Avery Milestones

Avery:
She is definitely a curious girl. Almost right after she learned to crawl she started to pull herself up to standing. Now she creeps around furniture. She has even climbed up on one stair. One of her favorite places to play is in the pink kitchen where she can open cabinets and drawers while standing. Saturday I caught her standing up on one of the drawer handles on one foot, reaching for something above. She is a climber. Yikes, I am so glad she has not gotten hurt yet. She loves to pull out all the play food and make a huge mess. She really gets into everything and I can not leave her alone for a second. Another favorite spot is standing at the kitchen sliding glass door. She watches the hundreds of birds we have that live in our bushes. They often come right up to the window. I think she might be a bird watcher, like her some of her great grandparents.

She also has this great laugh that is more like a dog panting. When she gets really excited or happy she starts to suck in air and breath really fast simultaneously she is grinning really big and scrunching her nose. I love this little girl she brings us so much joy and is leading us on an adventure for sure.

Thank you for giving.

Sherri and Cooper

Callie and Cooper

Hurt hand

Look I can still write.

Dinner at moms.

The Aunts

My climbing girl

Gigi and Luke

At the park in Reno

Joy School Kids: Hallie, Katelyn, Eliza, Callie

Ward Christmas Party

This is a sappy entry, just to warn any readers. If you don't like sappy just look at the pictures.

Callie has been eagerly anticipating her upcoming birthday and Christmas. Well, I have to admit that I get a little too excited for these things, too. I have been asking her what she wants as gifts for these momentous days. Her list has been endless. We started to browse the toy department of Wal-mart, and I soon realized that the greed I was fueling in my soon to be 4 year old was immeasurable. In order to tame the green-eyed beast a little, I started to say things like: "Well, you can't have everything you want for your Birthday and Christmas. You may only get some things. Which things do you want the most?" And since I have already bought most of the things we planned to get her, I keep trying to steer her back to her original lists. The clever girl knowing that after Halloween we first celebrate Thanksgiving, then her birthday, then Christmas, started saying in response to my comments: "How about, I can get this(which ever toy "this" is for the moment) for thank you for giving. Yeah, that's a good idea." I guess I needed to be more specific like: "That toy is too old for you," or "I got you some other stuff already and I don't have enough money for more," or "I really think that toy you might like for a day and then it will get boring fast," or "That is a complete waste of money." I thought about that title sweet Callie gave this holiday in her moment of greed, and thought it was very profound. How fitting that we quietly (or loudly in my family), spend the month before Christmas reflecting on gratitude. Thankfulness for our families, our homes, our religions, our country, our health, our friends, our many blessings that have come to us from our Heavenly Father. Hopefully, we all at least take a peaceful moment to reflect on our gratitude for the greatest gift of all, our Savior, Jesus Christ. Because just like the sequence of a prayer might be: first we thank, then we ask for things; so follows our Holiday season. Too often, I thank briefly. Most stores skip this Holiday all together (they want us to set into the greedy step.) Then I get caught up in the holiday rush, stress, traditions, gluttony, and greed. I think the true meaning of Christmas is lost in this, should it not also be about our gratitude for the birth, life, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ. Thank you Heavenly Father, "thank you for giving." I am going to try to keep this idea better in mind this month.

What did we do that I am grateful for this past month? At the beginning of this month we had Regional Conference. I am grateful that we could get, from an apostle, specific guidance for these latter days. Is it not interesting that the Prophets have been preparing us for hard financial times for many years? On the 5th we went to Charlotte's Web Children's Play. It was very cute; Callie loved it, and I am grateful that Avery behaved very well. I am grateful for our little Joy School group. Callie really loves it, and I like the kids and moms who are in it. Oh, since I had a urology appoinment this month I am grateful I don't have a kidney stone right now. We went on a tour of a farm that raises animals for their wool; and then spins, dyes, and weaves the wool on the premises. I am grateful for my clothes, and that I don't have to weave them or care for the animals. I will stick with children. What a talent to be able to do all that though. I am grateful for the people who do such work. I hosted a baby shower for my friend Sheri and I am grateful for friends and babies. I am grateful for book club that keeps me reading. What great women are in that group. I am so glad for my girl-time and friendships. Callie smashed her fingers twice this month (once in the door to the garage, once in the car door same hand). I am so glad they were not broken, and healed quickly. One of the things I am most thankful for is my family. The girls and I were lucky enough to travel back to Reno for Thanksgiving. I am so glad everyone in my family loves to hang out with the girls. It makes us feel so loved and popular. Callie would say that she is greatful that Papa and Sherri have a dog (Cooper), and Gigi and Grumpy have two dogs (Luke and Lili). She keeps asking for a dog and a brother. "I need a dog and a brother." When we left Callie kept saying "Cooper is sure going to miss me." I am glad we had beautiful wheather in Reno for our visit. I am thankful that we made it home to our Cameron. It was hard to be gone from him for so long. He was glad to be invited to Thanksgiving with Aaron and his friends.

