TV Rundown

Needless to say, we've been watching a lot of TV lately. Here are my reviews/comments for the shows we've been known to DVR (in no particular order). By the way, DVR is the best thing ever! I love being able to pause, rewind and easily record my favorite shows.

1. 24 - We've been watching since Season 1. Only 4 more episodes to go this season.

2. Flip This House - aka "The Real Deal". I like watching the Trademark Propertie episodes with Richard Davis and crew. They are no longer on A&E but are now on TLC as "The Real Deal". They buy real estate, fix it up very quickly and sell for profit. (I also like similar shows: Flip That House, Property Ladder, and Design to Sell.)

3. Scrubs - we just got into this on after Chris borrowed my sister Heidi's Seasons 1-4 DVDs.

4. AI/American Idol. Some seasons we watch -others we don't. We've been watching pretty regularly this season. Last night they did a special "Idol Gives Back" episode. We're donating some $ but I will say it was REALLY weird when Celine Dion did a duet with Elvis...could've done without that. OH, and we totally called it that the "shocking results" would be that no one was sent home.

5. Heroes - IT'S BACK! Finally. This show took over a month's break and is finally back on with only a few more episodes to go. Will they save the world?

6. The Office. Love this show. So funny. If you haven't seen it you should try to check out the previous season dvds to get to know the characters - it's much funnier that way.

7. We also watch the following kids shows: Max & Ruby, Caillou, Bearnstein Bears, and just about anything else on PBS Sprout.

(BE SURE TO SEE MY PREVIOUS POST ON BABY SLEEP! STILL NEED IDEAS! :)

Sleep Help

I'm needing some tips and reminders for how to help a newborn to sleep. Elise tends to do well at night but during the day and early evening is another story. She'll fall asleep and then wake up way too soon (like 15 minutes). I do my best to make sure her needs are met (dry, fed, burped, etc.) but am not having the best of luck.

What has worked for you?

My Letter to Disney

Dear Disney,

Thank you for the endless hours of entertainment you've provided my toddler. Thank you for spurring a love of all things Princess. Thank you for such things as - my daughter singing "I'm wishing..."with the echo from Snow White, my daughter pretending to go to the ball and dance with the prince from Cinderella, pretending to fly like Peter Pan, talking to Mermaid or Nana from Peter Pan on the phone, and her singing the songs: "Hakuna Matata", "A Whole New World", "A Dream is a Wish your Heart Makes", and so on. But most of all, thanks for babysitting my daughter so I can lay down, halfway pass out and get a little bit of R&R. You've helped us through a difficult time.

Please understand that we can no longer watch 2 or 3 of your movies a day. We'll still maybe watch one for now but that is all. Eventually, our relationship will become even more "distant" as I get more energy and start doing a better job of parenting. I hope you'll understand that this day is coming...hopefully soon for I can't let my daughter become a couch potato.

Until then,

Hakuna Matata (and I'll miss you terribly...)

More sister pics

I know I've been complaining and venting about all of the stresses and time adding a second child takes but there are also tender and special moments that make it all worth it. I also have to tell myself that it really isn't that bad. Actually, I think things are going pretty well and almost easier (knock on wood) than the transition from 0 to 1 child. The jury is still out on that one though. :) All in all, life is going on and our learning curve is steep right now but that is how it has to be I've decided. I wouldn't learn much if life was supposed to be easy all of the time. Darn.

The hardest things: keeping the girls safe. I'm so careful never to leave Ava alone with Elise. Good intentions can be dangerous - like Ava trying to feed Elise a cheerio the other day and saying, "Look, Elise eating!" The other hard thing is balancing noise and sleep. We're still working on that.

The easiest things: finding plenty of love for both girls and enjoying the fact that we are so blessed - I get to stay home with my girls and we are all healthy and happy. Oh, and I'm also getting a lot more sleep than I thought I would. Yay for that.

Here are a few pics to be shared:

Ava really likes climbing into the cosleeper in our bed for Elise. This time, she decided to climb in while Elise was still in there (supervised of course). By the way, we LOVE the cosleeper in our bed. She's safe and right there with us.
Ava loves to lay down next to Elise when shes on a blanket. I thought this was a cute pj and oral hygiene photo. I think Ava realizes that Elise sleeps a lot and is in Mommy's arms a lot for feedings, etc - so she has to take the opportunity to steal some awake time for some snuggles.
Had to post this one...3 binkies. Yes, Ava is a binky-lover. She had just had a messy bowl of ice cream too. Notice the bib she is wearing. This was a great find this week. It's an all-over bib which is great for this girl who loves ketchup with everything. We must go through tons of Shout spray.

