8 Months...are we really this far already?!

Oh my, the time is flying now! This month has been a whirlwind it seems...catching up with some friends, Daylight Savings Time (a big deal when it affects your kids sleep schedule), a wonderful family visit, Daddy's 37th birthday, working more regularly, and Easter just around the corner...I have felt like there just hasn't been time to breathe! Instead of staying ahead of things, like I prefer, it's felt like constant catch up...oh well, I'm either coming to terms with it, or I'm actually making some head-way and feeling a little bit better about it - at least for today! :)

Drew - my little firecracker! I have recently decided/figured out/became more curious about how Drew is wired so much like his Mother...he looks more like me these days than he used to, and he certainly has my spirit, determination (a nice way to say stubborn & opinionated), strong willed, a bit OCD, & loud noise level! My parents are probably so thrilled to know that their wishes came true - that I would have a child just like me to put me through all that I put them through...oh boy, I'm in trouble! :) But I love him so! I can't believe it, but I had my first, of I'm sure many to come, talks about not lying...he didn't want to confess to hitting his friend at school, even with the teacher telling me right in front of him! So I'm stuck trying to express how I will love him regardless, but he has to tell me the truth, and that there are consequences...I am so not prepared for this! I never had a problem lying to my parents growing up (sorry Mom & Dad), so I'm not sure how to convince Drew to not do it either. On the other hand - he's brilliant like I am, so, I guess you have to take the bad with the good! HA!

He really is getting so good at his ABCs, getting almost every single one right almost all the time, and even has memorized words that match the letter...we have several different ABC 'toys' that use different words/picture to match the letter - and he's able to tell you most of them, regardless of what particular toy we are playing with at the time! He is reading along more and more with memorized books, and singing lots of songs. Needless to say, it's not very quiet in the house when Drew is awake! (One more thing he probably gets from me!)

He has been saying some pretty funny things lately too...in particular, lots of 'paradoxes'..."I do, but I don't" and "I can, but I can't" - not sure where that came from, but we just roll with it. I LOVE how he says hamburger..."han-de-buwga" - my mom says that's how I said it too! Oh, and he loves to point out "I wistened!" when he does what we ask, even if it took 5 times of us telling him - we somehow have to teach him the difference in listening/obeying right away vs. after nagging & bribing!

We are starting to teach him how to get dressed - we don't do it every time, but when we have the time, think about it, or he initiates, we'll give it a try. He's also just learned how to open the pantry door & fridge door - something he figured out on his own because I refused to teach him that! But so far (crossing fingers, knock on wood), it hasn't translated to any other doors, and he's not even in those as often as I would have thought. And he is climbing on EVERYTHING, ALL THE TIME! HE's getting even more daring...climbing on top of the slide frame in his room to reach the books on his shelf that are about 6 feet from the ground! Matthew caught him on top of his bathroom counter once, and he's of course all over the couches, etc...we struggle with picking our battles and keeping him safe, etc. Not sure we've landed on a firm answer yet!

A funny Drew moment - one morning he woke up & Daddy went to get him like normal...without any hesitation, Drew jumped out of bed, stated "I a penguin!" & started waddling around like one! I guess we know what his last dream was about that day!


A game that both boys love right now is chase! Drew has loved this game for a long time now, and asks to play it all the time. I had to figure out a way to involve Noah since he isn't always a fan of sitting on the sidelines...So one day we are playing chase and Noah was in his exersaucer, so I stopped to tickle Noah on the way and then when I caught up with Drew, did the same. Now they both LOVE playing this game - Noah gets so excited when he sees us coming his way. An alternate version is me holding Noah while I carefully chase after Drew and then 'help' Noah tickle Drew when we catch up to him - again, both boys just get the biggest kick out of being tickled by each other, it's almost as if I'm not there for a moment and it's just the two of them having the best time together - I love it!

Sweet Noah...he is sitting all the time! Now, he still can't get there by himself, and does his ab workout if you ever put him on his back, so we sit him up & he is just as happy as can be - it's his favorite way to spend the day - sitting and playing with his toys. We still put pillows of a Boppy around depending on the situation, but alot of time feel quite comfortable leaving him there all on his own! YEAH! ...no change on the crawling home front by the way! :) The only time he kind of likes tummy time is if he accidentally gets himself there when going after a toy...or train mat...he LOVES to chew on the train mat we have downstairs for Drew...he can be surrounded with toys, and all he goes after is that mat...oh well! I've even caught him a few times lately sitting, but leaning over so far his face is flat on the mat, or carpet, and he's trying to lick or eat it! It's so funny! Baby flexibility is crazy awesome!!!

So Noah started daycare/preschool this month...he's done really well all things considered. He doesn't fuss at all at drop off and for the most part is happy as ever and eats great. But naps - oh, they are so tough. He's used to his very quiet, dark, comfy bed & room at home, and then has to try and sleep in a shared room, that isn't near as dark or quiet...he is SO tired in the evening after being there all day. He was so tired one day at dinner, that if it hadn't been for Drew's random screeching, he would have fallen asleep in his highchair - so sad & sweet at the same time. Just this past week we had them try his sleeping in the swing, and that seemed to work better, but he still only sleeps the one time for about 1-2 hours, when at home he can take two 2-3 hour naps - a HUGE difference. So we are hoping that improves soon. He's still pretty happy, just needing to be held much more, and it's so pitiful to see him so tired...so pray he starts napping better at school too! He also prefers Mommy even more on these days...he does in general right now (lighting up when he see me!), but on days when we've been away, I can barely put him down...there's a chance it's not just him requiring this though...I miss him too!

