I have been so busy the last couple weeks with preparing for Christmas, having Brogan and Channing home for two weeks straight, and then coming up here to North Dakota with Brogan again! It has been absolutely wonderful, but very stressful to say the least. Because it's been so long since I've given many updates on the kids and all that good stuff, I will just make this a REALLY long post and type out whatever comes to mind! All the pics will be at the end.
Saije: *Saije has been rolling over for about a month now and it's cute as can be. She only does it in her crib though. We have always put her on her belly to sleep and what she does is stiffen her body and arch her back so she being help up by he forehead and toes and then uses all her strength to flip over. Once she does it, she starts screaming because she HATES laying on her back to sleep. Little stinker!
*Saije had her 4 month checkup two weeks ago and she is almost off the charts! She was 14 1/2 lbs and 25 1/2" long which puts her in the 95% for height and 76% for weight. There wasn't a single issue with her this time, which was a little different than her 2 month checkup. Remember how she had torticollis (one side of her neck was stronger than the other making her head pull to one side) and she was still going cross-eyed? Both issues are fixed! The ONLY issue is that her umbelical hernia is still huge and seems to be getting bigger so Dr. Graham may be referring us to a surgeon. How soon that will happen we aren't sure of yet. It may not be until she is between 3-5 but all the same we are not thrilled about the thoughts of putting little girl in surgery. Oh well. Stuff happens and we'll get through it when the time comes. At this appointment she also had her second round of vaccinations and she did super well. Just like the first time! We are so blessed to have a healthy and extremely happy little girl. Saije is such a joy in our lives and those people who have chosen not to be a part of her life are seriously missing out. This might sound biased, but it's NOT, but Saije has to be the happiest and most smily baby I have ever seen. When she's not eating or sleeping, she's giggling and smiling! I love my daughter!
*Saije is still a great sleeper. I have had her on a perfect schedule since she was about 6 weeks old. I put her down at 8:30 PM and she sleeps until about 8:30 or 9:30 AM. She goes down for her first nap at about 11:30 AM and sleeps until about 2:00 PM. She then goes down for her second and last nap of the day at about 4:00 PM and is only asleep for 90 minutes. She never fights sleep. I put her down and she just goes with it and is asleep within a couple minutes with hardly any fussing.
*Saije rarely cries. She fusses when she's hungry, needs changed, or is tired, but other than that she is so great. She can chill on the couch and listen to music for long periods of time, or I'll put her in her vibrating bouncer chair thing and she'll sit there for 30-45 minutes while I get things done. It's like she knows that if she just obeys and makes things easier on Mom, the better off she'll be. I always take time to play with her and tickle her until she's blue in the face from giggling so hard because it's important to have that one on one playtime. She knows who her Mommy is for sure! Someone will have her and I'll walk into the room and the second she hears my voice she turns her head toward me and get a big 'ol cheesy grin the size of Texas! I love it! For me it's like a great feeling of accomplishment. I feel like a good Mom when she wants me to hold her and she smiles at me. It takes away all the insecurities that come with being a first time parent and I just can't help but let my heart get warm. Being a Mom really is the best!
*Saije has been teething for over a month. I swear she started the process the day she hit the three month mark. Her fists are constantly in her mouth, she drools about a gallon a day, and she goes to town chewing on her fingers or anything she can grab and put in her mouth! She hasn't actually cut a tooth yet, but the other day I noticed that there is a tooth about ready to pop through on the bottom any day now. She has only gotten fussy a few times during the whole process and when that's happened I have been using the Orajel for teething babies and it's worked like a charm. She doesn't make a pleasant face when I first rub it on her gums though! In fact, it's like I just shoved a sour patch in her mouth. It's hilarious! She's just an early developer I guess! I have a feeling she's going to be walking by 10 months, talking in full sentences by 18 months, and potty trained by 2. Here's for wishful thinking!!
*Saije has discovered her hands. OH BOY! She grabs and pulls on everything she can including my hair, my glasses (when I wear them), her blanket, toys, her bottle, Channing's face, etc. In fact, she loves to hold onto the fingers of whoever is feeding her and keep a tight grip.
*One of Saije's favorite things to do is look in the mirror. We'll hold her up to the bathroom mirror or the big mirror in our front room and the second she sees herself she gets the biggest grin and she starts giggling. It's hilarious to watch. I really need to get that on camera!
*Saije got her first set of piggies! Pigtails that is :D Her hair is getting soooo long and it's still as curly as ever!
Channing: *Channing is now 22 months! We will celebrate his 2nd birthday on February 27th and Brogan and I are so excited! We are going to have a family birthday party for him and it's going to be so fun to plan!
*About 2 days before Christmas Channing figured out how to climb out of his play pen where he sleeps! OHHHH NOOOOO! Naptime and bedtime are now very stressful for Mommy and Daddy. He gets out fast too! Brogan had just put him back down after climbing out the first time and before he could even sit back down on the couch we heard the door handle again! Ha Ha! It sounds mean, but the only way to keep him from getting out now is spanking him and putting fear in him that if he gets out he's going to get spanked. He cries and cries and cries and the always falls right to sleep. It just takes two or three tries before he decided to stay in and fall asleep. So get this: We are all sound asleep on Christmas Eve night (Christmas Day morning) at 4 AM when our bedroom door flies open loud, fast, and hard scaring the crap out of Brogan and I. It's Channing! He climbed out of his bed in the middle of the night! He walks over to my side of the bed and says "Hi!!!" and wants me to lift him up. I do and put him in between Brogan and I. He kissed Brogan three times and then turned over and kissed me three times. Then he stood up and says "Hi!!!" again like it's playtime! Brogan wasn't having any of it! After about 10 minutes Brogan finally took him to his own bed and it only took once. Well...until morning that is! lol
*The Potty Training thing has begun. As frustrating as it is, I think Channing is handling it pretty good. He says "pee pee" and "poo poo" really well and holds his crotch when he needs to go which is great! Only problem is that he normally has already gone at that point so when we take him into the bathroom his diaper is already dirty. Oh well. At least he's on the right track. However, if WE ask him if he needs to go potty he'll run into the bathroom, we'll put him on the potty, and he normally goes. His reward? FLUSHING THE TOILET! We gotta be careful with him because if we're not watching him close enough during the day he'll run into the bathroom and flush the toilet just for fun. For Christmas we got him a little potty of his own and he seems to like it. He much prefers the big boy potty so we've been trying to use the little attachment that fits his little bum to put on the big boy potty. It takes time though and when he needs to go he needs to go ya know? His Mom has been doing a good job of helping as well when he's with her so hopefully between the three of us, we'll have him in big boy underwear in no time and diaper free!
