Some Phone Photos

I just synced up my phone and cleaned it all off as I was out of memory space, so here are a few photos from the past week or so. Aaaand they posted backwards.

Gramma gave us window markers a while back and we like to keep our door window current with the holidays

Remember how I said he was sleeping through the night? Jinx!!!! Up 'till midnight then up 3x to fuss and nurse....I'm really sick of it. He's enjoying access to his parents bed as well as lounging around till 9am. Very jealous.

Impossible to get a decent toddler shot Exhibit A: She insisted on me taking one of her but only wanted to fake sleep.

First time participating at the playground. He looks unsure here but seemed to enjoy it, fell asleep on the walk back so I'll say it was a success

Art projects. Finger painting and chalk painting

Sorry, it rotated. But do you see the savings? 100%. Yes folks,. there is a rather amazing deal going on at Shaw's right now where you can make some serious cash. I made $113 and am (impatiently) waiting for my store to restock their gift cards so I can keep going. Major  couponing high going on over here...

New winter hat. My little fuzzy bear :)

It has ears!

Finally starting to be able to capture some of his grins

Well, I thought we were going to have a roller by the end of the week, but he's shown no further interest. Tummy time continues to be a bust, he refuses to use his arms and mostly just screams.

Ugh, rotated again. Anyway, out of the blue he took his paci and now seems to enjoy it

Taking advantage of any moderate temperatures

More jumperoos!

How he sucks his fingers :)

This month has blinked past and I'm already behind on everything for December. Just started my baking for Thursday and there's a cranberry bread cooling on the counter. Now to keep a certain someone who's name rhymes with "Jeeve" out of it for the next few days....

Happy 3 Months!

Hudson is three months today. 3 very short months ago the horrible shaking from the huge dose of drugs I'd been given was finally wearing off and we were settled in our room. I assume I was nursing, because that's about all he did for the first 4 days of his life, and Steve and I were just in awe of how strong and instantaneous our love for a second child could hit. Hudson had a ton of red spikey hair, a very grumpy face, and the cutest pudge rolls. He still has the last 2 but his hair has mostly fallen out and is coming back in darker. I know second kids get less than the first, but I think he's holding his own pretty well. He might not get picked up as fast as Henri did, but he is very vocal and does not suffer a slight lightly. He's also a cuddler and seems more socially aware than Hen did at this age (or we're just better at interpreting "baby"). I can safely say that I'm his favorite person (Steve was always Henri's) but he's pretty delighted to see Steve and Henri whenever they're around. A few other things he's up to:

Sleep: Naps only occur in someone's arms or in the baby carrier. He's been taking a 2 hour afternoon nap lately but only in the context of nursing and me holding him. Generally he nurses to sleep around 9:30 though the past few nights has fallen asleep at 0830. Sleeps through the night until 7ish. I'm assuming he'll be like Henri and move his bedtime by himself to 8. Of course he got some shots today so I'm expecting a disrupted night tonight.

Food: Super, very, immensely thrilled to report he is, and always has been, exclusively breastfed. Nary a nip of formula has passed those precious lips. Not that I'm against formula, mind you. Saved my sanity and health with Henri, I just prefer the convenience and health benefits of breastfeeding. First few weeks were painfully rough of course, but I was expecting the absolute worst after Henri, and this has been a breeze. I even have a little surplus socked away in the freezer. And he does love to eat :)

Size: He's 50% for weight (14# 9oz), 95% for length (26") and waaaaay off the charts for head circumference (44cm). I think he's a chunker but that's because Henri never made it to the charts. I just put away most of his 3mo clothing as it's all too short so he's in 3-6mo stuff. Not a very sentimental moment as he was in them for so short of a time

Likes: Mom, Dad, Henri, looking at himself in the mirror, tv (yikes), sucking his fingers (his newest skill this week. And he's LOUD when he does it), giving wet sloppy kisses, dancing, standing up

Dislikes: Wet or poopy diapers, being put down, sudden loud noises (Henri dumping legos out near his head when he's almost asleep on the rug elicits particularly terrifying screams), not being included at the dinner table, his pacifiers, tummy time.

I'd say the adjustment to 2 kids has been much smoother than the one to 1. That's not to say it hasn't been tough and I've had plenty of thoughts of running away, but Steve and I know it's only a stage and really, we're already out of the newborn phase so it can only get better from here!
I found him a jumperoo on Craigslist the other day as he's not a consistent fan of his swing and so far it's been a big hit (I know, I know, these pictures are all pretty much the same, but he's too stinkin cute to put up just one!):

We have a concordance under him cause he's still a bit stubby

His favorite part is that he's closer to eye level with Henri

Victory! He managed to pull the cloth off so he could chew directly on the seat

aaand then he switched to his fist

Fingers! He just sucks the tips, otherwise he gags himself

slowly sinking

I'm sure this next month will be an exciting time of change for him. He'll continue to cement his place in our hearts, and I'll continue to brag :D

