Kindergarten here we are

Big things happened this week:

Owen and i worked all year on a 100 lessons to learn to read. He finished a couple days before kindergarten started and he got a shopping spree at toys r us.  

Sadly, they do not carry all the power rangers in the store so thankfully Amazon has been delivering all week keeping the fun alive. 

We met his teacher who is awesome it is her fourth year and we feel she is a great fit for Owen. There is also a little boy named Parker that we have deemed fun! 

It is only day 2 so the new schedule feels more like camp than our norm, but I am already excited at the things I want to get done around the house. 

Jesse enjoyed the day playing trains and having some special mommy time. 

Second day of kindergarten and he rode the bus home! I was so proud of him and thrilled to not have to attempt the pick up line again. 

Stories from the bus. Day 1:

M: How was the bus ride?

O: great!! 

M:do you want to ride it tomorrow?

O: yes, but I almost cried

M: what! Why honey?

O: I was missing you and it was a long ride with my backpack on the whole time. And I thought I was on the wrong bus. 

M: 😥

Later:

M: did you sit next to the window or the isle?

O: next to a GIRL!

M: oh really, from your class?

O: no, but she did take a nap ON THE BUS!!! Bahahahahahaha 

M: 😂😂😂

Owen: 5+

Owen is 5! 

We are registered for kindergarten in the fall. He can ride his bike (let me tell you that story!) he is learning to read (15 min a day we are working through the book-Teach your child to read in 100 easy lessons). We are about halfway through and I am hoping to finish the book before the fall. He can do simple math and is learning how to use his fingers to figure it out. His brain is working over time and as much as kindergarten might make me sad I also see how ready he is to learn.  

Here is what he read today: the only words he had to sound out were did, feel and sad. Reading the "fast way"!!!

This morning on the way to school Owen told me he needed to tell his brain to remember to bring his show and tell.  I told Owen to tell his brain to wait till Thursday or Friday for show and tell. So, he gets silent, but thoughtful look on his face as "he's talking to his brain" and then announces that he told his brain. at this point I want to die laughing. I informed him those words in his head are called thoughts. Owen and his brain do a lot of thinking and a lot of talking. These were Big thoughts on the way to school today.

Learning to ride his bike.  We had recently purchased a bike trailer for the kids to ride in and we hooked it up to Owen's bike! It was hilarious to see Owen pulling Jesse in the trailer. Then daddy suggested taking the training wheels off and having a lesson. Owen was all game until he realized it was a little scary. The lesson may have been a lot of stern talking from Chris saying "listen to me, petal when the bike starts moving, I am not letting go, etc". Owen was a whiney brat. I tired to remind them both it was supposed to be fun. Soon the long 15 minute lesson was over and we parked the bike for another day.  

Another day, I suggested Owen ride his bike with me to the mail box and he didn't want to because the training wheels were off.  I mentioned to Chris we may need to put them back on, but it was rainy and then we have been inside a lot due to pollen and my allergies. So the bike was left alone for several weeks. 

Our amazing niece was in a local production of pride and prejudice and so Chris and I had a day date! When we arrive home from the date we were amazed to see Owen riding his bike!!! He just hopped on and took off.  Even now we go outside and I am amazed he just does it! I guess it's true you don't forget how to ride a bike. 

Mother's Day 2016

Mother's Day. A day that has been so hard and one that has been so good.  The truest definition of bittersweet. This year it has been wonderful. Chris cooked 3 amazing meals, full breakfast and then had his parents over for roasted cabbage, grilled chicken and baked potatoes. Dinner was delicious a nice filet, more cabbage and grits. 

After church my kids actually took a decent photo with me! Only took like 300+ pictures to get one of each of them!! Actually the out takes are just as funny! 

 

They share their lovies with her! 

I posted this today and my husband got all sappy on me. I can't let these words get lost. This is almost better than a paper card because it is heartfelt in the moment. 

