Thanksgiving

This post is late, but I have a hard time getting to the computer for more than 2 seconds these days - or I'm going to have to start typing up the posts without uppercase letters. It is hard to hit shift + a letter with a baby in one arm and a toddler tugging at the other.

Wednesday morning we started down to the lake. We took our time and stopped for lunch halfway in Macon. Kiddos were good and there was very little crying in the car. Charlotte saw cotton fields in bloom for the first time. She exclaimed, "Look at that cotton ball garden!!"

Lake Blackshear (where Judd's parents live) is controlled by a dam. Every other year or every two years, I'm not sure, they let the water way down in the Fall so people can work on their docks, etc. So, the lake is a giant mud pit. I was asked to pack Charlotte's rain boots so she could walk around in the mud pit.



Charlotte had fun with this until she fell. Then, she wasn't so sure about the mud and wanted to come back up to the dock.



We gave her the hose to wash he boots off, but she ended up washing off her entire body. She also tried to single-handedly fill the lake back up with water using the hose - terrorizing her cousin, Lilly at the same time. So, the mud wasn't a huge hit with Charlotte, but the hose definitely was. I guess 80 degree days in November have their benefits!



Not to be left out, Max had his first trip down to the dock. I forgot his mud boots, so he had to stay up on the dock with his Aunt Emily. Poor guy missed out on all the fun.



On Thanksgiving day, we headed into Albany to eat Thanksgiving dinner at Judd's grandparent's house. We were able to visit with everyone, and Max was passed around and around. Little guy didn't seem to mind, he slept through most of it. He was able to meet everyone for the first time, including his 3 great-grandparents on Judd's side.



Lunch was delicious, and the dessert table didn't disappoint. After lunch, Charlotte came up to me and said, "Mommy, I want to take a nap." What?? I couldn't believe it. What 2 year old actually asks for a nap? I had just assumed she would skip her nap that day. Well, I found a guest bed for her and tucked her in - she slept for almost two hours! At one point, I couldn't find Judd, so I went to look in on Charlotte. I found Judd.



The rest of our trip was nice. There may or may not have been a Black Friday 3AM trip to Wal Mart, that included Max, to pick out Christmas presents for Charlotte. Judd got his ultimate Black Friday deal - a Big Green Egg at the Ace Hardware in Cordele. Charlotte and her cousin Lilly played and played and played. I'm so excited to see these two grow up together - they have a blast together. Lilly is much older than Charlotte, but is so sweet to her and plays with her so well.

We came back to Atlanta on Saturday. Judd set up his Big Green Egg and smoked up some chicken wings for dinner. A great end to a great Thanksgiving.



(Yes, my baby has bare feet in a lot of these pictures, which screams child neglect, but I assure you, it really was 80 degrees!!)

Happy Thanksgiving

From my turkeys to yours.



Think this will be the last time she's punched in the face by her brother?

Minute with Max : Volume 2

Max : One Month

Max is one month today. It seems like such a fast month. I know his second will fly by as well with Christmas coming up.



His one month appointment isn't until the 30th, so I don't have any stats to post. He is sleeping at least one 4-5 hour block each night - I'm just never sure when that block will be. He is starting to coo a little more. He is making much more eye contact and wants to know you are around. He is really only happy sleeping, being held, or eating. He doesn't seem to be as content as Charlotte was to just hang out in the swing or bouncy seat. I said before he was born that I might be wearing this baby a little more than I did Charlotte, and that just may be true in order for me to get anything done.

He is very sweet, though. He loves to cuddle. Today I was holding him against my chest and he put his head back in order to see who was holding him. He looked right at me with those dark blue eyes. It's like he just had to make sure his mom was still there.

My Boys

Judd got some cuddle time when he wasn't picked for jury duty today. There aren't many things better than a teeny baby asleep on your chest - well, maybe looking at this and knowing that they are yours.

Minute with Max: Volume 1

Each week, I'm going to record Max for a minute until his first birthday. I think it will be a lot of fun to see how much he changes. So, here he is - 3.5 weeks old.

Birth Control

My sisters were in town for the weekend to visit with Max and Charlotte. Little did they know the fun stuff that was in store for them.



Not only did Charlotte's nose need wiped every 5 seconds, she came down with a stomach bug on Saturday. Sally was sitting on the couch with Charlotte after Charlotte's nap, and all of the sudden Charlotte saw her lunch for the second time - so did Sally's jeans. It was absolutely disgusting. Rachel threw Charlotte into the bath and Sally threw her jeans in the washer. Judd cleaned up the puke while Max swung happily in his swing. How did I get out of cleaning? I was actually napping when all of this went down. I came downstairs just after the madness. Charlotte would throw up one more time in the afternoon - of course she didn't hit the tile or hard woods, but the corner of the rug.

Max also had his worst night on Friday night - he must have hit a growth spurt and was up every hour and a half. Then Saturday night was up screaming for 2 hours around 3:30 AM.

I asked Sally, who has Jacob, if she was ready for another. She didn't have to think about it - it was a solid, "NO". I'm not sure what Rachel thought of all of this, but I'm doubting she went back to Baltimore ready to have a kid.

I believe they did have some fun, though. They were great and did lots of playing with Charlotte. They took her to the park a couple of times, played play doh, and had a dance party to Bon Jovi. They both got some cuddling time with Max, too.

It was a great visit and I'm so thankful that they took the time off of work to come spend the weekend with us. If there had been any weekend that we needed help, it was this one - a sick toddler and fussy baby. They got a free dose of birth control thrown in.

Relief

Relief came in the form of my sister Rachel last night. She flew in from Baltimore to stay for a few days. My sister Sally comes tonight. My shoulders immediately relaxed when she walked in the door. Don't get me wrong, we've been doing just fine by ourselves, but I'm all about the help.

They have plans to watch Max and let Charlotte and I have a special morning tomorrow. They also have plans to entertain Charlotte for a few days. Rachel is currently helping Charlotte make some cookies.

I'm so happy to have my sisters with me this weekend. I love it that they want to be with us and to meet Max. I love it that they love my kids.

Sleep Like a Baby

Not sure how little man can fall asleep in the midst of a Weeble carnival, but I looked over and sure enough he was zonked. (Isn't he a good kid to share his playmat with Cindy?)

My Girl

She's adjusting to her new life, the new normal. She is a little more whiney, a little more needy, and her frustration point is lower than it used to be.

She "talked" to her brother for 10 minutes or so last night. (Judd spoke for Max to make it seem like he was talking) She told him about all the things he could do when he got bigger. But, she said, "I still have a lot of growing to do too".

I think we all do as we adjust to the new member.

I have my moments of guilt. I feel guilty for bringing this little guy into our lives and taking the spotlight away from Charlotte. I'm sure this is normal and will fade as they can play together and become friends (at least I hope they become friends).

But for now, I will just try to kiss, cuddle, and hug her as much as I can. Because, when you have a face like hers - it is impossible to look at it and not want to hug her tight.

Sleepy

A sick toddler who got up at 5:15 AM. A newborn who also got up at 5:15 AM. Both didn't go back to sleep. There is one tired mommy in this house today. Good thing the Keurig is hot and ready to go - I'm gonna need more than one cup this morning. (Have I told you how much we LOVE our Keurig?)

Here are a couple taken the day he was 2 weeks. Don't you just love his little Superman curl in the front?

Thankful

It is a month to be thankful, and lately I am more thankful than ever.

It may have something to do with a beautiful, healthy baby boy that slept from 8:30pm - 2:45am last night. (I woke him up at 2:45 worried that he would starve to death)

It may have something to do with the friends and family that have stocked our freezer and refrigerator with meals - and we have another weeks worth on the way.

It may have something to do with the husband that loves me and deals with my postpartum moods - and that LOVES our kids to pieces and helps me when I need it.

It may have something to do with an adorable 2 year old that while drives me crazy, makes me laugh a lot.

It may have something to do with the friends that have pitched in with Charlotte - taking her places, entertaining her - making her feel special and giving me some time to bond with my Max.

Thank you, everyone, for helping us during this hectic, wonderful, transitional time.

Belly Button and other things

Max's umbilical cord fell off at 7 days old. But I noticed on Tuesday that it started to bleed a little bit. So we headed to the pediatrician yesterday to have it checked out. They cleaned it up and cauterized it. One of the blood vessels just hadn't closed up the way that it should.

Charlotte went with me to Max's appointment. When the nurse asked if this was her baby brother, she replied, "Yes, we have the best baby in the whole wide world". The kid knows how to charm.

Max was weighed before the doctor came to look at him - he was 8lbs 10oz! Guess I don't need to worry if he is getting enough to eat.

He has started to spit up the past couple of days. Charlotte was a spitter too. I'm wondering if I'm just not reading him correctly and feeding him when he is really just tired or gassy - then his little tummy is getting too full. I forgot just how much laundry the problem created, though.

We did it

We made it through our first day by ourselves - just Charlotte, Max, and I.

Judd's mom was supposed to be here this week through Thursday, but her mother went into the hospital on Sunday afternoon. It turned out to be more than an intestinal blockage and she was rushed into surgery yesterday. Nina left to go be with her mother. If you've been blog reader from the beginning, you may remember that her mother went into the hospital with an intestinal blockage the Sunday before she was to come stay with newborn Charlotte and I. What a coincidence.


Of course we missed having Nina with us, but knew that she needed to be with Grandmother Plymale. Grandmother Plymale is recovering in ICU this evening. We are all thinking of her.

Our day went well. It is after 6pm and I haven't showered, I have spit up all over my pants, and the house is a mess, but we are all pretty happy.

I took them both to the park today and considered it a successful outing. It was the first time I had both of them in the car with me. I kept looking in the rear view mirror and pinching myself - is this real? Do I really have two kids?

Charlotte was pretty good. I don't think we had one temper tantrum. She took a nap, Max took a nap, and I got to sleep for about 30 minutes. I consider that a pretty big success.

Then, Allison came riding up in her shining armor with a chicken pot pie for us for dinner around 5pm.

So, now Judd is home playing with Charlotte. I get a few minutes to update the blog. Max is swinging away, snoozing. We are all smelling the delicious dinner that we didn't have to prepare. All in all a great day.