I LOVE the Olympics

I look forward to it every four years, and it never lets me down! I love watching all the different kinds of sports, including my favorites of swimming and gymnastics (just like everyone else in the US, ha!). Mostly, though, I love what the Olympics represents- unity and camaraderie between all the countries. This year, I especially love how the torch was "lit" by every country and wouldn't be complete without every single one of them. Such an amazing concept, and I live that, even if for just a few weeks every two years (don't forget the winter olympics!), we put everything else aside for the good of the game, whatever game that might be. We've had it on constantly, and Jeffrey has been really getting into it. He likes to chant USA! USA! whenever he sees the US flag and really enjoys, like me, watching swimming and gymnastics. He was enthralled with men's gymnastics! Unfortunately for him, that's not going to happen. You don't see too many 6 feet+ gymnasts, lol! We've decided that Jeffrey will be our soccer player, and Gavin can be the swimmer since, you know, he was born in the water ;) Aside from sports, it's been a great teaching tool for Jeffrey since he's learning about how there are different countries and places, people have differences (but are all the same!) and all of those places are different. He's determined that he would like to go to London. One day, he will :)

I have such fantastic memories of the past few Summer Olympics. In 1996, my family went on a long vacation to Orlando. I watched the Magnificent 7 in the hotel after full days of Disney while my sister/dad went to watch the soccer matches. In 2000, I went to Australia just a few weeks before the Olympics began and got to actually see all the buildings all set up. The swimming arena was so huge and impressive, and I loved that there was a water park on the other side of the competitive pool. 2004, I remember watching men's gymnastics at Jack Camp, which was a fish camp for incoming freshman at the college I attended. I watched it with Jony and two other friends who ended up becoming great friends (one of them, I'll be a bridesmaid in her wedding this weekend!). 2008 brings memories of our honeymoon- watching those amazing opening ceremonies in our sweet little cottage in Calistoga, CA.

Now, I can remember all these sweet moments watching the London Games with my two little boys, as well as sending one of my best friends into a great marriage while celebrating mine :)

Well Adult Check-ups

We decided that it was time for us to finally get in gear and start being as proactive with our own health as we are with our boys. So, we made appointments for a physical/blood work. We're still pretty young, so we figured it would, at the minimum, be a baseline. It turns out that both of us had minor issues, so it's good that we went! I have anemia, which I have figured for some time. So, I'm on an iron supplement and will see how my body is reacting to that in about six months. There are different types of anemia, so we have to see if I have iron deficiency or a hormone imbalance (or something to that effect!). Jony's is a little more serious- elevated cholesterol. He's fairly certain it's the mass amount of fast food that he's been eating, so he's cutting that out. He needs to start exercising again, as well. It's not high enough for medicine yet, so he's just changing some life choices around first. He's most likely battling some genetics there, since heart disease runs down his father's side. It made him mad, though, since he's so much more active and typically eats better than I do! My blood work came back with the note of "excellent cholesterol!"- lol!

We also had our dentist appointments (which we have been doing twice a year, no worries) and, thankfully, were all clear in that area. It was crazy to think that I was pregnant the last time, and the next time I'll have an 8 month old and a 3(!) year old in 2013!

Gavin's 2 Month Appointment

He is still perfect :) He weighed in at 14 lbs 2oz and is 24.5 inches long. No issues at all and completely owned all of the developmental milestones for 2 months (of course, he IS almost three months- lol!).

Unfortunately, it was a terrible visit. We were there for almost 2.5 hours, which is ridiculous. The wait time has been seemingly getting longer and longer each visit, and it's maddening. We're very heavily leaning towards trying a new pediatrician for his 4 month appointment. It's just so frustrating. I really like our doctor, but that's unacceptable. Plus, the front desk people completely disrespected me by laughing and making a joke out of the fact that the toy Mator that Jeffrey left on the bench was turned in but taken by someone else. It was rude, and my poor innocent two year old was mortified that someone would think it was funny to take his car. After having so much of my time disregarded, to have them act like that towards me was completely ridiculous. Ruined my day.

Roll over, Roll over...

I'm assuming this is what Gavin is singing to himself all day long. For the past week or so, he's been getting way up on his side whenever he's lying on his back, and we were certain that he was going to roll back to belly at any moment. He still might, but he completely threw us off by, instead, rolling belly to back this afternoon! He's never even tried before! He has always loved tummy time, and he usually just hangs out there looking all around when he's on his tummy, but he must have gotten the urge to push himself up with his right arm and, poof, over he went. Jeffrey was super proud of him, which was adorable. Jeffrey did back to belly first and didn't do belly to back until he was 3.5 months old, so they're definitely marching to the beat of their own drums.

It's sad to bid those newborn days behind of just being able to lay him on the couch and not worry about him going anywhere. It's fun to see the beginning of mobility forming, as scary as that may be, though!

Weekend Parenting? Grade: F

We are for sure not walking around puffed up about how awesome of parents we are today. Our poor little Jeffrey is looking pretty rough this lazy Sunday. To start with, I totally spaced on bringing sunblock when we went to the splash pad on Friday morning. It's crazy getting out of the house with two kids sometimes, but that's no excuse. I feel so terrible, but my little buddy got his first sunburn. It's not horrific because, at least, he was wearing a rashguard. The worst was the back of his neck and his ears. It doesn't seem to have bothered him too much, and it's fading away super quickly. On the other hand, MY sunburn got a little worse. It's deserved, I suppose. We just kept lotioning him up and keeping him hydrated.

