{iPhone Rewind} :: February

February brought a visit from Grandma!

These silly boys. I don't even mind :)

"I go fishin' Mama!"

Matching family pajamas! :)

"I make a taco, Mommy!"

We got to eat a lot of yummy cookie cake!

When you thoroughly enjoy Mommy's cookie cake :)

This is 36 :)

A little reading while it snows

Because Daddy looks like a comfy chair to read on

LOVE that cutie smile

Excited to eat some Screamin' Sicilian for National Pizza Day!

Such concentration. {We love the Water Wow books!}

Waiting for trucks to pass by...I love that we have this large window for them to see the trucks drive down our street.

Boy, do they love this sandbox. Boy, do they make such a grand mess with it...

This cutie doctor has some unusual surgical instruments...

"Would you like me to read you a book, Aiden?"

Snuggles with my firstborn

And snuggles with my girlie

Aiden hit his 200-book milestone!

They sure make life fun :)

We started Toddler School again! I had good intentions of keeping up with it when we were in the extended stay hotel, but, well...it didn't happen. But we are back on track, and we will go through the summer.

He loves wearing Daddy's comfy! Also, we're back to patching :(

"Mommy, can I sit in your lap?"

Just sitting by himself, reading books

I got my first dose of the COVID vaccine, and I was SO impressed with how organized Virginia's health department was! Everything was super efficient, and I was in and out really quickly. I am so thankful for the many volunteers and healthcare providers that are giving their time to help the process.

I'm officially a Virginian! 

1,000 Books Before Kindergarten :: 1400!

Life has been crazy with moving {again}, but we still tried to find time to read some fun new books! 

We are back to tracking our books, and we are looking forward to going back to the library. Now that we have a more permanent address, we were able to get a library card here in Virginia. We are looking forward to reading real books again, instead of just on my phone!

You can find the books we have already read here:

• 1-100
• 101-200
• 201-300
• 301-400
• 401-500
• 501-600
• 601-700
• 701-800
• 801-900
• 901-1,000
• 1,000-1,100
• 1,100-1,200
• 1,200-1,300

1. Home for Christmas by Tish Rabe
2. The Littlest Watchman by Scott James*
3. Christmas Cookie Day! by Tara Knudson*
4. One Small Donkey by Dandi Daley Mackall*
5. The Littlest Christmas Tree by R.A. Herman*
6. Over and Under the Snow by Kate Messner and Christopher Silas Neal
7. Bill Mouse's Christmas Stocking by Cheryl Campbell
8. Flora and the Penguin by Molly Idle
9. The Polar Express by Chris Van Allsburg*
10. 5-Minute Racing Stories by Disney Book Group*
11. The Berenstain Bears: All Aboard!
12. My Merry Christmas by Sally Lloyd-Jones*
13. God Gave Us Christmas by Lisa Tawn Bergren*
14. M is for Manger by Crystal Bowman and Teri McKinley* {a sweet friend from college wrote this with her mom. It's really good!}
15. Frog and Friends Celebrate Thanksgiving, Christmas, and New Year's Eve by Eve Bunting
16. Cars: Thunder and Lightning by Disney Book Group
17. Cars Toon: Heavy Metal Mater by Disney Book Group
18. 5-Minute Princess Stories by Disney Book Group*
19. Cars by Disney Books
20. Curious George's 5-Minute Stories by Margret & H.A. Rey*
21. Precious Moments 5-Minute Bedtime Treasury by Precious Moments, Inc Staff*
22. Disney Pixar Storybook Collection by Disney Book Group*
23. Cars 2 by Disney Books
24. The Three Questions by John J. Muth
25. Little Lucy by Ilene Cooper
26. The Berenstain Bears and Baby Makes Five by Stan & Jan Berenstain
27. We Love You, Strawberry Shortcake! by Sierra Harimann
28. Camp Berry by Mickie Matheis
29. Treasure on the Tracks {Thomas & Friends} by Rev. W. Awdry
30. Red Boots by Rosemary Wells
31. Dance, Dance, Dance! by Ethan Long
32. Sofia Valdez, Future Prez by Andrea Beaty
33. Water by Emily Neye
34. Mr. Putter and Tabby Dance the Dance by Cynthia Rylant*
35. Just Keep Swimming by Melissa Lagonegro and Atelier Philippe Harchy
36. Splat the Cat: I Scream for Ice Cream by Rob Scotton
37. Flat Stanley and the Firehouse by Lori Haskins Houran and Jeff Brown
38. Rappy Goes to the Library by Dan Gutman
39. Splat the Cat Takes the Cake by Rob Scotton
40. Can I Be Your Dog? by Troy Cummings
41. Flora and the Peacocks by Molly Idle
42. Bug Stew! by Apple Jordan
43. Wild Sea Creatures by Chris and Martin Kratt*
44. Mr. Putter & Tabby Clear the Decks by Cynthia Rylant*
45. Spider's Lunch by Joanna Cole
46. Don't Throw it to Mo! by David A. Adler
47. Otter: Hello, Sea Friends! by Sam Garton
48. Tale of a Tadpole by Karen Wallace
49. Sandbox by Rosemary Wells
50. Maple by Lori Nichols*
51. Flat Stanley Goes Camping by Jeff Brown
52. Amazing Bees by Sue Unstead
53. Snail and Worm by Tina Kugler
54. Flat Stanley at Bat by Lori Haskins Houran
55. What's That, Mittens? by Lola M. Schaefer
56. What This Story Needs is a Pig in a Wig by Emma J. Virjan
57. Cars: Mater's Junkyard Jamboree by Disney Books*
58. Tiny Goes Camping by Cari Meister
59. Yellow Animals by Teddy Borth*
60. Awesome! Snakes by Teresa Domnauer
61. Lester's Dreadful Sweaters by K.G. Campbell
62. Henry and Mudge and the Long Weekend by Cynthia Rylant
63. I Got the Rhythm by Connie Schofield-Morrison*
64. It Came in the Mail by Ben Clanton
65. Red Animals by Teddy Borth*
66. Oh, the Thinks You Can Think! by Dr. Seuss*
67. Curious George Makes Pancakes by H.A. Rey*
68. Wild Predators by Chris and Martin Kratt*
69. Alma and How She Got Her Name by Juana Martinez-Neal
70. Saturday by Oge Mora*
71. The Berenstain Bears Clean House by Stan Berenstain
72. Birthday by Rosemary Wells
73. Wild Insects and Spiders! by Chris Kratt*
74. The New Small Person by Lauren Child*
75. Over in the Forest by Marianne Berkes
76. Cece Loves Science: Push and Pull by Kimberly Derting
77. Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs by Judi Barrett
78. The Berenstain Bears Go Out for the Team by Stan & Jan Berenstain
79. Little Blue Truck Leads the Way by Alice Schertle*
80. My Arms Will Hold You Tight by Crystal Bowman and Teri McKinley*
81. Paw Patrol: Pups Save a Train by Bendon*
82. Paw Patrol: Pups Save the Party by Bendon*
83. Paw Patrol: The Pup with the Fire Truck by Bendon*
84. Franklin Says I Love You by Paulette Bourgeois
85. God Gave Us Two by Lisa Tawn Bergren*
86. The Berenstain Bears Love Their Neighbors by Jan & Mike Berenstain*
87. Pete the Cat's Groovy Guide to Love by James and Kimberly Dean
88. I Love You Too by Ziggy Marley
89. The Truck Book by Harry McNaught*
90. Bears! Bears! Bears! by Bob Barner
91. I'm a Truck by Dennis Shealy*
92. Paw Patrol: Break the Ice! Nickelodeon Publishing
93. Valentine's Day by Emma Carlson Berne
94. Love From Me to You by Patricia Hegarty*
95. Happy Love Day, Daniel Tiger! by Becky Friedman
96. Franklin's Valentines by Paulette Bourgeois and Brenda Clark
97. I am Holy by Jennie Allen*
98. I am Rescuer by Jennie Allen*
99. The Best Mistake Ever! and Other Stories by Richard Scarry
100. Henry and Mudge Get the Cold Shivers by Cynthia Rylant

