Twelve months

(Okay, the "official" check-up stats, that is). We visited Dr. Hood yesterday, and here's the goods:

22 pounds, 2 ounces (45th percentile)
30 inches long (55th percentile)

So it looks like he's staying on the same curve! Dr. Hood was pleased with his development and said that he is adorable (FACT!). She also noticed that he was a little wheezy, which was disappointing. So we've been hitting the albuterol/pulmicort combination since. Hopefully that will clear it right up. (Okay, since I haven't gotten around to actually posting this post until 3 days after starting it, I can go ahead and tell you that it has cleared up just fine :)). It was an overall uneventful appointment - the best kind!

Anyway, in the past few weeks, Landon has really gone crazy, development-wise. He is now walking as much as he's crawling (although he still looks like Frankenstein); he's babbling all the time and is quite certain that "uh-oh" is his favorite thing to say; and is having tantrums like they're about to go out of style. I had forgotten that the "terrible twos" start in the second year Luckily, he's cute enough to get away with it... ;)

Sweet baby boy

Landon - I can't believe you are already a whole year old! Goodness, where does the time go? It seems like just yesterday we were on the way to the hospital and I was kind of feeling sorry for myself (and you :)) because I doubted that I could ever love a second baby the way I love your sister. Boy was I wrong! The second you were born, my heart grew (as I had been told it would). It was the craziest thing. And it has only gotten stronger since then! You have been the best baby we could've hoped for. You are so easygoing, happy, and lovable. You make the funniest expressions, and now that you're entering into tantrum territory, you make us laugh even more than ever. And even though you get frustrated now, you can be made to laugh within seconds. You have the most contagious laughter! You are the cutest, most ticklish boy I've ever seen. Everyone who knows you loves you. Maybe not as much as your mommy, daddy, and sister do, but that's okay :)

Happy Birthday, sweet boy. Here's to many more! I love you SO MUCH!

At one year, Landon:
* has six teeth (four on top, two on bottom)
* wears 12-18 month clothes; size 4 diapers, size 3 shoes
* is heavy - hehe. His appointment isn't til the end of the month, so I'll update then
* is still a SCHEDULED baby. You could set a clock by him - sleeping, eating, even his poos. Yes, I'm serious.
* is becoming increasingly talkative. Has a few words: hi, bye, bottle (baba), Addie, mama, dada (pretty consistently meaningful), dog (da); doesn't say no, but shakes his finger - adorable!
* is baby signing "more" and "all done"
* points and babbles at everything
* loves to "color" with crayons and markers
* is standing on his own for a few seconds but still no independent steps
* is transitioning decently to whole milk and sippy cups - we have been a lot more relaxed with this than we probably should be...oops. I promise he won't go to kindergarten with a bottle though!
* is in neither a "mommy phase" nor a "daddy phase" but seems to love us equally right now ;)
* still thinks Addie is NUMBER ONE!


Picture time! These are from today - we had our parents and JM's grandparents over for lunch. It was so much fun. We are so blessed to live so close to our families!

Waiting on the cake!


"Guys, I'm eating my hand here!"



That's more like it...






(Look at how he looks at his sister! PURE LOVE - so cute!)


The one-year-old


Four generations


Mimi, PawPaw and my babies and me!


Addie and Gran in serious conversation (watching CareBears :))

Well, I guess I could just pick up where I left off and pretend like it hasn't been three whole weeks since I last posted. We have been busy, busy, busy but having lots of fun! John Michael and I have been seriously considering putting our house up for sale to move closer to work/our families, so we have been busy doing things around the house. Two packrats + two babies + six years = MESS. So we're "sprucing things up" and decluttering. Yikes.

Work has been exciting - my boss was officially appointed City Attorney (she had been serving as Interim for two years). This is great news because our department can finally feel "settled" after all this time. YAY! I'm starting to get a little more comfortable with things so that's good. I know it'll take some time, it's just frustrating feeling like I don't know anything! The comforting thing is that I have been talking to a lot of my classmates/other new attorneys, and apparently this is normal :)

Anyway, the kiddos are doing great. I can't believe that Landon will be one in five days. February just flew (and I don't think it was just because it is a shorter month!). I'll do a big ONE YEAR post, but before then, I'll just say that he gets cuter every day. I. Love. Him.

