Andrew is FOUR months old!

Heelloooo HANDsome!

   I Feel like it took me freakin' FOOOR-eeee-VER (said in my Squints Palledorous voice.--and if you don't know who that is, shame on you) to reach the 4 month mark in my pregnancy, but to reach the 4 month mark of life on the outside, well lets just say it went by Jimmy Johns fast. I'm almost feeling like I need to get going on planning his first birthday party for petes sake! Sloooowwww dooooowwnnn!

   I take roughly 163,995 pictures a day to capture the itty bitty-ness of him and I'm thankful for my new phone that now has 64 Gb of sweet picture-storing-space so I don't have to pick and choose which ones to delete in order to make space for more pictures. Happy dance!
  

How do I pass this photo op up??? "..and I can't stop, and I won't stop"

   Alrighty, without further ado, here are our well visit details...

Size: I feel I can still get some more time in his 3 month stretchy pants because his legs aren't all that long but he's definitely needing the 6 month onesies and jammers. His head is touching the pack-n-play and his feet just touch the opposite side now (width-wise). I will lay him down length-wise but the center of the pack-n-play dips so he tends to end up sideways by the end of a nap or by morning anyways, ha ha. (Eli was in his crib by now but since the boys will be sharing a room until we build our new place, he's still in our room. I don't want him to wake Eli with his middle of the night/early morning feeding.) At the doc's, he weighed in at 16lbs 2ozs (Eli was 14lbs 5oz) and measured 25 inches (Eli: 25 1/4 inches). His back and thigh rolls are still coming in strong.

Likes: Being held, so the carrier I made comes in handy quite often, (Daddy and grandma have been wearing it too! They love it.) going for walks around the block & taking in the sights (gone are the days where he will sleep in my wrap the entire time. Now his head is outstretched and rubber-necking anything and everything in his path), taking baths, nursing, daddy making funny noises and faces at him (Aaron was the first one to get both boys belly laughing for the first time), being rocked when he's sleepy, and being talked to.

Peek-a-boo!

Dislikes: Being tired, 5pm, and not having my undivided attention.

Feeding: He's still exclusively breast fed. I have no intention of introducing solids until 6 months for several reasons, but mainly because he's not ready yet and its just so super simple feeding him now. He nurses for maybe 10-15min, there's zero prep work, no clean up, and he doesn't require a bath afterwards. Seriously, the let-me-put-my-fingers-in-the-spoon-and-then-in-my-hair feeding phase can hold off juuuuust a little bit longer, thank you...In other news, I'm happy to report that he IS getting better at the bottle when I'm at work but not a pro yet. There's still hope!

Sleeping: A few weeks ago he actually slept THROUGH the night. Yes he's been doing 8hrs + stretches for a long time now but I mean, he went down at 7:30pm and got up for his first feeding at 7:00am! I was super excited that maybe he was done with the middle of the night feedings but no such luck. He hasn't done it since and for some reason, this past week he's regressed a bit in his sleeping habits. His naps are all off and he's up twice during the night instead of his usual just once. Growth spurt? Teething? Not sure, but I'll take my great sleeper back aaaaaany time now. Prior to this past week, he'd take a nice 3-4hr nap at 9am and then a smaller 30 minute-1hr nap in the afternoon. Not so much at the moment. He's been cat-napping 3-4 times in a day and I sure hope he doesn't make this a habit.

Milestones: He's finally figuring out how to operate those chubby, yummy things at the ends of his arms. Look ma, they grab things! He's getting a little more coordinated in that department. If drooling were a skill, he'd be a blackbelt, and lastly, he's smiling a ton. Oh and I can't forget, I gave him his first "trim". I had to take about an inch off the top because things were getting a little ridiculous! (See below.)

Exhibit A. Pre-haircut. Yikes!

Yummers

Over all he's a very happy little guy and for that I'm grateful! 
That's all. Toodles!

