Caught!

The little man is sneaky with that smile and I've been unable to capture a picture of it. Until now.
I captured this at the end of the week during a session with his mobile. Just like his big sister, Teddy loves the mobile. That's actually where he is right now, under the mobile in his pack n play. He'll spend a good little while under it kicking his legs and pumping his arms. I also was able to capture this video:


Of course not even two seconds after I turned off the camera he let out the biggest smile and goo yet. That's actually when I was able to get the picture above.

We arrived at Papa and Gram Coberly's at lunchtime yesterday. Katherine is of course having a blast, Teddy is checking the place out for the first time. I'm using this as an opportunity to catch up on reading, pictures, blog posts, work...just about everything. Ted and I got the rare opportunity to go for a run together yesterday afternoon. He challenged me to see if I could run 3 miles...and I did! In total it was a little over 5 mile run/walk and I ran the first three and did a combination of running and walking for the last part. I'm a bit sore today but I feel good, good enough to consider another walk or run this afternoon!

My Name is...

Katherine!I was amazed when I pulled this out of her mail pouch yesterday afternoon. Yes, she traced the letters that the teachers outlined for her but still. At three years old, she wrote her name!!

The packing continues, just Katherine left to go. And Ted but I'm leaving him to pack his own bag (although...if he's willing to do a full night of feedings, we just might have a deal). I'm saving part of her packing until she gets home because she is VERY excited about the trip. I told her about it a couple of days ago. She's been plotting her packing scheme ever since. Yesterday she told me: "Mommy, I think I've got a lot of packing to do." Your telling me.

Katherine continues to be a wonderful big sister. This picture was taken last week during their bath time. She's showing him the finer points of paint with one's feet. She really was showing him too, she was talking about her technique while she was doing it.

I've got lots more pictures and some video to post, I'm taking it with me to work on this weekend. More to come!

Pack your bags!

Ahhh, the mommy guilt. You'll never know when it will strike. Katherine woke up calling for me this morning and I think the second or third phrase out of her mouth after asking to go downstairs and the whereabouts of her baby brother was..."I don't want to go to school today, I want to stay home with you." WHAM! There it was, as if I haven't been feeling guilty about his already. To add insult to injury, the protest continued all the way downstairs..."I don't want to get dressed, I want to stay in my pjs"...all said in that just right sappy, pitful tone that tugs right at my heartstrings. What's a mom to do? Having her go to school allows me to rest in the mornings, which is really needed depending on what type of night we had. Plus today I really need to start packing for our trip, something that is difficult at best to accomplish with a three year old at your heels. Therefore, there would be little time to play or go outside. And she clearly enjoys school, most days when I pick her up, she's not ready to leave. But there's no stopping the searing feeling of guilt that, she wants to stay home with her mommy, she should stay home with her mommy. Have I become too dependent on daycare? Is my child being deprived of my love and attention because I ship her out the door every morning? I was this close to saying, yes of course you can stay home. Ted, having a much more level head in this situation, felt it would be better if she went in today. I ducked out of the way and he very easily got her dressed, fed and out the door without so much as a word of complaint from Miss K.

Trip? Why yes, the family is off for the week with a final destination of Cincinnati, Ohio to celebrate Ted's grandparents 70th wedding anniversary and Ted's grandmother's 90th birthday. It's been almost three years since we last made the trip, so we're quite excited. We'll start things off at Papa and Gram's house for a few days, then off to Grantsville, WV to visit with Grandma Hamilton. Then on Friday morning, we'll drive over to spend the weekend celebrating in Cincinnati. What a whirlwind!

What I find interesting is that when Katherine was 8 weeks old, we would have NEVER even considered a trip like this. We can't possibly leave the house for that length of time. Why? Because we have a baby! Live and learn. After experiencing travel with a baby, a one year old, a two year old and a three year old we realize this time around that it is indeed MUCH easier to travel with an infant than probably any other of those age groups. Throw the dipes, wipes and formula in the car (oh and the kid too) and your good to go. Ok, maybe there is a bit more stuff to pack but you get my point. Three year olds require much more constant entertainment.

The packing! How we made the trip three years ago in Ted's Jetta I'll never know because I am predicting the CR-V will be full to the brim with stuff. There is a boatload of things to take with us and thank GOD I'm still on leave because I don't know how this task would get accomplished with me back at work full time (well it would get accomplished but it probably wouldn't be happy times around here). I've got a good list going with the help of this (I created my own version in Excel!) and today the plan is laundry and laying out of some of the non-apparel stuff that we'll need to take with us. Let's hope Teddy is cooperative with this plan.

