2 Months

Jackson is two months old today, and I am amazed at how quickly the time has flown by. It really does go by much faster the second time. He seems so big, and I wish I could freeze time and just keep him a baby forever. I love looking at him and holding him and am trying to soak up every second. It has been such a blessing having my mom here to help, because I feel like I have gotten the chance to really enjoy this special time with Jackson.

He is really beginning to talk more lately. He says "Ah goo" a lot and smiles all the time if you talk to him. His little smile is just the sweetest thing. It is the first thing I see in the morning, and it really does make all of the late night feedings totally worth it. He continues to be a happy little guy, but he has started to have some serious meltdowns, especially around dinner time. Between 5-8:00 pm we are pretty much guaranteed to see Jackson totally freak out for no apparent reason. Nothing seems to calm him down, and he does not like to be held. Most nights, he ends up swaddled tightly, in his swing, with the hair dryer blasting next to him until he falls asleep. When he wakes up, it is as if the incident never happened. According to the doctor, it is probably colic. Most babies outgrow colic by 12-14 weeks.

Jackson's health has really taken a turn for the better. His new reflux medicine is wonderful and has helped with his congestion. He is much more comfortable during feedings and afterward. His sleep has improved greatly, which makes both of us feel better. The one area of Jackson's health that has not gotten better is the Thrush. We both still have it after 3 weeks of treatment. He is starting a new medicine tomorrow, and I have to speak with my doctor to discuss my treatment. I really hoped that we would get this under control, but it is proving to be quite tricky to get rid of.

We are beginning to develop a bit of a schedule around here. Now that he is able to sleep better, Jackson can go 3 hours between feedings during the day. He pretty much eats, is awake for about an hour, and then naps for 30 minutes, with one long nap towards the middle of the day. At night, he has one long stretch of sleep that typically lasts 4-5 hours. We even had a 6.5 hour stretch the other night!

Happy Two Months, Baby Jack! We all love you very much!

Charlie at Age Two

-Charlie is a people person. He really does not want to play by himself yet and does not have many toys that he enjoys. The little guy would much rather do whatever the grownups are doing - cleaning, laundry, cooking, etc. He can be the best helper. He loves the new grill that he got for his birthday because he can pretend to cook. He has become a very good pretender, and it is so fun to watch his little imagination growing.

-Music, singing, and dancing are a big part of Charlie's day. You will often see him bopping around the house and singing a song. One of our favorite family activities is a dance party. Charlie insists that everyone dance with him. He loves to listen to music in the car, and starts asking for it to be turned on as soon as we start buckling him in his car seat.

-He still loves to read. Every night, he goes to bed with a handful of books. We will often hear him reading to himself at night and walk into his room to find him reading in the morning or after a nap. He does not allow me to read to him. Instead, he wants us to read together. He reads his book while I read my own. Nick has much better luck actually reading to him. We can't quite figure that one out.

-If you want a good laugh, hang around our house for the day. Charlie is hilarious. He is just plain, old silly. He knows it, too. Once he gets a laugh out of you, he will keep going and going and going to get more attention. His belly laugh is still one of the best sounds I have ever heard.

-Charlie has officially entered the terrible twos. He screams, hits, throws things, and tests the boundaries all day long. Nick and I are trying all sorts of strategies to help him through this tough emotional time, but it is hard to remain patient at times. It is especially hard when Charlie looks us straight in the eye, smiles, and then does exactly what he is not supposed to be doing. Right now, we are doing time outs and ignoring him when he whines. He has started to ask nicely for things, but still needs frequent reminders. The next thing we need to work on is using an inside voice. The boy is LOUD!

-Playing outside is by far one of Charlie's favorite things to do. We built a retaining wall in the backyard last fall, but all of the rain slowed the progress. So we really have not had a chance to enjoy it. We are having sod put down this week, and we will soon have a swing set. I know Charlie will be in heaven once we can get out there and play.

-Communicating with Charlie has become so much easier. He is talking up a storm, and adds new words to his vocabulary every day. He loves to repeat new words that he hears and is proud of himself when he does. I am constantly amazed by how much he understands. The other day, as I was changing his diaper, I told him that his lovey was above his head without pointing. He looked up and found Lovey quickly. I was so surprised because we don't really spend a lot of time emphasizing where things are ( behind, under, etc.). The rest of the day, I made a conscious effort to point items out using these words, and I found that Charlie understood most of the directions I gave. Nick and I have been blown away by his mental development and growth over the past few months.

-Despite the recent increase in tantrums, Charlie really is a sweet, cuddly, loving little boy. He still loves to be held, and he is quick to give out hugs and kisses. His affection for me, in particular, has grown since Jackson's birth. He asks me to hold him a lot and gives me big bear hugs whenever we have alone time. He has started grabbing our hands and holding them close to his chest. I hope that he will always be willing to give me a hug like he does now.

I Love You, Dadda!

Nick was the first one to hear the three magic words that every parent can't for their child to say. Nick asked Charlie for a kiss yesterday, and after giving his Dadda a kiss, Charlie said, "I love you, Dadda." It is a phrase that both Nick and I have been longing to hear for two years, and it was so special because Charlie said it without any prompting. It was a heart-felt I love you moment for him, and I am so happy that Nick got to experience that with his son. I have to admit, I am a little envious that I have yet to hear Charlie say the same to me. Nick was very sweet, and tried to get Charlie to say it to me too. Of course Charlie would not perform on command, and that's fine. I will wait for my sincere I love you moment with Charlie. It will be a day to remember forever.