*Some of our favorites

Crohn's Chronicles :: 4-Week Infusions

I last mentioned in January that my doctor was increasing my Entyvio infusions from every 8 weeks to every 4 weeks. I was going to be due to hit that 4-week mark pretty soon after my appointment with him, but he said it could take an extra week to get on the schedule. Sure, no big deal.

I am not a super patient person, and I am even less patient when I don't feel well. So it was a huge struggle for me when I spent weeks trying to get on the schedule. I had a hard time getting anyone to call me back, and when I did actually speak with someone, we got disconnected, and I never got a call back. It was the most bizarre and frustrating thing. After many more attempts, I finally learned {from my nurse, not the infusion center} that they were waiting on insurance to approve the increased infusions. So I had to spend the time getting through to insurance to figure out the hold up, only to learn that they had already approved it. More phone calls and messages and waiting...and I was finally able to talk with someone to schedule my "4-week" infusion. A whole 4 days before my regularly scheduled 8-week infusion. Sigh.

I decided to keep my 8-week appointment {I mean, what's 4 days when you have waited 5 weeks?}, and then just schedule my 4 week infusions from there. We had snow and ice the day before my appointment, and I was worried that they would cancel, since they had closed the infusion center for weather earlier in the week. So when I made it through the snow and ice, and they hooked me up to my infusion, I nearly cried. I was just so grateful that I had finally made it to this long-awaited treatment!

So since I didn't start receiving more medicine any sooner, I won't start to see any difference until after my next treatment {hopefully}. But that will be in 4 weeks, and I have started the cycle to get more medicine. So I'm one step closer. It took a long time to get here, and it was full of frustration and prolonged sickness. But I am thankful that we're heading in the right direction. Now I'm just praying that this is, in fact, the right medicine for me, and that the increased infusions will induce remission. Please, Lord.

Valentine's Day

We had a sweet Valentine's Day at home together. I cut out hearts and put some characteristics of each kid on them to tape on their doors, as a fun surprise when they woke up. It was so simple, and they were SO excited! {Thanks for the idea, Mom!}

I cut out some smaller hearts to leave a trail they could follow downstairs, where they could find their Valentine's Day books waiting for them. I have started collecting holiday books for the kids, ones that I hope to bring out every year. Because we love books around here :)

And we got to enjoy fun Valentine's Day cookies from Aunt Lindsay! She had shipped them the week before so we could freeze them and then have them ready on Valentine's Day. Our kiddos really love their Aunt Lindsay cookies!

It was a sweet day with our little loves!

Grandma in Virginia

We are so thankful to have spent the last week with Grandma! She was able to come to Virginia to see our new home, and we had such a fun week. The weather kept us at home for most of her trip, but the kiddos didn't seem to mind. They just loved having Grandma there every waking minute :)

When Grandma is here, you get to do ALL the fun things! Play games, color, make rice krispie treats, play baby dolls, build with LEGOS/V-Tech tracks/Picasso Tiles, and reading every single book you want over and over. It's pretty fun when Grandma says "yes" to pretty much every one of your little hearts' desires :)

On some of the warmer days {a balmy 40!}, we got to at least take some walks in the neighborhood. We will look forward to another trip when the weather is better so we can show Grandma more of Virginia. 

Our kiddos have really been missing Grandma today, and we will be so excited when she gets to visit again! :)