Littleman will never cease to make us laugh. I uploaded some pictures the other day and found these:
This must be what he's doing while I am changing diapers....I love, LOVE that my kid is such a character.
Also, Papabear and I recently discovered that Littleman has an interesting way of saying November and December. For some reason he adds "derf" to the end. So, he says, "Novemberderf" and "Decemberderf." Go ahead, say it out loud a couple of times - we were in tears.
Here's the "snow" we had the other day.
I have a video up on facebook of the snowfall, I'll try to get it up here soon.
Littleman has finally begun to show an interest in letters and writing. Here's a drawing of the two of us. (I'm on the right, you can tell by the hair.) :-)
And finally, this year's gingerbread house.
for some SERIOUS cuteness! Can you believe his shirt says "little guy"??????? AND, it was only three bucks at WalMart! This might be the most perfect picture I have ever taken. Ever.
And I almost wish these two were related so this could be my christmas card!!!!
Can you stand it???? I know, neither can I. *sigh* Such cuties....
Well, technically, the turkey is still with us in the form of blessed leftovers! Mmmmm, can't wait for my sandwich at lunch today. I prepped everything for turkey day the day before, so all there was to do was put the turkey in the oven and wait. SO, we decided to put up our tree. As I have mentioned, Littleman is beyond excited about the holidays, so we went ahead and got them rolling. We had a really nice morning together and a very nice afternoon with the family. Here are some photos:
These two are just of LittleGuy gearing up for chilly mornings...
Papabear is always cracking me up...
Yes, our tree topper is a chicken.
I included this one not so much to showcase our tree but to show that while my boobs and belly continue to grow, my butt appears to be keeping itself at bay.
This is serious business for Littleman.
The beloved 19 lb turkey....
LittleGuy hung out here for two hours while we decorated the tree!!
Always love an opportunity to use the wedding china.
My little turkeys with grandma (Maday).
Let the feasting begin!!
Grandma brought some fun stuff!
I can be an airplane, too!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
are so adorable.
I really didn't think nursing was going to work out for me. Most of you know that. For the first month of LittleGuy's life, I was very close to giving up. A few trusted sources told me to stick it out until six weeks. I did. Amazingly, they were right, it did get easier...but I still wasn't sold. I was dependent on that damn nipple shield and I had very little confidence that my "chest structure" would ever truly be able to feed my child.
However, ten weeks into this nursing relationship with my baby and I'm a done deal. I love it. I feel like breastfeeding Finn is one of the most amazing things I have ever done in my entire life. An accomplishment as much as it is a gift. He practically weaned himself off the shield over a week ago and I can't believe that "they" work - all by themselves! Well, LittleGuy is bigger and knows what to do now, so that helps A LOT.
I finally feel comletely in tune with the whole experience. I did not believe people who told me it's easier to breastfeed, but now I know it's true. And, it is just an amazing thing to be able to nourish your child...just by being alive and eating and drinking and staying near your baby. Amazing. My body makes food. I am a fully functioning kitchen for my baby. Completely mind blowing. Everytime we sit down for a "meal" I am washed in awe.
It really irks me that the nurses in NY did not encourage me more when Littleman was born. It makes me sad that this experience was lost for him...and me. I am sad that I'll only get to nurse one baby. I don't feel any less connected to Littleman, plus, I really didn't know what I was missing. (Since I won't be letting LittleGuy sleep in our bed, I feel like the boys are even in "closeness to mommy as a baby" issues). And I am not saying that every one should nurse - it has to be right for that mom and that baby at that moment. It really is not easy. It takes patience and confidence (when you have none) and, most of all, a support system.
All that said, as much as I love nursing, it is pretty gross. Milk gets every where. At times I am literally a geyser. It completely suppresses my libido and there are a multitude of drugs (ie, birth control) that are forbidden. I lack grace and tact, so in public I am pretty much a nursing nightmare. (Thank goodness Littleman is too young to be embarassed by me...and Papabear is working so much, he's usually not with us). And, I know I have complained about this before, but the sheer size that I have to carry around...is really ridiculous. So, it's not heaven or perfect. But, it is beautiful. *I* may not be, but the act is beautiful. Beautiful and peaceful and almost magical. I feel completely and utterly content. I am living my dream.
I am a mommy of two beautiful boys and wife to a man I love and adore. If I died today I could say I have everything I ever wanted.
Here's the last of 'em. LittleGuy as a horsie and Littleman with his friends.
Now that Halloween is over, Littleman is already talking about Christmas. Taking down the Halloween decorations was so sad for him (we've had them up since October 1!!!!). I almost wish there were more decorations for Thanksgiving. BUT, I am not going there. The day after Thanksgiving we break out the Christmas stuff and that's good enough for me. I love that Littleman shares my excitement for holidays. He could ignore my jollyness, but he embraces it. We'll make some turkey decorations to get us through until black Friday. I have to make calendars for him to hang in his room so he can check off the days.
Well, I haven't been sleeping great, so I think I'm going to head to bed. I think all the adrenaline and elation that got me through the first two months has finally wore off...and the lack of sleep is taking its toll. I can't say enough how grateful I am to have friends out here who invite me over for dinner or come over when I need their kids to entertain mine. I couldn't survive without them.
For some reason, Papabear gets the biggest grins out of our LittleGuy and today we had our first big laughs - amazingly I caught them on video.
Littleman had his Halloween party at preschool yesterday. They made jack-o-lantern cupcakes.
LittleGuy's wearing shoes!!!! How cute!
Pumpkin carving....
Papabear went all out when making a veggie tray for Littleman and a friend he had over for dinner!!! Would it surprise you at all to hear that Littleman cried when Lauren ate a little of HIS name???
In case you want an update on the breast feeding, continue reading: I started weaning LittleGuy off the shield a few days ago by taking it off for one of the afternoon feedings. WELL, by yesterday afternoon, he decided he wanted NONE of the shield at all! It's been a little bit of a struggle. When the jugs are full, so to speak, there's not a lot of surface area which makes it difficult for LittleGuy to latch on. He gets royally pissed, though, if I try to start with the shield - he really wants nothing to do with it! But, he has trouble getting "on" without it. This morning, though, we finally made things "work" by using the latch-assist. Without going into too much detail, for those of you who have no interest in reading about the finer details of breastfeeding, it's going well. We had a full feeding session completely free of the shield. I am still amazed that I am doing this. I am feeding my baby and it feels great to be able to do so.
Are you wondering if he sleeps through the night? He's pretty much on this eating schedule at night: 8p, dreamfeed at 10:30p, 3:30a, 7a - So I am up at 3:30 and 7 ish....I have adjusted to this so I am functioning okay. I am hopeful that he'll start sleeping longer soon....aren't we all? He's cute and sweet and cuddly, so I feel well compensated for the lack of sleep....
This little one is NOT sleeping in our bed like Littleman did for so, so, so many months. (not yet anyway, ha ha) He sleeps in the bassinet next to our bed. I tried moving him to his room the other day, but it's too soon. I felt absolutely haggard running down there in the middle of the night. I'm going to try again in a couple of weeks.
That's all for now folks! Hope everyone has a happy halloween!
Littleguy begins to converse...
Went to a pumpkin festival...Papabear was working so I was technically on my own (we went with some friends). It is still too warm most days to feel like fall, but we had fun.
Yes, Littleman is holding a giant "diamond." He bought it with his own money...the kid has strange likes, I know. Okay, this next one is seriously too cute for words.
LittleGuy was the talk of the festival in this little number!
Littleman in a pumpkin house.
Yes, that's fake grass. I swear we live in "The Truman Show."
And Vox is acting funny so I literally cannot delete this picture I accidentally posted twice. Well, it is so cute, enjoy it again.
Well, my LittleGuy is getting chubbier, little by little. At his two month check up on Monday he weighed in at 10 lbs., 10 oz. I am no longer worried if the milk factory is working - clearly it is. LittleGuy is happy, sleeps well, has his active time, and seems satisfied when we're done nursing. I can't ask for more.
I get scared when I think that in a few months my hooters will hold roughly 8 oz of milk per "session." Currently they carry about 4 ounces...and they are HUGE. That may be biggest drawback for me, the size issue. BUT, I've already complained about this, so let's move on. OH, I am still using the nipple shield. I wish I weren't, but LittleGuy just doesn't want to latch without it. I am starting to wean him, but it will be VERY slow going. The pediatrician says that since he's gaining and all, I shouldn't worry too much about it, so I am not.
Here is Littleman and some of his buddies dressed up in their costumes for our neighborhood "fall festival." It reached about 82 degrees and did not feel very fall-like...but they had fun running around. I am in the process of hemming Littleman's superman costume..as you can see he's basically swimming in it. My poor little short boy. Oh, you might be wondering why he is wearing that scary spiderman mask. He made me print it out from a CD-ROM that came with a t-shirt and laminate it! He's been wearing it for months and apparently is needed to "complete" his superman costume. He assures us he is a "GOOD scary superman." Whatever that is. Silly boys. How do you like our "spooky graveyard?" Fifteen bucks at Wal-Mart.
LittleGuy wore only the hat/stem for the chili pepper costume. Like I said, it was pretty hot.
I have a cute video I posted on Facebook of LittleGuy "talking" to Papabear. I'll get it up here tomorrow...or whenever I have the energy/extra time to do upstairs. I can only post videos from Papabear's MAC, not the PC...isn't that funny? Hmm...yes, more lame than funny.
All is well out here. Papabear loves his new job...even if it keeps him late - last night he was scheduled to work from 9:30a to 8p. He didn't get home until midnight! That's emergency room work, though. The only plus is that he is paid megabucks for all the overtime. Extra bucks can't hurt...ever, really. And, he enjoys all the different cases he sees - a stark contrast from the endless prescribing he had to do at his previous job. (However, he sees about 10 to 20 flu/swine flu positive people a day! Neither of us is thrilled about this, but it is a risk he/we has to take.)
We went to the U2 concert last week. It was pretty awesome. I was never a huge, huge fan, but it was a truly amazing show. I wasn't thrilled about going with LittleGuy being only seven weeks old. I was nervous about my boobs exploding...BUT, I pumped in the car as we pulled into the parking lot. I have a battery operated travel pump and I brought a cooler to keep the milk. Towards the end of the show I could feel the music literally rippling through the accumulated milk in my chest - definitely weird! I pumped nearly five ounces when we finally made it out to the car! So, it all worked out and I am really glad I went.
I wish I had more to write. There are plenty of anecdotes and thoughts to share, but I am simply tired. I feel good, but I also feel like I am still adjusting to life with two little ones. I am not as "together" as I usually am. Bills are being paid late and I haven't fully gotten back into the swing of hosting playdates.
I am grateful to the handful of girlfriends out here who keep us occupied when Papabear is working late. AND, my MIL who comes over to either take Littleman out for an afternoon, or stays with LittleGuy so I can go out with my big boy. Life is a whole lot more bearable when you get a break here and there. Today Papabear was home and just the simple act of driving Littleman to preschool made my day...well...awesome. I had time to exercise AND shower - JOY.
Okay, off to pump so I can one day, maybe, go see a movie with my husband again...
