My Little Helper

Lately Lincoln has been wanting to help with everything-laundry, unloading the dishwasher, getting himself dressed and undressed, feeding Nate...the list goes on and on and I am loving it (well most of the time because he literally wants to do everything himself and sometimes time just isn't on our side).  Kevin and I often ponder about those days when our boys are older enough to be given chores.  Oh the time I’ll have on my hands I may even be able to take up a hobbyJ  I love watching him grow but I can’t help but to feel abit sad-he’s growing up WAY to quickly.  There are times where I just look over at him and he just looks so darn mature-when did he grow up so fast?  One day I know I’m going to miss his enthusiasm to help and for now I’m going to soak it up!  God only knows this phase probably won’t last long. 

Babies really do grow up so fast.  I remember people telling me when Linc was first born “Oh they grow up so fast” and they were right.  And every second of every day I tried to take it all in...the good, the bad and the ugly but time just keeps on ticking!  I love Lincoln’s independence...even when it slows me down...I guess it’s a reminder for me to slow down and take a breath for a moment while he tries to figure out how to buckle his car seat (which by the way he can’t and we’ve spent countless wasted minutes arguing over it but he insists on doing himself...with the help of me of course).  I know he needs that time to figure out the world around him.  I wish I could tell him to not grow up so quickly but yet I am so grateful that he is happy and healthy and able to accomplish so much in such a short amount of time.  I know there are little ones out there who aren’t so lucky!  I have celebrated all of Lincoln’s milestone’s: sitting, crawling, walking, talking etc. and I will continue to do so and I know that little boy will be able to do anything he puts his mind too!

Tonight I was sitting at the McDonald’s drive-thru watching this homeless man and he broke my heart.  That man has (or had) parents and I’m sure they had such hopes and dreams for their little boy and I couldn’t help but wonder “where did things go wrong?”  I know there is a certain point in both my boys life where I’ll just have to let go and let them venture out into this big dark exciting world and I pray...oh how I pray...that they live good and wonderful lives full of love, laughter and happiness.  And one day they will be husbands and fathers (and good ones I hope) and I know they will make me proud...cause I already am.  I am so proud of my boys so very very proud.

So in the mean time all I can do is love and teach and help and pray and watch them grow into big strong amazing men!  I just want to bottle these moments forever so that I never ever forget them!

I apologize for the nakedness but I can't keep a diaper on this kid:-)

Oh What a Night!

Last night was just one of those nights!  I know all momma’s go through them but knowing that doesn’t make it any easier.  Nate was a dream sleeper.  At 3 weeks we put him in his own crib still awake so that he would learn to sooth himself to sleep.  If he started to fuss I’d go in and pick him up to comfort him then put him back down and BAM the kid would put himself to sleep!  Heavenly!  I’d put him down at around 9 and he’d usually wake up around 5 a.m. or 6 a.m. for a feeding then he’d be back down till 9 a.m.  Nate was a fabulous sleeper and everything changed when we came back from Maui-I thought he needed a week or two to re-adjust but it’s been two months now!  Some nights are good and some nights...well not so much.  Sometimes he’ll whine for a bit then fall back to sleep and other nights he’ll cry and cry and cry and when I go in to comfort him he cries harder (my poor baby)L  That was last night.  Before Nate went to bed I fed him then gave him a bottle of breastmilk and to my surprise he drank it!  I decided last night was going to be the night that I would cut out his night feeding.  The little monkey went to bed at 8 completely full and at 3:01 a.m. he was up.  I knew he wasn’t hungry so I decided to wait 20 minutes to see what he would do and he cried and cried.  I went in to try and comfort him and that made it worse (break my heart).  I rallied the troops and woke Kev up to help me out and every 20 minutes we’d go in and check on him...3 and half hours later he was finally asleep.  Phew!  And I was up an hour later with Lincoln.  I really thought we were going to have to by-pass this whole “sleep training” thing!  So I’m back to reading Sleep Sense and I hope and pray it works...and that it works fast!  I don’t like to hear my baby cry at all...it breaks my heart and if i had it my way I’d rock him to sleep every night.  But I have to be realistic and I’m his momma and I’ve got to teach him how to be a good sleeper.  Lincoln was the same way and now he’s a perfect sleeper.  I know it’ll take some time but for the time being it’s hard.  But I can do it...I know I can...I have to!

