11 months and still quarantining.

Our little guy is 11 months.  It's been a crazy ride, but boy has he grown quickly.

He is busy.  He seems to have weaned himself (excuse me while I go cry), as he's too busy to be patient or sit still.  Those 8 giant teeth also don't help. He spends most of his time trying to be big and stand unsupported (today he was so close to getting from a seated to standing position without any support), or foraging for more food.  He loves climbing stairs, but still would prefer to yell at us to help him down despite his sneaky escapes to places we thought we closed off.  And, for what it's worth, a 5-year-old can and babies can almost find ways through cat doors on baby gates.

Isaac desperately needs a haircut. He's currently rocking the mullet look, with a touch of Alfalfa/Jack Jack on top.  We were brave enough to do Nolan's hair, but I can't imagine cutting a baby's hair. On that note, I also can't imagine Scott's... so there's that. 

As far as quarantine life goes, we are hanging in there.  I'd be lying if we said it was easy.  Though I'm grateful for what we have, we are certainly nervous for an upcoming move across states as we struggle to find housing. We're also still anxious about our own health and our family's.  And while Isaac is enjoying his constant time to play and explore the house, Nolan is struggling with the lack of social activities.  His behavior seems to feed off of social settings and routine... both of which are lacking here.  Isaac needs a lot of our attention, and so does work. So, Nolan, while incredibly independent, is struggling to figure out his place. And, of course, that also translates to a lot of guilt from mom and dad as we try to balance work, home-schooling, creating consistency, and giving him the time he definitely deserves.  All that being said, we are thankful and it's been rewarding to see the connections and 'light-bulb moments' in both of our kids.

After reading, re-reading, and contemplating the deletion of that paragraph, I'm going to leave it because it's how we are working through this time (and this whole silly blog is a memory book to look back on when our kids inevitably ask "how old was I when...").  We stay awake at night discussing the pains of the world around us, and how much sympathy and empathy we share for those going through a lot more than us. Amidst a global pandemic, the politicizing and lack of empathy is something that we hope we can avoid in the future when teaching our kids what mattered most.

10 Months - Quarantined

What a weird time. We're making do in quarantine life, but we're constantly nervously awaiting all news pertaining to healthcare and education and admittedly struggling with the unknown.

However, one person who doesn't seem affected is Mr. 10-month-old. He is loving his time at home, with big brother constantly available to harass.

10 months brings us full mobility. He doesn't sit still and is constantly moving to a place where he can pull himself up. He is eating everything in sight, and foraging for scraps in between meals.  Second and third breakfast are pretty important to him.  On that note, he had teeth #7 and #8 pop through. He definitely hasn't had a break in the teething department, but those teeth make him seem so big!  I cannot say that sleeping has improved much, but he can weasel himself into mom and dad's room pretty quickly.

Nolan, my extroverted, go-getter is not as easy-going about staying in. According to him, I am most definitely not doing school the right way, and life can get "so boring."  He's been a trooper though. He struggles with parents being home and working, but I imagine all kids are at this point. He's read a few books on his own, is sounding out words nicely, and is close to mastering his counting to 100.  He's building pretty cool Lego designs, and making many craft projects for our work spaces. 

Scott and I are still working.  His work seems to be changing daily, and we may have a beard shave coming up (which is pretty notable). I am eagerly waiting on news for how this will affect the remaining school year, but looking forward to spring break this coming week so that I can devote more of my attention to the kids. We have had to cancel our trip to visit with family, which upset us all, but we know we're all in this together.  We're surviving with virtual game nights, lots of snapchat with the family, and apparently attempting to buy a home virtually.  

From our family to yours, stay home and stay healthy.  

Love, 

9 months out

Our sweet Isaac is 9 months today! He's been spending this month battling our first sickness, but I feel like 'tis the season.  Our Wisconsin winter got a slow start but ultimately seems to be here to stay.  Our 5-ft snowman is still going strong, adding more and more snow each week. Isaac went from some stomach bug to some nasty sinus stuff. It seems to be never ending, with his voice a little hoarse today and his eyes a bit goopy... but he smiles through it all.  You can tell it hurts a bit to eat, and he doesn't feel all that great, but that won't stop him from clapping along to excitement, scooting his way to his brother, or giggling at Peekaboo.

