Fall 2012 Summary

Alex's 15-month check-up at 16 months
Alex weighs 24 pounds and is 30.5" tall, which puts him at the 25th percentile across the board (even his head circumference). The boy is perfectly proportional. Just like his sisters did as toddlers, he has slowed down a lot but still has a nice upward curve to his growth. He still weighs two pounds less than Cora (but Cora somehow feels lighter--I guess it's the distribution of the weight).

He has been having some problems with getting secondary ear infections after colds. He has had three ear infections since June so now we are looking into the possibility of getting tubes put into his ears. The doctor has assured us that there is nothing wrong other than his Eustachian tubes just aren't doing what they need to do. He has another cold right now so I'll take him into get his ears looked at in the next couple days.

He is continuing to talk more. Last night when we were up for a couple hours in the middle of the night due to a fever, he enjoyed practicing saying "ay-oh" for hello (about a hundred times). He loves looking at books, stacking blocks and bricks, zooming cars and throwing balls. He also loves being outside and cries miserably when we take him back inside.

Kindergarten
After much worrying, anticipation, weeping and gnashing of teeth (all on my part), Eva successfully started kindergarten. I spent so much time mourning it before it happened that I shed only a few tears on the actual day. Eva took a couple weeks to adjust to her new schedule (waking up early, early lunch time) but loved it from the start and is still doing really well. She sees a lot of old friends from pre-school and has also made many new friends. I had the opportunity to chaperone the walking field trip to the fire station last week and had a lot of fun seeing Eva in her new environment.

Pre-School
Cora started attending a 3-year old program two days a week. Since she doesn't spend too much time without me, I was concerned she would have a rough transition but on the first day she happily skipped into the class, hugged the teacher and forgot to hug me. She absolutely loves it and has so much fun with her new friends.

Leslie
I'm adjusting to our new schedule. It took a while to get used to everything but it is going well. More than anything, I wasn't sure how to deal with my afternoons. During summer, Alex and Cora (sometimes) would nap and I would make Eva take some rest and reading time upstairs--it gave me a nice break. I now have it figured out so that I get about 30 minutes without kids before Eva comes home from school. We tried a few after-school routines with Eva but I think we have it figured out: she comes home, gets unpacked, has a snack, does homework and chores, and then can play or watch a show.

Matt
Matt walks Eva to school every morning and enjoys their time together. He recently landscaped our front and side yards--it looks amazing!