Mini update

Well. I love looking back at my blog posts, but I am horrible now that these 2 keep me running.  Here is a typical MWF of our life: 

Owen to play school by 9 am

Jesse and I run errands, hit up the Y where I can even get a shower while my crazy man plays and has a grad time!

Then usually it is time to pick up Owen, eat lunch in the car and head home to play before nap time or to the grocery store to pick up food.

1:30-? Jesse will sleep tops 2 hours and Owen will sleep till 5pm if he falls asleep! 

Then it is time for a snack while I cook dinner and we wait for daddy to come home from work!

Daddy gets home and its kisses and hugs for all! We eat dinner and then play a little before 7:30-8pm bed times.

Chris and I indulge in some tv before bed and doing it all again!

T/Ths: are mostly the same we either hit up the Y in the morning and hope for lunch or have a PJ day and mommy tries to clean house! 

My Babywised Babies sleep great!

(I didn't have much time to proof read and so please excuse the run on sentences, fragments and HORRIBLE punctuation!)

We follow the babywise book.  It's not a new method, but really sleep hasn't changed over the years.  The basic premise is eat, play, sleep; instead of eat to go to sleep, play and then eat again.  Basically, you are teaching your child to go to sleep on their own instead of needing to be rocked, held, or milk to go to sleep.  I have done this with Owen and now again with Jesse and I swear by this method because my babies sleep great!  Owen is almost 3 and still takes an afternoon nap that ranges from 2-3.5 hours!  Jesse is 12 weeks and has sleep through the night 7 times!! His bedtime is 6pm, I nurse again (dreamfeed) before I go to bed around 10-11pm) and he has slept till 6am and 7:30am!!!  Mommy loves her sleep so I am THRILLED!

We started at about 3 weeks old with both boys.  Before that we just nursed and held our babies as we all know those first few weeks are just survival.  Then at 3 weeks we moved our babies from the bassinet in our room to the crib in their own room.  When the baby is only a newborn sometimes the "play" was only a diaper change or a burp to wake them.  Here is what our newborn routine looked like during the day:

Baby is allowed to sleep as long as they would in the night and early mornings, when baby waked we would change his diaper and then nurse one side, burp, nurse the other side and burp.  Sometimes it would take up to 10 minutes to get that 2nd burp, but it is key to know there isn't any belly gas that would be uncomfortable for sleep.  Then we would enjoy a little awake time (keeping the lights bright and not muting sounds of Owen playing or tv etc.). When we saw the first sign of sleepiness it was off to the crib he went.  Some signs of sleepiness are rubbing eyes, droopy eyes, a yawn, redness around the eyes, and fussiness.  Jesse is great at rubbing his hands into his eyes while nuzzling his head into my shoulder when he is ready to sleep.  It is really important to put them to sleep when they are sleepy and before they are over tired.  I usually say the same thing when I put him into the crib:  "night night sweet boy.  Mommy loves you! Its time to go night night" and pat his belly.  I laid my babies on their back in a swaddle they can't get their arms out of.  We used some velcro ones early on and receiving blankets, but once they can get a hand out we would put them in the Woombie brand swaddle.  Yes, they are pricey, but worth every penny!  You can get them on the half off baby websites sometimes.

During the day, I closely watch the clock and if he is sleeping and it hits the 3 hour mark from the beginning of the last feeding I wake him up and we start the cycle over again.  Now, at nighttime I do NOT do this; I let them sleep as long as they can.  With Owen the nurses said I should wake him for the first month every 3 hours.  I think that he got trained to be on this schedule and it took longer for him to fully sleep through the night whereas I knew better with Jesse and we were able to establish his nighttime at night earlier on!

