What's new....

Teya's potty trained...mostly, except for the mishap yesterday at the aquarium in her swimsuit. YUCK. I think we'll be buying a new suit.

David has stopped crying incessantly. Poor kid seems to have some food sensitivities, which means poor Melissa has to cut out the goods like ice cream, cheese, ice cream, and ice cream. BUT he's happier, and that makes everyone in this household happier!

David still thinks night is day and day is night, apparently.

Phil and Melissa are thankful for the moments when both kids are asleep at the same time!

Dog Days of Summer

As would be expected, the pace of life has changed since little David's arrival. We spend most of our days at home in the refuge of constantly running air conditioning, following David's pattern (or lack thereof) of eating, sleeping and crying. While he sleeps, Teya and I like to slip out into the backyard to play soccer, harvest tomatoes and green beans or talk to our 12-year old neighbor, Alexis, who Teya affectionately calls "Necklace."

Teya is enjoying her new baby carrier (a birthday gift from Aunt Rachel), which is just like the one Mama carries David in. Being squished into a Mei Tai carrier is sometimes the only thing that will soothe our fussy babe. He seems to have some tummy issues & we've had some rough days and nights. A visit to the doctor Monday, though, assured us that he is growing and growing FAST. He is already a whopping 10 lbs 2 oz, 3 lbs heavier than his birth weight. So we're not worried that he's not getting the nourishment he needs, but he certainly spends many of his waking moments in sadness.

David in a rare moment of sitting by himself at about 3 weeks old

Teya is a happy, sweet big sister (most of the time)!

Two weeks ago Sunday, we had the joy of having David baptised by Phil's dad, after whom David is partially named (3 namesakes make life a little more confusing). Andrea was able to join Popsey for the visit, and we were excited to be joined by much of the Long & Stanton clans, as well as Mema. My dad read a Psalm chosen by Phil (I can't remeber which one right now - how terrible!), Phil's dad performed the baptism, and we all watched on as my sister's youngest, Noah, rolled around on the floor at the front of the church. As always, Rachel handled her half-pint with great grace and poise.

Teya, the Master Carrot Cake Baker helped me make a deliciously unattractive carrot cake for Phil's birthday. She is always a "help" in the kitchen, whether its stirring eggs for breakfast, washing green "beams" or tearing lettuce for a salad. Beware if you're ever invited to our house for dinner...most certainly Teya's little grubbies (clean grubbies, of course) have been in the food.

So this is the world of blogging.....I never thought I'd catch myself in front of a computer in this capacity. However, the recent changes in our life make this a very helpful way of keeping family/friends in touch with our life here in Red Bank.

We welcomed little David Philips Long into our family on June 8. At 7lbs, 3 oz, he was surprisingly tiny compared to Teya's arrival weight of 8lbs, 6 oz. She was all fluff, and he is all skin, bones & muscles (maybe a bit like his Dita, after whom we gave him his first name). We are in full recovery mode, working on getting nights and days straight and trying to wrap our minds around what in the world has just happened! Teya loves her little brother, but she is having her fair share of growing pains, mostly in the form of whining and mild disobedience. Along with the adjustment of a new person in the house, Teya has decided that it is time to potty train. Yes, that means wherever we are, convenient or not, we have to plop the poop she's done in her diaper in the nearest potty and talk about how we want to go in the potty next time. Very interesting.....