Ahhhh...Sleep!

Owen 7 months

Jack 8 months

So I haven't blogged about the boys sleep because frankly I'm concerned that it will all come crashing down if I speak, think or type it out loud! Oh well I'm tempting fate! Owen and Jack has been sleeping so much better...thanks in part to a few simple lifesaving (okay I know that's a little much) changes.



The big change has been during nap time. The morning nap has always pretty much been a breeze because it's just Jack napping no big deal. Sometimes he won't take his full nap, but the majority of the time it's cake. The afternoon nap has always been a struggle. For a while I was putting Owen to bed in their room and then putting Jack in his car seat to sleep, but I really wanted to break that habit. So I started trying to get them to sleep together at nap time, but that ended up being a horrible idea. Owen would only end up sleeping for 45 minutes some days and Jack sometimes only 30. Plus I would get no alone time and that's just not cool with me. The days the boys don't need naps anymore is going to be the day I start taking anti-depressants.



Anyways the other day I was at my parents house and it was time for the boys to take their naps. There is only one portable crib so usually Owen sleeps in it and Jack sleeps in his car seat, but like I said was really wanting to get away from that. So I thought I would try having Owen sleeping a real big boy bed...my old bed. I told Owen he was going to sleep in a big boy bed and he kept telling me, "No". I sang him a song about a big boy bed and then brought in the music player that he's used to hearing at Ga-Ga's and he fell asleep! I was so shocked. So Owen slept in the big bed and Jack slept in the portable crib. So cool!



The next day I was at my friend Jen's house and it was nap time so I asked if Owen could sleep in her bed and she had no problem with that. I found a stuffed animal for Owen to sleep with and then took him into Jen's room. I tucked him in and then turned on the space heater to the fan setting so he would have some white noise. Later on I thought I heard him kicking the wall or something so I marched in there to stop him and there he was sleeping on the floor on Jen's fluffy rug at the foot of her bed. It got a little cold in the room so he had gotten up to turn the heat on instead of the fan. The space heater that Jen has is actually ours we are letting her borrow it so Owen knows how to use it. He is so smart. I just couldn't believe that he laid himself back down and went to sleep instead of coming out. He slept on the floor for 2 1/2 hrs!



The next day we were actually at home so when it was nap time I put Owen to bed in the spare bedroom and Jack to bed in his crib. It worked beautifully! Owen is now taking 3 - 4 hour naps and Jack is sleeping about 1 1/2 - 2 hours twice a day. Mommy is so happy!

Random Picture Challenge

It's back after a week hiatus...this weeks challenge from Brittany is to post 11th picture from our September 2007 folder. Here it is...

This is Michael's Aunt Vicki holding Owen and Kayla. We were at Michael's cousin Carissa's wedding in Oregon. It was Owen first time going to Oregon outside of my belly. He doesn't look very happy because it's past his bedtime. The main thing I remember about this trip other than the wedding is we had just found out the weekend before that we were pregnant, but I didn't want to take the limelight away from Carissa so we didn't tell anyone...it was so hard!

Not Me Monday

Join in the fun with all of us "Wolverines" over at Mckmama's Blog. You won't regret it!!! Come on...what have you not done this week???

1. I did not take Jack's diaper off right before his bath thinking it only had pee in it to discover that there was in fact poo in it as well. Of course I had the baby wipes handy so there would be no reason that I would have to carry a naked poo butt baby across the room in order to get a baby wipe and I of course did not get poo on my arm because I thought I'll carry him facing me so if he pees he'll just pee on me and not everywhere else. That would be gross and that would so not happen to me because I'm prepared for everything!

2. I did not actually comment to husband on Tuesday night, "Why did you pick him up so fast? You should have gotten the camera!", when Owen fell off our bed and was doing a handstand. I am way more concerned with the safety of my child and not getting these types of incidents on camera.

3. I did not go on a shopping spree for yams and squash in order to make Jack baby food and end up over buying. I did not end up having 6 ice cube trays of yams and 4 ice cube trays of squash that would be crazy and a little obsessive.

4. After last weeks Not Me Monday post I did not start feeling so guilty over my dirty sheets that I ripped them off my bed that afternoon and tossed them into the washer to get them clean. I absolutely did not forget about them being in the washer until Thursday morning and I did not have to wash them again!

5. Yesterday Michael and I did not have to start implementing timeouts for Owen because he has entered the "I'll scream at you if I don't get what I want" phase. No way! My two year old is totally well behave and will required none of that!

