Project 356: Vacation 2014: {Days 71-88}

I'm really not sure how to properly document a full two weeks of vacation.  I'm not sure one picture a day is really going to cut it but I also don't have tons of extra time on my hands.  I guess I'll land somewhere in the middle.  This was the longest amount of time Brian has ever had off in one setting, and it began with 4 great days at home as a family.

Day 71: One more day until vacation officially began...here we are getting our weekly play time in with Carly's favorite friend, Holden

Day 72:  5pm hits and we are celebrating vacation!  Dance party with Mr. Incredible in Tomorrowland!

Day 73: Spent the morning at EPCOT with the lovely Roeth family & watched the Cyclones get another victory that evening!

Day 74: Farmer's Market, Splash Pad fun & more Cyclone basketball

Day 75: Church as a family then back to Magic Kingdom where Luke had his first Dumbo ride

Day 76:  Spent the morning at Fort Wilderness Campgrounds where Carly rode a pony named Cricket.  She loved her ride & talks about Cricket all the time!

Day 77:  Off to IOWA!  Luke's first plane ride & Carly's first time flying in her own seat.  The kiddos traveled fantastic & we couldn't have asked for a smoother trip.  The layover was a bit chaotic as our family with a million things ventured through the O'Hare Airport, but we made it without any casualties! Carly was so excited to see Gramma & jumped into her arms.  We had been telling her all day long she was going to Gramma & Grampa's house!

Day 78:  Carly & Gramma got right to play while I headed out to get my hair done for the first time in 18 months.  We completed our March Madness brackets & celebrated Uncle Nathan's birthday.

Day 79:  Proof that Carly saw some snow...if we only knew what the next week was going to bring I probably wouldn't have run out to snap this photo.  I got to spend much of the morning with my friend, Carley & Brian planted himself on the recliner to watch some basketball!  We also saw cousins Lisa & Justin and enjoyed Great Plains Pizza with Uncle Dick & Aunt Crystal.

Day 80: Can you tell we love our Iowa State Cyclones?  We got dressed in our cheering best & headed to Reiman Gardens for a look at the butterflies & some lovely pictures.  We went out for frozen yogurt, took naps & watched basketball. Brian's Aunt Dawn & cousin Zachary stopped over to see us as well as his former care provider, Lyn.  We were able to meet Chris & Nikki at Old Main for an hour after dinner before parting ways to watch a Cyclone victory!

Day 81:  My first run outside & boy did my lungs feel it! I feel so bad about the terrible winter the North had this year!  Brian's Aunt Paula stopped by in the morning & then it was "see ya laters" for us as we ventured across town to my folks' place.  As we were parting ways, Carly looked at her grandparents & word-for-word said, "Thanks for playing with me so much."  I think that may have been the most precious thing she'd ever said. The car ride over was a bit strange for little miss.  She was really sad that we were leaving so I turned around to ask her if she wanted to go to Nana & Bapa's house.  She gave me a look that said, "Mom, I never see both sets of grandparents in the same day...you can't be serious."  She was quite confused, but replied, "I want to do that!"  I was SO thrilled to see my siblings & introduce them to Luke.  I hadn't seen Trey since July & Tiff since October.  We've since vowed never to go that long without seeing one another!  Trey was the first to steal Luke while Bapa took Carly into the kitchen for some candy (as if she hadn't already gotten enough of that...).  Carly later got some play time in with Uncle Trey while Aunt Tiff became the baby whisperer.  We just sat in the living room catching up that evening & of course, watching more basketball.

Day 82: We've reached Sunday!  I always enjoy attending E.Free & seeing so many loved ones.  Carly was a bit distraught that her classroom put a limit on the crackers she was allowed to eat, being that it's unlimited at our church.  When I asked her how church was the first thing out of her mouth was, "crackers...no more crackers!"  After church we took an updated family photo to include Luke, then later was met by Tiff's boyfriend, Luke, and my Grandma!  We had SO much fun watching the Cyclones dance their way into the Sweet 16!  The day didn't end there! We all gathered around for dinner then it was off the the Plex for some 3-on-3 basketball!  Trey, Luke & I took on Dad, Brian & Tiff and won both games.  I think it was thanks to my incredible defense which denied Tiff the ball. ;)

Day 83:  Monday was a bit chill.  My Mom drove Tiff up to Minneapolis the night before to beat this snow storm & my Dad was at work...so Brian, Trey & I hung out with the kiddos.  Carley & I went for a walk & later that evening I was able to spend some quality time with some gals from college.

Day 84:  Tuesday was more play time, lunch at Jeff's Pizza, a walk through the Memorial Union with a hello to my favorite job ever, a very fun visit to the Loecke household, dinner at El Azteca & some more time at G&G's for miss C.

