Lake Winnie

We had our family reunion in Minnesota at Lake Winnibigoshish. All of the siblings were there this year except for Michael, who is on his mission. I usually ask myself during the week if it is worth the 24 hours drive each way, but this year it was definitely worth it! Things are so much more fun with kids. I wish Benjamin could live like that all the time: cousins everywhere, an old-fashioned playground he can stay at as long as he wants, activities to do, free time with mom and dad..,

Charity was there without Jarrett and was a big help with the boys and taking pictures.

Performing an old trick that Faith and I did as kids. We can still do it! We are both standing up with me on her shoulders.

The pool was nice and warm this year. Benjamin went from screaming the first day in the pool to happily playing by the last day.

Peter and Grammy had a special connection. They loved talking to each other.

Grampy wasn't feeling well so he stayed around their cabin instead of fishing. That means we got to see more of him!

Lamoni and Benjamin took the kayak out to this platform and I rode the paddle board. When I got to it I couldn't decide quick enough to turn right or left so I hit it at a bad angle, lost my balance and toppled over into the lake! In this picture I am soaking wet from head to foot. Benjamin was scared for me and started crying! I was laughing, though. :-)

Our arrival after 24 hours in the car. Note that Benjamin already had his life jacket on. We picked it up at Cabela's on his way and he loved it.

Naptime. Charity took this picture because Benjamin has the big bed and the three of us are snuggled up on the small bed. This kind of sums up the mantra in our family: whatever will help Benjamin sleep!

Peter was definitely not a fan of his life jacket. I think it pushed too hard on his chubby cheeks and was uncomfortable.

Charity and Katheryn on a boat ride. Lamoni was a good boat driver for those of us who didn't want to fish.

Enjoying a sunset ride.

Grammy brought lots of arts and crafts for the cousins.

We had fun with Joseph around.

Excited to get on the boat!

Out on the dock Grace took this picture for us.

Grace drove up with us. She was such a big help! She opted to drive back with Mommy and Daddy because we left a night early. We sure missed her!

We listened to Harry Potter there and back and it definitely helped keep us awake.

The sun fish were disappointingly small this year, but we did catch some nice-sized ones. The rest of the fishing was great, though. Daddy hired a guide for the first couple days and they got a ton of fish.

Look at those blue eyes!

Pleased that I found a way he was happy in his life jacket.

Off to boat.

The four of us out on a paddle boat.

Eating ice cream with Jared at the lodge.

Back seat sleepers on the way to church - a 45 minute drive.

Trying a different life jacket to see if he liked it better - he didn't.

Peter 3 Months

Peter has had a cold the last two weeks and we were in Minnesota the week before that so things have been off. Between not being able to sleep from being stuffy and just growing up he is so much more awake and alert than a month ago! He is starting to get his naps on a routine and still prefers to sleep in his swing. Night times have been tough because of his cold, so we haven't been getting much sleep. I wish there was a way for him to sleep more upright so his congestion could drain! They should sell those tilting baby beds that are at the hospital. Lamoni has been sleeping on the couch while Peter is in the swing so I can get a couple good hours in before he sleep nurses the rest of the night. After he was hysterical for a couple 45 minute periods where nothing would soothe him I took him to our nurse practitioner and she immediately knew he had an ear infection when I told her. Sure enough he has a double ear infection. She said most doctors would just write a prescription for antibiotics since he's so little, but because she takes a more natural approach when people want she gave us suggestions to help with it before doing antibiotics. So far so good! He has definitely made improvement in the last two days since we saw her. We're supposed to call today to follow up with how it's going.

He hasn't been very smiley since he hasn't felt well, and he's in general a pretty calm baby. Whenever Lamoni gets home Peter smiles and laughs with him. He already knows Daddy = fun!

He is in 9 month clothes for the most part. His pants are still 3-6 months. He is getting back to nursing every 3-4 hours after his nurse splurging during his cold. I'm sure he had a sore throat because everyone else did too (except for me :-)

Likes: Watching Benjamin. Benjamin loves playing with him too. I noticed that sometimes Benjamin talks loudly on purpose trying to wake him up, but not much phases Peter when he's sleeping! I can even vacuum under the swing while he's sleeping. So different than Benjamin where a light "click" would wake him up.
Other likes: Rock and play, bouncing on the yoga ball, being upright, standing on our legs, the itsy bitsy spider song, Popcorn Popping, riding in the Ergo, being sung and talked to.

Dislikes: When I eat spicy food. :-/ Benjamin talking too close in his face, having his nose suctioned out, me trying to feed him when he's not hungry. This is a constant struggle because I have so much milk. I try to feed him so I can get relief but when he's not interested there's nothing that will get him to latch and I don't want to pump so I don't make more... I still make ridiculous amounts of milk. He drowns and coughs every time he nurses. Poor guy. He takes a few gulps, comes off sputtering as milk sprays everywhere then attempts a few more gulps etc. This is how most nursing sessions go. I can pump 10 ounces easily and still have more milk, but that's as much as the bottles hold. When I look at the frozen milk it is dark yellow and splotchy with all the fat.

He still has his blue eyes. Even though he is so big he still feels like a newborn with his squishy soft body. He has good head control, but has sporadic muscle movements still and jerks around with no warning (every time I turn the faucet on...) so we still have to be careful. Sometimes people holding him don't realize that because of his size and hold him like he's older (or even by his arms!). There have been a few close calls.

He gives kisses already! I thought it was just me imagining things, but Charity was holding him the other night and said the same thing.

My favorite part of the day with him is when he first wakes up in the morning. Usually it's between 8-9 a.m. He starts making baby sounds and Benjamin and I run in there to greet him and talk to him. He is happy and all smiles.

