Family Photos :: Christmas 2009

Family photos below from our session that we did Thanksgiving weekend. Poor Josh had a front tooth cutting through, a cold, and thrush but he was a trooper. And if we could just get the pacifier away from Jake... how many times can you spot it in the photos? :-)

Big Snow '09!

The biggest snow that we have seen in a loooong time hit our area over the weekend. We ended up with about TWO FEET of now! Not good for short people like Jake, Bailey, and Mosley (Josh mainly stayed inside)! As those of you who know me well understand, I LOVE the weather and nothing gets me more excited than hurricanes and big snow storms. This one did not disappoint. At one point we even had a blizzard warning on Saturday.

Jake was thrilled about the snow this year (more so than last year). He got all into it by helping Paul and I shovel and clean off the cars. Such a good little helper! Now we just need to find gloves that will actually stay on his hands and we'll be all set!

The Rockettes!

Last week Paul's parents took me, Paul, Allison, ans Gretchen to the Radio City Christmas Spectacular with the Rockettes at the Patriot Center. I have never seen the Rockettes before so it was a huge treat for me. The show was great! I am still in awe at how they are able to stay in perfect unison with each other. Talk about talent!

All Josh Really Wants for Christmas.....

You mean besides his TWO FRONT TEETH?? (Which did conveniently come in right before the big day!)

......Wrapping paper! No need for a present inside. The paper is juuuuuust fine!

Baring All!!

Today at school Jake pulled down his pants in the middle of the classroom to show everyone the Spongebob band-aid on his leg. Oh the joys of being a toddler!

And I should mention that he didn't even have a boo-boo; he just wanted a Spongebob band-aid on his leg!

Some Days are Tough....

Let's be honest.... we all have days like this!

Christmas Time is Here!

The Christmas season has been a lot of fun for us this year. Not only is it Josh's first Christmas, but Jake is much more into things this year. It was such a blast to have him help us put the lights and ornaments on the tree and to hear him say "Merry Christmas" and tell you that Santa says "ho ho ho"!

Last weekend we went to Chloe's performance in The Nutcracker. It was a great performance and she was a superstar!

And while I am very proud that I have all of my shopping done, I am starting to feel a little overwhelmed about wrapping everything!

Josh hanging out on the floor playing and rolling around (his favorite mode of transporation) and I was able to capture Jake on camera saying "ice, ice baby" (yes, it's a big joke in our house that he will dance around to that and say the words!).

The Boys

Some fun new pictures of the boys.

Naked baby!

Happy naked baby!

Bundled up for the cold weather.


A new favorite picture of Jakey!

Daddy and Josh

Tired Eagles fan...

Josh's first time in the highchair!

Milestones for Josh

As of today, Josh has 3 teeth (he just cut through one of his big front teeth) AND he is sitting up on his own now! He still teeters some and falls off to the side after some time, but he is definitely sitting up right on his own for more than 5 seconds now! However, the poor guy was in a lot of pain cutting the tooth and he has a cold and he is getting over thrush. Needless to say, he hasn't quite been himself lately but unbelievable how happy and smiling he still is, despite how uncomfortable he must be.

Thank You & Please!

For as long as I can remember, I have been working with Jake for him to say "I Love You", "Please", and "Thank You". If you've been keeping up with the blog, then you know that he said "Luuuuuvvvv Youuuuu" a couple weeks ago (and how says it regularly to all sorts of people, including his best friend at school, Addison!).

Jake has been making so much progress with his talking and will repeat any number of words that you say to him (including having him say "ice, ice, baby!"); he is even repeating the alphabet and numbers. But for some reason, love you, thank you, and please were really tough for him. He would make the general sounds, but couldn't get the consonant/vowel sound combos together. Usually it sounded something like, "mmmmm, hmmm ooooo".

Last night I was giving Jake a bath and handed him something that he asked for and clear as a bell, he said "thank you". I paused for a second, mainly in disbelief, and asked him, "did you just say thank you?". "Say thank you!". "Tank uuuu". What's even better than the fact that he says "thank you" is that he says it on his own as the appropriate time as if he is just so proud and happy that he can say the words. This morning when I handed him the waffle that he wanted for breakfast, "taaannnk uuuuu" and he must have said it 8 times in a row. I am so gosh darn proud that my kid is now displaying manners!

To top it all off, he is now saying "peas" for please! I figured that since we were on a roll with love you and thank you, that I would see if he was ready for please. Sure enough, after months of having him watch my lips while I said "peas", he finally said it!

These are the sweet victories that make life all worth living.

Newish Pictures

A random selection of pictures of the boys from the last 6 weeks or so. Have some cute new ones on the camera to upload some time soon!

No Go on the Peaches!

Short update on introducing Josh to peaches.... I thought he'd love them because they were always one of Jake's favorite foods.... WRONG! We spent last weekend and the first half of last week worrying about Josh having an allergy to them. I was pretty convinced of the allergy all along, just from common sense, and knowing that something was a little off. The day after he had peaches for the first time, he started with some digestive issues and vomiting which is really weird for him. He also got bags under his eyes (puffy), rosy red cheeks, and kind of a blotchy face. I took him to Family Practice just to get some reassurance and guidance since I was worried and ended up with the WORST doctor that I have ever come across in my life. One of his comments to me... "well are you sure someone wasn't pinching his little cheeks to make them red?". Really, are you serious? I was infuriated. I was *this* close to asking to speak to someone else but I made him send all his notes and my comments about Josh's symptoms to his primary care pediatrician so I could follow up with her. The crazy doctor ordered a CBC and Chem 7 to rule out any other issues (all the bloodwork came back perfectly fine). He also told me that if I insisted that it was a food allergy that I should try the peaches again in a couple days and see what happens...

The next day I followed up with Josh's pediatrician and she agreed with me that it sounded like a food allergy based on the symptoms, how suddenly it came on, and how much better he got after we stopped giving him peaches. She said not to give them to him again for THREE months. (Good thing I talked to her about it.) She told me that it isn't uncommon for kids to have an allergy to something when they're little but that they will grow out of it. So while peaches does sound like an odd thing to be allergic to, chances are that he won't be allergic to them when he's older. (Don't run into too many adults who are allergic to peaches I don't think.) So I am a little more cautious to introduce new foods to him but we're just taking it slowly. He had applesauce again today for the first time in a week and seems to be doing just fine on it.

So far, allergic to penicillin (definitely) and peaches (hopefully not forever). Let's keep our fingers crossed that we don't run into much more!

Happy Halloween!

Okay, I am a little late with this post, but life is busy! Here are pictures of the boys from Halloween this year. Jake was T-Rex and Josh was a turtle. This was the first year that we took Jake trick-or-treating (for real). He was excited to go up to every house and knock on the door. We had to explain to him numerous times that you only go to houses that have the lights on. He did seem somewhat confused about what he was supposed to do when someone put a big bowl of candy in front of him. He got the hang of the fact that he was supposed to take candy, but don't think he understood that you only take a couple pieces and move on :-) Josh came along for the ride with us as well, and had a great time saying "hi" to everyone.

The boys also had a Halloween party at school the day before. They wore their costumes and had a parade throughout the school and got to visit the "haunted classroom". Jake has been so excited about the Halloween costumes ever since that he keeps taking Josh's out of his closet and asking me to put it on him. He also carries the "hands" from his T-Rex costume around and puts them on and will run up to you and yell "roooooaaarrr". Very funny!

Josh is 6 Months!

Today we went to Jake's 6 month check up. The verdict? He is going to be just like his big brother -- long and lean:
Weight: 16 lbs. 7 oz (28%)
Length: 27.25 in. (76%)
Head: 35%
(Okay so he does have a slightly larger head than Jake!)

That being said, he is moving into 9 month clothes now, especially for pants and PJ's because he is long.

The poor little guy had FIVE shots -- 4 in the thighs and one in the arm. Three of them were the usual vaccines and then he also got his seasonal flu shot and the H1N1 vaccine. Of course he screamed bloody murder for a couple seconds but as soon as I picked him up, he was fine. He just made me tear up a little is all :-(

I can't believe how quickly 6 months has gone by. He is going to be crawling and then walking and talking in no time. While I am incredibly excited to see what he is like and what he looks like when he is two and five and twelve, etc..., I very much want him to stay a happy baby forever. Very different feelings from when Jake was little and I couldn't wait for him to walk and talk and be a little person. Perhaps there will be a baby #3 after all!

