Our First Weekend!

For two years now, Andrew has been working six days each week. It's been hard, but I really admire and appreciate him for how hard he works to support us. With him working an extra day, we've been able to work on Dave Ramsey's "Baby Steps" and hopefully we will be able to buy a house this year.

Last Saturday was Andrew's last day working at Star. The sign pictured above welcomed him home! We are SO happy that we will have real weekends with Daddy!!!!!

We are proud of you Daddy! This weekend is going to be great! =)

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On a different note - notice that John is actually trying to color parts of the picture instead of scribbling on the whole page. This a little milestone for him! Now we just need to work on staying in the lines...

Snow!

We got about five inches of now last Wednesday! I'm just glad I was able to go to the store on Tuesday to stock up on groceries for the week. Cabin fever is setting in, so I am kind of glad that rain washed away most of the snow last night. We are going to get out of the house today and go to our Bradley class reunion. All of the women in our birthing class have had their babies, so it will be great to see everyone and hear their stories.

On Wednesday, we were able to get out in the snow with John for some fun! We went sledding on come corrugated plastic board because we didn't have a sled and we (aka Andrew) build a really cute snowman. It was pretty cold out there and the top layer of the snow was icy, so it didn't roll very well - but that doesn't matter to a 2 year old!

Hot coco + whip cream + crushed candy cane + chocolate sprinkles = the best post-snow play drink!

Peter Stats

I took Peter in a few days ago for his belated 2 month check-up. It confirmed what we already knew - we've got a big baby! 15lbs 11oz, 25 inches long, and 17 inch head circumference = 97th percentile on all counts! At least he is proportionally large!

On Monday he went to his 3rd chiropractic visit. She told us he was perfect! So now we don't have to go in again. I'm so glad the adjustments worked and he is all better.

He used to be pretty crabby, but over the past month or so he has calmed down and is generally very happy. I remember when I was in the hospital the day after he was born and he started to fuss. My friend Becky was holding him and asked me, "What does he want?" I shrugged my shoulders and said "I don't know, he is like a stranger to me." She gave me a weird look, but it was true - when you have a new baby you love them and have a strong bond to them, but it takes time to learn what their different cries mean. I'm happy to say now that he is no stranger! He is my little side-kick and I love being able to read his signs.

He is now approaching the three 3 month mark and I am really enjoying his age. His big past-time right now is sucking on his right hand (I wonder if that means he will be right-handed...). He is even getting a little rash on his chin from his drool. His sleeping patterns are starting to set in, which means I am able to keep up with some daily routines. At night, he usually only wakes up once to nurse and is a sound sleeper the rest of the night. I'm thankful for that!

Peter in his Jumperoo

I brought this jumperoo in from the garage after I took down the Christmas decorations. I figured that Peter was just about the right age for it. Sure enough, he loves it! And so does John! ;)

Until Next Year...

We had a good run, O' Christmas tree, but the time has come to say good bye. It's bitter-sweet. Sweet because your departure means that I can get on with organizing and cleaning the house. Bitter because it means Christmas is over and you won't return for another year.

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As a grown up, a year doesn't seem that far away, but when I think that my boys will each be a year older - that seems crazy! Peter will probably be walking! John will be even more eloquent, independent and potty-trained (please, oh please!). A year is a long time in child-years.

Today as I laid by the tree with John, I realized that I will only have 16 Christmas' left with him living in the house. Might seem like a lot, but I know it will fly by.  I'm going to cling to these years like Pooh Bear to his Hunny Pot.  It's been a sappy day for sure.  To top it off, "What a Wonderful World" played on my Pandora station while I was rocking Peter to sleep.

So tomorrow is the day, I will pack all the Christmas decorations away. Probably during John's nap. I don't want to traumatize him with de-decorating!

More to come later about all the festivities. For now, here is a picture of the boys cuddled up in matching PJs (thanks Grandma and Grandpa!) watching the Grinch.

Almost 2 months old!

Our little Peter is almost two months old! It's hard to believe how quickly the months have passed, but we can't imagine life without him! He smiles a lot and is starting to coo and babble. He is a very cozy guy and I love co-sleeping with him. He is also a great sleeper - only waking up once or twice to nurse!