-Linds

Why you should make your own Soft Structured Baby Carrier

   I did it! I did it! So ever since I got hooked on the Solly wrap for wearing Andrew as a newborn, I've become obsessed with all the other methods of carrying as well. I stumbled upon the most GORGEOUS rainbow colored Tula carrier and decided I must have one like it...until I saw the price tag. Yeesh. Now although my hubby is great at not depriving me saying no to the things I want, I couldn't justify a nearly $300 price tag (for this specialty one anyways) or even $180 for the standard ones since I'm a total newb when it comes to this whole baby wearing thing and still have a lot to learn (joining a baby wearing group on Facebook has helped a ton though!) But, I do know I want to continue to wear him since he likes to be held and well heck, I like to hold him. My housework and first born don't like it as much as I do however so a carrier seems to be a nice compromise and the best solution.

Aaaah! I covet!

  Obviously if you're a reader of my blog you've learned that once I get a sewing project in my head, I will stop at nothing until I see it come to fruition. It becomes an obsession and it's all I can think about. I literally scoured the internet to learn all I could about the SSCs (soft structured carriers) to see what I wanted and didn't want. I mainly wanted something easy on and off since it takes a while to get my wrap on and him situated in it and if he's crying hysterically, it feels like a lifetime. From my search I've learned this is what I wanted in a carrier:

1. Padded/comfy straps.
2. At least one pocket to carry my phone at the bare minimum.
3. Padded leg openings and head rest.
4. A removable hood with "reach ties" and a place to store it when not in use.
5. A chest strap to keep the straps in place since I don't have broad shoulders.
6. D-ring on the shoulder strap to hang toys from if needed.
7. A light colored/breathable hood that wouldn't attract the sun when wearing.
8. And of course, choose my own fabric pattern.

    Sounds reasonable right?? I thought so. I found a lot of the carriers have most of my requirements but not all of them and then I got to thinking "why don't I just try making it myself and then I can completely customize it to my liking??" Well then it was a challenge so I was totally game! I searched everywhere to find measurements of the Tula and then happened across a free pattern for a generic carrier. Score! It even had instructions but there weren't any pictures, and after I read through it once I realized I may just have to use the pattern and try to figure it out myself because it was like reading it in Swahili for as much as I understood it. At this point I was pretty confident I could make it on my own, but then it dawned on me that being a carrier, there would be stress points that would need extra reinforcements, or "X boxes" as they're called, that not owning a carrier currently, wouldn't know where to put them. Bummer. Lucky for me though, I found a couple of blogs where women had used this free pattern/instructions and gave their tips on constructing it. One even did a step by step picture tutorial! I thought I had died and gone to heaven! If you have any interest in making your own carrier check out her post, she links to the free pattern in it as well.  

   Now that I had my tutorial and pattern handy, I ransacked searched my entire house for supplies so that I wouldn't have to buy a ton of stuff, jacking up my DIY budget. I found the hardware (buckles, webbing, and D-rings) from a couple of sturdy backpacks my hubby gets from all the conferences he attends. They were just collecting dust so I took them. I at least asked his permission this time before cutting into them. (He quickly learned after we got married that his stuff was my stuff and therefore fair game to confiscate for crafting purposes.) My aunt had recently de-stashed her fabric collection and asked if I wanted it. Never one to turn down free fabric, I took it off her hands. Well I was pleasantly surprised to find 3 different canvas/duck fabrics that met the criteria for a strong carrier fabric. (That right there saved me about $15 in fabric I didn't have to buy. Thanks Aunt Dee Dee! Muuuuah!) I had the adorable whale fabric that I got on clearance at Joannes for under a $1 a while ago. I made the hood and the inner part of the carrier that sits against baby's back out of a mesh fabric (like basketball shorts) that again I had in my stash that I got on clearance ages ago. So the only thing I didn't have and needed to buy was the high density foam ($2.50) for the straps and a camping mat ($17, waaaah! That was the only bummer. But I'll keep the remainder of the mat for when Aaron takes Eli camping at Oshkosh for the Air show next year so not a total loss.) It helped that I had all the remainder supplies onhand so I was able to make a customized carrier for under $20. But I can see why the handmade carriers are so expensive with all the supplies needed and the time it takes to make just one!

    Here are more pics of all the details:

The hood attaches by snap under the top part of the strap on each side which you can't see in the picture, and then the hood "reach straps" snap near the toy clip.

  Since I'm now obsessed with it, I had to make some necessary accessories like "chew pads" (I like this name better than "drool pads" as they are called on Etsy.)

The underside is towel material for extra absorbency. These go for $15-25 on Etsy. I knew I'd need these since Andrew currently SOAKS the sides of my wrap when he's in it.

And a carrying case since I found I had this thing less than 24hrs and it was just strewn about wherever I felt like leaving it. Not to mention how much room it took in my oversized diaper bag when I took it to my mom's house. 

Yeesh!

Problem solved:

I added a little decorative strip in my carrier fabric because my math failed me and I was a half inch off  I think it adds a lil' sum'in sum'in ;)

While I was at it, why not add a decorative whale in my whale fabric? Ha ha. Is it just me or are whales going to be the new thing?? Well I'm starting it.... Here goes!

Hello little whale :)

 

Ahh, SO much better. Now I have plenty of room to stuff it to the max add a few more items.

  They sell these little "stuff bags" all over Etsy. The first one I saw was over $40! Then the cheapest I saw was around $25. Still over priced at that if you ask me. If I haven't convinced you all to take up sewing yet, not only for all the money you can save making stuff yourself, but for the sheer fun of it, then I don't know what it will take!

   So to recap why I made it myself: 

• Carrier: $180-$300 (for the one I was eye-balling)
• Chew pads: $15-25
• Carrying case: $25-40
• Hood reach straps $5-30............=$225-$395

My cost: Less than $20 **Happy dance**

Now the million dollar question: Does it work???? YES! Super comfy and it even held my-too-big-for-it-35lb-3-year-old.

Cheesing for the camera. I have NO intentions of carrying this kid. As you can see, he's heavy and I had to lean forward so I wouldn't feel like I was going to topple over!

Andrew is still too young/little for it yet although he's really close to fitting in it comfortably, so here is a picture of my sister wearing it with my handsome nephew Liam in it:

I took this picture before I finished the chest strap. Now the straps stay in place nicely.

Thanks Liam for humoring me, even though it meant you had to remain stationary for me to take my pictures and miss out on precious play time. Ha ha. The face says it all!

The hood.

     

   Overall, I'm very pleased with how it turned out. Unfortunately before anyone asks, I am not willing to make any to SELL simply for liability reasons. I've promised myself I won't sue me if a buckle breaks and my child ends up hanging by his ankle or something;) But in all seriousness, this IS a sue-happy generation and I have no intention of flirting with disaster. The handmade carrier sellers have to meet strict safety guidelines and to make one here or there for the random person interested, wouldn't be worth it for me to go through that verification process. I am however about to start selling other stuff I make (more about that later) so stick around because I would be willing to make carrier accessories if the demand is there.

   So do you think you'd make one?? Time to dust off that machine and get crack-a-lackin'! There are SO many tutorials out there for just about anything you could want to make. Plus if there is an unfamiliar technique needed for a certain tutorial, there are tutorials out there for that. And if you aren't a stranger, just ask me if you have questions! I'd love to help.

  Thats all for now. Thanks for reading.

  Toodles!

  -Linds

Andrew is THREE months old already!

Eli is such an awesome brother. He's always trying to make him smile.

My chunky monkey

   I feel so incredibly vulnerable having an itty bitty baby around during what they are calling a flu epidemic in Illinois. Ugh. The fact that he's older comforts me (so he isn't so fragile and can at least have the option of getting meds that are approved for older babies instead of absolutely nothing--not that I'm a big "med" giver in my house) but the fact that he IS getting older makes me also want to ugly cry in a corner somewhere. Why can't they just stay super sleepy cuddly a little while longer? WHHYYYYYYYY??
  
   With that said, this kid is good for me. If I'm having a crabby day, all I have to do is look at his face and I can feel all my tension literally release from my body and I'm happy again. I just came to the realization that I'm kind of in a mourning state of Eli not being my little baby anymore. He's graduated to full on little boy status, and the nerve, without my permission! Psha! I also noticed that I'm totally eating up my nephew Liam at the moment because he's just about a year and a half and it was such a great age for Eli with their personalities EXPLODING during this time! They get their words, they become more coordinated, and well lets face it, they're finally FUN! Ha ha. So thank you Liam for bridging me until Andrew gets to that age. In the meantime I'm eating up the squishy baby stage and enjoying adult conversations with my oldest. Seriously, he says to me "mom? Can I have a conversation with you?" Ha ha. That kid kills me. Anyways, I'll get to Andrew's stats now...

