Stretching Time

According to a magazine article I read this morning, first babies get more attention and quality time than second-born children -- approximately 30 minutes more per parent. Oh no! The article went on to say most parents feel they give the younger child more attention, but in reality, they are spending far more time with the older child. Apparently, this is why older children tend to score higher on IQ tests and have a lower risk of behavior problems (according to the article).

It is extremely hard to balance my time between Annabelle and Jacob. I try my best though. One of my biggest fears when I brought Annabelle home was that Jacob would feel left out because I'd be spending so much time with the baby. He seems fine, and if that article is correct, he might be getting more of my time than I think. I try to make sure I get some one-on-one time with each of them everyday.

Here's Annabelle spending some quality time with Daddy:

Everyone told me that I'd be much more laidback about the second child than I was with the first. Everyone was right. I am a lot more laidback about things. When Jacob was born, I wouldn't even leave the room without him being with me. I wanted to watch him every second. Now, with Annabelle, I feel ok walking away from her for a minute or two :) . If Jacob is awake, I can't leave her for too long, though. Just this morning, I left the two of them in the living room for a minute and when I returned, there was Annabelle in her bouncy seat with thirty pounds of brotherly love laying on top of her. So much for that nap, Annabelle. Sorry. If Jacob isn't hugging her, he's trying to make her dance, or trying to make her hold a toy. It's kind of funny to watch them together. Annabelle seems to enjoy the attention from her brother, but occasionally, he'll do something to make her cry. Then Jacob pats her on the head or rocks her seat and says, "It's ok...it's ok...don't cry Annabale."

So, back to what I was saying about being laidback. I remember freaking out (and overreacting a little) when my sister let Jacob taste her popsicle after the Cooper River Bridge Run. He was about 8 months old. I wasn't ready for him to have sugar like that...yet. After I yelled at her, she said, "Paula, it's sugar-free!!" Even worse!! I've never been a big fan of artificial sweeteners and I certainly didn't want my 8 month old to be eating them. If that same situation were to happen with Annabelle, I'm sure I wouldn't react quite as harshly as I did then. While I still wouldn't want her to eat the popsicle, I don't think I would overreact and yell so much. :)

Doctor Visit
We went back to the doctor yesterday for an ear check. Jacob's ears are fine, thank goodness. It appears the Amoxicillin did its job; however, he still has a runny nose and a cough. He had one week with hardly any symptoms, but then last Saturday, the runny nose came back, then came the cough. The pediatrician encouraged me to try the Singulair samples he had given us on our last visit. I was reluctant to try it then, but after talking it over a bit more, I gave it a try yesterday. It's a weird kind of a medicine. It's a powder and comes in a little packet. I sprinkled it on Jacob's lunch and he ate his spaghetti never knowing he was also eating "special sprinkles." The Singulair seemed to work. After his nap, Jacob didn't cough for the rest of the day! I gave it to him again this afternoon; this time, on a peanut butter and jelly sandwich.

"Yook! Mistuh Monkey's cousin's sayin' 'cheeeeeese'"!

The Definition of Cute

If you look up the word "cute" in a picture dictionary, I suspect this is what you would find:

Honestly, the cuteness factor here is completely off the scale. Don't you think?

Sunday morning before church, I noticed I had inadvertently dressed Jacob and Annabelle in matching outfits. Of course, I had to take advantage of this with a quick photo shoot. Jacob was all kisses and hugs, so it worked out well. I think Annabelle even enjoyed it.

We're still waiting on Annabelle to roll over. She gets to her side, then gets really frustrated trying to push herself the rest of the way. When Jacob sees her frustration, he usually decides to help her and push her himself...not so gently. I'm sure she'll be rolling over any day now, perhaps today!



I've been thinking lately, I really do have the best job in the world! I am so happy to be able to stay at home and take care of Jacob and Annabelle. It's so much fun to play with them and watch them grow. I do have some days where I am teetering on the edge of crazy, but then one of them always does something to make me smile. Just a couple minutes ago, Jacob and I had an impromptu dance party. We also have sing-a-longs. Other times we pretend we are trains, airplanes or cars, and walk around the house making the respective noises. It's fun...for Jacob and for me. Ok, so we may look a little silly, but there's nothing wrong with that.

