So how are the kids??

So many of you have asked and so I think I'll take a post to address your questions... So how are the kids and how are they adjusting? All in all, they are doing well.

Finnegan obviously is the one that we notice when things aren't ok and when things are getting him down. He is happiest here at the house, or when we're out for a short errand. Other than that, he seems to have more trouble switching gears than he did previously. And with this, as with everything else that we're noticing could be his growing little self changing or the effects of the move... I'm sure we'll never know! Finnegan really misses his friends. It was doubled edged sword that we spent so much time with our little friends in Washington before we left. It was bitter sweet to spend those last days playing and hanging out. But more than ever, my sweet boy is asking for his friends. He wants to play with them and go places with them. He brings them up on his own at least once every other day or so. And when he's really down (a couple of times when we've been here) he just cries, "I want to go to Liam and Rylee's!" UGH! Just breaks your heart when your little one wants the two other little people that make him just so happy!! We have had a breakthrough in this department in the last week, however. We went and had dinner with some neighbors who have a little girl name Juliette. She is about 6 months younger than him and despite a few toy disputes, had a wonderful time. And the next night he asked to pray for his new friend before bed. We're really struggling with Finnegan's impulsive attitude these days. He knows right from wrong and knows the attitude and actions that we expect. But my poor son can't control his impulsive desire to hit, push and kick his baby sister. He will actually walk out of his way to encounter her!! UGH! Any suggestions out there mommies?? We've tried time out, spanking, loss of privilege. He just doesn't get it in those impulsive moments... Finnegan is mostly enjoying a new activity class that I take him too. It's not as inviting as Gymboree was for him and he needs a little encouragement to engage himself in the class. But he does end up enjoying it for the most part. Finnegan really enjoys the large floor plan of this house. He can run and run and run...inside the house. He really likes to do that! And just like when he was in WA, he love to be outside with daddy doing chores and playing in the dirt.

Penelope is also having her ups and downs. As stated before, her major "down" is that her brother tends to beat up on her and she cries a lot during the day. She's even gotten to the point where she cries when he even just steps towards her sometimes! Though despite this one problem, she has so many "ups" on her side of the list. She's started to crawl just a couple of weeks ago and has just started to pull herself up on the furniture. She pulls herself up to her feet on occasion. She has had her second hair cut this week, well, just a trim. She has a "wing" on her left side of her head that just sticks out. We cut it for the first time in Feb and this week was the second time. Her hair is come in slowly, but we can tell it will be a similar color to Finnegan's hair color, but sometimes I catch a glimpse that it will be darker... or sometimes we think it might turn reddish. She is sleeping so much better now that we've stopped all the overall craziness in our family. She was sleeping through the night before our trip to MD in April. But once we crossed 3 time zones for a short period of time, it went downhill from there. Then, for the following 6 weeks, until we moved here, she couldn't recover. Now that we have returned to a time zone, and been here for a couple of weeks, she's returned to sleeping through the night, which is a blessing for all of us. She is eating more and more solid foods, which is fun for everyone. I am much more relaxed with the foods than I was with Finnegan. But trying the same old standbys. She loves her daddy and LOVES it when he comes home from work. She is an all around happy baby and I feel like I'm finding my groove with her. Her personality is coming out too, which is exciting for everyone! She's much more inquisitive than Finn was and she LOVES to be with people... well, people that she knows. She still is struggling with a horrible cold that she's had for about 4 or 5 weeks now. She only really coughs a handful times a day, but it is just a horrible sound coming from her. I took her to the doctor during our first week here in MD and the doctor wasn't too concerned about it (as she doesn't really have any other symptoms).

Overall, the kids are adjusting to the new house, the new weather patterns, and the new sights. They both have their days (as all kids do).