milestones

Today I ran my first ever 5K race. Pretty incredible to me still, especially considering that a couple of months ago, I would be huffing and puffing just walking that distance. About 8 weeks ago, I joined a gym and promptly started doing the Couch to 5K running plan. I was very Couch. It's a nine week plan, and I admit, that I got to week 6 and stalled out a bit with traveling and wasn't sure about this race I planned for. So I decided to just do the distance last Tuesday just to see if I could do it, because so far I had only made it to about 2.3 miles. Well, on Tuesday I did it and felt pretty good, so went ahead with the plan. Today I did the actual race.

Before the race the Philly Phanatic came to send us on our way. My kids loved him. I thought Marlowe would be scared, but he kept following him around saying "hi!"

My time was 34 mins, which I thought was decent considering that 8 weeks ago I was couch. That's about a 10-11 min mile. And I ran the whole time, didn't walk. My primary goal was to finish, my secondary goal was to run a steady pace the whole time, and I did both.

I was really glad that hubby and the boys came to cheer me on. I got a friend to come do it, too, and she has been running for much longer, so she finished much earlier. She took Ellis up a few hundred feet before the finish line to cheer me on, and Ellis grabbed my hand and zoomed me to the finish line. I was not prepared to go that fast. ha! He was adorable. When we were about to leave he said, "hey, where's your medal?" I'm not sure if coming in 127th warrants a medal, but at least I was comfortably in the middle of almost 200 runners. Not last place, considering my (non)athletic career thus far, that's a pretty decent place to be.

But the highlight of our VBS experience this year was Ellis had his first personal ASL interpreter that the church hired for him. It was like night and day for him. He was excited, engaged.

This picture makes me nearly choke up. He's raising his hand!! He understood what was going on, understood the question, and wanted to offer the answer. One day, he stood in front of everyone and volunteered to recite his verse in ASL. It was amazing.

They also took the opportunity to build awareness of deafness and ASL for the whole group. Here is his interpreter and him teaching everyone their alphabet:

which David put to use with his name

Yea, so I basically cried.

And it really confirmed to me that we need to get him interpreter some how, some way for church. He does use his CI, but he takes in information with ASL, his native language.

Today Ellis is four!!!

We've been having Big Birthday Weekend. I'll write more about that soon.

I just can't believe how BIG Ellis has gotten. My little baby who was born a month early weighing six pounds, now is so big he wears 5T clothes.

He's a vibrant, steady boy. He has tremendous focus and likes to let information soak in. He loves to snuggle and bestows the family with the best hugs and kisses. He loves ABCs, counting, cars, monkeys, cooking, painting, and photography.

I love my boy so much. I pray that he will grow up to be a great man.

I have a couple of Marlowe posts. First, his birthday party!!! Which was over two weeks ago. Marlowe turned one on May 25, Memorial Day.
Or, you could say, he turned Uno.

I made him a first birthday Tshirt with a freezer paper stencil. I had seen the idea somewhere on the internet. Can't take all the credit for it, but I can't remember where I saw it. I also made a garland out of Uno cards. And got primary colored paperware. So it was a little themey that way.

We had strawberry shortcake, because strawberries are his favorite food. Ellis helped carry the cake, and we signed and sang "Happy Birthday!" I helped Marlowe blow out his candle, to which Ellis gave me the look of greatest consternation and firmly told me that it was Marlowe's birthday and that I should've let him blow out the candle. Trying not to fall off my chair laughing at Ellis's brotherly earnestness, which was very comical, I had to explain that one-year-old's need a little help.

The party was huge, it was sort of doubled up with another party, a farewell wherein a great band of friends were disbanding into frays of Real Life, attached by wireless routers all over the country. We'll miss our dear ones.

And Marlowe was a little sick, a little bug with a low grade fever. He mostly sat in my lap.

But he did it! He turned one!

This bit of news warrants its own post arising from unintentional blogging hiatus.

So this morning I woke up and Ellis was in bed next to me, naked from the waist down.

Hmm--a little background. Since he decided that he was potty trained a few weeks ago. (And it was TOTALLY his decision.) He's been great. One day accident (while he was playing computer games for the first time ever), one night accident (after we had been on a little trip, so unusual beverage consumption and exhaustion), and one need to stop beside of the road incident. Other than that, he's been perfect. Uses the potty for both numbers. Stays dry at night. I can scarcely believe that just a few weeks ago, I was worried that we'd grow out of pull-ups and still be needing them.

