Wordless Wednesday

Blog Book and Blog Makeover

Well, I FINALLY ordered my 2010 blog book, and I'm in love.  I'm so thankful to have all of our memories in one book. It's truly priceless to me!

Also, I'm sure when you clicked on my blog you noticed that I had a little makeover.  My friend Carrie re-did my blog for me over a year ago and with our little ones constantly changing, I thought it would be easier to have a design that I could change easily, rather than bug her every few weeks to update my pictures.  So, this was my attempt.  Wes also told me the old design was a little girly, so now that we have a little boy in the family maybe I should try and make it not so girly. Hmm...not sure it worked, but here it is!.

School Days

I have several friends who have kids that are starting kindergarten this year.  I can't even imagine! I don't want to imagine that quite yet.  Hannah started "school" today. She was so excited and it was at a new place, so we made a really big deal about it so she would be extra pumped about it.

I'm planning to take a picture of her on her last day this year. I'm anxious to see how much she will have grown in the year.  

We got her a Tinkerbell backpack and she couldn't have been more excited.  When I gave it to her she just hugged it and said she wanted to sleep with it. I'm not usually big on characters, but her reaction was priceless   and melted my heart. 

When I picked her up her teacher said she did so good.  She ate most of her lunch and napped the entire nap time. We celebrated with ice cream.

Although she napped for 1.5 hours, that's about 2 hours shy of her normal nap, so it made for a tough afternoon.  But, it was worth the free time I had with just Ethan and it's only once a week.

Overall, the first day of school was a success!!

Ethan - 3 Months!

Ethan is 3 months old today! I can't believe how the time as gone by.

(Did you know that Wesley and Ethan both have birthdays on the 19th of the month and Hannah and I both have birthdays on the 1st?) - Just a little trivia for you.

Sweet, Ethan.  You have been nothing but a blessing to our family.  You have the sweetest little personality and you are EXTREMELY laid back.  When you let out a cry out of nowhere it startles me because it's so rare.  I hope you are just like your daddy - looks and personality!

You've started rubbing your eyes when you are sleepy and it's so cute.  You tug on your ear when you are falling asleep. You've started sleeping with a little snuggly, but I take it away when we go to bed. 

At 3 months:

• You are in size 1 diaper
• Size 3 month clothes
• Not quite a size 1 shoe yet
• You weigh about 13 pounds
• Going to bed at about 8:30 or 9:00 at night, waking once or twice
• You wake up between 7:15 and 8:30 most mornings
• Being swaddled for naps and bedtime, sleeping in crib the majority of the time
• Napping alot still, 4-5 times a day
• Nursing every 2-3 hours
• Been to the church nursery twice, and you're the youngest one there
• You love ceiling fans and light fixtures
• You're interested in the TV when sister is watching
• Found your fingers and you love to suck on them
• Take a pacifier when you are sleepy or hungry
• You've had about 4 bottles
• You light up when people talk to you
• Love peek-a-boo - you get startled and then you smile so big
• Rolling over from tummy to back - as of yesterday!
• You seem to like your big sister, but both of you don't seem to pay much attention to each other! (You survived Hannah sticking her finger down your throat, however!)
• You have diaper explosions and wardrobe changes often

I LOVE being the mommy of a sweet baby boy. I think about how our life with a boy will be like in the future and I can't help but smile.  I love you, Ethan boy.

Here is a comparison picture of you and your sister. I think your sister had you beat on head control and smiling for the camera!

Week in the Life - Day 4

Ethan woke up at 4:00 last night to eat and at 5:30 I gave him his pacifier.  He woke for the day at 7:15. I was so tired this morning, so after feeding him and dressing him (he had a major blow out), we went back to my bed and talked for a little while and we both dozed off again until Hannah woke up at 8:15.  I've had a sore throat the past couple of days so I think I'm trying to fight off a little virus, which is why I've been so tired.  

Hannah ate a toaster strudel and watched Dora this morning. After that, she played in her room while I showered and Ethan sat in his bouncer in the bathroom. Hannah played so good this morning in her room while I got ready. About 10 minutes before I was done getting ready she came in and ended up sitting on the counter top playing in the water and with hairbrushes, make up, etc.

