low batteries

Today I felt like I needed a battery recharge, and was just never able to get myself out of the little red area that shows the battery is about to die. Ivory put forth a good effort to help me kick the funk, and it did help for a while (thanks, Ivory!) but a frustrating drive across town sent me right back into the low battery zone. I feel like I spent all day yelling, I had NO patience for Landon's usual million questions, and poor Coleson pretty much got ignored all day because I was so focused on not losing it completely.

I have been reading a good book called Raising Your Spirited Child, which I am very much enjoying by the way. Part of the book has you assess yourself to help you determine how you will relate to your child. The little assessment reminded me that I am an extravert. Essentially, I gather my energy from interacting with other people (um, other adult people I have come to realize). I have been taking time to knit in the evenings or read a book, but that doesn't quite do it for me the way a good talking session would. In the last week, with Tyson being really sick and me caring almost 24/7 for the kids and him I have had almost no social interaction. Most days I usually at least get to interact with Tyson when he gets home but last week he has been too sick to even get out of bed let alone have a real conversation. And that has really taken a huge toll on me.

I have arranged to have playdates and such for the next few days, so we can get out of the house and not kill each other and I am hoping it will help my mood. I guess now I know that I can't just hole up in the house. I need to get out and spend time with friends. It's been a hard lesson today, though, because I feel like the biggest mommy-failure for yelling all day and slamming a few doors. Oh, well. Thank goodness there is a tomorrow.

one of those days (a venting post)

Today was one of those days where nothing went quite as planned.

Tyson woke up this morning really sick and spent all day in bed. Therefore, I spent all day trying to keep the kids quiet and happy.

I did get some holiday baking done with Landon while Coleson napped, but then Coleson never took an afternoon nap and spent most of the rest of the day overly tired because of it.

We went to playgroup, but then had a hard time with Landon's behavior and instead of feeling relaxed and refreshed from time with good friends, I left feeling stressed about disciplining my three year old and how I could have handled it all better.

Came home from playgroup to a husband still in bed, dinner to be handled (called the in-laws to bring over food - bless them!), and tired kids to put to bed. Since Tyson was completely non-functional, I had to do bedtime alone, which I hate. The overtired little ones stayed up until around nine, even though their usual bedtime is between six-thirty and seven, and now that everyone is sleeping but me I just can't wind down and get myself to bed.

Ugh, days like this go against all the hard work I put into establishing a good rhythm in our house. And I really think I notice the deviations more than anyone else. It's amazing how one or two little things that are outside our norm and really just mess it all up. Oh well, tomorrow is another day. Hopefully one where things go as planned!

so much to do . . .

We had so much to do today, yet most of it got done. Thanks in a huge part to Landon spending most of the day with grandparents, and Coleson taking an almost four hour nap. Both of these things were completely unexpected, but a wonderful treat. I started the day with a huge to-do list and I finish it with a little bit of sewing and other fun crafting to accomplish.

My brother and his best friend were here for dinner. Greg is in town visiting, and it was so nice to see him. I do hope he moves back to town with his family when his four years in the Marines is up. It would be fun to get to know him again as an adult.

I think I might go on a knitting fast for the next week or two in order to get a few other projects done, including that darn stocking for Coleson. I don't know if I can handle it, though. Knitting is such a relaxation thing for me. Maybe if I drink enough coffee and wine I will survive.

Sorry for the randomness of the post. I have been reading through the archives of this great blog and I really love it. I feel like it has inspire the tone of this post. Maybe I would post more often if I only needed a nice picture and a few words.

Thankful

I know I totally missed posting for Thanksgiving. And I decided that was ok. But I certainly am thankful. Especially for two wonderful little boys that make me laugh at least once a day. Check out this video. The beginning isn't the most entertaining, but the last few seconds are so cute I couldn't resist posting it.

Also, I am feeling way too overwhelmed by the holidays this year. I think part of it is that it seems too early to be December already, so I am having a hard time convincing myself that Christmas is really soon. It still seems like I have so much I want to do to make the holidays just right and I feel like none of it is coming together. I love the idea of an Advent calendar, complete with coupons for meaningful family activities. In reality? Landon has absolutely no interest in it, Coleson doesn't even get it at all, and Tyson could care less. I also want to have Coleson's handmade stocking finished, and perfectly awaiting Santa. Reality? I hate the stupid thing (a kit that involves WAY TOO MUCH embroidery) and don't want to ever work on it, making it nearly impossible to have it finished in less than 22 days (I am on piece number 15 of about 100 and I have already spent about six solid, two hour long stretches on it - UGH!). It will be beautiful when it is done, but for right now I am so sick of it. I guess he won't notice if it's not done by Christmas morning. Right? And, I wanted a beautiful tree and lights up all over the house and all the Christmas decorations to be just so. The reality is that I tell the boys not to take ornaments off the tree about 50 times a day, I spend way too much time putting back up the lights that have fallen down from around the windows, and I still have boxes of Christmas decorations sitting on my dining room table because the places I want to put them will not stay clutter-free for more than about 20 minutes. I guess I need to resign myself to not having the holidays be just so until the boys are a bit older, an age where at least they don't try to eat the glitter off the ornaments. I am just having a hard time realizing that it's ok if it's not all perfect and exactly how I picture it in my head. But that is always a hard thing for me.

