Lions and tigers and bears, Oh My!

THis past week, we went to the Cheyenne Mountain Zoo. It was our first time there as a family. I went while I was pregnant with Olivia and it was fun but hard for me to walk that far and in the mountain no less. But this time was much better. Carter did a good job of not running away (finally!) and Olivia was happy the whole two hours just being carried in the baby Bjorn. We didn't get to see everything because we were in a crunch for time, but all had fun and the weather was perfect for January.

The first exhibit that you come to when you enter the gate is the giraffes. That is my favorite part. They are so close you can literally pet them. They have these giraffe crackers that you can buy so Theo, being the good daddy that he is, bought some so Carter could feed the giraffes. I'm not sure Carter was quite on board with the experience but with a little help from daddy, had a blast feeding the giraffes and would laugh and squeal each time the giraffe at the cracker! These are the moments memories are made of for sure!

Am I the only one?

-who is completely sleep deprived?
-who has yelled at their kids this week? (at Carter, not Olivia!)
-who thinks that if toys were landmines, we'd all be dead?
-who is wishing you were back at work?
-who is tired of cleaning up messes, both in and out of the kitchen?
-who is tired of wiping pee off the bathroom floor?
-who wishes desperately for a solid night of sleep?
-who wishes she could sleep in the bed with her husband instead of him sleeping in the guestroom because a queen size bed is too small for two adults and two kids?
-who ate an entire chocolate cake in three days?
-who has spanked their toddler more than once this week?
-who has really let her ugly side come out this week?
-who has gotten frustrated with her husband?
-who is tired of grocery shopping thus didn't do it for two weeks until your husband begged for food?
-who really needs to dust the furniture?
-who has dirty laundry overflowing in her bathroom and too tired to drag it all downstairs?
-who leaves her bed unmade because it's just easier to crawl into an unmade bed at night?
-who wished she could live in tank tops and yoga pants everyday instead of actually getting dressed in real clothes?
-who is blogging instead of doing housework?

Don't get me wrong, I am grateful for my family and motherhood is never something I have had doubts about. And in the aftermath of the earthquake in Haiti, I feel like I shouldn't be even posting this. But since this is my blog, and my best outlet at this point, then I will share my feelings with whoever choses to read this. It has been one of those kind of weeks. Last week was so great! Carter and Olivia were so good. I didn't put Carter in timeout or spank him even once. And then this week came and he was a different child. I am tired. I am worn out. Not everything about this week has been bad. We had a great time at the zoo, we've had a very productive week. But I told Theo, if it's us against them (parents against kids) then our kids won this round for sure. I keep telling myself that it's only temporary. They will be grown before I can even blink my eyes. I am trying to cherish these moments, but it's hard to think fondly of digging handfuls of toilet paper out of the toilet because Carter decided he needed a half of a whole roll! I know it's just a phase. And each phase of our children't lives will bring new challenges. I'm trying to enjoy this phase while I can.

Four months old!

One more month down, a million more to go hopefully! Well, I'm not sure if it's a million more months per se....I'm not sure how old she would be in a million months but you get my drift. I just didn't want to start the post by saying "Man, the time has flown" :)

At four months, you:

-weigh 12 lbs and 11 ounces and are 25 inches long!

-have really discovered your voice. You squeal loudly, and coo all the time.

-have the most infectious smile. Anytime someone smiles at you, you smile back. Anytime you smile at someone first, they smile back at you!

-love your big brother. He makes you laugh and you stare at him intently when he talks to you.

-are a daddy's girl for sure but also love your mommy time

-nurse about every 3-4 hours during the day and 4 sometimes 5 hours at night. You were at two months going seven hours at night but not so much anymore :( You go through phases where it is hard for you at night to be in your crib and ultimately end up in your bed. But over the past several nights, I take you into your room where it is dimly lit, we listen to classical music while I nurse you and then you go easily into your crib. Sometimes an hour later, you are awake and crying and I think you just want to be held. So I ablige you :) I'm your mommy after all!

-have basically outgrown size one diapers which you rarely wear anyway. You're still in cloth almost all the time and have had less skin irritation since I put Burt's Bees powder on your cute little bum.

-have let mommy and daddy go out on two dates so far while grandma and Omaw have kept you. I haven't gotten brave enough to leave you with a real babysitter. You even tagged along with us to daddy's work Christmas party. All the ladies just oooohhhed and aaawwwwed over you the whole time!

-have the chunkiest little legs and rolls for days! And you have more than one chin but I am so thankful you are healthy and glad to know mommy's milk is doing you well :)

-have discovered your hands over the past couple of weeks and you are a BIG thumbsucker. You will sometimes pull your pacifier out of your mouth to stick your fingers (and sometimes entire fist) into your mouth.

-wear 3-6 month clothes but are already almost too big for some of the pajamas

-have pretty good head control and almost look like you want to roll over but haven't quite yet.

-made your first trip to the zoo today and were such a good girl!

-are the joy of our lives and have given us some of the best four months of our lives!! We love you more and more everyday!

Healing

Just got home from church! I heard an awesome message about healing. Pastor Brady (who is from Logansport....small world!!) is doing a series on healing. Although I am healthy, as is my family, I couldn't help but think that at some point in my life, I will need this message. I jotted down notes furiously and will keep these somewhere safe. If you or anyone you know needs healing in your body, please check out his series here! He makes no promises of being healed of course, but he says if you do five simple things that the Bible says, you will position yourself for God to do miraculous things in your life. And better than being healed, you will grow closer to God. So although I don't need physical healing at this point in my life, I am still going to take what he says and apply it to my life!

I can't take my eyes off of you

It works both ways beautiful baby girl! I love you more than words can say. And when you look at me with those gorgeous blue eyes, I realize just how totally in love with you I am. I am blessed to be your mommy!

Play Time

We've had a pretty productive week....well at least to start. The weather was nice and we went out several days. I took the kids to the park twice. We went and toured the Y here since we are thinking about joining. We made it to Target and to finally pick up Olivia's birth certificate. But the past two days have been cold so we've stayed inside. Carter has ventured out once to go play but I think his Southern blood got the best of him and he came inside! Smart boy!

Today, we did a lot of playing. Olivia has really developed a little spunky personality. She loves being entertained and entertaining us. Carter literally can't keep his hands off of her. She seems to enjoy it for the most part. When my mom came for her most recent visit, she did an awesome thing for Carter and me. She brought a ton of her education CDs she used to use in her classroom! I hit the homeschool jackpot!! So when I had run out of ways to entertain him, I popped in the Chicka Chicka Boom Boom CD and had instant entertainment. Olivia was on her playmat. She has recently discovered her hands and those are now her favorite things to play with. It's so funny! She is definitely going to be a thumb sucker....unfortunately. Oh well!

Three month photo shoot: part two