Drafts

I recently took Francie for her 3 month well checkup and decided to look back at our blog. Man, the memories and all the things I didn't remember, but was so thankful I wrote down. So, I am back. :)

I had written a few drafts that I didn't publish because they didn't have pictures or weren't good enough. Well I am copying and pasting and putting them here.

MAY 2014
Oh, the blog guilt. That I am not keeping up with the memories and if I don't write them down they will be forgotten.. which is pretty much truth. (Thank God of phones with cameras)

Nola Jo is almost 22 months and is becoming a real person. She is currently in the midst of attempting potty training, even though today feels like a day we just throw the towel in... however since this is our 2nd kid I have learned that things always take time and constant readjustment. She is really good at telling me where she has her accident and is definitely aware of how things work. Staying positive.

She is SLEEPING like a champ. I can't believe I typed that. I weaned her at 19 months and daddy took over bedtime and the wake ups at night for a bit and it was actually way less painful than we feared. I am so thankful.

Nola's words:
"Eye" for eyes or ice cream
"Poo poo" for poo poo
"Wa wa" for anything wet or water
"No"



Hartz (almost 4 years old)

Loves "pildo" (pillow) piles

JULY/AUGUST 2014 

Nola turned 2 on July 29th. We spent the weekend before in Pensacola with Nana and Hogpaw and Uncle Keith to celebrate.

Her stats:
Ht: 35 inches (75th percentile)
Wt: 25 lbs (15th percentile)
She got the Varicella Vaccine and Hep B and didn't even cry with the pokes. Tough girl!

What she is up to....

We joined My Gym a few weeks ago and she LOVES it... really loves the big trampoline they have and will seriously jump the entire class if they let her.

She has been taking a nap around 11/11:30 when Hartz is at school and I have to wake her to put her in the van and she falls back asleep to pick up "bubba"... I am so thankful for her napping early because I get a little guilt free break mid-day.

She is silly. Like we read a book and she will say every picture is a "sock" just to be funny.

She loves to "draw"

Potty training is going... She can hold it like a champ and loves to wear "undies" so we went for it around 21 months and have been on and off since. But lately she has been in underwear more often and the pull up when I fear poop out and about :) She wakes up from the night dry often, but isn't a huge fan of going potty unless she really has to, which makes it tricky when I want some confidence that she won't have an accident leaving the house.

Loves having her fingers and toes painted. Hartz does too.

Sleeps with baby, blanket, minnie.

If she wants to not doing something she asks for "5, 6" which translates to 2 more minutes please

She is fearless. Climbs on things, pushes stools around to be able to reach things she shouldn't

Loves yogurt smoothies right when she wakes up.

Loves animals. Likes to pretend she is a kitty.

JUNE 2014
Man I need to get a boss to order me to blog. Makes me sad that the months fly by and I know I won't remember.

Moving on...

Hartz turned 4 on June 21st. We spent 2 nights out at Universal's Cabana Bay Beach Resort. The kids had so much fun and slept great, which means Chris and I had a blast as well. The Eastwood Family of 5 joined us for the morning of his official birthday.

What is going on with Hartz:

-Stats: Weight: 37 lbs Height: 41 3/4 inches BP: 102/63 Pulse: 98

-He is straight up silly. He loves to make silly faces, falls down on purpose, thinks up "jokes" ... for example this is his fav joke setup lately... "Why does the ______ knock on the door? (Why?) Because he put a _________ inside." *insert new things in blank daily (and we fake laugh so hard) He LOVES to get people to laugh

-He loves having friends over and having an activity everyday. He loves My Gym, open gyms, parks, splash pads, and really anything with a person his age involved.

-He is an amazing big brother to Nola and I feel like daily their conversations get cuter. Like, "hey baby. you are gonna go with mama and take a nap while I go with daddy to the party. ok?" and Nola responds with, "Tay"

-Hartz loves anything with transformers. He loves being one. He loves reading comic books about them. He loves making them out of legos and magnet shapes. On that note he is an AMAZING builder. I may really be biased but he figures out designs and shapes of things I couldn't.

