LONDON 2012

So I haven't been blogging because my life has been completely consumed by watching the Olympics. I have team USA fever bad over here. One of my greatest joys in life (beside kids/hubs bla bla) is watching the summer Olympics.  I have no clue why, I grew up swimming and wanting so bad to be in the Olympics like Summer Sanders ( I am getting SO old) and It really has been something I love to watch. 4 long years ago Larry and I hunkered down in our tiny campus apartment watching Beijing all hours of the day in-between classes and work. We would run to the local greek place, or Cafe Rio and then spend copious amounts of time infront of the TV. Those were some good memories care free times for us, no worries about law school, kids and everything else that weighs us down. For 2 solid weeks we did nothing and it was pretty amazing.

SO yes thats why I haven't blogged in what a week, I need to even though I have like ZERO readers because my piggy Noah has turned 4 months and is so colicky {yikes} and Max is insanely awesome learning so many new words. Like today at dinner he said he liked to "play hard" where does he come up with this stuff? He also learned to do a slam dunk into his basketball hoop...I swear I don't know if its talent this 2 year old has or just insane obsession about balls. Maybe we will see him in the Olympics what 2020? haha Anyways faithful readers {the entire 2 or you} rest assured I will be back soon blogging about my oh so amazing life once I am done watching crazy things like white water kayaking and crazy gymnasts doing things that really no body should probably do!  Oh also the commercials are pretty awesome, I am sure I single handily have sponsored and Olympian through the vast amounts of diet coke I drink daily, so there you go I made my contribution... GO team USA

Noah Dean @ 4 Months Old...

My sweet Noah has become or really has always been a bit grumpy borderline colicky baby. This month has really been no different but I am hoping he takes a turn for the better soon! He is all smiles though when he is actually happy and has the best little laugh and high pitched squeals. He kicks his legs when he is really excited and arches his back and screams when he is mad. He hates being put in his carseat but usually calms down for the ride. He loves to have constant attention, being held, and having someone talk to him. He is FINALLY sleeping about 7 hours straight at night and takes 3 really great naps during the day. We have finally gotten into a great routine and schedule and I even have both him and Max on the same afternoon nap schedule...if that isn't heaven I don't know what is!

Noah is one big chunky baby weighing in at over 15 pounds and is drooling up a storm. He can roll from his tummy to his back, kick his away around a blanket, grab toys, and loves to play with his feet. He is a good little people watcher and in particular loves to watch Max run all around him. He loves to narrow into my neck and suck on any thing he can.  He is sadly always a little bit stuffy due to the teething, which makes him sound like a little piggy all the time, and he hates his syringe bulb I use to help clear his air ways. He has the fatest cheeks and the biggest thighs and my arms get a great work out as I carry him all day long. He also loves to stand up in his jumper and has started eating rice cereal and pears. My little baby is growing up!

I love having him in our lives, and I can't really picture our life without him or before he was born, funny how that happens. I love when he is happy and his big smiles just melt my heart. I am sad he is getting to be so big as I packed away all his 3-6 months clothes and busted out the 6 months, I felt my heart break a little as his little babyness is fading away, but I know whats ahead of us and thats pretty great too! Heres to 4 months down! We have made it past the sleep deprivation, lots of crying, and are now into a great routine which will inevitably be broken once teething starts and he learns to break his swaddle but I'm loving how things are now!

I NEED SLEEP.

Oh man I am so tierd. I about cried last night when around midnight we heard Max screaming. He is usually such a good sleeper but for some reason last night he was up twice...I think he is having nightmares. Noah was up promptly at his usual times 1 and 5 am and had a huge blow out the latter time which is just what you want when you have only slept 2 hours. Needless to say I am in desperate need of some good  uninterrupted sleep.

