Two Month Old Ruby and Auntie Meghan Visits

Well here we are at the 2 months mark.  I'm still waiting for Ruby to get the sleep through the night part down.  Though - last night she went from 10 until 4.  That felt wonderful - except for the part where I stayed up until 12 because I got caught up planning Ross's birthday party.  We're on the way to being happy sleeping again!
We went for the 2 month and 2 year check ups today.  They both did really well with our new pediatrician Dr. Mesch (our old one - Dr. Dahlquist went to just taking care of newborns and sick children).  Ross is now a whopping 29 1/2 lbs - leaving his 75 percentile range to the 63rd.  I think it's because he loves running around so much now.  That kid likes to move. :)  He's 33 1/2 inches tall - 20th percentile range too.  He's getting excited for his birthday party - though he still isn't quite sure what it is yet...he just knows he should be really excited with how excited we are about it.  
Ruby has weighed in at 13 lbs 11.6 oz!  93rd percentile!  This chick is enjoying her milk!  Ross was 12lbs 3 oz at her age.  She's not fooling around!  Her height is 23 inches which is 53rd percentile - so she's not so tall anymore. Here are some pics to prove her little chub that's coming along. :)

She is absolutely adorable!

I was trying to get some pics with her sweater on, but she got too hot and grumpy!

LOVE these chubby legs!

And chubby arms!

She is too cute!

Ruby is smiling all the time now and we get a few laughs now and then.  She follows you with her eyes and loves to watch everyone and be entertained.  We've swapped binkies since we found she likes this other kind that actually stays better in her mouth.  She has mixed feelings about tummy time, but can lift her head up if she wants to.  She eats about 7-8 times a day and is a pretty good nap taker, but gets grumpy at night between 8 and 10 at night.  Hey - we can't all be perfect little princesses 24/7. :)  
Rubes did amazing with getting her shots.  She was quite sad while she got them...as was her mama, but it only took a few minutes to calm her down and she fell asleep.  I remember with Ross, he and I were both traumatized from the moment he got his shots all the way home.  Ruby seems to take it all in stride.  That girl - I'll tell you!

One of our favorite Aunties came to visit us for the week.  It has been SO fun.  The day Auntie Meghan got here, the weather was gorgeous!  So obviously we had to go to the coast (I learned recently that you don't say beach here - you say coast - otherwise you might be fooled into believing  that the water is warm and there's no cold wind in sight).  We headed to Cannon Beach where the movie Goonies was filmed!  We all had a nice time.  Ross was especially excited to dig in the sand instead of wood chips.  Sand is WAY easier to scoop up.  After we stayed as long as we could stand we took Megs to Out Aza Blue and then headed home.  She has been a nice help with the kiddos - especially at the doctors since Ross was a bit scared at the beginning.  She's heading out on her mission in June and we are going to seriously miss this girl and need to get in all the quality time we can with her!  She's here till Saturday - woot woot!  So life is definitely good. :)    

Cannon Beach - Ruby hung out in the carrier the whole time snoozing - her first trip to the beach too!

The Goonies rock!

Doing some diggin' together!

A fam pic!

Auntie Meghan is Ross's best bud!

I think Megs belongs in a magazine - she is so gorgeous!

Posers

Ross enjoyed scooping sand from far away and walking it back to his bucket.  Here he also has a rock...

Hard at work.

Diaper crack!

I promise I'm not a creepo in a red sweater. :) 

One eyed Willy!

It was a million miles away (in Toddler terms) to get to the big rock, so Steve and Megs ran to check it out and take pictures for us.  They found some awesome starfish!

Cute siblings!

Ready for church - her ADORABLE dress from her Great Aunt Celia.  And ruby red shoes too :)

Book reading time with Auntie Megs.

Meghan had never fed the ducks before (I know - right?!) so we had to go!  She also hasn't seen The Wizard of Oz or Snow White...seriously folks!  I think she was raised in a cupboard. ;)  Ross was very concerned about throwing enough bread in for the fish and ducks here.

A duck that was NOT afraid of us no matter what we did.  We were all creeped out!

Ruby LOVED feeding the ducks.  Well - maybe she dreamed about it. :)

Who Wore it Best?

So Ruby has this habit of spitting up and just soaking her clothes enough that it would be uncomfortable for her to go to sleep wearing them.  She prefers to do this at night especially so we go through pajamas very quickly.  She ended up in some of her brother's old pj's from the ol' baby days.  I noticed I took some pics of him in these pjs too.  So the question remains - who wore it best? ;)  They both seem to rock the pjs in different ways....also - Ross was only 1 month old when he was wearing the pjs - so smiling wasn't his forte yet in one of the pics.   I simply can't decide...and maybe it's just not possible to.  I can't believe Ross was this little not so long ago and that Ruby is already this big!!