Size: I tend to gauge his size by how much smaller the pack-n-play is getting in comparison, ha ha. We don't have a well visit at 3 months so I'm not sure about his weight. He feels around 15lbs-ish but that's a guess. I've retired the 0-3m and 3m clothes and brought out his 3-6m and 6-9m bunch. Since going up to the next sized diapers last month, he's been pretty good in that department.

Yowza! ("3"on his bum as in 13 weeks/3 months)

Likes: He's really digging his swing these days with the animal mobile just like last month but now he stares at those guys and coos like crazy like he's legit having a conversation with them! Ha ha. I call them his friends. He loves his brother, being held, the boob, falling asleep in people's arms and smiling.

Dislikes: The bottle, (throw in a hysterical cry for good measure) and car rides, (although it is getting better since I've adjusted the straps and took out the newborn insert. He seems more comfortable in it now but it's still hit or miss.) He's still very easy-going otherwise.

Feeding:See above about the bottles. Ugh. I returned to work yesterday and lets just say that daddy and baby had a rough time. (I'll try to blog about that experience soon.) If he can get the milk on tap, thats what he'll hold out for. He took the bottle yesterday while I was at work but he was pissed about it. Needless to say, breast feeding is going well and that's what he prefers. I now have a nice freezer stash of breast milk and I hope it doesn't go to waste on account of his stubborn nature.

Sleeping: It's still about the same as last month. He's down at 7pm-ish and still getting up once during the night for a feeding. Unfortunately, all my boys are early risers. Ugh. Why can't I just be a morning person and make life so much easier for myself?? He's been getting up as early as 5:30am and not wanting to go back to sleep. Oooooh daddddddy! Somebody neeeeeds yoooou...But on a good day, he'll sleep until 7am. He's been taking a big 3-4hr nap in the morning and then takes 1 or 2 little catnaps in the afternoon.

Milestones: Not much to report here. He smiles a ton when you talk to him, he's been drooling a lot and trying to fit both hands in his mouth at once just like Eli used to so I know the teething process has been started but I don't expect any teeth to pop through yet for a few months. The other day I had him doing belly time and I propped his arms out in front under him and he tilted his head and rolled over. I'm not sure if I should count that as his first roll because he hasn't done it since but I was pretty excited in the moment. Ha ha.

"Wait, what's this business about being 3 months??"

Yep, I'd pretty much say we have the breastfeeding thing down.

"It's hard to see my yummy toes with my 5 chins in the way..."

Back fat has never looked cuter!

And that's all she wrote!

-Linds

Andrew is TWO months old!

  Can I just say how much I love being a mommy of two? Because I do. I'm sure I'd be singing a different tune if Eli was a terror to his brother and Andrew was a colicky baby who didn't sleep, but nothing could be further from the truth. Eli still adores his little brother and Andrew has fit very nicely into our little family. He's starting to smile at you when you talk to him, and even babble in his own little baby language (he just cooed on the baby monitor in his sleep as I typed that! I kid you not!) The best part to me is he's predictable--a very desirable trait in a little person with no big boy words yet, ha ha.

  Well here are his stats after his 2 month well visit with the doctor today:

Size: He's growing by leaps and bounds as babies are apt to do. He's quickly gained the nickname "beefcake" (among 20 other nicknames that Eli comes up with daily.) He outgrew his size 1 diapers about 3 weeks ago but me not wanting to waste diapers did my best to shove all his thigh rolls into said too-small-diapers and we've cleaned up many a poopsplosion as a result of it. Was it worth it? No, because I still have a boatload of size 1's in the house. Ha ha, doh! As far as his weight goes, he's 13lbs 6oz and 22 1/2 inches long. (Eli was 11lbs 8oz and 23 inches long at this age.) Beefcake is right! He's fitting pretty snuggly into his 3 month clothes and I've started to bring out the 3-6 month bunch in anticipation of needing them very soon.

Likes: Sleeping, being held, nursing, his swing with the mobile that he loves to watch, staring at lights, his bouncer seat that vibrates his bottom, watching his brother, and being talked to.