We are thankful for all the comments we recieve on our blog from good friends around the world. We wish you all love and happiness this Christmas Season.

Love,

The LaDukes

All about October

Well it has been a very warm and busy October. The week of Halloween it was 89 and 94 degrees. It is now finally cooling off, and feeling a bit like fall now. Upper 70's in the day and 40's at night. So we do actually put our heat on at night for the girls. I have to look at my calender to remember all that has happened this month. Lets start with Milestones.

Avery:

7th tooth cut Oct 21st.

8th tooth was cut on 31st

started clapping around the 24th

First ear infections (yes both ears at once) on the 22nd.

says "mama" and "dada" very clearly and seems to know what they mean. Also says "duck," I don't think she knows what it means.

Crawls more than 4 steps starting on Nov. 3rd.

Perfected her pincher grasp. Can find specks of crumbs smaller than the naked eye can see, pick them up and put them in her mouth.

So proud of her crawling that she will stop roll over and clap for herself.

She has turned into a happy baby. She sleeps well, eats well, and plays well. She loves her daddy, and sister, who both crack her up. She also loves to get into everything. She is very mobile.

Weight:

17 lbs 9 oz.

Callie:

This month started with Callie being Ariel because of her Halloween costume. But since Halloween night she has renamed herself Mulan. If I ask Callie to do something she says I am not Callie I am Mulan. She has renamed me Anita (this is what she thinks Ariel's mom's name is). We think it is Athena? I am often embarrassed in public when she says "Anita you are being mean." She calls Cameron King Triton and Avery is Seeping Dewy. Callie read her first book Wall.E level 1 reader. She helped to make her seashell crown for Halloween. Callie was in her first primary program. She had her part memorized and I think most of the songs. Though she would not say her part with out prompting, it was very clear. She did not sing a note the whole program but she did look cute. Next time I will make sure she wears a longer skirt. She was in the front row and I think many had a clear shot of her panties. She continues to have a great imagination, and a great ability for negotiation. Both are skill she may use in her future law practice.

Callie Quote:

Callie: "Mom, I have to sit down right? When I go potty."

Me: "Yes you have to sit down."

Callie: "Because I don't have a line."

Me: "A line?"

Callie: "Yeah, like Gage has a string, you know that he holds when he goes potty."

Me: "Oooh! Yeah, you don't have a string, so you have to sit while you go potty."

Addie:
Helped Callie fix her costume to be more like a mermaid named Frankie. Attempted three times to get Callie's hair to curl to the misery of both Callie and me. Won the ward Chili cook off. Oops, I did not know it was a cook off. My recipe will forever be kept secret with the famous makers of Stag (canned chili). I did get a lovely trophy though. Fixed a toilet that had a hose explode in the middle of the night. Called a plumber for the disposal and learned how to fix that the next time it is jammed.

Cameron:

Landed a summer internship with Cohen, Kennedy, Dowd, and Quigley.
Still surviving law school. We don't see him much but, all agree he looks similar to Anthony the Blue Wiggle.