 I even weened Noah from nursing, well he weened himself which broke my heart but I though hey at least with the formula he will sleep through the night, silver lining right? Nope, this kid is a garbage disposal. Then I thought okay he is big enough let start giving him some rice cereal, and we even tried some bannans but he really wasn't getting the hang of it, so I guess we will continue feeding him constantly until I buck up the courage to let him cry it out.  So I have sore boobs and a kid that is still not sleeping through the night, awesome times around here.  I know I just need to let him cry it out but man alive when your so sleep deprived hearing the constant screaming for over an hour makes my blood boil...and kinda breaks my heart {but only just a little}

Anyone needed a good dose of birth control can just read all my posts of sleepless nights and I'm sure that will help :) No it's not all bad but man I can't function with so little sleep going on 4 months now. I am mean straight up say awful things to anyone in my way and thats never good for your relationships. I start to put things like milk in the pantry and random things like Max's shoes in the fridge. I know this will end eventually but really it doesn't because your toddlers have nightmares, you have more babies, and the sleep never comes. I guess my body will adapt, I'm just in the in between phase where the body is fighting it, but eventually it will adapt to running off so little sleep and hopefully functioning like a happy normal person :)  Right?? I am RIGHT? I will just keep telling myself that and keep kissing my boys and watching them when they DO sleep contently and thinking how heavenly they look when they are sleeping.

We love Photo booth

Why I am no photographer and will probably never spend the money on a good camera, I sure am glad we have photo booth to document us trying to get good pictures, because lets face it trying to get 2 boys  {well 3 } to smile, sit still, and be happy is pretty dang hard! 

For all you mothers out there...

I thought that this weeks motherhood moment needed a little humor in it, because really to get the most out of motherhood you have to find humor in the small things or else all the failures and small disasters throughout your day will eat you alive. Case in point this morning after waking up multiple times to sooth my sweet Noah {turned devil baby} he yet again was crying, I was on the point of screaming which isn't good when its 5:00am and other are sleeping, he spat up everywhere then had this huge grin on his toothless chubby face...how could you not laugh? Or when I got into the shower this morning to find that my amazing husband who bathes the children almost every night when he is home had left every single bath toy in the tub to accumulate down by the drain. Instead of getting mad I just laughed about all the toys that Max needs in the bath and took my shower occasionally stepping on rubber ducks and foam letters.

The whole point of being a mother is to experience it in its entirety, and I think cleaning up messes big or small is part of it. My goal in life is to teach Max to pick up his toys, but if he forgets and I happen to trip over them in the middle of the night when I go to his rescue when he is crying, sure I want to kick them and say a swear word, but really I should be grateful the messes are there because I know someday {forever from now it seems} my house will be empty and all those small messes of race cars, balls, and left over crackers will be a distant memory. I need to remember that the piles of books on the bed were there because we had an hour of story time and what a sweet memory and moment that was instead of getting irritated they weren't cleaned up.

I do however want a clean house where my children feel safe, people want to hang out, and it doesn't seem like an episode of Horders, but I think there is a season for everything. Right now the season in my life is raising young children so messes are always around us, sometimes I want to just scream when i've cleaned up a room, will walk down a hall to another and discover that Max was playing to his hearts content with everything in it. There are moments when I snap at Larry for leaving his socks right by the hamper but when I look back I always feel bad that I over reacted because people are more important then the messes, and part of being a mom is cleaning up, and that is okay.

Lastly I just want to add that sometimes the only thing that gets me through my day is just to laugh at how nuts it can get when both boys are crying for something and I am frantically running around trying to do it all. If only we could see ourselves, myself in particular running around usually with my nursing cover on,playing with Max in his trampoline,making faces at Noah, carrying both boys up and down the stairs, desperately trying to get Max to eat, its all a show and its pretty funny to watch! I am desperately trying to enjoy being a mother because it is the greatest gift I've been given and when my kids are older, things are less messy, I want them to know how hard I tried to be the best mom for them and that I loved being their mom.

Soaking up some SUN...

