Uncle Scott's "Weddin'"

They did it!  My brother married Anya this weekend at Evergreen Gardens in Ferndale.

The weekend started off on Saturday, when most of the guests arrived in Bellingham to celebrate.  That night, there was an informal gathering at a house that many of Anya's family members had rented for the week.  There I was able to introduce Corey and my boys to many family friends that I hadn't seen in years!  It was so fun catching up with them, and seeing family who traveled in for the big day.  Both boys did really well even though we didn't leave until way past their bedtime and both had limited naps that day.  They especially loved the video my mom and Anya's mom helped put together with pictures of Anya and Scott growing up, and the story of how they met, fell in love and got engaged.

That night, Jackson had asked that I sleep in his big queen bed with him.  I happily accepted since it would be the first time ever that this had happened.  It took him awhile to fall asleep being in a new place, sharing a bed, etc. but after 30 minutes of him asking questions, repeatedly sitting up to look around, etc. he finally fell asleep around 10:30.  While I may have gotten punched in the nose before he even fell asleep, and I spent the night with him spooning me while I tried not to fall off the bed, it was great to have the opportunity for so many snuggles.  Cole slept in his pack 'n play in the bathroom, which worked out perfectly (the sliding door kept the lights and Jackson's loud voice from waking him up).  He only woke up once around 11:45 and quickly went back to sleep after we gave him his paci.  Jackson woke up once in the middle of the night confused - I think - about where he was. Plus the pillow protecting him from rolling off the other side of the bed had fallen. Once we resolved that, he was back to sleep.  They both woke up around 6:45.

On Sunday, we grabbed some breakfast downstairs with my family and some of our family friends, and then J and I took a swim and relaxed in the hot tub for a bit.  Both boys played and entertained themselves while we packed up and got ready.  After a quick lunch, we headed over to the "weddin' " (as J would say) venue to get J ready for his duties as ring bearer.

While the wedding party was lining up, Jackson was shaking the rings around and I think some of the party got a little worried the rings wouldn't make it down the aisle, but everything went off without a hitch.  Both boys were quiet during the ceremony (Cole sat with Kels' mom, J sat on my lap), though to be fair, J was stuffing gummy bears in his face (we may have bribed him a bit to walk down the aisle and to stay quiet during the ceremony).  The only time we had to quiet him down was during a few funny parts of the ceremony where the vows had guests laughing...J figured he should laugh as well even though he doesn't understand the humor, he does a super loud and embarrassing laugh when he's laughing along with others.

Once the ceremony was over, we mingled some more and enjoyed yummy appetizers and dinner.  J was mostly looking forward to the desserts, which he made good work of --- strawberry shortcake, chocolate chip cookies AND a 'smore.  (Love that the venue had a fire pit so you could make your own!)  And then the dancing began. J was a little shy at first, but once he opened up (probably once the sugar set in), he was the talk of the wedding as he busted out his break dancing moves.  It was adorable.

It was a beautiful setting, with delicious food and great company, and the weather couldn't have been any more perfect. We loved every minute of celebrating Scott and his wife, Anya!

Sunnies, a Frozen sing-along and holding Cole's hand was how he spent much of the drive up to Bellingham.

Pit stop at Bob's Burgers & Brew for lunch and a charge at the Tesla Supercharger station.

Loved seeing Gramma Linda & Great Gramma.

And, continues to LOVE his big brother.

Being back at work, I don't get many opportunities to cuddle with Cole during a nap, but I had the chance over the weekend, and loved every second of it.

J in his BIG big boy bed, enjoying his gadgets.  He looks especially like his daddy here.

Mommy & J selfie before our sleepover.

Each boy enjoyed playing on their own bed.

I can't get enough of watching these two boys interact. Melts. My. Heart. Every time.

Who is this big boy?!

Taking his ring bearer duties VERY seriously (after I repeatedly told him he couldn't shake the can that contained the rings, or try to untie them, and bribed him with MANY gummy bears).

