First friends

I post frequently about Thomas and his friend Lily. She is 7.5 weeks older than him and they have been "friends" since he was about a month old. It has been such a delight watching them grow up together. We had lunch with Lily and her mom and new baby sister today, in fact! Thomas loves Lily (he calls her "Yeeyee.").

But now it's Parker's turn. Lily's baby sister was born six weeks after Parker. Now Parker can have a friend just like his big brother. Parker's new friend is Sarah Ellen. Last week we took dinner (Chick-Fil-A drive thru) to Taryn and the girls because their husband/daddy was out of town for the evening. Though Parker had actually "met" Sarah Ellen once before, this was the first time we could put them face to face and let them be properly introduced. :)



Usually these days I can get Parker to smile on command. He must have been pretty overwhelmed that night with his new friend because all he could manage was this odd deer-in-the-headlights look.


I thought this picture was funny because A) it shows how crazy-big Parker is (he's 11.5 weeks, Sarah Ellen is 6 weeks in the photo), and B) Sarah Ellen is already telling him who is boss!


And this of course compares with Thomas and Lily's first meeting when he was about 4 weeks old and she was 11 weeks.



I hope that Parker and Sarah Ellen can become as good of friends as their bigger siblings already are...and I look forward to watching all four of them grow up together!

Taryn has a few pictures on her blog here...

An Alexander kind of day

When I was younger I loved the book Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day by Judith Viorst. Yesterday wasn't that bad, but it defintely had its moments. A few highlights are below, and will explain the reason for this picture:


I took Thomas to the aquarium to meet some friends. We rode down the elevator at one point and Thomas put his hand on the door as it was opening and I couldn't react fast enough (there was no time!) and his pinky and ring fingers got stuck in the door where it opened into the "pocket" part. I quickly jerked them out before more of his hand went in, but it was a very scary few seconds for me, Thomas and our friends. Poor Parker was wrapped to my chest and my quick movements scared him too! I think it scared him (Thomas) more than anything and for a moment he was trying to cry, but no sound was coming out. I remembered how a friend recently told me about her daughter reacting to something similarly traumatic to the point where she stopped breathing and lost consciousness so I started urging him to breathe and cry as he was turning. The whole ordeal was so scary, but in the end, he was fine.

Another highlight is the reason for the picture. As I was fixing dinner, Thomas asked if he could give Sully (our dog) a treat. I told him he could give her one but since we were having a pretty bad thunderstorm at the time, I told him Sully probably would be too scared to eat. I didn't pay more attention to this (he gives her treats all the time). A few minutes later he came to me and said proudly, "Thomas ate Sussy's treat, Mommy." I said, "Noooo, Thomas, no you didn't. That would be yucky!" He said, "Yes, Thomas ate Sussy's treat." I asked him again, and he very proudly and clearly said, "Yes. Yes, Mommy!" I asked him to show me and he took me to the couch and showed me a few crumbs that appeared to be milkbone crumbs laying on the couch where he had been sitting. I know it won't kill him, but it sure was nasty. And it's quite funny seeing how he's so picky about eating everything else in the world!

Another highlight was at bedtime. Parker was getting quite fussy but I was trying to read Thomas a few bedtime stories anyway. As I sat down next to Thomas with Parker held up on my shoulder he let out a hearty burp and spit up all down my arm, and some landed on Thomas's shirt, head and face. He looked up at me with the cutest and most dumbfounded look ever. It was so funny I couldn't help but laugh.

After I got Thomas and myself cleaned up, Parker proceeded to get pretty worked up and I apologized to Thomas that we'd have to skip the stories. I took him to his room and said his prayers, ending with The Lord's Prayer, as usual. By now I could hear Parker wailing in his room so I said the prayer as quickly as I could. I don't think I took a breath. When I said "Amen," Thomas said, "Quick prayers, Mommy." Yes, they were. :)

Well, I have a little munchkin crawling all over me at the moment, so I better go. By the way, he had a great day at school today. He didn't cry at all (aside from a bit of teary eyes when I dropped him off) and they didn't have to give him his paci. When I came to pick him up he was sitting on the floor with all the other kids listening intently to the teachers singing a song. I was so proud of my little boy!