I just looked back and Owen's 4 month schedule was this and it is pretty close to Jesse's schedule now too except he is still about about 2.5 hours during the day and getting up earlier:
8am-Eat, play time (this is a special time of day, he is so sweet!!) then a 1 1/2 hour nap
11am-Eat, play time (usually some tummy time or in his swing) then a 1 hour nap
2pm-Eat, play time (run errands) then a 1 hour nap
5-6pm Eat, play a little then a 1 1/2 nap
8-9pm Eat, play about 30 minutes and ready for bed!
10:30 dream feed and back to bed

Ok, here is the hardest part.  Crying it out.  I think the earlier you do this the easier it is for the baby and parents.  There are different ways to do CIO (crying it out).  We found that at 3 weeks CIO only lasted 30 minutes top.  Our boys would scream crying for the first 10 minutes then it there would be a pause then some more intense crying before tapering off or just conking out asleep.  It is HARD.  I would hold Chris's hand and we would encourage each other to be strong because we knew it was better for them in the long run.  Thankfully, it usually takes only a couple of days/nights to get to shorter crying periods.  Now, Jesse is only 5 minutes tops.  There are exceptions.  Sometimes I know Jesse is over tired from holiday or visits from family and those times I will swaddle him, give him his paci and hold and pat him to sleep and usually I can easily transfer him to his bed.  There are different ways to go about crying it out and you should decide as a family what works for you.  We said 30 minutes top crying before comforting and calming him down and trying again.  You have to check for poopy diapers, burps and sometimes a growth spurt will throw it all off.

One other thing you have to know about and it is the 45 minute intruder.  This is how long a young babies sleep cycle is.  After 45 minutes it starts over and sometimes or even most times the baby will wake up crying.  I usually look at the clock and use my judgement to see if it is close to the 2 hour mark I will get him up and start the cycle over, if it isn't close to it then I wait it out.  Usually, after 5 minutes he is back asleep or quiet in his crib.

I really can't stress enough that you should just read the babywise book.  She describes in detail the reasons behind it all.  It is all about the parent making the decisions with the information you have and not about the baby's crying dictating their schedule.

Last thought because WOW this is getting LONG!  If you are nursing you really need to make sure the baby is nursing enough and getting the hind milk.  If you can feel yourself let down then you know baby is getting the nice creamy think calorie milk.  If you only nurse for a few minutes on each side then baby only gets the foremilk which is more watery and wont sustain baby till the next feeding.  Babies who only get the foremilk have to eat more frequently and thus turns into a cycle of snacking instead of eating full meals.  The other reason to move baby out of your room if you are nursing is that baby can smell you...wouldn't you want to wake up earlier if you could smell your wonderful food cooking all night?!  Jesse slept an extra hour longer at 3 weeks when we moved him to his own room at night.  4 hour cycles are amazing during the night with a newborn!

Please, ask any questions!

Roughest night yet

Saturday was about like any other day. I walked around, but I don't think I over did it. We took Owen to the park with his Pa-Paw and then out to eat and home for a nap.  I baked a roast in the oven and made a huge pot of Santa Fe soup and froze it.  Well, of course, the contractions start as we head to bed. 11:04 was the first one we started timing. They came about every 5 minutes for several hours till I was finally able to sleep through them and they stopped.  I was up to pee about 6 times and had one or 2 each time but I knew they weren't active labor. That would be too easy at this point.  We are 35.5 weeks and still a little early, but OB said she wouldnt stop labor.  But we want him to be full term. As I type that I also am so ready for him to be here. I feel huge, I am so uncomfortable, those contractions were no joke and I want him out. I worry about the cord around his neck, I worry about a very late loss.  I was talking to my sister and I feel that we are all so happy right now that I don't want someone to pop my happy bubble.

As I type this at 8am, Owen is in his big boy bed talking.  One two three....blast off!!! Silly little chatter from the bed! I love it. 

Jesse, I want you to come when you will be healthy and ready, but heads up mommy's body is getting tired.  

  

big boy and little baby updates

First, my big boy had his first day of play school yesterday!  I am SO VERY PROUD of him! Truly, he has the best personality! On the way to school we talked all about leaving MeMe in the carseat and coming back to him after school ends.  We talked about how some of the kids might cry, but Owen was a big boy and would be ok and didn't need to cry.  We talked about how he was going to have snack and play on the play ground and how he needed to listen to his 2 teachers. I told him he would have a good fun day at school with his buddy Colin.

