With Time...

With time this two kids thing has gotten a million times better than when we started out. It was a rough transition, there were moments that I thought for sure I was going to go crazy and my head might spin off my body at any moment or that I might just run out the front door and keep running for a few days until I could come back to it all.

I prayed A LOT, my prayer book is full of the word patience from the last 12 weeks. Now that I head back to work a week from tomorrow I am not ready, not ready one bit to leave my sweet amazing kiddos.

Lydia has come so far while I've been home with her. She actually spoke to my mom's coworkers when they spoke to her first. She is potty trained and loves that she is not in diapers anymore like her baby brother. She hugs me at random moments and says "mom you make me so happy", she wants me to read to her sometimes at night again and we are just buddies. I am loving every hard, messy, fun-filled, hilarious minute of being her mom.

Garrett is at that stage where he's blossoming everyday. He discovers something new all the time, I can make him smile and laugh with just my voice and a little tickle on his belly. He's finally starting to nap in his crib and sometimes at the same time as big sister. I could have used that a month ago.

We have gone to the zoo, we have made crafts, we have gone to the park, we play in forts and have movie marathon days; my life as a mom could not be more fulfilling right now. Just in time to leave behind our routine and our fun to go back to work.

My heart aches every night when I lay in bed and think that it is one day closer to rushed morning drop offs and later dinner times.

These last 12 weeks have been some of the most trying, exhausting and rewarding weeks of my life. I love being a mom and thank God for this miraculous gift. That he would trust me with these two is something I don't know if I'll ever fully comprehend. 

Potty Trained

I mentioned in a post a couple weeks ago that we were starting the potty training adventure in hopes of having Lydia potty trained before I have to go back work (gasp, chokes back tears, not ready at all) anyway, this potty training adventure = SUCCESS

How we did it:

Week 1-2: Did not push her to use the potty but reintroduced it and got her excited about it since having no interest after Garrett was born. Everytime she went she got to put a sticker on her Elmo sticker chart and an M&M, she wore pull ups while we were at home and diapers while we were out (I still did not ask her if she needed to go while we were out in public during these 2 weeks) Each Saturday morning we would go buy new stickers and a blue icee at Target.

Week 3: Big Girl Panties time, she got to pick them out and then she ran around all day in her shirt and her undies. We did not do the naked thing, totally not how we roll. We made sure to stay home so we could put her on the potty every 20 min or so for the first day and then slowly started making that time longer and then switched to asking her if she needed to go. Towards the end of this week we ventured out with pull ups on but would go potty when we got places and she had NO accidents while out of the house so we quickly moved to undies all the time.

She had one day of set backs but jumped right back in the swing of things and has been perfect ever since. We are wearing a pull up at nap time and bedtime because she is still in her crib. She wakes up dry 90% of the time though.

We are so proud of our girl. She is a new girl since she became potty trained, she has a confidence about her and she listens better now, she really feels like a Big girl like the Big Sister and we turned a corner in this whole adjusting to two kiddos when she conquered potty training!

Goodbye to buying 2 cases of diapers.

2 Months

Sweet Garrett,

You are 2 months old and getting more handsome by the day, you take my breath away with your little smirks and coo's and baby talk. You have truly stolen my heart. You respond to my voice and when I tickle your cheek you light up and the dimples oh my those dimples :) The red tint to your hair is starting to go away but you still have plenty of dark hair right now.

You are doing much better with your sleeping, you are in your crib 100% of the time now during the night which makes me so happy because #1 you are a loud sleeper and #2 this hopefully means you will love your crib and be comfortable and feel safe there. However we still go back and forth on whether you will give us a good 5-6 hours between your bottles or whether or not we are going to have an every 3 hour kind of night.

You are enjoying your play mat more these days but still only last about 10-15 minutes before you want to move to your swing or into someones arms so you can see what's going on around you. You still aren't a huge fan of tummy time but mommy still makes you do it. This will happen often throughout your life but I only do it because it will help you to grow strong!

You like being on the move, if we stop while you are in your stroller for too long, while you are in someones arms at times or while we are in the car forget it, you are making your voice heard. You go from silent to crazed hungry baby when it is time for your bottle, we have learned to have them ready to go. You eat 5 oz every 3-4 hours and you spit up wayyyy more than your sister, I'm still trying to get used to it and guard my clothes and our furniture more carefully.

Places you have been:

- Indianapolis Zoo
- Monkey Joe's
- Moe's, Scotty's, McQ's, Mexico City Grill
- Cousin Kylie's soccer game
- Lowell, your first big road trip, to meet Great Grandma and Grandpa Kersey
- Church (you were baptized last sunday!)
- Target, Sam's Club, the mall

You went to your 2 month appointment and braved those darn shots like a champ! You weigh 12lbs. 14 oz. (60%) and measure 23 1/4 inches (70%) we just love watching you grow and get all chunky on us.

I cannot explain the joy you bring me, I love being a mom to a baby boy so far, there is less pressure when it comes to dressing you to leave the house, I'm starting to get excited about plaid, stripes, thermals and baby size boat shoes.

I will continue to pray for your health and your heart that you know how loved you are by not only us but by your heavenly Father who knows your present and your future.

love you to the moon and back,
Mommy