Happy Fall!

In honor of fall: HUT HUT HUT HIKE:


My favorite season has begun... Crisp weather, roast chicken in the oven, long sleeves, changing leaves, football, and so much more. I LOVE the fall :)

Goals this week- decorate! I need to dig out my fall stuff. Also I need to get on top of finding a storage center for our guest furniture- although I debated putting it in the basement. Our basement is large- and used as a playroom. We really should get a storage unit, but the idea of paying for it monthly for 3-4 yrs hurts. I think if we don't get it though I will regret it and feel like we are crunched for space once 2 little ones are in the house. Already- the laundry room has become a storage closet and we have stuff in the play area that needs to go. I would store the furniture as well as seasonal stuff that I could easily go and pick up as needed- it would open up so much space. So yeah- I need to get that done, then arrange movers, then get the room we are emptying painted. We ordered Brooks furniture so I need to do all this within the next month or two.

Squeaks- I had my monthly appt. Things looked well- my dr was a little concerned that I have lost 12 lbs. She said she doesn't want me losing too much and discussed anti nausea meds. The thing is- I have been throwing up, but not that often- and it is not inhibiting more than 3-4 meals a week, not enough to go on meds for. The more I think about it- I bet the reason I have lost this much in the past 2 months is that 2 months ago Brooks started walking and all I do all day is chase him around. My BP was 125/60. Perfectly normal. However, I am still perturbed because my doctor labeled me as high risk, chronic hypertension. Chronic meaning that I have high BP- not just pg related. My BP has never been an issue outside of pg, and even in pg it is fine half the time. I hate being labeled. I hate it. Especially because it means that I am going to have a bazillion appts again- she said twice weekly NSTs at the end this time! How the f am I goingt o manage that with Brooks? Seriously- it is making me super stressed and we are not even there yet. But on the sunny side of all this- I get growth u/s's every 4 weeks starting at 28 weeks- that is exciting :)

Brooks- is amazing :) We had our 15 month well visit today. My big boy is 23 lbs 6 oz (which I thought was a lot! But it is still only 30%). He is 32 " (75%) and 18" head (75%). He is right on track with everything- we should be experiencing a language explosion within the next few months which is exciting as he gets pissy when he is frustrated about communicating what he wants. He also gets pissy when he doesn't get his way LOL. He is running everywhere, exploring everything, and just a happy little guy. LOVE HIM!

And some pictures.

Friends of ours had cookie monster visit their son's 1st bday party!





Brooks imitates everything- I wish he was effective at it, then cleaning up his breakfast would be great :)



Lator Gator!!


Always stealing my keys


Look Mom, it's my punching balloon!!!


I'm gonna make you get it for me!


And some pictures from the park b/c we go every day :) Such a boy now and less of a baby
!






Mischief Maker!

Must get better...

at blogging. This is probably a record long between entries.

The run down...

Brooks- is doing wonderful. He is walking everywhere and continues to get more stable. He is also climbing and getting closer to the top of steps which is scary as hell. His comprehension is unbelievable- he really pretty much understands everything we say that is familiar to him (want to eat, where are your shoes, want to go to xxx, time for a bath, etc). We are still somewhere in between 2 and 1 naps. It all depends on wakeup time. He exhausts me. I think we are entering a bit of a tantrum age b/c he is trying to express himself and his wants, but really can't. I try to get him to show me what he wants, but sometimes if I keep getting it wrong he gets more pissed. It is sad (and sometimes funny) all at once.

Squeaks- all seems well. I think I am beginning to feel stuff. I got my first stranger comment today about my having another one on the way. I am still puking 4-5 times a week (blech). I am down 11 lbs as of now. I love having the home doppler for quick checks

Eric & I- are great. We just got back from a long weekend at the Atlantis in the Bahamas- an anniversary surprise from Eric. My parents watched B from Thurs-Sun and all 3 of them had a blast. He was great for them and of course they enjoyed every second of it. They took him to a small local zoo- and the day after they were there a leopard escaped!!! It was so nice to sleep, lounge, swim, go out, etc. Sure I missed him, but I think we all need grown up time once in a while.