And his big sissy - I love her, too. She is such a big girl! Every day is even more fun (and often more of a challenge) than the day before. :) We play lots of silly games together. My plan is to do a post devoted to these games so I don't forget about them (because I know one day she'll think she's too cool to play them :)).

Anyway, enough jibber-jabber - time for photos!

Look at that hair!

Uncle Kris, Holland and Quinn

All four babies at the zoo
(Lynn and I were cleaning out the garage - yippee!)

Greenhouse!

Time to plant!

Taking a break to pump some iron

The NSL Babies
(Olivia, born 3/4/09, Eamon, born 3/2/09, and Landon, born 3/6/09)
Mommies: Monika, Marian and me!

(This was at Eamon's first birthday, which is definitely the cutest first birthday party I've ever been to!)

Eleven months

(Plus a couple of days - not like you're surprised).

Is there really just one month til my sweet baby boy is a year old? I can't believe it. Admittedly, January was the s l o w e s t/hardest month of my life EVER but still, it is crazy overall how quickly the time has passed. I have started thinking a little about what to do to celebrate his birthday, and then I keep realizing that we need to hurry up and decide because it'll be here before we know it.

Landon has had a good month. I just looked back at his "Ten month" post and there really wasn't a whole lot new to add developmentally, so I'll just list a few fun things. At eleven months, Landon:

* is a little over 21 pounds
* is still in 12-month clothes, size 4 diapers, size 3 shoes
* has FOUR teeth now! He actually got his fourth one the day after I posted his ten month update but far be it from me to ruin the surprise ;)
* is still a daddy's boy - it's the cutest thing ever
* is getting even more feisty and vocal with his wants
* isn't taking steps on his own quite yet, but getting closer. My guess is he'll be walking a little after his birthday, just like Addie...
* is still a great sleeper but has moved his bedtime up to around 6:30 p.m. I'll be glad when that gets later again!
* loooves to wave "hi" and "bye"
* is chubby, chubby, chubby - so cute.
I LOVE HIM SO MUCH! I could eat him up.

Does he not look HUGE in this picture?

The Sweetest Sound in the World

Okey doke - try to ignore the talking with the mouth full for a second to hear the cutest thing ever :)



LOVE THAT GIGGLE! And that proud big sister, too!

ICE DAY!

So last night the snow turned into sleet, making a slippery (albeit gorgeous) layer of ice on top of our snow. I'd say we got another inch of ice for a grand total of 4 1/2-ish inches of accumulation. WHAT?! Spring Hill always gets the weather shaft, so to speak. We get hail, wind, etc., but usually no pretty snow. I am quite pleased. The only bummer is that I had a baby shower I was really looking forward to today that had to be cancelled. *Sigh.* But being snowed in with the family isn't too shabby, especially given the vast library of Netflix On Demand ;)

The ice made for PERFECT sledding








Ice and snow on one of our leftover pepper plants - so pretty

SNOW DAY!

Oh, how I long for days like this! Well, mostly. The weather forecasters started calling for snow here earlier in the week. For once, I didn't get my hopes up - probably because the "snow" that is usually predicted normally disappoints me. So anyway - Addie did her snow dance yesterday, and apparently it worked! We woke up this morning to see ZERO snow on the ground, but the radar looked ominous. I decided to head on in to work because I felt silly staying home with no actual accumulation. My plan was to keep an eye on the roads and head out as soon as it started sticking. JM wisely decided to work from home. We took the babies to school, and off I went! It was clear, clear, clear, BAM - streets completely covered. It really seems like it happened that quickly! I was checking fairly often and called my boss (who was working from home due to her little girl's school being closed) at 11 and told her I was about to head out. But then I checked the parking lot and roads, and they looked fine. So I stayed around a little longer. BIG MISTAKE! When I left at noon, the roads were already white. I made it fine for the first two or three miles of my commute, but then when it came time to turn onto the main highway, the traffic was stopped. I ended up making a u-turn (oops - illegal in Franklin :)) to try a different way. That went a little better except I got behind a MORON driving 15 mph. Now don't get me wrong - I'm aware that it is not a good idea to go the speed limit in inclement weather. And I wasn't comfortable going much faster than 30 or so. However, I was quite nervous that we wouldn't be able to pass over the many hills going so slowly! Thankfully, I turned off and got away from that buffoon (who I hope made it home safely, although it may have been six hours afterwards at the rate he was going). ANYWAY - long story short (too late, you say?), it took me an hour and forty-five minutes to get home. It normally takes me 25-30. I really can't complain, though, because last year it took me over three hours to get home in another snow where there were far better conditions than today's.