Dislikes: trapped burps, his carseat, (we joke that he'll only tolerate it once we hit 55mph or better because then he'll suddenly stop crying like flipping a switch, ha ha) and baths. Other than that, when he fusses its pretty predictable in that it's his nap time, feeding time, or he needs to burp. He's pretty easy to please.

Feeding: I'm still exclusively breastfeeding and feeding on demand. I worried that after the newborn phase if I didn't enforce an every 2-3hr feeding schedule and stop "feeding on demand" that I would end up being more of a pacifier and creating bad habits. I didn't want to be the only one able to soothe him (by nursing), but so far that hasn't been the case so I'll continue to follow this pattern. He has naturally fallen into an every 2-3hr feeding pattern on his own with an occasional need to feed sooner than that. Now that I don't have nipple "pain" anymore, just sensitivity, I'm ok with "indulging" him. I'm definitely not the mom who sticks a boob in her kid's mouth each time he fusses though. Like I said before, he's predictable and I find his cries easier to decipher than Eli's ever were. The only difference is it's hit or miss if this kid will take a bottle. Ruh roh. Eli never had a problem with bottles. Hopefully Andrew will get over this by the time I go back to work. Fingers crossed!

Sleeping: I'm happy--no strike that, ECSTATIC to report that he's a great sleeper. He's been sleeping in our room in a pack-n-play, just like Eli did. I put him to bed at 7pm (same time as Eli) and he's been doing 7-8hr stretches consistently since about 7 weeks. He wakes up anywhere between 2am and 4am for a feeding and then goes back down until about 7-7:30am. Sometimes he wants to start the day at 5:30 or 6:30 am but I'll feed him and do my darnedest to convince him to go back to sleep and then I'll wake him at 7:30 if he's still sleeping. (Wait what?!?! Wake a sleeping baby? Blasphemy! No really it's all a part of my master napping plan!) If he gets up at 7-7:30am, then right at 9am he's ready for a nap. This will be his big nap of 3hrs. Then I have 2hrs to myself when Eli is in preschool, or an hour overlap on non school days that I get to myself as Eli naps too. Can I get a woot woot?! Happy dance! As for the afternoon nap, I'm still working on nailing down a time, but ideally I like him to go down at 3pm or 4pm so he'll be up by 5pm and happy to go to bed at 7pm, ha ha. But in all reality, with the afternoon nap I'm more flexible, depending on what our day looks like. As long as he's taken a good nap in the morning, I'll let him cat nap on me (or a willing visitor) or in my wrap in the afternoon.

Milestones: Not a whole lot to report here other than him making eye contact and focusing better. I can tell he's starting to see farther than just a few inches in front of his face and he's starting to babble, as I mentioned earlier. I freakin' LOVE it!

And that's my bubbercakes! If you are curious like I was to compare him to Eli at this age, here's his 2 month update. So far they have a lot of similarities aside from Andrew's dislike of bottles and carseats. So cute.

Toodles,
-Linds

A baby-wearing coat!

I could stare at this view alllllll day. Sigh

  As most of my readers/friends know, Eli had to wear a Doc band due to a flat spot on the right side of his head. I honestly have no idea how he became flat on the one side other than a short 3 week span where he sucked his right thumb at night and would bend his head to the side to get it. (I witnessed this on the baby monitor when I was surprised one night when he started crying and then stopped almost immediately. Lo and behold, he'd found his thumb!) But just as quickly as he had started the thumb sucking, he stopped cold turkey. I have no idea why. Weird. Anyways this is the only theory I can come up with as to why he was flat on the one side and not the back since I always placed him on his back to sleep. Well of course I dealt with mommy guilt over that one so I am bound and determined to spare Andrew the same fate by baby-wearing whenever I can and doing plenty of belly time. I also figured it would be a must-have to get anything done around here with a 3 year old to tend to as well.

  One day on Instagram, I stumbled upon a girl using a Sollybaby wrap and I instantly fell in love with how light weight it seemed and how much easier it looked to use compared to the Moby wrap. It even had a little pocket at the end  to tuck itself into and would take up little to no space in the diaper bag! Sold! (Well after I heavily debated for weeks if I wanted to spend the money on one versus trying to make it myself.) Once I had made up my mind to buy it and that little boxed arrived, it sat on my kitchen table and made me so giddy for Andrew to finally get here. I couldn't wait to try it out and I still had weeks left to go in my pregnancy! Aaaah!

