Thursday, March 31, 2011

My babies don't sleep

I am writing this, not to complain, but in hopes that one day I will look back and be able to laugh about this season of my life. :) 

I have a lot of friends with kids my kids age, and so naturally we talk and compare.  Now, I know I should not compare...all kids are different, but it is so easy to do it.  And this is what I have learned...My kids don't sleep!!  How is it that they go to bed later than almost all of their little friends, yet they still wake up earlier?! My Sammie is in bed by 9:30 every night, some times we try for 9:00, but it doesn't happen too often.  While she is in bed by 9:30, there are nights when we still hear her talking, or screaming, depending on the night, at 10:30 or 11:00.  No matter what time this little beauty of mine falls asleep, it is almost guaranteed that she will be up at 7:00.  Some times, if I am lucky, she'll sleep until 8:00, but that is pretty rare, and normally happens on the weekends when David is supposed to get up with the kids...go figure!  And I am not talking about she is up and grumpy, she is up and ready for the day...talking and playing, laughing. Then there is nap time.  If it was up to Samantha, she would not nap anymore.  And some times, I do let her get away without napping, if I want her in bed early.  Most of the time though, at 2:00, she is in her room for her nap.  And like at bed time, she does spend a lot of time playing before she falls asleep.  And you would think, since she only sleeps 8 or 9 hours at night, she would take long naps.  Nope.   1 1/2 to 2 hours is the norm.  And on the days she does take a longer nap, I don't know what to do with myself...oh wait, I do know what to do...I take care of Caleb, because he apparently feels that he does not need to nap...
That's right, my dear, sweet boy does not like napping.  He does not realize that Mommy needs a break.  Now, he does sleep better at night than Sammie ever did.  He is in bed by 8:30 normally and wakes up once, maybe twice a night.  Some times, he even sleeps through the night!  And by "through the night" I mean he sleeps passed 4:00.  And just like Sammie, no matter how the night goes, Caleb is up before 7:00 almost every morning...7:30 if I am  really lucky.   And he is ALL smiles.  He is so excited when I walk in his room to get him.   Nap time is not as predictable with Caleb.  I have tried and tried to put his on a schedule, but I don't think it is possible.  At least with Sammie, even though her naps were only 30 minutes long at this age, I knew when they were going to be.  Caleb is so sporadic.  You never know if it's going to be a 2 hour nap or a 20 minute nap. And you never know if it's going to be 2 naps for the day or 4.  This is probably the most difficult part for me.  I need, well, maybe not need, but I really like schedule in my life.  I like to plan out my day and it is  very difficult when I don't know when Caleb will nap.  Especially since he  does not like his carseat and more often than not, will stay awake when we are in the car driving somewhere.  Even if he is tired, he would rather scream his head off than sleep.  And if he does fall asleep in the car, the moment the car stops, he is awake again.
So, some times I wonder why I don't get as much done as other moms I know, but then I remember they all have at least 3 extra hours of baby free time than  I do.  And that makes me feel better about myself. :) Seriously, they have 2 hours to clean and 1 hour of mommy time.  If I want mommy time, I gotta stay up until midnight or wake up at 5.   Maybe it's just an excuse, but I don't care...I'm sticking with it. :)
And on a good note, I read an article the other day about gifted kids.  One of the early signs of giftedness is that kids don't seem to need as much sleep as other kids. Maybe I was just blessed with 2 gifted kids. :) Either way, I love my kids and enjoy the all the time I get to spend with them, but seriously can not wait to get a full night of sleep and even maybe a little break during each day.

Tuesday, March 29, 2011

Where did he go?!

Where'd he go this time??  This is the question I am asking myself at least 20 times a day.  For the last month or so, since Caleb started crawling, I turn around for a second and he is gone.  And almost every time, I find him in his sister's toys with a huge smile on his face.  I don't think Samantha appreciates it too much, but I think it's adorable! 



Monday, March 21, 2011

Our second born

When I first became a mommy, I had a calender where I could put down all of Samatha's firsts in.  Every milestone was recorded. And now with Caleb, well, maybe it's lack of time, lack of energy, or lack of motivation, but I have not been so good.  So here is where I will record these before I forget them...

