Christmas fun

We had a very Merry Christmas this year.  Oma and Opa came in town on Wednesday afternoon and we celebrated and ate wonderful food all weekend.  The boys made out great with fun toys, clothes, ornaments, pajamas and more.  To make Christmas even more wonderful it snowed like crazy on Christmas Eve and we had a white and beautiful Christmas Day.

For me the holidays are just getting better and better because it is so much fun to see and enjoy it through the eyes of Samuel and Joseph.  Samuel was really excited about Christmas this year.  I wanted to bake cookies and leave them out for Santa and carrots for the reindeer, but I think Samuel was so exhausted from all the activities that he said he didn't want to make cookies on Christmas Eve.  Oh well, maybe next year.  On Christmas Eve morning, Samuel woke up early and asked if he could open his gifts.  We knew it was a little early, but we ended up letting him open gifts so he could actually enjoy them during the day.  We tried to go see Santa Claus but the wait for pictures was about 2 and a half hours and there was no way we were going to stay in line that long.  We did end up getting a really good picture of the four of us with Santa in the background.  I thought that was good enough.

Samuel built his first snowman with Oma and Opa and he loved every minute of it.  It was so much fun to see how excited he was.

We had a wonderful Christmas dinner, ate waaaay too much but had wonderful company.  On Christmas morning Samuel and Joseph got a few more gifts from Santa.

Dave and I kept up our tradition of going to the Casino on Christmas Day.  We think it has almost been 8 years that we have been going.  Originally we went because we were in town and there was no other place to eat, so we would go to the Casino and gamble and eat.  Luckily since Oma and Opa were in town for this Christmas we were able to go again.  It was so much fun.

Here are some great pictures from the weekend.

Samuel and Joseph opening their gifts.  Joseph's first Christmas!

More gifts!

Our attempt to see Santa.  Turned out to be a good picture.

Joseph and Opa

Oma, Opa and Joseph

Oma and Joseph

Samuel getting ready to play in the snow.

Building his first snowman.

He was pretty excited!

The finished product.

Christmas dinner

Samuel enjoying his delicious black olives.

Joseph's first Christmas dinner

Samuel playing with his finger puppets, one was obviously attacking me.

Joseph with his new name stool

Samuel loving his new kitchen.  He has been cooking up a storm.  

Sensitive Samuel

This past Monday Samuel was really excited to go to Mother's Day Out because this is his last Monday to go.  Starting January, he is going to go to his Spanish school 5 days a week.  So I set out a few different sets of clothes for him to choose from and this is the outfit he picked out (see below).  After I put it on him he looked at me and said, "Mommy I love my outfit."  He is just so cute.

On Tuesday Samuel had his first Holiday Program at his Spanish school.  I can't even describe how nervous I was for him.  On my way to the program I called Dave and told him that my heart was racing. When we got to the event there were probably 70 to 100 parents there with cameras and video cameras.  The director made all the parents of the 2 year olds sit in the front row, just in case they got scared and needed to sit with the parents.  When Samuel came out he was a little hesitant.  He looked around and then instantly started sucking his thumb.  Each child did the obstacle course and then went and sat in the half circle and waited for the music to start.  After he went through the obstacle course he looked around and saw all the people and started to freak out.  His face got bright red and he started to cry.  I felt terrible for him.  When the teachers saw him crying they brought him over to me and he held on so tightly to me.  After a minute of reassurance and hugs, he went right back out there and stood the rest of the time and finally participated in the dancing at the very end.  I was so proud of him.  I was beyond nervous.  He looked so scared, but he showed me that even though he was scared and nervous he went right back out there and finished what he started.  He was wonderful.  Here are pictures from the program.  

I hope everyone had a very Merry Christmas!

Fun Times

Things have been quite busy and sleepless around here lately.  Joseph woke up in the middle of the night on Thursday night with a 105 degree fever.  He was miserable and we gave him some Tylenol and he seemed to get a little bit better.  By the afternoon on Friday he still had a fever and I took his temperature in both ears and one was much hotter then the other, so I was afraid he had an ear infection and I didn't want to miss an opportunity to see the doctor.  So I called and got him in on Friday afternoon.  Thank goodness.  Joseph who is normally my pretty healthy baby and has never had an ear infection had a double monster ear infection.  Thank goodness we got in when we did.  We would have really suffered all weekend and probably would have ended up in the ER at some point.  

