August Update

We are dreadfully behind in our blog posts. Here is Eleanor at her birthday party. We had a few friends and Grandma there. And "Melmo" (in cupcake form)--that was July 15th!Then, our friend Whit came home for Dan and Jenn Hammill's wedding. Since he and the kids were looking so good, we snapped their picture. It was a lovely wedding and we enjoyed all the effort made on the children's' behalf.

"Hey Mom! I love swings!" Here is a cute one of baby Jack (who is now 24 pounds and 8 months old). Who has now said Mama and Dada and is starting to sing. He also had a brilliant moment at the tambourine the other day where he picked up my hand to bang on the drum. Smart kid!And then, for ten days we were in Oregon. Visiting family and taking full advantage of Grandma watching her grand-kiddos, we met up with lots of friends. Here we are at the Wehage Family Camp out at South Beach State Park. These particular pictures are when Geoff and I took Nora Kate to see the tide pools when the tide was out.



It was so nice to see family. We had lots of campsite visitors and played BINGO (missed the big one by 1 number!!) and hung out with my brothers girlfriend Patience and their baby Dosha. It was a nice time and I think we are going to end up alternating years in Oregon with years in Canada with the Pollocks. Ah, camping, even in a yurt, it was fun.

Jackie Boo

I thought we better do a Jackson update as Eleanor has been getting all the "press" recently. Jack has been a happy growing boy and continues to talk more and more. He loves his sister and lights up whenever she enters the room/car. Nora has gotten very good at making him giggle which puts everyone in a good mood.

He has started eating "real" food despite the fact he doesn't have any teeth yet. The way he gnaws and drools on everything we thought his teeth were coming months ago. He likes cereal (above) and fruit, but isn't sure about veggies yet.

He still isn't moving much, although will cover some ground in a sitting position. When in the crawling position he can't move himself, it got to be tough with the fat . . .er big bones, and he gets frustrated. It shouldn't be too long til he gets moving and our lives completely change (again).

"My 'troller"

A couple weekends ago we gathered for the Grove-Pollock July birthdays. Eleanor received several great gifts but the biggest hit was the stroller from Grandpa and Charlotte. For well over a year she has enjoyed pushing her stroller. It actually started before she could walk and she would push her stroller while crawling on her knees. Our recent neighborhood walks are often slowed down as she wants to help push Jackson, so we should have known how much she she would love her own stroller.

She knew what it was right away and was excited to see it. Luckily Skyler and his engineering skills were there to help put together the dozen or so pieces.

She watched him intently every step of the way. We had trouble getting her attention to other gifts to open as she couldn't take her eyes off her "troller".

Once it was complete she grabbed it and began pushing it around saying, "My 'troller" over and over. Once we put a Raggedy Ann in the seat it was all over as she kept pushing it and checking on her baby every few steps.

After a few hours when it was time to leave the thrill of her new toy had not worn off. She insisted that the stroller ride next to her in the back seat and once we got home she continued to push it around for almost two hours until well past her bedtime. When we finally took her upstairs she needed it within sight and kept interrupting her books and videos with, "my 'troller". I'm sure she dreamed of pink strollers that night, as the first thing she said when she awoke was "my 'troller". In a conservative estimate I'd say Wendy and I heard "my troller" over 150 times in 24 hours.

Another phrase she has been saying lately are "ank you, mommy/daddy" when we give her something. We would like to thank the new school for this new politeness in our girl. As she gets more independent she is also saying "I did it!" whenever she puts on socks/shoes, removes a button/snap, replaces a pen cap, washes her hands, pretty much anything equals "I did it!".

The other morning I woke up to her repeating "I did it" over and over again for 10 or so minutes until she started calling for me. I should have been more apprehensive as to what she "did" while in her crib, as when I walked into her room she was completely naked holding up a diaper for me to dispose of, saying "Daddy! I did it!".

Two!

Today is Eleanor Kate's second birthday and as her Mama, I am allowed some excitement, and nostalgia as I reflect on the past 2 years and what life has been like with my girl. It has been wonderful and exhausting, fun and funny. Some highlights (and there have been many as of late) include: She has become the best big sister. Recently, she started calling Jack "Boo" because her mom and dad call him that (a morph of Brother, Baby, and Buddy, we think...). She sees him after school and says "Hi Boo" and proceeds to do or say whatever it takes to make him giggle. You know the giggle, that of a seven month old boy....I swear there is no other sound like it in the whole world and it'll make you smile the widest smile.

She has the best smiles and she knows when she is being bad because she'll wait for you to notice. All of a sudden, she also says, "Sorry Mama" after she has done something I don't like and it about breaks my heart. It is the best thing to see her talking so much, understanding right and wrong, and seeing the buds of empathy take root.
Nora Kate makes us laugh every day. Here is she wearing her daddy's slippers (she loves putting our shoes on) and running away from me taking her picture. Today I got dressed while she and Jack were chatting in bed. I came in and he is stark naked and giggling and Nora was saying "uh-oh" which is what she says anytime Jack drools, spits up, pees, or otherwise makes a mess.
And, she lets you know when she is mad or needs snugglin. She is our baby and I keep thinking about how she will not always call me Mama, will not always search us out in the room, will not even keep running to us after school everyday with that wild excitement in her eyes.
We love her growing independence (she now dresses herself, feeds herself, drinks out of any cup around, and is mastering the potty slowly, but surely, celebrates her successes by telling us "Did it!") and yet, today, on her birthday, I have to admit, her babyhood is behind us now. Still, while I miss that baby stuff, I am so excited for her life. What will she be when she grows up? What will her passions be? Who will she love? It's all going fast enough, but still, this life of hers....I'm just happy I get to be a part of it.
Eleanor is growing into a kid who can socialize, who can feel for others, and who is soaking up every piece of her world with reckless abandon---exactly what I had hoped for her when she was born.

Oh, and she loves coffee. I know what some of you must be thinking, but really, I can't help it. Both her Dad and I are addicts, so it naturally happens that she loves it too (and not mochas, my friends, real coffee). Anyway, Happy Birthday Bean, you are my sunshine, my lovebug, my baby love, my girl. And I couldn't be happier to be your Mama.

North Carolina Trip

A couple weeks ago Wendy had a conference to attend in Charlotte, NC and Eleanor and I decided to tag along while Jack stayed in Columbus with family and friends. EKG handled the 7+ hour drive great, although she did resist getting in the car seat after pit stops once she realized the enormity of the trip. Wendy or I sat in the back with her most of the drive singing songs and reading the same books over and over.


While Wendy was in her all day meeting EKG and I checked out the sites of Charlotte. There was a neat park near our hotel where she got entranced by the ducks and geese in the pond. We spent most of the morning quaking at the ducks and wondering why they kept swimming away.


After a nap, we hit downtown. Saturday in downtown Charlotte was bustling. I thought about taking her to the Children's Discovery place, but all the goings on kept us more than busy.

So we just walked around and looked at the fountains, parks, artwork, horses, and people. We grabbed some tacos from a local merchant and checked out the farmers market. Before I knew it we had spent almost 3 hours walking around. It was kinda fun to be on "Nora Time" and let her explore and look at things without any agenda.

The big fountain above was a big hit. We stayed here for quite a while looking at the water and the bigger kids running around. I think the only reason we left was she saw a horse drawn carriage go by and wanted to see it closer.

Updates by Wendy

A lot has happened since we last posted. Jack had his 6 month well child visit with Doctor O'Brien and weighs 22 pounds (above 97th percentile), is at the 60% for height and has a pretty big head, although the actual percentile escapes me now. He has also been for a chest x-ray (I hated holding him down, but sang to him, which helped) which came back normal, did a week of steroids, which did nothing, and is now on a baby nebulizer for breathing treatments twice a day. All of this for a chest rattle that he's had since getting sick about 2.5 months ago. He also starred in the diapering video today and by all accounts was perfect. It took 3 cameramen, 1 nurse and 1 child care specialist an hour to make the video and Jack cooperated through it all. I will post segments when I get the final edited copy.

Also, Eleanor had her first serious injury. As many of you know, she has escaped injury quite miraculously given that she fell down an entire flight of stairs, bounced off the bed onto her head, tripped head-, chin-, and face-first into cement sidewalks without so much as a drop of blood. Well, we were enjoying a great meal on Father's Day at Geoff's sister's house and all of a sudden, cheesy potatoes were everywhere and Nora was screaming. She somehow got hot steaming potatoes onto her foot and anyway, two toes and three places on the top of her foot have blistered and burst. She has been a trooper and handled it well. With a Daddy who does her wound care, she has come out of it (we hope) with minimal emotional or physical trauma.

On Friday, my Grandma Elsa died. At almost 35, I still had both grandmothers until now. She was a great lady to lots of people and lived a very full life. Mother of 15 children (My Dad was #7), 39 grandchildren (I am #10), and 19 great-grandchildren (not sure of the order of everyone here), she and my grandfather left Canada for a warmer climate and found Portland, Oregon. They made a life there and from all accounts, it was a happy and good life. For a great life story, go to http://obits.oregonlive.com/obituaries/oregon/obituary.aspx?n=elsa-catherine-wehage&pid=128805266

My middle name is Catherine, named after my grandmother. She taught me gin rummy one afternoon when no one else but the two of us were around (a VERY rare occurrence and one of my most special memories of her). She made every one of us a huge heart shaped sugar cookie every Valentine's Day and she gave the best hugs. She got to meet Geoff and Eleanor, but sadly, not Jack, whom I sure she would have mistaken for my Dad.

In happier news, I was also promoted at work, Geoff passed his 6 month probationary period at Department of Education with flying colors, and today opens ComFest weekend here in Columbus. It means Uncle Whit is in town and everyone in our household is excited and looking forward to good music, one rainstorm, draft beer in huge mugs, corn dogs, and pad tai. So, we'll have pictures to post soon of this weekend.

We also had their pictures done this past weekend for Eleanor's 2nd birthday and Jack's 6 month old shot. A sampling below:

mamadada

With Eleanor growing up so fast and changing everyday I wanted to put down a few things I love about our life right now.

. . . when she says "mamadada". For months she has combined our names when she needs us, we have heard she does this at school and with babysitters as well.

. . . when she clings to my leg when a helicopter flies over head.

. . . how Nora and Jack delight in seeing each other and the way she tries to make him feel better when he is upset.

. . . the twinkle in her eye before she responds when she knows the answer to a question.

. . . they way she asks for "more" of anything she likes. It started with asking for more food or music/video and morphed into things like animals at the zoo, birds in the backyard, or firetrucks going passed us.

Jack is growing so fast. He is six months old on Monday, which is very hard to believe. Here is a recent one of our boy, whose smile is infectious and wonderful.

From Jack: I am sitting up pretty well these days, although I get tippy (as in, I tip over) if left alone. I want to put everything in my mouth and should get some teeth here pretty soon. I've started having some fussy time around 7-8 pm every night and I'm not 100% certain of why, but I'm growin' and see the Doc on Monday. Oh yeah, I've also accepted a starring role in a video about diapering babies for the Ohio Department of Health. Yeah, it's a non-paying role, but I'm working on building my resume. Ciao babies!