It's 2013

It's the 13th year of 2000... I can't believe that. And I can't believe that in 4 months from today, Jonah will be 1 and in 3 months from yesterday Ben will be 5. Happy New Year! We celebrated with the kids at Nana and Poppy's and we went to the Terry's for our annual New Year's party. We had Fireworks, Food, and Friends... oh lots of FFFFFFFFFUN!
So what's going on in our world. We've just finished the busy holiday season. I always kind of get down this time of year... the beginning of the year, after the excitement of the Holidays, not much to look forward to until the Spring. Luckily, I have an all girl's weekend to look forward to in two weeks. We are going to the cabin again and it'll be fun. I will miss my boys, and I'm so grateful Ryan will watch the boys so I can go and enjoy some quiet girl time.
I took Jonah to his 9 month check up. He's in the 25th percentile for height and weight. And 95th or so for his head, still. That kids got a HUGE noggin. Everything is good with him though, he's a completely wiggle worm... he barely sat still enough for the doctor to check him. We do need to take him to a specialist to check his eyes though because he keeps getting gookie eyes. It might be that he has clogged tear ducts. I hope not, but it's worth checking it out. He's 18 lbs 3 oz and 27 1/2 inches long.
About Jonah: he's head strong. And not just because his head is big! If he sees something he wants, he WILL get it. And if he doesn't feel like laughing, or saying something, or making a noise you want him to- he wont. He's army crawling still. Doesn't seem to be interested much in hands and knees crawling, not sure if he ever will. But he's fast enough doing it that way. He loves his mama still. He doesn't like to sleep that much, but when he does... he wants to be on his bed. He LOVES his big brother.  He loves to sit at the table next to him. And loves to hug him when he sees him. And honestly, no one makes him smile or laugh like his big brother does. He'll laugh at Ben before anyone else. I hope it stays that way forever. He's still a little fish in the bath, loves to be in the water and isn't scared of it at all it seems. And of course, it's always better if Ben is there with him. We can't wait to get him in a swimming pool. He really is a ball of energy... always moving except for when he sleeps! So I think we'll need to have him in a lot of activities... burn off all that energy! It's so true that each of us are born with our own spirits in tact, because Ben and Jonah are so different in so many ways. Ben's always been pretty laid back and easy going. And I think Jonah is going to be the exact opposite. And I love them both for their own little personalities. I am so grateful God sent them to us to love and learn from and take care of. Being a mommy is the most challenging and easy and frustrating and gratifying and scary and amazing thing I've ever done in my life! I can't believe how lucky I am to be able to do have this job. I am Ben and Jonah's mommy, and I love it!

booger bubble!

Well, Merry Christmas! Today we celebrated as parents of two handsome boys. Sometimes it's weird to think this is our 6th Christmas together, and that we've now got a little family to celebrate as. 

We started our celebrations on Saturday with our some of our friends and exchanged gifts. We got a picture of the kids together in their jammies. Cute little stinkers. Then Sunday we had a beautiful musical Sacrament meeting. Yesterday I baked. I made cookies and banana bread in our (MY) new KitchenAid stand mixer which I love. It made me giggle excitedly. Then last night we headed to Jonesboro to visit Ryan's Aunt Vickie as we have in the past. There were SOOOOOO many people there. Some who were not related or that I even knew, but we had fun and everyone was very nice and gracious. We had a wonderful dinner and then the kids opened their gifts from cousins and aunts and uncles. Then the grown ups played Dirty Santa. Poor Jonah isn't feeling too great again. I think his top teeth are starting their decent and is making for a miserable little man. So it was hard for me to enjoy it completely because he was not doing so great. We had a foggy drive home and me and Ben wrapped daddy's present, put out a cookie for Santa and he hurried to bed. He was afraid Santa would see him. He was SO excited and it was ADORABLE. It made me excited for him and to focus on the excitement of Christmas instead of feeling stressed about wrapping presents and all that stuff. 

We finally got settled in to bed around 11pm. Only to be woken up by the sick one, Jonah, at about 12:30am. Then again at 2.30, then again at 4:30.... we woke up at 7:30 and he didn't wake up until Ben had opened some presents already. We got Ben up and he was so excited to see his gifts! He kept saying "he really listened to my list!!" and "Santa gave me too much!" and "I like Santa". Like he really got it this year. Ally, our dog, ate Santa's cookie though much to our shagrin. And we didn't even know she'd done it until this morning. Santa brought Ben a cute little guitar, a scooter and a few other cool things. Jonah got a treasure chest and some clothes. I required that we all take naps, and when I got there... I couldn't sleep. I think I'm getting a cold and was feeling the affects of it, coughing and uncomfortable. Ugh. One of the only times I get the chance to nap, and I can't. So frustrating. Anyway, we rushed to get the house a little more presentable than a Christmas morning lends to, and Ryan's parents came over to spend the rest of the day with us. We made spaghetti dinner and opened presents and just hung out. It was super nice and relaxing and actually fun to be at home. We're usually somewhere else on Christmas day, so I was glad to be home today. Especially since Jonah wasn't feeling great this morning. After his afternoon nap though, his fever had gone away and he was much happier, not totally better... but happier. 

Now the boys are in bed, and we're just hanging out listening to the rain that could become severe weather (there have been tornadoes here in the South today, sad...). I am working tomorrow, bummer, but hopefully not for a whole day.

