These Two/ 10 Months/ Photoshoot

Seriously. The love between these two boys makes my heart melt. I didn't ask them to hold hands. They are just naturally drawn to be close to each other. 

I love when I hear from the back of the car from Dex: "Kiery, Kiery- do you see all the cars driving fast?" He takes his role as big brother seriously and is constantly teaching Kieran about the world around them. 

Kieran is now 10 months as of yesterday. He is pulling himself up on everything and cruising along holding onto things. He still eats pretty much everything, however, if he prefers one part of a meal to another he is not afraid to show it by throwing the undesired on the ground. He loves to sit at the little table with Deckie and feed himself. At 10 months he is fitting comfortably in 12 month clothes and may be another size up when he turns one. He loves to dance and make noise when we are singing. He is my rough and tumble boy. Where Deckie was afraid of finger paint and making me wipe up spills, Kieran is putting bugs and trash in his mouth and crawling until his head hits the glass door. His forehead generally has some sort of bruise due to bumping it. He loves to come and jump in my lap for a cuddle and is learning how to give kisses, which is my favorite. 

My boys are learning to play with each other. Crawling on top of each other and rolling away. Hiding and sharing. I can't wait to see how their relationship continues to flourish. 

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. 

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.

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.

Happiness

Things that make me happy...

1. Coffee
2. Tiny lion costumes
3. When it's actually cool enough in the morning that we have to wear sweatshirts
4. Lunch breaks with my little family
5. Making plans with friends
6. Looking at paintings by my two year old on the wall
7. Catch up phone calls
8. Multiple home-cooked meals in a week
9. This face

10. This face

 11. Oh yeah... and these eyes

Out with the boys

Things have been going well here. My mom came to visit, followed by Logan's mom, and then Logan's sister. Kieran is almost three weeks old, and we have had so much help! It has been amazing. We are now back to being on our own and settling down into our routine. 

But hey! You guys! Today I took the two boys out BY MYSELF. We went to the playground and then to Summermoon to visit Daddy. I was pretty proud of myself for being able to get us together and out the door without any help. And Kieran needed to be fed at both the playground and at Summermoon and I was able to watch Dex and nurse Kieran at both places. (Ok... maybe I got a little help from Daddy at Summermoon so I didn't have to take both boys into the bathroom) BUT, I think that this is looking good toward the future. Watch out... we are on the move. Now... we just need to make some Mommy friends here in Austin and we'll be all set. 

And fyi...

Kieran at birth: 7 lb 4 oz- 19.25 inches

Kieran at 5 days: 7 lb 7 oz- 19.5 inches

Kieran at 12 days: 7 lb 14.5 oz- 20 inches

We have a growing boy on our hands

Here are some pics from the last three weeks. I've done a pretty terrible job at taking photos but now that we're settling down I'll try to get better at it. 

Love to all and thanks to everyone that sent a card or a package! We're feeling the love!

The Rodeo!

Yesterday I got to spend some actual quality time with my boys. I feel like this really hasn't happened enough recently. We hopped in the car and headed out to the rodeo. Now, I'm not really sure I feel like we went to the rodeo. All that stuff happened later in the day and cost more money. It was more like we went to the fair. But it was still a good time walking around and watching Dex experience all the sights and sounds.

Enjoying his pizza

He really wasn't so into the petting zoo. I think he doesn't like it when there are small animals on his level. They freak him out a bit.

Waiting for his pony ride. 

LOVING the pony ride. He was laughing so hard he could barely stay on the pony.

My little cowboy.

Riding his tractor

So all in all it was a good day. Once the sun was too hot and there were too many people, we ate our last ice cream cone and headed home. We thought Dex was going to pass out as soon as we got in the car, but we had another thing coming. He spent the ride home singing. At first I couldn't tell what he was singing but I thought I recognized the tune. After a few minutes I figured out he was singing "Farmer in the Dell." Once I figured that out, I knew he was singing a song they sing in his class about shapes. But, how cool is that? Without knowing the words I recognized his tune. I guess there's some musical talent in him! (Oh, and then he didn't nap and didn't go to sleep until about 10pm. I guess the rodeo riled him up too much)

On another note. Tomorrow we go to the Dr and if all goes well, we find out the sex of the baby! Wish us luck. Any takers on what it will be?

17 Weeks

Oh hey there baby belly. When did you decide to pop? I guess maybe in the last couple days. Leading up to my... vacation!

That's right, folks. I will be stepping away for a few days of relaxing me (and well, dad too, I guess) time. Time for us to hit the road in FL and see where life takes us for a few days. I'll miss my boys something fierce but I have to force myself to cool out and enjoy my time to myself and relax. Not an easy feat. 

I am currently trying to find comfortable travelling clothes and really realizing that I'm in that in-between pants phase. Not quite my old pants for extended periods of time, but not really maternity yet. Leggings. I need to get more leggings. 

I must get to finishing packing! See ya later Austin!  (But those in Austin... please check in on my boys and make sure they're not in a pizza coma. Much thanks)

I know I probably do this way too often...

But... how can I not (almost) constantly sing the praises of the love I receive daily? I seriously don't know what I did to please someone in charge of things, but I can't believe how lucky I am to have Logan. He keeps me supplied with bbq chips and french onion dip, and ice cream, and lets me fall asleep at 730. Then he puts Dex to bed and when I wake up at midnight in pain, he goes to the store to get me anything and everything he can think of to make me feel better. I hope that I show him as much love as I feel. Because I am shown so much love.

I've been getting a bit sick recently. Usually not the hours of incapacitating nausea that I got last time (though there have been a few of those days) but I have definitely made friends with the toilet. I'm trying to keep my head up and remember that it doesn't last forever. I have also been feeling a lot more tired. I have a lot of respect for moms with many children. I feel like I for sure can't last as long in the day as Dex. Then, when I need to sit for a bit and can't play I feel so guilty. There has to be some way to get some energy back. Any ideas? I haven't been feeling lightheaded though, so that is a good thing.

I had an appointment to go see the Dr this week. To make a long story short, it didn't happen. To try not to get into an angry place... we'll just say that my benefits didn't kick in exactly when they should have. I have now seen my temporary health insurance card... so back to square one next week. Hopefully we'll be able to work something out soon to check this little baby out.

Declan is so cute. I ask him what is in my belly and he says "baby". He then proceeds to kiss my belly and say "hot!" because I'm assuming it is a little warm from being covered up all day. He talks so much and does so many things. I can't believe how much he grows every day. He walks around the house with a mission. He goes in and out of rooms, opening and closing the doors and saying "Hello" and "Bye Bye" when entering and exiting. The other day he was eating a piece of cheese that was on a napkin (we were having a picnic at the park) and he caught the napkin as well as the cheese. Logan was amazed that he was old enough to understand the difference and work to manipulate his fingers to separate them before eating anything. I watch him and am in awe of how fast he is growing up. I hold him in my lap and appreciate every second because somewhere in the back of my mind I am ten years down the road and pining for him to love me with as much passion as he does now.

I am a lucky mommy and I am a lucky wife.

The laziest Sunday

What a nice day it has been today. Though we had an awesome teething moment at 3:30 this morning, that only meant that Dex let us sleep in until almost 9. Thank goodness! Logan works on Sundays, so it means Mommy and Dex alone time. Sometimes I'm feeling ambitious (especially when it's warmer) and we go out and see people or to the park or the store or whatever, but lately I've been feeling pretty tired. This causes me to just want more cuddle time.

So Dex and I have spent our day watching Lilo and Stitch and Monsters, Inc., eating cereal and raspberries and yogurt, visiting Daddy at the coffee shop and making (and of course eating) cookies.

Last night we went to a surprise party for Logan's aunt. It was really nice to hang out with family. We ate delicious food, played some games and watched Dex and his two little cousins run like crazies around the house. It is so cute watching him run around after kids that are just a little bit bigger than him. It is also really funny because he has become attached to his stuffed animals (Daisy the sheep and his monkey) and his blankie. His blankie is like two feet by two feet so him dragging it around after him makes him look just like Linus.

It's time to start getting our act together to go home. Until then... back to more cookies and cuddling for me.

#1 Hubs Award

Woo hoo! We finally have working internet here! Pretty stoked about that. Now we need to get our webcam act together so iChatting and skyping and such can take place. So people can see Declan's constant ridiculousness. He is seriously one of the funniest kids. Maybe I'm biased.

I don't have a whole lot to update on at the moment. Except that I will totally and completely give out a shout-out to my Number One Hubs tonight. As all couples do, we have had our roller-coaster moments, but things have been SO good between us lately. And even when things have been down I know what a lucky, lucky girl I am. I will tell this moment of my day, but only continue reading if you promise not to get jealous. K? K.

Today I had training for work at another school, and drove back to my school after. On the drive, I talked to Logan about household stuff and we got it sorted. During this conversation he told me that a co-worker wasn't feeling well and was wondering if Logan could cover his shift. And instead of just taking it, he told them that he needed to talk to me to make sure it was ok. He wanted to make sure that I wasn't going to feel abandoned having to take care of Dex by myself after a long day of work. He wanted to make sure my needs were met. (As I type this, I realize I may sound kind of controlling... but I swear this was all out of the blue... probably because I've been feeling a little under the weather for the last two weeks). Seriously? Making sure my needs were met as a cause not to take a shift at work? HOW LUCKY AM I?

Of course I told him to go. I would have anyway. But I just wanted to throw it out there. I love him. So much. So much gushy lovey stuff that would probably make you gag if you knew how over the moon I was.

(Also... he went out and got me cough drops and sushi last night after we put D down. Just because I mentioned I wanted them. Ugh. I'm so spoiled I can't handle it. Yes I can.)

Saturday

Today was a day full of those little things that make life worth it. It was a gorgeous day that started out chilly enough for a sweater, but turned out sunny with just a hint of crispness in the air. Declan woke up super early, but nicely went down for an early morning nap so we got to sleep in. We went to his cousin's fourth birthday party and had a nice time with family and other kiddos. Then we came home to a daddy that unfortunately had to miss the party because of work and went out to lunch with Austin. We finished the night with much family chilling and cuddles and movie watching.

All in all, a pretty great, calm day. Just what the doctor ordered. Also... it's 9pm and I'm so ready for more cuddles and sleep. This whole classroom to myself/ full time mom thing is wearing me down. In a good way. Especially when I get good days like today to replenish my spirits.

Home Sweet Home

So Dear Readers,

We have a new home. I can't believe it's been ten days since I last posted. To play that broken record one last time... that's what having no internet does. Things here have changed quite a bit in the last few days. I have a new position at my school and we have a new home. I am now the Accelerated Pre-K teacher and have my own class. It's a big transition for all of us but I'm excited about the prospects.

And we have  a new home! We pretty much moved across the street, so Logan can still walk to work. We have TWO bedrooms again so Logan and I don't have to sleep in the living room anymore, and we can finally settle. It was really scary for me to have a whole year lease ahead of me... I wasn't sure if I was ready for that kind of commitment, but I think it will be good. I'm excited to actually be able to decorate and make it OURS. I feel like Declan is starting to get to the age where he will start caring about his home and his room, and I'm so glad I get to give that to him. (Though a house would be great also...)

Speaking of that little devil, to update those who miss him greatly... He is going to be a Roman gladiator for Halloween. He was a pretty big hit at school and I had lots of people ask me where I got it and look pretty boggled when I said I made it. Hopefully he will get distracted enough to wear his golden laurel wreath out on Halloween or else you mayyyy get him confused with an angel or a girl or something. He is talking more now. He repeats a lot of words and is constantly describing things around him. I don't like that he has picked up saying "Mine" from school, but what can you do. He walks well and mostly runs everywhere he goes. He is a pretty picky eater which we are trying to change. He loves his stuffed musical sheep, Daisy. Sometimes he prefers to sleep in his pack and play because it makes him feel safe. He has three molars and the fourth is coming in along with the two bottom teeth to make a foursome down there. He is so funny and sunny and loving. He gives hugs and kisses and waves goodbye to everyone. Pretty much he is awesome.

I suppose I should go start unpacking otherwise Declan will unpack it all for me tomorrow by throwing it around the apartment or putting things in random drawers. I'm so happy to have the internet back!

Cowboy Baby

Yesterday in our unpacking, we found the cowboy boots Declan got for his birthday. The exciting news... they finally fit AND he can walk so he can tromp around in them. The even more exciting news is that he loves them. He woke up this morning and saw them sitting next to the other shoes. He brought them over to Logan and by the time I was upstairs, he was already a mini cowboy.

I love watching him care about things and gain preferences for some things over others. He is growing up and growing into himself and his personality. I can't wait to see where it goes.

We have been busy packing and cleaning and moving into our new place, and hopefully will be fully in by this evening. Once we're there, we won't have internet and probably won't until at least one of us has a job and can afford another bill thrown our way. So until then it will be internet on our phones of course, but for the majority of communication- coffee shops and libraries.

Cowboy pictures to come. :-)

In Love

Ahhh... I'm sitting here completely in love with the two boys next to me. Every day we become closer with each other as individuals and as a family.

Smiling

Things that are making me smile right now.

5. Declan with TJ the cat. He's so excited to have an animal that will actually let him come over and pet him. He is so gentle and gets so happy.

4. Declan trying new food. He's been doing so much better. I'm a little nervous to have to start making him lunch, but he's been eating a lot more at home.

3. The feeling that anything can happen. What a treat to have a new start. I can't wait to be settled so when people come to visit we can show them around.

2. Watching Declan in the pool. We got him a new inner tube/ bathing suit thing today so he can be more independent and he LOVES it. He can swim from me to Logan and I love watching his legs kick kick kick.

1. The fact that even though it is due to lack of jobs which some may stress most about, I'm more enjoying our family time together. We get to run errands and actually have dinner together. After missing so much time with Logan due to his job, I'm loving it.

The Small Things

Winding down from another pseudo "vacation" day. I did some job searching and applying and such, but we also got a lot of family play time in. I love being able to be with my boys. Yes, I'm slightly stressing about the job and home situation... but I'm also taking time just to love and laugh. In the end I'm pretty sure I'll be more happy that I soaked up those moments than made myself sick with stress.

Logan's cousin-in-law Bryan came over with his kids today. It was nice for Declan to get some playtime in with other kiddos. He had lots of fun showing off his splashing skills in the pool and even attempted to swim on his own (to the terror of Mommy and Daddy). Luckily three grownups can move pretty fast. I applaud all of our reaction timing.

Logan made dinner while I tried to get some odds and ends done and Declan occupied himself by playing with things on the floor. It's really the little things that count. I'm sure that soon enough Logan's job schedule will rip him away once again from family time, so I'm enjoying what I have while I have it.

To My Wonderful Husband

I didn't end up writing a Father's Day post to brag about the wonderful man in my life. Things have been busy and stressful and we've both been dealing with a lot. I guess I wrote about him recently with our anniversary, but with the last few days, it didn't do him justice.

To my rock,
Thank you so much for everything you do. Watching you blossom into a grownup is the biggest blessing. You have grown from a party frat guy into a responsible (mostly) husband and father. Every day I get to wake up in your arms and I can't tell you how special I feel knowing that no matter what I look like, you will smile and kiss me and say "Good morning, beautiful." Seriously. You seem to enjoy my bed-head. Who else but you?

I get to watch you light up our son's face when you enter the room. Your absolute and true love for him is apparent at first glance. You were born to be a dad. I can't put into words how beautiful you are when you are with him.

To be more specific about where this is coming from, thank you for everything with this move. Thank you for being reassuring, thank you for putting in your time. Thank you for not sleeping last night and going out and getting me Tylenol when I couldn't function anymore. Thank you for driving me to a bed and then driving yourself back to the house to work. Thank you for telling me you love me even when I got sleep that you didn't. Thank you for lifting things and dealing with the stinky garbage. Thank you for THANKING ME and telling ME how good I am to YOU when all I did was get your stuff together and get you a sandwich to have before you WENT TO WORK with NO sleep.

You amaze me.

I love you super much.

Naptime

I seriously love the sound of silence more than I knew possible. And it dawned on me that I really AM (hopefully) becoming less selfish in the fact that more than I love the boys napping to get some quiet time... I really love knowing that they are getting the rest that they need. When they take super short naps I just feel bad that they aren't going to have as peppy and energetic an afternoon as they could be. When Declan woke up BEFORE 5 yesterday and then only took an slightly-over-an-hour nap... I just knew he wouldn't be as happy as he could be.

So anyway... nothing really new to report from the moving front. Things are just moving along I guess. Our apartment is starting to be shown so we have to attempt to keep it clean. Good luck to us. Declan pretty much makes that impossible seeing as he continuously knocks everything off every surface he can reach.

Thinking about having an estate sale for all those nearby. The last weekend in June. The 26th and 27th. Please come. I want to move as little as possible so I want to get rid of as much as possible.

Anyway... pretty excited for the weekend. Logan has Friday night, Saturday AND Sunday off so we actually get to have a real weekend together. My mom is coming up Saturday so we get to hang out then have a date night (which is sorely needed at this point) and then Mel's Bridal Shower is Sunday. Have I mentioned how nice it is to not be in school and actually get to live my life?

Up in the air

Right now I feel an interesting mix of pressure and ease. Our life is about to make a major change (I think, I hope). For now, though, we're not entirely sure when or how that change is going to happen. And for the most part, I'm ok with that. I've accepted that things are up in the air. I will keep applying for jobs and see what happens. Our lease is up July 1, so we are out of here then but things will depend on our job situations. I have accepted that we may be vagrants for a small while during our transition time. That's ok. We'll get a pod or storage space for our stuff and we'll figure it out.

The pressure part comes in from people asking questions about what we're going to do. When I say that I'm not really sure they raise their eyebrows. But you know what? That's ok too. We haven't really done things traditionally around here to start with. I like our life and love my boys. As long as we're together we will be ok. The money part will work itself out as long as we are following our hearts. We have so much support from family and friends that there is no way we could ever fail.

We're just doing our own thing. And we're happy. And that is all that matters.