Christmas in Africa

As we were driving home tonight and updating the boys as to Santa's location, which was in Africa.  Thomas says "Santa delivers presents to Africa"?  We reply "yes".  Thomas says "wow, that is cool and there aren't even any people in Africa".  We say, "Thomas there are people in Africa". Thomas says  "Oh, but do they have houses?"  "Yes, Thomas they have houses".  To finish the conversation "but the houses must kind of blend in".

Merry Christmas!

The Christmas Tree

According to Michael we didn't decorate the Christmas tree today, we trimmed it!

One year old!

A belated birthday blog for Ethan. Ethan turned one on November 19th. We enjoyed a nice day celebrating with friends and family. Ethan loved his birthday cake.

Diving into it even before we are done singing. 

At his one year check up he weighed 18.8 pounds and is 30 inches long.  He is a happy and healthy one year old.  

Some of his favorite things to do include dancing to music, playing with balls, getting into mom's cupboards, trying to sneak into his big brother's room.  The bathroom is also one of his favorite places to play, especially the toilet.  He also enjoys wrestling with his dad and big brothers.

He is not walking yet, but will be soon.  He is starting to stand for a few seconds on his own.  He stands longer if he doesn't realize he is standing.  He loves to cruise along furniture and walk  if you are holding his hands.  

Happy Halloween!

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Ethan on the Couch

I put Ethan on the couch today and he started doing laps.  The best way to understand is to watch!  Enjoy! This kid is crazy!

10 months old

I'm 10 months old now and boy am I having fun.  Dad has a football which is so much fun to play with.  Check out the video of me having a ball with it.

Mom has finally decided to stop buying the mush she calls baby food.  I would much rather eating food with my hands or food with a little texture.  I love to eat baked beans, cheese, yogurt, bananas, smoothies, carrots, peas, grapes, cereal bars, and bread.  If it were up to dad I would be trying all kinds of different foods, but I always hear mom say, no he can't have that. My grin won't be toothless for very long as my two bottom teeth just pop up, ouch that hurt.  Maybe mom will let me try some new foods if I have some teeth. I am getting the hang of using a sippy cup, now I have to figure out how to tip the cup up and not lose my balance.

I love to wrestle with my dad and play with my big brothers.  We have so much fun.  The other night I got so upset because Thomas and Michael are always keeping me out of their room. I just want to see what's in their room.  My big brothers have just started playing soccer.  It is fun to sit and watch them play.

Mom is trying very hard to figure out if I am cruising along the couch or if I'm just so quick and getting down from the couch, crawling a bit and standing back up.  She will just have to keep watching me.  I do love to stand and look outside when the doors and windows are open.  The screen doors make a cool noise when I bang on them.  Cars are another one of my favorite things to play with.  I even make a fun car noise.  I have a stuffed Clifford dog that is fun to play with.  His nose tastes really good.

So long until mom lets me stay up long enough to get on the computer (computer keys are so much fun to band on!).

Bye Bye Baby Food

It saddens me to be writing this.  I've just decided a few days ago, that I am not buying any more baby food for Ethan.  The kid doesn't have any teeth, but he doesn't want much to do with baby food.  Some of his favorite foods are baked beans, yogurt, cottage cheese, bread, cheese, nutrigrain bars and pretty much anything he can pick up with his fingers and put into his mouth.  I can't believe how fast my baby is growing up.

Household Happenings

Read on to enjoy a few of the conversations that have been had around our house lately.

This is what Michael said after hearing that Michael was going to take his lunch on the day turkey fritters were going to be served.  "Thomas you don't like turkey fritters?  How can you not like turkey fritters?  They are my favorite!  I love them!  What are turkey fritters?"

Thomas talking about their jobs at school.  "I thought when it said day off, it meant you didn't have to come to school"

Michael after hearing about the 1 million dollar prize for the winner of America's Got Talent.  "Wow (with really big eyes)  that's a lot of money, I could buy three toys."

Ethan making car noises, while he plays with cars.  I know not really a conversation, but super cute.  I"m trying to get a video, but when he sees me he crawls straight for the camera.

Most nights, Thomas admits to being tired.  He must be having too much fun at school.

Michael no sooner than we begin walking to the car after I pick them up.  "You didn't ask what my job was today"

kisses

This is the conversation I overhear as the twins are in their room and I'm working in the kitchen.  I know that Thomas is coloring and Michael has just walked in.  Thomas says "Do you know what this is?"  Michael "No".  Thomas "kisses, that means it is for a girl".  Me in my head "Oh no, not already!".  I go to tell David about this little conversation and when I come back into the kitchen, I hear them talking about Grandma and Aunt Danielle.  I ask "Who is that kiss for"  Thomas replies "Grandma Mel".  Whew that makes me feel better.

Cookie Caper

The other night I decided I was going to open a package of Oreo cookies that were in the pantry.  I go and get them out to find they have already been opened.  I figure that David opened them and put them back on the shelf.  Mad that he had some cookies without sharing with me, I pour myself a cup of milk and take them out to the living room.  I'm not planning on sharing any cookies at this time.  I ask him about the cookies and he denies it.  He promises me he didn't open the cookies.  If the didn't open them, then who did.  David thinks it is the twins.  I doubt they are able to open the sealed package.  We decide to investigate in the morning.

As we are getting ready to go the next morning, he asks them if they got into the cookies. They both deny it of course.  At first they try to blame Ethan, then the target me. I say it definitely wasn't me b/c it if was I wouldn't have put them back in the pantry and I would have eaten more than two cookies.

Really would this innocent face steal some cookies?

Who still don't know who stole the cookies from the cookie container, but we have our theories.

Taking our lunches

Aunt Danielle gave the boys super cool Darth Vader lunch boxes and Cars sandwich containers for their birthday.  It was like one of the first few days of school and the twins decided to take their lunch to school that day.  I pack them a healthy lunch to take with them. We use the lunch box and sandwich containers, that even came with a nice ice pack, and think we are set.  I pick them up from school, ask about their day, how their lunch was etc.  Then we get home and I go to put away and clean up their lunch boxes. Well come to find out both lunch boxes make it home, but the trash can got the sandwich containers and one ice pack.  Both boys were pretty upset about it.  I found it kind of hard not to laugh about the whole situation.

Lesson learned...remind children not to throw away sandwich containers.  It didn't even occur to David or I to talk with the boys about that.  I was actually kind of surprised that the school didn't have someone watching the trash cans on the first few days of school, especially since the building only has Kindergarten and 1st grade.

Off and running

Thomas and Micheal ready for their first day of Booster K.

The 2010 - 2011 school year is off and running.  I have started my new job at Chapman Middle School in Chapman KS. I'm really enjoying it so far.  It is great getting out and meeting new people.  I did manage to break my pinky toe at school already.  I was getting up from lunch table to throw away my trash and caught my toe on the leg of a chair. David keeps telling me I should be using duct tape to tape it.  I'll stick to regular medical tape.

Michael has found his seat and he is ready to go!

Ethan has adjusted well to going to daycare.  He still would rather nurse than drink formula from a sippy cup.  I'm betting he gets pretty thirsty during the day.  He is pulling himself up to a stand and loving every minute of it.  Except for when he is falling to the ground.  One of his favorite things to do while standing or sitting is jamming to the music.  He loves to dance.

Thomas getting ready to start the day!

The biggest change for us this school year is Thomas and Micheal have started school.  They are in the Booster K program at the public school.  Their class is 13 boys, who are old enough for kindergarten but not quite ready.  I'm not sure how their teacher does it, but she must have patience of a saint.  They are loving every minute of school.  One of the factors determining if they had a good day or not, is the job they had that day.  If they have a day off, it wasn't a good day at school.  The other major factor is if they had to move their clip off the fish bowl.  They haven't had to move their clip very often, so they must behaving themselves pretty well.    They have quickly figured out if they take their lunch to school, they don't get much of a sweet treat for dessert.  As we go through the menu deciding if they will take or buy their lunch one of the deciding factors is dessert.  If the menu has something like cake or cookies they will be buying their lunch from school.  I'm sure we will have many more good stories to share.

9 Months Old

It is hard to believe that Ethan is 9 months old already.  Ethan's now goes by Pidge in our house.  The video above explains it all.

Ethan loves playing with his big brothers.  They always have so much fun together. 

Ethan is now crawling all over the house.  He has pulling himself up to his knees mastered.  He has just started pulling himself up to a stand!

He has made a good transition back to daycare since mommy is working again.  The biggest issue we have is that he doesn't drink much during the day as he would rather breastfeed.  Hopefully he will decide drinking from a sippy cup is cool.  

He has no teeth yet, but enjoys lots of different foods.  Some of his favorites include bread, baked beans, yogurt, cottage cheese and ice cream!

8 months old!

Just a few of the places I am exploring now that I can get around.

  

Hanging out while the big brothers take swim lessons. 

One of my favorite things to do, put anything I can get my hands on into my mouth.

Having fun, this time the big brothers are golfing.