Events:

Octobers general conference marks the 6th year anniversary of Cams and mines first date. We celebrated by watching conference as a family and playing a memory game of the quorum of the twelve, and 1st presidency's names. Callie now recognizes many of them by name. The next weekend our friends the Berry's came down from Phoenix to visit. It was a giant slumber party for the girls. We were glad to have a nice break from the grind and visit with our good friends. As luck would have it we were asked to speak in church that same weekend about general conference. I chose to speak about "lifting where you stand" from President Uchtdorf's talk. This may have been my worst talk ever. I really did not prepare well, so was kind of winging my transitions. I am a little embarrassed. But, it was fall break week for the high school so a lot of people in our ward missed it. The content was good though, my rambling was not. Cameron spoke about relying on our covenants with the Lord. He did a fabulous job. The Monday following the Berry's visit Cameron was offered an internship with Cohen, Kennedy, Dowd, & Quigley, a great law firm in Phoenix. This means we will be spending our summer in Phoenix. Cameron is very excited this was one of his top choices, he is happy for the opportunity. I am also thinking what fun to be up near all our old friends again. Callie started Joy school with a few other girls, Eliza, Kaitlin, and Abby. Callie was in her first primary program. Then the Halloween extravaganza began. I was really worried we were not going to have anything to do this year for Halloween. Boy, was I wrong. Callie kept asking me about parties we went to last year. I think she expected to see the same people and do the same things for Halloween this year. So in my mind I really wanted to live up to her expectations. I think we went a little over board. Monday night we went to the law school Halloween party for the kids. Callie went as a mermaid. We curled her hair, put on makeup, got her all decked with jewelry, and crown. She looked great and ran into her friends Eliza, and Kaitlin. She got lots of candy and treats. We should have stopped there. Gigi came to town on Weds. and we dragged her to Shaylee's princess birthday party. I tried to convince Callie to dress as Belle, because she has a beautiful Belle costume, but she wanted to be a mermaid again. We tried to curl her hair but it did not work. My mom did her makeup. Her crown broke so we made a new one, and went to the party. It was a really fun party, there was a Cinderella, Fairy princess, Sleeping Beauty, Tinkerbell, and a princess. The next night was our ward trunk or treat. Avery was Daisy LaDuke in her flower costume. Callie decided not to be Ariel but to dress as a cheerleader. I think she was sick of us fussing with her hair so she thought her Yale cheerleader out fit would avoid the curling fiasco. So she got pony tails instead. She started the night with fairy wings too. So we called her the cheer leading fairy princess. When we got to the party she took off her wings. When I asked if she still wanted them she said "We can just pretend I have them on." I think this was the best ward party I have ever seen. They had so much going on. Diner, lots of games for the kids, cake walk, and spook alley. The adult costumes were very elaborate too. Callie was very good at this spider toss game getting 7 out of 9 in the bucket. Huge improvement from last year where she would walk to the bucket and place them in. This year she actually tossed them. Callie won the cake walk her first round. I won the chili cook off, with my Stag chili. Cameron even came to the activity, so we all had fun. Then we did the trunk or treat and came home with a bucket of candy. Well, we should have stopped there, but Halloween still had not come. We thought it would be fun to go look at toys to give Gigi an idea for Christmas gifts. Well, little did we know that Toys R Us would be having trick or treating all day in the store. So more candy, and even a paper Mulan mask. That night we decided to go to our old ward's trunk or treat. Callie has a lot of friends in that ward so I thought it would be fun for her. She decided to be a mermaid again, but we could only call her Mulan. The request was fine until we found her friend Shaylee who was dressed as Mulan, "the china princess,"(Callie calls her), and Shaylee says "Hi, I am Mulan!" then Callie replied angrily "No I am Mulan." Well Shaylee was a bit confused so just went her merry way collecting candy. Callie got upset because I guess she expected Shaylee to play with her and talk to her. Shaylee was on a mission, and Callie had a little melt down. It all ended in hugs and a sad goodbye. I think next year we wont celebrate so much Halloween. I think we wore Gigi out too. Gigi helped me run a few errands that are hard with the girls. We got some fabric for pillows, and some things at the hardware store. She was a huge help to have around. We worked on trying to get Avery to crawl. We had a good visit with her, and were sad to see her go. After we dropped her off at the airport Callie whined as we got in the car "we will all miss her very much." Avery started to cry and Callie explained, "Avery is crying because she misses Gigi." The day after she left Avery started really crawling, more than 4 step. This week we went to a children's production of Charlot's web. Callie and Avery were very well behaved, and the play was very cute.

