Thumb Sucker?

Last night I was cuddling with Gavin while we were watching tv. I looked down and he was sucking his thumb! I sucked my thumb as a child and didn't stop until I was in First grade. A girl in my class made fun of me and I was mortified! I hoped and prayed that my kids wouldn't suck their thumbs. That is the main reason I push the pacifiers on them. Eventually you can take that away! Even though he looked cute as can be, I am hoping this won't be a habit!!

Smile!

Gavin has started smiling and it isn't just because he has gas! Yesterday, my parents both thought that he was smiling at them and Brian said that he smiled at him last night! He hasn't officially smiled at me, but I'm sure it is just a matter of time. Even though this is the second time going through this, it is still an amazing feeling to watch your little one meet each and every milestone. I don't want to miss a single one! Gavin is the sweetest baby and I'm so glad that he is in my life!
I am also happy to report that today was a much better day than yesterday! I feel like I was more in the groove at school and tonight was a much more pleasant evening with my family!

The Worst Hour of My Day

4 to 5 pm is the WORST HOUR OF MY DAY!! In that hour, Gavin needs to be fed, I pump, fix dinner, feed the dogs, unpack things from the day, prepare for the evening, talk to Brian on his way home, and wrestle a cranky, hungry, trying 17 month old who is into everything! Not to mention, I am exhausted and wanting Brian to get home!!
Before Gavin was born, this hour was rough, it got worse when he was born, and today I about had a melt down! Going back to work only complicates things.
I don't get enough time with my kids as it is and I don't want to spend my time with them frustrated and upset. Will I get through this, of course! I just want to be the best mom I can be and I think I am too hard on myself. I just need to take a deep breath, eat a piece of chocolate, and thank God that I have a beautiful family to drive me crazy!

A Sad Day

Today was my last day of maternity leave:( Tomorrow, I have to go back to work. I have mixed feelings. I am so sad to leave Gavin and I am enjoying my time with Macie. However, I know that I'm not really cut out to be a stay at home mom and I love my job. I also miss seeing my friends at school and my students. The positive is, Gavin and Macie will be with my mom and Brian's mom while I work which makes it a lot easier. I also only have to work for 9 more weeks and then it will be summer vacation! I only have 7 students this year, but a few of them are quite challenging and I know there have been some issues while I was gone, so wish me luck!!!

A Busy Saturday

Today was a very busy day! We started the day with a photo shoot at Wesselmans. It was our first attempt to get both kids together. Macie was all over the place, but I know Allie was able to get some great shots! Then, Gavin and I headed to Rachel's shower and Brian dropped Macie off at my parent's. He had to bartend tonight and I wasn't about to take Macie to the shower. I wouldn't be able to sit for a second! Gavin was a very good boy as usual and slept most of the time.
After the shower, Gavin and I headed to my aunt's house for my Aunt Jamie's 5oth birthday party. My parents met us there with Macie. Macie had a blast because all of her friends were there! I missed the funniest moment of the night though! I changed Macie into her Elmo pjs and then went to feed Gavin so we could get ready to go. I guess Dylan saw that Elmo was on Macie's butt and kept following her around saying "Melmo" and started pinching her butt. The funny part is Macie just let him like it was no big deal! Too funny!

Gavin snoozing at the shower
Hannah wasn't quite ready to leave her Mommy's leg for a while, but she did warm up eventually!

Dylan

Miss Macie

Dylan and Macie were sharing sticks

Olivia

Aunt Jamie, the birthday girl, loved the Elvis card we got her!

Pretty Toes

Ever since I painted my toes last week, Macie has been fascinated by them. She keeps pointing to them and smiling. I decided to paint her toes today. Yes, a little crazy to paint a 17 month old's toes, but I went for it. She sat perfectly still and even helped me blow on them to help them dry faster! As we all know, Macie is a busy little girl and rarely stops during the day. However, she seems to really enjoy "girly" stuff. She loves to wear shoes, bracelets, necklaces, sunglasses, and jackets and get her hair done (although she pulls it right out so that you can do it again). I guess now I can add painting her toes to the list. Of course there are smears and it's not perfect, but what do you expect!! She actually sat there...what a great "first" for mommy and daughter to share together!

