Monster Teeth

My boys are big time thumb suckers and there's no easy way to get to get them to stop. Austin's kindergarten teacher was the only person who could get him to voluntarily stop. They worked out a secret little finger-wiggling signal that she would do when he was sucking it. He would immediately take his thumb out of his mouth. I tried that at home, and he just laughed at me. So, I've pretty much given up trying to get them to stop. Nothing works, though people are happy to share thumb sucking stories with me (summation: nothing works till the kid is ready).

When the kids went to the dentist in January, the dentist finally said it's time for Austin to stop. After all, he'll be 8 at the end of the month. Since Austin is not willing to stop on his own, the dentist recommended an appliance (aka, monster teeth...as named by Richie). So, Austin went to the dentist a few weeks ago and had a mold made of his teeth. A week later, the appliance was ready to be glued in. It wasn't quite what I expected, but it seems to be working!

Initially, he had a hard time eating and talking. He eats fine now, but still slurs his words a little. The first night he had it in, his finger was constantly in his mouth touching it. He hasn't sucked his thumb in quite a while now. Once he's gone a month without sucking it, they'll cut it down a little so it's not so in the way. After another month of not sucking his thumb, the dentist will take it out (but hold onto it for a couple more months in case he regresses). All in all, I'm happy with the results. FYI: The appliance is $350 and most insurances (like mine) don't cover it.

One year pictures

I had Abbie's one year pictures taken at JC Penny. She did not want to sit/stand still at all. I was sweaty and tired from chasing her around. Her personality sure came through in some of these pictures, so it was worth it.

Snow, snow, and more snow...

You can't fully enjoy Christmas without snow. We got plenty of it right after Christmas. Luckily, I didn't have to shovel any of it. Aaron and the kids did it. The boys got small snow shovels for Christmas, so they were excited to use them. I love that they like to help out with stuff like that. Austin is the first one to start shoveling whenever it snows.

I took Abbie outside to see the snow. The first thing she did was grab it off the handrail and shove it in her mouth (kinda reminded me of her birthday). That child is not afraid of anything and will put anything in her mouth. I got her dressed in her snow suit so she could walk around with the big kids, but she was not happy with that.

Daddy's here...and boy is he hairy!!

The kids were excited for Christmas, but I think they were more excited to see their dad. They attacked him when he got here and climbed all over him. It didn't take long for Abbie to warm up to him either.

However, he was in dire need of a haircut and shave when he got here. Coincidentally, the boys needed haircuts too. So I made coupons good for one free haircut and put them in all the boys' stockings. Yes, I have been known to cut their hair. It's not to hard to buzz it.

BEFORE:

AFTER:

Abbie fits right in with the boys and their short hair cuts!

Christmas...finally!

Ok, thought I'd better get some of my Christmas pictures posted finally. Everyone got what they wanted most. Ashley got a Nintendo DS (I haven't been able to separate her from it!). Austin got a bike and a skateboard. Andrew got a bike and a friend for his turkey. For those of you who don't know, he has this beanie baby turkey that my mom got him. He takes it everywhere! Abbie got some toys and clothes. I got a break since Aaron was here. We had a nice, relaxing Christmas. It's tradition in my house to stay in your pajamas all day, be lazy, watch movies, and eat whatever you can find. Gotta love it!