Snow

Finally! Actual snow!! And how beautiful it is!!

Ice 2015

There is something so magical about the snow.  My family from Omaha may disagree, but when you don't get to see it very often, it's the most beautiful sight! 

 

Although we didn't exactly get snow, the kids had fun playing in it!  And our driveway was the perfect place for trying out some sleds!

 

4 months

Blogging has not been a strong suit of mine lately.  But I love having this blog to go back and compare the kids at the same ages. In fact, Ryane's 4 month update (here) is eerily similar to Avery's! 

At 4 months, Avery weighs 16 pounds, 4 ounces (65th percentile) and is 26 inches long (80th percentile).

Avery wears 3-6 month clothes and some of those are a bit short in the arms. 

 

He is wearing a size 2 diaper but I'll get size 3 next grocery trip. 

 

He is still waking once during the night to eat. We've talked about sleep training... But honestly right now I works rather feed him then listen to him cry. 

 

Most days Avery wakes up on his own around 7:30 a.m.

 

Avery is still usually up around 1.5 hours before it's time to sleep again.

 

His naps aren't going well... 45 minutes and he's up.  IF I can get him back down, it's a miracle. (crazy, but I just heard crying and looked at my clock.  45 minutes on the nose)

Avery no longer gets swaddled!  He was breaking out of his swaddle blanket... so I tried the miracle blanket.  And he could even break out of that!  So we kept him unswaddled and he started flipping over!!

 

He sleeps on his belly all night long. And for naps too!

He generally eats every 3-3.5 hours during the day.

 

Avery is back to taking a bottle.  Thank goodness.  I started to feel like a prisoner...

Avery is the smiliest, happiest baby I've ever had. If he's tired or hungry, he is cranky, but if you're holding him, he's fine!  That's never happened to me before.

 

He talks back with his raspy little voice when you ask him questions about his day. 

He's so ticklish!!  I love listening to his laugh when he is getting tickled.

Avery still falls asleep in the car every day on the way to Cam's school. 

 

Avery loves to jump!!  He loves his jumper and loves to stand and jump on our laps.

Avery can roll from his back to his tummy and occasionally tummy to back.

 

He gets fed around 7:00 and goes to bed right afterwards.

 

He falls asleep best when he's getting his tush potched while laying on his belly in the crib.

 

I seriously am in love.  I told Nic the other day that I always felt like Ryane was a light in my life from the moment she was born.  She always made things better and brighter.  But I feel like Avery is my heart.  I can't really explain the love I have for him other than that!

3 months

Avery wears 3-6 month clothes now!

He is wearing a size 2 diaper. 

He isn't doing all that great at night anymore and he wakes once during the night to eat.

I still have to wake him to feed him at 7:30 before we take Cam to school but some days he wakes at this time on his own. 

Avery has put himself on an eat play sleep schedule, for the most part. He is usually up around 1.5 hours before it's time to sleep again.

His naps aren't great anymore either! He usually naps about 45 minutes. 

Avery still gets swaddled for bed and nap time. 

He generally eats every 3 hours during the day and he nurses well.

Avery was taking a bottle really well and got sick during Christmas. And he stopped taking a bottle!!!! We are working on it. 

Avery is so smiley. He smiles all the time now and loves when you talk to him or smile at him. 

He talks back with his raspy little voice when you ask him questions about his day. 

He has the funniest laugh. It's a little squeaky squeal. It makes me laugh.  

Avery falls asleep in the car every day on the way to Cam's school. 

Avery likes to play in his playmat. He has started to hang out in his jumper but doesn't tolerate it too long. 

Avery was rolling tummy to back but I haven't seen him do this in a few weeks. 

He's a cuddle bug and so very sweet. He lays really comfortably on Nic's chest whenever Nic holds him.

He gets fed around 8:00 and goes to bed around 8:30. 

Avery still likes to rock and get his tush patted (potched, as we say). He calms down with white noise. 

He's a sweet little Bugga!! Happy 3 months! 

2014

2014 ended up to be SO much different than I expected. 