I heart my diaper bag

I'm not one to post about products that I like or give any type of endorsement for anything. Rest assured, I'm getting no kickback for this little post (although, if anyone from the company is reading this...) But I'm enjoying this bag so much, I feel the need to talk about it.

Right before Teddy was born we received a package in the mail from Aunt Carrie containing a new diaper bag filled with all sorts of baby goodies. (As an aside, how cute of a gift idea is that?? If you want a creative gift idea, she's your woman. Big or small, she always has the cutest and most thoughtful gifts. We won't even get into the wrapping and presentation...but she always hits the nail on the head.) Anyways, my first impression was how beautiful and stylish the bag was. However, once I started using it I fell in love.

First off the fact that it is a shoulder bag is wonderful. I can easily throw it over my shoulder or hang it on the back of the stroller making it super convenient to grab what I need when I need it (note to future diaper bag users, you need a shoulder bag). Second, the features of the bag speak for itself. There's a nice roomy pocket in the front for my wallet, cell phone and any other purse paraphernalia that I need. Inside, there's handy pockets for bottles and diapers but not so many that it takes up valuable space. When I put the bag down for a diaper change, the changing pad unzips and folds right out of the side of the bag, meaning the bag is nice and handy while I'm working on Teddy's diaper. I can even zip and unzip it with one hand. The thing even came with a wipes holder. What more could you ask for?

I've already received numerous complements on the bag, both for it's look and it's function. If you're in the market for a new diaper, I highly recommend it. There's not much else to say except...Thank you Aunt Carrie!!

Giving a Warm Welcome

Katherine had an absolute meltdown last night over not being able to answer the front door. She had just had a bath and was busy dancing around in her birthday suit. We need to keep up some type of respectable appearance with our neighbors. So I made her stay upstairs in our room while I checked on who it was. Little did I know she went into her room to put pjs on so she could say hello. But she wasn't quick enough and the guy was gone before she was dressed. She spent the next hour sniffling and exclaiming "I wanted to say hello." She just didn't get our explanation that you can't answer the front door naked.

Incidentally, the guy at our doorstep was neighbor promoting a bbq fundraiser he's having for a conservative congressional candidate (Ted wanted to know if he was having a tea party). Um, thanks but no thanks. I don't think I'm the person you want at your fundraiser. I thought of informing him of this fact but decided against it. Better to be nice, thank him for the flyer and go on my merry way. Plus the guy was very nice even if we don't see eye to eye on the political side of things.

Wouldn't it be funny if Katherine had answered the door with no clothes on..."We don't want to stifle her budding independence." So much for conservative values!

Mr. Turtle

Look who paid a visit to our backyard earlier today:



Unfortunately Katherine wasn't here, maybe he'll be back out tomorrow.


-- Post From My iPhone

Teddy's Video Debut

First home movie of Mr. T!

Surf's Up!

The major activity of this past weekend, at least in Katherine's eyes, was setting up the pool for the summer.  She'd been asking us for weeks to go swimming in her pool but we've been a bit busy with the new baby.  Plus, since an adult needs to be in the pool with her, the weather wasn't quite warm enough for Ted and I to go in.  I like it hot for swimming.  With temps in the low 90's on Saturday, it was time.  Poor thing had to wait a whole extra day though while we prepped by buying the chemicals and mowing the lawn.  On Sunday, Ted took her out to the bookstore while I got the pool out, blew up the ring and swept it out.  We knew she wouldn't sit still for those activities.  I made a quick trip to the store (note to self: at the end of the season put all of the small parts, like the hose clamps for the filter, in a baggie at the bottom of the bin so you can locate them in the spring) and when I walked in the door she practically knocked me over..."are you setting up my pool?"  Yup, sweetie and if you want to help, go put on your bathing suit.  She RACED upstairs while Ted and I moved the pool and filter to the backyard (Teddy slept through all of this, clearly not interested in swimming this summer).  The next thing we saw was a stark naked little girl come running out the back door, dragging her swimsuit behind her.  She didn't want to miss a moment of the excitement.  The water was too cold for me but she didn't mind one bit.

Summer here we come!

