Nora Hansen's Journal

Nora ate bites of waffle and two servings of fruit salad for breakfast.  For lunch she ate a couple bites  of shepherd's pie with meat, carrots, potatoes, and green beans.  She ate half of whole wheat tortillas and ate her cherries.  After EVERY meal Nora (she's usually the last table person done) has to go to EVERY chair and make sure it's pushed up tight to the table.  It doesn't matter if it looks all the way up, she still has to give it a push.  :)  And she talks as she does it; "I'm gonna push Avi's chair; I'm gonna push Atley's chair." Just in case anyone is interested:  Child Care Resources is celebrating 50 years in the Missoula community with free rides and free Ice Cream at the Carousel on March 12th, 5:30 - 7:00.  Bring friends and family.  All ages of kids are welcome. First picture; Avi and Nora were playing with the mirrors while Atley pushed the chair in circles.  Second picture: Avi started this routine and now s...

Nora ate two servings of French toast and ate two servings of strawberries for breakfast.  For lunch she ate pork chop, whole wheat toast, no sweet potatoes, and ate applesauce.  We have a routine at meal times that the highchair kids "come out" first.  The three 'older' ones still try to come out early and always have to ask.  At lunch Nora said, "Gary, can I come out!?"  Linnea said, "no."  Haha!  Thank you Linnea. Speaking of Linnea and Nora;  This morning Linnea was holding out a toy towards Nora and Nora reached to take it.  Of course that's not really what Linnea was wanting Nora to do.  How do you explain to a 2 -3 year old (in this case; a very sensitive 2 - 3 year old!!  ha!) that the babies will often hold it out for you, but don't really want you to actually take it!! Here are some pictures from Nora's morning.  Avi and Nora were doing a pre-school activity together even though these beads are a bit small and kin...

Nora ate bites of whole wheat English muffin and bites of grapes for breakfast.  For lunch she ate two servings of whole 30 chili with meat, sweet potatoes, peppers, and tomatoes.  She also ate whole wheat dinner roll and two servings of tropical fruit.  At lunch time Avi looked at Nora's plate (before Avi even washed or sat down) and said, "I don't like that stuff!!"  I answered, "You don't even know what it is."  She said, "What is it?"  Haha!  Nora loved it and snarfed it down immediately and asked for more.  I told her she needed to eat her tropical fruit before she got another serving of chili.  Then I added, "If Avi doesn't want her's then you can have it."  (....knowing how Avi would respond....)  Avi immediately said, "I'm gonna eat it all!"  And she did.  :) This preschool activity set has a digital camera and Nora loves taking pictures.  I think I've finally got her to keep her fingers off the shu...

Nora ate half of whole grain Chex cereal and ate peaches for breakfast.  For lunch she ate most of ground beef, most of whole wheat hamburger bun, most of tomato, ate avocado, and ate most of her oranges. We did a toy, book, and puzzle exchange this weekend and the kids were busy all morning.  Nora was playing with the shapes and shape-sorter bucket and Svea was just observing.  You can't really tell from the picture, but Nora was a bit frantic when I took the picture.  She's saying, "No Svea, no Svea, no Svea" and trying to scoop up all the shapes!   Svea just kept standing there watching.  And learning.  :) Nora played with the dress-up clothes, primarily the pajamas, and Atley was trying her best to assist Nora.  Atley kept saying, "Stick your arm in!  Stick your arm in!!"  Nora said, "ok."  I love it and encourage them to try to help each other.  Nice job of trying Atley and Nora!! Two more pictures from this morn...

Nora ate half of oatmeal and half of dried cranberries for breakfast.  For lunch she ate tilapia, whole wheat elbow noodles, two servings of green beans, and ate applesauce. Nora had a good morning as she and Atley went right back into their "silly mode!"  I never get tired of watching those two be silly and it really fascinates me how they interact with each other.  Atley knows and understands Nora really well and she knows which buttons to push at the right time.  "Shall I make her laugh or shall I pester her!?!"  Decisions decisions!!  And if Atley gets on Nora's "bad side" Atley knows how to ease her way back into Nora's good graces. I took this first picture when Nora was just sitting quietly behind the chair; basically just relaxing and sucking her thumb.  I guess it was a nice quiet spot for her to chill out!  I asked her if she was pooping - nope - which I already knew she wasn't!  But I like the big smile she gave me when she saw...

