Wordless Wednesday

Coleman

Carter

My next 30 Years

It is hard for me to believe that I am 30 and a mother of two! Where in the world did the time go?! There's a song by Tim McGraw that talks about his next 30 years and all of the things that he wants to change and do better, but I don't think that I could possibly be any more blessed or change anything about these past 30 years. What an amazing journey it has been and I am so thankful to have such wonderful friends, family, amazing husband, and sweet baby boys to show for it all...and maybe a few crazy stories along the way. ;o)

Here is a picture from my first birthday...I still love chocolate cake (and wouldn't complain if it was all over my face) and to put my feet up on things...so I guess not much has changed!

Good Friends

Our friends, Matt and Emily, came in town this weekend from Indiana. We had a great time hanging out with them and really appreciated the 11 hour drive that they made to come and see us! Coleman and Carter gave them great "hands on" practice for their residency program in pediatrics.

Soccer Saturday

We had a great Saturday watching the world cup at a local restaurant with some of our friends. The boys did GREAT and loved having their "wake time" while watching the game and cheering on the red, white, and blue...it was a good thing that the game ended when it did though because Coleman and Carter were having a tough time trying to take their naps through all of the noise and excitement and were getting a little restless.

Go U.S.A!

The boys have been hanging out and watching the World Cup with us and have enjoyed all of the cheers and "conversations" that we like to have with the ref through the tv (as if he cares what our opinions are!). They put on their red, white, and blue and can't wait for the 2:30pm kickoff today to help cheer on their American friends!

Happy Father's Day!!!

Happy first Father's Day to my sweet husband and amazing Daddy (and to my Dad too)! Hugs and kisses to all the men in my life!



Coleman hanging out with his Daddy

Carter practicing his standing with Aunt Jordan who is in town for the summer at NC State


My Dad (aka Poppy) and I many years ago.

Love Them!

Coleman







Coleman



Carter



Carter Bug waking up from his nap...such a happy boy!!




I could take pictures of these sweet boys all day long!

My FAVORITE Age

I think that 3 months is my favorite age right now! The boys are starting to smile and talk, recognize faces, can sit when assisted, and most importantly are ROCKIN' our schedule!!! I have read what seems to be a zillion books and internet posts, etc. on how babies seem to finally "get it" at 3 months and all of your hard work will pay off. I am one proud Momma and life has been much easier the past week and a half thanks to them. They say that babies are more comfortable when they are able to predict their daily schedule, similar to you and I, and I can totally understand how this helps their little bodies know what's coming next.

One major thing that I have learned is that we are definitely on an hour and a half wake/sleep schedule and that when it's nap time we prefer our swings over our crib. I have read that you need to put your baby down in their crib so they will sleep in it at night but that if they don't have any problems sleeping in their crib in the first place then there's nothing to worry about. Thank goodness the boys are good sleepers and are all about their cribs!

I have also learned that when it's nap time the boys become a museum to visitors....you can look, but don't touch! They are creatures of habit and after Memorial Day weekend of visiting with so many wonderful family and friends it took me a grueling week and a half to get the boys to realize that they can't be held for their naps and wake time. Trust me, it is SO hard not to pick up that sweet sleeping baby and snuggle with him when it's nap time but it is totally worth it to keep them on track. Don't get me wrong, we definitely snuggle for a few minutes and I hold them during their wake time too to help them stand and look around, but they definitely let you know when they are tired and ready to be put down.

The boys have gotten to where they entertain themselves if they wake up early from their naps (sometimes they just need a paci reinserted) by looking around, studying their hands, etc. This is how they learn and develop and it's so awesome to watch, yet hard not to start playing with them right away. :o) Thanks again to Nana and Poppy for keeping them on this schedule while we were at the beach and using our stations and nap time routine! I know it was hard not to hold those sweet boys all day but having them on schedule this week has been a blessing!


We are still going on our "field trips", but I don't leave the house until after we have had our wake time so that the time spent in the car or on an errand is during our nap time. This cuts a lot of my errands short, but having two babies off schedule is sometimes more than these go go gadget arms can handle so it's worth the sacrifice.

I am often asked what our schedule looks like....here is a typical day for us:

7am~ Wake up, eat, change into our clothes for the day (even if the boys are not up, I wake them up at this time)

7:30-8:30~ Play. This is when we rotate our stations, build our muscles, and have lots of smiles as we learn.

8:30-10~ Nap in our swings in the den. I turn on some background music and am able to pump, do laundry, and clean while they snooze.

We then repeat the same schedule at 10am, 1pm, and 4pm.

At 7pm we turn down all the lights and Jared and I feed the boys. If we need to talk to each other we only whisper. It sounds crazy, but it's amazing that the boys need this time to unwind and not have any stimulation. They usually nod right off as soon as they finish their bottle and are down for the night!

We don't wake the boys after their 7pm feeding and they usually wake up anywhere from 1:30-4am for their next feeding. They sometimes take the full feed, sometimes not, and we put them back down until 7am.

