Twenty Two Weeks

The big event for Addisen this week is that she is ROLLING over! Although she does not like to totally roll to her stomach, she has proven that she can roll her bottom half all the way! At night we always laugh because she moves herself all around her crib. Jim jokes that if we didn't have her in her crib she would make her way down the hallway.

I just love this picture. I think it captures Addisen's personality so well. She is the happiest baby that I know and can light up a room in minutes! We are so blessed to have her in our lives!

Of course I have to follow that up with a picture of Brody - this captures his personality too! He is the LIFE of the party! It has been a great week for him to just be a kid! For those blog followers from Jim's family - I think Brody looks SO MUCH like his cousin Jordan in the picture!

This Sunday we had an interesting Sunday night dinner! My mom had bought cow corncob holders for Brody a few weeks ago, so it was time to use them! Brody was so excited to attach the head and butts! That night he had also watched one of his shows and it was teaching kids how to use chop sticks. So Jim attempted to teach Brody how to use them...it was more of Jim feeding Brody.

The highlight of Brody's week was CHUCK E CHEESE! He has been asking for us to take him there for months! We have never talked to him about it, but it appears that the kids at daycare have been sharing stories! Jim took Thursday off to spend the day with Brody and surprised him by taking him to Chuck E Cheese. Jim even convinced me to go with them over my lunch hour. I have to admit that it wasn't as bad as I feared (I definitely recommend going there early afternoon on weekdays!). Brody's reaction to the whole experience was priceless! He is still talking about it today (and asking over and over again if we can go again now).

Tonight we went to Relay for Life in Rockford. We have been going for the past few years because most of the booths have games for kids to play. Brody had a great time winning little prizes, getting his face painted and even convincing us to let him catch (and keep) a goldfish! It is pretty impossible to tell such a cute little boy no! So we are now the proud parents of a goldfish named "swimmy"! You will notice in the picture that there is a net over his bowl...I insisted on taking precautionary steps to make sure swimmy doesn't become a jumper! Jim and I are hoping that swimmy makes it at least a week...we'll see - it may be a late night run to a store for a new swimmy one of these nights :)

Twenty One Weeks - Mother's Day

We celebrated Mother's Day a day early this year since Jim was running in the Kalamazoo Marathon on Sunday. I received the greatest gifts from Jim and the kids. Brody picked me out "an angel with a stick" (really a wooden angel with a flute) and Jim bought me a pandora bracelet with 3 beads from the kids.

We headed to Kalamazoo on Saturday afternoon and met my parents at the hotel. Brody was excited to go swimming and I was excited to put Addisen in her first swimsuit! Unfortunately the pool was crazy, so Addisen just lounged on the side with my mom.

We gave my mom a collage of pictures for her Mother's Day present. Brody was very excited to help her open it. Although this Mother's day was celebrated in an unconventional way, we had a great time being with Grandma and Bobo!

Sunday ended up being a beautiful day. Addisen gave me the best Mother's Day present by sleeping through the night in the hotel (wish I could say the same for Brody). We were able to watch Jim run past in 3 different spots. At the first stop Brody even got to hand Jim a refill on his water - that just made his day! Addisen was a trooper through it all and did really well considering she didn't get to take a long nap that morning.

Jim did great in the Marathon. He had set a goal of finishing in under 4 hours. Unfortunately he did not meet that goal - but finished in 4 hours and 3 minutes! It was so close and a great time for the difficult (hilly) course! We are so proud of our daddy!

We almost forgot - but remembered right before bed to get a picture of me with my babies! I am so lucky to have a happy and healthy family! I was reminded of that today when I went to visit a friend from Pharmacy School. She and her husband have been through such a roller coaster ride in the last 6 months. She is currently in the hospital 30 weeks pregnant with their second child (a little girl, Grace). They found out earlier in the pregnancy that there were complications. In the beginning they were told that their daughter had a 0% chance of survival, and now she is in the hospital with hopes that there may be a chance that baby Grace will be able to survive outside the womb. Visiting with her today reminded me just how lucky we are to have all of the people we love in our lives, especially healthy children. My heart goes out to her and her family in this difficult time of uncertainty. If you have a spare moment today, please pray for strength for my friend Erica and her husband Brad.

Twenty Weeks - All About Food!

Our original plans were to wait a few more weeks to start Addisen on cereal, but as you can see we started this week. Addisen had started to wake up around 12-1am instead of making it until 3am, so I thought lets give it a try! And....SHE LOVED IT! She is so happy to see the food coming on the spoon - she just laughs and smiles the whole time you are feeding her! We have only experimented with oatmeal and peaches so far, but not surprisingly, she loves her food.

Staying with our "Food Theme", Brody and I made ourselves some pizzas for dinner last night. He had a great time and enjoyed "tasting" all of the ingredients the most. It seems like if Brody is able to participate in making dinner he is more likely to eat it. So we have been trying to come up with ways to include him in cooking.

Earlier in the week I decided to try Addisen out in her Bumbo seat. She is always trying to sit up while you are holding her, so I figured she would enjoy "sitting" on her own. It was fun to watch her discover her feet!