Sitting and waiting patiently for me to paint her toes
Crazy enough, it was harder to get a picture of her feet than it was to paint them!

Pretty toes!

Money Saving Moms

In an attempt to save money, we decided to stop getting the newspaper and find coupons online. Brian has taken this on for me. He has been finding great coupons and amazing deals. In fact, we bought 8 AA batteries the other day and they owed us 6 cents! Brian discovered a website that has a lot of great deals and money saving tips on it. With the way the economy is, we could all stand to save some money!

http://moneysavingmom.com

Sunday Afternoon Date

This afternoon, Brian and I used a gift card we had and went and saw the movie, Blindside. It was playing at the cheap seats. It only cost us $4 to get into the movie but another $8.75 for popcorn and 2 drinks! Crazy!!!! The movie was great and it was so nice to have a few hours just the two of us. My parents kept the kids for us. We even have a few dollars left on the gift card for next time!
In other news... Macie fed herself her applesauce at dinner tonight! We didn't help her at all! She was so excited to be able to use the spoon and have the bowl on her tray!

Laundry Basket fun... When Brian was doing laundry, Macie kept wanting to get into the basket. I told Brian to pull her around the house in it. So he pulled Macie around the house. She had a blast and cried when we finally put the basket away!

Like I told Brian, these moments are what life is all about!

Clayton Kisses

My Aunt Dawn, Clayton, and Aunt Judy stopped by for a quick visit yesterday afternoon. My Aunt Judy hadn't met Gavin yet. They invited us to go to lunch, but Gavin and I were headed to Sturgis to pick up Macie. Clayton kept giving Gavin kisses and then laying his head on Gavin's. It was soo sweet! I'm sure these two will grow up to be good buddies!

Too precious!
When Macie got home, she wanted to get out her pop up tent. It wasn't long before she had it flipped over and I found her in the tent reading books. I guess this is one way to use the tent!

My little bookworm!

When Brian got home, our whole family went for a walk! Dogs included!! Macie wanted to wear her shades, but of course she kept taking them off and then wanting them back on. It was nearly impossible to catch a picture, but I got it!

It was so nice to take a walk and we hope to do this more often now that the weather is nice!

Spending time with Leland

Our Godson, Leland, turned 6 on March 12th. Instead of buying him a gift this year, we decided to spend some time with him and take him to Chuck-E-Cheese. We had a blast! We bought him 100 tokens. He only spent about 25 of them tonight so that he can go back and play another day. When I was younger, my godparents would take me out on special trips for my birthday and I think that we are going to do that with Leland until he is tired of us!

Playing in the tunnels
Racing cars

Shooting hoops

Watching movies

I don't know who had more fun...Leland or Brian!

Macie was in Sturgis, so we only had Gavin with us. He kept looking around at all of the bright lights. We even had a picture made in the sketch book machine. By the end of the night he was wiped out!

Happy St. Patrick's Day!!

Macie, Gavin, my mom and I went to Holy Spirit to visit today. It was so nice to see many of the people that I work with and my students. I will be going back to work in a week and half (sniff sniff) and I wanted to take the kids in before then. Both kids were a hit. Macie acted a bit shy but started warming up once we got in my classroom.
After the visit, I dropped my mom off and then the kids and I headed to Walmart to buy a wii fit plus. Those things are hard to find these days, so I had to get one when I could. It was the first time I took both kids shopping by myself. As my mother-in-law said, I am getting brave. It is not just taking care of two kids that is hard, but keeping them both on their schedules, which of course isn't the same and the management of getting both kids in and out of the car/cart. I get worried that something is going to happen to the one while I am loading/unloading the other. I guess I've watched too many specials about kids being kidnapped! I do feel more confidant with them though and even gave both kids a bath before Brian got home. Macie's went off without a hitch, but Gavin's was a whole different story. Not only was Macie clinging to my leg crying because she wanted me to hold her, but Gavin pooped EVERYWHERE all over his towel. After laughing a bit, I cleaned him up and moved on! I had to grab a kitchen towel to wrap him up in to take into the bedroom to get dressed. Oh, the joys of motherhood...