Anyway, back to the thankful. Sorry about the long rant in the middle. Maybe I need to go watch that video again.

little man of the house

Tyson is out of town this week, which always makes me dread bedtime. I hate trying to figure out how to get two kids to go to sleep. Anyway, tonight Coleson was ready for bed long before Landon was. So, I told Landon he needed to play quietly while I nursed Coleson to sleep. He sat down for quite a while next to us with a fun new puzzle book he got for his birthday from Gretchen. Then he put that away, including all the pieces, which is somewhat rare for him as we usually battle over cleaning up, and ran to the kitchen. Pretty soon he ran back to ask me if a few different things could be recycled. Then I heard the water running in the sink. Turns out, he was in the kitchen tidying up (!!!) by putting the recyclables in the bin and rinsing off the dishes. Um, hi, did you just turn three or twenty-three? I was so amazed! I thanked him a couple times over and told him that I was proud of how responsible he is becoming. Now, if I can just get him to do this every night . . .

Landon's 3rd Birthday

Landon had his third birthday on Thursday. My little guy is already three. He is turning in to such a wonderful little boy.

He is smart and funny, athletic and daring, affectionate and sweet. He cracks me up at least once a day and is constantly asking questions about everything. When he learns a new word he tries to use it in conversation and he listens so closely to everything we talk about, even when we think he isn't paying attention. He is incredibly social, but enjoys spending time at home doing his own thing too.

I am so proud to be his mama and I'm looking forward to many more wonderful birthday celebrations to come.

(Beautiful pictures by Chelsea.)

walking boy!

I finally got a good video of Coleson walking. It took a few attempts, and it's still sideways (darn camera) but I got one. So, tilt your head to the side and enjoy!

it was gonna be great

I got on here tonight all excited to do a post about Coleson's new-found walking ability. Then I downloaded the video I took of it the other night and realized that it's not a good video at all. He barely walks in it, Tyson and Landon are chatting away in the background about random stuff, and it's sideways. So, the post was gonna be great. It really was. And I'm saving it for when I have a decent video that actually shows off my little guy. Because that's what mamas do.

dinner

I love reuben sandwiches, but I have never attempted to make one. It's usually something I order in restaurants, but when I stumbled across a recipe for reubens in one of my crock pot cook books I couldn't resist trying it. I put about five ingredients in the pot just after breakfast, and come dinner time all I do is add cheese, a little 1000 island dressing, and bread? Um, yes please! Ok, so I also added homemade sweet potato fries to round out the meal, but those are super-easy too. Anyway, the sandwiches turned out so good! I was very pleased with myself. I wolfed mine down, and looked over at Tyson across the table with a big, proud grin on my face. I mean, really, these things were better than I've had in many restaurants. I asked, "Did you like the sandwich?" To which he replies over his half-eaten sandwich, "Eh. I don't really like reubens." GASP! Of course I took it as a total insult to my cooking ability, which is not how he meant it at all, but still. At least he came up later and told me how he loves it that I try new things with my cooking. Don't you hate it when someone totally bursts your bubble like that?

Happy Halloween!

I know it's a little late, but Happy Halloween! We celebrated by doing a bit of trick-or-treating around our neighborhood and my in-laws' neighborhood, and Landon definitely got more than enough candy. At first he wasn't so sure about the whole wear-a-costume-and-knock-on-doors thing, but then he realized that he got candy when he did it and there was no turning back. It helped that a slightly older friend of his trick-or-treated through our neighborhood with us, and she REALLY understood how the whole thing worked. Coleson had no idea why in the world we had him dressed in an annoying thing with a tight hood and walked around outside in the cold, but it made for cute pictures at least. Overall, it was fun and Landon has yet to gorge himself on candy so it was a success!

A knight and his loyal puppy, heading out to get some candy. (Yes, Coleson can stand on his own and is walking a bit, but that's another post.)

Tuckered out at the end of the night, taking a break on Grammy and Papa's steps.

I hope your Halloween was just as fun!

it was that kind of night

Last night was one of those nights. You know, the one where one kid wakes up, and as soon as he's settled, the other one is up, and pretty soon they are both up at the same time and neither one of them will go back to sleep? And then you get to repeat it again about an hour after everyone is finally settled back to sleep? Yup, one of those nights. Luckily they don't happen around here too often, which in a way makes them even worse because we're not used to them. Anyway, it wasn't much fun. Luckily they both went down easy for bed tonight and we are hoping they are too tired to wake up much tonight.

Earlier this evening Tyson and I left the boys with my in-laws and went out for a nice dinner. We even had cocktails before dinner and dessert afterward. I got to eat dinner and chat with my husband without anyone trying to sit in my lap, and no one called me "mama" for about two hours. It was wonderful. I'm thinking we need to do that a little more often.

Tomorrow Landon gets the second of three cavities filled at the dentist. He is usually really great at the dentist, but I am worried that all this work on his teeth will lead to him being one of those people who hates going to the dentist, even for a little cleaning. Hopefully after this we will not have to deal with any more cavities, as we are being super-vigilant about brushing and taking really good care of his teeth. Ugh, I think it might stress me out more than it does him.

In hopes of getting to bed early, I am going to go finish a cute knit vest for Coleson and relax. Aaahhh.

it's been a while

I have been busy knitting lately, too busy knitting to update my blog. It has just seemed like the season for knitting and all my spare time has been used up by that hobby. I also started reading a book, which I haven't done in a long time. So I guess you could say I have been focusing more on my other interests.

However, I read other people's blogs on a daily basis and enjoy it very much so I finally figured that I should pay a bit more attention to my own. And by attention, I mean adding a bunch of pictures from our last few weeks in hopes that my adorable children will make up for my lack of words. The pictures are a bit Coleson-heavy. This is mostly because Landon hates having his picture taken lately and will either not look at the camera or stick his finger in his nose (cute, I know). Plus, Coleson is a huge ham for the camera and starts smiling as soon as we get it out.

Our days over the past six weeks or so have consisted of . . .

. . . riding bikes with neighborhood friends.

