Cuddle Time

I haven't spent as much time just sitting and cuddling Nick as I did with Lainey. He's such a good little sleeper most days that I'm able to easily put him down and do the myriad of chores on my list. But, this morning as I started to head for his crib after he drifted off in my arms, I stopped and sat back down. These days are precious and few, and just because he WILL sleep in his crib, doesn't mean he HAS to...he should get some warm cuddle time in his parents' arms.

So, I left the wet clothes in the washer, turned on cartoons to occupy Elaine, and sat and rocked my little boy. At the rate he's growing, he won't be little for long. Gotta' take advantage while I can!

Bad Hair Day (Life)

Lainey is obsessed with having a "pony" (ponytail) right now. I tried my best to get something pulled together for her Thursday, but the result was not what she was looking for--her face says it all.

Poor kid. All the other girls at her daycare have some form of a ponytail in their little toddler locks. But, Lainey has two strikes against her: 1) the curls 2) lack of hair in general.

As frustrations continue mount, I'm considering getting a pixie cut to stand in solidarity with her until the day finally comes when she too can have a pretty pony in her hair. It will happen, Lainey. Some day, it will happen.

Bye-Bye Sippy Cup!

Lainey is venturing into the world of a cup with no lid. The sippy cups will remain a staple for any beverages consumed away from the table, but we're working with her on using a "big girl" cup with her meals. She has to pick-up the skill before she transitions to the pre-school side at daycare this summer. She's doing a great job and is very proud. See for yourself!

One Month Today!

Nick is one-month-old today! He had his four-week check-up and weighed in at 11 pounds (75%), 23 inches (98%), and just like his sister, his head remains large--15 3/8 centimeters (95%). Guess he has a big, beautiful brain, too!

Our little man continues to take it fairly easy on us, but it was around week five that Elaine started showing her willful streak, so we'll see what the coming weeks bring. Nick's still going through an hour or so of fussiness in the evening, but it's not too intense. He's also been mixing up his nights and days a little, so his nighttime feedings are followed by 30-60 minutes of wide-eyed gazing, but at least he's calm about it. Once I reach the 90-minute mark of being up with him, I've been putting him back in his crib awake and he's putting himself to sleep just fine. I hope this is a good sign of future sleep habits!

Here's a picture I caught while waiting for the doctor today...soon we should be getting lots of smiles out of him!

Poor guy doesn't know he's about to get a shot!

Little Over Achiever

At the wee age of three weeks and three days, our little Mister Mister rolled over for the first time from his front to his back this morning--three times in a row! Really, this is probably just a fluke, but I'm going to brag about it anyway. He was pretty motivated to get out of tummy time, so all his little baby anger just pushed him over I think.

Things are still going pretty well with Nick. Overall, he's a very good baby and takes it easy on us. He has developed a case of the evening grumpies for about an hour or two, but it's not too bad--just incovenient timing, since he usually starts in around 6:30pm at the time when we need him to be most cooperative, so we can get Lainey through her night time routine.

I'm anxious to see what his weigh-in is at next Monday's check-up. As you can see from the pictures below, his face is filling out and he's getting some chubby cheeks. But, he's still got his skinny chicken legs, which seem to be the only thing he inherited from me. The rest of him is all Mark! Only seems fair, since Lainey has nada resemblence to her daddy.

We're getting more eye time every day!

He's still a sweet, little sleeper.

 

Blessed

After getting some much needed rest and a good dose of female support at brunch today, I am able to stop and reflect on how truly blessed I am with such a beautiful, healthy family. I won't take back my last post or regret the feelings I had over the last few days, because it is okay to love your kids, but not always like their behavior, and it is okay not to be in perfect control of everything every day. I'm just a mere mortal after all.

But, it is also important when feeling overly frustrated that things just aren't going as planned (e.g., Lainey won't sleep; we can't find a house we like) for me to stop, take a deep breathe, and focus on all the wonderful blessings in my world.

I have two, healthy, beautiful children. I have a loving, supportive husband, who generally puts my needs ahead of his own (thanks for the extra hour of sleep today, Mark). I have never had to worry one single day about having enough to eat, clothes on my back, or a roof over my head.

