Happy St. Patrick's Day!

Oh the fun we will have!!!!!!

March 2010 Update

Most mornings I am waken by Eden stuck on his tummy in the crib, usually holding on to the rails and he can't figure out how to roll to his back. Isaac has done it several times but unless he's passed completely out, Eden rolls to his tummy every time you put him down. Isaac likes to sleep on his side but doesn't make it there sometimes so his arms and legs are crossed to his intended side but he's still in his back. It's very cute. Eden has also become obsessed with his feet. Everytime you change his diaper, it results in a fight to keep him horizontal and flat. Can't say it would be any easier with disposables though.


Eden pre-bath.

They are eating cereals and fruit and vegetable purees now, so after I tried out all of the first foods and some seconds for allergies, I finally got to bust out the awesome book Leah lent me on making our own baby food. I got a manual food mill from Babies'R'Us for $12 and we has a small food processor, plenty of pots to boil water, and a steam basket. So far, I have made apples, pears, mixed the two, zucchini and sweet potatoes. I was surprized that they liked the zucchini but they gobbled it up. I also have plans for cantaloupe, carrots, cauliflower and potatoes, but I need to reorganize our freezer because it's slowly being taken over by small Tupperware bowls of purees. Thanks to my sister's recent baby related donation from my nephew's old stuff, we have plenty of little bowls to store it all in.


Aunt Jaimie over for a visit (L:Isaac; R:Eden) .

Eden's first tooth finally broke through. This brought some relief but I think more will be shortly behind them because he gnaws on EVERYTHING now, not just soft or squishy stuff. Even hard plastic has now given him at least temporary relief. Isaac's ridge still isn't very pronounced, but his new favorite thing to do it raspberries. Most of the time, he bites the bottle nipple, enough to let some formula out, and then spittles it out, resulting in a wet shirt 99% of the day, regardless how many bibs and shirt changes he goes though. Laundry is a lot easier now with the new washer and dryer - makes me wish we got it sooner, but I'm happy to have it now. Now to figure out what to do with the clothes line in the hallway......

They are both sitting independently pretty well now. I have them on the play mats with their boppy's behind them and throw a bunch of small toys, from blocks to cloth books, in front of them. Eden has really gotten into it and loves rushing through as many things he can get his hands on while Isaac prefers to kick at everything. Occasionally they will reach too far to the side to grab something and topple over. Eden has figured out how to roll over to his stomach after that, but get's stuck there and ends up yelling for help since he won't roll to his back. Isaac usually just layes there or kicks his feet and sucks on his fingers until someone can help.


Isaac (L) & Eden (R) playing on the floor.

The "Your Baby Can Read" videos from Kim & Beau have taught Isaac how to shake his head no today. After a belly full of barley and zucchini puree, both of them were laying in their boppy's on either side of me while they were eating bottles. Isaac was avoiding eating, as he tends to do, but this time when I asked him if he wanted the bottle, he shook his head no. I was so amazed I laughed and asked him again so he laughed and did it again. This of course sent us into a round of me laughing at him, so he laughed at me, so I laughed even harder, and so on and Eden laughing at us collectively.


Isaac asleep in our bed on my pillow.

Eden's speech has developed even further now including M's and B's and a low growl now. Isaac loves to scream in the high pitch Eden used to do but doesn't like it when Eden does it back and get's upset. He has from what we can tell grown out of his shy stage. Last week's chiropractor appointment was the first time he was there and held by someone other than Joey or I to be adjusted as well as while I was being adjusted that he didn't cry. In fact, he didn't cry the entire time we were there.

We've also been getting out for walks when it's nice outside. I broke out the running stroller my old boss gave me and I looooove it. I think the boys enjoy it a lot more than the tandem stroller their old car seats fit into because it allows them a lot more leg room and has more support on the sides. The tandem was okay for shopping, but places like Target and the like usually have their racks too close together to efficiently navigate through without running into anything.


Eden (L) and Isaac (R) out on a walk.

Gamma & Gampa Brickhouse visit

The boys got a quick dose of kisses from Gamma & Gampa Brickhouse yesterday and today on their way back home to NC from vacationing in the FL Keys for the Anniversary.

Other vacation pictures from my good camera

View from back patio


The boys and I


Joey and the boys


Isaac & Joey


Eden & Joey

First Family Vacation

All four of us went to Gatlinburg, TN to Mountainloft Resort, which is part of our timeshare with Bluegreen, for a long weekend (= $0 to stay; usually around $80-$90/night for the deluxe 1-bedroom villa we stayed in). The boys did pretty good for the car ride up and back. They slept most of the time thanks to their new super comfy car seats (wish I had one!) and were generally pleasant the entire time we were there. We got to cash in a lot of time with cable tv while the boys napped (I miss you even still HGTV...). Isaac and Joey had a little bout of sleeplessness one night but the cat's finally went away (meowing kept Joey up) and we padded Isaac's bed better, so we all slept well last night before heading home today.



The place was pretty nice, although a little misleading (villa didn't exactly match what you'd think it is) and even provided pack'n'play's for the boys to sleep in so we didn't have to pack them. After 3 separate calls, including one before we even left to come up there, and the last one Sunday night, we got out of the "owner's update" which is their way of trying the sell us more points - the only annoying part about the timeshare. We got in around 7 or 8 Friday night and there was still some snow on the ground from the day before which was nice and after a little trouble finding the room, got the boys settled down for bed.



Saturday morning, we got everyone up and dressed and went on our first grocery store excursion. They boys were great, hardly made a peep, but I guess they were too busy looking at everything. My arm felt like it was going to give any minute though because I was holding Eden (not ready/prepared for grocery carts yet). I don't know why it was easier for me suggest this in a place I'm unfamiliar with, but I felt very liberated with taking them out the whole time we were there. After getting the groceries back and cooking some breakfast, we took naps and then decided to see what the traffic was like at The Old Mill Restaurant in Pigeon Forge. Joey was a little nervous about taking them, but I figured worst case scenario, if they made a scene, we'd probably never see any of those people ever again. They did great though and Eden even fell asleep on me after eating his bottle.



Sunday was the boys' 7 month birthday and we made breakfast again, and this time decided to go to Hard Rock in downtown Gatlinburg for lunch after their AM nap. They boys were a little more ornery than they were the day before and the waitress was a little too invasive, but we got the boundaries and the boys settled and then drove around Pigeon Forge again "window shopping" at the Tanger Outlet from the comfort of the car while the boys took a long nap. We had our last dinner and put the boys to bed again and packed a little before going to bed.



I was woken this morning by Joey laying Isaac beside me telling him to "wake Mommy up so we can go home". I'm usually the first up so it was a nice change of events. He had even showered before the boys woke up so after we got them ready to go, I hopped in the shower, fixed our last breakfast, then started packing the car. We did pretty good on groceries so we didn't waste much and gave what was leftover to the cats as a reward for leaving us alone :) The drive back was pretty uneventful. Glad we came back when we did though cause it looks like more snow is on it's way in. We all had a good time and it wasn't too short/long/stressful/far away, not boring and very affordable. We're already looking forward to our next trip attempt, but we'll have to figure out if we can manage a longer road trip or make the first flight attempt. Only time (and money) will tell.