. . . crashing the bike (happened last night - poor guy!).

. . . getting new matching outfits made by Gram.

. . . taking baths with Dad.

. . . helping with laundry. He loves to watch the front-load washer through the little window.

. . . learning to play in the big kid toys. This has been coupled with learning to stand and trying to walk. Coleson wants so desperately to be able to play with the big kids!

. . . helping with dishes.

. . . LOTS of eating. Let me tell you, this boy LOVES food. Plus he has two new teeth (one top and one bottom), all the better to chew it with!

So, that's it in a nutshell. A lot has happened over the past six weeks or so since I updated, but it would take forever to type it all out. Let's just go forward from here, shall we?

wedding pictures

I promised pictures the other day, and here they are. We took some really great ones at Allison's wedding, but there were too many to share them all. We had such a good time at their wedding - it was quite the party!

The gorgeous bride. (Her dress and flowers were so, so pretty.)

Landon in his summer tux. All the groomsmen were jealous that he got to wear shorts and they didn't.

Another picture of Landon in his tux, because can you really have too many? Plus, in this one you get to see his cute little boutonniere (I sure hope that's spelled correctly).

Now, on to Coleson. He is doing so many new things these days. He started eating solid food, doing some baby signs, sitting, scooting, and crawling. He is also fond of the idea of pulling himself up to stand, but isn't quite strong enough yet. He is also showing the makings of quite the temper. He is really easy going most of the time, but every once in a while he can really let you know that he is not happy. Cole still has a big grin on his face for almost everyone he meets, and we often get greeted by wild flapping of arms and legs, a huge smile, and some shrieks. He is quite a charmer!

Coleson enjoying chewing on a corn cob at dinner.

Yep, it won't be long before he is terrorizing the house. I am equal parts dreading him being able to crawl well and being excited that he will be able to get around on his own.

Last, I went to my long-time friend Sarah's wedding a few weekends ago. We had such a good time seeing lots of people that I grew up with and their parents. It's so fun to be able to get together once in a while. Here we are at Sarah's reception.

These are the ladies I grew up with, and they are still some of my best friends. I think it's so great that we have been friends since we were ten and we still talk and hang out when we get the chance. I wish I had a photo on my computer of us as kids to compare. Then again, we looked pretty dorky in some, I'm not sure I really want them on the internet for all to see!

Anyway, those are my pictures from all the festivities of the last month or so. It's been a busy summer for us, and now we are starting to move into focusing on preparing for the fall and winter. We are doing some repairs around the house and working in the yard to get everything ready for cold weather and snow. Hopefully not as much snow as we had last year. We still have about a month left of good, warm weather though. Ok, off to go knit in peace while the baby naps and Landon is at the neighbor's house.

you could win!

Check this out! Each of us could get one of these for free. How cool would that be?

I still have yet to download pictures from the weddings and such. I will this weekend though. Promise.

weddings and funky days

We have been so busy the last few weeks, so no updating has taken place. Sorry. Here's a run-down of what has been happening with us.

About a month ago we traveled to Olympia to visit old friends and attend a friend's wedding. We were there for a week and had a great time just hanging out with our old buddies. It was ridiculously hot while we were there, though, but we just spent a lot of time playing in the cold water and we even took a day trip to the ocean. The boys did great in the car both there and back. I was so impressed with them.

The weekend after we got back from visiting Olympia, Tyson's sister got married. I took some really nice pictures, which I will have to share in another post. Landon was the ring bearer and even wore a cute little tux. A lot of family was in town for the wedding and we spent about six days just visiting with everyone and enjoying having company.

Last weekend a friend of mine from childhood got married, so off we went to another wedding. I got to see a lot of my friends from grade school/middle school/high school, so that was a lot of fun. We didn't get to stay too long, because Cole was really tired and couldn't stay asleep with the loud music, but at least we got to enjoy seeing people.

Then this week, and a little of last week, have basically been spent recovering from all the activity. We have been trying to settle back into a routine which I hope will carry us into the fall. Landon has been having some major melt-downs and I have been very short on patience. It's been a bit of a rough transition back to real life for us the past couple weeks. Today, Landon sobbed and screamed for at least an hour for a toy he saw at the store with my mom that he wanted me to drive back and get for him. When he finally stopped crying about it, he fell asleep, took a nap for an hour and a half, and then woke up and started crying about the darn toy again. I just keeping hoping tomorrow will be better.

I will try to be back here again soon with pictures from our adventures.

wrestling brothers

Landon and Coleson have started playing together lately. Usually it involves Landon trying to get Coleson to laugh at him, but Cole loves the attention and Landon likes to feel like a big brother. They are so cute together! Today they were having a great time wrestling on the bed and, lucky me, I managed to catch it on camera. (Sorry it's so dark - we have blackout shades. I'll have to try to lighten it later.)

Aren't they the cutest? I just love Coleson's shrieky giggle and how he is wrapping his arms around Landon like he's trying to wrestle back. Too cute!

Happy (Belated) 4th of July!

Happy 4th of July! We celebrated by hosting a BBQ attended by lots of family. My brother got to come home on leave from the Marines for the holiday, so Landon and Coleson got all dressed up in their Marines gear. Greg, my brother, will be stationed in San Diego at the end of this month and we are looking forward to visiting and going to all the area attractions. The boys' godfather Rob is also a Marine, currently in Afghanistan, or "Ganisand" as Landon calls it. I hope everyone had a great holiday!

our days in pictures

Our summer days are so full of fun activities. Plus, Tyson is currently on "bay-cation," as Landon calls it, for two weeks so we have been having extra fun. Here is what we have been up to:

Swimming in Grammy and Papa's pool.

Camping and fishing with Gram and Papa Dan.