  The minute we walked through the door after being discharged from the hospital though I made a beeline for that little box and excitedly put it on and got him snuggled in there. It was heaven and just as awesome as I'd hoped it would be.

   Well now that we are in full blown winter weather and there will be snowmen to build and sledding to do with Eli, I wanted to be able to have an option to go out with Andrew as well. I began googling DIY options for a baby wearing coat and saw some pretty cool options out there, but ultimately I found one listed on Etsy that was what really caught my eye. (It even doubled as a maternity coat!) With a hefty price tag of $158, I couldn't justify buying it for the few times I might actually be outside in this polar vortex. I felt if I had this coat I'd be more likely to go outside with Eli and daddy but it wasn't a given that I would, so I'd hate to spend that kind of money and only start to use it in the spring time, if at all (especially since I wouldn't be using it as a pregnancy coat now that I'd already had my baby.) So I stared and stared at that picture and decided to give it a go at making my own. I must say, this is one of my proudest sewing moments, you know why? Because first off, I drafted my own pattern pieces (there was no tutorial available, obviously) and not only did the pattern pieces work out the first draft, I didn't have to make a single alteration to them once I started! This is unheard of for me! I've made clothes before, but usually its following an established pattern. So for me to draft my own pattern and not have any measurement errors is baffling to me. Before I do a project, I will sit down with my notebook and write it out as I see it in my head, step by step. If I can see it through to the end in my head and then ultimately on paper, then I'll proceed with the construction part. Guys, it went without a hitch! Whaaaaat? 

Here's the inspiration picture. Gorgeous huh?

  Here's what I came up with. 

Collar down, neck exposed.

Collar up, neck warm

   Although a loud floral isn't typically my style in coat design, I had this fleece already in my stash so I wanted to see if it would even work, before I went through the trouble of getting to the fabric store and buying new stuff (because if I had done that, you KNOW it would have never worked out. That's how my luck goes) However, I'm kind of really liking it. Maybe because I associate it with success so it's likeble to me now, ha ha!

    I didn't care for the tie option like in the pic (I originally made it with the tie but it just didn't look good to me) so I just went with short straps and velcro. Also I couldn't figure out the top part as it looks like it zips up through the collar and down the chest piece...? How far does it go down? How would a carrier fit under that? (Obviously it could per the seller's claim but I still couldn't figure it out) so I just did a wrap around collar with buttons that could also be left undone and worn down if the weather is warmer but still requiring a coat.  The front wraps from both sides for 2 layers across baby's back. The under wrap piece has a strap that sticks through a hole on the side and velcros in place. The outer wrap also has a similar strap that also secures with velcro along the side.

The inner front flap secures through a hole on the side

And the outside strap is secured along the side with velcro as well

   So what do you think? Would you wear it? I'm bummed I didn't have the opportunity to try this out while pregnant. But then again, I purposely planned a non-winter baby so I wouldn't have to buy a pregnancy winter coat that I'd only get to wear for a few months. True story.

  Alrighty, time for bed for this momma. Na night.

-Linds

**Update, I made another coat for a friend and this time added buttons to the straps instead of velcro. I definitely LOVE the solid colored fabric for this coat.

An update on being a mommy of 2.

   First off, I just want to say how absolutely CUH-raaaazy I am about these two little boys. Sigh. If you told me 5 years ago that I'd be a mother of not one, but two BOYS, I'd laugh in your face. I was going to have a house full of girls didn't you know! I would put them in frilly outfits and do their hair every day in fun styles. I had plans to make ruffled diaper covers, baby shoes, and bonnets to match every little dress in their closets (and I WOULD have too if you know anything about me. Ha!) Fast forward 2 years, and I found myself staring at boy parts on an ultrasound and my chin hit the floor. But I wouldn't have it any other way. 

   Now that I'm on my second boy, I'll be honest, a part of me still wonders what my life would be like to have a little girl as well, but never in a million years would I ever have believed how much I could love little boys. Eli has been a pure joy except his terrible three's moments and so far Andrew is a lot like him and a GREAT baby.