Day 85:  Brian was out the door before 4:30am to catch his flight back to Florida.  I think it was a tie between me & Carly as to who had more tears about him leaving (especially in the middle of the night when Carly woke up screaming & Dida wasn't there for comfort her...).  I got the kiddos up & out the door before 9am & took them to Altoona to see my cousins.  There are 10 great-grankids on the Stubbs side of the family, 6 of which are 2 & under.  We had four adults & 7 kiddos in Shayla's living room!  If we lived closer I'm sure we would have many play dates!

Day 86:  While Brian enjoyed 54 holes of golf in Celebration, the rest of his family was still in freezing cold Iowa...but in good company. ;)  We enjoyed Hickory Park for lunch & more basketball that evening.

Day 87:  First a long final walk with Carley (we attempted to walk the baby right out of her but were unsuccessful) and then a great way to end our vacation...spending it at Mimi's, of course!  But not without a stop to see my 98-and-a-half-year-old great-grandma.  We had lunch at her place & enjoyed hearing her play the piano...still by ear.  The woman can't read music but can play just about any hymn!  She may be the most fascinating person I know.  Mimi prepared a Mexican-inspired feast for the Iowa Sate game to be played that evening, so we spent the day laughing & filling our bellies, as per usual.  I got to see my Uncle & cousins & although we cheered loudly the Cyclone basketball season came to an end.  By the end of the day Carly had the worst cold she's ever had & her cough was sounding like croup!  Such a bummer the day before a flight!  My brother had croup 7-8 times in his first few years of life, so my Mom graciously took the monitor that night so she could listen for labored breathing.  She was up for a few hours in the night...poor kiddo!

Day 88:  Up early to finish packing before heading to the airport.  My bag weighed 56 pounds so it was tricky to spread 6 more pounds out between my back pack & duffel bag. I received a "flight delayed" text just as we were passing Ankeny...so we debated heading back to Ames but instead went to the Urbandale Library! Carly thought that was pretty fun!  I then got another "flight delayed" text just as we were leaving the library, so it was out to lunch followed by frozen yogurt!  I'm so glad I got the text before checking in! Phew!  When we did finally arrive at the airport we walked up to the counter and heard, "You must be Tricia & Carly!"  Ha! Looks like most of the other passengers weren't as lucky as us!  Also...turns out Allegiant's bag weight max is 40 pounds...so there I was unpacking 10 MORE POUNDS of stuff.  Ugh.  If Allegiant wasn't the only airline that flew direct to Central Florida...I would not fly with them.  Anyway...alls well that ends well...my Mom got an escort pass & was able to take us right to our gate where we saw some friends who helped buckle my car seat in.  C & L both did great on the plane...all of us snoozing probably 90 minutes of the 2.5 hour flight.  We were so happy to see daddy on the other end...even though Carly kept requesting to go to G&G's house.  She continues to request her family members each day!

A big thank you to our family & friends who always welcome us to our home state with such love!  We always look forward to being in Iowa! 

"L Is For The Way You Look At Me" {Luke 2 Months}

Goodness gracious where have these last 2 months gone?  It's March & I'm still wondering where January went.  Although it seems like quite a while ago we turned the clock to 2014, the first two months of Luke's life have passed rather quickly.  Perhaps it's because with 2 hour feedings around the clock for 2 months it just feels like one long day. ;)

I'm so in love with this boy.  I have to admit, I wasn't worried about loving him, but I didn't think I would love him as much as I love Carly.  Well, that wasn't accurate thinking. ;)  He is a sweet little guy and we are so excited to see his personality & preferences form throughout the year.  I said to Brian this week while looking at Carly, "Can you believe Luke will someday walk & talk too...and we'll know him on the same level as her?"  He just shook his head.  It's hard to picture your infant as a toddler...and yet to think how quickly it happens!

I feel like I had so much to say about my little girl in her monthly updates; even when she was itty bitty.  I don't feel like I have near as much to say about Luke.  Brian joked that when Carly was 2 months I used to lay in bed taking hours of video of her while cooing at her until she was blue in the face...and Luke doesn't get a second of that precious time! He certainly gets overshadowed by a girl who is doing tons of interesting things all day long.  But this little boy has sure won over my (and his daddy's) heart...and here are the things I just love:

•  He continues to adore snuggling.  He wants to be held & loved on all day & all night and although he's become rather squirmy during those nighttime hours, I still love snuggling with him almost around the clock.  He does like his position to be changed quite frequently: he goes from resting his head on my shoulder, to being cradled in my left arm, to my right arm, then a quick turnaround to say hello to the world & back for more snuggles.
• He is not one who loves too much stimulation.  He can handle an hour to an hour & a half of awake time when we are home, but if we are out & about he's gotta shut those blinkers and do some processing after about 30 minutes.  
• He enjoys it when we whisper in his ear
• He cries after 90 seconds of being put down when awake
• He does not like to be bounced but instead prefers a swaying motion
• Would rather fall asleep on his left ear facing down than his right
• Hates the taste of sissy's paci when it accidentally ends up in his mouth
• With his rapid weight growth he was killing his mama's back in the kangaroo sling, so he has now graduated to a Pognae (similar to Ergo)
• He LOVES being outdoors & will lay on his own on a blanket in the sun for quite a while
• He jerks every time his sissy lets out a scream or squeel
• Has good neck strength compared to his 2-month old peers

Luke is sporting 3-month clothes & has been since he was 6 weeks.  He weighs 12 pounds (80th percentile) and is 23 inches long (50th percentile).

I'm not convinced babes get on a good schedule until about 4 months old, so I haven't pushed anything on him as far as sleeping/eating goes but have rather monitored a lose schedule.  Plus, he has fairly dramatic growth spurts (I only have C to compare to...and in comparison to her his growth spurts are much more noticeable) about every 5 days...so even attempting a rigid schedule would go haywire!  When he's not in a spurt, he eats every 2.5-3 hours around the clock.  Not joking, the kid has only given me a 4-hour nighttime stretch twice in the last month.  When he is growing...he can barely make it past 2 hours before he's rooting toward any exposed skin...even at night!  I've worked with him a good amount this month on getting him to sleep on his own, and I must say the work is starting to pay off.  He starts in his crib at night and will sleep 2-3 hours before getting up & joining me in bed for the night and also generally takes a 2 hour nap in his crib in the afternoons.  I am not ready for CIO quite yet, but I have made sure to put him down groggy to let him learn to fall asleep on his own & rubbing his back until he's out.  He's doing much better about falling asleep in his crib than Carly did...so I'm thankful for that and hoping it continues. I do believe that any child who has to attend daycare or something of the sort needs to be able to sleep on their own...holding/carrying/wearing them through naps is really doing them a dis-service, so I knew after he turned one month that I had to get to work on that.  Because I am an on-the-go mama, Luke does take quite a few naps in a carrier, but I'm generally laying him down 3 times a day (he usually takes 3 cat naps + 2 long ones/day).  Despite having the noises of sissy his entire life, he still really jerks when she speaks, so having him nap in the same room she is speaking just doesn't work.  He also sleeps longer & deeper if he is sleeping on that tummy of his in his crib.  Quite interesting!

And here are his 2 months photos:

I am continually praising Jesus for the blessing of good health and am in awe of the miracles that are His children.  Grateful for Luke!

"You Hold the Whole World in Your Hands"

Since adding Luke to our family, I experience three questions most regularly.

1. How is Carly adjusting to her new brother?
2. How are YOU adjusting to two kids?
3. Are you getting any sleep?

So, I thought I'd take the time to do a bit of reflecting on our adjustment period over the past two months.  First off, Carly really loves her baby brother.  She was very frustrated at ME when we came home from the hospital, but has not shown any sort of resentment toward him.  For a good two weeks, she wanted nothing to do with me.  No hugs, kisses or cuddles, no helping her with anything & certainly no parenting her.  She would yell sternly, "go sit mommy!" when she wanted me to get away from her.  It was challenging.  Here is this girl who I couldn't love more, completely rejecting me...and it was all my fault.  We had been BEST buddies and I ruined it by bringing another little one home who needed much of my attention and was always in my arms.  Each week since has gotten better, and around week 5 she was back to her sweet & loving self.  I do believe that she just forgot what life was like before him and accepted that him tagging along on our adventures & my arms being less free was just part of life.  She is so concerned when he cries & rushes to his aide!  She gets him his paci, plays with him when I ask her to & has even started asking to hold him. She loves to name her family (Mommy, Dida, Carly & Baby Ooke) & always includes him in her stories. I think it's been the transition most would expect.

I think I could write with tears of joy streaming down my face for hours about my transition to having two children.  I believe I'm a pretty emotionally-stable person but only by the grace of God who blessed me with parents who taught me that the way to control my emotions was constantly putting them in His hands.  In the 62 days I've been a mother of two, I would say 6 of those have been really trying & full of frustration, while the other 56 have been pretty great.  I think I've upped my percentage of good days from shooting 500 with Carly.  It has UNDENIABLY AND MOST CERTAINLY been an easier transition going from 1 to 2 than going from 0 to 1.  No question.  And this is why:

1. Our life changed drastically when we went from being newlyweds to parents.  All of it changed.  This time we were already in kiddo-mode, so adding another kiddo just meant having more strategy in meal-planning, errand-planning, outing-planning, outfit-planning, chore-doing, you get the picture.
2. There is SUCH a learning curve to parenting.  We did not prepare our hearts & minds well when we became parents & were basing our knowledge on opinions & advice.  This time we not only prayed fervently for God to prepare our hearts & minds, but also had gained confidence that we were great parents & knew to trust our instincts.
3. Luke is just an easier baby than Carly was.  That's certainly played a roll in a smooth adjustment period.
4. Being a parent matures you & stretches you in ways you've never been pushed.  I am bottom-line, a more mature person than I was two years ago...and quite frankly I've enjoyed "watching" myself grow over that past two years.  I'm more relaxed now even though my life is seemingly more chaotic...and my children can sense that and feed off it.
5. Part of that maturity is knowing how short this season of life is.  So what if Luke is 8 weeks old & I'm still getting up with him 4 times/night because he thinks he needs to eat every 2 hours.  This time is so precious & I am focusing on all the wonderful things that come along with having a baby rather than the difficult ones.

Despite my heart feeling so very full, I have certainly had my moments of sheer frustration & utter chaos both mentally & physically.  There have been a few days that I've had to turn on Mickey Mouse Clubhouse & lay on the couch nursing Luke so I could close my eyes for just 20 minutes...and I've felt trapped & isolated multiple times.  I can't tell you how much I would love to drive across town in the middle of a boring day to my mom's house or call up my mother-in-law and invite ourselves over for dinner on a Sunday afternoon.  Not having their help leaves me feeling rather isolated, but fortunately I only feel that way for a short time before being completely satisfied in my husband & my children.  I cried to a friend one evening as I was explaining to her that I felt I had ruined Carly's life.  Here was this girl who constantly got to do fun things with her naturally on-the-go mama and had my complete attention and I had wrecked all of that by bringing home this needy little man.  That day was my lowest day, for sure.  But, my friend lovingly smacked me across the face & reminded me that I have not ruined her life, but in fact enriched it.  Carly has a forever playmate & potential best friend...and soon enough she will be reaping the benefits of having a sibling.

So there you have it.  Our wonderfully blessed & slightly trying transition of bringing home little brother.  These children are miracles, I tell you, and EACH & EVERY DAY I praise God for choosing me as their mother, holding us so tightly in His hands & for His continued mercy on our safety and health.

Oh, and the answer to question number 3 is: "What is sleep?" ;).  BUT...I can honestly say I'm okay with not getting much shut-eye & am amazed to experience how little sleep one can truly function on.

Project 365: {Days 64-70}

Day 64: Morning at the park spent with a girl sporting her pony tail, hoddie & nikes

Day 65: A rainy day called for a family day of indoor activities; including many games of hide-n-seek, ring around the rosie & flying.  We also got some cleaning & organizing done!

Day 66: Carly in her zebra pants because we went to Animal Kingdom in the morning then after nap decided to explore Downtown Winter Garden; having dinner at a Thai restaurant & ice cream in a little parlor.

Day 67: Cherie & Simon spent the morning at the Winter Garden Farmer's Market with us and were huge helps chasing Carly around while I picked out my veggies!

Day 68: A BEAUTIFUL Sunday...went to church then to a friends home for lunch, took a long nap (all three of us!) & spent time sun bathing & blowing bubbles in the backyard! 

Day 69: The Roeth's are in town!  One of our favorite Ames families...and we were lucky enough to get to have breakfast & a pool day with them.  Carly ADORED Anna & Ally!

Day 70: Stacey, Aria & Anya came to play & joined us at the park!

Project 365: {Days 57-63}

Day 57: Holden & C at DHS with Minnie

Day 58: Found at a 9am that due to a clerical error I needed to report to work!  So I was there by noon & got in on a presentation about our new shop opening in May.  Fortunately, I have a WONDERFUL boss, so he made it possible for me to go back on leave for another month. {Can you see I still have a good 30 pounds before I'm pre-Carly weight?}

Day 59: Family time at the Boardwalk & EPCOT

Day 60: Featuring Luke's blue eyes...I've gotta continue to put him in blue shirts!

Day 61: Went to visit the "hoe-es" at Ft. Wilderness Campground...she loved it & got right up in his face after checking him out.  She wanted to "ride a ride a hoe-es" SO bad but I told her we had to wait to do that with Daddy...so I'm sure photos of her first horse back ride will be coming to a post near you.

Day 62: Everything about this photo makes me laugh.  This is the look they gave me when I got the camera out and said "Kiddos...let me get a picture of your sweet faces!" ;)

Day 63: Our rather prolific small group birthed 5 baby boys in just 6 weeks & here is #1, #2 & #4, respectively. ;)  This photo shows us one of two things...that babies gain 3 pounds/week OR that Luke is just a monster. ;)