Ruby Jubilee :)

Roscopants :)

This was Ross at 2 months...where Ruby is now.

March Madness

I have mixed feelings about March.  I used to just hate March actually.  When I was teaching, there were no breaks, it felt like the longest month ever, and the worst part of all was all the games the weather would play with my heart.  One day it's the most beautiful, warm weather of your LIFE - especially after the never ending terrible weather of January and February - and the next day it's back to miserable gloom and cold...on goes the vicious cycle of March.  The only redeeming factor is the fact that March is the month this little charmer came to join us...

For that reason I've gone from practically despising March to having mixed feelings - just like the weather.  On his birthday though - I love March. :)  We've been venturing out a bit more in the world lately and I've braved up with the sunshine that has presented itself the last few days and gone out in it.  It's been LOVELY.  

I feel the need to report a few things that we love about our little kiddos.  I have found that sometimes when I'm trying to get Ross to eat veggies or something else he's not really interested in, if we do a "Cheers!" with it - e.g. a sugar snap pea in my hand and one in his that we bump together before taking a bite - he will eat better for me.  Thanks to Grandma and Grandpa White for introducing "Cheers" at their Christmas visit and my mom for expanding it to healthy foods too. :)  
Every morning Steve is home - he and Ross have a ritual.  Steve gets Ross up, they go downstairs, pour themselves a bowl of Wheaties, get two spoons, sit at the table, and enjoy their breakfast together.  Without fail - after Ross's first bite, he'll stop, look at you, and say "Like it!" like he's never had Wheaties before (like every single day that week).  
When I get Ross up, I ask him if he'd like some oatmeal - which gets him to pop out of bed.  I change him - during which we talk about what he dreamed about - this involves me guessing and Ross repeating after me smiling.  We head downstairs, pour some oatmeal, cook it, and put in a scoop of brown sugar for good measure and bring the blueberries with us.  He sits in his chair, we say some prayers, he takes his first bite (P.S. The way he says oatmeal is SO cute!), and looks at me and says "Like it!"
He loves getting Ruby up and giving her kisses.  He also loves to help me give her a bath (the cleansing spray bottle is his favorite). Sometimes he'll tell me "Ruby bouncer!" or "Ruby swing!" when he is wanting more of my attention.  He usually is pretty patient with her.  He likes it when I nurse her, because he usually gets a snack or gets to watch a little show then.  Lucky pants.

Ross and his good buddy Wesley having some reading time.

Exploring Lincoln Park

Getting some Daddy time in with the kiddos....right next to a pack of diapers - we need to have those on hand everywhere!

Ruby is becoming more and more drop dead gorgeous.  Her baby blues get brighter and brighter every day.  She is usually quite content and likes to watch all of us bustling about playing, cleaning, cooking.  I think she would lose the keep-a-straight-face game VERY easily.  She LOVES to smile.  I can't believe she is 8 weeks old - almost 2 months now!  She's not sleeping through the night just yet, but I have high hopes.  I only have to get up once to feed her which is doable at the moment.  

I am working on fitting in maintaining the house on top of taking care of two kiddos.  I'm slowly getting the hang of it.  Ross is very encouraging since he loves to help clean anyway.  Though - this week with the good weather - cleaning has been thrown out the window.

Steve has been plugging away at school.  He is hanging out in a wheelchair this weekend for an assignment.  He's spent the whole evening practicing wheelies while we watch TV.  

A wheelie

I tried to get him to go higher...

Yes - I did laugh. :)

It's been a good week.  We love this family of four!     

Getting Going

Ruby is 7 weeks old now - how did we get here?  I always think the first 6 or 7 weeks blend into a traumatic mess of sleepless nights/soreness/being at my wits end/gathering my wits to start all over again.  But - here we are - at the more validating stage of having a new baby.  Ruby smiles all the time now, has the beginnings of a laugh, is more predictable with her routine and moods, and hopefully will be sleeping through the night soon (please please please!).  

Another thing I have learned with Ruby is that she is a tremendous spitter upper.  She does it quite often and spits up quite a lot.  I've found if she suddenly stops eating that means I better hurry up and burp her unless I would like another of my many shirts soaked with some spit up.  I had forgotten that phase of life when all I smell like is spit up.  I can't say I enjoy being back to it.  I do enjoy having a little baby to cuddle though once again on top of snuggling my little Roscopants who is getting too big for me to handle.  Last night he even woke up in the night saying "owies" for a little while which we've afterwards attributed to him having growing pains.  No more growing!!  Seriously!

