Michael - 8 Months

Another month come and gone...my little dude is 8 months old now!

Poor little guy wasn't feeling good when we took these

He has had a bit of a rough couple weeks with being sick, and now teething/ and probable growth spurt? But he is quite the trooper, and still shows off his toothless grin through it all :)

I feel like he has changed quite a bit over the past month. He went from the quiet little guy who was happy watching everyone be wild, to the little guy with a loud voice determined to keep up with everyone else. I guess he figured if he stood a chance, he had to learn to speak up and keep up ;)

His big, new thing lately is getting his army crawl on. He started this a couple weeks ago and he is moving! He loves to chase Lucy around, and she equally loves getting chased by him.

He has started waving, and attempting to say "buh-bye". Whenever we wave and say "buh-bye" he will look at his hands and start waving. He is very intrigued by those hands still.

First time in the swing

He has finally said "mama", but only a couple times so who knows if it was legit ;) We are working on that!

Loves bath time!

Sleeping is still going well. He is in limbo with dropping his third nap of the day. Most days he still needs it though.

His eating is giving me a glimpse into teenage years. This kid is taking down food faster than ever. We are doing a baby led weaning/ purees combo for him which seems to be working well. We haven't given him anything yet that he doesn't devour.

First donut...love at first sight, just like his momma!

Fun little photo session! :)

Little man, you light up our world with that toothless grin and your sweetness! We love you so!

I Used To Be Cool

Today, I traded in my dignity for a sweet, new ride...a minivan! Yeah baby!

Let me start off by saying I was that woman who said, I will NEVER NEVER NEVER NEVER own a minivan! I can recall telling Ben at one point, "mark my words...I won't do it". Ahh, those moments when you eat your words ;)

We traded in my beloved Xterra. It was my second one to own, and I cannot even tell you how much I loved both of them...until we had our second child. Honestly, with just Lucy, I never felt like getting her in and out of it was a big deal and we still had a whole empty seat next to her in the back, so no biggie. Since having Michael, there was still the middle seat, but no one could fit in it so when family came in town we always had to take 2 cars wherever we went.

Another not so great thing about loading children in to the back seat of the Xterra was the fact that the rear doors are right over the wheel wells. Putting a toddler in, not so bad...putting your infant carrier in, a bit of a challenge. One thing I have day dreamed about is the idea of being able to lay my baby out (inside the car) and change a diaper. This may seem silly, but we haven't always been in places where there is a changing station, or it isn't up to my cleanliness standards so I prefer to change the kiddos in the car. Changing Michael isn't easy, but it is doable. Poor Lucy is usually contorted all kinds of ways in order to get her changed. The final straw for me was recently when I took both kids to the doctor and someone parked too close to me. I have had people park close enough to where I have to finagle Michael's carrier in there, but I have always been able to slide him in somehow. This time, there was no way I was getting that carrier inside through the back door. So I go around to Lucy's side, get her back out of the car, and the carrier is too big to go over her car seat so I had to climb in the front seat and push that thing through the two front seats to click it into the base in the back. Talk about major frustration! And did I mention it is snowing and freezing outside, and of course both kids are screaming. Ben came home from work that day and I told him I needed a minivan with those glorious sliding doors.

I have spent the past week talking to other moms about their minivans and ya know, I have yet to talk to a minivan owner who doesn't love theirs!

The kids and I were at Chik-fil-a for lunch last week and I saw a woman pull up in her minivan with a bumper sticker on the back that said, "I used to be cool". I'm thinking that purchase may be in my near future :)

The more kids we have, the more convenience I need in my life!! This van is the definition of  convenience for me. Sure, it may not look as rugged and cool as my Xterra did, but it sure makes life a heck of a lot easier!

All hail to the minivan!!

Valentine's Day

Happy Valentine's Day (almost) weekend everyone!! Ben and I don't usually do anything big to celebrate Valentine's Day, and this year will be no different ha! We had planned on doing a date night swap with some friends for tonight and Sunday night but Lucy has been battling a nasty cold all week so we are postponing date swap until kiddos are all healthy! Tis the season for all the lovely germs.

Instead of getting to go out to dinner, I'm thinking something more like this. This isn't really a new idea. I have heard of this before, but I love hearing new ideas for home dates. I also love that she talks about scheduling it. It would be really easy for us to put it on the back burner since we wouldn't be getting ready and leaving the house, but this would make it more set in stone.

Other things on the agenda for the weekend include...GETTING OUTSIDE!!! We have had some awesome weather this week and it is continuing all through the weekend and into next week and I am so pumped about it! Come on spring!!!!! :)

What are your Valentine's Day plans? Hope everyone has a fantastic weekend!!!

Lindsey

One Year Later...

