Day 231

I have to say this immediately: Lulu is eating three BIIIG meals every day now, and I'm seeing her grow, like daily! :) Our sweet baby girl was a teeny tiny little one, ever since they pulled her out of my belly (more like yanked her out), and she has just taken her time with getting big & chubby. Well, she's going there now! She's eating lots of rice or oats with veggies and fruit, purées of course, and she is just loving it. Tonight after our bath, while we were watching Peppa, it had been exactly one hour after Lu ate a very big bowl of food-- she passed out cold:

She didn't need her swaddle, we were loud, the TV was on and P was shouting... Point is, she was knocked out. We are going to stuff this kid for dinner every night, she was so happy! :) 

Dada comes home tomorrow, we are happy as we can be. That's all! Here's a few dinner pics. Night.

Day 230

Today the Rindge gals visited Aunt Anita in Los Angeles! :) We are all sleeping a little longer in the morning, so we were got a later start than we might have if we were up at 5am! It's a welcome change, and I'm happy about it. :) So, we went to L.A., had lunch, played at Auntie's house & headed back home in time for dinner and bathtime. We got to see Papa before bed via Face Time (a video chat thingy on our phones)-- we loved that, and Penelope especially, she kept hugging and kissing the phone. :) The girls totally miss Daddy when he's at work, and it's always such a happy morning when he comes home.

We have one more day of no Daddy, I wonder what we'll do? 

Here's a few pics of the girls, goodnight!

Day 229

Luciana is a champion baby food eater now! She eats three meals a day-- all organic stuff that we feel good about. She loves it all, unlike her big sis who was very picky about peas and other green foods. :/ (She got that from her Mother, I'll be the first to say, unfortunately) We are noticing that Lu is growing quite a bit, and now all her milestones are arriving: sitting up, rolling over, and sleeping (a bit) longer. We are very proud of the big girl she is!! :) 

Today we had a very late start-- Penelope decided to sleep in until 8:15!!!!!!!!! And truth be told, I woke her up, so she definitely would've slept longer, I was worried something was wrong! Anyway, it threw our whole day off-- she didn't wake from her morning nap until 1ish, so we didn't get to go to the park until almost 3. Crazy! It made for a very long morning, and then the rest of the day flew by. Luciana is such an easy baby to handle, it makes my life so much easier, when I have to run after crazy P!! P is at an age where she wants to do, see, talk, yell, run, and above all: DO IT HERSELF. So it makes a huge difference that I'm not fussing with Lu also. :) We'll see what happens when she's 18 months old! :/

Here are a few pics from breakfast-- both girls finished all their food! Yay! :)

Goodnight.

Day 228

Just a few things tonight-- Mommy is TIRED. We had Papa home for a day, and we spent it checking out our local YMCA-- had an idea of swimming this summer, in a pool! It's a beautiful place, but the girls may be too young for it just yet.... After dinner, bath and bed, we were just exhausted. It seems the days just run us ragged, but we still try to pack as much as we can into it. I'm rambling....

Luciana is doing really great, sitting up more, eating more, but we are still working on the sleeping through the night thing. :/ What are you gonna do? I know she'll grow out of it once she's good and ready. 

It's the weekend tomorrow & we'll miss Daddy... That's all. Goodnight!

Day 227

Happy Thursday, but Mama thought it wa Friday all day! :/ Us Rindge gals were up with the sun. And this after they were both up before the sun. :/ We have taken to sort of letting them stay in their beds if they wake up before, say, 6:30. It's been working out, too! Penelope will talk loudly, sometimes call out, "Mama" (the pushover, not Dada who is not) but then she'll fall back asleep. Lulu will talk too, but she'll also cry a little, and that is hard to lie in bed and listen to. But-- a tired Mommy is not a very attentive or very awake Mommy!! So, we are sleeping a little bit more here, and it does help. :) 

Luciana is growing sooo much lately. She was super tiny tiny up until the last few weeks, and now it seems each few days I really see how she's bigger and stronger in different ways. We love it. It's awesome! I will share one more thing our sweet baby is doing now-- she is talking more! She says "dadadadadada" :) Today I said it, hoping she'd copy me, and she did :) Anyway, I think she's super smart and gorgeous, and perfect. That is all.

Goodnight!