This week has been a fun, busy one.  I am happy to report I have entered the exercising phase once again.  I conquered my old pregnancy elliptical routine I did before Ruby is born.  But doing my Jillian Michaels DVD has left me sore in every muscle I have attached to my body...oh how I've forgotten the price of fitness.  The saddest part is - I did the wimpy version of her workout - and even sadder - I wimpified the wimpy version too...and still - here I am - complaining about my soreness.  Oh well...I must continue.

Every time I think this girl can't get any cuter...

This is what happens when we get up in the morning after having a bad night with Ruby...Ross gets to watch Cars...or Mighty Machines - lucky pants.  Ruby goes down for a nap and Mom gets to pass out asleep snuggling him.  Win-Win-Win

About a week ago my friend Kim and her husband scored a gift card to The Cheesecake Factory - my all time favorite restaurant.  I raved to them about the avocado eggrolls and chicken bellagio that I always get.  They went, thoroughly enjoyed my recommendations, and later Kim invited me to attempt making the chicken bellagio dish with her since they have the recipe posted on their website. 

Our boys entertained themselves for the most part - the other part we just filled up with super healthy snacks like marshmellows and goldfish.  Ruby was as precious as her name and was happy in the swing the whole time we cooked.  It was a bit of a madhouse in the kitchen and we managed to fill up all the counter space with our work, but the end result was completely worth it.  Who needs The Cheesecake Factory right?!  Okay - well to be honest I think we're happy spending $14 on the dish and foregoing all the work/dishes/time/bill of ingredients, but we were VERY proud that we could do such a good copycat of my favorite dish.  We all very much enjoyed it!

Yes - it did taste as good as it looked - it really did.

Another picture to taunt you.

Tonight we had our good friends, the Vosses over for some pizza and hang out time with our new little babies.  They had Henry 3 weeks after we had Ruby.  They were good little buddies and we had a good time swapping baby stories, feeding babies, and eating pizza.  There's nothing like good friends!  
Now we're into March - where the heck did February go?  Ross is turning 2 this month and I'm in complete denial.  He is so stinkin' adorable and fun to be with.  He loves to put on his crocs that match mine (mostly because he can do it himself) and always has to have his jacket on too if the shoes go on.  He's loving playing with Ruby more and getting her to smile.  He has this weird obsession with making sure she always has a binky in her mouth whether she's crying or not...seriously - she'll be in a dead sleep and if I'm not watching he's trying to shove the binky in her mouth.  He's very serious about binky issues.  I've also found if I'm cooing at Ruby he want to come sit on my lap or snuggle with me and have me coo at him too - silly boy.  He can say "Francesco" and "Piece of Cake" really well.  "Francesco" may be my favorite thing he is currently saying.  

The babes.  Mandy told me Henry gained a pound in the last week.  I'm pretty sure he gained it in his cheeks - could you not just kiss those all the time!  Ruby made sure to put her arm around Henry and smile for the picture.  Henry has maybe a week or two until smiles may be more on cue.

Steve continues on - after the first week of classes he informed me he's ready for summer...just after one week. :) This boy is ready to be done with school!  He's so brilliant and amazing though.  I can't believe how much time and effort he puts into his schooling - quality time and effort at that.  He is making so much of his life and I am so glad our little family is all a part of it.  He is wonderful!

Ross enjoys a good tummy time with Ruby - he loves it actually!

He's cheering her on reminding her he hated tummy time too back in the day.  She'll get through.

Especially if she can have encouraging kisses from her brother. :)

This kid knows how to fill his role. :)

I LOVE this picture - LOVE IT!!!!

Anyway - there is an update - here's to a week of getting a bit more sleep now that we're healthing up and Ruby's getting older!  Cheers!

Out of the Woods...Maybe?

Well we have had quite the last week and a half!  My wonderful friend Maren came with her daughter, Ally (aka Ross's betrothed), to visit.  It started out great - we got to have some serious girl chat, chick flicks (including Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants - I need to SERIOUSLY get to Greece!), and convinced Steve to hold down the fort so we could go get some delicious dinner without kiddos one night.  It was hilarious because Ally and Ross were pretty much on exact opposite schedules.  Ally took two naps and Ross just took one in between.  They did get to see each other in the morning and night though.  
The sad part came when Ally seemed to go from a runny nose to a touch of the croup by the fourth day they were here.  They ended up cutting their trip short and headed home the next day.  I was SUPER sad to see them go, but we were all hoping Ross and especially Ruby wouldn't catch anything either.  I needed some serious Maren time and we'll just have to make up for it this summer!
Sadly, we didn't dodge the sickness, all of us got a touch of it one way or another, and are getting over it now.  It wasn't a bad bout though - so we're super thankful.  It seems like everyone is getting sick these days!
 

