Millie's 2nd Birthday Party

Millie's party was a success!  She had the best time and zero meltdowns...it was way more than we ever could've hoped for.  The party was at The Little Gym, which is one of her favorite places in the world.  She feels comfortable there and knows what to do...plus we kept pumping her up all week for her party.  She had no idea what a party was, but by the time it got here, she was excited for it. ;)  She was in the best mood and we were so proud of her!

We hired a photographer so that I wouldn't have to worry about trying to run around and take pics.  I am way under-qualified to take pics of these kids on the move.  It was super nice not to worry about it, but it sort of sucks to have to wait on the pics.  I didn't even take any iphone pics...but Aunt Coco did, so here are a few pics from the party.

We had a great turnout; 9 crazy two-year olds owning that place.  It was awesome to see them all have such a fun time.  Millie especially enjoyed jumping on the air mat, so I'm sure we'll see some bouncy houses at her future bday parties.

I tried to do a kitty cat theme, but there wasn't a whole lot to work with...I found some kitty cat ears for both girls.  I also found some kitty cat cupcake toppers and pawprint balloons.  And I made some treat bags full of "meow mix" for everyone to take home.  It was simple and stress-free...and we didn't have to clean our house.  ;)

Bubba was in charge of Syd most of the party...thanks Bubba!

It made it all worth it seeing her have such a fantastic time...what a great day!  Sadly, Mills seems to have contracted a little bug while at the party though.  She's had a fever today and isn't feeling good.  Booo.  Hopefully she kicks it quickly and gets back to her happy little self soon.

It's Almost Party Time!

Millie likes to share my afternoon snack, which is usually an apple with some sort of nut butter.  This day happened to be dark chocolate almond butter.  She enjoyed it thoroughly.

Syd's fish lips

Syd's fish chin?

Millie loves to hold Sydney...she's constantly asking to hold her.

I'm scared to leave Syd unattended because I think Mills might try to do this on her own sometime soon.  Yikes.  However, I'm trying to let Millie love on her as much as possible so that she learns how to be gentle.

Yep, we splurged on the big pool. ;)

Take Syddles outdoors and she konks out immediately.  She LOVES to sleep on her belly, but we only let her do that for naps.

airplane!

This picture is SO Millie.

a wink and a smile ;)

sometimes she prefers to swing big girl style

Saturday is Millie's 2nd Birthday Party!!  Soooo hard to believe she is already 2, yet somehow it feels like we've had her forever. ;)  In preparation for the big day, we've been working with her on telling people how old she is and holding up her two index fingers.  It's pretty cute...see Video Here.  And since I'm posting videos, here's another video that doesn't really show much of anything, just precious Syd and Millie trying to give her knucks.

Currently

This morning has been a little rough.  After a long night with Syd (which isn't the norm), I'm exhausted.  I had some errands to run this morning, and even though I could technically wait until JKK gets home, I hate to do that multiple times a week.  I would rather hang out with him here at night than keep running off to do errands while he deals with the kids. I'm sure he doesn't want that either. ;)  So although that scenario is necessary sometimes, I'm trying to get used to doing a few errands with both kiddos in tow.  This morning's goal was a trip to the post office and then the grocery store.  Should've been no big deal but both kids had meltdowns at some point along the way and I even had to sit in a parking lot (only 10 minutes from my house) to feed Syd before continuing on.  The good news is that they redeem themselves pretty quickly with doing something hilarious or just being adorable.  The other fun thing about this morning...I definitely have mastitis.  Ugh.  This is a condition that breastfeeding moms can develop which has fever and flu-like symptoms and one very sore boob.  So I'll be heading back to the store after nap time to pick up antibiotics.  I felt horrible last night, but today I feel okay...so hopefully the antibiotics can kill it before it becomes a full blown case.  Wish me luck...and TGIF!  Here's what's been happening here this week:

outdoor watercolor painting while syddles snoozes in the background

new game where millie tries to shoot the flies with her spray bottle

shaving cream finger painting at Cayden's...Millie wasn't really into it, but she loved watching Cayden get crazy with it

library storytime...she loved pointing out the fish and saying what color they were

post-storytime craft

silly boy

all of the books that were read had to do with construction equipment and trucks...so they made a dump truck

parking lot safety train

sydney has some pretty great neck strength these days...

best feeling in the world!  maybe it's because I know this is the last one, but I have really enjoyed this newborn phase.  sweetness <3

outdoors with daddy...both of our girls have loved being out in the summer heat as tiny newborns

Millie vs. Sydney...I see some similarities, but they don't look all that much alike to me.  Except for that forehead V. ;)

Consider Yourself Warned

Beware...if you come to our house and toot, Millie will call you out on it.  Having a gassy newborn in the house has taught Mills all about burps and toots.  And just like her mother, she giggles every time she hears the sound, whether it is an actual toot or not.  If your bare leg makes a squidgy sound on the leather couch, she will point to you and scream "toot!".  Every time Sydney toots, Millie yells "she toot, she toot!" until you acknowledge her.  And yes, right now it is hilarious, but I'm pretty sure this is going to cause some embarrassing moments when we are in public.  Ahhhh, sweet memories...

 someone was having a good hair day ;)

1 Month Old

Sydney is already one month old!

one week old:

versus one month old:

still has those deep blue/gray eyes

check out those toes...I wonder where she gets those from?!

