Happy Girl!

Caitlyn right after she woke up from sleeping for 12 1/2 hours in a row! Mommy is even happier, no doubt. I tried to do the same thing with her schedule again the next night, but it was a bit difficult. She did really well though, slept right through until 7:45am! This is marvelous as any mommy would agree, unbroken sleep comes at a price. Fortunately this one isn't too high.

This is Caitlyn asleep in her carseat fir the first time. Despite the seeming normality of it all, this is actually monumental. Definately photo-worthy in any case!

And let the people rejoice! ( to be said in a sing-song kindof voice :-)

Alelujah! Caitlyn SLEPT THROUGH THE NIGHT!! Can you tell I am exstatic about this!? Well, let me give you the low-down on how it all came about..... We went to a baby shower last night that started at 7pm. It was a weird time and I didn't feel comfortable leaving her home. So, off we went to the baby shower, just the girls. We didn't arrive until 7:45 because the house was in a place I was not familiar with and it was dark with lots of traffic. She never cried until 5 minutes before we got there! What a good girl. So, we said our "hi's" and she quickly got cranky (well, it's passed her bedtime), so we got her changed and I nursed her, then she fell asleep. I passed her to a friend who wanted her turn to hold her, I couldn't pass her up on that offer, so Caitlyn stayed alseep for a few minutes but woke to some woman cooing at her beautiful sight. She was passed around between some longing woman and she got cranky again towards the end so I fed her again and we went home. I told her in a nice firm voice that she had a choice. She could go to sleep and have a happy heart or she could scream in the car like she always does. I got in the drivers seat and told her where I was and talked with her for a minute, then I noticed she was getting fussy. She did this for a minute or so, then promptly went to sleep. This may not seem like a big deal, but, you see, she sleeps on her tummy so going to sleep on her back is very uncomfortable and unnatural to her. What a good girl! So, I took a picture of her when we got back, I was just so proud of her and I wanted everyone to see. This, ofcourse, startled her, but she went right back to sleep. I put her in her bed, at this time it was 9:30 pm. (2 hours later than her normal bedtime). I woke at 8:30 this morning feeling slightly odd. Then I thought about it for a minute...........Wait, what, umm...where did, hmmmm.....when....HUH??? She never woke to nurse! SHE SLEPT THROUGH! WOW!! Well, it is now 9:30 am and she has been asleep for 12 hours! Yahoo! And like all neurotic mommies, I checked to make sure she was breathing. She is. Then I quickly walked out of the room to have some time with Ethan and tell everyone I knew, who would care at this hour of the morning, that she is still asleep. So, I should go do something productive while I have the chance, lest she wake before I get anything done! (will post the pics later)

The Anderson's!!!

Michael, Lisa, Kevin, Matthew, Christopher and Nicole all came to visit us today during their stay in Singapore. We met the Andersons' when first coming to Singapore, they arrived the same time we did and were seeking homeschooling friends to hang out with. Lisa and I met on the homeschooling message board for Singapore, before the actual move, both seeking information. We hit it off right away and continued corresponding through email, walking eachother through each step of the moving process. We met in Singapore on the National Holiday, August 9th, in the busiest place in Singapore, right where they did the firworks. I will never forget it. We have been friends ever since! God provided an amazing support system in this family and we were blessed by them tremendously!

Just me and my baby girl!

McRitchie Reservoir with Aunt Pammy and Uncle Dan

Pam and Dan took Ryan on a hike to the Canapoy Walk with them and had a great time. Ryan was a bit put off by the size of the bridge and stability (or lack there of) but, funny enough, had no problem with the monkeys baring thier teeth at him while he was eating his snack. I guess nothing gets between him and his food.

Ethan found the cable guy quite interesting and followed him throughout the house. Thankfully it was a nice guy and he didn't mind Ethan watching his every move. It was cute to watch.