That was my super quick update... here are some pics

Our vacation:



And some pics of B from the last 3 weeks

static sliding



Back to footie pj's. He has learned to remove his pants and has been pulling down the front of his diaper.

4 little fingers make bruises on my arm- I believe going into a public restroom caused this.

obsessed with brushing my hair, and has started brushing his own

On a date ;)

And never let it be said our kid doesnt have style. This big boy is working on spoon feeding himself with applesauce. This results in a mess- all over- including his hair. When I removed his messy shirt, it styled his hair with the applesauce acting as gel. He looked quite comical. He ran around the kitchen playing with magnets, banging on the dishwasher and stove (and kissing his reflection in them) opening cabinets and trying to open locked ones- I think he enjoyed himself.





gotta love the handprints :)

Hello 2nd Trimester!

WOW- when people say 2nd pregnancies fly- it is no joke. I finally put a ticker up on the side of the blog- I am officially 2nd tri and we had our NT scan yesterday. The u/s was great- everything looked good. I was a little nervous at first b/c Squeaks was not moving at all- but s/he was just very asleep. After about 20 minutes of the tech embarassingly jiggling my belly flab and having me flip and cough, the kiddo woke up and was zip, zip, zooming all over the ute. She had a hard time getting a picture in the beginning b/c Squeaks was curled up in the corner, then a hard time in the end b/c Squeaks was crazy all over the place. My monthly appt was last Friday. BP was good, I am down 7 lbs and showing more than I was halfway with B- it is nuts!
Brooks came with us- he woke from a nap at 11, the appt was at 1:30, and we got home at 4- the kid was an amazing tropper- he was so well behaved and I am so proud of him. He totally passed out as soon as we got home.

Some pics of Squeaks: the profile is really blurry and not that great, but the 2nd shot you can see the little hands waving in the air!




In other news- Brooks is doing pretty well. I have so many things I want to blog about, but if I did the post would be ridiculously long. A quick overview-
* He is learning at an amazing rate. Suddenly he's fitting shapes into holes, stacking blocks, will go to the basement door if you ask if he wants to go down there etc.
* Breastfeeding- it's over :(. I am super sad and cried about it, but I am also in a good place b/c he weaned himself and we were working towards it. I am very grateful that I had one last nursing session I knew would be our last- I just soaked it all up and was able to kind of have peace with ending it (and of course I cried).
* Walking- I am exhausted- he is everywhere- my days are filled with following him around
* Naps- we are shifting from 2 to 1, and this is a HUGE adjustment for me- it makes the awake time very long and as a SAHM I just don't know what to do in that huge chunk. He's prob having fun but I get bored with the same shit over and over- and well, I am kind of in a rut and some days want to put my head through a wall. I am working on coming up with more varied activities. I am dreading the winter when we are stuck inside.
* Prep for new baby- B is moving into a new room and I am having huge furniture debates- 2nd crib, toddler bed, big boy set he can use until college, etc. I have no idea what to get him. I don't wnt to waste money by buying something now he won't be able to use for years, but at the same time he isn't ready to be in a bed.

And we are car shopping- if you have a small SUV that has a 3rd row (maybe one that folds down) let me know.

So life is nuts- seriously.

And a few pics for fun from the last week or so.

officially a toddler!

Brooks is officially a toddler!
You may be thinking- wait, wasn't Brooks' birthday in June? Well, you would be right, but in June he wasn't toddling! On July 15th, Brooks took his first steps while I was on the phone with my mom. Since then, he would take 3-4 steps if where he wanted to go was close enough to go step, step, step, lunge/fall onto. Other than that, he wasn't gaining confidence or trying anything further.
Well on Wednesday night, 8/4, my mother and sister were sleeping over- they came down for a visit- and we wanted to show them his 'steps. Eric took out his cell phone- aka baby crack- and held it in front of him. Well Eric kept backing up, and Brooks kept stepping, and he must have taken 10-15 steps. When he woke up on Thursday- he was step, step, stepping everywhere! Now he walks until he falls no matter how far he is going. It is funny because he has the cutie frankenstein walk, and if anything is in his way (toy, dog, ledge between different types of floors like wood and tile, etc) he more often than not falls, but it seems as though walking is his preferred method of travel!
I have not seen him get from sitting to standing without using something to pull up on yet- but I don't know that that is cause he can't or just because he knows how to pull up and never thought about trying it with nothing. That will come though. He is so frigging cute when he walks :)

