{shenanigans}

I finally convinced Chad into making the coat hooks for the front door (would have done the back too but we bought Menards out of the hooks we needed). We may or may not have messed up and now it has a fancy decoration on it =)

I also finally finished the set of word blocks that I had started at the beginning of January.  I've got the most awesome head cold that started today so I didn't get to snuggle much with Parker today.  Don't want to get him sick! So I sat at the table and finished these up.

They spell a bazillion different words and I've made them for a few family members and friends but never myself.  Now I have my own set!

We also put together Parker's high chair today.  It will get brought upstairs this week and he will start joining us in this for meals!  He may or may not get to start solids soon.  Most books tell you 4-6 months so we will talk to his pediatrician at his 4 month appointment to see when to start and what to start with!  For now though, he will just hang out and play in it.  He didn't seem to mind it all that much so that's a bonus!!

We all hung out in the "man cave" last night.  Chad hooked up one of our cable boxes to the TV down there to see if it would work and voila! As long as we use the AV jacks and not the HD we have TV downstairs again!  He took the box out of our room and used that.  We need to find somewhere here that sells the boxes so that we can just have one for down there instead of using the one from our bedroom.  Loves me some Nick at Night before I go to bed!

Chad shoveled earlier this evening.  We have quite the drifts from the "blizzard" we were having.  We are expected to get another 1-3 inches tomorrow!!!

I hope your weekend has been as productive as ours has so far!

{faux}tographer

I took Parker's 3 month pictures with a 

malfunctioning camera today. 

I'm pretty biased, but I think they turned out pretty decent! 

Here's a few of my favorites SO FAR.

{three months}

HOLY MOLY!!

 P-man is G.R.O.W.I.N.G.!!!!!

(month 1)

(month 2)

He is now 24.25 inches tall and 13lbs 8oz (as of the beginning of January)!

 

HE:

 had his first antibiotic this month......

Cherry flavor....not so bad!

is a mildly fussy baby.....
unless he REALLY wants something and wants it NOW!

 has slowed his eating habits (thank goodness)....

still snores (I swear the two boys in the house are trying to out do each other).....

is starting to grab at his toys....

the octopus gets beat up every day on his play mat

laughs and smiles a lot.....

found his thumbs!...

has started pulling his knees up under him during tummy time......

rolls front to back.....

has started to roll from side to side and spin himself when on his back.....

doesn't spit up nearly as much....

naps well in his swing.....

started daycare this month.....

and last but not least!

his newest accomplishment!

He mimics us when we vibrate our lips at him!  

It is TOO cute! He laughs after he does it and spits EVERYWHERE! 

.............................................................................

Some things that we I couldn't have lived without his third month:

Baby Einsteins Neptune Ocean gym--he seriously loves this thing. He will bat and pull the toys for a good 45 minutes before getting fussy.

 Bibs--we have a serious drooler on our hands currently.

Boppy--he loves to sit propped on the couch with this and "play" with the toys that I put on it for him.

Oxi Clean spray--has taken the spit up stains out of ALMOST all of OUR clothes!

Baby Brush--this has helped clear up his mild-moderate cases of cradle cap...that and baby oil

..........................................................................

Our little dude is getting quite the personality!  He talks our ears off somedays!

He is becoming more interactive and more content playing by himself.  

He falls asleep on his own a few times a week without the aide of us, the swing, or bouncer chair! 

I'm back at work now so he goes to daycare.  He seems to do great and is sometimes smiley when he first sees me at pick up time.  

Is it sad that I'm already looking forward to our three day weekend in February? and our 5 day Easter break? oh, and SUMMER?!

"What are those things down there?"

Poor Jeffrey didn't even see it coming.

Loving some Bumbo time.

{commit}

Goodbye 2012! Welcome 2013! 

We've got some resolutions....

But we've got some ideas too....

To me, a resolution doesn't need to just happen on January 1st.  If it's something you want to change or do or experience...do it NOW. 

Don't wait. 

COMMIT.

Last year I decided I was going to try and bring less work home...guess what?