In January, I made resolutions to eat better, exercise more and have more time for me. I went on a 21 day sugar detox which started me off on the right foot. 

On February 4th, I joined It Works! I was so excited for this adventure and felt like this was a great step in doing something just for me!  It did not start out quite how I envisioned; we were busy with a school fundraiser and all of us were so sick! I can remember hanging decorations for the event thinking all I wanted to do was go home to lay in bed. 

February 11th was the day that changed my life. I woke up early for an annual visit with my obgyn. I remember telling Nic I felt nauseous that morning. I was still so sick and had pulled a rib muscle from all of the coughing and could hardly sit up on the table while I was talking to the doctor. She wrote me a prescription for  cough medicine and one for a different birth control, saying, "you can't take either of these if you are pregnant." I laughed and said, "no way in hell I could be."  Well, that pregnancy test proved me wrong!! I'll never forget that feeling. Shock, sadness, anxiety, panic, loneliness, guilt... All at once. 

The next 9 months were difficult for me- physically, mentally and emotionally. 

The past 3 months have been even harder! I have a lot of guilt that I can't possibly give everyone the attention they need and deserve. Nic travels more for work and being home with all four kids is not easy. 

But my heart is in a different place. A better place. My life might not be easy right now, but it's exactly where I want it to be. I am truly blessed. ❤️

Kaden in 2014:

Favorite part of 1st grade: "We get to be more powerful than kindergarten." He likes writing and art the best. He loves his teacher and said this about her: "I noticed that not only is Mrs. Robles nice and kind, she is also really funny."

Favorite school project: snow globes

BFFs: Philip, Gage, Will, Mikey, Aakash, Jaxon

Girlfriend: Lainey. "She's kind."

Favorite part of baseball: catcher because he likes to wear all the gear

Favorite part of basketball: "It's easier than baseball because all you have to is shoot!"

Favorite part of being a big brother: "I get to have more fun with them."

     Cam: "He's my pal." 

     Ryane: "Helping her out when Cam is making her mad."

     Avery: "I really like to hold him because I don't really get to hold Cam and Ryane anymore." 

When Kaden grows up he wants to be a baseball player and an artist. 

Kaden has changed a lot in 2014. He went from a preppy little guy wanting to dress like his daddy, to a kid who wants to be just like his friends. He wears only athletic gear now, a baseball rope necklace (like the pro players) and a hat backwards. He has matured a little at school and doesn't get into trouble as much this year. Reading has started to click and Kaden is doing well learning his spelling words each week. Kaden is more interested in math and science at school and excels there. Although at times he has an attitude like a teenager, he still loves to be a helper and loves to hear what a great job he's doing. He loves to play with his neighborhood friends and he will run over to their houses to play after school. Between that and practices for baseball or basketball, Kaden is really busy!

Cam in 2014

Favorite part of pre-k: snack time (crackers). Upon further questioning he said "going to the art museum."

Favorite school project: drawing pumpkins 

BFFs: Philip. "When we go to swimming, Philip needed to buckle something on his backpack but he kept walking so I helped him."

Girlfriend: Ella "she's berry {very} nice."

Favorite part of being a brother: "taking care of Avery."

     Kaden: "letting him have my tatoo."

     Ryane: "she's funny."

     Avery: "I take care of him." 

When Cam grows up he wants to be a "dult {adult} that cooks."

Cam has also changed a lot this year. He took the prize for being the most difficult child to being the easiest by a landslide. Although he still can throw a mean tantrum, those moments are few and far between. He's really sweet and sensitive and can get his feelings hurt really easily. Cam cares a lot for Ryane and Avery and is a great big brother. I love listening to his conversations with Ryane.  The two of them play really nicely together. And Cam loves Avery. He will bring him a stuffed animal to look at and will sit next to him and talk to him for awhile. Cam loves school this year and has grown a lot. Last year you could hardly get him to hold a pencil, and this year he loves to write and draw. After I had Avery I started dropping Cam off in the carpool line. Now he requests that I do carpool and his teachers say how proud of himself he is when he walks in on his own. Cam is  funny but he doesn't understand sarcasm or joking too well. He's adorable and we love his cute little personality!

