Rhythm

Lucas might turn out to be our musically inclined child. He loves to dance to any kind of music he happens to hear. I remember Ryan did the same thing at this age, although he only had one dance move. The up and down squat. Lucas has mastered that move, and moved on to things like head shaking and hand waving. Sometimes he looks like he is conducting a symphony while he's listening to music. It's awfully cute!

What I find particularly amusing is that he doesn't just dance to music. Lucas loves all loud sounds, including the vacuum cleaner and the blender. The other day we were out on a walk and a neighbor started up their lawn mower. Lucas immediately stopped walking and started dancing to the sound of the lawn mower. The boy's got rhythm!

Snoozing News

Just when I think I've got things under control in the sleep department, my boys have to go and change everything up. Oh wait, I never had Ryan's sleep issues under control. Here's what issues the boys are having right now:

Lucas is a great sleeper. In fact I almost don't want to talk about it, for fear that acknowledging it will somehow make him change his habits. He usually takes a morning and an afternoon nap, both lasting about 1.5 hours. At night he goes to bed by 8pm and gets up at 7am. That's 14 hours of solid sleep per day! Yes, I often have to pinch myself and make sure this is real. The "issue" I am having with him right now is the length of time it takes him to fall asleep. After I put him in his crib and leave the room, he will often take up to 1 hour to fall asleep. During this time he is babbling, standing up and crying, banging his head against the side of the crib, or just rocking back and forth. Very rarely is he actually screaming and crying, though. I have tried putting him to bed earlier and later, but it made no difference. I thought he might be transitioning to just one nap per day, but I don't think he's ready for that yet. It has just been this past week that I realized I was trying to fix a non-existent problem. Lucas just takes a long time to settle down and fall asleep. I don't think it's something I need to solve or change. As I type this, Lucas is rolling around in his crib, trying to fall asleep for his afternoon nap. He's playing with his toes and chewing on his shirt.

Ryan also has a really hard time settling down to go to sleep. But he has had trouble with this since birth, so I don't think it's going to change anytime soon. What we're dealing with now is bedtime burnout. I dread the evenings, and I think Adam does too. Putting Ryan to sleep is a multiple-hour process. Unless we use Melatonin as a natural supplement to help Ryan fall asleep, it can take anywhere from 1 to 2+ hours of us laying in his bed with him before he dozes off. And then he only stays asleep a maximum of 2 hours before waking up and climbing into our bed. Once he is in our bed, he has to practically lay on top of me in order to sleep. He's very cuddly at night. I have noticed that on the days he doesn't nap, he falsl asleep a little bit easier at night. So I'm at a point where I need to either stop forcing him to take a nap and hope for a shorter bedtime, or enjoy my break during the day while he naps and then deal with the consequences at night. I'm leaning towards giving up his naps, although this comes with its own set of problems. When the boys nap, it's my one chance during the day to get anything done. I look forward to this 45-minute break every single day. And I am like Superwoman during this time, flying around the house doing dishes, cleaning up toys, folding laundry, paying bills, making phone calls, etc. Without this time I fear a mental breakdown. Or a house that looks like a tornado blew through it. Many people have suggested that I implement some sort of "quiet time" for Ryan in lieu of a nap. The very idea makes me laugh. And cry. Making Ryan sit quietly and focus on anything is impossible. I have tried just about everything, but I just can't make it work. As I type this, Ryan is enjoying his "resting time". So far he has thrown a pillow at my head, asked to watch cartoons 1 million times, and shoved every toy off of his shelf. Loudly.

So that's where I'm at with my two boys and their snoozing habits.

Walking During Walks

These boys. They have endless energy. I am constantly trying to think of ways to entertain and wear them out. We often go on walks, but Lucas hates being confined to his stroller. (Or his carseat, or in my arms, or in his bath seat......). It occurred to me last week that I could just let Lucas walk during our walks. So that's what I did. Sure, I have to steer him away from the street sometimes, and keep an eye out for sticks and rocks making their way into his mouth. But for the most part he just loves exploring and running with his brother. I can see our walks becoming an evening routine as a way to wind down before bed, as well as to pass the time before Daddy gets home. I don't know why I didn't think of this sooner!

Can I Build a Rocketship?