But on a happier note my little Lincoln went pee on the big boy potty today!  Ya!!!!  Potty training and sleep training at the same time...uh probably not the best timing but we’ll see how it goes!



My sleeping angels!



Kissing Summer Goodbye

The time has come to say goodbye to summerL  I decided to take the boys to White Rock yesterday-it was the last thing on my “to do” list for summer and the weather was beautiful!  And the boys were P-E-R-F-E-C-T!!!  No whining, to crying, no melt downs, and no chasing after Lincoln while leaving Nathan behind in his stroller!  I couldn’t have asked for more!  They both were amazing!  I packed a picnic but we ended up eating McDonald’s for lunch instead (bad I know but the kid loves it) and we sat on the beach and relaxed!  Lincoln played with his trucks and Nate lounged on the blanket playing.  I decided not to bring my book to read because I thought I was going to be chasing after Lincoln but nope he hung around where we were and played.  That boy is such a boy (besides not liking to get dirty)-he had his dump truck and tractor and spent the day loading rocks into his truck.   Highlight of my day was watching Lincoln chase the seagulls while making seagull noises-he just cracks me up!  We finished up the day with a walk along the pier and then headed home.  The boys played in the tub and peacefully went to bed!  Oh I love days like that! 

When we had Nathan I vowed I wouldn’t be that mom that sits at home with her babies because it was too much work to leave the house.  It’s not always easy trying to run errands with two babies but I try to make it work and make the best of it.  I want to make wonderful memories with my babies and although I know they are too young now to remember I hope that they one day look back on the thousands of photo’s I’ve taken and be thankful.  I just can’t wait till they are old enough to take them to Disney Land!  I don’t know who’s going to be more excited-me or them! 

Today we are spending the day in our jammies cause it’s just one of the those days.  I do love always being out and about but I do treasure days like today.  Lincoln is napping and Nate is now up which gives me some one on one time with him!  Sometimes life just flies by so I’m going to take the time now to enjoy my littlest baby while he’s still a baby!

Yummy!




We call it "booby cheese"

 

And We Baked!

I am not a baker nor do I like baking but every now and then my inner Martha Stewart comes out!  I admire Martha and would love to be more like her but I have two babies to chase after and just don't have the time...maybe one day!  So I was cruising the Martha Stewart website last night and was drooling over the cookie recipes and had the urge to bake which I get every now and then.  So this morning Lincoln and I decided to give it a try.  We got all the ingredients out and Lincoln sat on the counter-he was my little helper.    First ingredient flour-which Lincoln got mostly on himself followed by sugar all over the floor.  I tried to fire him as my helper but that didn’t go over so well (tears, screams etc.).  We (and by we I mean Lincoln) had melt downs, tears and time outs and I had moments of “this really isn’t working out” and “Oh gosh this is so messy”  “Come on just let me stir it” but we baked and the few moments of happiness and smiles made it all worth it!  And if Martha saw my finished product I don't think she'd be too impressed but I think she'd agree that taste is better than appearance!  Grandma stopped by for a visit and enjoyed our baking.  And she taught me how to make coffee and it was good cause she told me so and she wouldn’t lie cause she’s brutally honest.  Yes I know I should know how to make coffee especially with two boys you think it would be a necessity in the morning but the truth is I don’t know how to make coffee and good thing she was here because if I would have made it on my own I would have done it wrong (apparently you really do need to put in a coffee filter).  Overall it was a great afternoon with great company and I sit here with my delicious coffee that I made and yummy pumpkin loaf while the pumpkin cookies bake.  Lincoln is off with grandma and baby Nate is sleeping peacefully!  Uhhhh some time to myself!  My kitchen is a disaster (which is another reason why I don’t bake) and I should really go and clean it before it’s time to start making dinner.  I swear I could spend my whole day cleaning.  In a perfect world I’d have someone follow me around and clean up my every mess.  I can dream can’t I? Lessons learned today: 1. How to make coffee and 2. Read the recipe before you start baking and while your baking

It's Beginning to Look a lot Like Christmas...