We got to school, took the first day picture in front of some of the brick of the church and walked into his class.  OH MY!  Most of the class was crying. Owen seemed fine so we washed his hands, found his friend Colin, they started playing in the kitchen together, he gave Mommy a kiss and that was it!   He was happily playing when I left!

When I picked him up he looked tired!  We had a cute little chat that went something like this:
Hi, Owen!!
"Mommy you came back to me!"
Owen what did you do at school?
"Play with trains" "Play outside"
Did you have a snack?
"yes, COOKIES!!!!"
What did you have to drink?
"water! I threw my cup away!"
Did you play with Colin?
"uh ah"
Did you play with the other kids?
"NO, they crying!"

BAHHAAHAHAHAAHAHHA!!  I LOVE THIS KID!!!

In Jesse news!  I think he flipped, which in this case isn't a great thing!  He has been head down every u/s and OB appointment.  The way I know this is that his hiccups have been very low in my pelvic the past month or so.  Well, yesterday I felt this weird rolling, a movement that hasn't happened this pregnancy.  Then he has been kicking in a total different location and last night the hiccups were in my left rib cage area.  :/  Dude, are you just doing everything to ensure we have a repeat c/s?  His size being big, me having gestational diabetes and now him being in the wrong direction.  My belly went from a basketball look to more of 2 melons when I look down!  Haha, thankfully I don't think it looks weird to others!  Hopefully, he will flip back!

Potty Training Day 2: Owen

Day 2 at home.  He is still naked from the waist down and today I haven't been as watchful.  The plumber was here and so was daddy....meaning lots of distractions! Owen has done great with peeing!   However, we did have poop on the floor again. He does notice as it is coming out and says "oh no!" He then ran to the potty and tried, but it was too late.  It seems he didnt quite finish as 2 other times he has RUN to the potty saying "Owen poo poo!" The first time nothing and the second time I think there was already a pebble/rock turd in between his cheeks!  Haha, he soooo wanted the prize, but not yet! 

Then it was nap time, I put a diaper on him and it was a little wet when he woke up.  Daddy was working on the bathroom so we decided underwear and pants were going to have to be worn in the construction zone and basement.  Weeeeeeelllll, I am not surprised we had an accident.  He pooped in his pants, but did seem embarassed about it. Daddy got him cleaned up and new underwear and back to work.  He did do pretty good peeing when we asked him too, though still had damp underwear when it was bath time.  It wasn't a lot so I feel like he realized what was happening and stopped it.  

I have a feeling the poop is going to be our struggle.  But we are talking about how you have to sit on the potty for a long time, sometimes singing a song before the poop will come out!  

If anyone has poop tips fill me in!!

Potty Training Day 1: Owen

Wow, my son amazes me.  Not that today was perfect by any means, but I am a proud mama!

A little background: So, since 18 months we have had the froggy potty in the bathroom.  We have used marshmallows as treats or rewards.  This worked great when they were "new" thankfully we got a different type of marshmallow after a while and so he got re interested! Recently, when we ask if he needs to pee pee or wants a marshmallow he says no.  Chris really has been pushing wanting to try to see if he is ready. Play school starts in 5 days and at play school he will get the opportunity to try and potty, but they can be in diapers or underware.

Anyway, I am really proud of him today.  We got the second frog potty out and out it in front of the TV. He wore his t-shirt and socks. He watched movies, had salty snacks, juice, chocolate milk and peed in the potty 5 times before naptime!  There was a tiny dribble on the floor, but it seems he stopped himself!! The only oops we had was poop, but then we haven't been successful with poop yet anyway.  I ran into my room to switch pants so we could run to the bank and I walk back to poop falling onto the floor!! Then he proceeds to step on it!  The first thing he says is "I am sorry, mommy!" He knew it wasn't right. Thankfully, he was wearing socks and it was easy to pop the sock off and into the wash! Owen helped me wipe the floor (after I cleaned it!) and flushed the poop down the toilet! We talked a lot about pooping in the potty next time and I was hopeful.  

