2 months old and Blessed!

We blessed Anna in our home this past Sunday.  We had Grandma Barb and other friends and family with us; including the Taylor Grandparents via the webcam.  David gave Anna a wonderful blessing, I'm so grateful for the priesthood.  We had a tasty dinner and a great time visiting with everyone.  Anna cried during the blessing of course but was angelic the rest of the evening so we were able to enjoy her.  She's such a sweetheart.

Anna fell sound asleep in Grandma's arms after dinner

The kids played and played and played!

We had the Griggs, the Bluths, The McKays and the Spencers celebrate with us! 

Anna's 2 month stats:

weight: 11 lbs. 10 oz.  60%

length: 22 inches  25%

head: 14 3/4 inches  25%

5 Fast Things

1.  Anna is 8 weeks today and for the last 2 nights she has slept 9 p.m.-7 a.m.  And she is no longer crying when going down for her naps--unless she's overtired. I'm in awe of her.

2.  David let me do a little shopping yesterday.  It's amazing how buying a new pair of pants, a shirt and some shoes just makes you feel on top of the world.  I don't remember the last time I bought shoes-it's been at least 2 years.  It's really hard to find cute size 11+ shoes for women so when I find some I'm SO happy! And when they're cheap, I'm even happier.  I made sure to get him a couple of shirts too, and Sunday shoes for Cyrena---it wasn't all about me. :)

3.  Cyrena told me my job is easier than daddy's because I JUST have to bathe and feed babies.  Daddy's job is SO much harder.  She also asked me why we have to die, why she has to be a girl, and if Supernanny lives on Earth or just in the t.v.

4.  David went shopping for our Valentine's dinner yesterday.  He came home with boxes of chocolates for me and the girls.  I promptly took them back to the store.  Not because I didn't want to eat chocolate...no way; I just didn't like the kind he bought! And I'd already bought some Valentine treats for the girls.  Luckily, he didn't mind.  We're practical that way. :)

5.  Cyrena's soccer team won their first game yesterday.  She scored her second goal of the season and was so proud.

Pre-Valentine Fun

We've been having some pre-Valentine fun around here.  By the way, Cyrena started preschool last week. She's going to a local at-home preschool and loving it so far.  She's such a social girl and it's been a little hard on her just being at home with her sisters all the time.  This is something that's just hers and it is fantastic! 

We matched up some foam hearts that had things to match up like letter, numbers, etc.  We have done other learning activities but I didn't take pictures...oops.

For FHE we made Valentine mailboxes

Yesterday the girls made 'love bugs'  They are so cute and they each did a great job!  I found the pattern here.  After they made these, we had some people in the ward over for a Valentine potluck lunch.  I pretty much didn't see the girls for over 2 hours since they were so busy playing with kids, and Anna slept the entire time so I was free to socialize!

Getting sticker backs off is great fine motor work!  She has just recently been able to start doing this!

This morning we put together Cyrena's Valentine's for her preschool party.  Everyone got a tootsie roll, 2 airheads, and a yo-yo.  Natalie saw candy and ran for the scissors to try and open some...she's a handful. 

Here is my beautiful girl ready to go to her party!

Then she wanted to take pictures of Natalie and I...a little fuzzy but cute.

Mom's 'hep'er

So after my lovely metaphor about colds and cold medicine...guess who got a cold? Yep, that would be me. I guess I was asking for it? The girls have both had slight colds, nothing too bad and now I have the sore throat/congestion thing going on. No fun. David let me take Tylenol PM last night and made his first debut into the middle of the night feeding for Anna. It was so nice! I think it built his confidence a bit. :)


ANYWAY, this post is really about my little helper, Miss Natalie. She's always saying, "I hep you mom?" And she is a pretty good helper. Here are some ways she has helped me lately:

-After I feed Anna I usually leave the bottle on the couch while I'm entertaining Anna and such. Then when I put her down for a nap, I go get the bottle to rinse it out. A few times this week, I went to get the bottle and couldn't find it. I asked Natalie where it was and she replied, "I put it on the sink mom" and there it was, sitting on the counter next to the sink.

-When I change Anna's diaper I leave it on the stool while I am feeding her, etc. Again, sometimes it has mysteriously disappeared. So I ask Natalie and she tells me, "I frow it in the trash Mom"

-I get Anna dressed for the day on the couch after her morning feeding and I put her dirty clothes to the side while I take care of her other needs. They also disappeared one day, and later I found them in the dresser drawer in Anna's room. I need to show Natalie where the Anna's hamper is. :)

-The other day Cyrena was playing at a friend's house and Natalie was hanging out with me. I left the room to put Anna down for a nap...literally I was gone for maybe 3 minutes. I came back in the kitchen and Natalie was seated in her booster seat with a yogurt, eating away and said. "I got a yogurt Mom!" She's never done this before. She had gotten the foil lid off herself and thrown it in the trash, got a spoon, and got into her booster seat. The only thing she forgot was a bib. I burst out laughing at my big girl.

-If Anna is fussy or upset, Natalie strokes her head and says, "Don't be sad....it's ok....don't cry..." These are things she hears me say and it's pretty cute coming from her.

-Natalie also helps me make my bed almost every morning, puts ingredients into the blender for smoothies, is starting to get her own water out of the fridge and flushes the toilet for Cyrena when she goes potty.

-Sometimes in the early morning hours, we hear the pantry door slide open and closed. Then we hear Natalie bedroom door close. When this happens we know she has helped herself to a bowl full of something. Usually it's Craisins or goldfish. We need a pantry that locks.

