Birds

It took awhile before it was nice enough to go outside today. When Rielee came to play they kept pointing outside when the sun was shining but it was such a short time between showers they never made it outside. Both of them love to go outside to play.

There is a birdbath out front with two stone birds that Jillian is fascinated with. This photo shows her giving the birds a drink from the water she put in the birdbath. There is a wooden bird on a stick a short distance away that is bigger, which Jillian calls the Mommy bird, so she will take the two smaller birds to visit their mommy for awhile before bringing the babies back for a bath or drink. Of course, anything with water keeps her going for a long time.

Hand-me Downs

Jillian has really enjoyed this new dollhouse as it has twin babies, a Mom and Dad, Grannie and Papa, a dog and many others plus all the furniture including a potty for the babies. It was Rielee's and they got it from Tierney so it's been around, as is the case for the neighborhood toys. Tierney was excited to see it again and played house with Jillian.

Roaming the New House

Jillian loves to run around inside the remodeled part of the house. Her favorite part is jumping in between the wall studs. We have to watch her closely, because it's not entirely safe in there, but she does a pretty good job of staying out of trouble. A lot of times, she just tries to help out with the work. Her favorite job is to run the big Shop-Vac and suck up all the wood shavings.

Here's a photo of Jillian in the new hallway, with the walk-in closet behind her.

Sleepy Sweetie

Here's just a quick little photo of Jillian taking an afternoon nap on the couch. She still doesn't care much for her naps, but she still really needs them ... otherwise we'll see Crabby Sweetie the rest of the evening.

House Remodel Photos

We're going to use Jillian's blog to post a few before-and-after photos of the house remodel. Basically, it looks nothing like what it used to, after the new exterior walls and roof were put on.

This first photo is what the old house used to look like from the street, before we had even bought it:

Then, this photo shows the most recent view of the front of the house. There won't be many changes to this part, other than installing new windows and finishing the siding. And yes, we had to cut down the "Dr. Seuss" tree that so many people used to find our house. We don't miss it that much.

Nearly all of the work these days is on the inside of the house. Most of the interior walls have been framed up, and a lot of the plumbing is finished. We're going room to room and trying to finish those up as we can. The amazing part of this whole process is that we've been able to live in our little "house inside a house" since we began the remodel.

It's a Girl!

Yes, we found out this morning that the new baby is a girl!!! Jillian will have a little sister to play with soon. It's seems that she has known it all along, because whenever we asked her, she always said that she wanted a little sister.

Mommy, Daddy and Jillian went to Southwest Washington Medical Center this morning for an ultrasound. Jillian got to go into the examination room, too, though after a few minutes, she got pretty restless since the video screen wasn't showing a Dora cartoon. The technician checked Mommy's tummy for quite a while, measuring this and that. When it was time to check the sex of the baby, Mommy agreed that we wanted to know. After a quick check, the technician said the baby was a girl! We were all very happy, and Mommy said that she had a feeling that the baby was a girl. The ultrasound went on for a bit longer, and we got a few pictures. The baby was pretty scrunched up in the womb, so it looks like she'll be long, too, like Jillian.

After the exam, Jillian celebrated by running down the hall, tripping and bonking her head on the ground; she ended up with yet another goose-egg on her forehead.

Yum!

Jillian is enjoying licking the pudding pan with a lot smearing all over her face. She got to spend a lot of time with Tierney since the high school softball game was cancelled. She likes to go potty and have Tierney read her a book. Then they hang out acting silly together.

Jillian is really doing well now on the potty training. I just ask her every couple hours if she needs to go potty and she'll say "yes", and run to the potty.

Number 2 Success!

Daddy had just walked into the living room and noticed that Jillian was standing behind her rocking horse. When he asked "What are you doing, Sweetie-Pie?", she said "Bye, Daddy". That meant that she wanted her privacy to take care of Number 2. So, Daddy said "Let's go sit on the potty". For once, Jillian actually agreed and took Daddy's hand and ran into the bathroom quick. She sat up on her potty seat, gave me her {ooooomphhh} look that we had practiced, and then she said "I did it". And sure enough, she did! Then Daddy read the usual story to her, and when it was all done, she got to look at her Number 2 success ... and then flush it down the drain. Right away, she ran into the living room to tell Mommy the good news!

Thank you, Grannie, for getting Jillian to this point! She was very proud of herself.

Volleyball Tourney

The volleyball tournament was in Corvallis and Albany for two days. Jillian and Rielee were wonderful playing with each other. They spent a lot of time huddled in the chair reading books. Then during one match they watched a Dora video on the Ipod. During the last match of the day Jillian fell asleep watching a video with Rielee.
The other exciting part of the two days was that Jillian got to wear her pretty underwear and shorts instead of a diaper and she went the two days without an accident. At the very end of the day

when we were leaving, Jillian had just awoke from her nap and needed to go to the bathroom but she was cranky. We convinced her to go with Grannie and since at home she gets a book read to her, she asked for a book and since I didn't have one I started to recite nursery rhymes and she would say no to the first 3 or 4 and then she started listening,all the while I was frantically trying to remember some. After we left the restroom, Jaws, who was in there at the same time said that it was amusing for everyone in the restroom listening to the nursery rhymes. Oh, well.

More Water Fun

We decided that this combination water play area and sandbox would be great for Jillian since she loves to play in water. When Rielee came to play they played in the water and sand for a really long time. Rielee manages to stay dry but Jillian is soaked from head to toe in a short time so now I have a change of clothes ready. You may notice that not much water stays in the water area and the sand area looks like a water area in a short time.

4-month Appointment

Heather went to the doctor Wednesday for her 4-month appointment to check up on the new baby. She saw Dr. O'Neal again, and she was examined thoroughly. Heather's blood pressure was normal. Then the doctor examined the new baby. The baby's heartbeat was 140 bpm.

At the end of the exam, they scheduled the ultrasound for next Wednesday (April 21). After having thought about it for some time, Heather has decided to find out the sex of the baby at that time!

Stay tuned for the news.

Jillian and Mocha

Jillian is turning into an animal lover. She is always giving Mocha a treat or bringing her a toy or stuffed animal. Jillian follows Mocha around or Mocha is continually following her. Mocha will not sleep if Jillian is awake and will constantly keep an eye on her. Sometimes if Jillian pesters Mocha too much, Mocha will lick Jillian until she leaves her alone. Mocha is so tolerant of whatever Jillian wants to do to her like put a "pretty in her hair", cover her with a blanket, or lead her around on the leash. This last picture show Jillian having Mocha kiss the "owie" on her toe.

Grannie's Birthday

We celebrated Grannie Woodruff's 70th birthday on Easter Sunday with the whole family, though the actual birthday date is today. Grannie, Jillian and Rielee got to wear crowns for the party. As always, Jillian loved to hear the happy birthday song and help blow out the candles.

ABCs

Every time Jillian comes she bugs Papa to play ABCs (that's what she calls it) on Starfall on the computer. It's a great site that my sister Dianne recommended. It has helped Jillian learn the alphabet and the sounds for the letters in a fun way, as it's always children doing the talking. After each letter there's a game to play with that letter and that's what Jillian is doing in the picture, pointing out the correct answer. It's great as she always asks for Papa to do it for her and I can get something else done.

Easter II

With Ava and Harper (Charbo's twins), Jillian is not the youngest cousin now. With this bunch it can get pretty wild during the Easter egg hunt but we did put a special spot for Jillian and Rielee to hunt eggs so they didn't get run over. Next year the twins will be right there joining Jillian.

Easter Sunday

Now that Jillian is 2, she's a lot more into Easter. We've been reading lots of Easter books to her, and talking about looking for eggs and such, so she's been ready.

Easter Sunday started out early, with all of us going to church in the morning. Jillian wore her pretty new pink dress with white stockings, white shoes and white sweater. We were joined at Grace Lutheran by Grandpa Peterson, Auntie Greta, Cousins Meagan & Adam, Aunties Sheryl and De, and Cousin Andy. All of the kids did good throughout the service, playing and visiting quietly. After church, we all headed to the Monticello Hotel for Easter brunch for a huge buffet, where we met up with Dad T. Jillian ate lots and lots of breakfast food.

Our next stop was Castle Rock, where the Piercy family was having Easter at Grannie and Papa Woodruff's house. As soon as we got there, it was time for the egg roll, since it wasn't raining yet. Jillian tossed the egg overhand about half-way to the line, so unfortunately, she was out in the first round. After the raw egg toss (in which Mommy and Daddy took 2nd place to Cale and Will), it was time for the egg hunt. When it was time to go hunting, Jillian immediately ran to the fountain to splash in the water. Mommy had to re-direct her, and finally got her to start looking for and picking up eggs. After several eggs, Jillian was much more into it. She ended up finding about a half dozen. She also received several Easter baskets filled with fun things, including a new pair of Dora Crocs.

We headed home with a very tired (and cranky) Sweetie-Pie, after a very full day with no nap. But, Jillian had a lot of fun running around with family the whole day!

Zoo Trip

Jillian went to the zoo with the Johnson clan yesterday as part of her birthday present. We caught a break and it didn't rain the whole time, though it was pretty cold. The trip started off with a walk on a long trail where we saw birds, wolves, and cows (at the zoo?). Jillian had a lot of energy and alternated between the stroller and walking, or should I say running! Ty and Brock were designated "chasers" when she would take off to see something.

After the trail, we started seeing some of the bigger animals such as the polar bears, elephants, cheetahs, and lions. Jillian was more in awe of these animals and would just stare at them for several moments before getting back in the stroller. We also saw monkeys that were sleeping and snakes that Jiliian said "SSSS" (and Aunt Julie stayed away from). We also stopped at the big field for a few minutes and she ran back and forth several times. Next we made a quick bee line through the hippos, zebras, and giraffes because everybody was hungry and we wanted to get to the crocodile "rainforest" ( a building that is very warm!).

Eating our packed lunch in the crocodile rainforest is a tradition of the Johnson boys who used to visit the zoo often when they were little. Jillian did not seem fazed by the big teeth of the crocs and just ate her peanut butter sandwich right by them (with glass in between, of course). After lunch, we could tell that she was getting tired, so we put her in the stroller and hurriedly saw the bats, tigers, and sea otters. Jillian yelled for the tiger to "wake up!" but it didn't work. Lastly, Jillian went to the gift shop and picked out a stuffed baby lion that she called her "puppy." All in all, we had a great time and Jillian fell right to sleep as we left for home.

New Stuff XXIV

Here it is ... the latest of compilation of Jill-stuff. It continues to be funny:

1. Packing : When we get ready to go somewhere, Jillian immediately starts looking for something to take with her. It could be a baby, or a toy, or as many things as she can carry in her arms. We've managed to get rid of a lot of stuff, because Jillian often returns home empty-handed.

2. More Singing : Jillian continues to enjoy singing. She let loose with a couple new ones recently, including "Itsy Bitsy Spider" and "Ring Around the Rosy".

3. The Barney Song : When we went to the beach last weekend, it was non-stop Barney theme song. If you haven't heard it, she sings it like this: "I love you, you love me, we're a happy family, with a great big hug, and a kiss from me to you (muh), hope you say you love me too".

4. "Muh" : This is what Jillian says when she gives a kiss, either to people or her babies or when singing the Barney theme song (see above).

5. Bear, Bottle & Little Chicken : For a couple days, Jillian couldn't part with these 3 little things, carrying them around with her everywhere, and even taking them to bed. Just so you know, they were a little stuffed bear, a little toy baby bottle, and a Pez dispenser with a chicken on top.

6. Counting 2 Things : Jillian can actually count things, up to 2. She'll point at 2 things and say "1, 2".

7. "Don't Worry (Mommy / Daddy)" : This is similar to the "What's wrong?" that she had been saying earlier. There's no particular reason why she says it, though.

8. "Waaaahhhhh" : Jillian likes to pretend cry by saying "waaaahhhh", and has gotten pretty convincing in how she does it. But, she gives it away after she says "I cry like a baby."

9. "Hola" : It's evidence of the Dora influence on her; when we went to Wal-Mart the other day, Jillian was saying "hola" to people she'd meet.

10. "I don't like that" : This has become a common phrase lately. It's often followed by Jillian throwing that thing down.

More Princess Dress-up

Here's another video of Jillian in her princess dress, princess top and princess shoes. She was definitely in a princess mood tonight.