silly toes

Billy sits down to watch a movie with Colton one evening.  He asks Colton, "What do you want to watch?" Colton excitedly replies, "I want to watch SILLY TOES!" Well, I guess that funny, silly boy translates the movie Happy Feet into Silly Toes.  He's so funny--and smart!  What a riot!


This week, I am preparing and packing and cleaning and mowing and shopping ... all to get ready for the big summer trip.  We leave on Friday afternoon, and I have a lot to do.  I have mostly packed up the kids.  I have made lots of lists.  I need to run a few things over to a friend's house, so she can give some things out to my other friends while I'm gone. I have shopped ... I have returned items ... and we have washed our car--and changed the oil.  I still feel so far behind.  


The next item on my agenda is to pack myself.  I know ... I'm usually a "day of" kind of packer, but I have been really trying to break myself of that habit.  I need to get packed up days earlier than my trips ... rather than frantically packing (everything in my closet, because I don't know what I want to bring with me and I'm in a hurry) the morning that we leave.  I will get most of that done today.  Of course, there are some items that I just won't be able to pack until Friday (toiletries and a few items I might wear before then), but if I can do the majority of it ... I know I will be more relaxed and less impatient on Friday morning.  Plus, I think I'm going to help Billy out and pack the majority of his clothes for him, too.  I know ... how nice is that!?!  But he has been working so hard lately ... for over a month (probably more like 2 or 3 months), he has been working LONG hours--leaving before 8 (sometimes by 6:30 a.m.), and he doesn't get home until nearly 8:00 p.m. or later every night!  So, I think helping him pack would be the right thing to do ... plus, I know him.  I pretty much know exactly what he will want to wear driving and what he would want packed.  It shouldn't be too difficult.


Whilst all of this commotion around here, Koki has a runny nose.  It's been over a week.  She doesn't seem to be bothered by her ears, so I don't think she has an ear infection--no fever and the like (though, both of my kids haven't had fevers with infections that have been found via their well-checks before--so that's not a totally reliable reading).  I think she just picked up something that has affected her nose ... or she's teething, because she always gets a runny nose before a tooth pops through.  We'll see.  I'm just getting tired of wiping that leaky faucet!  I'm ready for it to dry up. 

Crazy Koki in her new sweatshirt.  She's waving to the camera (or herself).

Cole has been as active as usual.  He is really into his trains right now.  He loves Thomas and Friends.  He, also, really likes things that connect.  He wants everything to connect.  He found one of Billy's old trailers from his car collection, and he wants it to connect to every car ... (for the record, it doesn't connect to any car ... but he tries so hard!).  He, also, wants Mater to tow everything!  He tries to hook all of his CARS cars to Mater.  It doesn't work like that, but he will try and try.  I think that's one reason he is really loving his trains ... they connect to each other through magnets.  He thinks that's great! 

I found Cole like this one afternoon.  He had pulled up a chair to the window, and he was playing with his cars on the window sill.  I asked him, "Hey, what are you doing?"  He said, "Mommy, I just pulled up a chair!"  That you did, Buddy ... that you did. :)

This is the face I love and adore.  My cheesy boy!

We made it to the water park today ... despite all of the rain we've been having.  Unfortunately, it rains every day right during the time where I'm usually at the water park.  It is so frustrating.  I can't go earlier, because Khloe has her nap ... earlier than that, and it's morning.  I can't go later, because that's when I'm making dinner and feeding the kids.  Ugh!  We went today ... for an hour or so ... then we headed home, because the rain clouds rolled in.  As soon as we got home, the clouds opened up, and it began to POUR!  I'm glad we got home, because I walk to and from the water park.  The kids would've been drenched!  (You might be saying to yourself, aren't they already wet from swimming?  And you would think so, but no ... I change them into their dry clothes at the water park before we go home.  This way, they don't get the stroller soaking wet.)

Finally made it to the water park ... 

And the rain moves in nearly an hour later.  Grrrr!

We still had fun!

To say the very least ... I'm nervous about our drive on Friday.  It will be a long drive ... over 24 hours.  Yikes!  Pray for us.