Ryane in 2014

Busy. And that's actually an understatement. I told Nic that I can't watch her all the time because she needs an eye on her every second of the day... And I need to blink!!  She's two and acts like it- one minute she is happy and the next minute she's on the floor beside herself crying. And she's got a temper too!! Ryane has a very funny personality and she says the cutest things. I think Ryane is very smart and I don't think there's any comparison between her and the boys at the same age. Ryane loves music and knows the words to every song. She is starting to like to dance too! She's my little light and definitely makes things brighter around here. Ryane definitely rules the roost around here with her brothers and she has her daddy wrapped around her finger as well.  "She's sun and rain. She's fire and ice. A little crazy but it's nice." 

Avery in 2014

He's my heart. He's the sweetest baby I've ever had and is happy just to be talked to. He's much more easy going than any of the other kids were and even fell asleep the other day playing on his play mat in the middle of our crazy kitchen! He has started giggling which melts my heart. I was worried about what his place would be in our family but it didn't take long to realize! I'm in love with this sweet boy! 

Nic in 2014

I'm lucky to have Nic in my life. He's definitely my rock and is be lying if I said I didn't need him every day. He's pretty impressive in my opinion! He ran an ultra marathon in September (40 miles) and I'm sure is planning more for this year. He loves his job as a Sales Manager and he's great at what he does. He works really hard- from waking up early to run, getting the kids their breakfasts, and working all day, to then coming home to the chaos of our lives... He puts up with a lot all the way around. I hope he knows how appreciated he is!! 

Here's to a happy and healthy 2015!

Us

I'm conscious of us a lot. 

We can be loud, obnoxious, out of control and crazy. 

We stand out. 

But all this craziness will go by fast. 

And one day it'll be quiet in our house and we will miss these days. 

I need to remember to take it all in and try to enjoy these times with my babies. Thanks Mom for the reminder.  

2 months

At two months old:

Length:  24 1/2 inches (90th percentile) 

Weight: 14 pounds 1 ounce (75th percentile)

 

Avery looks like such a big guy! He's so long! But he doesn't seem as chunky as the others were. 

 

Avery wears size 0-3 month clothes but I'm sure he'd fit into 3-6 month clothes, especially the one piece outfits. 

He is wearing a size 1 diaper but I am about to switch to size 2. 

He was doing great at night.  His longest stretch was 7 hours. This past week he's been waking between 3-5 hours.  Hopefully it's just a growth spurt and he will start going longer again. 

I usually have to wake him to feed him at 7:30 before we take Cam to school. Some days he wakes up right around then on his own.   

Avery has put himself on an eat play sleep schedule, for the most part. He is usually up around 1-1.5 hours before it's time to sleep again. 

His naps are not very consistent yet. Sometimes he sleeps 3 hours and sometimes 30 minutes. 

 

He generally eats every 3 hours during the day and he nurses well. 

 

Avery is so smiley. He smiles all the time now and loves when you talk to him or smile at him. He has a little almost-laugh when he gets really excited. 

 

He has started to coo a little bit here and there, especially when you ask him questions. I've heard a mmm sound a few times as well.  

 

He likes his swing and will fall asleep in there if he's drowsy. 

Avery also does better now playing on his playmat and tolerates it for longer periods of time. 

 

Avery has rolled over a total of four times Fromm tummy to back! I even caught one on video. 

 

Avery is still doing well taking a bottle!  He drinks about 4 ounces.

 

He's a cuddle bug and so very sweet. He lays really comfortably on Nic's chest whenever Nic holds him. 

 

He still doesn't settle well in the evenings but he's doing better than he was. He gets mostly fussy when he's tired and has a hard time settling to sleep. This is usually around 8:30-9:00.   

 

Avery still likes to rock and get his tush patted (potched, as we say). And he sleeps swaddled up. 

 

His nicknames include Baby A, Aves, A and Avery A.  I call all the babes Bugga and Punka. 

 

Sweetest boy.