Emmanuelle update, including 2wk stats & weight history

Long-overdue family update

Height - 43 in (60-75th percentile)
Weight - 46 lb (75th percentile)

Carter's 4yr stats from 4/3:

Height - 37 3/4 in (25th percentile)
Weight - 38 lb (75th percentile)

Wow, been forever since I blogged.  Instead have been putting quick updates of the fam thru pics and statuses on FB - much easier.  But at least for my own use and for whoever might happen to still be interested in more detailed updates on our family, I think I'll still try to post when I can, esp when logging the kids' growth stats and all.  (And perhaps even some more frequent quick posts/stories of the kids that I don't want to forget?  We'll see if that happens!)  But anyway, before I write out Emmanuelle's birth story and everything,  I've had notes about what's been going on with the other kiddos for a while now, so I think I'll post those first.  Everyone's growing and changing fast!  In the midst of the daily grind and challenges, I love these guys so much and am so grateful to God for each of them.

Siena's 5 1/2 now, nearing the end of kindergarten..and has enjoyed it very much.  Not challenged academically enough, but we expected that, going into this school year in public school.  Tiger Mom that I am, it pains me so much that she's not being taught nearly as much as I know she's capable to learn and I would want to do myself here at home, but I've learned to let go of certain things (this year at least), for the sake of her socializing with other children (as she herself had desired for so long) and being provided with regular activities/"specials"/stimulation that I felt I couldn't offer her sufficiently, due to daily family life with her siblings (esp when the other two were younger)..  Well with doing homework every day, violin practice (which she is enjoying! but hard work), gymnastics on Monday afternoons, violin lessons on Friday afternoons, plus daily Bible reading time with her sibs, dinner, bath, and such, it sure is difficult to fit much else in after school!!  Not to mention, letting her still be a KID, who can play outside or color (her fav pastime by far these days) and even watch some TV with her sibs.  So...we have actually decided to go back to homeschooling her for first grade next year, for a variety of reasons, but particularly since she is now open and willing to be at home this time - she says, "then I can help with the baby" .  Really happy we'll have her back home with us!  (And getting super excited about homeschooling a first grader and pre-K student, of course while keeping a preschooler entertained, and baby would hopefully be napping.  Maybe I'll post more about my plans for curriculum and personal teaching methods, etc, once I finalize the plans/materials..we'll see if I get around to it.  And though I will have 4 kids at home by myself, I have much faith that it will be much more doable this year, since all the first 3 kids will be older now, and Emmanuelle will be almost 5 mos by the time the school year begins, but yet not too mobile at that point!)  Anyway, Siena's such a big girl now:

- seems to comprehend, and is affected by, the gospel genuinely (was in complete tears reading about Jesus' innocent death on our behalf, last Easter; now expresses such gratefulness and sobriety/repentance with her sins)
- is still so keen and sensitive to how others feel and seeks to care for them selflessly and generously
- in a 2nd/3rd grade level reading group at school, reading chapter books and having good comprehension
- has incredible number sense and can figure out things re: numbers/math really easily
- handwriting has gotten quite good for a 5yo
- is bold to introduce herself and make new friends everywhere she goes (and usu with kids much older than her)
- is a risk-taker and likes to challenge herself physically, i.e. in gymnastics class, trying new things on the playground, or going on carnival rides, etc. (been riding a two-wheeler for a year now).  Needless to say, we are proud parents and very grateful for our big girl.

Carter has done SO well this year doing pre-school with me at home, just loving my attention due to his big sis not being home all day.. First my relationship with him has gotten SO much better since the past, and he is much more responsive, attentive, and affectionate to me - probably a combination of maturing with age as well as getting more of my attention and focused care towards him, I am so grateful to God for this, a true answer to prayer!  His love for the Bible (books in general, but the Bible clearly his fav) and understanding of the gospel has been humbling and such a joy to witness - quite a tender heart for such a rambunctious and passionate boy!  In addition, he's proven to be MUCH more of a studious child than I ever expected - reading 3-letter short-vowel words, various sight words, thus simple sentences/books (halfway thru kindergarten level in Hooked on Phonics); spelling words mentally; LOVES math and seems to have a strong number sense like his big sis as well, adding/subtracting well, enjoying word problems and such, has grasped tons of concepts such as greater/less than, size/amount comparison, length measurement, tallying, shape comparing/contrasting, Venn diagrams, and more; has memorized so many facts about dinosaurs/animals/etc thru books and tv shows.  Lastly, Carter continues to LOVE and excel at sports of all kinds, particularly basketball at the moment (due to Jeremy Lin and the Knicks), practicing different skills and tricks non-stop all day; football would be his next favorite to practice.  Definitely curious to see where the Lord will lead him in the area of sports.

Anyway it's just been amazing to observe how the Lord is growing these kids' minds and bodies so much already.  Our prayer for them is that it all results in just deep worship of Him and using all gifts/skills/knowledge that He gives, to glorify Him and further His kingdom purposes.