   Mommy confession time. I had a cabbage patch doll as a little girl who was my "real" baby. Gosh I loved that thing. Then one day I had the opportunity to get another cabbage patch doll and in my little girl thinking, if one doll was so awesome, two would be even better! But what I found when I got this second doll is that it didn't mean as much to me as my first and I ended up ignoring that second one. I felt like a horrible "mother". I beat my 10 year old self up about it. Because of this experience, in the back of my mind I've always worried about having more than one kid and loving them equally, especially since Eli already had my heart nearly bursting. I couldn't imagine how I could possibly shove any more love into what I thought was a confined space. But you can! It stretches! Phew, what a relief!

  Next fear of mine: Eli would be insanely jealous of now having to share mommy/daddy/grandma/complete stranger's attention and would start regressing in his behavior. This kid is a people person and thrives on attention. Would he act out? Would he be mean to his baby brother? He's potty trained now, would he start having accidents? How would he be with his favorite people now fawning over a brand new baby? Just fine it turns out! He loves him and loves showing him off! He talks to him all the time. If Andrew cries, he immediately notifies me (even though oftentimes I'm actively in the process of soothing him, ha ha.) "Mommy, Andrew needs milkies. He's hungry." When we're in the car and Andrew starts singing the song of his people, ("waaaaaah!") Eli will respond with "hush little baby, don't say a word..." It all makes my heart soar. I wish you could see how Andrew stares at Eli as he dances like a maniac in front of him and turns to face him when he's talking to him. I don't know what it is about Eli, but even I don't always get Andrew to focus on my face, ha ha. 

First night home, Eli is loving on him

He's always asking me to take their picture together.

   So now that I can definitively say, 6 weeks in, that those 2 fears are a moot point, we have fallen into a nice little routine. Andrew is a great sleeper/napper and eater and Eli is a great helper (when his 3 year old self wants to be, that is.*wink*) While pregnant I wondered how I'd fit in all those nursing sessions with another kid to tend to but again, Eli surprised me by being incredibly patient and waiting until I'm done feeding his brother. He hasn't shown any resentment or anything. It's just understood that mommy is busy with the baby and he will find something else to occupy his time until I can get him what he can't get himself, usually a snack. I also wondered if all the prep work I did while pregnant would even make a difference. For example, I constantly talked to Eli about Andrew and what to expect. I told him he was going to be a big brother and that one day, although not right away, they would have lots of fun playing together. I warned him that he'd be pretty boring the first year and that he'd have no words to use and would only cry to communicate and that we'd have to be patient with him and figure out why he was crying. I explained that he needed to always be gentle with him and that as a big brother he needed to protect him. Now, I'll over hear him explaining to people meeting Andrew for the first time that "he cries because he has no words" and "I'm his big brother, I protect him." So he is getting it, and he is listening. That kid is a little sponge. Every little phrase and term of endearment I say to Andrew, I've heard Eli parrot. It's hilarious! Love that kid.

   One of the main reasons the transition has been so smooth is because of my hands on hubby and the boys' amazing grandparents. Once again, my mom has bent over backwards to help me out whenever I need the help. She offers to babysit and to let me have some mommy time and takes the BEST care of them. My hubby, being considerate of my sanity, arranged in advance to have his mom come stay with us for the past 2 weeks while he'd be traveling and she's been a Godsend as well. She is the baby whisperer and both kiddos adore her. If I didn't know any better, I'd say she has a doctorate in child psychology because she knows exactly how to handle a willful 3 year old (I know you know what I'm talking about.) So lets add preschooler whisperer to her list of talents as well. It's fascinating to watch! She reminds me of Cesar Millan, only with children, ha ha. True story.

I have yet to see her NOT get a baby to sleep, even when you swear you've tried everything!

Love them.

    I'm not going to lie, having my mother in law here has been great and I'm going to be sad Eli will bother me at 6am instead of her she's leaving. I can't thank her enough for her help these past 2 weeks!

   In the meantime, my hubby has made it clear he's set on having just 2 kids so I'm soaking up EVERY cuddle, coo, and gassy grin I can get. I wish I could bottle up the baby smell and have it on hand for when they're teenagers and I want to wring their necks because it'll take me back to this moment in time and remind me just how worth it it all is.