I sometimes tend to forget why we celebrate today, and need to do better at making sure my kids understand why. I am grateful for our Lord and Savior whose birth we celebrate. I am grateful for His sacrifice and teachings while on the earth. I am grateful for His love. Now, a week away from 2013! ACK! Where did the year go!? I feel as though having two kids makes the time fly by even faster!

Christmas exchange with our friends!

 

Aunt Vickie and Uncle Lanny's House- Christmas Eve

Nana and Poppy!

Tripping time

I'm sitting here next to my man, by the light of the tv and Christmas tree, listening to little Jonah in the next room over in his crib talking when he should be falling asleep. "mamamama" and "babababa" maybe even a "dadada". He's got his little blue doggy blanky and I'm sure is in a corner of the crib sideways, because he NEVER sits still. Ben is in bed, and I'm thinking of him and how I'm concerned a little for him. This has been a hard year for him. Life as he knows it has changed a lot. And I think part of it is because there's a new member of our family, but he's growing older and learning more and realizing more and more how things work every day, which is getting him in to trouble. He's pushing his limits, us, his teacher at school and causing some trouble. I am hoping it's just a stage and not something we'll have to always worry about. He's always been a pretty well behaved kid... but lately, he's been quite difficult. He's very smart and sensitive though... I guess both of those things are maybe not a good combo? I love him, so much, but get so frustrated with him. I have to find balance with him and remember he's a lot like me and if it were me how would I want to be treated? Anyway, that's on my mind right now.
Jonah and I went to go visit my family out in UT this past week. We flew to Las Vegas and met my sister Delinda. Jonah did pretty well on the flight out... I know it was hard for him because he is a wiggle worm. He slept a good bit though. And luckily I sat by two very nice guys who didn't mind him at all. We got there Wednesday afternoon, and Delinda picked us up. We went straight to Rubio's to get fish tacos... because we love them and never have them. After we were done eating, Jonah had a barf fest, (neither of us have seen a barf like the first one, shot out and my hand deflected it and his face was covered from above his eye brows all the way down... in his eyes, nose, all over the car seat, EVERYWHERE...) so as soon as we got that cleaned up we were on our way to St. George. Not long after we got there (and Jonah slept the whole way), Claudia and Nico and Missy came to see us, and then when John got off work he came over. We had Cafe Rio for dinner and then Jonah and I went over to John's to go to bed. Although, he went to bed and I stayed up to chat with them. I love them so much. I wish we lived closer. I love the talks we have with each other and I love their kids. Thursday we spent the day hanging out with my parents and went and ran errands and then that night had our traditional Christmas dinner of Roast, Yorkshire pudding, cream corn, roast potatoes and trifle for dessert. Mom and Dad had 3 of her 4 [living] kids there that night. We missed Greg and his family. Jonah unfortunately really started to feel sick... cold, yucky eyes, coughing and wheezing. He was pretty miserable the whole time. Not his cheery and happy little self. Poor thing! Friday, Delinda and I ran some errands, did a little shopping... I had Kneaders for lunch (there's a theme here, all the food I had been craving that we don't have out here I tried to get! haha). I tried to sleep for a little bit, but couldn't. So we ran a couple more errands to get prepared for our trip home and then we went to see Shauna's grave. I sat by her and just thought abouthow much I miss her. And how much I wish she was there to meet Jonah. The horses came to say hello to us though. On the way back to mom and dad's, Delinda and I talked about all the things we missed about Shauna. How funny she was, her pretty handwriting, her hugs, We sang Heart and talked about how she loved Anne Murray... I was glad to be with DJ to talk about it all.
That night, we went to John and Claudia's for dinner. Claudia, the angel she is, made us Empanadas. They were SOOOOOOOOOOOOOO good! I haven't had her empanadas in years and she was kind enough to spoil us with them. They are hard work to make. And they were amazing. And so is she. I am grateful for such an amazing family and awesome sisters in-law to take care of my brothers. After we ate dinner, we had pumpkin pie cheesecake and then all watched Elf together. Everyone sat on the couches and Nico and I listened to music on the floor and shared some of our favorites bands with each other sharing headphones. It was a nice evening together. Then Saturday it was time to go home. Delinda's flight was a lot earlier than mine, so mom and dad took me and Jonah to Vegas to the airport. Gave us a little more time together. It was a rough ride home, the plane had a malfunction and Jonah was a bit of a stinker- and at this point I was exhausted. Jonah didn't sleep well the whole time we were there, which means I didn't. So by the time we were about an hour from landing I was just DONE. Luckily, people were kind and generous and offered to help and were generally nice. I had a lot of offers to help me which I appreciated, and a lot of compliments on how well behaved Jonah was. I know that most of them saw us and thought "oh great..." when they saw me entering the plane with the baby. He fell asleep pretty fast though. But then we had the engine problem. He slept through most of that, but then woke up when they started making announcements. Right after our malfunction on the plane was taken care of and they alerted us that we would be now taking off, he pooped. AWESOME timing kid... I couldn't get up because we were starting the take off process. So, I tried to hold him on my lap as much as possible and held his shirt down as to block the smell, I just didn't want someone to smell it. BUT, there was nothing I could do. After we'd gotten in to the air, I asked the flight attendant if he could let me know when I could get up because the baby had pooped and I didn't want it to bother the people around me. As soon as he could, right before the drink service, he came to me and told me to go ahead. The only restroom with a changing table was in the back of the plane and I was 12 rows from the front. (sigh) So I took him and my purse back there. Got him on the fold out table in the tiny little bathroom and undid his diaper only to look in my purse and find I didn't have wipes in there, they were in his duffel bag in the overhead. Ugghhhhh. So I had to use wet paper towels. While I was getting said paper towels wet, he was getting his shirt wet by PEEING everywhere! (Again, UGGGHHHH) I yelped, he stopped, I got more paper towels, he peed more... WHATEVER... I can't do anything about it. Luckily, it was just a t-shirt and it wasn't his pants and it was just a section of his shirt in the back. So I got his diaper on, got MORE paper towels and sopped up the pee from his shirt. Then proceeded to go pee my self with the changing table still down and him still laying on it, which incidentally lays over the toilet. So I had to stick my toosh back there and maneuver the peeing business. All the while he's rolling around and I'm holding him up with my head, right arm, and shoulders! It was a circus in that little bathroom! But we got it taken care of. Phew. The rest of the flight was just... too long. I just wanted to get home. He fussed, fell asleep, kept waking up, and did this like 2 or 3 times. Oh well. We made it... and it was a great trip, I'm SO glad we got to see my family and visit, it was short but the perfect amount of time. I missed Ryan and Ben like CRAZY and was so glad to see them when we got home. Me and Ryan snuggled most of the night. I realize whenever I'm away from him how much I don't like it. haha! I love to have my partner around all the time, he's my best friend and I just love being with him. Jonah was SO glad to be home, so glad to see his daddy and big brother. Luckily, we ALL slept until 9am this morning. Jonah didn't wake up once... I think he was SO tired. He even took a 3 hour nap today! And the rest of us about an hour and a half nap. Now it's back to work... and I'm not looking forward to it. Things are going to get crazy. But Christmas is about 2 weeks away so we'll get some more family time together.
We are having a little shindig for Christmas with our friends this weekend I'm excited for. We also have our Relief Society dinner this week for church, and Christmas lights at the Atlanta Botanical Gardens next week... volunteering for work on the 21st at the Salvation Army giving away the Angel Tree gifts. Lots to look forward to.
And something to make me feel old, my nephew JC who is on a mission is turning 20. Weird.
Jonah's two bottom teeth have come out, right at 8 months old. He's army crawling and is in to EVERYTHING he can find. When he's not scooting around that way, he rolls everywhere. Loves to play with tags on anything. Calls me "mama", especially when he wants me. Says and waves "Bubuh" (bye bye). He's pretty serious, he's happy, but doesn't laugh much. He doesn't like to be tickled, he cries or gets mad if he's not in the mood. He'll laugh, but he really has to be in the right mood for it. He's big. Or at least I feel like he's bigger than Ben was, but I don't really remember right probably. He's starting to grow out of his 6-9 mo clothes though. He doesn't like to be told no, and gets pretty mad at us when we take something away from him he shouldn't have. He's my snuggle bunny. Mama's boy.
Well, I should go to bed. I will have to do better with updating this... I am so forgetful nowadays that unless I write it down, it will disappear in to the oblivion.
*photos to come.

