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[thepregnantweirdo]

Baby B is 3!?!?

I guess this blog has turned into annual posts because it seems that I only write when it’s Baby B’s birthday!  The past year has completely flown by, and here we are at yet another pandemic birthday!  In usual fashion, Baby B is going to have a small family party, but since he hasn’t really met any other kids other than his siblings yet...that is ok with him!

Two was a big year for B because he learned SO much!  There’s been so many words (like “actually” and “because”), new stunts (like sneaking out of his crib and dragging kitchen chairs over to the countertops and climbing up them to get stuff out of the cabinets), and new experiences that I don’t think I can remember everything! This little guy has kept us on our toes with all of his silliness this year, and we love it!  

This year, he got to experience the “only child” lifestyle while the big kids went off to school.  At first he HATED it - he was very crabby, asked me where they were every 5 minutes, and thew a bunch of tantrums...but after about 3 weeks he embraced the life of fun that comes with getting to play with any toys you want when your siblings are away!  We have had some great times together - lots of parks, baking experiments, playing, and attention.  He loves it, and so do I!  

Baby B is quite the TV addict and loves Blippi, Truck Tunes, Lots and Lots of Trucks, Paw Patrol, and Daniel Tiger.  He is very persistent about watching his shows and knows that I will usually give in (well, I give into him a lot.  Whatever, he is cute!)

He loves his snacks at all hours of the day...I mean who else doesn’t crave Chipotle Cheddar Popcorners at 8:38 AM?  If I tell him “no” that won’t stop him...he invites himself to the pantry, finds a bowl, and helps himself!  He also likes to get apples out of the fridge and then leave the cores around for me to find (sometimes days) later!

Baby B still hasn’t had a haircut because I refuse to say goodbye to his lovely curls.  He gets mistaken for a girl every now and then...but I’m still not changing my mind!  We get a kick out of his white, wispy hair...it’s so different than his siblings’ thick locks!

He recently embarked on the potty training adventure, and he is doing great! I especially love when he tells me to leave him alone in the bathroom because he needs some privacy.  I wonder where he heard that one from?  (The answer is Peeps.)

As he’s grown older he’s started asserting himself around his siblings...especially Bro.  They are into the same types of toys so this has been causing some disagreements, but I guess on the bright side, he has found a great playmate in Bro!  Baby B and Peeps rarely fight...she likes to try and calm him down and reads him books and that kind of thing.  He really looks up to her!

He wants to do everything the big kids do, but he is still my snuggly little guy!  He hasn’t grown a ton over the last year, so I can still carry him around and hold him (when he lets me), but he is definitely more independent!

If you know Baby B at all, then you know that there are 2-3 things he cannot live without: boppy (his pacifier), Blue Teddy, and sometimes his bear blanket.  He has these things with him all day, and if we can’t find one of them...YOWZA.  We will be working on ditching the pacifier soon...but whenever he is upset, tired, or a little crabby, those items are his go-tos.  We even got a backup Blue Teddy in case the first one got lost, but he can tell the difference and does NOT like “clean” Blue Teddy!

He recently learned how to do a thumbs up and loves flashing one all the time...it is hilarious!  He also doesn’t go anywhere without his firefighter rain boots...even when it’s 100 degrees and sunny outside.  Some other random facts - he loves the color red (he enjoys rocking a head-to-toe red outfit every now and then), knows the name of every type of vehicle, and loves hide-n-seek.  Although when I’m pretending to search for him, I’ll yell out something like, “Is Brendan in the closet?”  And he will ALWAYS yell back, “NO!” and then start laughing hysterically.  I guess we have some hide-n-seek practice to do!  Also, whenever we turn on the microwave, he calls it the “microwave engine.”  He was very distraught when our microwave broke and we had to replace it...he told the VERY lengthy story to Grammy right after it all went down!

Two really funny/awesome things about him - he LOVES singing and dancing.  He makes up words to songs all the time and is really quick to pick up a tune.  He also loves dance parties and coming up with crazy moves that make us all crack up.  He is quite the comedian and I’m pretty sure he knows that he is very cute!

So much has happened over the last year, and I can’t believe we’re about to close out age 2!  He is seriously so much fun and the best addition to our family.  We can’t wait to celebrate him Sesame Street-style this weekend!  We love you Baby B, and hope you have the most magical year yet!

Our little goofball

[thepregnantweirdo]

Baby Brendan is TWO

A whole entire year has gone by since I last wrote about Baby B!  I meant to do it when he turned 18 months, but I will admit...I forgot!  So I am dedicating this post to our precious Baby B (or Boo as he is affectionately known), who is currently up early from his nap and is yelling, “Dada?  Peeps?  Bro? How are you?” from his crib! 

I guess his shouting is what I will talk about first - this guy went from saying a couple of words here and there to BOOM - speaking full sentences! He also has several catchphrases, including, “Ah sigh down!!” (upside down), “Don’t like that,” (referring to most foods), “So funny!” “Two minutes!” (which he yells down the laundry chute to the kids when they’re in the basement), “Good job!” and “Go ah-siiideee!” (go outside).  He also has some new tricks up his sleeve, including working the Apple TV and the DVD player, putting his toys away, coloring all over his body, helping himself to snacks and whatever he can reach in the fridge, putting his siblings’ shoes on (the wrong feet, hehe), taking off his clothes, and climbing EVERYTHING. 

Looking back on the post I wrote last year, I mentioned that he was a terrible sleeper.  Unfortunately, that didn’t improve for a LONG time.  I honestly can’t remember when he became a decent sleeper because I think I’ve blocked all of his zillion wake-ups/refusal to go to bed/napless days/waking up at 4:30 am/shenanigans out of my mind!  Luckily for this guy, he is cute and gets away with a lot.  He also inspired his mom to get a jogging stroller and take up running last summer because I didn’t know what to do with my no-nap child!

Besides the sleep stuff (and that he’s recently become a picky eater), Brendan is a true delight!  He really knows how to crank on the charm with his dance moves, clapping, and how he grabs our hands and says, “hold hands” when he wants us to play with him.  Over the past few months, he’s gotten really into books, and has even memorized parts of them!  (One of his favorites is called “Toot.”  I will not lie, it is one of my favorites too.) He loves the Sesame Street gang, Blippi, all cars and trucks, and building stuff.  He loathes brushing his teeth, getting in the bathtub (and then getting out of it because he’s too busy playing), and when his siblings leave him out.  Just last week, Joe took the big kids to the carwash and Brendan was SO mad.  Later on he said, “Have feelings.  BIG FEELINGS!”  (Thanks, Daniel Tiger!)