Food Making Friday with Friends

Today Kim and Andy came over for lunch. Kim and I made tons of baby food for Andy and Jack. The boys are old enough to start eating meat so we made them two meals with chicken. They really taste good, unlike that nasty Gerber meat baby food I remember trying to feed Owen. I had so much fun talking with Kim and at one point ALL the boys were napping. Owen is now taking his naps in the queen size bed in the spare bedroom because Jack wakes him up if he sleeps in his normal bed. Jack is sleeping in his crib like always. We had to get a little clever with where to put Andy so I brought in the Radio Flyer ATV wagon and we lined it with blankets and put it in the bathroom and Andy slept in there for an hour. Such a nice treat!

Andy isn't quite crawling like Jack does yet, but he does a mean army crawl and he's way more steady when it comes to standing and walking. He loves to walk around...with his mommy's assistance of course. I'm sure he'll walk before Jack.

The look on Jack's face in the picture above is what Michael calls the 'Target Acquired' look. Jack will be playing on the floor just fine and then all of a sudden he stops and starts looking for me. Once he finds me he get this look and then makes a mad dash for me. If Michael's in the room he always says, "Target acquired...target acquired!"

One Jumbo Box Of Diapers Comin' Up!

On Thursday morning before I went over to a friends house I made a quick stop at Costco for some essentials....Milk, Cheese, Ketchup, Salsa and of course Diapers. Since Potty Training Boot Camp didn't go so well I had to give in and buy another box of Huggies size 4's for Owen. Oh how I didn't like doing that...$40 hurts my wallet! Anyways later in the day when we got home Owen decided that he should play with the box. I'm not sure if he's never really been interested in them or if I've just put them in the recycle before he'd had a chance to play with them.

He didn't really like playing in it while it was on it's side like this because he couldn't sit up.

He liked sitting in it like this though. I tried taking his picture through the hand holds on the side of the box, but he kept shutting them on me. Cute little stinker!

ABC's

We've really been working on getting Owen to say his ABC's and he's doing so well. We've noticed that he'll say more words now because he knows more sounds. Michael and I particularly LOVE the way he says 'Q', 'S' and 'X'. Oh and as you'll hear he still doesn't start with 'A' he starts with 'B'. Oh yeah and don't mind the fact that after I ask him to say 'W' I ask him to say 'V'...of course I know 'V' doesn't come after 'W'....sheesh!

Unfortunately he doesn't look all the good in this video because he's not. Both of the boys had terrible colds and fevers over the weekend. They are on the mend though.

Puppy Love

We got this puppy toy from a McDonald's Happy Meal a little while ago and the boys have just been loving it. I decided the other day to see what Owen would do if I stuck it in his front pocket. I was sure he would want to take it right out and try to put it back in and it would turn into this screaming match because he wouldn't be able to do it by himself. To my surprise he just left it there and kept playing and then occasionally he would lean over and kiss it.

Last night I noticed that the outfit I had Jack on had a little pocket on the sleeve so I thought how fun...I'll put the puppy in his pocket and have pictures of both of the boys with the puppy. Jack didn't necessarily enjoy kissing the puppy as much as he enjoyed biting him...

I guess Jack didn't like it when the puppy bit back!

(No puppies or babies were hurt during this photo session!)

I want my mommy!!!

Have I mentioned that Jack is a Mama's boy? Well he is...MAJORLY!!! On Saturday morning I had finished nursing him so I put him on the floor so he could crawl around. He was having a grand ol' time and then he decided to come back to mama and check in with me. He does that quite frequently when he's playing on the floor except this time I wasn't on the floor I was still sitting in my nursing chair. I guess Jack thought that he could find me if he crawled behind the nursing chair. That didn't work out so well....

Where's mama...I know I saw her?????

Ummm...Jack mama's right here!

There she is!!!

I'm saved!

I have a feeling that I should cherish this because I highly doubt he'll want me this badly in just a few short years.

Not Me Monday

Check out MckMama's Blog and all the other bloggers who participate in this freeing online carnival.

1. This week we were not again dealing with two sick children. My kids do not catch every little bug that comes around...no way!

2. I did not pump every 2.5hrs on Saturday and take Fenugreek in hopes of increasing my milk supply since Jack wasn't eating very much on Friday because of his cold and it was starting to get low.

3. In response to all my pumping I was not awakened on Sunday morning at 5am because my breasts were so engorged you would have thought I just gave birth to twins.

4. I did not use my sheets as a tissue for my runny nose because I was so exhausted that I didn't want to lean over and grab a tissue that was on my nightstand. I most definitely changed said sheets the morning after I did not use them as a tissue and I am most certainly am not still sleeping on said sheets.

