Archive for the '36.Two kids-July 09' Category

A sweet song

Thursday, July 16th, 2009

Q’s dad did a lot of rocking and singing to Avery when he was here last week, and the baby took a particular liking to his rendition of Singin’ in the Rain. When Avery was fussy the other night, Q whipped out the phone and had PopPop sing to her; I thought the combo of Q holding her and PopPop singing was pretty much the cutest thing ever!

-M

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Some thoughts from mom

Thursday, July 16th, 2009

Now that Avery’s several weeks old, I’ve had some time to absorb the fact that we’re a four-person family. So – what are my (early) thoughts on being a parent of two? As several friends told me before Avery’s arrival, going from one kid to two is MUCH less of an adjustment than going from none to one. I feel like Q and I are old pros at typical parenting things (diapering, consoling a crying child, etc.), and we’re already familiar with the lifestyle changes that a child brings. (We’re used to working our schedules around nap and feeding times, and we’re accustomed to being home in the evenings.) Also, I don’t find myself fretting about the baby as much as I did with Zoe; when she cries, I know she’s doing it for a reason and I know she’ll stop eventually.

With that said, what remains quite difficult (and what I mentioned earlier) is the sleep thing. Though we’ve gone through this before, coping with a constant loss of sleep is still a real shock to the system – I liken it to a plunge in a pool of very cold water. (I’ll never get used to it!) And what makes things even more challenging is the fact that we have a toddler that gets us up every day at 6 or 6:30; we don’t always have the luxury of sleeping when the baby does.

I don’t deal well with sleep deprivation, and I’ve had some down moments since Avery’s arrival – but overall, I think things have been fairly manageable. And when things don’t feel that way, I try to remember some advice from a commenter on BabyCenter.com, who wisely wrote:

“With my first baby I was just trying to get through the first couple of months! I couldn’t wait until he was sleeping through the night. What a mistake that was. The best advice I can give you is that your baby will only be a newborn for just a few months so breathe it in and enjoy every cry and every moment. When you start to feel like you can’t handle everything that’s happening, just remember that it will be over faster than you can imagine!”

-M

Snuggle bugs

Wednesday, July 15th, 2009

A friend recently mentioned that one of the best things about having two kids is their interaction; it’s an amazing feeling to see how much joy the oldest gets from his/her sibling. I already totally get that, and these pictures of (a very happy) Zoe snuggling in bed with Avery make me especially happy. I’m sure many more cuddle sessions are in the girls’ future!

-M

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On my own

Tuesday, July 14th, 2009

What a difference a day makes! Yesterday, I was on my own for the first time (Q returned to work, and his parents left the night before), and – like my first time alone with Zoe – it was a fairly tough day. My oft-mellow baby was anything but: she constantly cried and complained, and she didn’t follow the schedule that she has been following for weeks. (She wasn’t keen on napping, she wanted to eat every two hours, etc.) I only got about five hours of sleep the night before, and I felt bleary-eyed and sad for much of the day. (How am I going to do this on my own?? I thought.) But then last night, I got a (relatively) good amount of sleep, and both Avery and I were in better moods right from the start today. Feeling well-rested and confident, I decided to keep Zoe home for the morning, and the three of us wound up heading to a sing-along at the library. I felt really good (and proud!) about being out with both girls, and I’m hopeful that Avery’s grumpiness/fussiness yesterday was just an ill-timed fluke.

-M

First bath

Tuesday, July 14th, 2009

Avery [note: NOT Zoe, which I originally wrote – hence Krista’s helpful comment!] had her first (non-sponge) bath on Sunday, and I had to post a picture to mark the occasion. You can’t tell here, but when her hair got wet it also curled up a bit. Could we soon have two curly-haired girls running around??

