a little shot of nola's wiggles :)
Friday, February 5, 2010
Thursday, February 4, 2010
the overtired child. and baby. and adult.
being overtired is cruel. the only cure for lack of sleep is...sleep. but when you're too far gone, sleep is just about the one thing you can't grasp.
in this house, overtired manifests itself in different ways.
the baby:
*gets a wide-eyed wild look
*waves and flaps her hands and arms excitedly during a feeding
*giggles, shrieks, babbles incoherently (well, more incoherently than usual)
*finally dissolves into tears upon sobs upon shrieks of a different nature
*can finally be coaxed into sitting quietly in the chair and staring at your face for a while, as her limbs start to settle. then, within a matter of minutes, she's snoring.
the child:
*starts running around the house like a child on a sugar high (but believe me, if we think she's tired, there's not one recent trace of sugar in her system)
*starts falling apart at the simplest of comments, questions or commands ("do you want milk or juice?" "juice!" "ok, here's your juice" "no. NO. NOOOOOOOOOOO!" hmmmm.)
*will become the most stubborn human ever
*will stall about picking out a story before naptime, but will scream incessently if you choose a story for her
*will finally comply to lay down and close her eyes and then is usually out like a light...but will then be awake sometime from 2 minutes to and hour later, either crying and asking for something you can't understand or talking to herself and her friends in her crib
(side note: if any of this happens and is not remedied by earlier sleep-times later, the battle continues and the cycle repeats itself viciously)
when i was little and would get overtired, i'd just cry. maybe there was more of a lead up to it that i wasn't aware of, all i remember is that i'd cry. and cry and cry and cry. about nothing and with no quick off switch. the day after avery was born i spent a good number of hours just crying. a mix of exhaustion, horrendous delivery, pain and hormones. but probably mostly exhaustion. so i totally understand these poor little bodies getting tired and not being able to deal or settle. as hard as it is somedays to stay at home all day to make sure they each get the rest they need, it sure does make for happier kids.
and adults.
*so i wrote this post yesterday...after avery and nola both woke up well before 6am. it seems more days than not this week have involved early wake-ups, naps cut short by dirty diapers, attempts to put nola down for a 3rd nap that she doesn't usually take, bedtimes that started too late and take too long (even though we tried to get them down early and quick), and overnight wakings...which leads to more early wake-ups, etc. it's 8:44pm right now and we can still hear avery talking upstairs, though we put her down at 6:30 she might have fallen asleep for a little bit, hard to say). i'm anticipating hearing more from avery overnight (not so much talking as crying) and (too) early in the morning. it just won't stop!!
happy (almost) friday, everyone. :)
ps, i'll be REALLY surprised if nola doesn't pop her first tooth in the next few days...we can see the tooth just below the gum. a whole month and a half earlier than avery's first tooth! i told zane i'd be sad to see the last of pure baby gummy mouth around here...
in this house, overtired manifests itself in different ways.
the baby:
*gets a wide-eyed wild look
*waves and flaps her hands and arms excitedly during a feeding
*giggles, shrieks, babbles incoherently (well, more incoherently than usual)
*finally dissolves into tears upon sobs upon shrieks of a different nature
*can finally be coaxed into sitting quietly in the chair and staring at your face for a while, as her limbs start to settle. then, within a matter of minutes, she's snoring.
the child:
*starts running around the house like a child on a sugar high (but believe me, if we think she's tired, there's not one recent trace of sugar in her system)
*starts falling apart at the simplest of comments, questions or commands ("do you want milk or juice?" "juice!" "ok, here's your juice" "no. NO. NOOOOOOOOOOO!" hmmmm.)
*will become the most stubborn human ever
*will stall about picking out a story before naptime, but will scream incessently if you choose a story for her
*will finally comply to lay down and close her eyes and then is usually out like a light...but will then be awake sometime from 2 minutes to and hour later, either crying and asking for something you can't understand or talking to herself and her friends in her crib
(side note: if any of this happens and is not remedied by earlier sleep-times later, the battle continues and the cycle repeats itself viciously)
when i was little and would get overtired, i'd just cry. maybe there was more of a lead up to it that i wasn't aware of, all i remember is that i'd cry. and cry and cry and cry. about nothing and with no quick off switch. the day after avery was born i spent a good number of hours just crying. a mix of exhaustion, horrendous delivery, pain and hormones. but probably mostly exhaustion. so i totally understand these poor little bodies getting tired and not being able to deal or settle. as hard as it is somedays to stay at home all day to make sure they each get the rest they need, it sure does make for happier kids.
and adults.
*so i wrote this post yesterday...after avery and nola both woke up well before 6am. it seems more days than not this week have involved early wake-ups, naps cut short by dirty diapers, attempts to put nola down for a 3rd nap that she doesn't usually take, bedtimes that started too late and take too long (even though we tried to get them down early and quick), and overnight wakings...which leads to more early wake-ups, etc. it's 8:44pm right now and we can still hear avery talking upstairs, though we put her down at 6:30 she might have fallen asleep for a little bit, hard to say). i'm anticipating hearing more from avery overnight (not so much talking as crying) and (too) early in the morning. it just won't stop!!
happy (almost) friday, everyone. :)
ps, i'll be REALLY surprised if nola doesn't pop her first tooth in the next few days...we can see the tooth just below the gum. a whole month and a half earlier than avery's first tooth! i told zane i'd be sad to see the last of pure baby gummy mouth around here...
Wednesday, February 3, 2010
shots seen around the house.
our day in pictures. you should be able to tell which pictures were taken by avery ;)
my lame attempt at a fort.
the little one waiting for me to put her clothes away so she can get up and play.
like mother...
like daughter.
"look, mommy! i swimmin' in the ocean!"
in case you ever wanted to know what my foot looks like from the floor's point of view.
avery's hair.
my lame attempt at a fort.
the little one waiting for me to put her clothes away so she can get up and play.
like mother...
like daughter.
"look, mommy! i swimmin' in the ocean!"
in case you ever wanted to know what my foot looks like from the floor's point of view.
avery's hair.
Tuesday, February 2, 2010
noise.
today was a pretty low-key day. avery was awake last night until 8:30 or so, talking to herself and reading "polar bear, polar bear" to the animals in her crib. she definitely needed to catch up on rest, and snow white seems to be perfect for just that :)
tonight, zane was making dinner and i was in the living room with the girls. snow white was on (again). nola was shrieking and giggling at a pig we were playing with. avery was marching around the room playing the recorder. it was the type of "noisy house" i'd always imagined and craved since we started our family. everyone was happy and not hiding it :)
*yep, it's day 2 of my own post challenge and i'm already getting lame :)*
tonight, zane was making dinner and i was in the living room with the girls. snow white was on (again). nola was shrieking and giggling at a pig we were playing with. avery was marching around the room playing the recorder. it was the type of "noisy house" i'd always imagined and craved since we started our family. everyone was happy and not hiding it :)
*yep, it's day 2 of my own post challenge and i'm already getting lame :)*
Monday, February 1, 2010
a post a day
in celebration of february (closer to spring, yay love!, short month, school vacation), i've given myself a goal/challenge to write a post a day...knowing that there will be days that i don't feel like writing about current happenings, i'll dig up a picture from the past (most likely meaning within the last 3 or 4 years). yay! a little bit more of the nonsense strewn around on here for you folk-by the way, who are "you folk"?? march forth (:)) and introduce yourselves!
on with the show...
nola, waiting in anticipation for bath time! so excited!!
avery, modeling the best way to shampoo your head and not get it in your eyes! so talented!!
and the 2...just being the wide-eyed little girls they know how to be! so wide-eyed!!
yesterday, avery spilled her chocolate milk everywhere. i mean...everywhere. she started to cry-from embarrassment, discomfort, sadness (chocolate milk is a luxury!), and part cranky-overtired-ness. her cry made nola cry. and then avery's apology made us all cry.
"i sorry. i sorry, nolya."
whoever said 'don't cry over spilt milk' obviously never experienced this situation.
on with the show...
nola, waiting in anticipation for bath time! so excited!!
avery, modeling the best way to shampoo your head and not get it in your eyes! so talented!!
and the 2...just being the wide-eyed little girls they know how to be! so wide-eyed!!
yesterday, avery spilled her chocolate milk everywhere. i mean...everywhere. she started to cry-from embarrassment, discomfort, sadness (chocolate milk is a luxury!), and part cranky-overtired-ness. her cry made nola cry. and then avery's apology made us all cry.
