all the drawers.  Oh, my.  It is probably my fault.  He loves to play in the dishwasher and help me put away the dishes (he takes them out and then I put them away).  But he stands on the dishwasher door which I am just sure is going to break.  So, I showed him how to use the stool beside it instead and look what I have created!  He is trying to figure out how to open doors, but sadly is just a little too short.  Thank heavens.  He does know how to open the oven door and dishwasher however.

Logan loves to go in the boys room.  Thankfully there, he mostly just plays.  He loves the boys toys.  He also is learning to pick up.  Today, I saw him pull out blocks, build towers with them, and then put them away.  He actually is a much better pick or upper than Seth is right now.  He loves to pick up.

Logan also loves to play in the bathroom.  We try to train the boys to always shut the door, but occasionally they forget and oh, boy.  Even if it is only 30 seconds, the drawer is open and everything is thrown on the floor or into the bathtub.  Next, he opens the toilet – thankfully he has only throw a few things in and does not yet know how to flush.  He also likes to empty the trash and take the toilet brush and brush everywhere. 

Logan loves to help.  He loves to watch me make yeast breads and rolls and comes running when he sees the breadmaker.  He wants a taste of everything.  He loves watching all kinds of cooking.  And trying most kinds of eating.  He also likes to help clean and pick up.  So sweet.

Logan is running.  He is busy busy.  He still climbs everywhere.  He is pretty daring.  He will drop himself off the back of the couch, but gets upset when he gets stuck between the couch and the wall.

Logan loves to play with his brothers, wrestle with his brothers, and toddle off and get into things on his own.  He loves to come back and cuddle and hug with us regularly, too.  He is even starting to say “hug”.  So, cute.  He still doesn’t kiss anymore, but he will make kissing sounds, mostly for Joe.

Logan mimics everything his brothers do.  If they throw something, he does it.  When Seth or Andrew are in one of their moods and hit, Logan will hit, too.  He loves to throw everything, especially cars, but also balls.  He loves to play on any electronic device and will go to anyone in reach.  He pretends to talk on the telephone with anything resembling the right shape.

Logan has definitely different cries – he has this cute little offended cry whenever anyone hurts him or his feelings.  He will cry and cry unless you come over and say you are sorry and give him a hug – then, we will be happy again almost instantly.  He isn’t talking much – he only regularly says “hi”, “hot”, and “hug”.  I swear I’ve heard him say Andrew and Seth but not consistently.  I wish he was speaking a bit more, but he has great comprehension, almost scarily so.  And he expressed himself pretty well by pointing and little noises.

Logan still isn’t weaned.  Maybe this month.  He is drinking a lot more milk than he used to, so it seems more promising.  He is a very hearty eater.  He is starting to go to one nap a day but it is kind of a hard transition. 

Update from Logan’s well check this morning – He was 95% still for height and weight (I think he is 27.5 lbs and 33 inches tall) and 90% for head circumference (48.5 cm).  So, he hasn’t dropped off the charts yet … we’ll have to see if he does that.  He did not want to be there – he started crying as soon as I took off his clothes and it was a battle to try to get him on a scale.  Everyone commented on how strong he was (when I took him to get his blood taken last week, the nurses were telling me how much trouble he was going to be when he was older because he is so strong willed).  They sent in two nurses to do his shots because one wasn’t going to be enough.  But he cheered right up as soon as the nurses left and was happy to pick out a toy and go home.  His iron levels are up, so that is good – we’ll have to keep giving him iron for awhile.  Otherwise, everything looked good.

Fun Things This Month

• Making a special huge heart cookie for Katsu when he got back from Japan. The boys were very excited for him to be home again.  Logan seemed to have really missed Katsu and wanted to be held by him all the time when he first got home.
• Snow ball fights and building a snowman with Katsu after he got back from Japan. I was lazy while he was gone and limited snow play to snow ball fights at school after the school day.  Logan didn’t get to play in the snow as much as he liked (so much work at this age!) but he loved every second.
• A couple beautiful days at the park, but otherwise, the month has been really cold. 
• Incredibles movie at the History museum.  Logan thought it was fun and enjoyed the snacks, but slept through most of it.
• Seeing lots of planes at the airport from taking Katsu to and from the airport.
• Loop Ice Carnival – the kids LOVE this.  Businesses in the Loop have coolers full of ice with either dollar coins or chocolate coins inside.  You throw them on the ground to get the treasure inside.  It was a gorgeous day and the Loop was packed and most of the coolers were already empty, but the boys got a few.  We also checked out the ice sculptures that were in front of the businesses, ate out for lunch on Katsu’s treat and Andrew and Seth both went down the ice slide a couple times.  It was a super fun day and gorgeous.  Logan was in the stroller most of the time, but enjoyed it.
• Being sick – Logan had a cold with a super duper runny nose and also gunky eye – he had to have eye drops which he HATED.
• Setsubun – we threw jelly beans at a bemasked Daddy.  Logan was terrified and gripped really hard to my shirt.  I gave him a jellybean to throw, but for once, he was too afraid to throw!  He did enjoy eating some jellybeans after the goblin left and loved gathering them from the floor.
• Super Bowl – we ended up being home the whole day because everyone was sick, so we made a party of it with lots of snacks.  Logan loved the snacks and trying to eat off of everyone’s plates.