We noticed early on that he tends to lean his head and look to the right. We learned from a chiropractor who was a guest at one of our Bradley classes that this can be a sign of spinal misalignment, which likely occurred during delivery. So last week I took him to that same chiropractor and she determined that his occipital bone was misaligned. She made some adjustments and showed me some exercises to do with him. We had another appointment with her today and she saw major improvements in his neck strength and movement. Andrew and I have also noticed a lot of improvements. It's so nice to see him holding his head straight!

I have a couple more posts that I meant to write after Peter was born. I've been pretty behind on this blog for two main reasons (John and Peter!). Hopefully I will catch up soon!

John Quotes ~ Vol. 3

There is never a dull moment around this house. John is quite the talker and has a great sense of humor. Here are some quotes that I managed to write down over the last month or so:

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His critique of some homemade grape juice: "It's not sour, Mamma. It's very spicy!"

"Look my did!" (instead of "look what I did")

"This mines?" (instead of "is this mine?")

"Some-be-people" (instead of "somebody") Example: "Some-be-people live in that house."

When Peter was crying: "Oh, Peter, you're fake crying."

After trying to use the potty chair: "I put a toot in there! Come see!"

I was wearing a knit hat and John said, "I like your hat, it's really purple."

We were taking a walk and a sports car went by. The driver was revving his engine. After it passed, John said, "That car stinks!"

He gets to have a little cup of chocolate milk before nap and bed time. While he is drinking it he always puts his finger in his belly button. He calls this "belly button time".


Apparently I call Andrew "darling" a lot because John asked me one day, "darling had to go to work?"

When we were driving past a sign for a highway he said "That man lost his body" (In reference to the profile of George Washington).

Our Newest Catholic!

Peter was baptized on November 13th. We had a great weekend - full of time with family, friends, and God's grace though Peter's first sacrament!

Shortly after he was born, a good friend of ours gave Peter a holy medal that contains a relic from his patron - St. Peter Julain Eymard! I pinned the medal to his shirt and he wore it during his baptism.

May you cling to Our Lord all the days of your life, Peter! Welcome Home!

Andrew's Birthday Weekend!

Andrew's birthday was on Saturday. He had to work, but that turned out to be a good thing because I had a lot to do to prepare for a couple surprises I had planned!

As far as he knew, the plan was that he would come home for one of his favorite meals (Tikka Masala), then my parents would come down and join us for huckleberry pie and a few presents. That was it... or so he thought!

After he opened gifts, my mom spontaneously suggested that Andrew and I go out and do something together. I looked at him and shrugged my shoulders as if it was a possibility. At that point he knew something was up!

So we rushed off and I took him to see our community theater's production of Fiddler on the Roof! It was very good and well-done! We had a great time and he was pretty surprised.

But wait, there's more!

The next day, after we came home from Mass, he found this sign on our front door:

"Whaaaat?" He questioned with a smile.

When he went in the house he found a fridge stocked with beer and pizza and snack food covering the counter (Thanks to my mom and dad who set it up while we were at Mass!).

I told him that some of his buddies would be over soon for a "guy-day." They played poker and Halo. Everyone stayed all day and into the night - so I think they had fun!

John, Peter and I went upstairs and spent the day with my parents. So we got to have a special day too!

Andrew, I love you so much and hope you had a wonderful weekend! You work so hard to provide for us and we really appreciate everything you do! Happy birthday!

Happy Birthday!! {How to make straw rockets}

Happy Birthday, Daddy!

Today is Andrew's birthday - or as John would say "Daddy's happy birth-dee." This year, John got in on the gift giving. A couple of days ago we made straw rockets. You can see below that we have Super Daddy, Super Mommy, Super Johnny, and Super Peter. I drew the figures and John colored them (I colored the capes).

Stapled to the back of each figure is a paper tube that I rolled around a crayon which was slightly larger than the straw. You can't roll it around the straw because then it will be too tight and not fly off easily - trust me, I tried it! Then you just put the figure on the end of a straw and blow! It's lots of fun for a 2-year-old and his daddy!

This morning I told John that it was Dad's birthday today. He ran to where we hid the gift and brought it to Andrew (who was still sound asleep). Andrew woke up and opened his gift. It was so sweet to see John's excitement! I know that Andrew is his hero!