Thanksgiving

The past week flew by and I know that this upcoming week is going to go even faster.  We were able to celebrate Thanksgiving here in the cities with Nate's family.  The holidays are always a time to reflect and take a step back to look at our blessings...and we have been so blessed this past year.  The year brought us many unexpected surprises (no, Grant was not one of them).  We sold our house in two days, moved in with Nate's parents, and built a new house to name a few.  God gave us our amazing little boy, and has continued to bless us with a happy and healthy little girl.  So needless to say, we are blessed and oh so thankful!

Grant is now almost 5 weeks old and he's starting to smile more and even giggle once in a while.  When he giggles his whole body shakes and you can't help but laugh along with him.  He is still pretty chill most of the time, but does have his cranky time around 8 pm.  He's still getting up once around 2:00, and is now getting up again around 6:00.  If I could just get him to wake at 3:00 and 7:00 that would be wonderful since our daily feeding routine starts at 7:00.  I know that in time he'll be sleeping through the night (hopefully by 11 weeks like Ava was since I go back to work at 12 weeks).  In the meantime, I'm just thankful that he's not up every hour. 

This week is extremely busy as we prepare to get into our new place.  Tomorrow afternoon we have our walk through.  Wednesday I'm hoping to get some stuff packed up.  It's much more difficult to get stuff done when there are two kids as opposed to just one.  Thursday Ava will head off to her last day at her current daycare as Grant, Daddy, and I go to the closing.  We then have to get down to our  new place to unload our POD before they take it away on Friday.  Thursday night will be our last night at Mema & Boppa's.  Ava on the other hand will stay an extra night and have a sleep over Friday night so that we can be a bit more productive moving all of our stuff in on Friday and Saturday morning. 

We've spent the last few days finding stuff to fill our house.  We ended up purchasing some new furniture for our new family room.  It should arrive in about 6 weeks.  We're anxious to get it and see it in our new space.  Tonight we went and bought our Christmas tree.  We've always had real trees in the past, but I decided that this year we should invest in an artificial tree.  I say invest because Nate had a bit of sticker shock when he saw the price of an artificial tree.  I had always loved going to get a real tree, but the last two years we ended up just buying pre-cut ones out of a lot.  With two small children it just seemed like too much work and way to cold.  Now I don't have to deal with the sap, the needles, watering it, and worrying that it's going to spontaneously go up in flames because it gets to dry when we go to IA to celebrate Christmas.  I tried to talk him into the 12 foot tree but he just laughed.  :)  Ava, Grant, and I went and looked at them this morning and then Nate met me at the store this evening.  Of course during the day they sold a bunch of them and the tree that we wanted was gone except for the floor model.  So, poor Nate ended up driving all the way Fridley tonight to pick up the tree.  He was sure that it would still be there if we waited until Thursday, I was sure that it wouldn't be.  So, off he went to get it.  It's now safe and sound in the garage and I can't wait to get it up and decorate it.  Thanks honey, I really did appreciate it! 

So, it may be a while before the next update.  Who knows when we'll actually get our kit for our internet service, and then hooking it up myself is another story.  Not to mention that I'm sure that we'll be a bit preoccupied unpacking.  I know that our house won't be all in order by the end of the weekend, but I'm really hoping to getting a huge chunk of it done.  My sister and brother-in-law are coming up Saturday morning to help us move stuff.  If you've never met my sister, she is a super anal  type A person (I mean this as a compliment) who should have our house put together in a day.  I will get updates up ASAP.  In the meantime, wish us well.  It could be an interesting week.  :)

 

 

This picture is from last weekend when we got to help Lauryn celebrate her birthday over dinner

This is how Grant prefers to do tummy time

Ava reading to Grant

This would be Grant's 4 week picture without the sign.  I didn't quite get around to getting that done.

Mike, Kristi, & Cora were nice enough to invite us over for dinner Tuesday evening.  We were so happy to be able to catch up with them and Ava loved seeing Cora.  Cora did a great job holding Grant.  She grinned from ear to ear when she got to hold him.  She is going to be an amazing big sister come February!!!

Thanksgiving day (as if you can't tell by Grant's outfit)

When this kid is tired there is absolutely no way to keep him awake!