"i sorry. i sorry, nolya."
whoever said 'don't cry over spilt milk' obviously never experienced this situation.
Sunday, January 31, 2010
group therapy
we had another great weekend :)
mema came down to stay with us, and got some one on one time with nola while we took avery to see james and brian! we ate some fantastic "gumbolaya", spent time with fantastic friends, and let avery play with all the fantastic things in their place (including a tennis ball, ramp, toy giraffe and lots of cool musical instruments!) :) thanks again for the dinner and company!
(please note the chocolate candy james is holding...it was the bribery needed to get avery to take this picture :) it was almost bedtime, so she was fading fast...)
tonight we went out to eat with grammy and gramps to celebrate zane's certification! it's been a long and weird road trying to get nh credentials and paperwork transfered down here, but it's done and we're so proud :)
(i'm assuming avery had food in her mouth? not sure where the enlarged cheek came from ;))
i really need to get back into writing more frequently. maybe then the posts wouldn't be as random and jumbled. until then, i'll leave with one last list of updates.
*last night avery was reading a story with zane before bed. she had her stuffed doggy with her and said "i love you, doggy!" unprompted for the first time! later i said "i love you, avery" and waited for her response. it was "i love you, avery". hmph :)
*we now leave her bedroom door open and a light on in the bathroom/hall at night and she's doing really well with going to sleep and staying quiet through the night. yay! tonight when we were leaving her room i heard "na-na, mommy!" :)
*gave nola yogurt the other day and she loved it! i can't think of one food we've given her that she hasn't liked. (i will say that green beans are not in her diet right now though...the last few times she's eaten them, she's been super cranky and uncomfortable-acting after.) her favorite foods: squash, carrots, peas+carrots combined, and sweet potato. she really likes bananas, applesauce, pears and peach, but i don't think she likes them better than veggies.
*i hosted a playgroup here last week and even though not many people showed up it was really fun and worthwhile!
*can't remember if i mentioned nola is clapping! and she loves zane's glasses. and giving kisses. and pounding the table/ball/her thighs/etc with her hands.
mema came down to stay with us, and got some one on one time with nola while we took avery to see james and brian! we ate some fantastic "gumbolaya", spent time with fantastic friends, and let avery play with all the fantastic things in their place (including a tennis ball, ramp, toy giraffe and lots of cool musical instruments!) :) thanks again for the dinner and company!
(please note the chocolate candy james is holding...it was the bribery needed to get avery to take this picture :) it was almost bedtime, so she was fading fast...)
tonight we went out to eat with grammy and gramps to celebrate zane's certification! it's been a long and weird road trying to get nh credentials and paperwork transfered down here, but it's done and we're so proud :)
(i'm assuming avery had food in her mouth? not sure where the enlarged cheek came from ;))
i really need to get back into writing more frequently. maybe then the posts wouldn't be as random and jumbled. until then, i'll leave with one last list of updates.
*last night avery was reading a story with zane before bed. she had her stuffed doggy with her and said "i love you, doggy!" unprompted for the first time! later i said "i love you, avery" and waited for her response. it was "i love you, avery". hmph :)
*we now leave her bedroom door open and a light on in the bathroom/hall at night and she's doing really well with going to sleep and staying quiet through the night. yay! tonight when we were leaving her room i heard "na-na, mommy!" :)
*gave nola yogurt the other day and she loved it! i can't think of one food we've given her that she hasn't liked. (i will say that green beans are not in her diet right now though...the last few times she's eaten them, she's been super cranky and uncomfortable-acting after.) her favorite foods: squash, carrots, peas+carrots combined, and sweet potato. she really likes bananas, applesauce, pears and peach, but i don't think she likes them better than veggies.
*i hosted a playgroup here last week and even though not many people showed up it was really fun and worthwhile!
*can't remember if i mentioned nola is clapping! and she loves zane's glasses. and giving kisses. and pounding the table/ball/her thighs/etc with her hands.
