Some Thoughts

These pictures are from yesterday...but wanted to discuss interesting things about then.

Top Left
A mom in action. Wiping the dirty face, while squishing baby....lol

Top Right
My babies and Me...wow, am I really old enough to have two young children? Sometimes it seems all too surreal. Love.

Bottom left

hhumm...those eyes are definitely lighter than Olivia's were.
Oh how I would love for them to be blue or green (like daddy's)

Bottom Right
CHEESE...who loves my smile???

Concert in the Park

This evening we went to a concert in a park. It was a nice time. We brought a picnic pizza and listened to good music, played in the fountains, danced, and ate snow-cones. Gotta love my little lady with bright red snow-cone lips :)

But the highlight of the evening was definitely Olivia groovin' to the music. Yes, there was a dance floor area...and yes, she was the only one up there...just showing off her moves. The band gave her a couple of shout-outs, stating how she's got great rhythm (don't know who she got that from) and were dancing along with her. There are not many words that can describe that evening...watching her. She was so innocent, carefree, sweet, adorable...I want to replay it over and over again.
Memorable. Forever.

Oh and if I took video of her dancing the whole time...
it would be well over one hour long.

ugh...not the best video (gotta work on that)

Grandma and Grandpa in ACTION

WOW...they've been busy. Cooking meals, giving baths, reading stories, playing inside, playing outside, babysitting...but I'm pretty confident that they are having a blast!!

Our BIG Man

Here are pictures of our Man having some tummy time. Originally, I had this post titled "Our Little Man" and then we went to the doctor.

I decided to take him in because he is still not going to the bathroom (#2). Dr explained that this is normal, especially for breastfed babies, and that Mason can go up to 10 days between bowel movements. GOODNESS! Has anyone had experience with this?? His stomach is not hard nor distended. There are times when I think he might be in pain, but it could be gas or acid reflux...and I can usually get him calmed down.

About acid reflux....yes, he spits up :( Not Olivia style and not with every meal, but he's already spit up on other people and frequently it's very forceful and comes out of his nose too :( Mommy does NOT like that at all. Dr said that she could put him on meds but for now we've decided to hold off. Why? Mason is not nearly as fussy as Olivia was and...for the BIG news....

He is gaining weight REALLY WELL!

Mason Wayne is now 11 pounds 9 ounces!

This is very different from Olivia who wasn't gaining weight very well and weighed only 11 pounds 6 ounces at 4 months old.

Needless to say, the Dr thinks that Mason is just using all the breast milk to grow (oh, our nursing sessions are still only 5-7 minutes on one side...crazy!).

BLUE

We are sitting at the table finishing dinner and Tim gets Olivia a popsicle.

He hands it to her and immediately she says,

"BLUE"

Enter that into the books!! First time Olivia identified a color of something and she wasn't even prompted by us asking....what color is your popsicle???

Granted...I haven't heard her point out the color blue since then, but we are still very very proud of her!!!!

The Bug

Olivia's good friends Taylor and Aubrey looooooove bugs. They like picking them up, making homes for them, and discovering interesting things about them.

Olivia sees a bug.

Olivia checks out the bug.

Olivia gets closer to the bug.

The bug moves.

The bug jumps.

The bug flies.

Olivia leaves the bug.

Maybe we need to spend more time with Taylor and Aubrey finding our "inner-bug-self".

GM & GP

Grandma and Grandpa arrived yesterday!!!

O&M are loving all the attention...
and Mommy has already taken extra baths and naps.

Sleeeeeeeeeeeepy

Sesame Street - The Classics

Recently we rented this DVD, 40 Years of Sunny Days, from the library. It's wonderful. It has most of the classic favorite vignettes from when I was a child. MY absolute MOST FAVORITE is the first link below....and if you are interested....other favorites :)

We All Sing The Same Song

Ernie and His Rubber Duckie

Jelly Man Kelly

Bert and Ernie Fish Call

Grover - Sing After Me (not on dvd)

Do you remember these? What's your favorite?