Aunt Sandy & Grant

Grant found his thumb for the first time (he hasn't done it since).  I'm sure he learned it from watching his big sister constantly suck her thumb. 

Nana, Ava, & Grant

Two tired boys.  I'm certain that Daddy fell asleep before Grant did. 

Grant's newborn pictures

As I mentioned before our friend and photographer Ang (angelacourtneyphotography.com) took Grant's newborn pictures. Well, actually he was 16 days old when they were taken since we were in IA after he was born. Anyway, she dropped off his pictures this morning so I've posted some of them below. He looks so old in the pictures with his gold gopher onesie on. 

We had a busy weekend.  Saturday morning Ava went with  Daddy to run a few errands.  After they got home Nate, Grant, and I went to the new house to measure for blinds.  I'm really hoping to get them ordered this week and hopefully get them installed shortly after our closing date.  We have a lot of windows in the new place and I'd prefer not to have people looking in them while my child plays or I'm breastfeeding.  On our way back from Apple Valley we stopped by our friend Brian & Marissa's place.  They closed on it a few weeks ago, but were moving in on Saturday.  It was great to see them and their new place.  We got home in time to feed Grant and then headed out the door to Lauryn's birthday dinner.  We went over to her place and had a delicious dinner with her family.  It was such a nice evening with good food and great friends.

We got up this morning and went to church.  We had to take my car for an oil change after that..  Unfortunately an oil change turned into $400 worth of work.  Nothing major, just maintenance stuff which all adds up.  We did stuff around here after Ava and Daddy stopped for some very messy doughnuts with sprinkles.  I was able to get a nap today, which was absolutely glorious and very much needed. 

Tomorrow it's just Grant and me, as Ava is off to daycare.  We'll have another busy day of errands with just the two of us and I'm hoping to get a walk in since the weather is supposed to be so nice.  Wishing you all a wonderful week and a Happy Thanksgiving!

Unfortunately Cora was not feeling much better last Thursday so we didn't have our play date.  We made up for it on Friday when Mema took the day off and we took Ava to the indoor playground and then Mema took Ava to lunch at McDonalds while Grant and I met up with my friend Molly for lunch.

 The kitchen, which I think we may have to paint before we had initially planned since our cupboards match the walls.

 Our living room with our microwave sitting in it

Master bathroom

3 Weeks

I can't believe that it's already been three weeks since Grant was born.  The time has flown by!!!  Perhaps it's because I also have a 2 yr old at home with me now, but the time seems to be going so much faster with Grant than it did with Ava.  Or maybe it's because in the past 3 weeks we were in the hospital, in IA, and have been busy getting things finalized for the new house.  I guess we are taking on a bit more this time around than we did when Ava was born.  Things are not going to slow down at all.  I looked at the calendar and almost every day has something on it until we move.  Before I know it I'll be heading back to work.  :(

I forgot to mention in my last blog post that our friend Ang came over last Thursday to take Grant's newborn pictures.  The little turkey was supposed to fall asleep for the last pictures and we couldn't get him to stay sound asleep.  Of course after his next feeding I couldn't keep him awake to save my life.  I'm anxious to see them and hope that we got at least a few good ones.  He wore his new gopher onesie for some of the pictures.  It has a collar on it and he looks like this little old man when he's wearing it. 

Grant continues to be such a good little man.  He continues to get up only once during the middle of the night, between 2 and 3:30.  Unfortunately for the past two nights it's been closer to 2:00, which means he's getting up before his 7:00 wake-up time.  This morning he was a champ and held off on his feeding until 7:00 even though he was awake.  This gave us time to get Ava up, dressed, and out the door by 7:00 so that she could go to daycare.  Since she was at daycare Grant and I took advantage of it and ran a few errands this morning and we managed to get a nice walk in this afternoon.  It felt SO good to get outside, get some fresh air, and a little bit of exercise. 

Tomorrow we're hoping to head to the indoor playground here in Maple Grove with our friends Kristi and Cora.  We were supposed to go on Tuesday but Miss Cora has been sick.  The first thing that Ava has said the past two mornings is, "does Cora feel better".  I'm not sure if she's concerned about Cora or if she wants to go to the playground.  Hopefully Cora does feel better and we can meet up with them tomorrow.  Mema took Friday off so she's going to hang with Ava around lunch time so that I can meet up with a friend for lunch.  Then this weekend we have Miss Lauryn's birthday party.  It should be a fun couple of days. 

