Family Files!

“F-Pow” (her Jersey Shore nickname) had her four year checkup today with Dr. G. After showing off her painted toenails, she happily cooperated with all of the doctor’s examining. She got her vision and hearing tested (we have to go back in a month to recheck her hearing because she had a hard time with the lowest setting), her finger pricked, and THREE booster shots. You would have thought the nurse was sawing off her leg with all her crying, but she soon recovered with the promise of a safety pop. Poor girl has to get the other two booster shots next month. Sigh. Little Miss F weighed in at 38 pounds (73%) and measured 41.5″ (84%), which means she has gained 6 pounds and grown 3″ in the past year! Aside from her hearing test, she passed the exam with flying colors. Both kids have been battling fluid and wax in their ears with all these winter colds (Charley has to go on ANOTHER course of antibiotics for his), so hopefully it’s just that.

Carlos turned 19 months old today and somehow he has changed so much in just the past couple of weeks. He has at least tripled his vocabulary and has started to “parrot” by repeating a random word from your sentence (not to self: ixnay on the swear words). And he’s using the ASL sign for more and please like mad, although he can say both words. He hasn’t faded out his secret language yet (“bah bah” is to draw or color, which might have come from “draw draw” or “paper;” “nah-nah” means to eat/food which we think came from “banana”). He, like his father and sister, remembers everything: where things are, people and places, things we did the last time we were with said person or at said place. He knows most of his body parts, including his “butt-butt (for some reason he doubles up on syllables — two syllable words are easier to say than one). He loves to climb, assemble and disassemble, dance, and do everything just like his big sister. He’s a bit of a clown and likes to make people laugh. But the best part about Charley is that he is still a Mama’s boy, and loves to snuggle and play with my hair.

By the way, I rescued this chair from the basement of the Humboldt/Marion Streets property my father owned — it was filthy and rusty and shoved in a corner!

Miss Flora turns four today — what a BIG girl! To celebrate, she brought purple cupcakes with pink frosting to school to share with her friends, and later we’re meeting BFF Ruby at the Border Cafe for dinner. She even got to open a couple of presents this morning — some bling from Gram Kaye and a paint and draw video “game” from Papa and Amma. We can hardly believe it has already been four years since we brought our little girl home — she’ll be off to college in no time. Sniff, sniff. Though she does say she’ll NEVER leave me, and of course her Daddy says she can live with us forever and ever!

View Flora’s “Fourth Birthday” photos