JaxiPoo is Two!

Time flies when you're having fun, I guess.  I am reeling from the fact that my baby boy turned two on Wednesday.  I think the little guy had a good day, other than when he was asked if he was going to be two.  Every time he would scowl his best scowl and say NO in a gruff voice.  Reminding him that he would be eating Thomas the Tank Engine birthday cake that night seemed to brighten him up pretty quickly. 

Here's the birthday boy swinging with MeMa (or Grandma, depending on who you ask) in his shirt made by my friend Terra (http://www.tickledsewpink.com/)... I love her work!

I got his cake from Target (no can do on the whole making-from-scratch-with-a-new-baby-thing) and the consensus was that the flavor was really yummy.  I set his piece of cake in front of him, thinking he would just dig in and cram it into his mouth.  He seemed to be confused about what to do without his fork, so he just leaned over and tried to eat it that way! 

Here is Hayden enjoying the festivities.  You'll also notice I've gotten rid of my highlights.  I have this love/hate relationship with them.  I love them for a good 6 weeks, then I can't wait to go back to plain 'ole brunette.  Catching the occasional episode of Kardashians while nursing during naptime also fueled the fire.  Those girls may be as dumb as rocks, but they have the most gorgeous, luscious hair I've ever seen.  Genetics and salons probably play a wee part in that.  Nevertheless, I realized I missed my brown hair and actually went to a new place with a new stylist and am really happy with the outcome.

Big sister helped Jax open his gifts and enjoyed being the first to sample them.  I have a feeling her technique won't go over so well the older he gets. 

Here's birthday boy on the morning after his big day (yes, wearing the same clothes over again... don't judge) playing with his new tool set. 

 

Happy Birthday to my sweet boy! 

Body Parts

I have a post ready to go for Jax's birthday last week, but for some reason Blogger isn't letting me upload pictures right now.  So I've got it in edit mode just waiting...

I just have to share what Jax said on the changing table a few weeks ago.  I've been identifying his body parts using the correct terminology, and it's so cute to hear him repeat them back.  This particular day, he had a poopy diaper and was attempting to reach down and see what he could grab.  I firmly told him no, that we don't touch our poo-poo.  He replied back, "And no touch my popsicles."  Hilarious.  

Conversation about her wedding day

We watched Cinderella after naptime today, and when Cinderella hurried down the castle steps wearing her beautiful wedding dress, Emerson went nuts.  Here is our conversation:

Emerson: "Oh yook, Mommy!  Cindereh-wa is wearing a beeeeautiful wedding dress!"

Me: "Yes, she is."
Emerson: "Mommy, someday when I'm a yittle bigger, I will be a bride."

Me: "Yes, ma'am, when you are 30."

Emerson: "Yes.  And I will marry a handsome prince.  Do you know what his name will be?"

Me: "What?"

Emerson: "Daddy!"
Me: "Yes, I know Daddy will be so glad to marry you."

Emerson (leaning in to touch foreheads with me... talking in a very dramatic, whispery voice): "And after the wedding, we will get to eat GUM.  And open surprises.  And eat bomb pops.  And I will have a purple oval ring." 

What more could a bride want, really?

2-month comparisons

Baby Hayden was 8 weeks old yesterday!  That little girl's personality is really starting to show... she's cooing, smiling, and making little birdie sounds just like Emerson used to.  Every day I fall more and more in love with her, and as my stress level from the house goes down and my hours of sleep go up, I'm really getting the chance to enjoy her.  I absolutely love spending the day with her on the other kids' preschool days.  She's just such a precious little gift. 

I went through Emerson and Jax's 2-month pictures and found two similar sets of the three of them.  I really do think that Hayden is a mix of her siblings.  So here are my three munchkins, each at two months old (Emerson is pictured first).

Musings of a tired momma

I have nothing really of substance to blog about, so this will probably end up being a random assortment of this and that.  Feel free to quietly make an exit and spend the next few minutes doing something of value.  Really. 

My friend Terra stopped by today to drop off some shirts that she had embroidered for Jason.  After she left, I found myself feeling really happy-go-lucky and almost bouncing off the walls.  I think I actually laughed out loud after telling myself I really need to get out more.  Poor Jason... I've come to the conclusion that I must totally wear him out when he gets home.  He's done nothing but communicate all day long, and all I want to do when he comes through the front door is have an adult conversation.  About anything.  Sometimes I find myself talking just to talk, and I start to see his eyes glaze over.  Just kidding.  He actually does an amazing job of putting up with me.  I do think it is really interesting that we live in such different worlds during the day... I have come to understand that making an effort to connect with each other each evening is key to being on the same page.  I mean, what he does every day is really important.  And what I do each day is really important.  They are just SO different. 

I took Jax to Trippets yesterday to see if I could find anything for his fat little feet.  Alas, there were only two pair of shoes in the whole store that were wide enough, and I came home with one of them.  The other was a brown leather sandal that was way too girly for my liking.  He doesn't have anything for summer yet.. the warm weather last week had us outside in the back yard most of the time, but he was always barefoot.  I just couldn't bring myself to put socks on him in 80-degree weather. 