-His nicknames: Bubba, Bud, Buddy, Bub, Hartzie

-We are working on him pulling the "shy"card with adults lately. Hard to always know what to let go and where politeness and manners come in. He has done great when I have prepped him before going in to make sure he says hi and is kind.

-He is losing his afternoon nap these days I think. But, I cherish the "rest" time we have after I put Nola down for a nap and we read books and "try" to nap. Occasionally I will doze off and I wake up with 2 handsome gray brown eyes staring at me. I don't want these days to pass so quickly. I want my boy to say "mommy please snuggle me all night"... meaning all of nap time... for a long time.

-He is using feelings words a lot. "Mom, that makes me upset" or "Mom, I so excited" or "That makes me scared" I love this because I feel like we have real conversations about stuff and I am knowing him better.

-He is going into VPK at Maitland Community Preschool where he was for the 3 year old class last year. He has Mrs. Derfuss and 6 total of his class last year are all together. I feel so thankful, especially because of the amazing moms that come with those kids.

15 month Nojo and almost 3 1/2 year old Hartzie

Nola Jo turned 15 months on October 29th, 2013. 

Her stats:

Weight: 20 lbs. 3 oz. 15th percentile

Height: 32" 95th percentile

Head: 18 1/4" 75th percentile

Playing with bubba at Dr Amber's

Latest Happenings:

-Front molars are coming in. Top right and left are poking through. Not fun.

-Signs the word "please"

-OBSESSED with the iPad. OBSESSED with hitting the home button ALL the time = mama hiding the device and Nola screaming. 

-Likes to sit and cover her legs with a blanket

-Gives kisses to people, books, toys, whatever she can find.. lets hope that doesn't continue into adolescence

-Got her first mani/pedi ... her brother was jealous and got his first one as well. "Red Spidey Nails" we called his. 

-Says "dada, mama, done, dat (that), bubba, yeah (with aggressive nod)"

-Moos like a cow, roars like a lion, growls like a dinosaur 

-Trimmed a little of her whispy hairs and was forced by daddy to leave the curly mullet

-Super smiley when out in public places usually...waves hi, but it is usually after the person has left sight. Your brother did that as well. 

Halloween 2013

Cutest robot in town

Robot transforms to Space Guy... Dance Party at Paige's house was a blast

Our Lady Bug

Hartz 

-Straight up silly... loves making people laugh. Tells "jokes" by saying something strange and yelling "joke" after it. 

-Just learned how to be rolled up in a blanket and turned into a burrito

-Loves racing, running, being chased, jumping off platforms (that aren't too high)

-Becoming way more brave on the playground... climbing and going down high slides with no fear!

-Loves watching you tube videos of strange people demonstrating how rescue bot toys work.. have a fear he is going to click on something bad news one day.

-Becoming interested in letters... trying to not push him. 

-Counts to 13 still no problem, then it gets all messy after that. 

-Still loves rescue bots, dinosaurs, dressing up like super heroes, legos, and super squad.

-Can play independently really well lately. 

-First person drawing "Charlie"

-Loves school... is making lots of new friends and wants to always be the line leader (at home as well) 

First School Picture
Mrs. Jakes Class/3 year olds/2013

So very thankful for these two kids. 

Our baby girl is one!

Nola is one!!

We weren't sure how happy you would be on the outside after your initial weigh-in and drama with petechiae all over you. 

But after some loving, you seemed to come around. 

This past year happened so fast and I tried really hard to remember and track things the best I could. We celebrated your birthday at the Floriday's Resort near Seaworld with the Dunns and Hogpaw and Nana. 

I made a banner to show how cute you grew each month. 

We all went out to eat at Benihana's to celebrate you and Auntie Becky's Birthday and then came back to the hotel room for cupcakes. 

Birthday Girls

Bluebird Cupcake!

Nana got you your sweet outfit!

Cousins (Missing the Walkers)

Nana and Hogpaw and the rest of us...

It has been such a "crazy fast, but feels like you have been around forever" kind of year. 

Your one year stats:

Weight: 18lbs 15oz (15th percentile)

Height: 29 3/4"

Head: 18"

Hemoglobin: 11.2 

Lead level: negative

Vit D: 60

What you are up to....

-You took off walking the day after your birthday and never looked back. History before you started officially walking: You took your first steps around July 8th with Auntie Amber and Daddy catching them (I spend ALL day with you, and you showed off for them first) Caught you standing in crib on July 17th and you stood up from sitting mid-floor on July 18th.

-You are really good at pointing and saying "dat" to tell me what you want. 

-You are definitely feisty. You DO NOT like things taken away from you and you let it be known. Full on tantrums.. body flinging back and flailing. God help us. 

-You climb stairs, stools, playground equipment, you name it. No fear in you. 

-Love to swing.

-I caught you on top of the kitchen table while I made breakfast... you took full advantage of your brother's stool by the table. Scared the crud out of me. 

-You do funny dance moves. Kind of a bounce, thrash your head back and forth dance move.

-You give open mouth kisses. 

-You LOVE your brother and are getting closer to be able to play chase. Then HE will really love you. 

-You love Larabars, cheese, butter toast, yogurt sticks, ham/turkey... you are not a huge eater. You like to take a couple bites and come back for some more later. 

-You still take 2 naps a day.. a short morning one and a longer afternoon one. 

-Mama went back to work for 2 days a month and you survived the first day with a sitter. 

-You love the pool.. kicking and putting your face in the water especially.

-You still aren't very good at self soothing and I might end up nursing you until you are 5 ;)

-You like to put your hand in the toilet, eat plant dirt, and try to sneak cleaners out of cabinets.

-You give hugs and rest your head on our shoulder. Sweetest thing ever.

-You play independently well... rescue bots and the bat cave. ha. Aunt Amy Smith got you your first baby princess doll. You carry her by her hair. 

-You still just have your 6 teeth.

-You like to go hide behind the couch and watch the cars go by.

-You love bubbles and actually can sort of blow on the wand ... in between trying to eat it. 

We love you sweet girl and are so thankful we get to have you in our world. 

update blog before the real one year old blog... 2nd child problems

I have a "note" on my phone where I will type what Nola is doing and try to put the date. I also typed the blog below back in April and left it as a draft until tonight because I was waiting to add pictures. Guess 3 months later the pictures probably aren't going to happen. This is the case of the 2nd child and their baby book. NOLA, we LOVE you, even if we hardly blog about you!! :)

FROM APRIL:
Nola Jo - 9 months old

Stats

Weight: 17 lbs 2 oz (25th percentile)

Height: 28 3/4 inches (90th percentile)

Head: 17 3/4 inches (80th percentile) 

What she is up to....

Pulling herself up
Stands for a couple seconds without assistance

Cruising some around train table and coffee table

Crawling backwards still but not forwards
Lowered crib all the way down at 9 months

Has her top 4 teeth through her gums at different stages

Her bottom 2 teeth came in at 6 months (should probably start brushing them)

She "llllls" her tongue like a Spanish lady when she is mad 

Tilts her head to the side back and forth being silly with daddy

Says "da-da" 

Started waving and clapping at 8 months old
Loves to pull my glasses off my face in the mornings
Is doing really well eating real food and is still exclusively breastfed.. as in no bottles. ;)
Down to 2 naps now and is sleeping 9+ hours at night pretty consistently
Prefers her brothers cool toys and not her awesome baby toys (I hear, "no, baby!" all the time now)
Hartz definitely doesn't like her crying in the car ... I hear "STOP crying, baby" or "toy for baby, mama"
Hartz has lots of moments though when he plays really well with her and asks where she is if she is napping or not around

Hartz - a couple months shy of 3 years old (AH!)

Stats
We had a time with a 5 day virus a couple weeks ago, so we took a trip to see Dr. Amber and Hartz weighed in at 32 lbs. We will have for real stats soon.

What he is up to...
Lately he likes to tell me around people that he is "gonna be shy" and proceeds to hide behind me
Loves making silly faces and loves getting people to laugh at him
Still wants to play "catch"
Been playing soccer every Sunday... he excels at running really fast, picking his nose on the field, water/snack breaks, kicking the ball as long as no one else is (who can blame him for all the teaching on sharing and not stealing toys he has been through) and chasing other team mates on the field and I think he is pretty much the cutest kid ever out there.