-M

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Fun at the fair

Monday, July 13th, 2009

Yesterday, while Q’s mom and I relaxed with the baby, the guys took Zoe to the Giants County Fair. Zoe did tons of stuff – including walking through the “scary house” and riding on the teacups (her favorite), the ferris wheel, and kiddie roller coaster – and Q reports that she was quite the big girl during the outing. She wasn’t scared to go on any of the rides on her own, and she went diaper- and accident-free the entire afternoon. (Zoe is just about potty-trained at this point, but I’ll save details for a different post.) I was happy that PopPop took lots of pictures; here are some of the best.

-M

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Congrats again Sandy

Monday, July 13th, 2009

Here is our proud 30K winner with her prize! Waiting for the next winner at 35k!

Jon Q

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Another dance-a-thon

Sunday, July 12th, 2009

In honor of PopPop, I had to post a second dancing video – this one of him and the two girls. It’s a bit hard to see, but you can still tell how much fun they’re all having!

-M

Fun with PopPop and Safta

Saturday, July 11th, 2009

It’s been a lot of fun (and help) to have Q’s parents around, and both Zoe and Avery have enjoyed all the bonding time. Below are a few fave pics of PopPop with the girls, followed by video of a little dance-a-thon with the four of them. (Needless to say, the house is going to be very quiet when they leave tomorrow night!)

-M

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Princess Yoda

Friday, July 10th, 2009

When Zoe was exactly Avery’s age (i.e. three weeks old), I made reference to what I called her “Princess Yoda” look. Whenever she finished drinking her milk, Zoe – with closed eyes – would scrunch up her face, purse her lips and throw her head back or to the side. As I wrote back then, it was “one-part Yoda and one-part princess,” and I remember thinking that I would really miss it. What I didn’t know then was that it wouldn’t be that long until I saw it again: Avery makes the same face after eating! I once assumed it was a unique-to-Zoe look, but I’m now thinking that – a) it’s a Browdy-girl thing or b) perhaps every baby makes that face after eating. Either way, I love it – and I’m happy to have Yoda back in my life.

-M

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Eskimo kiss

Thursday, July 9th, 2009

As mentioned before, Zoe is quite affectionate with her sister: she often tells Avery that she loves her, and she’s always eager to caress her and plant her with kisses. (Fortunately, and probably due in part to our frequent reminders to be careful, she’s been quite gentle with the baby so far.) Yesterday, she decided to try out something new – an eskimo kiss – on her sister, and Avery seemed to like it. Check them out…

-M

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Best baby sister…

Wednesday, July 8th, 2009

Remember how I recently commented on heartwarming kid moments? Well, another occurred last night, as Avery was finishing up eating. Zoe climbed on the bed with us and wrapped her arms around her little sister. “I love you,” she said as she put her face close to Avery’s. “You’re the best baby sister ever.” I couldn’t help but smile…

-M

Just hanging out

Tuesday, July 7th, 2009

Okay, so taking a video of a newborn is sort of silly – because babies this age do very little. Still, I thought those of you who haven’t yet met Avery might like to see what she does do when she’s not sleeping or eating. Here she is, hanging out and doing a little squirming and cooing on her hippo mat.

-M

Hello, Safta and PopPop

Monday, July 6th, 2009

Safta and PopPop arrived yesterday morning, and most of their time has been spent playing with Zoe or snuggling with Avery. Here are some of the first pictures of them meeting Granddaughter #2!

-M

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Little Mommy

Sunday, July 5th, 2009

Avery’s been a fairly mellow baby so far, but I still feel overwhelmed and grumpy with the double-parenting thing at times. Luckily, at least a few times a day something happens that makes me smile and makes it all (excuse the cliche) worth it. This morning, the thing that warmed my heart involved Zoe, who decided her baby needed to take a nap in Avery’s swing. While the real baby was snoozing in her bassinet, Zoe changed her baby’s diaper, strapped her into the swing, covered her with a blanket, and started the rocking and music – all on her own. And when the baby was perfectly positioned, Zoe looked at her and said, “Perfect!” (which is something I usually say when we’ve accomplished some sort of task). Watching Zoe act like a little mommy, and emulate what Q and I do with Avery, made me beyond happy. And I’m sure we’ll see more of this mommy-like behavior in coming months!

-M

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