Noah got another tooth this month - on the bottom left, so I'm on the look out for #4. He's up to eating 3 solid meals a day, and nursing only 4 times! Crazy how far we've come already! We've added in carrots, zucchini, mango & cinnamon to our diet this month.

The weather has been beautiful lately, that or raining, so we've had lots more outside time, including a family trip to the zoo! We all loved it & Drew walked/ran around the whole time! I can't believe he's big enough to do that now! We do love that it's lighter outside in the evenings again, giving us time to play before & after dinner if all goes smoothly!

Aren't these brothers just precious!

Thompsons invade Texas!!!

We were happy to host a select group from Thompson family for 4.5 days - a group that deserves recognition for breeching the Iowa state line and venturing south for a few days to see those forgotten relatives in Texas! :)

We had a wonderful time with Grandpa, Grandma, Aunt Stella, Jill & Kelly. A true treat to have a few days to enjoy each other's company! Nana drove up from Houston on Wednesday to be here when the family arrived, so Wednesday night, the air mattresses started to take over the floor space! But I think everyone still slept well - Stella even slept in most mornings, something she claims rarely happens at home! On the opposite end, the girls were up every morning, out for a jog, enjoying the wonderful Texas weather and our quiet little neighborhood!

We kept everyone busy with either shopping, eating, March Madness, or napping - sounds good, eh?! Both boys loved all the attention, and Drew certainly had a blast playing with everyone, and showing off all his tricks!

Grandpa & Uncle Kevin joined the party Friday afternoon (props to Kevin for driving from Austin, to Houston, to Fort Worth, so Grandpa didn't have to drive separate!) So another mattress, and more chairs at the table, all summing up to more fun!

We did lots of shoe shopping, but also did some walking around in the downtown Sundance Square area of Fort Worth. Noah was a trooper and went everywhere with us. Drew stayed home with the boys - much more enjoyable for everyone that way! And of course, no trip to Texas is complete without Blue Bell ice cream...we made sure we had enough to go around!

So a big shout out to the Fave Five! Y'all rock for coming to visit! Can't wait to see you all in June!

An answer to prayer

So, another post dedicated to thanking some special people in our lives...


Before Noah was born, knowing the due date, and remembering the rough fall/winter we had with Drew being sick almost non-stop with ear infections, etc., I was not looking forward to this baby going through the same thing if it could be avoided. I wanted to avoid starting daycare right at the beginning of the cold/flu season, and 3/4 months just seemed so little still to put a baby into daycare. Obviously Drew survived and we all lived through it, but those were some miserable months for me. So with some prayer and hoping, a solution came to mind and fruition. By the amazing generosity and willingness of Marti Mueller, Noah was able to delay daycare until he was 7 months old!!!

I can't express how grateful I am to Marti to opening up her home and schedule to allow me to work a few days a week, with the utmost comfort and confidence that our sweet little Noah was getting amazing love and care! And it couldn't be more convenient, with Marti living only blocks away. She was incredibly flexible the entire 4 months with schedules, etc. But most importantly in my mind and heart, Noah just seemed as happy as ever! He never fussed a bit when I dropped him off, and though he was always happy to see me when I picked him up, he was more than content with Marti!

A fun surprise for us all though, was Noah's immediate affinity to Tom, AKA "Coach"! He just loved it when Coach came home, and I think Coach liked it when Noah was still there to play with too! They were sweet on each other!



We are so blessed to have Marti and Tom in our lives, and the love that they shared with Noah is priceless and irreplaceable! THANK YOU BOTH SO MUCH!

Shout out to Grandparents

So this is long overdue, and hopefully they already know this, but I wanted to make it public...our kids have the best Grandparents! We knew were blessed by our parents a million times over already, but when we had kids, it opened up our eyes to even more! God has truly blessed our families with wonderful relationships and closeness emotionally, and for the most part, geographically. Our boys just absolutely LOVE their grandparents!

Lately it's been more apparent that the roles they play and the things they bring to the boys' lives are truly unique and special. I am so thankful for all the differences that they all bring, making our boys' lives that much more complete & diverse, with the solid & similar foundation of love with God fueling it all.

The Palmers (Papa & Grandma) are truly wonderful in their willingness & happiness to frequently, usually at least every other week, watch the boys to give us a night out...we can't say thank you enough! So refreshing for us, a wonderful treat for the boys, and a nice, small break for all of us! And Grandma continues to insist that she's take them overnight whenever I'll let her...I just can't seem to release Noah yet, but the time is coming! :)

The Glienkes (Grandpa & Nana) have a different relationship in seeing the boys in person about once every 1-2 months, but when they do see them, they get them for at least 2 days solid, from wake time to bedtime! And then off they go back home again, always wishing for more time, and closer proximity. But then we almost always Skype on Sunday afternoons, getting a bit of face time & catch up. (This tradition actually started 14 years ago - when I started at TCU, we called each other every Sunday, and we've continued to always connect on a weekly basis. But then when the boys came along, talking wasn't enough, so added in the video concept, and we really love it!)

My mom has told me how jealous she is that Joyce & Dennis get time alone with the boys to babysit, and I'm sure Joyce would say she wishes they got to spend longer amounts of time with the boys like my parents do. But what I'm more aware of and thankful for, is God's wisdom in how and where He placed our parents to play these different roles in our boys', and our, lives. We are blessed beyond measure through our family that God gave to us.
So praise to God and a big shout out to awesome Grandparents! We love you!!!