Brothers

I can't get over how sweet it is to watch my boys turn into brothers. To watch their relationship blossom in front of my eyes. I hope this bond stays strong as time continues on. Because for now, Dex can move Heaven and Earth in Kieran's eyes. 

Declan is very protective. Calling Kieran his baby. His brother. He makes sure to help him if he is fussing and that no stranger does anything wrong to him. He shows him how to do things including, but not limited to, rolling over. They were both rolling over on the floor the other day. 

Dex for sure is paving the way for little man. 

Merry Christmas 2011

Merry belated Christmas everyone! We spent lots of time with family and not much time on the internet. Unfortunately I forgot my camera for most of the time, so there aren't as many pictures as I would like. 

I'm still pretty into the family mode, and there is a pretty cute baby snuggled in my bed right now so I will just leave you with some pictures. 

After giving Daddy the present Deckie picked out all by himself. (And told Daddy what it was before he opened it)

Deckie's dress up stuff. Modeled by Logan.

The toy vacuum that Dex had been asking Santa for

Dex's "Yo Gabba Gabba" Box that Logan and I made

Four Months

Oh my little man. I can't believe it's already been four months. Every day I count my blessings that I get to spend my time with you. I could spend each monthly post going on and on about my love for you (and your brother) but it's late, and you are both asleep so I'll make this quick so I can join you in dreamland. 

The plan is for to go to the Dr tomorrow for your checkup. (Though one person said your appointment was today after I had already been confirmed for tomorrow. I figured I would have made it for my day off and not your dad's, but... I don't know. Maybe your appointment won't be tomorrow. We'll see). However, when we last checked you on a scale you were 15 pounds. You are definitely our little chunky monkey. I can't get over your thighs, and your cheeks start conversations everywhere we go. 

You love to smile. Pretty much anything and anyone can make you smile. You love to charm people as we wait in line at the grocery store or coffee shop. You also love to talk, but you save a lot of that for Mama so that we can have a back and forth conversation. When you want your opinion known, you definitely have your own voice. 

You have rolled over from your tummy to your back, but not consistently at all. You are, however starting to be more consistent with getting yourself over on your side. It freaks me out when I look away and you are in a different position when I look back. You love standing. I only do the balancing for you. The rest is all your leg power. 

You are still completely nursed. They say 4-6 months to introduce food. You seem to be doing well with just milk, so I think we'll probably wait another month and see where we're at then. (We bought a can of formula as a just in case when Mama went out- but didn't end up using any yet). 

You are in love with your brother. He lights up your world. It is the sweetest thing to see the two of you together, and I am slightly terrified of the inevitable ganging up against mom that there will be- but your brother love is for another post. With other pictures of your admiration. 

I am so excited to have our first Christmas with a family of four. Since Dex is now bigger, you will get more of the excitement from the start. Santa has some surprises in store!

So anyway... four months. Wow. We have survived. Every day brings new triumphs and challenges, but the triumphs overpower by far. I'm working on cherishing every moment of you being tiny, because I know it won't last long. However, I'm also so excited to see what else is in store for us!

Oh Christmas Tree

So in my head, we had a grand outing where we went out to a farm where we could cut down our own Christmas tree, drink some warm apple cider, and take a hay ride. However, reality had a different idea. Reality meant it was six days before Christmas, any time we had as a family was super limited until Christmas itself, and we had to get a tree. One plan led to another, and in the end it was 9:00 at night, there was a lot I remembered seeing the other day when I took a wrong turn, and Dex had no pants. 

It was actually fun, quick, and since it was so late there was noone else there so Dex for the undivided attention of the men working there. They cut a tree down to the size we needed and cut the price down as well. Dex got to push the button on the tree shaker, they cut the end of the tree for me so I could make an ornament, and gave us the extra branches to make some decorations with. So it was pretty great. But, like I said. It was late and Dex had no pants. Therefore, there weren't any pictures of that particular excursion taken. 

