January pics

5 months

Okay, so I'm not keeping up with this thing as well as I used to. It's hard to believe that we've entered the 5th month of having two kids! Sister and brother love each other... their faces light up upon sight of the other. It's the sweetest thing to observe, and I hope that even when they go through phases of sibling rivalry, etc., they will always be best friends. Brandon is so used to his sister's hugs that when he met our friend's 2-month-old, he leaned right over to give him a hug. And when they laid on the floor next to eachother, they held hands. SOOO sweet!!!

Not sure about the weight gain, but some 6-9 month clothes are fitting in addition to the 3-6. (Some of the sleeves are too short on those.)

we've started solids: rice cereal, oatmeal, and pears so far. He loves them, and will grab the spoon and shove it all the way back to his throat until he gags if we don't hold him back. He also loves to reach for our foods and drinks, no matter what they are. I let him taste some brown rice at Pei Wei yesterday, he loved that, too.

He rolls over from back to tummy occasionally, plays well in his exersaucer with a pillow under his feet... his legs are a tad short to touch steadily, and I don't want to crunch him you-know-where. He seems to enjoy tummy time more and more, spits up less most of the time, and my friend who is a physical therapist said she thinks he's about a month ahead in strength because he sits up so well, even though he does face plant every once in a while. I think there is something to the theory that boys are naturally stronger than girls. He is also beginning to pick up objects

Last night, he slept in his crib in the room he and Hannah share all night!!! That is a milestone. A big one. (He's beens leeping in the travel-lite crib in our room, even though it has about 1 inch left of length in it.) I haven't even replaced the batteries on the mobile yet, but he fell asleep quite well and stayed down until 7:30 a.m. Sissy slept all night, too. :)

4 month check up

Okay, so our Buddy a.k.a. Champ will be 5 months old in 10 days. But I wanted to make sure he was past his crud before taking him for his shots. And Daddy had to be off work.

Weight: 14 lbs 8 oz
Length: 25 1/2 cm, give or take a bit. He was pretty squirmy.

Doc has given the okay to begin cereals (which we actually did this week when he was staring us down at dinner), considering how much he likes to eat (30-36 oz a day), and is pleased with his development. He's alert and strong... he prefers to stand on my lap more than sit on it these days, and if you are wearing a necklace or earrings, or have long hair, watch out! He's drooling more and chewing on everything, so even though I don't feel them poking yet, I am sure his teeth are working their way up. He still spits up, but not AS prolifically as he used to, and honestly, having such a sweet baby makes me think I could be ready for another one SOME DAY.

winter from a child's eyes...

Mommy, can we go for a pretty drive and look at the icicles?
- Hannah

photo catch up

look what i did!

she wanted her hair up in the comb, to wear this "dress", and to walk in mommy's shoes....

pthbt!!! ! (i did not ask them to do this simultaneously)

sweet dreams, little one

can i eat this, please?

Happy New Year

We took Buddy in the Saturday after Christmas and he got his first antibiotic prescription. Since he was sick, we abstained from the 4-month vaccinations. He seems pretty well recovered, but Bear still has a cough and runny nose... yet her bloodwork came back just fine last Saturday.

At his doctor's visit, Brandon weighed in at around 13 pounds, so he's holding pretty steady for now. But the way he's been eating the past couple of days, I think we'll be introducing him to solids soon. Big Sis's still around 33 pounds, too, in spite of her uncle's claim that she feels heavier. It's all in the physics, she's just shorter and squattier than her cousin who she's almost caught up to in weight. It could be all those curls. ;)

Anyway, Brandon has been rolling from tummy to back for quite a while now. Tonight, he rolled from his back to his tummy! :) He's also starting to scoot a little bit at a time, though tummy time still frustates him if he gets too much of it. Sometimes he scoots in circles, other times a couple of inches forward. When Bear heard me get excited about her brother's first big roll, she exclaimed, "Good job, Brandon! We're so proud of you!"

Thanks, Uncle Grant, for the awesome pics!

our virtual Christmas card

reunions

We reunited with some very special people this week. On Thursday, the kiddos and I met Steph, Caroline & Kimberly for lunch and a play date at McDonald's after gymnastics. Our friend April and her boys were supposed to come to, but one of them got sick in the car a block from Mickey D's. :(

Brandon and Kimmy had fun staring at each other. Hannah and Caroline had fun running around and playing with eachother and the other kids. By the end of the 2 hours, they were holding hands as we left. So cute!!! And of course, Steph and I got to enjoy some time together with our kiddos while she is home from TX.

Today, we enjoyed spending time with my parents and Uncle Dan and Aunt Petra at Mom and Dad's house. I told my Dad that maybe the house hasn't sold yet because God wants them to stay here. He said if God wanted him to stay here, He would send someone to help keep up the 2 1/2 acres, and that God just wants him to appreciate FL even more when they eventually get there. I got some good photos, but haven't uploaded them yet...

things a 3 year old shouldn't say... but does

Last night: "maybe Brandon will die so we can have a baby girl"

?????