Jacob's favorite thing to do with Annabelle is make her dance. He is always dancing with his sister. Also, did you notice how he gives her a toy? He just throws it on top of her. "Here Annabelle.....a toy!" Occasionally, I'll find her laying on her playmat or in her bed with one or two toys piled on top of her. She doesn't seem to mind. I know there will come a day when she starts to throw toys back at him though. Hmmm...what will Jacob think about that?

Storytime with Jacob

Reading books is one of Jacob's favorite activities. He loves books! Some of his favorites are from the If You Give... series (If You Give a Pig a Pancake, If You Give a Mouse a Cookie, If You Give a Moose a Muffin, etc...) I must admit, I am a big fan of these too. :) We read to him all the time and since we end up reading the same stories over and over again (Jacob's choice), he memorizes them and reads the books back to us.

For today's storytime, Jacob will be reading If You Give a Pig a Pancake and If You Give a Cat a Cupcake.

Not ready for storytime to be over yet? If you have a little extra time, sit back and listen to Jacob read Max's Valentine and If You Give a Mouse a Cookie.

Annabelle decided to do a little talking of her own this morning. After I took this video, I realized she is in the exact same spot as she was in the last video I posted...and wearing the exact same clothes. What can I say? I guess she just likes her bassinet...and that outfit!

Mr. Monkey Update

So far, so good. As of tonight, we will have been without Mr. Monkey for a week. Jacob has grown more and more attached to Mr. Monkey's cousin, as well as a little stuffed cat we bought the day Mr. Monkey disappeared. Santa did send a new Mr. Monkey in the mail. It arrived yesterday. It is a lot different than the old one though. Besides the fact that it is much cleaner and not germ infested, the blanket is satin on both sides. Mr. Monkey had a soft, plush fabric on one side and that's what Jacob liked to hold onto. The monkey is also more brown. When I gave it to him, Jacob said, "Mr. Monkey a bown head." I guess, since he likes Mr. Monkey's cousin, Santa really didn't need to buy a new Mr. Monkey at all. Anyone need a lovey??

This is the last picture we ever took of Mr. Monkey. It was taken the day before he was lost.

Before I end this post, I have a quick, funny story. Going to the grocery store is always an adventure with Jacob. It's always a toss up whether he's going to be "good Jacob" or "not so good Jacob." Yesterday, he screamed and fussed pretty much the whole time we shopped. At least Annabelle slept through it, so I didn't have two fussy kids....until the ride home. Anyway.....Jacob loves mini cheddar cheese rice cakes, so I bought a bag. He calls them cheesecakes. As soon as he saw me grab them off the shelf, he started begging, "Cheesecakes....cheesecakes....CHEESECAKES!!!!!!!" He had already eaten fruit snacks, so I told him he couldn't have any cheesecakes right now. I refused to give in. He tried and tried to open that bag, but was unsuccessful....until.....all of a sudden, the bag popped. It sounded like a gunshot. Everyone around us jumped and one lady's arms went flying into the air because it startled her so much. I think it startled Jacob too...for a second. Then he proceeded to eat the cheesecakes that were now all over the place. That really grossed me out. Just think of all the germs!! When we got to the checkout counter, a couple people unloaded my buggy (I love the service at Publix) and one of them noticed the busted bag of rice cakes and asked me if I still wanted them. I was going to buy them since Jacob opened them, but they insisted on getting me a new bag. Let me say this again....I love the service at Publix! So, I learned my lesson. From now on, the cheddar cheese rice cakes will be far out of Jacob's reach.
Christmas Pictures
We celebrated Christmas again over the weekend since my sister and her boyfriend came down from D.C. Here are a few pictures:

Hello Gorgeous!

Any requests?

David, JoBeth and the child prodigy. He plays the piano, the guitar, and soon...the drums. Aunt JoBeth and David bought him a drum set for Christmas. Thanks. ;)

So long, Mr. Monkey

Quick, call the police! Call the rescue units! Call the fire department! Call....anyone who can help! MR. MONKEY IS LOST!!!!!!


