Happy 6 months Chad!

Today Chad is 6 months old. He is such a blessing, such a joy, such a happy baby. He's pretty much still sleeping through the night. An occasional waking here and there from his little head rolling over onto his pacifier. Must not feel too good. Then, sometimes he'll wet through his diaper, so that can't be too comfy. Especially when it's so cold! I weighed him the other day, and it said 19 lbs! Geez, he's so big! I can't believe he weighs so much at just 6 months old. I take him in for his 6 month checkup on Jan. 8th, so we'll get a more accurate reading on his weight then. He eats everything, he loves it all, it's crazy. He is so different then Maddie. She is very picky like me, and Chad is the total opposite, will probably take after Chris. These past 6 months have had it's ups and downs (emotionally), but I'm so happy to say that things are great! Chad just loves Maddie, he can't take his eyes off her when she's in the room. He's just started to develop a little temper too. If Maddie takes a toy away from him he'll just cry and fuss until it's returned back to him. We're trying to teach Maddie that if Chad is playing with something, she can't just grab it out of his hand, and if she does take something from him, then she needs to replace it with a different toy. I am so looking forward to the next 6 months. Chad will be sitting on his own before we know it. He's already starting to sit in his stroller, he likes to hold on to the back of Maddie's seat. now, if I could just keep him from grabbing at her and pulling her hair. It really upsets Maddie. Happy 2008!

Christmas was a success! Bring on the New Year!

Christmas Eve morning we let Maddie and Chad each open up one gift from me and Chris. Maddie opened up her playdough set, and Chad opened up soemething to chew on, which kept him occupied for awhile.


Then, Jacob (my nephew) came over, and him and Maddie played and kept each other occupied for a little bit. Then, Jacob started getting ancy to open up gifts. My brother was late as usual (LOL), so Jacob was getting really irritated. Poor thing. I remember at that age, I couldn't wait to eat and start openeing presents. So, we told him, as soon as we eat, we'll open gifts. So, he thought if he ate first, he could open presents sooner, it was so cute. The food wasn't even ready yet, and he went into the kitchen, grabbed his plate, and said, he's first in line :) So, he ate, then sat on the couch looking out the window waiting for his dad

Finally they arrived (they were only a half hour late, but to a kid, it seems like eternity), everyone ate, and presents went flying. Maddie got tons of stuff to play with, Barbie guitar, Disney chair, Princess dress, books, clothes, markers, etc.

And Jacob finally got his XBox 360, he was so excited.

So, after presents, we had cookies, and then everyone left. I told Maddie we had to leave cookies and milk for Santa, and carrots for the reindeer. She couldn't wait to pick out a carrot for rudolph!

So, she picked one, and then she helped me poor the milk,

picked out some cookies, and then finally got her to bed, and then me and Chris were up late wrapping, and putting together the Rose Petal Cottage.



Christmas morning Maddie slept in till 9:30! I was up around 8 with Chad, and couldn't wait for Maddie to get up! When she got up, she couldn't wait to see if Santa brought her rose petal cottage, then when she walked out to the living room, Chris had the song from the commercial playing, man, she was all smiles... and said "ya, that's what I wanted!" It was so cute. She couldn't stop laughing. She immediately started to move the sink and crib around, like they do in the commercial. She was in HEAVEN!

Then she started to open her presents, but kept getting distracted and going back to the RPC. We put Chad in his walker and opened the presents for him. I think he was more into the wrapping paper then anything.

Chris and I exchanged small gifts this year. We just wanted to focus on the kids, especially since this is the first year Maddie really understood what was going on. So, I'm getting my hair done for Christmas, and have decided to go back to blonde. I'm so tired of my hair being dark. It just depresses me. I think that's what my problem has been lately, just tired of feeling yucky :( So that was our Christmas, looking forward to next year when Chad will be walking. Seems like such a long time away, but I know it will come quickly!

The cutest thing ever!

So, today I went into work for a little bit because Chris came home due to the rain. When I came home, all three of them were passed out in the bed. It was so darn cute!

My miracle baby!

Chad is still falling asleep on his tummy, still sleeping through the night. He very rarely cries or causes a fuss. He eats everything we give him. He even loves peas and green beans. This morning I thought I finally found something he didn't like (PEACHES), he made a funny face like he was eating something sour. But, he kept eating it. Again, we'll see how long all this lasts. Maddie is such the opposite, it's crazy. I'm so tired of ordering her a cheeseburger minus the meat, plain! She is so darn picky!

Little girl...... BIG feet!