Crossed one bridge

Pulling out of my driveway today, a toddler and a newborn in tow, I thought to myself, "I can do this"...

I'm craving a sense of normalcy (if that really exists) and feel that if I can get out of the house and survive by myself with two kids - then I'm on that road.

Today didn't really count because it was just a trip to my Mom's house where we visited for a little while and then my sister, Kelly, went with me and the girls to Jason's Deli for lunch and then Kohl's where I bought myself some shoes. That was nice. Oh, and I also had to take Elise to the Dr. because she has thrush...yuck.

Anyway, I'm feeling like life is returning more to normal. Yay. My goal is to call friends and family and get out of the house a few times a week to help us keep sane and enjoy the nice weather.

Two kids - so far so good, well almost

Adding a second child sure has its UPS and DOWNS. Here are a few observations/reflections/lessons learned.

(Views and thoughts are subject to change at any moment due to hormonal fluctuations)

NEGATIVES

1.)There is no easy button for parenting - if only!

2.) I would do almost anything for a magic sleeping wand - just a wave and either my newborn or toddler would be fast asleep

3) Two kids seems like plenty to me - I always thought 3 sounded like a good number but I don't know about that now.

4) Yelling is not an effective parenting tool - esp. just screaming "ahh" at the top of your lungs because you don't know what else to do at said moment...(Ava would NOT go to sleep, Elise was crying and I was super tired - not that that is a legitimate excuse).

5.) I don't like being outnumbered by things needing my help. When Chris is gone - I've got the two girls AND two dogs that seem to bark at the worst moments.

6.) Still don't know how to juggle noise and sleep - how to keep toddler quiet-er when baby is sleeping and baby quiet when toddler is going to bed. Need to find a way to make white noise...

7.) 22 months might just be too close together - What are we going to do when Ava outgrows her crib or learns to climb out?

8.) My regular clothes don't fit me yet and my maternity pants are way too uncomfortable - a guess a life of my comfy pants is what's in store - oh well.

9.) Sickness throws everything off. Ava being sick this weekend and not wanting to sleep in her crib was a nightmare!

10.) Elise screams anytime we put her in her car seat and tends to be a little fussier overall than Ava was.

POSITIVES

1.) We have two beautiful little girls

2.) I can't wait for them to play together and become best friends

3.) Elise sleeps well at night - giving us 3-4 hour stretches

4.) The crappy times make you appreciate the good times. I love the time now that I have when one of my girls is asleep and I can really focus on the other child, snuggling and reading with Ava or rocking and singing to Elise.

5.) I've been able to have more time for myself than I thought I would - this time was recently spent making toddler activities and file folder games for Ava

6.) Family support is great. Major props to my sister, Gina for spending several days over the last few weeks helping us prepare for baby and then helping me last week just to get through. We wouldn't have any clean clothes right now if it weren't for her. THANKS, GINA!

7.) I'm so lucky to have recovered so much more quickly than my last pregnancy. I'm actually starting to feel better than I did my last month or so of pregnancy. One day, I'm hoping I'll feel normal...

8.) It's so sweet to see my daughters interacting...or at least seeing how Ava acts with her sister. We haven't really seen jealously but we've definitely seen love. One incident was just yesterday, Elise was crying in the car because she hates her car seat. We were hurrying to get packed in the van and get going because we knew the driving would calm her cries. I look over and see that Ava is holding Elise's hand, gently rubbing it with her fingers. Ava hadn't said and word and no one had asked her to do anything. She just took it upon herself to try to soothe her sister. It made me think of the relationship that they will have with each other. Wow.

9.) Thank gooness my toddler forgives me when I lose my cool. Immediately after yelling I told her I was sorry and she said she was sorry too.

10.) It could be so much worse...in fact, I've got it pretty good. How in the world do single mom's, mothers of multiples or mothers with lots of children or children with special needs do it? I have no idea - but bless their hearts!

More Pics

Milk drunk. Elise is already 2 weeks old...time flies. She's usually pretty content but does have her fair share of fussy moments. I'm dusting off the old baby books and trying to figure out what we did with Ava. Funny how you forget. The nice thing is that she sleeps for at least 3-4 hour stretches at night.
Elise's 1st bath...she wasn't a big fan of it.
Big sister, Ava, "helped" give Elise a bath.