Brendan has the sweetest disposition but man this child can SHRIEK!  I think only dogs can hear him.  This shrieking occurs at opportune moments, like when we’re all trying to eat dinner and he just doesn’t want to do it.  He prefers all types of salty snacks (pretzels, Cheezits, “fooshies” [Goldfish]) and every condiment on the market.  He is always willing to try foods...but usually one bite and he’s done!

I can’t believe that 2 years have gone by so fast, and now we are celebrating another pandemic birthday!  Maybe someday this guy will get to experience the joy of having a big birthday party with lots of friends and family. We’re pretty sure he doesn’t mind, though!  

I think I’ve said it before, but we are all SO lucky to have this little guy in our family!  He is always entertaining us and making us laugh, plus it’s just fun having a littler one around.  He is so observant and curious, which makes us slow down and appreciate things more!

Happy second birthday, Boo!  We all love you so much! 

[thepregnantweirdo]

Baby Brendan is ONE

How is this even happening?  My sweet little guy is already turning one and I feel like he was just born.  I know I say that every time one of my kids turns one, but this year REALLY went by fast.  Maybe it’s because he sort of still sleeps like a newborn (aka he doesn’t, ha) or it’s because things are just super busy these days, but I feel like I can’t remember life without Brendan/I don’t know where the year went.  Typical mom feelings I suppose!

This will be the first time I am not hosting a big first birthday bash thanks to the COVID, but we are not letting that get us down!  Baby B will still have his smash cake, he’ll get some fun presents, and he’ll get to see some friends and family from afar...so I guess that’s ok.  I never really imagined that we would be celebrating such a big milestone like this, but there’s nothing we can do about it, so I’m trying not to think about it too much.  

Baby B is such a joy and he is always, always making us smile!  Even though he takes sporadic naps (some excellent, some terrible) and has been waking up at 5:30 each day, he makes up for it with his sweet disposition.  (Also, the fact that his siblings are losing their minds 9 times a day and fighting constantly also makes him appear super cute as well, ha).  

After a pretty rough bout of sprouting 6 teeth at once, Brendan is mostly back to his happy self - he is clapping, waving, standing on his own, getting into stuff he’s not supposed to, saying adorable things like “uh-ohhh,” “dada,” and “mama!”  His laugh is irresistible and luckily for us, he does that a lot!  He thinks his brother is hysterical and he just adores his sister (who loves taking care of him and is a great helper)!  The best is that he just LOVES music and dancing.  Whenever he hears a tune, he starts bending his knees and throwing his hands up in the air.  It is so cute, I really can’t stand it!

As far as food goes, he seems to like most things - probably yogurt, pears, mangos, and sweet potatoes the most.  Lately he is more interested in throwing his food than actually eating it!  He also has picked up a new/weird habit of “fake-gagging” himself...we don’t know where that came from!  

He has to look out the window every time a big truck or siren goes by, and he wants to play with ALL Jameson’s trucks (which I’m sure is going to cause some major fights in the future!). We get a kick out of B’s fluffy, sparse, white hair - he is still pretty bald!  Jameson on the other hand had thick, long, dark hair at this point, so that’s a major difference!  B looks a lot more like Peeps when we look back at old pictures!  

Every day we feel so lucky that Brendan is in our family!  We hope that our smiley, happy, fun-loving, sweet little guy has the best first birthday, and we can’t wait to celebrate him.  Happy Birthday, Brendan!  We love you!

[thepregnantweirdo]

Brendan is 6 Months!

I just posted about Brendan turning 7 weeks...and now magically he’s 6 months (and a couple weeks)!  Time is flying and Baby B is like a completely new person now.  He baby talks all day long, goes up on his knees and attempts to crawl, laughs hysterically at his siblings, has attempted to eat some solids, and has taken a liking to some particular toys (his musical elephant that he keeps in his crib as well as the “crunchy paper” books.)  He smiles 98% of the day and is just the most joyful, happy guy.  He still loves going on walks (now that it’s dark at 4:30 our walking time is seriously limited) and riding in the Baby Bjorn.  He gets dragged around to all of his siblings’ events and doesn’t mind a bit (which is enjoyable for me, because I know this phase doesn’t last long)!  

When Baby J and Peeps take a break from fighting with each other, they love to play with their baby/entertain him with his toys/make him smile and laugh.  Mom enjoys these moments of pretending like I have built-in babysitters (well, I enjoyed it until I overheard Baby J talking about giving B some candy...eek).  

I am thinking back to when Baby J was 6 months and I feel like he was maybe slightly more “aggressive” than B?  Brendan is currently 18 lb 6 oz and 26.5 inches, which is a couple pounds and inches smaller than J was at this time (but he is by no means a small guy)!  B is at a size where I can still hold him without throwing out my back and I can still pin him down when I’m changing his diaper. He has two teeth about to pop out at any moment...which kind of surprised us because he didn’t show any of the typical “signs” of teething. We just happened to notice one day that there was some white poking out of his gums! 

He’s not quite sitting up on his own and shows no interest in doing so...but he is ALL about the crawling.  He likes to “practice” any time he’s on the floor or in his crib.  When he’s not doing that, he is rolling!  The kid can maneuver himself across a room like nobody’s business.  It’s probably getting time to baby-proof the house, which should be interesting this time around because Peeps is mostly into microscopic toys like Calico Critters and Shopkins...choking hazards waiting to happen!

We are just loving our time with Baby B - he has the sweetest demeanor and personality.  He is by far my baldest baby and currently the most easy going.  I can count on one hand the number of times he’s slept until at least 6 am...so we have work to do in that area!  His room may still be decorated with pictures of Baby J, all of his toys and clothes are hand-me-downs, and his mom waited a ridiculously long amount of time to feed him solids...but he doesn’t care about any of these things, so neither do I! Ha :)  We love you Baby B...and you can seriously slow down with the growing up now!

Hello, cutie!

[thepregnantweirdo]

All About Baby Brendan!

Baby Brendan has been here for 7 weeks, so I thought it’s about time I introduce this sweet fella!  Brendan was born on May 15, 2019 at 8:48 in the morning.  He was a scheduled c-section (so he was born a couple days before his actual due date), but I was afraid I wasn’t going to make it to the big day!  Around May 5 I started having a LOT of contractions, which was something I didn’t really experience with the other kids.  I managed to keep working until the last day that I had planned...and then the contractions magically stopped!  Baby’s movement also stopped, which made me get a little anxious.  So about 6 days before he was born, I had another ultrasound to make sure everything was ok.  Turned out he just slowed down on moving because he was crammed in there...and the technician also let me know that this baby had a large head and tum!

