Brotherly Love

Clashing shades of red never looked so cute.

Happy Valentine's Day!

No Longer a Newborn

There are a number of things that serve as evidence for that title: size two diapers, six month onesies, and sleeping for six hours at night are a few that come to mind.

But here's another one.

Luke slept in his crib last night.

No more hanging out in mom and dad's room to keep us company (or awake).  The move pretty much came from necessity.  Sweet Luke is so darn big that he was uncomfortable in the rock and play and not sleeping well.  He hates the pack and play, which was also in our room.  I wish I knew why that thing was so uncomfortable.  Both of my boys have hated it as infants.

So we were left with our bed or his.  And since I keep hearing the Baby Whisperer say, "Start as you mean to go on," in my head, it was definitely his.

The night went pretty well, especially considering that Luke has hated sleeping flat on his back.  I still think he's not a big fan, but he's adjusting.  Waking up about 30 minutes before I expected for a feeding wasn't too bad for the first night.  It may, actually, be harder on Noah as he gets used to hearing a screamer in the middle of the night right next door.

Part of me missed him being 'right there,' but another part of me was also happy to turn on the bathroom light in the morning or just have a conversation with Nate at a normal volume.  Oh how things change with child #2.  Good job Luke.  You're growing up!

Sick.

Is this not the saddest face ever?

Noah got nailed with a pretty rotten cold.

It seemed fairly standard for the first two days, but Tuesday night things changed a bit.  I picked Noah up for bed, and he was hot.  Like, really hot.  He was in pretty good spirits, so I didn't think it was too bad, but I got the thermometer.  The reading of 105.3 caused me to try it again the most 'accurate' way, and the result was the same.

Thankfully my sister and Jason were already at our house. (Um, she has been bringing us dinner every Tuesday since the busy season started.  Awesome, right?)  They hung out with my sleeping Luke while I called the advice nurse and pediatrician and then headed off to urgent care.

There were three people ahead of us, but when I mentioned Noah's temperature reading, we were put at the front of the line and seen within five minutes.  Look at those hot, pink cheeks.

The doctor was calm, but honest, and let me know that if Noah's fever couldn't be reduced quickly with medication we would be off to the ER.  A high fever like that can lead to some bad stuff for a little guy.

Great.

I felt really comfortable about the whole situation and mostly just wanted to get some kind of treatment started.  And, thank goodness, that treatment worked, and he was back in the 101 range.  Noah was a champ during the exam and even waved to the doctor.

By ten o'clock we were headed back home.  While the fever hasn't gone that high again, our usually over-the-top happy guy is still pretty miserable.  He's got lots of coughing, a bit of a fever and sure is needy.  You know a kid is sick when he doesn't even want ice cream.

This morning he fell asleep on my shoulder while I was feeding Luke.

I can't wait to have THIS guy back in a day or two:

Me, I'm worn out.  These two boys are keeping me busy -- day and night.  But I keep having that phrase, "Forget yourself and go to work," weave itself into my thoughts.  Yes, I'm aching for some 'me' time, but it's temporary.  I really am, above all, grateful.  It's amazing how quality, accessible medical care, simple medication and prayer can serve as the perfect combination for healing.

And, as exhausting as it is, having your little one want YOU for comfort and healing is motivation to love MORE in every way so that he always comes to you when he's hurting.

Zeezas, Roars...and a Turtle

While we were on a walk last week Noah started talking about seeing the 'zeezas' (zebras) and 'roars' (lions) at the zoo.  And, he kept talking about it (and talking about it some more), so we made a date with Mads and Amy to go.

This morning he woke up saying, "Ads? Mamy? Zoo?"  Yes, Noah today is the day we're going with Mads and Amy to the zoo.

I was way too busy with a two year old and two month old to take a lot of pictures, but we sure had a lot of fun on this sunny January day.

The boys loved seeing the 'zeezas,' 'roars,' 'affs' (giraffes), and 'ee-ee-oo-oos' (monkeys).

But this time there were also some docents out with other animals that they could get really close to, like this 85 year old turtle.

I was too busy dealing with a fussy Luke and trying to take a picture to remember what this little guy is, but Noah sure liked him.

And we finished off our time at the zoo with the boys' favorite, a train ride. I'm pretty sure they'd be happy if we came to the zoo just to ride the train and then went home.