Apparently nothings better then being naked to Max. He has recently learned about the freedom of swimming naked, and he is hooked. Whenever his swim suit gets wet he comes right over and says "wet" over and over until I undress him then he goes wild in the backyard. Yes I should teach him some modesty, I know I am not doing any of us a favor by letting him run free, but he loves it, and I don't have the heart to make him keep his clothes on. He is only 2 so I am letting him have some fun before it is no longer socially acceptable. I might highly regret this later on :) 

Life lately according to my super high quality phone...

{Photos from late June to early July, I really should stop documenting our life so much via my phone}

Lunch Date With Dad

 {Max's nose is hilarious in that one, he is so not photogenic}

It is SUPER hot here in California. We are spending most of our days running outside naked in the pool, well Max is and playing inside. Today we did a quick lunch date with dad at the super fancy pizza place in Winco...fancy right? Don't worry we brought Noah along, he chilled in the cart while we ate. Look how cute he is. Seriously I can't get enough of that face. I wish we could just pause time with him, but also fast forward to when Larry is done with law school and our lives will become some what regular. Time flies when your raising kids and they are constantly changing and growing. I love that Larry works close so we can meet him for lunch time to time, it makes both our days go by faster.

{Noah is so handsome, he's going to break some hearts} 

15 Week Stats

We finally got to the Dr. today for Noahs 2 month appointment...yes a month late, but no harm done. I wanted to document his stats at 15 weeks old, because you know how big of a milestone that is {with Max as his brother sometimes making it to another day is a big deal} I am still in shock of how fast 15 weeks have gone by. It feels like Noah has always been apart of our family, I told Larry the other day I couldn't remember what it was like to only have one child...its the sleep depravation talking probably.

At 15 weeks Noah Weights 15 pounds 1 ounce and is 25 inches long! He is one big chunk, looking back at my stats Max weighed that much around 6 months. I contribute it to all that nursing he does at all hours of the night. He also is falling right in line with having a big o' head like his brother. His head is proudly in the 80th percentile.He is a slobbery, teething, fussy mess of a boy but we sure love him. 


Also as a side note my hair is starting to fall out...you know your baby is growing up and no longer a newborn with the clumps of hair are coming out in the shower. No one ever tells you the awesome things your body does after your have a baby right? 

A Moment In Motherhood...

I love the idea of having a motherhood moment on my blog each week. It might be a wash though because this entire blog is really dedicated to the journaling of our family so it is pretty much already about being a mom, but I recently I have been reading more church talks about motherhood and have even started reading some different parenting books so its on my mind. I wanted to share this quote by  Elder Neal L. Anderson....

I really love this quote, and I love the small part where he says "It is not something to do if you can squeeze the time in, It is what God gave you time for". Sometimes when I am busy doing things like dishes, laundry, or even trying to read I get frustrated when Max is pulling on my clothes or Noah is crying for something. I have even caught myself being short with Max because I am putting something I want to do before what is most important. Motherhood is a juggling act where you prioritize your children's needs over your own. And this quote reminds me that my time, at the moment is not really mine, but needs to be fully dedicated to my children and their needs. 

My best days as a mother are when I drop everything and just play with Max, hold Noah, and spend the entire day taking care of them and serving them. On those days I am happier, less overwhelmed, and the boys are happier. I know that my husband can tell a difference when he walks in the door on the days I have dedicated to put my all into motherhood. Somedays are more overwhelming, and tiring then others and at times I feel like I am not cut out for it, but that is the great thing about little kids, they are forgiving and tomorrow is always a new day to be a better mom. 

  

Me and Noah wearing our Sunday best. I am so grateful I have been given the gift of time to raise my sweet boys, the good, the bad, and the ugly of motherhood. My calling as a mother is the greatest gift I have been given. Also look at those cheeks, how could you not just want to kiss those all day long? 

The Bottle Battle

Lets be forewarned this is NOT a post about my beloved first born Max. His bottle and him are best of friends and the relationship will not be severed yet {although it should be} because this mom is to sleep deprived to muster up the courage for that battle.