... and then she was 10 months old.

10 months old--July 21, 2012

Koki has reached another milestone.  She celebrated her 10 month birthday on Sabbath the 21st of July.  It's hard to imagine that ten months have already gone by ... it doesn't seem like it has been that long since she was just a newborn in our arms.  But now, she is moving, crawling, standing, and getting into everything!  She is a little trouble maker ... so curious and explorative.  It won't be long before she's running around our house keeping in time with her big brother.  

Giving me the look ... of mischief!

Pulling up to stand.  Next ... cruising!

Here are some of Khloe's 10 month achievements:
     *She pulls up to a stand on everything.
     *She eats small pieces of banana, avocado, and watermelon.
     *She still rocks back and forth on her hands and knees ... making one or     
      two movements forward, but ultimately, she slithers still.
     *She can clap her hands.
     *She raises her hands up over her head when you say, "SO BIG!"

I thought this one was pretty cute.  So, flexible!  She loves to do this.

Her stats for this month are:

29 1/2 in. (95th percentile)

20 lbs. (90th percentile)

You can see her four teeth here.  Billy says she looks like a witch, because that top right tooth is down so much further than the top left.  I guess it looks like she only has one upper tooth.  Kind of witchy, I guess. :)

We went ahead and measured and weighed Colton, too.  He is 33 lbs. (90th percentile), and he is 36 1/2 in. tall (90th percentile). We grow them big here in the Heinrich family!  And they are cute, too. 


This weekend, we visited our friend, Duska, in the hospital.  She had her baby on Friday.  It was so fun to hold little Beckham.  He is a doll!  She was doing really well.  My friend, Gwendy, and I are going to take some food to her on Monday, so that she can freeze it and use it whenever she doesn't feel like cooking.  I found that so helpful when I had Khloe.

Baby tag.

With baby Beckham.

Beckham Lee

Beckham with Gwendy

Today, it rained, of course!  But Billy still got to take Colton to the water park.  We washed our car to prep it for our big drive on Friday.  I will vacuum and clean it out this week, too, before I pack it up.  I have a list of things to buy, clean, and pack ... that way we can be ready to go by 3:30 p.m. on Friday.  We're hoping with stops and everything to make it to Hutchinson, MN by 5:30/6:00 p.m. on Saturday night.  I'm sad we will miss the opening ceremony of the Olympics, but that's the way it goes.  


Here are a few pictures from our week last week.  Enjoy!

Koki had a great time playing with barbies at one of our MOMs Club events last week.  She will love them just as much as her mommy did growing up!

Always has something in her mouth!

Colton enjoyed playing in his friend's playhouse at our MOMs Club event ... he was "washing dishes" as he said.  He had a lot of fun playing with his friend, Mason.

Crawling around.

With mom.

Saw this guy on my way home from MOMs Club.  Scary!

My cute, smiley buddy! 

All snuggly taking a nap.

Right after she woke up!

Haystacks are tasty and fun! 

Happy Sabbath!  Good times at Sabbath School.

The storm that rolled in on Sabbath.

Sweet Colton giving kisses to Kokobear and making her laugh and laugh! 

A Colton blur! 

While Colton is stuck in his booster chair eating lunch, Khloe takes advantage of the situation!

old time video

Okay, it took me FOREVER ... days that I tried to get this video off of a program I took it on, so I could post it for my family to see Khloe crawl.  I worked on it 2 1/2 months ago when Khloe first started slithering.  She would use only her legs to move and her arms were just there to reach for the object of her desire.  It still cracks me up to see her push her buns up in the air as she reaches for something.  I don't know how she ever got anywhere, but she did it!  I wanted to post this months ago, but since I accidentally figured it out this evening.  I will post it now.  



Now, the question remains ... will this girl ever do a "real" crawl, or will she go from a slither to a walk?


The question is yet to be answered.

welcome Beckham Lee Mewhirter!

