Buncha turkeys

Happy Thanksgiving! Today we went to my mother-in-law's house for Thanksgiving. Judy and I took Ellie out on the paddle boat. Ellie loved it, but I think my legs will be feeling it tomorrow. I needed to work off all that fudge I ate. The holidays are the worst time to be trying to get back into shape. I can't stay away from the desserts!

Ellie was so worn out that she fell asleep on the car ride home. Now, Ellie, Jack, and Tom are all napping so I am taking advantage of this rare moment of "me" time to catch up on blogging and, of course, eat some more fudge.
We are slipping into a nice routine around here. Jack likes to stay up til 11 or 12 and then he wakes up to nurse around 2 and again at 5. Ellie wakes up at around 7 and I am still trying to "train" her to not come in and wake me up. Every night, I set out some Goldfish or cereal for her and have the TV set to Nick Jr. Then, I tell her multiple times when I put her to bed to please, please, please not wake Mommy up in the morning. It hasn't worked yet, but I keep hoping. Every day we try to go somewhere whether it be to the library or to the grocery store. Then, when Tom gets home from work, Ellie and I go "exploring" which really just means a walk around the neighborhood. But I look forward to that one on one time with Ellie. So much of my day is spent taking care of Jack that I feel Ellie gets a bit neglected. I get so proud of myself when I successfully take both kids somewhere...I seem to forget that my mom used to haul all 7 of us kids all over the place. Of course, she would occasionally forget one of us...just a casualty of being part of a big family! Heehee.

Random Bullets

• Sabrina organized a fun girls' night out last night where we all went to see New Moon. Loved it! Might have to reread the series again for the 4th time. It was my first night out without any children since having Jack 6 weeks ago. I pumped a bottle before I left, but let's just say I was hurting by the nights end. Jacob made it all worth it, though.
• The Pioneer Woman will be signing copies of her cookbook in Houston on Dec. 5. The day after my birthday! I so want to go, but not sure it will be worth it to stand in a long line with an infant strapped to me.
• Ellie has been crazy today. She threw a massive tantrum that left Tom and I completely bewildered. Then she fell asleep, taking her first nap in like a year.
• I am trying to make my Christmas gifts more personal this year. It is so time consuming and not at all cheaper and I am kind of wishing I had just purchased gift cards for everyone! It's like my short stint at being a stay at home mom is giving me delusions of being the thoughtful/creative type.
• I've been doing a lot of baking lately. Not cooking. Baking. And so I said I needed to stop baking because I just had a baby already and need to lose some weight. But guess where Tom is right now? At the grocery store buying us some cookies. Because I am not baking anymore. Probably not the best diet plan.
  

Things I love...

• My Baby Bjorn - this was given to me by Alex (hi!) when I had Ellie, but I didn't really use it because why would I want to stick my sweet, shiny baby in a carrier when I could hold her in my arms at all times? I mean, I had nothing better to do, right? This time, Jack gets planted in that carrier as soon as he starts getting too fussy. Plus, he has digestive issues (meaning he cries and struggles every time he has to poo or pass gas...you wanted that clarification, right?) and being pressed against me in the Bjorn really seems to soothe his tummy. In case you are wondering (and I know you were) he is sleeping in it right now as I type. A must for every second child.
• Nursing tank tops - I wish I had discovered these when I had Ellie. They are awesome. Seriously, I can nurse and still have my flabby tummy and muffin top covered. Plus? Way more comfortable than nursing bras. I bought two at Walmart and two at Target. Walmart's are $3 cheaper, but Targets are a little longer and thicker. Just FYI.
• AngelCare monitor - Again, wish I had purchased for Ellie. Would have saved me so many trips to check to see if she was breathing. Jack is still in the bassinet next to my bed at night, and this is a crib monitor, but I use it in the daytime for his naps because, shhhh, Jack naps on his tummy. At night, I prop him on his side in one of those wedge things, but again, the tummy sleeping seems to help him with his digestive issues and I don't freak out as much since that alarm will sound loud and clear if he doesn't breathe for 30 seconds. A little pricey, but so worth peace of mind.
• Glider - this was a gift from my mother-in-law and I love it. With Ellie, I just used the recliner and it was dang hard getting out of that seat. The glider is in my bedroom and makes nighttime nursing so much better.
• Boppy - okay, I loved this last time around, too, but seriously, Boppys (or Boppies?) are a must. I have two and kind of wish I had a third!

My crazy kid

Getting Ellie to clean is a daily struggle. She will often take things and hide them in drawers or in the closet or under her covers rather than putting them away. This drives me crazy because it takes more effort to hide them than to put them in their correct places. The other day, Ellie completely trashed her room. So I shut the door and told her she couldn't come out until it was all clean. I walk into the room and at first glance, I am somewhat impressed. Not great, but definitely an improvement.

Then, I look to my right and notice she has draped a blanket from the corner of her bed to the closet door. Take a wild guess what was behind the blanket?

Unbelievable.

Of course, I laughed to myself, but I didn't let her see it. Other things keeping me laughing? Ellie's determination to do her own hair. She had something like 8 barrettes in her hair in this picture: And here she has a barrette, a ponytail, AND a headband. So pretty.