We took Maddie to Stride Rite the other day to get her some new shoes, because we felt her old shoes were getting a little snug. I didn't want to believe it, because she was already in a size 8. It seems like every time we go to get her shoes, her feet have grown another 1/2 size. So, my suspicions were correct. She did need bigger shoes. The saleswoman said she was now a 9 1/2. I was like, no way! There's no way! The size 9 1/2's were monstorous! So, we settled for a size 9, which still looked so big on her feet, my little angel. I wanted to get her some boots (they looked like uggs), but the size 9's were too small (her toe was right at the edge) and they didn't come in 1/2 sizes. I just couldn't get her a size 10. Just didn't seem right.

Santa and Chad

So, we've been practicing with Maddie all month to see Santa. She was all ready and excited to see him. Even when we were standing in line, she was being so brave, rehearsing her lines, of what she wanted for Christmas. Then, when we got in there, we stood in front of Santa, and Santa started talking to her, and he asked her what she wanted for Christmas, and she said "I want the Rose Petal Cottage", and Santa said he'd see what he could do. Then I put Chad on Santa's lap, and asked Maddie if she would sit on his lap so we could get a picture so she could take it home and look at it, and the tears started flowing. She wouldn't let go of Chris for nothin. So, this year just a pic of Chad. He wasn't phased one bit as you can tell.

Something spooky... yet silly!

So, last night I was rocking Maddie, and she pointed in the air and said "who's that guy?" And I said "what guy?" She pointed to nothing and said "that guy". I said "what's he look like?" And she said "he's white". So, I started to get a little freaked out, because here I'm thinking she's seeing a ghost. I called for Chris, and I told Maddie to tell daddy what she's seeing. So, she tells Chris, and he looked around and couldn't figure out what the hell she was talking about. So, Chris starts asking her questions about this guy, and she tells him he's white, with a big beard. Turns out, she was pointing to a christmas card, clear across the room hanging over the bar. We just started cracking up. Here I thought she was seeing a ghost.

Well, the reason I was thinking that is because she has this imaginary person, who she gets all scared about. His name is BOBBY. She says he lives in the hallway. Totally freaks me out. Sometimes she gets scared for no reason and will run really fast yelling "here comes Bobby". And sometimes when she sleeps she has these really bad night terrors. Where she'll start grabbing at the air, and will cry uncontrollably, there's no waking her what-so-ever, we just have to let her ride it out. Crazy stuff!

Tis the season....

This weekend we finally got up our Christmas tree. We have a fake one, and I really wanted to get a real one this year, but we just decided to put up the fake one to save some money. Trees seem to be getting more and more expensive each year. Maddie had fun decorating, even though it was hard for her to stick the ornaments on the tree, she gave up after a few, and just watched me, and then would take them off after I put them on, that little stinker.

She loves all the lights on the tree and all over the house. Yesterday morning when she woke up, she said "lets go look at all the christmas decorations." It's so cute the way she talks. Chad gets excited when he sees the tree with all the lights, he squeels and squeeks when he gets excited, it's so darn cute.

Can't wait for Christmas Day this year. Maddie is so excited for the Rose Petal Cottage, and I can't wait to see her face when she gets up in the morning and see's it all put together!

Kids say the funniest things.

Yesterday Maddie told me that she was going to have a baby someday with the Jonas Brothers, that they are cute boys! How funny (and scary) is that!

Major Crisis... Maddie and her dolly.

Ok, so Maddie takes her dolly everywhere. And she's got about 6 different ones that she just loves! So, she trades off which one she wants to take with her. Well, today we went to Target, and she wanted to take Baby MARCO with us. First off, meaning behind the name, she's into this one episode of Sesame Street, where Gina (the Vet) adopts a baby, and his name is Marco. So, Maddie had to name one of her babies Marco, super funny! So, anyway, we're at Target, and she brings baby Marco. We do our shopping, and we're out in the parking lot, and Maddie realizes she has lost baby Marco. OMG, major crisis! So, I take her back into Target, and re-track our steps. Finally, I saw baby Marco's legs sticking out from a clothes rack! Phew! I grabbed baby Marco and gave him (well, it's actually a girl dolly) to Maddie, who was in tears by this point. Poor little thing. Baby Marco is now safe at home ;)

I feel like I'm ALWAYS shopping!

Does anyone else have this problem? I swear, I go to the store like 3-4 times a week it seems like. I think I have everything I need, then before I know it, I need diapers for Chad. Then I need diapers for Maddie. Then, Chad is out of applesauce. Uh oh, Maddie needs bananas again. Woops, out of Mac N Cheese! Crap, need more wipes. I swear, it's never-ending. And I don't ever have my own money because I work from home, and don't get many hours in, so I'm always having to write a check, then get it from Chris to put in my bank. Agh! I guess what I need to do is take an inventory before I leave the house. Maybe make a check-list. I just need to get a little more organized.