Purgatory

Today we went for a hike at Purgatory Chasm. And before you get too impressed, let me tell you how this "hike" went:
-Spur of the moment decision to go. So Steve takes Henri out to rake leaves while I pack for the adventure. 45 minutes later, I'm ready to go and Henri is crying because, well, because.
-We get in the car, Henri still crying, Hudson starts screaming. I realize how cold it is but I'm irritated already so don't feel like going back inside for a hat and gloves.
-Steve spends 10 minutes looking for directions on his phone.
-Finally pull out of the driveway at 11 only to have the gps tell us it's an hour drive. Noon is lunch time always. Crummy timing.
-In 15 minutes, blissful silence, both kids asleep (miracle!)
-10 minutes to destination and Hudson wakes up screaming.
-We arrive! At the parking lot.
-Get Hudson to the front so I can nurse him, Henri wakes up and is whining about, um, no idea. Just loud. Hud not interested in nursing or looking out, just miserable.
-Cram Hudson into his too-small snowsuit, put more layers on Henri (who is crying that they won't fit and/or aren't cute.
-Walk to the visitors center for bathroom break where the walls vibrate with the force of Hudson's very unhappy wails.
-Stuff Hudson into the Lillebaby but he's a bit bulky and his legs can't stretch out in the too-small suit. He's really ticked.
-Cross the road to trailhead.
-Pose for pictures.
-Venture 5 feet down into the chasm only to determine that 1.it's impossible to see where you're going with a front carrier on, 2.it's impossible not to squish Hudson while trying to scramble down rocks and he hates to be squished, and 3.Henrietta extends her fear of everything to climbing down cliffs.
-Climb back up the 5 feet you've just descended and amble over to a huge boulder left by a glacier
-Spend the next 30 minutes taking pictures and sliding down said rock
-Declare everyone numb and starving, head off to get some lunch which sets Henrietta off again as she "really wants to climb the rock" (riiiiight).

As my Mom always said, "we're gonna have fun, fun, fun!". I'm sure we'll look back on these days fondly, but it really is so much easier without kids! Hard to regret them when one's snuggled down on your chest and the other is complementing you for doing the dishes though :)

Anyway, here's the photos to make it look like we overachieved:

Sticks have not lost their allure

This was actually yesterday when the kids and I played ball in the backyard

Trailhead. Still faintly optimistic



Beginning the descent

Top of the boulder, finally coaxed her up

Hurray for self timers!

Hudson actually does love being outside, he just keeps a stoic face while he processes

Steve looks to the left

And Steve looks to the right

We've just decided to leave and go for lunch!

A trip to the park and the library rounded out the day of wholesome fun. Also Digorno pizza for supper (my first time! got a nice deal on them...) and a batch of brownies cooling that I plan to dig into without having to share as Henri is in bed. Long weekend for Steve so I'm sure we'll have lots more to report on soon :)

Finishing up October and running into November.

These past few weeks have been jam-packed ones. Steve had his 34th birthday. Payte had her 21st (!)birthday. I took, and failed, my comprehensive exam so it's back to studying (ugh, but I guess the good news is I can retest in a few weeks....also somewhat comforting on review to realize I knew all the right answers, I just didn't chose them for some reason). Hudson had his first urgent care appointment (nothing too thrilling, just a spreading rash on the weekend that turned out to be...drum roll please....sensitive skin). Hudson at said appointment weighed 14# 4oz. We watched the Head of the Charles. I had a weird week-long stomach bug. Steve and I celebrated our 5th wedding anniversary with a meal out without the kids. That was a big one. We never left Henri with a sitter until she was, um, 18 months? Allie most generously offered/was guilted into coming down and allowed us to frolic off without a care in the world. Delicious steak dinner with some corny but much appreciated gestures by the restaurant (flower petals, champagne, yummy desert) and a rousing game of Monopoly on our phones while we waited for our seating. And Anna won the VT state field hockey championship game. Their team went through a lot this year and I am so very proud of her (a wee more bragging: she was team captain. Also the most beautiful one on the team. Also the smartest. Also the most fun to watch).

And as you've no doubt come to expect, the camera just isn't getting pulled out a lot. Hud is heavy to hold one handed and simultaneously operate the camera (and no, I can't put him down, he screams and pouts. TOTAL mamma's boy!), and Henri is just plain old uncooperative when it comes to taking photos. So here's a smattering of what was on the card:

Going to have to move the shoulder straps up soon

We thought Gram Schoeffler would get a kick out of the "car" driving down the river

Watching the men's 8s

This was a grand thrill for her. Train, walks, playing by the river...she loves an adventure

She loves her daddy a lot

Supervising a bike rack install

Love those eyes

Walked in on her reading in her new favorite nook. She has a scary good memory for books and after a few readings of a story will "read" it back pretty word perfect

My little night owl. He's very happy when he first wakes up (7ish) and then late at night. Rest of the day is rough.

Could not get both to smile simultaneously. But they were cuddling on the couch. He just adores everything Hen does.

Probably last time he can wear this *sniff*. Little porker belly

Hen is getting a lot of mileage out of her ladybug costume

First time carving a pumpkin! We didn't trick or treat this year (it was pouring and she's still pretty young) but we did the pumpkin and read a few Halloween poems and ate a brownie. I was happy :)

Real dads wear necklaces (also headbands and barrettes...)

It worked!

Playing with modeling clay. And she mixed all the colors. I can not tell you how irritated that made me...but I let it go. It was her clay after all

And she had a really really really good time with it. Almost 2 hours of fun. I'll be stocking up on this stuff next time I see a Crayola sale!

And of course Hud wanted in on the action

The matching was unintentional. He's finally lifting his head! Tummy time still doesn't last long, but he's getting better.

And speaking of tummy time, poor Hudson has a bit of a rug burn on his forehead. I left him on his blanket on his tummy to go in the kitchen and heard him screaming. Nothing too alarming there, the boy could be rented out as a foghorn. Anyway, on my return he was almost all the way across the rug. No rolling yet, he just propelled himself with his feet cause he was mad he'd been placed on his stomach. And being mad, he had his face buried in the carpet. So he gave himself a rug burn. I can see that the bruises are going to come early and often to this squirt.
The next two months are already booking up fast so hopefully there will be more to report/comment on here. For now just trying to fit in some study times and figure out the best way to keep the kiddos warm and entertained in this in-between weather. :)