Two Naps?

Brooke went from 3 naps to 2 naps when she was about 6 months old. I decided to prepare Ryan for the transition by spacing out his naps a little. Right now he goes to sleep 2 hours after waking up, so I figured I'd add just 30 minutes and make it 2.5 hours. Books suggest that the first nap is the hardest to move, so I figured I would just push back the other two and leave nap 1 where it was :)

Yesterday he got up at 7 and went to bed at 9, he slept until 10. He went back down again at 12:30 and slept until 3! With a bedtime of about 6:30, there wasnt enough time to take another nap so I decided to just push him until 6:30 and see what happened. He ended up going to bed at 6:15 because he was so tired, but he made it.

Last night he was up at 12:30, 3:00, and 5. Sadly, this was a pretty good night for him. After he woke at 5, he was still sleeping at 7:40. I had to wake him up (which he deserves for all of the middle of the night wakeups he give me). So he was up at 7:40, and down at 9:30. He decided to take a short nap and was back up at 10:15. He went to bed at 1 and is still sleeping at 3.

I think the little guy just transitioned to two naps. How fantastic is it when life just works out like that? Now, back to getting him to sleep through the night ....

Smiley Guy

Ryan is thrilled to be getting over his cold ... To bad he passed it to his sister :(

Future Food Critic?

Brooke wants to "make cookies" every day. Essentially, she means she wants to eat them. She refuses to get her hands dirty and freaks out when she does. So she is good for a little mixing (aka spilling ingredients all over) and that's about it ... Until the finished product. Then she's all about taking credit for the baking and eating as many as she can :)

She is more of a manager than a doer. Perhaps a future food critic or restaurant owner?

Sunday She Said

Brooke is in bed, calls "Mommy!" over the monitor. Mommy goes to her room.
Brooke: Mommy, Daddy is not a nice guy.
Mom: What?
Brooke: Daddy is not a nice guy.
Mom: Yes he is. Daddy is a nice guy.

Scrunches nose, and says with a nasty voice
Brooke: Daddy says "no kleenex in bed!"

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At the zoo, walking around
"I want to see tigers.  Tigers, I love them!"

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Driving in the car...
Brooke: Mommy, turn it off.
Mom: You want the radio off?
Brooke: Yeah.  Its too loud in here.

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Brooke: I need a cookie.
Mom: How many did you have?
Brooke: I had one.
Mom: You had one?
Brooke.  I had one.  Then two.  Then three.

Budding Photographer

Photos by Brooke. Copyright pending ;)

Bit On The Finger, Smacked In The Face

Ryan is sick, again! This time seems a bit different because he is just miserable and his little happy & smiley personality just cant shine through. He spends his time whining and crying, is very clingy, and easily upset. He is running a low-grade fever - his first fever. His sisters usual antics appear to bother him even more. Her loud voice makes him flinch, her fast movements make him jump. Yet, she still can make him smile!

She was playing with him, moving his arms around and singing to him. He was smiling. Next thing I know he is screaming bloody murder. She jumps back and looks guilty. His finger has a bite mark in it. So, Ryan got to experience his first bite on top of his first fever. Lucky guy :)

Brooke is never intentionally aggressive with him, and while she definitely bit him, I think she was just testing to see what happened. I highly doubt she intended to hurt him, and she sure didnt expect the siren that came out of his mouth when she put her experiment into action.

Later we were reading books in Brooke's room before nap. She was wild, flipping around and squirming all over. She wanted to lay down, then sit down, then lay down again. I kept telling her to calm down and just pick one spot to read, and I think the more I corrected her the feistier she became. In midst of her squirming she whacked Ryan in the face with a book. Pretty hard. Que second gurgling scream of the day. This time it took quite a while to settle Ryan back down. I was fuming and Brooke knew she was in trouble.

I'd like to say it was the first time Ryan has gotten smacked in the face, but (sadly) cannot. I'm not sure he has gotten a book in the face yet, but he has been kicked in the face and hit in the face with a toy. The joys of having an older sister I guess ;)

Passing The Time

Double Trouble hanging out after nap ... Waiting for Daddy to get home from work!

The Zoo!'

Sunday She Said

"I'm a girl just like Dora! I'm really big! I'm grande!"

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In the car on the way home from school
Mom: Brooke, what was for lunch today?
Brooke: We'll talk about it at home.

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In the car, the song "Wrong Way" by Sublime came on. I am not a fan so I changed the station. The peanut gallery in the back shouts: "Mommy, I liked that song!"

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I left Brooke with the sitter when I took Ryan to his 4mo doctor appointment. As I walked out the door Brooke shouted:
"Goodbye Mama! Get medicine for Baby Ryan and stickers for me!"

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"Ryan looking at me! Big Sister really cool."

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Passing The Time

Hanging at Starbucks until it's time to pick up Big Sister from school. Being good and looking cute (as usual), he is starting to build a fanclub here :)

61 Degrees

It was one of the first warm days of the year, and a day where we actually had nothing on our busy schedule! Brooke, Ryan and I & packed up our stuff and head to the park (with a stop at Starbucks on the way!).

Honestly, it was terrifying. Brooke at 2 1/2 is not a baby anymore. She was doing all the "big kid" stuff. She climbed EVERYTHING. She went down the biggest slide. She ran towards the next thing faster than I could catch her. She was half way up before I got there. One of the things she had a hard time climbing. I figured she would give up and move on. Nope. She tried it over and over until she got all the way up.

Ryan spent the whole time in the Ergo carrier. Despite the fact he wasnt due to sleep, he passed out only minutes after I put him in and slept for 45 minutes. He essentially slept through our entire visit only to wake as we were packing up our stuff to leave.