Luke was pretty much a champ.  He spent his time at the zoo sleeping, eating, fussing just a little, and then sleeping some more.  I sure love that guy for being cooperative and sweet so much of the time.

Can't wait to go back!

The Guys

A little over a year ago, I started taking Noah to the gym with me.  Each day we'd walk by the racquetball courts on our way to the childcare.  There are some regulars who play and we'd always say hello to them.

Noah is pretty friendly and comfortable in most situations, so smiling and waving turned into high fives and even blowing kisses as he got older.  His 'Guys,' as we call them, have been very generous and probably given Noah a total of twenty racquetballs.  Over the summer one of them asked if it would be o.k. to bring his old racquet for Noah to have.  Wow, was Noah sure excited about that one.  The Guys all cheer "Noah" when they see him and even stop their game and leave the court to come out and say hello.

They're pretty awesome.

So on Monday I got a call from the gym.  I was sure it was because I haven't been much since Luke joined our family, and they were wondering if I was ever coming back.  (I wonder that too...)  But really they called because Terry and Jim, two of the Guys, have had a present for Noah and wanted us to give them a call so Noah could have it.

Today was the day.  Noah woke up saying, "A gym? A gym? Guys?"  He's missed it too and asks to go a LOT.  After walking in, we rounded the corner and, just like always, heard the guys say, "Noah!" in unison.  They excitedly gave Noah his present, all wrapped up. And, of course, they had another racquetball for him.

Here's a little clip of the experience.  I wish I would have taken more:


Those sweet Guys sure know our Noah.

He felt pretty special to have a new, big dump truck from his buddies.  So far he's dumped blocks and cars out of the back and given his bear and Elmo a ride.  Sure do love those guys and how, each and every day we've been to the gym, they've made our Noah feel special and important.

Two Months

Luke is two months old!

And to celebrate, his mean mom took him for his first shots.

It was rough.  Luke has never cried like that.  Real tears were spilling out of his eyes, and he was a bit of a mess.

Shots aside, I was anxiously awaiting his growth measurements:

Height: 24 inches (89%)

Weight: 14 pounds, 7 ounces (89%)

Head Circumference: 41 centimeters (93%)

He weighs two more pounds than Noah did at this point and  is quite the little meatball.  I love it.

This round-faced guy is getting chubbier by the day.  That double chin is coming in nicely.  He loves to eat and is a feisty one at meal times.  He grunts, gulps and burps constantly.  Manners are definitely not his specialty at this point.

Right around the 6 week mark we started seeing tiny smiles.  Day by day they have gotten a little bigger and now Luke really interacts by smiling.  Melt my heart.

A few other things to remember about the month include:

* He's on a schedule!  Oh, we both needed this to happen.  To have some kind of predictability and routine is saving me.  Three naps a day is working well for us all -- although I can't wait until it drops down to two.

* Staying healthy while the rest of us each battled some form of that nasty stomach flu. 

* Luke has quite the old man hairline as it continues to recede.  He's also got a nice case of cradle cap that is taking its time to resolve.

* He is noisy -- and not just at meal times.  The early morning hours are the worst, but he is a noisy sleeper pretty much all night long.  Most of the time it's this annoying goat-like sound that wakes us up.  But he IS sleeping for longer stretches, usually for five and a half or six hours during the night.  Thank goodness.

* Luke won't sleep flat on his back.  Right now it's not much of an issue, because he's still in the rock and play (best thing ever, by the way), but at some point he's got to make the transition.  I keep trying, and he keeps letting me know that he hates it.  Eventually, right?

We're in the thick of the busy season and balancing this two kid thing on my own has taken some time.  A schedule and a little more sleep at night is making it easier.  I'm so grateful for the help of family and play dates with friends.  I think I need the social time just as much as Noah does right now.  It's hard to believe baby Luke has only been a part of our family for two months.   These boys are pure sunshine on even the dreariest days.  We are so blessed.

These Guys...

I might just be that mom who is excited to dress her boys alike -- or at least very, very similar.

We joke that my side of the family bleeds blue, because we have three generations of BYU alumni.  These little Cougars would make it four.  Might as well start planting a seed for college aspiration early, right?