I am so proud of the boys for following their schedule and growing and thriving. I feel like we are finally getting into a pattern and it is awesome! Way to go Coleman and Carter!!!

Big Boys!!

The boys did great last night and slept for 9 hours!! They go to bed after their 7pm feeding, so they slept until almost 5am this morning. Mom on the other hand woke up every 30 minutes or so after 2am to make sure that everything was okay...maybe I'll join in their afternoon nap today to catch up on some zzz's.





This morning during our morning "stations" I decided to try to sit them up on the couch and they loved the new view. Carter is especially into standing while you hold his hands, so I thought he would like it and he definitely did. Since their necks are SO strong and they enjoyed sitting on the couch I decided to try them in their Bumbo seats. They had to have been the cutest little things in them and they loved just looking around at all of the new sights from their new seats. I only had them in it for a few minutes so they could get adjusted and keep building those neck muscles, but I'm glad to add another "station" to our schedule. :o)

Wordless Wednesday

Lots of Love

One of my best friends, Adrienne, and her boyfriend, Steven, flew up from Birmingham this weekend to go to the beach with us. We had a great time and it was hard to see them go. The boys were so happy to meet their Aunt Adrienne that they had heard so much about!


Nana and Poppy were so sweet to come up and watch the boys this weekend, although I'm sure they didn't need too much persuasion... ;o) I knew that they were in good hands, and I know the boys had just as much fun as Nana and Poppy did! We wish that they lived closer to us and can't wait until we can visit again!

Round 2

Since the boys are on an alternative vaccination schedule they had to go to the doctor's office today to receive their second round of inoculations instead of waiting until their 4 month well visit. This time they received two shots each in their thighs and they were not very happy campers, especially since that is how they awoke from their nap. It was a lot harder for Mom this time around though...I am not sure if it's because they had two, or since they cried a lot more than last time, but either way I definitely shed a few tears myself. They had a great afternoon though and only cried for a little bit tonight which was due to a mild fever from the shots and I'm sure the soreness of where the needles went in. I am so proud of our big boys though and their camouflage band aids that they earned. :o) Their Daddy even picked out two "big boy" stickers for them from the basket...you can never be too young for stickers! Here's a picture of my sweet boys...all three of them.

Fun Filled Weekend

The big 3-0 is quickly approaching for me at the end of the month and since the beach is my FAVORITE place to be in the summer we took a trip with good friends for an early celebration weekend. We had a fabulous time and couldn't have asked for better weather. My parents (aka Nana and Poppy) came up to Raleigh to babysit our sweet munchkins and spoiled them rotten with snuggles and love. The boys did great for their sweet grandparents and stayed on schedule (way to go C and C!).They updated us with pictures which made the transition a lot easier, but I definitely missed those sweet boys and was happy to be home Sunday evening to give them kisses. Here are some pictures of the weekend!

Wordless Wednesday

Movers N' Shakers

The boys have become REALLY strong at holding up our necks for long periods of time and are constantly moving all limbs in excitement and trying to crawl up our chests when holding them. This morning during our tummy and back time Carter decided to move all around his mat and here is where he wound up in 1 minute...I think I'm going to have my hands full when these boys start crawling!

Our friend, the hairdryer

After being held for a week and traveling in the car we are definitely off our schedule and having a tough time adjusting. The boys are still eating and getting hungry at the same times but are very fussy and are wanting to be held all the time. I do have go go gadget arms, but they're not quite long enough to hold both of these growing boys and do anything functional. The other day I needed to take a shower and attempted to do it during our morning nap but their nap lasted a whopping 10 minutes. So with wet hair I decided to put them in their bouncers and see if my hairdryer would entertain them, and it worked like a charm! The boys were all about the noise and I was able to dry my hair and brush my teeth...all in all it was a success!

Chatty Cathy's

Over the past couple of weeks the boys have really started to coo and smile. They are most chatty in the morning after their breakfast but like to tell us "stories" throughout the day. I can't wait for the day when they start cooing back and forth

Sisterly Love

Nestle has always been the center of attention...until 12 weeks ago. She has adjusted really well to her new little brothers and LOVES to give them kisses on their heads and feet. She has become really protective of them and likes to lay near them or sniff their crib to make sure they're in there, etc. On our drive back home she decided that she even needed a little snuggle...so sweet!

Tailgating

On Tuesday the boys spent 11 hours in the car as we traveled from Atlanta to Charlotte. Jared had meetings, so the boys and I hung out while he worked. Needless to say it was a long day for babes and for mom! Since I didn't have Jared to help me feed the boys we had to improvise and decided to set up two Boppy's in the tailgate of the car, similar to how I feed them at home during the day. It was a great plan and worked most of the day, but towards the afternoon this is what I had to work with....



Those are definitely two worn out boys!

What a Week!

Last week we headed to Atlanta and Lake Martin to visit with friends and family. We had a GREAT time and the boys were loved and snuggled all week long. We took tons of pictures but here are just a few of our favorites. :o)