4 months old- November 23rd

Soooo... I'm over a week late. What can I say? Life is crazy, but wonderful. We spent this last week and your 17th week in TX. It was great!  We got to spend time with your cousins Olivia, Lily, and Henry, your Uncle Aaron, Aunt Jenny, and Grandma. 

Daddy was working for Mr. Luke, and he played the halftime show on Thanksgiving Day at AT&T stadium, so we decided to spend the holiday with my family.

You are happy, talkative, sleeping without a swaddle, and growing up way too fast. You giggle at me, enjoy my rapping, dancing and singing and smile at me with such joy. Oh, how I adore you.

You also enjoy blowing bubbles, and you are good at it.

I love you. Forever and always!

Mommy

3 years, 8 months

Hey Little Shaw Shaw,

You love to make up new words and this is one of your latest and funniest.  Remember Gonky??? You said that for the first time again last night at dinner when you called your brother Maxi-Gonky. It makes me laugh.  Actually, most everything you do makes me laugh. You are really, freaking funny kiddo.  You like me to take your newest made up word and insert it into all the songs we sing.  For instance,  "Put your shaw-shaw in, put your shaw-shaw out, put your shaw-shaw in and shake it all about."  I really enjoy how you keep us creating new things all the time all the while doing constant stand-up comedy routines.

For instance, let's talk about how you love talking about poop!  I think you would rather be around your boy friends than your girl friends because they will talk about poop with you.  All.  The. Time. Right now we are working on not actually calling people Poop, Toot or burp.  This is a fun one... haha!  It is funny how fascinated you and all your friends are fascinated by those words.

You are a lot of fun and REALLY loving. One of the things I got from being pregnant a second time is some serious hip pain.  Since I sit criss cross, apple sauce to nurse your brother (when I have to for comfort), my hip really hurts.  One day I asked if you would just sit on my hip and rock back and forth.  You said yes and did that for like 30 minutes... it helped so much.  Two days later you asked if I would like for you to rub my hip again.  Very sweet.  You also love hugs and kisses... you always have, but you are very generous with those and want like 50 before you go to school and 100 before bedtime.

Some ways you say things that aren't exactly right, but I may never correct you:

• This old man, he played one, he played knick-knack on my thumb with a knick-knack waddy pack, give a dog a bone. 
• Kwazo (our cat Cosmo)
• Hone-on (hold on)
• Tophia (Sophia, the first) 

We have done a lot of Fall Festivals and fun things over the last 2 months... I will try to show them in pictures!

You found this cardboard thing at the park and thought it would be funny to put it on like a necklace.

You are a speed-racer on the tricycle that Uncle Abe and Aunt Val are letting your borrow!

Pumpkin carving... after Halloween.  Better late than never!

You look very focused on your work with Daddy... so does Daddy!

Proud of your choice of pumpkin!

gymnastics... you seem to love it!

You have great form!

Boo at the Zoo with one of your besties... Emma!

Right before Boo at the Zoo and you asked for my lipstick... this is what happened! ;-) 

You love to dress yourself and on this day you wanted to dress up to go get Daddy from the bus!

Pumpkin decorating with your friend Linden at your school's Fall Festival

School Fall Festival with our friends Brigid and Shaunee... you were too busy to have your picture taken!

two cute princesses!  Mollie and Linden!

Too cool for school.  Afternoon visit to the park!

Outside Soulshine Pizza before Mr. James and Mr. Kent's birthday party!  We represented for Daddy... You made a friend named Caesar... he has three daughters, so he spoke your language and you had such a good time!

Lucky Ladd Farms... you were exhausted by the end, but had a great time!

Pumpkin patch picture and you knowing just what to do to make Max stop crying!

Barrel Train with your friend Emma at Lucky Ladd Farms

Face painting with Emma!

Pumpkin Patch with Emma!

Pumpkin Patch with cousin Jimmy!

You loving on your brother... melts a mother's heart!  We had actually just got locked out of the van thanks to yours truly and were waiting on AAA

You playing a fierce game of checkers with Daddy at cracker barrel!

A fun trip to Knoxville to see our friends Shanell and Lyric!

You basically think you are spiderman!

You met Elsa, Anna and Olaf!  You were SOOO CITED!

Playing "Ring Around the Rosy" with Paigey and Epleata!

Hug-wrestling with Keenan... again!

The three amigos with snowbird!  

Rapunzel in all her glory!

Toddler Rave at Aunt Jess with Charlotte, Hannah, Reme Lynn, and Evan Miller!

Pumpkin painting!

Cookie decorating!

Loving on your brother again!

Art projects are the best... you were at this for two hours!

Time with Aunt Veronica, Uncle Nate and Donovan!

Snuggles and funny faces with Aunt Veronica!

Bath time fun with Baby D!

Loving on your brother!

Loving on your cousin!

Let's make mad-crying faces like Max, mommy!  Okay... Let's!

15 Weeks

Well... You rolled over from your back to your stomach this week!  I have no idea how you did it, but below is a picture right after you did it.  You were screaming bloody murder!  I love, love, love our conversations.  They last a long time, you are VERY talkative and you like to respond to what I say. You mimic me when I talk in baby language to you and you do it very seriously!  And then you smile... that smile... It melts your mama's heart!

I have started signing to you.  Words like Mommy, Daddy, milk, hungry, eat, change diaper, etc.  You have no idea what I am doing and you just give me your gummy smile or annoyed cry and we move on.  However, it was HUGE with your sister and really lessened her frustration with communication.  This is the age we started with her, so here we go!

Oh, how I love you!  I know one thing a mom of two worries about with their second one is the possibility of not feeling the same with the second.  The first one is so full of firsts, and you can be totally, 100% focused on the first baby.  With the second, you have another child that needs you, doesn't understand why they are not the focal point of your world anymore, and sometimes acts out.  Luckily, your sister has not had any of those issues.  However, she does still need me and needs my time.  She makes me sing the Daniel Tiger song (you will learn about him soon enough), "There's Time for You and Baby too" - Haha!  She adores you.  She has been loving and kind and helpful with you.  She had some of her own issues for about 6 months while you were growing in my tummy, but all of those have subsided, normal three-year-old stuff, tremendous change stuff, whateves.  Your sister had a rough year with all the change, death, and traveling!  We did well, and all made it through just fine! 

Me... how have I felt about my second little?  Well... I did find that I felt a different immediate attachment to you.  I felt like from the moment you showed up I was fighting to be with you.  I didn't get to snuggle with you from the get go... you were in the NICU.  I didn't listen to the doctors and rest because I wanted to be near you and holding you (which they didn't let me do for like a day and a half), but I still walked down there every 2 1/2 hours with pumped breast milk and to just put my hand on your little body.  I felt a fierce attachment.  Once they finally let me hold you and your oxygen leveled out and your heart rate settled, I was overcome with emotion.  Every single day brought a stronger bond between us... we were fighting together, to be together.  That is a special bond you and I have.  The love... it's the same.  Being smitten - it's the same.  How "mama-bear" I feel - it's the same.  All my worries melted away when I realized I didn't have to give half of my love to each of you... maybe half of my attention... my heart grew, my emotions grew, my love grew to accommodate both of you.  It is just about the coolest thing ever.  

I love you to the moon and back, my sweet boy, 

Mommy