Scooter riding and bike riding too, of course!

Going four wheeling at Gram's house. (Don't worry, he doesn't drive it himself. Yet.)

Finding shade whenever possible and playing in the grass.

Jumping on Dad.

Visiting with cousin Theo, since he and my sister-in-law are about to go join his daddy in San Diego.

Being sweet brothers together, enjoying the summer!

Coleson's Birth Story

I realized tonight, while reading a friend's birth story (her little guy is only a couple weeks old) that I had never posted Coleson's birth story here.  I meant to, but I guess it never actually got put up.  It's pretty detailed, so it's quite long.  Enjoy!

Coleson’s Birth Story

January 26, 2009

Early in the morning of January 26, around 2 a.m., I woke up with Landon because he had been sick and was running a small fever.  He was tossing and turning and couldn’t fall back asleep.  I lay down with him for quite a while in his bed, brought him into ours, and finally got him settled back to sleep.  When he was finally sleeping, about 3:30 a.m., I noticed that I felt some uncomfortable cramping feelings.  I lay in bed for a while watching the clock and trying to get some more sleep.  I figured if this really was the start of labor I should get as much rest as I could.  I noticed that the cramps were coming every 7-12 minutes, with most of them being around 10 minutes apart and lasting about a minute.  

I was able to stay in bed until about 5 a.m., but didn’t get much sleep.  That’s when I noticed that I needed to breathe a bit through the cramps (I still wasn’t convinced they were contractions) and decided to get up so I didn’t wake Landon or Tyson.  I told Tyson I thought I might be in labor, but to get some more sleep because I was handling it fine by myself. 

I went out to the living room and sat on my birth ball.  I got on contractionmaster.com, but it wasn’t working right for me (maybe because I have a Mac?) so I gave up trying to time things.  I put on my Hypnobabies Birthing Day Affirmations CD and rocked my hips on the ball whenever a contraction would come.  I posted on MDC and updated our blog saying that I thought I might be in labor.  I finally realized that I was really working through the contractions, so I put on my Hypnobabies Easy First Stage CD.  It really helped me remind myself to relax during contractions, even though I never really got into a hypnotic state.  I started chanting “relax, relax, open, open” to myself through contractions and leaning over the birth ball. 

Around 5:45 a.m. I went into our bedroom and asked Tyson to get up so he could call my mom to come get Landon and call the midwife to let her know I was in labor.  Both of them live about 45 minutes away, so I thought we should get them headed toward our house sometime in the near future.  He came out and called my mom.  When he told her I was in labor and she needed to come, she said she had called into work ten minutes ago and told them she wasn’t coming because she was having a grandson that day.  Crazy, huh?  Then he called the midwife and let her know that I was in labor.  I told him to tell her not to come yet, mostly because I didn’t want her sitting in our house watching me labor.  I have nothing against my midwife, but I was enjoying being alone.  So, he told her not to come yet and we would call her if we needed her.  About 10 minutes later I told him to call her back and tell her to come! 

At this point I knew I was in pretty active labor, but I wasn’t sure how far along I was in the process.  Through the last part of my pregnancy, I had been doing what Hypnobabies suggests and visualizing my perfect labor, one that is quick, comfortable, easy, and without any complications, but I wasn’t sure if that’s what I was getting or not.  By this point I was pacing the living room, doing deep “oooohhhh” sounds and chanting “relax, relax, open, open” during contractions.  I kept reminding myself that the contractions weren’t painful, just full of pressure.  I also talked to my baby and asked him to move down.  All of that really helped me focus on the work I was doing and not tense up. 

During all of this, Tyson was cutting up some fruit for me and getting me water.  I had pretty much told him I didn’t want his help with laboring (mostly by swatting him away at one point) so he did a good job letting me do my own thing.  He also got on the computer briefly and sent some emails to work and to cancel some appointments for the day. 

Around 7 a.m. Landon woke up and came out to see me.  He asked me to pick him up and I told him I couldn’t.  So, he just gave me a hug and went to get something to eat.  Tyson told him what was going on and Landon watched me have a couple contractions.  I assured him that I was ok, and he was going to get to see his new little brother soon.  He was totally fine with the whole thing and just watched with curiosity.  My mom came about 7:10 a.m. and gave me a quick hug.  I was having contractions pretty close together at that point, and barely acknowledged her.  Landon came to say goodbye and then left easily with my mom. 

At about 7:15 a.m. I started to feel like I didn’t really want to do this labor thing anymore.  My rational brain told me I was in transition, but the other part of my brain was feeling really overwhelmed and just wanted things to end.  I just kept reminding myself that it would be over soon and I just needed to relax.  Then, I realized that I was giving tiny little pushes at the end of contractions and it felt really good to be doing that.  I started hoping that my midwife would arrive soon!

Five minutes or so later, around 7:20 a.m., my midwife arrived.  At this point I was kneeling on the floor and had just asked Tyson for some pads to put under myself because I could feel things leaking.  He was working on setting up the tub back in the bedroom, since I had requested it right before Landon woke up.  I heard my midwife tell him that there wasn’t time for that and he needed to come out to see his baby being born. 

We briefly tried having me squat with Tyson supporting me, but it didn’t feel right, so I got back into a squatting/hands and knees position on the floor.  Tyson and my midwife spread a bunch of pads under me and I really started to push.  A couple of pushes in my water broke everywhere and it was clear.  I felt much less pressure after that and knew that we were getting so close to the end.  With Landon, I pushed for three hours, but with this baby I knew he would come out much faster.  At first, I wasn’t pushing very efficiently because I was so focused on how intense it was and how I really didn’t want to do it.  Then I decided to really bear down and make things happen.  My midwife and Tyson were both encouraging me at this point and that really helped a lot.  The midwife was behind me rubbing my back and Tyson was up at my head whispering to me and telling me I was doing great. 

My midwife got up to warm up some water for hot compresses and while she was gone I reached down to feel for the baby because there was such a strong stretching sensation.  I realized his head was quickly emerging and shouted for the midwife.  She asked if we had a head and I said it was coming!  I guided his head about halfway out and then waited for the next contraction.  I could feel part of his face and feel myself stretching around him.  It was amazing.  With the next contraction his head came the rest of the way out, with me guiding it.  His body rotated, and with another tiny push his body slithered out and the midwife helped me bring him up to my chest.  I had been hoping and hoping to catch my own baby, but I didn’t realize it would actually happen!  I was so thrilled!  He was born at 7:45 a.m.  He was crying, and Tyson and the midwife helped me get settled in a seated position so I could hold him well.  About 10 minutes later I pushed out the placenta and immediately felt much better. 

He cried for a while and we talked to him and admired him.  The midwife brought us hot towels from the dryer and wrapped us in them.  Eventually we got into the bath where the baby floated contentedly and fell asleep.  I started to get uncomfortable so I asked to get out and have the midwife do the newborn exams so I could crawl onto the couch and really get comfy. 

The baby was weighed and measured and came in at 7 pounds 14 ounces and 21 inches long.  He latched on and nursed like a champ after we got out of the bath, and I was so pleased.  We had problems nursing Landon in the beginning, but that has never been an issue with this little guy.  The midwife stayed for a few hours, cleaning up and chatting with us.  Then we spent the day getting to know our new little boy and deciding on a name.  He never once left my arms, and everything went so perfectly.  It was exactly the birth I wanted!  

Tired days

We have had many busy days this week.  Tonight, I think all of us are very tired.  Landon and Coleson both fell asleep in my lap at about 6:20 p.m., and I felt like I could have joined them.  We've been having fun, though. 

Poor Coleson hasn't had a real nap in a couple days.  He takes all these little cat naps, but never really sleeps.  Thank goodness he sleeps so well at night.  I am thinking about setting up his crib and putting him in it for naps during the day so he can actually get a little more sleep and I can interact better with Landon.  

Landon has been biking and swimming so much that by the end of the day he is completely exhausted.  He is amazing in my in-laws' pool.  He wears his little water wings and he can swim the whole length of their pool.  This kid, he is so fearless.  I just love watching him do these things.  He constantly amazes me with what he attempts, and then stuns me further when he succeeds at them!   This kind of stuff is what being a mom is all about.  I learn so much from these two little people in my life.  

In other news, I took Landon in to get his collarbone looked at again, by a different doctor.  It's not broken and it's not dislocated, so we were told that there is an injury around the bone, maybe to the bone, and we essentially need to be patient and let it heal.  It will probably be tender for a while and we should definitely keep an eye on it, but there's not much we can do directly.  So, I feel ok about that, although I wish there was something I could do about the situation.  The doctor is going to order the x-rays and look at them himself just to make sure there's nothing really wrong, but I feel much better about it than I did after seeing Landon's pediatrician last week.  

I'm going to go knit with my long evening, and maybe I'll get more than a row or two done!

summertime

Tonight I asked Landon what his favorite part of the day was.  I do this almost every night, and many times I am surprised by what he says.  The things I think he will surely mention sometimes don't make the cut, and most of the time he names the most simple pleasures.  So, when I asked him tonight, he replied, with already sleepy eyes, "Swimming.  And riding my bike."  What a perfect summertime answer!  

First X-rays

We had a bit of a crazy afternoon.  After lunch, we were playing outside and Landon was pretending to mow the lawn with his little plastic lawn mower.  He was pretending to pull a cord to start it and all of a sudden he kind of grabbed at his shoulder and started to cry.  I thought for a second that he had gotten a bee sting, and then thought that maybe he had pulled a muscle in his shoulder or something, and then I thought maybe he had dislocated it.  I checked out the area but didn't find anything.  He stopped crying quickly and went back to playing.  

Later, I picked him up (to remove him from pushing his brother "real high" in the baby swing) and he kind of collapsed in my hands, grabbing at his shoulder and screaming in pain.  Again, I checked the shoulder area, but this time I moved the search to a wider area.  I realized he had a largish bump on his collarbone and when I prodded at it a bit his crying started up again.  I asked him if that's what hurt and he said yes.  So, I called my father-in-law and told him about it, and he agreed with me that his collarbone was probably broken.  EEK!  He rushed over here while I called the pediatrician to ask if I could please bring him in right away.  

We drove down to the hospital (my ped is in the Sacred Heart Doctors Building), saw the pediatrician, and he sent us down to the radiology clinic for X-rays.  Landon did so well through all this.  He even stood still for the X-rays.  Luckily, they didn't see a break on the X-rays, but we are still waiting for the radiologist to really look at them.  After looking at the X-rays, my pediatrician thinks that maybe Landon dislocated his elbow somehow and then it popped back in immediately, but things were still sore from it.  I don't see how that fits in with the shoulder area pain and then bump on the collarbone, but I'm not a doctor either.  So, we are keeping an eye on it just in case.  

It was a stressful afternoon with all that going on, but Landon seems to be doing ok now.  I really hope nothing is wrong, but a part of me feels like we are totally missing something.  I just can't figure out what.  

Look, Mama, no wheels!

Today I went to the grocery store without Landon, which was very nice by the way, and I left him home playing with his Grammy and the five-year old who lives across the street.  Landon and this little girl love to play together, and they especially love to ride bikes together.  A few weeks ago, we got Landon a "big boy bike," a 16-inch frame complete with training wheels.  So, I left to go to the store and they were riding their bikes around and around our circular driveway.  