Hartz is THREE

I love birthdays for lots of reasons... one is because they make me sit down and look back at photos and remember. I still remember the moment I saw Hartz's face for the first time. I thought he was super cute (with a slightly large nose and big ole' eyes and SO much DARK hair....) Our little 7 lb 2 oz baby boy. I was so in love and so happy... I always say those first 2 weeks I felt like I was on something... I was just so thrilled and wanted everyone to meet our baby boy. I didn't need sleep and I was totally fine... until week 3. We won't go there. :)

Day 1

Day 3

5 Weeks Old

That first year flew by...

The second year flew by even faster I think...

And now we have a three year old. We went to Pensacola and spent his birthday at Portofino with Chris' parents at the beach and pool. Was paradise. 

Poolside

So excited for Cake!

Like Father, Like Son

What Hartz is up to... (beware it is random because I can't organize my thoughts well anymore.)

- He has started to sing. Slightly delayed when singing along to a show or music, but he is trying to be musical. 

- He LOVES rescue bots. He has earned almost all of the rescue bots by putting poop in the potty. The longest stretch that a toy has kept his attention.

- He has tons of energy. Loves to race, jump, run real fast, playing "catch" around the loop upstairs is still a fav past time. 

- He loves his "friends" or "kids" and would rather play with them than mom on any day. 

- He plays really well with Nola and can make her giggle and smile. Loves her to get in his crib with him and hang out. Is super remorseful if he accidentally hurts her. Like 

can't talk, quivering lip, mental breakdown" remorseful.

- I told Chris I want to record everything he says, so I can remember how he says things so cute. Tonight he wanted to "ex-ur-size" with Charlie on the couch. 

- Still takes a 2-3 hour nap in the afternoons. In bed by 8pm and up between 6 and 7am. 

- Still sleeping in a crib. Big boy bed will happen soon.

- He is going to start school in the fall 2 days a week. He told me initially that he wanted to ride the bus. 

- He is 33 lbs, 34+ inches tall ... 50th percentile in both weight and height. 

- He knows all his colors, shapes and can count to 13/14 depending on the day. 

- He calls letters "numbers" and I can't get him to stop. 

- He is going to to go school to learn his ABC's or hopefully the Leap Frog show will teach him. :) 

- Says "What" instead of "Maam" or "Sir" or "Mom" or "Dad" and I blame it all on Chris because he has taught him to do it. 

- He still has the best laugh I have ever heard. And the best smile and handsome eyes and I want him to stop getting big because I can't handle thinking about him as a teenager.

Too fast

Lately, I feel like my kids are growing way too fast. Everyday I think about how I want to make sure I write something down so I don't forget, or video that funny thing Hartz said, or backup the 2000+ photos I have on my phone and I find myself snoring around 9pm... hoping my brain kept track somehow. But, we all know that my brain is not so capable of that, so I am going to attempt to just write everything down here. Now.

Hartz (2 1/2 years old)

Says,
 "Licious" while flossing his teeth with minty floss.
"Blessa Me" after sneezing... "Excusa me" after burping
"Me try" when he wants a turn (sometimes nicely and sometimes not so nicely)
"Baby or "Nona" for Nola
"Catch" aka chase is still his fave activity
"Roooaarrs" like a dinosaur

He loves to go to the park to see "kids".. I so pray that he doesn't remember the kids that ignore his attempts to play and act like he is not cool at 2.

He asks multiple times at night/nap for "one mo' kiss" and it ends up being about 5 "mo" kisses

He has started missing people. "I missa hogpaw" while looking down with a pout on his face. (not sure why he adds an "a" to lots of words, but he does)

He is a pro at making Nola giggle... whether he bounces her (gently) in the exersaucer or runs up to her scaring her gently.

If I ask if he is ok.. he usually responds with "K, mama"

He snuggles so sweetly in the mornings in bed while we watch a "show"... Usually snuggles up to me while I am holding Nola and says "my two babies"... Because I always hold them both and say that.