The two lovebirds!  Note - Ross's cement mixer in his hand.

Giving a luv - Good thing Ross's onesie is covering up what would probably be a plumber's crack. ;)

She has the cutest smile!

Ally definitely knew how to eat - it was a whole experience in and of itself! 

Ruby is 6 weeks old now!  Steve and I consider this the "out of the woods" time with getting her more adjusted to sleeping and us actually becoming real live people once again.  Last night Ruby was sounding more congested with a touch of fever, and I was concerned it was starting to affect her breathing so we went to the doctor today to make sure it wasn't developing into anything else.  She's just fine though - just dealing with a bit of congestion in her nose.  Sleeping just isn't so fun for her...or mommy for that matter.  We found out she weighs 11lbs 15oz now!  SHEESH!  She's already up a pound on her brother when he was her age...she's longer though so she carries it well. ;) This girl is taking advantage of getting those cute baby rolls going now too.  Her legs are chubbing up and her cheeks are getting more and more kissable!  She likes to have conversations with you - mostly you talking, but she will happily smile.  Her smiles are to die for - she'll scrunch her nose to one side sometimes and open her mouth like she's going to laugh.  Steve got her to laugh two days ago when he was whistling at Ross to get away from being GLUED to the TV.  She thought it was quite amusing. :)  Oh I love it when they laugh and smile - definitely an "out of the woods" feeling.    

6 Week Smiley Pants!

Her signature half nose scrunch smile. :)

Ross got a fever and quite the runny nose.  He handled this illness like a champ though!  He was a bit grumpy, but enjoyed popsicles and watching TV while we tried to get him to rest.  He slept that night for 14 hours, only waking up when Steve went in to check on him.  He nipped that sickness in the bud with his excellent sleeping skills!  
He currently likes to line up his cars and trucks on the kitchen table and take head counts as to if he has all of them.  He likes to play with them on the stairs as well. (This proved to be a problem when Ally came since she was still in the phase of not quite getting how not to fall down the stairs when sliding down them...we had to block the stairs much to Ross's dismay.)  He calls marshmellows "fallows" and fruit snacks "nick nacks".  
Last night I had a realization of how attached Ross is to his blanket...Steve had put him to sleep without it initially since somehow it had gotten into our room instead.  Ross then began crying hysterically calling for his blanket....oh may we never lose that thing!  We'll all be paying for it.  
Speaking of crying - whenever Ross finishes crying (as in he's calmed down but the tears are still on his face) he looks at you and says "cryin'! cryin'! sad!" - totally adorable.
Ross is getting more fun every day.  He is talking so much more stringing more words together.  I love it.  Whenever he starts doing something he shouldn't, I'll tell him to "look at mommy" and when he does I'll tell him his choices of what he needs to do and he'll look back at me and say "dank you!" while he does what I asked (since I always tell him thank you after I tell him to do something).  He truly is the sweetest boy.  I think some of his greatest gifts are his sweetness, his ability and excitement to share, and his love of helping.  I'm so proud of him and what a good boy he is.  

We're having some scripture study time.  Ross likes the boat pictures best.

Enjoying some story time with Daddy.

We went to check out a cool train around the block with some of Ross's buddies (Ruby is in the back). 

I guess they wouldn't all look at the camera at the same time!  Stinkers!

I think he was hoping for Thomas the Train - or one that at least talked. ;)

Nothing like a cool train to capture some boys' attention!

Ross the sickie...sporting a fire truck onesie, fighting a fever and a runny nose (as you can see).  Also - he can lift his leg up high. :)

Playing a little b-ball!  Ross got distracted.

Steve and I are hanging in there.  I'm boggled at the idea of how people handle more than two kids.  It's nice when he's home and we each can be taking care of one of them.  Steve is trying to nip his little cold in the bud, but is also trying to juggle that with school, two little hoodlums, church callings, and a needy wife.

I am trying to figure out housework, cooking, planning an exercise schedule, play dates, and two kids still.  It's fun but still a bit tricky.  I'm sure in the distant future when we have three I'll be looking back thinking two was a cinch, but it takes time to get to that point.  Sheesh - it took until getting Ruby to think having just one was a cinch - before that it took both Steve and I to handle Ross. :)  Oh the fun-ness of parenthood!