On the Flip Side

Christmas has officially ended, but I have to say that this particular Christmas will go down on record as one of the best ever. The snow started Christmas Eve and we spent several hours over the next couple days exploring the snow, sledding the slopes, and building a snowman. I hadn't had that much fun in the snow since I was a kid! Carter really enjoyed the sledding part, and Nora seemed happy to observe from the backpack carrier. Opening presents, lots of good food, and spending time with each other really made the entire holiday memorable.

Some new milestones to share...
- Nora can push herself up onto all fours now. She's not crawling yet, but we consider this a major accomplishment considering how...er...round she is in the middle. Crawling will come soon though! She already rocks back and forth on her hands and knees.
- Nora's also quite the chatterbox. A near-constant stream of BAs, DAs, YAs, MAs, all come out of her mouth.
- Carter's not near the chatterbox Nora is, but his vocabulary finally seems to be catching up with his age. Every day he says a new word. It's amazing to watch him...he's known what these words mean for ages having heard them from me and Mike, but to hear it from his own mouth is so thrilling...hard to put into words.

Hope everyone had a great holiday! Have a safe New Year! Couple new videos below, and click the link for pictures on Facebook.

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=245105&id=1012296258&l=abd5b6bafb

The Weeks In Between

Normally this time of year is totally crazy for everyone. We are no exception! Between Thanksgiving and Christmas, it's a nonstop frenzy of shopping, Santa photos, tree decorating, present wrapping, package shipping, and card making all packed into a few short weeks. Amazingly, I actually have a moment to update the blog again! Twice in one month! Nora is happily bouncing in her jumper (i.e. The Mother's Godsend) and Carter just went down for a nap.

So, now that our traveling is out of the way, I can share some things the kids have been up to. Nora has mastered the art of sitting up. It's such a huge relief for us because she will quietly sit and play with her toys for 10-15 minutes at a time, giving us chances to tend to Carter or whatever else needs attention. I think there's less screaming because of it, but I'll have to get back to you on that. Nora's also progressed to 3 square meals a day. So far she has yet to totally reject anything I've given her. When Carter was her age, he ate mostly homemade baby food. And now he's a great eating toddler who will try almost anything. Hopefully Nora will follow in his footsteps.

Carter seems to have resigned himself to the fact that Nora is a permanent addition to the family. He still gets a bit jealous sometimes but I think it's getting better. The next few months will be a challenge since we won't be able to spend as much time outside. He absolutely loves the outdoors! He's always ready to plop himself in the nearest pile of dirt and begin sifting for treasures. I think we'll need a bigger sandbox come spring.

Around the house, I've been doing a little sprucing up. The family room area in the basement was painted with colored we had leftover from upstairs rooms. I like those colors in the upstairs rooms but hated them in the family room. The lighting was completely different. Over the course of a week, I repainted the entire family room area (6 walls!), one wall at a time every night. I love the way it turned out. I also added a few extras...a hand-painted wall quote, new painted bookshelf, framed pictures and family decor. Come visit to see the changes, or scroll down for pictures!

This weekend we'll get the Christmas tree up with all the decorations. Who knows? There might even be ANOTHER blog update with more photos!

New pics on Facebook here and also below.

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=245105&id=1012296258&l=abd5b6bafb

Wall quote: "The love of learning, the sequestered nooks, and all the sweet serenity of books" - Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

Happy Thanksgiving Everyone!

Hope everyone had a great Thanksgiving holiday! As usual, we ate way too much...but how can you turn down such good food? We visited Mike's family in Arkansas for a nice, laid-back vacation. The driving was mainly uneventful, except for on the trip down, Nora exploded in her pants TWICE, leaving her down to her diaper for the last 2 hours of the drive. The kids slept through the night mostly, lots of food and leftovers, the Hogs won, Mike got his fix of Rocky's and McClard's, and Clay shot a huge buck went deer hunting. Who could ask for a better trip?

I've been getting several queries about Christmas gifts for the kids. Please don't think that we expect gifts from everyone for the kids, but I'm going to post some ideas for those who plan to play Santa.

Carter
- Wears a size 2T in pants and shirts.
- Clothing ideas include Razorback apparel, pajamas, sweatpants and hoodies
- Toy ideas, pretty much anything with wheels: trucks, tractors, trains, cars
- Also some art supply stuff would be good for winter indoor play: fingerpaint, coloring books, etc.

Nora
- Currently wearing 12-month clothes, but will likely be in 18-month stuff this spring.
- Clothing ideas: pajamas, knit pants and leggings, hoodies, socks
- My mind is blank for toys for Nora...she's happy playing with Carter's old toys for now.

We're counting down the days to Christmas now! I love this time of year. Hopefully we'll be able to get our Christmas tree next weekend, and maybe we'll hang some lights up outside this year. Another post will be coming soon...I've got some photos to share.