When I got home from the store, Landon immediately asked me if he could ride his buddy's bike.  She got her training wheels taken off a week or two ago, so I tried to talk him out of it since I didn't feel like pushing him around the driveway.  He insisted, though, so I started pushing him around on it.  Within seconds, he insisted that he wanted to "do it myself!"  I realized that he wanted to actually ride the bike.  I thought, Well, I'll let him give it a shot, but as soon as he crashes he will give up and ride his safe little bike again.  So, I put him in the grass, pushed him to get him going, and let go.  Off he rode!  Seriously! Like he's been riding a bike, sans training wheels, his whole life.  We did it a few more times, and then he ran over to his own bike and begged me to take off his training wheels.  All the horrible scenarios that could occur raced through my head, but hewas insistent, complete with tears, that they come off NOW.  

So, we took them off and we now have a little boy who rides a bike all by himself with no training wheels!  I was so proud of him, but at the same time my heart was hammering with nervousness that he would crash and get really hurt.  But, my-oh-my, was he proud of himself!  He kept saying, "I can do it myself!  I can ride with no training wheels! I can do it myself!"  Gosh, I love this determined little guy.  He is so amazing.  

We, of course, took a ton of video and some pictures, and I want to share this cute video.  This was maybe five minutes after we took off the training wheels.  

Isn't he amazing?  

Coleson also had his first giggle-fest today.  He laughed and laughed at me making faces at him for quite a while this afternoon.  He is such a happy little boy!

I am so blessed by my children!

Happy Mother's Day!

Happy Mother's Day!  I thought this was worth sharing.  It made me laugh out loud, and then Tyson scolded me for startling the sleeping baby he's holding.  Oops.  

And, to totally steal an idea from Ivory (aren't I original today?), here are ten reasons I love being a mama.

1.  I love seeing both of my boys smile when they see me in the morning.  Cole, especially, looks so pleased that he wakes up next to me every morning.  

2.  I love watching them learn new things.  Cole has really gotten the hang of his hands lately and loves to put them in his mouth, and Landon can ride a big kid bike these days.  

3.  I love watching them discover the world.  Landon loves new words and phrases and repeats them over and over.  He constantly asks questions and sometimes I swear I can see little wheels turning in his head.  Cole watches everyone so closely - he is really absorbing so much information every day.  Imagine everything being so new and fascinating!  

4.  I love how one minute I am so short on patience with them I think I will scream and maybe throw things, and then Cole will give me a huge grin out of the blue, or Landon will say something like, "Mama, can you turn up the music so we can rock out?"  Then I just have to laugh and thank heaven that I get to hang out with these fun little people.  

5.  I love watching them with their dad.  There is a different dynamic in their relationships with him, and it is amazing to watch them all together.  

6.  I love watching them grow and envisioning the men they will be someday.  I think they are getting off to a pretty good start.  

7.  I love watching their personalities emerge.  Landon is so like me - outgoing, bossy, a little OCD about some things, busy, and so talkative.  Coleson is more quiet and laid-back, willing to sit still and observe.

8.  I love hearing Landon call me Mama.  Cole will, too, someday.  

9.  I love that they are young enough to still want to be with me all the time.  Someday, I will probably be way too uncool, but for now I love that the place they want to be most in the world is with me.  

10.  I love how they love me so much.  Without any restrictions, conditions, or requirements, just pure love.  

I hope your Mother's Day was great!

has it been that long?

I am so awful at updating.  Eek!  Sorry, everyone!

We have been spending SO much time outside lately.  Landon and I both already have pretty good tans going on, and it hasn't even been that sunny or warm (hence the lack of sunscreen that allowed such tans, oops).  He loves to be outside, though, and it makes my job a lot easier because we don't butt heads outside the way we do when we have to spend a lot of time indoors.  We got him a new bike too, and that has added to his fascination with being outside.  Luckily, Cole is such a mellow guy that he doesn't mind spending about seven hours a day outside.  As long as he can nurse, ride around in the sling, watch his big brother, and sleep once in a while, he is good to go.  Of course, I don't get anything done in the house unless Landon is in bed, Tyson is home, or someone else will watch Landon for a while.  That's ok, though, as the house is coming together nicely in spite of that.  Tonight I am supposed to be working on putting together my craft room, but thought I would do a quick update first.  

Of course, now that I am actually sitting down at the computer, none of my great blog topics are coming to mind.  Darn.  I guess it would help if I actually uploaded the pictures off my camera so I would have some props.  Ah well, I am going to work on that craft room now.  

house pics!

Here are the much-awaited new house pictures.  I wish our flowers were blooming, but so far we just have some green showing and no flowers yet.  I think it will be really gorgeous when everything is blooming this summer.  

The front of the house.

Our huge backyard.  To the right of this picture is the garden and clothesline.  

Our back patio (with my favorite tricycle rider).

The old swingset that was left by the previous owners.  

We really love the new house so far.  It's slow getting everything unpacked and put where we want it, but I think in another month or so it will really be starting to look and feel right.  

still here

We're still here, but I've been feeling a bit overwhelmed lately with all the changes and the blog is generally the first thing to go when I have too much going on.  I took pictures of the new house, but they are still on the camera.  I know there are people out there that want to see it, so I'm working on it. 

We are getting settled in the new house.  I still have a bunch of boxes to unpack, but it's starting to look like a home instead of a complete disaster.  It's slow going because Landon loves being outside in the warmer weather, so we spend ALL DAY outside.  No joke.  We eat out there, we go for walks, we go to the park, he rides his tricycle/scooter/skateboard, he plays with the neighborhood kids, we poke around in the dirt, and it goes on and on.  I love that he loves to be outside, but I'm hoping the novelty wears off just a bit soon.  

