Merry Christmas!!

Merry Christmas 2008!! Here is a sneak peek of Christmas Eve at the Janks. Our "family gift" was a new digital SLR, Nikon D80, so I will be bombarding this site with fabulous new pics!! I love our new camera!
More photos to come...

You remember that pool scene from Caddyshack...

You know the one with the Baby Ruth that helped to clear the pool? Yeah well, G&A had a re-enactment of it last night in the tub, but it was no Baby Ruth.

We were having a good time splashing and playing with foam letters, when Abs starts crawling for the back of the tub behind G, and G starts crawling the other way. I see her reaching for what I first thought was a toy, when I realized that we didn't have any brown toys in the tub at the beginning of bath time.

I screamed out don't touch, and grabbed Abs, soapy head and all and pulled her out. She proceeded to start crying hysterically, which got G started crying as well. C grabs G and we look at each other and try to figure out what to do with two screaming, wet kiddos. I take the head rinse cup, and scoop the "Baby Ruth" up and deposit it into the toilet. Still can't get all the floaties out, and it would take way too long to get the tub scrubbed. They're too big for the bathroom sink. There are dishes in the kitchen sink. Its too cold (28 or so with a wind chill in the teens) to go hit the hose outside.

Kitchen sink it is. Quick wash of the sink, move all dishes to the counter out of the reach of little hands, and minutes later, we have 2 smiling clean children. Got them down, and C thankfully got the short straw and bleached the toys and tub.

Just another night at the Jank house.

Recent mugs...

Here are a few snapshots after church this past Sunday.




This is the sweetest. Not the most flattering pic, but for those who were not aware, Matt started taking violin lessons not long after the babies were born. He has kept it up and is playing really well! He has a number of songs down pat, many of which are children's songs. So last Saturday while we were all still in our PJs, Matt played a mini concert for us. George was absolutely enamoured with his daddy's music and I was thrilled to capture this moment!

Geo's Ears

Goe's ears have been clear for about 2 weeks now (knock on wood), and of course yesterday was the scheduled appointment with the specialist in OKC for a second opinion. We decided to keep the appointment even though there were currently no issues, and to see what he had to say.

Of course he took a quick look, and nothing wrong. We went over the last 11 months of infections and the treatment path up til now, and he agreed with everything. The only thing he would change was treating any new infections with an iodine drop instead of the vinegar drops, and he said we should stop the daily Singular, since the tests showed Geo was not allergic to anything tested for. So if he gets another infection right off the bat, it may have actually been doing some good.

So we'll see what the future holds, and pray for the best.

Fifteen Months (plus two days)--letter to Abigail

My sweet Aberdoodle,
You are full of spirit and spunk and can charm anyone! You love to make people laugh and know just how to wrap them around your pinkie finger. Your facial expressions are so expressive...sometimes you furl your brow and play hard-to-get, sometimes you flash that gorgeous 12-teeth smile, and other times you have Monkey hanging out of your mouth as a comfort measure if you are skeptical of your environment. Your strawberry blonde hair, chubby cheeks, and petite frame makes you look like a little doll!

Your intellect has blossomed in the past month. You follow directions really well, unless it is something you don't want to do, then you do what you want while watching for my reaction. You are great about "helping" Mama, taking things from room to room, loading clothes in the laundry basket, or picking up toys. You love to go wake George up from naps, running into the nursery and standing at his crib, screeching for him to awaken. You know where your shoes and socks and coat go on your body and love to wear them! You understand so much of what I say to you and you try to repeat some of the words. You are definitely chatty like your Mama and fluctuate your tone in your "storytelling". Your words are Mama, Dada, Bubba, Mo-mo (Monkey), mama milk, Gee-gee (Georgie), bye bye, Boo-Boo (Boomer), cat, all-done, mo (more), up (when she wants to be held), juuce, nigh-nigh, and our favorites, Abu and Abiga (her versions of her name).

