Our favorite way to make the bed

Can you see little Brooke in this shot? No?


There, that's easier.


Brooke still sleeps in the pack and play but for my benefit, it's been moved just outside our bedroom so I can hear her cry but I don't have to hear every little wiggle. Because of this, I usually let her take her morning nap on my bed (away from the curious hands of big sister). Since I try to get the bed made early too, this is how it's done most days :).

Lucky Me...

Some women are dripping with diamonds
Some women are dripping with pearls
Lucky me! Lucky me!
Look at what I'm dripping with
Little girls
:)

Well, since the last post, things have definitely been improving as a mommy of 2 kids. It's still busy and Megan can still get in one of "those" moods but we've all been settling in to this new routine. I'm not so stressed every time I have to venture out with both kids (but it DOES still take a good 15-20 minutes from the time I start heading out the door until we are actually on our way). We still have some trying moments, but most days are good overall. It's been weeks since I've called Dan in tears--or even cried at all--a sure sign that things are getting better.

What have we been doing these past 5 weeks then? Well...

I turned 25 on August 8. I told Dan that for my birthday I wanted to sleep in and eat out at Pappasito's. We did both! And it was a really nice day. Dan also got me the Harry Potter movies and we've enjoyed that as well. We had a nice little family party at my parents' house on August 16 in between their vacations and my Mom made angel food cake served with Blue Bell--mmm, mmm, good.

Megan watching Daddy mow the lawn on my b-day (he had just finished making me breakfast too--what a fantatic man I married)


Our little family of four at the b-day party


We also survived 6 days and 5 nights (but who was counting) with Dan in Florida for a business trip. No, the smoke alarm did NOT go off and we had a nice quiet week. I did better than I thought I would without my other half and spent my evening time getting caught up on cleaning that had been neglected since Brooke's birth. I also spent 2 nights at my Mom's house to help pass the days. My parents and Ty had been gone for the 3 weeks before Dan left and Brooke and Megan were in need of some Granny and Grandpa time!

Kate (one of my best friends growing up) came to meet Brooke and see our house while Dan was gone. Megan warmed up to her pretty quick and wanted Kate to read her book.


Also while Dan was gone, Brooke did a lot of this

and this


while Megan "helped" empty the dishwasher (or whatever other task I was doing).


Dan got home on Aug. 15. Megan, Brooke, and I spent the rest of August being little social butterflies with lots of playdates, lunches, and fun times with friends from the ward and neighborhood. I've discovered that having people over gives me the break from the norm that I need to stay sane without actually having to pack the kids up and go somewhere! Woo hoo.

August actually involved some rain in the afternoons (the typical summer weather pattern here) and Megan is a big fan of watching/splashing in it. Megan continues to amaze us with her exploding vocabulary and her energy. She's starting to string phrases together and when she finds one she likes, we get to hear it often--"beh-bee cah-ing" (baby crying) is a current favorite--whether baby is crying or not. She is a sweet big sister (most of the time) and loves to give hugs and kisses to Brooke. Brooke is the name mentioned most often in Megan's prayers. Megan's biggest milestones this month included using the potty for the first time on Aug. 27 and sleeping in a big girl bed for her morning nap on Aug. 31. (*note that neither of these are perfected habits yet, but it's a start. actually, the potty training has been super-easy and she's wearing panties for the first time today--sep. 11. It's 10 am and so far, so good.)

Brooke started smiling on August 18 and is just the cutest, happiest baby (unfortunately, our camera is slow and it's hard to capture those fleeting smiles just yet). She spits up a lot!! but judging from her expanding cheeks, it's not affecting her growth at all. She is a great sleeper with 2-3 long naps during the day and sleeping from 9 pm to 4 am most nights. She's starting to coo and LOVES it when we coo back at her. She doesn't even seem to mind the not-so-gentle love from her big sister.