He got some meds and has been taking them since Friday early evening, but he has been miserable all weekend.  His fever has only broken three times this whole weekend.  The lowest it went was 99.9 and the highest was again 105.  I think we called the doctor's office at least three times making sure we shouldn't take him to the ER.  He hasn't been eating much, but he has been breastfeeding non-stop.  He has been up every night since Thursday night in serious pain.  He just wants to cuddle with me and breastfeeds for at least 1-4 hours straight.  I think this is his way of soothing himself too.  He has taken two naps today which is good because he needs his rest.  If only we can get him to sleep at night.  Dave and I are exhausted.  Joseph has barely been sick.  He normally gets a runny nose and little cough or runs a fever right before a tooth is about to break through, so this really freaked me out.  

It is hard to tell with both Samuel and Joseph when they are really sick because they are both so happy when this are sick.  I guess that should be my clue.  They smile and play, but they are just calmer.  I am so glad that I took Joseph in.  Hopefully he will feel better soon.

Now for my other baby Samuel.  I think I am falling in love with him again.  I know some of you out there probably think that I am a terrible mother when I say that I always love my kids, but sometimes I just don't like them or shall I say I don't like their behavior.  So I know I mentioned in older posts that I had a really hard time with Samuel when he was a baby and I didn't feel like we truly bonded and I didn't feel like I fell in love with him completely until he was about 6 months old.  Then from 6 months to about 2 years old my love for him just grew and grew.  Then right about when Joseph was born Samuel decided to turn into a complete terror.  He was testing his limits, throwing fits, biting, spitting and the list goes on.  He is not a bad kid at all, but he is so strong headed and independent and so self assured.  This trying behavior wasn't continuous; one minute he was absolutely wonderful and the next or at completely random inappropriate times his Mr. Hyde personality would come out.  I never thought that we would come out of that period of time alive.  I guess some people call it the terrible two's, but I can't really describe how terrible it really was.  I can thank Samuel for really teaching me patience, understanding and unconditional love.  

In the past few weeks, Samuel has really matured.  I can't describe how much I love him.  He is entertaining, smart, enjoyable (most of the time) and most of all loving.  He sings to music on the radio, he dances, he tells jokes, he is super witty, he makes me laugh all the time, he give us all kisses and tells us that he loves us all the time.  He still throws his tantrums, but most of the time they are manageable.  I can see him growing up before my eyes and I can't help but feel a little sad.  He is growing up so fast, the time is flying.  When I am starting to emerge from the tornado created by my two year old, I can look back and know that both Samuel and I have grown.  I have learned so much about being a parent and I know he is shaping himself into who he is going to be.  I know that I made it through this period with Samuel and I will be able to prepare myself for when Joseph's time comes.  

Being a parent isn't easy at all, but the benefits and love you receive in return is priceless.  

Here are some pictures:

Samuel isn't really biting Joseph.  He was actually giving him a kiss and Joseph was laughing, but when I looked back at the picture it looked like Samuel was really biting Joseph and the look is pretty funny.  Boys will be boys.

Savta and the boys celebrating Hanukkah late.

Samuel got a new bike from Savta and Papa.  He is still a little small, but hopefully when we move into our new house it will be perfect.

Here he is trying it out.

Joseph got in on some opening presents action too.  

Papa and Joseph.  So cute.

Me, Mom and Joseph

The boys weren't too excited about Papa leaving.

A new addition

On Tuesday morning, we welcomed baby Haidyn Elizabeth Teal to the world.  She was 5 pounds 14 oz and came right on time.  She is absolutely beautiful.  Laura and Jonathan are doing great too.  They will be coming home from the hospital tomorrow.  Joseph has met her so far and hopefully soon Samuel and Dave will too.  I think Joseph was a little jealous when I was holding her!

Here are some pictures from her first day.  I am sure you will be seeing much more of her on my blog.  We finally have a little girl around.  She isn't going to be spoiled at all.