It has been a very busy week. As I mentioned, my mother and sister visited. They stayed over and we had a girls night out while Eric stayed home with Brooks- that was Wed & Thurs. I was really bad and didn't take too many pictures- we were just having fun and it was super fast and busy. We did walk up to the Eastern State Penitentiary (old prison that looks like a castle and is open for tours or haunted houses) and put B in a cell LOL.


Friday was our 5th wedding anniversary! WOW. Eric was AMAZING- seriously. We never do gifts for anniversaries or valentines day- those 2 events have always been a night away or a fancy dinner or something (plus flowers LOL). Well Eric surprised me! He took the afternoon off of work to hang with B while I was sent off to a spa for a mani/pedi/facial/massage package. It was HEAVEN. Now you must be thinking- wow that is great- but wait! there is more!

At dinner he gave me my card- which made me cry b/c he wrote such a sweet message- and in the card was a map of the Atlantis Resort in the Bahamas. Yes- the Bahamas! We are going for a 3 day weekend, just the 2 of us, and he already arranged it with my parents (yes MY parents- good boy Eric) to watch Brooks while we are gone. WOOOOOOHOOOOOOOOOOO. Happy Anniversary to my love!

5 yrs ago vs our date night on Friday!



Saturday we met up with friends of ours at a place called the Little Treehouse. This place is awesome- adults are free, kids are 8 bucks, and it is just an all wooden toy indoor playground. This was our first time going but definitely not our last- Brooks had a ball!

Here he is walking around- and you can kind of see what this place was like!


They had a fun kitchen area!

What can I make you?

Working in the kitchen is fun!


I need to pick up some ingredients to make that!


Cutest chef ever!


Pictures with Dad & MOM (and yes- I am in love with this pic of B and I- we are both actually smiling and looking at the camera- a rarity since I am usually behind the camera)


He really had so much fun

I got chocolate ice cream and this is what I turned around to (Eric was in charge of my cone!)

Here he is with our friends son- this is Zach- who is 7 weeks older exactly and the son of Eric's best man from our wedding.


On Sunday we hit the road for the shore- We went to the Ocean City NJ boardwalk (I had to specify NJ b/c B and I are actually heading to Ocean City MD this week to visit with my parents who are there for vacation.
Fortunately, going down the shore isn't too bad b/c we time our drives with his naps


We took B to the boardwalk and he got to ride a bunch of rides- he was wiped out by the end of the day. But did he sleep on the ride home? HECK NO- I was upset. He fell asleep for 10 minutes as we walked to the car, and would not go back to sleep for the 90 minute ride. Same thing happened Saturday- he fell asleep for 5 or so minutes on the way home from the treehouse, and would not take a nap. WTF?!?!?! I now know we must keep him up until he is somewhere he is going to be able to actually rest- I seriously could not believe he didn't zonk out in the car. ughhh

Boardwalk rides!






And- last thing- we did an old fashioned photo at the boardwalk! I think it came out great. It was hysterical though, he pooped right as we were waiting, and we figured it was our turn and we would change him after. Well you can't see, but some guy who works there is hidden in the tub. I guess it's his job to keep the little ones up to make it go faster. The guy was DYING from the stink, seriously- hahahahaha. Eric tipped him 10 bucks :)


So yeah, it has been busy. This weeks schedule includes Ocean City MD, my birthday, and my OB appt for squeaks. (My NT was supposed to be my bday but they backed it up to the 20th- don't get me started on that!).
Hope everyone is doing well! :)
<3 Car