Sorry about the lack of posting--it's not for lack of trying! It's just that every time I sat down to start, Megan would decide it was a good time to pull a chair to the sink and empty the dish soap all over the counter or strip down and pee on the tile or some other such toddler happening. The only reason I'm posting now is because both kids are asleep! I can't pick which pics I like best, so enjoy a slide show :)

Weeks 3 to 4

Other titles for this week could have included: "Pink Eye times 2!" or "Reality Sets In (and sometimes bites)" or even "I Love/Hate Eye Drops"...

We started the pink eye adventure last Thursday (July 30). Aunt Carrie came over to play and after lunch we realized Megan's eyes were looking goopier and goopier and pinker and pinker so we headed to the doctor (thanks Carrie for coming with us!). We got eye drops started and started washing our hands like crazy to protect Brooke. Unfortunately, she got goopy eyes on Saturday and also started drops. So that's 2 girls times 1 drop per eye 3 times a day--that equals 12 drops and at least 3 toddler tantrums.

Thus infected, we decided that this was NOT the Sunday to return to church. So we spent a quiet day at home. Dan and I read through a lesson together, we listened to the Mormon Channel online, and drove to the temple in the afternoon. Megan enjoyed walking around and pointing and saying "Ten-to". (and not looking at the camera)


Monday morning, Megan's eyes (which had looked better) started to look worse and by Tuesday were really bad again. So back to the dr we went and came home with a new super strong antibiotic which seems to be doing the trick. Brooke's eyes are fine on her first prescription so that's a relief (and Dan and I have avoided it too).

So, this week I've been getting out more. (grocery store, doctor's appt, pharmacy, michael's, hobby lobby, and the library) This has been good and bad. It's nice to get out of the house. But I'm also learning that it's nice to just be home sometimes too!

I've decided that adjusting from 1 to 2 has been a much more challenging adjustment for me than going from 0 to 1. Or maybe I just don't remember the challenges and in a year I will say this was no big deal either :). Let's just say I've been VERY ready for Dan to get home every day this week. And my daily prayers now include that I will be patient and soft-spoken (but not a pushover) with our sweet, head-strong 21 month old (who is still adorable by the way, just exasperating sometimes).

The low point of the week was getting Megan to leave the child-size chair in the computer area at the library so we could go home yesterday. We're talking a full on yelling, kicking, going-limp-so-you-can't-carry-her toddler tantrum that started at the computer area and continued in the entryway, 100 degree parking lot, and car. All of that was with the diaper bag, library book bag, and Brooke in her carseat on my "free" arm. Megan wouldn't even get in her carseat. After 5 minutes of her screaming on the floor of the car I bodily folded her into it and buckled it. She continued screaming for the next 10 minutes but was ok by the time we got home. I on the other hand had about had it and called in tears to tell Dan that the book we'd gone to pick up for him had better be the best book he'd ever read in his life because anything less than that was NOT worth it. For some reason, he decided that he could work from home today and even suggested I go out to lunch without the kids :). I can't imagine why.

This means that today has been the high point of the week! Even though Dan is working, it's just nice to have another body around when you're battling a toddler. And there have been very few battles today! Yay! We've had a lot of playing and dancing and singing and taking care of Brooke and Megan's dolls. And instead of going out to lunch while Dan took his lunch break, I went to WalMart all by myself and reveled in the joy that comes from parking and just walking in without maneuvering carseats and toddler shoes and a diaper bag. I could have been in and out in 10 minutes if I'd needed to, but instead I just meandered slowly and enjoyed the alone time. It was wonderful. And currently--both girls are asleep for the 2nd time today! I took a nap the first time and now I can blog! What a fantastic day.

By the way, Brooke is getting strong. She loves tummy time and can hold her head up for a long time! We can't believe she's almost 4 weeks old! She continues to be an easy going girl and a great sleeper. She only cries when she's hungry or poopy. We just love her.


Here's our photoshoot from after lunch (matching outfits courtesy of Stephanie). It starts out a little shaky.


Then we get some good ones.


They are just so cute.


And, obviously Megan's done and trying to shove Brooke off her lap (and the couch). Hence the blur as I quickly reach in and save Brooke.