Thursday, January 28, 2010
bored while zane watches A&E
a- zane is CERTIFIED!!!!!
b- crazy week. i may have been sarcastic in the last post about being busy, but this time i'm serious! everyday we either had visitors, went somewhere or had more visitors. it was hectic but a really nice change from the regular days :)
c- nola's new babble is "dadadadababadadada". she usually breaks out in babble while clapping (also new)! she's also almost a pro at feeding herself her puffs! growing up way way WAY too fast.
d- it's almost february!! how did that happen?
e- tonight when we were reading one of avery's bedtime stories, zane asked her to point to the big tree. she did, saying "Biiiiiiiiig!" and then pointed to the slightly smaller tree calling it "mama", then to a smaller one and said "avery", then the smallest one and called it "nola". really cute.
f- it's almost friday!!
b- crazy week. i may have been sarcastic in the last post about being busy, but this time i'm serious! everyday we either had visitors, went somewhere or had more visitors. it was hectic but a really nice change from the regular days :)
c- nola's new babble is "dadadadababadadada". she usually breaks out in babble while clapping (also new)! she's also almost a pro at feeding herself her puffs! growing up way way WAY too fast.
d- it's almost february!! how did that happen?
e- tonight when we were reading one of avery's bedtime stories, zane asked her to point to the big tree. she did, saying "Biiiiiiiiig!" and then pointed to the slightly smaller tree calling it "mama", then to a smaller one and said "avery", then the smallest one and called it "nola". really cute.
f- it's almost friday!!
Sunday, January 24, 2010
so busy.
seriously. we're swamped around here. i don't know when we'll get a break.
we're spending lots of time not getting kisses...
putting lizards in our mouths and waiting for someone to notice...
wearing our shirts over our heads and comparing it to when we did the same thing with the big one...
nola
avery
and dressing up like a tough girl.
but we have managed to schedule in some time for smiles, which is always a welcomed distraction.
but really, we had a lovely weekend. it was very low key, but not in a "i'm bored and we should do something but we have no money and no real desire to do anything" kind of way. which is how some weekends have felt lately. instead, we chose to focus on getting healthier, keep on our routine and make the most of it. we cleaned the house, made a bunch of baby food, kept people well rested and happy and even watched a movie!
:)
we're spending lots of time not getting kisses...
putting lizards in our mouths and waiting for someone to notice...
wearing our shirts over our heads and comparing it to when we did the same thing with the big one...
nola
avery
and dressing up like a tough girl.
but we have managed to schedule in some time for smiles, which is always a welcomed distraction.
but really, we had a lovely weekend. it was very low key, but not in a "i'm bored and we should do something but we have no money and no real desire to do anything" kind of way. which is how some weekends have felt lately. instead, we chose to focus on getting healthier, keep on our routine and make the most of it. we cleaned the house, made a bunch of baby food, kept people well rested and happy and even watched a movie!
:)
Friday, January 22, 2010
feeling better with their help ;)
when you're feeling down with sickness and weird moodiness, it helps to have a couple cuties to soothe your soul ;)
if that doesn't work, a pair of sunglasses and conveniently placed stickers should do the trick...
...or a pair of yummy thighs...with a side of love handles ;)...
...or a bunch of pigs lined up perfectly, just the way daddy would like them.
...or maybe some good old fashioned playing around on the floor....
if that doesn't do it for you, i don't know what will. it sure helped me :)
in other news...
*nola fed herself her first puff today! she's been grabbing them and losing them to her fist or the floor for a while now, but successfully grabbed and made it to her mouth this morning. i even got it on film accidentally.
*avery is giving us a run for our money at night. put her to sleep fine, then 20 minutes later she's screaming at the top of her lungs (for mama or dada) and will keep at it every few minutes until one of us checks on her. we're at a loss. i don't really want to go the ignoring route, but we've tried a whole host of other tricks. this might be a separate post entirely, but if anyone has advice/tips/btdt stories for me before i get to it, please share!! (ps, i also got her screaming on film this morning, same video as nola slam dunking her puff...maybe i'll post it)
*zane has also been feeling crappy this week, i'm hoping he's recovering as well as i am. i drank coffee this morning for the first time in almost a week and i'm starting to feel more and more normal. here's to a good and healthy weekend for everyone!
if that doesn't work, a pair of sunglasses and conveniently placed stickers should do the trick...