(P.S. We are happy we'll be seeing Papa tomorrow, but just for one day... We'll take what we can get;))

Day 226

We Rindge gals had a very busy day today. After our amazing waffle with fresh peaches breakfast, we put the girls down for naps. Once everyone was awake, we headed out while Papa worked on the cars, and some projects inside the house. We went to 5 or 6 different shops today on various errands-- returns, shopping, etc. Both girls held up amazingly all afternoon!! It's always nice to have our babies with me, even if it's no the easiest thing in the world, even when our wide stroller barely fits down the aisles, even when somebody smells awful in Lowes and we need to find a bathroom with a changing table (P, it was you, sorry), and even when Mama has to nurse Lulu in the backseat in a parking lot. It's still fun being together, and we always end up having lots of laughs. :) When we got home, there was no time to sit down, but straight to making P her dinner and feeding Luciana hers: today it was kiwi, pears & peas. She loved it! :) It makes me happy beyond belief when I see the girls eating heartily. Gone are the days when something silly like a concert is what makes me truly happy... It's when my babies are happy. 

So, you know the rest Lulu, right? Dinner, bath, Peppa Pig? :) I like Peppa Pig time-- when Daddy's home, we all watch together and it's really nice. Oh, and we also sit in Penelope's room and hear her bedtime stories.... That's also nice. 

We say bye-bye to Daddy tomorrow, he has to work. We have had him all to ourselves for the last three days, so I guess we'll let him go! We are going to try and get back on our park schedule with our friends. 

Night! Oh, here are some before and during bath pics. ;)

Day 225

Camping day!!! We were up early as planned, but Mama was tired because Lulu had a rough night. :/ After I snuck in a few more winks (with P in bed next to me) I was finally up, ready to pack. Daddy was home early, and we got it all done together-- we filled the van all the way up:

With two very little babies, we know we must be prepared for anything, and we were!!! We were on the road a bit later than planned, but it happened. :) Holly & Lily caravanned with us, and would stay one night. 

We got to Palomar Mountain at 3ish, and were happy it was really woodsy, it really felt like camping, not like the last place we went to, it was more like a desert. We set up, P took an apple break, and I had Daddy put Lulu in the playpen:

It was a LOT of work keeping both girls happy and safe. Holly and Lily helped us sooo much, we wouldn't have been able to do it without them! We finally got through dinner (we had to take turns eating so the girls could be taken care of!) and soon it was bedtime. Basically, it took P an hour to get used to the idea she would be in the tent by herself for a bit and stop crying... Loudly. :/ I had to nurse and rock, and rock, and rock, and rock Lulu in the van until she fell asleep. It was nearly 9pm when we were ready for some fire and board games!! Once P started crying again, we called it a night. Our story should end there... It doesn't. First, it was cold, and we were all super cold/uncomfortable. Second, the girls just couldn't sleep. We were all up at least every hour. The very least! We woke up and laughed, knowing we'd have to leave that day, as well. :/ Camping is too much for our babies. Here's us when we woke up:

We got up, made breakfast & ate, washed up and went on a hike :

Then we packed it up, and were on our way home sweet home by 1pm. There you are, express camping by the Rindge family! We had many laughs, and loved spending time with Holly & Lily, but know it was probably something we'll try again at a later date. :)

So happy to be home, and I know the girls are too! The girls were troopers, I'll never forget this trip! 

Day 224

Sunday was a day of trying to prepare for camping... I tried to pack a few different times, but it just wasn't happening. I did manage to write out lists of everything we'd need, and it was a bit overwhelming. :/ 

I managed to get to bed at an okay time, hopeful for at least 3 hours of solid sleep at some point!

Camping on Monday :)

Day 223

Our day consisted of only a few things: wake up/morning routine (up at the CRACK of dawn, lie with Mama in bed for a bit, downstairs for breakfast & Dora the Explorer, play & naps) and then Grandma Gayle time. Mama needed help with Wild Woman Penelope while I cleaned this house that is twice the size of our old house!! :) Totally not complaining-- I'm lovin' our house, it's all coming together, it's so pretty! After a couple hours of cleaning (Lulu slept most of that time, thankfully), we had our evening routine (dinner at 5, baths, Peppa the Pig, stories and bed). We had lots of running around to do, but we'll do that tomorrow-- we have shopping to do for camping! Mama plans on eating a LOT. S'mores are happening... Whenever possible. :) Yay! Let's just hope camping actually doesn't become a disaster. I plan on keeping my babies warm and as content as possible, so that may leave us gals in the minivan. We'll see. 

Well. Old Mom has managed to ramble through another blog post! Lulu, you are an angel from Heaven, you are a perfect little doll, so sweet and happy, it'd be a redundant blog if I just said that over and over (but it's totally true). :) You have to know how your life was, what you did your first year, and how Mama & Daddy loved you so. 

(We just wished you would sleep all night already, sheesh! But we still love you!)

Tomorrow is an hour away, you are asleep in your crib wrapped tight in your swaddle, fan on for air, a second for noise, night light owl on the changing table... Goodnight, my sweet girl! 

(Just for the record, your sister didn't sleep through the night when she was you age, either. We're cutting you some slack!)