The day before his due date, I ended up taking Baby J to the doctor because he had a gnarly cough going on...and the pediatrician thought it’d be best to test him for whooping cough.  She also warned us that if it was positive, J wouldn’t be able to be around the baby for 2 weeks, and all of us would have to take antibiotics.  Not what I wanted to hear the day before giving birth!

All in all, baby’s birth was really smooth!  It took 4 different people to get my IV in, which wasn’t awesome, but I felt so much better during the procedure than I did with Jameson.  The best part of the entire event was finally finding out the baby’s gender!  The whole time I had a feeling that the baby was a boy...but I was still so shocked and surprised when Joe announced, “It’s a boy!”  (If you are pregnant you should definitely consider not finding out the gender.  It was an amazing experience!)  I cried when I heard the baby crying, and it was amazing to finally meet the little guy!  He weighed in at 9 lbs (smaller than I thought but still large!) and 20.25 inches.  He was over 2 inches shorter than J, which explains why I didn’t feel him smashing my ribs (thanks, baby!)  The doctor and nurses kept commenting on how adorable he was (maybe they say that to everyone), but I’d have to agree!  He had some light, wispy hair and skinny little legs and arms, and the same blue eyes as his siblings.  He also had SUPER long nails...he had to have them cut just a few hours after being born!

Speaking of that, the nurse who cut his nails was also my nurse for both Peeps and J, so that was a pretty cool experience.  Just like Baby J, Brendan ate pretty much right after coming out, and had no trouble at all.  He was a hungry little guy and was ready to pig out!  

After I fed Brendan, I remember hanging out with Joe in the recovery room and repeatedly saying how awesome I felt.  Obviously that was before the drugs wore off and I couldn’t feel anything below the waist, ha!  I was so happy that I felt decent after the surgery...with J my heart rate got really low and blood pressure dropped a ton.  This time they tried a new medicine on me to prevent all of that from happening, and I guess it worked!

One thing that was kind of a bummer was that Baby J’s whooping cough results didn’t come in that day.  We called the doctor a zillion times, but unfortunately the results didn’t come in until that night, so we decided it wouldn’t be a good idea for the kids to come in and meet Brendan.  They were so devastated...it made me so sad!  Luckily the results were negative and the kids visited the following day, but they were so sad they couldn’t meet their brother right away.

Speaking of that, the kids were so sweet when they visited the hospital for the first time!  They kind of crept in the door and shyly walked in, and we told them, “This is your new BROTHER, Brendan!”  I was a little afraid of how Peeps would react when she found out the baby was a boy, but she seemed excited (and ready to hold him!)  The other cute thing was the kids each picked out a stuffed animal for the baby (Peeps picked out a pink sheep and Jameson a blue bunny).  They were so excited to give him their presents and snuggle with their new brother.  

I was in the hospital for 4 nights, which I strangely found enjoyable!  The nurses took Brendan to the nursery during the night, changed his diapers, brought me stuff, etc...I mean, what is not great about that?  Plus I ordered this delicious fruit smoothie every single morning...I actually could go for one of those right now!

Brendan is truly the sweetest baby and has been a wonderful addition to our family.  He stinks at taking naps, but he is overall a happy guy who loves going on walks, riding in the Baby Bjorn, being outside, and watching his siblings.  Peeps has been the BEST helper, and Baby J always wants to see what the baby is up to.  The only sad thing is that I think my 5 day absence might have scarred Peeps for life!  She will randomly say things like, “Mommy, you aren’t going to sleep in the hospital again tonight, are you?”  I didn’t realize this would affect her so much, but I think she was truly worried that I was ok.  Poor Peeps!

This post is getting long, but I wanted to share a few more things about Brendan (mainly for my own memories!)  So here is a quick list:

Name:  We picked Brendan after perusing a baby book.  Nothing great was coming to mind, so I checked out a book from the library, and I started reading every single name out loud to Joe.  When I got to Brendan, he was like, hey I like that!  I liked it too, and we thought it was cool it’s an Irish name for “prince.” It was also awesome that we decided on a name that began with “B” so we didn’t have to go through the entire book! (Kidding!) His middle name is Joseph (for obvious reasons).  Turns out Brendan Joseph is also Mark Wahlberg’s son’s name, too!

Temperament:  Overall I’d say he is a chill, happy dude!  He makes the sweetest little sounds (some sound like a baby bird, and it literally sounds like he’s saying, “WA!” when he cries!)  He also grunts a LOT, which is pretty funny when we’re in public ;)

Looks:  When I saw his ultrasound, I immediately thought he was a boy because he looked SO much like Jameson.  After he was born though, I wasn’t so sure!  I actually think he looks like my baby pictures, and a little like my dad maybe?  As the days go on, he’s starting to look a little more like J, but without all of the chunk!  His hair has majorly fallen out, and he doesn’t have much in the eyelash or eyebrow department, but they’re slowly coming in!  I love his soft, soft feet and sweet little baby smell....babies are the best!

Eating:  He eats about 6-8 times a day.  He struggled with nursing a little at first, which was surprising to me because I assumed I was a seasoned pro (ha!), but he got the hang of it after awhile!  

Sleeping:  I will admit that it was awful at the beginning.  We were zombies and the big kids were being crazy, and things were just pretty rough.  Suddenly, I figured out a semi-schedule that seemed to work...he just needs to eat by about 7:30 or 8 pm.  After that, he will sleep anywhere from 2 am to even 4:30 am!  Not sure what determines that 2 hour gap, but I’ll take it!  After the early morning feeding, he usually doesn’t sleep that long...maybe another hour or 2.  It is definitely not the worst, so I hope he keeps it up!

This is turning into a major novel, so I’m going to leave it at this for now.  Stay tuned for more Baby B updates...hopefully I’ll write again before he’s 3 months old!  

He’s HERE!!!

So happy the meet him.

Hi, Mom!

Proud Daddy.

Proud (tired) Mommy.

Sporting his sweet new onesie!

Proud siblings (you can’t see but their shirts have “big bro/ big sis” on them and their names...and J’s has a dump truck and Peeps’ has a unicorn!)

[thepregnantweirdo]

34 Week Update

This pregnancy has been flying by, and I just realized that there will be a baby here NEXT MONTH!  So I thought I’d do a little update so I can remember what’s going on in our lives...my memory is terrible lately so it’s a good idea for me to write things down!

Baby Things

-The babe continues to thrash around all day long and get hiccups multiple times a day.  Baby J thinks it’s hilarious to feel the baby hiccuping...he used to do it a lot, too!  

-One night there was some serious flipping going on, and Joe noticed there was a giant bulge up near my ribs.  That would be the baby’s head...the doctor said he/she is breech but there’s plenty of time to flip over (but I’m having a c-section anyway, so I guess that doesn’t matter)!

