Wednesday, July 16, 2008

Life As We Know It

Is it already July??? Where is the time going? Oh yes, to throwing balls, playing with sand, changing diapers, nursing, managing sleep schedules, making lunch, refilling sippy cups, burping the baby, grocery shopping and the occasional shower for me in order to stay awake!

The time is certainly flying by, and I'm trying to savor every second I can. It feels like every time I look away, something new happens and I've almost missed it. The boys are both growing by leaps and bounds and each day brings about so many sweet moments.

Jak is just about 20 months old now. 20 months! Jeff and I are loving this stage and learning a lot about how to deal with a toddler. Some days are just peachy and some days are just down right hard. But we're surviving!

Jak is broadening his vocabulary each day. He still has his standard word bank each day, consisting of: uh-oh, bye-bye, oh jeez, ball, hot, cold, baby, Mama, Dada, Nana, Oui-Oui (our friend's nickname), Mimi (Aunt Emily), yes, no, more, milk, chips, down, please (pees), muh (kiss), and poop (he has told us for the past two days each time he's gone...I think I see toilet training in the near future!). Add to those words new words he tries out every day. I love watching him grow and learn, and seeing how his brain processes things. What a joy it is to watch your son discover something new, like how to put his shoes on or pull his pants up! Simple things to us adults, but so exciting for little ones!

Big brother *loves* his little brother to pieces. Jak would kiss and hug the baby nonstop if I let him. He often gives John his pacifier which ironically makes the baby cry (Jak means well, but is a bit forceful). Then we go through the standard speech that the baby doesn't need (or like) the "sucker" and to put it down, to which Jak then will test it out in his own mouth before giving it to Mommy. There's also the scenario of John sleeping peacefully before Jak decides he wants to rudely awaken him. And I mean rude. Who wouldn't hate a screaming toddler shaking the bed violently? We now have invested in a second sound machine, along with a door lock and pinch guard (which prevents the door from being closed) for John's room. See, we have to both prevent the door from being opened and closed with Jak around. What fun!

And then we have John. John is such a sweet addition to our family. He is a mellow baby, just like his big brother was, and for the most part pretty easy to figure out now. He's almost 8 weeks and weighs about 14 pounds! I can't believe how fast he has grown! He is wearing things already that Jak was in at the end of 3 months. This boy isn't even 2 months yet! We have a dr. appt. next week; I'm eager to see what his real weight and length are from the dr.'s measurements and not our own. His sweet baby hair is starting to fall out much to my dismay. It's still pretty fluffy but is thinning daily. I hope he doesn't lose it all! And those cheeks! Well, they aren't going anywhere fast and I don't' want them to! They are delicious!

He eats pretty frequently for a big little guy, about every 2 hours. This boy is like clockwork! I noticed yesterday during my meltdown (I'm saving that for another post!) that I wasn't eating well or drinking enough water to satisfy my boy; my milk didn't seem like it was coming enough. Today, I've been diligent about getting 3 meals in with some healthy snacking in between, and the water intake is better. It seems like I'm producing more already, so I need to keep up the good work.

Jeff and I stay busy around here with housework, outdoor work, and day-job work for Jeffery. We are both tired, but I'm not sure we'd have it any other way. We have a warm home, yummy and abundant food, clean clothes and water, and two healthy babies to love and who love us back unconditionally. Thank God for that unconditional part, because as parents (somewhat new ones at that!) we screw up. A lot more than we'd like to admit. But that's the thing, the more we screw up, the more we learn about how not to screw up the next time. There is grace, forgiveness and unconditional love that comes with each mistake, and we can live with that as we learn!

1 comment:

Maryann said...

Looks like the boys are, well, being boys! Thank you for the update, and the great pictures!
Love, Maryann<><