Long Time

This is the longest I have ever gone without posting.  Thanksgiving kind of snuck up on me and I can't believe that it is already December.  We have been super busy.  So many things have been happening so it gets a little overwhelming at times to just sit down and write stuff down.  

I am going to try to catch up a little bit now.  We had a wonderful Thanksgiving.  All the family came in town, Savta and Papa, Oma and Opa and Jonathan and Laura came over too.  We ate tons of food and Joseph ate pretty much every single thing we put on his plate.  I think he is a fan of Thanksgiving food.  He did have a little bit of a tummy ache at the end of the evening from all the rich food, but he enjoyed every minute of eating it all.  

We are expecting our first niece any day now.  She has acted like she was going to make an appearance several times already, but nothing yet.  We know for sure that little Haidyn will be here by next Tuesday, unless she comes earlier.  

Joseph started military crawling around Thanksgiving.  He is super mobile now.  Still military crawling, but nothing else.  He is trying to pull up on things, but overall gets frustrated and screams for us to pick him up.  He is an eating machine.  Just this week he finally started picking up food and feeding himself.  He has been able to pick food up for a while, but he would always miss his mouth when he tried to feed himself.  He has now become successful, which is good for me because I can put Cheerios or puffs on his high chair and he can entertain and feed himself at least for a little bit.  He is becoming very verbal.  He says "Dada" a lot and "Mama" when he wants me to pick him up.  I feel like he is trying to say other words as well.  He repeats a lot of things we say, which I find amazing because Samuel was not this verbal at all at this age.  Joseph is 10 months old today and is growing like crazy.  I can't believe how big and wonderful he is.

Samuel is such a character.  He is really picking up Spanish.  He can count 1-10 (with a little assistance, but he knows the numbers).  He calls his teachers by name and knows very basic commands and words. It is pretty exciting.  We are starting to have some serious difficulty with bedtime.  We have had the same routine for a long time now, but he just fights going to bed.  We have experienced the most amazing meltdowns at bedtime lately.  I could actually applaud him for the excellent show we receive every night at bedtime.  He is testing him limits like crazy and really becoming quite a negotiator.  He doesn't really care too much about time outs, so we are figuring out new ways to discipline him.  We are always learning thanks to Samuel.  

Samuel is a very emotional sympathetic and sensitive kid.  He is very aware of other peoples emotions and feelings and is very caring.  I have learned that about him and I will have to keep that in mind as he gets older.  I have a funny story about him that occurred yesterday.  I went to pick the boys up from Mother's Day Out and Samuel was wearing a different shirt then what I dropped him off in.  Now I am used to picking him up and seeing a different pair of pants because every though he is potty trained he is still have random accidents.  So, I asked his teachers what happened.  They said that Samuel was sitting next to his friend at lunch time and his friend (Aiden) sometime has an issue with eating his food too fast and he will start gagging.  Well, yesterday Aiden ate his food way too fast and gagged and then threw up at the table.  They said it wasn't very much, but Samuel looked over and saw that Aiden had puked and he started gagging and then threw up all over himself.  I was not surprised at all because Samuel has this strange thing with throw up.  If he sees Joseph spit up at all he starts gagging and acts like he is going to throw up too.  Like I said, I have a very sensitive little boy.  FYI, if you have to throw up and you are around my son, please try to make it to another room or else we will have two people throwing up all over the place.  

Okay, here are a few pictures from the last few days.  I am off to clean up the house a little bit and try to exercise before I have to pick Samuel back up from school.  

First night of Hanukkah and Joseph first time lighting the candles

Not the best picture but they were happy

Samuel modeling his first night Hanukkah gift, alligator slippers

You might see some of these pictures on our holiday card.  I just love this one.

The boys!

Joseph's 10 month pictures

Samuel was modeling again today.  He won't sit still for pictures unless I tell him to try to strike a pose.

Worn Out

The past week has been pretty terrible.  Last Tuesday night around 3 am, I was woken up to Samuel throwing up in bed.  I had to change the sheets and his clothes, wash him off, start the laundry and get him back in bed.  Then around 6 am he woke up again and threw up all over the place.  So I striped the bed, changed his clothes, started another load of laundry and got him comfortable again.  He was miserable all day.  He threw up one more time in the morning, but pretty much slept all day long.

