Maxwell: Four Month Check-Up

Mr. Maxwell had a doctor visit today.

Weight: 17 pounds 6 ozs, 86th percentile

Height: 26 1/2 inches, 96th percentile

Head: 16 1/2 inches, 62nd percentile

We arrived to the doctor's office and I told Max I had

 something very serious to discuss with him.
This is the concerned look I got...

Then I revealed the big secret. 

Three shots were in his future...

Haha. I just love the facial expressions I'm able to catch sometimes.

Anyway, my little buddy was very pleasant during his check up.

The doctor didn't have any concerns and says he is a healthy, growing boy!

Sadly, he developed a fever for a couple hours after we got home.

I've never went through that with either of my babies before, so that was a little sad.

We spent the afternoon snuggling and even Lyla seemed

 to be giving out more hugs than usual too.

She pointed to his legs and proclaimed, "saaad...." 

Always looking out for her little bro. 

To check out his two month stats click here.

And I know I'm not supposed to compare and stuff, 

but it cracks me up how completely different my babies are.
Sooo if you want to check out Lyla's four month old stats click here.

It's even funnier to read Lyla's six month stats. [click here]
Max is definitely going to be the bigger "little" brother in no time.
[or will Lyla be the little "big" sister?] 
I guess I'll just let them figure that out.

Love, Patience & Vodka

It's safe to say I underestimated the job of a stay at home mom.

I have learned more in the past 21 months than I have probably in my entire life.

You think you know everything, then bam! Life sends you two

 little creatures who make you realize you know nothing.

Well played universe, well played...

I know I often write about my overall motherhood experience.

But there's really, I mean really, nothing else like it. 

[and I'm still just getting started. ahhhh!]

Just when I'm ready to start chugging vodka by the bottle, 

I witness moments like this and the world just feels right. 

The picture really doesn't capture the tenderness, but you get the idea...

I truly hope they stay best friends forever. 

More importantly, I hope they always appreciate and respect each other.

I look back at old photos of my little brother and wish I would have been nicer to him.

Once I realized how adorable he was [is] it was too late, he already became all manly and stuff.

Gymnastics

We are back at gymnastics for the year.

Lyla moved up a class level and is now with big kids.

Previously, she was one of the older kids in her class 
and I think she likes this age group a little better.

I will say it again, she's never liked being a "baby"...

It's actually pretty neat how much she has improved since we first started.

She is able to walk across the balance beam unassisted, swing from the bar, 

and she is becoming quite fond of the teacher. 

It's always been a fun class, obviously.

But sometimes I forget that she is learning a lot too.

Money well spent! 

Sleep Solutions Continued...

Sorry to blast my blog with more talk about baby sleeping habits, but I just got to do it. 

I keep going back and forth between what I want to do with 

moving Max to his crib and getting him to sleep through the night.

I'm certain all this thinking is burning a hole in my brain.

I read about so many different methods, ideas, 

and people claiming to have the magical sleep secret. 

As I was rocking him to sleep tonight, I suddenly thought of something. 

Maybe babies don't come with a training manual for a reason.

I mean, technology allows us to share stories and 

experiences from across the globe and it is great!

But it also makes [me] over analyze to the most extreme possible. 

Maybe a mother is meant to figure out on her own what 

works for each one of her babies individually. 

All babies are different so obviously what works for some, won't work for all. 

I'm really not against the cry it out method. I do think it works. 

It gives your baby the opportunity to self soothe. 

But who says they are meant to self soothe? 

Isn't that what I am for, as their mother? To soothe them? 

It's not like I'm faced with a baby who is confused between night and day.

He simply needs a little help going back to sleep when he wakes up.

Whether that means a dream feed, a pacifier, or just some snuggles.

There isn't a magic trick. I know that for sure. 

I remember being faced with the same challenges when Lyla was so young. 

And looking back, the sacrifices I had to make seem so minimal now.

I don't ever regret rocking her to sleep. 

In fact, those are some of my favorite moments. 

Eventually she was able to fall asleep on her own 

and eventually she started sleeping in her own crib. 

I can't remember when it happened, but it did, just as it will with Max. 

So, I think I'm just going to keep on doing on what we are doing. 

No books. No methods. No sleep training. No whiskey. <- joke. calm down.

I'm just going to do what works for us and what feels right. 

What feels right now, could be different in a month, and that's okay

 because I'll say it one more time---everything with babies is a stage.

I Wear What I Want

Some days I run out of ideas of stuff we can do at home. 

Actually, it pretty much happens every day around 4 p.m. 

It's kind of like that feeling when you're at work and you just want the day to be over.
You can't stop staring at the clock because you are ready to go home.

I'm already home, of course. 

But by later afternoon I start feeling a little bored and/or insane. 

And at that time, it seems we just migrate from room to room making messes. 

I'm usually too exhausted by that point to prevent messes or even care. 

The following pictures are an example of what I'm talking about.

Lyla decided to have a fashion show and try on everything in her closet.

It's really entertaining watching her try to put clothes on. 

She's almost got it and that's what makes it so funny.

First, no matter what we are doing she always makes sure Max is set up.

Blanket, check. Pacifier, check. Animals, check.

Fading to Fall

As I mentioned in an earlier post, 

I don't feel that we experienced very much of summer this year. 

As such, I didn't really think I would notice a change as we emerge into fall. 

It certainly doesn't feel like fall. I am so eager to wear sweaters & boots,
 but then I step outside and realize I'm still living in a sauna. 
I suppose it is cooling off at night, finally. 

Anyway, back on track. 
Although the trees aren't changing colors, I do feel a change. 

Perhaps it's just the 'back to school' season all around. 

We aren't in school, of course. 

But I guess it feels like we have established a fall routine for ourselves. 