It's been a long time since I've written, and I really don't have much time or energy for that matter to write much. But wanted to note that I'm still alive... barely. ha! I have to tell ya... I'm sure there are plenty of people who love it- but for me, being a working mommy of TWO kids is hard! I am WORN out. I know Ryan is too. We decided last week that being a grownup is pretty hard sometimes... but, we have the two most adorable faces to wake up to everyday! THANK GOODNESS!
Jonah is 7 months old now. His little personality is really shining through, and we just love him. He's another happy boy that's been brought in to our lives, and we are so grateful for that. He has the most contagious smile! He's making lots of fun sounds and noises... ba-ba, mama, dada and the "pfffft" sound with his tongue. Rolls all over...loves to bob his head when he's sitting upright. Loves his big brother and Ally the dog. Loves his mama. Is pretty stubborn. Loves his blue doggy blankie. He definitely looks like my side of the family.
Ben had a wonderful Halloween, he was Spiderman this year. He only wanted to go to a few houses to trick-or-treat, and had a much more entertaining time passing out candy and seeing all the other kids. He even gave up some of his candy for a trick-or-treater when I ran out of candy to pass out! He's doing well in Pre-k and is learning SO much. He surprises us everyday with things he's singing or talking about. He LOVES Show and Share Fridays. And occasionally still gets jealous of the attention Jonah gets. He's got a talking back problem right now, which I'm sure will probably be an issues for years to come (sigh) but he's got a heart of gold. I had a really rough morning last week and was crying because I was frustrated about something and he said "mommy?" and I kind of said in an annoyed voice "BEN! You need to leave me alone for a little bit so I can figure out how to do this okay?" and he said "But mommy? I just wanted to know if I could give you a hug?" Sweetest little guy. He's LOVED playing out in front with the two neighbor girls Sophia and Isabella. They're quite a bit older than him, but they are great with him and he always looks to see if they are around to play house with. Which I love, because kids are supposed to be outside using their imaginations and not getting their brains sucked out by the tv right?! I don't even mind when he gets super dirty!
Jonah and I are flying out to St. George, UT to go see my parents and brother (maybe both?) with my sister Delinda. I will miss my other boys but am happy I get to go be with my family too.
Okay, time for bed. I would love to say or promise I'll do better at writing but I struggle to find any time. We've got a bridal shower this weekend, wedding next, Thanksgiving... and then holidays. And work is INSANE right now on top of that. Life...
We had some family photos taken by a wonderful photographer who is a mutual friend of some of my friends, she did and amazing job and can't wait to get them. I will share a couple when we get the disc! Until then, here are the boys!