Then she wanted to get out her "yee haw" and ride it.

After a few minutes of that, we got her dressed and she played some more while I fed Ethan.  Then we went to run some errands.  We got home at about 12:15, played and ate lunch and both kiddos went down for naps at 1:00.

During nap time I played on My Digital Studio, read, read blogs and relaxed.  Ethan woke up at 3:15 and I fed him and we had a little photo shoot for his 3 month post for tomorrow.   When Hannah woke up at 4:15 she had a snack and then played with paints that we bought this morning.  It started off well....

But quickly turned into a big mess...

I didn't mind, though. She was having so much fun and she played with the paints for over an hour.

Wes got home at 6:30 and we ate dinner and then swam and played outside. Ethan was bathed and in bed by 8:00 and Hannah was in bed by 9:00.   Now Wes and I are getting ready for bed ourselves. It's been a long week for some reason!

This is my last "Week in the Life" posting.  Tomorrow my sweet boy will be 3 months old and so I want to post all about him! 

Week in the Life - Day 3

Ethan woke up at 3:00 and 5:30 last night to eat.  After he ate at 5:30 I put him in his swing and then he slept until 8:15 this morning, and so did I!  We played for a few minutes and then I fed him and dressed him. Hannah woke up at 8:45 and I got her dressed, fixed her hair, she ate a cereal bar for breakfast and we were out the door to Chuck E Cheese! She had a great time and decided to get an air head as her prize. Imagine that - she picked candy!

We got home at around 11:30 and Hannah ate a hot dog and banana while I fed Ethan.  Hannah watched Mickey Mouse after lunch and Ethan played under his play gym while I unloaded the dishwasher, made my bed and picked up a little. (Does anyone else feel like "picking up" is a daily task?!) Hannah went down for a nap at 12:20  Ethan sat on the couch for a few minutes and he went to sleep at 12:45. 

Ethan woke up at 2:00 and I fed him and we vegged on the couch and watched TV, which is what I did the entire time today during nap! I don't feel guilty about it at all - ha!  Hannah didn't take her normal long nap and woke up at about 2:45.  Luckily, just as she was waking up my friend Tamala texted to see if we wanted to come play.  Hannah had lots of fun with Ella.  At 4:45 we left Tamala's and ran by my friend Ashley's for a few minutes and now we are home.  Hannah played with her left over tokens for Chuck E Cheese FOREVER. I'm not sure why there were so entertaining, but it was great.  Hannah isn't much into playing with toys these days, so anything that occupies her for longer than 20 seconds is always a good thing.

(Don't tell Wes she was sitting on the coffee table)

While Hannah played, Ethan and I worked on tummy time.  He's rolled over one time, but I think it was just a fluke. He hasn't done it since then, but he sure is trying. 

Wes decided to get off a little early, so I started getting dinner ready a little earlier than normal.  Wes has been working 7-6 Monday through Friday for the past several weeks, so it was nice to have him home just a little early, which is the normal time he gets home when he's not working over time.

We had bacon and eggs tonight, and Hannah had a pop tart with hers.  She saw that we were eating breakfast and asked for a pop tart...wasn't quite sure how to explain to her that it wasn't actually breakfast time, so I let her eat it, but she ate everything else, too.

After dinner we went in the front yard and Hannah ate some icecream.  She found it when I was getting something out of the freezer and I told her if she ate good she could have it. She remembered.  After that we went to the backyard and went swimming.

Wes and I watched. (Ethan was in my lap)

I bathed Hannah outside in her swimming pool. Don't judge!  Hannah has fought her bath so much lately and I figured it wouldn't hurt to just bathe her outside.  After that I came in and bathed Ethan. I love two clean babies lathered in baby lotion!!  I tried to get them to take a picture together, but instead Ethan laughed at Hannah....

While she sat on the arm of the chair.

Will I ever have a good picture of them together? 

Both kids were bathed and in bed by 8:30. That's a rare thing these days.  Since Wes isn't getting home until 6:30, we typically play outside until dark since it isn't soooo hot by that time and by the time we make it in for baths, it's close to 9:00 or later before both babies are sleeping. 