Night night, sleep tight

I have a love/hate relationship with bedtime.  On one hand, when about 6 o'clock rolls around I breathe a sigh of relief.  We've made it through another day, usually fairly unscathed.  On the other hand I panic with the thought of the things left to do before we can call it a night.  Here is the "to do" list that looms large once dinner is over:

• Clean up from dinner
• A bath for both kids, currently done together on the nights that Teddy needs a bath.
• Pjs for both kids
• Lay out tomorrow's clothes for Katherine
• Tomorrow's lunch prep for Ted
• Get the nighttime bottles laid out for Teddy
• Put the house in some type of respectable order.  This does not mean perfect, this means in some semblance of neatness so that this anal retentive person can rest easier and we start the next day somewhat put together
• Teeth brushing for Katherine
• Bedtime bottle for Teddy
• Final diaper change
• Other nighttime feeding preparations such as laying out my robe, bibs, burp cloths, cooler for half drunken night time bottles (so that I don't have to truck them down to the refrigerator in the middle of the night) in order to make the nighttime wake ups go as smooth as possible.
• Keeping an eye on Katherine during this time to ensure she doesn't end up as a TV junkie for the entire evening.  This means one or both of us taking short breaks from the list to get out toys, play a game or do some sort of activity with her.

Rarely, if ever, does that list get accomplished without some sort of unforeseen event like a lost blankie or diaper emergency.  Ted and I don't say much to each other during this time, it becomes a tag team event with us relaying messages to each other like "You handle bath, I've got the kitchen", "Hold him while I get the bottle ready" "Did she brush her teeth yet?"  We've become a well oiled machine.  And there's no rest for the weary, oh no.  I find if I even take a short break to read a magazine article, check my email or, heck, even daydream too much we're sunk.  You put your head down and trudge ahead.

Sometimes we want or need to add a task or two to the list.  For instance, last night I wanted to try to squeeze in a run after bathtime.  Usually there's a load or two of laundry that needs to be taken care of.  Most nights, Katherine wants someone to lay with her for a bit.  Once the list is complete, then and only then can we even consider pjs or any type of quiet time for ourselves.  And that list is shortened a bit right now because I'm home on leave.  Once I return to work it will include getting Teddy's clothes and bottles ready for the next day as well as my lunch.  Ted and I usually do all our ironing and clothes prep during the weekend because there is no time for it during the week.

What falls completely by the wayside?  Catching up on emails, phone calls to friends really any sort of contact with the outside world.  I have people (you know who you are) who I am way overdue some contact to from my end.  Rest assured I've been thinking about all of you and I have a million thank yous for you guys always contacting me first.

My goal is to have the list mostly done by 8 o'clock.  This means it's usually done by 8:30.  Katherine goes to bed at that time and is asleep by 9 (thanks to nap time at daycare, on weekends we can usually get her down much earlier). Teddy seems to drift off some time between 9 and 9:30, which I think is an accomplishment for a one month old.  We're usually exhausted ourselves and aren't far behind.  But on the rare night where everything falls into place and we're lounging together as a family at 8 o'clock...well...it's wonderful. It's what I long for every night.

I know it won't always be like this and I also know as the kids grow, that list will grow and change.  And there's hope that once Ted and I (ok, mostly me) are sleeping full nights again we'll want to stay up for at least an hour after the kids go to bed. For now, I'll just try to keep chugging along between the hours of 6 and 9 pm.

A package from Katherine

I don't know who that package is for but she's making sure it doesn't open up in transit. I think she gets this from my father.





-- Post From My iPhone

Happy Birthday Aunt Carrie!

The Tooth Fairy Came!

We had our first visit from Madame Tooth Fairy last night.   Over the past few months Katherine has become keenly aware of the fact that she is missing one of her front teeth.  She first mentioned it while brushing her teeth one night..."I'm missing a tooth!"  My guess is that it was brought to her attention by one of the kids at school since even the oldest ones in her class are still a year or two away from loosing their first tooth.  We explained to her what happened when she was two  (proof that the experience, while being traumatic for Ted and I, had no lasting impact on her).  I also told her that the dentist had given us the tooth and I would show it to her when she wanted.  At first, a simple explanation of what happened satisfied her.  We assured her that when she got a bit older a new tooth would grow in that place and she would no longer have a missing tooth.  One day she got curious and asked to see the tooth.  Honestly, I hadn't looked at the thing myself, they handed it to us in a little tiny pink case and I had no interest in opening it because it has been a rough day and well...ewwwwww.  Miss K didn't think there was anything gross about it, she spent a good while marveling at the chipped tooth in it's little case.  Since that first glance, she's asked to see it quite a few times.  Each time I've mentioned to her that, when she's ready, we would leave the tooth underneath her pillow for the Tooth Fairy.  Up until this past weekend she had no interest.  This time around though, she was intrigued.  Who was this person and (more importantly) what was in it for her?

