The Traveling Circus: Blog Break

Many of you know that our long-anticipated trip home is imminent!  Thanks to Hurricane Irene we actually moved it up a day from Saturday to tomorrow morning so that we can get there ahead of the storm.  We are probably the only people that have ever wanted to go TO a hurricane instead of AWAY from it. 

Basically, we have looked forward to this trip for so long and we are so eager to see our families and friends and for the babies to spend time with their grandparents and great grandparents that nothing will stand in our way, hurricane included. 

That being said, I will be taking a blog break for a couple of weeks while we are away.  I will have internet access but the point of the blog is to connect with our friends and families back home and since we are going to be there in person, I will want to spend my time with them instead of on the computer.  I am sure I will have plenty to post about our trip when we come home. 

Have a wonderful couple of weeks everyone! 

We Love You Mia

For those of you who do not know, my niece Mia is not well and is in the Children's Hospital.  Today she is having a very important surgery. 

Mia is a beautiful, sweet, and smart little baby girl and she is so precious to us all.  Her Mommy and Daddy are amazing and strong people.  If you are the praying kind, please say a prayer for Mia for healing, her parents for strength, and the doctors for wisdom.  If you would like to just keep her in mind and think positive thoughts for her, that is welcome too. 

Mia, your family loves you dearly and we are thinking of you constantly.  Please know how very many people are praying for you, loving you, and hoping for your successful recovery.

A Few Fun Videos

Just wanted to post a few fun videos from the last few days.  Hope you enjoy!

The first video is from what I call "twin time".  A few minutes each day I like to put the babies face to face so they can interact with each other.  This video doesn't show both babies' faces but you can hear them both very well.

 

This next video is of Mr. Brady in his walker.  He saw his sister in the Jumperoo and had to go and see her.  What a big boy!  In other Brady news, we discovered on Friday night while Skyping with Meepie and Pap that his bottom front tooth is coming in (we promise it really is this time, LOL)!  

Happy Monday! 

50th Post: Start Your Engines!

This is the 50th post of the Ringley Family Circus!  It has been a lot of fun keeping up with the blog and I really enjoy posting to keep our family and friends informed of what is going on in our lives.  I hope you all have enjoyed keeping up with us and that you will continue to check in on us. 

Today was the first day the babies got to try out their new walker.  We have been having a lot of fun giving it a couple of "test drives" around the living room. 

Chloe took to the walker right away, and is very pleased with her new ability to move about.  Her preferred method of moving in the walker right now is by scooting herself backwards, and she is enjoying herself! 

Brady took a while to warm up to the walker, but now he seems to like it, especially since he has figured out he can use it to "come and get Mommy".

Have a great Friday evening everybody! 

Half Birthday and Six Month Stats

I would like to wish a very happy Half Birthday to Brady and Chloe today!  It seems as if the last six months of our lives have gone by at warp speed.  We have been so blessed to welcome our beautiful babies into our family and they have changed our lives in ways we couldn't have imagined. 

We went to the pediatrician today for their 6 month well check appointment and shots, and both babies did very well.  I want to do a "progress report" of sorts on both babies together and then on each child separately.  I will also be including in this post some of the photos from their six month photo shoot. 

At Six Months Old Brady and Chloe Are:

Eating: The babies now eat an average of 7 ounces at each feeding, and they eat 5 times a day at 6 AM, 9 AM, 12 PM, 3 PM, and 6 PM.  They also eat solids twice a day, usually a fruit at lunch and a vegetable for dinner.  In terms of solids they have tried: Sweet Potatoes, Apples, Carrots, Peas, Green Beans, Bananas, Squash, and Pears.  Their favorite food is Sweet Potatoes and their least favorite food is Peas.  The doctor said today they can start eating a larger quantity of solids and they can begin eating finger foods like Cheerios and Puffs. 

Sleeping:  The babies go to bed at 8 PM and wake up between 6 and 7 AM.  Occasionally they will go back to sleep after eating and being changed at the 6 AM feeding until 8 AM.  They take 3 daytime naps that last 1 hour each at 10 AM, 1 PM, and 4 PM.  

