Um...hi

So yeah, it's been a few weeks. I'm sorry. Because I know my readership has been refreshing every few seconds just aching for an update from me.

Oh...what's that? You've haven't even noticed that I've been gone? And you don't think a couple people with my blog in their Google Reader counts as "readership"? Yeah, yeah, I get the point.

Anyhow, much has been happening at my house these days. Jeramy went hunting, which meant a week of being a single mom. On the plus side the house was much cleaner when I got home each day because my MIL would take those messy kids to her house after they woke up. On the negative side, a two year old and six month old do not provide for very stimulating conversation. Unless you enjoy discussing the merits of Elmo. In which case you would find out discussions enthralling.

Then this happened:
Just a couple days early (and after an early labor that stretched out over three days) my niece Lily Marie arrived. She was just a petite thing at just 6 lbs 5 oz and 18.5" long. The delivery went smoothly, and I have to admit it was pretty amazing to witness and Jaime handled labor like a champ. Lily has been growing like a weed since then. I think her lowest weight was 6 lbs 2 oz and she is now 7 lbs 3 oz. I'm such a proud auntie!

The day after Lily's arrival Hayden turned 6 months old. Half a year. Seriously. She remains the worlds sweetest baby even if chewing on your finger and pulling your hair are her favorite activities. She also seems to have forgotten how to suck her thumb, and cries out hourly for me to come and reinsert her pacifier each night. Sleep in one hour increments is not quite as satisfying, but this is far better than actually having to feed her at some point during the night. That would require much more than walking down the hall in back in a zombie like state. She has mastered rolling from back to front, but is not very good from front to back. At least she is getting more and more content with tummy time because the whole flipping her back over every 15 seconds thing was getting old. She can sit up, but she is not nearly as steady at Jillian at the same age. She tends to fling herself backwards and seems much more pre-occupied with standing than sitting.

And just in case anybody worried that Lily got a knitted blanket but Hayden did not, never fear. It may have taken me many, many months to complete it but here is pictoral proof that this blanket does exist.

She loves Sophie the Giraffe given to her by Aunt Jaime

Then there was Halloween. Jillian was a Monkey (very appropriate) and Hayden a Lady Bug, and hot damn if they weren't the cutest Trick-or-treaters ever. Well at least Jillian was with her "tank yous" and "bye byes". Hayden was passed out in the stroller. The best part was that...finally...after a two decade hiatus...Jeramy and I got to go begging door to door for candy once again. Only this time we had an adorable set of girls as bait. Our house is in a rural area, so we drove a couple miles down the road to a fancy neighbor hood with houses several times the price of ours where many of the homes were all decked out in Halloween decor. These folks handed out the good candy (no tootsie rolls and crap as Jeramy said) and some even had full sized candy. And maybe...just maybe...we had a few items from Jillian's take that evening. We wouldn't want her too jacked up on sugar after all. Man oh man, are we responsible parents with our priorities entirely in order.

Don't they look bored?

After fattening them up with candy (well Jillian at least as I've heard that giving babies Reeses and Milky Ways if frowned upon) we took them both in for their 2 year and 6 month check-ups. Both were pronounced healthy specimens of children and both screamed mightily upon receiving their shots. As suspected, Hayden is gaining on Jillian in terms of weight and I'm a little nervous that she may overtake her at some point defeating the entire purpose of hand-me-downs. Here are the official stats:

Jillian
Height: 34.25" (50th)
Weight: 27 lbs 4 oz (65th)
Head: 20.5" (100th)

Hayden
Height: 27" (80th)
Weight: 19 lbs 3 oz (95th)
Head: 18" (100th)

My doctor is feeling a little reassured by the fact that both of my children appear to have enormous heads (thanks to their Daddy). As for the weight Hayden is a fatty, but I find it a little hard to believe that Jillian's weight is in the 65th percentile. She seems a little on the small side to me in comparison with other kids her age.

In Jillian related news, she has recently taken to hiding from us. She isn't very good at it, I'm afraid as she always chooses the same spot behind the ottoman. And some body part is always sticking out for us to see. I try to play along though and say "where's Jillian???".

She has taken a little more notice of her little sister lately, and often times tries to physically insert herself between me and the baby when she sits on my lap. Hayden certain notices Jillian and finds her very interesting even if she does steal all the toys and call everything "mine". I'm looking forward to the day the girls can play happily together. Okay, okay...I would just settle for play together.


There is more to share as we head into the holidays. I've been learning to knit two socks at one time saving me from "second sock syndrome". And I've been learning how to cut our grocery budget in half as part of Operation Learn How to Live on one Income. So look forward some posts on knitting and savings!