The Aunts Go Marching...

A few weeks ago (okay, a month) we got to spend a little time with Nathan and Olivia's Aunt Kelley and Uncle Chris. They weren't able to visit long, but we enjoyed having them here and letting them snuggle with Livy. You'll have to excuse Kelley's platinum locks...her stylist needs to re-review the chapter on dyes before she touches someone else's hair.

We also enjoyed a slightly longer visit from Aunt Ashley who flew in from California to meet her niece and play with her nephew. Olivia and I went to pick her up from the airport and even though I really worried about how it would go (lady bug is not the best traveler) she did great and slept most of the time. With Ashley visiting and the lure of the grand babies as strong as ever, Lolo and Momo and Popo also made the trip up here. While they were here Jimmy and I managed to sneak out for our first date in a long time. Hooray for relatives! Olivia was a little fussy that weekend with so much activity and Nathan mostly played with Popo as usual. Aunt Ashley tried to play with him but for some reason he was kind of mean to her all weekend and insisted that he didn't like her and would get mad if she tried to play with him. He was probably bummed she didn't bring her dogs, although if he ever met Jude (her 75 lb golden-doodle who thinks he's the size of Prince, her 20 lb poodle) in person he would change his mind. He loves dogs but is only used to small dogs and gets a little freaked out by bigger dogs who want to get in his face (which pretty much defines all dogs). Anyway, hopefully he'll be nicer to her at Christmas!

In between the aunts visiting, Grammy came to visit. You know what that means! Laundry gets done, dishes stay washed, dinner gets cooked and kids get snuggled. Oh, and Jimmy and I get a hug or two in there as well. My babies are so blessed to have such wonderful grandmas and aunts to love on them.

My Little Chef

Nathan is all about helping these days and wants to do things independently to boot. One way I've tried to give him the attention he needs in the afternoon is to let him help me (or anyone else) cook. He pours, he crushes, he stirs and he "chops" (with a flimsy white plastic knife that barely cuts butter). He loves the cooking center at his school and likes to pretend he's cooking there and at home. I love that he is using his imagination to do things like this. I remember making mud pies with locust shells (you know, as a binder) at my house and opossum sandwiches using coasters for my Papa at their house. In case you're worried, Papa never (to my knowledge) actually ever ate a real opossum sandwich, but that's what he always said he wanted when we were "cooking" for him. He also insisted that horses liked peanut butter and jelly sandwiches. I miss him.

Anyway, here are some pictures from the last few months of my big cooking helper.

Observations on Motherhood

I'm not sure why but I think I'll want to remember life with a newborn someday. I didn't start blogging with Nathan until after he was past this first precious stage, and I was having such a hard time recovering and breast feeding that I don't remember much anyway. And it isn't that we'll be having another baby (at least it isn't in our plans) so really why write this stuff down? Maybe so someday when Olivia has a baby she can look back on this post and see how real life with a newborn functions (or doesn't).

I'm feeling pretty useless these days. While I wouldn't call Olivia a high maintenance baby by any means, she definitely prefers to be held. And why not? She was safe and snug next to my heartbeat for almost 9 months so why wouldn't she want to continue that pattern. She is also a very noisy sleeper. Most newborns are noisy when they sleep, but she takes it up a level. Mostly she is a squeaking, grunting, pushing, hiccuping mess. Jimmy says she sounds like a combination cat-squeaky ball-baby. The culprit is gas and/or whatever sensation being flat on her back creates that she doesn't particularly like. The result of these two traits is that my days are spent holding, nursing or changing her diaper. We do both manage to get dressed in a fresh change of clothes everyday (ok, most days) and I get us both bathed regularly enough, but past that I really get nothing accomplished. Case in point: I created and ordered Olivia's birth announcements two weeks after she was born (win!) but then it took two more weeks to get them addressed, return labels attached and mailed. Oh, wait, so silly...they aren't mailed yet!! We need stamps.

Regarding keeping us both groomed, I feel it is important to note that showering with a newborn in the house is a privilege, not a right. I first observed this with Nathan and the same is true for Livy. Thank goodness for bouncers or I'd never get clean. Luckily both kids have been calmed by the sound of running water, so I don't have to listen to screams during my shower (unless I take too long).

Then there is nighttime sleep (or the lack thereof). I've mentioned already that my lady bug is a noisy sleeper. Well, guess who doesn't sleep through all that noise? If you hold and rock her, the noise level goes down. So once a night I swallow the guilt and wake Jimmy up to rock with her so I can sleep a little. The rest of the time I'm either rocking her myself or laying awake in bed listening to her and wishing I could fall asleep in the 2 minute quiet intervals between squeak sessions. Occasionally I sit and cry and wonder why everyone in the house gets to be asleep except me! Even the cats are curled up snoozing away. Then of course comes my late night hatred for my loving husband. How can he possibly sleep through all that racket?! This hatred grows with each middle of the night diaper change and feeding and is amplified when he snores. I wonder if he's faking sleep (wouldn't that be ironic) and search my immediate surroundings for something to throw at him from my vantage point of the rocking chair. You know, something that isn't too light (because it won't make it to him) or too heavy (I do actually need him in the morning). Something juuuust right for smacking upside that snoring head so he'll turn over. I might need to keep a stock of stuffed animals nearby for this purpose, but I digress. I recently saw a sign that said, "the phrase shouldn't be sleeping like a baby, it should be sleeping like a husband." True words.

On the subject of breast feeding...I hate it! We are into 4 weeks of life with Olivia now and she's still using a shield to nurse because she can't latch consistently without it. Nathan needed the shield for just three weeks then quit it cold turkey. Of course then he immediately got thrush and shared it with me. With Livy I've already been on two rounds of antibiotics for mastitis on both sides. With Nathan, once we got past the 6 week mark I seem to remember enjoying breast feeding and was sad to stop when I went back to work at around 4 months.  But that's a distant memory right now. I've already considered quitting multiple times and have resorted to the mental strategy I used with Nathan of "just one more day" or " after this week we'll stop." There are times when she nurses calmly for 10 or more minutes and I feel pretty content. But the majority of the time she's squirming and fussing and making noise resulting in a broken latch (and spilled milk), choking (and spilled milk) and knocking off the shield (and spilled milk). Let me tell you from someone with supply problems, that stuff is precious and while there is really no use crying over spilled milk, the tears happen in this house! I'm holding out hope that as she gets bigger she'll get better and eventually we'll have a good time feeding. Until then I'm using sibling rivalry (Nathan got it for 4 months after all) and financial motivators to keep going.

That pretty much sums up life. Eating, sleeping and of course changing diapers (roughly 12 a day right now). On a super productive day I might pay bills, load the dishwasher, start a load of laundry or tidy the living room (emphasis on the 'or'). Most days aren't that good and the best thing I can say I did was keep Livy and I alive...which I suppose is pretty good indeed. Doing laundry is a joke. As mentioned above, I can usually only hope to start a load. Jimmy then moves it from washer to dryer and from dryer to laundry basket where it sits in our room until we've worn everything in it again. I used to naively wonder why my mom and dad's bedroom sometimes had piles of laundry (both clean and dirty) on the floor and why there were stacks of mail everywhere.  I mean, why can't you keep up with those two simple things?? Buahahahahaha! I have so much greater appreciation for what my mom did for us growing up now that I have munchkins of my own. And I'm actually glad she had those messes in the house from time to time because it frees me to have the same messes and know for sure that she had it right. She always gave us exactly what we needed, which was love and attention and memories. Memories of getting the kitchen messy making chocolate chip cookies for dad. Memories of her letting us build forts out of couch cushions and sheets in the front room. Memories of mom.

Here's something I jotted down one night/morning before Livy was even 10 days old:
   It's 3:15 am and I'm rocking with Livy after a feeding waiting for her gas bubbles to work through so she'll relax for sleep. I myself am thinking longingly of sleep. Then I see it...that little practice smile and the hint of the dimples it looks like she got from Daddy. And it reminds me to savor the moments she needs me so totally and completely. All too soon it'll be, "I do it" and "Don't help me" like we hear from big brother. I love you lady bug. Mommy's here for you, forever and always.

And there it is. The reason we do it all. We lose sleep, hair, our mind and money all for that perfect, precious gift from God who fills our heart and gives us the strength we didn't know we had.

Thank you, Lord, for this blessing called motherhood.

We Went Swimmin'

A few weekends ago (July 27th) we suited up and went to Papa Joe and Boo's house so Nathan could go swimming. We wanted his first experience to be in a place that was familiar and safe feeling for him as well as in a pool that had a "shelf" he could stand on himself to ease into the water. Only Daddy and Nathan actually got in the water with Papa Joe while Livy, Boo and I supervised. Nathan stayed in for about an hour all told. He jumped from the shelf, put his face in the water and let Jimmy dunk him (but just once)! He also kicked his feet and had fun "motor boating" with Papa Joe. Here are some pictures of our fun morning.