On Thursday, luckily Dave had the day off and we went to pick out all of our closet stuff for the new house.  That took all morning long.  Then we tried to relax in the afternoon.  I went out for an attorney happy hour Thursday night, got home at 9:30 and everyone in the house was passed out and asleep.  I felt so old coming home at 9:30 and everyone was asleep it felt like I got home at midnight.

On Friday, I got to run a few errands while I had our babysitter.  Then Dave and I went to a wine tasting on Friday evening for just a few hours.  I wasn't feeling great, so I didn't really drink any wine.  I was worried I was getting whatever Samuel had.  We went to bed by 10 on Friday night.  At around midnight I thought I heard Joseph gagging in his bed, but he didn't really cry or make any other noises, so I just fell back asleep.  At 3:30 he woke up screaming and crying.  I ran into his room and was hit with that disgusting throw up smell.  He had thrown up all over his bed and I guess had fallen back asleep.  The most disgusting thing ever was that it was all caked in his hair and in his clothes.  I changed the sheets, changed his clothes, we washed his hair and tried to clean him up and got him dressed again.  Luckily he went right back to sleep, but then he wasn't a very happy guy the rest of Saturday.

Then Saturday Dave started to feel badly.  He got progressively sicker and sicker.  I am pretty sure that he caught the flu because he was out of commission from Sunday until yesterday evening.  He didn't go to work until today.

I am soooo worn out.  I have been up with all the boys since Wednesday night.  I also haven't been feeling so great, but I think because I got the flu shot it helped.  So that is what my last week has been like.

I am so not ready for Thanksgiving.  Mentally I keep thinking it is the end of October still.  I can't believe that we will be celebrating next week.  I ordered the Turkey yesterday and I am about to make my big shopping list.  I just feel like there is so much to do and I have no time.

After Thanksgiving is over, Hanukkah is the very next week.  Time is flying.

By the way, does anyone know of good designer deal websites both for adults and kids?  Dave joined Ideeli and we have gotten some pretty good stuff there.  I have also heard of Gilt, but I was wondering if anyone else had some places they liked.

I am off.  I will try to post pictures of the house later.  I did post some on Facebook, so you can check there.

9 months old

Joseph turned 9 months old on Sunday.  He right front tooth completely broke through the skin on Monday, so now he has two bottom teeth and two top teeth.  Today he kind of started crawling forward.  He has been pushing himself around backwards and rolls around to get things, but hasn't really made much effort to crawl.  Today he actually crawled forward to get a toy.  He still prefers to cry and scream until Samuel throws him a toy or I pick him up, but hopefully soon the crawling will happen more often.  He is actually trying to pull himself up and tries to walk when holding my hands.  Maybe he will move quickly from crawling to walking since it has taken him so long to start crawling.  I looked back at my blog posts and it looks like Samuel started crawling at 7 months.  I am not surprised that it is taking Joseph longer.  He is much more laid back then Samuel ever was.

On Monday I took Samuel to get a new pair of running shoes.  He only had one pair of shoes that fit him and I wanted to get him some running shoes.  The last pair of shoes I got him were in August and he was measuring about 8 and a half, so we got him size 9 shoes, they were supposed to last him through the winter at least.  Well, when he got measured on Monday he was almost a 9 and a half, so we got him a size 10 shoe.  I can't believe he is growing so fast.  We are flying through shoes and clothes.  I also just got him size 4 pants, the size 3 were starting to ride up on him.  I just can't believe how much he is growing.  I look at the shoes and clothes and I think that there is no way he can fit into them because they are so big, but then he puts them on and they fit.  When did my little boy become a big boy!

Here are some 9 month pictures of Joseph and some pictures of Samuel playing in the leaves.  

Joseph at 9 months old

Samuel was having so much fun jumping in the leaves

They are moving pretty quickly on our house.  The walls started to go up on Monday.  They should be working on the framing of the roof by Monday.  Everything looks great so far.  I am starting to get anxious about moving.  I think I am going to start packing stuff up soon.  I figured books and little things can start to be packed.  We might actually be in the house close to the beginning of the year.

We have walls! This is the front of the house

This is the back of the house, the middle is the living room, to the left is going to be Samuel's room and to the right is the Hearth Room and Kitchen