Say What?

Samuel is talking more and more. I love this stage! It's so much fun to see his speech take off and to communicate more with him.

(Note: The videos don't work in emails, they only play on the blog website.)

Samuel saying his favorite word, "Daddy"

 He loves making animal noises. So far he'll do elephant, duck, dinosaur, lion, seagull, and owl. 

On the swing in the backyard

It's so amazing how quickly they learn. I'm just trying to enjoy it because it passes so fast.

All Croup-ed Up

Our household was finally hit with croup. Elena got it first, and luckily she only had the seal bark-sounding cough the first night, and then it just turned into a regular cold. The doctor said this is because she's older so her airways are larger. She's been sick for 6 days now, poor thing, with constant fevers, a relentless cough, and congestion. Today's the first day I haven't had to medicate her to bring down her fever. Samuel just got sick two days ago, and when I took him to the doctor they gave him one dose of a steroid to decrease the inflammation of his airways. I'm glad because the croup cough sounds so painful. He's doing better, just has a runny nose and a mild cough. He has the immune system of a champion. This is the first time he's really been sick; up to this point he's only had the sniffles a couple times. We're all tired of being stuck at home.

And I'm sick as well, which is no fun. Luckily, it seems like my body is fighting it off. Now I'm just hoping and praying that my babies get well very soon.

Love my Family

My mother-in-law came over to visit yesterday.  It's so funny because Samuel stares at her when he first sees her, I think because Jorge resembles her so much. 

Elena was excited for her to come.

This is not a great picture, but since I'm always the one behind the camera, most of the pictures of the kids don't have me in them. So here I am with Samuel.

I love when the kids play together, or at least close to each other.

 

My little guy, with a mouthful of goldfish.

 

Elena's such a beautiful little girl, inside and out. She's so loving and has a tender heart.

 

At the end of a long day I'm tired, but I get in bed and think about how sweet my babies are, and I'm very thankful.

Noah's Ark

I've been wanting to take the kids to the Noah's Ark Exhibit at the Skirball Cultural Center for awhile now, and we finally went. It was awesome!

When we first got to the ark, Elena seemed pretty amazed.

She played with a miniature one for awhile.

The animals were neat.

 

Samuel loved the animals, especially the plush ones he could carry around and put in the little rooms.

 

 

I think this was my favorite part of the exhibit. By cranking the lever you make it rain and then the water level and ark rise up. Elena's doing it here, and Samuel was pretty mesmerized by it. He also liked looking at the lightning that was produced by turning a wheel. 

 

There's also a section where the kids can help build up the side of the ark, and Elena did that for awhile. It was a great afternoon and so much fun for the kids. We'll definitely be going back at some point.