Adventures in Travel

There's always a moment shortly after becoming a parent when you realize you've become THAT mom. The mom you said you would never become. Those moments have come more frequently for me since we had Nora. For example, recently I was unsuccessfully trying to navigate a double stroller through the narrow aisles of the Eddie Bauer store in the mall. The salespeople were giving me dirty looks as I bumped into their displays and knocked things to the floor. Even though I realized it was hardly my fault they designed their store for people of supermodel thinness, I couldn't help feeling self-conscious. To my chagrin, I had become THAT mom...wielding her diaper bag and snack container with multiple babies in a monster truck of a stroller. *sigh* Other moments like these have followed...giving my child a meal consisting entirely of Teddy Grahams because that's all he will eat, looking with longing and envy at the moms driving the new Honda Odyssey, and now...being the parent of the two extremely loud, crying, screaming, kicking kids on a 1.5-hour flight.

This weekend, Mike and I took the kids up to Minnesota for a big family reunion. My Grandmother's 85th birthday is coming up and everyone met in the North Star state to surprise her. We debated on driving versus flying up there for the long weekend. After finding some low fares online, we chose to fly. I spent weeks planning for every possible need and situation we might encounter on the plane, and I thought we'd have a fighting chance of making it through the flight without incident. Ha! Oh the luxury of naivety!

The trip actually started out surprisingly well. We made it from remote parking to ticket counter through security and to the gate without much trouble. Carter was thrilled to look out the windows and see airplanes up close and Nora was on her way to falling asleep. The dream came crashing down when we boarded the plane. Carter panicked after seeing a hundred pairs of eyes on him while walking down the aisle. The well-meaning flight attendant made things worse when she tried to talk to him about his first flight. Nora woke up as soon as we sat down and proceeded to scream in Mike's arms. Carter didn't want to sit in his seat and he kept trying to escape into the aisle. The flight attendant got on the airplane speaker and invited everyone to welcome Carter and Nora on their first flight. The passengers repeated the welcome in monotone voices like school kids forced to greet their teacher. Mike and I tried to look like she wasn't talking about us.

After takeoff, I held Carter on my lap and tried my best to keep his legs from kicking. But my two arms were no match for his four flailing limbs. I felt awful for the guy sitting in front of me. Even Carter's favorite snack, applesauce in a pouch, didn't come through for us. Carter gave it a hard squeeze and an applesauce volcano erupted in my lap. Mike wasn't having much luck with Nora either. While she cried, he shushed and rocked as best he could in his cramped window seat. Out of the corner of my eye, I could see the tray table of the woman sitting behind him. She had to hold her drink to keep it from spilling. We decided to switch kids...Mike took Carter and I took Nora. Things calmed down a little after that. Carter was more comfortable away from the aisle with his DVD player and favorite movie. Nora seemed happier with me as well. She actually fell asleep just as we landed. Whew! We were exhausted and the trip had hardly begun!

My whole immediate family stayed at my sister's house. It worked out really well since they have lots of room and tons of toys! Carter loved playing with his cousin Dalton's trains and cars. He also seemed to get a big kick out of chasing their cats around the house. He would laugh anytime they came into the room and say "Kitty cat!" Nora's experience wasn't so positive. She had a hard time sleeping in a new place, waking up every two hours. Over the course of the trip, she developed a fail-safe, guaranteed pick-me-up-NOW noise. This noise isn't crying or wailing, but it is by far the most annoying sound in the world! I am not exaggerating! Jim Carey from Dumb and Dumber has nothing on Nora! Mike and I took turns getting up with her, but we still felt it in the morning. I surpassed my normal weekly caffeine intake within the first day!

The best part, the whole point of the trip, was Grandma's party. Her face was priceless when we walked in the door. She seemed to be in shock. I loved being able to see so many family members that I hadn't seen in so long. I think I might have been 9 when Uncle Dwight last saw me! Carter and Nora lasted longer than I thought they would at the party. However we still had to leave after a couple hours. I wished we could have stayed longer to visit with everyone and take more pictures. I feel like I missed some opportunities there, having everyone in the same room for the first time in so long.

To wrap up the weekend, Mike and I took Carter to a Halloween trunk or treat with Dalton. Dalton was a cowboy, complete with leather chaps. Carter was a Star Wars jedi, though he shed most of his costume by the end of the event. He seemed to enjoy running around and looking at the sights. Since he didn't collect any candy, I had to steal some of Dalton's (shhh!).

The flight home was the complete opposite of the flight up. Nora slept the entire time. Carter sat in his own seat, quietly watching a movie and eating a snack. After the halfway point of the flight, he sat in Mike's lap and fell asleep. It was kinda peaceful sitting there, looking over at my two guys and down at my baby girl, all sleeping on the plane.

Now we're home with piles of clothes threatening to suffocate us. I hope to kids adjust to the normal schedule without much effort on our part. Click the link below for photos from the trip on Facebook.

Favorite quotes from the trip.
"What is on my leg?" - Mike wondering out loud on the airplane while he held Nora.
"Did you want sauce and cheese in the 2nd layer of lasagna? Or meat and sauce?" - Me getting confused about how Mom wanted me to help make the 4 giant lasagnas for the party.
"Look at the cute cowgirl!" - Random person at trunk or treat admiring Dalton's costume. Is it time for a haircut?