Life will always have difficulties and disappointments, and if I need the occasional bitchfest to clear my stress, I'm not going to beat myself up for it. I'll just hope that most days I'm able to enjoy the magic moments of life and let the other stuff fade to the background. Like right now...this is what the rest of my family is doing...all three of the loves of my life slumbering away...

She Looks Like an Angel, but...

...she's the devil in disguise.

Well, we all survived Thursday and Friday, although by the end of the day Thursday I was seriously contemplating calling the daycare and putting Lainey back in for the full five days a week. Before 9:00 AM rolled around, she'd thrown about a dozen tantrums and my patience was already gone.  By early afternoon, I was reconsidering our stance on spanking (but, to be clear didn't do it) and had ordered a toddler discipline book. When Mark got home, I told him we were raising a terrible, terrible child and that he was in charge of her, then promptly took Nick into his room, so he could have the first peaceful, uninterrupted feeding of the day. Not my best day as a mom. 

Today was much, much better. A large contributor to our Thursday woes was lack of sleep, due to her getting up every hour the night before starting at 11:00 PM.A well-rested Lainey (although make no mistake, she still got up twice during the night and then woke at 5:15 AM for the day), is a much happier Lainey. Tantrums were minimal, however, she continued to completely ignore any direction regarding "no" or "stop," and pulled a few very hostile attacks on her little brother.

On the other hand, I took both kids to the grocery store (and both were perfect angels) and on two outings to enjoy the weather yesterday, and we all went to Nick's doctor's appointment together today with no incidents. So, I have to say, despite my desire to knock back the six pack in the fridge with lunch and Lainey's frequent sobbing pleads for "Daddy," I would call this first week on my own with the kids a success.

And for the future Lainey, who may some day read this post, you are still my most favorite little girl and I love every inch of you! You are a holy terror right now, but you also give the best hugs and have the best giggle of anyone in the world. I know your fiery personality and headstrong perseverance will serve you well someday when you are running a Fortune 500 company. And I also know you will send your beleaguered parents on a well-deserved luxury vacation to pay us back for these early years.

Big, Strong Boy!

Nick had his two-week check-up today. He weighed in at a whopping 9 lbs. 6 oz. (90%)!!! The only expectation was that he regain his birth weight, so I was super excited to see he'd gained an entire extra pound. Guess those initial marathon feedings paid off. He also grew 3/4 of an inch and is now 22.25" (985). Finally, following in his sister's footsteps, he has a whopper of a head--33.75 cm (90%).

My guy is still taking it easy on his mom. He's become a much more efficient eater (20 minutes feedings instead of 45-plus) and is giving me 3.5 to 4-hour stretches between feedings during the night. He's very tolerant of his sister's overly agressive affection and patient when his feedings get interrupted by her antics. I'm looking forward to our next one-on-one day together Monday, so I can finally give him some proper attention again.

Quiet time with Mommy

A Belly Button for Baby!

Nick has a belly button! His cord fell off Sunday afternoon during a diaper change in the front seat of the car. We were at the park getting Lainey some much needed fresh air and exercise, but the wind kicked up, so Nick and I headed back to the car for cover. Just to show how much more confident and relaxed I am this time around, I not only changed his very messy diaper and dealt with the cord (which bled slightly), but I also nursed him for fifteen minutes while we waited for Mark and Lainey to finish playing. No way would I have pulled that off 8 days into Lainey's life.

Nick continues to be a pretty good baby, but seems to be having some tummy problems. He gets very irritable after most of his feedings and is having some spit up issues. We'll chat with the doctor at his two-week appointment on Friday, but I'm not too concerned. He seems to being putting on weight just fine (his cheeks are really starting to plump up), and he's still nursing well. I just hate seeing him hurting. But, Lainey had really bad gas issues, too, and grew out of it pretty quickly. The biggest issue is it takes a while to get him to relax back to sleep in the middle of the night and then he grunts a lot while sleeping--which he seems to snooze right through--me? Not so much.

Lainey continues to get more affectionate towards her little brother--which is good and bad--sometimes her love is a bit too agressive. The tantrums have quieted as well, so now we just need to figure out how to get her to sleep thorugh the night and life will be good.

Tomorrow is my first day having both of my little loves home with me all day with no back-up. Cross your fingers for me!!!

Snoozing...

Fun at the park!