At 3 1/2 weeks, Caleb rolled from his belly to his back 3 or 4  times, then he stopped
3 1/2 months, Caleb rolled from his back to his belly and by 4 months was rolling both ways
4 months, Caleb finally laughed..and of course the first person to make him laugh was Sammie.  The second was Daddy and finally a month later, Mommy got him to laugh
5 months and 3 weeks, he started saying "babababa"
A couple days shy of 6 months, he was sitting independently for more than 30 seconds.
6 1/2 months, Caleb was crawling, he also recognized his name and starting looking at you when you said it.
At 7 months, Caleb learned how to go from the crawling position to sitting. 
And now, at a little older than 7 months, Caleb is almost creeping (crawling on his hands and knees).  He is also imitating raspberries, and vocalizing the Ba, Da, and Ga sounds.  He's also beginning to look for Samantha when you ask him where she is.

He is growing and learning so fast.  It's hard to  believe he is more than half a year old.  What a joy he has been in our life. I'm looking forward to watching him grow and meet even more milestones in his life.  And I am so blessed to be able to stay home (Well, except for the whole 6 hours/week of work I do), and watch him grow from a baby to a little boy.


Sunday, March 20, 2011

Quotables from Sammie Girl

For those who know Sammie, you know she is a talker.  She was saying her first few words around 10 or 11 months and talking in two to three word sentences by 18 months.  Now that she is three, the things that come out of her mouth some times are hilarious!  Well, far before she turned 3, she was coming up with funny stuff.  I don't want to forget some of them, so I thought I would write them down.  It'll be fun looking back later  and telling her "Yup, you really said that!"


Here's one from when she was almost 2..


Sam: I want boobies.  I no have boobies.
Me: What?  You want boobies?
Sam: Yeah, daddy going to buy me some.


And here's a couple recent ones from the grocery store..


Sam: Mommy, I want a balloon. (They give kids balloons at Stater Brothers)
Me: Not now babe
Sam: Moooommmy....Daddy bring me to the store and HE get me one.
(Not to be outdone by Daddy, I went and got her one.:) )


Sam (Pointing down the alcohol aisle): HEY! Daddy take me there everyday!!!
Let me make this clear...her daddy DOES NOT take her to get alcohol everyday...maybe once has he ever taken her down the alcohol aisle


And now some that just melt my heart...


"Mommy, I love you like a popsicle!" If you know how much Sammie loves popsicles, you know this is a major compliment!
"Mommy, thank you for taking Caleb out of your belly." This was a couple weeks after Caleb was born
"Daddy's my best pal!"


And some that make me realize how smart and witty she is..


"You're stuuuuu.....I say stuuuupendous, I not say stupid!"
"Mommy, Shut......I say Shut the door, Mommy, I no say bad word."
It's so hard not to laugh when she says these!


"Mommy, thank you soooo much for checking my cookie to see if there are peanuts! Cuz mommy, peanuts make me itchy.  Thank you sooo much!" - I am so glad she knows not to eat peanuts and glad she's grateful that I check. :)


"Mommy, did you go down the wrong path?!" This was when I got lost going  to a playdate..I don't know how she knew...maybe because I turned around like 4 times. :)



These are just a few of Sammie's quotes.  She comes up with new stuff everyday.  It is amazing to me what comes out of my little girl's mouth.  Where she comes up with this stuff, I'll never know...

Monday, March 14, 2011

Our girl turned 3!!

It always amazes me how fast time flies now that we have kids.  Yesterday, our sweet Samantha turned 3 years old.  How in the world did that happen so fast?!?  My baby girl is no longer a baby.  It is a little bitter sweet.  I love where she is in life now...smart, sweet, funny, but it makes me a little sad that she really isn't a baby anymore...she is a little girl with her own mind, her own ideas, her own personality, her own strengths, her own weaknesses. She wants to do everything by herself  and she is so curious about everything.  She is always learning and laughing.  Right now, her favorite question is "What does *insert new word here* mean?" She loves organizing everything.  At Gamestop the other day, she literally looked at all the games on the shelf and arranged them so all the same games were together. Sammie is definitely a  Mama's girl, but I can tell she is going towards becoming a Daddy's girl.  She gets so excited when I tell her he is coming home from work and the  first thing she asks me in the morning is "Where's my daddy?"  And of course, she loves her little brother like crazy. She is always making him laugh and loves to help take care of him.  She has brought so much joy into our  lives and I am so blessed to be able to call her my daughter.  Ahhh...I love that little girl!

We had a party for her on Saturday.  It turned out to be a really nice day, so I was very thankful for that.  For some reason, we always pick the coldest day of the week to throw her a party.  Sammie did really good, after having a little bit of trouble at the beginning.  She really isn't a crowd person, not really a people person all of the time, so I was a little worried.  But once she got comfortable, she had a blast!  She did sooooo good with the other kids!  I noticed she spent most of her time with the other little girls. I'm thinking she has reached the age where girls and boys start separating.  Don't worry all you moms of her little boy friends, she still loves them! :) Here are some pictures of the kids playing...



