Audrey: February (7months)

Audrey is doing a great job figuring out how to sit by herself. She will sit the longest when she is playing this piano since it keeps her attention. I put the pillow behind her just in case she tips backwards, but she usually sits until I pick her up. Devon will give her a little cup and we have a tea party clinking our glasses. Audrey has surprisingly fast reflexes and will grab toys right out of your hands and wave them around.

Little Audrey got six teeth this month leaving her with a grand total of eight. She got two middle bottom ones last month and now her "fangs", her two top front teeth and two bottom teeth are coming through. She loves crunching Cheerios with her fancy new chompers and still loves baby food in all flavors. I remember having to coax Devon to eat every bite (it still feels that way sometimes), but Audrey loves it. I think the only thing she doesn't really like so far is peaches. She loves to chew on feeding spoons to soothe her gums even when she's not sitting down to eat.

Her lashes are a mile long! I can't wait to slap some mascara on them when she gets older. Much older ;)

Her hair is super curly when it's wet, but gets pretty straight once it dries since it isn't very long. It has thinned out quite a bit from when she was born and even seems to have gotten lighter. I was born with super dark hair and it turned blond by the time I was one so we'll see what happens!

Audrey was crying and Devon was trying desperately to make her feel better. He literally brought her every toy she has, but she continued to cry. All she wanted was a nap!

Audrey is generally a very pleasant baby. She loves to be talked to, sang to and all around just given attention. She is happy to go along with whatever we are doing and loves to be close to Mama in the pouch. She seems to like the "ring sling" (Maya wrap), even though I didn't like using it with Devon. I have a better appreciation for it this time around, though I'm sure that has more to do with me figuring out how to wear it properly.

In the toy room at Grandma and Grandpa's house. Grandpa gave her this toy to chew on. It's a rubber snake. Awesome.

Sleeping little thumb sucker. Thankfully, she only sucks her thumb when she's tired. It's an easy way to tell when she's ready to be put in bed.

Now that big brother Devon is in a real bed, I was finally able to move his crib into Audrey's room. Her bedroom is now complete and she definitely sleeps better and for longer periods of time. I knew she would be more comfortable so I am happy to have made the switch. I love the bedding for her crib! It is so lovely and pink ;)

Devon loves to climb into Audrey's crib when they are both supposed to be napping. I'm not sure if Devon does it because he wants to be with her, he doesn't want to sleep, he misses his crib or a bit of all three. If I don't lock the door to her room he will climb in there again and again.

He hasn't ever hurt her and she loves it when he's in there with her, but sometimes it wakes her up and Mama needs both babies to nap at the same time.

I recently started putting them in the tub together. They love to splash each other and share bath toys. I am continually amazed at how much Devon loves this little girl and genuinely wants to play with her.

Audrey is a little ray of sunshine in our home. She is so sweet and lovable and life wouldn't be the same with out her.

Valentine's Day

Pink pancakes for breakfast.

Joe and I aren't big on Valentine's Day. It's Valentine's Day every day at our house ;)

I made some red velvet cupcakes and let Devon decorate them with frosting and sprinkles. Every few seconds he would say,"Mess. I made mess. Need to clean it up with a towel." He would say this over and over until I got him a towel. And when he says "mess" that can mean that he got the tiniest speck of frosting on his finger.

He wont lick it off. He wants it wiped with a towel. He is such a neat freak!

Audrey was content to sit in her chair and when Devon finished they played together.

Audrey pulled on his shirt, sucked on his fingers and he handed her toys ;)It is great to see them actually starting to play together. Devon is so gentle with her and loves to make her laugh. He giggles so much when they are together when she touches his hair or face or makes some sort of physical contact with him ;)

We don't do gifts, but we always get each other a card or write a love letter. Joe always makes me one and I keep them all (of course)and they are hilarious. I usually buy him a card, but this year I made him one and I think it turned out OK for my first try.

I had all this crafty stuff around because I have been making hair bows for Audrey so I put this together. It's not a big deal (and it clearly didn't take me long to make since it's not terribly well done), but the felt heart flips up to reveal the message.


Joe made me this card.

He designed the top and bottom himself and printed it out on his fancy sign-making printer. It's like a giant sticker. To give you an idea of the scale I had Devon pose with it.

It's awesome! The best one yet. The BEST part is the text on the inside is 12 size font and he only wrote three, little words. It was hysterical and I love it. Now where am I going to put it? I think it will look great in my bathroom.

Perfect! I'll have to do my hair and make up somewhere else, but I think it's worth it ;)

Devon: February

Me: What are you doing Devon?
Devon: Licking the wall.
Me: What does it taste like?
Devon: Ketchup.

Devon reached two milestones this month: potty training and getting a "big boy bed".
I have been agonizing .... AGONIZING over when is the right time to get Devon a bed. He loves his crib and will even ask to stay and play in it after his nap is over. I felt guilty about "kicking him out" to give it to little miss Audrey. I felt guilt over her turning six months old and still being in a pack 'n play since they aren't that comfortable. Ahhhhh a mother's guilt!