IT HAPPENED.  

I didn't bring home piles of work each night/weekend.  I didn't spend countless hours at the school on the weekends.  Sure, maybe once a month (dang centers) I spent a few good hours there on a Sunday....but it wasn't EVERY weekend or EVERY night. 

**I'm committing to that again.  

I need to use my time at the school wisely and not always 

over talking to bugging Alysha :-)

I only have the evenings with Parker once I'm back at work so I want to make the most out of them.  Sure I might have a few things to bring home to work on here and there, but it won't be as much as it used to be.

**I also want to try and make cleaner meals...less boxed stuff.  

I'm committing to 1x a week for now.  I think that's reasonable.  

I can't commit to an all or nothing....that isn't reasonable.

**I also want to find a balance for keeping the house clean.  I used to spend one day during the weekend to clean...that gets to be too much when your husband is just a "picker upper" and not a "cleaner".  So maybe Mondays I'll clean up the whole kitchen, Tuesdays I'll do windows, etc etc.  I'm bound to find a balance somewhere. I've got quite a few "cleaning schedules" pinned on pinterest....

Cleanin' Fool

orGaniZe mE

**I am committing to finally getting the house decorated....

**I'd like to explore the Dave Ramsey envelope system again...

not committing to doing it, just exploring it a little more.

**The utility room WILL get organized in 2013...COMMITTED!

**I'm committing to reading 1 book for pleasure this year.  I haven't done this in awhile and I'd like to.  

So I'm committing to one, if I read more than that GREAT!   

**I'm committing to trying/doing/going to 5 different things.  Maybe it's going to a new store, going for a walk in a different park than normal, trying to crochet, attending an event we've never been to... WHO KNOWS! The possibilities are endless!

 I would commit to 12, but that is one a month and that 

is not currently reasonable for ME. 

 5 is a good number...

I've also got a new bill book idea that we will be starting in January.  With this record keeping I have decided it's best to start fresh by following the calendar....so this doesn't get changed up often =)

That's a lot of commitments resolutions huh?  

Guess what though...they are reasonable.  

A reasonable commitment resolution is one that will probably happen 

and not die out within a few weeks or never happen at all. 

These are just mine...I'm not sure what Chad has in store.

(okay I do have an idea but they aren't mine to share)

I've shared mine...now.... What's your take? 

Do you have a reasonable commitment you will be working on?

Postpartum Month 2

Just pictures for you =)

Taken on December 20 (two days after exactly 2 months)

See Month 1 here

{christmas}

PHEW!  What a week!  

(and because I'm lazy tonight, you get unedited pictures!)

We headed back to our hometown for Christmas last week, came home, and had our own little Christmas as a new family of 3 4 (Sadie counts!).  

Parker got to see all his grandparents and got to meet his great grandmas! 

He also got to meet Uncle Brad!  

I won't lie....it was nice to spend a quiet Christmas at home with our new little family.  New traditions took place and it was just so humbling.  

Was it quiet? Yes. Did we miss our families? Yes. Was it relaxing? Yes. Was it worth it? Most definitely. 

It isn't that we don't enjoy spending time with our families.  I just don't think it's fair to have to miss out ON the holiday itself...You know..all the families eating, playing, making memories???  Who really wants to sit in a car and travel ON Christmas Day??  I would rather travel, celebrate and see family early (or late), and then spend time as our little family.  Sure we'll hit up the hometown ON the holiday itself if the weekday allows, but when it falls in the middle of the week and Chad has to work the next day we'll spend it as a little family.  

Chad said he grew up spending time with pretty much his whole family every holiday.  I grew up spending Christmas Eve with my dad's side and Christmas Day with my mom's side--even before my parents were divorced this is what I remember.  We almost always got to wake up in our own beds on Christmas morning and see what Santa brought to OUR house.  So, we will have to combine our memories and do a little of each =)

Every year that we've spent along on Christmas Eve (which hasn't been many) we have always made Taco's.  So, every year we are alone we will eat taco's on Christmas Eve and a bigger lunch will be had on Christmas Day.