Gavin and I with my small class
Gavin sporting his shamrock bib

More Fun in Daddy's Chair

Macie is learning new tricks every day! She has been getting in a chair at my mom's house all by herself. It took her a long time to figure it out, but she finally did. Now she thinks she can get in any chair. Last night she was bound and determined to get in the wooden chair that was Brian's when he was a little boy. The problem is, his chair is taller and doesn't have arms like the one at my mom's house. She was so funny to watch. She could get up there on her knees, but she couldn't figure out how to turn around. When she would get frustrated, she would get down and walk around the chair before trying again. After many tries, and not giving up, she finally did it! She was so proud of herself. I guess that tenacity paid off!!!

Attempting to get in the chairShe did it!
So proud of herself!!

A Much Needed Break

The last two days, my mom has kept Gavin for a few hours so that I could have a much needed break. She already takes Macie for most of the day so they can spend time together, but it was nice to have 4 or 5 hours completely to myself. Both days I did some scrapbooking. I have actually gotten so much done during my maternity leave. Over the weekend, I bought 3 albums and I bought another one today to finish up projects. I finished Macie's birthday, Christmas, my pregnancy with Gavin, and today I did his hospital album. Now, my goal is to start his first year album before I go back to work in a week and a half. I probably should have spent more of my time sleeping, but it was so nice to be able to work on a project that I enjoyed without any interruptions! I miss my babies when I am away from them, but I think the breaks make me a better mommy!

Happy Birthday Grandpa!

Tomorrow is my dad's 54th birthday! We have had a weekend of celebrating! Last night, we went to eat at Kipplees. Brian was bartending and couldn't go, so today we had my mom, dad, and sisters over for lunch. Even though we had pizza last night, my dad loves my homemade pizza. I also made him a carrot cake that was very yummy!
Besides celebrating my dad's birthday, my sister, Annie, came home for the weekend so we have been spending a lot of time with her. Both of my sisters were here late on Friday and Saturday night. It has been really nice hanging out and catching up, but I am exhausted! I don't get enough sleep as it is and the time change didn't help matters. Annie brought the kids Easter gifts. Gavin got some adorable clothes and a rubber ducky in a big plastic egg. Macie also got a rubber ducky and a big plastic egg plus a princess wand and a Mickey Mouse tambourine. The gifts were a hit!

Macie got ahold of Aunt Allie's phone

Very focused...

The cutest one-eyed frog I've ever seen!

Macie loves to get on her horsie

Just chillin' on the floor

Grandpa and Macie

A Swelling Heart

In the past, I thought that I had been in love. I thought that I knew what love was and what it felt like. And then, I met Brian. I new immediately that this love was different. This was the love I had been searching for. Giddy, leave your credit card at a restaurant 3 hours away, can't stop smiling kind of love. My heart swelled. Things were great but something was missing. That's when Macie entered my life. I experienced a whole new type of love. Love that words can't describe and is unconditional from the moment you see two pink lines. Exhausting, exhilarating, exciting kind of love. My heart swelled again. Then comes Gavin. I had worries, concerns, will I be able to love him as much as Macie? I knew I loved him, but would it be the same? The moment I saw the pinto bean on the ultrasound screen, I knew once again I was in love. Since he entered this world, I have been bursting with love. Sweet, cuddly, gushy kind of love. My heart swelled yet again. How does it happen? I don't know. All I know is that I have been blessed with a swelling heart.

Enjoying the Sunshine

Yesterday was another gorgeous day with temps in the 6os! My mom and I took the kids for a walk. Later in the afternoon when we got home, I took Macie out in the back yard to run around and play. This was the first day she has actually played in the yard. She had a ball to say the least!!!

We took her basketball and soccer ball with us
Gavin just hung out in the bouncer

Using the cooler as a drum

Attempting to kick the soccer ball

Look at that precious face!

She plopped herself on the ground so I could "get" her

Being the good big sister that she is, she tried to share her ball with Gavin. Next year they both will be running around the yard!