Wesley is outside doing a little work on his shop and I'm about to pick up dishes from dinner, relax and go to bed.  We have nothing on the agenda for tomorrow, so we'll see what the day holds...

Week in the Life - Day 2

This morning Ethan started our day by waking up at 7:35. He only woke once last night to eat at 3:45.  Wes put him in his swing at 5:30. It's typical for Ethan to sleep in his crib most of the night and end up in  his swing.  Gets us both a couple more hours of sleep.  Ethan and I played on my bed for a while, and then we went to the kitchen so I could eat breakfast and he sat in his bouncer.  Hannah woke up at 8:30.  She watched Little Einsteins while she ate her breakfast, which was a cup of yogurt.  I made my bed and put Ethan down for a nap while she was watching.

(I think he was scared when he saw me this morning)

At 9:00 two different friends called/texted to see what our plans were today.  If you would have seen me you would have seen that I hadn't planned on seeing anyone today.  But, we ended up having a play date over here and it was a lot of fun, despite that fact that I was still in my pajamas.  Our little ones have a tough time sharing, but they manage to get in some good playtime, too! We are so blessed to have such great friends.  Ethan slept from 9:00-11:00 and missed out on most of the fun!

I fed Ethan at 11:00 and all our friends left at about 11:30.  Hannah and I decided to just have shrimp dip and crackers (and a banana for her) for lunch, thanks to Ms. Ashley for the dip!  I hopped in the shower while Hannah watched about 20 minutes of Toy Story.  Such a cute movie.  It was about 12:30 and Hannah and Ethan both went down for naps.  

During nap time I got ready, ironed, and picked up around the house. Ironing took forever!!  Ethan woke up at 2:00 and I fed him and then finished ironing while he sat in his bouncer.  Then I snatched him up and we played on the floor and had tummy time. At this point, I love that he doesn't sleep as long as Hannah or always at the same time, so I get to spend some one on one time with him.

Ethan went back to sleep at 3:20 and Hannah woke up at 3:30. Hannah and I played in her room for about 45 minutes after she woke up. We "painted", read books and then moved to the kitchen to play with playdoh and do flash cards.  Then we played dress up before daddy got home at 6:30. So much fun this afternoon! Ethan woke up at 4:15 and I fed him while Hannah played in his room.

Ethan took another cat nap from about 5:45-6:30. Tonight James and Jenn came over for dinner.  I fixed chicken wraps and poor Jenn ate Mac and Cheese because her pregnancy appetite doesn't do meat right now.  Hannah played outside with daddy and Uncle James while me, Aunt Jenn and Ethan played inside and visited.  James and Jenn left at about 8:30 and we did baths and bedtime for both kiddos.

It felt long a long day and I'm extra tired today for some reason.  Hannah woke up from her nap extra happy and playful, so even though the day felt long, she was a happy camper. Hopefully Ethan will sleep good for me tonight.

Another fun day planned for tomorrow! 

Week in the Life - Day 1

About a month ago, Kelly from Kelly's Korner did a "week in the life" post about her daily routine/schedule. I thought it was a great idea to record the day-to-day life with a toddler and 3 month old.  My blog is the only written memories I have of our life, so I think it will be fun to record everything and read it in 20 years and wish I had my little babies to snuggle with again!  I'll probably try to do a similar post every few months since things are constantly changing. It might be boring to some of you, but it's my life.

This morning everyone woke up at 8:00 a.m. It was like an alarm went off. I opened my eyes, heard little Hannah saying "mommmmmmy" and stopped by Ethan's room and he was awake, too.  This 8:00 a.m. time didn't come without a few awake times in the night for little Ethan. He woke up at 1:00 and 4:00 to eat. At 6:00 a.m. he woke up and I put him in his swing and he slept for 2 more hours. 

I fed Ethan and dressed him.  Hannah ate a honey bun for breakfast, with a few yogurt raisins because I wasn't in the mood to fight with her. Then I put this pink dress on Hannah and she said she was "pinkalicious" and wanted pig tails. So then we headed to the bathroom to fix her hair.  She actually sat really still, which is not always typical.  Once I threw some clothes on and brushed my teeth, we headed out the door to play with some friends at McDonald's. 