I currently have 68 videos on my videocamera.  For the love, when am I supposed to find time to go through them?!  I used to be ON THE BALL about keeping my videos current on my Vimeo page.  *Sigh.*

Today Jax had two big plastic bowls in the living room that he was using as drums, and out of nowhere he decides to take one of them and hit Emerson squarely in the back with it.  He had to apologize and spend some time in timeout, and Emerson came and sat on the couch with me to cry it out.  She finally wiped her tears and said, "Mommy, when Daddy comes home, I have some very important news.  I'm going to tell him that Jax hit me in the back, and that was NOT a good choice."  I just love the way 3-yr-olds communicate.

It's official... Hayden is sleeping through the night!  Her last feeding is usually right around 9:30, then after swaddling that little girl until she looks like a burrito, she sleeps until 7:30 a.m.  It's a beautiful thing.  Emerson has still been getting out of bed most nights, but her princess fashion shows have ceased.  Now she just brings her pink OU blanket, her favorite baby doll, and a little mini doll pillow with her to the top of the stairs.  We find her there, fast asleep, covered in the blanket, the little doll right beside her with its head perfectly placed on the pillow.  I love that she takes the time to get her baby all situated while being completely disobedient.

My sister is potty-training Avery and going through the normal frustration of it all.  I'm kind of dreading starting with Jax.  The plan is to get it done the first week he is home from preschool.  I'm thinking I'll have to recruit Emerson to help me at times, especially when I'm nursing Hayden or changing a diaper, etc.  We'll see how that works... he is currently expressing his independence with such phrases as "No, Mommy, stop it!" and "My do it!"  I can't believe that boy is about to be two.

Hayden's crib & furniture made it to the OKC furniture shop that our Wisconsin contact had it shipped to.  So Daddy is renting a cargo van on Thursday to pick it up, then pick up our small breakfast table from the old house.  Did I blog that we have renters?!  They move in April 1st and signed a 2-year-lease!  We are thrilled to be finished making two mortgage payments.  Anyway, I'm really excited to begin working on Hayden's nursery/future guest room.  It's not going to be baby-ish at all so that I don't have to do a total overhaul in two years when I move her upstairs.  I'm in the process of deciding on fabric for the window panels that my friend Sarah has so graciously offered to help with.  The girl can SEW.  I'll keep you updated on the project.  I'm just thrilled that I'll now be able to diaper that cute baby bottom on an actual changing table.  Currently I have wedged a standard changing pad on top of the pack-n-play's changing station.  It's way too big, but somehow we make it work even though Hayden lies on an almost 45-degree angle.  Livin' on the edge, people.  It's how we do it around here.

The Cousins' Visit

I'm finally getting around to posting pictures of my siblings' visit from a week-and-a-half ago. 

But first, I have to share a few funny things the munchkins said today.  Emerson's preschool teacher told me she had to go to time out in music today, so on the way to the car, I asked her what she did to get time out.  She didn't want to tell me, so I told her she was going to her room when we got home... no snack, no playing.  After a while, she decided to go ahead and fess up, and this is what she said: "Mommy, my teacher said 'Sit in a circle or go to time out,' and I chose time out."  Hilarious.  Then when we got home, Jax and I were sitting on the couch while I was nursing Hayden (Emerson doing her penance in her room), and he looked over at Hayden and said (quite loudly), "No, Baby Hane!  No biting Mommy!"  I told him she wasn't biting me, that she was just getting milk from my nipple.  After a few seconds, he grabbed his shirt, lifted it to his chin, and shouted, "Bite MY nipple!" 

Speaking of all things breast, the thrush is almost completely gone now.  Hayden's mouth is clear, and I'm down to one last crack to deal with.  Woo hoo!  She has also slept from 10 p.m. to 7 a.m. the last two nights... praying that this time it's gonna stick!  Uninterrupted sleep has been amazing. 

Okay, on to the pictures.  The first one shows the whole crew.  From the left... Emerson, Jax, Avery (my sister Miley's daughter), Jason, Eric (Miley's hubby), Jace (my brother), Miley is standing and due with baby Hudson in mid-May, Liz (Jace's wife), then Vance, Parker & Addison (Jace's kids).  Can I just quickly point out our neighbor's dining room window directly across from ours?  Our first night in the house, our neighbor was eating dinner in her dining room with some guests, and it was hilarious because we didn't (and still don't) have any blinds or curtains, and her blinds were down but not closed, so all of us were trying to have a normal dinner and not look at each other out of the corners of our eyes. 

Now for dinner close-ups of each of the kids (minus Hayden):

I love this picture of Addie and Hayden. 

Jace and Addie at Bounce U.  Jace, Miley and I took the oldest 5 while Liz took sweet Vance to urgent care... poor baby came down with pneumonia. 

This last set of pictures was taken by Liz in the backyard.  Oh, how I love natural light.  Good job, Liz!

We are hoping for a late summer reunion after baby Hudson arrives!  It has always stunk that my siblings live so far away, but now that these 7 kiddos are in the picture, it's just that much harder.  They're starting to get to know each other, and I'd give anything for them to grow up together.