Update and More Favorites

Playing in a basket Michael brought home from Malawi, Africa.

Last week the kids had their well child doctor's visit (Sarah's 3 year and Andrew's 15 mo.). Sarah tipped the scale at 30 lbs (45th percentile) and measured 34.5inches (0 percentile/not on growth chart). Andrew now weighs 25 lbs. and is just under 31 inches (60th percentile for both) and his head size has dropped from the 90th to the 80th percentile. Think he'll catch up with sister soon?

Both kids had vaccinations. Andrew went first and was a complete mess. Sarah looked a little concerned, but was easily persuaded to lay down knowing that she would get a band aid in the end. I have no idea why a flesh colored, circular band aid was that appealing, but she didn't shed a tear.

Both kids are very healthy and are doing really well. Since Sarah's 3rd birthday she has made huge progress in her language. Granted, it is still delayed, but for her it is a vast improvement. She is pairing all kinds of words together and spending hours each day practicing. She doesn't talk much in public, so I think it is actually really helping her to be home with me so that she can practice in the safety and privacy of our home.

Two Product Reviews:

Sit-N-Stand Stroller: A friend recently gave me her old Sit-N-Stand. I think she got it off Craig's List, used it for her kids, and then passed it to me. So, it is probably one of the originals. At any rate, I love it. I've been using this tandem stroller for malls, zoo, etc and a double jogger for longer walks. While the tandem served its purpose early on, (and I liked the compactness and light weight feel) I quickly realized that I needed something different with Sarah being almost two years older than Andrew. At places like the zoo, I was constantly lifting her in and out of the stroller. With the Sit-N-Stand, Sarah can hop on and off whenever she feels like it. She can stand up to ride a short distance or sit down on the sliding bench for longer rides. It also has a roomy basket under the sliding bench. While my double jogger is a great stroller, it doesn't work well for my children to sit beside each other. Andrew can't resist the temptation to pull Sarah's hair and neither one seem to be able to stay on their own side. I think they make tandem joggers now, so I would much prefer that. The two brands that I know of that make the Sit-N-Stands are Baby Trend and Joovy. I've heard really good things about both, but I think the Joovy looks pretty sweet.

Suave's 2-in-1 Smoothers for Kids: I've been using this product for many months now for washing Sarah's hair and Andrew's. I have to say, this product is super compatible with Sarah's Asian hair. It makes it silky soft, but also gives it lots of body. I couldn't believe the difference when I switched from baby shampoo to this product. She gets lots of compliments on her hair. It also works great for Andrew and it is tear free. I did try Loreal's shampoo for kids on Sarah's hair before trying this and it was a disaster. It completely messed up her hair's texture.

Wow, anyone else completely sleep deprived from the Olympics??