Happy Baby :))

Kevin is such a happy little sweetheart. Sure, he has his off days, and his cries of hunger and discomfort; but, overall, he's a very happy little boy. I've especially noticed how much he's been smiling and giggling since he recovered from that nasty infection last week. When he's excited, he gurgles and giggles and growls, and his legs start doing Riverdance! You never know what is going to amuse him. Two days ago I put him in his exersaucer, and he was so thrilled! He's been in it lots of times, and he likes it, but I'd never seen him this excited before.

***

Then, there's Andrea. I really don't get what to make of her anymore. She used to be just like Kevin--extremely content, always smiling and laughing. It seems that about 3 months before her second birthday, Andrea underwent a major personality change. I mean, she still smiles and giggles and has fun, but only with certain people and only if it's on her terms.

These pictures I took of Kevin and Andrea together are so typical of her interactions with him, and her general attitude: totally absorbed in her own toy, and not at all interested in her brother who is giggling and cooing at her.

Poor Kevin. He just loves her so much. He coos and laughs when she's nearby, and squeals to try and get her attention; he always tries to touch her with his hands or feet when she's nearby. Yesterday, he tried to hold her hand and she totally freaked out! I told her that Kevin loves her and just wants to be her friend and play with her, but I made him let go (and he was being so gentle--not at all intimidating). Sigh.

***

Anyway, here are some other pictures I snapped.

Hoody Girl: Andrea is all about the hooded sweatshirts right now. She has three, and they are her favourites. She has to wear the hood up all day long, too.

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"Who is that handsome guy?"
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"Where's my refund, Daddy?"

Mashed-Potato Monster

Mmm . . . mashed potatoes . . .

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Andrea's 4 Food Groups: Noodles, Yougurt, Cheese, and Mashed Potatoes (with an occasional helping of fruit, salad, or hot dog).

Instant mashed potatoes have recently ousted noodles as her favourite food. She wants them for pretty much every meal. I don't mind too much, as long as she munches on some other things throughout the day.

***

Yesterday, Kevin had a bad crying spell while I was getting Andrea ready to eat, so I had to leave her alone in the kitchen for a few minutes. When I went back in to check her progress, I couldn't believe what she had done. She smeared potatoes all over her hands, and all the way up her arms, to her elbows. Oh, and she did her work well--it was a nice, thick layer, too. Sometimes I've caught her smooshing it in her hands, but she has never spread it all over like that. I was really irritated, but I thought I might as well get some fun out of it. I asked her (on camera) to explain what she did, and why. The thought processes of a two-year-old are pretty straightforward . . .

***

It's good that we have a step-stool for her in the bathroom now. I was able to march her right up to the sink and help her clean up this mess!

The CRAZY Virus/Potty update

This is the name I have to given to the virus that my children are finally starting to recover from. In my last post (a week ago!) I mentioned that Andrea was sick. Well, she didn't even start to get better until about Sunday. Kevin got the virus too--he started on Wednesday, and is only starting to get better today.

Basically, this has felt like a week and a half of hell-on-earth for me. I know there's a lot of worse things out there, but having two really sick babies on your hands is not fun; especially when the virus seems to make them act CRAZY!

Really, it was just an awful cold/ear infection/throat infection combo. But it made both Andrea and Kevin act totally bizarre! They would seem okay for 15 minutes or so--playing, even smiling a bit--then one or both of them would go into a screaming fit for over an hour. I am not exaggerating! And nothing could console either of them. I tried everything--pain meds, cold mist, warm mist, Vapo-Rub, cuddling, rocking, singing, cold treats, and finally, just leaving them alone! Nothing would calm either of them down. Andrea also started waking up in the middle of the night--after she was starting to feel better!--and having two-hour-long screaming fits, during which neither Rod or I could do anything to console her. We finally took her into our bed, until she cried herself back to sleep. Last night was the first time she's slept through the night in about a week.

I think Kevin got the virus worse than Andrea, though. On Sunday evening I took him into the ER, because he was crying so constantly, and his breathing was really wheezy. Thankfully, it was not too busy, so we were only there about two hours. The doctor wasn't too concerned about his breathing (though she was surprised by how full of mucous he is--yuck!). She said he has an ear infection in both ears, and a throat infection, besides all that icky mucous. So, he's on antibiotics now, which he does not like to take. The medicine smells good (banana) but he spits half of it out every time, despite my best efforts, and it stains his clothes. Grr.