I really can't believe how big Addisen is! I know everyone tells me that she is a healthy girl - and I by no means think there is something wrong with her, but am just amazed at how much she can grow every week. Today she went to school in 9 month clothes...and they really weren't that big on her! My baby girl is only 20 weeks old and wearing 9 month clothes! I just feel like she is growing up so fast (well maybe growing out more than up!). I am starting to come to terms with the fact that she will not be wearing the CUTE 6 month summer outfits I had bought for her :( It is just crazy that Brody was such a small guy and Addisen is the opposite! I wouldn't change her for the world...I just really wanted to hang on to my "little" baby longer!

I hope everyone has a great Mother's Day Weekend! We will be celebrating the day cheering Jim on during his 2nd Marathon! I will be posting pictures next week of the big race.

Nineteen Weeks

Hope you had a great Easter!

This was a great Easter for Brody. He was able to have two Easter Egg hunts, one on Saturday before we left for my parents and then another on Easter morning. He was so thrilled that the Easter Bunny had left so many eggs for him!

The Easter Bunny left Brody a new airplane kite at Grandma and Bobo's. Uncle Neal headed out with Brody to try to get flight...unfortunately there just wasn't enough wind and we ended up with more time on the ground than in the air.

At our house the Easter Bunny left Brody a big boy bike! It only took about 15 minutes and he had figured out how to ride around with ease! During the few nights of nice weather this week we have been out riding the street in the neighborhood. It seems like yesterday he was attempting to ride a tricycle...my baby boy seems like he is growing up so fast!

Addisen was back to the doctor again yesterday because her cough doesn't seem to be going away. She was a trooper through the chest xray and exam. She weighed in about 6oz more than last week...she is now officially over 16lbs! I am afraid that she is not going to fit in most of the summer clothes that I bought! She barely fit in her 3-6 month size Easter Dress...luckily those button holes stretched just a little bit!

Tonight we went to a circus in Grand Rapids. There were free kids tickets available at my work, so I thought it would be a great idea (mainly because there was an elephant on the ticket and Brody has been interested in them). When we arrived at the arena Jim and I began to get a little leery. At the ticket office there was a sign posted that there wouldn't be an elephant at the show (good thing we have learned not to tell Brody what to expect - otherwise he would have been devastated with the change). The kids did great during the circus even though I would have called it more of a "talent show"... I guess we live and learn! Luckily it doesn't take too much to amuse a 3 year old - he was so excited to see the 2 guys riding motorcycles in a big steel cage!

Addisen's Photo Book

I received a gift code to make a free photo book for Addisen! I think it turned out pretty cute!

Click here to view this photo book larger

Eighteen Weeks

We were in the Easter Picture mode today! I got Addisen's four month pictures taken and we went to visit the Easter Bunny for some more pictures! Brody was so excited to see the Easter Bunny...until we got there! We finally convinced him to go and stand next to the bunny so we could get a picture - maybe next year he will touch him!

My parents bought me a new flash for my camera as part of my birthday present. I am a bit naive with the whole photo taking thing and assumed I could just attach it and "wing it". Our first photo session today was pretty much just darkness through the lens...but I finally managed to get some good lighting.

Last night I finished this headband for Addisen - I wanted something to make her look a little more girly! Her hair isn't nearly as long as Brody's was at this stage - so it doesn't look like she will be wearing bows anytime soon!

Yesterday was Addisen's 4 month check up. She weighed in at 15lbs 11oz (this was up 6oz from when we were at the doctor on Saturday!). She definitely is a "healthy" girl! Unfortunately she has held on to a cold and cough for the past 10 days. Yesterday it had progressed to her lungs and we started her on Albuterol to help her breath. You wouldn't know from looking at her that she isn't feeling well - she gave everyone lots of smiles! She fell into the 90th% for weight and was still in the 75% for length (pretty much stayed the same) and although I thought her head was smaller...she followed in Brody's footsteps (95th%). Everything developmentally looked great and we will probably start feeding her cereal sometime next month. She is very content with her bottles and sleeps through most of the night - so there is no need to rush into the foods.

We colored Easter Eggs with Brody today. He had a great time mixing them in colors and seeing what came out. In the end we had a dozen eggs to show (some with a few more cracks then others).

This was Brody's last week at Sports Class and we finally got to tackle the rock wall! I was surprised at how willing he was to try it out! He walked right up the first time and started climbing. When he fell off for the first time he was a little started, but I was so proud of him for being brave enough to try it again!

We hope everyone has a great Easter!

Seventeen Weeks - Happy Birthday Mommy!

The big event this week was my Birthday! Jim was out of town for the majority of it - but the kids were so good to me! Addisen painted a card for me at daycare and Brody colored me a picture (and wrote his name!).

Last night Jim got home and surprised me with this certificate that he made with the kids! It is so cute! They all did a great job on it!

Addisen still continues to love her naps! She sleeps for about 4 of the 8 hours she is at daycare. Still the best baby there! Night time still fluctuates, but for the most part I don't mind having to get up one time a night.