Finally our Penny...little miss Penelope-pie.  She is quite the character.  A constant chatterbox (at least at home), just like her sis and bro (imitating them constantly), often saying interesting things that sound beyond her, but is fitting due to her rather emo personality and keen insight, lol.  Despite her very innocent face, she can be quite fiery when she is angry or embarrassed or whatnot.  She puts up a real good fight with big bro, having quite the strong will - scratched up his face pretty bad one day, and scratching/hitting/biting has not been unusual for her!  I have to say that she seems to have even a stronger will, stubbornness, and fearlessness to disobey than Carter did!  Doesn't get as passionately angry as he does, but fights harder for what she wants - needless to say, though I LOVE certain things about this stage as well, Penn has def been going thru her terrible two's..:P  Anyway, she comprehends and verbalizes so much it's startling, but in terms of knowing things like her letters and numbers..not so much, haha.  Her sibs def knew their letters and sounds by the time they turned 2 (largely due to the Leapfrog Letter Factory DVD), but this little one could care less about learning them and is not picking them up at all at this point!  She does at least know how to count up to 20, (or just past 20 actually), besides skipping 16 (I remember Carter skipping 16 in the past as well!).  And she's known all her colors for a while now.  Shapes...maybe a couple :)  Other than that, she just learns things from her sibs..and TV shows.  Wild Kratts (show about animals), Octonauts (show about sea creatures), Dinosaur Train, and Dino Dan are all 3 of the kids' favorites currently - Penny can recall various dinosaurs and animals on her own.  Finally, she loves to color/draw for long periods of time, having rather good pencil grip and control.

Last note on all three: 2 out of 3 are in underwear at night, woohoo!  Carter finally made the switch a few months ago.  And Penny has been in underwear all day for a number of months now, but still in pull-ups at night just in case - but has consistently been keeping them dry every night, so perhaps we'll switch her over at some point too!  Crazy - I guess now we'll just have our newborn's diapers to worry about!

And finally - pregnancy with Emmanuelle had been rather smooth up until the 3rd trimester hit, when I started feeling more and more uncomfortable and ready to be done with pregnancy.  I experienced the usual tons of pressure, and this time started getting a weird shooting pain/cramp in my right thigh that hindered my sleep at night for a stretch.  And then my bad digestion issues (from my last 2 pregnancies) came up and were quite painful/uncomfortable for about a week and a half or so, which made it really hard to do anything, and I couldn't eat too much either because I feared the pain becoming too unbearable.  Then lastly, my early consistent contractions started up, that are not painful, yet uncomfortable nonetheless and making it hard to breathe.  So, I actually knew right after I got pregnant and started feeling the 1st-trimester nausea, but by 3rd trimester was confirmed for sure: this will be our LAST pregnancy, at least in our plans!!  Could not do this all over again another time.  Anyway, with my history of early contractions and dilation, had no idea when to expect this baby, but was def planning for her to come early, perhaps around 37wks again.  Well, we were right about her coming early...whole birth story to come.

Penny turned 2

Height - 35 in (75-90th percentile)
Weight - 25 lb(26th percentile)

Head - 18 3/4 in (50-75th percentile)

Carter turned 3!

Our lil April Fool's boy... never ceases to live up to that title! 

Height - 36 1/2 in (25th percentile)
Weight - 32 lb, 2 oz (60th percentile)

What a short little guy!  We're just thankful he makes up for his height with his athleticism   He's crazy, the kid can throw and hit any kind of ball like it's nothing!  We are curious to see what sport(s) he will end up sticking with.

Lots I can say about our boy, but alas, haven't enough time to do so right now.. perhaps one day.  Cuz lots the Lord is doing, both in the little man's heart and my own   He sure is challenging (probably the biggest means of sanctification for me at this time!)...yet has a ton of things I just LOVE about him.  Uniquely made, and uniquely planned to be MY son, by our wise Creator!

Thank you God for our Carter-man, we are so grateful for him - please have Your way in his life and grow him up strong and humble, to be ever-increasingly passionate for You, Your kingdom, and Your glory.

1/1/11

Happy New Year to all (who still read this)!  And Penny turned 18 mos on the 1st as well.

Penny's 18mo stats:

Height - 32 1/2 in (90th percentile)
Weight - 22 lb, 8 oz (25th percentile)
Head circumference - 18 1/3 in (70th percentile)

Apparently she only grew 1/2 an inch and gained less than a pound, in 3mos?  I guess she grew fast early on but now seems to be stabilizing.  And don't think those percentiles are totally accurate, but at least it's a general estimate to go by.

Penny's been SO much fun lately, understanding almost everything we say, responding to questions, communicating so much to us in diff ways (though not as verbal/enunciating as Siena was at this age).

Words she says (that I can remember): mama (umma), appa/bappa, ppa (oppa), dardder (Carter), hi, bye, ny-ny (night-night), beh-bee (baby), meuh (milk), ba-beuh (bottle), maw (more), wa-wuh (water), joo (juice), beuh-beuh (pee-pee/poo-poo), dadduh (cracker), zhou (shoe), dot (sock), deuh-dee (dirty), buh (bird), daw (dog)/dawdee (doggie), woo-woo (woof-woof), dduh (duck), buss (push)

15 teeth now (just waiting on one last eye tooth to come thru - then it's just her 2yr molars left!).  Sometimes eats a ton, other times quite picky and doesn't eat much at all.  Seems to prefer fruits and veggies, particularly sour/strange/spicy ones like pickles, dahn mooji (pickled radish), lemons/limes, and KIMCHI!

Loves seeing babies and animals, knows most body parts, mimics her sis and bro all the time...can't think of everything else she's been doing, at the moment - but seriously so so fun and so cute :)

Oh and semi-potty-trained since 15mos, crazy girl.  So nice, barely ever changing poopy diapers anymore (now that Carter is pretty much fully-trained as well, praise God!)!  Just had her try underwear for the first time yesterday though, was only using pull-ups til now - so we'll see how it goes!  A real sweet girlie, that Penelope.

Pics up on flickr.