Though you only weigh 20 lbs, most of the time you eat really well. You would prefer to drink soymilk all day long but you are adventurous in trying new foods. Tonight, you tried butternut squash soup and ate apple off the core. Yesterday you loved your dinner of corn, peas, baked beans, hummus on crackers, and part of a chocolate chip cookie. You have recently started drinking juice out of hard mouthpiece sippy cup (which you think is great fun!) and ice water out of regular straws in cups. Anything I am eating, you want to try.

You have started running in the past week and tonight you were prancing around in your pjs on your tippy toes....too cute! You love to read/eat books and you love to sit in anything Abigail-sized! You love rocking horses too. You also like to sit in Mama's lap when I'm looking on the internet. You also give the best hugs. You don't sleep as well as your Bubba, but I guess you get enough rest for your energetic little self! You always awaken before G and I love it when you wake up talking or singing.

You certainly have a fiery temper and can turn the screaming off and on in a heartbeat. You can get really mad if you don't get what you want, and you have the "slippery baby body" (where you arch your back and put your arms overhead) down pat. You do not like diaper changes--you are sooo wiggly--and you don't like sleeping on long car drives, which has made our recent road trips challenging.

...But you have been "spirited" since the day you were born, and I have grown to love that aspect of you. You are very attached to your mama and we have such a wonderful bond. I hope and pray that you and I stay as close as Nana and I are...having a strong mother-daughter relationship is priceless and something that I already treasure between us.
all my love, Mama

Fifteen Months (and one day)- letter to George

In their daddy's pattern, here is the first of my letters. (Abigail, your nap was too short today for me to write both!)

My sweet Georgie,
You are too precious for words. Always smiling and laughing, going for things 110%. Sometimes I look at you and cannot believe that you are turning into a little boy. You have developed so much in the past month. You have begun to take more risks with walking, going from one side of the room to the other, yet still preferring to crawl because you are fast! You have begun to talk more, saying Mama, Dada, mama milk, uh-oh, cat, sissy, and my personal favorite, barking at Boomer and the cats.

You have become more finicky in eating, wanting only your favorites of soy yogurt, pbj sandwiches, graham crackers, and bananas. If we give you something that you don't want, you throw it across the kitchen. You learned how to drink out of a regular straw this month and you love ice water now. You still love apple juice and soy milk. You have grown a ton...you are sooo heavy! You weigh ab 25 lbs. but you are solid! You wear 12-18 mo. sized clothes but you can squeeze into 12 mo. bottoms in a disposable diaper.

You are definitely a water baby--you love love love bathtime and now that we've recently started bathing you and Abigail in the big bathtub, you try to crawl away when it's time to get out! Can't wait to swim more with you in the pool and watch you kayaking with Daddy.

You certainly have a strong connection with Abigail, giving her sweet smiles and putting your head to hers. You are not such a fan of her trying to climb all over you and sometimes you protest her hugs. You think it's great fun to chase her with your walking toy while she runs ahead.

You definitely have a temper and are beginning to assert yourself. If redirected from something you want to do, you scream and hit and arch your back. You can screech some high pitches!! You are very focused and love to figure out how things work. You prefer to play with things that are not toys (like remotes, boxes, phones, etc.) and love to rattle the locked cabinets. You love to laugh and crash into things and swing in the swing in our backyard. Your head tilt reappeared this month but I suspect that it is because you began walking--our PT told us to expect that. You also have 2 molars about to pop through the skin, which has left you fussy and painful sometimes. You have four teeth on top and two on bottom and you smile with pride!!

(addendum: How could I forget to mention about your ears? We are still battling your chronic ear infections and will see a new ENT at Children's on Monday. We are hopeful that he might have new ideas as no one can figure out what causes your ears to drain so badly. At given moment, your ears have not drained in eight days! But you are a trooper, only acting sick when your ears are really really infected. However, you HATE anything that resembles a doctor's office and scream like crazy--can't blame you with how often your ears have been suctioned and poked... )

You still love to snuggle and give great kisses. My heart melts when I hold you and you sink into me with all your weight (that's the part of you being low tone that I treasure!). There is something very special about the connection between a boy and his mama...now I get it!

with love, Mama