We ran to the bank and were gone for 40 minutes no accident.  He wore shorts no underware!! Then it was naptime. I knew what would happen and was right. He took a great nap and I could see on the monitor the pee puddle!  LOL.  I stripped the bed and washed everything.  What I wasn't expecting was the additional "rocks" in the underware!  They fell out onto the floor, ops! We cleaned them up, wiped Owen down and put a new shirt and socks on!

The rest of the night was good!  A bath, eating dinner at his table and two more pees in the potty.  Clean sheets on the bed, clean PJs and a night time diaper and he is down till day 2!

switching to whole milk

It is official, no more bottles, no more breastmilk and no more FORMULA!!!  Thank goodness!!

We started switching to whole milk cold turkey.  He seemed to like it, but then we got worried that the whole milk was giving him diarrhea.  WELL, it wasn't the milk it was that stomach bug!  So, we went back to formula till Owen was all well.  When I tried to give him whole milk he wasn't interested, I wouldn't be either.  You know how you eat something and it makes you sick and you don't want it anymore, this is what I think he is relating to the whole milk.

So, we did 1/5th whole milk and 4/5ths formula for several days, then 1/3, and then a good week of 1/2.  I could tell when he wasn't sure of the milk and when he would get used to it.  I didn't force it as I was also trying to use up the container of formula too.  From 1/2 we were able to jump to a 1/4 for a day or so and then it happened.  We were running late, so I just thought better now than later!  Owen drank the 100% whole milk ok that day! BUT the next day and true to today he has been GULPING it down like the whole milk is FABULOUS and he has never had such goodness!

I am proud that I was able to exclusively give him breastmilk till 10 months, he had formula for 2 1/2 months and now he is organic whole milk.  

Now if I could get him to eat his veggies!!

Playdates with Colin

I attended a breastfeeding class when pregnant with Owen (best advice EVER!) and was excited to meet another new mom, Katie, and found out she too was having a BOY!! Oh the fun I imagined we would have!!!

In February, our little men were here and were only 13 days apart!

Now 10 months later I am in SHOCK that our boys have grown so fast!

Here are a few pictures of our little men together:

At the beginning the difference of 13 days seemed HUGE!

as newborns (Owen on the left, front)

by 3 months the boys started looking the same age (Owen far right)

now they each have their own personalities!

little buddies

It is so fun to see them together; they are having a war for the cutest cheeks!!

sharing a blueberry muffin

playing with orange colored toys (I totally could have rocked being the mom of twin boys)

And, I swear they are already swapping tricks!

Owen: 10 months

love this face

Schedule: 
You've been waking up at 7:30 am with Daddy's alarm clock, one of us gets you and by 8am you are done with breakfast consisting of puff or cheerios, yogurt and milk.  By 9:30 am to 10am you are so tired and ready for your nap.  You usually sleep till noon and are ready for lunch.  You are eating about 4-6 oz of stage 2 baby food, some more puffs and 4-6 oz of milk.  We then run errands or meet up with friends for a playdate and run home by 2 pm to get you back in bed for your nap.  You will sleep till 4-4:30pm and then you have a snack and more milk and we start waiting for daddy to get home.  After dinner at 6pm you play with daddy till bedtime at 7:30pm.

laughing at mommy

Teeth:
You got your 5th tooth on the top left!  It was a rough week till it broke through, you would wake up once or twice and we would rock you and give you some numbing agent on your gums.

so serious, my boy

Eating:
This month we started weaning.  At the beginning of the month you were breastfeeding 4 times a day.   Each week I dropped a feeding and you did so great!  You are drinking formula out of a straw sippy box.  As of the night you turned 10 months we had our last feeding together.   It was the middle of the night and you needed some comfort.  You pooped your diaper (you were constipated) and then you were teething so you needed mommy's milk that night.  It was so sweet, so bittersweet.  I am so proud that you don't need me anymore for your food, but I miss our sweet snuggles already.  We even spent our first night apart when I stayed with your Aunt Sara one night!

runner up for the Christmas card

Movement:
You have started crawling!  I can put you down in one room and find you in another or down the hall.  You like to throw a toy and then crawl after it!  Your crawl is like a belly/army crawl.  We have already teased you that you are prepping to crawl under houses like your dad!  You will lay on your side and play...you still don't want to sit up on your own.  We can hold your legs and you will sit up, but you never try to do it.  I know it is only a matter of time, I did find you in your crib once this month sitting up crying and you have sat up several times in the bath.