Showered with Love

Over the past several months we have been showered with love and understanding from friends, family and co-workers. I already wrote about the shower my college girlfriends had for me during our girls weekend and mentioned our visitors at the hospital in Olivia's birthday post. This post is for everything else.   I don't have any pictures, but I still wanted to remember all the kindness we were shown while getting ready for Olivia and after she arrived.

My EY co-workers hosted a joint shower for us and the Turilli's at Meredith's house in early June. It's always fun getting to see everyone with their significant other away from the stress of the client site. We got a bunch of baby essentials from the team and some adorable clothes (featuring A&M and lady bugs of course). Nathan attended with us but was going a little stir crazy so he and Jimmy spent most of their time outside or looking at the big puppy dog through the window.

We also had a special celebration with all of the team executives and spouses hosted by the partners at Brennan's downtown. Be careful drinking the water on our audit team right now because three couples at dinner were pregnant and another had a 9 month old. The food was, of course, amazing and evidently so was the wine judging by how many bottles the table went through (considering only half the table was drinking at all!). We had a great time catching up with everybody. Thank you to Aunt Misty who watched Nathan for us!

Also in June my sweet girlfriends from church had a little dinner and shower for Natalie and me (due within 4 days of each other). Similar to the EY dinner, pregnant people almost outnumbered the others! Thank you again Ashley, Jana, Lela, Natalie, Justine and Danielle for the good conversation and sweet gifts. Olivia received some precious clothes, including the floofy pink creation she wore on her first Sunday at church (from Lela).

Before and after Olivia came we received gifts from many other friends and family. Our church family also made sure we didn't starve to death those first few weeks at home by bringing us meals every few days (thank you to the Cains, Seiferts, Siscos, Billie Duncan, Conaways, and Cathy Ross). In between meals from the church we enjoyed food from Cousin Cynthia, Amy and the Ozgos. Everything was wonderful!

Of course this wouldn't be complete without mentioning the flood of love and support from our moms and Jimmy's grandparents. Lori is a near constant source of clothes for both kids and Grandpa and Grandma have funded more meals and boxes of diapers than I can count! They also keep the first born occupied when they visit because no one else matters when Popo is here. Lori was also a comfortable napping spot for Olivia judging by the looks of things. My mom is equally (if not more...yes, I'm biased) amazing. She first came the weekend before Livy was born to help me get the house in order. And by "help me" I mean I did very little (mostly supervised) and she organized, did laundry, cleaned, cooked, washed dishes and packed away things. She then came back three days later (the night before I was induced) so she could be here with Nathan and take him to school that next morning while we were at the hospital. She stayed with us for seven wonderful days and made sure I ate, rested, drank enough water and had what I needed while also playing with Nathan, snuggling with Olivia and generally keeping the house in order the whole time. I think Jimmy cried when she left too! (Just kidding, only I cried.) Thank you Mamma for everything you did and continue to do. We love you!

In summary, we are very thankful for the outpouring of love and support and prayers from all of our friends and family. I know there are people I didn't specifically mention here, but know that we appreciate everyone and you have all made even more of a blessing than it already is.

Now, who wants to come babysit two kids so Jimmy and I can get OUT of this house?!?!

Nathan's Milestone Update

I haven't done an update on Nathan's milestones since a few at his second birthday and I didn't want to forget some of these. Here's a quick list along with random pictures I want to save:

• Drinking from a cup. "Two hands, go slow"...I'm a broken record!
• Knows all letters of the alphabet (not just the song), and knows the sounds of several (so far S,C,A,B,T and M)
• Can say his numbers up to 20, can count objects more reliably but tends to say one more number than there physically is.
• Can make 1 to 5 with the fingers of both hands. He uses both hands a lot. Not sure whether he'll favor right or left yet. I think he colors with his right hand but eats sometimes with his left. 
• LOVES to sing. All the time. Also "conducts" at church along with the song leader. He isn't a dancer, he just enjoys the singing.

Eating watermelon at the church on the Fourth (and dripping it all over Mommy's white capris)

• Has switched from Wheel of Fortune to Mickey Mouse Clubhouse before nap (on the weekend) and bedtime. This started when he had scarlet fever and we needed him to be still during the day.