On the way to Trick-or-Treat!

Burt's Pumpkin Farm

Tender heart

Our Ben has the most tender little heart. Ben is a very sensitive kid and feels his emotions throughout his whole body. Whether it be that he's sad, disappointed, happy, excited... he FEELS it. I just had a great cuddle/hang out before bed session with him and it made me happy so I wanted to write about it while thinking of it. There's enough room for us to both lay on his bed, so we were just chatting... about who knows what. Who cares, right? He said his prayers, asked for Uncle Greg to feel good and "thankful for soccer that it'll get safely" and then I told him goodnight and I loved him lots. I put my hands back to back and said "I love you from here (one side of the hand) all the way around the world to here (the other side of the hand)" to which he replied "No.... I love you from here (point to his heart) to here (to my heart)". Is your heart melting like mine did? Even though my little guy drives me batty, for being a 4 year old he sure is wise and loving. When I got home the other night from a long day at work where I had to stay after hours he came out to the car to great me and hug me and said "mommy- you took too much long to come home". I love that little stinker. He is, as well as his brother, my SUNSHINE.

Big Headed Children

I guess it's inevitable. We have big headed kids. I took Jonah to his 4 month check up last week and he's doing great. Healthy, happy, on the right track. His head... 98th percentile people. We have a genius on our hands! I can feel it! I mean, you've got to have a large head to hold all those brains right? Right??? There is one hindrance to such a large head though, he doesn't quite have the tummy-time- head up-pushing up with hands-thing down yet. He'll get there though! He's average for length, but a little on the skinny side- but again, I'm not worried. His reflux is pretty well under control. He's been a little under the weather since going to daycare, but that's to be expected unfortunately. He's a HAPPY baby. Loves to cuddle with mama. Only wants a pacifier when he wants to fall asleep. Is playing and reaching for things. Rolls to his side, and can just about get to his belly. The girls at daycare says he does, but I wont believe it until I see it. :^) He LOVES taking baths, especially with his big brother. He loves to talk and make noises and suck on his little fists. He's found his feet. He likes to be sung to, he thinks it's pretty funny. He likes it when daddy scares him. He likes to "talk" to daddy too, Ryan will ask him a question and he'll smile and nod his head or sometimes shake it. I know, coincidence but it happens EVERY TIME. haha! He loves to watch Ben. He and Ben are starting, just barely, to interact with each other and it's awesome. I can't wait until they have that solid brotherly bond and when they get to laugh and play together. We both swear Jonah hates being a baby and just wants to play, play, play and be a bigger kid.
We fed him his first rice cereal, but he's not really in to it yet. We will try again in another week or so. He ate it- but he doesn't get it really. He's sleeping pretty much from 8:30ish-6am... on average. Not always, but most nights he does. We're finding it's harder to get him to sleep when we're out, he likes to know what's going on and see around him despite how tired he is. He snorts when he's mad. He's taking about 6oz in the bottle mixed with a little cereal for his reflux. Again, he's a very happy baby. I love his little cute cheeks and kissing them and he actually likes it when I do it too, which makes my heart warm and fuzzy. He's got beautiful eyes and a happy disposition. We are so blessed to have two beautiful sons of God that we "get to" take care of.

this photo melts my heart every time I see it...

Big Boy...

I think I'll freak out even more when he goes to Kindergarten next year, but for now- this is close enough. Ben started Pre-K yesterday! Luckily we are blessed to have both the boys in a good daycare, and ours has the Pre-K program there already! He loves his new teacher Miss Abby and assistant teacher Miss Dana. Both of them have kids at the daycare, and seem like nice ladies! He even gets to wear his backpack. I don't know... we might need to get him a cooler one, do you think Winnie the Pooh is a little too young for a 4 1/2 year old? No seriously... I don't want him to feel "un-cool". Anyway, I gave him a haircut and he's so handsome. I love my little smarty pants. :)

It's high time I update this blog thing. haha So much has happened in just the last month my head is still spinning. I'll get to that later, maybe even in another post. We have had a pretty fun summer though, and I wanted to write about it.

Because I had Jonah in April, my maternity leave covered May and June and so me and the two kiddos were able to do some fun stuff once I was feeling up to it and felt Jonah was "old" enough to be out and about. To keep myself from going completely insane, I tried to get out about every other day- even if it was just to the grocery store or for a ride or something. However, about a month, or maybe a little more than that, before I went back to work I was invited by a church friend to go to the playdates a group of ladies from church do every Wednesday. This proved to be very beneficial for not only Ben, who was getting super bored at this point at home with me and the baby, but for me as well. I have somewhat been a little introverted when it comes to friends or people I know at church. We have a good group of friends, but they happen to be in other wards (or congregations for those who don’t speak Mormon) and so I just haven’t made a huge effort to get to know people. Plus I’m a little shy believe it or not and maybe and just afraid of rejection? I don’t know… anyway, the play group not only helped me get acquainted to people I already knew I liked but to meet a few other women that I didn’t know. And it was fun to see all the things we could do for either free or really cheap. We went to a park near railroads tracks, so that every time a train went by the kids could run up and watch it. And just down the street from there is a free little splash park, much like the one at Centennial Park. So free and free= awesome. We went to another park at the DeKalb Peachtree Airport, a smaller airport here in the Atlanta area. The kids get to watch the planes take off, and again- it was free! We brought lunch and ate under the little covered table area and the kids played on the playground there. We went to the Splashpark near our house which is only $1 to get in… and all three places Ben had A BLAST. Jonah did pretty well too! We had a few other playdates with friends on the side which was really nice. We went with Kaela and Aubrey K. to a place called Catch Air, basically an indoor playground with tons of bounce house type equipment. Ben keeps asking if we can go back, which I hope to soon. Ben also learned to love and appreciate cold sandwiches and Lunchables during our summer together.  We typically feed him warm food, and he actually eats warm lunches at school too. And I figured that since he’ll be going to elementary school next year (EEEK!) he needs to have cold lunches a lot. Still not keen on peanut butter and jelly sandwiches though, which is so weird to me. Who doesn’t love a PB&J with a cold glass of milk? Apparently my child.

The week before I had to go back to work was our typical summer vacation week. Ryan takes off the week of his birthday every year, and luckily that was the week I was supposed to return to work- but instead I used a week of vacation and we spent the week as a family hanging out together. We went to the pool, we ran errands, we played in the rain, we filled up the little pool we have and the boys played in it, celebrated Ryan's birthday... It was just fun to do whatever, whenever. Ben and I had a date and we got to go to the Atlanta Center for Puppetry Arts one of the days that week. We went and saw the Pirate Princess which is basically the Little Mermaid story… only closer to the real version of it. He LOVED it. LO-VE-D it. It was really fun! They have a “museum” of puppets there we got to look at. And because he was dressed up like a pirate (I think one of the only kids there that was!) he got a coupon for a free cupcake, which we still need to get him. Anyway, I think he really enjoyed the alone time with mommy. Ryan and Jonah hung out at home.

We also were able to drop the boys off at Ryan's parents for an evening, and were spoiled thanks to a vendor working with Ryan's company. We had tickets to the SunTrust suite at the Braves game which included free food and drinks, as much of it as you want, valet parking and two awesome seats behind home plate. We were almost on TV, but we were like two people shy of it! It was definitely a lot of fun. Ryan had what we think was the flu unfortunately, but we still enjoyed each others company. I love my man and spending time with him alone. Ben is starting to get jealous of us spending time alone with one another, he thinks we should love him first instead of each other. One day he'll understand!  This summer we have also got to visit with my sister Delinda, our friends from the Northpoint Singles ward, which incidentally, a lot of us all had kids around the same time as each other, and also our friends the Christensen's. We try to see the Christensen's once a year, or at least have been blessed to have been able to. They moved from AZ to PA and got to stop in town to visit and we had a great, short, visit with them. We wish it could've been longer. We always find ourselves saying "I wish they lived closer, we would hang out with them all the time".
Going back to work this time was pretty difficult. Not maybe as difficult as it was last time with Ben, but for about a month before (I know, pretty pathetic) I was pretty down and out. Spending the summer with Ben and being the stay at home mom I really desire to do was so much "fun"... hard at times, but I loved being with my two boys. I miss them a lot every day. I just hope that one day they realize that we both want what's best for them and even though it's not my first choice to be working- we have a lot of reasons for it and feel it's what we need to do for our family. With that said, I decided to not be too mopey about it. I still have my days, but I have to make the best of our situation and so while I was out on Maternity leave I was presented with a new position opportunity at my work that I applied for and eventually got the job! I've been back to work since June 25th and it's been a bit of a crazy (almost) 2 months. I am excited for this new position, it's just hard for me to go from knowing my other job SO well to training on something new and not really knowing what to do next or how or what's the right way, etc. The lady that was doing the job before me quit while I was out on Maternity leave, so I don't have anyone training me. I'll get through it though. There are definitely some perks to this new position, although it's a lot more demanding and at times will be more time consuming- it was definitely a blessing. A pay raise and the ability to have the option to work from home occasionally will help out tremendously. Anyway... that's the update for our summer so far. It's almost over, and we will be ending it with a trip to Destin, FL to visit the beach! Yay! We have been waiting just about ALL year for this!

Cool Baby...

Swimming! Jonah enjoys (warm) water!

Lots of playing in the rain!