The name of my friend is...

I have a lot of catching up to do in here, but I wanted to remember something Thomas said today that made me giggle.

He went back to school ("camp") today and will again on Wednesday and Friday mornings. He cried "a little bit" again, but did pretty well, from what they tell me.

After we got home I asked him about school and what he did. I asked him if he played with some new friends and he said, "Yes!" Then I asked him if he knew the names of any of his friends and he said:

"Uhhh, yes... BOY!"

Maybe you had to be there, but hopefully you'll get a giggle too. :)

27 months old!

Today Thomas is 27 months old. After all those months, he still never stops finding ways to make us smile.



The biggest development this past month has been his language. It almost seems like overnight he went from 3-4 word sentences to sentences of many, many words. It's so interesting to watch this develop. At first he'd get a little tongue-tied and jumble his words together if he tried saying too much too fast. I'd encourage him and tell him, "It's okay, slow down and you can do it." ANd he would. Now he often tries to say things quickly and repetitively, just to show off, I think. Like he will say, "Mommy & Daddy & Parker & Thomas go outside...Mommy & Daddy & Thomas & Parker...Parker & Thomas and Mommy and Daddy go outside!!!" And then he laughs at himself. :)

It's amazing to hear the things he has picked up when you don't realize he is paying attention. And he has a great memory. I'm always surprised at the things he can remember. We went in a children's shop the other day and it was one we had not visited since right after Christmas. He walked in the door and straight to the back right corner (where the kids' play area was). I was floored! Things like this seem to happen all the time. And now that he talks more, I guess he's just more able to tell me things he wants to say.

He can now correctly count from 1-10, all by himself. And he still knows almost all of the letters of the alphabet, though he's still working on actually saying his ABC's. He does know more of the song though (I'd say about half, maybe). He also loves "the Jesus song" and sometimes I hear him say while in his crib, "Daddy says Jesus loves ME!!!!" This would be because his Daddy taught him the song. So sweet. His other favorites are The Itsy-Bitsy Spider and Twinkle Twinkle. He throws out a word here and there, but he's not quite singing along just yet.

As all 2-year olds should be, he is a messer player. I had to take a picture of his table the other day because it's so typical of play/snack time with him.


Let's see.... He's very into dumping out any food I give him. Here he said he had to dump his raisins on the truck. Then he wiped them off with his Daddy's hairbrush (which he just HAD to bring downstairs earlier in the day). And, you might can tell that he also has decided that the windowsill would look much better with a splash of purple crayon. Thank goodness that Crayola has mastered the art of making things washable.

He is not a great eater, still, but we do the best we can. It sure would be a lot easier if he could eat dairy, but here we are, still unable to add it to his diet. We still try things from time to time and sometimes they give no reaction, but most of the time, he ends up with a nasty flareup of eczema and sometimes some stomach issues. It's frustrating, but what can you do? Trey let him have a small bite of ice cream sandwich the other day and I was so hopeful it was going to be okay, but within a few hours, his bright red rash was on the backs of his legs. I hope Parker can outgrow this sooner!

One thing that has helped us get Thomas to eat more lately (and I know it will wear out soon!), is the "Nannie cookie." Nannie made him some cookies a month or so ago. They are oatmeal raisin cookies with no dairy and made with applesauce instead of oil/butter. I think I've let my mom convince me they are health food or something, but then again, they are a great tool for bribery so I go with it. "Thomas want Nannie cookie," he'll say...and I'll say, "You have to eat your dinner first." And he'll eat! My mom has done a great job of keeping us stocked up on them, and sometimes Thomas & I mix up a batch to supplement. He likes that part just fine:


Nannie cookies are best when worn, he says:


He also loves the water and wants to play in whatever water he can find. The other day it started pouring down rain right after dinner. He asked me if he could go outside and play in the rain ("Thomas go outside play rain!") and since I didn't hear any thunder, I agreed. It was pouring, but he didn't care one bit!