Sooo, enough about me. I finally got home and JM and the babies were safe and sound and warm and toasty, thank goodness. We went out to play and Addie had a blast! She made a headless snow angel (refused to lay her head on the ground). Landon wasn't quite sure what to think of the snow, but he was definitely not a big fan of his "snowsuit." But seriously, he looked so adorable, I really didn't care. He did seem to have a good time "sledding" with Addie! We're excited about Round 2 of playing outside tomorrow, but hopeful that we're not completely "snowed in" because we have a few events we're really looking forward to attending this weekend!

(I promise Landon really did smile & laugh while we were outside, I just never caught it with the camera :))

*As of right now (9:00 p.m. Friday), I'd guess we have around 3 1/2 to 4 inches. Gorgeous!

The Grab Bag

What a week. Well, really, what a month! We have had the hardest time staying well in January. John Michael kicked it off with a sinus infection that required not just one, but two, rounds of antibiotics, and I have also have two colds/sinus infections. We took Landon for his ENT consult at the beginning of the month and we were told he had another ear infection. I think this made his sixth, although I honestly can't remember. Then, last week he had a nasty tummy bug and bad cold. I thought SURELY we were through, but we woke up Saturday morning to find Addie's eyes with the yuckiest case of pinkeye I've ever seen! At this point, all I could do was laugh. We certainly have had the grab bag of sicknesses here! It ceased to be quite so funny when we got called to pick Landon up this past Tuesday because he had a fever of 101.8. Ay, ay, ay. Dr. Hood had noticed some fluid in his ear when we were visiting her last week for the tummy bug/cold combo (we were afraid it was pneumonia), but she did not want to give him antibiotics because he had just finished a round and he was already scheduled for his tubes today (Thursday, the 28th). So, the bright side is that we didn't have to trek up to the pediatrician, because she had told us to give her a call if he ran a fever and that she'd just call in some antibiotics. ANYWAY...Addie now has the nasty cold. Please pray that it won't settle into her chest!

Today was the big day for the tubes! He was still running a low-grade fever (100.6), but that's the tricky thing about tubes...we can't keep his ears from getting infected long enough for him to be completely "well" for the procedure. So after discussion with the ENT and the anesthesiologist, we felt quite comfortable with them proceeding. And he did just great! The only downfall of the whole thing is that we were scheduled to arrive at 8 a.m. Remember, no food or drink after midnight. Kind of hard to explain to an almost-11-month-old. But he did well with very minimal fussing, and he certainly won the hearts of all the nurses! We were asked no less than five times if he could be taken home with someone. Hehe. :) They ended up taking him back around 9:30 or so (yes, seriously! I was so angry!), and we were back in recovery with him by 10ish. He did GREAT with the anesthesia. Addie was inconsolable after hers, so we were prepared for that. Our little man didn't fuss a bit! He was obviously groggy, but seemed fine. Of course, the difference is that they gave him an intranasal pain medicine (something Addie did not receive). He drank a little water while we were there and I gave him a bottle once we got home. He's sleeping soundly now after fighting being put down. Once I decided that I needed to put him in his crib (rather than hold him - can't blame a mommy for trying), he was out like a light by the time I got down the stairs. I am so glad he's doing well and we are hoping this will be a great improvement for his ears! The doctor said there was active infection in both ears, and that both eardrums were retracted. Yikes.

*Update - here's the photos!

In the waiting room, playing with the HIPAA notice! Lawyer-to-be?