Playing:  The babies are usually up for about an hour and a half at a time.  Their longest awake stretch is usually from 5 PM until 8 PM in the evening.  During awake time we spend a lot of time on the floor rolling, practicing sitting up, on their tummies pushing up, and scooting.  They enjoy playing with rattles, fabric blocks, stuffed animals, etc.  Their Jumperoo is an absolute favorite and both babies can stay happily occupied jumping and playing with the toys on the Jumperoo.  We just purchased a walker and it should be arriving today so we will see how they do with that. 

Developing:  Both babies can roll both ways.  They both laugh and babble frequently.  They both can hold toys and shake them.  Both can support their own weight when you "stand" them up, although Chloe is much sturdier than her brother.  They are both supported sitters and we are working on sitting up on their own but we aren't quite there yet.  They acknowledge one another, hold hands, touch each other's faces, and when put face to face they will respond to one another by laughing and chatting back and forth.  They both smile at the dog and the cat, and they both attempt to "pet" the dog and grab her fur (poor dog!).  Both babies love to be read to and will listen and look at the pictures intently.  Their favorite book is Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What Do You See? by Bill Martin Jr. and Eric Carle. 

Chloe Renee Ringley



Height: 26 inches (61st percentile)

Weight: 14 pounds (14th percentile)



Chloe is fun-loving and jubiliant.  She is a sweet, sweet girl who loves to smile and laugh at everyone.  She is very "talkative" and will chatter to herself or laugh out loud without any provocation. 

Five Fun Facts about Chloe:

• She will scream/squeal with delight in her Jumperoo to the extent that you can't have a normal conversation or talk on the phone when she is in there
• She loves to be tossed in the air and to be "flown" around the room
• She is incredibly sturdy and strong.  She can hold her own weight for a very long time when "standing" and doesn't waver or wobble
• She will stick her tongue out and try to lick the water in the bathtub when you pour water over her
• She is very attached to her Daddy and I think her favorite time of day is when Daddy gets home

Brady Matthew Ringley

Height: 27 1/2 inches (85th percentile)

Weight: 15 pounds (10th percentile)

Brady is very active and very coordinated.  He loves to cuddle and likes to be held.  He can be our "high maintenance" child at times. 

Five Fun Facts About Brady: 

• He loves the water.  He will kick and flail his arms in the bathtub until nearly all the water is out. 
• He loves books even more so than his sister.  If he is fussing, he will calm down immediately if you show him a book. 
• He has a blue puppy that he loves and often cuddles with during nap times. 
• He has excellent hand/eye coordination and motor skills.  He will reach out for objects and hold them.  He can pull down on his carseat toy and watch it go back up and pull back down on it.  He will reach out for his bottle during feedings and can hold his bottle and feed himself for brief intervals.  He can hold a small ball with both hands and bring it to his face. 
• He is a great eater and is very good about opening his mouth in anticipation of the spoon. 

After writing this all out it is amazing to see how far the babies have come in what seems like such a short time!  We are so lucky to have them in our lives and to be their parents.  We can't wait to see what the next six months will bring! 

Toys!

The babies recently started to show more interest in toys so we have incorporated a few into our playtimes.  They really enjoy rattles and can hold them and shake them on their own.  We bought some fabric blocks that make a crinkle noise or have a bell inside, and the babies seem to enjoy them, especially the crinkle noise ones.  Brady loves his carseat toy that he can pull down and it zig zags back up.  He can entertain himself for quite a while pulling up and down on his carseat frog (this is a great thing for us because he is not too fond of sitting in the car for long periods of time).  They enjoy anything that is colorful and almost everything goes directly in their mouths.  Here are a few pictures:

Time to play:

I have no idea how she managed to get either toy around her arm or her leg:



Brady with his puppy, he really loves this stuffed animal:



The puppy is as big as he is! 



Have a great afternoon everyone! 

Pics from Today's Sit Up Practice

Some of you know the babies are in the process of learning how to sit up on their own so we are trying to practice daily.  I got a few cute pictures during today's practice, so I thought I would share them with you:

Cracking a smile:

Goofin' Around:





Givin' it a good try:

"So what's it to you?"

