Thomas Tidbits...: Father's Day, KC, and School

Lot's happening in the Thomas Family. I tend to think we won't have a dull moment for another 18 years or so.

We're settling into the new house a bit more, and we're anxious to get the last few pieces of furniture and rugs that we ordered a couple of months ago.

We celebrated Father's Day a few weeks ago. Bama was in town, so Bama and Nana tag teamed the kiddos while we went out to dinner with friends. It was our first outing since Fisher has been sleeping at night, so we were able to relax and actually enjoy ourselves. Aren't grandmas the best?!?

We had a whirlwind trip to Kansas City last week as a family of four. Thanks to Nana, we survived all 4 flights. The 3 to 2 ratio definitely worked in our favor. Miraculously, both kids behaved themselves and didn't completely embarrass us. We stayed with our friends, The Dreilings, who were unbelievable hosts. Their kids, Lucy (6) and Grant (4), practically babysat our kids our entire stay.

The Friday night that we were there, Erik Lund's mother, an amazing chef, hosted 6 couples at her house for a cooking class and delectable dinner. Good food, good friends, and KC hospitality - what more could we ask for?? Most of the parents ventured out to Johnny's Tavern afterwards for a nightcap(s) which lead to a late night by our current standards (midnight!).

On Saturday, Nana and Grammy hosted a Sip and See for Fisher so that our various friends and family members could get a peek at the newest Thomas. It was fun catching up with everyone and seeing family and friends that we hadn't seen in awhile. The guest of honor was the perfect gentleman and soaked in the snuggle time and loved being passed around. Eleanor obviously loved the party and put on her usual performances of singing ABCs, dancing, and usual silliness.

It's already been a big week for the Thomas Gals. Eleanor started her first day of preschool today, and I started back to work full time yesterday. I hit the ground running at work and was anxious to get back into a routine. We're about to launch a new community, so I'm coming back at the perfect time to pitch in. Eleanor also hit the ground running at school. She was supposed to start yesterday but woke up sick, so we kept her home to get better. Immediately upon getting to her classroom this morning, she insisted on stripping down naked so that she could sit on the mini potty (in the bathroom attached to her room). She didn't actually go potty but was very excited to have a real potty just her size. And mini sinks to match.

When I picked Eleanor up, I barely recognized her. She was completely glazed over, had a mismatched outfit on, shoes on the wrong feet, and 3 pony tails. Definitely a free spirit kinda school! I could feel Eleanor's exhaustion from about 10 feet away.

The teacher said she napped about 40 minutes, which isn't long for her, but I was just glad she was able to sleep in a new setting on the first day. Apparently, she was the first to wake up and stayed quiet. However, as each of her new friends started to stir, she tip toed over to their mats and said, "Did you have a good nap?? Do you want to play with me??" So typical Ellie... love that silly little girl.

In Fisher News:

: We have a sleeper! Fisher will now sleep about 12 hour stretches at night and only wake once to eat during that time. That translates to me reclaiming my sleep and sanity! Hooray! Perfect timing as I headed back to work.

: Our little buddy is still trying to figure out the whole finger sucking gig. He's dabbled with his thumbs and index fingers. We'll see which one ends up being the winner(s).

: Brother is SUPER vocal now. Lot's of cute little sounds.

: We're still working on rolling over. He's been sooooooo close for about a month now. If that darn arm would just cooperate!

: Fisher loves putting his toes in his mouth and working on his "happy baby" yoga pose.

: Fisher is now sleeping in his crib. Due to his acid reflux, the first 5 weeks of his life were spent sleeping on my chest while I sat upright, we then transitioned to his carseat for about a month, and then onto his swing/rocker gadget. Now that he's medicated and started to learn to self soothe, he's made it to the crib! I honestly thought he'd go to preschool still sleeping upright, so this was a big milestone.

In Eleanor News:

Some traits that have been pretty apparent since Eleanor was a wee one are even more apparent now at 2 1/4 years old:

Party Girl:

: Ellie was bouncing around on the couch a couple of weeks ago while laughing and playing with Justin. She exclaims, "Daddy, I love fun!!" Oh my, you are your father's daughter (Good Time Charlie).

Cheerleader:

: Each time I pump, Eleanor comes up to me and say, "Good pump, Mom!"