Life in Singapore

Caitlyn, Ryan, Aaron and Ethan have been quite busy these last few months. It's been interesting to say the least to try and meet everyone's needs with new demands of a baby. I have to give major compliments to my husband, who has been my strength throughout this new beginning. Ryan is enjoying school and doing better and better all the time. He is now up to 10 spelling words each week and progressing with an eager attitude. His report card was great, improving in almost every area. Aaron is getting used to the routine of school and doing well. He seems to be doing well with the work, but have yet to see the progress report. We are having a parent teacher conference sometime this month to discuss how he is handling it all. He continues to make new friends and gets excited about the happenings at school. Ethan is liking the special time home with mom but equally misses his brothers. Since I have been needing more sleep than normal, he gets bored a little bit. Caitlyn, as you can imagine, is growing by leaps and bounds. She is smiling and coo-ing and getting to be responsive to the boys. It's definatly neat to watch! She is loving the schedule that we have developed from reading "BabyWise". She sleeps much better and eats less frequently, making for a less stressed mama and much happier baby. Steve has been busy balancing work, school, family and play. I must say he is amazing at being able to do all of these things. His school weeks are quite busy but I think he thrives on the intensity of it all. He loves playing golf and has gotten quite good! God is using this as a tool for witnessing, it's amazing to hear the stories he comes home with! BTW, don't ever pick up a very large snake with a frog in it's mouth, it won't like it very much! Only Steve IRWIN should attempt this! I have been struggling with health issues lately but am thankful to have found a wonderful Dr. willing to work with me. God has been carrying me through this, showing me that all things work together for good. I have a feeling God is allowing me to endure these trials so I may help others with similar issues in the days to come. This excites me. My husband has been a source of strength as well, for which I am forever greatful! We are eagerly awaiting the arrival of family in the next few weeks. Pam and Dan will be here for 2 weeks and then Mom and Dad Wilson will be here for 6 weeks! We can't wait to share life in Singapore with family. I am sure they can't wait to see our newest family member! Well, that's all for now. Stay tuned for more tales from the tropical city of Singapore!

We Have a Schedule Folks!

I have been working quite diligently trying to get Caitlyn on a better schedule so I am not so tired during the day, and life can resemble a little normalcy (whatever that is). We tried skipping naps, waking her up early in the morning, giving her baths at a certain time each night, and sleeping with her. Well, something has paid off! She has now gone to bed at 10:30pm for 4 nights in a row and slept with no awake times until 8am. NO, She's not sleeping through until then, she wakes for feeding, but before this she would catnap until 11pm and be awake until 1am! Unfortunatly I am not sure which one it was that worked, but I guess it doesn't matter since I haven't done any of those things since she's been sleeping through. The funny thing is one night my friends and I were talking about how to get her, and their babies as well, to sleep better for naps and nighttime. We talked about the BabyWise books and a few other popular methods. None of which really sounded that good. That was the first night she fell asleep at 10pm and didn't wake until 3am for feeding! I guess she decided to do it on her own so we didn't have to start any unpleasant means of getting her to sleep at an earlier time. Smart baby!

Six Minutes with Daddy

Steve decided to spend a special six minute time with Ethan one morning after the older boys went to school. Ethan was playing with his new knights and daddy thought it would be fun to take pictures of them. They had a great time using the timer taking pictures of themselves with the knights and got some great shots! Ethan was so excited to take the pictures, and got some good ones, this was until HE DROPPED THE CAMERA ON THE TILE FLOOR! This ended the picture taking session very quickly! I had to remind Daddy that maybe it wasn't such a good idea to let a 4 year old practice on an expensive digital camera! Nevertheless, they had a great time and got some good shots. My Knights in Shining Armour!

