Wednesday, September 26, 2012

Second Baby Sydrome and the Insistent....

"Mommy Guilt!" ...Most of you know what I'm talking about. Poor neglected number two. The truth is I can't really tell if he's more neglected or I was just way too up all in Lawrence's business. Either way, it doesn't matter. Good ol' "Momma guilt" swoops her ugly little head in every time and makes me feel bad...about everything.

When I just had Lawrence, I remember hearing about Mommy guilt and others feeling like they neglect seconds and thirds, but really honestly didn't think it would be a problem for me. I had always taken care of multiple little ones and never felt like I favored one or was "unfair" to another.  Also, I'm one of five and a twin, which means I always shared my time. Even in the womb......I had a "womb-mate"  hahaha...never gets old!!   Anyway, I'm sure nasty old  mommy guilt gave her share of difficulties to my mom too. But, you would've never known it. I never felt forgotten or cheated in any way. In fact, my best memories are of me with my siblings. and all in all I turned out awesome and so did they. 

I am constantly feeling like I don't give enough time and energy to Evan and so freaked that I'm going to miss a :first or at least forget to document it. I think the fear of missing something has actually made me extra careful to jot every moment down...even if it is on a random missile calendar.

So, the moral of my ramblings today is: You're going to feel bad no matter what. Even when you know it's ridiculous and actually good for them to have more independence and this built in playmate,best friend to hang with and share Mommy with. 



Reason a bujillion why I love this whole blog idea. Memories  (and my insistent rambling)  being saved for always. Love it!
Here are some of our sweet Evan's firsts (that I'm remembering to document!)  these past couple weeks:

wheeeee....

My first pouch...unplanned as you can see!
Such a big boy!!
Puffs!!
and then it was more like this...




Loves the tub! He splashes and kicks the whole time!!
  • Eating puffs
  • Stage 2 foods in the pouch
  • riding on the big truck
  • pulling up onto his knees
  • Sitting up in the "big boy" tub
  • Sitting in the grocery cart
  • clapping his hands!! My favorite!
  • "dada" his first consonant!! 
PS....Lawrence is supposed to be napping and Evan just crawled in there to get him...so funny! Guess that's what I get for neglecting him to write this blog! ;) 

Sunday, September 23, 2012

No More Sick Babies, Please!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d4tSE2w53ts

Boo to being sick! Being a Momma is hard. I knew that when I "signed up" but the extent of hardness is what gets me. Not the physical part; up all night, exhaustion, try and fail and try again stuff...but the emotional hard part. 

You know you're going to love your babes....but FEEL everything they feel down to the tiniest little emotion? That is what is hard!!  My heart breaks for them with each tiny sneeze or little fever. and that's just it. I have healthy, VERY HEALTHY  boys. Yes, right now we have a little hiccup of being sick with the good ol' Hand/Foot/Mouth... YUCK! But, this has been the worst for us.
cuddle time with Daddy

 I can't help but think of parents who have REALLY sick children. How do they do it? God must have given them an extra dose of strength and endurance. Something I don't possess and God-willing never will have to.

Feeling a little yucky :(
 I honestly tear up every time I've had to suck out Evan's nose or give him a dose of the medicine he hates so much. And cringe when I hear Lawrence in his room crying at night because his mouth hurts or the medicine is making him feel funny. Poor guys, I must say, they're  handling  it like champs!!   So, we'll continue to push  blueberries, water, nursing (for Evan), a bit of IBU  and lots of rest until they're better.

 At the same time, we will continue to count our blessings and thank God everyday for our two healthy boys, reminding ourselves that this too shall pass, and somewhere out there are other mommy and daddys who have it far worse than we do here. 
Here is a simple little prayer for children who are sick:

Prayer for a Sick Child
Heavenly Father, watch with us over your child (name) and grant that he may be restored to that perfect health which it is yours alone to give. Relieve his pain, guard him from all danger, restore to him your gifts of gladness and strength, and raise him up to a life of service to you.
Through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

and our sick, but still happy babies :)
Giving baby brother a lift


so silly


Tuesday, September 18, 2012

~Mommy School~

I desperately wanted to find more productive things to do with our time, but had a few obstacles finding activities for two little ones under two. So, in an attempt to stop finding myself aimlessly wandering around the Starbucks/Target, I decided to start "Mommy School!"

L has the best built-in buddies right here in the neighborhood.
And those little ones have some great Mommas that I knew would help make this great.
The Mommies
 One Mommy even decided to host her own Mommy School at her house on Mondays! (score!! that's two productive mornings!!)

So every Tuesday six of the cutest little loves come over to play and learn with Lawrence and Evan.

Here's the breakdown:

  • Educational Toys/books/puzzles in L's room
  • Carpet Time: hello song, book, game, finger plays/songs
  • Art
  • outdoor play/sensory activity
  • Snack
  • Carpet game, goodbye song
September Theme and Focuses: 

 Last Tuesday was our first class. It was so much fun! We learned all of our new hello/goodbye songs and "Way Up High in the Apple Tree" song. This song/fingerplay is so great becuase you can adapt it for any age. We were much more interactive and used our babies as "props" in the song. The avg. age of this froup is "2" so getting them up and moving on the carpet is the best way to keep them engaged. They loved it!! L sings the new song he learned all the time now. After carpet we did  an apple tree project. 


We traced each child's arm and hand for the tree

Then, they added apples by dipping their fingers in red paint and "stamping them on the leaves. Lawrence's apples got a  little crazy at the end. 

 Today, we talked about school buses and sang and acted out "The Wheels on the Bus." We talked about the round wheels on the bus and how they look like circles. For art we used several different materials(toilet paper and paper towel rolls, lids, cups etc)  to stamp circles with red paint on white paper.







 We also made letter "A" To do this I made capital "A" with masking tape on red paper. Then the kiddos painted (with hands and brushes) any color over the "A"  When the paint drys, you tear it off and reveal the letter underneath.



 For our sensory activity we had some "fizzy fun" with baking soda and vinegar.
 All you need is:
 some containers, medicine droppers (or even just some spoons) food coloring, baking soda, and vinegar.

I put the baking soda in a large pan and vinegar in four smaller containers. The babes helped me put drops of food coloring in each container to make red, blue, yellow and green. Then, I showed them how to make the first fizz. Just take some vinegar in the dropper or with a spoon or anything!! and drop it into the pan of baking soda... I had them all "shh" so they could listen for the fizz. From there, they explored all on their own!! 







What about Evan?? I didn't get a lot of  pictures, but he played with the bus, rolled around on the kitchen floor with a paper towel roll, and watched all the action from his jumper! He was worn out and took a nap :)



These kids are awesome!!







Monday, September 17, 2012

A Glimpse Into Some of Our Week :)


Thursday: Library Time with our Buddy Jacob!
criss-cross applesauce with a bubble!




BuBbLeS!!

















Friday: We went to our church's Fall Festival with our neighbors :)
Jump castle with Sean

He was intrigued

Friends :) 

Saturday: Birthday Party!
Sunday: Bible School, More Presents, and Lazy Football Day!
Bible School

Evan had a really good time!


He was pretty serious  the whole time




He was way more excited than these pictures show!
Our Little Football Babies




Monday: Morning Leftover cake play date and Art

Making Thank you cards for my friends

Evan is such a good helper



yes! That crazy baby is standing!