Both kids lost their appetite during the virus. Andrea ate almost nothing for about 4 days in a row, and Kevin was eating only about half what he normally eats. Andrea's appetite is back now, and Kevin's up to about 75%.

***

What worries me most about Kevin is how each time he's really sick like this, it's a bit of a set-back in terms of his development. He's basically lost a week, because he hasn't been playing/eating normally. In fact, I was introducing him to fruits and veggies before he got sick, and now I'm just trying to get him to eat his usual formula again. Then we'll have to work our way back into cereal and other stuff. In terms of motor skills, he was really rolling around a lot, and pushing himself up on his arms, and we were working on sitting up and putting weight on his legs. Right now he's so worn out that he can barely spend 10 minutes in the exersaucer without needing an hour-long nap after!

***

However, we have had an encouraging development in Andrea's potty training. She still hasn't actually done anything on the potty, but she seems more interested in it and comfortable with it now. I think that's because of a few major changes I've made over the past few days.

First, I got her a potty seat and stool so she can use the grown-up potty. Also, I got her a Dora book about how Dora learns to use the potty. Actually, the book came first, although I ordered the two things at the same time. It worked out well, because she fell in love with the book at once. And in the book, Dora's parents present her with a big-girl potty seat! So, a few days after she got the book, I was able to give Andrea her big-girl potty seat. The book is "Andrea's special potty book"--she can only read it when she's on the potty. So, now she often asks to sit on the potty, because she wants to read her book! That's fine with me; it gets her on the toilet by her own choice, right? :)) So, like I said, she hasn't actually "tinkled" yet, but at least she wants and asks to sit on the big potty now.

Of course, nothing's perfect. Andrea has discovered how much fun it is to spin the toilet paper roll, and watch the paper stream down to the floor! I have told her countless times that she can't use the toilet paper until she pees or poops in the toilet, but I guess it's just too tempting!

caught in the act!

First Veggies and Fruits/Potty Update

Four days ago, I gave Kevin his first taste of veggies. I went with squash, because that's what I started Andrea on 2 years ago, and she really liked it. Kevin's reaction was a lot different from Andrea's:

Andrea: Smiling! Kevin: Gagging!

I tried it again the next day, and he still wouldn't eat it. He actually put his fingers in his mouth and tried to scrape it out!

So, I let it go for a day. The only other baby food we had was a jar of banana. I'm thinking: bananas are a fruit; they're sweet; he'll probably like that! No such luck! He reacted the exact same as he did for the squash--spitting and/or drooling it out, scraping it out of his mouth with his hands, and wincing at every bite. More and more I am learning how each baby really is different. Andrea ate every new food we gave her, when she was Kevin's age. She might have made a face for the first few bites of a new food, but almost always began to like it within minutes. Anyways, it's back to plain old rice cereal for our little man, for now.

Here's a video of Kevin's first experience with squash:

***

Right now, intensive potty training is on hold. Andrea came down with a very bad cold (it never ends!) and fever on Monday night. She has been coughing, not sleeping well, and generally miserable; so, I didn't think it would be worth it to try any serious potty training. We still try to get her to sit on the potty a few times a day. Plus, Kevin is starting to cough, and Mommy has the fever and runny nose today, so it will probably be awhile before we get back on track. In the meantime, thanks to all of you who've called/emailed and sent me some great ideas for encouraging Andrea. I will definitely put them into practice when we're ready to resume serious potty training.

***

On a positive note, I'm pleased that Andrea had recently gotten more interested in books. She has her favourites that she pulls out and leaves around her little couch, for whenever she feels ready to read. If I try to put them away (tidy up), she gets upset! Her favourites, right now, are: "Dora Rides to Bike Park" and "Diego Saves the Butterfly" (no surprise there). She likes us to read them to her and she'll sit and "read" them to herself now, since she has some of the stories memorized.

