Henry {2 Months}

Oh Henry.

You sweet boy.

It is amazing to me how fast you have changed from a squishy newborn to a baby with some lovable chub.

The greatest joy for me as your Mama this past month was to see your first SMILE. Oh...it's huge. You get this goofy grin on your face that just grows into this huge gummy smile and it just lingers while I do whatever to keep it going. Your big brother thinks I have lost my sweet mind. I. Don't. Care. The more smiles, the better the day.

You also began to coo and "chat" with me. Your brother started about the same time and hasn't stopped since. I have a feeling the day will come when I will hear myself say, "Henry, close your lips." But until then, I love your little voice.

You found your hands and you think they are DEE-licious.

Your sleep is awesome. Three to four naps a day and nighttime has been as much as 8 hours in one stretch. {Of course as I write this post you're going through a growth spurt, so the next few nights could be "interesting". ha!}

Speaking of growth spurts...you're nearing the end of your 3mo clothing options. This could make things, well, interesting. Here I thought having babies in the same season I would be saved from having to buy clothes. Well, so long as we have to consider snaps in, a, well...certain area of your body...we're in trouble. So, to save your manhood, I bought some onesie extenders. I'm hoping that they can tide us over until the next season.

I tried to drop the swaddle the other night. EPIC FAIL. You screamed at me for doing such a harsh thing. {I'm very sorry.} We'll try again in a month, unless of course you get this rolling thing figured out in the next week or two. If that happens, well Mister, it's gone.

I'm excited that it's August. It means we're closer to fall and the chance for you to experience the outdoors. {Your Daddy would like for me to point out that we're also a month closer to OSU football.} You've had moments to experience your first Georgia summer. But, for the most part, I have protected you from this ridiculous heat.

In just two weeks your brother will start preschool. Two days of the week you and I will have time together...just the two of us. I'm so excited about that one-on-one time with you.

I love you Henry!

It's a Jungle In Here

We pulled the FP Rainforest Playmat out today for Henry. Jack loved this mat. The lights, sounds and textures could keep him occupied for quite some time. It was fun to see Henry's first reaction to it. I think he might be a fan too!

Here's Jack at 6mo ~

And here's Henry today ~

And...um..uh...Jack...today.

{Six Weeks!}

I cannot believe we have had Henry for 6 weeks. 

Time is flying with this sweet baby. 

We have seen "half smiles" ~ 

I can't wait until that little mouth cracks a wide grin. 

Sigh...

Have a great weekend!

Friday Funnies

Oh Friday...thank you for coming. One day until the weekend and another Dadderday.

Jackson has always had a funny sense of humor. At times it is just what comes out of his mouth, other times it's how he says it. Either way, it is his humor that helps me remember how much I love him when he's being a big stinker precious angel.

So, I thought I would share a few "Jacksonisms" from the last few days to give you a good laugh and help you get through the day.

Each week we go to our neighborhood library's story hour. Jackson loves story hour. He is a boy who loves to be read to and while the librarian is reading he sits and listens intently to each book. Since June 2 Henry now comes along with us to story hour and just sleeps peacefully in his stroller. Well, this week that changed. Oh the sleeping continued. But there were some, um...sound effects to accompany that sleep. About halfway through the third story, Henry blows out his diaper. Jackson looks at me and slaps his forehead in disgust and whispers {loudly}, "MOMMY! We're in the library!" 

Later that same day, while paying for our purchases at Target, Henry had another gastrointestinal outburst. To which Jackson looks at the cashier and says, "I'm sorry about that."

Finally, while I went for my postpartum appointment this week, I had Haley, our babysitter, come over. She tells me when I get back that Jack had hurt himself while they were playing outside. While she’s checking on him and making sure he’s not terribly hurt he says, “Miss Haley, I think if you kiss my cheek I’ll feel much better.” As she is recalling this to me I look over at him and realize he is turning bright red.

And so it begins....

Dadderday!

We like to refer to Saturdays around these parts as...Dadderdays. And no. I did not think of that wonderful term myself. One of my dear friends, Michele, called it that one time and I thought it was GENIUS. Jack lives for Dadderday. He and Trip talk all week what they plan to do together.

As a Mama, I have always loved this time that the boys get to spend together. But since Henry arrived, I have really loved it. It gives me some time to do a few things for myself while Henry sleeps. Today, I actually did my hair. I mean, "whip out the straightener and look like a woman", did my hair. {Don't hate, that's the first time it's happened in 5 weeks.}

Anywhoo...while I was taming the tresses today, my guys went to the baseball park to play. It would seem that our 2yo can hit it hard. To prove the point, of the 8 baseballs the kid plays with in our backyard, 6 of them were beyond the fence. He likes to call them his "homers". And look, when you're barely more than 3ft tall, THEY ARE.

Trip retrieved all the missing baseballs from the woods behind our house and they headed to the actual ballpark so that the fence wouldn't hold my baby back.

Taken with iPhone

After some hitting, Jack wanted to pitch. He told Trip he had to stand on the mound and he had to wear his Daddy's glove.

Priceless.

Happy Saturday Dadderday everybody!

Yankee Doodle BoyS!

Happy Fourth of July!

Henry {One Month}

It's true what "they" say...by the time your sweet baby arrives it's hard to imagine life before they were physically a part of your family. I remember that feeling once Jack had arrived and it resonates deep within my heart again as I reflect upon this first month with Henry.

~Henry is a very sweet baby. He rarely cries. If he does, he is hungry. And not "sort of" hungry...maybe I could use a "snack" hungry - oh no! H-U-N-G-R-Y.

~He's a good sleeper. The last two weeks he's been stretching his night sleep 4 to 5 hours. {It's amazing to me what happens to your brain when you get more than 2 hours at a time.}

~At his 2 week check up he had reached 9lbs {up 20oz since leaving the hospital} and had grown to 21in. With that growth, he said "goodbye!" to newborn clothes and diapers. It has been so fun to see Henry in clothes that Jack once wore.

~He finally got to have his first bath at 3 weeks. {His umbilical stump just wanted to hang on...} I think since he was a bit older the first bath "drama" didn't occur. He really enjoyed it.

The adjustments that we have had to make going from one to two are nothing out of the ordinary. I think the biggest adjustment I have had to make is to give myself an unusual amount of grace throughout the day. To say that I had unrealistic expectations of myself this first month would be the understatement of the year. At times it has been completely humiliating to watch myself flounder with two children. {I mean...HELLO! I used to run a classroom full of crazy lovely students!}

But, as I have learned to accept grace from my Heavenly Father, I have also had to learn to make the time to be in God's word. My quiet times this past month did not look the same as they have in the past, but I find those moments since I know without His words in my heart, there is NO WAY I could do this job. To help me stay focused on my quiet time, I have been studying Kelly Minter's devotional on Nehemiah. As I was studying I came across these verses...

~ Nehemiah 1.5-6 ~

"O Lord, God of heaven, the great and awesome God, who keeps his covenant of love with those  who love him and obey his commands, let your ear be attentive and your eyes open to hear the prayer your servant is praying before you day and night..."

Day and night...how I praise God he hears us whenever we call and whatever we need...even if we don't even know what to ask for {Romans 8.26-28}. I'm just so grateful that we have a God who cares and is the perfect model for us as parents. It gives me great HOPE as I look to the future as the Mama of both Jack and Henry.