Unless I can calm my nerves, this "first" trip might also be our "last". The little daredevil almost gave me a heart attack and I'm not sure I can handle that stress ever again ;)

Wordless Wednesday

Four Month Checkup

Ryan really is the opposite of his sister. She is tough. As a baby she was great at the doctor. They could do anything to her and she would take it. She barely flinched at shots. She is still like that ... Which is a good thing since she seems to spend a lot of time at the doctors!

Todays visit was a bit of a mess for Ryan. The visit started with a weight check. He cried when I put him on the scale. Then we moved him to a board to check his height. He cried. The doctor came in, cooed and babbled at him ... And he cried. He cried when she looked in his ears. He cried when she listened to his chest. He cried when she moved his legs around. He cried when they gave him to oral vaccine and lost it when he got FOUR shots.

It wasn't the best experience for him (or me), but other than his crying he checked out fine ;). He is currently sleeping it off and likely has already forgotten about the trauma. Good thing, because we go back for more of the same in just a few months!

Sunday She Said

To Ryan in the car...
"stay awake buddy"

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Brooke: I would like to say something
Mommy: What would you like to say?
Brooke: ROAR!

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listening to music in the car...
Brooke: I like Lady Gaga. I want to sing this one.
Mommy: You can sing it.
Brooke: No, just the lady.

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Regarding blowing up a balloon ...
"I not need a grown up.  I do it myself"

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Ballet Class

Snapped a few pics of yesterday's ballet class...
Before class

Waiting for class to start

During class
Brooke is to the teachers left, she always has to be right next to her teacher!

Practicing some moves in the mirror

Sunday She Said

"I'm big like Mommy! I almost reached the ceiling!"

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Mommy: Whoa!
Brooke: Mommy no say "Whoa". Be quiet!

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Getting ready for bed ...
"Get off my bed"

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Mommy: I'm a little bit tired.
Brooke: I'm not a little bit tired. I have (had) a long nap.

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Mommy: Brooke, you are a little athlete!
Brooke: No! Mommy a little athlete!
Obviously not understanding the word and assuming I was throwing an insult at her ;)

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Approaching Daddy with her play tools...
"Watch out Dada! I'm trying to fix this!"

Ryan Is 4 Months Old!

We don't go to the doctor for almost two weeks, so I did an unofficial weigh-in.

Weight: 18lbs (18lbs 4oz on 3/15)
Height:25 3/4 inches (on 3/15)

(Brooke at four months was 17 lbs 12 ounces and 25.5 inches. It will be interesting to see in a few weeks how the two compare! Weight seems to be pretty similar ...)

Ryan is smiling, babbling and cooing, and holding toys with his hands. Currently he has been working on trying to roll over, and getting pretty close to it! He is quite the charmer, flashing smiles at anyone in his view. He continues to be a laid back little guy who is happy regardless of the situation.

Tall Tales

Brooke is a story teller. She loves to recount her days and experiences, and it appears has learned the art of embellishment. She tells us stuff sometimes that seems doubtful, but at the age of 2 1/2 its hard to believe she would be "lying". Here are some of the recent things she has told us:

Note: They are always about school. Guess that's where all the exciting stuff happens ;)

1. Oliver (another preschooler) was in trouble. He had to stay in the corner.
2. It is her teacher, Miss Amandas, birthday today*.
3. Miss Amanda was really sad last Wednesday because Freddy (another preschooler and good buddy of Brooke) was sick.

I did some fact checking today ;)

1. I actually know Oliver, he is always in trouble. This one didnt sound too odd. But the teacher laughed and assured me that nobody gets put in the corner when they are in trouble.
2. This weekend (Sunday) is actually Miss Nicole's birthday, her other teacher. So this was pretty close and more likely just confusion.
3. Freddy was not sick on Wednesday and Miss Amanda has no clue what Brooke was talking about.

On the way home from school Brooke told me that Miss Nicole was really tired and taking a nap in the chair. When we left Miss Nicole was in fact sitting in the chair, reading a book to the kids. I assured Brooke that Miss Nicole was awake when we left, but after a day with all those kids she likely goes home and takes a nap.

One site suggests that "preschoolers with higher IQ scores are more likely to lie"and that "early lying proficiency may also be linked with good social skills in adolescence". The same site also suggests that 3- to 5-year-olds' have a "freewheeling relationship with reality". Its getting hard to believe her lately, but I'm not concerned about her turning into a chronic liar ... yet. Another article suggests "If your 4-year-old is a good liar, it’s a strong sign she’s got brains. And it’s the smart, savvy kid who’s most at risk of becoming a habitual liar."

So while we are entertained by Brooke's imagination and storytelling, we also do not doubt she is a pretty smart little cookie. I'm predicting she will become an excellent liar in the years to come. We will just have to jump that hurdle when it arrives ;)

*Jeff recalls the conversation differently and insists Brooke actually did say it was Miss Nicole's birthday on Friday. Either way, this statement appeared to be truthful. Some facts might have simply gotten confused. Since she is only 2, we will forgive her on this one.

While Big Sister Is Away...

Ryan is at home with the sitter, enjoying the quiet as he curls up with a good book.

Soccer Thursday!!!

Stitches Update
Brooke got her stitches out today. The doctor said everything is healing up well. She (as always) was a total rock star. At one point the doctor was pulling out the last stitch and Brooke said "that hurts me". It was more of a statement than an accusation. She didnt cry, jump, or even flinch. She just let us know :)