I have been thinking about this post for a while now.

It has been one year since I started this journey as a stay at home mom. It's hard for me to believe that it has already been one year, but here we are.

Here are some of my thoughts and emotions reflecting back on the past year.

Things I expected:

1. I thought about going back to work on multiple occasions (big surprise, huh?). I feel like I've actually had this thought more often lately. I'm not sure if it's because things are getting a bit busier now as Michael is getting older or what but, though I'm not proud to admit, when things have been tough, I tell Ben I want to go back to work. This is always followed by me feeling bad because I know that I am truly blessed to be able to be at home with them, and it is totally normal to have tough days.

2. I have struggled with my identity, as well as my contribution to my family. Ok, here's the thing, Ben probably tells me on a biweekly basis that I am contributing more than him by raising our kids, and that I have the harder job of the two of us. I know that I have a huge, important responsibility in raising these sweet blessings, but satan does a darn good job of getting in my head and making me feel like I don't do enough. If someone asks me what I do, I actually fumble because I don't know if I should mention that I'm still technically a nurse. As far as my identity, God is reminding me often that my identity is found in Him alone (1 John 3:1-2), and not tied to a profession. I'm human, and some days I need the reminder that regardless of whether or not I go back to work one day, I am secure in Him.

There's my short list of expectations, ha! I guess I was really in for the surprises ;)

Things I did not expect:

1. I worried about not having a plan in place for if/when I would go back to work. I worried about this A LOT! I think this one surprises me because it's only been ONE year! I thought a lot about losing my skills as a nurse the longer I'm out of it. I worried that I might try to go back to work and not have the confidence anymore that I could still do it, or worse, that someone wouldn't want to hire me because I chose to sit out for a while.

2. The huge need for adult interaction. I have joked with Ben before about him coming home from work and I will just talk his ear off because I have been talking mostly to little people all day. I think sometimes it can feel a little lonely so I've tried getting better about doing playdates, as well as time with friends without the kids.

3. The astounding number of days in a row that I can rock my pj's. Oh yes! Confession: I lost count. And for the record, ain't no shame in it, I just try to break the cycle every now and again to surprise my husband when he comes home from work ;)

4. How much fun I've had crunching numbers and actually staying within our budget. It has become almost like a game for me (say what??) This one was certainly unexpected. I was worried about the finances when I quit my job, but now I actually enjoy scoping out the deals, and tapping into my inner frugal side, and making things work.

Overall...what a fantastic year it has been, really. If there is one thing I know...it is that God has me right where He wants me. Every time I consider going back to work, He reminds me that I am right where I need to be right now...at home with these two little ones :)

And that peace is unquestionable.

Happy Friday friends!

Lindsey

Potty Training Attempt (daddy's version)

Ah the topic of potty training :)

Let me just say that the selfish part of me has not wanted to start potty training (I know, shame on me). Lucy has been showing signs that she is interested in it, so back around Christmas, when Ben was off work we decided to dive in and give it a shot!

So, let's recap how all this went down.

Ben was very helpful in getting me pepped up for all this, and the night before we started we felt ready to take on the task. We sat in our room the night before we started the training and it was like a scene from a locker room before a big game. We were pumped up (as pumped up as you can be about potty training, right?) ;)

As far as training methods, we didn't have one specifically really. We read some stuff and took bits and pieces and came up with a game plan that we thought would work for Lucy.

Ben was sweet enough to allow me to share his notes from our experience :) So, here is the recap of our attempt at potty training (documented by dad).

Day1
8:00am- Start

8:25am- Accident #1: Poop in the big girl panties. Nothing like hand cleaning poop from panties.

8:55am- 15 minutes on the potty and still no pee. She hasn't peed all morning. Hopefully all this juice won't come too quick.

9:25am- Still nothing...waiting, watching Little Einsteins while sitting on the potty.

9:33am- Accident #2: Some pee came about 2 minutes after she got off the potty. Nothing like seeing a puddle of pee on the hard wood floors you slaved over. She didn't seem to cry until I said "you should do that on the potty" (way to go dad)

9:38am- Accident #3: The rest of the pee came which was probably double or triple what just came 5 minutes ago. This time in her room on the carpet and all down the hallway. The good thing is that she came and told us about the accident.

10:10am- Accident #4: That was a big pee. This time in the front room. 4 accidents. 4 rooms marked.

10:20am- Lucy told mommy that she needed to go use the potty. Yay! But nothing.

10:32am- Lucy told us again that she needed to go to the potty. Another false alarm.