This is actually about my sweet second child or should I say devil baby now? Okay that might be a little harsh but at 4:00 am and every hour after of constant screaming it could be warranted right? We are having a dilemma in our house hold with him. He is pretty well natured except when it comes to eating. Now we all remember me slaving away getting him to nurse and it was going great, until he grew and I was eating and drinking my guts out but my poor little chest can only do so much. We stared to supplement first with pumped milk then I was dying of much needed sleep and was hoping that adding some formula would help with longer stretches...not so much.

Now he seems to want the bottle more because its easier and quicker and probably lets face it more available. I still nurse him regularly as well maybe 4 times a day but he screams and squirms a lot. BUT recently {meaning like 2 days} he really just wants to eat all the time and nether seem to be doing the trick. It the words of my husband, "this baby is messed up" haha he was tired when he said that. I mean what baby doesn't want to nurse or take the bottle willingly....a crazy one :) Or just cranky or maybe just full??

He is currently swing away in his swing happy as can be kicking his little legs but man alive he has tested my patients and your talking to the mom who loves newborns to no end, but lets face it hes now a baby and is cranky a lot. I know it will pass and keeping him on his some what established routine will help, and taking him outside does wonders but BOY will I be happy when he grows out of this. He also seems to be starting to teeth which doesn't surprise me Max was early too, but I forgot how much I hate teething, its a nightmare that never ends.

So we battle on with the bottle, with my boobs, and with every other little thing this baby can throw our way. I sure love his fat little cheeks and his huge body, the boy is way bigger then Max every was. I love that he is smiling and laughing, kicking, and developing. I need to cherish these baby months because they are only here for so long and then they are gone forever, but some sleep would be nice and maybe a little less crying, could you help a mom out Noah? Please!

"POPS" At 10 AM

This morning I didn't have any fight in me. I am so tired, really that word doesn't seem to even fit the amount of fatigue I am feeling. My sweet Noah is just not sleeping well at all. I am at a loss because he was doing so great and now we are totally digressing. Not only does he not want to sleep he wants to fuss ALOT through out the day because he is tired and he does not want to nurse anymore. Straight up the kid screams when I undo the bra and whip out the goods. I keep trying, hoping that it's a phase but I know I am slowly drying up if there is no need, we shall see. So I am telling you all this because when Max desperately asked for a "pops" aka popsicle and said a double please in his cute high pitched voice I couldn't say no. Then I looked at the clock 10 am...hmm crap he said please so cute and twice and smiled...pops it was. SO we sat outside and he basked in all his glory of eating his popsicle and wearing down his already worn down mom, that Max is a smarty.

It wasn't one of my better parenting moments, but hey I am bracing myself for bigger battles like taking away his bottle, you all know when that goes down all hell will break loose in our house because that Max loves his bottle to the moon and back. He would give a limb and cry for hours on end all for his "bob"....yup its that bad. Anyways hopefully tomorrow will be a better less sleep deprived day, because man alive I might just die. Really I probably shouldn't be driving, these babies need to come with a don't operate heavy machinery sticker on their butts when they come to earth because thats kinda how I feel right now. I probably also shouldn't be blogging right now, my mind kinda goes wild and my fingers just press whatever key they want :)

Oh and I promise I really do brush Max's hair most days, sorry Max today was not one of those days, but your pretty cute so I think it's okay. 

Happy July 4th!

We had a super jam packed day full of family, friends, and a ton of food. It was a treat to have Larry home all day mid week and the weather was really nice. I love the 4th, its such a fun day to celebrate. We were able to do a lot including a small parade with the boys in the stroller and even stay up late watching fireworks. Max did not love the fireworks, which was not surprising because the kid hates loud noises that startle him. He spent the entire night being held, crying, and saying fire whenever one went up in the sky. Sorry Max the 4th just isn't your kinda holiday, but I am sure as you get older you will love blowing things up like any other American boy. Hope everyone had a great 4th!