Singapore sign posts

One thing I have come to love in Singapore are the road signs! There is nothing more frustrating when you are on the highway cruising along, at the speed limit ofcoarse, and all of a sudden traffic comes to a halt. The once happy attitude in the car turns sour at the possibility of sitting in an hour of traffic. Somehow it all seems better when you reach the sign ahead alerting you of what went wrong. You see, they have these signs that are elctronic and change according to the situation, telling of coming events in the area, or accidents or car jams. Today on the way home from our Drs. appt. Ethan and I encountered one of these traffic jams. It was bad enough already that it decided to down pour on us, so we were already feeling a bit cranky. But we somehow felt a little better when we saw that familiar sign ahead that said "vehicle breakdown lane 2 rochor rd. exit". There was a light at the end of the tunnel, a break in traffic ahead! We were not far from that exit so knew the traffic would clear soon. Gotta love those signs. We should adopt this system in the states.

"Mom, watch this!"

As I am loving the quiet house now that the older boys are in school, I seem to have a parrot in my house. One of the biggest reasons to send Aaron to school was so that I could have concentrated time with Ethan to work on some things with his character. This is great, but he has lost his playmates that he has never known life without. So I have gladly become his playmate. The most common thing I have heard is "mom, watch this". I love to see what he thinks is cool and has discovered to do, but it is about 100 times each day! And most often it's the same thing over and over again. He has essentially become an only child during the day. I have totally forgotten what this entails. Alot of affirming with comments like "wow!" or "you are so good!" or "great job!" or "cool", all with genuine interest. Need I go on? So, I feel like a parrot being cued to say things on command based on certain things he does/says. BUT......... Having said this, I wouldn't change it for a minute! The children are the light of my life and I am so blessed to be able to spend my days teaching and training them! I get to peek in on him during quiet playtime and hear his conversations with his self and his toys, this is a precious gift.

Electrified!

It's a good thing she doesn't know about good and bad hair days yet. So, would I be a really bad mom if I saved this for leverage some day?

Caitlyn smiles

In the last two weeks we have been rewarded with beautiful smiles from Caitlyn. Her first month nand a half were so difficult we wondered if this day would ever come. There were many times where she would be screaming so hard while riding in the car we had to climb in the back to pick her up. She was completely hysterical, and totally beside herself. It got to the point I never wanted to go anywhere. Now it is more common for her to be content than hysterical, this is a great relief. She has now been happy and content for a good 2 weeks, for which we are so greatful. Steve and I fall in love with her more and more each day. Her smiles are like God's little blessing on a difficult day, sunshine in the midst of the rain, a reminder that He is still there and His beauty can be wrapped in the tiniest of packages. It looks as if an angel comes down and tickles her belly. It's priceless. Children truly are a blessing from The Lord!

Climbing the walls, litterally

The rainy season in Singapore can get pretty bad. This week it rained every single day, leaving us with very little to do. As you can imagine, we were needing activity with 3 boys running around the house. On this day they actually resorted to climbing the walls for fun. I think I need ot work harder at finding activities for them to do!

Aaron's First Day of School

Monday January 8th was the first day back at school for all the international schools on the island. This is also Aaron's first day at a public school, we decided we needed to take a break from homeschooling for a short while. He was so excited and had no anxieties or fears as we put him to bed the night before. His teacher's name is Mrs. Ong and he is in 1st grade. Ryan is in 2nd grade at the same school, his teacher's name is Miss Jarman. They attend the only Christian school on the island called, International Community School (ICS). It is growing by leaps and bounds in attendance, which is why they changed venues last year. Because people come and go frequently here in Singapore, they accept new enrollments any time of the year.

Let's take a tubby

I have decided to establish a night time routine for Caitlyn in hopes of getting her in bed earlier, eventually. This includes a bath, at around 9:30-10pm. I thought she hated bath time because when I lay her on her little seat she would just complain and cry. Well, one day I decided to put her facing forward, because she seems to like life from her tummy much better than laying on her back. She Loves it!!! I have to admit, it looks kindof weird, but she is so happy! She kicks her feet and tries to swim and can stay that way for 10 minutes or more. Usually my arm gives out by then and we have to change positions, to which she greatly protests. That ends the bath. Here is a picture of her enjoying her bath, and no, it's not torture I assure you, she really likes it this way! And, for those nervous mommies, her face is about a good 6-10 inches from the water!

Impersonations

One of the boys favorite things to do is to dress up as Batman, Spiderman, and Superman. They are often dressed up when we go for family walk, and the looks we get are quite funny. They also recived indian costumes from gramma, much like the one daddy wore in Indian Guides when her was younger. This went over huge! I never know who I will be greeting each morning as I get up, but more than likely it will not be just a regular boy!

Big Brothers

Gramma Wilson made "big brother" t-shirts for all the boys and sent them for Christmas. Ryan was thrilled to see his title as "Biggest Brother". Aaron is the "Bigger Brother" and Ethan is a "Big Brother" at last.

Caitlyn...JOY???

Well, one of the reasons I gave her the middle name of Joy is because I was so sure she would have a Joyful heart! It was my mission in life to pray it into her and make sure she was joyful, if there was anything I could do about it, it would be done. You can imagine my dismay when she does nothing but fuss, scream and have a sour look on her face for the first month of her life! I can tell right away she has a short temper, Steve and I have no idea where that came from. This, however, can be trained. But, she cries alot, screams when she goes potty and is just plain unhappy. The good news is I think we have discovered the reasons for her un-joyful-ness (is that a word?). I will spare all the details, but we discovered she is sensitive to dairy products! This is not a big surprise since Aaron was as well. She is also a bit sensitive to all the veggies I am eating, as well as the chocolate. I even buy the chocolate with no milk, come-on, you can't deny a girl her chocolate! We need to have a little woman to woman chat about that one, everything else is do-able. Since taking out all the dairy she is a much happier baby. There are times when she fusses and screams, but she's a baby, they gotta do that a little. I have just succumbed to the fact she is sensitive and I will need to be very careful with what I eat. This isn't difficult for me since I love the area of nutrition and how it affects the body, and, as Steve can attest, my diet is quite bland to begin with. So, here are a few pictures where she is actually happy. They are quite hard to come by, so this is exciting for me! Hopefully we wil have many more of them to come!

Going out in style

Mom was finally able to get out and see some of Singapore the last weekend she was here. Steve took Friday and Monday off from work and showed her some of the island. This gave me some peaceful time at home, just me and Caitlyn, which, ofcourse, I loved! They went to Jurong Water Park, the Chinese Gardens, Sentosa Beach and the luge, and to see the Merlion. Sunday night mom and I went to the Night Safari, which was fantastic! Then all afternoon on Monday we went shopping. You can never start too young you know, and mom wanted a hand at teaching Caitlyn to shop. There's nothing like packing it all in one weekend, but she loved it!

Who are you, and why are you following me??

We have all been having fun quoting lines from our favorite movies while mom has been here. The lines from Finding Nemo seem to be most popular. I think mom and Caitlyn have a secret little thing going, because Caitlyn looks at her with this funny look like mom is from outerspace or something and mom says "Who are you, and Why are you followiong me?" This looks exactly like what Caitlyn might be thinking!

This is the life

Mom and I decided we needed some pampering one day, after all, we are working very hard you know. Between taking care of the boys and being sleep deprived, who can argue! For those of you back home in reality, don't answer that! So, we had a pedicurist (is that a real word?) come to the house and give each of us a pedicure. It was wonderfully relaxing and we had a nice conversation with this person, from South Africa, who at 28, had already been to almost every continent. But she was amazed at the fact I was "so young" and had "all these children"! Mom and I got a good laugh from that. I don't think it will be hard to convince mom to come back again next year. Convincing dad on the other hand, will be a bigger challenge!

Aaron lost his first tooth!

One morning as I awake from my stupor, I am bombarded with this amazing story told by Aaron. It entaled something like Ethan coming down the steps of the bunkbed and his foot somehow hitting Aaron's face, which knocked out his tooth. This is being told by a excited Aaron with a bloody face, totally oblivious of the fact he has no idea where his tooth went, or that he has blood all over! Thankfully his tooth was ready to come out any day, and we were all talking about how it would happen very soon. He looks very cute with the little hole in the front of his teeth.