Yesterday evening, a worried Mommy gave me a call, because she was sure she might just be going into labor!  My friend, Duska, thought her water may have broken, but like any second (or third or fourth) pregnancy, it just didn't seem the same as the first time around.  She called her doctor ... and waited and waited and waited.  Finally, the doctor (or nurse) called her back, and she gave her little to no advice.  "You may be in labor ... you may not be."  Well, thanks Bill Nye!  Next time, we'll call Captain Obvious, if we need advice.  So, she decided the best thing would be to go into the hospital and get checked. They admitted her, because tests showed that her water did break.  They started her on pitocin to get her contractions going ... and they called me to head on down to the hospital to pick up their first born ... Landon.  


I got down to the hospital around 9:30 p.m.  Landon looked very sleepy ... and he was ready for bed.  Mike and I got all of his things into our car, and I popped on "Bee Movie" for him to watch on the ride home.  When we got to our house, I put him straight to bed.  He was out like a light!  


This morning, our house was full of laughter, playtime, fun, and giggles.  Colton has enjoyed having Landon around to play cars and trains with.  They had fun making funny noises at each other at breakfast.  


After breakfast, I had to put the kiddos (all three) into the car and head to the bank.  I had to sign some paperwork, because I am the new treasurer of my MOMs Club.  Now, I have the access to our club's account.  All three kids in tow, we made it to and from the bank.  

An excited OFFICIAL big brother!

Not too long after we got home, I got a text.  He arrived!  Isn't he adorable!?! Newborns are just so cuddly and loving.  

Beckham Lee Mewhirter

7 lbs. 14 oz.

20 inches

Born at 10:28 a.m.

After our outing, we played a bit more while Khloe slept ... then we headed to the water park for lunch and outdoor playtime!  I hit the garage door opener to get the stroller out ... and nothing.  It tried to open and then it shut again.  Again and again, I tried.  Nothing.  At that moment, I recalled hearing a strange noise while the boys were playing earlier, and I just thought someone had thrown a toy or dropped something.  But now, I was wondering if it might be the garage door that I had heard.  I looked around, and sure enough ... the torsion spring on the left side of garage door busted!  Deja vu!  This happened to us last summer at our old house in Altamonte.  Well, no big deal ... I could get the stroller out of the other garage door ... but how would I ever get our car out!  I called Billy, and he told me to take care of it.  I immediately called Sears ... they fixed it for us last time--$175.  They said, "It will be $299.99.  We can't come out until Tuesday the 24th."  What!?!  Am I supposed to walk everywhere for four days?  So, I said, "Last time, I had Sears fix our torsion spring, and it cost me $175."  She looked up my phone number to see if I was in the system ... and I was not.  I said, "Well, I had Sears fix it at our house in Orlando."  She said, "OH ... Orlando is a totally different place.  They have their own repair center and different pricing."  I said, "Well, I can't wait until Tuesday, so thanks anyway!"  (And I'm not paying you $299.99.)  Then I googled garage door repair in Wesley Chapel ... and I found a company that would replace my springs, give me a warranty, do it TODAY, and only charge me $175!  Win and win!  Phew, crisis averted! 


So, after all of that ... I pack the kids in the stroller (and Colton walked along side).  We headed to the pool.  It wasn't until I got to the pool gate that I realized I had left my access card at home.  Blast!  I did not want to walk them all of the way home.  I went to the gate and explained that I live here ... I am here all of the time ... I will give them my name, address, phone number, etc. Please let me in!  The young girl working there told me to plead to her boss.  I did.  The boss said, "Do you have an I.D. ... like a driver's license?"  Uh ... I did not bring my purse to the pool!  She turned me away.  I was bummed.  I told Colton we had to walk home to get our card.  We left the pool area when a lady came running after me.  She said she would let me in as her guest.  She looked at me and said, "I can't believe what just happened!  I mean, you have three babies with you.  They should've let you in!"  She told them I was her friend, and I had to write my name on a piece of paper (which I offered to do originally).  Phew, again!  We got to go eat lunch and play at the pool for a while!  Yay for no rain, too ... it has been so rainy lately, and it was nice to have a sunny afternoon to play.  But it was HOT!!!!  I'm glad we were in the water.  

Headed out to the water park!  Three kids ready to go.  Khloe was hot and not having it!

Playtime fun!

Love these three kiddos!  They had fun!

