Mackenzie Turned Three

For weeks prior to her birthday, Mackenzie could talk about nothing less than her monkey birthday. We had decided to make her a monkey cake, hence her monkey birthday. She was very excited for this day, although she did NOT want to celebrate at school, only at home. Regardless, she was not unhappy to have cupcakes at school or to wear a crown commemorating her special day. She especially likes wearing dresses. What a girl she is!

For her birthday, she received roller skates, a ukulele, and many other nice things. Although she cannot ride her skates alone yet (and we haven't practiced in many weeks), they are definitely entertaining. We are also waiting for her to begin jamming on her beautiful, bright yellow uke.

Potty Buzz

Every once in awhile, Jenna expresses a desire to sit on the potty. We always encourage it. A couple weeks ago, such a desire was voiced. I helped her set it up with the potty seat. She sat, did nothing, wiped, got up, and repeated the sequence a couple more times before finally flushing and putting away the potty seat. I returned to the office, because I had been working. Jenna did not reappear. I went back to the bathroom. To my surprise, I found her struggling to lift herself back up out of the toilet. She had opened it and sat back down, without the potty seat. Subsequently, she fell it...literally...butt first. She never made a sound to indicate this problem. When I pulled her out, I merely stuck her in the shower to hose down her entirely wet backside...just in case.

This past Friday, Jenna had a poop of such magnificent proportions in her pull-up, that I threw my hands up in the air and said "Enough!" We switched her to big girl underwear, and by today, Sunday, she is going potty almost every time, with fewer accidents, and a definite pride of success in her eye. Yay! Almost back to one in diapers!

More later on Mackenzie and Mason's birthday, as well as our recent move into a bigger house.

It's a...

Some of you followed our daily saga on Facebook, but for those that did not, here is our last birth story.

Forty weeks came and went. We expected that. Both Mason and Mackenzie were born two days after their projected due dates. Why should this one be any different? (Jenna doesn't count, since the circumstances surrounding her birth were very different.) So, two days later, when the baby still didn't come, we were kind of surprised. But, it occurred to us that both Mason and Mackenzie were born on Saturdays. So, maybe we were meant to be four days late - April 25th.



That theory, too, was wrong. Each day become more unbearable. Each night, we went to sleep. Each morning, we woke up, disappointed. Then, the antenatal testing began. Baby's healthy, baby's comfortable, fluid is fine, come back in two or three days if the baby still isn't born.



The baby's grandfather (Papa) who was visiting and helping with the girls could no longer remain, after extending his trip an extra week. One week after the projected due date of April 21, he flew home. Still no baby, but another round of antenatal testing and one night of false hope, when contractions began, but were not regular enough.



As we watched April come to a close, we lost hope for our children to have birthdays in March, April, May, and June. We were now guaranteed two May birthdays, and no April baby.

Eleven days late, on a Saturday, no less, May 2nd, to be precise, the real contractions began. This time, they left mom breathless. After about four hours of them, they became quite frequent. First, the call to a friend went out, to help with the girls. Then, the call to our midwife followed. We told her it wasn't urgent, but it was definitely happening. When she arrived, I was in the bathroom and had asked Alan to start the bath. I moved from the toilet to the bathtub, and it was there I remained, despite plans for a birth in the living room. :-)



Not long after our midwife arrived (maybe 45 minutes), I swore to her that I was ready to push. She reminded me that I had done this before, and if I felt that urge, she was not inclined to check, because I know my body. She was right. A few pushes later and...we had ourselves a baby girl! She floated out into the tub, behind me, as I was on my hands and knees. Alan caught her, and the midwife watched before preparing to care for both the baby and me.



The birth went as smoothly as we could've hoped. By about 8 PM, we were all resting in bed, eating dinner, and sharing our new little girl with her big sisters.



Three weeks later, we decided on her name: Sierra Kelsey Bice. It was "voted" on by her sisters, her dad, and her mom. Here is a picture shortly after her birth.



More updates about Mackenzie's third birthday and Mason's sixth birthday will come in time - sooner rather than later, this time!

Is Deb Pregnant or What?

After 40 fast, but sometimes long weeks, we have reached the projected due date, April 21st, for the last baby to enter this family. However, as of this morning, the baby is still firmly packed inside mom's tummy. Alan, Deb, and all the girls are anxiously awaiting the baby's arrival, as is Papa, who is still with us after two weeks, and will stay until the baby makes its appearance known to the outside world. Here are some pictures as the pregnancy has progressed.