*Channing's vocabulary doubles every time we get him. It's crazy how they pick up on things! Sometimes out of no where he will say something clear as day and we just look at each other like "Did he really just say that?!" I'm kind of emberassed to say this, but it's funny in it's own way: Channing's first real phrase was "oh shit!" when he was about 18 months old and he hasn't stopped. He'll be playing with a toy or his blocks or something and he'll drop one. "Oh shit" instantly comes out of his mouth which means he even says it in context! It's hard not to laugh when he says it, about 10 times a day, but we really try not to and correct him every time by saying "Don't say that Channing. It's oh crap!" We'd much rather him say this. Alot of parents don't even want their kids to say Crap but ya know...I'd rather him say Crap than Shit! He's into this thing where EVERYONE is Mama. Brogan, Grandmpa, Grandma, Kayla (Brogan's sister) or any of his cousins. We don't know where that came from but we have been correcting him and telling him who is who. He will repeat the right answer, but then next time he sees them, even 2 minutes later, it's "Mama". Frustrating...oh well. He'll learn! He always calls me Mama though for sure and always has!
Ok...The full two weeks Brogan was home was full of game nights with the Family, hot tub nights at his cousin Alissa's house, homemade dinners at home or at Grandma's, and lots of one on one time. Brogan's family LOVES games. Our favorites seem to be Things, Catch Phrase, Sequence, and Quelf. For those of you who have never played Quelf, YOU NEED TO! It is the most emberassing game ever but when you play it with your friends and family you're night will be filled with nothing but laughter and great memories. If you're anything like us, you'll go to bed with a belly ache from laughing so hard! I won't even try to explain it, I'll just let you all research it on your own or give it a whirl. Soooooooooo fun!
This is what happens when you play Quelf. Brogan had to wear Channing's beanie the entire game and then later on he had to construct a homemade snorkel and wear it for the remainder of the game. Ha Ha! You gotta play it...SERIOUSLY!
So...Brogan and I were planning on getting married this Spring right? Well, we just decided that we will wait until the Fall or next Christmas and GET MARRIED ON A CRUISE SHIP! We want to take as many friends and family as we possibly can so to anyone reading this who wants to join us, SAVE YOUR PENNIES! We aren't for sure which month yet but it will be between October-December. We will book our tickets about 90 days in advance. We just figured since this is both our second times getting married, we will do a ceromony and honeymoon all at the same time and make it as memorable as possible! Instead of paying tons of money for decorations and food and all the froofy stuff, we'll just pay for cruise and airline tickets and excursions and all that fun stuff! I am so excited! I have already been on a cruise, but Brogan has NEVER been so it will be great! We are serious when we say ANYONE is invited! Destination will either be Bahamas, Caribbean, or Mexican Riviera. Because we'll have kids left at home, we will probably do a 4 night 5 days cruise so we can get back home. Total cost for two people with all taxes and fees included is like $600/couple PLUS airline tickets. Trust me...I've done all the research and it's going to be a good time! More details to come later :D
I'll make a post about Christmas all on it's own since there are alot of pictures to go with it. I will say, however, that this was the best Christmas of my life! We all got everything we ever wanted, but most importantly we were blessed with each other. 2011 was a year of ups and downs for me, but it ended on the highest of highs and I cannot complain! Bring it on 2012! We're ready!!!
Mommy and Daddy playing with Saije on the floor
When we picked Channing up from him Mom's house in Twin Falls, we headed to the Mall to do some Christmas shopping! Channing loved the fake snow that was coming from the ceiling, which was really just bubbles. Sooo cute!
Our Boise Broncos played in the Las Vegas bowl on December 22nd against Arizona State so we all went to Alissa's house and watched it. It was our last time this season to sport our Boise State gear on game day so we went all out! We won, of course! GO BRONCOS!
Saije is a Mommy's girl when Brogan is gone for two weeks, but when he comes home....DADDY'S GIRL!
Mommy and he Princess getting ready for Christmas!
Channing is really into watching TV. As long as he has his blankie, he's good!
A few days before Christmas all of Brogan's family and us went up to Rock Creek to see the lights. We didn't get any good pictures from actually being there because both the flashes on our camera phones weren't working for some reason. Bummer :( These pics were taken afterwards at Alissa's house. I had to get some cute shots of Saije in her beanie.
Mommy and Saije on Christmas Eve!
Daddy and his kiddos on Christmas Eve! Best Christmas present ever was having him home for it all!
Nothin' like some good lovins from Big Brother on Christmas Eve! This kid LOVES his baby sister!
Look at the smirk on her face! (hotel room in ND)
Saije's hair is getting soooo long and it's soooo curly!
This is a classic pic. Daddy and Saije watching TV together in the hotel room.