He likes to help make his eggs for breakfast by using a spoon to stir... I have caught him twice sticking his finger in the raw mixture for a taste. yuck.

Time out is still super effective in fixing behaviors... please let it continue.

He is ADDICTED to "pakeets" still. Please help.

I love how he asks a lot for permission to do different things. I don't know where it came from except from the Lord or maybe it is his father's genes. I LOVE IT. Definitely a compliant kid for the most part.

He gets quite emotional when toys break apart or a sweet child takes a toy... full on tears like the world is ending.

He loves to pretend. He asks me to sleep (my FAVORITE game), while he gathers blankets and pillows. He stretches his arms up and yawns to indicate its time to lay down and then proceeds to lay for 2 seconds and then say "awake!" Working on stretching the 2 seconds to a good 15 min nap for mama ;)
Pretend animals are a hit too. Dinosaurs (very loud roaring happens) and a doggie are the top two right now.

Nola (6 months)

Stats:
Weight: 16 lbs 1 oz (55th percentile)
Height:  27 1/4 inch (93rd percentile)
Head: 17 1/4 inch (85th percentile)

Sweetest smile ever.
Blows raspberries.
Scooches backwards (ahhhh. Hartz didn't crawl or scooch until closer to 10 months... this girl is gonna be on the move early).
Sits up.
Loves to bounce in the exersaucer.
Talks real loud and real often (total girl, right?!)

Ended up doing hard core sleep training right around 5 1/2 months. It has helped so much and my girl is finally giving us rest. She naps usually 3 times a day. Two of the naps seem to be at the 1 1/2 hour mark and one is shorter...45 min. Nights have been 7pm-5am (quick feed) and back to sleep until 7am. I know the 4 month sleep regression exists. We almost died due to it.

Started eating food! We are doing a mixture of Baby Led Weaning and purees. (It really means that I am lazy and will just feed her what is available) We started with bananas... have done some pears, carrots, and green beans so far. She is getting the hang of it.

She is just plain sweet.

We have 2 kids.

We have settled into life with 2 kiddos. It has been easier in some ways than I thought and maybe a little tougher in others. Hartz has adjusted really well. He had Daddy and Nana with him for the first 4 weeks combined, so I think having the extra attention helped get through the toughest weeks for me as far as sleep deprivation and healing went. He calls Nola "baby" and doesn't pay too much attention to her unless he feels another sweet child might be threatening her or wants to see her. Typical territorial toddler behavior I guess. He does seem to ask where she is more often now and will give her a few tickles with some prompting. I'm excited to see them interact more as she becomes "more fun." 

I think the toughest part is figuring out the balance of taking care of kids, the husband, the house, dinner, relationships with friends like you used to be able to... it obviously has to change, so I'm slowly figuring out those changes and what our life looks like now. 

Nola (2 weeks) and Hartz (25 months)

'Seriously, dad, another picture"

The first of many sibling pictures

Nola (9 weeks) and Hartz (27 months)

Nola is now 9 weeks old. I so don't want to start calling her "2 months" because moving to months from weeks makes them way bigger in my mind. I hate how fast these first weeks fly and I wish I could freeze moments in my brain forever... except, I think I have lost my brain most of the time these days. :)

Nola started smiling purposefully around 4-5 weeks. It is the sweetest smile you have ever seen. She is cooing and chatting it up with her mobile (thanks Nana) and loves smiling at the letters above her changing table (thanks Auntie Christie). She has been sleeping pretty consistently about 8-9 hours (from 8pm- 4ish) through the night. I have not been so great with the schedule this time and I just pray she learns to be a flexible baby and just naturally sleeps through the night. ha. 

9 weeks

9 weeks and smiley

Stats from 2 weeks 4 days 

Weight 9 lbs 15.5 oz (95%)

Length 22 1/4 inches (97%)

Head 15 inches (75%)

Stats from her 2 month visit

Weight 12 lbs 4 oz (90%)

Length 24 1/4 inches (>95%)

Head 15 3/4 inches