I'm finding it hard to believe that Ethan is 8 months old already.  I'm enjoying being home with him this summer to watch and see how fast he is growing.  He has figured out a true crawl.  He doesn't have any teeth yet, but he is working on them.

In the past month he enjoyed his first movie.  He went to see Cars 2 for the twin's 5th birthday.  He slept through most of the movie.  He also slept through his first fireworks.

Just in the past couple of days he has started trying to pull himself up on furniture.  Watch out Thomas and Michael here he comes.

Thomas and Michael turn 5

Thomas decorating his birthday cake!

Michael decorating his cake!

Future chefs?

Michael's finished cake.

Thomas' cake.

The birthday boys!  Best of friends, most of the time.

Playing angry birds with dad.

It's hard to believe that the twins are already 5 years old.  They enjoyed a great birthday.  We took them to see Cars2.  

They will be going to school in the fall. They are going to be in the booster K program at the local elementary school.  It is program designed for students who are old enough for kindergarten, but not ready.  They are super excited to start school. 

We are all excited to see what adventures the next year will bring for Thomas and Michael.

4th of July

 Thomas and Michael crashed out on the couch after a busy morning of watching chicken roulette, mud volley ball, prachuters jump, and playing at the playground.  What is chicken roulette you ask?  Well let me explain.  Their is a large board on the ground with spaces marked with numbers.  This large board has a cage over the top. Everyone picks a number, then a chicken is put into the cage.  Everyone watches while they wait for the chicken to poop.  If the chicken poops on your number, then you win a prize!

 This is how Ethan 'watched fireworks'

It took a lot of convincing to get Thomas and Michael to even come with us to watch the fireworks.  They were afraid they would be too loud.  We finally got them to come with us, with the condition that they could watch the fireworks from the car.  While it was still light out, they enjoyed playing in the field in front of us. They even enjoyed a few of the fireworks that others were setting off.  But as time drew closer and closer to the City's display, they decided they wanted to go to the car.  Initially they weren't even going to watch from the car.  Since I felt like a terrible parent sitting out side watching the fireworks with my kids hiding in the car, I checked on them often.  The picture above is of them watching from the car.

All in all a great day was had by all.  We were very lucky to spend part of the day with David's parents and sister Crystal, and my sister Danielle.

Man on a mission!

Check out this video of Ethan's version of crawling!

He now has no problem getting where he wants!  I'm preparing myself to hear the constant chorus of "Ethan, no" as he tries to 'play' with his big brothers.

It won't be long!

Check out this video of Ethan trying to figure out how to crawl. It won't be long and nothing will be safe. He knows he is on the brink of something good!

He loves the toy in the video. He will play with it for 10 or 15 minutes. I love it!

Finally a Crib!

It has only taken 7 months, but Ethan finally has his own crib, which comes along with his own room. Initially the plan was to put a bedroom in the basement of the Edgerton house for the twins and put Ethan in the twin's room upstairs. Well with the move to Abilene that got put off. He was sleeping in a pack in play in our room when he came home from the hospital.

We needed the mattress of one of the toddler beds to put back into his crib, so he had to wait until the move. So now he is finally in a crib and loving it. I was nervous that his arms and legs would be caught in the crib rails, as he moves around a lot, but so far he hasn't gotten stuck. He does like to push himself off the sides of the crib.

Welcome to the dark side!

Thomas and Michael got new beds when we moved. They were very excited to pick out their new sheets. Above is Michael 'sleeping' on his new bed.
Michael showing off his Darth Vader pillow!

Thomas with the other side of their pillow!

Their dad is so excited that Thomas and Michael share his love of Star Wars.

Brothers

Check out this short video of the Michael and Ethan having a good time.

7 months old!

Ethan is now seven month's old. Where does the time go? He has just learned to sit up. He will sit by himself for short amounts of time, before falling over.
Since he has mastered the art of sitting up, he is trying to figure out how to crawl. There is a video below of him trying to figure it out. Even though he isn't crawling he doesn't let it stop him from getting around. He will roll all over the room. He also likes to spin circles on his stomach. He can move himself backwards. It is only a short amount of time before he figures out how to go forward.
We went to the park when Grandma Mel and Aunt Danielle were down for a visit. While there, Ethan took his first ride on the swings! He loved it.

The video above is a short video of what I like to call yoga baby. He trying to figure out how to crawl. I think he looks like he is trying to do yoga.

The adventures continue!

