Moving Day

We officially moved to our new house today.  The movers came and packed up most stuff yesterday and today they loaded up the truck and moved our stuff to our new house.  Exciting but stressful at the same time.  The kids did great and had no problems transitioning into the new house.  We are all very tired and looking forward to be settled in our new house.

Stella's 5 year check up

Stella had her 5 year checkup with the pediatrician today.  Her stats are as follows:

Height =  44 inches (75th %)

Weight = 44 lbs (75th %)

She got a clean bill of health and she even let the nurse take her blood pressure (something she has always freaked out about).


She got 4 shots today but handled it well (Hep A, chicken pox, MMR, DTap and Polio).  The doctor said the MMR shot will probably result in fever and swelling.  And since I am retroposting, I can tell you that Stella had a strong reaction to the MMR...the swelling on her arm at the site of the injection was the size of a golf ball, very red, and very, very hot to the touch.  She had a fever for a day and the swelling and redness went away in about 4-5 days.

So after dinner today, we treated Stella (and the rest of us) to one of her (and ours) favorite desserts...Krispy Kreme Donuts.  Stella's favorite is the chocolate covered donut with sprinkles on top.

Getting Ready

Even though we are getting movers to pack up and move our stuff for our move to the new house, Des and Stella got in the spirit of things and thought it would be funny to pack themselves up in boxes.  Playing with boxes never gets old for these two.

Potty Training, Take Two

A few days after we came back from our trip to Chicago, Des, during the middle of his bath, informed us he had to pee and wanted to use the potty.  Ever since then, he has been using the potty to go pee.  Pooping is another story...he is not yet comfortable using the potty for that, but that's okay with us because at least he seems to have half of it down.  Ever since then, Des has been wearing pull-ups and keeps himself dry throughout the day, except during naps and overnight.  He has even used the potty for peeing in public restrooms. 

We are so very proud of our little boy and hope his potty training success continues in the days ahead.

House Closing

We closed on our house today...yippee!  We had to take Stella and Des to the closing, but they behaved well for the most part and kept themselves occupied with coloring, doing workbooks, and playing on Dada's iPhone (which led to some fights about whose turn it was, etc.).

Next week, workmen will handle the minor repairs on our new house and then the following weekend we move in.

Happy 5th Birthday Stella!

Today is our sweet Stella's 5th birthday.  In the above right picture, she is showing you how old she is in case you didn't know =;)

She woke up today to find a basketball hoop (which can expand in height up to 6 ft) set up in our living room.  That was her big present and she was so excited about it.  Somehow, I managed to not take any pictures of it.

When Ommy came to visit last time, she brought with her several dresses for Stella.  This pink butterfly dress was Stella's favorite dress and she said that she wanted to save that dress and wear it on her birthday.  That was back in April.  Well, Stella didn't forget.  On the morning of her birthday, she told me without any hesitation what she wanted to wear!
 
Today was a very hectic day for us.  Beside it being Stella's 5th birthday, we had a walk-through of the house we had purchased recently scheduled for 5:30 PM (and closing on the house is tomorrow).  By the time the walk-through was finished, it was close to 7 PM.  Stella was told that she could pick any place she wanted to go to eat for dinner and she chose Jason's Deli because she loves the free soft serve ice cream you can get there at the end of your meal.  Stella didn't care that we were so late for her birthday dinner; she was happy as a clam to be going to Jason's Deli!  Here's a shot of the two of us enjoying our ice cream at the end of dinner.

Someone else also likes the ice cream at Jason's Deli...

When we got home after dinner, Stella opened the rest of her presents.  After the basketball hoop, she loved all of the board games she got like Operation, Connect 4, Guess Who, etc. 

What is Stella like these days?

• Well she still continues to be a sweet girl for the most part, but like most kids, she likes to push our buttons and test her limits.  
• She loves to boss her little brother around, but she is getting better at sharing her toys with him.  As a result, they play together a lot better these days.
• She is very observant and hears and sees everything, even when you think she is not listening or paying attention to you.  
• She loves being a goofball, like her Dada, and thinks that anything weird or silly is hysterically funny.
• She is very headstrong and does things the way she wants to do them.  Most of our battles with her stems from this attribute of hers.  For example, getting her to practice on the piano is a constant and ongoing struggle.
• She loves going to Chuck E. Cheese, playing on the computer, riding her bike, and playing at the playground.
• She loves going to the library and reading books on her own which she is very proficient at these days.  She also loves doing her many Kindergarten and 1st grade level workbooks.
• Stella is a girlie girl and loves things like painting her nails, getting new clothes, shoes, wearing dresses, hair clips and bows, jewelry, makeup (always wants to put mine on and I say no), etc.  Her favorite colors are pink and purple.
• She is still very innocent and sweet and does not have a malicious bone in her body towards others.
• Stella wants to be an artist when she grows up.
• She is a chatty Kathy at home and can be with others with whom she feels comfortable with.  She will rattle off story after story!

I am sure that there is a lot I am forgetting, but that is just a glimpse of what Stella is like these days.

We can't believe that our little girl is 5 years old.  In just a little over a month, she will be starting kindergarten.  Even though she is more than ready to go, her parents are not.  We love you so much sweet girl and are so proud of who you are and how you are growing up!  Happy Birthday Peanut!

An Early Birthday Celebration for Stella

Since Aunt Sil is leaving tomorrow (one day shy of Stella's 5th birthday), we decided to have a mini birthday celebration for Stella today so that Aunt Sil would be able to partake in the festivities.  I made a very simple pink cake (that's all this pregnant Mama can handle these days), but Stella loved it and that's all that matters.

After singing, blowing out candles, and eating some cake, Stella opened only the gifts that Aunt Sil had gotten her.  Stella was in a generous mood and so she graciously let Des open one of her gifts since he didn't have any gifts to open himself.  It was a very sweet and touching gesture that was initiated all by herself!

Stella's favorite gift from Aunt Sil was the "Chat Beads"...beads of all colors and sizes along with string that allow you to make necklaces or bracelets.  Since it was close to bedtime, Stella, with a little help from Des, was allowed to make one bracelet before having to get ready for bed.  Here they are in action.