Now, the kids are asleep ... I am ready to sleep, but I should get the house clean for Sabbath.  Mike (Landon's Dad) will be here soon to pick him up.  Duska's Mom surprised them both by flying in and showing up to the hospital today.  Isn't that so sweet? 


I love babies!  I can't wait to meet him tomorrow.  I'm so happy it's the weekend!  Happy Sabbath everyone!


A Few Coltonisms:
This week, he told me, "Mommy, this oatmeal is AMAZING!"  Glad I could make such wonderful instant oatmeal. :)


Cole was eating his haystacks for dinner tonight, and he put all of his olives on his fingers.  He kept saying, "Mommy!  Watch what I can do!" (It reminds me of Bambi.) Then he stopped and said, "That was awesome, Mommy! Just awesome!"  

infiltration of bugs

From the title, you may think we have an invasion of ants or roaches or some horrid Florida bug that you get in your flour ... but no.  We have two sick kiddos over here.  


On Monday, I woke up to find Kokobean has a runny nose, congestion, and boy was she sneezy (in the morning, at least).  She has been a dripping faucet for two days.  It affects her sleeping, because she can't breathe very well.  I do the necessary maintenance that one can do for a runny nose and congestion--humidifier ... baby chest rub ointment ... aspirator ... and kleenex, kleenex, kleenex!  She just has a hard time sleeping at night and for naps, because it's so hard to breathe.  I'm hoping it doesn't last for very long.


I thought I had only one sick kiddo ... until this morning.  I went to get Colton up, and he seemed pretty out of sorts.  It's not unusual for this kid to tell me, "Mommy, go wake up Khloe first."  So, I did.  Once I had her up, I went to get Cole--who is usually up and jumping around in his crib by now.  Only today, he was still laying down.  I picked him up and got him undressed.  He just kept moping and whining.  He seemed so uncomfortable and uneasy.  He went potty, and when he came back, he just wanted to sit in my lap with is blanket.  I let him for a little bit.  I figured he was just still sleepy.  I told him I had to get Khloe her breakfast.  I left him, and I went to put Koki in her chair.  I could hear him coughing, but it didn't sound strange.  I got her a bottle and started warming up his breakfast (he had requested oatmeal).  He came out whining about something and coughing.  That's when I saw vomit on his shirt.  I went to him, and he threw up again.  I took off his shirt, and I grabbed a paper towel.  When he threw up again!  I asked him if he felt better or like he was going to throw up again ... he said that he felt better.  I took off his shorts, and I cleaned up him and the floor.  While I was cleaning up the floor, he said he had to go potty again.  I thought maybe he needed to go poop (sorry for the TMI), but he didn't have to do either.  I think his tummy still hurt.  He acted fine, though.  He went and started to play with his toys.  I had taken his temperature (twice), and it was normal.  


Not too long later (maybe 5 minutes), he came into the kitchen and asked for a drink of water.  I gave him one.  He drank it, looked at me, and promptly threw up everything that he just drank.  After that, he wanted milk.  I didn't know what to do!  I cleaned him and the floor up.  I waited about five minutes.  No more vomit ... so I gave him another small glass of water.  He held it in with no throwing up.  So, I gave him a small glass of milk.  No issues.  He ended up eating a small bowl of applesauce for breakfast.  He played all morning.  He never complained of feeling sick ... but he did want to lay around a little more than usual.  By lunch, he wanted to eat the bowl of oatmeal I had made him for breakfast.  I let him.  He cleaned it up!  He wanted another bowl of oatmeal.  So, I made him one! He downed that, too.  Then he ate a bowl of fruit and several crackers along with a box of raisins.  He was pretty hungry!  


He seemed normal most of the rest of the day.  He took a decent nap, but that's usual for him.  Right now, he's terrorizing Khloe.  She so wants to keep up with him, but obviously, she has to get even more mobile.  I guess all is well.  I will just keep a closer eye on him for the next 24 hours.  

Colton after his morning sickness ... he seemed to be feeling better.