Critters:

The morning Callie went to practice for the primary program, she told her friend, "This morning King Triton had a scorpion in his pants." Yes we found a scorpion in the house. It was on a pile of clothes that were left on the stairs. Cameron almost grabbed it thinking it was a piece of string, but then noticed the string assumed a striking position. Cameron heroically exterminated it. We are now calling the professionals.

For now King Tritan, Annita, Mulan, and Seeping Dewy are all doing well and recovering from a busy October.

Family Scenarios

Scenario #1

You are 7 months old and your mom says: "It is time for bed. Stay here and I will go get your toothbrush and then we can get you ready to go to bed." You think in your little mind, "I don't really want to go to bed. I can't miss anything fun. What can I do to get out of this?"

Answer: Hide under the bed.

Scenario #2

You are 3 1/2 years old and you see mom painting her toes. You ask if she will paint your toes, too. She says that you need to take a bath first and then she will paint them for you. So you obediently take a bath. Your mom seems to get busy with some other project. So she tells you to go down-stairs and watch some TV while she finishes. You come down-stairs to find the bag of nail polish just waiting for you in front of the TV, on the white carpet. What do you do?

Answer: Paint your own finger nails and toes nails in the darkest red you can find.

Thankfully she was really careful and there was not any polish on the carpet. I told her she almost got in a lot of trouble.

Scenario #3

You are too old to mention and your baby's car seat is looking old and worn. You notice that your cute sister-in-laws have adorable covers on their car seats and you wish you could afford to get one. What do you do?

Answer: Save a lot of money and make your own.

Scenario #4

You are in law school and a main staple in your diet has always been ranch dressing. Your wife had not noticed that you have been out of ranch dressing for almost a whole month (maybe two). You think that tonight you might want a burrito for a snack and you can not stand the thought of eating it without ranch dressing. What do you do?

Answer: Pick some up at the store on the way home from school, and don't tell your wife.

Honestly who eats Ranch dressing on their pasta and burritos; is that normal?

Its about time! Of which I have none.

I have really meant to do better with my posts. I find that with a 3 1/2 year old and a 7 month old there is little "me" time. All our activities are aimed at keeping them rested, fed, entertained, and groomed. If one is hungry the other needs attention, if one needs a nap the other needs their bum wiped. It is never ending. Really how do people do it who have more kids or lots of little kids at home. I think either the women who do it are way more relaxed, organized, have more help, or really do have super human abilities. OK so it is not only the kids, we have grandparents needing pictures and posts, and husbands who need lunches, dinners, and rides to the bus stop at 6:30 every morning. I learned the way for me to get "me" time is to pack up the girls once a day to go shopping. Even when it is grocery shopping, they are contained in the shopping cart or stroller while I lazily and wantonly gaze at an item I think I might want or should want. I can momentarily escape some of the needs my children demand for a brief moment. We never really escape the bum wiping thing though. Callie always has to go potty in the places with the worst restrooms. I usually just tote the whole shopping cart into the bathroom. I don't care about the stares I get from customers and employees, it is the only thing that makes sense to me. I am not going to leave my baby purse and groceries out by the door, nor am I going to tote them all in while hoisting my daughter on the huge potties and trying not to get my purse and baby corroded with bathroom floor germs.

I guess I am side tracking a bit. My point is I have many excuses for not having time to post. Mainly, their names are Avery, Callie and Cameron. But, they are all so cute, I need to record our family's last month's worth of adventures.

First, I need to mention we got one vacation in before Cameron's schooling started. We went up to my sister's wedding in Hailey/Ketchum/Sun Valley (not sure what to call it) Idaho. It was wonderful!! Such a beautiful place. We got to stay in a cottage at the Sun Valley Resort. It was Luxury. There was symphony music at the amphitheater outside our cottage, professional ice skating, plenty of shopping, and outdoor activities to enjoy. We were there for 4 days, but with all the wedding stuff and relatives to visit we did not do much in the way of enjoying the area. We have decided it is definitely a place we need to come back to. At least Cameron and I decided that. Callie kept saying "I want to go home. I want to go home to my house with the orange room." Callie and I were part of the wedding party. Callie was the flower girl, I was one of the sister bridesmaids. Sarah and Zach were married in a meadow at the Galena Lodge. The wedding party rode in on a horse drawn carriage. Callie performed wonderfully she may have even given a smile while she walked down the aisle. I thought there was a moment when it could become a melt down. She was extremely tired, and she had sand in her shoes. She wanted to stop and have me fix it, but I just told her to smile and keep walking. Sand in her shoe is a major upset but, she played her part well and went on with the show. The colors and setting could not have been more spectacular. Sarah did a great job planning every detail and she was a stunning bride. We are very happy to welcome Zach to the family. We were so proud of both our girls they held up very well with little sleep and lots of stimulation. Callie entertained herself well. Then danced the night away with her dad. When Avery finally conked out in the baby Bjorn while the band played loud Neil Diamond music, we knew it would be child abuse if we did not leave.