Today we got to decorate. It was fun. Dex was into it for a little while. Then he started playing and Mom and Dad got to finish it off. Kieran sat there laughing at the lights. And in the end we have our tree. 

Getting the skirt on

Decked out for the festivities

So excited

Concentrating

After this we realized there was a huge smudge on the lens

Didn't want pics of himself. Just his toy.

Not the best picture, but it's late and I'm tired. 

Three Months

Oh my sweet boy. You are now three months old. (Well... you turned three months 9 days ago, but who's counting?) You are continuously a light in our lives. You smile and laugh constantly. You are honestly one of the happiest babies I have ever seen. And man can you talk. Once you get going, you make sure we know you have something big to say. I think that may have something to do with who you are surrounded by...

You want to be so big already. It makes me a little nervous for the future, but for right now I am loving how much you love to watch your big brother. It is your favorite thing to do- be pulled into a standing position. You do all the hard work of actually standing. The only thing we do is provide a bit of balance. You would so much rather be sitting up than laying down. You want to see everything. You love to be worn in a sling when we're out and facing forward so you can observe everyone and everything we pass.

You have a slight love affair with your hands. Sometimes I hear you smacking on them so loudly from the other room it sounds like you are right next to me. 

You are still 100% fed by mommy milk which Dex is well aware of. He has now pretended to make one of his stuffed animals nurse from another. And wants a vacuum for Christmas. 

You have had two sleepovers with Grandma and Aunt Jilly. You did better than me, who came over and checked in both times. 

Oh my Kieran. My Kier Bear. Just be content staying small. I am savoring every moment, because I now know just how quickly they fly by. So there are less pictures... but it's not because I love you any less. It's because I am appreciating my time with you more. 

I can't wait to see how you grow, but it definitely is already too quick. 

Happy Thanksgiving.

I have started this several times with so many deletions. I guess that I am just so very grateful for what I have that it is hard to put it into words. I started trying to write something I am grateful for every day... but I am lucky enough to have been off living and enjoying my life that I haven't been able to be online and writing about it. 

I am grateful for family. Both close and far away. 

I am grateful for my family having everything we need. A husband who works as hard as he can to provide. And for myself having been instilled with a work ethic. We both work hard- earning money and raising our family. I'm sure I've said it before, but we are so lucky to have worked out a schedule where we get to be with, educate, and watch all the firsts of our children. 

Because in the end. I am MOST grateful for these little lives that have been placed in our hands. Some days are trying. Sometimes I feel completely lost. But these boys are my everything and I cannot express how thankful I am that they are mine. 

I didn't really get as many pictures as I would have liked. But here is a bit of our Thanksgiving. 

Kieran's set up. We made a bed for him in the wagon so he could be wherever we were. And that lovely piece of cardboard was his sunshade. 

Good thoughts

Hey everyone. I just wanted to quickly ask for some good thoughts to be sent out to my brother-in-law, his wife and their family. They lost their house and belongings completely to a wildfire in Reno last night. They live with her family, and all seven of them are together and safe along with their two dogs and rabbit.

However, I believe that good thoughts can go a long way- so anything helps.

Thanks!

Can't believe I never posted this picture. It certainly got sent out to grandparents.

Look at that little imp. Something is up with that boy. I suppose it could just be that he is two... but I think that he is really just starting to realize that Kieran has stolen our attention. He still loves Kieran and gives him kisses and makes sure he has his blanket and pacifier... but Dex has been climbing into my lap and demanding cuddles. This hasn't happened in a really long time. He's generally pretty independent. There is much showing off of his will. Strong will, that boy. He pitches fits, and it is so hard for everyone because we are so low on sleep. Everyone. Including him. Because he fights it.

Bedtime has become one of the worst times of day. #2 being nap time. We are working on it, and tonight we tried something different, and he was actually asleep by 9:30 which is really good. I wouldn't care if he was awake if he would stay in his bed... or even in his room. It becomes a game, and... ugh. I don't need to get myself worked up right now. Because he's actually asleep and it's 10pm and I can actually have a few minutes of alone time because *gasp* Kieran is asleep too.

It's less than three weeks until we go home to visit! I am so excited. Slightly nervous about travelling with two small children by myself... but not really. I am borrowing one of those dollie things that you can strap a car seat to for in the airport. I will have a car seat to put Dex in on the plane. (Instead of being in my lap and fighting him to stay in his seat for four hours) We caved and got a portable DVD player and headphones. Last year we were in the car. A. Lot. (And he had a double ear infection and I didn't know it.) So he was pretty much miserable. I can't believe I didn't get one then. However, with two kiddos to tow around... this year... when we're in the car for awhile he can watch a movie.

I really struggle with keeping the house clean. Playing with the kids, educating Dex some, doing the laundry... those I can do. Keeping the clutter and dishes at bay... that's a whole other story. With two kids, I find it almost impossible to clean. When I get a free moment, all I want to do is sit down and take a breath for a minute. However, Logan and I have been working on getting the house a WHOLE lot more organized. There has been furniture rearranging and stuff put away in tupperware boxes and... it's getting there. There is still a lot to get done, but I am SO much happier with less junk on the floor.

Tonight we flipped Declan's bed over, so it is now a loft bed. (Let's hope this works out and doesn't end up with a broken arm. It's really not that tall, but still). I then decided to make use of that space and put his low shelf with drawers of toys in it. I had been keeping toys out of his room to make it a place to sleep.. but he hates sleeping anyway... and since the bed is higher, it kind of created a place just for him. (And it's not in our living room... yay! Now there are some toys, but it's mostly his play kitchen and there is actually room for his easel). So the living room and the boys' room looks much better.

I think I'm going to stop because I'm pretty much rambling. I don't talk to a whole lot of grown-ups, so it's nice to let the words all spill out sometimes.

Oh, and there was some baby picture taking this weekend... but Logan has the camera in the car at work. So... soon! They will be up soon!

Night all!

Thankful

9. Brownies. Enough said.

10. Having the ability to share one car. It was really only a problem when Logan worked 30/40 minutes away. And even then we had help to get us to where we needed to go.

11. The knowledge that if I was ever in trouble, my family is there for me. I know without a doubt that I will never be on the streets. I see so many people asking for money on the side of the road and am so grateful that I know I will never have to take that option. I will always have a roof over my head, clothes on my kids and food in our bellies. We are doing just fine right now, but it helps knowing that even if we aren't... we'll be taken care of.

12. The constant deliberation over the color of Declan's eyes. It makes me look deep into them constantly and I don't know if I would if they were one singular color. They are blue with flecks of gold in them. Since he turned 18 months, the gold has become more and more prominent- causing them to look really green sometimes and more blue others. I honestly don't know which I would say. Hazel I guess.

13. The fact that I have a husband that will run around the town in matching super hero capes with Dex. I can't give too much away because there is a project in motion... but it makes me so happy to see Logan not care about anything except his son's happiness. (Though I know he was running around in a gorilla costume before- and when- we met anyway... though that is a different story. No... it was not Halloween)

Random

So today we were getting ready to go out and I was putting on some makeup (a pretty rare occurrence). Dex was in the bathroom watching me do it and in the end decided he wanted some. I swiped across his cheeks with the blush brush because... who cares.

He told me it was his dinosaur face. That is what he recently got his face painted like when out at a Halloween event. We left and finished getting ready. He then said "My dinosaur boogers!!!" and ran back into the bathroom where I found he had taken the brush and eye shadow and was brushing it on his nose.

So once he had his "dinosaur boogers" we were off for a busy day. And it really didn't occur to me until just about now how funny it was. He's a silly one, that kid.

Thankful

I am thankful for...