Landon and I were getting irritated by this point...I believe it was nearing 9:30.

It was a family affair! At least we weren't crying like we were when Addie got out of her first tubes surgery :)


Sweet punkin

CeCe

I am not quite sure where to begin with this post, but I feel like not posting anything is just unfair to myself (and the rest of my family). My sweet grandmommy passed away Thursday evening at the age of 85. She was an absolutely wonderful woman. I grew up with her literally next door (she had what we now all know as a "mother-in-law suite" in my parents' home), so we were very close. I have awesome memories of her from my childhood, of course, but even more since I've been an adult (and not just because I can remember more :)). I can't begin to explain the amount of support she gave me over the past few years (along with the rest of my family, of course). She always told me I could accomplish everything I set my mind to, and without ever making me feel dumb, told me she thought my nerves and fears were silly. And nearly every time, she was right!

The past few months, she had been having a lot of pain in her legs, and being not quite herself. My mom finally convinced the stubborn old lady (well!) that she needed to go to the doctor, and eventually ended up having her taken to the emergency room. This was Monday, December 28. She was diagnosed with cancer in her hip bone, liver and lungs the next day. Of course, we were all devastated, but were hopeful that we'd have a couple of months to spend with her. Obviously, that was not God's (nor her) plan. When she and I sat to talk, right after her diagnosis, the first thing she said was, "Well, I get to go see Wayne!" That is my grandfather who passed away nearly 50 years ago. It was amazing to see her peace. She knew she was going to Heaven and honestly, I think she was ready. And I think she gave us a week for the rest of us to catch up with her peace. I told her a little fib and told her I was okay with her leaving us. It hurts so bad, but knowing that she is without pain, and is with her husband and her son (my uncle, who died five years ago), I am happy.

Of course, not only was she my grandma, but she was "CeCe" to Addie and Landon. She had originally chosen "G.G" (Great-Grandmother) to be her nickname, but Addie couldn't say it. So it became "CeCe," and it really seemed perfect. She loved those babies more than anything. Even on a day where it was obvious that she wasn't feeling well, one sight of either Addie or Landon would cheer her up. I have prayed every day that Addie will remember her and remember how much her CeCe loved her. I think at the very least she'll remember the York Peppermint Patties that she got whenever she visited her :)

I don't think a day will go by that I don't miss her. I am so thankful that God gave her to us for so long. I am also so grateful that I got to sit with her and tell her just how much she meant to me. I know that she knew, but it (selfishly) began my healing process. She was a beautiful woman, and she will be loved and missed forever!

Ten months

And only a day late - ha HA! This month has been a whirlwind with the holidays, but it was definitely a good one. Landon continues to be SO active. Changing his diaper and getting him dressed is practically a two-person job. He hates to be still for any amount of time anymore, but he will cuddle a little first thing in the morning while he drinks his first bottle. Addie, Landon and I all sit on the couch and watch Mickey Mouse Clubhouse while he gets out of total starvation mode (he thinks, at least) and Addie slowly wakes up. That is my favorite time of the day! I'll pretend that they enjoy the snuggle time, too.

Landon had a visit with the ENT yesterday, who determined that it is time for tubes. Landon has had a little cold for the past week and the doctor noticed that fluid is just sitting in his ears and not draining properly. There was no active infection, but it was headed that way. Poor kiddo. SO - he's apparently a "perfect candidate." We're still trying to figure out whose fabulous genes gave our babies their bad ears! ;) He will have the procedure at the end of this month. We would greatly appreciate your prayers for a smooth procedure, and also that this will help his ears in the future. More on that closer to the time...

Anyway - here's the list:

At ten months, Landon:
* is over 20 pounds, although I'm not sure exactly how much
* is wearing all 12-month clothes; size 4 diapers; size 3 shoes
* is walking with assistance EVERYWHERE
* is climbing stairs! EEK!
* is still babbling a lot - I'm honestly not remembering if he has any new words since the last time I posted, but he is definitely more emphatic when he says things now!
* is a dancing fool when he plays with his musical toys
* is a daddy's boy right now
* chews on everything, but still only has three teeth
* is showing his temper a lot more readily lately
* only wants table food now and eats pretty much whatever we're eating
* wants to be held if he sees someone standing up
* is all over Addie's toys now and she is NOT a fan
* has pretty impressive fine motor skills for a little guy! He's getting very good at putting small items in slightly-larger boxes, etc.
* still sleeps from 7 p.m. til 6:30 a.m. - clockwork - and takes two to three short naps a day
* is still a sweet, cute, precious boy!

