Tree Farm

I wanted to go to a tree farm to pick out our tree this year.  It's something I've been wanting to do the last couple of years.  I know I've mentioned in the past how I want to have family traditions that the kids will remember and even pass down to their own kids.  So, the day after Thanksgiving, we got dressed up (in hopes to get some good pictures) and headed to the tree farm.  As we drove up we talked about our favorite part of thanksgiving.  It made my heart so glad to hear everyone's laughter fill the van.

When we got to the farm, it was very picturesque.  There were farm animals, a nice lake, with the backdrop of Christmas trees in perfect little rows.  We attempted to get a few family pictures with the help of our tripod, then were on a mission to find the right tree.  It felt like Goldilocks, the tree was too tall, or too bare, or too trimmed.  Then we found the right tree, a tree that wasn't perfect but had some character, a tree that looked like our family.  So, Jimmy got down and sawed it down.  After we got the tree on top of our car, we went for a hayride, watched the farm animals, and roasted some marshmallows.  It was a lot of fun!

When we got home, the kiddos took an afternoon nap, and when they woke up we decorated the tree together with Christmas music filling the air.  We had Thanksgiving balls for dinner and the smell of sweet pine filled the house.  These are the memories I want to savor and makes me wish time would pass just a little slower so that I can hold onto these moments.

Best Buddies

One of the many reasons we wanted a second child is so that EV would not be alone.  We were perfectly happy with our one beautiful little girl but our family just did not feel complete.  In addition, EV would always ask for a little sibling, okay fine, a little sister.  She would say "my other friends have little sisters and brothers" can I have one too?  Then she started praying for one.  But it wasn't as easy as she had hoped and required a fair amount of waiting.  When we found out we were having a second, we were ecstatic!  Then we found out we were having a boy and had no idea how we would break this news to EV, but we were grateful when she wasn't disappointed or upset.  And felt such a sigh of relief and joy when we saw her getting excited for the arrival of her baby brother.

We all eagerly anticipated the birth of this baby and I think EV's expectation was let down the most.  Say what?! The baby can't play with me and do all the things I dreamed he would do?  All he is going to do is eat, sleep, and take away my precious time with mommy??  Oh yeah, the first three months were tough on everyone, especially EV.  Our precocious, independent, sassy little 4 year old became a whining, needy, baby herself.  Then one day, EV walks into a room and Emmett flashes her the biggest smile ever and everything changes.

EV starts to acknowledge her little brother, she sings to him, dances for him, plays with him.  If he drops a toy, she picks it up for him.  If he drools, she gets his burp cloth to wipe his mouth for him.  If he cries, she goes over and comforts him.  She's also back to her normal self, she's able to play by herself again, she's less whiny and needy, and she's back to doing everything by herself again. 

It warms my heart to see these two get to know each other.  I know they will have their fair amount of arguing and fighting (especially the day Emmett stands up to his sister and doesn't do what she tells him to do).  But I pray that even in those moments, they will grow closer to one another and become the best of buddies.  EV calls Emmett her baby (primarily because she doesn't want to acknowledge that I am his momma) and says that when she grows up she's going to marry Emmett.  I know that it was not instantaneous but I love that she is loving her brother a little more every day. 

Baby boy

I never thought I would love having a little boy.  My family is all girls and I've only really been around girl babies.  Plus, after having such a difficult pregnancy, I was sure to resent the little boy growing in my belly.  But let me tell you, I LOVE my little baby boy!

My love for Emmett is different than my love for EV.  EV is my pride and joy.  She's a reflection of who I am and everyday I am amazed at how loving, graceful, passionate, considerate, thoughtful, and smart she is.  Emmett is my heart.  He makes my heart melt and I become putty when I'm around him.  He makes me feel at ease and I feel like he just gets me.  He doesn't have to say anything, he just puts his head on my chest and everything is okay.  He thinks everything is funny and it makes all your troubles go away. 

At five months, he loves to be a part of the family.  He sits with us during mealtime and drools away.  He's chatty, always has something to say from the moment he wakes up to the moment he falls back asleep.  He also loves his sleep (EV wakes up at 5am while Emmett sleeps till 8am or until we wake him up).  He loves holding his hands together and trying to get them both into his mouth.  He's a thumb-sucker.  The moment you lay him on his back he rolls to his tummy cause he wants to see what's going on.  He loves weird and loud noises, being tickled, and startled.  EV was roaring at him with a dinosaur mask on and he thought it was the funniest thing.  He loves his sister.  His eyes widen and the biggest smile comes across his face when she enters the room.  He doesn't want to miss a thing and unless he's really hungry can't be bothered with eating or being changed.  He likes to grab hair, shirts, necklaces, skin, pretty much anything he can get his little hands around.  But the sweetest moments are when I'm nursing him and he is grasping my finger.  Yes, I hold his little hand while I nurse him. 

Emmett, thank you for being our little boy.  Grandma calls you a little angel and I completely agree.  We are so blessed to have you in our lives and are so thankful to call you our own.  I look forward to every new discovery and adventure with you.  We love you, sweet boy!

Pumping and Traveling

Last week I went on my first work trip since the baby's been born.  Originally, I was planning on just pumping and dumping but a co-worker gave me some great tips on how I can save my milk.  So, I thought I would pass along some tips.

1.  Preparation is key.  Take a cooler, the kind you can fold, so you can pack into your suitcase when heading to your destination.  Take tons of ziplock bags (I'll explain why later).  Take hand sanitizer.  And of course take your pump, your bottles, an ice pack, and your milkbags.

2.  When you arrive at the hotel.  If you can book a room with a kitchenette that has a fridge with a freezer is best.  You can also ask for a mini fridge but those don't always have freezers and depending on how much milk you need to freeze may not be big enough.  I was supposed to get a suite with a kitchenette but they put me in a regular room.  So, I told them I needed to freeze my milk and they let me use the hotel freezer.

3.  Here's where the ziplock bags come in handy.  I placed 2-3 milkbags into a sandwich ziplock bag then put the sandwich bag into a gallon ziplock.  I labeled everything and then placed a piece of paper into the gallon bag with my information (you know just in case my milk gets lost somehow).

4.  Sanitize your bottles.  Again, if you are in a room with a kitchenette you can sanitize your bottles on the stove or using the microwave but if you're in a regular hotel room then usually the hot water doesn't get hot enough.  So I used the coffee maker to boil my water and poured it over my bottles and pump pieces.

5. Coming home.  I placed my frozen bags into the cooler I packed with me and carried it through security.  I placed them in the cooler at 8am and got home at 4pm and they were still frozen.