7. Finally starting to make friends here. It has been a hard year. I have a hard time making friends in general. Most of my friends are from high school and college where we were repeatedly in each other's faces enough to cause us to hang out all the time and make us friends. I am much more of an observer. A shy outsider until someone else brings me in. It seems like things are finally starting to work out. I'm finally starting to have people to hang out with. And it makes me a much happier person. 

8. Chunky baby thighs. Oh my goodness. I can't get enough of them. And this picture was taken a few days ago so it doesn't even do them justice anymore. I just want to eat them up. 

Read what else I'm thankful for here. 

Thankful

So I had an idea that every day I was going to write something I was Thankful for during the month of November. I guess I'm already behind schedule. I guess that is what no computer and two small children will do.  Let's see if we can play catch up to get this under way.

I'm thankful for...

1. All the hard work my husband does. He works long hours to make sure that we continue to get what we need. He also works hard at being a dad... spending his days off being with and educating Dex. He finds them new places to go and explore. Learning about animals and flying kites.

2. Kieran starting to talk. Watching him with his mouth wide open and his tongue moving around like a whale's. He loves playing with sounds and volume. Once he gets started, he can keep up with the best of them. He tries to have conversations... taking turns with the people he's looking at. And he gets so proud of himself that after he has done an impressive amount of noises he interrupts himself by laughing.

3. Declan's new drawing abilities. I swear... from one day to the next his drawing completely changed. He used to just scribble a few lines. Sometimes they would be named... mostly not. He now loves drawing circles and "real-life" figures. He draws circles with some lines coming out of the back of them. "Airplanes with fire" aka. rocket ships. He draws people. With bodies and arms and legs and faces. While those might not be in the same place that they belong.... he understands that things have parts to them. I honestly can't believe this quick transformation.

4. The fact that I am able to work part time AND bring Kieran to work with me. There isn't a whole lot of their growing up that I have to miss and I am SO grateful for this. Things have worked out so well and Logan and I are very lucky to both have amazing bosses.

5. Saturdays. That is the one day a week that we have off together. We get to have cuddle time and adventures as a family. Because we have so little time together we appreciate what we do have immensely.

6. Getting to eat brownies before bed with my loves.

Computer Issues

Oh hey guys.

Sorry I haven't been around in awhile. The power charger cord for my computer died... again. (The second one in a very short amount of time). Meaning my computer has been completely not working. So Logan and I have been sharing a computer. When he doesn't have it at work. Or the kids are actually asleep. Therefore, I really haven't had much of a computer. Hopefully a new cord can be bought tomorrow or Monday. (Now that rent has been paid and we have gotten paychecks... yay!)

So until then... going to be trying to upload my pictures on Logan's computer. This project has failed me twice so far. We will see if it can happen tonight.

Because it is 8pm and DEX IS ASLEEP. I can blog about that journey later. But just know that it is an amazing feat. (And may or may not have included an energy filled birthday party and no nap).

Hopefully I'll be back sooner rather than later with some cute pics and some projects actually able to be in motion.

xoxo

Side by Side

When I found out I was going to have a second child, I was obviously excited. However, I was already so acquainted with my first born that it seemed impossible to me that I was actually going to have a different kid. Not just another Declan. That seemed even weirder to me once I found out it was a boy. 

Now, I stare at them. I look at their faces and pay attention to every detail of their personality. I love looking at their similarities and differences. Here are some pics for you to see them together. 

They have definite similarities and differences in their faces. Dex has Logan's eyes and more of my nose. Kieran has more my eyes and Logan's nose. However, they seem to pull it off to look alike anyway. 

Here are my boys...

**Sorry for the terrible quality of Declan's pictures. The ones that were most helpful were old cell phone pics.

Surprise Pictures

So today when I went to upload pictures I took a couple of days ago (let's face it... nothing gets done quickly anymore)... I found some surprise pictures from an outing that Logan and Dex took. Most of the pics are going into other posts, but I thought you would like a snippet of their afternoon.