 

Success!  Made it up the aisle by himself, with the rings.

 Anya made a beautiful bride, and I still can't over my bro in his suit --- who is this grown man?!

They did it!

Big hugs from Gramma Linda

J and his second cousin Natalie

Both the boys loved these bubbles

Taking a selfie with Great Uncle Gene (who claims he invented the selfie - who knew?)

I just love these swing photos --- he looks so big and grown up, but then he's swinging and being a true kiddo.  I think J gives this place two thumbs up for the swings alone.

Another "good smile" from J.

Cole's open mouth smile --- love it.

Taking 'smore making very seriously

Great Aunt Karen and Cole

Worn OUT!  (Don't be fooled - this lasted 15 minutes on the way home.  The rest of the 1+ hour drive was spent with Jackson asking us questions about anything and everything (and then telling us to be quiet/"shhh"'ing because Cole was sleeping when we tried to talk to each other). Note: He holds Cole's hand to help calm Cole and get him to sleep.

And finally, our little dancer/break dancer in action:

Six Months

Another month has quickly passed and Cole turned 6 months over the weekend.  He spent it celebrating his Uncle Scott's wedding (more to come soon) and did great on his first overnight roadtrip.

Here are few highlights from the past month.

• Sitting - about three weeks ago, Cole began really sitting on his own.  He loves this new point of view, and spent 30 or 40 minutes in a single sitting (pun intended) on the hotel bed over the weekend playing and taking everything in.
• Sleeping - still a good sleeper, and most nights sleeps from 7:45 or 8 until 6 or 6:30.  Occasionally he'll wake up shortly before 6, but often falls back sleep if we give him a paci.
• Eating - still eating 6x/day (including a 10 p.m. dream feed) or sometimes 7 times at daycare, 35-40 oz. day.
• Solids - has started eating solids and seems to like them so far.  He's had green beans & brown rice, brown rice cereal, avocado, peas, bananas, pear, mango, nectarine, applesauce, Mum Mums, squash, puffs, and plum.  His favorite seems to be green beans & brown rice which he polished off nearly half a jar of in one sitting, with very little on his face.  He isn't sure about puffs or Mum Mums once they're in his mouth and typically ends up munching on them for a bit, and then spits them out. (Most of the time they end up in a goopey mess in his fist as he hasn't quite figured out the pincher grasp.)
• Clapping - my cousin Natalie taught him to clap at Scott's wedding and while he doesn't do it all the time, he often will clap along with you.
• Still not rolling over, but has gotten very close to rolling from back to tummy to reach for a toy.
• Has a FIRM grip - he went from a few days of lovingly cupping our faces to clawing our faces and necks, and yanking hair and necklaces.  No more long earrings or necklaces for me for awhile!
• Still loves his toes and his tongue
• No longer using his baby tub in the bath or his swing - we've retired both!
• Experience his first swing
• Has started looking in our direction consistently when we say his name - not sure yet if it's because he knows his name, or if he just recognizes our voice.
• Continues to be a very happy baby with big, open mouth smiles for everyone.  My favorite is the big smile and leg kicks that he does as soon as he sees us walk in his room each morning.

And here are his 6 month stats:

• Weight: 18 lbs, 3 oz. (50-75%)
• Length: 28" (95%)
• Head: 17.5" (75%)

He did great and very smiley and chatty with the nurse and doctor.  He got an oral and three shots and was very sad, but quickly calmed down after I was able to pick him up.  Poor munchkin!  J accompanied us to the doctor and was a very good boy as well, keeping himself entertained with the toys in the room, and his tablet and phone.

Here are Cole's stats from his 4-month check up, and here are J's 6-month stats.

Happy 6th!

Happy 6th anniversary, my love!

I can't BELIEVE it's been six years already.  I still remember our wedding day like it was yesterday - it truly was the best day ever, and these past six years have been amazing. You're the best hubby and friend in the whole world, and our boys are so unbelievably lucky to call you their daddy.

I love you "all the way to the moon and back down" (as Jackson would say) and I can't wait for all the fun times ahead.

"Don't do it!" says the random passerby, right about this point in our ceremony.  While it was memorable and something we still bring up from time to time, I'm so glad we didn't listen.

I love being silly with you.

Who are these babies?!

We've got a sitter

As mentioned recently Cole could sit for a few seconds at a time before tipping over.  This was the case as recently as the 4th of July weekend.  Early the following week, he rapidly gained strength and officially became a sitter.

While he occassionally tips over sideways or backwards, when he gets excited and stiffens his back, and we still have to put cushions around him, he can sit for minutes at a time playing and looking around.

It's still so fun to witness these milestones the second time around.  And it still amazes me how quickly they pick things up.

A Day in Our Life

My friend Natalie did a post about her day, and I realized it had been a long time since I've shared my day (years??), and with two kiddos in our house now, it seemed like the perfect time to provide a snapshot of my current day.

4:55 a.m. - On Tuesdays and Thursdays, this is the time my alarm goes off for my workout. (Body Fusion workout DVD on Tuesdays, and a 3ish mile run through the surrounding neighborhoods on Thursdays.)

5:40 a.m. - My alarm time on Monday, Wednesday and Friday.  I typically lay in bed for a few minutes, sometimes catching up on email, Facebook and Instagram.

5:45 a.m. - I hit the shower.

6:10 a.m. - With myself mostly ready for the day, I head downstairs to pack up Cole's bottles, empty the dishwasher if it's clean, load my car, water flowers, feed Roxy and let her out, and make up Cole's first bottle of the day.  (Some days, Cole wakes up around this time, and either babbles and wiggles around, or fusses, so we may have to pop in and give him a pacifier to buy a few more minutes to finish getting ready.)

6:30 a.m. - We get the boys up.  Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays are my days to wake Jackson while Corey wakes Cole (and the days I wake Jackson are the days I do his bedtime).  This may seem overly prescriptive but Jackson likes knowing who is waking him up and putting him to bed, and this was the easiest way to remember our schedule.

6:35 a.m. - After five minutes of cuddling (as well as "waking Cole up" (meaning he opens the door to his room, turns off the white noise and says "hi" to Cole), Jackson gets up and gets dressed, goes potty, brushes teeth and does his hair, while Cole gets dressed and gets his first bottle of the day.

6:45 a.m. - Jackson heads downstairs for breakfast.  If it's a morning I'm getting him ready, I'll eat with him. Otherwise Corey will, and I'll grab a protein bar or make a juice or smoothie for the road or when I get to work.

7:05 a.m. - We load the boys into the Corey's car and the boys head off to school while I head into work.

7:30 a.m. - I arrive at work.  Corey finishes dropping the boy off at school.  Cole goes to the Infant Room, Jackson goes to the Big Rainbow class (a class he shares with the elementary school kids until they head off to school).

8:00 a.m. - Jackson heads to Green Class, where he spends the rest of his day.  Cole goes down for his first nap of the day.

9:30/10 a.m. - Cole eats again.

11 a.m. - Cole goes down for nap #2.

11:30 a.m. - Jackson eats lunch.

12:30 p.m. - Jackson takes a nap; Cole drinks bottle #3.  I eat my lunch and catch up on personal email and check in on Facebook/Instagram.

2:30 p.m. - Jackson gets up from his nap. Cole goes down for another nap.

3:30 p.m. - Cole eats again.

4:00 p.m. - I leave work.

4:30 p.m. - I arrive at Rainbow School to pick the boys up.  Cole may fall asleep on the way home.

5:00 p.m. - We get home and let Roxy outside, unload the car.  I get Jackson a snack and put on a show for him, and feed Cole if he didn't have a big previous feeding, or if his previous feeding happened much earlier than 3:30.

5:15 p.m. - I start dinner and wash bottles.  Sometimes I'm a lucky mama, and J helps me with dinner or with setting the table.

5:30/5:45 p.m. - Cole may go down for his final nap of the day, if he didn't fall asleep in the car.

5:45 p.m. - Corey arrives home.

6:00 p.m. - Dinner time, with solids for Cole (when he wakes up from his nap, if he's taking one).

6:30 p.m. - Playtime with the boys.

7:00 p.m. - Bath time for both boys (every other night).

7:15 p.m. - Cole gets his PJs on, gets his final bottle, a few books, some cuddles and songs.  Jackson gets PJs on, goes potty, brushes his teeth,  reads two books, watches YouTube playdoh videos or plays with apps on Corey's tablet.

7:45 p.m. - Cole goes to bed.  Jackson gets 5 minutes of cuddling, hugs and kisses and goes to bed.

8:00 p.m. - Time to make up Cole's bottles for the next day, get the coffee maker ready for the next morning's coffee, make my lunch, finish cleaning up the kitchen from dinner, do my PT exercises, fun chores like cleaning bathrooms or anything else I don't want to do over the weekend, and catch up on any shows that may be on the DVR.

9:30 p.m. - Get ready for bed and read in bed or catch up on all my social media apps.

10:00 p.m. - Cole gets a final dream feed.

10:30/11 p.m. - Lights out and asleep within seconds. 

Jackson + Mommy Date

Corey had an extra day off before the 4th of July and kept J home from school to have a Daddy + Jackson day.  They had such a fun day that I'd been looking forward to taking a day off work for my own date, and today was the big day.

I gave J options of the aquarium, the zoo (Woodland Park or Cougar Mountain), the farm or picking berries.  He decided on the farm and picking berries which was perfect, because I'd been wanting to try Remlinger Farm out, and it met both requirements and then some.

All week, we'd been talking about our date, and when I went into his classroom yesterday to pick him up, he was already gathering all his things that we normally gather at the end of the week (water bottle and blanket), which we bring home and clean before bringing them back on Monday. I could see his teachers trying to remind him it was only Thursday and that he didn't need to do that on Friday, but he of course remembered that he was going to be there today because of our date.  SO cute.

We started our day off with him sleeping in a little later than a normal weekday, taking Cole to school and running a few errands.  But once those necessities were done, we hit Starbucks for breakfast, and then finally we were on our way to the farm.

This is what he typically he considers a "nice smile" when we ask him to smile nicely for a pic.

He had so much fun picking raspberries - he would run up an aisle (which he was calling "estrallas" for some reason?) and pick a berry or two, only to run back and show me his finds, drop them off in the box and then run away again.

Raspberry picking is serious business.

These bad boys are in our sorbet maker as I type this - looking forward to fresh sorbet with a slice of the pie we picked up!

Once we decided we had enough berries to eat + make raspberry sorbet, we headed over to the farm.  There were so many more activities than I realized - and he was the perfect age to enjoy everything. He started with a pony ride on a pony named Apple, followed by warming up with a few smaller kid rides.

 Then we headed over to the bigger rides including a canoe, a big train, teacup-like barrels, ferris wheel, roller coaster and the list goes on.  Mixed in there was some climbing in/around a school bus, a fire engine and some tractors, and petting and feeding a few animals.

I couldn't believe how much he loved the big kid rides, especially after being so nervous on the small train at Fox Hollow Farm last summer.  But, he was laughing and (happily) screaming, and putting his arms up on all of them.

After the rides, we grabbed some lunch and watched a musician in the the theater for a bit, and all the kiddos got to play instruments on stage during one song, which J loved.

We wrapped up the day with purchases of not one but two of the musician's CDs (I told him he could pick one, without realizing there was a two-CD combo pack, which of course is the one he picked and I just couldn't say no), ice cream bars, froggy gummy candies, a marionberry/blackberry pie, and second rides on both the ferris wheel and the roller coaster.

We both had a total blast, and I can't wait to go back again soon.