10:39am- I went to put Lucy on the potty and she asked to move it out in front of the tv and ran out there. By the time I got there she said she "need to get on potty" and I picker her up and got her on it quick without pulling down her panties. Nothing for a few seconds so I had her stand up so I could pull them down but she had just started going. Most of the pee went in the potty! Hooray for progress! She wasn't super excited initially, but was when she got a small handful of M&M's.

11:49am- Still no pee after about 4 false alarms, but better than her not even thinking about it.

11:52am- Success! Instead of sitting at the table for lunch, we sat her on her potty at her little table. That's two in  a row!

12:32pm- Success again! Another pee. She likes flushing it down the toilet and saying bye-bye. This time, she got up and bent down towards her toilet and said "put in my mouth".

2:20pm- Nap time ended early with a wet bed.

2:50pm- Accident #6: Pee in the front room again. Lucy then said that she wanted to wear her diaper again. Then she used the potty again, and after said again that she wanted to wear her diaper.

3:45pm- Accident #7: Lucy just got off the potty and her and I were playing in her room. I stopped her and had her look at my eyes. Then proceeded to ask her 4 times if she needed to go potty. Each time she adamantly answered no. Then she said sorry, and started to pee. After getting cleaned up, she said again "need diaper". That's when we threw in the towel...she's not ready.


There ya have it folks ;) I am happy to report that since that time Lucy has been asking to sit on the potty almost daily. Sometimes she goes, other times she doesn't, and we are happy with that :)  Of course, we encourage her and cheer her on, but have just decided not to push it right now. I am basically just rolling with it and letting her lead the way, and we'll see how it goes.

Happy Friday!!

Lindsey

Michael - 7 Months

There is something about my baby boy being over 6 months old now that makes me a little emotional. I feel like the past 7 months flew by, and it seems inevitable that the next 5 months will go by even faster and we'll be celebrating his first birthday, and just like that, the first year is already over.

My sweet, happy momma's boy...you are just the sweetest, and everybody knows it. 

You are just over 16 pounds of chubby baby roll deliciousness! You started solids this past month and are rolling with it like a champ. You continue to be great at nursing, and I'm thanking my lucky stars for that! It's hard to believe I'm over halfway to nursing you for a whole year, which seemed like an undesirable goal for me a few months ago if I'm being honest. The great thing is, you have made it so easy to get this far, and I hope we make it to one year. 

You sat up on your own this past month which has been a game changer for play time with Lucy. You guys love to sit by each other and play for quite a while. It melts my heart to watch this. Lucy always makes sure you have a toy to play with, even if it means giving up one of her toys. 

You are a pretty quiet guy, which means you take after your momma, but you have started saying "da da" in addition to your usual raspberry blowing ;) I love to watch you when daddy and Lucy are playing and being wild (and usually loud) and you just watch ever so quietly and contently and take it all in. 

You're growing up too fast little one. 

Happy 7 months my sweet little buddy!

Cabin Fever

Hello from Antarctica...I mean Denver. It has been frigid here this week y'all. We have been dumped with snow and more snow, and the high today was 24! Brrrr! 

Now, just for the record, I LOVE living in Denver! I especially love the weather because in between these freezing cold days in the winter, we get these amazing 65 degree days BUT being cooped up in the house for days on end with two little ones can make ya go a little stir crazy! 

I have done some baking with all this time indoors which has been fun for me, but not so much for my waistline, whoops. I tried getting Lucy to bake with me, but she just has not been interested in it at all. She does, however, partake in all the eating of the baked goods ;) Poor girl just wants to go play in the snow but it is way, wayyyy too cold for that. 

We have watched entirely too much Mickey-- cue the Hot Dog song!  We have had Christmas music dance parties in the kitchen, colored our little hearts out, played with Play doh, played a game of chase Daisy around the house, & endless stickers that can now be found all over the house. I even managed to make vacuuming a fun activity for all of us!

But all that fun had to come to an end and we had to bust out of the four walls today!

I had a doctor's appointment to get to, so we bundled up and headed out. Since we were out, I decided to stop at Wal-Mart to get a couple of crafting items for stuff to do with Lucy...big mistake! Of course Wal-Mart was packed, so I had to park about a football field away and try to steer the stroller across the icy parking lot, ay-yi-yi.

So I did all that complaining about being stuck inside, then I go out, and all I wanted to do was run back home. 

Go figure.

On a totally unrelated note, Lucy made my stomach hurt from laughing so much tonight. She finally learned daddy's real name and I was cracking up over it. Her and I were reading books before bedtime and Ben was leaving to run to the store for more diapers. I called his name so I could tell him one more thing about the diapers to get. After he left the room again, she yelled "Ben!" And she kept yelling it and yelling it, and I lost it! At one point, she looked at me and asked, "where Ben go?" Ahhhh kids are too funny!

Happy almost Friday! ;)

Lindsey