EWM-4months

My little man turned 4 months old on 8/19/13.  As a special gift he slept through the night for the first time.  yay!  He has kind of slept through the night on an every other night basis since then.  Otherwise, I think we are doing about the same as at 3 months.  The giggles have progressed to belly laughs and he is super interested in gnawing on his hands....and in turn knocking out his pacifier...and then being frustrated that he doesn't have his pacifier :)  We have made progress in the blow pop shape and it was confirmed at his 4 month well baby check...

Weight: 14lbs 4oz (30th%)
Length: 25.5in (75th%)
Head: 16.75in (83rd%)

He hates tummy time and I think it might have something to do with that REALLY heavy noggin.  Love him to pieces...

Just to compare (without really comparing my children) Lofton was 25.5in and 14lbs 10.5oz at her 9month check up so this 30th% kid seems huge!

EWM-3 months

Wow!  What a difference a month makes.  This little guy has officially stolen our hearts.  3 months old on 7/19/13
Sleeping:  Everett dropped from 8 to 5 feedings a day over the past month, whoa!  He still wakes up a couple of times, but is content to just have his pacifier replaced :)  He continues to nap between each feeding during the day...some in his bed and some in his swing
Eating:  My little monster eats more than his sister ever did already.  He is up to 5.5oz per bottle and eats every 3 hrs from 6:30am to about 6:30pm
Personality:  Who is this boy??  He is HAPPY, yay!!  By the time he actually turned 3 months he was happy unless sleepy or hungry.  We are thrilled.
Lots of firsts:  Everett started "school" on 7/1/13.  He doesn't nap well at all but he eats well so that's good.  It actually makes our evenings pretty easy because he typically takes a 2-3hr nap in his swing while we do dinner and bath for big sister.  I often wake him around 7 just to bathe him, play for a few, give him a bottle and put him back to bed.  In general, we don't see him with his eyes open a lot on week days.  A less exciting first, in his first upper respiratory infection.  The joys of being baby #2.  He was congested for several days and then ran a 101 temp which lead us to the pedi on 7/18.  No ear infection or pneumonia so that was good.  He slept in his bouncer for 2 weeks to help.

Weight: 13lbs 11oz
Clothes: 3months
Diapers: Sz 2

Love you little guy!

Interview with a 3 year old

I thought it would be fun to ask Lofton a set of questions each year on her birthday beginning with her 3rd bday.  This is what she had to say :)

Favorite color: Pink

Favorite food: Marshmallows

Best friend: Kendall and Papa J

Favorite movie: Monsters inc

Favorite thing to play: Dress up

Favorite class at school: Going to Gard 3 

Favorite drink: Milk

Favorite thing to do with mommy: Hug

Favorite thing to do with daddy: Hug

What do you want to be when you grow up: a doctor

some of these answers I expected and I am quite sure I would get again any day of the week (color, drink, play, grow up) and others were a bit random but fun all the same.  In general, I will most remember this time period by the complete obsession with twirling.  She lives her life in a tutu.   Her morning routine involves opening her blinds to see if the sun is up (my early riser can't come downstairs until sunrise), turning off her white noise machine, changing out of her pull up and into panties after going potty, then dragging her step stool to her closet, turning on the light, and closing herself in until she locates the perfect twirly dress to wear that day.  Of course everything ends in a meltdown when I remind her that it is a school day so she needs to wear her uniform.  To compromise, once she is ready for school she can put a tutu on OVER her outfit until it is time to leave :)  So cute to see her innate 100% girly nature.  Not sure we'll get any tomboy out of this one.

Pajamas by Lofton

Tutu, ballet shoes (she walks on her toes while wearing them), and "tiara"

Random time when she chose an outfit with no twirl.  Note that her jeggings are rolled up and her shoes are on the wrong feet.  We probably went to Target in this outfit.

The aftermath

EWM-2 months

My little man turned 2 months old on 6/19/13 and he already seems so much older...

Eating:  now that i am back to work full time he eats 4.5 oz for three bottles and nurses 5 times for a total of 8 feedings.  i think he is more than ready to drop a feeding since he seems to just snack at night but no luck so far...

Sleeping:  still holding strong at our eat, wake, sleep routine.  he is generally ready for a nap after being up for 1 to 1.5hrs.  he will sleep in his bed really well for about an hour and then fusses before his nap is over.  we definitely don't need any extra fussing around here so he may or may not take the second half of almost all of his naps in the swing :)  most nights he continues to give me a 4hr stretch but we have had a few of those nights where she see each hour on the clock.  oh well, time for extra kisses.

