Sawyer Speak and Sibling Rivalry

Our darling "spirited" child, Sawyer seems to be maturing a bit. She is getting pretty effective with her communication skills (unless you're new to her and then she will talk nonsense using proper tone and inflection) and seems to be listening to adults and getting along with others. She is even starting to take an interest in her brother that does not involve punching, pushing or pinching. She often wants to hold him, sing him a "wuwwabye" (lullabye) or even just "pway wiss baby boy" (play with baby boy). When she plays, she continues to be a bit rough and I am always commenting to her that she is like a "bull in a china shop" to which she pays no attention.

Yesterday while spirited Sawyer "pwayed" with my little Prince Eamon, she decided that he was the bully. He was rolling around and attempting to commando crawl in this play session with his big sister. He clearly thinks it is fun to play with Sawyer and is a pretty solid little guy, so I can let them play in a somewhat physical manner, ie..tickling, patty cake, etc. That is, until my blushing flower of a little girl decided that big, bad Eamon was being a bully. Her comment was priceless, "Mommy, that baby is besin' mean to me. That mean baby is kickin' me!" Well Sawyer, that baby is 7 months old, has no ability to plan an attack on you and can barely get around. I think she really believes that the baby is cooking something up, and that he is actually able to hurt her in some way. Awesome.

The good news is that the kids are at an age where they are starting to enjoy eachother. Eamon loves both of his sisters. Both of the sisters enjoy playing with their baby brother. Sawyer would follow Madeline off the edge of a cliff if it meant one more minute of playing Barbies, and if I give Madeline $1, she'll take Sawyer upstairs and "watch" her for a while so that I can get something done. Aaaahhhh.

Old (sorta) Friends

When my darling Sawyer was born, I attended a breastfeeding support group at the hospital where she was delivered. During that crazy, colicky time, I was able to meet some great moms and their babies thanks to my religious attendance at this group. I would take Madeline to day care and spend the day with Sawyer and some moms and their babies who were just a couple weeks older/younger than Sawyer. When we moved, we lost touch. Thankfully, while visiting Indy, I ran into one of the moms at the mall and we were able to reconnect. These lovely moms were sweet enough to make the long drive up to West Lafayette to visit this past week and, we had such a wonderful visit. Emily brought her daughter, Gabby and Brooke came with Beau and 8-month old Tommy. I had to post some cute pics of our "old" friends. That is, they are old friends if you're 2 and a half.

Easter

Our first Easter as a family of five has come and gone. We colored eggs, had the egg hunt, wore pretty clothes and ate bunny shaped pancakes (good idea Amy). I managed to give my kids candy and then steal most of it out of their eggs/baskets and hide it so that my husband could hand it out at work on Monday. I was also able to include things in the Easter baskets that were of necessity and not just ridiculous gifts with no purpose. The kids got shorts, shirts, and socks and were thrilled that the bunny had been so generous. Most importantly, the kids had a fun day from sun up to sun down and we were able to enjoy some fun family time.

This year, I almost forgot how important Easter is to kids, regardless of their religious leanings. Easter is kind of a mini Christmas for little kids. Schools tend to perpetuate this phenomenon with crafts and stories related to Easter and it is a good thing. Had it not been for Madeline's Kindergarten-fueled excitement about the return of the bunny, I may have forgotten to go to Target and spend a bunch of money on this wonderful tradition.

Priceless Quotes From a 9-Year Old

The Honakers' (Jason's sister and family) came to visit again this past weekend. I'm sure when they come to our house that they experience culture shock. They have one child, Avery who is very well-behaved and independent. Poor Avery. When she gets here, she is inundated with "love" from her adoring cousins. I'm sure that it is so annoying to her. Additionally, her parents who love their nieces and nephew unconditionally have got to be somewhat irritated by the constant "love" (otherwise known as demands, crying, sitting in your lap, following you around, constantly saying your name) they receive. I know the Honakers' love to visit us. Undoubtedly, they also love to head home, to the quiet sanctuary that Kentucky provides them. This weekend Avery spouted off another of her famous quotes regarding the DeWitt family. Last time she was here she commented on the work that I do as a mom:

Avery: "Three kids is a lot of work."
Aunt Katie: "Yes it is but, I love it."
Avery: "Seems like a hassle."

Most recent quote:
Avery: "Aunt Katie, do you want a fourth kid?"
Aunt Katie: "Yep, sometimes I do. I love those babies!"
Avery: "You're crazy. There is something wrong with you."
Aunt Katie proceeds to crack up and agree wholeheartedly.

Grandpa Accepts His New Role (finally)

My dad has not exactly accepted his role as grandfather gracefully. He has always been, as I say, a soldier in the war on aging. He has experimented with tinctures, exercise, diet and meditation as ways to stay young. Recently, he admitted to me that he has given up his fight and has accepted his age. At the end of this month, he will be 65. Of course, he continues to make healthy lifestyle choices and is in good shape for an old coot. Nonetheless, his surrender to becoming old has also signaled a white flag in respect to fighting his role as grandpa.

Man, he is starting to love it! No doubt, the DeWitt children (and adults) have got to be incredibly annoying to a man who has lived alone for the past 24 years but, as his recent visit revealed, he is a pretty darn good grandpa. He goo-gooed with his grandson, let his granddaughters primp him up princess style and arrived on the DeWitt scene with a gift for each child. I'm impressed.

I Talk With My Feet

Hi, my name is Eamon and I talk with my feet. Since I cannot communicate using words and am generally a pretty quiet baby, I must let you know with my arms, legs and feet how I am feeling. I usually feel pretty happy and I let you know by smiling and constantly kicking my feet and hitting whatever is in their way. I will kick you, my bed, my car seat, my sisters and my toys. Often, when I am mad, I will also kick my legs and feet. You will know the difference because I will be whining when I kick and feel mad. If you notice that I am kicking and whining, go ahead and put me in my bed so that I can kick in there, followed by going to sleep.

Spring Break: Labor Intensive

Because we are gluttons for punishment, we decided to take all three of our lovely children to Great Wolf Lodge in Mason, Ohio for spring break. We were lucky enough to be upgraded to a 2-floor condo style hotel room for our 2 night stay and it was a good thing. Instead of sleeping soundly with my wonderful husband, I spent 2 nights in bed with my infant son who took this as an opportunity to enjoy a 24-hour buffet, courtesy of his mommy. I had to sleep with him to quiet his frequent crying and therefore avoid waking up Sawyer and opening yet another can of worms. My loving husband slept with Sawyer, to quiet her cries up on the second floor.

Great Wolf Lodge is great. It is huge and delivers on all of its promises for family fun and excitement. Unfortunately, our kids turned out to be a bit young for the water slides. Jason and I were dying on the inside, as we wanted to go on the slides. We learned very quickly that taking children ages 5, 2 and 6 months to a waterpark does not leave a whole lot of time for adult fun. It was labor intensive to say the least. Of course, Eamon had to be held. Sawyer suprised us by demonstrating a new fear of water and therefore wanted to be held constantly. Madeline loved the water park but in true Madeline form practiced "safety first" and avoided anything that looked at all frightening.

The good news is that the kids were pretty well-behaved and Jason and I got to revisit the place where we met, complete with our 3 children. It was pretty neat to take our kids to O'Bryon's Irish Pub and sit in the booth where we first got to know eachother. As many of you know, Sawyer is named after the place. Here are some pics.