OK I know it's early to start thinking about Christmas but it's my favourite time of year and I'm having a hard time embracing fall so I thought that if maybe I got into Christmas mode I'd open up my arms to fall!  We’ll see...I’m still not over the fact that summer is over.  And I’m still holding my breath for one last heat wave...and I have a feeling it’s not going to happenL  And besides Costco already has some Christmas stuff out so I'm not the only thinking about Christmas!  I love everything about Christmas-the smell, the chaos, the baking, the wrapping, gift buying and of course family time!  Nothing beats Christmas morning especially with little ones and this Christmas is going to be extra special...it’s Nate’s first Christmas!!!!  And then we are off to Hawaii for 2.5 weeks for some fun in the sun (I’m sure by then I’ll be in desperate need of sun).  I’m just hoping I’m here when my buddy Chrissy births her second child (fingers crossed)!

This year I have a major dilemma...what do I get Nate for Christmas?  It seems like it was yesterday that it was Lincoln’s first Christmas and the tree was surrounded by gifts.  We have SO many toys...it’s unbearable...they are everywhere.  We even have a separate room designated for the larger toys.  I’ve even contemplated getting rid of some.  My poor second born is going to suffer because for the last 2 years his older brother has been spoiled rotten.  Would it be bad for me to not get him any toys for Christmas?  Maybe he’d appreciate a new car seat for Christmas?  Seriously our house is cluttered with toys and we’ve run out of space!  I’m a huge fan of Christmas and tend to go all out so it almost seems wrong to deprive Nate of toys and I don’t want him growing up with second child syndrome!  Hmmm what’s a momma to do?  All this talk of Christmas has me craving baked goods and tomorrow I shall attempt to bake with my two little loved ones.  Lincoln’s big into helping right now so I’m sure he’ll have a good time...let’s just pray he wakes up in a good mood tomorrow!  Right now the kid is moodier than a hormonal 13 year old!

And the quote of the day comes from my loving husband: "Don't write anything boring cause people won't read your blog."  Thanks for the love and support Kev:-)

I'm a Blogger!!!

I've done it...I've finally done it!  I'm a blogger!  I never really saw myself as a blogger but my friend Kacey started a blog (which I follow religiously) and it intrigued me.  She's my inspiration!  My husband said to me today that he was surprised that I wasn't a blogger because I love documenting everything in our life so tonight I thought I would take the plunge!  My husband also joked and said he'd probably be my only follower (thanks Kev:-)  I was a little hesitant on starting a blog...I mean I'm not a writer nor do I have an ounce of creativity in my body.  God only knows I dreaded every essay I've ever had to write.  And my spelling and grammer is atrocious (yes I had to look that up).  And as for this blog-it's not as pretty as I'd like it to be but I had 4 templates to choose from and I don't have the slightest clue on how to change things!  And does this thing even have a spell check?  Oh so much to learn! 

I've decided to use my blog as a way to document my memories so that one day my babies can have a way of looking back on my life and the memories we've shared together.  I thought about keeping a diary but my hand always gets sore from writing and it upsets me if my printing isn't just right (I spent hours in university re-writing my notes so that my printing was perfect-wasteless hours I tell ya).  I also wanted a way to share my life's stories with other momma's!  As a mom of 2 of the most precious little boys, I love hearing other momma's stories.  It let's me know that I'm not alone in this wonderful world of parenting!  I love knowing that my two year old isn't the one only out there throwing a tantrum over God only knows what!  A lot of what I know about parenting has been learnt from other parents!  I love talking with other momma's about breastfeeding, getting babies to sleep through the night, diaper sales, c-sections and tantrums!  We feed off of eachothers energy and enthusiasm and I love that!  I'd have to say that parenting has consumed my life...in the best way possible!  I coulnd't imagine my life any other way!  Being a mom has taken my life to a whole new level.  It's a dream come true and I love every minute of it...I just love it!!!!..even those times when my two year old is banging his head on the hardwood floor and when my 5 month old is crabby cause he's teething.  I've waited for these moments my whole life and it's even better then I could have ever imagined!

So here's to documenting my memories and sharing my life's stories with the world!