This past week, Syd has really loved taking naps on her belly...hmmm, a love for tummy time and the car seat??  How much more opposite of Millie could she be?!  :)

EAT/SLEEP:
Syd is an excellent eater and has been since day one.  She breastfeeds about every 3 hours during the day for approx. 15 minutes...I like how she's efficient and doesn't dawdle.  She has given me several long stretches of sleep at night, but so far it has been sort of inconsistent.  Last week, I had a night with a 6 hour stretch and the next night had a 5 hour stretch.  However, the last few days she has been waking at night to feed every 3-4 hours.  The saving grace is that she usually goes right back to sleep after eating in those early morning hours.  I plan to start the pumping/bottle business later this week, so maybe JKK can take one of those fun early morning feeds on the weekends.  Hurray!

Our girl likes a good, tight swaddle and her sleep sheep set to the womb setting.  She currently sleeps in the rock-n-play sleeper in our room.  I didn't even try the pack-n-play because every time we put her down flat during the day, she would spit up.  I think a bit of an incline helps her keep her food down.  She's pretty noisy with all of her grunting and baby noises, so I hope to move her to her crib by 2 months old.

Today, she had another quick checkup to discuss her possible milk protein sensitivity.  (weight 9lbs, 1oz!)  More diapers came back positive for blood in the stool, so the doctor wants me to eliminate even more dairy and cut back on eggs.  Sigh.  I've already cut out most dairy except for milk in my morning coffee.  If you thought I was cranky in the mornings before...yikes.  Good thing she's worth it.  Next we'll check diapers again in 2 more weeks to see if that made any difference.  After starting her on probiotics a couple of weeks ago and me eliminating most dairy items from my diet, I believe I've already seen improvement...so I hope this next step clears it up completely.  If I have to start reading labels for casein and hidden milk products, I'm going to get overwhelmed pretty quick.

PLAY:
Not a ton of playing going on right now. ;)  We have daily tummy time; she's lifting her head really well and turning it back and forth while on her belly.  Other than that, diaper changes and bath time are really her only other activities at this point.  She's not a big fan of that first plunge into the bath.  She lets out a little shriek that is so sad, but then she settles in for the bath and is fine.  She smiles a lot, but it is mostly in the first stage of sleep.  I don't know what happy place she goes to in her REM cycle, but it must be full of rainbows and unicorns.  I crack up on walks where she tries to sleep because each bump in the sidewalk resets her sleep cycle and she starts smiling all over again.  Now that she's awake more, I do like to get down in her face and talk to her and a couple of times a day, I get a smile that way.  Supposedly, they don't start social smiling until 6-8 weeks, but as you know, we have advanced babies in this household. :)

Dear sweet Syddles...our little prairie dog,
You are the most perfect and sweet baby.  Your demeanor is so calm and relaxed; I hope this is a small peek into what you will be like when you are older.  I know I need to come up with another adjective, but sweet just fits so perfectly.  You look so angelic when you're sleeping, and your sweet little face looks so content.  We adore your little prairie dog barks and squeaks, and I'm so thankful you're not a crier.  You have been such an amazing addition to our household and you complete our family in such a perfect way.  We are all enamored with you, Sydney...even Millie, who by all rights should be jealous, instead asks for you first thing in the morning.  I can't wait to see you grow and change in this first year of your life...and I especially can't wait to see you develop a special relationship with your sister.  Baby of mine, you are loved more than you'll ever know.

Father's Day for JKK

Yesterday was the most exciting Father's Day ever.  False.  It was pretty much business as usual, but I did try to express how much I love and appreciate this guy as much as possible throughout the day.  Seriously, he's the best.  He deserves a better Father's Day celebration, and maybe in a few months when my brain is less foggy from sleep deprivation, I'll make it up to him.

Sydney decided to take her afternoon nap outside...sweetness

Once Millie joined us after her nap indoors, it took her awhile to wake up and lose the cranky face.

 Beansie, on the other hand, never has cranky face.

Happy Father's Day 2013, JKK...I know these girls love and appreciate you as much as I do <3

Also, Happy Father's Day to my own father and Papa to my girls.  I hope to make it up to you with a belated celebration some time soon.  Love you....and you're welcome for posting this most amazing family pic from the 80's.