-Baby has one single new item...a carseat!  The one we used for both Peeps and Baby J sadly expired in January.  Besides that, we don’t plan on buying a whole bunch of new baby items since I kept all of the kids’ old clothes and toys.

-Speaking of buying baby stuff, I haven’t even gone through any of the stuff we currently have in our basement, so I don’t even know what we need!  I probably shouldn’t have waited so long to do this, because each day moving around is becoming more and more of a struggle.  I figure once baby is here and I suddenly realize I have nothing, that is what Amazon and Target are for!

-Baby still has no name selections at all.  I keep trying to think of boy names because I just have a feeling it’s a boy.  Especially because in one of my ultrasounds, baby looked like Baby J 2.0!  

-We don’t know how big baby is (the doctors never really say), but I just feel like this is a big one.  The doctor told me that the third baby usually weighs somewhere between the first and second, but that means it’s still going to be at least 9 lbs!

Mom Things

-I recently had a few junky feeling weeks but I’m feeling somewhat better now.  As usual, I have my hypoglycemia issues, pelvic issues, heartburn issues, and a zillion other issues, but something I noticed this time around is that I spend a LOT of time sitting down.  Sometimes I feel like my legs weigh 200 lbs each and that just moving them makes me exhausted.  

-Speaking of slowing down, my workouts are totally pathetic.  Mainly I do them because I really hate the thought of so much sitting, but when I’m at the gym I can barely do anything that doesn’t make my pelvis feel like it’s ripping.  So elliptical and some arm workouts it is!

-I have been going to PT for pelvis stuff for a couple of weeks now.  This time I decided to start it up before baby’s arrival, and I’m sure I’ll be going a long time after the arrival, too (just hopefully not for a year like I did with Baby J)!

-Mainly I am just feeling really large...I’ve been noticing that people have to move out of the way when I’m walking by and everything is just becoming a tight squeeze.  I have to stand sideways when I’m washing dishes, otherwise my stomach sticks out so far that I can’t reach the sink! Also my steering wheel is just about an inch or 2 from the tum, which isn’t too comfortable.  I hope the cold weather is gone, because none of my coats will even zip!

-Weirdly I haven’t been having any cravings...but I guess I haven’t had any aversions either.  I have been avoiding anything spicy and anything with red sauce/overly garlicky because of the heartburn, though.  

-Another different thing for this pregnancy is that I haven’t been feeling as weepy as usual.  There have been a few times/days where I got a little emotional, but I think for the most part I have just been feeling ragey, ha!

Sibling Things

-The kids are always talking to the baby (maybe I should say yelling into my stomach) and feeling the movement.  Peeps seems like she is so excited to help me take care of baby, and that makes me so happy!

-Baby J has been excited throughout the pregnancy too, but the other day he randomly told me he didn’t want a brother or sister.  I don’t know where that came from, but he never mentioned that again!

-Another exciting thing for the “big kids” is that they will be sleeping in bunk beds in Peeps’ room for the time being!  It’s not our ideal situation, but they seem very excited about it and hopefully think it’s fun.  My plan is to just keep Baby J’s room as-is and move some of his clothes to Peeps’ room...that way he can still play with his toys in his old room.  I figure 3 year olds care more about their rooms than babies...so baby is just mostly going to be in there to sleep!

-The kids have decided baby’s name - Margaret for a girl and Daniel for a boy.  Can you tell what their favorite TV show is??

This has been an extra long update, so thanks for reading if you’ve stuck it through to the end! I think my next post is going to be “Things People Have Said to Me : Part II” because sadly (and annoyingly) I have a bunch more to add to the list!

Just a random pic of Peeps and Baby J because I didn’t know what else to post, ha!

[thepregnantweirdo]

Things People Have Said to Me Lately: Part I

Did you know that when you’re pregnant, everyone has a license to say whatever they want to you?  This can include comments on your weight, appearance, parenting skills, and just general views on the way you’re running your life.  For the most part, these are comments people would not normally say out loud, especially to strangers.  But pregnant ladies are susceptible to everyone’s thoughts and questions, whether they like it or not!  

Here are some things people have said to me since I’ve become noticeably pregnant (probably the last 1.5 months or so). I am labeling this post “part I” because I know that the farther along I get, the more the comments will come flying in.  I hope you enjoy reading these as much as I’ve enjoyed hearing them (where is the eye roll emoji???)

Are you sure it’s not twins? [The 4 ultrasounds I’ve had so far have confirmed that!]

How much weight have you gained? [I don’t know...how much weight have you gained?]

After having three kids I felt like I was drowning. [Tell that to my great grandma who had 13 kids!]

You already have a girl and a boy?  I would’ve stopped there. [You sound like an excellent mother.]

[Look of pure disgust and then] Why do you need a c-section? [If you were 5′2 and your last baby weighed 9 lb 13 oz and was 22.5 inches long, you would have one, too!]

You look like you’re having a girl, because you’re carrying everything up top.  And baby girls like to steal your beauty...they don’t want you to be beautiful when you’re pregnant. [In less than 20 seconds, you have called me both fat and ugly!]

Now clearly I didn’t actually come out and say these responses...I usually just give a smile and a fake laugh.  But maybe I should just say what I’m thinking...because that’s what everyone seems to be doing to me!

I will be back in a few weeks with another list, because the larger I get, the crazier the comments get!

[thepregnantweirdo]

The Three Amigos

I suppose it is kind of old news by now because I am already 27 weeks along, but baby #3 is coming in May!  I may be slow to the blogging this time around, but I wanted to address some “very important things,” because if I don’t write them down here, I will never remember any of this.  So here’s what’s going on!

Who is in there?

We decided to change it up a little bit this time and not find out the gender!  At first I didn’t think I would be able to handle not knowing, but we thought it’d be a really fun surprise!  Plus, it saves me from the worry about “what will Baby J do with another sister/how will Peeps feel about another brother?”  I’ll just have to worry about that once baby arrives!  Another positive thing about not finding out the gender is that we currently have nowhere to put this baby (see below), so I don’t have to work on decorating a room yet. With the other kids, I was SO into decorating their rooms and was stressing out about having it ready in time.  I guess I’ll have something to look forward to after the baby comes...right??? ;)

What do I think the gender is?

I truly don’t know!  I basically felt the same (read - awful) during the first 16 weeks of pregnancy with Peeps and Baby J...but honestly this time I didn’t feel that bad.  Now that I think about it, #1 and #2 were identical pregnancies (with the exception that I threw up a lot with Peeps).  I did feel extremely tired and slightly nauseous, but I wouldn’t say it was anything like with the other kids.  If I were to guess the gender, I’d say boy, just because baby was measuring large at my last appointment, and the kicks have been at Baby J caliber!  Another strange thing is that I have been pretty unemotional during this pregnancy.  I recall crying at EVERYTHING with the other kids and just feeling weird in general.  I will admit there have been a few random tears here and there, but I’ve been holding it together (so far)!

