Abigail Mae is 2 months old!

She is such a GOOD baby!! I'm not saying that because we're second time parents and it's supposed to be easier the next time around...Abby is incredible! She rarely cries, there's no "fussiness" from her at all. She does great at night. She gets swaddled and bottled and she's in her crib until Chris dream feeds her at around 11:30. She sleeps until about 3, eats, then goes right back to sleep until about 6. After that feeding she goes back to sleep for a good 2-3 hours and then she's up for the day. I follow the EASY routine (eat, activity, sleep, your time.) She naps in her swing or bouncer right in the living room. I don't know if I should be putting her in her crib or not. Maybe when she has a set schedule?

She's eating about 4.5 ounces every 3 hours. I had major engorgement and blocked duct issues when I went back to work. Cabbage definitely did the trick because my supply tanked (my right side only gets 2 oz after a 30 minute session!) I've been able to keep up with her but today I started giving her some freezer milk so I can rebuild a good fridge stash. I'm pumping much less often...before bed, at the 3 am feeding, when I get up with Audrey, and maybe 2 more times in the early afternoon and early evening. She'll probably be on formula by the time I go back to school.

She definitely knows where her hands are. Her fist goes right up to her mouth if a bottle or paci aren't available fast enough. And I'm pretty sure she swats at her little red bird on her playmat (check out the video below!) She does very well holding her head up & steady when we're holding her. She's bearing weight on her legs for a few seconds at a time.

Today she had her 2 month appt. She weighs 12 lbs 10 oz (90th percentile...YEAH.) She 22 inches long and looks perfect. Sue said she's "just lovely." She got 4 shots and an oral vaccine. Poor baby turned bright red and screamed, but was just fine by the time we left the office. She's been sleepy and kind of irritable all day. I woke her up to do pictures and therefore 99% of them were awful...but I managed to get a few gems :)








Last night, passed out during playtime:


This afternoon, after her appointment:


She is such a sweetheart! She's totally smiling and cooing for us. It's beyond adorable! I got her on video a few days ago and I smile every time I watch them!







I am SO hoping Abby continues to be an easy baby. She is such a delight and I'm so, so, so happy I have all this time to dote on her and sweet Audrey Cate!

Pinterest: my new obsession...

In the words of Audrey's new favorite song (and to quote will.i.am)...I just can't get enough! Pinterest is basically a virtual pin board. A place to store all of the pretty things you find on the interwebz. My favorite categories are style, kids, & food but I've found many cool pins in nearly every category. Lots of great ideas out there and finally a place to keep them!

Pinterested? My board is here.

Let me know if you decide to start, I'd love to follow more people!

POTD (Pin of the Day)

Source: etsy.com via S on Pinterest

Sharing is caring...

PT success!!

Audrey has been without a diaper all day and has had NO accidents! We've been hanging out in the living room all morning. She walks over, gets on her potty, and she goes! She gets a small treat, we clean out her potty and start all over again. I am so proud of her! She definitely seems to recognize the feeling that she has to go and she's making the connection that she needs to go on the potty. A month ago that wasn't the case (as evidenced by numerous puddles on the hardwood floor!) I just put her down for a nap and I'm hoping the rest of the day is just as successful.

So, when is a good time to start putting her in underwear? Should we start with Pull-Ups first? Should we keep doing the nakey thing for a few days until she definitely gets it? I'm just not sure what the next steps are so any advice would be GREAT!

**UPDATE**
Audrey did great after her nap! She even went #2 on the potty :) I put underwear on her when we went outside to blow bubbles. We were out for maybe 10 minutes with no issues. But then, as we were walking in she peed and oddly enough it didn't phase her. She had another accident later on when she was playing with her toys. Both times I had her sit on the potty and I assured her it was ok to have accidents (she didn't seem to care, lol.)

Thanks for all the advice!! I'm hoping she continues to use the potty like she did today. What a huge step!

Audrey is Two and a Half

Dear Sweet Audrey Cate,

Today you are two and a half years old. You are such a beautiful and wonderful little girl. You light up our lives and fill our hearts with joy we never imagined.

You amaze us everyday. Last night when I sat with you to say your prayers, you said them all by yourself! You can count to 12 (and then all the numbers after sound like gibberish…but they all end in ‘teen’ lol.) You love to sing and dance. You are a serious radio nazi. If a song comes on that you don’t like, you let us know. Recently you’ve been trying to sing the songs on the radio and it’s so cute because you pretty much just chime in on the endings. You really love your tv shows; Mickey Mouse, Jake & the Neverland Pirates, Umi Zoomi, Bubble Guppies, Little Einsteins. In fact, you go through phases where you just want the same show over and over.