I'm hoping to update before Thanksgiving, but no promises.  If I don't make the deadline, have a Happy Thanksgiving and safe travels!

 

This is Ava's new smile when we take pictures.  Oh how I love those fake cheesy smiles with the squinted eyes. 

1st week going solo

The kids and I  survived our first week home alone with just the three of us.  It actually went much better than anticipated and the week flew by.  I can't even tell you what we did, as the week went so quickly.  Well, I can tell you...it was a lot of feeding, diaper changes (for both kids since Ava has not been doing the potty thing lately; grrrrr), reading books, and a couple of trips to Target. 

Ava went to daycare on Wednesday and I have to say that  it made the day so much easier.  I wasn't running to take her "poopy" while I had Grant attached to my boob while feeding him.  And to think that when I became a nurse I thought I had mastered the art of multi-tasking.  :)    I also didn't struggle with trying to divide my time between the two kids.  When they are both here I constantly feel bad about not being able to give enough individual attention to each child.  I think back to how much time I spent with Ava when she was an infant; doing tummy time, reading stories, playing, etc  I can't give that to Grant, and I can't give Ava the attention that she is used to.  I'm sure that every mother struggles with this. 

I had an eye appt. on Friday and there was really no change since my appointment 1 1/2 months ago.  The drops that he prescribed didn't really help so we're now trying new drops and I'll follow up in 3 weeks.  If I continue to have the blurry vision then he will refer me to a specialist.  I'm really hoping for some improvement.  I'm tired of not being able to see out of my right eye, and I'm tired of wearing my glasses. 

Our weekend was pretty low key.  Most of the weekend was spent at home.  Saturday afternoon the rain stopped and the temps started to rise.  We broke out the new double stroller and Nate and I took the two kids for a nice stroll.  It was so nice to get some fresh air.  I'm sure that was the last time that we'll be out for a walk for a while...the snow was flying around this morning. 

We were supposed to have a play date with Cora this morning, but unfortunately she was sick.  We did however have a surprise visit from cousin Kristin this afternoon.  It was so nice to see her and have her meet Grant.  We have a busy week ahead with more visits from friends. 

Hope that your week is going well!

 Aunt Lori drove all the way from Des Moines back to Grandma & Grandpa's to meet Grant and see Ava.

 We stopped at Nana's on our way home from IA so that she could meet Grant.

 These are the monkey pjs that Aunt Lori brought for Ava (she got Grant monkey jammies too so that they match, only Grant's are a bit more masculine).  Ava absolutely loves them and wants to wear them every night

 Erin & Kevin were able to stop by for a short visit last Sunday.

 Ava "just looking at Baby Grant".  She is actually very gentle with him and really seems to love him even though he does take up a lot of my time and attention.

 These are pretty self explanatory

 Boppa was in the Apple Valley area this past week so he stopped by our new place to see how things are coming along.  Above is the kitchen, and below is our master bath.  Only three more weeks and we'll be in our new place!  :)

Iowa continued

Daddy made Aunt Darlene a birthday cake and some cupcakes.  Ava got to frost her own.

Grant dressed in his Halloween best

Ava LOVED riding Aunt Moe Moe's horse

Daddy was able to mount the horse fairly well.  The dismount didn't go so well, and he bounced off.  My cousin started to go faster and Nate lost his balance, falling off the horse.  So this is a picture of Nate's first and last time on a horse. 

 

Iowa

So continuing on from my last post...

Miss Ava went home with Aunt Lisa that Saturday afternoon and had a great time playing with Zacky & Reece on Sunday.  I was worried about if we should send her back since we hadn't spent much time with her with us being in the hospital.  We Skyped on Sunday and she was having so much fun.  It was definitely the right decision.  She met up with us at Grandma and Grandpa's on Monday afternoon. 

Grandma Becker went home Sunday morning.  We were going to go to church, but decided to stay home instead since it would be during Grant's feeding and I didn't want to introduce him to the bottle yet.  It was nice for just Nate, Grant, and myself to spend a little time alone.  We had visitors that afternoon, and I spent the evening packing up the kids and myself to spend the rest of the week in IA.