Fortunately, Devon made the decision himself. One day, during nap time, I heard on the monitor,"Devon riding a horse!". I knew what that meant .... and it wasn't good. I ran upstairs and he was straddling the front of his crib. Yes, I ran and got my camera before I asked him to get down ;)

When I asked him who taught him how to ride a horse he said,"Prince Charming. It's from Shrek." OK, thanks little man! ;) He usually does this on the couch or on arm chairs, neither of which are in his room. I had him lay back down and climbed in there with him. I held him tight and he wrapped his arms around me and fell back to sleep. I just stared at him. He is so beautiful and it is so sweet to be so close to him while he sleeps. I knew that it would be my last time to snuggle in his crib and I soaked up every minute of it not wanting it to end. My little baby is growing up.

Since he could officially get out of his crib, we went that day and got him a bed.
I ended up going with a trundle and It. Is. Awesome. It's like having another closet only better because it can be an extra bed at some point if we need it to be. It can slide out on either side so I can store stuff right ....

and left. It also slides so easily that Devon can move this huge trundle all by himself. The sheets glow in the dark. How cool is that?

The first night he was so excited and kept talking about how soft his big boy bed was.

The second night he climbed out and fell asleep on the floor at the top of the stairs (yes, the baby gate was up).

The third night the inevitable happened .... he fell out. He yelped when he hit the ground, but he was totally fine and went right back to bed. He loves his new bed and wants to play toys in it all day. He seems to go to sleep faster for naps than when he was in his crib and also sleeps longer. I am so happy that he likes it and that it was such an easy transition. My only complaint is that he does get out of bed several times at night before he falls asleep. It is starting to get a little tedious and I don't know how to keep him from doing it.

I have threatened to take away his blankie (that always makes him cry at the mear thought of that happening) and that works, but not every time. I'm sure it's one of those things that will just have to work itself out.

In the beginning, he would head over to Audrey's room and climb into her crib. It woke her up, but I would always know he got in bed with her because I would hear giggling over the monitor. It's difficult to get upset that neither child is napping when they are being so sweet to each other. Needless to say, I started locking her door ;)

There were four huge boxes of materials to put this bed together. Our living room was covered in cardboard. My husband is a genius. Have I mentioned that? I came home from teaching yoga and this was in my living room.

My husband built a castle out of card board and duct tape. It's amazing! It is big enough that Devon, Audrey and I (and probably even Joe) can comfortably fit in it without having to hunch over. The next day while Joe was at work I added the draw bridge. It works, too. It's an engineering marvel if I do say so my self .... and I do ;) Devon will stay in there for an hour a day lifting and lowering the draw bridge while I color on the walls and Audrey plays toys. It's fun to play together and be so close at the same time. The best part is when Devon is done playing with it we can recycle it!

One day I realized that I was getting low on Devon's diapers. I am feeling comfortable with the whole having-two-kids-thing, I feel like I can handle the extra work of potty training and I think Devon is definitely ready so I decided that once the size 5's were gone I wasn't going to buy more. I have had a box of pull ups for months and potty training was going to happen. I took Devon with me to the store and let him pick out some underwear. It's so fun to see what he picks out. He went for the super hero assortment, Pixar multi pack and his latest favorite Yo Gabba Gabba. I have given him stamps and stickers as a reward, but suckers and marshmallows worked the best since he pretty much never gets either of those.

It took him less than a week! It is so awesome to hear those six little words. "I have to go potty, Mama." I still ask him if he has to go in my attempt to avoid an accident, but it is exciting (in a lame Mom sort of way) for him to understand what his body is doing. It is so great to have one baby out of diapers and he's only 2 1/2! Of course he has accidents, but extra laundry .... I can handle. But rushing out to stock up on diapers when I'm running low, the smell, the garbage, the expense .... I am SO over it. One down and one to go! By the way, his other favorite phrase is,"Ca ca means poop, in Spanish." Giggles ensue. Sigh. Such a boy.

One of Devon's favorite phrases right now is,"Want just a tiny, little bit more milk, please Mama." The kid loves milk. He would drink it all day long if I let him. He gulps down an entire sippy cup of it in one sitting and then asks for more. He also loves rasins, pizza, dumplings, rice, watermelon and cheese.

Devon loves to cook and be a little chef. He regularly asks to make cookies and I have finally figured out a way for a two year old to have fun and actually be helpful in the process ;) I fill the measuring cups and he dumps it into the mixer. I scoop the dough and he puts it on the cookie sheet. I bake the cookies and he eats them ;)

Devon is quick to give out kisses, hugs and I love you's.He loves his baby sister and actively includes her in play time and makes sure I bring her with us where ever we go. He drags her car seat out of the closet and brings her toys for the drive.

It is the sweet, innocent moments that make being a Mom SO, incredibly worth it when you are able to watch your children grow and learn. Devon knows the President, Vice President, First Lady, who is on the $1, the $5 and is starting to learn letter sounds (T-ta-truck) as well as basic math problems (1+1=2). It is amazing to understand how kids grasp language.

Joe was teaching Devon about George Washington. The next day Devon pointed to a dollar bill and said,"George Bath time!" Get it? He knows the word wash, but bath is more accessible for him. I think that is SO amazing! My current favorite word of his is "yester-night". You know .... like yesterday, but at night. It seems like it should be a real world.

And finally, if you ever want to know what the world of a small child looks like ask them to look at a picture and tell you what they see. Joe showed this to Devon and asked him what it was....

He said,"Monkey." Such a sweet imagination I almost cried!