He looked like such a little man in this outfit!

"CHEESE!"

Oh, and...

Happy New Year! As I put on my Facebook status, I hope your year is filled with more laughter than tears. Cheers!

I have a confession...

I love when Addie says words incorrectly. LOVE IT. She has had such a good vocabulary for such a long while that it doesn't happen often, so when it does, I can't help but repeat the word(s) exactly like she says them because I think it's so cute. Yes, I know I should say them the right way so she learns, but hey, she has her WHOLE life to speak correctly, and I'm hanging on to my little girl as long as I can. And seriously, for the most part, she even uses "and I" and "and me" the correct way, so I feel I can let her say a few silly things without fear that she'd be embarrassed if she knew better ;)

My favorites?
"be-cation" for "vacation"
"whistletoe" for "mistletoe"
"reckles" for "freckles" (this is my ULTIMATE favorite!)
"lose" for "use" and "lellow" for "yellow" (even though she can say her 'y' sounds)
"Darbie" for "Barbie" (she doesn't have any dolls, but does have a cup with Barbie on it)
*"Old MacDonald's" for "McDonald's" (not that she's ever been there, it's just...er...um... :))
*"cheesebarger" for "cheeseburger"
*She also sometimes says "bees" instead of "be" - like "I'll bees ___ and you can bees _____." (I don't use that one back, but I do think it's adorable :))

I know, child educators everywhere are cringing...ha ha!

Merry Christmas!

Did we really just celebrate Addie's fourth and Landon's first Christmas? SERIOUSLY?!

We had a blast. We started off the week by having dinner with my family on Saturday night. On Sunday afternoon, we went to Nana and Papa's for a "dessert drop-in" - soooo yummy and fun! Then they watched the kiddos while we went to a wine tasting hosted by Lynn and Leslie. It was such a cute idea! Each couple brought two identical bottles of wine. One was put in the "reserve," and the other was covered and marked with a letter. Lynn had made scorecards where each wine would be rated 1 through 10, and everyone went to tasting. All the points were tallied, and then the person who brought the highest scored wine went home with all the reserve bottles! Genius! Okay, I had never been to a wine tasting, so I thought that was just about the coolest thing ever. I still thought it was cool even though our wine didn't win. Ha!

Fast forward to Christmas Eve - annual Logan's lunch! We have officially outgrown a booth with four adults and two high chairs (yes, Addie still prefers a high chair when we go out to eat, and I admittedly love that she's "contained"). I'm trying to remember how this tradition got started, and I can't! I guess that's when you know you've truly got a tradition...

That evening, Mimi and PawPaw and Nana and Papa came over. Addie was bouncing off the walls, and Landon was pretty cute, too, of course, even though he's still been having some tummy problems and hasn't quite been 100%. The kiddos got Christmas books and new Christmas jammies (SO CUTE!) and the grownups got new Addie (and Landon, starting in March) calendars for 2010! THANKS, NANA!!! I think I speak for all of us when I say this is our favorite Christmas gift :)

Addie was super-excited for Santa to visit, but surprisingly went to bed without any trouble! We slept in a little bit (7:00) on Christmas Day, and were so excited to get Addie out of bed! She came downstairs and seemed a little confused, but then she announced, "It's a baby carriage!" That is the one gift she had asked for over and over. Precious.

We continued the day by going up to Nana and Papa's, then Gran and Pop's, then down to Mimi and PawPaw's before settling back home. It was a long day, but one of the best days ever. It's definitely the best Christmas I've ever had! Seeing Addie's face light up was just so exciting. Of course Christmas isn't about the gifts, but watching my little girl being so innocent and happy was just priceless. In fact, it actually was a constant reminder of the true meaning of the day!

Addie "helping" open Landon's first ornament

I promise I was not about to drop Landon, even if it looks like it.

Addie going through her stocking

"Seriously? For me?"

"Christmas can't be over already!!!"

Getting all better

We have had a yucky week. We got a call from Landon's teacher last Friday that he had thrown up and had three loose poopies (after two at school the day before), so we had to pick him up. John Michael actually got the call, so he went down there. He called me once they got settled and said Landon was acting completely fine and playing like normal. Yay! Or so we thought. We woke up to Addie whining/crying around 11 p.m. (yes, we were asleep that early on a Friday - don't judge ;)). I went up to check on her, but she was still asleep so I went back down. Repeat at midnight. Then, at 1:30 a.m., I heard her get out of her bed and she was screaming and crying. I nudged JM for his "turn" to check on her, and before he was even upstairs, I heard her screaming, "I throwed up! I throwed up everywhere!" Sure enough. We brought her to bed with us and she got sick three more times throughout the night. She woke up at 8 a.m. Saturday morning, good as gold! We even ended up going up to Nana and Papa's for JM to cut down our Christmas tree (and help Papa with theirs) and had a great day playing, but taking it easy, just in case. Poor Landon was still having...um...diaper issues, but seemed to feel fine. We came home and ate dinner, and were looking forward to decorating the tree on Sunday!

But then it started all over again. Addie woke up puny and threw up Sunday morning. She spent the day on the couch and was so, so pitiful! I have never seen her so weak-looking in her life. We talked to the pediatrician's office about three times that morning to go over both her symptoms and Landon's. Poor kiddos. But the nurses didn't seem concerned at all since they were both willing/able to take in fluids. Addie did start to perk up a little by Sunday evening, so she got to help with the tree a tiny bit!

We kept both babies home Monday, because Landon was STILL not back to normal and Addie had said she needed to stay home. The cutest thing ever happened - I put Landon down for a nap at around 8:30 that morning, and starting at 9 a.m., Addie started asking if we could wake him up. She was saying, "I think he's poopie! I really think we need to go get him!" I kept telling her no, that he needed to sleep because his tummy wasn't feeling good. She finally said, "I stayed home from school today so I could play with my baby brother and all he is doing is sleeping!" Hehehehe.

Anyway, Addie was 100% Monday and went back to school Tuesday. Landon's poopie issues were still there, so he stayed with Mimi. She said he was really fussy and tugging at his left ear, so I made him an appointment to see Dr. Hood for Wednesday morning.

*Sigh.*

So, he continued to be fussy and have tummy problems throughout the night, and on into Wednesday. Dr. Hood was not at all concerned about the now-weeklong diarrhea, but did put him on a probiotic to try to help things. She did check his ears, and the left one was good. The right one had to be cleaned out (seriously, holding a nine-month-old while they take a WaterPik to his ear does NOT equal fun. Just in case you were wondering...), but sure enough...infected. Sooo...we're headed down the same path and it's time for Landon to visit the ENT doctor. The sweet boy had a later start with his ear infections, but he's a competitive one and decided to try to make up for them in a shorter timespan.

Boo.

Although, I must admit, I'm relieved when I think about how much Addie's tubes have helped her, and hopeful that if (ahem - when - let's be honest) Landon has to have them, they'll be just as successful.

So, that was our week in a nutshell. Poor little man's tummy is still having problems, making almost ten days. They said that viral diarrhea can last up to two weeks. Does that seem INSANE to anyone but me?!?! He's eating and drinking just fine (we still have him on a very mild diet, though - no baby food except bananas, plain yogurt, rice cereal and puffs) so that's good. We can't really tell if the probiotics are helping, because with the antibiotic for his ear infection, we don't know if the virus is still clearing its way out of his system or if the medicine is causing the problems now. I will be SO GLAD when he is feeling better. So will our water bill ;)

Unwrapping her Little Einsteins ornament



Poor sweet girl


Helping with the tree!



Snuggle time to recover from decorating

Landon "helping"

JM's year for the tree - it's huge (but yes, it's pretty)

All better and baking gingerbread!