Nursery completed

After a few final touches, we have finally completed Eden's nursery! We recently added the lamp, hung the quilt on the wall and thanks to my mom the rug and cute rose pillow. Thank you SO much to Lezlee for spending so much time on Eden's letters. They completed the room and they match her bedding perfectly!

Letters up close (click to see the amazing detail)

These two frames are on top of her bookcase! We're still filling it up because all of Claire's books are in her room. Any time I put books on Eden's shelf they get carted back to her room. Let's talk more about sharing huh?!

2 month appt & sleep

Just put Claire down for a nap (not an easy task these days) and I'm holding poor Eden - she got 5 shots and 1 oral vaccine so needless to say, she doesn't want to be put down. Poor baby! She screamed so loud and it took awhile to comfort her. Claire took shots well but not this sensitive one! Breaks my heart to hear my babies cry from pain when they're looking at me.

Eden's growing strong! She's 10 lbs. even and 22 1/8 inches long. They couldn't print out the percentile chart for me but she's about 50% on length and I think about 40% on weight. Everything else checked out fine physically.

Dr. Gulde asked his usual wellness questions and asked if she was smiling which she really isn't smiling socially yet - a little reflex grimace here and there. He also asked if she was "talking" and she isn't doing that really either. Just her grunts and animal noises. He could tell that by saying no to these questions I was concerned but he was really sensitive and great encouraging us not to worry. He said you can't rush developmental things and to just continue interacting with her. I asked about it being b/c she is premature and he said yes because she is more at the stages of a 6 week old rather than a 9 week old. That made me feel better. He also said that kids start showing their personalities this early and she just might not be the socialite that we've already experienced. So we just need more time and patience! Even though I know we aren't supposed to compare, it's so hard!

On another note, I got a chunk of almost 5 hours of sleep last night! I feel like a brand new woman! Neil fed Eden her last meal before bed so I could get some more sleep and she did great. I actually got 7.5 hours total which is more than I've gotten in one night in 8 weeks. I'm praying it wasn't a fluke. I'm a much better mom when I'm well rested. Not there after one night but it's a start. Claire's really hoping it continues so I'm more patient with her too =)

Eden's 2 months old!

Can't believe Eden's already 2 months old today (9 weeks on Tuesday)! She's certainly starting to look a lot more like an infant instead of a newborn. It's amazing how fast they change the first year. We celebrated today with a fun trip to church and we'll be out at life group tonight. It's our first one to go to that we aren't hosting since Eden was born! I'm wondering how all the timing will go with eating and driving. We have our dr. appt. on Thursday and anxious to see how long she is and how much she weighs!

Here is our little angel at 2 months with her bear. She nicked her face pretty bad yesterday so that's the red spot on her sweet cheek. I included a 1 month pic too for comparison:

One month

2 months




Here are the things we want to remember about this month:

- Eden found her hands! They have definitely found her mouth and she is starting to grab onto things like hair and jewelry - ouch! Claire has gotten her hair pulled many times but has been a good sport about it =)

- Eden has found her first friend outside of the fam - Mr. Fan! She is mesmerized by it even if it's standing still. I think she's trying to figure it out.

- We've gotten glimpses of smiles while she is awake but hoping they get more consistent soon!

- Eden is getting so big! She is getting her baby rolls on her legs and arms just like her sister. I love my marshmallow babies!

- Eden is sleeping going 4-5 hours between feedings at night after she tanks up with every 2 hours late evening. She's still working on sleeping a long time so I'm getting at the most increments of 3 hours of sleep at a time. Looking forward to her sleeping more like 6 hours and going to sleep right away. She likes to be held a lot from about 8-11p.m.

Some of my favorite pics from this month!

Taken New Year's Day
Sleeping Beauty


"Uh...excuse me...I have a question..."




We get this look a lot!! She gets this furrowed brow like she's trying to figure everything out or she's already questioning everything we do!

Rare pic of her sleeping with her arms out of her swaddle - we're trying to figure what she likes best now that she's getting bigger
Comforting Eden -she's such a good big sis
Love this one! Look at the shoes - Pitter Patter - I LOVE baby shoes! They're so darn cute! This is the same outfit as the first pic so you can see she's really grown into it at the end of the month
This was yesterday - I love these pics even if I look exhausted and pleasantly plump (not really pleasantly!)

How do sows do it?

I just put Claire down for a nap and read that a sow can have up to 27 piglets in one litter! Could you imagine? I just had an extremely tough morning and so it really hit me thinking "I only have two!" Yes, I know it's silly to compare what we do as moms to a pig but I just thought it amazing.

I really haven't been out and about with the girls by myself because the timing is so weird and hard to get down. By the time I get everyone ready to go after feeding Eden, I only have an hour and a half or so before she eats again. (And that's if she waits her 3 hours - sometimes it's 2.5 hours). Or when Claire gets up from a nap, I have to feed Eden shortly after... I'm learning all over again. This morning I went to run errands that I have to get done for tomorrow and realized why I don't go out much!! While leaving Hobby Lobby, Eden started crying pretty hard but fortunately stopped when the car started running. So I thought "Oh she'll be fine to go to Costco" - well, no! She had a melt down pretty much from when we got to Costco to when we pulled into the driveway. When I say cry, I mean scream - the tongue quiver, red faced, can't-catch-my-breath kind of crying that breaks your heart....Of course, Claire wasn't making things much better! She hasn't heard Eden cry like that so she was a little stressed too (probably because of me)!

Needless to say, I needed some blogging to be my stress relief. I know I have so much to do right now but this is so cathartic for me!

All that to say hats off to you mother sow! You amaze me!

Here are a few cute ones of my piglets:

Eden's Baby Blessing

Wow! We were so overwhelmed by the baby blessing that they gave us at church for Eden on Wednesday night. It was our first time to church on Wed. with all four of us. Before Eden, I usually went but Neil and Claire were home because of our early bedtime. On the way to church (6:45 p.m.) Claire said she was sleepy and wanted to sleep in the car!! By the time we left (8:40 or so), Claire was telling us she was tired and ready to go and Eden was crying because she was hungry! A little bit of a stressful evening but we had a great time with our family at Northside. Here are some pics:

The cake was AMAZING! It was strawberry with cream cheese icing - thank you Lora Klinge!

Everyone was so generous with Eden's piggy bank. Thanks Tina for setting everything up for us!
The proud grandparents with the guest of honor
Not the best group shot but these have been rare for us! Claire's holding a potato she got from class time. She loved that thing!
The whole crew - I was bending down but still got in the way of Mimi - sorry about that!
Eden slept the whole time - anyone surprised? My mom got this adorable outfit for her! She looked so sweet and cozy. Thanks mom!
Did I mention that the cake was AMAZING? Not only to an almost 3 year old! Claire thought it was Eden's birthday because it was a party with cake. She's still learning!
Proud "Uncle" Eric and "Aunt" Erin - So glad Erin came by after work! You guys are awesome
Here is Eden awake after I fed her at home - I had to get another good pic of her outfit with her eyes open. Btw, I just LOVE baby shoes! They're the cutest!

Where were you?

Today seems to be one of those moments in time when people will ask:

"Where were you when Obama became President?"

Well, I was home with my two wonderful girls watching as much as I could while having one of the fussiest days yet with Eden and juggling Claire's extra neediness! I was nursing during his historical speech - how's that for a memory?!

Obama seems to have really positively charged up a lot of people with such a monumental occasion as being our first African American president. We shouldn't forget that along with this, we also had our first women up for Pres and VP - times have certainly changed. Along with so many, I am so glad my girls will grow up seeing different kinds of people hold such prestigious positions. I pray that this reinforces that they can do whatever they want and be whoever they want to be. The sky's the limit...

I haven't posted anything political and that has been completely on purpose. I'm not much into politics. I know it's a touchy subject with some but I wish it didn't have to be. Politically, I wish we could all just agree to disagree on certain things and simply have a discussion. No matter if you are terrified that this change has occurred or you are ecstatic, there is no denying that we have made a huge step in our history. I pray that God's hand is in everything that Obama does. We all know that humans disappoint so even though so many are expecting such great things and a great turnaround, we must always remember to put our complete faith in God and not man. I'm excited for what this time might bring and look forward to how God will work through this man we now call President.

Claire Elise

I just wanted to write down a couple things to remember about our sweet Claire Bear! She's already 2 years and 10 months old and I'm trying to plan her third birthday party! Can't believe how fast it has flown by...

Obama

A couple weeks ago Neil was watching something on TV about President-Elect Obama and the name certainly caught Claire's ear. She said "Who's that?" so Neil said "Obama-He's going to be our president soon" and she responded "What does that mean?" =)
This was the first time she had asked a full question wanting to understand something! She usually would just say "Why" or "What" so this really caught my ear.

Santa

Claire loves to pretend more than anything. She will be someone while we are someone else relating to her. Now this could be a person we know or usually a character like Arthur, Cookie, Ernie, Belle, Ariel, The Wiggles, etc. Along with these characters, we are expected to speak in the appropriate voices and if we can't do the voice (usually me) she says "Can't do it?" and she thinks it's funny =) Well, the other day Claire was Santa and she surprised us by using the lowest "Ho, ho, ho" voice she could make! It was so sweet and her first attempt to do a voice with her characters!

My Breast Friend

For those who don't know, the BEST nursing pillow to use is lovingly called "My Breast Friend" and it quickly becomes that when you nurse all day long!

Last week, I was looking for the pillow and I said out loud "Where's my breast friend?" (I never actually call it that!) and Claire so sweetly said "I'm right here Mama!"

Isnt' that the sweetest thing? My heart melted!

Walking weather

Although it's been chilly in the mornings, there have a been a couple of BEAUTIFUL afternoons! Claire LOVES going on a walk but even more now that we have a "new" stroller for both of the girls to ride together. She loves that she gets to watch Eden from her seat. She constantly talks to her and kisses her feet =) We found it at a garage sale when I just found out I was pregnant and it was a great deal! It's a little hard to put in the car but easy to push around. I'm still thinking about getting a sit n' stand stroller and selling this one but for now, it's working out just fine. Here are some pics from our walk sometime last week.

The stroller is a Graco so it works with our car seat for Eden!

Claire peeks through to keep an eye on baby sister! She insisted on putting all of Eden's toys on her car seat that day.
We got this sign from the company that gives the RSV vaccination - Synagis. She got the first dose in the hospital upon my request because it's used for babies 35 weeks and younger. We just found out that the insurance declined covering that rest of the doses because Eden was 35 weeks and 1 day - can you believe that? To pay for it on our own it would be $2600 every month till March or April! With that being said, I encourage everyone to constantly wash your hands!! It's the best way to prevent spreading things around! RSV is going around and it makes me so nervous!
Cheese Ball
Eden's wondering when I'm going to stop taking pictures of her - better get used to it girl!
Our view on our way back to the house. Claire asked why the sky was so pretty and I said it was because God made it that way so she exclaimed to the neighborhood "Thank you God for making the sky pretty!" I tried to get it on video but no such luck

Eden's First Post

Well, since mommy is busy, I thought I would write the blog world about some of my favorite things! My most favorite thing right now is sleep. Mom says I get that one from her! I’m a really good sleeper but sometimes I just want to be held between 9 p.m. and 1 a.m. You know, it’s one of my favorite times because Daddy gets the first nigh time shift with me =) It’s great daddy/daughter bonding time!

I love taking my bath! The warm water calms me down after being naked and cold. I just sit and relax while I get nice and clean. I really love it when my big sister helps! She talks so sweet to me and pours water on my tummy to keep me warm. I especially love it when mommy cleans my hair with a soft brush. I think mommy and daddy are funny because they always take pictures of me in my cute hooded towels – that must be their favorite part!


When I’m awake, I like to hang out in my swing and bouncy chair. It’s the perfect height for Claire to hang out with me too! I also like wearing my pretty bows so everyone knows I’m a girl =) People are so silly these days! It doesn’t matter if I’m dressed in pink head to toe, they still think I’m a boy!

One of my other favorite things is my straight jacket – I mean, my swaddle blanket! It keeps my arms close to my body so I don’t wake myself up! It also makes me feel nice a warm like being in mommy’s tummy.

After I eat, mommy likes to hang out and talk. I really like to see her when we’re talking so I just pull my head up nice and straight to look in her eyes. She makes funny faces at me, talks in a high voice and tells me "good job" when I do it!


This picture is of something I’m not too excited about but it calms me down every once in a while. The paci makes me scrunch up my face and turn my head. I will take it when I’m really hungry and am waiting for mommy to get ready and sometimes when I’m fussy in the car. I don’t think I’ll become attached though… I’d rather use my mouth for eating and making noise!