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=238678&id=1012296258&l=5f0cc90b62

Cross Your Fingers...

Apparently I'm lapsing in my blogging responsibilities...at least according to various friends and family. I swear it's not intentional! These days, it seems like I blink my eyes and a whole week passes. In fact, today I actually put a dirty diaper in the mailbox instead of the trash bin. Thankfully the mail had already run today, but at least you see where my head is (or isn't) these days. :-)

The last couple months have been as uneventful as a household can be with two babies in it. But this last week or so has seen a lot of changes. Nora has been eating solid food for her dinner. Between Carter and her, Mike and I are lucky if we actually get to eat hot food at the same time together. Sometimes we postpone our dinner until after the kids go to bed just so we can enjoy the meal! But it's fun to see Nora figure out how to swallow rice cereal, and Carter finally eat some of his food with a fork.

As far as sleeping goes, we've been pretty lucky as parents...both of ours are sleeping through the night. I almost dread the day we introduce Carter to a toddler bed on the likely chance that he will wake everyone up during the night when he falls out of the bed. In his crib, he hardly ever sleeps in a normal position...usually I check on him to find his feet sticking out through the slats.

Couple of other firsts this month...I took Carter to the movie theater to see a Thomas the Train movie. It was a complete failure! Oh well, maybe next time.

In a few days, my fingers will be crossed for a more successful "first". Mike and I are taking the kids on a plane to Minnesota for a long weekend. I'm really excited about the actual time in Minnesota, but also dreading the travel part. I'm sure the next blog entry will have lots of interesting stories from the trip. Until then, check out the new pics on Facebook!

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=238678&id=1012296258&l=5f0cc90b62

Photos and Videos Finally!

Time to catch up on my photo and video posts. Here is a link to a bunch of new pics on Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=238678&id=1012296258&l=5f0cc90b62

Scroll down to see a couple new videos too.

News bits from the Bunn's in St. Louis...

• At least two teeth have sprouted in Nora's mouth. She's taking the change well, not a lot of crying but definitely a LOT of drooling.
• Both kids sleep through the night...Woohoo! (doing a little celebration jig)
• Carter is one of the best behaved kids I've ever seen, but he does occasionally test my limits. The other day I stepped into Nora's room for a few seconds to change her diaper. When I came back into the living room, Carter was sitting cross-legged on top of the dining table playing with the train I had set there earlier.
• We're looking forward to some upcoming holiday travel...though we are a little nervous. First flights for the kids in October and first road trip for Nora in November. We may need to be institutionalized come Christmas!

Happy Birthday Carter!

It's official! Carter is 2 years old! The birthday party was a big success, thanks in part to good weather. We invited a ton of people and being able to go outside made all the difference. We were so happy to share the event with all our friends and family, but for those of your who couldn't make it (or if you're just interested in the party details), here's the low-down...

Decorations

The theme was transportation. Planes, trains, and automobiles are all favorite toys for Carter so I tried to incorporate all of them into the party. I hung sky blue and white balloons (no helium) from the ceiling to make it look like the sky. Then I put my grade school skill of folding paper airplanes to use and hung some of those from the ceiling too. For a tablecloth, I ordered a bunch of transportation die-cuts from Little Extras, and arranged them randomly on top of a sky blue tablecloth. Then on top of all, I laid a huge piece of vinyl (available at fabric stores) to hold the die-cuts in place and make for easy cleanup.

Activity

You gotta have something for a bunch of kids to DO at a party, right? Since we had kids of various ages attending, I thought long about an activity that everyone could do. Something easy for little kids, but also fun for the older ones. I decided on The Great Paper Airplane Contest, with prizes for the best decorated and the best in flight. I gave the kids prefolded planes which they covered with stickers and decorated with crayons. Then they threw them off the top of the deck outside to test their flight skills. I designed the prize boxes in Adobe Illustrator.

Cake

I was inspired by Martha Stewart's Cupcakes book. For the middle cupcakes, I made red velvet cake with cream cheese frosting. Then I used royal icing to make the letters. On the outside, I had chocolate chip cupcakes with dark chocolate frosting. I added a yellow dashed line and gummie cars to make it look like a road. The cupcakes turned out okay...maybe a little dry. But I had baked them the day before the party so maybe that had something to do with it. Both frostings were very tasty though!

Goodie Bags

I received many compliments on the goodie bags, but I have to come clean here. The idea was not mine to claim. I found the idea here and made mine to be pretty similar. The suitcases were made from cereal boxes, spray painted brown and embellished with yellow bands and travel stickers. The luggage tags were my own creation (Illustrator again) though. They turned out great and tied in nicely with the theme. The guests picked them up from the "Baggage Claim" table as they left.

More photos can be seen on Facebook. Click this link:
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=225952&id=1012296258&l=68d16c6c42