18 months

I had Alex's 18 month appt today & yup, he's still small. The doctor walked in & just stared at me, like he wasn't sure how to approach the situation. Haha! All in all, I'm not a big fan of him. He was nice enough & after finding out that I make small babies he was ok with Alex being so small. He just stared at me quite a few times and when I asked to forgo the flu shot, he gave me this long schpel on how it's the most important shot today & how he really needs it because the flu is coming. Well fine, but it's the last time. Their birthdays are in June & July, non-flu shot times so I won't have to worry about being pestered again. So, my big boy!

19 lbs 2oz & 30.25 inches

That's a full pound & a quarter inch bigger than little Miss K at 18.5 months. I keep hoping he'll spring up & be tall like his dad but I guess not. He's healthy & happy which is what really matters. He loves to walk around, starting to run. He loves to hug babies & push items around the house. He LOVES all things wheels and gets excited when he sees cars, trucks, trains, or motorcycles. He loves to laugh & he's quite silly. He likes to run away from me, he thinks it's so funny. He's sensitive & cries if sissy is crying. He prefers to drink like a big kid, from a regular cup. He's still not sleeping consistently through the night & it's quite frustrating.

Katie weighs 29lbs 6oz. She knows our phone numbers, our address, & how to count to 20. I need to get her into gymnastics, she's started trying to do cartwheels in the house. 

September 2016

15 months & 4 years

Halloween 2016

16.5 months & 4yrs 3 months

December

My, it's been a long time since I've updated. Last I updated my son turned 1, now he's almost 18 months. What has happened in those 6 months. Well, we moved from Tennessee/Kentucky to Arizona. We arrived in Arizona on my daughter's 4th birthday. We had a party for her in Tennessee, so she did get birthday fun. We bought a house! I had hopes of getting Katie into preK but apparently it's mostly for the poor. If we want her in preK, we have to pay. There is only one school here that offers preK & it's not in our district of course. So, she's not in school currently. We do go to weekly story time at the library so she gets interaction with kids her age. Everyone keeps telling me she needs to be in school.

Katie update: She weighs 28-29 lbs I think & is about 3'2. She is still very curious about the world. We've worked on her letters & she can write her name when she wants too. She can count to 30. She is still crazy active, running around the house. I have been slacking in the teaching/learning department. It's hard with a little one in the house also. I need to get back to it, I'd like her to be able to write by the time she goes to school. She does know my & mike's phone numbers & she knows our address. She's very smart & loves to learn. She seems to have a good memory.

Alex: He weighs about 18 lbs. I can't seem to get that boy to gain weight, I tell you. He's walking now! That's so crazy. He started walking at 16-16.5 months which was a month-month & a half before his sister. He is such a happy boy though teething lately has him very whiny & clingy. He's still breastfed but I'm trying hard to wean. He loves being read too. He's growing so fast and I can't believe it. It makes me happy & sad. He's still not consistently sleeping through the night which is driving me CRAZY! Sleep kid, sleep! He Is A Climber! And sneaky. If the garage door(from inside to the garage) isn't closed all the way he'll go out it to play in the garage. Silly kid! His laugh is so cute & he loves to laugh. He gives great little hugs & kisses. He squeezes your face/head, I love it!

Both kids love being outside & playing at the park. That's most kids though. They still love each other & he loves attacking his sister. I hope they always have this bond & are always close.

June 2016

We celebrated our son's 1st birthday. How is that possible? I can't believe it's been a year since our lives were torn upside down. Alexander completely changed our world. Katie still adores him & he adores her just as much. These two are so sweet & special together. She can make him laugh harder & more than anyone else. They truly have a special bond & I think always will. We went to a Nashville Sounds game(A's affiliate) on Alex's birthday, just like we went to an Oakland A's game on Katie's 1st. Both of the kids were featured on the big screen and separately even at the Sounds game. It was a boring game though, home team lost. We're getting ready to throw Katie a birthday party since we're moving in a few weeks & she'll have no friends at the new place. I feel bad, she made a good friend across the street. I really have to get her into more things in Sierra Vista. She is a social butterfly. So, we're having a 4th birthday party for her and 29 days early at that. Haha. We might end up visiting California in between Tn living & Az living but I really doubt we'll get too. IF we do then we'll have birthday barbeques there as well for her & Alex.

Alex weighs 15lbs 7oz & was 27.17 inches. Size 3 diapers & size 9m clothes, though he still fits in 6/9. On his birthday he had 2 teeth & the hint of a few more. He's had hints of teeth for a month. Well, on June 27th he had 2 full teeth, a half out tooth, a 1/3 out tooth, a 1/4 out tooth, & one barely poking through. 2 full on bottom front & the 4 springlings are on top from left to right (his left to right, my looking at him right to left). He has 2 teeth that want to come out on the bottom next to his full ones. My, how my baby has grown.

Katie weighs 27lbs 9oz. My girl has grown. She was 25 for the longest time. 3T or 4T shirts, the 3T are getting tight. 3T shorts. Size 7 shoes. Her hair is so long but so wispy. She has lost a lot of hair lately, it's very thin. That makes me sad. I'll ask the doctor about it when I get her an appt.

Well, here's some pictures that I took yesterday. My 1 yr old & almost 4 yr old girl.

June 28th, 2016

Father's Day Gift

The brown guy is our first child, our fur-son, Hershey. He's 12.5 yrs old.

10 months

Time is freaking flying. My baby(boy) is going to be 1 in 6-7 weeks, what the heck. Where did the time go. While it's incredibly amazing watching him grow & expand his world it is sad. Sad for that teeny tiny little 6 lb human & my oh so small & adorable almost 3 yr old. They both have changed so incredibly much in the last 10 months. Sad!

So, my teeny tiny 10 month old. He's still not 14 lbs as of 13 Apr. I don't know what to do to make that boy gain weight. I started feeding him 4oz of food at breakfast & dinner. I started sharing my lunch and still this boy is a stick. He's also short so that doesn't help. He doesn't look unhealthy, he looks perfectly healthy, he just has so little weight. I had to pump the other day because he wasn't really eating & K was sick with a stomach bug so I thought maybe some breastmilk would help her. I ended up not giving it to her but the milk seems pretty good. Not a big fatty layer but barely any just watery layer either. It's mostly this in between layer of thick cloud milk. Hmm, maybe I'm making the good stuff right now. He hasn't been wanting regular food either. This boy would throw a major fit when he smelled or saw food but now he'll take a few bites & be done. He might be teething, he needs too. Monster man is still rocking his 2 bottom teeth. They are sharp, my nipples know that for sure. Though he hasn't bit me in a few weeks. He's still not crawling but he scoots. He loves to stand & in the last few days he's started to move his feet around when I'm holding him up or standing at the table. Not a lot but I think a little bit testing the waters. I'm torn because I see these months younger babies far past what he's doing and I am a little concerned and jealous but at the same time my baby is still my baby. He's still a innocent, not super mobile, baby. He can get from point A to point B if he wants for sure. He's gotten into the water bowl & made a huge mess. He goes into the bathroom too. He's barely starting to pull himself up a little but only to his knees and on the wrong dang things. He doesn't try on his play table, he wants to try on his unstable bouncer or the walker. If I'm holding his hands or underarms he'll get stand up. Usually straight up to feet but sometimes onto knees first, then feet. I'm trying to help this boy learn what he's suppose to be doing. He loves to stand though & likes to fight me when I'm trying to get him to sit on the floor. Our table isn't steady enough to let him hold onto that without someone there. It'll open & he'll fall on his head. He finally fell on his butt for the first time. He's the king of the TIMBER! Locking his body so he falls & hits his head instead of bending so he lands on his butt. Oh this boy, he might end up being like his sissy with all her injuries. Minor injuries but still, she falls a lot.

Well, I guess that's all. Have a nice day.

9 Month Check

Mr. Alexander (Salamander Flanders) had his 9 months well baby today & filling out the questionnaire was nerve-wrecking. All the 9 month olds I see & hear are standing already and some are even trying to walk. What the freak. Mr. Alex is not even crawling yet. He'll push himself backwards & he has started pushing with his feet but he's still a ways from crawling, let alone standing by himself! So, all these questions of *is he doing this yet?* and answering no to most of them was upsetting. Also his weight. Now on my scale at home he gained like .8 of a lb in 2 months. Woo hoo! At the clinic he gained NADA! Home scale: 13lbs 10.5 oz. Clinic: 13lbs 4oz.  I weighed him at home after breakfast, 2 hrs before his appt. Also he pooped on the way to the clinic so I guess that might be it. Le Sigh! But thankfully my doctor was A-Ok with no gain because he has grown in length. All of .8 inches. Also she was ok with my non-crawly boy. She had him stand just holding his hands & he supported himself. I've been trying to do it for a week & he'll stand for 2 seconds & be done & that's holding under his arms. I was amazed he stood for her. Then tonight I tried it at home & he did it. He thought it was hilarious to stand. And he even stood holding onto the table(for dear life). So I was proud! So, mister magoo is now 25.6 inches long. In size 6-9m clothes (still with growing room, 6m pants because his waist is small) and size 2 diapers. He LOVES bath time, definitely a water baby. I bathe the kids together & they both enjoy it. I can't believe my little man is 9 months old already, what the heck! It's going so fast! He LOVES food! If we eat, he must eat. He gets so worked up & whines when he wants food. Definitely impatient! Haha. I think he's a way better eater than Katie but shoot, it's been 3 years so I don't really know. Still breastfeeding, woo hoo!

Katie Bug is miss attitude. She likes playing on her tablet (because it's a treat, she rarely gets too), running, & singing. She runs every single day, EVERY SINGLE DAY! She loves singing as loud as can be, my goodness. She two favorite shows/cartoons are PJ Masks & Frozen(Let It Go as she calls it sometimes). She loves having me braid her hair because it's like Anna or Elsa (depending if I do one or two braids). She can spell her name out loud & she can spell Alex also. She is semi obsessed with counting down.

These two adore each other. Seriously adore! When Katie wakes up she looks for her brother and if she's asleep in our bed (she sneaks in after daddy leaves for PT every morning) while brother is feeding he'll look down at her & watch her. His face lights up when she walks by him & he squeals in excitement. He seriously loves that girl. He's a very happy baby & he loves to be tossed in the air. Oh, Katie loves riding her bike/trike. When we go on a walk at night she rides her bike while dad walks Hersh & I push Alex in the stroller. She is extremely excited about Easter, though she's excited by every holiday. She loves seeing decorations. She's bossy on the playground, I sort of feel bad for the other kids but she also follows once in a great while.

Well, I guess I'll go. I know it's a little all over the place but I wrote as it came to me. I want to write stuff down so I'll have record of it but it's hard to remember every thing. So, Good Night!

7 Months

7 months ago we became a family of 4(humans, 5 with dog). 7 months ago my world was turned upside down. It truly has been a difficult change. Do I love my son, yes, but I also miss the life we had with one child. When we got to focus on only her. I miss the relationship I had with Katie, it has changed so much since Alex came. Daddy still seems to get his special Katie time & I get some time too but I get mini moments. Could I have more or longer ones? Sometimes yes but I am so exhausted. All. The. Time! I told someone the other day that Alex was high maintence & it's true. We went home on vacation & he didn't take it well. He didn't like all the new people, he wanted mommy. He would be fine if mommy wasn't around or he didn't hear mommy but the second I walked into the room or he heard my voice he lost it. He Wanted Mommy & NOW! It was exhausting. Vacation was exhausting. He also went from sleeping decently to waking up every 2-3 hrs, sometimes worse. Since getting back 2 weeks ago he's had one decent night sleep & one good one. Oh I miss sleep. Any ways. I miss my daughter. I miss being able to have special time with her. I can't wait til I can have a mommy daughter date with her & I think we're about at that age with Alex(that I can leave him without daddy freaking). I think I really need a date with her. Just us. It's getting better though I guess & I know it'll continue to get better. I will get more time with Katie & I will be able to focus on her & solely her at times. It's just been hard feeling distant from her, feeling like I don't have as strong a relationship with her. Anyways. On to updating.

Dec 8th, the kids & I flew on the plane to Ca. Katie got to go into the cockpit & the both did great on the flights. Everyone kept telling me how well behaved they both were & how surprised they were that neither made a peep. Woo hoo! We got an extra week in Ca before Daddy made it out. Katie had a blast with all her cousins & I was glad more family got to meet Alex. We also drove from Ca to Tn and it freaking sucked! I never look forward to that drive again.

So, real updates. Katie is up to 25 lbs. Woo hoo! Alex weighs 12lbs 13oz as of today. On the 12th we had his "6 month" check up (he was a day from 7 months). He weighed 12lbs 9oz on my home baby scale, which has always been even with their baby scales. Well, clinic baby scales were down so they weighed me, then both of us, to get his weight. I use to do this with Katie & it was always very off. Big surprise it was there too. It showed that Alex weighed 11lbs 8oz, which would be a 1oz loss in 3 months. I flat out told her that it's not what he weighs & that's not an accurate way to get a baby's weight. I understand they have to do what they have to do but I'm not starving my kid & he did not lose weight. Look, my kids grow very slowly, they gain VERY slowly. Katie only gained 9 lbs in her first year of life. So I keep track of it, I'm very on top of it. I was worried that he hasn't gained anything(as of the 12th) since 5 months. Well, because he showed a loss & you know "she has to look out for him & to make sure he's healthy & taken care of" we have a weight check on Tuesday. She claims he must gain so much & weigh so much to reach certain milestones. WRONG! He's doing good on sitting up & he's ahead of his sister on that. He is a happy active baby. He's small, yes, but so was Katie. The doctor wants him to gain a lb in a week. I flat out told her there is no way he will. Except that their scales were wrong & if they get their BABY scales in then it should show his true, nearly 13 lb, weight, instead of the 11.75 lb weight. That would show a one pound gain. He has gained 4oz in 5 days so he might gain another oz by Tuesday. So I'll update, hopefully, after that check. Oh & he was 24.8 inches tall. Woohoo! He gained 1.5 inches in 3 months. :) Size 2 diapers & 6m clothes.

Gotta go, he's fussing. Bye & Love!

Flying by...

Time is flying by. Our son is now 5 months old, which is so absurd. He has changed so much the last month. He smiles a lot more & he talks a lot more. He's working on sitting up & he's rolled over a few times. He laughs a little bit I know a lot of babies his age have/are doing a lot more. Mike's coworker's son (born a day earlier) sits up like a champ and he laughs like a champ. He's also 4 lbs heavier than Alex. Alex weighs 12lbs 8oz now, not sure on height/length. He wears size 3m & 3-6m clothes. 3m pants are a little short on him but the waist of 3-6 are so big. He wears size 2 diapers. He eats ALL THE TIME! Night time feedings average every 3 hrs. Once in a great while I get a 5-6 hr space but unfortunately sometimes I only get a 1.5-2.5 hr spacing. Ugh, the short spaces are really hard. Alex is getting good at grabbing things & gets excited now. He flails his arms & legs, it's so funny. He's starting to put everything in his mouth. He grabs his feet now & rolls to his side. Who cares about fully rolling over, he's good. :) He still sleeps in our room in the pack n play but we'll probably move him to his room after the holidays. We waited til 6 months with Katie too.

Katie adores her brother & always wants to be in his face, except when I could really use her to entertain him. When I'm doing chores she tends to ignore him. Katie is FINALLY saying F's. Fish is Fish instead of Shish now. Now to work on other letters she has trouble with. She has SO much energy, all the time. She's usually pretty good but girl can be a terror too. She's wearing size 3T & 2 or 3T pants. 2T pants are too short on her but ey, still use them sometimes. :)

Well, that's about it. These use to be a lot longer when updating about Katie.