One tradition that we started this year is probably my favorite.  We decided that we will buy new pajamas, wrap them up with a movie or game, and then open them on Christmas Eve to enjoy.  Chad picked out all of our pajamas this year and wrapped them up for Parker and I to open up.  He did a good job! I love my new pajama pants and Parker's sleeper is SUPER cute!

Next year we will be doing the same thing but adding in 25 stories.  We I will wrap up 25 books and Parker will get to pick out one to open each night that we will read.  He may not understand fully, but it'll be fun none the less.

We are so thankful for everything that we received this year.  We didn't ask for much and were given more than we imagined.  

Chad was able to spend time making Krumkake with his grandma...

And we were able to spend time with my grandma and hear some of her stories of just moving to our hometown.....

A few gifts really do stand out though.  Not because of who they are from or because of what they are, but the meaning and memories behind them.  

Chad's parents put together an amazing picture frame about brothers and included a more recent picture and pictures of them growing up.  Priceless.

  

My dad made Chad and I each something as he does most years.  Earlier in the summer this year Chad played anti-Johnny Appleseed and chopped down our flooded apple tree in the back yard.  He cut up the wood and my dad took some home for projects and other things.  

My dad made Chad a pocket knife out of wood from our tree and me a pepper grinder from the wood from our tree.  

We will always have a part of our first home with us now. Priceless. 

We hope that you all had a blessed holiday and were 

able to spend it with your loved ones.  

Memories were made with the big family and with our little family.

Merry Christmas.

"Are you done taking my picture yet, mom?"

{two months}

Parker-man is 2 months old today!

He was excited!

 {see comparison pic here}

He's growing like a weed!!!
On Friday (12-14-12) we had to take him into the doctor because he had the stomach flu and the Friday before (12-7-12) he had shots (eeek!)!
He is now 12lbs 4oz and 23 inches long!

He is still taking Zantac twice a day and on Nutramigen formula.  

HE:

 enjoys grape pedialyte.....

doesn't scream for hours upon hours anymore! .....

 eats A LOT........

still snores.....

likes the outside Christmas lights but could care less
about the lights on the tree.....

has enjoyed listening to Christmas music--
and if you don't look at him and sing it's just not the same!.....

has found his hands......

has started to smile and giggle a little bit more......

now enjoys taking a bath (we took the infant sling out and voila! He kicks his legs and smiles and splashes with his hands...it's pretty funny).....

is starting to like tummy time....he is lasting a few more minutes each time!

.............................................................................

Some things that we I couldn't have lived without his second month:

sleep sheep on the go--nice for when you're on the move and need some white noise to keep him sleeping...plus he likes looking at it and grabbing at it!

Johnson bedtime lotion--something about it helps him sleep longer..forget to use it and hello 2 a.m.!

Pandora radio --because where else can you listen to non-stop Christmas music?

Fisher-Price Rainforest Bouncer--absolutely loves this! Hates the other ones we have but this one is a huge winner! maybe it's the vibration or the lights and sounds...either way it has been a life saver!

Bison Booties--these bad boys are amazing!  They don't squish his feet and legs like socks have been AND when you pull off his pants to change his diaper--these bad boys STAY ON! unlike socks that pull right off with the pants!

Gerber Pre-fold diapers--best.burpcloths.EVER when you have a kid that spits up the amount that ours does!

..........................................................................

This little peanut of ours is GROWING fast!  He is gaining weight like a champ and growing tall!  He continues to amuse and surprise us daily. On Saturday Chad was finally able to hear REAL giggles from Parker....cutest.thing.ever!
He smiles when he wants and sometimes it's hard to get one but he won't let you down (as long as you aren't trying to get one while he's screaming his head off).  He's been napping in his crib for at least one of his daily naps--it's only for 30 minutes if I'm lucky, but it's a start to try and get him transitioned out of our room (who knows when that'll happen).

He has also started to notice Sadie more.  He smiles and coos at her or looks at her and grunts.  She checks on him while he's screaming.

 "Hey dude, don't touch me!"