Cabin Trip- Memorial Day Weekend

We went to our trusty Thundering Waters cabin over the long holiday weekend with our friends. It's been a while since the guys had been there, but only a few months for us girls since we took our Girl's Trip there in January. This was Jonah's first time to the cabin, and the first time in a while we've been when it was warm out! We played a lot of cards, watched movies, tubed in the Chattahoochee River, picked ticks off each other and the dogs, grilled out both nights (DELICIOUS FOOD), enjoyed getting to know Mr. Joe who came with Jennifer, gave first aid to Ryan who got stung by a wasp, and managed to somehow fight some sort of bug Ben picked up Saturday morning that caused him to throw up until he took a good long nap that made him feel better. He had been fighting a cold earlier in the week, and over night the cabin in general got a tad bit cold and I think his body was retaliating. He came up to me in the morning pale and weak and said "My tummy hurts. I'm FREEZING" in a very pitiful sad voice. I think he secretly enjoyed the pampering after his puking bit because we quarantined him downstairs away from everyone with his DVD player and my old iPhone to play games on, I don't blame him! It's always nice to get a little extra love and attention, right? As soon as he felt better he went with all the grown ups & Savannah down to play in the river. Poor little Savannah was also fighting a battle of her own with teething AND we also celebrated (I wish we would've done more) Ashley's 30th birthday! Unfortunately we had to leave on her birthday, and also a lot earlier than a lot of us planned because the septic system backed up and we couldn't do much after that point. So we didn't get to do anything particularly fun for her, and for that I am sad. :(

I just have to say, again, how very grateful I am to have such wonderful friends in our lives. I am obviously grateful for my family whom I love very much- but our friends are tried and true and are always there for us. We love taking these trips with them. We are all like a family of our own and we just love each other and each others company. Everyone is always so helpful with our kids, and I know Ben loves each and every one of them as if they are his family. He doesn't know any different, because they've always been in his life. That is so special to me, and I hope he remembers them always and how special they are to him. We have a plaque in our family room that says "Friends are the Family you choose" and that couldn't be more true! We are so blessed!

Playing Phase10

Cute Savannah

 

Keeping it real

 

Mustachio!

 

I swear this is not an advertisement...

 

 

 

I feel horrible that I haven't posted more about Jonah and his development, and also Ben too. Both change everyday. Jonah is 2 months this week and he's my little hunk. There are so many things to notate about him I don't know if I'll be able to remember it all.

Our days typically consist of a feeding somewhere between the hours of 4-6am and then another 2 hours later. We sleep between those two feedings, but Ben usually wakes up and for some reason feels the need to wake me to tell me he needs to go potty instead of just going. Sigh. I usually turn the TV to the channel he likes to watch before I go to bed at night so he can turn it on while I rest and feed Jonah. The days seem to fly by, like even now- it's 2pm and I haven't eaten my lunch but both boys are fed and (supposedly) taking a nap! Ben's starting to not sleep but he still has to have quiet time in his room, mostly for mommy's sanity. Before I know it it's 5pm and Ryan's on the way, and I feel guilty more days than not that I don't have dinner planned and beginning to cook for him when he gets home. So far, I'm not a good pretend stay at home mom (since I will be returning to work in a month, I don't count as a real one! haha), although I really wish I could be one still. Jonah eats right around the time we eat dinner, then I eat, then it's bath and bed time for Ben and then I usually feed Jonah and get to bed between 10:30-12am. So far the last few nights, he's slept on average of about 5 hours which is awesome... but that could change, tonight. I've been trying to take an outing about every other day to help keep us all sane. Jonah doesn't particularly like being in the car seat... so that makes it kind of difficult. He usually calms down after a little while, and it's getting better the older he gets. Ben is the look out for me and alerts me if he's crying (like I can't hear him), or if he's sleeping, or looking at him or outside... it's very helpful. tee-hee It's a little bit of a challenge to get both kids out the door and to maneuver it all on my own, but it's getting easier and easier and I'll be a pro before I know it. :)

Jonah for a while, a very short while, liked to be swaddled but then he realized his hands were constricted and then decided he didn't like being swaddled at all. Ben was the exact same way. Jonah has the most kissable cheeks, I've mentioned that before, but I can't get enough of them. Jonah has now started to smile! It's awesome and he's starting to make sounds and coo and he even laughed at his daddy the other night when he said "chi-chi" to him! I suppose he thought it sounded funny! I am so glad he's out of that zombie newborn stage and is showing some personality. I can tell he has got a lot to say and is going nuts because he can't say it. We swear he wants to be a big kid already and is not happy about being a newborn! He tells me a lot with those beautiful eyes of his. 

He doesn't really have a "pattern" of being awake/sleeping... other than at night. He usually takes about 2-3 naps during the day but also enjoys playing on the activity mat a lot. He likes to see what his brother is doing and the tv and to flail his arms and legs about. He's very alert and active for a 2 month old! This morning both Ben and I weren't in the room and we came back to find him laying on his side! Ben sat next to him and he rolled back over to his back! He's too little for that! He's also found his hands, and when he's hungry he desperately tries to suck on them, thus leaving them stinky on occasion! I wash them, I swear. He's eating 3 1/2-4 oz now, and we've had to put him on Zantac for reflux and have started to add rice to his milk. I was giving it to him in all his bottles but have just cut down to his night time ones to keep him sleeping longer at night due to a little bit of a problem with being backed up. He has started to use the pacifier more, mostly when he's going to sleep. He will not take it if he's hungry though, he will not be tricked! haha

He doesn't care for the bath still, unless Ben is in there with him. It seems much more tolerable to him when his big brother is in there with him. Which, I think it's pretty adorable! I love having my two little nakey boys in the bath together! 

Jonah does NOT like to be burped at the beginning of his feedings. He does this start up cry as soon as I take the bottle from his mouth and sit him up and then screams out all while pushing back as to get to be in the laying position again! He's a stubborn little one. 