You love to play pretend. We have pretend picnics and tea parties. I can’t wait to get you a dollhouse so you can pretend all day long! You are very helpful…you stand on a chair at the sink and I wash bottles and pass them to you so you can throw them in the cold water.

You have adjusted so well to having a little sister. For the most part you go about your day as if she doesn’t exist. One day that will change and you’ll be the best of friends and you won’t be able to imagine a time when she didn’t exist. You are so patient when I’m tending to her. You don’t seem to be jealous at all.

You have your moments…when you don’t listen we put you in Time-Out. You sit there, quietly and you face the corner. It’s so odd…you place your hand on the wall and we’re not sure why! Even when you’re in trouble you’re so damn cute!

You want nothing to do with potty training. You’ll sit on the potty to appease us and I’m almost certain you actually hold it while on the potty because as soon as your diaper is on you go! I’m not too worried because when you’re ready you’ll rock it and be potty trained in no time.

You really can’t be bothered with eating. I seriously dread your mealtimes! Breakfast is usually ok; you eat yogurt and pancakes and toast (and the occasional donut.) You do enjoy a variety of snacks and fruit. You’re back on a chicken strike and prefer “peanut butter on a spoon.” Grilled cheese can be a hit or miss and luckily you’re still eating YoMeals. Your eating habits stress me out especially since there’s nothing I can do but keep offering different foods. Your response is almost always, “I don’t like it!” Maybe when Abby starts eating real food in a few months you’ll regain interest! But for know you’re healthy and growing and all I can do is wait it out.

I feel so blessed to be your mom. I love watching you grow up and learn new things. You are wonderful in every way! I hope you always know how much we love you.

Love, Mom

Fastest week of my life. Ever.

We all know that time flies when you're having fun, but did you know that it also flies when you're busy as hell from sun up til sun down? A coworker put it perfectly... "It may be the last week of school, but it's one hell of a week to come back." Amen to that!

All in all it was a good, albeit busy, week. We have a good evening routine: Audrey gets a bath, brushes her teeth, takes her vitamins, puts on her PJs and watches one of her shows in our room. Abby gets her bath, PJs, swaddle and bottle. We put Audrey to bed after she says her prayers (with her "fan on, blanket on, music on".) Abby goes into her crib (or into the swing until she is either asleep or very drowsy.) Chris stays up late each night so he can dream feed Abby (yes, he actually used the term 'dream feed'!) I get up with her for the next feeding (usually in the 2 or 3 o'clock hour.) The only thing that stinks about that is afterwards I have to pump...by the time I'm done it's basically time to start getting ready for school, lol. 3am-9pm makes for a long day...I'm exhausted by the time my head hits the pillow.

The morning is jam packed. I pump and get myself ready. I try to get as many things packed and ready the night before (clothes, bottles, Audrey's juice, etc.) I start getting Audrey up at 6:00. She's easy- I change her diaper, give her milk and have her come with me to Abby's room. I unswaddle Abby (which results in her pouty cry), change her diaper, and feed her if needed. I put her in her car seat while Audrey and I say goodbye to Chris. Sometimes Abby wakes before 6:00 so I feed and change her before I get Audrey up. My goal is to leave the house by 6:30 but most mornings we left a little later due to toddler meltdowns, spit up on my clothes, and other unforeseen events. That 30 minute window goes by so freakin fast. I'm hoping to get a better handle on it when school starts back up again.

Speaking of, school was CRAZY. It was so fun to be back but I had a million things to do and the kids were pretty excited about the last few days. By Friday I was just ready to be done! I didn't even cry this time :) Today I finished packing my room. I just have to go back in for my evaluation and it's truly SUMMERTIME!!

Some pics from the last couple of weeks:

Field Day 2011:


Audrey Cate's first snow cone!





Hanging out in mom's room with the kiddos!


Audrey is such a great helper! She collects all of Abby's nighttime bottles and throws them into the sink :)


Dad took us to DQ the night before I went back to work. Audrey shared his M&M Blizzard.


I came back to school with a room covered in welcome back signs! LOVE. They also got Abby an adorable outfit and a gator onesie!







I super love this "Good job" sign! LOL


Audrey's last dance class was on Saturday...I can't wait to start back up again in September! We've enjoyed it so much :)




Serious balance skillz!

Freeze dancing "One more time!"


We went to Bonefish for Aunt Kelly's b-day:

Always with the hats!

Yay, Uncle Scott gets her to eat!

Nice of you to wake up and join us, Miss Abigail!



I only went back to work for a little over a week and I feel like I'm in desperate need of a vacation! I am looking forward to taking it easy in the mornings with my girls, coffee and GMA. I'm looking forward to mine and Chris's favorite summer shows. Losing track of what day it is. Library trips. Evening cocktails. Pool time. Man, I love summer!