Gymnastics started back up for Lyla and we are going to story time at the library again. 

And as soon as I get my hands on a double stroller, I'm joining a baby boot camp group. 

It looks super nerdy!

Some additional updates include:

Lyla is blurting out new words every day. Not kidding. 

Her latest words include okay, yes, and sorry.

Very simple words, yes. But it's allowing us to have real conversations and it's quite cute.
For awhile the only response we could get was "NO" for anything and everything.

For example, if we ask her to do something [or not to do something]

she says, "okay" in the sweetest little voice I've ever heard.

If she falls down or bonks her head now she says, "I'm okay." 

Also in the sweetest little voice. I'll never get sick of hearing it.

She says "work" when I ask where dad is. 
She says "dinner" when she is hungry. 

We are still working on please & thank you. 

Sometimes she will say please, only if I beg though.

And my sweet little Max. He is ticklish all over. 

It's adorable. I don't remember Lyla being ticklish this young.

Also, I swear he looks different every day. 
His toes are hitting the bottom of the bassinet when he sleeps, 

which makes me think it's time to transition him to the crib. [attempt #2]

I'm really dreading it though. I think mostly because I'm feeling lazy.

Lyla was moved to her own room by Max's age, but her room was right across the hall.
His room is all the way upstairs and I don't want to run up there every time he wakes up. 

It's so convenient right now to just bring him in bed with me, 

let him find the boob, and drift back to dream land.

I know the longer I wait the harder it will be. 

Apparently he is at the prime age for a little "sleep training." 

At least that is what all the books, websites, and parenting crap I read says. 

I really suck at letting them cry or "self soothe" or fuss it out. 

Whatever it is, it gives me anxiety. It's true. 

I'm still wondering where I went wrong with Lyla. 

The girl who still wakes up occasionally screaming bloody murder.
 Poor girl. Why can't I just make babies who love to sleep? 

I'm suddenly seeing flashbacks from various articles claiming it's the parents
job to teach babies healthy sleep habits. and it's best to allow them to learn.
blah blah blah. People really have baby training down to a science.
My method is to snuggle them as long as possible.

Everybody has sleep issues though it seems. 

I get frustrated about it, then I think about a kid who throws a fit every night

 at the idea of going to sleep and/or wakes up at 5 a.m. ready to get the party started. 

Yeah, I don't think I want to trade my problems for any of that.

One thing I know for sure is everything with babies is a stage. 
Don't get used to one thing, cause it will change again.
Sooner than I think Max is going to be Lyla. [walking, talking, etc.]

I think we have officially closed the baby book with Lyla and opened the toddler section.
Which means a whole new world I know nothing about...disciplining. 
It's weird and makes me feel bad sometimes.
She isn't a bad kid. She actually listens pretty well. 
Just teaching her manners and right from wrong, that sort of thing.

It's made me realize how judgy I used to be of other parents. [before I became a parent]

Always thinking, "I will never let my kid do that..." 
Often rolling my eyes at obnoxious children in restaurants, etc. 

And imagining myself as such a better parent than other people. [even my own friends] 

But guess what. My ego quickly learned to calmed the *beep* down.
 I'm not the perfect parent I always thought I would be, 

but I'm trying to do better and be better every day.

 And I think most people are doing the best they can too. 

That's all anyone can ask for.

I apologize to all the people I judged for being so judgy.

I never knew how challenging being a parent would be.

Now the only person I'm judging is myself!

Weekend Recap

1. saturday thunder storms. 

the first half of the storm everyone was asleep.

i have no idea how because the sky was booming.

eventually max woke up and hung out with me. 

 then, lyla played in the rain. splashed in some puddles. 

she was soaked & having a blast.

then dad kicked water on her, which was obviously a huge problem.

apparently only the rain can get her wet, not dad.

2. after bathtime we made some cookies. 

the first thing lyla did was pour my entire container of

 sugar into the mixing bowl. that was fun. 

no big deal though. she had never made cookies before.

 she thought that was how you did it.

then i let her lick the beaters. 

[yep, one of those parenting things i said i would never do]

she will live. it's fine. 

3. football sunday.

like the first football sunday of the year. omg!

poor kirk. luckily kurt will be here soon to watch it with him.

i usually try to avoid football and just stay busy making treats in the kitchen.

lyla did a good job of pretending she was interested though.

and she sure did look cute wearing a jersey to a team she's never heard of before.

"mommy, what am i wearing?"

 "it's your favorite football team, sweetie. shhh. don't ask questions."

4. lyla's first time at the nail salon.

she was very serious and sat very still.

i love having a little girl.

5. pretty sure max got even chubbier.

okay, i only added this one because max wasn't really

 included in the fun activities listed above.

but he's just a little guy. he sure is cutie though!

5 1/2. oh yay. i found a picture of a max weekend activity. sleep! haha.

Pretend Time & Smiles

Lyla is beginning to understand the concept of playing pretend.

Today she arranged her favorite animals on the couch and performed her ABC's for them. 

[her ABC song is just a mash up of various noises, but she's at least got the tune. ha.]

 It was very cute and even cuter than she came up with the idea on her own. 

I was only allowed to take pictures for a few moments, because

 then I had to stand on the "stage" with her and sing.

The only problem with pretend time is she wants to do it over and over and over again.

Singing songs to stuffed animals just loses it's cute appeal after 10x in a row.

The only way I was able to convince her to eat lunch was

by allowing the audience to join her.

Eventually the animals ended up on tray with lunch around their mouths too.

I had to take them away & that''s when the meltdown happened.

I keep wondering when Lyla will stop being so bossy, 

but I don't see that happening anytime soon...

Max is too little to play pretend, but he sure was enjoying his reflection in the mirror today.

[notice the wrist roll!!!!!!!!]