By Sunday evening we have the truck unloaded for the second time. With the help of family we have also made good progress in the house. Sunday night is bath night for all three boys and David and I take showers to get cleaned up. After the round of baths and David's shower he overflows the toilet in our bathroom, which shouldn't have happened. I don't think I have mentioned that the bathrooms are both carpeted (yuck!) I run to the store to get a plunger since we haven't unearthed our yet. Then I take a shower and it is a little slow draining. I begin to wonder what is happening... We are too exhausted to worry about it that night. Monday morning comes and David showers, which causes water to back up in the bathtub and the other toilet almost overflows. So now we can't flush either toilet, the shower and tub are both backed up, great. The boys can just pee on the fence outside, no big deal. I'm sure our neighbors just loved us! I put in a call to our landlord, who calls a plumber. He comes out after lunch to look at things. In the meantime we aren't totally without a toilet. Since things settled down after showering we can flush a toilet, but not too often. The plumber figures there is something clogging the main line between the house and the street. He has to run and get his machine. He hopes the small one will work otherwise we will have to wait until after 5:00 when the big machine gets back from Manhattan. He gets his machine and it works success! We can use the toilets! Anyone want to guess what was causing the back up?????

Yes he pulled some twigs and branches out, but there was more. He pulled out a squirrel! Yes I said a squirrel. He said that on rare occasions a squirrel will fall down the four inch pipe and get stuck. I didn't go out into the yard to look at the remains, but David says there really wasn't much left, but enough to know it was a squirrel.

Since then things have calmed down. I had a job interview and was offered a position at Chapman Middle School. I was also offered a position at Abilene High School, but I choose the middle school over the high school. Now the hunt for childcare begins.

The boys and I are getting to know the library very well. They have a great summer reading program. Thomas and Michael have Vacation Bible School this week, followed by swimming lessons next week.

Adventures in Abilene

Our Adventures in Abilene began before we even moved here. The week before we were supposed to move, I was making the necessary phone calls to get the utilities turned on in our name. While talking with the electric company, I find out the house has been vacant for awhile and it needs an inspection before they will turn the power on, plus the house needs a new meter and this takes a few days to get. The inspections are handled by the city. No big deal I've got connections with the city, I can get this done! The city does the inspection and it fails....Needless to say our landlord isn't very happy. I spend one valuable packing day in limbo, not knowing if we will have power to move in. Eventually I talk with our landlord and I am assured our power will be turned on in time for us to move it. I frantically begin packing again. With the help of my sister and parents we were able to get the house pretty well packed up by Friday night, with the exception of the few things we are still using.

Moving day has finally arrived. David and his dad go and pick up the moving truck. I take all three boys to a friend's house to play. The moving truck ends up being too small and we decide instead of leaving a few things behind to pick up at a later time that David and his dad will make a second trip. The first load is off to Abilene after lunch. My mom, David's mom and sister, along with me stay behind to finish cleaning. I go to get the boys and hit the road a while later. We arrive in Abilene, just as the truck is finished being unloaded. Perfect timing! Then we start the unpacking. David and his dad headed back to Edgerton on Sunday to grab what didn't fit the first time.

The adventures will continue in the next post.

Find us in Abilene!

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Watch out Abilene here come the Dillner's

I have finally finished school for the year and that means it is time for us all to be together in Abilene. We haven't sold our house yet and I don't have a job for the fall yet. We have found a small house to rent, hopefully for only six months and then we will be able to buy something. I did have a couple of interviews last week and I have one more next week. Hopefully one of those interviews will lead to a job.

In the fall Thomas and Micheal will be in Booster Kindergarten. Which is a program designed for students old enough for kindergarten but not quite ready. We wend to Abilene one day after school was out and they were screened for this program, luckily they did qualify for it due to their fine motor skills and early birthdays. David and I are both very happy that they qualified for this program, as we really didn't want them being one of the youngest in their class, but we knew they were ready for the structure and challenge of school.

We are moving on Saturday, which means I should be packing instead of blogging.

Tickle Tush

Above is a picture of all three boys at Easter time. Thomas and Michael are great big brothers. They love Ethan to pieces. He lights up when he sees either of them across the room. Dinner time has become interesting as all three of them are trying to make each other laugh.

Ethan enjoying his first taste of solid foods. He continues to make faces during his first few bites and when you switch from veggies to fruits.
This is a picture of Ethan almost rolling over. He has it down now. He rolls allover the living room. He will roll to get somewhere he wants to go. He is also reaching and and scooting to reach toys just out of his reach. It won't be long and he will be mobile. He is not sitting up on his own yet, but will be before too long. He is a very happy baby, with lots of laughs and smiles. One of the few things that gets him riled up is being left alone in a room. You don't always have to be paying attention to him, but he wants to watch and see all that is going on. If he is alone then there is nothing to watch.

One of his nicknames is tickle tush. He earned that nickname at daycare because he would always laugh when Ms. Karin was wiping his butt. He must think it is funny that someone is wiping his butt. He laughs extra hard when you are cleaning up a poopy diaper.

Well Check Ups

Before we head to Abilene I thought it would be a good idea to get all three boys into the doctor for physicals. Thomas and Michael needed to be seen so they could be ready to go to Kindergarten and it was time for Ethan's 6 month check up. I'm not crazy enough to schedule all three appointments at the same time, but they were all done with in one week.

Thomas and Michael were in for their 5 year check up. They both looked great. Thomas weighed 31 pounds, 8 ounces and is 3 feet 3 inches tall. Michael weighed 30 pounds 14 ounces and is 3 feet 3 inches tall. Other than each boy getting 4 shots the appointment was pretty uneventful. The favorite part for Thomas and Michael was getting to pee in a cup. One of the nurses took one of the twins out while the other got his shot. That was probably a pretty good idea. That way Michael didn't have to see Thomas get upset and vice versa.

A couple of days later I was back at the doctor's office with Ethan for his 6 month check up. At 6 months Ethan ways 15 pounds 8 ounces and is almost 25 1/2 inches long. He didn't particularly care for his shots either.

Thankfully we are all caught up with doctor's visits, at least for 3 more months. Which will give me time to find a new doctor.

Four Months Old

It's hard to believe I've been enjoying life at my house for over four months now. Mom took me to the doctor last week. In addition to being poked in the legs (ouch), I found out that I weigh 13 lbs, 5 ozs and I am 25 inches long. Boy am I growing, no wonder I'm wearing all new clothes now! Some of my favorite things to do include eating and sleeping (mom is so grateful that I sleep through the night!), talking to anyone who will listen, laughing, hanging out on the floor watching my crazy brothers run around the house and listening to music. I tend to get upset when mom puts me on my tummy for extended amounts of time or when I am left in a room by myself with no one to talk to or watch.

In the short time I have been around there have been many changes at my house. Mom who enjoyed 8 weeks at home with me has gone back to work and boy is that keeping her busy. I do enjoy going to Ms. Karin's with Thomas and Michael. Daddy got a new job in Abilene and is gone during the week. I miss him. From all that I can tell he is enjoying the job and challenges that come along with it. The house is always clean and mom keeps saying to Thomas and Michael 'you have to keep your things picked up, in case someone wants to come and see about buying our house.' Mom sure is busy these days taking care of everything while daddy is away (which is probably why there haven't been many updates lately).

I have two of the best big brothers in the world. Thomas and Michael are so cool, I can't wait to be just like them (watch out mom and dad!) I love to watch them play, but I love it even more when they talk to me. They do a great job picking out a toy for me to play with each day at Ms. Karin's. I love them.

Well I think that pretty much brings you up to speed on the happenings from my world. I do have to say that I've got life pretty good right now!

Ethan's Baptism

This past weekend we celebrated Ethan's Baptism. We were joined by his Godparents, Adam and Jackie, Grandma Susie, Grandpa Brian, Aunt Crystal and Aunt Danielle. Grandpa Dale and Grandma Mel really wanted to come, but decided to play it safe with the impending winter storm.

Two Months Old

It is hard to believe that Ethan is 2 months old already. Where has the time gone? At his 2 month check up he weighed 10 pounds 12.5 ounces and is 22 5/8 inches long. He loves to talk to mom, dad and his big brothers. It doesn't take much to make him smile. While laying on the ground, his legs are constantly moving. He is ready to run with his big brothers.

He has also adjusted well to going to daycare. Thomas and Michael are so excited that he is at Ms. Karin's all day. They watch out and protect their little brother. I am adjusting to being back at work. It is great to get back and see all the wonderful people I work with, but I do miss being able to spend the days with Ethan.

more articles

Here are a couple more links to articles regarding David's new position.

http://www.abilene-rc.com/view/full_story/10968324/article-Edgerton-executive-chosen-as-Abilene%E2%80%99s-city-manager?instance=main_article

http://www.salina.com/news/story/Abilene-City-Manager2011-01-12T03-05-32

The Big 30!

David turned 30 yesterday. The boys helped me make cupcakes for daddy's birthday. They wanted to know if I had candles. Well I wasn't sure I had 30 candles around the house. Sure enough I did some checking and I found enough. We thought for a moment that the fire alarm was going to go off, when he blew out all the candles!