She has also taken to asking for "Mama's book." She knows I always keep one or two handy on the back of the couch. Then, she sits herself down and solemnly begins to flip through the pages of my book. It's quite funny. When she has flipped to the last page, she declares, "The end!" and gives it back to me. But, she also has a habit of coming up to me when I'm reading, trying to push my hands together to close my book, and saying, "The end!" so I'll stop reading and pay attention to her. :)) Hmm . . . now that brings back memories . . . (Anything requested of mom while she's reading is null and void . . . :))

Potty Training Woes

What do you do with an almost-30-month old who says, "No!" EVERY time you ask her to go to the potty?

I offer incentives--stickers for trying, mini-marshmallow for success--and these are now only given to her when she uses the potty. I make it fun: we sing on the potty, we read on the potty, we sit and chat on the potty. At Gram and Grandpa's house, they have a container of toys that is specifically for potty time. I also got her some Dora underwear that she can have when she starts to pee on the potty. Even that hasn't enticed her.

It doesn't matter. Getting Andrea to sit on the potty, with her pants down, is like trying to make a rabid dog take a drink of water! She actually gets upset sometimes.

I've been trying to pick times to take her to the potty that don't interrupt her playing or her TV shows. It's hard, but that hasn't seemed to work, either. I've also tried to guess when she might have to go--like after sleep, or drinking a lot--and take her then. Still, no success.

I can usually coax her to come and sit on the potty after a few minutes of her saying "No" or trying to ignore me. I don't want to be mean or stern about it, because it already seems like it's a negative experience for her. When I finally DO get her on the potty, she sits for about 3 seconds, then declares that she's "all done." I usually encourage her to sit back down for a bit longer.

So far, she's done nothing in her potty. Gram and Grandpa have a potty at their house too, and they haven't had any luck with her, either. But Grandpa got Izzy to go, and she's only 18 months old! Geez!

I asked Andrea if she wanted to go on "the big potty," thinking maybe she doesn't like her little potty. But she still said no, so that's not the problem.

So, I have no idea why Andrea is so against using the potty. She's sat on it in her clothes for a year now, no problem, but never wants to use it!

I am at my wits' end!

Andrea is moving up to the Junior Preschool room in her daycare on February 5th. I know they do intensive potty training in that room, for the kids who need it, so I am trying to get her used to sitting on the potty every few hours. I really hope they will have some success with her! Maybe new faces, and being surrounded by other little friends who are also potty training (and succeeding!) will give her the extra encouragement she needs to get over this anti-potty attitude. Hmm.

I am open to suggestions . . . anything . . . you can post, or email me, or call me, or whatever! My worry isn't so much that she isn't potty trained yet, as that she doesn't even want to try. :((

***

In the midst of all this, poor Kevin seems to be cutting some teeth. I can't see them yet, but he has been waking up at night (which he hasn't done in months), and is often miserable for no apparent reason during the day. He's also been drooling like crazy for the past month.

However, one thing Kevin has been doing is making me very happy. He has really started to put weight on his legs this week. He stands up nice and stiff when I put my hands under his armpits, and even tries to take a little step now and then! He can't hold himself up yet, but still, I am so pleased . . . Remember what we went through with Andrea? She didn't bear weight on her legs until she was well over a year old. Kevin also rolls from side to side and from belly to back regularly--and he could roll from back to belly if he wanted to, but he doesn't like his belly! Rod laughs because I put Kevin on his belly, and Kevin almost always flips right back over onto his back, the little stinker! Kevin is also babbling a lot this week: lots of "mamamama" and a few "dadadada"s and even "bababa" and "booboob!"

The Partner

The announcement about Rod entering the partnership of his accounting firm came out in today's paper. I wanted to put it on here for people who might not get a chance to see it.

(You may be able to click on it to see a bigger version.)

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Andrea shows signs of following in her father's footsteps. She loves counting. She also likes Daddy's dress shirts!

***

Perhaps Kevin will live Daddy's fantasy life. :))

Kevin's First Swim Class

Today Kevin and I had our first Parent and Tot 1 swim class. Overall, it was a great experience, but I missed having Daddy there to help!

This time because I am going with a friend, Michelle, and her little boy, Parker (who is six days younger than Kevin). Michelle drives us. It took a few extra minutes to get Kevin's new car seat in her SUV, but we actually did it more easily than I expected.

We arrived fairly early, so we had lots of time to work out the logistics of getting ourselves and our babies ready to swim. It's a bit of a juggling act to get an impatient, squirming infant and yourself ready to swim in a changing room that only has a couple of benches and one fold out change table, for 8-10 babies! Some moms brought strollers, so they had somewhere to put their baby down. It's a good idea--Michelle and I are doing it next week.

It was nice because Michelle had previously taken a Mommy and Baby Yoga class, and some of her friends from there were in our swim class, so Kevin and I made some new friends.

Kevin missed his morning nap, so he was pretty drowsy by the time class started. But he was a good sport. He didn't cry at all. He was very calm and quiet in the water. He simply floated along, and relaxed in the lovely warm water. He kicked his legs a few times. I think his favourite part was when we got out the little floatie boards and floated the babies around on their backs. He stretched his arms right out over his head, and lazily observed the other babies surrounding him. Everyone was laughing because he looked so relaxed!

Parker was a good sport, too. He reminded me of Andrea, when she started swim class--a real splasher! He seemed like a natural swimmer, kicking and splashing right away. :))

The teacher is by far the best one I've had yet. She kept us busy the whole time, and even had us do some things I hadn't done in all the classes I took with Andrea. Coincidentally, she and Michelle went to high school together. There was another mommy there, who had also gone to their high school; and out of about ten babies, she had the only girl !

By the end of swim class, both boys were overdue for a nap, so they got a little cranky as we were all getting changed to go home. But they were in good company--several of them got up quite a little "concert" in the change room. One would start, another would join in . . .

The boys were sound asleep by the time we got back home. When I woke up Kevin to get him out of his car seat, he looked completely dazed. Once in the house, he only ate about 2 ozs. of his bottle, and fell into a deep sleep. Kevin, give up food for sleep? He must be really tired! :))

All Kinds of Little Things :))

I didn't know what to title this entry, because it is made up of a bunch of little things I wanted to post about the kids. (?)

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Kevin:

We had to get Kevin a new car seat over the weekend. He has already exceeded the maximum height for his infant seat! At his 4-month appointment he was 27.5 inches long; and the maximum for his seat is 27 inches! What a big, healthy boy he is. Plus he gives Mommy the sweetest smiles!

Today, Kevin also decided that he wanted to try eating some cereal again. After his first try a few weeks ago, he only had it a few times; and only once did he actually bother to eat any of it. So, I let it go awhile. Tonight, when I was done eating supper, he suddenly got whiny for no reason. I said, "Do you want some cereal? Are you hungry?" and he got all excited! So, I mixed up a couple tablespoons of baby cereal. He didn't seem too interested in the the first few bites, but then he started to gulp it down. Furthermore, he would yell in between each spoonful, because it wasn't coming fast enough! He finished the cereal in the bowl, and then cried for more! So, I mixed up another batch, and he ate it all. Wow, is somebody having a growth spurt?

Also, Kevin is going for his first swim class tomorrow. I hope he will like it. I will be posting all about the experience, of course. (Unfortunately, I won't be able to get pictures; this is the first time I'm taking a baby to swim class without Daddy!)

Finally, I didn't know where else to put this, but Daddy was so proud, I had to throw it in. Rod offered Kevin a toy golf club a few nights ago. Kevin grabbed it right away and started swinging it around. :))

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Andrea:

She warmed my heart today. She was playing next to me and Kevin on the couch. I was feeding Kevin, but he kept getting distracted because he loves to watch her play. I told Andrea, "Kevin really likes to watch you. He loves his big sister Andrea." Then I asked her, "Do you like Baby Kevin?" Andrea responded, "Yes, I like Baby!" with the cutest little smile on her face. This made me so happy. It's the first time she's verbally expressed any feelings about him. :)) Later in the day, she also asked him, "What's'a matter, 'evin? Why you crying?" when he was getting a bit restless in his chair. Slowly, but surely, she is starting to acknowledge the poor little guy, who is so fascinated with her.

Also, I know I've featured Andrea's Dora obsession several times, but tonight was a prime example. When I put her to bed, she had to have all her Dora dolls, large and small, "go da bed."

"Five little Doras jumping on the bed . . ."(plus the one wearing Dora pajamas)

By the way, the two songs Andrea must have at night are "Five little monkeys jumping on the bed . . ." and "The wheels on the bus go round and round . . ." However, Daddy and Andrea came up with their own versions featuring "Five little Doras" and "Five little Andreas" who are also sometimes "jumping on the comfy" (her little couch) and fall off and bump their "bummy." (!)

Another Andrea bedtime ritual: not only must Andrea sleep on her tummy, but she also makes sure each one of her Doras are sleeping on their tummies, too!

re: Christmas and New Year's 2007 Entries

Okay, here we go. I hope to get this all done tonight. I am planning on putting up a separate post for almost every day from December 22nd to January 1st. If you're a regular follower of this blog, make sure you don't miss a day--getting these posts up might get a bit complicated!

I am going to date each post for the day it happened--so you'll need to scroll down a bit to start back at the 22nd of December. Thanks!

PS: Kevin and I still have this nasty cold virus! Andrea is starting to get it too. She had to come home from daycare at 11 am. This one is a linger-er! Kevin and I are feeling better but both still have sore throats and coughs. Ugh.

January 1st: Happy New Year!

Ah, a lazy New Year's Day at home. Well, that is, until 7:30 pm, when Rod decided he wanted to un-decorate the house before he went back to work the next day! (But I was glad we got it done.)

Oh, and in case you didn't know: effective January 1st, 2008, Rod is a PARTNER in his accounting firm. Way to go, Rod! We've known for a while it was coming, but didn't want to announce it until his firm did. His firm is a bit partner-heavy at the moment (there are nine partners, now that Rod and 2 others have entered the partnership). But most of the current partners are in their 50s, and likely to retire in a few years. They are bringing Rod and the others in now, as transitioning to the future of the company.

What does this mean for Rod? More work, more responsibility, and a little more pay--but definitely worth it in the long run. I am so proud of him. :))

***

Anyway, back to our New Year's Day. We spent most of it playing with Andrea and Kevin. :))

Weird child--she loves the deerskin gloves Daddy and I got from Grandma Marty and Grandpa Rick. She wore them for about a half an hour and only took them off because it was time for lunch!

***

Andrea with her "tedescope" and "nash-night"

Kevin quickly figured out that if he can't reach the buttons, he can kick the side, and the vibrations make the toy play music!

Andrea riding her new pony--Giddyup! (Kevin is in the exersaucer.)

Kevin in his Red Wings onesie--he's finally big enough to wear it, Sue!

December 31st: Mark and Sara's

We spent New Year's Eve at Mark and Sara's house, as we usually do. However, this was the first time it was a family event! When Andrea was 5 months old, we had a babysitter; and last year, Mark and Sara had a newborn baby so we stayed home. This year, both Andrea and Kevin came with us to Mark and Sara's. It worked out well because they have two little boys, aged 1 and 3 years, so they have a great set-up for the kids. Andrea slept on an air mattress in the playroom, and Kevin slept in their playard (playpen to you old-timers), when it was time for bed.

One thing that has definitely changed is the size of this gathering! This year it was just our two families, plus Jay and Karen were down from the Toronto area. So, there were 6 adults and four kids. How things change! But I think it was kind of nice that way--a relaxed, intimate gathering of friends. We spent a lot of time just talking, and looking over the photos Jay and Karen brought from their trip through Europe (so jealous!).

We did our usual potluck plan where we all bring a couple of things to share. I brought my usual: stuffed potatoes and chocolate chip cookies--as per Rod's request!

The kids were so cute, and got along well. Talk about a step ladder--one at each stage--3 years, 2 years, 1 year, and 5 months old! Oh, and by a funny coincidence, Aiden, Andrea and Kevin all had camouflage-print outfits on!

Daddy and The Boy

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Andrea and Kevin playing

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Aiden tickling Kevin

(LOVE this picture--how cute are they? Aiden kept saying, "Kevin likes me!")

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Kade was so sweet--he kept coming up and patting Kevin's head, and touching his hands. Kevin loved the attention from the other little boys!

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Karen and the kids are checking out Aiden's toy laptop.

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The kids slept soundly through the coming of the New Year, and when we left there was quite a snowstorm outside! Thank goodness we only live about a 2-minute drive away from Mark and Sara's. :))

December 29th and 30th: Relaxing!

