Alayna's Audio

Recently you listened to Cavell. We thought it would be nice to also highlight Alayna.

In this clip Alayna has taken one of our paperback books and is "reading" the story to me. At first I was going to grab paper and pencil to write it down, but grabbed the recorder instead. Here is her tale.

boomp3.com

There are words we don't recognize either. Yes, every time she started another story she found a new page to read in the book. She was also trying to show me the pictures in the book.

Following is a recording of Alayna singing I Am a Child of God. I am the Primary Chorister and we started learning this song at the beginning of the year. When we would try to sing it at home for family home evening she would tell us she didn't know it. Last night she decided that she knew it, and didn't even need help!

boomp3.com

Alayna knows that there are more verses to the song, but has only learned the first.

It's Been A Big Week

Cavell's 6 Month Checkup

Cavell went in to the Dr. for his 6 month check up. It was nice for Stacy to take a child in to the Dr. with no concern whatsoever about child development. Alayna was always on the slippery slope of 'failure to thrive'. Cavell is on the slippery slope of getting too big for his britches.

Cavell is now 15-1/2 lbs and 27 inches long. He is getting big and at the ripe old age of 6 months has actually grown into his 6 months clothing.

Cavell has also progressed quite a bit physically. Stacy checked in on what types of physical development a 6 month old should have to compare Cavell to the standard. Apparently the average 6 month old is just starting to try sitting up which helps gain the strength and skills needed to start scooting around before crawling. Cavell started scooting at 4 months and can get around the whole house leaving snail trails of drool behind him. He has learned the joy of climbing everything. He pulls himself up to a standing position on the floor pillows, on the couch, on his sister, and most recently on his mother's calves while she was washing the dishes. And just to put himself in compliance with the regulations, he decided to sit himself up as well. But Cavell has no time or desire to sit. He got moving again as soon as Mom took notice of his accomplishment.

Alayna 'Miss-Demeanor' Jensen

Alayna has a pretty cute, even innocent countenance. People always comment on how angelic she is. Little do they know the cold, hard, criminal mind that lurks beneath the pampered princess exterior. Noticing that Cavell had received considerable attention from the Dr. and nurses, Alayna instinctively sought out a source of attention getting behavior.

While Stacy stood at the front desk setting appointments and paying co-pays, Alayna decided to go to the waiting room and sit, innocently enough, on a chair. Stacy could see Alayna sitting calmly on the chair. Since all appeared well, Stacy returned her attention to the receptionist and setting the next Dr. appointment. Noticing the tiniest breach in Mom's attention capacity, Alayna sprung into action.

Turning around in her chair, Alayna noticed a bright red and white wall fixture hanging right at eye level with a handle that was just built to be pulled by little hands. So she did.
It's amazing how fast you can gain the attention of an entire building, not just a single office suite, when the fire alarm is pulled. Alayna deteriorated into shock in response to the wall of noise that came from the little handle. Stacy deteriorated into embarrassment, Cavell just watched everything. The office staff calmly shepherded everybody out of the office while the receptionist remained to call the fire department to let them know that there was no emergency. All the rest of the building occupants calmly exited to the parking lot to take a break from contributing to the nations economy. If we have a recession, now you know who to blame.

Apparently this is a common drill for this building. The fire alarm in the pediatrician's office was placed in a location perfect for tempting small children despite the protests of the building occupants. New building codes require that the fire alarms be accessible to people in wheelchairs and the occasional three year old.

Stacy was the picture of calm in the storm. Immediately after the alarm was activated, she asked for her co-pay receipt, confirmed she had an appointment scheduled and gathered her children to exit the building. The receptionist was the real hero. She risked life, limb and hearing to stay at her post to finish making Cavell's 9 month checkup appointment card and tidied up the paperwork before fleeing the danger zone. Stacy and her pint sized partners beat a hasty escape before the cops arrived. So far there has not been a knock at the door looking for a delinquent evading arrest, but I'm a little concerned that there may be a warrant waiting for Alayna at the next Dr. appointment. What is the punishment for harboring a fugitive? Is there a toddler's court?

New Developments

Cavell has had a break through. His first tooth!

Can you see it? Look really closely.

Alayna joined the United Auto Workers Union!
She attended her first clinic at Lowes on Saturday morning and completed construction of a 2008 GMC Sierra truck. Paul learned a whole new dimension of fear when Alayna took hold of her hammer. Alayna does pretty well with a hammer until she is distracted by anything else going on around her. Watching the hammer as it slowly pounds it's way away from the nail, across the project, and directly into her loving father's patient fingers held multiple inches away from the actual nail zone soon became a source of enjoyment for all the other parents at the work bench. "Isn't that cute," they laughed.

Alayna had her first experience with all aspects of a construction project

1. A certain sense of danger
2. At least one trip to the hardware store
3. Frustration about not having enough space to work in
4. Use of inadequate tools because they were there and close enough
5. Cleaning up the mess

She was lucky enough to avoid building most of the project, realizing that step 2 had been skipped or assembled incorrectly, tearing it apart, putting it back together the exact same way, tearing it back apart, fixing step 2 but using parts meant for step 8, thus requiring another trip to the hardware store. . .

Well the truck looks like a truck, and Alayna looks pretty happy.

More Alayna cuteness:
Stacy was asked to say the closing prayer in sacrament meeting today. You know that moment of complete dead silence that comes between the person saying the prayer saying amen and the congregation saying amen? Right in that moment of silence, Alayna said, "Thank you Mom!" just loud enough that about 2/3 of the congregation could hear her. Alayna is already the cutest thing the state of Florida has ever seen, but now the tiara has been permanently affixed to her head.

The Sounds of Cavell

We thought we would share a few sound bites of Cavell as he is finding his voice and learning to communicate with the world.

13 December 2007. As Paul and I are working on our computers after the children have gone to bed, we hear a sound we have never heard before. Turning on the baby monitor we hear Cavell vocalizing for the first time! We are excited and amazed. After discussing how sweet it is and how much the grandmothers would LOVE to hear such sounds, we remember our mp3 players can record. This is what we recorded from the monitor.
boomp3.com (46 sec)
Even after recording and listening (and listening again) Cavell is still "talking." I can't resist making another recording.
boomp3.com (35 sec)

random picture inserted, just for fun

3 January 2008. Cavell was fussy and I am taking him to his crib for a nap. As always, we stopped in front of our hall mirrors. This calms him down and he likes to smile at himself. Alayna joins us and blows Cavell a zerbit.

Side Note: I had always called the "rasberries" but when Paul started blowing on Alayna's belly, he called it a "zerbit." I looked it up online today.

[I]t is actually ZRBTS. It came from the Cosby Show episode where Rudy asked Heathcliff what ZRBTS spelled. He said "Zerbets." She said "What's a 'zerbet'?" and he responded by giving her a raspberry.
Sorry, I couldn't find the specific episode.
see also:
a short, quick puff of air blown through tightly puckered lips that are applied directly to the skin of another person such as a spouse or infant child, making a farting sound. much like a raspberry but short and quick. usually done in affection.

Alayna blows Cavell a zerbit. Cavell laughs. Alayna blows another and Cavell laughs again. While he has laughed a little before, he had never laughed this much and it had always been to a tickle or a toss. This is the first time he is laughing because he finds something funny. As this continues I once again remember I can make a recording. I get the player, even though I am certain the game will stop after the interruption. I explain to Alayna that I want her to zerbit again so that I can record Cavell laughing. He found it just as funny as before.
boomp3.com (53 sec)

The next day Alayna asked me to get the recorder so that Cavell would laugh at her zerbits again.

Disclosure. The clips were longer (1:15, 58 and 1:27 respectively). Fortunately for you, the free version of the .wav to mp3 program only converted 60% of the clip.