Where is baby going to reside?

This is the question on everyone’s mind (especially ours), and there is still no answer to it!  We are hoping to find a new house, but in the meantime, we are just planning on sticking the baby in our house somewhere.  Is that a good plan, or is that a good plan?  I am trying not to think about this too much because I don’t want to end my streak of not feeling anxious/like crying!

What do Peeps and Baby J think about all of this?

The day before I broke the news to the kids, Peeps was in her room playing with her baby dolls and told me, “Oh Mommy, I wish I had a real baby to play with.”  I figured this was a pretty good sign that she was going to be excited. I was WRONG.

I didn’t come up with a fun or creative way to break the news to the kids, so the next day I just flat out told them what is going on.  Peeps glared at me, threw down the doll she was holding, stomped to her room, and slammed her door.  Meanwhile, Baby J (the one I was sure would be upset/not understand) was clapping his hands and just THRILLED about becoming a big brother!  He immediately put his hand on my stomach and said, “I feel it moving!”  He also tried yelling into my stomach, “Hi baby!  It’s your big brother!”  Luckily, Peeps came around pretty quickly, and now she always talks about how she is going to help with her new brother or sister.  Baby J has still held on to his excitement, but he claims that he will “not share my trucks with the baby.” 

What are some similarities of this pregnancy and the first two?

-The heartburn (but I think this time around it is 100x worse)

-The feelings that I’m going to black out after eating (except this time it happens EVERY SINGLE TIME I eat, not just breakfast)

-The feeling like I’m going to rip in half when I try to roll over in bed

-An increased desire for pineapple and roast beef sandwiches (not together though, gross)

-Really weird dreams

-A hatred of the smell of pretty much anything

What are some of the differences?

-I felt the kicking REALLY early this time...maybe it was around 16 weeks or earlier?  I could even see it happening, too.  

-My hair is not luxuriously thick, which makes me sad!

-I did not feel nearly as lousy in the first trimester as I did with the other kids

-Time is going by really fast instead of creeping by

-I have a 5 and 3 year old who like to ask me intense questions such as, “How did the baby get in there?  How does it come out?  What is it doing in there?  Can it see me?  Why do only mommies have the babies in their tummies?"  My answers to these questions are vague.  Since I’m having a C-section, however, I told them the baby comes out through a little slice in my tummy.  (Or if this baby is anything like J, the doctor will need to make a “big” slice...eek!)

The duo is about to become a trio!

[thepregnantweirdo]

Three!

My sweet Baby J turns 3 very soon, so I should probably refer to him as “Toddler J” or even “Preschool J” - but I won’t be doing that because he is STILL MY BABY!  As you can see, I have a hard time with birthdays and my kids getting older.  On the bright side, now that he’s about to be 3, maybe I can finally stop hearing people say, “Wow, he’s only 2?” (referring to both his size and his very chatty ways.)

Baby J has changed SO much in the past year! From age 0-2, I thought he was the most easy going guy ever. Then when I was getting him dressed on his second birthday, he got upset because he didn’t want to wear what I picked out.  I thought to myself, “WHAT IS THIS?? Baby J has never tried to defy me or resist something I make him do!”  (This is in comparison to Peeps, who wouldn’t let me pick out her clothes starting at age 13 months.)  Looking back, I wouldn’t say that he actually had the “terrible twos,” but he definitely became more resistant/defiant/opinionated, which made things pretty interesting around here!

This year Baby J added a TON of new words to his vocabulary, especially ones that have to do with construction, trucks, cars, trains, and garbage pickup services.  He will tell stories that go on and on, and he’ll recall events that happened months ago (I wish I had a memory like his!)  He spends most of the day driving one of his 900 trucks around the house and putting them in their “parking lots.”  He lives for watching the garbage/recycling trucks do their pickups, and he secretly climbs out of his crib at night to look out the window when a firetruck goes by.  The kid LOVES him some vehicles!

Baby J’s done a lot of growing up this year (he’s potty trained, quit using the pacifier, goes to preschool) but he’s still the same guy who loves to snuggle, asks me to “hold him like a baby” (which is really hard since he weighs about 40 lbs), and cracks me up on a daily basis.  I hope his special day is filled with trucks and trains galore, plenty of dirt to dig in, rocks to collect, and heavy machinery to watch!  Happy 3rd Birthday, Baby J!

Baby J LOVES collecting rocks...but this one is more of a boulder!  We brought home at least 40 pounds of these from our vacation!

[thepregnantweirdo]

The Big FIVE

In just a few short days, Peeps is going to be ONE WHOLE HAND old!  That’s right, the little gal who I was just rocking to sleep and feeding 18 times a day is now going to be a 5 year old.  As the years go by, Peeps gets increasingly more excited about her approaching birthdays...and this year her excitement is through the roof!  For the past month or so, she’s been telling everyone she encounters that, “It’s almost my birthday, and I’m going to be 5!”  Sometimes she’ll even add in, “I’m a big kid, so I can do _____ [insert some type of activity here] really good now!”  Peeps is not shy about sharing her excitement (or her accomplishments) and it just cracks me up!  

Initially when I asked her what she wanted for her birthday, she kind of glanced around her room and said the first 3 that came to mind: a mermaid swimsuit, a new Fancy Nancy book “that doesn’t have to go back to the library,” and a new rug because “Minn chewed mine all up.”  Now I don’t know any 5 year old who would get amped up about new carpet, but whatever makes her happy, I guess! (I did not get her a new rug, but I’m pretty sure she will be ok with that.)

As the weeks have passed, the number of items on her birthday wish list has been climbing off the charts.  Now every time she sees something she’s remotely interested in, she will say, “Maybe I can get this...for my birthday? Please?”  These things have included new pajamas, random dolls, a zillion books, and so many other items that make me think, dang, I wish I thought of that!  It’s nice that she gave me some birthday present inspiration this year, but for once, I was ahead of the game and got her presents in advance!  Hopefully she likes them...she is not super great at hiding her disappointment!

I can’t talk about her birthday without mentioning what Peeps is up to this year!  While she is not yet in kindergarten, she is already talking about when she gets to go to the “big school,” which makes mom want to cry, of course.  I think age 4 was a really big transformation for her.  She really does act like a big kid now (most of the time, unless she wants dessert and mom won’t give it to her), and she tries her hardest to set a good example for Baby J. She has made a bunch of friends at school, although she never, EVER tells me any details on what her days at school are like!  I guess her tight-lipped characteristics will make her a great secret-keeper in the future, ha!

