Baby Blue Eyes

Svea can sport a cool baby hairdo. She was born with long hair and around 4 months she started losing most of it except for this middle aged man comb over on top. Way to rock the hairdo, Svea!

The Pile Up

This past week was somethin' else. Jedd was gone hosting a retreat group at camp from Friday to Monday. I got a nasty cold Saturday and was just thankful it wasn't the flu bug that Jedd had the previous week. Sonna got the cold too but it didn't seem to slow her down much. The girls both did headers into the door jam - Sonna's at full speed. We were so close to seeing blood spill out of her head. She's had quite the steady stream of accidents. Thursday night while I was at a meeting at church, Sonna and Mara were playing (the kind of play that goes from laughter to crying in a blink) and Sonna hurt her arm, so much so that she would scream if we even approached her to check it out. If you ask her how it happened she'll say, "Um, we were playing Wipeout and . . ." (Jedd's favorite TV show where people essentially do ridiculously risky obstacle courses). The x-rays didn't show any broken bones but she did come home with a tiny little sling. It's Saturday night and she's started crying in pain again. She keeps her arm straight at her side. So maybe a trip back to Urgent Care tomorrow? At any rate, this pile of wet diapers and dirty clothes is one indicator of the mess.

This, too, shall pass. Mom, was that your saying?

Loved and Appreciated

I typically have the girls put their own dirty clothes in the laundry pile after bath time. Tonight while they were in the tub I asked, "Girls, would you like me to put your dirty clothes in the dirty clothes hamper?" They replied, "Sure" and "Yes". I said, "I'm happy to do that for you". As I left the bathroom I heard Sonna say to Mara "Mom's really nice".

I smiled to myself and had a tear drop in my eye. Oh, to be appreciated at the end of a day!

Svea is 5 Months Old

See this? Svea decided to debut her first roll while I was taking her 5 month picture! Mara and Sonna maybe rolled 2 or 3 times each so my kiddos aren't big rollers. Maybe Svea will be the one with the rolling skills!

She Lost It!

Mara lost her first tooth! She looks so much older to me. It was so wiggly and she ended up pulling it out but she sure was surprised when she did. I think the blood was a little bit shocking to her. But after an initial reaction of "I didn't want to pull it out!" and a moment of panic from the blood, she smiled from ear to ear!

So exciting! Really, quite a big deal. I had forgotten what it was like but now am reminded of how epic it is to lose your first tooth! I bought this Tooth Fairy pillow last week when Mara discovered her loose tooth. If you look closely, you can see her tiny tooth next to the tooth on the pillow below. :)

A Small Sign of Spring

More Valentine's Day Love!

Sweet Svea. Nearly 5 months old.

Svea and I had so much fun helping at Mara's school Valentine party. Look at that spread of sugary goodness! Mara wore a puffy sticker on her forehead that said "Be Mine".

Macie, Stetson, Trystan and Mara share a table this month. She has such a wonderful class.

The breakfast table. Lots of Valentine fun!

She's Got It

One Sunday morning at church sometime between Christmas and Valentine's Day, Mara drew this picture. It says, "The Baby God lays in the manger today". Clearly, something in worship inspired her to write these words and draw a happy Jesus in the manger illuminating love for the world. Ahh.

Happy Valentine's Day 2011!

This is actually my sister's idea for a Valentine's Day post. Thanks, Becca, for always inspiring me (if not amazing me!) with your creativity. Anyways, she and Mara were doing some Valentine projects together in Arizona and Mara decided to make heart crowns for the family. She carefully measured the baby's heads and proudly crowned them! Enjoy the love!

^ "Have you been workin' out?" ^

v "Oooh, Oooh, new diapers!" v

One Activity at a Time

Mara is taking her 4th and final Saturday morning ski lesson at Blacktail Mountain today. She has improved so much! She loves her helmet and goggles. :) Yes, this is the 3rd winter Mara has worn her winter coat! Next winter, a new one, and it will be DARK so when she brushes against the dirty car it won't matter!

Sonna starts swimming lessons on Monday. It's twice a week for 4 weeks in the evenings which feels like a big commitment but we've heard great things about the teachers. If only it would be a combo Dance/Swim Lesson class Sonna would be all set! Mara will take lessons next month and she has been asking to take lessons for a year now so I'm glad she can do it too. (I intended to take the girls to lessons last summer but at that time I would have been required to get in the pool with Sonna and that just didn't sound too appealing when I was 9 months pregnant. Actually, in the pool would have been fine, but the extra trips into town and changing in and out of swim suits with two girls is what seemed too much for me).

Valentines for Classmates

Mara included sparkly stickers and pretty ribbon on her Valentines. She carefully wrote each of her classmates' names and was so eager to bring them to school today to put in each person's mailbox. Before breakfast this morning Mara finished one for her teacher.

Sonna worked so hard writing the names of her classmates on her Valentines. I think she was pleased with herself. If you go around in a circle starting on the left her classmates are Teah, Kieran, Quinn, Kian, (Teacher) Cohen, Hayden, Colton, Ayla, Sonna (She made one for herself first!), Maddox, Alli, Libby, Liam, and in the middle are Aiden and (Teacher) Carol.

I enjoy Valentine's Day and our girls do too! It's fun to be a bit crafty and share some love. Having said that, the only Valentine that is in the mail is to Aunt Becca. Sonna made one for her during her quiet time yesterday. Hopefully Sonna will want to make a few more for Grandparents this morning and we can mail them this afternoon.

More This and That

Mara loves to hold Svea on the couch or cuddle up to her. I suggested she read to her. How cute are they?! She's reading The Little People "Farmer Jedd" book. :) Delighted!

Today was class picture day at Mara's school. In an interesting twist, it was also 'wear your sweats to school day'. Hmm . . . I wonder who scheduled these two days on the same day! Mara wore these cotton/knit pants and by some miracle, wore this cord dress on top. Even more surprising she was very happy to have me braid her hair. And when the camera came out, this is all I could get. I didn't fight her on it. I'll take a profile shot.

Baby Svea

Sara loaned us her Moby Wrap. I really like it and Svea likes it as long as I keep moving until she falls asleep. (Mara took this picture the first week of January - a budding photographer!)

Svea has the sweetest little cry. It's a cross between a grunty whimper and a "Hey, Mom, when you get a minute, could I please get some milk?" This baby is so 'go with the flow'. I have said Thank You to Svea many times after marathon errand running in town, sitting contently for an hour in her carseat next to me while I sit in the dentist chair, and being able to nap through her loud sisters. (I swear, Mara and Sonna's volume is getting LOUDER by the day).

I just wanted to post a bit about Svea. She's growing so fast!

Great Grandma Lovin'

Svea and Grandma Bredberg got well acquainted while we were visiting in Arizona. What a gift to have my Grandma know and love my children.

Helping Svea get some exercise!

Two mornings Svea and I went to Grandma's for her yummy oatmeal. She enjoyed Svea and Ivar while Becca and I enjoyed a quiet, nourishing breakfast.