Our house has been sick for weeks. I don’t know if we are passing colds back and forth or just picking up new ones but we can’t seem to shake it. At least the kids are building their immune systems?

On Monday morning, Sammy was still asleep when I went in to get Steven and Amaya so we snuck out of their room and Sammy slept for another half hour. He is not a morning person. Even when he finally woke up he just wanted to be left alone with Princess Cat and his milk.

Rosie tested out our winter gear to be sure we’re all ready for the snow. It’s a win for sure when last year’s stuff still fits.

Look closely. That’s Amaya’s “you’re stupid” face. We’ve been seeing it since she was a baby and I expect I’ll see it for a long time to come.

Silly girl!

On Monday, Rosie took the kids to PT on her own. When they got there, Sammy said, “You did it!” lol. It’s just always nerve wracking for me to let the of kids drive with someone new even if I know they’re safe and taking all the right precautions.

I had a bunch of goofballs on Monday night.

Amaya was a walrus.

Steven and Sammy decided to wear my shirts, fresh out of the dryer. I think Steven looks so grown up here.

Steven wanted to be a walrus, too. I love seeing how they spark each other’s imaginations.

Bobes, sleeping in my shirt. <3 <3 <3

To get to the kids’ classroom they have to go down two flights of stairs. Their teachers joke that they are always at the back of the pack. Besides the fact that gross motor isn’t their strength, apparently they’re also always looking around at everything instead of hustling with the class.

I’m noticing that, when the kids pair off, it’s usually Amaya and one of the boys. I don’t think I often see the boys playing together. I’m going to need to pay more attention to that. I’ll have to ask Jason how the boys interacted when they were home with him this weekend. Brothers can cuddle at this age, right?

Oh, Amaya. Before bed we usually have a snack of apples or bananas. Amaya likes to hold onto her banana peel but I won’t let her put it on the floor or the couch so she just stands and holds it.

When she wanted to sit down I told her that the peel couldn’t touch the couch or I’d throw it away so she sat for a long time just like this. It’s amazing to me how she can be so strong willed but also such a rule follower. I guess it depends on how following the rules suits her needs.

On Wednesday I went to Chicago for an overnight business trip and it was Rosie’s first days 100% on her own. Of course, she rocked it. I thank my lucky stars for great care for the kids.

Steven has two more weeks of PT and then he’s going to be released for 3 months at which point we’ll go back for an evaluation to see how he’s been progressing at home. Meredith’s goal had been for him to be jumping by the time he finished but she thinks that, even though he’s not quite there yet, he’s making enough progress to warrant the break. Jason and I will have to be diligent and make sure he does his at home PT at least twice/week on an ongoing basis. I can’t say we’ve been great at that so far so we’ll need a new game plan to be sure it happens.

I got home Thursday night and had just a little bit of time with everyone on Friday morning before I headed out to work and then to NY with Amaya. It was a school day but everyone’s been sick. Amaya had a fever on Wednesday & Thursday so she was already staying home. Steven woke up and told me he was too sick to go to school so we decided it was a good day to rest. And a good thing, too! The kids napped for almost 3 hours!

After work Rosie, Steven and Sammy came to my office to drop off Amaya for our girls weekend. Before she got out of the car she said, “I love you, Stevie. I love you, Sammy.” So sweet!

I thought this would be my last leg of a flight with a car seat now that I’d have 3 in New York. I forgot that I’d need a car seat in my car to get Amaya home from the airport! Good thing I remembered before I made the trip without a car seat in tow. Yikes! I’d have had to call Rosie to come get Amaya.

“We’re on an escalator!”

I had to buy her this Hello Kitty plush in the airport. Had to. (Because what she really needs are more stuffed animals.)

Off we go!

And here we are! 10pm and we made it to NY! She was a champ!

Stories before bed, even late at night.

On Saturday morning, while Amaya slept in, Daddy had everything covered with the boys. Hi boys!

Amaya slept until almost 10am when a patient Charlie finally woke her up and helped her get dressed.

Back at home, the men of the house did some construction work.

While the boys were building stools, Princess Scientist Amaya found her flair.

We all got to FaceTime. Steven and Sammy were so excited to show us the stool they built! It will be perfect for Amaya when she washes her hands.

Saturday afternoon was a special treat with the Goldstein cousins for a Hanukkah get together. I think it’s the first time just the cousins have gotten together. <3

Amaya and I took these selfies when we were camped out in the bathroom. She was clingy and fussy and said she had to poop but wasn’t comfortable going at Glori’s house. We tried and tried. Interestingly, as soon as I put her in her nighttime diaper and jammies she perked up. Sara said she probably relaxed because she wasn’t afraid of having a poop accident because she knows she can go in her diaper.

On the way home, Amaya said she had to pee. Even though she was in her diaper I’m really trying to support the process and not tell her to just go in the diaper. We pulled into a gas station and I grabbed a plastic bag to put over the potty. Turns out that regular plastic bags don’t actually hold the pee. Sorry Papa!! I cleaned up the car! I promise!

The rest of the ride home was tough because she said she had to poop but wanted to do it at her house, not Nana’s house. She was so sad about it. I was actually relieved to find she’d gone in her diaper on the ride. Potty training takes so much energy from everyone!

What do you do when you’re peeing in the back seat of a car? More Mommy/Amaya selfies!

Sunday morning breakfast with Daddy for the Steven and Sammy. I can’t wait to squeeze these three guys of mine!

We headed to Aunt Sara & Uncle Dave’s house for the early part of the day. Amaya appropriated some sunglasses and wore them all morning.

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Back in the Land of Cheltenham, Sammy and Steven got busy with scissors. They’re little people! I definitely, definitely don’t have babies anymore.

This evening was a Hanukkah party with my mom’s side of the family. Amaya put on her fancy dress and tights and then I got to work on her hair. I need a full on hair tutorial. It does not come naturally to me. As you can see.

Aunt Sara to the rescue!

Lots of playtime for all of the cousins.

Best way to get a group photo is to require it before presents. (Goldsteins! We need to remember this for next year!) I am in the picture because someone insisted on sitting on my lap.

Give Amaya some play doh and she’s content for hours.

The girls playing together. They all ran off once they saw us taking pictures. 🙂

Back at home, Anna came around 5pm to help out a bit. While Jason was outside dealing with the snow, Anna did a science experiment with the boys!

She texted me, “Pictures from our science experiment! Sammy asked me why snow was wet; I explained that snow was made of water and he looked really confused so we put snow in the cup and watch it melt. They thought it was the coolest thing and we added more snow and later we added ice cubes to see what happened. I love how many questions they ask about things ?”

How cool is this!?!? Jason pointed out that, besides showing them so they could really understand, framing it as a science experiment helps them understand how to go about figuring things out.”

And that’s it for the week! Here’s one last selfie of Mommy & Amaya. We’re off to MI tomorrow to squeeze our men!