Doing the "Hot Dog Dance"

• Still in size 4 diapers though I'm wondering if we need to move up a size. Showing interest in the potty but only usually fully clothed. Have gone 2 times in potty but we are not formally training yet.
• May 31st - after bath while getting his diaper put on said he needed to poo poo and wanted to go in the white potty. So we got up and he ran to the potty with Daddy. Daddy took off the diaper and Nathan sat on the potty. He went tee tee in the potty then said he was all done. We cleaned up with toilet paper and he had some gas (I guess he thought it was poo poo feeling). Then he helped pour the tee tee in the big potty and flushed it. So excited and happy!
• June 20th - before bath after I got him undressed he asked to tee tee on the potty. Nothing happened. So we took a bath and said he could try again afterward. So we got out of bath and dried off really well then sat on the potty again...this time he tinkled!! I think he was motivated by being told he could help pour the tee tee in the big potty and flush by himself, haha. Who can ever tell what kids will do!
• Size 2T clothes but some shirts need to be 2/3T. Still wearing size 5 shoes but he might be going through a growth spurt.

Bubble mustache with Daddy

• Jumping with both feet off the floor for several months. Throwing and kicking much better in the months following his birthday.
• Baby sister: says he loves her (also loves Minnie and Daisy and the ballerina from Goodnight Houston) and likes to give her hugs and kisses. However, he still doesn't want mommy or daddy to hold her and asks us to put her down. He says "mine" (mommy/daddy) and looks really sad. No aggression but an uptick in yelling at home. Teachers say there is a "yeller" in his class now. Greeeat.
• ::enter stage left, baby sister. Enter stage right, terrible twos::
• We had our first scream fest the other night after he was abruptly removed from the dinner table for playing with his milk (all over the front of his shirt). I snapped (but just to be clear Nathan was the only one doing the screaming). The punishment: no Mickey Mouse Clubhouse before bath time (you'd have thought I was beating him from the reaction this got. Believe me it was really hard not to spank that little bottom.) Jimmy backed me up when Nathan tearfully appealed to daddy, and held Olivia while 2 weeks postpartum mommy broke the doctors orders ("don't pick up anything heavier than your baby, no excessive bending, picking, pushing, pulling" uh huh...right) and carried the 30+ lb kicking screaming crying 2 year old upstairs and gave him a bath. More like a fast soapy rinsing since the stamping and throwing of objects recommenced in the bathtub. He cried for daddy and since I had already overtaxed myself I let Jimmy come up to read with him and put him to sleep. Meanwhile I got Olivia and held her and cried at the kitchen table and waited for my appetite to come back so I could eat the dinner that was in the microwave at the time of the meltdown. Sensible, huh. On the plus side he hasn't had a similar episode since that night. I guess taking away MMC was traumatic enough to stick for now.

Picking the sole surviving peach from the tree in the back yard.

• Still loves books. Current bedtime favorites are Goodnight Houston and Goodnight Aggieland. Also the Mickey look-and-find book he got when Livy was born. He pretends to read his books by making nonsense sounds or by reciting a book he knows by heart, even if he has open a different book. For example, he'll have a random book open and start reciting 'The Very Hungry Caterpillar.' (pronounced cater-peeler with a pause between parts).

Adores his Popo.

• He is still very articulate for his age. Jimmy and I can understand easily 95% of what he says and I think other people can get 75% or better (someone correct me if I'm delusional). He speaks in full sentences most of the time and understands (and uses correctly in a sentence) abstract concepts such as "both of us." I'm not sure why but I find that particularly impressive.  Don't get me wrong, he still mispronounces words like yellow (lellow) and others I don't pay attention to, but he picks up on corrections pretty quickly. He also started deliberately mispronouncing words at around age 2 because he thought it was funny. It started with the number five which he would say as "fauf" and laugh hysterically.
• Perhaps the biggest milestone of all: Nathan has been sleeping through the night since Livy came home. He had been irregularly for a few months (we'd have good nights and bad nights) but now  every night for 3 weeks straight has been good. He still has bad dreams occasionally that we go in to soothe away but that's it.  I've been scared to put it in writing... He still sometimes wakes up between 5:00 and 6:00 am but will generally go back to sleep until a decent time. He'll ask, "Time to get up??" Currently his bedtime routine starts with dinner time. Then it is one episode of MMC, bath, 2 books and "night night." We still stay with him until he falls asleep.

Clearly from before he started sleeping through the night in his own bed.