5. I did not spend all of Valentine's Day unshowered, in my pajamas, watching episode after episode of 24 with my husband. That would be so unromantic. It's not like we have two sick kids and no babysitter and are only living on one income...sheesh! (Actually it was a great day and I wouldn't change it)

6. I did not just learn how to schedule my posts while posting this blog. I'm still not that naive when it comes to my blog.

7. After scheduling this post to automatically post at 7am I did not say out loud to my husband, "Now all I have to do in the morning is get on Mr. Linky...I hope I get on top of Mr. Linky!" (If you have no idea what I'm talking about head over to MckMama's blog and you'll figure it out. Today I was no where near the top of Mr. Linky, but I was closer than I've ever been.)

Random Picture Challenge

This week we've been challenged by Brittany to post our 3rd picture from either our January 2007 or our 13th picture folder. I chose the 13th picture folder because Owen was born in January of 2007 and I've already posted a pretty awesome picture of his birth. This picture was taken on Easter 2007. This was the day that Owen said his first word. He said "Hi" twice that day. I love this picture because it's so totally disfunctional in that it's not the typical perfect family picture that you save. My mom isn't looking at the camera, GG's eyes are closed, I look drunk, Michael looks giddy and Owen is just plain pissed off. I love it!!!

Deep & Wide

I sang the song Deep & Wide to Owen a long time ago and I would do the motions for it. Today he just started saying "Hee & Haa" and doing the motions. I had to capture it on film. Sorry it's sideways!

Owen Speak

Owen is just talking like crazy now. He amazes me. I've been writing them down so I won't forget and it seems like the list goes on and on. I know this stuff probably isn't that interesting to most of you, but I want to make sure I remember this stuff when he gets older.

Netty = Thank you - He sometimes signs this.

Ree-Ree = Ring or Pretty - I'm not really sure on this one yet.

Hacut = Haircut - We just buzzed Owen's head last night and it looks super cute.

Han = Hand

Tay = Tape - Owen loves to play with masking tape and since Michael is a painter we have plenty of it.

Bubba = Brother - This is what I called my brother so sometimes I say it for either Owen or Jack and he just started saying it today.

Off! He just started saying this today. Finally! Hopefully he will phase out 'Not on' now!

Here go = Here you go

Kim = My friend Kim - She came over last week or the week before I can't remember anyways he just stood at the window and said her name. Also I have all my picture Christmas cards hanging up in the dining room so when he sees hers he says her name over and over.

Icky = Yucky - He learned this one during potty training this last weekend. Oh yeah that didn't go so well so he's still using "Boppies" aka diapers.

Pen - Self explanatory

Nay = Name - Owen thinks that all words have to be names because each of us have our names over our beds. The words can be on paper, the TV, a sign outside, but they are all names.

Gapa = Ga & Ga & Pa together or it means Grandpa...not quite sure.

I pay I pay = I pray I pray - That is actually how Owen prays. He says it over and over about 3 or 4 times and then says Amen at the end. I couldn't figure out why he prayed like that until I really listened to myself praying and I say...Dear God, I pray that we have a good day and I pray that Michael comes home soon and I pray that the boys take a long nap......wonder who he learned how to pray like that from???

We've been working on the ABC's and counting from 1 - 10 with him more and more. He can say almost all of the ABC's now except he refuses to say 'A' he always starts with 'B'. The same thing goes for his numbers he always starts with '2'.

Today I kissed Owen and it shocked both of us on the lips. I kissed him again and it happened again. After that he didn't want to kiss me, but later on I convinced him too and there was no shock and he said all excited, "No Owww"!

If your happy and you know it clap your hands...or cry!

Sleep Issues

Jack did not nap very good yesterday so while Owen and I were showering and Daddy was checking some things online Jack just couldn't take it anymore and finally gave into his exhaustion.

Ga-Ga's chest is best!

Jack 1 month old

Jack 8 months old!

Not Me Monday

Have you thought about participating in the weekly carnival that's all the rage in blogger world? Head over to MckMama's blog and try it out.

1. On Saturday I did not spend over 6 hours in the car traveling to Oregon for a baby shower with my mother and my mother in law. I did not even consider or actually bring Jack along for the LONG and quick trip. It's not like he's nursing and couldn't stay at home with Daddy and Owen.

2. Owen did not start potty training on Saturday only to stop potty training on Sunday because Daddy was going to lose his mind. We are much more strong willed then our 2 year old son is.

3. I did not unwittingly wipe Jack's face on Sunday morning with a towel that was used to clean up Owen's accidents the day before. That would be so disgusting...in fact I might need to dip him in antibacterial gel.