 Night night,

-Linds

   

Andrew is ONE month old already!

How did THAT happen?

  Well 4 fast weeks have come and gone and our little guy is a whole month old already. I still feel like I'm going to wake up at any moment and realize this whole mommy thing has all been a crazy awesome dream! I'm not even kidding when I say it took me a full year to actually fully wrap my mind around the fact that 1, Eli was mine, 2, he was mine to keep, and 3, I made that little person. I think when he actually could call me "mommy" is when it all really sunk in. Weird, right?? I'm kind of in that place right now with Andrew too. I look at this perfect little human being, my heart swelling to max capacity, and I can't believe I made him. He's really truly here. One thing is for sure, I. Am. Blessed.

  Before I jump into his stats I'm happy to report that for those of you who followed my horrendous nipple pain issues with Eli, this time around, although by no means pain free, is WAY better! I mean night and day better! I don't dread nursing him and the pain is tolerable without needing prescription strength motrin. Halleluia! But, with that being said, I still wish I had a bullet proof vest or something to prevent even a wayward sneeze from accidentally sending a gust of wind my way. I like to think I have a high pain tolerance (heck I delivered 2 babies!) but this nerve type pain turns me into a whiney baby and it doesn't take much to make me want to cry out. Aside from the nipple pain/sensitivity, does anyone know when the rest of my boobs won't feel like I got donkey kicked repeatedly?? Anyone??? My girls look pretty amazing right now, but what a total waste if even looking at them hurts....

  Anyhoo, lets move onto what's new with Andrew, shall we?

Eli crashing Andrew's photo session. Andrew's like "hey, I thought this was about ME?"

Size: This kiddo has just gained 2 pounds in 2 weeks! If you recall, his birth weight was 8lbs 2oz and he's now up to 10lbs 10oz! So far he's beating Eli for age because he was 9lbs 9oz at one month. He's now filling out his 3 month clothing pretty well and I've since retired the newborn clothes (and no, I don't want to talk about it. **sniffle......snort...sob!**)

Likes: Naps, his big brother (he can't see a whole lot yet but he tends to track his brother moving around him like a maniac), being rocked, having his butt patted, eating, lying on his belly, and going for walks tucked snuggly in his wrap against mommy.

Dislikes: His carseat (I reeeeeally hope he grows to like this because the hysterical cries in the back seat that only subside when the car is moving and start back up at stop lights, is gut wrenching for the mommy all the way up in the front seat), and diaper changes.

Feeding: He is exclusively breastfed and for now I feed on demand being that he's a newborn. It took almost 6 freakin' days for my milk to come in so I made it a point to nurse as often as I could to prevent the jaundice issues we experienced with Eli and to encourage my milk to make an appearance eventually. He also had a tongue tie at birth like his brother so our pediatrician snipped that at our first well visit and he's nursing like a pro now.

Sleeping: He's a newborn! Enough said, ha ha. He eats, poops, and sleeps, in that order. During the day, he can only stand being awake for about an hour max (including feeding time) before he gets fussy and overtired and then he'll take a 2 hour nap. The past few days he's been able to stay awake a little longer, stretching it to an hour and a half or 2 hours in between naps. At nighttime he does his longest stretch first, sleeping for about 4hrs, then he wakes up 3hrs later, then 2hrs later and then 1hr until we're up for the day around 7:30. His morning wake time is still very erratic at this point but I'm hoping he'll start to fall into a predictable pattern soon.

Milestones: Rolls! He's starting to fill out nicely. Also neck and head control. I'm not even kidding but this kid could lift his head and turn it from side to side while laying on his belly from week one! He made it look so easy and I had to constantly remind myself how young he was because it makes him seem so much older! Even in my wrap, he would push off and hold his head up to stare at me! Hilarious! 

Rolls! That's some good eatin'

   So that's it! I'll try to find some more time here in the next few days to update you all on how it's been with 2 kids and how they get along.

   Here's some of our outtakes from our month one photo attempts:

   

Giving Eli the stink eye for crowding his picture moment, ha ha

"Wait, what am I supposed to do again here?"

Winner winner, chicken dinner!

Until next time...

-Linds