Luckily we had a book (two actually) to educate her on this.  She received them right after the big tooth incident and we've read them off and on since then.  On Friday night she was interested but not quite ready, especially when I told her that the Tooth Fairy would take the tooth away for good and leave something behind.  So she stuck the tooth in her nightstand drawer and I assured her that the Tooth Fairy would not come unless she left the tooth under her pillow.  On Saturday morning she brought it up again and this time put the tooth under her pillow.  She was all ready to wait for the Tooth Fairy to arrive until I informed her that she had to be asleep for her to come, much like Santa Claus and the Easter Bunny (funny how all these things seem to occur at night, no?).  The tooth stayed under her pillow all day.  At bedtime, we read the Tooth Fairy books again and I asked her if she still wanted to leave it there.  She did.  We had a brief crisis when the tooth fell out of it's little case during one of her many peaks and we had to locate its whereabouts but she went off into dreamland with the tooth safe and sound under her pillow.

I missed wake up this morning due to my nighttime schedule with Teddy but I heard the exclamation when she found the dollar under her pillow.  The tooth fairy had come!!!!  She came running into our room to wake me up and let me know.  I wish I had a camera, her little face was beaming..."Mommy, the tooth fairy came! She left me money!"  Then quick as that she was off to start her day.

Her dollar is tucked safe and sound in her jewelry box, awaiting a trip to the dollar bin at Target.  At some point we have to break it to her that it will be a couple more years before she looses another tooth and gets a visit from the tooth fairy.

Tummy time!

Clearly not impressed with this state of affairs.


-- Post From My iPhone

At the bookstore...

Saturday morning at Books A Million. Look at this selection from the children's section.


I couldn't make this up if I tried. We're not buying this for her because there's no way I could read it with a straight face.


We'll pick out some tamer fare.
-- Post From My iPhone

Our Crazy Aunt from Brooklyn

Two packages arrived yesterday from Aunt Colleen and Uncle Sven, one for Teddy and one for Katherine.  Miss K LOVES getting packages, in fact anything that arrives at the front doorstep is assumed to be for her unless she states otherwise..."A Package?...for ME!"

Inside both boxes were lots of goodies including these shirts:

In case you can't read that it says: "My crazy Aunt lives in Brooklyn".  I don't have much else to say about that...but it does make me think about something cousin Bill once said about our family..."It's like the circus but you don't have to buy a ticket." The shirts don't say anything about Uncle Sven, so I guess he's off the hook.  I'm thinking they need to wear them on the same day to daycare (once T starts going), to really make a statement.

K also got a T-shirt that you can color and she wasted no time in getting to work:

And no package from Aunt Colleen, aka the Subway Knitter can be complete without some hand knits.  She's knitted a bunch of sweaters for Katherine and now it's the little dude's turn. My favorite one is front and center. Obviously it's not sweater weather around here anymore but these are the right size for next winter.

I think my absolute favorite thing in the package was the slippers.

Is that not just cuteness up there?  K already had a pair of red sparkly ones but she was enthralled with the purple ones, they actually her pjs.  Teddy got three pairs, the cow, a pair with ducks and a pair with chocolate chip cookies on them but my absolute favorites are the cows.  He'll need to grow into them but even on the big side, they look adorable on his little feet.  In case you want to get a pair for your kids (or yourself...turns out they sell adult sizes), here's the link to Kaya's Kloset.

Do the kids have a crazy thoughtful Aunt or what?

One Month Mark

In one month we've gone from this:

To this:

The stats:

Head Circumference: 38cm

Height: 21 3/4 inches

Weight: 10 lbs, 13 oz.

Yes, you read that weight figure correctly.  The T man has gained 3lbs, 3oz. since birth putting him now in about the 75th percentile for weight.  He's in about the 50th percentile for the other stats.  The doctor was thrilled, clearly we have a healthy boy on our hands who enjoys a good meal every now and then.  He's on the path to be up in the 90th percentile just like his sister was as a baby.

Teddy has also started to wake up and be a bit more alert while remaining a true snuggler at heart.  We've seen a few smiles already, although I still think most of them are due to gas.  I know a true "Mom, you crack me up" smile isn't too far away.

And I think the honeymoon is over for Katherine.  While she still gives her "baby brother" plenty of hugs and kisses, her behavior has been a bit of a challenge over the last week.  On Monday she had three time outs.  THREE.  This is unheard of for her.  One happened at school for not listening (a repeat of Friday). In fact her teachers reported that the least little thing would set her off. The next one occurred at home for throwing an all out tantrum for not getting to "take a turn" with the TV right away. Truthfully I was watching HGTV and would have not minded at all to turn the controller over except that she more demanded that Nick Jr. be turned on rather than ask nicely.  And when I told her that I would change it in a few minutes and she hit the floor crying and demanding that it be changed RIGHT NOW...well...the battle line had been drawn.  What she could do RIGHT NOW was to take a seat on the bottom step and I told her as much.  The final one was called by Ted who grew tired of the struggle of getting pjs on a three year who would just not cooperate.  Speaking of which, what is it with this age group and putting on clothes?  I've read numerous other blog posts and stories on the interwebs about this one.  In the morning she doesn't want to take her pjs off to put on regular clothes and in the evening she doesn't want to take her regular clothes off to put on pjs.  What gives?