Last night, though, he ended up hurting himself to the point where the sunburn didn't even have a chance at bothering him! We were at my parent's house for dinner, and we were all just hanging around after eating. My niece decided she was ready to eat her cupcake, so Jeffrey went to sit next to her. My mom was carrying the cupcake tray out, and he got too hyper. He stood up in the chair super fast and turned around to grab the back, causing it to fall over. His face got way too acquainted with their tile floor. I ran in and held him while he cried worse than I've ever heard before for a good five to ten minutes. The bump was HUGE! Once he calmed down, he just hung out on the couch with Jony playing games on the iPhone, which showed us that he could still think. He was acting totally normal and putting up a fight about having ice on his forehead. We kept him up about an hour later than normal to give us about two hours of observation, per our call with the nurse's line. After some Tylenol and the normal bedtime routine, he fell asleep in record time. We checked on him a few times overnight, and he was fine. This morning, he's acting completely normal although he says he has a headache (obviously). It's not as swollen as it was last night, but it's starting to bruise. It is not going to be pretty.

Needless to say, we're staying in today. Keeping it low key so that maybe we can avoid adding another injury to the weekend report!

The burn pre-bump:

The bump:

Life is Crazy.

It has been insane lately. I feel like I've blinked and summer is almost over! Gavin is no longer a sleepy newborn (although he does sleep fabulously, which I'm quite a fan of!) and requires playing and attention throughout the day. Then there is Jeffrey's jam-packed social calendar. The kid's got places to go and people to see, for sure. There hasn't been anything too terribly exciting going on- just everyday life.

Gavin is an amazing, super chill little guy who just loves watching his brother and our dog. He's so happy all of the time and is really starting to give us giggles and laughs. He's a strange child who loves having his diaper changed, bath time and absolutely adores tummy time. He's lifting his head up at a 90 degree angle and just smiles and coos the entire time until he gets too tired. He also enjoys his activity mat- the giraffe is his favorite. He's a big little guy, and I'm awaiting his stats from his 2 month appointment (which, due to my pedi's vacation) will be when he's almost 3 months)

Jeffrey is my very active guy, and he is constantly wearing me out. Thank goodness his little brother sleeps through the night because I NEED that energy with him. He is absolutely loving with Gavin- almost to the point of too extreme! He wants him to learn how to stand and talk so badly and asks every day if he can help teach him. He's doing pretty well in his swimming lessons, although he had a rough week this last time. He gets really happy on swim day. His current obsession is Cars. We've been watching a lot of movies lately since a few months ago I made a rule about how movies are for rainy days only. Wouldn't you know that it's rained every.single.day here the last few weeks?!? Completely abnormal for us. He had a major potty training regression around 4th of July, but he's coming back around now. I think he was feeling too much pressure, and it seems to have helped him to get pull-ups for when we're out of the house. Then, we're not stressed out about him having an accident and, in turn, are not frustrating/bothering him about it too much. Now, he typically stays dry the entire day except for maybe one accident a day on some days.

We're gearing up for our trip to Fort Worth in two weeks where I'll be in a wedding, trying to stay cool and dry and trying to soak in these fun days of summer! Jeffrey will be starting MDO in a little over a month, and I have a feeling it's going to be a time of adjustment for all of us!

Wordless Wednesday

Freedom at the Farm

We spent most of last week up at my parents' farm. It was a nice break from the hustle and bustle that our lives are, and we got to get some good quality time in with the family. Jeffrey absolutely loves it there- playing with his cousin, riding the tractor and 4 wheeler, playing in the pool, running around the yard, eating lots of yummy food and ice cream, and watching Cars a million times. The stress of being in a new environment seemed to affect his potty training, so we're starting to get back into the groove now that we're home. Everyone kept bothering him and asking him if he had to go all the time, which he hates, so he just shut down. Gavin had a bit of a transition, too, but he was sleeping good again by the third night or so. He loved being held by so many people. Not being able to put him down too often was really hard on my upper back/neck, though, so it's off to the chiro for me! Overall, the whole family loved being up there. We're not sure when we'll be free again for awhile, so we made sure to enjoy it while we could!

2 months!

Even though he's almost nine weeks old, my little Gavin baby is 2 months today! Labor and all that happened immediately afterwards all seems like such a distant memory- so long ago, but it's only been two months! I'm absolutely loving having my new little man in my life. He's such an easy baby, save for a moment here and there. He's almost always super happy, loves smiling, goes to sleep easily and sleeps at night! He doesn't nap too long during the day, but we're on the go anyways with big brother, so it doesn't really bother me. He'll get longer naps if his little feet are touching me, which I find adorable, so he usually gets a good couch nap while Jeffrey is napping. He absolutely loves his play mat, especially the monkey and the mirror. He's a big fan of tummy time, but only for a certain amount of time. He's still a major grunter and makes all sorts of noises all the time, and he loves to chew on his hands. He noticed his feet the other day and likes just watching them in awe. He's still rocking out in his Rock n' Play next to our bed, and I love waking up to him just smiling at me (yes, even for his one (!) overnight feeding. Life is good.

Gavin's 2 Month Stats:
-13 lbs and 23 inches
-transitioning from 0-3 to 3-6 month clothes
-holds his head up 99% of the time
-brings his hands together and up to his mouth
-smiles all the time
-beginning to giggle/coo
-loves sticking his tongue out
-rolls onto his side
-stares at anything hanging above or in front of him