We had lots of people come out to the party.  Family, friends we see everyday, friends we haven't seen in years.  It was nice! And we had a jumper for the kids, along with bubbles, chalk, ride on toys and a sand table.  Of course my mom cooked and everyone loved it. I so appreciate having a mom who is happy to cook for all occassions. 

And here are some of the people who were there...

                                  
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All in all, it was a good day!  Sammie had sooo much fun and Caleb did so good being passed around from person to person. :) I am so glad everyone made it out for our girl's special day!




Saturday, March 5, 2011

Our Adventure at Disneyland

And Oh, what an adventure it was!!  Now let me first say that when Samantha was born, David and I decided that we were not going to take our kids to Disneyland until they asked to go.  We figured that it would be around 4 or 5 years old.  Well, we should've known better with Sammie!  She began asking to go right after Caleb was born, making her about 2 and a half. Part of me thought she was still too young, but the other part thought that it would be fun...that part won!

We took both kids yesterday.  9 days before Sammie turned 3, so we wouldn't have to pay for a ticket. :)  They day started off magical!  Not only did Sammie sleep in until almost 8:00, she also got dresses, brushed her hair, and brushed her teeth all without a fight!  Now if you know Sammie, you know those are her 3 least favorite things to do and she will put up a fight!  Caleb woke up at 6:00, napped at 7:30 and still slept almost the whole car ride.  And when he was awake, you could just hear him playing.  Again, amazing because if you know Caleb, you know he does not like his carseat at all and does not like to fall asleep in it. I just knew this was going to be a good day.........

So we get to Disneyland and I can already tell it may be a little overwhelming for Sammie.  Sammie needs time to process stuff and take it all it.   As I watched Caleb though, I could tell he was gonna have a great time....lights, music, and people makes Caleb a happy boy! Especially when those people pay him any kind of attention.




It took us some convincing, but we finally got Sammie to go on Peter Pan. Sammie was very excited in line and so happy. And Caleb was too.  In fact he was so excited, he grabbed on to some lady's hair and began to pull it. Oh my! Luckily, the lady was really nice.  She was there with her husband celebrating 27 years of marriage.  They looked so happy together.  I love seeing people who have been married so long and are still so happy.  You just don't see that too often any more. Anyway, where was I?? Oh yeah! I don't know about anyone else, but I do not remember it being that dark! To say Sammie didn't like it would be an understatement!  After the ride, Sammie would not get on anything else, but the carousel.  Since she didn't want to ride on anything, we decided to take her to Toon Town.  I mean, what kid doesn't like Toon Town?!?  That would be my kid!  She was ok until she saw Characters and then she was done!  And when Sammie is done, she is done!  There is no talking to her at that point.  You just have to let her work it out on her own. That just also happened to be when we bumped into our friends the Magee's and Bubeck's.  Their kids were having a wonderful time. My kids were screaming!  Well, one was screaming.  Caleb was just a little fussy because he was tired.  Go figure we see people we know at the worst part of our day. :)

Anyway, Somehow we convinced Sammie to get on Roger Rabbit.  Maybe because her friends were also getting on.  Whatever the reason, it was not a good choice!  Sammie would not let go of my hand and kept saying she didn't like it.  David sat with Caleb and apparently Caleb's head kept hitting the bar.  He had to sit by himself and from what David told me, he just looked up at David with tears in his eyes like "Why aren't you holding me? Do you not see me bumping my head?"  I gotta say, that is not a ride for babies...there should be a warning!!  Here we are after the ride..


Well, it took a while of sitting around to get Sammie to try anything again.  For some reason, she didn't trust us anymore.  :)  We let her watch the people on Autopia and finally she wanted to drive!  I got to go with her on this one and it was great to finally see her eyes light up....This is the little girl I know...

After that, Sammie was good.  We got on Small World and both kids loved it.  Sammie was even singing along by the end.  We took her to Tom Saywers Island too or as she called it "Pirate Island." For all those who watch Jake and the Neverland Friends, I think Sammie was really hoping to see Jake (He's her favorite!).  Even though there was no Jake, Sammie had a blast!  It was the perfect place for her.  Not to many people and full of fun places to crawl, climb, run and jump.  I, on the otherhand, was feeling a bit claustrophobic.  She was trying to get me to go through the smallest opening.  Crazy girl!  I am pretty sure Caleb wanted to get down and play too, but he'd have to wait until next time!