Now, let's talk Kokobean.  She is nuts!  That girl is pulling up on everything, and it is taking a while for her to understand 'no'!  I am about to pull my hair out!  That girl keeps pulling up on to the TV stand.  It's right at her level, perfect for pulling up, and has a bunch of lights.  I can move her, tell her 'don't touch', and smack her hand a billion times.  She will fake cry for 5 seconds and turn her body to head right back to where she got in trouble.  It's maddening!!!  She will instantly go from crying to smiling, as she pulls back up onto the TV stand.  Ah! Once she is walking, I know that she will have a million other things to occupy her (good and bad), but since she is at this exact stage ... and that stand is at her exact level ... it is her fixation.  

Pulling up on everything ... even bothering brother a little bit! (Even though, he's sitting in her chair.)

Also, this girl will crawl (regular crawl) a few inches and then immediately drop down to her tummy to slither along.  The only reason I want her to crawl regularly is this ... it's ruining her clothing!  Her shirts and outfits get all dirty from dragging across our floor or wherever she's slithering around.  If she would just crawl like a normal crawler or walk or something, her clothes would stop getting ruined. I see her crawl for a few seconds ... and I think, 'yay! she's doing it!' Then ... no dice!  She drops down and slithers away!  

My 'Godzilla Girl' plowing her way through toys.

Phew!  I really took it out on this blog today!  I guess I had a lot to vent about. It has been raining all day, and we have been cooped up in the house.  Maybe I just needed to get it all out.  I'm feeling much better.

Here is what kept us from going to the water park today.  Ugh, rain!

One adorable thing Colton did today was in the car on our one short outing ... in the pouring rain (and yes, we all got soaked).  We were driving to the store, and Cole wanted to watch a video.  I said that the store was too close to our house, and we didn't need to watch a movie.  I wanted to listen to some music instead.  He didn't want to, but he decided to sing along with the radio.  At first, I wasn't sure what was going on.  I asked him what he was doing.  He said, "I'm singing with the radio!" Ah.  So, here it is ... on video.


Yesterday, before our big morning rain hit, Cole and I went for a walk.  We ran around the neighborhood.  He tried to touch every branch that was hanging down from the trees.  We had fun!  We were racing the rain.  We knew it was coming ... we saw the clouds.  Cole likes to point them out ... "Those are the storm clouds, Mommy.  It's going to rain." 

Out with Mommy on our walk.

"Mommy, are those the storm clouds?"

Colton running ahead trying to get home before the rain hits!

When we got back home from the walk, it still wasn't raining, so I quickly got out the bat and balls.  Colton likes to play baseball.  He says, "I'm good at baseball, Mommy!"  I took pictures, because I thought it was too cute. :)

Got a little baseball in before 'the rain came down with a pitter, pitter, pat.'

Today, Kokobean was having fun using her newest skills.  She learned to clap a few weeks ago (as I posted), but I just got it on video this afternoon.  I will leave you with her clapping skills.

koki's new ride

We're about to head out on a long adventure with the kids to Ely, MN ... that's right, the boundary between the U.S. and Canada.  I know, we live in the south ... the super deep south.  The only further south we can go is Miami.  We are basically driving the entire height of the United States in just over 24 hours.  You can say it.  I already know it.  We are nuts!  


As I was thinking about our long drive and the hundreds of hours we are about to endure in the car, I realized that, currently, Khloe's car seat is not going to work for her.  She has quickly outgrown her infant carrier.  Her feet dangle over the end.  Her head is aligned with the top, and there is absolutely no way I can lift that thing with her in it without nearly breaking my forearm. 

See how big she is getting!  It's ridiculous!

My big girl.

So, I decided it was time for her convertible car seat to be purchased and installed.  Luckily, I had just gotten a coupon via email for 20% off my purchase.  That makes a big difference when making large purchases.  I had done a lot of research when I looked for a convertible car seat for Colton.  The one I settled on was the Evenflo Symphony 65.  It has top ratings in safety and innovation.  It is the #1 mid-range priced car seat in its class.  I bought it for Colton feeling very good about my purchase.  Two years later, I still feel very good about Colton's car seat.  He loves it.  He's comfortable.  And it still has top ratings.  Naturally, when I went looking for a convertible car seat for Khloe, I looked for the same one.  Now, they have the Evenflo Symphony 65 e3.  This is their newest and most updated car seat.  It has all of the features of Colton's car seat with a little more side-impact safety.  It's been two years ... of course, they updated it.  I love this car seat because of the SureLatch system.  It makes it easy to install, and I feel safe knowing that they are securely fastened into the car with no chance of me messing it up by installing it incorrectly.  It's fool proof people!