Happy St. Patrick's Day

We honored our Irish roots today by wearing green. Thanks to Auntie M, the boys looked adorable.

It's Love

I am head over heals in love with these two beautiful boys! Things are crazy around here most days. Despite the craziness, I get to kiss and hug these boys every day. That makes me the luckiest mommy on the planet!!!

You Know You're Tired When...

Your husband wakes you up to let you know that the baby is crying. You sleepily reassure your hubby that you know the baby is crying and that you are taking care of it. Hubby taps you again and tells you that the baby is in the other room. You open your eyes to realize that you are patting the air and holding an imaginary baby. Oh goodness!

I now understand why sleep deprivation is used as a form of torture.

Party Planning Madness

I have a problem...I am the first to admit it...I might need help. I have an unhealthy LOVE for party planning. The shopping and planning for Charlie's party started back in September. I knew that I wanted to have Elmo as the theme. With the colors red, orange, and white in mind, I started shopping sales, Dollar General, and the dollar section at Target. All of the advanced planning made it easy to get ready for the big day. I started decorating a little bit each day the week before the party, so all we really needed to do was get the food and make cupcakes. Nick thinks I am nutty for doing all of this decorating, but it is all worth it. Charlie noticed every decoration as it went up, and I have to say, he loves the new Elmo decor in the house. It is still up, and it probably will be for a few more days!

Partying Hard - Elmo Style

We celebrated Charlie's 2nd birthday with friends and family on Saturday. The theme of the party was Elmo...Charlie's favorite friend. It was great having all of our friends and their kiddos over to help Charlie wring in his birthday. He was a little intimidated by all of the attention at first, but he quickly turned around and started to bask in the attention. Charlie, for some strange reason, does not like the happy birthday song. So, instead everyone wished him a happy birthday. He was not crazy about that either, but he did enjoy blowing out the candles. We also decided to ask guests not to bring gifts for Charlie. In lieu of gifts, everyone brought new books and pajamas to donate to needy children. I am so excited to say that we collected 33 pairs of pajamas and 20 books for The Pajama Program.

It was a fun day, and we are so lucky to have such amazing people in our lives. Unfortunately, because he has been sick, Jackson had to skip out on the party. Our pediatrician recommended that we keep him away from the party goers or cancel the party in order to avoid further illness. My parents offered to keep him at their house during the party. I was sad not to have Jackson and my parents at the party, but it was the best thing for the little man. Charlie still got to see his Grandma and Grandpa on his big day, so he was happy.

When it Rains it Pours

Poor Jackson has had one problem after another. We made our 8th trip to the pediatrician yesterday. Jackson's congestion has become a real issue with eating and sleeping. Our nights are pretty miserable. Last week, I thought that he might have an ear infection because I noticed some gunk in his ears. There was no ear infection, but the doctor did discover that he has Thrush. It is a yeast infection in the mouth. Since I am nursing, it means that I too have it. We are now both on meds to treat the infection. Apparently it is pretty tricky to get rid of because we will keep passing it back and forth to each other...yay. We headed back to the doctor yesterday because his congestion has yet to improve. They wanted to make sure that it had not traveled to his chest and ears. So far, it has remained in his nasal passages. If things do not improve by Friday, we are back to see the doctor for an antibiotic. The reason for waiting is so that we can clear the Thrush up first.

I feel just awful for Jackson. He is so little and does not understand why he feels crappy. The days are okay. He eats every two hours and just wants to be held a lot. Nights are the worst. He whimpers and moans in his sleep - when he can sleep. We have him propped up on an incline or in his swing so that he can breathe and to help his reflux. He usually gets one good stretch of sleep (3-4 hours), and then it is all down hill. He whimpers and moans the rest of the night and wakes frequently to nurse for a few minutes. Needless to say, neither of us is sleeping very well.

Even though he has so many things going wrong in his tiny body, Jackson still keeps a smile on his face. Seriously, he smiles all of the time. He can be gagging on meds one minute, and then he will give me a big, gummy grin. It melts my heart. hopefully, our sweet smiling boy will be well soon.

Happy 2nd Birthday, Charlie Shaw!!!

Happy birthday to our lovey loving, tooth brushing, stinky bag carrying, book reading, cleaning, dancing, silly face making, hug and kiss giving boy! You have filled the last two years of Momma and Dadda's lives with more love and joy than you will ever know. We could not be more proud of the independent little man you have become. Love you, love you, love you!!!

We had a relaxing day at home for Charlie's birthday. Jackson decided to sleep in until 9:30 am, so Charlie's day started off with over an hour and a half of alone time with Momma and Dadda. We had breakfast together and played hard. The little man was in heaven. He seemed to know that it was his special day today and was in very good spirits. He took a huge nap this afternoon and then enjoyed playing outside with Nick. We had cake after dinner, and Charlie really liked blowing out the candles. He also liked taking a huge bite out of the cake before I got a chance to cut it. It was such a great way to celebrate Charlie's birthday, and I am glad I decided to have his party next weekend so that we could just hang out and enjoy his actual birthday.

Charlie was hamming it up for pictures in his birthday shirt. The ones below are of him saying cheese and letting me know that he is done with the photo shoot. What a nut!