Yes, we finally got two relatively quiet days. We basically just relaxed, cleaned up the house a bit, and played with Kevin and Andrea. Kevin and I were still sick, but at least we could take it easy.

Daddy and Kevin, the morning after our party

***

The next day was similar--we spent the day in pyjamas, relaxing. Rod and the kids played on the floor together.

Kevin's new music-and-movement ball intrigues him. He can't crawl yet but it did get him kicking and wiggling with excitement. He was twisting himself around so much to watch it and reach for it that he kept rolling over! So, it lives up to its hype--it entertains Kevin and encourages him to move. But I have to laugh when it teases him a bit by saying things like, "Catch me if you can!" and then it rolls away. :))

December 28th: The 8th Annual RG Classic In-Between Christmas and New Year's Invitational

With Kevin on the mend and Daddy doing all the preparations (good man!), I was at ease to enjoy our annual holiday party for our friends.

I took this picture of Andrea before our guests arrived. I had to laugh--she's a living advertisement for Dora and Diego! She has Diego binoculars; Dora pyjamas; a Dora couch; and three Dora dolls! And this is only about 10% of her Dora and Diego items. In keeping with this theme, why not watch a video of Andrea watching Diego and dancing and singing along with the episode? :))

***

Our friends soon began to arrive, and it was quite a baby-fest! Matt and Susan were down from Kitchener with Maeve and Finn; Mike and Michelle brought Parker; and our own two rounded out the group. It's always fun to get this group together, because the boys were all born within the same week, and the girls are only a few months apart in age, too.

Andrea and Maeve playing with the ball popper

Finn, Kevin, and Parker

Although Kevin was feeling a bit better, he was really worn out by the time the other boys arrived, so he wasn't in much of a mood to socialize. But I love this picture. Look at Finn--he looks like he's saying to Kevin, "It's okay, buddy!" Parker was also reaching out and touching Kevin's arm when he was upset. Too cute! (Also note the extremely rare "Mommy Sighting"!).

***

After we got our tired little ones of to dream-land, we got up a poker game with more of our friends downstairs. I had the monitor on. It was close to midnight when Kevin suddenly decided to wake up, and join the party! I went to get him a bottle from the fridge, and this is what I saw:

Oh, and it gets better. After he had his bottle, he stayed up and visited with the poker players. He was passed around and admired, and of course revelled in the attention. He gnawed on the lip of Daddy's beer bottle, and even got his first poker lesson from Daddy!

Bottoms up!

Okay Dad, I'll go ALL-IN like you said . . . but I can't watch!

December 27th: A Day of Rest ?!

Ha!

This was supposed to be a day for the kids and I to stay at home and relax a bit. Admittedly, Rod had a busy day planned--he had to do an inventory count in the morning (yuck), but then had the Gagnon family euchre tournament in the afternoon, and a poker game at night.

Well, Kevin had other plans. Early in the morning he spiked a high fever, and Advil was not bringing it down. By the time the clinics were opened he had a fever of 101.6, and I couldn't get rid of it. But Rod had to go to the inventory count. So, we called upon Grama and Grandpa Gagnon for help. Grama was not feeling so well herself, so Rod dropped Andrea off there while Grandpa took Kevin and I to the clinic. Naturally, being the first day these services were open, they were swamped. We made fairly good time in the clinic itself; however, the doctor on call decided to do blood work and x-rays on Kevin to make sure he didn't have an infection/pneumonia. They also gave him an additional dose of Tylenol in the office, because they were concerned about his fever.

So, we went over to the lab. Of course, it was packed. When we finally got called, poor Kevin went through quite an ordeal--his tiny veins wouldn't cooperate, despite several minutes of poking. Then, they had to do the heel pricks to get blood, and had to do it twice, in case one sample clotted! He wailed himself into exhaustion. I was numb by this point, but the one technician almost cried because she felt so bad for him!

Then off to x-ray for another wait, and another uncomfortable time for Kevin. Then back to the clinic, to be told that (thank goodness!) the x-rays were clear, Kevin's temp had come down a bit, and we could go home.

That didn't mean the fun was over. Kevin was hot until late into the night, when his fever finally broke. Meanwhile, I had him stripped down and was keeping cool washcloths on his head, which he thoroughly enjoyed. And don't forget that through all this I was sick too!