Starting to see some light at the end of the tunnell!

Well, things are finally starting to calm down around here. We're all finally feeling like things are falling into place. I never thought I'd be saying that, but I can finally breathe again! It use to be so difficult when we first brought Chad home. I didn't know what to do. Chad would cry, and Maddie would cry, what was I suppose to do? Can't comfort both of them at the same time. Don't know how I did it, but I managed. Maddie (bless her little heart) would just look at me with those big blue eyes, thumb in mouth, blankie rubbed up against her cheek, wanting me to rock her, while Chad is waking from a nap, frantic, wet and hungry. "Don't hold him momma, rock me, rock me" Not sure how to reason with a two year old, not sure if they understand, but somehow, Maddie did. She would climb up on the couch, and lay there and watch her shows until I was done with Chad, then once I layed him down, she'd crawl up onto my lap for her turn to rock and cuddle. I would feel so bad, like I was putting Chad first, and her second. But I'd explain to her that Chad can't talk, he can't do anything by himself, we have to help him, together. Just hoping she would understand, that mommy still loved her as much as she use too, if not more. I look at her, and am amazed by how much she has grown. just by looking at her new recent pic's, and her pic's from when she turned one, how her facial features have changed, her hair has grown (thank god!), but the one thing that has stayed the same, is that beautiful little smile of hers, and that sweet little dimple!

So, today, Maddie has gotten the swing of things. She knows what to expect. She knows that mommy has to feed Chad. She knows that she will get her mommy time no matter what. Just now she has to be a little more patient, and understand that she can't have everything she wants NOW NOW NOW!

Chad has started to fall asleep in his crib on his own. Not sure how I lucked out with that, but it kinda just started happening. I didn't put him down meaning for him to nap at first. I just layed him in the crib because I needed to put a load of laundry in. I put the monitor on so I could hear him. And, I realized that he was just hanging out, not fussy, so I thought I'd let him lay in there while I played with Maddie. Next thing I know, I walked in there to check on him, and he was sound asleep. Not thinking that would ever happen again, I put him down when I thought he was ready for his nap, and the same thing happened. After awhile, he just fell asleep. And, the really weird thing is, he doesn't cry. Maybe because I put him on his tummy (he loves loves loves laying on his tummy) and he is just comfy. Well, we're going on day two of this, so we will see how long it lasts.

Christmas Pic's

Last night we took the kids to get their Christmas Pic's done. Surprisingly it went well. Other then the long wait at Babies R Us. We had a 7:00 appt., and didn't get in until 7:45! So, Chad was a bit fussy, not to mention a little constipated! Madison however was loving the camera, and the camera loves her! She put her shyness away, and was giggling, posing, I was shocked! Hmmm.. maybe she'll grow up to be a model :) Chad wouldn't sit still, nor would he crack a smile. Like I said, he was constipated, so he was a bit uncomfortable. We only got two pic's with him in it, and the lady at Babies R Us had to take one of the pic's and make a close up of his face just so we could get one of him by himself :) So, they turned out really cute. Next challenge, to get Christmas pic's with Santa. Maddie is so shy that I'm certain that is going to turn out disasterous, but we must try! I told her she needs to tell Santa what she wants or she might not get the right stuff :)

Sleeping issues!

Well, I thought it may be too good to be true, because the falling asleep on her own, well, didn't last! I've come to find out that this only happens when she's super tired, which isn't often! I swear, my kids don't sleep! Poor little Chad cannot take a peaceful nap, as soon as I lay him down, he wakes, either by Maddie being loud and obnoxious, or by the slightest little noise. He sleeps pretty well if he falls asleep in his swing, which is where he takes the majority of his naps. At night I usually have to rock him to sleep, and he will sleep all night, thank god! Today I was having problems getting him to sleep, 1pm came around, and Maddie was tired and cranky, and Chad just couldn't fall asleep, I tried everything. So, I thought, well, I will just lay him on his tummy in his bed and see what happens. He of course cried and cried. Maddie wanted me to rock her, and I told her I needed to go check on Chad. Well, she wouldn't have it, she started to cry and carry on, so I said, ok, we'll just sit here and rock and watch Chad cry. I knew in time she would feel sorry for him. I kept telling her... "See Maddie, Chad is all by himself, he's really sad right now, don't you think it would be nice if we went in there and gave him his pacifier?" She said "No momma, you stay right there, Maddie go check on Chad." So, she went in the room and I could here her through the monitor "It's gonna be alright Chad, don't cry Chad" then she came walking out and said "Momma, now you go help him", sweet little angel, I knew in time she would feel bad, she just loves her little brother. So, we both went in there and I popped the pacifier in his mouth, rubbed his little back, and he just went to sleep. I think he was just so exhausted, from crying and all, that he just gave out. So, every day has it's own challenges, a new day brings something new.

Proud mommy

This past week, Maddie has been falling asleep on her own, I never thought this day would come! Chris and I use to have to lay down with her in order to get her to sleep, and some nights it would take hours, because she would just goof off and not try and sleep. I found that if I put her in bed, and tell her she can watch one show, then she needs to go night night, she actually will lay in there, watch her one show, and then go to sleep. I'm so proud of her. I tell her she's such a big girl to go to sleep on her own. She loves to be praised, and gets the biggest smile. She really is proud of herself, and I think the more I praise her, the more she wants to do on her own :)

Not so fun pumpkin searching!

This weekend we took the kids to the pumpkin patch. Not the best experience this year. We went at nap time....... BAD IDEA! When we got there, we went to search for a pumpkin. It was so hot that all the pumpkins were yucky!

And, there were no trees, no shade, and it was so hot. Maddie was getting irritated, maybe from all the pic's I was trying to take. She wouldn't look at the camera, or smile, so none of the pic's turned out that great, and of course, Chad wasn't into the pictures either. I think maybe because the sun was in their eyes. I forgot Maddie's "bing" (receiving blanket) and I didn't have a bottle for her in the diaper bag. Oh man was she pissed! She just wanted her bing. She didn't want to take a wagon ride, or go look at the animals, she was over it. We were there for about 20 min. We grabbed a few pumpkins, and went to stand in line to pay, and the line was like a mile long. So, I said forget it, we'll get our pumpkins elsewere, totally a wasted trip!
Last night Chris brought home some pumpkins, Maddie had a great time painting hers while her daddy carved the big one.

Our big boy is getting so strong!

Chad is slowly but surely getting stronger. Just this morning, he started being able to prop himself on his arms. He's still a little wobbly and plops down after a little bit, then he gets really frusterated because he wants to get back up. So funny to watch. Before I know it he'll be trying to sit, crawl, stand, then walk. Can't wait for all the fun milestones! We are thinking about starting him on cereal today. Just another week before he turns 4 months, but I just can't wait, and I don't think he can either. Every time he sees us eating, he starts to lick his lips and stuff, poor little guy is hungry for some real food!

Oh, and how adorable is this pic of Maddie, too cute not to post. Check out those dimples!

Where has the time gone?

Chad is approaching 4 months old. I can't believe how big he's getting. He's already 15 lbs! I call him my little chunky monkey. I had to get out some of his 6-9 month clothes, because some of his pants weren't fitting around his little (well, big) tummy :)

Madison has finally hit the terrible two's, at 2 1/2! I thought, wow, I've got it made, I'm not going to have to deal w/ tantrums, etc. But, oh my, it's BAD! If she doesn't get her way, watch out.

Maddie and Chad have both been exposed to the FIFTH DISEASE! My newphew came down with it somehow, and he was over on Friday/Saturday. Sunday he woke up with a rash, poor little pumpkin. His mom took him to the dr., and they said it's not contagious, but I've been reading up on it, and it's actually very contagious the week before the rash breaks out. Yikes. So, I have to keep a close eye, fingers crossed they don't get it.

Halloween is coming up. Chad is going to be a Sweet Pea, and Maddie is going to be Minnie Mouse. She begs me daily to wear her costume, because she can twirl really good in the dress :)

Will write more later. I should be working right now, both kids are napping. SWEET!

Our Vegas trip, 2007!

Saturday morning we left for Vegas, got a late start, but better late then never. I wasn't sure how Maddie would do, having to stay at someone else's house, since she's never been away from home (except when she was 6 months old). Well, she freaked out a little bit. It took her a good hour to get use to everyone at my Uncle's house. Then, I took her to see my Grandparents (which is attached to my Uncles) and she clammed up again and started crying all over again. Poor thing, it was pretty tramatic for her. But, Chad could care less! He was all smiles, which really made my grandparents happy.

I got to meet my new little cousin, Richie, he is so cute, he's 4 weeks old. It's cool to think that in just a few years, Chad will have a little buddy to play with when we come visit.

Maddie met a new little friend, Nalani. My aunt's sister was also staying the weekend, and Nalani is her 3 year old daughter. Thank god for her, because I don't think Maddie could have made it through the trip without her. They had a lot of fun playing together.

We didn't have much opportunity to go to the casino's to gamble, which really bummed Chris out. But, the whole point of the trip was to spend as much time with my grandparents as possible. And that we did!

I really was looking forward to taking Maddie to the strip at night so she could see all the lights, but when we got there, they had plans to go to dinner, so we did that the first night. Then Sunday night, my Uncle had planned a birthday BBQ for my aunt, and Maddie didn't take a nap, so she was really tired and cranky, so there was no way we were going out on the town with her. So, on the way home, we drove down to the strip and walked around a little bit. She wasn't too interested though, except for the M&M guy that was standing out front the M&M store, she just loved him.

Well, that's about it for now.

Our pool......... for a day!

It was so hot the past few weeks, that Chris went out and bought a big pool that all of us could go in and enjoy, and get out of the heat. We were all very excited, especially Madison.

As you can see, she was all ready to go in her little life-jacket. She thought it was so cool that it was so big. Once it filled up a bit more though she got a little scared, I think it was a bit overwhelming for her.




It took over 3,000 gallons to fill the pool up. So, by the time it was filled to the top, it was dark, and starting to get cool out, so we went in for the night, looking forward to the next day to where we could all get in and swim. Well, later that night, my mom came in to tell us that the backyard was flooded. Chris went outside, and found that there was a huge rip in the bottom of the pool. Agh, what a nightmare! Chris had to take it back to K-mart the next day, at least we got our money back. Not looking forward to the water bill though!

Pigtails!

Madison's hair is growing, finally! I'm now able to put cute little pigtails in her hair. Unfortunately, they do not stay in for long. She gets really excited at first and will stand in front of the mirror for about 5 minutes looking at herself and talking to herself, then after that, she's pretty much over it and rips them out. Oh well, I'm sure if I keep putting them in her hair, she will eventually get use to it.

A happy face!

It's been ages since I posted something, I have been so busy w/ these two children, that I barely have time for myself these days.

Today Chad is 7 weeks old, as I always say, it's amazing how fast time flies. Seems like just yesterday I was bringing him home from the hospital. My recovery this time around was so easy, I hardly remember being in any pain. Chad started smiling last week, but I was just able to capture it on camera just the other day. He is so darn cute! Usually when he wakes up at 3 am, I'm so exhausted, and cranky because I just want to sleep, but then when I take him and lay him on the changing table, and he looks up at me w/ that big adorable grin, I am no longer tired, nor irritated, you just can't be w/ that big grin looking up at you, it just melts my heart.

Madison is such a great big sister! She's so mature for her age, and is so gentle w/ him. Every time he cries, she runs up to him and pats his little tummy and says "your stomach hurt Chad? Aww!" It's so cute. And then she'll say "I pet him?" Then she touches his little head and gives him a kiss. And she's very good about putting his pacifier in his mouth when it falls out. Also, when he's in his swing, she sometimes stops it so that she can bend down and kiss him. It really is way too cute. I'm so lucky that she is so good with him. That was one thing I was worried about.

Well, I will try and be better about posting more stuff more frequently.

Maddie went Pee Pee in the Potty!

Tonight me and Chris were giving Maddie a bath, and Chris was playing around sticking his head underwater and blowing bubbles, Maddie was laughing so hard, it was so cute. All of a sudden, she reached out to me and said "Momma, pee pee" and I was like, REALLY??? So, I grabbed her quickly out of the bathtub, because at first I thought she said poo poo, and I didn't want her pooing in the tub, so I stuck her on her potty, all wet and sudsy, and wrapped her in a towel. She was still laughing at how funny Chris was being. Then after like two minutes, I asked her if she was all done, and she stood up, and there was pee pee in the potty. I showed it to her, and she got so excited, clapping her hands and jumping up and down, it was so cute, and she was so proud of herself. She gave me a giant hug, and then wanted back in the bath tub. I would be so lucky if she were to be potty trained before the baby gets here. We'll have to really keep working on this.

Maddie's Two Year Check-up!

Today Maddie had her two year check-up. The Doctor was surprised to hear that she can say her ABC's and count to 13! She was also very impressed that Maddie can catch a ball and draw a circle. Maddie weighs 29 lbs and is 36 1/2 inches tall. She's in the 75th percentile for weight and the 95th percentile for height, which means she is going to be tall like her Daddy. The visit ended with a nasty shot for Hep A, which of course Maddie cried, but was all better when the doctor gave her two stickers. She's the best little pumpkin!