Since then we have been home and back to the grind of things. School started for Cameron, and so did Law Journal, Job interviews, and Busing. School has been the usual busyness for him. He has already stayed up till 5am one night then 3 the next night. So far he has had three call backs with firms he is very excited about. So if you feel like praying for him he really wants to get an offer from one of these firms. Then hopefully it will turn into a job our first year out of law school.

Callie is a smart girl and I am amazed how much she is reading already. She finally earned her Wall E toy and when we went to purchase it, they were half the price than the ones we had seen before. So she was able to get EVE, too. She is a funny one always talking about robots and fire machines (fire extinguisher) from the movie Wall E. At the rehearsal dinner I found her out in the grass staring up at a huge pine tree and talking to it. I asked her what she was playing and she explained "It's a nice giant robot." (talking about the tree) It may seem a little odd, but I like to encourage anything that is not princess. Another funny thing she said at the wedding was "Dad when you are a little girl you can be a flower girl just like me." She said something similar to me the other day. "Mom, when you are a little girl and I am the mom, I will say 'Addie don't climb on that table it will fall.'" I think it is clever and funny so I don't explain that I won't be a little girl again. Callie has learned to put together the United States puzzle by herself. I am amazed and have recorded it. I have several friends who have a hard time with it. I have to admit it was hard for me, too, at first. There are lots of little pieces and there is not a matching background to tell you where the pieces go.

Funny Callie story:

We have this game called Hoopla that has all of these cards with pictures of odd things. One of the cards has a picture of Adam and Eve with the tree and a snake in the tree. After she asked us about it, we explained to her that the snake was Satan, and Satan is not very nice. Soon after that I was at the Park Place Mall and on the ceiling there is a mural of a giant snake. Callie stood there, staring at the ceiling and saying, "Oh, look there's Satan Mom. He is so cute and nice. He is my friend, mom. Satan is my friend, right mom? He's nice." I could not help but laugh. I can't imagine what a passerby might have thought.

Avery (aka blondie) is growing fast. Too fast. I want to freeze her at this age. She is so fun. Still loud and not a great napper, but very curious and into anything she can roll to. She is very determined and also very smiley. She loves to get under things: beds, sofas, desks, etc., or to try and tangle herself in things. She loves her exer-saucer, couscous, yogurt, applesauce, watermelon, and her dada. Cameron swears she said "Hi dada" several weeks ago. She does say both those words, and waves. The words at this point are probably just sounds she is toying with. She has enough hair for a clip. She sits and rolls everywhere. I realized that she rolls both ways from her back to stomach, but will only roll over her left shoulder from her stomach to back. So she has figured how to scoot her body around to roll back the other way when needed. She is quick and determined when she sees something she wants. Usually it is something dangerous, like a plug or cord. I should say her naps are getting better. She will usually take one good nap in her crib. Sometimes that good nap is 30 min. sometimes 3 hrs. She also finally will lay there awake and put herself to sleep instead of screaming her head off. This is a major improvement. She is also a good cuddle bug. Avery now has 6, almost 9 teeth, as three are coming fast.

6 month stats:

27.5 inches long

16.25 lbs.

rolling...

Sitting in the bath

under the bed

I am finally into a book. It is one I have read before. "These is my words." The title sounds weird but it is one of my favorite books. I have been so wrapped up in it today that I did not put away laundry, or shower, and I let Callie watch TV as much as she could stand it. I guess that I needed a little "me" time.

More pictures of critters: