Happy Thanksgiving

To start off our thankful day, I wanted a cute brother/sister pic.  Well one child is happy:).

Now to Hudson's credit, she is very squirmy and wiggly so I can see why he couldn't hold her.  LOL.  But her feet do say Gobble Gobble:).  I LOVE girl clothes and couldn't resist this one!

One pic of her alone:).  Then we were off to Holman Gardens with the Grandparents for our feast.  Nana wasn't feel so well this year and I didn't think it was doable with our newbie.  It was truly wonderful to have your meal prepared for you.  No prep, no clean up.  WONDERFUL!  Granted I never do the prep work:).  Hannah did wonderful and was a delight!  Thank heavens!

Then we came back to our pad for some family time.

There is something about an older sibling who loves his little sister!  He is good with her and she is the apple of his eye.  

Then as we were having a post thanksgiving snack, Nana and Gigi were teaching Hudson to spell.  I thought it was silly and he wouldn't be able to do it but he did.  He can spell quite a few words now!

He spells Pops, Nana, Mama, Gigi, Pops, Hudson, and Home (which he copies from our house)

Smartie!

Then we sang HaPpY BiRtHdAy to POPS!  Here we are singing to our favorite Pops!  We're lucky to have such a wonderful, fun-loving, adventurous guy in our lives!

Yes, Pops likes the attention:).  Hudson loved singing and was really excited about the cake and motorcycles…until he found out they didn't spin (the wheels that is).  Then he put them back on the cake:).  

Happy Birthday to Grandma Ev as well!  We are thankful for you both:).

We had a wonderful day with family! Happy Thanksgiving!

With a final thoughts on thankfulness, this is my my 3 year old is thankful for:

Mommy

Daddy

Hannah

and the ottoman

Yes he said this on his own.  He was at preschool and they were talking about thankfulness and he said his family members.  Then Lexie asked him if he was thankful for his grandparents.  He said no.  She asked if he was thankful for food.  He said no.  So then Lexies goes, "Oh is it something more specific?"  Huddy replies with "Yes, my ottoman."  LOL.  Love 3 1/2!  

Wordless Wednesday

SNOW SNOW SNOW

SNOW IS HERE!  I'm a bit excited, can you tell?  A few weeks ago the snow was here and I got SUPER excited! It was a preschool day for Huddy so I dropped him off and Hannah and I went for a drive.  I was hoping she would fall asleep but alas, she didn't.  Either way, we both enjoyed the drive:).

After I picked up Hudson, he wanted to make some snow balls.  He was explaining how you grab some snow and roll it up and throw it.  I think he had some snow time at school:).

Another Year Older:)

Tuesday, November 13th was my birthday.  Birthdays usually mean conferences for me so I've started dreading my birthday because it meant STRESS!!!!  So this year it was a different, very different!

Jared was gone on an audit so we celebrated with a night out at the Melting Pot.  Jared bought this package that came with flowers, etc.  It was so nice to get out!!!

He then bought me my traditional lilies.  I'm a sucker for a lily!  

A few people thought it was my 30th:).  I was greeted at the door with a cookie cake.  YUM!

On my actual birthday, Jared put together a scavenger hunt through out the house.  THe last time he did this he was out of town and it was for a cute outfit for our baby:).  So fun!  I'm a geek and love a good scavenger hunt.  Hudson helped and it led us to two race cars (for Hudson of course!) and an awesome pair of purple danskos.  Love them!

My family came over and celebrated that night with a traditional meal of tuna over biscuits and squash. Now this might not be a favorite in your household but its tradition in ours!  I LOVE it and my grandparents joined us.  Even though Jared was away, I was filled with family and he made me feel so special.  Thank you all for the wonderful birthday gifts, dinner, and cards!

Two Steps Forward, 10 Steps Back

I love her but I'm a struggling mamma to figure her out.  These pictures were within a matter of 10 minutes.  I had bathed her, finally calmed her down, and was rocking her.  Happy girl, right?!  Nope. I got her to sleep then she still proceeded to wake up, fall asleep, wake up, and fall sleep all within 10-15 minutes.  My baby girl just doesn't sleep!  

At 8 weeks, I thought I had her figured out.  I was able to pace/walk and calm her down.  She had a few naps in the morning, and nights were good at 8 1/2 hours.  Then we took 3 giant steps backwards.  I then couldn't calm her down again.  She wasn't napping in the morning and her night time sleep is back down to 5 hours…ugh!  Talk about one discouraged mamma!  At 9 weeks we put her on formula.  We've switched twice and it still hasn't seemed to calm her down.  I'm at my wits end.   

Exhaustion, tears, why can't I figure her out?

I tried to brave it and go to breakfast with my grandparents.  I asked my mom to help.  Hudson was perfect but Hannah wasn't happy…again.  

She looks so peaceful.

Hudson tried to help calm her down by singing Twinkle Twinkle Little Star to her.  Have I told you how much I love my son?  He loves her unconditionally through all the crying, every time I have to say "Mommy can't do ____ right now, I need to calm Hannah down", and tells me "It's alright mommy, you go calm Hannah down."  Ah, break my heart!

I won't be going to breakfast again for a while.  While everyone has heard a crying baby I just hate leaving the house right now unless its for a long drive to calm my girl down.  It stresses me out and I hate seeing her so upset:(.

But Hudson did get this adorable puppy dog pancake they make special for him!

We went to a family friend's 90th birthday Saturday night and she just cried.  Everyone wanted to hold her so I let them but it was not fun.  She cried and spit up on EVERYONE.  Yuck!  Then the following  day she was off.  Did we overstimulate her?  She's just not the type of baby you take places.  She can't calm herself down.

