Keyboard Issues

Sorry I haven't been posting lately--I have some issues currently with my keyboard. It is spazzing out on me, and it isn't the batteries (it's cordless). It is cooperating right now--hopefully that will continue, so I can update!

Happy Birthday

The day began early, with Bronwen talking quite loudly in her room. I would say screaming, but that makes her sound in distress, and she wasn't. I soon realized that she was actually calling for me. I stumble in her room, bleary-eyed, only to hear and excited, "Happy Birthday Mama!"

She was still in her bed, which is unusual in the morning, so I asked her if I could climb in and cuddle. She replied with her agreeable, "Oh sure!"

So i crawl in and she tells me happy birthday again. Then asks me why it is my birthday; I explain that this was the day I was born, etc, etc. She moves on to, "Are you going to have a birthday cake?" I told her that I hope so. She ends the conversation with, "I am going to celebrate your birthday, Mama."

Sweet--so am I.

Good Night

Bronwen just came running up to me tonight, wearing her ballerina PJs, and gave me a big hug good night. She said, "Good night Mama Duck", and I said, "Good night ballerina Duck." She looked at me and said, "I am just a baby duck." I asked her, "Do you know who gave you those pajamas?" She said, "Mimi did." I told her, "Yes she did, for Christmas." Bronwen thought and said, "Happy Valentine's Day!" and I said, "Happy Valentine's day to you, too." Then I inquired if she knew what tomorrow was. She said, "Sunday!" I said, "No, it's Thursday and it's my birthday." She replied, "Why is it?" To which I said, "It just is." She looks up at me with her big eyes and asks, "Are you going to wear a birthday hat?"

I just might, baby duck, I just might.

Mimi's Package

Dear Mimi,
Thank you for the package, but we already have one of these. Thanks.


And just some added cuteness--Bronwen happens to be sleeping in this morning, so Lila and I are enjoying some time together:

January 26

Stumbled into Lila's room this morning at 3 and heard the sweetest thing:

She looked at me and said, "Ma Ma!"

Lila's Sense of Humor

Try not to smile--I think it may be impossible.

Thanks!

Thanks to all who voted--Cat Haven has moved to the #1 slot in LA! Please keep voting daily to increase our chances. The contest ends in April, which seems so far away, but isn't!

I will post more about our weekend later, but just a quick story:

I told Bronwen we might be going to the mall today, and she got super-excited and asked if we were riding the carousel. I told her I needed to see if I had money. She said, "I have money!" and ran to her cash register to get her plastic coins.

Guess I'm going to the ATM.

Please Vote!

As many of you know, I have volunteered with Cat Haven for 4 years now. It is a wonderful rescue organization in the Baton Rouge area that rescues cats and kittens and finds them forever homes. Cat Haven also has programs that encourage spaying and neutering, as well as trapping and spaying/neutering feral cats before rereleasing them into their previous surroundings.

I personally adopted Cassie and Pepper from Cat Haven.

Please take a moment to vote for them in this shelter challenge. As of today we were gaining quickly on second place, and I think we may have a chance to win Louisiana. If we win, we get $1000 for our organization. It will just take a second to click and vote each day.









Please help!

Go Here

Enter in Cat Haven for the shelter name, and Baton Rouge, LA for the city/state. Please vote every day (once you enter Cat Haven, you won't have to enter the name each time; it will be there).

Happy Birthday Part 2

This is take 1, because Lila starts getting into poisonous berries and I had to halt filming.
Bronwen did wake up with a very scratchy voice, so it is a little difficult to get her to talk...at first.



Take 2:

Happy Birthday Aunt Jana Part 1

Bronwen and Lila Jan 19

Bronwen has been sick for the past few days; she is running a nasty little fever and tells me her body hurts everywhere. Thankfully, Lila seems to be fine so far. Here is a glimpse of my morning, with Bronwen lying on the couch watching Sesame Street, and Lila trying to get into all of Bronwen's stuff.

