Baby Command Center!

Hunter's new favorite toy (courtesy of daddy):

A New Day

Avah, waiting to leave for school



Lately I have felt like every day passes so  quickly that its almost like watching my life in a movie. I watch my  two kids grow up before my eyes and its almost like they are running ahead and I can't catch up. My dad tells me nearly every time he talks to me to "spend more time with your kids" and I understand exactly why. They grow up SO fast. He spent so much time working he missed out on a lot and I think it is his biggest regret.

When I was admitted to the hospital to give birth to Hunter I was a whopping 60 pounds heavier than when I got pregnant. I was already about 5-10 pounds larger when I got pregnant than I like to be so I felt like (and was) a whale. Fast forward to five months later and I am still 40 pounds away from my norm. That's a LOT of weight. I have a closet full of size small and medium shirts and size 6 and 8 pants that I cant even think about fitting into. This may not seem like THAT big of a deal to some people but its a huge deal for me because I don't feel like myself. I almost feel like I am suspended in time waiting for "me" to come back...all the while my kids are growing like weeds and my life is going in fast forward around me. I have been really conservative about attempting to lose weight because of breastfeeding, but I need to do this for me. I am trying desperately to find a balance between making enough milk for my son and eating less calories so I will lose weight. It seems like every time I eat less my supply takes a dip. Ill keep you updated on my progress, but I thought I would share my struggles with people. If anyone has any suggestions or advice I would love to hear them!

Hunter: 5 Months

Hunter and daddy "flying"

Hunter is 5 months old on Saturday! Its absolutely crazy how fast time flies. He is a really smart little man and his personality is starting to really come through. He can do the following:

- Roll over both ways
- Lift his upper body up 90 degrees
- Smile and laughs (a lot)
- Chew on anything and everything
- Reach for toys
- Objects when you try to take a toy away
- Razz and babble
- Bear most or all of his weight on his legs
- Sit upright, supported

He is still exclusively breast fed and we have not started him on solids yet. He has stupid reflux still so his pumped bottles of breastmilk (while I'm at work) are thickened so he can keep them down. Hopefully that gets better soon. We will start solids sometime after he turns 6 months old. We are also still cloth diapering and using cloth wipes as well. We absolutely LOVE them, and this is coming from a VERY busy mom that works full time.

We also have Justin's cousin, Haylee, watches the kids while we work. She is absolutely AMAZING and so so so much better than daycare. We are so lucky to have her.

Avah has been growing like a weed. She put on a pair of shorts she hadnt worn in a month or two and they were so short they were like daisy dukes! She mustve grown like 3 inches! Shes doing well in school and is really starting to mature. She has about an hour of homework every night as well...its insane.

In other news, me and Justin's 1 year wedding anniversary (4 years together) is coming up in a few weeks. Crazy! I got a job as a loan processor within the same company I am working for now. That starts on October 1. Things are going really well for us as a family. If only I could stop time from ticking away so fast...

Photo Montage!

4 months old =(

Technically, hes not four months old for another 4 days, but still. Its so sad how fast hes growing. Im hoping to finish this entry without interuption...I am watching him squirm in his sleep on the monitor. We are transitioning from cradle to crib right now and I'm not sure how tonight will go. My guess is not so great. He has been teething like mad and doing a lot of baby sit ups. He reeeally wants to sit up but has no interest in rolling over. Avah was the same way as a baby!

In other news, we have another busy week ahead of us. Avah gets to meet her teacher on Monday night and then my dad will fly in Tuesday night. Then Avah has her first day of school Wednesday and we will need to get back into the groove of that. I picked up the last item needed (shoes for PE) today so we are all set. Its absolutely INSANE the amount of crap you need for back to school. About $100 worth of school supplies (including back pack and lunch box) and another several hundred for clothes and shoes. I wouldnt feed into the whole clothing shopping frenzy for back to school but she really needed new ones so we did.

Ill leave you all with pictures and a vow to start blogging more often!

Daddy and Hunter

Hangin out with Grandpa

His shirt says "Ladies Man"...Justin's mom brought it back from Seattle for him! That chair he is in is the only baby item I have left from when Avah was a baby. She loved that chair!

Hunter hangin out with Sophie the Giraffe

"Sophie, come back here!"

Squirmy, unsteady baby + portrait mode = bad (but cute!) photo

Avah looking cute as always!