Of course, today she woke up thinking her little brother is adorable, giving him hugs and kisses, etc.
*****
We went shopping today. One of the items we picked up was Daddy's present. I should not have told her who we were buying presents for, because no matter how much she insisted she would keep the secret, it slipped out. "Daddy, we got a ___ for you today! Did you go _________ today, Daddy?" Not sure if he deciphered the 2nd part or not. The hat was actually free with the other purchase. Now hopefully she won't blurt out what her cousins are getting as soon as they walk in the door.

a visit to grandaddy and granwendy's

mom: What did you do at Granwendy and Granddaddy's?
Bear: I just gave them a hard time.

big girl, big boy

Last night was Bear's 3rd night in plain cloth underwear or training pants. And her first waking up completely dry!!!!! We ran out of pull-ups earlier this week, and I decided to give the night potty-training a try.
******
Our big boy had has 3 month check-up today. He's 25 inches long and weighs 12 lbs, 12 oz. clothed... since his diaper was a little wet, that's probably more like 12 lbs, 6 oz.

fun times

I made brownies a couple of nights ago. This picture was taken at least 30 minutes after the bath began, after I had tossed in a washcloth and asked Bear to clean her nose. She obviously needed help.

Brandon's big-boy-bumbo seat.
I used some gift money for this splurge... and I want to send a pic to Great Gramma to show her what her gift money went toward. This pic was taken tonight, when Buddy was a bit cranky. Earlier, he had a huge smile on his face as though he was proud to sit up like a big boy.

sleeping beauty

Bear felt a bit under the weather earlier this week, and just wanted to cuddle on the couch. Soon she was asleep, and I managed to sneak out from next to her and capture the moment on camera.

3 month pictures

focused

sitting proud

i can get that...

thud... maybe not (mommy caught me, don't worry)

tolerating tummy time... momentarily

We had a great Thanksgiving; photos are on facebook, so if you aren't my friend on there and want to be, send me an e-mail.

Brandon is growing like crazy. He likes to eat. He loves hugs and kisses, and loves to be held. He's demonstrating a bit of Mommy preference already... and is spoiled. But they are only this little once, and time passes too quickly. Thankfully, he also likes to sleep most nights. Last night, he even slept from about 9:45 pm to 8:15 am!!!!! Big Sis, on the other hand, did not go to sleep until after 11 p.m. (but she did sleep in, too, for once). We took advantage of the sleep and opted to go to the later worship service at church. :) He makes adorable cooing and gurgling sounds as though he is trying to carry on a conversation. He rolls from his tummy to his back with ease, and he LOVES his baby einstein play mat (a hand me down from big sis). He also brings toys to his mouth with ease and chews on them (he thinks his fingers are tasty, too), and tonight I caught him pulling up the knees of his pants. He sits up well when he is propped up, and seems to like the new perspective, at least until he gets tired. He's got Mommy, Daddy, and Big Sis captured by the heartstrings. And pretty much everyone who meets him when he's in a good mood.

His 3 month check-up is not until the end of this week, but I thought I would go ahead and post some pictures of our big Buddy...

our budding photographer

Bear took these photos this morning:

"study of a ceiling fan"

little buddy after being hugged by bear

"why do you let her torture me so, mommy?"

mommy's cheesy smile, completed by the pj's...
but considering there are few pictures with mommy actually in them, we'll keep it.

I think she's improving!
Maybe Santa will bring her a camera of her own for
Christmas.

12 weeks

11/12/2008

12 weeks- 11/18:

chillin' with sis

Our little Buddy's growing up on us. Fortunately, this means he sleeps a 6, 7 or sometimes even 8-hour stretch most nights. He's spitting up less, which is also a welcome change. Big Sis has figured out how to pick him up by herself, which is semi-frightening. I'm glad she loves her brother, but she doesn't quite understand just how careful she needs to be. Perhaps she's grooming him to be a wrestler some day (in school, not "pro"). She'd better watch out, some day he'll be bigger than she. He smiles a lot, but catching one on camera is not always easy. Oh, and he's beginning to outgrow his Newborn and some of his 0-3 month sized clothes, so today I put him in a 3-6 month sleep n' play outfit just to see. It's a bit big, but no worse than the 0-3 month ones were when he came home from the hospital! He also intentionally reaches for some of his toys (especially on the activity mat), and grabs onto them. Some things, like his snugglies, make it to his mouth. (He also pulls Sissy's hair when she invades his personal space).

Sometimes he doesn't mind to be loved on with Bear hugs... at least, at first....

overheard:

"Mommy, why are you so grumpy?"

she's gonna hate me for this someday...

... in case you ever wondered why I don't fix her hair, this is what it looks like before I touch it!

10 weeks