Monday morning we were out the door bright and early to get to Grant's Dr's appointment in St. Paul by 8:30.  It was not only his newborn appointment, but also his appointment to get circumcised.  Nate and I weren't sure what to expect...if we would be in the room where they would do it, etc.  Well we walked into the clinic room and on the table sat the little torture chamber that they were going to tie our child down to in order to circumcise him.  Nothing says welcome to the world little man like a piece of hard plastic with things to tie down your legs.  We met with a new pediatrician since that's who we will start to see after we move.  She was very nice and informative.  She explained the procedure and then gave us the option to stay or wait in the waiting room during the procedure...Nate and I darted towards the door after a quick kiss (and a short apology whispered into his ear).  He did well and supposedly didn't even cry.  We had to stick around for awhile to make sure that he could pee and that there were no bleeding issues.  He did great!  The Dr. said that he looks great and we'll go back at 2 months for another check-up and his immunizations.  They did check his weight and height while we were there.  He weighed in at 9 lbs 7 oz  (up 3 oz from his discharge weight) and was 23 inches long.  So, I'm fairly certain that they did not get an accurate height when he was born.  I can't believe that a child can grow 1 1/2 inches in 6 days. 

As soon as we left the Dr's office we headed south to Grandma & Grandpa's house.  Grant was an all star traveler except for the fact that I couldn't get him to latch on to eat, and I couldn't get my pump to work in the car.  Slightly frustrating to say the least.  That was the start to a week long struggle to get him to latch on.  I was in tears and ready to come back to MN to see a lactation specialist.  Finally it clicked and he got it.  The little turkey still won't latch on in the middle of the night so he gets a bottle.  I figure that I can't complain too much since he has only been waking once a night to eat.  I'm scared to say anything in fear that things will change, but he is such a good baby. 

Speaking of breastfeeding, Ava is now quite interested in "boobies".  One of our first nights home Ava asked me what I was doing.  I told her I was feeding Grant and she asked how.  I told her I was giving him milk from my boob.  At that point Grandma and Daddy started to laugh like 2 year olds at the word boob so Ava thought it was funny and repeated the word.  Then when we were at Grandma and Grandpa's she approached me and said, "mommy, when I go shopping I'm going to buy some boobies".  I told her that we don't buy boobies (although some people do), but that God gives them to us.  So now she tells me on a daily basis that God is going to give her boobies.  She then asked Mema last night if she had boobies.  Mema responded by saying yes and then Ava said that she could feed Grant then.  I'm waiting for her to inform her Sunday school teacher that God is going to giver her boobies.

Back to our trip to IA...it was filled with lots of visitors.  Aunt Darlene came out every morning around 9:30 to help me since Nate was working half days while we were there.  It was great to be able to go and shower and not have to worry about what the kids were doing.  Thank you so much Aunt Darlene for ALL of your help while we were there.  We not only got to see family, but friends as well.  Thank you everybody who took time out of your busy schedules to come and meet Grant.  We are so truly blessed!

Unfortunately our week down there ended with Nate getting the flu.  The poor guy was up all night Thursday from 1 AM on.  He kept me up more than Grant did that night.  Luckily it was only 24 hours and he was feeling much better by the time that we had to leave Saturday morning.  We stopped at Nana's and got to see some of Nate's family on the way home that afternoon.

Nate headed back to work Monday morning (I think that he was ready).  I was a little nervous about how I was going to handle two kids by myself, but it went just fine.  We even ran an errand to a little baby boutique that we like here in Maple Grove, and made it home with no melt downs from anybody.  Ava did go to daycare today, as we're going to send her one day a week so that she has time with other kids as well.  The day flew by with just Grant and me, and I got to run a few errands and get some stuff organized around here.   It's back to the three of us tomorrow.  Grant has his newborn pictures tomorrow...I hope that it goes well!

He has got some Big feet

Ava & Daddy got to ride in the combine.

Daddy helped carve (ok, he did the whole thing himself) the "Ava" pumpkin

Our little puppy trick-or-treating.  Grant came along as well, wrapped in the Moby wrap under my jacket.  Ava did a great job and wanted to walk the whole way.