Nora ate bites of whole wheat bagel and three servings of peaches for breakfast.  For lunch she ate several bites of hamburger and sausage pizza with whole wheat pizza crust, tomato sauce, olives, pineapple, and peppers.  She ate two servings of pineapple on the side too. This first picture makes me laugh!  Nora was reading books in the preschool room and you'll never guess what she was singing when looking at this one.  "Over the river and through the woods to Grandma's house we go."  Haha!  Dodging jack-a-lopes all the way to Grandma's house!! Next picture: So what are you doing Nora?  "Going potty."  Haha!  Potty practice sessions look a little different for Nora!  I like this picture because she's watching herself in the mirror.  So how do I look!?!  She kept scooting herself up until she got to the mirror.  :) Next picture; I don't usually let the kids build towers this tall - for obvious safety reasons. ...

Nora ate most of whole wheat toast and two servings of grapes for breakfast.  For lunch she ate pork roast, bites of whole wheat tortillas, no potatoes, no sweet potatoes, and ate fruit salad.  At breakfast they were talking about Atley being gone yesterday.  So Atley told them she was with "Nana and Papa."  I asked Nora; "What do you call your Grandpa and Grandma?"  She said, "Grandma Pam and Grandpa Gary."  Huh?  She got a huge grin on her face when she realized what she'd said, "Nooooo, Papa Greg."  And then Avi said, "My Grandpa and Grandma are Mark and Mary."  Is there anything more cool for children than Grandparents!?!?  No.  :) Three pictures:  Just working on some preschool activities.  They enjoy working together and most of the time that works out ok.  Some times I have to monitor more closely; just depends on the activity.  Nora was happy to have Atley back today.  They played together and as y...

Nora ate whole wheat English muffin and dried plums for breakfast.  For lunch she ate half of chicken, bites of brown rice, half of stir fry vegetables, and ate oranges. First picture: Lauralea was walking to catch the bus and doing some sign language with Nora on the way by the window.  (Nora was the only one here at this time.)  Second picture:  As soon as the song came on Nora yelled again; "It's Rock-a-bye-baby Gary; it's Rock-a-bye-baby!!"  Then she raced to the shelf, got a baby for herself, and started "mothering" it.  Do you think Svea is interested!?  Yes, I do too!!  And that's one of the ways learning happens here!! Next picture:  Avi was spinning the chair and then jumping on to get a little ride herself.  Nora just continued to work with her baby.  Avi said, "Now it's your turn to give me a ride!"  Nora said, "No thank you Avi, no thank you!!"  Well that was the end of that fun time!!  :) It w...

Nora ate most of brown rice and bites of raisins for breakfast.  For lunch she ate salmon, bites of whole wheat dinner roll, bite of riced cauliflower, and ate mangoes. Nora looked at my pants (sweat pants) and said, "That new pants Gary?"  I said, "Yup."  (Well that's sort of true!  They're older than you Nora, but in my world they're still new!!  Haha!)  Nora said, "That is cute!"  LOL!!  I roared.  "Well thank you Nora." "Gary! My nose is full!"  Ok, I'll wipe it for you.  As you might suspect I couldn't see anything!  Oh little sensitive One!!  :) I took this first picture shortly after breakfast and Atley was being silly and making Nora laugh.  Atley's favorite thing in the world; make somebody laugh!!  So following with that theme here's the second picture:  The three older girls were done with breakfast while Svea and Linnea were finishing up.  Sometimes, when Atley finishes a meal early, I ...

Nora ate bites of toasted whole wheat English muffin and two servings of oranges for breakfast.  For lunch she ate ground beef, whole wheat elbow noodles, peas, and two servings of applesauce. First picture: Off to a good start!  I took this picture just moments after Nora arrived and she and Atley (and joined temporarily by Linnea) were doing their usual antics of laughter and goofiness!  Things went swell for a few minutes and then got momentarily sidetracked!  Ha!  Nora was furious about something and I said, "Nora, I don't want you to lay on the mattress and scream at Gary's house."  Avi, always instantly more than ready to offer additions and corrections to what I have to say, chimed in with this jewel;  "You can do that with your Mom and Dad."  LOL!  Well I don't really think they appreciate it either!  :) Soon after Nora arrived she was quizzing Linnea about the color of the hearts on Linnea's pants.  "What color is thi...