4. I in no way would go to bed at 9:45 last night due to pure exhaustion after this weekends festivities...that would be so lame. Once the boys go to bed I'm supposed to party. Yeah right!

Random Picture Challenge

I'm late with my Random Picture this week. Check out 4 Little Men and Girly Twins to see all the different challenge this week.

This picture was taken by either Ga-Ga or Pa. It was the first time we had left Owen overnight and they were watching him for us. We were over in Sequim at a B & B that wasn't the best, but we still had fun. We both missed Owen to pieces and were happy to come home. He still loves to take out all the Tupperware and measuring cups and play with them.

Owen's Professional Birthday Pictures!

The day before Owen's birthday party we decided to go have professional pictures taken at Sears like we did for his first birthday. They turned out really good since that was the weekend him and Daddy were sick with salmonella poisoning.

Tunnel of Fun & Tears

I got this tunnel at a garage sale for $2! Owen didn't like it when he was little so it's been outside with all the other outdoor toys not getting used much. Yesterday when it was so nice out Owen and I were outside playing while Jack was taking a nap and I saw the tunnel and thought I would bring it out again. I cleaned it off and brought it inside and Jack and Owen both just love it. Owen gets inside and rolls around. We had friends visit today and Owen and Kadyn had so much fun laying on it and pull each other in it. After our friends left this is what happens when you are WAY overdue for your nap and Mommy won't let you have the camera...

First Boo Boo & 4th Tooth

Jack got his first really boo boo this week. I was holding him at the computer desk while I was checking my email and he leaned forward and hit the bridge of his nose on the desk. He cried pretty good and it got all puffy and red. The next day you could still tell something had happened, but it wasn't as bad. The next day it looked fine, but I couldn't figure out what black stuff Jack had gotten into and got under his eye. I tell you my brain sometimes...I had totally forgotten that he hit himself and then it dawned on my that he got a black eye from hitting his nose. It's not that bad, but still he's not even walking and he already got a black eye. If you click on the pictures you can see better. Oh yeah and Jack's 4th tooth came in on Tuesday so now he had 2 on top and 2 on bottom.

Opposite Day

The other day I needed to put Jack down to do laundry so in hopes of entertaining him with something different I put him in Owen's highchair (IKEA highchair....LOVE IT). Well Owen got a little jealous that his brother was in HIS chair so I put Owen in Jack's highchair and they both thought that was so funny. When they are older and understand the word opposite we are going to do a whole day of opposite stuff where we all sit in different chairs and maybe wear our clothes backwards. Of course we won't be leaving the house, but it will still be fun and silly!

The Simple Things

Have you ever gotten the Pub Mix from Costco? It's good, but we ended up throwing some of it away because there was so much that it ended up getting stale before we could finish it. Plus we had had quite enough. Well I decided to just wash out the container and use it to store toys. I thought it wouldn't be anything interesting to Owen or Jack. Boy was I wrong!! It's like the most awesome new toy ever. I shouldn't be surprised...kids love to play with the box the expensive toy comes in so why not a Pub Mix container. I had put the Peek A Blocks in the container and Owen just kept dumping them out and then he would put a receiving blanket over the top, reach in grab a block and take it out that way. It entertained him for a while. What simple thing has entertained your child for hours on end that you were surprised by??

Jack's Baby Dedication

Yesterday we had Jack dedicated at our church. A baby dedication isn't like a baby baptism where we think that Jack will go to heaven now just because of the decision we have made. We believe that Jack needs to come to that decision on his own. A baby dedication is where Michael and I are publicly saying we are going to raise Jack in a Christian home in the hopes that one day he will accept Jesus as his Savior. It's also a reminder to the church that they are responsible in a way for Jack coming to know Jesus. We invited a bunch of family and friends to join with us on this special day. It was so nice that so many of them came.

I had my mom take this picture because it reminds me of the picture of Owen and I on his dedication day.

Hmmm...what's gonna happen at the church this week?

There were even more family and friends there to see Jack get dedicated, but they sat in different spots. Ga-Ga & Pa, Grandpa & Grandma Martin, Uncle Rick, Aunt Michelle, Avery, Cooper & Paige, Jim & Norean, Micah, Kim & Andy, Kevin, Julie, Louise & Kadyn all came to celebrate with us.

This was Pastor Proctor's first baby dedication as the Senior Pastor of CBSR.



After church a few of us headed over to Roaster's by SeaTac Airport and had lunch. It was yummy! Both Owen and Jack were sick with a cold, but they did really great.

Jack was just tuckered out from all the festivities he thought that Pa's shoulder would be a great place to take a little nap.