Tyson just got home with our Thai takeout and I am ready to eat!  More some other time.

moving day

We are moving over the next few days, but we are scheduled to get our cable internet back on Saturday afternoon, so luckily I won't have to go too long without it.  You know, priorities.  

Today we are moving over all the smaller things and tomorrow the movers are coming for all the furniture and heavy stuff.  We are planning on spending our first night in the house tomorrow.  Exciting!   Hopefully I will be able to spend some time this weekend actually unpacking stuff and putting it away so we can start to feel at least a little settled in the new place.  

I have to go do some more packing and organizing, but I just wanted to share the excitement of the move!

the new house

I realized yesterday that despite all that goes in to getting a new house and how much time it takes, I haven't talked much about our search for a house here.  So, we got a house!  It's in the perfect location - within walking distance to THREE parks - and we will live very close to three of my good friends.  We close on it this coming Thursday, and we will move a week after that.  We decided to take a week to paint and do a few other things to the house before we have all our stuff in the way.  I have yet to pack up anything in our current place, which is leaving me feeling slightly panicked, but with two little ones I can't seem to find time or energy to toss things in boxes.  Luckily the new place is pretty close by and we can just take carloads of stuff over without having to pack it too well.  My mom is coming for the day tomorrow, though, to help me get some of that stuff done.  We are so excited to finally have our own place just in time for spring and summer.  I will even get to have a garden this year!  So, that's what is going on with the house search.  Hopefully I can get some pictures of the new place up soon.  

smiles

Look what my little guy can do!  Smiles are everywhere these days.  

Also, doesn't he look lovely and chubby?  You have to love that!  

Welcome Baby!

Welcome to baby Theo Gregory, my first nephew!   He was born today at 3:08 p.m.  He was almost exactly the same size as Coleson, weighing in at 7 pounds, 13 ounces and 20 3/4 inches.  I was thrilled to get to see him when he was about an hour and a half old.  My sister-in-law had a great labor and I was impressed that she was willing to have guests so quickly after the birth!  My brother didn't get to be there due to his Marines training stuff, but he will be home soon to see his first son.  I am so excited for them!  Congrats, Greg and Brittney!

peace at last

Both of the boys are sleeping.  How I managed that, I'm not entirely sure.  But it sure is peaceful to do something without holding a baby or dealing with a cranky and slightly sick (again!) toddler.  I do know they went to sleep with the help of many layers of clothes, a baby carrier, a stroller, and a long walk in the fresh air and sunshine.  It's a miracle I transferred them both inside without waking up, but there you have it.  Two sleeping boys.  

Landon starts soccer with his daddy tonight, and he is really looking forward to it.  I think he will have so much fun!  He has also been taking swimming lessons and is enjoying that as well.  We are also hoping to get him in some gymnastics sometime soon.  He loves to be active, so it's fun to see him doing activities like this.  He is growing up before my eyes.  Some days I look at him and can't believe he's the same little boy as he was the day before.  

Cole is also growing at an amazing rate.  He was six weeks old yesterday and I already feel like I didn't enjoy the newborn period enough.  I look at Landon and then I look at Cole and realize he will be as old as Landon is now before I know it.  He's such a mellow little guy and has fit right into our household without any problems.  

We move into our new house in about three weeks.  I am so ready to move in and get settled there.  Hopefully the move will coincide with spring making it's appearance since we will live within walking distance of three parks.  

Speaking of spring, what is up with all the snow and freezing temps?  It was fun to have winter until about a week ago and now I am officially done with this stuff.  Bring on warm temps, sunshine, and the playground.  

I'm going to knit a few rows while I have some peace and quiet around here.  I will try to hold off on the celebratory wine drinking, seeing as how it is only 3:45 pm.  Then again, it might make for a nice calm mommy when they do wake up from their naps.  Hmmm . . .

great expectations

I was talking with some moms a couple weeks ago about the expectations we have to let go of when we become mothers.  We also have to let go of some of our expectations along the way as well.  I had this huge expectation, created early in motherhood, that I would nurse my kids until they were completely done and stopped of their own free will.  It was a great idea and I really believe in the value of that for many families.  But, in reality, for me at least, it wasn't working out so well.  So, I decided to wean Landon.  It took a lot of thinking, talking, and crying about it, but I decided (with the encouragement of my loving husband) to just do it.  The nursing relationship was not good any more between me and Landon, and weaning was something that would be healthier for both of us.  Today is the first day I have told him he can't nurse anymore, and so far it is going well.  I am not looking forward to bedtime when he usually really wants to nurse, but I think we will survive.  And I hope instead of really screwing up my kid, this will be a good thing for both of us.  

Birthday!

Happy Birthday to me!  Today is my 28th birthday.  Currently, Tyson and Landon are out getting me coffee while I play on the internet, hold the baby, and watch TV.  Later we will open gifts, I will go knitting (I finished my sweater!), and then we are having Thai food for dinner.  We didn't plan anything too exciting because I just wanted to be at home and enjoy my family.  It should be a nice day!

Brothers

Landon has been doing so well with Coleson lately.  We did have a couple days there where he was testing to see what would happen if he hit his little brother, but we got past that and now he seems to be doing really well with him again (knock on wood).  He especially loves getting to hold his little brother and asks me to take pictures.  I had to create a photos file just for the pictures of him holding Cole because I am starting to amass quite the collection.  They sure are cute, though.  