Eating Champ

January 17

Lila had a fever when I first returned home, but she seems to be all better now. Just in time for me to have a sore throat. We all went to church today and the girls were fine, until we returned home. In no time flat Bronwen developed a fever and is now sleeping in her bed, sick. I asked her if she wanted juice, and she said no. I asked her if she wanted milk, she said no. I asked her if she wanted mac and cheese, she said, "I don't want anything; I am just sick right now."

Poor thing.

Lila, however, is doing just fine. It looks like she learned how to stick her tongue out from her sister.

A Little Late

My sister has been feeling ill lately and requested a Bronwen story to cheer her up. There are just so many, but here is one I forgot to blog about a few days ago.

I made chicken enchiladas on Wednesday for Thursday's dinner. Bronwen was kind enough to assist me. I assembled the ingredients on the tortillas, and Bronwen was sprinkling shredded cheese on top before I rolled them up.

Suddenly she took the bag of cheese and ran around the island. I asked her what she was doing, and she replied, "The mouse takes the cheese!"

She really likes that "Farmer in the Dell" song.

January 15

We went to Hobby Lobby today to pick up some Mardi Gras decorations for the house. As we were getting back in the van, I gave Lila a toy to play with and circled around to Bronwen's side to buckle her in the car.

Lila dropped her toy, so I came back to her side and said, "This is the last time I can pick this up for you, Lila Noelle."

I get in the driver's seat, and Bronwen says, "Yes, Well." I said, "What?" She replied, "Lila Yes-well, not Noelle."

January 13

Today was a major day in the history of the St. Romain sisters...

Lila was playing on the floor, trying to reach a toy on the windowsill (which is low and achievable) when Bronwen stopped what she was doing, walked over to the windowsill, got the toy for Lila and gave it to her, saying, "Here you go, Lila."

I about cried.

One small step for Bronwen, one giant leap for sister-kind. Or kind sister :-)

Games Lila Plays

Now you all know what Bronwen's favorite game is, now check out Lila's--note the unexpected game stealer who scratched my back for attention:

Jan 11

Santa Claus brought Bronwen the game Cariboo Island. If you have a toddler I highly recommend this game; Bronwen loves it, and it is short in duration. She enjoys it so much, she doesn't even care if she plays it by herself, probably because she always wins that way. As an aside, I always play with her unless I am cooking dinner or feeding the baby. This particular day, she was playing by herself while I was in the shower.

These videos will be long, so don't feel obligated to watch unless you have nothing better to do, but I have been so impressed with her skills:

Jan 10

This is really T.J.'s story to tell, but he is currently at work, so I will have to relate it. I was on my way home from the airport, and T.J. and the girls were playing in the den. T.J. went to unload the dishwasher and had several utensils in his hand (spatulas and tongs). Bronwen called him over for some reason, and he traversed into the den with said utensils in hand. Naturally he set them down and returned to the kitchen forgetting to retrieve them. A few minutes later, this is what he found:
Another view with the artist playing Cranium Cariboo Island in the background:

Questions

I returned home from my short trip to N.C. and was greeted enthusiastically by my girls. Bronwen gave me lots of hugs and kisses and then inquired: "Mama, would you like a beer?" I totally approve of T.J.'s hospitality training.

He told me that earlier she had asked him who Mrs. Ippi was. Or, he said, it could have been Miss Assippi. He told me he wasn't sure how to answer her.

Jan 6

I am panicking a little about my travel arrangements. Not only am I leaving my sweet girls and T.J. behind, but also will travel when the weather is less than cooperative. I depart from Baton Rouge tomorrow morning, it's currently raining, and the low tonight is 20 degrees. At least I will know ahead of time if my flight is delayed/canceled.

Bronwen has of late been crying for me in the middle of the night. No explanation, just crying until I get her back into bed. Last night she started up around 11. I went in, put her in bed, and the following transpired:

Me: What is wrong?
B: I don't know.
Me: Why are you crying?
B: Because I wanted you to come.
Me: Why?
B: Because I like you.
Me: Well you will like me more if I get some sleep.