 We got on the Jungle Cruise after we finally got Sammie to leave the island...she could have stayed there all day.  She did ok on the cruise, but it wasn't her favorite.  Caleb liked it though.   We decided it was time for ice cream at that point, but while we were in line Sammie fell asleep.  We talked about getting out of line and waiting for her to wake up, but I really wanted ice cream.  So we enjoyed our ice cream as she slept.  I felt a little bad because I knew she really wanted some, but it was sooo good!

Well, after 45 minutes or so Sammie work up and was over Disneyland.  She was grumpy and nothing could make her happy.  We tried a couple rides with no luck...




I'm not sure what exactly happened, but at some point, Sammie was back in a good mood.  We took them on the Nemo ride and she loved it until about the middle part where all the scary fish were.  Again, there should be a warning!!  She had her eyes covered , but would open them every now and then to tell Caleb that it was ok. :)  No need to worry about Caleb though, he was amazed by it all!  Well, we came out of the submarine and Sammie was a whole different kid.  She was full of energy and ready to ride!  She went back on Autopia and wanted to go again and again, but we thought we'd try something else.  And then there it was, the Tea Cups!  Now, I do not like this ride at all!  I get the worst motion sickness just thinking about it.  In fact, I'm getting a little sick now! I was a little nervous for Sammie, but she really wanted to ride because she loves tea cups.  I figured David would just sit with her and not spin. But then as I watched, I noticed they were spinning faster and faster. I took a few pictures, but had to stop, because once again, I was getting sick.  David kept asking her if she wanted him to stop, but she wanted to go faster.  Right then I knew, she was her father's child!  She definitely did not get that from me!  All I know is David is so happy he has someone to go on rides like this with!  I think they go on it 3 times.  Here  they are fake spinning...


We finished off the day with one more ride on the carousel. And by now, Sammie was so happy and wanted to go on everything!  That's right, it took all day, but at least the last 2 hours were fun!



We took the kids into one of the shops before we left so they could each get something to remember their first Disneyland trip.  Caleb got a Mickey Mouse plush doll and Sammie got Minnie Mouse.  Seriously, by now Sammie was so energized.  We told her it was time to go and as we were walking on Main Street, Sammie yells, "Hey!!!  We forgot to get ice cream!"  Haha, I won't tell her we got some without her until she is old enough to read this herself.

And that was our first trip to Disneyland and probably the last for a while.  We'll go again when Caleb asks to go. :) California Adventure is coming up though because we got the 2fer....that should be interesting...

Tuesday, March 1, 2011

And so it begins...

So, I have been contemplating starting a blog for about 3 years now and finally, the women in my bible study group, convinced me that it was a good idea.  It seems to be the best way to keep our family memories and who knows, maybe I can entertain a few people in the process.

I think I will start with where our family is now in life...

David and I have now known eachother for over 10 years.  We have been together 8 and married almost 5 years.  If you were to have asked me 10 years ago if I thought I would be married to David now, I would have said No!  But, I am soooo glad he did not give up the first 5 times I turned him down for a date. :)  He obviously knew something I didn't know back then.  And now, on our good days and our bad, I feel so blessed to be his wife.

Samantha is about a week and a half shy of being 3 years old.  It is so hard to believe my baby isn't a baby anymore...I mean, she could start school now!  And so, what can I say about Sammie girl?!  She is a ball full of energy from the moment she wakes up until the minute she falls asleep!  She loves all things princess, make up and jewelry, but you try to comb her hair or put a dress on her, and she will scream her head off.  Well, dresses are getting better, but brushing her hair turns into war at home.  Samantha loves singing and dancing and her favorite is Taylor Swift...it is ridiculously cute watching her dance and sing!  And that is when she wants her dresses on....you gotta wear a dress when dancing!  I could go on and on about how wonderful she is, but I won't...I'll save some for later. :)

Here is a picture of our beauty


And Caleb...6 1/2 months old and just the perfect fit to our family.  We were hoping to have our second baby a little early, but God had other plans.  He had us wait and then gave us the perfect baby boy.  He is so happy (most of the time) and so easy going.  One of those babies who wakes up and just starts playing...no need for mommy or daddy right away.  He is getting really good at sitting up on his own and even starting to crawl...I am getting ready for that fun stage.  His smile is adorable and his laugh is contagious!  And of course, he absolutely loves his big sister.  She can make him laugh like no one else! I am so excited to watch them grow up together!

And here is a picture of our handsome boy

And so there you have it, our wonderful family! I can't wait to see where life takes us.  And if all goes well, I will be keeping this updated, so we can look back and remember where we started..