After the bath - she was much happier, although it's sad to see her little scratches from fingernails and various newborn marks.
Pudding Face. Ava was very excited to have dessert in a cup. She had no idea why we were laughing when looking at her.
Here's Ava playing with her fish on Easter morning.

Easter 2007

This was the first year that the Easter bunny visited our home. Ava was very excited to see bunnies, eggs and an Easter bucket w/a book, baby Snow White toy, bath toys, chocolate, etc.

Here's baby Elise on Easter morning. She's a pretty happy camper so far.

We celebrated Easter with my family in town. As you can see, there were lots of willing egg dyers. We had to find Ava and William nice big T-shirts to use as smocks. Ava got to dye a couple of eggs, the first one she tossed and smashed just after being dyed.

Here's Ava in her Easter dress. With a new baby, we didn't make it to church for Easter services but dressed her up at Grandma and Grandpa's.

Ava was very excited because we were getting ready to go hunt Easter eggs.

There she goes. She knew exactly what her mission was and strayed just a few times - once to jump on the trampoline - but who can blame her?

Here are four of the five Grandkids/Egg hunters, (Elise not pictured). Ryan and Kate (in the middle) hunted eggs for the first time this year. It was funny because as they were sitting on the couch they kept taking eggs out of each others baskets. (By the way, Kate is wearing another one of Grandma's knitting creations - you can't really see it but the skirt has a row of white bunnies on it.)

Here's the grandkid pic from Easter 2006...what a difference a year makes! (My mom also knitted the pink shrug Ava is wearing in this picture)

Our Girls

We're so proud of what a great big sister Ava has been. In the morning when she wakes up she immediately asks where the baby or where Elise is. She likes to look at Elise and say, "Hi, baby!" and smiles. I even showed Ava how to play "This Little Piggy" on Elise's toes. She thought that was funny...especially when Mommy did it to Ava's toes.
Elise loves the bouncy seat (w/o the vibrations though). Her color is getting a little better but we're still fighting the bilirubin levels.
She's smiling at only 4 days old! Amazing...no, I just happened to catch her in the middle of a stretch...it still looks like smiling!
We've decided to do some co-sleeping - something I never thought we'd do until Ava was 5 months old and didn't want to sleep in her crib. We loved it! Since we're not as comfortable putting a newborn in our bed, we bought a co-sleeper for Elise to sleep in. Ava was kind enough to try it out for us. (For the record: Ava has slept in her crib since 9 months - at some point it just isn't as fun anymore) ;o)

Pictures of Elise

Here she is...our little newborn. Only a few hours old and she was already sucking her thumb. You'll notice her nice newborn look with purplish skin. It turns out she had a lot of purple bruising due to a rapid descent down the birth canal. It made life easy for me (3 pushes and she was out) but made me sad for her. The nurses said it would fade and that it didn't really hurt her.

All in all the labor went pretty well. It wasn't pain free but it definitely was much easier than having Ava. I guess I was already having contractions 5 minutes apart when I came in so who knows if Elise would've picked the same day for her birthday anyway. :)

Our Family of Four
BIG SISTER! Ava got to come and see us that night to meet her new little sister. After leaving the hospital, she was talking to my sister Heidi and said, "Yay, hospital!...Yay, Elise!" We're happy that she's enjoying the good parts of being a big sister.
My two little girls. Ava had a great time playing at the Smoots' house that day but we were both happy to see each other. (I think I missed her more). Daddy made sure to take time to see her and tuck her in at night so I think that helped her cope.
Day 2: Ava got to come and visit Mommy and Baby Sister, Elise, at the hospital again. She was very excited and had way too much fun playing in the room. :) She did want to help feed and take care of the baby.
Eyes open. Grandma plays with Elise.
I couldn't resist putting her in bed with me. There's something so special about cuddling up to your newborn.

What a difference a day makes! These are her hospital pictures from day 2. I made them retake them because the first day she was soooo purple and banged up looking. She's still purple in these (I touched them up a little) but looking a lot better.
Notice the big hands and long finger! Mommy's genes.

STAY TUNED!

I'm sure we won't resist the urge to post lots and lots of pics in the days to come!

Introducing.....

Elise Nicole!

9lb, 9oz
21"
Born at 4:24 PM

Pics to follow later. ;)

Just in time...