After playing for about an hour and a half and a near-meltdown, we headed home for lunch.  

Hannah ate about 1/3 of her lunch.  She's not a great eater these days.  Oh well, makes things last a little longer and gives her left overs for the rest of the week.  Ethan and I sat with Hannah while she ate for a few minutes and then we headed to clean her room.

Ethan sat on Hannah's bed while I cleaned.  Hannah helps clean sometimes, but I needed to dust and have everything off the floor so I could vacuum, so I just did it real quick.

By noon both kiddos were sleepy, so they went down for naps.  I got a load of laundry going, ate lunch, played on My Digital Studio, cleaned out my closet, had a quiet time and picked up around the house.

At 2:00 Ethan woke up and we played and talked for about 15 minutes, I fed him, he watched me fold clothes and dust his room and then we played and had tummy time until he went back to sleep at 3:15. I had a little more down time until Hannah woke up at  3:30, so I answered emails and read blogs.

When Hannah woke up we had a snack, colored and played.  Ethan woke up at 4:00 from his 3:15 nap. At some point this afternoon Hannah watched an episode of Dora so I could vacuum and Ethan sat and kicked in his bouncer.

(her left pig tail kinda got shoved to the back of her head -ha!)

Ethan went back to sleep at 5:30 (he still naps pretty often) and woke up at around 6:30. Our cousins came over at 5:45 to play. This was the hi-light of Hannah's day. She looooves her cousins.

This was the only time I could get them all together (minus Ethan)...watching Princess and the Frog for a few minutes before dinner.

After they left at around 8:15 we relaxed a little and Hannah went to sleep at around 8:45 and Ethan went to sleep at around 9:30. Now I'm off to bed, too!

I know this was really boring to some of you, but I'm going to love having it. You can expect the next 4 days to be just as exciting - ha!

Potty Training Week

Well, Monday at our house was day 1 of potty training.  I reserved the entire week to just stay at home and work on it, with the hopes that we would say goodbye to diapers forever.

My method was to set a timer for every 20 minutes and have Hannah sit on the potty for 5 minutes.  We got a timer, potty seat, m&m's for rewards, a special new cup so she would drink more and new Dora panties. I wrapped it up like a present and let her unwrap it first thing Monday morning.  So with a little research, my sister on speed dial and lots of prayer, away we went....

Day 1:

 We ate lots of salty snacks to make her extra thirsty and drank lots of fun drinks that she rarely ever gets.  We were set up for complete success!

Throughout the day she had about 5-6 accidents (which made Dora on her panties really sad).  FINALLY, right before bed time at around 8:30 she DID IT! Wes and I threw a huge party and I'm pretty sure she thought we were crazy.

Day 1 overall - FAILURE! 

Day 2:

Right when Hannah woke up (at around 10:00 a.m.) I took her straight to the potty and SUCCESS! Due to a flushing incident the day before, Hannah was scared of the big potty, so we took out her little potty.

At one point in the day she sat on the potty for 50 minutes and I entertained her with all kinds of activities. 

There was no success during the 50 minutes, but there was an accident 30 seconds after leaving the potty for almost an hour! Frustration! Luckily, about 45 minutes later we had more success.

After a 3.5 hour nap and waking up dry - more success!

Day 2 Overall - Making progress

Day 3:
By now, we were pretty tired of sitting in the bathroom for the majority of the day, so I moved the potty around the house. I've learned as a mom to "never say never."  I started off not wanting her to sit on the potty forever, especially in front of the TV. I wanted her to be aware of what was going on, sit on the potty and take care of business.  Well, she had some success by sitting on the potty with a show on, and she knew what she was doing, so I was OK with it.

Also, by day 3 the m&m treats weren't so special anymore, so Tuesday night I put together a "treat box."  When she attempted the potty she still got m&m's, but if she actually had success she got to choose something from the treat box.

(yes, we are still in the same shirt from day 2 - ha!)

We also had our first really BIG success in the potty today - if you know what I mean. She had been holding it for a couple of days, but she did it in the potty! So thankful!

Day 3 overall - We might be getting the hang of this.

Day 4:
I decided today that I would try and hit "key" times for potty time. Instead of making Hannah sit on the potty each time a timer went off, I put her more on a potty schedule. When she woke up, mid morning, before nap, after nap, mid afternoon, after dinner and bedtime. I figured this little routine would prepare her for the outside world, where potties aren't available at any given moment - ha!

And this included putting on real clothes instead of running around in our panties or naked all day. ha! We still haven't fixed our hair, though. It's been days (for both of us)!

Hannah did GREAT with waiting until she was on the potty to go.  We didn't have any accidents today. Yahooooo!!!!!

Day 4 Overall:  Complete success!!!!!

Day 5:
I can't believe we are 5 days into this and Hannah is doing so great.  This morning we had a little test.  Marley came over all morning and I was anxious to see how Hannah would do when I had to take her away from playing to go potty.

Hannah did awesome while Marley was here.  She had one little draw back right before nap time (no accident, just a little fear of the potty for a brief while), but she ended up having success before nap.  She's also showing signs of the fact that she's waiting to potty when I put her on it. She's aware of having to go and is waiting until she's on the potty. SO EXCITING!!!

Day 5 Overall: WE GOT THIS!

Let me just tell you....I'm shocked at how quickly Hannah caught on to this.  I'm certain that we aren't free from future accidents and they will most likely come while she's at the top of the slide at McDonalds or walking through Wal-Mart, but I do know that we aren't going back to diapers! Yahoooo....as exciting as this is, I told Wes Sunday night before we started that it was a bittersweet time for me. My little baby girl is growing up.

Another bonus to  potty training this week is that we haven't left the house. Not once. I've fallen in love with this little girl all over again and I'm so proud to be her mommy. I've loved spending sooooo much time together in our pajamas.

Love you, Hannah Kate. Mommy and Daddy are so proud of our big girl!! 

Prom Date anyone?

My nephew (who is now 7!!!) was the honorary ring bearer in our wedding, and every ring bearer needs a tux, right?
He was only 7 weeks old. 

So when my nephew, Grayson, was born we had to take a picture of him in this tiny little tux.

And now that Ethan is here, we had to follow the trend.

How cute are these little fellas? 

 I think they'll all make great looking prom dates one day! 

7 Year Itch

Well, I'm not sure if we are past the 7 year itch or if we are entering into it, but nonetheless, as of this past Sunday, Wes and I have been married for 7 years!!  The time has absolutely flown by and it's been so much fun.  Who knew that marriage could be this perfect?!  I've been blessed beyond measure with a great husband and a great daddy for our kiddos.

We have accomplished so much as a couple and I'm so blessed to have a man like Wesley as my husband. Wes is the most level-headed, calm man I know.  He's slow to anger and quick to love.  Each day I thank God for the life I'm living with him. What a fabulous guy to go through life with. I've always loved him unconditionally, but within the past couple of years I've grown to love him beyond explanation. He is truly the best partner in the world.  An amazing provider, supporter and follower of Christ. He's so supportive and encourages me daily. 

I love you, Wesley Paul and I look forward to spending 70  more years together! 

Beaver's Bend

This past weekend we headed to Beaver's Bend with the Tyler family.

A special thanks to James and Jenn for getting it together. 

We had lots of fun and it was a great time to spend with Wesley's family at one of our favorite places...the lake!

The Tyler boys.

We rented jet skis while we were there too.  I stayed home with the kiddos while everyone enjoyed themselves. I heard it was a great time!

Rachel getting a tan...

Since Wes and I love the lake, we are anxious to get our kiddos up on water skis.  Don't worry, we didn't try quite yet, but we did get Hannah on the tube. She did great and kept saying "Yahoooooo, Weeeee, Super Fun!!"  So, I guess she liked it!

Hannah enjoyed her first smore, perfectly roasted by daddy.

And when we weren't out on the water, we were inside giving ourselves facials and manicures with finger paints.

Gotta love family time!!