Funny Faces

Rhonald's mom came today to help me out over the weekend so we started off with a bang and carved pumpkins! We did it before Paw Paw had to leave so that he could help clean them out (smart huh?). Let me begin by saying that this is normally Rhonald's job and will be from now on but he is working a lot and could not get to it this year. Cole refused to put his hand in the pumpkin but did think it was fun to smell them! Once we cleaned them out Grandma and I tried to use these stencils I bought and make race cars on the pumpkins. 2 adults and 1 pumpkin later and we threw it out...and decided to carve funny faces instead. Cole did not want anything sad or scary - he said he wanted happy pumpkins so we did just that ... and we were all happy in the end!

A Sonshine School Halloween

Cole had a big day at school Wednesday for their annual Halloween party! Obviously, he is dressing up as Buzz Light Year this year. He was so cute when I took him in to school. People would say "Hi Buzz!" and he would look at me and say "I am Cole Mama." I had to explain to him that they were just pretending with him!!! The school was brave enough to have trick or treating and a pizza party all in one day which made one little boy very, very happy! Cole loved trick or treating - his favorite item he got was a small notebook that he scribbles in. So cute! He was also super excited when I explained to him that it was not Halloween yet and he gets to wear his costume again on Sunday. We love Cole's school and things like this are good reminders of why we send him there.

Lily Kate At 3 Weeks

I had always heard that you never take as many pictures of your second child as you do of your first and I swore I would not be that mom but...I am here to tell you that I am that mom and am going to strive to do better! Sweet Lils is 3 weeks old today and gets more perfect every second. She loves to be held and expects to be whenever she is awake! She is eating so well and growing quickly. Yesterday she moved up to 0-3 month size clothes! She usually goes to bed around 10 pm and wakes up twice to eat at night. To me that is wonderful since Cole was up every hour or two for months. Rhonald is working a 14 day stretch (including 4 calls) and the boys have both been sick so I will be honest in saying the past 2 weeks have been a little nuts! But we are making it and are getting better at our routine every day. Lily Kate attended her first birthday party last weekend and has been to a few play dates as well. We did not leave the house for 6 weeks with Cole but that is just not possible this time around. Luckily we have friends with very clean houses (ha!). Through all of the craziness we do know that we are blessed beyond measure and we are excited to see what the future holds for sweet Lily Kate!

Lily Kate at 2 Weeks

Has it really been 2 whole weeks? Time flies...! Lily has changed so much already it is amazing! I took her to the Dr today for her 2 week check up and she did great! She now weighs 7 lbs and 2 oz and is 20 inches long. Her umbilical cord fell off today so we are all very excited about giving her an actual bath tonight when Rhonald gets home. She is still somewhat jaundice and we have had to take her to have her blood drawn about 5 times in the past 2 weeks to have her levels checked. Hopefully today was the last time (fingers crossed). Lily Kate is the best little eater ever! During the day she eats every 3 hours until around 5 pm where she kicks it up to every 2 hours until night time. She normally eats every 3-4 hours at night, however, she has had a couple of nights where she was up every 1-2 hours. She is sleeping in a pack and play in our room right now. She only likes to sleep on her side and loves to have her hands by her face. That is how she was in every ultrasound we saw of her too. Lily is awake for about 3 hours early in the morning and for several hours in the late evening. She loves to watch Cole already. Rhonald and I could not believe it last night...every time he spoke she would look in his direction. She loves to be talked to and held. Lily Kate has not been interested in her pacifier at all (which is fine with us) until yesterday when she took it very easily for a little while. Cole was in love with his right from the start so it is strange to have a baby who could really care less. She is so laid back and still hardly ever cries. It is so wonderful to have her around...she is already so much fun and so much apart of our family. I could not imagine life without her!

A Wonderful First Week

Well, we have almost survived our first week with no help around the house and it has been wonderful. I don't know if I was so nervous about being alone with 2 kids or what but this week has been much better than I ever dreamed it would be. We have taken walks (thank goodness the weather has been awesome), we have had play dates (thank goodness for friends), we have made lots and lots of art projects (Cole's very favorite thing to do right now). I have ventured out with 2 kiddos (just to drop Cole off at school but still) and I have managed to have everyone fed, clean and dressed before we have had to leave the house (including myself). Being the mom of 2 suits me and I love it. We do miss Daddy and look forward to his next day off (Nov 1st) but we are doing well and enjoying our time together. I realized, just like with Cole, it just takes getting in to a routine. While we are not 100% there yet we are well on our way and we are having fun learning together. The one thing I am constantly reminded of though...with 2 kids there is not a lot of time for things like blogging and talking to family and friends so ... if we are out of touch for awhile be patient, we will be back!

Lily Kate's First Photo Shoot

So, yes, I should have warned you that there were a million pictures to go on this post but hey, I knew you would love to see them!!! Rhonald and I are so blessed to have so many talented friends. One of those wonderful people is our friend Rachel. Rachel is a teacher but loves photography and asked if she could come over and take some pictures of Lily Kate this past week. We were beyond thrilled and we are IN LOVE with these photos!!!! Isn't Lily Kate beautiful?

Future Entertainer

This is the cutest video of Cole dancing during a special Handy Manny movie on Disney. He has really gotten into music and dancing lately. It cracks us up every time we watch it - hope you love it as much as we do.

Be Still My Heart

Can it be true??? Is Lily Kate already one week old? Man, time flies. Our first week as a family of 4 has been absolutely wonderful! Cole has loved having a buddy to love on and share life with. He still wants to have Lily be involved in everything he does. Rhonald did manage to get him out of the house (without his sister) today for a morning of "guy time." It was so good for them to have that time together and for Lily and I to have time to rest. She is the sweetest most laid back baby ever. Seriously...I think she has cried 3 times since we brought her home from the hospital. I know she doesn't exactly have a routine yet but normally she follows similar patterns every day. She eats every 2-3 hours during the day and every 3-4 hours at night. Lily Kate is normally very alert and awake for about 2-3 hours after her 6-7 am feeding and then again after her evening feeding. Throughout the day she will be alert for 30 or so minutes at a time. She likes to be in her swing but would much rather be held and cuddled. We do swaddle her a night but she is just as happy to sleep in some one's arms. She has the sweetest face and loves to be talked to. Rhonald and I are so much more relaxed with her than we were with Cole and I can't tell you enough how much that has helped this week run smoothly. We have definitely learned the true meaning of teamwork and have really enjoyed this time together. Tears came to my eyes today when I thought about him going back to work. Not because I am afraid of being alone with 2 kids (although that has crossed my mind) but because we have had so much fun together this week. I cannot tell you how blessed we feel to have Lily Kate in our family. Lily Kate is the most amazing addition to our family and our hearts runneth over with love for her. I know there will be hard times...as with any new baby...but I feel like she is just perfect for us and we all completely adore her!