Favorite Part of Our Day

is whenever this car is coming home :)

Blogging

I love my blog (I think that's obvious). I love my blog followers. I love following blogs (do you use google reader? if not...DO IT! It's soooo incredibly easy to set up and can decrease your internet time while still allowing you to stalk all your 'internet friends'). I love looking back on my blog, like a journal, although I'm not always 100% honest...I should work on that (thinking about Trish and her blog...). I love knowing my nephew and his quirks like they live next door, when really they are thousands of miles away. And I'm excited to meet and get to know a new nephew coming in October. I love when my friends have a blog. I like to know what they are thinking/doing/considering 'blog-worthy'. I love the different blog styles and perspectives people take when writing a post. I love the creativity...although I tend to be rather straight forward.

But most of all... I love the comments I get on my blogs...I have the BEST commenters!!! (thank you for making me feel like my posts are important).

Speaking of all this blog stuff, I had my first run-in with a blog friend. I don't "personally" know this person...but I know a lot about her. I found her through another "real" friend's blog. (I think that's bad...having to point out "real" friends versus "blog" friends).

Anyways, I was at the doctors office the other day and saw her!!! I'm sitting in the waiting room wondering "how do I know her? I know her. I do....but how?" And then it hit me!!! Her blog!! So I spent the next 10 minutes starring at her and looking like a crazy person and she kept looking at me too.

Wait...does she "know" me too?

Haha...

I love my blog.

Daddy's Girl

These two are just too cute together!!!

Our Family (minus Jerry)

It only took 2 tries to get this self-timer family picture.

jackpot!

Newborn Pictures

We got Mason's newborn pictures back today. And here are just a few of our favorites. The blog banner has our absolute favorite picture of the bunch. Olivia was NOT excited about taking any pictures and we are VERY impressed with this photograph considering how much screaming and fighting there was (not to mention she has candy in her mouth and hand...lol). Thank you to Misty Green of MG Studios for taking these pictures!!!

ONE MONTH!

already???

how is it possible?!?!

slooooooow down please...

Yes, our little man is ONE MONTH OLD today!!

Tidbits:

*nurses every 2.5-3 hours during day

*nurses every 3-4 hours during night (hoping this increases soon)

*noisy nurser...Daddy makes fun of his drinking noises

*no longer wearing newborn clothes :( or newborn diapers :( {stopped that at 3 weeks}

*wearing 3 month clothes and size 1 diapers

*eyes are a slate blue (sometimes we think they are lighter than Olivia's were)

*weighs more now than Olivia did at 2 months!!

*still battling some baby acne

*spits up (forcefully and through the nose)...ugh

*grunts (might be due to bathroom issues or reflux)

*had some bowel issues...didn't go for over 6 days....had to give him a suppository...and HE WENT A LOT! Hopefully this won't happen again...ever again....

*sleeps in the pack-n-play in our room

*just started using the sound machine with him and noticed an immediate change in the length of his sleep....looooooove white noise

*uses a pacifier

*awake after feedings for about 30-45 minutes and then naps

*leg and chin quivers

*gaining great head control

*looooooves to lay on his tummy on other people (especially his Mommy)

*has rolled over from his tummy to back MULTIPLE times (yes, more than five...and we're not counting anymore). He has to get REALLY mad about being on his tummy and then he struggles but rolls over.

*generally doesn't cry much...or we can resolve any crying issue pretty quickly

Cupcakes

One year ago on September 3rd...Mr Cameron was born. Can't believe how fast time flies!!!

Happy 1st Birthday Cameron!
Because Cameron was back east visiting family, we celebrated his birthday today. Miss Chris had us over for a playdate, lunch and CUPCAKES!

I will have to give Corrigan the best cupcake face award :) To think that he didn't even want to eat it at first....

A Series

Olivia, lets go outside and take pictures.

ooops...flash on....

Olivia, give me a BIG smile. Say cheeeeeeeeeeeeese. Pleeeeeeeeeeeeease....

(Olivia sees an airplane....OOOooo)

Will you give Mommy a big smile if I give you a cookie???
(yes, I attempted bribery).

hhuumm....smiles and cookies don't go well together....

one more good smile Olivia...

nope...we're done...

And the photo, that I've decided "perfectly"
captures this mini-photo shoot?

loooooove this little lady.

thank you for putting up with your mama :)

Bathtime

Grana and Grampa

Our company left today....and will be missed terribly.

We love you!

Projects

As usual, whenever grandparents are in town, we create a long list of things that we would like to get done around the house. Tim's parents graciously helped us with a lot! We hung mirrors and frames, bought a table runner, serviced the 4runner, washed the cars, made lots of delicious meals, bought some clothes, filled another one of Jerry's holes back up with dirt, and redecorated our left-wing bathroom.

The bathroom was one of the larger projects. I wanted something that was a little more "kid friendly" since this is going to be Mason's and Olivia's bathroom.

And the final product...

Fun Times

The Face

love him

Lobster

So I've only had lobster a few times in my life...but I LOVE IT.

The first time I had it, was the summer of 1999 (no...I'm not 12, although it might look like it). I was with Tim's family...his dad is pushing the squealing lobster near me and I'm freaking out about the whole situation.

And eleven years later...it's 2010 and Tim's family is serving me lobster again. This time I'm excited about the squeals as I know the DELICIOUS meal that comes next.

THANK YOU!

Tummy Time

Look how strong our little man is!!

Are You Ready For Some Football????

We are!

Goooo Hokies!

Family Swim

Of course, Olivia needed to show off all her fun pool skills.

And Mason didn't want to miss out on anything :)

Visitors

Grana, Grampa and Aunt Katie have arrived!!

We will have additional hands for the next 9 days. Glorious meals, lots of projects, and some definite shopping are planned over the next week :)

Speed Racer

Daddy exposing Olivia to the "need for speed".

At the end, when Mommy asks Daddy how are you feeling...he replies "tired". Granted, I only grabbed the camera after the 10th+ circle in the backyard :)

Daddy is SOOOOO much fun!

Things I Forgot About Having a Newborn...

*They sleep...ALL THE TIME!

*They poop and pee...a lot!

*Your life is organized in 2.5-3 hour segments

*Rooting

*Milk induced comas

*The amount of laundry

*Complete limpness

*Skin that flakes off

*The urgency of each feeding

*Their pathetic cry

*Legs that stayed curled up

*Arching the back and small, yet really big, stretches

*Eyes that barely can open

*Reflexes

*How small they are

*The wrinkles

*How any emotion can be felt in my boobs

*The softness of their skin

*Rubbery little fingernails

*Their sweet noises

*Skinny skinny limbs

*Itty Bitty Clothes

*How cuddling becomes number one priority in your day

*Attention from complete strangers

*How the mundane things in life have taken a backseat (dusting, cleaning, vacuuming, organizing)

*How this little being has captured sooooo much of my heart

I Wish...

...I could have had the experience and calmness I have with my second child...with my first.

It's not that I didn't enjoy or wasn't relaxed with Olivia...but I was often worried or concerned or cautious or nervous. With Olivia, I didn't realize how truly fleeting this "baby" time is. Or maybe it just happened so quickly that when I think back, I want to go back and snuggle her as a baby....but I can't.

I do feel much more at ease with Mason. I'm not worried about every burp or hiccup or sneeze or cough or bowel movement or cry. I'm not stressed about him getting spoiled or learning bad habits. He's a newborn. He's a baby. He's meant to be cuddled and loved and won't develop bad habits (yet).

So with Mason, I'm just loving. And snuggling. And kissing. And holding. And singing. And if I haven't held him in awhile, I make excuses of why he needs me. And playing. And touching. And smelling. I've been changing his clothes...to just change his clothes. And taking his picture, so I will always be able to remember "this face", "this moment", "this age", "my baby".

We're Content.