1st Ear Infection

We brag about how healthy Cole has been - he has only been to the doctor for his well baby check ups, at least that was until last week. We had a long week last week. Starting on Tuesday Cole started to spike a fever at daycare. Brian was gone on a fishing trip until Tuesday afternoon so when daycare called me early afternoon I tried avoiding them as long as I could. I figured Brian was on this way home and could hopefully pick them up so I didn't have to leave work. About 2:30 I couldn't put them off any longer. I went to get them and by the time I got there Cole was sleeping for the 1st time that day. I decided to let him sleep since he hadn't napped yet so Annabelle and I went back to the bank to get some more things done. About a half hour later they called me to let me know Cole woke up. When we got home Annabelle went right to her room and got her box of wipes, lined her toys up on the floor and started to clean them. "Cole is sick I have to clean the toys" is what she told us - what a kid! Brian came home not much after we got there so he was able to stay home while I got some work done. Wednesday I planned to keep the kids home for a little while in the morning to see how things went. About 10 Cole's temp was never above 98 so off to daycare we went. He made it until about 3 and then I got a call again that his temp had spiked to 101 so home he went. Thursday morning we tried it again and late morning his fever spiked again. The director thought maybe he should stay home for the day and rest. I had called my friend to watch him on Friday and she agreed and suggested to maybe have his ears checked. I never thought of it because he wasn't pulling on them or screaming when he laid down like they say the symptoms are (but in hind sight Annabelle never did those things either). Brian brought him to the clinic and yep - double ear infection - the poor little guy. He has been on meds for a few days now and is back to his normal self.

Ashes

Today is Ash Wednesday and the kids, Kirsten and I ventured to church. It was an quite the time - it is supper time and they go to bed so early that trying to do something in the evening is sometimes very interesting. I was telling Kirsten that we are lucky that people in church know us so well and still think our kids are cute. During the first reading Annabelle kept saying "I want to talk from up there" and was pointing to the lectern. I told her that she has to be bigger to talk in front of the church so then her next phrase was "I want to be big, I want to talk to people from up there." She is such a special child - it is odd how much she enjoys church (we think it is wonderful but odd) . Pretty soon it was time to have the ashes put on your forehead. When we first went up Annabelle didn't want to do it but after Kirsten and I did it Annabelle thought it would be fun. Apparently she was listening in church because the whole walk back to the pew she kept saying "I want to be ashes again, I want to be ashes again." Okay maybe she wasn't really listening but she had an idea of what was going on. She was very excited about her ashes; she thanked Pastor Suzie for her ashes and was very excited to show them to Brian.

Bonding Time

Cole has figured out how to ride his "work"s (that is what Annabelle calls the riding toys). I don't remember when Annabelle figured it out but it took her a long time to learn how to go forward.

Fix My Hair

After months of not even wanting me to brush her hair Annabelle's new thing is she wants someone to "fix her hair" - weather it is Kirsten or myself. I am not sure where the phrase came from but we are ust going to go with it.

Painting

We decided that the upstairs needed a little something so we did a little painting last weekend.

Busy Day

Enjoying the cupcakes that Annabelle made

Another busy day at the Paulson house. I keep thinking things are going to slow down but they never seem to and everyone tells me that is isn’t going to get any better. That it ok - I tell everyone our life is a "good busy" and I really think it is. I can't think of anything else I would rather be doing than spending time with our kids and helping them make some wonderful memories. Right away this morning Cole had his 1 year pictures done. They turned out cute so stay tuned for those. After that we stopped to get some groceries and as we were walking though bakery section Annabelle wanted cupcakes. I told her that we would go get the ingredients and we would make cupcakes - she thought that was a wonderful idea. After backtracking thought the store to get what wasn't on our list we headed home. The kids then ate lunch and afterward Annabelle and I left with Michele and Ian. They filled the Jamestown Civic Center with inflatable games for the day. They charged at the door when you came in and then the kids could jump and play all day. Annabelle and Ian had a blast!! Annabelle was a little small for some of them but she gave it her best shot - I did have to pull her out of a few because she couldn't finish it and she couldn't get back out. After about 3 hours we decided it was time to call it a day. We took the kids out for ice cream and then headed home. We got home around 3:30 and decided to put Annabelle down for a short nap. We didn't want her to nap to long or it would be tough getting her to go to bed but if she didn't nap we could just see how our night was going to go. After she had her quite time we got up and made our cupcakes. She is really starting to become a good helper. She is able to follow directions and can do quite a few things on her own. The rest of the night we just spent playing and spending some quality time together. This weekend Cole has really improved on his walking! I bet 99% of the time he is on his feet when he is trying to go somewhere. He also enjoys just walking around the house. It is so much fun to see him growing and learning everyday.

Such a happy little man!

Coleman

Cole or should I say Coleman has figured out how to climb onto our little chair and now he thinks it is funny to stand on it. He has tumbled off a few times but that doesn't seem to stop him

So I am pretty sure the nickname "Coleman" is going to stick. That is what he is called at more than 50% of the time at our house. The other day when I picked him up at daycare his teacher said, "Goodbye Coleman." I don't think I call him that when I pick him up or drop him off but I am sure Annabelle calls him that through out the day. I didn't ask where they came up with it but it sounds like they tend to call him that more often than not at daycare as well.

A First for Annabelle

Annabelle and her friends

Annabelle was invited to her first birthday party today and I will admit it made me a little sad. She has gone to birthday parties for other kids before but they have all been relatives or Ian's - who is like her brother. Now she has friends that she talks about on a regular basis and is actually starting to form relationships with other kids. Sometimes when I look at her I still see out little black haired baby that we had 2 1/2 years ago and I really can't believe how fast she is growing up! Anyway the party was a pizza and bowing party and Annabelle had a great time! When we got there the kids all had some pizza and then we headed out to get our bowling shoes. The party was for a 3 year old so needless to say it was fun to watch the kids bowl. All of them were able to lift the ball and they all had the right idea of how it worked but there were a few times that we were wondering if the ball would actually make it down the lane. I know Annabelle was the youngest one there but she did a great job. When she first started she would put the ball down and kick it but after showing her a few times she figured out how to roll it down the lane. She was very disappointed when it was time to stop bowling and go have cake. I think Brian and I are going to have to start taking her bowling every once in awhile; the nice thing about that is now I have an excuse to put the bumpers up so I don't get as many gutter balls.

oopps the lane is a little slick