So, when I had a naked boy in my bed this morning, I thought, for sure, my luck was over. We had an unusual evening last night, hanging out with friends. Lemonade was consumed. I knew it. I knew he had wet the bed, and I still hadn't gotten a waterproof cover for his mattress yet. I got up preparing to find the worst, and trying to figure out how to explain to him that when he needs to go potty in the middle of hte night that he needs to get up and go.

Hubby was up already:
"*sigh* Ellis is in our bed, naked. Did he wet the bed?"
"uh, no. I think he went to the bathroom in the middle of the night. His bottoms are on the floor of the bathroom."

And so they were! Dry undies. Dry jammies. Poor boy. Must've been so bleary-eyed couldn't get 'em back on. But to the bathroom he did indeed go!!

Dear lucky stars, thank you!

(yes, I'm aware that this post falls under serious mom-blogging. Hardcore, man, hardcore)

Can you believe that today my baby turns one-year-old!? A year ago today Marlowe was born

If I didn't have a calendar I would know it's time: the peonies are blooming.

Poor baby was a bit sick (or teething, still not sure which) on his birthday, but managed to perk up here and there. We had a fun birthday party. Reports and pictures forthcoming.

Dare I say it? But I think Ellis might have achieved that which had seemed impossible, that which belongs to all humans who have advanced beyond infanthood, that feat of taking himself and his bodily functions to the toilet! A week ago today, I ventured forth on a risky expedition. After wearing undies successfully at school for several days, I let him wear them in my care (previously an unsuccessful venture). Not only that, but on an almost 2 hour car ride. He was a pro. Like, "Oh yea, mom, I just go to the bathroom by myself. Didn't you know?" And from then on, he hasn't really looked back. Then he started staying dry at night. After three nights in a row of pulling off a dry Pull-up, I thought we might live on the wild side and send him to bed in his undies. Yea, no problem. Now he wants boxer briefs.

If you had told me a week ago where we'd be today, I would have cackled in pessimism. But at the same time, it's just like my Ellis. That's how he does it. He waits and waits. And then, one day, he's ready, and there's no going back.

Tonight at dinner he actually ate lettuce! And a few lentils!! (which I had served to him in a bed of grated cheese). I never dreamed I would have a picky-eater.

And now a funny story. Scene: Coming to the dinner table.
Daddy had to get by Ellis to get to his chair in the corner, and there was no room, so he kind of climbed over Ellis's chair to get to his. Granted, a little ungraceful, but not too heinous. Well, Ellis stopped him:
(signing) "No, Daddy! No climbing! Come back out here! Now say 'excuse me, please.' There. Good job, Daddy!!"

Aaah. Life in a house with three firstborns.

At the tender age of 9.5 mos, Marlowe took his first steps at FAO Schwarz in NYC a few weeks ago. He's gradually been building confidence. I took this little clip about 5 days ago, and he's even more confident since then. Just yesterday he was walking all over the driveway chasing after Ellis. He's hilarious!

It's so funny how he and Ellis are different. One day when E was 15mos, he just stood up and walked and never crawled again. It was his first time standing and walking independently. Marlowe has been more gradual about the whole process. And he knows he's a big boy, too!

We have been making liberal use of our new membership to the children's museum. We even went twice in one week not too long ago. Marlowe is *this* close to walking, and when he does, I think he'll have even more fun!

While I was making dinner one night recently, Ellis pulled his chalkboard out and called my attention to what he had been doing. I was so excited, because it the first time I had seen him draw a face!!! And he told me (speaking and signing) eyes, nose, mouth. I love this artistic new stage he's moving into.

In the past week or so both Ellis and Marlowe have attained new accomplishments. Isn't that the life of a kid? Always moving to the next level and striving to get there. I could learn something from them.

Ellis (3 1/2)
* of his own volition, deposited Number Two in the porcelain receptacle two times on Sunday (not that that puts in sight of the end goal yet, but babysteps, folks. it is progress.)
* has slept in his own bed all night long with no waking three times in the past couple of weeks. (see above comment)
* can fingerspell his own name with no prompting, all the letters in a row in the right order without looking at any printed letters, all from his own head. (can you tell I'm extremely proud?)

Marlowe (will be 9 mos in 2 days)
* has started letting go and standing on his own for brief increments of time
* not only letting go but bending down to pick something up and then coming up to stand again all without holding on (he did this for the first time on Saturday when Daddy was playing with him at the Please Touch Museum). (can you tell I'm extremely freaked?)
* might actually show signs of being interested in eating solid food. he eats Cheerio bits and today gobbled down about 3 ozs of yogurt.
* I think he's throwing his arms up in the air when he's Done with something (usually being confined in a seating device).