I finally got him to come back to the porch and I dried him off in hopes of taking him inside, but he had other plans. You see, his Daddy started something with him a while back called "SUPERBABY!" After he gets dried off from his nightly bath, he likes to wear the towel on his head because it makes him "Superbaby!" Trey calls him "Supes!" and Thomas loves it. After his bath THomas will say excitedly, "Be Supes! Be Supes Daddy!" So anyway, after I dried him off all he wanted to do was "be supes" and run back in the rain...


Now for as much as Thomas is a pure delight, he also has shown us all about the terrible twos. He seems to be getting a little better, but he can defintely be defiant, usually when he is tired. He tests his boundaries and throws food and fits, but for the most part, he is a good little boy. If nothing else, I'm always thankful that when we are out and about he listens very well and never runs off from me in parking lots and such, even when I can't have my hands on him every second (he has learned to hold onto my pocket quite well!).

I can't believe another month has passed us by and sometimes I feel like if I sleep too long one day I will wake up and he'll be in kindergarten. I hope not. It is a sad thing that they do have to grow up, isn't it? It's moments like these that make me want to keep them this young and innocent forever!

Shhhhh....baby sleeping!

I probably shouldn't say a word. So I'll whisper. Parker has slept through the night for four of the past five nights (and the one night he made it until 4:30). He's 11 weeks old. Thomas didn't sleep through the night until he was 11 MONTHS old. I'm not kidding. However, the difference is something that might mean Parker will have a greater need for an orthodontist. You see, when he sleeps through the night, this is why:


The only bad thing is that I've had to change his sheets daily lately (as you can see, nasty as it is, in the picture above). His diapers can't seem to hold up to sleeping 10-11 hours straight. But I'll take a daily sheet change over waking up in the middle of the night any day!



Even me taking these pictures around 7 yesterday didn't stir him. And this morning, I'm going to have to go get him up in a moment because he quite obviously is in need of a diaper change. I hear him sucking hard on his finger right at this very moment. Let's hope this fabulous behavior continues!

First came school, then came quarantine

Thomas was supposed to have "school"/camp last week on MWF half days. I was anxious about it a bit since ever since his last time there last month every time we talk about school Thomas says, "Thomas cry school." And this would be because Thomas does, in fact, cry at school. In June he went two weeks in a row, just on Tuesday and Thursday mornings. The second week he pretty much cried the whole time he was there. They even asked me to leave his paci and children aren't supposed to have pacis there. Ugh.

So anyway, last Monday I took him back and as soon as we started getting out the car, the sadness started setting in. His bottom lip started quivering and he started saying, "Mommy come back?" over and over again. I tried to ease him into the room, but he was wise to me. The teacher had another crying child that day and I could tell she was a bit anxious about having two criers that day. But as they tell me to do, I told him goodbye and left. As I was going out the door Thomas started crying pretty hard. He was gagging himself a little bit, but I left. Well, I didn't even make it to the car before a teacher came out and said "Ma'am!?! He just threw up." Lovely. After assuring them that he was not sick, that he just gagged himself until he threw up, they were okay with him staying and they encouraged me to hang around for a bit longer. So I did. Eventually I left and when I came back at the appointed time they said he ended up having a pretty good day. Whew. He actually participated with the art project (more than he had been doing) and when I asked Thomas if he had fun at school he said, "Thomas cry school a little bit." Progress, no? :)

Unfortunately later that day I realized that what I thought were ant bites on the palms of his hands had multiplied (I had first noticed them the previous Thursday). After some Googling, I realized he must have picked up Hand, Foot, Mouth Disease when he went to the doctor for a vaccination the previous week (Monday nearly two weeks ago). I felt terrible that he had been at school while possibly contagious and I felt bad that we paid for the week and he wasn't able to return! He never ran a fever, that I noticed though, and from what everyone tells me, this must have been a very, very mild case. I tried to take a picture, but my jitterbug wouldn't stay still enough!




This doesn't look like the face of a sick boy, does it?


Those pictures were a week ago. I think the spots are finally clearing up and I hope we can be out of self-imposed quarantine this week! And next week he heads back to school for the last camp session before he starts for real on August 26.

Oh, and Parker, as you can see, thinks it is all a bit funny. I just hope he doesn't get it!