Nora ate most of French toast and two servings of strawberries for breakfast.  For lunch she ate "hearty paleo stew" with meat, broccoli, cauliflower, green beans, carrots, and tomatoes.  She also ate crackers and tropical fruit. First picture: Hey, sometimes is pays to be a smaller kid!!  No one asks you to give them "piggy back rides!!"  Atley was more than willing to be the one giving rides.  Avi wanted to give Nora rides, but Avi moves a bit fast for Nora and her rides are more unpredictable.  Haha!  Second picture: This time it's Nora trying to get Svea to hang out with her!  When I took the picture Nora was "tickling" her. Avi and Nora were playing with the food toys and Avi held the "dinner roll" up to Nora's face so Nora started chewing on it!  Avi acted really disgusted and said, "You just pretend Nora!!"  That's a definite case of the pot calling the kettle black!!!  Here's another example of the same s...

Nora ate half of waffle serving and ate two servings of grapes for breakfast.  For lunch she ate chicken, bite of whole wheat tortillas, most of corn, and ate baked cinnamon apple. I mentioned this to Momma Emily yesterday, but I'll put it here too.  Nora wants Atley and Avi both to know when she goes potty in the toilet and wants them to say something!  She re-enters the Daycare room by loudly announcing, "I pee on the potty Atley!  I pee on the potty!"  No response, so I encourage Atley to say, "Good job Nora."  Next it's Avi's turn to congratulate Nora!!  "I pee on the potty Avi!  I pee on the potty!!"  Avi softly and reluctantly mumbles, out of the corner of her mouth, "good job Nora."  Ha!! Here are some pictures from Nora's morning;  Nora was putting these doll blankets over Linnea's head and they were cracking up.  I love the look on Linnea's face!!  Second picutre; Atley was "helping" Nora put the mas...

Nora ate half of kix cereal and half of mixed fruit for breakfast.  For lunch she ate ground turkey, bites of whole wheat hamburger bun, ate avocado, most of tomatoes, and ate her cherries. This first picture is left over from Friday afternoon, but it was so cute when Nora was "teaching" Svea some colors.  :)  Nora was saying, "This is blue Svea, this is blue."  And doing each color.  She's getting some good practice for being a big sister this year!!  And the second picture is another great example of Atley and Nora's relationship.  I can't remember what Nora was mad about (something I told her she couldn't do), but she did her "slump to the floor" maneuver.  And a little pouting - which gets her nowhere here!  But she hasn't come up with an alternative plan yet.  :)   So moments later Atley mimicked her!  Not too close - see picture - but within moments Nora was laughing!  Atley will try and if it doesn't work she'll t...

Nora ate bites of oatmeal and ate baked cinnamon apples for breakfast.  For lunch she ate two large servings of hamburger stew with meat, carrots, green beans, tomatoes, and potatoes.  She ate whole wheat dinner roll and apricots.  I've mentioned before how the kids like watching the digital pictures especially during meal times.  At breakfast this morning Avi said, "I just saw Nora's nostrils Gary!!"  Haha!  Yup, some of the selfies you guys did are pretty hilarious!  :) This story is more about Avi and Atley, but it kind of involves Nora too!!  Atley LOVES to be silly and wants Nora to join her and they'll just laugh at the goofiest things.  (Kids just being kids.  I love it!)  She frequently says, "Hey Nora, you wanna be silly!?"  Today, Atley said, "Hey Nora!!  We're gonna exercise (on the mattress) so we can be really...(pause)....funny!"  Avi, who was in the background, said, "NO...Heatlthy!"  LOL!! ...

Nora ate most of French toast and half of dried plums for breakfast.  For lunch she ate bites of chicken meatball (substitute for pulled pork today.  Costco had these meatballs - organic chicken - no sugar added - cheers!), ate whole wheat toast, peas, and strawberries. This first note is from yesterday afternoon, but a similar scenario happens almost everyday!!  Immediately after I fix Nora's ponytail she yells for Atley to look at her hair and she means RIGHT NOW!!  She not only wants Atley to look at her hair, but she insists that Atley comment on it too!!  Ha! So yesterday it went like this; Atley was stretched out on the couch reading a book.  I finish Nora's hair and she yells; "Look Atley!!  Look at my hair!"  Atley slowly turns her head to look at Nora and said, "After I finish reading this book."  Ha!  Those two might play together and laugh uproariously, but man do they ever know how to push each other's buttons as well!! T...