Every day Ryan asks me if he can build a rocketship. And by that he means taking every cushion off of our huge couch, stacking them up, and then climbing and jumping on them. It's kind of like a ball pit made out of cushions. Lucas joins in on the fun now too.

Mommy joins in on the fun by dismantling the rocketship every night before bed, just so it can be put back together the next day!

Shadows

Ryan is at an age where his imagination is really developing. I'm noticing it when he plays, and he makes up little voices and stories for his cars. It's really cute to watch. Unfortunately, he is also imagining scary things, like monsters, shadows, and scary sounds.

 

He starts talking about them every night as soon as he gets in bed. He "hears" sounds and wants me to turn the lights on so he can see what the shadows really are. He tells me there are monsters in his room. At first I thought he was just trying to get out of going to bed, but I'm realizing he is actually a little bit frightened. (Although he may be using it as a stalling technique).

 

I'm not sure what to do about this. I've tried explaining to him that monsters aren't real (where did he even hear this word? I've never said it to him), and that shadows can't hurt him. But they still seem to bother him. And it's even becoming an issue during the day. Ryan gets scared sometimes when I leave the room. He accuses me of "leaving him all alone" and tells me something is scary in the room. So now he's my little shadow during the day.

Daddy's Home!

Waiting on Daddy to come home from work. It's pretty much an all day event.

Boy Crazy

I've been feeling a little boy crazy lately. Boys are......fun. And messy and energetic and a little crazy. By the end of most days I feel a little crazy myself. Here are some real life examples from the past week. These are the kinds of scenarios that happen on a daily, if not hourly, basis. It's......fun.

While changing Lucas' diaper, Ryan runs into his room and pees all over his freshly washed pillow and sheets.

Ryan sneaks off and pours hair gel all over his head, face and shirt. I decide a bath is necessary. I get the boys into the bathroom. While I strip down Ryan, I keep 1 pinky finger on Lucas, trying to keep him away from the half-full bathtub. He slips out of my grasp and immediately dives head first into the bathtub.

I shut myself in the bathroom in the morning for exactly 1 minute so that I can put in my contacts. In that 1 minute both boys have opened my jewelry chest and removed all my jewelry, tangling it up all over the floor.

I open the front door to get the mail. Ryan runs past me and grabs the hose I was using to water my flowers, spraying himself. I carry him inside to change him into dry clothes, only to discover that Lucas has dumped out the dog's water bowl all over the kitchen floor and himself.

I'm nursing Lucas in his room after his nap. Typically the only thing that distracts Ryan while I do this is TV. I need a quiet room to nurse Lucas, so I turned on a cartoon for Ryan in the family room. Only this time, Ryan grew bored with television and instead opened our front window and ripped off the screen. I found him hanging his head out the window, just watching the world go by.

I need to start a load of laundry, so I put Lucas in his doorway jumper, one of the few places I consider safe to leave him alone. Ryan is reading a book. As I'm about to start the washing machine, I hear Lucas screaming. Ryan has flipped him upside down and he is suspended in air, crying for me.

Oh and don't be fooled into thinking Lucas is always the sweet innocent bystander. He is turning out to be quite the firecracker.

Front Porch

Our front porch is complete! Adam worked so hard on it and did a great job.

No rest for the weary though......now I want to paint the house!

Lucas: 1-Year Checkup

Lucas had his 1-year checkup with his doctor earlier this week. Here are his growth stats:

Weight: 22 lbs, 3 oz (63%)
Height: 29.5 inches (37%)
Head: 18.5 inches (74%)

All of his growth percentiles have increased from his last appointment. Compared to Ryan at 1 year, Lucas is a little chubbier and shorter.

I asked Lucas' doctor about one of his latest habits that I was a little concerned about.....rocking back and forth. He does it a lot in his crib, when he should be sleeping. He just sits and rocks forward and backward, sometimes repeatedly hitting his head against his crib. His doctor assured me that this type of behavior is normal, and it could either be a self-soothing tactic, or Lucas merely just learning about rhythm. I was also concerned about the fact that Lucas isn't clapping, pointing, or waving. But again, his doctor wasn't worried. He's on track for everything else, and just focusing on other things (like running) at the moment.

Slurpin' Spaghetti

Spaghetti has always been one of my favorite meals, if not my absolute favorite. I loved it as a child. I remember begging my Mom to make it more often, and one time declaring that when I grew up, I would make spaghetti for my family at least once a week. These days I still love spaghetti, but only make it about once every month or two. I just love the variety of trying new recipes, and spaghetti feels too basic sometimes.