Call it nesting, call it last-minute, call it crazy...but I just finished Ava's I-spy quilt - today. Yep. On my due date. I guess it just shows what 15 minutes here or an hour there over a month or two will help you accomplish. I'm glad it's done. Now she can have her special blanket just like the other grandkids.

Various Thoughts

1. I'm so glad Spring is here! The fruits of my landscaping/gardening last spring & summer are starting to show.

2. I'm sad that the Jayhawks lost. :o( But, I'm glad we got the huge monkey off of our back - and we did have a good season, Big 12 Conf. Champs, etc. We even taught Ava to say "Go KU!"

3. I'm glad that Chris and Ava are still getting the mail together...Ava sure likes it.

4. I'm still pregnant. This baby really is going to arrive...very soon...reality check.

5. I'm supposed to be induced Tues if I don't have the baby before then (getting down to the wire). I'd really like to go into labor on my own, A) to have that experience (was induced w/Ava) and B) because I'd rather not spend all of my labor in bed hooked up to an IV (until I'm ready for my epidural). I don't know. My dr. reccommends not going too far past my due date since I'm prone to have another big baby. (Ava was 8lb 15oz and this girl should be close if not bigger...who really knows though.) It's really my choice. If I had my way I'd go into labor Monday. Who wants to go much later than their due date anyway??

6. My biggest concern is Ava right now. I know Chris and I will be fine and so will the baby. I just see myself missing her and being overly concerned about her happiness when Mommy is away. She's such a mommy's girl right now.

7. 2 kids - what will that be like? How will we manage? Any advice out there on how to adjust to 2??? - keeping in mind that they will be just under 2 years apart??

8. We'll definitely keep everyone posted as to when the baby comes. Keep checking back!

More of Grandma's Handiwork

My Mom made Ava this cute strawberry hat this past winter to go with her red winter coat. She also made her some matching mittens (not pictured). Even though winter is over, Ava still loves to dress up in her various hats. She especially likes her strawberry hat - and when asked who made it for her she says, "Grandma made it."


Thanks, Grandma!

Our Little Baby

Here she is - our new little bundle of joy...snuggling up in her bassinet. She weighs over 30 lbs and is 3 feet tall. OH wait - that's not our new baby...that's Ava after hours of begging to go "night-night" in the bassinet.
I decided to give in to her strong desire to be the baby...even if I was a little nervous the thing might break.

Ava has been having a blast playing with all of the baby items we've been setting out. She's been putting her baby dolls in the swing and the bassinet as well as putting herself in the baby's carseat, bouncy seat and as pictured - -bassinet. I guess we'll be looking at toys r us and garage sales this summer for her own collection of baby gear for her dolls.

real baby update: I'm still pregnant. Due on the 26th (Mon). Dr. will induce Tues the 27th if the baby has not arrived before then.

Catch Up

Lots of good things have been happening too these last several weeks - here are some catch up moments that we caught on camera. The above picture was taken after our little trip to Oklahoma in Feb. Ava thought it was hilarious to get inside of our luggage that we hadn't unpacked yet. She kept saying, "I hiding". :)

For Valentine's day, Chris and I exchanged gifts (Chris got me a new color all-in-one printer and I got him a game for his Wii - amongst other smaller gifts, etc.) Chris also got Ava a Mickey Mouse valentine and a book all about dogs -which she loves. Ava picked out the puppy she's holding for her daddy. We didn't go out to eat but instead got Chili's to go.

Since the weather has started warming up we've been able to make several trips to the park. Chris has even come home a few days after work and taken Ava to the park so that I could rest or do something I need to do - like shower. ;) Just like most kids, Ava LOVES playing at the park.
She especially loves to swing. One funny thing is that on two separate occasions, we've been at the park and some other kids will come over to the equipment Ava is playing on and she's said, "No, this is MY park!" Oops.
We celebrated my sister, Gina's (in dark blue shirt) bday earlier this month. We had it at our house - made a tasty meal and then did various activities ranging from playing with the grandkids in Ava's kitchen, organizing baby clothes and playing Chris' Wii games. Can you find the nonhuman visitor in this picture?

Last but not least - even though it was late and I looked and felt frumpy - I made Chris take a picture of me so that we can have record that indeed I am pregnant. Hopefully, I'll get a few more where I'm feeling a little more spiffy.

There you go - we have had some good times too! And - Ava is also quite fun to be around - despite my hormonal complainings as of late!

COUNTDOWN: 2 weeks