Know when to make 'em, know when to break 'em

I've been trying to get around to making this post since Monday (or maybe it was Tuesday) when I took the pictures. Which makes the gist of what I plan to say a bit ironic. Apparently I don't have things as under control as I would like to think. And a few people know about my little meltdown this week, so again...maybe I'm not supermom after all. :)

But what I was going to say was how people are constantly asking me "How do you manage to do it all when your husband is gone so much?" And for me, the answer is...the truth is...you learn it's okay to break some rules sometimes. And these rules would be my rules. And this is a picture of one rule being broken...


Before Thomas was born I decided to follow the recommendation of the American Academy of Pediatrics and not allow Thomas to watch television (and when I could help it, not even have it on when he was in the room, even as a baby) until he was 2. Now this is not to say that if any of my fellow mommies out there choose to allow their toddlers and infants to be exposed to the television it's a bad thing. It's just not our choice. I remember my friend Nancy blogged about this subject not too long ago. In the end, we all want what's best for our children and we make personal choices to that end.

We have done pretty well with this goal (and I've come to really enjoy the peace and quiet it allows to not have the TV on all day long, as I used to do just for background noise). And now that he is 2, I planned to limit his television watching to one hour of age-appropriate programming a day. But now that I have a baby thrown into the mix and I often have to figure out how to feed two kids, fix dinner, clean the house, bathe the kids, etc. all by myself much of the time, I learned that the TV and DVDs can sometimes be my friend. This is a rule that gets broken (though I still keep it under 1.5-2 hours/day). Pretty much all he watches are Sesame Street & Bob the Builder. In the end, I don't think Thomas will be harmed, and I know I will be much better off!

The other rule involves Parker. Now I know that when I was a baby, everyone thought babies should sleep on their stomachs. And nowadays the American Academy of Pediatrics feels it's best for babies to sleep on their backs. Well, I've learned lately that in the afternoon I can be very productive and have some playtime with Thomas before I fix dinner and get him fed if I allow this:


And if you can't see that well enough, here's a better picture:


Parker sleeps so well... I mean, he sleeps like a baby if I let him do this in the afternoon. So I break another rule (and I constantly watch him on the video monitor...not sure how we lived without that thing with Thomas).

I'm no Supermom and if there is one thing I have learned, it's that I'm quite human. We all have good days and bad days. And in the end, we just have to do what works to make it through the day. I'll try to keep my rule breaking to a minimum, but when it's necessary, I won't be afraid to do it!

Daddy's favorite shirt

I think I won big points with my husband last week. He was probably a bit skeptical when I told him I bought an article of clothing for Thomas that he (Trey) was going to love. After seeing me buy one too many (in his eyes) sunsuits, rompers and jon-jons (which he generally thinks are too girly/baby), I guess I understand his skeptism. So he was mighty surprised and quite pleased when he saw Thomas wearing this:


If you are a fan of the movie Animal House and/or John Belushi, you will get the reference.

Thomas decided it was the perfect outfit for playing in the drizzling rain:


And for going to the Children's Museum with his friend J (J not pictured...):


And for helping Mommy make cupcakes (while he talks on the phone to his Nana):


He got cupcakes on his mind that morning when his Daddy read him The Very Hungry Caterpillar. One of the many things the caterpillar eats is a cupcake so Thomas came down to me saying, "Want cupcakes!" I'm not sure he really knew what he was asking for, but since I have quite the sweet tooth I was happy to oblige. Since I am now also on the dairy-free diet with Thomas, I just love that Duncan Hines makes baking products that fill that need. Thank you Duncan Hines! :) Once they were made, Thomas wasn't really that interested (as I didn't think he would be...he does not seem to have his mother's need for sugar!), but we had fun making them together nonetheless. He does at least enjoy giving the beater a good lick or two...



And not to leave off Parker, here he is with his best, "What have you done to my hair, lady?" look:

A Happy Fourth

Our new family of four spent the weekend of the Fourth with Nana & Umpa. We all had a great time and it was nice to introduce Parker to his grandparents' house.



