Lincoln: 1 Month old

I can't believe that it's already been a month since Lincoln has arrived. It's been a blur however.Sleep deprivation can do that to you! :) Sleep in improving, so that's always a blessing.

I took Lincoln's one month photos at my parent's house, and I think I did a pretty decent job! I also got a good one of the boys together!

Highlights:

*we had Lincoln's baby dedication

*he is 8 lbs 11 oz, 21 inches long. he is still wearing his newborn clothes!

*He doesn't mind tummy time, and he's doing well at holding his head up.

*he rolled over from his stomach to his back (at 1 month, 2 days old). I doubt he'll do it again, but it was still neat. he cried after he rolled over!

*He's sleeping 3-4 hour stretches and then 2-3 hour stretches the rest of the night

*He sleeps a lot during the day, but he is starting to have more alert times

*First outing: Pirates Fest.

*First babysitter: grandma

*he has started to focus on our faces

*he can follow an object with his eyes

*he'll stop crying if we pick him up

*he's starting to "coo"

He had his first play date this week at well. This is baby Malachi, he's exactly one month older. I look forward to these two precious boys to grow up together!

Cleaning Boy

Jonathan Loves to help with cleaning. He helps put his dishes away, sweep the floor, vacuum the carpet, pick up his toys, and he likes to stand on a chair while I'm doing dishes and "help" wash them. He makes more a wet mess than anything, but I figure he's learning how to help and keep things clean, so that's a good lesson. I don't have pictures of him doing all the chores, but I did get him vacuuming. So cute!

Weekend Fun

This past weekend was a very busy weekend for us. Saturday was our 6 year wedding anniversary! Where does the time go? God has truly blessed us these last 6 years. Obviously, our highlight moment this year was the birth of Lincoln. But so many amazing things happened this year. Nathan enrolled in school (he starts in August), we became an aunt and uncle to sweet baby Lily! We have another niece on the way (Ava Rose), our sweet Jonathan is growing and learning, and has brought so much laughter and fun in our home. These are just a few of the highlights from this past year.

To celebrate we rode the motorcycle to Bayshore Mall and went to the Mongolian Grill for dinner. It was yummy. We will have to go back and try it again sometime. We didn't fully understand the concept of the restaurant, so this time we will load our bowl with more food...lol

This was an amazing shrimp appetizer! yummy!!!

Saturday morning we went to Breakfast on the Farm with Nathan's mom. The food was fantastic. Jonathan loved looking at the cows. It was a fun morning. I look forward to taking the boys to many activities like this in the future. I don't want to be one of those families that stay home all the time. I want my kids to look back and remember activities like this and to say they had a fun childhood, and enjoyed family time.

Breakfast: Eggs, pancakes, cottage cheese, milk

there were a TON of cows!

checking out all the activities with daddy

Dancing to music with Nonna

Family Picture

Sunday was the day we moved Kevin and Liz into their house. Of course I forgot to take pictures.. bummer. But is a beautiful house in Port. I am so happy for them. And I look forward the birth of their daughter in 3 weeks! God has blessed them so much in the year that they have been married!

being a mom of 2

Wow - has life been crazy lately! 2 kids under 16 months is a handful! Overall I've been able to manage 2, but there are times where both kids are crying, and I have to decide which direction to go in first to make things better.

Jonathan has been adjusting well to having a baby brother. For the most part he ignores him, but every once in a while he realizes there is a baby in the the room and he runs over to him with a HUGE smile. He wants to kiss him, poke him, hug him, pull on him, and smash him. I have to keep a very close eye on him, or else he would probably hurt him accidental. He doesn't understand that he can't play yet. But he is a big helper. He gets the diapers and wipes for me, he throws the old diaper in the trash can, he likes to try to put the pacifier in his mouth (usually when Lincoln is sleeping, so the end result is Jonathan waking him up), and he likes to hold the bottle when I'm doing a bottle feeding. It's adorable. He also comes and gets me if Lincoln is crying. So cute!

The other night however we saw something I had been dreading... sibling rivalry. We were all sitting on the couch, and Jonathan turned around, smiled, and smacked Lincoln right on the face!!! Needless to say, he got a spanking for that one.Was he was upset that I was holding him, or was he playing? I don't know. But hopefully it doesn't happen again until Lincoln can defend himself!

So, overall Lincoln is an easier baby that Jonathan was, which has been a blessing. Nights are not always the easiest, but we're managing. I don't do well being sleep deprived, but we knew that going in. Emotions run high when I'm tired and I have a baby that won't sleep. I have had some good nights, one including a 6 hour stretch, but he was up until midnight/1am that night crying, so it was a much needed stretch. But, I remind myself, he's sleeping better than Jonathan did at that age, so I'm a happy camper!

My biggest struggle so far has been with breastfeeding. I am a yo-yo when it comes to this department. One day I want to quit, the next day I want to continue. My closest friends and family (Nathan, my mom, Michelle, and Marissa) have been great support people for me as I vent about my feelings. I had actually decided for good that I was going to quit, and started the weaning process for 2 days before I changed my mind again to continue. So, I'm going to just go with the flow, continue breastfeeding for the 3 1/2 weeks I have left of maternity leave (wow, I can't believe I have to go back so soon), and just give bottles when I need to, and not stress about it. I remind myself that whatever I do, as long as he is fed and loved, I'm a good mom.

So, besides that struggle, I've been doing well. We've gotten out of the house for multiple play dates, which is always fun. We attempted grocery shopping with all 4 of us, I've ventured out to Walmart with both kids by myself (a small challenge... always park next to a cart area), we went to Pirates Fest for Lincoln's 1st outing, gone to Nathan's softball games, and to grandparents house for holidays/gatherings. I look forward to more play dates, zoo trips, Breakfast of the Farm, and great grandparents visiting in Aug.

Life is good. God has blessed me!

Father's Day Weekend

This weekend was a special weekend. We had Father's Day and Lincoln's baby dedication. On Saturday we spent the afternoon with Nathan's family. It was a beautiful day. The guys played volleyball.

The whole family enjoyed some time outside, playing games, talking, boating, and swimming.

I took Jonathan out of the paddle boat for the first time. Nonna and Abi took a ride with us.

Lincoln slept most of the day. He is such a good baby!!

On Sunday we had Lincoln's baby dedication. Pictures to follow soon. Afterwards we had a brunch at my parents house to celebrate my dad, Nathan and Kevin (soon to be dad :) ). It was a yummy meal!

Nathan got the special plate this meal, since he has the newest child! He is such a great father!!

We gave my dad some twizzlers. They are his FAVORITE candy! Yummy

The morning of Father's Day I had Jonathan take a bag of Reese's Pieces and a card up to daddy in bed. It was so cute as he handed them over. He's such a big boy! we are so blessed to have 2 adorable boys!

newborn shots

A friend of mine, Kayla, did Lincoln's newborn shots for me. She did an amazing job! Here are my favorites!!!!

Thank you so much Kayla! You did an amazing job! I would recommend you to anyone!!!