Outdoorsy/City Girl:

: As we walked into The Dreiling's house, Eleanor peeks out the window into their backyard and exclaims, "They have a park here!!" No, Eleanor, that's just a suburban backyard. God bless her;)

Comedian:

: Eleanor loves to make people intentionally laugh with her silliness. However, most of the time, she has no idea that she's as funny as she is. For example, the other day Justin came home from the gym all sweaty. Eleanor: "Daddy, you're all sweaty." Justin: "Yes, I went to the gym." Eleanor: "Oh, did you swing on the monkey bars?" Eleanor's "gym" boasts a balance beam, monkey bars, pit of balls, etc.

Master Manipulator:

: Whether it's batting her eyelashes or giving us a pouty face, our daughter definitely knows how to work us. She took manipulation to a whole new level last week. She's been really picky and doesn't want to sit still for dinner. Then, as we put her down for bed, she says, "I'm hungry! I need to eat!" Most nights I tell her that it's time for bed, and explain that SHE made the decision to not eat dinner. Well, in a moment of weakness, I let her come back downstairs after bath and eat an apple . As I was lifting her out of the counter stool, her leg barely grazed the counter. (It's bed time, mind you) and she whines, "Oh Mommy, you hurt me!.... I'd feel better if I played for a little bit." What? Absolutely not, Miss Manipulator.

Helper:

: Our daughter loves a good chore. Especially since Fisher joined the family, we really promote her helping out. A couple of weeks ago, she was in a (very full) public restroom with our nanny, Laura. As Laura was going potty, she handed her toilet paper and shouts, "Here's toilet paper to clean your vagina, Laura!" No Filter Ellie.

Loving/Nurturing:

: Ellie just looooves her "brudder." She's taken to mimicking the things I say to him in a very sweet, endearing, soft voice:

"How's my handsome boy?" and "Who's so big?" and "Hey little buddy!"

I call the next 3 photos "The Evolution of Eleanor Loving Fisher"

Happy Father's Day, Justin!

Butterfly wings and a leg tattooed with Whole Foods checkout stickers. Typical day in our house.

Eleanor reading her "book" - aka Skymall - en route to KC.

Fish's first flight - he was a champ!

Lots of love for Lucy.

Grant was super sweet with "Eldadore"

Cousin Lee stopped by for a visit.

We had a rough night wrangling Eleanor down for bed our first night in KC. It had been 6 months since we last traveled. Justin had to literally tackle her into bed, and this is how I found them the morning after.

Ellie and "Jeffrey" doing a little downward dog action. E insisted on calling Jeff Jeffrey our entire stay. We have no idea where she came upon this name because we don't know any Jeffreys.

All business.

Fat and happy.

Playing the piano at Grammy's house.

Eleanor and Grammy having a chat. Not sure what they're discussing. Perhaps Betty is schooling E on how to gracefully throw a successful dinner party.

Despite the face, Fisher loves Auntie.

Oh, did I mention that Aunt Katie is moving to Austin this Fall?? We can hardly wait!

Fish and Grandma Pat. Fisher is Grandma Pat's 11th great grandchild.

Cousins! Carey and Kate were somehow graced with long skinny legs. Are they Lawrences?

Kiki with the bow tie that she made buddy.

Ellen Lund, Eleanor, and Emory Filing. A second generation of friends.

We've always thought that Fisher looks exactly like Uncle Mike. Not the best shot to capture the twins, but funny that they have the same expression.

More cousins! Cameron and Kate...

Back home in Austin. Laura took Eleanor to her house, where she'd just hosted a big housewarming party. Upon stepping into Laura's backyard, Eleanor exclaims, "A splash pad at LAURA'S house??"

Little Fish is testing out fingers... a thumb today.

... an index finger tomorrow.

Nothing better than a naked baby in a fedora. Thanks to Grammy for the hat!

Happy Baby yoga pose. Lots of feet grabbing and foot in the mouth these days...

Pensive babe.

Eleanor and I had a day of beauty before our first day of school/return to work. Hair and pedicures! Eleanor was well behaved at the nail salon and picked out what she considered the perfect hue of lavender for her tiny toes. When my favorite nail technician asked if Eleanor wanted sparkles on top, she was over the moon. She loves her "pretty toes."

Fish diggin' sister's purple Bumbo seat.

Sister loves to hold Brother's hand. The sweetest.

FaceTime with Daddy while he travels. Here you see her showing Justin her "surprise!" face. We've been going through happy/sad/angry/surprise/etc faces - we just may have an actress on our hands.