And she didn't get up for the rest of the night! I hope she is okay when I am gone. She and I have such a routine down; intellectually I know she will survive, but I also remember the horrible feeling of really missing my mom.

Granny

For those of you who don't know, my grandmother passed away on Monday afternoon. Jana and I have many great memories of her, but my favorites include her care packages, going to visit her in Detroit, and going to see her daily when she and I lived in Shelby. Never have I seen her smile wider than when she got to meet Bronwen. She was so afraid to hold her!I am going up to Shelby for the funeral this Saturday. I have no idea how I will leave my girls, but I am certain it is better that they stay home.

On a happier note, Lila went in for her 9-month check up yesterday. She is weighing in at 20 pounds, 12 ounces, and is 28.5 inches tall. I can't believe how big she has gotten!
Since the weather has been so frigid lately, I went ahead and gave Bronwen a robe I bought for her. It's a 4T size, but I think it fits perfectly. She loves it! In fact, it's 11 this morning, and she is wearing it over her clothes. Of course, I have mine on too.

January 3

It's been a long weekend, with Lila and Bronwen waking throughout the night, performing their covert sleep deprivation experiments on me. So far I think I have been performing well, but I really need to get them settled. Lila is finally over her runny nose, or has at the very least turned the corner, and last night Bronwen discovered that I am not the only one who will come to her when called, much to her dismay. We had a long conversation tonight about how she needs to sleep until the sun is up, so I hope this will be effective tonight.

Lila was sleeping well today, so likewise, I hope it bodes well for this evening. I am an optimist.

Bronwen received two games for Christmas and loves them. She wants to play them all day long--she must get this from T.J., because I am not an enthusiastic participant in games. I am trying, and I do play with her when she asks.

T.J. brewed beer tonight. I got Lila to bed, and T.J. took care of Bronwen, up to the point where she needed to actually go into her bed; he had to fiddle with something concerning his brew. Bronwen started crying in her room, and I told T.J. to get her to bed...I heard her say to him, "No, no, you need to brew beer."

He agreed.
In the meantime, Lila's new favorite activity is checking out the goings on outside. Must have been something funny...

I Didn't Crop Jana

A second look...closer in age :-)

It's all in the eyes...

Thanks to my sister for posting this pic on her FB page--I am sorry for cropping you out, Sister, but your cuteness would have detracted from my purpose.

Is it just me, or does Lila remind you of someone?

January 1

It seems 2010 decided to start off with quite a bang--involving Lila and Bronwen tag-team crying last night to the point where I basically got little to no sleep. I have no idea what was bothering Bronwen; she just kept waking up crying for me. When I asked her what was wrong, I just got a tearful, "I don't know." I realized around 3:30 that she could still hear fireworks, and I wonder if that didn't upset and confuse her.

We had to get up early for church, and I figured today would be rough. T.J.'s sister invited us all to her house, and I knew I wasn't going to make it. I was just too tired. T.J. went and took Bronwen, and I managed to be incredibly productive. I think it had to do with the fact that T.J. gave me real coffee this morning instead of my usual unleaded.

I cleaned the bathrooms, got super glue off the floor (don't ask), did all the laundry, vacuumed the carpets, cleaned the kitchen, reorganized the books in Lila's room by age, genre, and author, took down some Christmas decorations, and straightened the girls' rooms. I didn't get to nap, but Lila went down for a nice, long nap, so I got to rest for a little while.

T.J. and Bronwen arrived home, and Bronwen was tired and a little cranky. She did manage to perk up a bit when she saw the basket of clean clothes, putting a pair of my underwear around her neck, and running through the house yelling, "Look at me! I'm panty girl!" I really have no idea...but I am fairly certain she gets that silliness from me. (Jana: remember Ninja socks?)

I wrote how Lila is like Cookie Monster--here is proof:



And now, another installment of "What are you doing, Little Mouse?"


I think I am going to crash early tonight! Hopefully everyone will sleep well, including me.