Ben has had a bit of a difficult time now this second month. He's really seeking for a lot of attention now, and has been acting out. Not towards Jonah at all, but to me particularly and just in general. He all of a sudden doesn't ever want to be alone, and thinks his room is spooky at night. He's afraid of us deserting him at home whenever we need to go out or even if we're at the store and we're slightly ahead of him. He and I are a lot alike so I think we drive each other a little crazy. He loves his brother though, and he loves to feed him. He feels super important and in charge when he does. I'm trying to get him to be my helper so that he focuses more on that, than how his life has changed. His favorite song right now is Party Rock Anthem from LMFAO. He loves to dance to it and almost knows all the words, but his favorite part is the "every day I'm shufflin". We've even gotten him to do his rendition of a robot dance. Ben does NOT like it when drawers or closet doors are open. He needs to close them when they are. I think it's pretty funny that something like that would bother a 4 year old. His favorite thing to say lately is "That's a GREAT idea!" and tells us we're "full of bologna" (bologna just doesn't look like how it sounds does it?) often. He has been doing a lot of his homework while at home with me. We have some print outs that have very short sentences on them that the kids are supposed to trace below and Ben is really good at it. At times he runs out of room, but he can do it. He doesn't know how to read it, but he knows the letters and how to write them together. The poor kid is getting lonely, but I try to do something with people who have kids often. Some ladies from church usually try to do a playgroup once a week, and we went this week and had a lot of fun. We went to a park that is located right next to some train tracks so the kids can watch as the train goes by, and just down the road is a free spray park that they played in. He was pretty upset when we had to leave, and didn't believe me that everyone else was too! Ben loves his daddy, and loves when he comes home. They get all sorts of rowdy, which I still don't understand, but have a lot of fun doing it. Ben can buckle himself in the car now. We still struggle with him eating in a timely manner, and still struggle with certain foods and textures. He likes to help water the yard, and to play in the water. And is really excited to start swimming this summer which I hope to do this weekend. I feel like he goes through these crazy growth spurts that make him just look so much more like a little kid instead of my toddler and it's scary sometimes. He drives me batty, but I sure love that kid. He loves his family very much and I hope that never changes. 

Ally Doggy

Happy 5th Birthday to our little doggy, pal, and the other girl in the house Ally! 

Jonah's Blessing

Jonah is named after my dad, the Grant part. So while my parents were still here we asked my dad if he would be willing to give Jonah's baby blessing. We did it at home since he was still so tiny and had a member of the bishopric come to participate, as well as our friends Geoff Davies, Jacob Terry and Jared Markham... and obviously Ryan too. :) It was a beautiful blessing. What stood out to me was the fact that Jonah came at a special time and his purpose and influence on this earth was so important and that his parents loved him SO much would guide him in the right direction (no pressure or anything!).  He didn't cry at all, and the blessing was special and sacred and I'm so glad my daddy got to do it!

 

 

 

For those of my friends who are not LDS, we bless baby's in our church and give them a name for the records of the church and sort of a prayer for guidance and direction and of good things to come for them in their life.

Jonah continued...

Motherhood and the creation of life is such a miracle. I feel pretty blessed to be a mom... it's not easy and sometimes pretty stressful. Well OK, a lot of the time it is. But that doesn't make me love it any less. I am so grateful for these two beautiful boys I have. 

Here are some of the deets on Jonah's birth. Well, on April 4^th I was doing laundry… had Ben home because he was feeling under the weather and I wanted to take him to the doc because I was afraid he had a cold and I didn’t want him to get his baby brother sick when he arrived. Our appt was at 12:15 so it was just he and I at home. After getting some stuff from the dryer I came in to use the restroom and that's when my water broke. I called Ryan and the nurse, Ryan asked if he should come home to which I responded quickly and loudly (not yelling though, hehe) "YES! NOW!" and the nurse confirmed my water had broken and that as soon as Ryan came home I needed to get to the hospital. A couple of things about this, I was set to be induced the 6th had he not come on his own- but I REALLY wanted to go in to labor on my own. In fact, I prayed about it a lot. It was REALLY important to me because I was totally induced with Ben and really wanted to experience the whole going in to labor thing naturally.  And sadly, my normal doctor wasn't on call yet- he was going to be that Friday but Dr. Hirsch was on call. The nurse assured me that he was a really nice guy and would be wonderful, which was comforting. 

While we were alone, Ben came in to see what was wrong with me in the bathroom and I told him “The baby is going to come, I need you to get your clothes on RIGHT NOW” and he kind of started to whimper like he was worried and I said “mommy’s ok, don’t freak out”. So when I came out of the bathroom he said to me “mommy, I got dressed and I’m NOT freaking out”. Hahaha… he’s  a funny kid. Hillary arrived and helped keep Ben distracted (and me a little bit calmer than I would’ve been) and helped grab a few things for me to take with to the hospital (all the while she is about 9 months pregnant as well!). Ryan zoomed on home, and his dad (who was luckily off work for the day) drove over to pick Ben up and they got here at the same time as each other. So my water broke at about 9:50am and we got the hospital by 10:45. Ryan’s mom met us there. Unfortunately, this was all the day before my parents were to arrive! I called my momma on the way and we cried together because I really had wanted her there with me during all of it. She was mad at Jonah for not waiting just ONE MORE DAY! I called Ben's doctor on the way to the hospital to see what we could do for him, in case he had something contagious since I obviously couldn't make it to his appt. The nurse was kind of laughing at me because I was calling during all of this. She said "um so you're on the way to the hospital? are you like... having any... you know, contractions?" haha! I told her not yet, just slight discomfort. (BTW- Ben just had allergies, thank goodness!)