Peeps decided this year that she just LOVES dance class, and even though she’s been on summer vacation, she continues to twirl, spin, and practice her plies all around the house.  She loves singing as well, and sometimes I catch her singing lullabies to Jameson when he is in bed!  She also is quite the little mermaid girl.  She is crazy about swimming and stays in the water until we drag her out.  This summer she completely ditched her floatie and swims across the pool, goes under water for a REALLY long time, and even has underwater tea parties.  It seems like all of a sudden she has all of these new swimming skills...and we don’t even know where she’s getting them from! 

Art/coloring makes up a large portion of her days, and she has really acquired some skills!  I am pretty impressed with the drawings/coloring pages she shows me...so impressed that our fridge is completely filled with her pictures, as well as every door in our house!

Peeps is a caring little gal and is always making sure her dolls, babies, and various stuffed animals are doing ok.  She is pretty empathetic too, which makes her even sweeter!  Up until she was about 4, I will admit that Peeps and I butted heads about a lot of things.  I don’t know what happened, but suddenly she just started getting really lovey-dovey to me, giving me lots of hugs and kisses throughout the day, and basically is my best bud.  I don’t know what changed, but I am loving and hoping it is a really, really, really long phase! :) 

I could go on and on about the cute things Peeps does these days, but I will try to just leave it at this:  Peeps is one sweet and smart girl who marches to her own beat.  I’ll admit she wears some crazy outfits, prefers not to brush her hair, and might over-accessorize a little bit, but she is just expressing herself, and I think that is great! Her brother is her best friend, and while they do spend 80% of the day fighting, I think they would be completely lost without each other!  I feel lucky to be Peeps’ mom, and I can’t wait to see what new things await her this year!

The little mermaid/birthday girl!

[thepregnantweirdo]

2.5 Years of Baby J

In honor of being 30 months old, I am going to share 30 fun facts about Baby J! Here goes...

1.  He is still hefty and I’m pretty sure he weighs more than Peeps.

2.  He needs 3 items with him at all times:  his sleep sack (which he carries around like a blanket), his pacifier aka “boppy” (I’m not proud of this fact, but whatever), and a stuffed elephant named “Cute Aw-phant.”

3.  He knows the name of basically every type of heavy machinery.  This is all new to me since I have 0 interest in trucks.  I’m actually really impressed that he knows the difference between an excavator and a backhoe loader (I am learning all of this stuff along with him!)

4.  He is still really easy going.  Although he does have his “2 year old moments,” he gets over them pretty quickly.  

5.  He is so different than Peeps that it’s hard to believe they are related.  He always wants to clean up, help with chores, and help us cook.  Peeps has no interest in any of these activities whatsoever!

6.  Although he is different than his sister, he still wants to do whatever she is doing.  Baby J gets REALLY mad when he sees Peeps ice skating...he tries so hard but can’t get the hang of it quite yet.  

7.  He has to get his hair cut a lot.  (As opposed to Peeps who has had 2 haircuts her entire life!)

8.  He loves anything train-related (and truck of course), but really couldn’t care less about boats or planes.

9.  His immense appetite still persists, but he has become pickier over the past few months.  

10.  He has a CRAZY GOOD memory.  The way he associates things really blows my mind.  I can’t think of any examples right now, because unlike him, I have a bad memory!

11.  He really likes looking at books/listening to stories...a complete turnaround from about a year ago!

12.  He doesn’t really have any friends other than Peeps...yes, I feel bad about this!

13.  He can recognize music within about 4 seconds into a song.  For example, he heard “Broken Halos” by Chris Stapleton in the car and told me, “That’s a daddy tune!  This is daddy’s favorite song!” (HOW DOES HE KNOW THIS?)

14.  He loves giving Minnie her nightly treat, and can get her to sit down and shake.

15.  He knows where we are when we’re in the car.  For example, he’ll yell out,  “There’s my doctor!  There’s Callie’s dance class!”  (Again, HOW DOES HE KNOW THIS?)

16.  I am not quite sure what size shoes he wears now, but he’s busting out of his 10.5 wides...I think Peeps wears an 11!

17.  He gives the best snuggles and cuddles...it probably has to do with his squishiness!

18.  His favorite color is orange - which works well for us, because no one else ever wants the orange Skittles or lollipops, ha!

19.  His favorite game is hide-and-seek, and he is actually very good at it!  Although when he’s hiding he will peek out and look at us, but think that we don’t see him!

20.  He runs away from me every time we’re getting in the car, which is super fun in parking lots and other busy places.

21.  He’s obsessed with the furnace and gets really excited when it turns on.

22.  He says a lot of things wrong, which cracks me up.  Some phrases include, “Let’s watch TB!  I need a maKle leaf cookie!  I hear a BU-lance going by!”  (BU-lance is my favorite...it’s how he says ambulance!)

23.  He is addicted to butter and needs it slathered on his food 3-4 times during one meal.

24.  He counts to 10, then continues on to 19, 13, 17, and then eleven-teen!

25.  If you give him a choice between “this or that,” he will always answer with “OR that.”  (Like we will say, “Do you want Bob the Builder or Mickey?” and he will say “OR Mickey!”)

26.  He climbed out of his crib a couple weeks ago for the first time since about a year ago.  I told him a scary story I made up about little boys who climb out of their cribs, and I hope it worked!

27.  When he sings the ABCs, he says “T-boobie” for “T-U-V.”  (I don’t correct him, it’s too funny!)

28.  He will always tell you about his day and what he did.  Once I asked him what he did while I was gone and he said, “I went to the hardware store with Daddy.  I got popcorn.  I wanted a cookie.  I cried.  Daddy told me to stop crying right now.”  You really can’t get away with anything when our “little reporter” is around!

29.  He will happily play with any of his sister’s girl toys, but then he’ll do something truly disgusting and remind me that he’s still a boy.

30.  He is the sweetest, smartest, funniest little guy that I know, and I am so proud to be his mom!!

Chef Bro-Ardee. Hahaha.

[thepregnantweirdo]

4-Real

Have you ever noticed that on all kid TV shows, the main character is supposed to be 4? (You can look it up if you don’t believe me!)  Anyways, I always felt like 4 is the magical age of kid-dom.  This is when a kid is still young enough to still need their parents for a lot of things, but they are also becoming more independent and like actual little humans!  Four years old is definitely still an innocent age, but this is when they are developing their own little interests and opinions. Anyways, I’m talking about all of this because my sweet little Peeps is turning 4 on August 27, and I really can’t believe it! She’s such a big kid now!