This is the end of this long rant/post. I feel better already. Hopefully you enjoy the pictures if not the whining :)

Some favorites

Here are some of my favorite pictures so far:









Oh, we just love these girls!

For the fam...

I've had more than one request for MORE PICTURES in the past few days. So, for our family that live away, here's a bunch of pictures. These are just from our camera. I'll do another slide show when I get the pics off my parents' cameras. Enjoy!

Sisters

Yup, we're pretty sure Megan and Brooke are related. But they do have little differences too! (you can tell that Brooke fills out that little outfit better than our teeny Megan did).

Brooke (2 days old)

 

Megan (4 days old)

 

First Week

I can't believe Brooke is already a week old. And yet it already seems hard to remember what life was like without her! Here are some pictures from this week from our camera. When I eventually get the ones off my parents' camera, I'll put up a slide show or something.


Megan's excitement over this new baby in the house has continued--she still gets pretty excited when she comes downstairs in the morning and baby Brooke is still here. Megan is learning to be soft and gives the sweetest hugs and kisses to her sister. She is always trying to help take care of her and loves to point out Brooke's features (nose, ears, eyes, etc.).


Brooke is a fantastic baby so far. Other than a rough first night home, she's been a good eater and even better sleeper. The past 4 nights she's been eating at 10 pm and not again til 3 am and then not again til 7:30 am or so. Getting up once a night is totally do-able and I am appreciative!





We had a really enjoyable first week as a family of four. Dan got to take the whole week off and I was so spoiled! My mom came over last Wednesday (our first day home) after keeping Megan one more night so we could have our first night home with just Brooke. Mom made us lunch, dinner, cookies, and let us both get naps! Our ward brought dinners the other nights of the week and Dan was wonderful to get up every day with Megan and let me sleep in--it was nice.



I enjoyed my quiet Sunday morning while Dan and Megan were at church. My Houston family came for dinner on Sunday (except my Dad). My sister-in-law Amy brought the yummy food and it was fun to have visitors.


Yesterday, Dan worked from home so I had one more day of extra hands around. It was nice to be able to go to the grocery store one more time with just one kid (I left Brooke napping with Dan).



Today was my first day all alone with two kids! It went pretty well. Megan didn't nap but that's usual :). Other than going through pool withdrawal, I'm feeling great and was able to get a nap in. We still have meals coming in and it is so nice to not worry about making dinner. We'll see how things go next week when reality really sets in!

Who does Brooke look like?

Brooke


Megan


I think she looks like my hospital picture but Brooke has more hair. Dan said a lot of his coworkers think she looks like him. What do you think?

Welcome Little One!

We just wanted to introduce our new baby girl! More pics will come later, but here are a few for now.
Name: Brooke (no middle name)
Born: July 13, 2009 at 3:17 pm (yay for afternoon babies!)
Weight: 7 lbs, 12 oz (almost a full pound more than Megan)
Length: 19 1/2 inches (an inch longer than Megan)





Here is a "before" comparison--

With Megan at 39 4/7 weeks


And with Brooke yesterday at 39 3/7


I woke up with contractions Sunday night (Monday morning really) around 2:30 am. We got to the hospital at 8:30 am and everything went great! Little Brooke was born just under 7 hours later. Megan got to come meet baby Brooke around 7 pm last night and her first reaction was pretty cute--she lunged to try to touch the teeny baby! I'm feeling good and we'll probably go home tonight after dinner (the food is good, but getting woken up by both a new baby and nurses/techs/etc every hour is not as fun). We hope everyone is having a great week!

July 4th

We just wanted to say a quick "Happy Independence Day!". We've had a nice, relaxing holiday. We skipped the neighborhood parade (it was just too hot) but had some neighbors over for a little afternoon barbecue and games.
Megan looked pretty cute in her patriotic getup. And as you can see, it's hard to get a good picture of a 20 month old when someone's not holding her down :). By the way, this is me at 38 1/7 weeks. I am finally feeling mentally ready for this new little girl to come. All that's left is to wait! Nothing is happening yet on that front, but we'll keep you posted.
Enjoy your holiday weekend!