Day 222

It's 10:07pm, and my sweetheart Luciana is crying in her crib. :( We are doing a little bit of tough love-- letting her cry it out when we know she's not hungry, wet or unswaddled. I hope she's learning, finally, because the crying time is getting shorter.  She's my angel, and it's still hard for me to not react when she's crying, and feels wrong. What are you gonna do, can't win! :/

We enjoyed Daddy's ONE day off from work, and we'll see him off again tomorrow, until Monday. The girls were both in atrocious moods today, so I'm sure it was really fun for Papa! :/

The best part of today was that we all napped at the same time!! Imagine that?! We were out all morning, and as soon as we got home, we all zonked out-- it was awesome. 

Here's a couple pics I took of Lulu at bathtime.... Night. 

Day 221

Well, the Rindge girls made it through Daddy's 3-day shift... The kids are in bed, and I still have my sanity. I think. ;) I'm exaggerating, of course, it's definitely harder without Papa's help, but we manage just fine with our daily routine. The girls seem to know what to expect throughout the day, and I know that is true because they just kind of look bewildered if we are out of it. This worries me because we are taking the girls camping in a few days! :/ We haven't worked out how we're going to maneuver around naps, but I guess we'll figure it out! 

Um. Ok, no more rambling.

Today was a good day, and we enjoyed ourselves and each other! :) The girls are waking up a little later, praise Jesus, Mary and Joseph!!! It is a huge thing to sleep until even 6:30. Luciana is still gettin used to eating solids, and I have a feeling weaning her from nursing is going to be HARD. :/ 

No pics today, let's see what we can do about that tomorrow. Goodnight.

Day 220

Well, the girls slept in (almost til 7am) but I was a mess because Luciana had a long night. I kept racking my brain, trying to guess why she was wide awake at 3am, but seriously, what difference does it make? She does what she wants. We hung around the house until afternoon, when I took the girls to The Habit for a burger-- I really wanted one, a good one! It was funny, I brought everyone's lunch, including Luciana's baby food and we made a specticle of ourselves in the dining room, with all the mess, noise, etc.   But the way I see it is, if we don't get out because we're afraid to deal with the girls out, we'll be stuck at home for the next few years! 

Later, I did our nightly routine of bathtime, Peppa Pig (a show that is absolutely adorable), story and bed by 7pm for both girls. Too bad Lu woke up at 7:30 and wouldn't go back to sleep until 9:15. I hope that means she'll stay asleep until at least 1am!! :/ 

Here are a few pics from today.... Night!

Here's Lu this morning-- we were outside watching Penelope play....

And then here she is gumming a baby biscuit... I was watching her like a hawk, afraid for her to finally get a big chunk off!

Day 219

Baby Lulu slept in this morning-- 7ish!!! I went and got her different  baby food (the kind she first ate & liked) and... No good. I'm hoping that she just wasn't hungry. :/

Mama is fallin asleep typing this, so I'll sign off & share tonight's post dinner pix....

Day 218

We celebrated Lily's 5th grade promotion today at the Souplantation. :) She is on her way to middle school now! The girls behaved pretty well at the restaurant-- meaning, no major meltdowns or poop. Afterwards, naps were had, dinner, baths and bed at 7 sharp. We have Luciana going to sleep at 7pm also, of course she wakes up throughout the night, but she's down early all the same. :) 

Papa returns to work tomorrow & we won't see him for a few days. We miss him already.:'( 

Lulu started eating solids (purées) a week ago, successfully anyway, but now she's some of hit a wall. She isn't liking any of the food I give her, so we'll keep trying until we find what she likes. :) I wonder if pickiness is genetic. :/

That is all. No pics from lunch-- I'm kicking myself now! :/ Goodnight!

Day 217

Last night wasn't as bad as I thought it would be... Lulu woke up maybe three times, same as home, even a little better. She did go to sleep at 10:30, so I'm sure that had something to do with it. :/

We were up late (7am is late to us!!) and had breakfast on our way out of Coronado Island. We tried to race home to see Penelope, whom we missed a LOT, but alas there was traffic. Blah. We were really glad to be home, and know now that we cannot have an overnight getaway until Lulu is a bit older. That's okay, we'll survive, I think. ;)

It's Father's Day, and we gave Papa a couple pair of shorts (he always can use new duds), a card and a peach pie. :) We let him know how much we love and appreciate him, too!!! Our day was spent at home together with Chinese takeout-- our favorite way. 

That'll do it for today. Goodnight! 

Day 216

Today we came to the Loews at Coronado Island to celebrate our second wedding anniversary. We ended up bringing Luciana after all.... She just won't take a bottle, and we can't have her go hungry! Here's Lulu on the car ride-- she was a trooper the whole way, traffic and all!!!