Landon has also been very into coloring lately, and discovered the other day that markers color just as well on skin as they do on paper.  He had such a blast coloring his hands, arms, and legs!  Thank goodness for washable markers!  He was so proud of himself and kept saying, "Look, mama!  Look!"  And, yes, I let him do it because sometimes keeping the two year old occupied for ten minutes (more like 45 if you count the bath that follows) is so totally worth it.  

I also just want to toss out there that I don't understand how people have babies, especially if they have other children, and don't practice babywearing.  Cole spends at least 50 percent of his day in a baby carrier, usually a ring sling because it's so easy to get him in and out.  He snuggles in and sleeps.  It keeps Landon from crawling all over him, my hands are free, and he gets to be right next to me.  It is quite possibly the best thing ever!  Plus, who doesn't love to look down and see their precious sleeping baby?

So, things are going well here.  We are sort of settled into a rhythm, and Cole is fitting in quite nicely.  This having brothers thing might just work out after all!

Happy Valentine's Day!

Happy Valentine's Day!  I hope it's full of love and fun.  

Oh, and isn't my newborn the cutest in his Valentine's Day sweater?  I thought so.  

House!

We found a house we really like and we went today to make an offer on it.  The current owners have until tomorrow night to get back to us to accept or give us a counter-offer.  I really hope that we will get the house.  It's in a perfect location and there is tons of room.  We could live there for many years to come.  I know it's a little crazy to be buying a house right now with a new baby, but we are so eager to have a house of our own and this one would just be perfect!  Keep your fingers crossed that we get it!

Super Bowl Sunday

Nothing much happening around here for the Super Bowl.  We are having a few snacks and some beer, and trying to keep our two year old from throwing too many tantrums.  Currently he is crying because he wants to play with my sewing machine and I said no, so the world ended.  I hate it when he is like this.    

In more positive news, Landon sure does love his little brother.  He hugs and kisses him all the time and wants to hold him quite often.  I love the picture above.  Landon wanted to sit alone with Cole so badly, so he reclined the easy chair and made a little place for him.  So cute.  

Then again, he is acting out a bit more and waking up a lot at night, so I don't know if the transition has been as easy on him as he makes it look sometimes.  At least he isn't beating on his little brother.  Yet.  I know there are many years of that to come.  

Off I go to try to squeeze in a bath for Landon during half time.  If he will stop crying.   

more than surviving

Tyson just took Landon to the children's museum (thank goodness for that family membership!) and I have some quiet time alone with Cole.  

Things are going pretty well.  I remember with Landon being so exhausted the first few days, and while I'm not exactly well-rested, I am doing more than barely functioning too.  Tyson and I wonder if it's because I am used to being sleep deprived (he's not functioning so great, but he's never really been on night duty like he is now) or if it's just really not so bad.  I won't lie, the first night with two kids was ROUGH, but last night was so much better.  Still not ideal - as in, Cole and I slept about half the night in the living room so we wouldn't wake everyone in the bedrooms when he cried - but it was doable.  

Landon is adjusting very well to having a little brother, and wants to hold him quite a bit.  When someone else is holding Cole and he starts to cry Landon comes running for me so I can help.  Landon tried to brush Cole's teeth this morning and also wanted him to eat French toast with us, but he's catching on to what babies can and can't do.    

Overall, I feel like things are going very well.  Now that I am saying that it all might fall apart, but for now I feel like we are doing more than merely surviving.

Announcing . . .

We are thrilled to announce that our son, Coleson Robert Magney, was born at home this morning at 7:45 a.m. after a mere 4 hours and 15 minutes of labor.

He weighed in at 7 pounds 14 ounces and he is 21 inches long. He is absolutely perfect, and nurses like a champ! He is alert and wonderful, and we are enjoying him so much already!

labor?

So, I might be in labor.  I have been having contractions for almost two hours this morning.  Of course, Landon was up for over an hour in the middle of the night right before the contractions started with a small fever and a cough.  Ugh.  I was kind of hoping to be able to take him to see the doctor today, but we might be having a baby instead. I'm so excited!

sewing and crafting

I realized I hadn't posted any pictures of some of the stuff I made for the baby. I think I put up all the knitting stuff, but I sewed a bunch too. See?

I made five pairs of pants total (ok, six if you count the pair I made for Landon too). One of the pairs obviously didn't make it into the photo. This pattern is so easy! Then I stenciled onesies and T-shirts to match the pants. They turned out really cute too, but apparently I didn't get a picture of them. Oops.

I also realized that I participated in the Holiday Traditions Exchange before Christmas and never posted about it! I was paired with Sarah B. in Georgia, and here is what I sent her:

My swap package to her included two handknit poinsettia dishcloths (I loved how they turned out!), a bar of peppermint soap, three little elf ornaments, homemade shortbread and the recipe, and our Advent tutorial.

She sent me two great books, a handmade holiday recipe book, a very adorable holiday house, and her tutorial on Santa Mouse. The picture isn't so great, but I think my computer ate the other one that was better.

It was the first swap I've ever done and it was so much fun! Once the baby is here and I feel like I have a little bit of time again I would like to find another one to do.

So, still no baby. Tyson took Landon for the morning and left me home alone to chill. I know the baby isn't due until next weekend, but I am so impatient to meet him and settle into having him here. I am trying to just be patient, but it's hard! Landon was cute this morning when they were leaving. He asked if I was going to come too, and I told him no. He started to fuss, but then he ran over and gave me a hug and kiss. Then he headed for the door blowing me kisses and saying "buh-bye!" Out he went with Dad and that was the end of that. Usually he cries whenever we aren't going to be together, but today he seemed ok with the whole thing. My little boy sure is growing up. Well, back to relaxing for me. I am trying to just focus on enjoying some quiet time before I have to chase two little ones around all day long!