Weekend recap

This was such a busy weekend! Tom was going out of town for the state cross country meet, so Ellie, Jack, and I drove to Beaumont to stay with my parents. My cousin that I have only met a few times was in town to get some dental work done (3 root canals from her cousin Mark), so she hitched a ride with us. Poor girl, we had only been on the road for 10 minutes before she threw up all over herself and my car. She was horrified. I would like to think the sickness was the result of all that dental work and not my driving. Anyway, after a nice relaxing weekend at my parent's where Jack actually slept for four straight hours, we returned home for Tara's birthday party the following day.

Jack slept through the party, but it was rather nice to have my hands free to enjoy the yummy brisket and cake!

Here is Ellie cuddling her cousin, Brannon. They are so cute together. I can see all three cousins being great friends in a couple of years when they can all chase each other around.

Dear Jack - Month One

Dear Jack,

Today you are one month old! I didn't start the monthly letters for your sister until she was 5 months old, so I had a lot more milestones to include in her first letter. What do I put in your first letter? That you can hold your own head up unsupported? Way to go, little man! As Ellie likes to say on a daily basis, "Babies just sleep and eat and poo and cry." That about covers it. I would like to say that you often prefer to do your sleeping during the daytime and the eating, pooing, and crying at nighttime. Hopefully that will have changed by your two month letter.

Before you were born, I braced myself for the sleepless nights and the surge of hormones. I was so focused on preparing myself for the hard stuff that I forgot all about the sweetness of newborns. I love how you snuggle on my chest. I love the way you smell. I love those inadvertent smiles as you are falling asleep. I love your incredibly long fingers and toes. I love the way your lower lip will stick out in a pout when you make your "sad face." But most of all, I love your sweet spirit.

I feel so much more relaxed with you than I was with your sister. I can tell when you are hungry, when you are tired, when you are going poo, and when you just really need to burp. And really, those are the only times you cry. You always have a reason and they are pretty easy to remedy.

You are so lucky to have a big sister like Ellie. She is already your protector. Yesterday, we left you with your Daddy while Ellie and I went for a walk. Ellie didn't know your daddy had come home and she was so alarmed, informing me, "We CAN'T leave Jack alone!" She also loves to sing you songs, her favorite is "I am a Child of God." She is so gentle and loving with you.

Jack, you are such a great addition to our family. And I am saying that on only three hours of sleep (if you let me have more, this letter would have sounded better, but I would still love you just as much). You are amazing and we love you. I look forward to getting to know you more and more every day.

Love,

Mama

In the trenches

I woke up this morning in horrible pain. I'm talking waves of sharp pain in my stomach. This really freaked me out since I just had abdominal surgery and all, but I soon realized I merely had a case of the stomach bug. Not fun, but I'd survive. However, each time the pain hit, it would take my breath away and cause me to double over. So, poor Ellie got placed in front of the television with a bag of goldfish and Jack and I lay in bed for awhile. Jack seemed to be suffering from a stomach bug, too, so he was ultra fussy. I just let him use me as a human pacifier most of the day. Luckily, Sabrina came by to take Ellie to the park. Sabrina rocks. We were supposed to have a pizza party at my house tonight while our husbands were away at the regional cross country meet, but I figured I wouldn't expose the pregnant lady who already throws up enough. The pain finally went away this evening in time for me to bathe both my kids and read Ellie several stories. Ellie was a dream today, moving up two whole spots on her good choices chart! Here's hoping for a somewhat restful night and a better day tomorrow!

state of the union

My little sister and niece have been staying with me the past few days. It was so nice having another adult around to talk to and laugh with while the kids entertained each other. Well, I had to entertain Jack myself by nursing him all the freaking time, but at least I had Dianna around to talk to while I was confined to the recliner. I dropped them off at the airport this morning and now my house seems empty. Ellie keeps coming in to tell me, "Mom, my cousin is gone. I am so sad." Poor kid.

I bought Ellie a second booster seat for Tom's car and the girls looked so cute sitting side by side in their matching boosters. Unfortunately, they fought every single time we got into the car about who got to sit in the middle (closer to baby Jack). Ellie is still having adjustment issues (ie. not listening AT ALL) so I busted out the "Good Choices, Bad Choices" chart this week and put it on the fridge. If she can get the magnet all the way to the far right in Good Choices, then she gets a doctor's set that I had originally bought Kolby for Christmas (sorry, Kolby...although Ellie may never actually make it all the way to the right).

Halloween

It has become tradition that we spend Halloween with Daniel and Sabrina's family. So, yesterday, we went over to their house for chili, hot apple cider, cookies, and, of course, trick or treating. This year Ellie was really excited about trick or treating. She kept running ahead to the next house. She was dressed as Cinderella and kept tripping over her petticoat. The best part was when she lost her shoe. Way to stay in character, Ellie. On the way home, Ellie asked if she could go trick or treating again tomorrow. She just couldn't quite grasp the concept that Halloween is only one day a year.

Here are all the kids racing to the neighbor's door:
Ellie and Olivia were supposed to be posing with those mini pumpkins:
Not exactly the face of a princess:

This is more like it:

And, of course, my hungry little bear: