The Next One's A Boy

Not that there will be a next one... but Caleb has submitted his prediction. Apparently whatever gender your baby's first word is will be the gender of your next child. Caleb is now saying "Dada," so there you have it. Baby number five will be a boy. In a make believe world. Where Ben has his way.

Wanted: One wife- willing to have lots of children

Our eldest son has been on a quest recently. A quest that, I hope, will take him about 20 years to complete. Benjamin Heath Donahue is looking for a wife. I'm afraid this may be partially my fault. Ben loves children, and has informed me several times recently that we need more babies in this house. The other day at dinner, I quite firmly informed him (for the last time) that as of right now, we had no plans to add any more children to our family. Brad seconded the motion, and that was that. Or so I thought. Ben's internal wheels turned for a moment. "I'll just have to find a wife."

Ben's wife application consists of one question. "Will you grow babies in your tummy?" He has so far proposed to me, his sister, and his preschool teacher. Once he understood that you have to find someone OUTSIDE of your own family that is approximately your own age, he started targeting his little friends at school. I told him that I really thought that he should wait and marry someone from maybe his college class as opposed to his preschool class. Ben will not be deterred. He now has his sights set on his friend Molly (sorry Melissa).

All this is stemming from the desire to have more children. I wonder if I can just convince him to start babysitting. We may even make some money that way. Yeah. Good idea. All he needs is a little CPR training and he'll be set.

More About the Guinea Pigs

So, I know that you all come here to see pictures of the children. However, the guinea pigs are being featured today.

As good pet owners, Brad and I researched the most humane living space for the guinea pigs. We also looked for bedding alternatives- something that could be reused and didn't make a mess. What we found was a design for a nifty open top pen/cage with bedding made of towels wrapped in fleece. Brad went to the store and bought the materials to construct this ideal living space and he made it himself. The cage is probably about 6 feet long. The pigs are much more enjoyable now because they have plenty of room to play and race each other. They also do something called "popcorn" where they jump straight up in the air. For ease of cleaning, I add an extra layer (old cloth diapers) under the food, which I switch out every day. The fleece wicks any moisture down into the towels, so you can sweep up the poo daily with a whisk. This keeps the cage much cleaner, as you can see. We've also had fun finding new fruits and vegetables to supplement their diet. The children have had fun sharing new foods with the guinea pigs- and have eaten a few new veggies themselves!

Yeah....it's been awhile

So instead of agonizing over composing the perfect blog post, I will just speedily catch you up on what has been happening for the past month. First, Emily and I were diagnosed with celiac disease, so we are wheat free here in the Donahue household. I have learned many interesting things about wheat and your immune system recently. The next exciting thing that happened was that we added two guinea pigs to our family (Sally and Cleo). They were a pseudo birthday present for Emily- we have all enjoyed their entertaining antics. After the purchase of guinea pigs, we celebrated Emily's second birthday. Twice. Once here and once in Washington. Finally, we had a wonderful Easter. Thanks, Granny, for the cute clothes. The end. Now maybe I can get back on schedule with my posts.

Happy!

I'm glad my children are happy today- even when, like Emily, they don't feel well.

Ben

Today Ben was thoughtfully watching Caleb eat his baby food.
"Caleb doesn't have any teeth."
"That's right, Ben."
"He has a flat mouth. Just like Elmo."

I had never thought about it before, but this is true. Babies mouths are very similar to puppets. Or dancing Peanuts characters...

Happy February!

We've had some unusually warm weather recently. Last week school was closed for snow, but by the end of the week we were in the 70's. Yesterday had the perfect weather for playing and snacking outside. Ben, Anna, Emily, and Caleb all got to enjoy the faux spring atmosphere.