It was more a day of stress than the day of rest I had hoped for!

***

Well, at least Andrea enjoyed her day. She had fun playing with the new toys, and got to visit with her Grandma.

Here she is, in the morning, playing with the ball popper Santa brought for the kids. I cut out the end of the video where you hear poor Kevin start to cry because he feels so miserable!

December 26th: The Gagnons

On Boxing Day, as per tradition, we went to the large Gagnon (Rod's dad's family) gathering. I say large because, well, the family is so big! It is just Rod's dad's brothers and sisters and their families, but they counted and there were about 80 people present--and some family members couldn't make it! For the past few years this event has taken place at Aunt Petesy's (a.k.a. "Gagnon Hall"). We visit, have a big family dinner, and then Santa comes to visit the kids and give out gifts. Yes, Santa makes a special effort to visit the Gagnons on Boxing Day, because there are just so many children there! :))

Andrea is in the background, playing bowling; Izzy is eating some taco dip; and Kevin's entertaining himself on the floor.
***

I have to say, though, I've had bad luck the last two years with this gathering. Last year, Andrea was so sick with a throat infection that we didn't even go. This year, I was really sick and almost didn't go, but didn't want Rod to have to go alone with both the kids. We got there, and I actually perked up a bit. But then Kevin suddenly started to shriek for no apparent reason. He felt a bit hot, but it was hot with all those people, so I stripped him down to his undershirt, and sat by a door with a cool draft. He calmed down, but I was starting to feel miserable again, plus being worried about his unusual behaviour.

Anyhow, we had a good time until Kevin started to scream (I got a bit mad about some people's comments about Kevin's yelling--even if they were just joking--because I know he's usually such a good baby, and I was worried).


However, we had a funny moment when it was Andrea's turn to get her gift from Santa. I guess she remembered how upset she was when she had to sit on Santa's lap at Gram's Christmas party a few weeks ago. Well, when they called her name, she ran up, snatched the gift from Santa, and ran back to her place! Nothing could induce her to return to Santa so we could get a photo. I had to laugh.


Kevin, on the other hand, wasn't bothered by Santa at all. He was feeling better at this point, and took his first meeting with Santa quite matter-of-factly.

[Santa must be dieting.]

***

We ended up leaving the gathering early because I was feeling so unwell, and Kevin was getting a bit restless again, too. When we got home, Andrea had some fun playing in the new schoolhouse Mommy and Daddy got her for Christmas. It's kind of like a pop-up tent/playhouse, with Dora and Diego pictures on the outside.

I see you, Mama!

Peek-a-boo!

December 25th: Christmas Morning and The Seguins

Christmas Day was busy, but pleasant. Thankfully, the kids slept in until about 8:30 am (!). When they got up, we showed them their presents from Santa, and Daddy helped them open their presents from us, too. Andrea, once again, was simply excited because there were more "PRESENTS!" Kevin was excited because Andrea was excited! :)) One item of note: although Andrea loves presents, she's lazy about them. She had to have "Mama/Dada help it?" which usually meant we unwrapped her gifts for her!

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At around 10 am, we packed up the kids and headed over to Aunt Stephanie and Uncle Tony's for their traditional Christmas morning brunch. It's a nice little gathering, because the Hages (Uncle Tony's family) are always there as well. And who doesn't love a good-old-fashioned huge Christmas morning breakfast? :))

Adam, Izzy, and Andrea (the toddler trio) had their own little table!

Christmas cake, Kevin? No? We don't blame you! :))

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In the afternoon, we went to Aunt Claire's house, where most of the Seguins (my mom's family) congregated for the day. (Yes, this is the same Aunt Claire who was at the Markets' on Christmas Eve . . . oh, you all know about me and Rod's weird family connections by now!).

Andrea had an incredible amount of fun there, because there were lots of kids within a few years of age to play with. The finished basement also had a wonderful open lay-out conducive to running and screaming children! :)) I didn't even try to keep tabs on her. Andrea did her best to keep up with the "big kids" (5 to 8- year-olds) until we had to put a stop to it, because she was trying to jump over the couch with them!

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Nice hat, Uncle Chuck! Merry Christmas!

Kevin with Aunt Rosie--my godmother, and baby-lover extraordinaire!