It finally happened. We lost Mr. Monkey. Oh what a sad, sad, SAD day for all of us. Yesterday, we got in the car with Mr. Monkey....and came home without him.


Jacob has had Mr. Monkey ever since he was born. He is part of our family. When he was just a tiny thing, he grew attached to this little security blanket and it is his most cherished posession. Where Jacob is, Mr. Monkey is also. He plays with Mr. Monkey, sleeps with Mr. Monkey and has to know where Mr. Monnkey is at ALL times. When Jacob is upset about something, Mr. Monkey helps calm him down. When we give Mr. Monkey a bath (throw him in the washing machine), Jacob will sometimes stand in the laundry room and cry until Mr. Monkey comes out. Pitiful.


The strange thing is, even though he is so attached to Mr. Monkey, oftentimes, Jacob will casually throw him on the ground or throw him out of the stroller if we are out somewhere. I usually notice when this happens and pick him up so he doesn't get left behind. Occasionally, I don't see him get thrown out and someone will chase me down, "Ma'am, did you lose this?" Whenever this happens, my heart sinks to my stomach for a moment thinking of what I would do if we actually did lose Mr. Monkey.


I needed to do a little shopping yesterday, so Annabelle, Jacob, Mr. Monkey and I headed to Savannah. There were several places I needed to go, and on the way, I was already wondering if I would be able to get everything done. We met Heath for lunch first and after we ate, Jacob was ready for a nap, but since we were going shopping, that nap wasn't going to happen.


We went to two places before getting to the mall. Annabelle had already eaten twice and Jacob was getting more and more tired. By the time we got to the mall, Annabelle was hungry AGAIN, so I found a place to sit and feed her while Jacob ate a pretzel from Auntie Anne's. About the time we got up to resume shopping, I realized Jacob wasn't holding Mr. Monkey. I searched the stroller....he wasn't there. I searched the diaper bag....nothing. Then, I started to panic. Of course, Jacob was now crying because he wanted Mr. Monkey too. I traced and retraced (several times) my steps through the mall and talked to people in the two stores I went in asking if anyone had seen a little blue blanket with a monkey head on it. No such luck. Mr. Monkey was gone.

I searched the car, hoping maybe we had left him in the car seat, but he wasn't there either -- not in the car seat, not on the floor, not in the back. Jacob was crying and I was on the verge of tears too. I called Heath, who called the other stores we had visited earlier and left our phone number just in case Mr. Monkey turned up.

I always said if we ever lost Mr. Monkey, I would probably cry harder than Jacob. Well, I did cry, off and on, pretty much all the way home. I was dreading bedtime. What would Jacob do without Mr. Monkey?

Surprisingly, Jacob has handled it fairly well. He keeps saying, "Mr. Monkey....gone????" He's been holding onto Mr. Monkey's cousin (an ivory blanket just like Mr. Monkey), but I can tell he doesn't like it as much. He never did. But, it will have to do for now. Heath found an online store that sells monkey blankets like the one we lost and we've ordered a new one. I told Jacob we talked to Santa about Mr. Monkey being lost and asked if he could bring us a new one. This will be the third time Santa has visited us since Christmas -- once on Christmas morning, again to bring the new dvd player (that actually works), and now a third time to bring a new Mr. Monkey.

The new Mr. Monkey won't be anything like the old one. It won't be dirty. It won't have a rip all the way down the side. The stuffing will still be intact. Heath suggested before we let Jacob see it, perhaps we should take it outside and rub it in the dirt, rip it down the side and take out all stuffing. Just a thought.

For now, we've survived one night and one naptime without Mr. Monkey, so seemingly, all is well. Maybe we didn't need to order the new one after all, but I'm glad we did...just in case. It's still sad to me that Mr. Monkey is gone. That was Jacob's little blanket. I still have my blanket that I used when I was little. I thought we'd keep Mr. Monkey for Jacob too. Oh well. I am just glad Jacob seems to be taking the loss like a champ...for now, anyway. I'll keep you posted!

Sleep

I used to sleep late. I remember sleeping until 10 or 11:00 in the morning (on Saturdays, at least). Boy...those were the days. After Jacob was born, sleeping late became a thing of the past, never to return. When you bring a new baby into your household, the words, "sleep late," vanish from your vocabulary. Sleep? What is sleep? Instead of wanting to sleep late, you find yourself praying to just get a few hours at a time.

I seem to have adjusted to my new sleep schedule with Annabelle -- a catnap here, a catnap there, all through the night -- but I've still been praying for at least one good night's sleep. Well, it finally happened! Friday night, Annabelle slept for five hours straight. Hooray! Last night, I put her (and myself) in bed around 11:30. You can imagine my surprise when I woke up this morning to her crying and looked at the clock. It was 6:15!! Can you believe it? I sure couldn't. I think she was a little sleep deprived because she has trouble napping during the day. Her big brother does not like her to sleep and does everything within his power to keep her awake.

Yesterday, Heath was holding Annabelle on the couch and she had finally drifted off to sleep despite the noisy toys Jacob was playing with at the time. Not long after she closed her eyes, Jacob walked over to her with his guitar, grabbed her hands, and said, "Dance Annabelle, dance!!" He loves to make her "dance." I only wish he wouldn't dance with her while she's sleeping. Of course, she woke up. Then later, when she was trying to take another nap, Jacob stood over her and said, "Annabelle, WAKE UP! WAKE UP!!!!" She did. I've decided I need to take her away from the "action" when she's ready for a nap and let her sleep in another room. That should work, as long as I can keep Jacob out of that room.

Besides waking her up all the time, Jacob loves playing and "taking care" of his little sister. Sometimes when she cries now, he says, "see her brother," meaning, "She wants to see her brother." Cute, huh? One day last week, I left Annabelle in the Pack 'n Play while I went to fill her bathtub. When I came back to get her, she had Boudreaux's Butt Paste all over her and there was a pile of q-tips on her stomach. Jacob had already left the scene, but when I called his name, he came running in saying, "lotion on her tummy...lotion on her tummy." He just wanted to put lotion on her tummy. I'm not sure what he was doing with the q-tips.

Let's Pray

Jacob loves to pray. Before he eats, he likes to say his own prayer now. He doesn't want to repeat a prayer. He wants to say it "self" (himself). And he does a good job. He says, "A God...Kink you...a day...a food...A-meeun." (Dear God, Thank you for this day and this food. Amen.) I'll have to video him saying this. Yesterday, while he was playing with his guitar, he stopped mid-song, closed his eyes, and started praying: "A God....help me....listen....to what...Mommy Daddy....tells you. A-meeun." Then went right back to playing his guitar. He looked like a little worship leader. Everyday we talk to him about how he needs to listen to what Mommy and Daddy tell him to do. "You need to listen to what Mommy and Daddy tell you," we say. We also include it in the bedtime prayers. I guess he just felt the need to pray about that yesterday afternoon. How funny. He actually did the same thing this morning, only this time, he thanked God for the day, then said, "I yuv you Jesus. A-meeun." Maybe he will grow up to be a worship leader one day. Who knows?

Yesterday morning, Jacob found this jingle bell bracelet and immediately started singing Jingle Bells. And yes, he now uses his ride-on toys as step stools to get things that are out of his reach. That's what he was doing here before I stopped him.

Back to the Doctor

It was a big day for Annabelle! She had her two month well visit this morning...which included shots. Yuck. The doctor said she is growing and developing perfectly, so all is well. Our "big" girl weighs 11 pounds, 6 ounces and is 22 inches long. She is in the 50th percentile for weight and 25th for height. Wow! Hmmmm....I wonder if all that chocolate I've been eating is contributing to her weight. Is that possible?? If anyone is interested, she is also in the 25th percentile for head circumfrence.

Annabelle handled her shots fairly well -- all three of them. She did cry a little...ok...a lot....but not for long. She quieted down as soon as I picked her up. That made me feel better. I am always anxious when it comes to taking them to get shots. But, really, who likes shots?