Wuv U!

I have been waiting for 27 months for it and I finally got it last week! Jake decided that it was time to say "wuuuuuvvvv eewwwwww" back to me, after I have been prodding him to say it for about 12 months now. (smile)

We now have a fun routine of hug, kiss, wuv u when I leave for work in the morning and when I see him in the afternoon after work. He seems very appreciative of his newfound way to express himself and I am ecstatic about his new phrase. I will admit that the first time he said it, I teared up a bit, and I now ask him to say it multiple times a day just to make sure he doesn't forget (haha, really, it's just to hear him say it!).

And as for our little fatty, he is eating applesauce now on top of his two servings of cereal a day. He's still a little unsure of the applesauce but he seems to be getting used to it. He makes a funny little face by puckering up his lips and giving you a look like, "what the heck is this? this isn't cereal!". Next we'll try the peaches.... Jake looooved peaches; maybe his little bro will too!

Josh and Daddy

Josh's vocal skills in the video below! The little man will talk to anyone who will listen! He was also quite fascinated with Paul's face...

The Wheels on the Bus!

Lately Jake has really taken to singing finger play songs (they do a lot of them at school). His favorites are The Wheels on the Bus, The Itsby Bitsy Spider, and If You're Happy and You Know It. He knows all the finger movements to go along with the words and we captured one demonstration on video below!

Big Boys!

I continue to be amazed every week, every day at how fast the boys change and how quickly they are growing up. I looked at my little baby Josh today and started to see a little boy with his chubby cheeks and bright eyes -- newborn baby look all gone. And Jake, wow, I don't even know if I have the words to explain how much he has grown up in the last month. I am so proud of him and how far he has come with his talking and his willingness (most of the time) to listen and cooperate.

Little man started blowing raspberries today and boy did he and I both get the biggest kick out of it. My lips were numb after blowing raspberries back at him and he was covered in spit from his chest to his forehead! He would wait for me to do it and then he would giggle and do it right back, big gummy grin the whole time. Hysterical. And he is rolling over both ways now -- pretty much at the exact same time that Jake did. Now that he can roll from his back to his tummy, the whole back to sleep thing is way over and done with. The second you put him on his back in his crib, he flips himself over and goes right to sleep. His laid back personality is awesome. Perhaps I am a little partial and "braggy" because I am his mom, but if you ask anyone who spends an hour with the kid, they will tell you that he is the happiest baby on the face of the earth. He is so content and silly and just loves to smile and laugh and talk with you. He is the best sleeper too. Twelve hours a night -- straight. Whew. If only all babies were this easy -- makes me nervous to think about having a third and what a handful he/she could be!

Big man might as well be ten. I don't know WHERE the time has gone with him. His vocabulary and speech is tremendous and I think it has helped him so much to be able to verbalize what he wants. He is asking for what he wants using his words now and call most family members that he knows by their names (including the dogs -- Bay-eee and BoBo). He is still a little quiet to talk around people other than me and Paul but trust me, the boy can talk! Mama, Mama, Mama, Mama! He is also the biggest helper. The other day when I was in the shower, he heard me turn off the water and he immediately ran into the bathroom and pulled down one of the towels from the rack and opened the shower door and handed me the towel. The proud look on his face is just priceless. He is also a big help with throwing away trash and doing laundry. Tonight he helped me change the sheets on the bed and give Josh a bath. I really think that his terrible two's have subsided quite a bit. Now that's not to say that he can't let out the highest pitch scream ever if he is mad about not getting something he wants BUT what little kid isn't going to do that? He is much easier to reason with now. If I ask him to stop doing something, he will and he'll say "okay" and sometimes even "okay, sorry".

We are working on getting rid of the pacifiers now (we call them nummys). Part of me feels badly about taking them away because he is SO attached and its his comfort/safety thing away from home (and to sleep) but at the same time, I feel like he is starting to look kind of old to still have a pacifier and it does cause issues sometimes. For example, last week at SoccerTots, he wouldn't participate without the nummy and he kept running back to the bag to make sure his extra nummy was still in there. We started on Sunday morning and he made it pretty much until this morning without one. We had one helluva meltdown this morning. He also hadn't been sleeping as well at night without them so he was tired. So when we got home from day care today and he desperately wanted one, I gave him one that had the tip cut off. He was not too thrilled with the "broken" nummy. He eventually forgot about it and had dinner, played, took a bath, and got ready for bed. While he was curled up in bed watching cartoons, he started asking for it again. We decided that we would let him sleep with it for the time being but when he wakes up in the morning, he has to put it in a special spot where it will wait for him until he goes to bed that night. For a transition, he can have the nummy with the tip cut off if he wants to hold one and/or have one in his pocket. I am hoping this will ease the transition some for him. It breaks my heart to see him so upset because we're taking away his most important comfort item.

That's some of the latest and greatest for the boys. Life for Paul and I is business as usual. Last night we went to the Redskins/Eagles game here at FedEx Field. We had a good time and it wasn't too cold but sure enough, I fell asleep (in the stadium) during the 3rd quarter. Big surprise. I knew I wasn't going to make it. Considering that I am going on about 3 hours of sleep right now, I better wrap this up and get some much needed rest before it catches up with me!

Cox Farms 2009

Two weekends ago we went to Cox Farms to ring in the beginning of Fall. Lucky for us it was a beautiful sunny and warm day. A lot has changed in terms of the weather in the last two weeks! Now it is 40 degrees and rainy.

Jake had a lot of fun playing with Chloe. The highlight of the trip was the hayride... it was a really good one! Josh had a blast being carried around in the baby bjorn and then falling asleep on Aunt Gretchen's chest. Paul and Nick were there too.

Slideshow below of some of the pictures from the trip.

In other news, Josh is now almost 16 pounds -- about 40th percentile for weight. However, he is super long so he is almost out of 6 month clothes now (especially pants and PJ's). He LOVES to eat cereal and I know he will be super excited to start fruits and veggies in the next couple of weeks. He is sleeping for 9-12 hour stretches at a time and continues to be the happiest baby on the face of the earth! Jake has transformed into an amazing little boy who holds conversations with you! His terrible two's have subsided quite a bit so we have been having lots of fun. He is back to sleeping through the night and is even starting to sleep in a little longer in the mornings. When he goes to bed around 8pm, he sleeps until about 7 or 7:30am. A big improvement over his usual 6am wakings!

Speaking of the big guy, he is clinging to my back asking for a "giddy up" (piggyback ride) so off we go!

Owen's 1st Birthday Party

Last weekend we went up to Delaware to celebrate Owen's first birthday party at a beautiful state park. The weather was gorgeous and there was a playground right next to the pavillion we were at so Jake spent most of his time playing there with daddy and grandpa. Josh had a great time hanging out on grandma's chest.

Owen is Jake and Josh's third cousin... Walt's cousin's son's son. Jake and Owen are good buddies and we wish we were able to see them more often!

SoccerTots

This past week, Jake started his 6 week SoccerTots session: http://soccertotsva.com/. It is a child physical development program that uses fun games to engage kids in physical activity. In Jake's class of the 2-3 year olds, they don't actually play soccer games but the activities are designed around soccer-type play such as kicking, throwing, and jumping. The class is every Friday morning so Paul is able to take him and they enjoy their father/son bonding time!

Two short videos below of his first day at SoccerTots!

(Yes, I am discouraged that he used his nummy during the class but we're working on that. Think he needed it as a soother being in a new environment. He's going to be potty trained before we get him off the pacifier!)

Happy Boy

One of my new favorite shots of happy man, Josh. It doesn't get much better than this!

Talk, Joshy, Talk!

On the way home from Cox Farms yesterday, Mr. Josh decided that he would occupy himself most of the way home by chatting, squealing, and laughing almost the entire way. As you can see from the video below, he had quite a bit to say!!

(Video is a little bouncy because I was taping it in the car.)

A Video is Worth.... well... Quite a Few Words!

I decided to have Jake do a little talking for the camera today. Video below of him showing off his vast knowledge of animal sounds and then some of his favorite words as well. His vocabulary is up at about 75-100 words now and he keeps on saying new things every day. One of his favorite new words is "backpack". He got his first backpack the other day and it is by far his most prized possession :-)

Video isn't the BEST.... I was holding Josh and trying to balance being down on my knees at the same time so I could capture the video at Jake's level. Oh and Jake was eating a Gogurt (yes, yogurt in a tube) as we were doing this. Still fun! He has come such a long way.

Joshy

Josh has his first tooth coming in! It's the typical bottom middle tooth (the one to the right). We figured he was teething and for the first time today, you can see the little white line starting to cut on through!

In other news, at his 4 month check-up, Josh was:
14 lbs. 1 oz -- 33%
25 3/4 inches -- 85%
He is going to be built just like Jake. And even though we think he is so much bigger and chunkier than Jake was, Jake was 13 lbs. 1 oz at his 4 month check-up so they aren't too far off!

Oh and a big HECK YES for Josh sleeping through the night now. A whole 3 months sooner than his big bro did!! Mommy is very happy about that :-)

Walking with Dinosaurs

Paul and I took Jake to Walking with Dinosaurs at the Verizon Center on Friday. The link to the site about the show is here -- http://www.dinosaurlive.com/. We weren't sure if Jake was going to be scared or overwhelmed but we both figured he would love it so we gave it a shot.... And oh boy did he love it! He sat there wide eyed during the entire show. It's meant to be an educational show about the history of dinosaurs on the planet so of course he didn't really get that part but he sure did love it every time a new dinosaur came out on the stage! We heard quite a few "whoah"s, "uh-oh"s, and "yay"s through the evening.

After the show, we bought Jake a set of 4 of his very own dinosaurs and all weekend long he has been going around the house with them yelling "ROOOOOAAAAR" and making them play with one another. He even has used T-Rex to help him eat his food. Too funny!

We couldn't really get good photos since it was dark and flash photography wasn't allowed but I have included a couple of videos below!

Kings Dominion

Last weekend we took Jake on his first trip to Kings Dominion! It's about 90 minutes from where we live. It was Booz Allen Hamilton family day there; the whole park was rented out to Booz Allen employees, family, and friends. (So it was free!) They gave us a great BBQ lunch and free drinks around the park as well. Jake and I went with Grandma and Grandpa (Paul's parents) and Aunt Allison.

Bottom line is that Jake had a GREAT time. He loved the kiddie rides and the highlight of his day was definitely getting his picture taken with Scooby Doo and Spongebob! I have included some pictures and a video below. Paul was on his whitewater rafting trip so he wasn't able to come with us but we hope to go back there with Jake again soon so Daddy can enjoy the time too!

Cereal and Stuff

Josh has been eating rice cereal for about a week now. I expected it to take a couple of weeks for him to get used to it and really start chowing. So the first night we made a little bit for him and he spit a lot of it out and wasn't too interested. Thinking the same thing would happen the second night, I made a little bit of a smaller bowl. Think again! He decided that he was ready to chow down!! He opens up his mouth and goes right for the spoon. The serving suggestion is 1-2 Tbs per serving but he is definitely eating 2-3 Tbs twice a day and enjoying every second of it. Might I also mention that he is sleeping through the night now! (Or at least 3 of the last 5 nights, and I'll take it!)

I was quite surprised to find out that Josh is a thumb sucker because Jake never was. I love watching him do it; I think it's so cute!! He won't take a pacifier (nummy) at all but that's okay because he has his thumb!

I wish I had a picture of this (kind of had my hands full!) but the other night, Jake and Josh took their first bath together. Really it was Jake's bath and I just stripped down Josh and stuck him in the water for the fun of it. Josh liked the first couple of minutes but he didn't seem to like being in the big open tub of water as opposed to his snug infant bathtub. Jake got a kick out of having Josh in the bath with him but I think we have a little ways to go before they can really take a bath together :-)

Jake & Josh Photos

A couple new ones of the boys...

Josh is 4 months old today! He goes in for his 4 month check-up tomorrow morning.
Jake is TALKING up a storm these days and loving school.

Jake at Uncle Nick's house... getting so tall wearing those 3T clothes!

Jake and Papa on the bike! This is the first time we were ever able to get Jake to sit on Papa's lap on the motorcycle.

Joshy playing with his elephant in the swing.... note the long legs hanging over!

Josh just as happy as can be @ 4 months old!

Happy Monday!

Wow, I used to be a lot better about updating the blog! The time just literally escapes me these days. The theme in our house right now is exhaustion!! Paul and I are getting used to our new schedule -- me up at 5am, him up at 6am, kids up at 6:30am if we're lucky (usually earlier), and both of us working full-time. I have to try so hard to stay awake when I am laying in bed with the boys around 7:30pm getting them to sleep. I am progressively getting better at getting to bed sooner. I aim for 9:30 but it usually ends up being 10 or 10:30. No matter what time I go to sleep, 5am always comes too early!

The boys are doing sooooooo well at their new day care. We thought Jake might have a hard time this morning since it was Monday but he did better today than he did last Friday! He didn't even have to take a nummy with him to school today and no tears when Daddy left. When I go to pick him up from school, I always try to peek in the room to watch him play before he sees me. He looks so happy. Usually he is playing with Kennedy, one of his new little friends. Josh is quite the ladies man as he makes eyes with all the girls in his nursery. A 7 month old baby joined the group today and I was told that he was very fascinated with what he was up to all day. I swear a switch has turned on in Josh and he is so "alive" with excitement and personality. He is grabbing at anything he can get his hands on and is really starting to "play". He is a nonstop chatterbox and his smiles and laughs are enough to just make your melt. Truly a joy. THE best moment of my whole day is walking into Josh's nursery and seeing his face light up when he recognizes me, followed by Jake running into my arms yelling "mama, mama" when he sees me. I don't think it gets any better than that.

Other news? My job is going well. It's very busy and a lot going on but so far it has deemed itself less stressful than my other job because there is a bigger team working on the project. I start training (giving, not receiving) this week so I am hoping that goes smoothly. Paul is still working on getting his real estate license. Now that he has Tuesdays to himself, he is hoping to have his license by the end of September. Then the transition to the new job will be a whole other story!

Jake is talking up a storm! He is starting to say so many words now without being prompted. I'd say his vocabulary is up to about 75 words or so now. Still just saying single words but it's so thrilling to see him start to really communicate with words. He still works with his speech therapist twice a month, probably until he is about three years old.

Josh is finally taking bottles now, yay! He is up to about 5-6 oz. bottles and usually has 4 of them while he is at day care. Not too shabby! Now he is going to pork up :-)

Will post some new pics of the boys soon!

Family Time

Jake's first "homework" assignment from preschool was to bring in a family photo for tomorrow. We took this candid one tonight. (Not a lot of pictures with ALL FOUR of us in it!) Note that Jake does, of course, have a cord in his hand.

The first day went well. I started to get a little weepy as we walked in but I held it together. Jake's teacher, Ms. Brandi, told me that he had a bit of a two year old meltdown for a couple minutes after Paul and I left but then he was fine all day and had a great time playing with the kids. He even took a nap! Joshy was happy and content as can be except for when taking his first bottle which he threw a fit about.... then he downed his other three bottles like it was his job. Increasing the volume tomorrow to see if he will actually take full bottles now!

Josh Man

Couple new pics of Joshy at 3 1/2 months. His more recent developments include grabbing at toys and any other object in front of him including my face, my hair, and Jake. He is also very intent on studying people's faces and his cooing conversations have become quite the event. I thought Jake was an easy and happy baby... I think Josh has turned out to be even easier and happier. (But maybe that is just because the 2nd one is a little easier when you have kind of learned the ropes a little!) He continues to do well with his sleeping. It still ranges from 4 to 6 hour stretches at night but he's done that totally on his own. I really haven't done anything in terms of "sleep training". He doesn't mind sleeping in his crib either but most of the time I have still been keeping him in the bassinet so he is close to me :-)

Our big battle with Josh (and only battle really) is the bottle. It has been THREE weeks and he is still being stubborn about it. Granted he is getting better and has had a couple successful 3 oz. feedings from a bottle but he's never happy about it. Usually he waits until about 4 in the afternoon and then just eats out of desperation. He's happy as a clam as soon as I come back around and feed him... A look in to what is to come with a stubborn personality?!?

Love my playmat and grabbing at all the fun toys!

Has the same big blue eyes as Jake and Daddy.

I love bath time! :-)