Side view of the new car seat.  

Another side view.

More of a view where you can see the fabric and such.

View from the third row.

Now, Khloe can enjoy her 30 hour ride north with ease and comfort.  I'm sure this will make her rest easy and have a tear-free ride.  (Insert sarcastic tone here.)  I'm not quite as worried about our drive north ... as I am about my drive back south.  At least when we go up, I can climb in the back and talk with her, if she gets uneasy.  When we come back south, I will be the driver ... and two kids will be locked in the back.  Hopefully, Khloe will become a great rider and learn to enjoy road trips for the fun they are ... well, here's to next summer!


On Friday, Colton was having a blast racing around the house with his big, orange ball.  He was kicking it.  He was throwing it.  He was laughing so hard!  I had to get some pictures.  Koki wasn't sure what was going on.  She tried to keep up with him ... as she always does, but slithering around on the ground doesn't get you too far too quickly!  

About to throw the ball.

Running with it.

So much fun to throw!

On the run!

Sis knows what's coming!

He had such a great time!

I, also, took some pictures this week of my latest project ... the kids' table!  Here are some before, during, and after pictures.  The only thing I have left to finish is Koki's chair.  She can't sit in it ... though, she does like to pull up on Colton's.  I guess I have a little time to finish that ... it's almost done.  

Before ... well ... post primer.  I don't think I took a picture of it in its raw wood state.

I sanded, primed, and painted the table.  I cut up a map, decoupaged it, painted detail, and sealed it.  Colton is obsessed with this table!  He loves it.  Perfect!

Checking it out! 

Here is where he is singing at the top of his lungs, "When a Mother says come here!  Who comes running?! Who comes running?!" When I asked him, "What are you doing?"  He said, "Mommy, I'm just looking at my map on my new table."

One very pleased customer.

His chair.  I will have him put his hand prints on the seat on his third birthday.  We tried many, many times a few weeks ago, and he kept messing it up!  It was such an arduous task that we decided to wait until he's a bit older.

Finished product ... minus one baby girl chair that will it across from Colton.  To be finished soon.

We had a pretty fun weekend.  It started out at the water park on Friday, of course.  We had a MOMs Club event there, so it was fun having a lot of other kids to play with.

Pool fun.

Koki playing with her friend Rachelle.

Colton was enjoying the water fall from the giant mushroom!

On Friday night, we had dinner at the Adams' house.  It was fun to relax with friends.  On Sabbath, we celebrated another friend's birthday.  We had lunch at Maggiano's.  It was delicious!  The guys went go-kart racing Saturday night, and Gwendy and I did a little shopping.  Today, we have been relaxing.  Billy is out mowing the lawn right now.  I just installed Koki's car seat, and now, Colton is ready to go to the water park before we get some rain (as per usual).  This evening, I am going to a girls' night out with Gwendy and Duska.  Duska is ready to have her baby at any moment.  She's not due until August 7, but she is already 3 cm dilated.  So, we thought, since she's not working this weekend (she's a nurse) ... we better have our last girls' night that she can attend for a few months.  We'll do dinner and a movie.  


This week looks to be filled with MOMs Club events ... projects ... and most likely, a little water park time!  I'm sure we won't get bored ... unless it rains all day every day ... I wouldn't put it past Florida.  


I better go help Billy outside ... I am going to spray the weeds ... and he can take a break to take Colton to the water park.  

Have a great week! I'll leave you with a few fun pictures.

Colton LOVES sweet potatoes.  He ate two that night!  (with some peas, too)

Dad shared a gummy with Colton, and it turned his tongue blue!

Sis got stuck crawling under the race track this week.  What a predicament!