Natalie can be very mischievous, she can sure throw a tantrum, and she is BUSY but she's also a lot of fun!

My Friend Jessica

Remember what it's like when you have a cold and your head is muddled, your thoughts are foggy, and you are just surviving minute by congested minute?

Then the blessed cold medicine kicks in and suddenly the world seems a happier place, you have the gift of energy again and you feel like you can accomplish anything? You know what I'm talking about?

That's what happened to me last week.

No, I didn't have a cold- thank goodness. But I AM the mother of 3 young children who fill my days with fun, feeding, crying, potty breaks, fighting, tantrums, endless energy, and lots of loving. So this leads to foggy thoughts and minute by minute survival. But I got a great dose of medicine.
Meet my friend Jessica.

She came with her kids to spend some time with me.
She was here for 3 days and
IT. WAS. GREAT.

I've already talked to you a bit about Jess, if you remember. We've known each other for about 17 years....WHAT?? I just did the math and that's accurate. Crazy.

Jessica has always been someone I've looked up to (she's 9 months older than me!). She's very organized with a system for everything. I wish I was like that! I remember when we were roommates she worked as a server in a restaurant. She had mugs on a shelf in her room and every night when she got home, she automatically sorted her tips into the 2 mugs which were for TITHING and SAVINGS. I always admired that she did it right when she got home so she didn't have to go back and calculate later. So organized, I'm telling you. She has taught me a lot about strength and spirituality as well.

Anyway, it had been way too long since we'd seen each other so we were lucky to get together. Since we don't have a car big enough for all of us we just stayed home, took care of the 5 kids and talked, talked, talked. There was never a lull, always something to catch up about or ask advice on, etc. In the evenings when the kids were in bed, just she and I would run a quick errand or 2 which was nice.

So this trip was one of the first we've really had to see each other in action as moms. It was so fun! Jessica is a great mom and reinforced the importance of doing some things that I have been a bit lax about lately. She motivated me to be better in all aspects of my life, which I really appreciate about her!

This is her oldest, Brady. He loved holding Anna. He's 4 and had fun playing with the girls.

He joined us for some preschool time.

This is her daughter, Brooke. Such a cutie-pie!

We set up the Thomas set and the kids went crazy playing with it!

David's obsessed with wimp.com so the kids were watching some videos with him. He was so great to play with all the kids!

They left Saturday afternoon and it was sad to see them go back to Colorado. David was shocked that I didn't cry but I was trying not to dwell on it! :) Although it did make me a bit melancholy at the beginning of the week. It's hard to live away from all my good friends. I haven't really made friends here yet. And there's no replacement for those friends who REALLY know you.

Anyway, thanks for coming Jess, you are amazing! Here's to the next 17 years of friendship!

Anna is 6 weeks

Well...it didn't happen. Saying those words "good baby" did not turn Anna into a monster. In fact, she's only getting better and better! She is a great baby. Her smiles have gotten bigger, more frequent, and more spontaneous. SO fun.

She takes about four 2-2 1/2 hour naps. And since 4 1/2 weeks she's been sleeping a 6-9 hour stretch at night, eating and then going back to sleep for a few hours. Seriously!

Of course there are days that her naps are a little messed up, she wants to eat more often, or cries hard when it's bedtime but pretty much that's what she's been doing. She does a kind of spit up/throw up thing once every couple of days. I'm not sure what's causing it but she gags really easily.

David and I are still able to have time together in the evenings since Anna goes to bed at a decent hour. Our nights are not filled with a fussy baby like they were with Natalie. It's so nice. Life is good.

I took this picture because it just typifies my everyday life. Anna being happy, Natalie curiously watching/playing with her, and Cyrena busily writing and working on something.

Anna likes to look in her mirror

Trying to get her to smile at the camera

She likes the mobile in her swing--a great craigslist find

I still have to wake her up from every nap to eat, this ensures she gets all her feedings in so she'll sleep long at night! Sometimes it takes her awhile to wake up.

Another attempt at capturing a smile

Anna is 1...Month

Wow, it's January 19th already! That means Anna is 1 month old. It doesn't feel like it's been a month since Anna was born but it also seems that we've never been without her!

I think I can officially say the words "good baby" in regards to Anna. I'm very scared of those words because I worry the minute I utter them my baby will turn into a monster. But I think how a baby is at 1 month is a good indication of how they're going to be the next couple of months until they're out of the 'newborn' stage. And that makes me happy because she's pretty good!

She's definitely a gassy baby so there are times we really have to work out the burps and such. We are transitioning her to formula in the next week or so. She's a good sleeper and puts herself to sleep most of the time. If she's overtired or has an upset tummy she'll need us to pat her back and help her relax to sleep. She's only able to stay awake 45 minutes at a time--max. She has been very alert lately and has the beginnings of a smile, I hope that happens this week! She likes the bath, loves her bottle, and most of all loves to be cuddled on my shoulder. Oh, and she loves the plethora of kisses she receives from each of us!

I am feeling great, better than I've ever felt with a newborn. I usually get the baby blues pretty bad for a week or 2 but I have really only had them for 1-2 days this time-and only cried once. I can't tell you how relieved I am about that (and I'm sure David is too!). Now, I've definitely had my grumpy days but none of those yucky, hopeless, apathetic, overwhelming feelings.

Anyway, things are going well, the kids are all healthy and happy now and we're looking forward to a visit from my junior high/high school/college/newlywed, etc best friend Jessica next week! It's been over 2 years since we've seen each other--crazy.