Personality:  little guy still seems a bit out of sorts.  my pedi thinks he may have a milk protein allergy so i am dairy free.  goodbye milk, yogurt, baked goods, coffee creamer, etc.  not my diet of choice but i will obviously do whatever for a happy and comfortable baby.  we have started to see some good days mixed in the fussy ones so we are hopeful that this is either the fix or he's just working through that newborn stage.  also....he smiles!  he tried to hold out for awhile but is giving us more little grins by the day.  Lofton is pretty convinced that he only smiles when she is around because he's so happy to see her.  we go ahead and enforce that belief.

Size:  "wow!  that's a big boy you have there!"  i heard this at the grocery store the other day and almost passed out.  i am quite accustomed to the opposite comments.  3 month clothes fit well and size 1 diapers do not.  we will move up to size 2 as soon as we finish out this box.  E had his 2 month appointment 8 days before he turned 2 months.

       11lbs 9oz (50th%)

       23in (77th%)

       Head (90th%)

i took his pictures on what i call my super mom morning :)  my baby slept well so i got up at 5 to work. he woke up at 6 and played happily while i got ready for work.  he ate at 6:30 and was ready for a nap at 7:15 right when his big sister woke up.  i made pancakes for the two of us and we had a little girl time.  everyone was dressed, fed, happy, and ready for the day by 7:45!

EWM-1 month

My little guy turned 1 month old on his sister's 3rd birthday (5/19/10).  And this is how he's doing...

Eating: Everett fell into an easy 2.5 to 3hr eating routine on his own and was even giving us a one 4hr stretch from the time he was about a week and a half old.  He has had several bottles since Mommy started working part time when E was only 2 weeks.  He will down 3.5-4oz in 5 minutes flat.  Quite a change from his sister!

Sleep:  We have not had any difficulty with day/night confusion and E has started showing us more and  more wake time which is very sweet.  Naps are a bit of a challenge which we are just now finding out since so many in the first few weeks were in Mommy's arms.  Why put the baby down when you have such a small window to hold them?

Personality:  Hmm...let's just say E have a bit more than we're used to at this age.  His lungs get excellent work outs anytime his diaper is changed, he's ready to eat, he's sleepy, or the wind changes direction without his consent.  L often tries to force the paci in his mouth and says so sweetly, "That's enough baby brother.  Big sister is right here."  This too shall pass

Size:  Definitely going to pass up your teeny sister in no time.  At 1 month we estimate that you are over 9 and a half pounds, we have moved on to size 1 diapers, and newborn clothes will probably be a thing of the past in the next couple of weeks!

Despite E's lively personality, I sure have loved having a newborn to kiss and snuggle in the wee hours of the night.  It may have something to do with the fact that I am his food source, but he is definitely mommy's little boy.  That first month flew by!

Lofton's 3rd Birthday

My sweet baby girl turned 3 on May 19th.  It has kind of been a joke that Lofton gets sick for all of her friend's birthday parties...and this time it happened on her own party day.  Poor girl had an ear infection and a temperature of 103 on Saturday.  So we improvised!  Party cancelled and family dinner (plus L's bff Ryan) scheduled on Sunday.  With grandparents, 2 aunts, 2 uncles, 5 cousins, and 1 best friend with her family-it was totally a party!!  We grilled, swam, played in the new sandbox, and opened presents.  It was actually pretty perfect.

At 3 Lofton is still a sweet natured, hysterical, smart, and beautiful child.  We have seen a few hints (maybe more than a few...) of attitude which I hear comes with the territory, but overall she is very well behaved and a joy to be around.  She is ALL girl as this phase will definitely be known for the twirling.  I plan to do an entire post on twirling soon :)  She is still tiny weighing 25.5lbs (4th%) and 35.25in (13th%) and wearing mostly 2T's and a size 7 shoe.  

enjoying some birthday donuts and chocolate milk

impromptu decor compliments of last year's party :)

the cake...my former self would have never bought a grocery store cake with plastic princesses on it, but you know what.  it's not about me, it's about her and my little doll thought it was WONDERFUL!

birthday girl!

2 cousins and her best pal Ryan

Parkerman!

master of the grill

the perfection of the cake is proven by the fact that she changed out of her swimsuit and into a rapunzel dress...

and the tutus!

"Mom!  This one is SO twirly!"

can't imagine life without you my little doll.  we love you to the moon and back!

Sweet Baby Everett-Newborn Pics

How fast time flies.  These pictures were taken 4 weeks and 3 and a half pounds ago.  Thank you Andie Hamilton for your beautiful work.  You are truly talented and I will cherish these always.