"Not sure about this anymore..."

Chloe is enjoying herself:

"I think I'll try to crawl instead..."

Chloe's Classic Leg Pose (she loves to do this and I have no idea why?)

Happy Friday to everyone!  

Wordless Wednesday: Sleeping Beauties

Jumpin' Jumpin'

Although we have really streamlined the amount of baby stuff in the living room since we have the house on the market, the one thing I refuse to move or put away is the Jumperoo because they just LOVE it and it is really handy to have around to entertain a baby if I need a second to get something accomplished. 

They are old enough and grown enough to really enjoy it now.  Chloe has officially retired the beloved (and abused) Monopoly game box and can jump without it now. 

Here is Chloe proudly jumping Monopoly-less: 

Here is Mr. Brady jumping away:



Have a great afternoon everyone! 

Two Peas in their Pods

In less than three weeks, our family is going to embark on a new adventure...traveling home for the first time with the babies.  It will be 2 parents, 2 babies, for 2 weeks of touring NC and VA.  We booked this trip in May and have been looking forward to it all summer long. 

Going home is always such a privilege for us.  We LOVE spending time with our families, catching up with old friends, enjoying the (usually) cooler weather, and eating at all the places we miss because we don't have them in Texas (including our Momma's kitchens, of course!). 

This time it takes on a whole new meaning for us because we get to reunite the babies with their Grandparents who haven't seen them since they were tiny newborns, and we get to introduce them to Great Grandparents who can't travel, and family friends we don't get to see often.   

All that aside, as excited as we are, we are also scared to death!  The thought of interrupting the babies' normal routines and traveling for prolonged periods of time with them definitely has us nervous.  So we are planning, planning, and planning some more.  Our hope is the more we can prepare in advance, the easier the traveling experience will be for everyone. 

Part of our plans involved what to do about the babies' sleeping arrangements.  I did some research and we purchased two of these infant travel tents.  We decided to "practice" with the babies by letting them sleep in their tents for naptimes.  Eventually we will work up to having them sleep an entire night in them.  If they can feel comfortable in them now, we are hoping it will be an easy transition when they are sleeping in them on our trip.  So far today (knock on wood) they have already had two successful naps in them, so things are going well! 

Here are some pictures of the babies in their "PeaPods" (that's the name of the tent):



Please keep us in your thoughts as we hopefully have a safe, fun, and successful trip at the end of August through Mid-September!  

Siblings

As the babies become more observant and interactive with us and their surroundings, they have also become more observant and interactive of/with each other and other members of the household (i.e. Sadie, poor dog). 

Here is a short and sweet video from today where Chloe laughs at Brady:

They often touch each other's faces or hold hands, but this was the first little "verbal" interaction they have had that I've seen. 

Here is a longer video but it encompasses Chloe, Brady, and Sadie:

They have just started to get really interested in Sadie.  Mostly Chloe, she will smile if she sees Sadie or Sabrina walking by.  I think she is going to have a love of animals for sure.  Both babies have just started to try to "pet" Sadie so I have had to monitor both Sadie and the babies and try to model the proper etiquette for how the babies should treat Sadie and how Sadie should treat the babies. 

It is a really exciting time for us now and there are some days when they do something small and I just think to myself, "I can't believe they are doing that!".  To watch a child/children grow up is such a miracle!

Wordless Wednesday: "Fra-Gee-Lay. That must be Italian!"

Sitting Up is Hard to Do!

Today we practiced sitting up with the help of our Boppy pillows.  Chad and I have been practicing with the babies informally while they sit on our laps or on our bed (so they have a soft surface to fall back on), but today I gave it a try with the pillows and less help from me. 

We had a fun time practicing and we will keep it up.  Here are some fun photos:

"Well, Hello!"

Chloe had quite a bit of strength and was able to sit up for little bits at a time

Practicing Together

"Are you sure this isn't how you do it?"

"Cheese!"

Happy Monday everyone!