He had 3 blow outs like this 3 days in a row while I was out! I thought I liked Costco diapers but I really think Huggies is the only way to go.

August

Benjamin has a new imaginary friend. I feel partly responsible because he appeared after I was reprimanding Benjamin for his behavior. When I was done lecturing, Benjamin said "Jordy sits on his mat during lesson time" (what I was lecturing him about). I asked who Jordy was and he said Jord is his friend who is obedient. He hasn't left us since. Pinto and Kin Kin have been gone since Peter was born. We'll see what gets rid of Jordy! It's funny because when I was reading about 3 year olds online this is what was on the first site I pulled up: 

Been asked to set an extra place at dinner for an imaginary friend yet? As many as half of preschoolers have a pretend buddy. These phantoms don't mean your child is lonely or maladjusted. In fact, kids with imaginary friends are more likely to grow up to be creative, cooperative, sociable, independent, and happy.

An imaginary friend can be human or animal and usually comes with a name and distinct personality. Part confidant, part playmate, part protector, and part scapegoat, they help kids practice relationship building and let them be in control for a change. A pretend friend can be a child's way of handling an increasingly demanding, expanding world.

Watching your child's interactions with her imaginary friend can give you useful insights into her fears and stresses.

It all matches exactly!

It was my year for our Anniversary surprise so I took Lamoni to Main Event and then to a local pizza buffet. I managed to keep it a secret til we got on the interstate and then he guessed it! Main Event was a blast and we were able to go in the morning when it wasn't busy so we didn't need to wait for things. I heard that during peak times you can wait about 3 hours for laser tag or the obstacle course! We were able to do laser tag twice. Super fun with two stories.

Hanging out with Aden.

We have a thumb sucker! He won't even take a pacifier anymore. He loves his thumb so much that he sucks it about half the time while nursing. I'm serious. I don't know how he does it but somehow he's able to get a suction.

Benjamin asks for Matthew park whenever I ask him which one he wants to play at.

A sign that Katheryn and Benjamin have been together - Screwdriver from Benjamin getting into Lamoni's stuff, and cooking utensils from Katheryn going through our drawers!

I can hear him coo just by looking at these pictures!

Hanging out after church.

They love each other.

Look at the rock wall he climbed all by himself. 

I just love this cuddly boy! He is so soft and squishy and still melts when I hold him.

I have loved feeling like a stay at home mom since I cut my studio back from 30 to 11 students! It is so nice to have time. I teach 5 days a week but only a little bit in the morning OR the afternoon, never both. Before I was teaching 6 days a week morning AND afternoon. The first week with Lamoni at work I was out bringing product samples to some customers and Benjamin said "can we go to the temple?" That would have been out of the question before to have a spontaneous trip somewhere, but I just hopped on Paseo and drove to the temple. It was a blast.

One of Benjamin's favorite activities is to play Star Wars as a family - he plays the rhythm on his cello, Lamoni figured out how to play it on piano and I play violin. Peter sings.

I arranged for our play group to go have a tour of the fire station. It was a hit! In all of these pictures I had to say to Benjamin "show me you're excited." We literally practice having him show excitement because he has such a serious face when he is actually dying inside of how cool it is... 

Here he is at cello group class. He participates great and is such a good listener when Miss Lisa teaches; he is still getting used to when the interns teach since he doesn't know them and prefers to watch from my lap so far until Miss Lisa comes up. He loves her! He told me after his second private lesson, "Miss Lisa is a nice lady." He is the far left one in these pictures. He fits in great in the class even though it's for ages 5 and up and he's 2! Every Wednesday he has a 15 minute private lesson and Saturdays are group class at UNM at 8 a.m.! Poor Lamoni. I have him go with me so he can attend the parent class (where he gets to learn the cello himself!) so I can stay with Benjamin and take notes so I can work with him better at home. Between work and 8 a.m. church he has a lot of early mornings.

Some cute things Benjamin said are:
Me: Are you a little boy or a big boy?
Benjamin: A big boy. Well, maybe a little bit of a big boy.

He told Katheryn out of the blue, "I just love you sooooo much!" and they gave each other a long hug.

He asks about everyone standing on street corners if they need "food or water or a home." He has so much empathy for them. I read their signs to him and if they need food we give them a bar from our stash. When I read to him that they are homeless he says in a sad voice, "Ohh, we should give them our home!" Once when I was trying to get him to happily go to bed I told him that some little boys don't have beds and have to sleep outside on the street (which he took literally as "on the street"). Later on he asked me if he could give his bed to the little boy who doesn't have one and asked where he was.

He has been getting really excited about Christmas and has me read him books about Santa already. He told me that he wants to play his cello for Santa. When I told him that Santa comes while we are sleeping he spent the next couple of days coming up with ways he could wake up when Santa gets here so he can play cello for him. So cute! He asked me in such a sweet voice, "Mommy when Santa gets here will you please wake me up?" Boy is it going to be fun getting him to bed on Christmas Eve!!

Benjamin is so good about not getting out of his bed. So good in fact that he had his first accident ever in bed (at least that I can remember) because of it. He had woken up with a bad dream during the night so Lamoni went in there to comfort him. Later that night he called out for me but I was in bed nursing Peter so I didn't respond. By the time I was done he wasn't calling for me anymore so I didn't go to him. That morning when I went to get him he told me he peed in bed and that he was calling my name to ask if he could get up. I felt awful and told him that he was allowed to leave bed in order to pee!! I have heard him twice since get up during the night to go to the bathroom. It's amazing what he listens to (when he wants too...). He used to wake up when Lamoni would leave early in the morning so I had a talk with him that he needs to fall back asleep after he hears Daddy leave and now he does.