Happenings

Yesterday Hudson decided he wanted to wear my glasses, and refused to give them back.

Madeline LOVES this play mat. It's great because she loves to kick her feet. Each time she does so, she makes music with the piano. It's really, really cute. She is such a happy baby!

My beautiful girl with her sweet smile.

Daddy and Hud off to school this morning.

The return to coffee park

Yesterday was absolutely beautiful here in Big D, so we stepped out to enjoy the weather. Hudson and daddy had a great time at Coffee Park together while Maddie and I sat and watched. It was Maddie's first trip to the park, so naturally I took some pics.

The cast comes off, swimming continues!

You might recall that the day Hud broke his arm, he'd been swimming that morning and came home with his eyes burning from the chlorine, which we suspect had something to do with the fall off of his bed that led to said broken arm. This morning, we weren't taking any chances. Hence, the goggles. With 5 weeks off and a new teacher, Hudson jumped right in like he hadn't missed a single day. He still just loves to swim!

This morning as I kissed Hudson goodbye, he said, "Mom, don't forget to feed the baby!"

Thanks for the reminder, sweetheart! Pretty sure I won't forget. He's so cute and he says and does things like that every day. Those little things are my favorite part of being a mom. Little things, simple things, that make you smile and give your heart joy. 

 

So, Madeline is 3 1/2 months already! I can't believe how fast it's flown by. I never even had a chance to post after her 2 month visit! Well, to bring you up to speed, Madeline is HUGE. I mean, HUGE! She was bigger than Hudson was at his 2 month visit, in the 95% for height and >95% for weight, and that was a month and a half ago. No one believes me when I tell them she's only 3 1/2 months old, and in fact, most people tell me she looks like their daughter did at age 1. Well, what can I say? Apparently, Scott and I make BIG babies!

 I took the photo below yesterday. In it, Madeline is wearing a size 12 month outfit. I must disclose that baby clothes sizing is completely inconsistent, for the most part she is in 6 month clothing, but in things that run small, well it's a size 12 month for this little chub! But she sure is a cute little chub! Gosh, I just love this little girl!

 

So here are some things we have learned about Maddie in her first 3 1/2 months of life-

Likes: 

1. Being held 

2. eating (obviously) 

3. bath time

4. her daddy 

5. her big brother 

6. the dogs, especially Dulce who kisses (ok, licks) her all the time and she smiles! 

7. Sophie the giraffe

8. kicking her feet 

9. sleeping on her tummy 

10. being bounced (but you must be standing, you may not sit while bouncing her)

11. the swing, but only for short cat naps, which is her preference anyways

12. interaction and smiling, she is going to be very outgoing (see photo below)

 

Dislikes: 

1. the car seat (VERY STRONGLY dislikes, see photo below)

2. riding in the car (unless asleep, which is rare)

3. the bottle (will not under any circumstances take a bottle from anyone- which means mommy can not be away from her for more than 2 hours at any given time, more on this at a later time)

4. pacifiers

5. putting clothes on post bath

6. napping longer than 35 minutes at a time (must have inherited this one from her brother!)

 

A nap and a smile

Yesterday was Hudson's first "full" day at school. He's now there from 8AM-2PM, M-F, which means he has lunch at school and takes a nap there before I pick him up. Both Scott and I were a bit nervous yesterday, wondering how nap time would go, and then about 12:30 I got an email from Sylvie that said, "He did it! I'm so proud of him!" with this picture attached.

 

So proud of him!!!

I had some special time with my little girl in the morning, where I could devote 100% of myself to her. It was a nice and welcome change, but I admit, I missed Hudson! Here are some pics of our little girl from yesterday morning.

On Second Thought

Well, friends, I can't lie to you...our staycation was not all we had hoped it would be.

On our second night there, while trying to enjoy our dinner, everything that was barely staying together to begin with, fell apart. Hudson became crabby and started throwing a fit because he didn't like his mac'n cheese and then decided he wanted plain pasta instead. Meanwhile, dinner time is always  Maddie's fussy period (aka- the witching hour) and she refuses to sit anywhere, with you at the table or in her carrier (which she hates at any time of the day, in particular if it's in the car). Scott and I have to take turns bouncing and walking her around the restaurant while simultaneously trying to convince Hudson that his mac'n cheese is not as bad as he thinks it is, please stop whining and crawling around under the table and staring at the people behind you who are trying desperately to pretend you aren't there.. Meanwhile, our food- which isn't great to begin with- is getting cold. Finally, Scott and I looked at each other and said, "This just isn't worth it, let's just go home."

So we did.

We cut our staycation short and decided that if nothing else, we learned a valuable lesson. Travel is NOT enjoyable with two children (no matter how well behaved) under the age of 3. It just isn't, and anyone who says it is is LYING. Scott and I have come to the conclusion that traveling is not in our near future (or even distant future after last weekend), and that's just the way it is for a while. A small sacrifice to make while we get through the tough years of raising young kids. We didn't get many pics while we were there, but I'll post the few I have....until our next vacation (in 2018).

Nothing but love for this little boy, even with his picky-eating-toddler ways!

On our balcony in the hotel.

Heading to the pool with daddy!

Choo-choo ride!

Precious baby girl, hangin' in the room with mom.

Happy.

In the elevator, heading out for a little adventure.

Stay-cation, Take Two

This morning Hudson got his cast off, yippee!!! AND, they took the pins out of his arm with NO anesthesia, you read that right, NO sedation! Hud was, as usual, a TOTAL CHAMP!! Since we missed out on "stay-cationing" when Hudson broke his arm, we decided to give it another go over Labor Day, so we're off! Hudson still can't really swim, he can't submerge his arms in the water due to the pin removal sites, but we've got a waterproof device so he can play in the water. He's also supposed to "take it easy", meaning no climbing or running for 6 weeks. Yeah, right. A two year old who doesn't climb or run? Sure! Clearly they don't recall how we ended up in this predicament in the first place, but okay...again, we'll try, but we make no guarantees! Here is the first photo from our stay-cation, stay tuned for more to come!

tip: since I'm posting from my phone, you'll have to click on the photo to see the full image