Our Christmas Card picture!

Did I mention how much I love you and I have loved experiencing each new thing through your eyes.  My life is so much better with you in it!

Owen, 9 months

Time is flying here we are and Owen is 9 months old.

Your words:
Mama, Dada, Na-na (night night), all done, I love you, Up (you lifted your arms said up, up mama!)

Eating:
You are starting to eat some of the food off of my plate including: spaghetti, enchiladas, re-fried beans, lasagna, Brunswick stew, santa fe soup, grilled cheese, and nutri-grain bars; basically anything sort of mushy.  You still are eating stage 2 and some stage 3 baby food.  We are proud to say you were breast milk only till 9 months!


Schedule:
Wake up at 7am, play till 8am when Daddy gets you out of your crib and hands you to me.  Nurse, change diaper and go eat yogurt and some puffs!  Play time till nap time from 10-12.  Eat lunch usually a fruit or veggie; play till 2-4 when you take your second nap.  Then you get up, nurse, and we play till daddy gets home.  We have been eating together as a family and it is so fun!  You are like a little bird when I offer you food off of my plate your sweet little mouth is so open and ready to try new things.

it was a meal squeezed in before naptime

Sleep: 

You are still our little sleeper. The time change messed you up for over a week, but thankfully you are getting back on track....we need you to stay up till 7:30 and spend a little time with daddy on the weeknights.  We did have a hurtle this month.  You would turn onto your belly and then cry till we flipped you over.  Now you are doing this just to get us to come in the room as we very well know you can flip over on your own!!

Movement:

You are getting so good with your hands, picking up the littlest of things!  It is amazing to watch you learn to use the different functions of the toys.  You are picking up on cause and effect of thing more and more every day.  You learned to really sit up and this month as been so fun to play sitting up with you!  You haven't started crawling but your little butt is starting to get up in the air hear and there!  But that doesn't stop you from getting around you pinwheel and roll to where ever you need to be!

We love you so much and are so proud of you!

Sick baby and mommy

It is official Owen is in the middle of his first cold. I seem to have it worse than him which I hear is typical of a breastfed baby... Thankfully. Last night he woke himself up with a little cough from his runny nose down the back of his throat. Poor thing was so uncomfortable laying down that he let me hold and snuggle him and he fell asleep in my arms in the rocking chair.

He doesn't look to sick, but laying his head on me is a sign he is tired and not feeling good.

Owen : 8 months

mama's happy baby!

check me out I am sitting up!

• You have started talking
• first you say na-na-na for night night; we think this means "I want to be in my crib with my woombie"
• then one night you said clear as day "I love you" back at daddy! (people may not believe me but you did!!)
• when we were driving to the beach you said "na na na na mama and dada na na na" this was the first time you said dada; broke daddy's heart that we had to keep driving and not get you to your crib like you needed.

so sleepy

sleeping on his belly

• Sleep:
• You have learned to sleep without your swaddle around you; you are still clutching it and sucking on the fabric.  When I hand your woombie you kick and squeal with happiness!
• You like your room nice and toasty when you sleep...if its not you like to let us know!
• You can go some days with only 2 naps, but then you do still need 3 naps

• Eating:
• you will eat just about everything I will give you some new things you have tried are:  lasagna, refried beans, cake, puffs, spinach, but you don't like baby food with textures!  That stuff you will gag and spit back out.  
• You still like fresh food best...the baby food that I make for you...or our food now! 

You are such a good baby!  Have I mentioned that?  Sometimes we are so busy and you only get one nap and still you are so good for mama.  I try to make our days at home special and low key so that you can make up that much needed sleep for growing.