...or a pair of yummy thighs...with a side of love handles ;)...
...or a bunch of pigs lined up perfectly, just the way daddy would like them.
...or maybe some good old fashioned playing around on the floor....
if that doesn't do it for you, i don't know what will. it sure helped me :)
in other news...
*nola fed herself her first puff today! she's been grabbing them and losing them to her fist or the floor for a while now, but successfully grabbed and made it to her mouth this morning. i even got it on film accidentally.
*avery is giving us a run for our money at night. put her to sleep fine, then 20 minutes later she's screaming at the top of her lungs (for mama or dada) and will keep at it every few minutes until one of us checks on her. we're at a loss. i don't really want to go the ignoring route, but we've tried a whole host of other tricks. this might be a separate post entirely, but if anyone has advice/tips/btdt stories for me before i get to it, please share!! (ps, i also got her screaming on film this morning, same video as nola slam dunking her puff...maybe i'll post it)
*zane has also been feeling crappy this week, i'm hoping he's recovering as well as i am. i drank coffee this morning for the first time in almost a week and i'm starting to feel more and more normal. here's to a good and healthy weekend for everyone!
Wednesday, January 20, 2010
april, i can almost see you!
having a pretty good handle on what any given day will be like now makes me realize how difficult the first 5-6 months were around here. before nola was born, avery had such a definite and consistent pattern to her days. and even though that stayed pretty much the same after nola got here, we now had the new little one to figure out and soothe.
things weren't necessarily unhappy and people weren't trying to be difficult, but there were more days than not where we would have no idea how and when things were going to happen. looking back, we should have just relaxed and tried to have faith that things would fall into place eventually. (i say "we", but i think zane had more confidence in the future than i did.)
then when things first started falling into a routine around here i was a little overwhelmed. it seemed that nola took her nap in the morning and would wake up a little before or just in time for avery's nap. then as i put nola down for her second nap, there would be a small window (if any) before avery woke up.
now that it's been a while on this new schedule, i'm realizing what a blessing it is. we have time with all of them together, then we have time to spend one on one time with each girl. yes, it's exhausting. there are days when someone is awake and needing something at all hours from 6am-7pm. those are hard. and there are days like today, when i'm sick and want nothing more than to crawl into bed and just don't see that happening.
but it's so fulfilling. seeing the girls together in the morning, eating breakfast together and laughing at each other, playing on the floor together and just hanging out. spending time with avery when nola naps in the morning and getting a taste of our old one on one relationship. playing with nola in the afternoon and really getting to focus on her fun little personality with no distractions. coming together in the late afternoon when zane gets home from work and playing and eating together.
anyway, i'm so glad those first rough months have passed :) april can't come soon enough, i'm ready for vacation.
things weren't necessarily unhappy and people weren't trying to be difficult, but there were more days than not where we would have no idea how and when things were going to happen. looking back, we should have just relaxed and tried to have faith that things would fall into place eventually. (i say "we", but i think zane had more confidence in the future than i did.)
then when things first started falling into a routine around here i was a little overwhelmed. it seemed that nola took her nap in the morning and would wake up a little before or just in time for avery's nap. then as i put nola down for her second nap, there would be a small window (if any) before avery woke up.
now that it's been a while on this new schedule, i'm realizing what a blessing it is. we have time with all of them together, then we have time to spend one on one time with each girl. yes, it's exhausting. there are days when someone is awake and needing something at all hours from 6am-7pm. those are hard. and there are days like today, when i'm sick and want nothing more than to crawl into bed and just don't see that happening.
but it's so fulfilling. seeing the girls together in the morning, eating breakfast together and laughing at each other, playing on the floor together and just hanging out. spending time with avery when nola naps in the morning and getting a taste of our old one on one relationship. playing with nola in the afternoon and really getting to focus on her fun little personality with no distractions. coming together in the late afternoon when zane gets home from work and playing and eating together.
anyway, i'm so glad those first rough months have passed :) april can't come soon enough, i'm ready for vacation.