Jacob came along for the ride and had his turn to be seen by the doctor as well. He's had a cold for a long time and if you've been following this blog for any length of time, you probably know what that inevitably leads to.....you guessed it......a double ear infection. Time to chug-a-lug the Amoxicillin. Jacob actually loves that stuff, so at least I don't have to fight with him to take it.

Taking two children to the doctor is not what I would call a fun activity. The last time I went with Jacob, Annabelle just slept in her car seat the whole time, so that made things a little easier. Today's visit was much more difficult. The most embarassing thing? Probably when Jacob opened the door, said, "Bye! See you tomorrow!" and ran all the way down the hall and around the corner to the exit. The doctor actually had to chase him down for me because I had my hands full with Annabelle at that moment. What made it worse is that he was yelling all the way down the hall (not screaming, just yelling). He is a little hoarse from all the coughing and he's still congested, so when he yells, he sounds like a demon child...seriously. We kind of laugh at this when we're at home, but it's not so funny when we're in a public place. I'm sure people were thinking, "What is wrong with that kid?" Oh well. Jacob, Jacob, Jacob. He might be challenging, but I love that little boy :)

Jacob definitely needed a nap after this morning's crazy doctor visit. I needed one too!

I found this video when I was transferring pictures from the camera to the computer. This was from New Year's Day. He was playing with one of his bathtub squirt toys that he got for Christmas....until Daddy put an end to the "fun." He likes to squirt the water outside the tub. Fun for Jacob....not so fun for us.

This video of Annabelle was taken the same day as Jacob's bath video.

It's 2009 and We're Off and Running!

Happy New Year! A brand new year has begun and it's already proving to be a great adventure. I can't wait to see what God has in store in the coming months!

So...let's talk about resolutions. What are your resolutions this year? I have to admit...I haven't really thought much about it. Like the rest of America, I'd like to lose a few pounds, especially since I enjoyed the holiday goodies a bit too much. Seriously, chocolate has become my main source of nourishment lately and that can't be good. The "sweet supply" at our house has dwindled a great deal though and I am not planning on replacing it. Well, I take that back. I can't live without sweets. I just need to become better acquainted with the 100 calorie packs and try to eat only one pack per day. No more of this eating a whole bag of chocolate chips business.

I imagine, losing weight and getting fit are the top new year's resolutions for most people. At least, that's the way it seems. Have you ever noticed how every year, TLC and The Discovery Channel fill their new year's week program schedule with shows about obesity? The Half-Ton Teen, The Half-Ton Dad, Inside the Brookhaven Obesity Clinic, World's Fattest Man, etc... I guess they are just trying to give everyone a little extra motivation to stick to those resolutions.

I am sooooo ready to get back to exercising. I haven't done much since Annabelle was born (although Jacob does keep me on my toes). It's amazing how much a little exercise (or lack of) can affect your life. Hopefully, if we can get Jacob over this cold he's had for two months, we'll get back to StrollerFit in a few days.

We started off the new year with a trip to Jacksonville, FL. Heath's cousin got married on Saturday, so we drove down for the event. This was the longest trip we've taken with Annabelle. Like Jacob, she is a pretty good traveler. BUT....when she is unhappy, she lets us know. She has a set of lungs like you wouldn't believe. That girl can scream and when she does, we have to pull over immediately. It's impossible to take much more than a few seconds of hearing a baby cry. Thankfully, she only screamed twice on the trip and both times we found out she just needed to burp. After that, she quieted down and was perfectly happy.

Jacob stayed in the nursery during the wedding ceremony, but had a great time at the reception. He even made a friend who was just a few months younger than him. They had a blast blowing bubbles...or should I say...pouring out bubbles onto the floor. Between the cake, M&M wedding favors, and fruit snacks he ate that evening, he was sufficiently wired for the night. It didn't help that he hadn't had much of a nap. We all had a wonderful time and it was good to see everyone. The wedding was beautiful. Congratulations Rachel and Joseph!

The happy couple

sleeping like a baby

Annabelle and Aunt Tammy are sharing some bonding time.

"I'm ready for my close up..."

"...so don't just stand there, bust a move....."
Jacob is quite a dancer. He must get that from his dad. HA!