Wow! It's Been 3 Months!!

Where in the world has the time flown? We intended to post an update after Jenna's birthday, which was March 20th, but that doesn't even begin to account for the two months prior. Sometimes, life really does get in the way!

So, we'll start with Jenna's birthday anyhow. She turned two back in March. We celebrated with a small family party and a "kitty cat" cake (orange, to look like our cats Blaze and Tom). Jenna couldn't quite figure out the blowing out candles bit, but she had no trouble unwrapping presents.

This was a big milestone birthday for all of us, considering she was born ten weeks preemie. She had her 2-year physical and was on all the charts, with her highest marks going to her head size. (Pretty normal for all the Bice girls.) She's talking now in near sentences. She loves puzzles. But the favorite pastime for her and especially her two big sisters is to ride bikes.

Yes, Mason has learned to ride her bike without training wheels. Hurray! The freedom it has given her is absolutely amazing. She can ride in sharp circles, up and down bumps, pretty much anywhere we let her go. Her only downfall is when she hits water in the road. She had a pretty good fall this past week on some water, but we hope to get her back on her bike quickly. She's asking for a kickstand now, so we don't think she's been deterred. She took her first "bike ride" with her dad. It was about a half mile to a friend's house. She did great! Since then, she's been riding longer and longer rides with her Papa, who is here helping with the kids (who had a two-week long spring break). Mom needed lots of help, as the due date for Bice Baby #4 has rapidly approached.

Mackenzie is also a pro on the bicycles. We purchased a bigger bike for Mason, and gave Mackenzie Mason's first two-wheel bike, putting the training wheels back onto it. She motors around the neighborhood like it's second nature, although she gets nervous going down hills. Up hills, however, she has the endurance of a true athlete. She has learned to pedal faster and can motor right up a hill like it's effortless. Maybe we'll take the training wheels off even earlier for her.

Lest we forget, Jenna attended her very first day of preschool, with big sister, Mackenzie, just before spring break. She was a little confused that she didn't just drop off Mackenzie and leave with mom, but in the end, the teachers reported that both girls had a great day! They played together, ate together, there was no crying from Jenna, and it was deemed a success. Jenna is returning to school today, with Mackenzie, for the first day back after the break. Hopefully, it will be another success.

With that said, we've added some photos for your viewing pleasure. Enjoy!

Catchup Time

Gosh! Has it been months since we posted anything here? Let's see, Thanksgiving, Hanukkah, Christmas, New Year's. Yikes! Thanksgiving was quiet. We celebrated at home, with just the five of us. I guess you couldn't really call that quiet, but we relaxed, and enjoyed our favorite feast of the year!

Hanukkah arrived, and for the first year, all of the girls were interested in lighting the candles and singing the peppy little Hanukkah song that has become our song of choice for the holiday. Of course, a visit from Santa was what really got to the girls. They were all excited about him coming, but Mackenzie was petrified that he might actually come INTO the house. You see, Mackenzie saw Santa one night, visiting a neighborhood home that was lavishly decorated. He invited her to sit with him and she freaked. She didn't want to be anywhere near him. He is a scary guy to a two-year old! Jenna wasn't too thrilled either, but we did manage to get her in his lap, although she was whining and reaching for daddy the whole time. Mason did not see Santa, because she went to a nativity slide thing (whatever that means) with some friends.

When push came to shove, the Christmas tree was small, not much bigger than the menorah, but the girls were happily rewarded with presents from Santa. Jenna was a pro at unwrapping. Mackenzie still asked for help. Their personalities are definitely blossoming.

On New Year's Eve, we went to a friend's house for a small party. There were seven children and ten adults. Not bad numbers. The girls tried their hardest to stay awake, just for the fun of staying awake (since they didn't really understand New Year's Eve). We ended up leaving before midnight, after the younger two passed out between 10:30 and 11 PM. What troopers! Mason was in bed and asleep by 11:45 PM. Just missed it! The two of us finished folding laundry at 11:55 PM, chatted, looked at the clock, smooched, and said "time for bed!" We feel so old some days!

Finally, after a long winter break and lots of sleeping in, we had to resume our daily routine. The older two went back to school, Alan went back to work, and Deb and Jenna went back to running errands and dropping everyone off/picking them up each day. Amazing where the time goes.

Anyhow, enjoy all the pics until next time!

Baby Bice Four

For anyone who is remotely interested, this is one of the best ultrasound pictures we've ever seen for any of our children. This one, of course, is still cooking, but should arrive mid-late April. ACK!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!