Tuesday, January 19, 2010
Monday, January 18, 2010
7 months!
it wasn't until yesterday when i checked my email and noticed babycenter sent me something called "your 7 month old, week 1" that i remembered nola turned 7 months! shocking, i know. you blink your eyes and these kids are old. ugh.
i have a video of her lost in the hood of her shirt, but youtube seems to have changed and i'm too slow right now to figure out how to get it on here. maybe tomorrow. but maybe not. we are coming out of a 3 day weekend, you know. which means i'll be mourning the loss of the much welcomed help around here, and i might not have time for much other than snuggling ;)
Tuesday, January 12, 2010
our babies
our first animal baby with our first human baby. nope, i didn't set them up.
in the mornings when i put nola down for her nap, avery sits in our bed and plays or watches sesame street. from the chair in nola's room i can see into our room and watch avery. most days cleo follows us all upstairs and settles down next to me while i feed nola. on saturday though, she left my lap (or what's left of it with nola there :)) and headed straight for our bed. she jumped up, stalked across and landed in avery's lap.
i got to see the whole thing. avery's face lit up as she looked around the room for someone to share the moment with. she looked down at cleo and just beamed. and cleo looked up at her and snuggled even more. my two "first" babies found each other and were loving it.
in the mornings when i put nola down for her nap, avery sits in our bed and plays or watches sesame street. from the chair in nola's room i can see into our room and watch avery. most days cleo follows us all upstairs and settles down next to me while i feed nola. on saturday though, she left my lap (or what's left of it with nola there :)) and headed straight for our bed. she jumped up, stalked across and landed in avery's lap.
i got to see the whole thing. avery's face lit up as she looked around the room for someone to share the moment with. she looked down at cleo and just beamed. and cleo looked up at her and snuggled even more. my two "first" babies found each other and were loving it.
Monday, January 11, 2010
hunkered down.
ok. question time. (and a bunch of boring daily schedule talk).
two kids. different ages. different needs. different schedules.
will i ever get out of the house again?
kidding. kind of.
so the girls wake up around 7. then there's diaper changes, getting dressed, getting downstairs, two breakfasts (three if i have time to make something for myself). by then it's usually after 8, sometimes closer to 8:30.
nola goes down for her first nap around 9. by the time she falls asleep it's probably 9:30 and she'll get up around 10:30/11:00. i usually take avery upstairs with me. then diaper change, round up avery, downstairs again.
then there's usually about 20-30 minutes of downtime before i need to start lunch for avery (and nola, but baby food doesn't take much prep :)).
eat around noon.
then we all go upstairs for avery's nap around 12:30. after she goes down, nola goes down. they both sleep until 3 or so.
soon after, zane gets home, i go to phototherapy (dermatologist) 3 days a week, sometimes i drop them at the playspace on my way to the dr and pick them up on the way home, then dinner gets started, then bathtime and bed.
does anyone else with 2 kids get a chance to get out of the house? i know every once in a while we get out and their schedules are easy enough to get back on track...but i just want to know i'm normal ;)
two kids. different ages. different needs. different schedules.
will i ever get out of the house again?
kidding. kind of.
so the girls wake up around 7. then there's diaper changes, getting dressed, getting downstairs, two breakfasts (three if i have time to make something for myself). by then it's usually after 8, sometimes closer to 8:30.
nola goes down for her first nap around 9. by the time she falls asleep it's probably 9:30 and she'll get up around 10:30/11:00. i usually take avery upstairs with me. then diaper change, round up avery, downstairs again.
then there's usually about 20-30 minutes of downtime before i need to start lunch for avery (and nola, but baby food doesn't take much prep :)).
eat around noon.
then we all go upstairs for avery's nap around 12:30. after she goes down, nola goes down. they both sleep until 3 or so.
soon after, zane gets home, i go to phototherapy (dermatologist) 3 days a week, sometimes i drop them at the playspace on my way to the dr and pick them up on the way home, then dinner gets started, then bathtime and bed.
does anyone else with 2 kids get a chance to get out of the house? i know every once in a while we get out and their schedules are easy enough to get back on track...but i just want to know i'm normal ;)
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