We met my parents tonight for dinner and then they took Brody home with them. They are going to MSU tomorrow for small animal day. It isn't going to be the best weather for them, but Brody will be excited to go with Grandma, Bobo, Uncle Neal and Jenny! It is strange to be home with just Addisen. This is the first time she has been the only child in this house - it is quiet!

Last Sunday we were spoiled with 80 degree weather (tonight it is closer to 30!). While we were out playing in the yard we found a caterpillar. Brody was brave enough to hold it! We even had to take it on our walk (we...because I had to carry it the majority of the way). When we got back Brody put it back in the flowerbed and made it a "home". Everyday we are out looking for him - but he never seems to be at home. Brody thinks maybe he is out looking for his mom.

Brody got to try out his baseball skills with Uncle Neal. By the end of the morning he was doing a really good job hitting the ball to Jim. This week at Sports Class he learned about golf. It was pretty funny to see all of these 3-5 year olds putting! It was also amazing that they didn't swing the clubs at each other! We only have one more week of class - the last activity will be rock climbing! That will be something to see!

We go for Addisen's 4 month check up on Thursday. I am excited to see how much she weighs and see what the doctor thinks about starting cereal. I think she is ready to start, she really enjoys watching us at dinner time...and maybe this could mean a full night of sleep!

Sixteen Weeks

Addisen continues to be the happiest baby I know! She is such a light in our lives, even in the middle of the nights! Her sleeping schedule has varied a lot in the last week - last night being the best night (sleeping from 8:30 - 5:45!). Earlier in the week she was quite fussy going to bed, but would just smile and smile at you when you came to her room to console her - she definitely has us wrapped around her finger. I think we are breaking every rule in the book with her, with Brody we would do the "cry out method" and with her it seems like she makes a small noise and Jim is out of bed to get her.

Grandma, Bobo, Uncle Neal and Jenny were here to spend the night with us on Friday night. Brody was very excited to have every one here to celebrate Uncle Neal and my birthdays. The best part was that Bobo bought a cake decorated with Toy Story rings! I found this costume today at the Meijer Thrifty store - it was so cute to see Brody running around the house as Buzz Lightyear.

My sweet baby girl was happy to have the company too! She smiled and smiled at everyone that was here. She can capture your heart in just one minute!

It was such a great day today! The weather was so nice outside that we were able to have a Penn State vs. Michigan State Football game in the backyard! Brody was very excited to show Uncle Neal his football skills and of course tackle him!

This should be an interesting week for our family. Jim will be traveling for the first time since I have returned to work. So that means - for my birthday this year I will be tested with getting our kids to bed, hoping Addisen sleeps through the night and getting all three of us ready in time to be to work at 8am - oh what a gift :)

Fifteen Weeks

Addisen continues to be a very happy girl, but we have gone a little backwards on sleep! We were spoiled with the 5 days of sleeping through the night and are now back to a little bit of a fussy phase. She still heads to bed about the same time as Brody, but is up around 2:30am to eat. We are still lucky enough that Jim or I only have to get up every other night - but we were spoiled by those few nights of no awakenings! She is continuing gain weight - I will be interested to know how much she weighs when we go for her 4 month doctors appointment in a couple weeks. She eats about 6oz every 3-5 hours and she LIKES her food! Addisen is wearing mostly 3-6 month clothes and fills them out well! The only 0-3 month clothes she has left are onesies and nightgowns.

We were lucky to have a lot of sunny days in the last week (not too warm but at least sunny!). Jim and Brody were out last Sunday practicing their football skills! I found out this week that we will be able to sign Brody up for flag football in the fall, so he has to start his training!

Grandma and Bobo came to visit us tonight. Brody loves to play/torture his Bobo! We had a lot of fun attempting to make paper airplanes that would fly!

Addisen is a lot nicer to her Bobo!

Brody definitely has a mind of his own these days. Often too busy to talk on the phone to Grandma! But we did convince him to at least be in a picture!

We couldn't get Addisen to stop watching tv tonight - so we had to settle for this picture!

Hopefully next week we will have some more pictures of us playing outside!

Fourteen Weeks - What a Happy Baby!

Happy Birthday Uncle Neal!

I was hoping that our little spring flower would bring some warm temperatures! We were spoiled last week with the chance to go for a walk at night, but this week old man winter was back again!

Last night we put Addisen in the exersaucer for the first time. She enjoyed looking at the new scenery for about 5 minutes! She is gaining pretty good control of her head, but hates tummy time! So I thought this might be another way to strengthen her muscles.

I did her 3 month photo session last Sunday. The pictures didn't turn out exactly as I had hoped - but we did manage to get a few good ones.

This week went fairly well, but we were all tired by the end! Addisen slept thru the night two more times this week! It was such a great surprise...we must be getting closer to a nightly occurrence:) She has decided that her bedtime is around 8-8:30 each night, so that allows for Jim and I to have some "grown up time". She definitely is becoming more aware of her surroundings and enjoys looking at her hands and sucking on them! And boy does she like to move - if you lay her on the floor she just kicks and kicks!