Although Peeps has always been a chatterbox and seems wise beyond her years, during this past year she’s done some especially big girl things.  She picks out her own outfits, goes potty with no help at all, sleeps in a big girl bed, and is slightly more willing to try new foods (sometimes).  She is also more open to trying new activities.  At the beginning of this year, it took me about 2 hours to convince her just to go to the dance store to get ballet shoes, and another 2 hours to convince her to go to the class.  But for the past couple of months, she’s been more open to new experiences, which is certainly making my life easier!  

Here are some more Peeps-isms that make her awesome:

She has a best bud at school and is not shy around new people.  She’s very observant and really hates it when Joe and I report the funny things she says to each other.  She asks for ice cream every single day and would probably eat chicken fingers each night if we let her.  She dips everything in ranch dressing and likes to wear the same 4 outfits every week.  She won’t let us do a thing to her hair, and she wears sweaters when it’s 94 degrees outside.  She sleeps with about 32 buddies in her bed and cries when I wash her sheets (I have to sneak new ones on without her noticing).  She uses half a roll of toilet paper during each potty visit.  She throws all of the couch cushions on the floor every morning and says she’s making a fort.  She has learned to make Minnie sit and give her a paw in exchange for a treat.  She loves playing pretend, reading books to her buddies in bed at night when she’s supposed to be sleeping, singing made up songs, and drawing pictures of flowers.  She will swim without a floatie on during swim class.  I think she surprises herself when she does it, because she always looks like she’s going to cry by the time she makes it to the wall!  She loves going to the grocery store, which is pretty funny considering she doesn’t love eating that much.  She only weighs 2 or 3 more pounds than her brother.  She makes up funny words all the time, like “bompsy,” and cracks herself up when she says them.  She will get at least 12 mosquito bites every time she’s outside, even when she’s wearing bug spray.  She crams her feet in slippers that are 3 sizes too small and won’t let me get rid of them.  She loves accessories and playing dress up.  

Most of all, she LOVES playing with her brother. It has gotten to the point where they are pretty inseparable, which of course makes me thrilled!  I will also overhear her saying things like, “No, Bro, Mommy said we can’t do that,” which also makes me immensely happy!

Peeps is one unique gal, and I love each and every one of her “Peeps-isms!”  I hope she has an amazing birthday and I can’t wait to see all of the new milestones she hits this year.  Happy Birthday, Peeps!

[thepregnantweirdo]

Keep it to Yourself

This is my fourth attempt at writing this post (it’s been brewing in my mind for awhile now), and I originally tried to eloquently put in writing what I need to say. 

Instead, I will just come right out and say it!

WHY DO PEOPLE FEEL THE NEED TO SAY WHATEVER IGNORANT THING THEY ARE THINKING?  KEEP YOUR DUMB COMMENTS TO YOURSELF!

As I’ve mentioned numerous times on this blog, Baby J is a large guy.  He started off large, he remained large throughout his baby days, and now that he’s a toddler, he looks a lot older than his current 21 months.  I understand how it could be confusing to people that this kid who looks about 3-ish wears diapers, has the vocab of a normal almost 2 year old, and behaves like one too.  But that doesn’t mean people need to make snide remarks!

About a month ago, we were at a party and three separate people made the comment to me, “Isn’t that kid a little big to be in diapers?”  First of all, even if he happened to be an older kid who still wore diapers, does that mean you should make a comment about it?  NO IT DOES NOT.  I can’t believe people feel the need to say some of this crap.  What gives you the right to tell me you think my kid’s too big for diapers?

Although these people were clearly mindless cretins, I pleasantly informed them that my kid is only 20 months old, and he’s not potty trained yet.  Then I got the usual, “Wow, that kid is really huge.  You’re a small person! How did you even give birth to him?” That’s not really a rude question, but it just annoys me for some reason. (Probably because I hear it a lot.)

Making a comment about diapers isn’t the hugest deal in the world, but I wonder if these people know that making remarks like that is basically making fun of my kid.  Would you just go up to an adult and say something like, “Aren’t you a little young to be going bald?” or  “Aren’t you a little old to be wearing those shorts?”  Hopefully  not.  So don’t do it to kids!

The moral of the story is, people feel like they can say whatever they want about kids just because the kid is too young to understand.  But I am the kid’s mom, and I know what you’re saying is rude and condescending. The next time I hear the diaper comment (because I’m sure it will happen again), I’ll just say, “Yes, he still wears diapers. Maybe he can share a pack with you!” Muahaha. 

[thepregnantweirdo]

Jameson - King of the Irish Goodbye

You’ve probably heard of the Irish Goodbye - when someone disappears from a gathering without telling anyone goodbye/that they’re leaving. Well, at a mere 18 months of age, Baby J has mastered this exit strategy to a T.  Anytime we are somewhere other than our house, he immediately locates the door, manages to fling it open, and leaves!  This happens EVERY TIME WE GO SOMEWHERE.  If you can imagine, this makes things quite tricky. When we are out and about we have to watch that sneaky little guy like a hawk.  We learned our lesson the hard way...

About a month ago, we were getting ready for work and were in our usual hustle and bustle situation.  Normally, I put Baby J in his pack n’ play while I’m getting ready, since he has a habit of flushing the toilet 7 times in a row when no one’s looking.  On this particular morning, I must have forgotten to “jail” him...because I looked over and saw the door that leads to our garage wide open.  (Keep in mind, the door was previously deadbolted!) Of course I started freaking out, because I figured by the time I got outside, he’d be in the street!  I headed out the door to find Baby J happily pulling Peeps’ gardening tools out of the garage and laying them out all over the driveway.  The best part is that he just looked at me like, “What’s the big deal?” and continued getting stuff out of the garage.  

A couple of weeks later, Baby J used his magical deadbolt unlocking skills to open the back door.  I caught him after he had already made his way down 3 steps and was gleefully galloping through our backyard on his way to the swing set...wearing no coat, no socks, and no shoes in 40 degree weather.  Nothing stops this kid from escaping me!  

Speaking of escaping, do you know what’s a really creepy feeling?  When you trap your kid in his pack n’ play to go downstairs to do some laundry and then you hear footsteps running around above you...but there’s only the 2 of you at home.  Then you put him in his crib where he surely can’t escape, and you hear feet running around AGAIN. It’s a pretty bad feeling when your only form of entrapment doesn’t work anymore.  I even Googled some tent-like things you put over cribs to keep kids from escaping.  They seemed a little extreme, but if I get really desperate, I’m not above it.

All of this is new to me, especially when you consider that Peeps didn’t get out of her crib until earlier this year!  Baby J just lives for keeping up with his sister and exploring everything he lays eyes on.  I have a feeling that pretty soon we’re just going to have no furniture (since he’s figured out how to climb up our really tall kitchen chairs and then stand on our table), no decorations (since he finds the most random dangerous things I didn’t even know we had), and everything else is going to have to be 5 feet off the ground! You live and you learn, I guess!