We arrived (finally) and went directly to the pool for a late lunch (burger for me, tacos for Papa). Here we are on the lounge chairs....

Since Lulu was weirded out by being somewhere so different, we took a walk and explored the grounds of this place. It's huge! We walked along the bay, and then came inside to look around. We found ping pong outside near the pools, and played for quite a bit, Lu watched. :) What a pretty hotel:

Back at the room-- Lulu is finally asleep (at 10:30, this kid!!) and we are settling in for the night. Sigh..... Lulu, we love you to pieces. That's all. :)

Goodnight!!!

P.S. We miss Penelope so so much.... We keep seeing things here that we know she'd love! We know she's having lots of fun with Holly & Lily, though. 

Day 215

Daddy came home today, and we had ourselves a great day at home. The girls were super happy to see him, and we all got to spend some really good time together. :) After the girls were both up from afternoon naps, Papa took them to the park to play-- Penelope is big enough to just run off and go on the slide 20 times all by herself, but Daddy sat on a blanket and played with Luciana. 

Here are a few pics from earlier, when we were all on the family room floor playing...

On a side note-- Mama & Daddy are going on a little overnight trip to celebrate two years of (fun, happy, awesome) marriage, and I think we'll have to bring Lulu along. :/ Now, we adore our angel, but it's sort of a Mommy and Daddy only thing, but our baby won't take a bottle!!! We tried and tried. :/ Tomorrow morning we try again, maybe a few different ways as a last ditch effort. We'll see what happens!! (Lulu, you know exactly what to do to make Mama jump, you little rascal!! ;))

Night.

Day 214

Luciana just won't sleep through the night. She's up every two hours, and the nights are loonnnnggg! :/ She's going to bed at the same time as P now, and we're hoping to try some different things to help her get some 3 and 4 hour blocks, maybe even sleeping all night like P! I have to remember that P wasn't sleeping through the night until a little later. It's a tough stage for us all, but we're powering through. :) 

Today we were mostly at home, hanging out inside until the sun came out, and then outside. Papa cleaned up our back yard, and now I can let P run around on her own, and Lulu and I can just lie on a blanket and play. It really is nice. :) 

Tomorrow Daddy comes home, and we are so happy and ready to have him here with us. Here's a pic of the girls waiting to have their bath tonight.... Goodnight.

Day 213

Today was another early morning-- 5:30, folks. :/ We had a visit from Mana today, she took P to the park while Lulu & Mama ran around town. Lulu was a quiet little mouse the whole time, only beginning to cry once we got home & it was time to eat. Speaking of eating, Lulu is eating fruit & veggies like a champ!!  It didn't help her to sleep through the night last night, but we'll keep trying!

She's looking bigger to me, my angel:

Goodnight! We miss Papa so much, can't wait till he comes home!!!

Day 212

Yesterday was a girls only day-- Papa went back to work after six days. We were up early again, so we keep missing our morning walk/playgroup. :/ It's just impossible-- to wake up at 5:30, and meet up by 8:30 or 9... Penelope naps riiiiiight around then when she wakes up so early, so it's a no go. The girls nap, and then we go about our day. 

Yesterday Luciana tried squash & banana purée, and she loves it!! I'm happy to report that she devoured a bowl of it, and seems to "get" the whole eating thing now . :). Yay!!!! My thinking was , if she has a full belly, she'll sleep great all night. More on that next post. :)

That's all for now, folks!!

Day 211

Happy 2 year wedding anniversary to Mama & Daddy! Two years, two babies... It's been pretty exciting so far, and we're just starting out. :) 

All our guests left today, and we had the day to clean up, do laundry, rest and spend good time with the girls. It was a good day, and I'm happy we were just home all together. 

Lulu was grumpy today, she just wasn't herself and I suspect it's because she was up whining and crying all night! Hoping tonight she catches up on her sleep!!

That's all... Goodnight.

Day 210

We had a long, but fun day today. :) Papa made waffles for us all: Grandpa, Ann, Holly, Lily, and us girls of course. Yummmmm, such a treat! After morning naps, we packed up the bikes and went to the park for croquet AND badminton! Lulu hung out on the blanket while Penelope terrorized the playing field ;)

After that, we rode down to Doheny Beach for icecream, then home for a game of Taboo-- T and I against Holly & Lily, Grandpa was score keeper and timer. Then we all walked to dinner at Cassanovas and dessert at Baskin Robbins!!!! Can you say busy day?? :) Seriously, though, it was fun. The girls went to bed and we are just beat. We enjoyed having Daddy's Daddy (and Ann!) in town for these two days, and we'll see them off tomorrow morning. 

Lulu is still awake every two hours at night... All we can do is hope she'll break the trend very soon.

That'll be it for tonight... Bye bye!