So we got to the hospital and then in to our room and that's about when I started having contractions.  So basically, to make a long (and otherwise boring) story short, they gave me the epidural when the contractions started getting more frequent and painful and then after that- they slowed way down. This epidural experience was A LOT different than when I had Ben. I didn't believe people when they said they had their epidural and didn't feel a thing because I TOTALLY did feel EVERYTHING with Ben, but this time... I understood! I did have to have a second dose of it because I could still feel some discomfort on my left side, which was weird since I was laying on my left side practically the WHOLE time I was in labor. The epidural relaxed me a lot and so my contractions slowed way down- so they gave me a little pitocin to speed things up. This eventually made little Dude Jonah's heart rate drop and so they turned the pitocin off and gave me something to actually completely stop the contractions. That was TERRIFYING for us. All the nurses rushed in frantically pushing buttons, watching the monitors, turning me from side to side, rubbing my belly to get him to react, etc... it was really scary. Our nurse was awesome and so comforting and let me cry after he was stable again and reassured me that he was fine... the contractions were just too much for him.  I progressed quite nicely after that, and started having the contractions again and a MUCH smaller dose of pitocin to keep them going. I even took a nap! At about 7pm Jonah's heart starting giving us issues again, so Dr. Hirsch decided to go ahead and deliver, we were close enough and it was that or have a possible c-section, which again terrified me. He also mentioned forceps which I was totally against, but he assured me that all would be well and to trust him. Jonah's head is pretty large... so there was really no other option unless we did c-section and I was bound and determined to not have to do that. So we did one practice push- which I could barely feel because of the epidural. Then a few mins later once everything was set for me to go, I pushed once... then twice and about half way through that push the Doc told me to stop and he would do the rest and out came our Sunshine! I was hysterical... LOL I was so happy to see him, and to hold him and hear him. It was amazing. As they took him away to clean him up and do all his measurements and stitch me up- thunder rolled in! Not sure what that's symbolic of, but it was still pretty neat! He came in with a vengeance I suppose! Both of us were healthy and we were able to come home two days later with both our boys in tow. It was a surreal experience having two kids in the back of the car!

So now it's almost a month later, can you believe it? We had to put Jonah on sensitive formula because he's had some stomach issues with just the regular kind, and no I'm not breastfeeding. He likes to be held, but luckily not ALL the time. He doesn't like his pacifier like his big brother did... it just kind of soothes him, once in a while. He's got a temper just like his big brother did. He's been pretty darn alert ever since he was born. Recently his eye sight has started to clear up and he can see things pretty well and will follow a hand or object if in front of him. One of my favorite things ever is when I'm feeding him and he's staring at me and we lock eyes... melts my heart. And even with that huge noggin of his, he's got a lot of strength in his neck and back and can hold his head up really well. He's taking 3oz and at times wants more after that. He eats about every 2 hours, sometimes 3. And there have been a few nights that he will do 4 hour stretches, even a couple of 5-6 hour ones between feedings. He has started to enjoy laying on the floor on a blanket or his activity mat and "play". Kicking, waving arms, wiggling the body, swatting... He hasn't quite started to coo or make big noises but he's getting close to. He acts like he could roll over any minute, so maybe he'll do that earlier than Ben did! He's growing pretty fast, and is now starting to be too long for his newborn clothes. His hair is lightening up A LOT, his eyebrows and lashes are a lot lighter than Ben's were and it looks like he'll be pretty blonde, or at least that's my prediction. He doesn't have as much hair as Ben did, we could do a little mohawk with Ben but no go with Jonah. He's got the cute little notch on his right ear, just like his big brother and daddy have.

Speaking of his big brother, Ben has done remarkably well with Jonah and having him around. I'm kind of surprised really. He acts as if Jonah has always been here. He loves to gently kiss him and rub his soft head. He likes to see if he's awake, and always lets me know if he is! The first time he met him, I think that he finally understood that there WAS a baby in mommy's tummy (we weren't just making it up) and here he was! Just like that first day he was around him, he still loves to see him and check on him and see what he's doing. He's had his own little 4 year old issues... but I don't really think they have to do with Jonah. He's lonely for his friends and daycare routine, we have him out now since I'm on maternity leave and it's so expensive to keep him there. I took him for a couple hours last week so he could play and his little buddies were ECSTATIC to see him and he was so happy to have his groupies around him. He keeps telling me he misses them. He was entertained for the 2 1/2 weeks my parents were here, but now that they're gone- he's a little bit lonely. Luckily we have a full week this week so he should get a little more interaction with kids his age and the outside world. 

I again, am so in love with this new little person we get to take care of. His cheeks are just as kissable as I hoped they would be, and I can't believe how lucky I am to have two handsome boys. And just like Dr. Hirsch said when we told him this was our #2 boy, "you're going to have a house full of penises!". I'm out numbered! hahaha

My contractions were a lot prettier and more mellow than last time.

On Jonah's birthday... tired mommy

Daddy and Jonah

Meeting Jonah

All 4 grandparents and our boys

Leaving the hospital with our two boys!

First family photo of all 4 of us!

Jonah's first Doctor's visit