(Side note - before you think I’m the worst parent ever, we took care of the door situation and childproofed the knobs.  Hopefully our little Houdini won’t figure those out for awhile!)

Hey, sneak! Get down from there!

[thepregnantweirdo]

Holidays of Yore

Keeping true to my slacker fashion, I haven’t written in the blog in over 3 months.  That is just atrocious!  So much has happened in the past 3 months, and I didn’t write any of it down…so of course I can’t remember any of it.  I guess I’ll just dive right into the present then!

Last week, the kids visited Santa, which went surprisingly well.  We had to wait in line for 1.5 hours, which is not normally something I would condone, but the kids were both unusually calm and collected so we stuck it out! It probably had to do with the fact that they both have colds and were feeling a little subdued…so Peeps just mostly hung out in the stroller, while Baby J (who was the sicker of the two) tore off through the mall while Joe chased him.  There weren’t any meltdowns, bathroom issues, screaming, or incessant requests for food, so I would call it a success!

When we finally made it through the line, Peeps promptly told Santa that she wanted a purple dress (keep in mind, she has like 9 of these in her closet).  Meanwhile, Baby J just kind of sat there and glared, which is nothing like his usual cheerful self!  When it came time to snap the pictures, neither kid would smile, no matter how much we jumped around, made ridiculous faces, and made general fools out of ourselves.  Peeps actually started looking like she was about to burst into tears, but she held out until it was time to go!

Overall, I would call the visit a success.  Here is one of the more decent photos we got:

We can’t talk about this year’s Santa picture without recalling visits of years past.  Here was last year, when Baby J was just 3 months old, and Peeps wanted NOTHING to do with Santa:

The year before, Peeps was just a solo child, and she actually didn’t mind sitting on Santa’s lap:

And finally, back in 2013, Peeps was just 4 months old and decided to spew all over Santa’s lap.  He was not thrilled about it (since he pretty much chewed me out about it. Chill out, Santa!)  Also, notice how “round” Peeps was back in the day!  She might have even surpassed Baby J in the huge cheek department!

[thepregnantweirdo]

Say Hello to ONE!

As I’m writing this, I’m feeling a little shocked that Sweet Baby J is turning ONE tomorrow.  The only word I can really think of to describe my feelings is “shocked,” because this has been the fastest year of my entire life!  I don’t know if it’s because Baby J took much longer to sleep through the night than Peeps did, if it’s because just 6 days ago I finished breastfeeding, or if it’s because one week ago I FINALLY had my last physical therapy appointment...but I just can’t fathom that my baby is about to be one!  

I know I mentioned that time went by fast during Peeps’ first year, but I feel like this time went by even quicker, if that is even possible! I can’t even remember what happened earlier this summer, let alone last winter!  I just keep wondering...how did this even happen?  Wasn’t I just taking Baby J’s 7 month photos?  Didn’t he just start eating food?  Why does life speed by so fast?

Since I clearly get nostalgic around birthdays, I also got to thinking about how Baby J is SO much different than his sister (besides the obvious fact that he is a boy).  Peeps surprised us by coming into the world 9 days early, while Baby J was a planned c-section who arrived on his due date (he actually would’ve stayed in longer if we let him!  Pretty sure he would’ve been 11 lbs if that were the case!)  Peeps was a big talker early on, but was very hesitant to crawl, stand, and walk.  Meanwhile, Baby J does say a few words, but this guy is ALL about being active.  His favorite activity is standing up, clapping and waving, and then taking a few tentative steps.  

I also can’t leave out the fact that this kid eats nonstop, does not hesitate to try any type of food, and would eat all day long if I let him.  This is SO not the case with Peeps!  During Peeps’ first summer, she absolutely loved floating around the pool in her little boat and could do that for hours at a time.  Baby J lasts about 3 minutes in his boat before he tries to tip it over, and then he gets mad being in the pool because he just wants to get out and crawl around!

Despite their differences, I don’t think Peeps and Baby J could be any happier to have each other as siblings!  They are getting to the point where they actually play and laugh together, and from a mom’s perspective, that is amazing!  In just one year, Peeps went from completely ignoring Baby J existed to asking, “Can I play with my brother?” each night before bed.  

Our family’s lives have been changed by our giant bundle of joy, and I can’t imagine not having him around!  Baby J was always such a happy, content, and easygoing baby, and he is still like that today (the exception being his crabby mood the past couple weeks, which I think is caused by the teething).  I love going in his room each morning and seeing him happily peering over the top of his crib with a paci in his mouth and a smile on his face.  He’s picked up a few new morning habits too, including jumping up and down in his crib and screeching at full volume when he’s eating his breakfast.

I love watching all these milestones, and although I’m a little sad that my baby is growing up so fast, I’m looking forward to all the fun of the future!  We love you, Baby J, and we hope you have the most excellent first birthday ever! (Also I’ve been dying to see him pig out on his first taste of cake...that will be amazing!)

I don’t sit still for pictures but my mom still makes me do them anyway!

[thepregnantweirdo]

My Little Big Kid

In just two short days, my sweet Peeps will be turning 3 years old.  First of all, I can’t believe it’s already nearing the end of August, and second of all, how is she turning 3 already?  I know that every mom says this, but to me, it just does not seem like 3 years have already come and gone.  I guess I am coping with the fact that Peeps is turning 3 only because it seems like she’s been 3 for awhile now!

About 2 weeks after we brought Baby J home, Peeps suddenly began talking in complete sentences.  I guess she had to have been about 25 months.  Then the sentences turned into paragraphs, and then she started saying words correctly on the first try.  She is such a well-spoken little girl that to me, she’s always seemed a little older than she actually is!  She never really went through the “saying words wrong in a cute way” phase and we never had to ask her a million times what she was talking about, because she always made sense.  

Suddenly, she started doing other “big kid” things, like cleaning up her toys in her room and telling us when she had to go potty.  She helps out with “her baby” (bro) and remembers things we briefly mentioned 3 weeks earlier.  Joe and I are always amazed at how good her memory is/a little freaked out about it (she does NOT let you forget anything you said, EVER)!  

Even though she’s just turning 3 which is still pretty young, I feel like she’s an “old” toddler.  Which I know doesn’t make sense.  Either way, I hope my accessory sporting, car loving, tutu twirling, peanut butter eating, swimming pool splashing, purple obsessing, expert coloring, sky-high swinging, sweet little girl has the best third birthday ever!  We love you, Peeps!!

Stop growing up NOW!