Then I had some success with putting her in our travel swing upstairs.  A neighbor had offered her baby swing to us but I didn't need one with Huddy and would Hannah really like it?  I didn't know.  So the first night I put her in it and she slept 30 minutes but that seems to be the longest right now between feedings.  She was happy however, for the most part.  

So I tried it the next day

She liked the mobile above!  I was worried that all along we were overstimulating her but she was calm looking at it, something we don't seen very often.

She seems to like it!  Its nice to have her with us in the kitchen, higher off the group almost eye level.  The music and mobile keep her entertained.

For now, I'm thankful for the calm moments.

Then my mom was feeding Hannah and she fell sleep on her lap, on her tummy.  So my mom put her to sleep on her tummy.  Well that seems to have worked a few times.  Its nice because then she holds the binki in her mouth.

She still sleeps on her back at night.  I know tummy sleeping is a "no no" but Huddy was a tummy sleeper too.  He couldn't hold his head up as well as Hannah at this age.  The day we brought her home, she almost rolled!  Yes she is so squirmy and busy!  She also has held her head up from day one.  She can hold it up for quite some time.  It's hard to get her to lay it down and calm down so we end up cradle holding her otherwise she is MOVING!

For now I'm taking one day at a time.  I was a basket case earlier this week but I've had a few good days.  I'm just taking it day by day.  Any words of advice dear mamma friends?  

My Lil Pumpkin

Wordless Wednesday

Hannah is 2 Months!

Our Hannah Lynn is 2 months old!  

I would love to say that time has flown by but its been the longest 8 weeks of my life:).  

Developments:

*She is tracking people and objects.

*She has found her fist, at times, and enjoys watching them along with her feet in the bouncer.

*She is starting to smile more and more.  I used to just get 1 smile (that I worked very hard for after her afternoon feeding) but now I get a smile after every feeding.

*She is learning to be independent in her bouncer or have floor time now for 15 minutes or so (yes we are just getting some independent time!)

*I can officially calm her down now!  I learned the trick.  If she gets over tired or overstimulated its not good.  When she shows the first sign of getting tired I swaddled her, carry her cradle style with the binki pushed up against me to she can suck on it or not, and I pace.  I have a few "tracks" I walk in my house until she is tired enough to be put down.  I used to let her cry it out but the crying would never stop:(.  She's just not ready for that yet so I need to help her sleep because she NEEDS sleep.  At first she would only sleep 30 minutes before each feeding but now we're getting to over an hour with help:).    Most of the time I have to walk for a good 15 minutes but sometimes its a good 30 or more.  Sometimes she'll still wake up too early so I pace again.  We're making progress people!

*Sleeping is changing.  While Jared was gone for the 2nd week in a row, she slept 3 nights of 8 1/2 hours and I had to wake her up but she is still waking up around 5 am.  I have a hard time "topping her off" at 10pm so maybe we need to readjust her schedule:).

*I'm starting to be able to dress her up!  Before changing her clothes was such a chore because she would cry and "thrash", yes our daughter is a "thrasher", that it would rile her up so much it wasn't worth it.  She has been in sleepers for the first 2 months but I'm starting to change her clothes now in the morning, hooray for cute girl clothes!

Stats:

*Weight 10.6lbs    53%

*Height  22.8in     75%

*Head Circ  15in   41%

Still her most common face

Happy 2 Months Hannah Lynn!  

We are so blessed to have you even though you keep us on our toes:).

Happy Fall Y'All

The first event Halloween week was a party with our small group friends.  She rented out the big room in the valley library.  There were lots of games and kids.  Hudson was content just sitting at a table watching everyone:).  He had just woken up and was a bit reserved.  We got his costume on him but I was worried!  I kept asking him what he wanted to be for Halloween and he kept saying "3 year olds don't dress up!"  What 3 year old says that?!  So I had bought this costume last year and told him he could be a blue monster.  I did give him EVERY option.  We'd look through magazines of costumes but he always said, eventually, that he'd be a blue monster.  Ok!

I did get two pictures at the party though!  She digitally changed the background:).

I think his favorite part was the cupcakes!

When Wednesday rolled around, Hudson got to go trick or treating at U-Hi with Miss Lexie and the crew.  He came home, showed grandma all his candy, and took a nap so we could head off to see Gigi, & Gpa and then Nana & Pops.

When the kids woke up, my mom graciously offered to come help me out.  I was worried about getting Hannah in her costume that she would just get REALLY upset, but she didn't!  Praise God!  I even got to take a 2 Month pic of her in it.  Low and behold, she actually smiled!

Then I tried to get a sibling shot outside.  

Poor Hudson tried but she got upset.  If she didn't squirm so much he might have been able to hold her:).  But we did get a great family shot, minus Jared who was in Wisconsin. 

Then it was off to Gigi & Gpas.  We were too early for their Trunk or Treat but we came by to parade the kids at dinner.  Gigi had to hold Hannah.  Again I was worried but Geeg has the magic touch:).

She was so calm I took another sibling shot.

Then it was off to Foothills for their Harvest Party.  I love church Harvest parties because they are all in one place!  We started off with some chili at the community center and hit the games.  Hudson didn't care for the limbo came but he did it:).

He had fun throwing horseshoes, apples and fishing for ducks in the farm room, playing gold with oars in the sports room, and knocking over villains in the super hero room. His favorite was the glow in the dark room.  I thought he'd be scared but he loved it.  He also loves Miss Stephanie from VBS who was our missionary story teacher.  We were in that room a lot!  

We ended the night with some pie and Hannah needed to get home.  I stayed a bit later for feed my girl and the ride home was quiet.  Halleluia!  Then we got home.  She cried pretty good from 9-11pm.  Oh well, at least the party was fun:).

Happy Fall Y'All!!!