Monday, June 30, 2014

9 months: The Peanut


My Macy is now 9 months old.


And she is a little peanut.
Peanut.
 


Like, not growing as fast as she should, little peanut.
Her 9 month wellness check was not so successful.
She is busy and active and not interested in eating at all.
Healthy, but needing to eat more and grow at a quicker rate.
 

BUT, this cute little stinker will not take a bottle, or a sippy cup and will only nurse.
So we are trying to feed her more solid foods (which she is not a fan of) and I am working on improving my milk supply.
Again.
 


Does anyone know how to make a baby take a sippy cup?


Not helping the eat more food situation was Macy's first real cold.


Little Lady was coughing and sneezy and runny-nosed for a solid week. 
As you can tell, she is just not her happy little self in these pictures.



The cold has now left and Macy is starting to eat more and hopefully grow!


Never a dull moment in her little world. She knows her likes and her dislikes and voices them regulary.

So, chunking up those little legs is the order of business around these parts.
That, and snuggling and kissing.

Sunday, June 22, 2014

A Day in June: School Days

A long time ago, I recorded what a day looked liked and blogged about it. 
Now, it is one of my very favorite posts to look back at. I remember those routines, contemplate how they have changed and savor those special moments that seemed so mundane at the time, but were so fleeting.

So, before the end of Jack's first year of school came to an end, I wanted to document it.

Here is our day on June 6th, 2014.

Fridays are favorite days in our household. Friday is Pizza Day at school. Jack stays for recess and pizza lunch with his friends. It is his very favorite day at school, followed closely by Show and Tell on Mondays. This Friday was a bit different, as they were celebrating the summer birthdays, so Jack and another little friend were going to celebrate their birthdays with cupcakes, fruit and a special Birthday interview.

I made the cupcakes late that Thursday night but was going to get up early to frost them.


 However, Macy was fussy throughout the night and I overslept my alarm. I woke up 20 minutes before Jack was suppose to leave for school. (My saint of a husband gets up with the boys, gets Jack ready for school and takes him every day. This allows me to get a bit more sleep) 

So, first thing first....blue frosting.



Quickly followed by a cup of coffee. Teething, non sleeping babies are no joke.


 I was able to get them frosted in time and the handsome kindergartener was on his way!


However, the baby was not happy about all that cupcake frosting. After destroying all her brothers' toys, she was ready to nurse. I was not ready. She doesn't like waiting. Obviously.


BUT, a freshly fed baby is a happy baby. She played with medieval weaponry while her brother played with his legos and his leap pad. I wanted to have a picture of my cute Colin, but he prefers to not wear clothes and I didn't think that the internet needed a pic of Thomas the Train undies.


Baby was ready for her morning nap and I get to sneak in some cuddles, as this is the only time she is still.


Colin and I had some lunch as Macy napped and we got ready to go pick Jack up from school.


The pick up team. I love my mornings with Colin. He talks and talks to me and tells me everything he sees on our way to the school.



Macy is the star at school. The kids love to surround her and talk to her. Somewhere in that swarms of little bodies is Macy in her carseat. The kids are so good with her and love to talk to her every day.


Once we are home, the boys get to watch one episode of Octonauts. Colin is checking the facts with an animal book. It helps Jack unwind from school and than it is off the play for the boys. They usually are pretending they are some sort of marine animal that they see on the show.


 While the boys are playing, Macy gets her lunch. Sweet potatoes today, her favorite!


 After another round of play time, it is time for Macy's afternoon nap. I may or may not snuggle with her well after she is asleep.


Afternoon quiet time sometimes involves quiet reading in separate rooms, but today the boys begged to make a big bed on the floor and watch a movie. I agreed and the movie of choice was Elf.



  While Macy sleeps and the boys' have their quiet time, I work out. One of the many things that I love about Fit2b is that I can work out with my laptop, in the same room with the boys, keeping an eye on everything and still getting in a solid 30-45 minute work out.



Late into the afternoon the baby wakes up, the movie ends and I start to make some dinner. Ryan comes home and we  eat. Tonight, we decided to take a walk after dinner. Jack needs to practice riding his bike more, so that he can try to get his training wheels off.

After the walk, it is bed time for the boys. Teeth are brushed, stories are read, prayers are said and it is off to bed for them.



Night time is wild time for Macy. It is like she has to burn up all her energy before bed. She scoots all over the place, tearing into the boys toys. Here, she has pulled the bin off the shelf and happily threw out every single toy, as fast as she could.


Our quiet evening ended with the finishing of Season 1 of Downton Abbey. I know that I am behind the times, but I am slowly making my way through the series. Bed time for mom usually does not come soon enough.

And that is our day in June.


(To see more of the day in... series, click the label below)

Sunday, June 15, 2014

So This Is Love


 Daddy and Jack.
2008



Daddy and Colin
2010



Daddy and Macy
2013


Happy Father's Day to my Love.
Thanks for being such a great Dad.
Our kids are lucky to have you.
I am lucky to have you.

You are a shining example of love, patience, grace and selflessness.
Your efforts to provide and keep us happy and provided for, while still investing your time, does not go unnoticed.

Our boys idolize you and thankfully, want to be just like you.
Our daughter adores you and her happy squeals of joy when you come home from work are proof of that.

Thank you for showing us what Love is.

And a very Happy Father's Day to my own Dad.  
You set a great for me.
Love you.



Thursday, June 5, 2014

Adventures at 4am

This does not happen at 4am.

If you were to stop by our house around 4am, there is a good chance that someone will be awake.
It will mostly likely be all of us, except for Colin. Colin is the best sleeper and doesn't want to be bothered. Don't wake him up, don't sleep in his bed, don't move him. He likes his sleep.

I wish his other siblings would get that memo.


Also not at 4am.

Little Miss likes to wake up between 4-5am for a feeding, so we both are usually up at that time.



And Jack...oh, Jack...  he has decided to completely revert back and sleep in our room, preferably in our bed, wedged between us.

We have a queen. It is not big enough for an 5 year old boy who seems to grow arms and legs in the night that wrap and surround you like an ever-growing octopus.


Only one will be sleeping at 4am.

He has learned two very important tricks.

1. Mom wakes up WAY easier than Dad. Sneak past Mom at all costs, for she will put you back to bed.

2. Dad does not wake up. Ever. Go to Dad's side of the bed, and even lay directly on his back...for if you hit Mom in the face while sleeping, she will take you back to your bed.

Jack has been making beds on our floor sometime in the middle of the night. He also wakes us up to let us know that Macy is crying. (Something I am well aware of). He wakes us up if he hears a noise, or a car, or a creak.

Or the cat. That blasted cat.

The cat has figured out where our bedroom windows are. So he will want to be let outside around 8pm and than around 5am...right when everyone is back to sleep from our 4am party session... he will summon us to let him back inside by meowing at our window.

It is not cool, not cool at all.


SO, if you would like to party at 4am, come to our house. We have lots of conversations about noises and fear, we feed crying babies and we sport dark under-eyes circles during the day.

All are welcome.