We also got to spend some time with Nana's sister and her family. Here are the two sisters holding our two boys:


Parker was able to meet some of the locals, but I fear his fussiness might have left a bad impression. Hopefully he can be a little better behaved and not show off so much on his next trip. :) His Umpa seemed to have the trick in helping him doze:


And Thomas had a blast, as usual:


He enjoyed his new fire truck very much and took it with him outside:


And he took it with him when his Umpa (and Nana) took him to the local fire department:


Sometimes I very much agree with the sentiment of this picture (the boy can have his moods!):


Since Thomas is the IV, it's always neat to me when we can get the three generations of fellas with the same name in the same picture. Here they are:


And that is not our dog in the picture. This was our first trip we had to leave her behind. Having Parker and his gear has, for the time being, eliminated space for her on the trip. Hopefully we can find a way to take her next time, as she loves to go too. And hopefully the solution is something other than buying a new car! Many thanks to Nannie & Papa for keeping her for us...especially on a fireworks-filled weekend with our very skiddish dog!

Two month WBV

Parker is Mr. Fussyman lately but I've finally snagged a few minutes before Thomas awakes thanks to the helpful swing. Today Parker had his 2-month WBV (and Thomas tagged along and got a shot too just not to be left out-- well, kind of, he was due for his chicken pox vax). And now it's official, our little man is not so little! He thinks it's pretty funny, see?



His stats...
Weight: 14 pounds, 12 ounces (97th percentile!!)
Height: 24 inches (90th percentile)
Head: 16.25 inches/41.3 cm (not sure of percentile)

This compares with Thomas at that stage...
Weight: 13 lbs, 2 oz. (75th percentile)
Height: 23.5 inches (75th percentile)
Head circ: 39 cm (25th percentile)

It is possible Parker's weight was increased due to a slightly wet diaper (Thomas's former pediatrician always stripped him down to his birthday suit before weighing), but still! I guess the nursing thing is going just fine. ;-)

Parker had one shot today (three vaccines), and here he is sporting his bandaid.


Compare that to Thomas at two months, sporting his post 2-month WBV band-aids:


And a few more of Parker.... The mysterious hand there would, of course, be his brother's. He can't seem to let him have the limelight ever!





The doctor said everything seems great with Parker. He is a healthy, growing baby boy!

Swimming with and checking out the fishies

Last week I took the boys for an overnight visit at my parents' house because my car needed a little work and I've recently discovered that the best way to take care of that while Trey is out of town is to head up their way. While waiting for my car, I took the boys down to the lake. Unfortunately the water has dropped a few feet in the past few weeks, but it still worked just fine (with more beach!).




I forgot Thomas's newer hat and had to use this one from last summer. It was a tiny bit small...





The dog, as usual, enjoyed the lake more than anyone...


And I say that I took "the boys" down to the lake. Parker never actually went in the water, he just supervised...or napped...from his perch on the shore. Thomas made sure we both went and checked on him frequently...




He's a little too big for his beachwear:


Thomas and I had a good time playing in the water and building sand castles (or garages for his cars, rather). And Thomas is getting braver and braver with getting in the water.




As usual, I take too many pictures and never can pick between them, so I post too many here...




All in all, it was a great day and a wonderful time. We look forward to more time this summer down at our own little private "beach." :) It sure makes it much easier for me to take both boys all by myself!


That was Tuesday, then on Wednesday we met some folks (a friend (Lily's mom!) and her two kids and my sister-in-law B (who's also a friend!) and her little girl/my niece, Eliza). They were all patient with us as we were terribly late and then once we arrived I somehow managed to leave my wallet in the car and had to run back to it with Parker wrapped on my chest, but we had a good time nonetheless.

Here's the crew taking a little break:


Eliza is six weeks older than Parker and Lily's little sister, Sarah Ellen, is six weeks younger than Parker. My boys are surrounded by girls! All my friends seem to have girls (Caroline, I'm holding out for you!)!!

Lily & Thomas checked out the fish:


And poor Lily was teething and not feeling much like posing for a picture. And Thomas, well he never likes to cooperate with picture taking lately!


I only have one matching outfit so far for the boys. It's this silly little t-shirt from Carter's, but I thought it was fitting for the aquarium...


I couldn't resist. And Thomas can't resist being a ham...


We definitely had a fish-filled week last week, but it was all a lot of fun!