I know this behavior is a combination of the major changes over the past month and just being three and a half.  Still, it does make you want to pull your hair out every now and then.  And just when you've had about enough, the sweet little girl comes back out and smiles at you. Case in point, bath time last night.  Last week I discovered that it was much easier to dunk Teddy in the tub during K's bathtime than get a completely separate bath going in the sink for him.  However, little dude is a slippery thing when he gets wet, so to calm my fears about dropping him I purchased a bath seat.  Since then, they have had two bathtimes together and K thinks it is just wonderful.  Actually Teddy seems to enjoy the experience too, as far as I can tell.  But to watch Katherine with her little brother just puts a tear in your eye.  She very carefully helps me wash him up and doesn't mind at all the there needs to be a bit less water in the tub.  In fact, she's upset when it's time for him to get out. She even shares her tub toys with him.

In the fitness area, I completely surprised myself last night by running the route that I have been walking.  I started out running, just to see how far I could go and I kept saying to myself "Just see if you can make to ...".  The stop sign at the end of the street turned into the next street sign, turned into the cul de sac and well, next thing I knew I had made it all the way!  I'm not even that sore today.  Guess I am in better shape than I thought!

Cleaning out the closet

I was so ready to get out of the house today. I was itching to hit the mall, stroller with the T-man in front of me, scoping out the deals for my updated, post maternity leave wardrobe. In the past couple of years, I haven't been too concerned about investing a whole lot in clothing basically because I was pregnant. Why spend a whole lot for something that may not fit you after having two kids? Now it's time to spruce things up a bit. However, I'm not ready to start shopping yet, as much as I want to. Why?

Well, first off, I'm not in the shape I want to be in. I have to keep telling myself that at four weeks post partum, things are looking pretty good. In fact when I look at pictures of myself during the same time period after having Katherine I realize I'm right on track. I started up my running/walking routine this past weekend. I have a starting goal of being able to run from our house, around one the neighborhoods near us and back at a fairly decent pace (and not feel like I want to keel over when I'm finished). I even have a few apps on the ol' iPhone to help me keep track of my progress. Now I just have to do it. And slowly but surely I'll get back to where I want to be. But that doesn't stop me from feeling frustrated every now and then. And I know I'll have to hit the stores here soon to get interim pieces (I can't wear sweatpants everywhere), hopefully things that I can still wear later even if I have to have them altered a bit.

Second, I feel that no successful shopping trip for this purpose could happen without a list. Therefore a closet cleanout was in order, which I did this morning. And when I say clean out, I'm talking a real come to Jesus moment with my wardrobe. Actually now is the perfect time to do it since a bunch of the clothes, pants mainly, still don't fit me. Therefore, I can be much more objective. Anything that hasn't been worn in the past year or two (pregnancies aside)...gone. Anything with holes or stains...gone. Anything that, well, to be honest never looked all that good or is hopelessly out of style...gone. This means tossing a few beloved items that are well past their prime. Now that the closet cleanout is done I have a better idea of some must have items that need to go at the top of the shopping list.

And speaking of cleaning out closets...he may be just one month old but I've already had to start the "too small" box of clothes in Teddy's closet. He had a few newborn items that at almost ten pounds, are already too small.

Time to hit the mall!

Decisions, decisions...

It's 9:00 pm, everyone is asleep and I have a decision to make. The baby fell asleep right before 8:30 after drinking 3 oz. This is earlier than he has been falling asleep so I think he'll wake up fairly early tonight for the first bottle. So do I go ahead and fall asleep or do I stay up until after this wake up. Because being woken up one hour after falling asleep is the absolute worst.

Last week was the 3 week growth spurt for Teddy, which means he was hungrier that usual. When he wasn't hungry, he wanted to be held all the time. There were a few nights of wake ups every two hours. Still, I was able to get through it pretty unscathed, which I am shocked about. I guess this time around I knew what was going on and I knew it was temporary so it made it easier. The same thing with tonight. Teddy was cranky unless he was being held. With Katherine this would have unhinged Ted and I. And while we were both tired and not in the best of moods we stayed relatively calm about the whole thing.

Ok, decision made, I think it is in my best interest to try and catch some zzzz's while Mr. T is sleeping so soundly. There a few more things I want to update everyone on but I'll make a note of them in a draft post and start working on them in the morning...night!