But tonight was spaghetti night and I'm really glad it was. This is one meal that both my little guys will eat. Both Ryan and Lucas go nuts over the sauce-covered ground beef. Ryan usually passes on the noodles, but tonight I taught him the fine art of slurping spaghetti noodles. At first I think he thought I was saying "spitting" noodles, because that's exactly what he did all over the table. But then I demonstrated how to slurp a noodle and he caught on quickly. I encouraged the messy slurping because, of course, they were whole wheat noodles.

Lucas learns a lot by watching his brother.

One of the best things about this meal was that it was all made from "real food". I've mentioned this website before, but I love 100 Days of Real Food. I'm trying to eat as much real food and as little processed food as possible these days, so it's nice to have a few recipes up my sleeve that are both healthy and kid-approved. Tonight's sauce recipe can be found here: Homemade Spaghetti Sauce. I did doctor it up a bit with fresh basil and a few other spices.

Other recipes from this website that I have made this week:
Whole Wheat Cheddar Biscuits
Cobb Salad
Banana Pancakes
Jambalaya
Granola
Quiche

And tomorrow night's dinner: Slow Cooker Baked Beans and Potato Skins and a Salad

Yes, I wash dishes all the time.

So what kind of spaghetti eater/maker are you? Do you have a famous homemade sauce recipe or do you open a bottle of Prego? (I really like the Classico brand).

Isabella Rose

I got to meet my new niece last week! Isabella Rose was born on May 2nd and she is absolutely precious! Her nickname is Bella but Adam is insisting on calling her "Izzie".

 This makes 6 kids for my sister! Here is proud big sister Ava.

And big brother Josh and of course, Ryan. He is in love with his cousins. Every time we see them he begs to go back and play with them again. I don't blame him....I wish they lived closer!

Lucas: 1 Year

My sweet Lucas, you are 1 year old today! I can't believe you've grown from this.....

to this in just one year!

You are growing so fast! In particular, you really seemed to evolve from a baby into a toddler this past month.

You are still a good eater, although you are definitely showing preferences and turning up your cute little nose at certain foods I offer you. I suppose this was inevitable, although part of me hoped you would forever remain my child who ate everything.

You walk really well and sometimes run now. It's amazing how much speed your short little legs can muster up! You especially like to run around the house and the yard with your brother, screeching and giggling.

You and Ryan have a lot of fun together these days. I have had quite a few moments lately where I've just stepped back and watched the two of you together playing. Actually playing and having fun with each other! I absolutely love it.

Daddy thinks you need a haircut. I've only had one person recently mistake you for a girl, but that was one too many for Adam. He thinks the cute little curls around your neck are a little too feminine. But I want to wait just a little longer for your first haircut.

 I love your happy personality! So many people comment to me about how you are always smiling, and it's true. It is so easy to make you smile and I think you will be a happy, goofy, easygoing boy when you get older. Your Daddy thinks you are absolutely hilarious, and pretty much laughs at you all the time.

Your sleep habits are either really really good or really really bad. Naps are great....typically 2 per day ranging from 1 to 1.5 hours each. Yep, pretty darn wonderful. I nurse you to bed around 7:30 and then wake you up around 10 or 10:30 before I go to bed, to nurse you or "top you off" for the night. On a good night you will sleep in your crib until 7am without waking up again to eat. On a bad night you are up every 1-2 hours. You are almost always happy and smiling when you wake up from your naps and your face lights up when I come into the room. (Except when I don't pick you up fast enough!)

 You have 5 teeth plus 2 more that just cut through. You say "Mamama", "Dadada" "Gagaga" and "BwaBwa". No real words, just a lot of jabbering sounds.

You weigh a little more than your brother did at this age, and everyone seems to think you will catch up to him in size this year. You two are even mistaken for twins sometimes! (This always makes me laugh)

You are quite independent and will happily play by yourself or with Ryan, without needing me right next to you. You are definitely attached to me and experience separation anxiety when we are other places, but at home you entertain yourself really well.

 I am so blessed to be your Mommy. You have been such a happy addition to our family and I am excited to watch you this year as you become a full-blown toddler.

 Love you Lukey!

Gone Gold-Fishin