mom's good idea

after the neighbors parked and abandoned a cadillac leaking oil on our front lawn for over a month, I decided to plant a tree, grasses and flowers in that spot. the ground was very hard and compacted but mom suggested adding water, which made it easier, and Rob did most of the digging. its nice to look at our new flower bed.

pumpkins at their best. the rain barrels are empty, so now i'm only watering a little.

rough few days

saturday. rough day. high fever. rob remembered that last time this happened it was due to teething. E is gumming and making unusual hand mouth guestures, so rob is probably right and ely will have 5 new teeth tomorrow. all my family is together at a reunion today. sad we're not there, because i know they are having an awesome time. E sleeping a lot today and hot to touch. he isn't eating well or nursing as much as usual. nice to have him snuggle and read lots of books, but not nice that he is sad. hopefully will pass soon. glad it happened on a weekend when we could be here for him.

update Sunday AM. the fever has passed. i hope it won't return. he is nursing better. still lots of putting his hands in his mouth and drooling. poor guy. rob's working all weekend to meet monday deadline. midnight walks when E cant sleep. jolene is a good girl to go with us.
monday. good morning, but fever back after noon. sleeping a lot. resistant to drinking. i try to force tylenol and he throws up. his first tastes of popsicle and apple juice.
tuesday. rob is home with him.

regular sorts of evenings

I've been reading a great book about the importance of routine and simplifying food and toys, etc for children. Simplicity Parenting by Kim John Payne.

yesterday Ely got into the pots and pans. here is a photo, but it doesn't capture the aural experience (i.e.banging). tonight he pushed his highchair all around the kitchen (soon to be walking without that support). He ate cherries (his dad's favorite) - even the skin, and frozen blueberries. he still doesn't like cherry tomatoes, mushrooms, peas or scrambled eggs. then in the bathtub, he tried drinking the water, many times. (I showed him how to drink out of a fountain the other day, maybe thats why).

at mealtimes, i've been giving him his own spoon. he sticks it, usually the handle end, into the bowl of oatmeal/veggie/applesauce or yogurt and gets lots of good tastes into his mouth (and elsewhere). I think i'm helping him learn how to feed himself.

roadtrip adventure

Ely and I got to visit our cousins in Spokane, and officially meet the newest little guy. they are so much fun. We saw beautiful gardens at Manito Park and just had a relaxing time. Jenny was a great hostess!
Eric is a great dad and uncle. all the kids love to be around him.

Jenny & Isaac got into a water fight with the competitive Eric, they should have known better...