I just adore that firey alfalfa-like hair and big grin. He's very vocal.  He has to contribute to every conversation with his "Bababa" or "Dadada."  He can definitely sign 'more', and sometimes we wonder if the "Dadas" are really for Dad. They're usually pretty timely. If he's not talking excitedly, he can be found singing/grunting/whining his way to sleep. 

He learned to be mobile this month, too.  I wouldn't call it crawling, but he's an effective inchworm.  He's pretty swift at moving around until he can steal someone's snack, Nolan's iPad, and/or help Nolan 'construct' whatever it is that Nolan is building. I suppose it should be mentioned that he's equally skilled at stealing ice cream and treats as they pass over his head. Spoon and all. 

Feel better soon, buddy! As much as we'd like you to get back to sleeping semi-decently, we know you'd appreciate the same. <3 

Winter Blues

I'm fairly late on this post.  If it makes a difference, sickness seems to have gone through the household.  I'm currently awaiting meds to be ready at the pharmacy for a sinus infection. I'm ready for some sunshine and warmth.

Our sweet little (well, not so little) Isaac is 8 (and a half) months! He's such a smiley, calm baby. We seem to have beat the worst of the reflux, though his preference is always cuddles to get through the night time.  I think back to his first few weeks and how he always needed my hand as we drove, and not much has changed.  He just loves physical touch.  He adores grabbing at Dad's beard, mom's face or necklace, and cuddling up in a little ball. He's all smiles during the day. We have quite the collection of sweet smiles from this little guy, so we picked a photo that showed off his little personality.

He can rock back and forth on his knees, but mostly he's still stationary. He can scoot backwards, but he's not aware that he's doing it, and it generally makes him frustrated that he's further away from what he was trying to get to.  That big ol' belly is just so heavy! He loves his kitties and his big brother. 

This month was also spent pushing 6 (!) teeth through.  2 came up through the bottom fairly quickly, and then 4 all at the same time on the top.  The canines pushed through on top first, which was a little odd, but all four are there now. He's been a drool-y little trooper through it all! 

In other news, Nolan's hockey pictures came back and I figured I'd share some cute ones. 

For all of you hockey fans/players, don't worry... we have since gotten him a longer stick. 😄

We also took a short mini-staycation before the sickness hit.  As always, Daddy did a good job documenting our adventures and summing them up in a short one-minute video. It's been fun to watch Nolan grow into a little water-loving fish, with Isaac following close behind. He loves the slides, and officially passed his recent swim level. He can now officially float on his back and front, swim underwater, and is starting to to take a few strokes above water.  He's getting too big!

Can you believe it's almost February!? Stay healthy!

Happy Birthday/Merry Christmas!

What an exciting month!

Nolan turns the big 5 tomorrow. Scott and I were talking, and we said that five just seems so big. He's now school-aged. Where did the time go!? We both got quite emotional as we looked back on videos, went through his monthly pictures, and talked about ways he has changed and stayed the same over time. 

The eyes stayed the same piercing gray, while the hair has turned darker and chins have disappeared. He thoroughly enjoys building through legos or constructing projects out of tape and random things around our house. He is easily amused, has big emotions, and needs things to work out the way he plans them in his head. We enjoy his spirit, attention to detail, and constant drive to get answers.  He still plays hockey, though these late nights/busy holiday season had him lying in the net most of last practice. I feel ya, bud.   He also is making big leaps in swimming! He enjoys swimming underwater and jumping in unassisted.  It has taken a while to get here, as he is a kid that does not take our word for his limits. 

He adores his little brother, but I think his little brother adores him exponentially more. While Nolan is at school, Isaac talks to his pictures on the wall, pictures on the computer, and eagerly awaits for him to come in to the car at pickup (he lets out a big coo every time Nolan enters). 

As Nolan turns five and Isaac is clearly on the upswing to one, I just want to formally request for time to slow down so we can savor these cheeks a little more and enjoy them being little. Isaac just got two teeth, and is thoroughly loving this big-kid life in the high chair (he'll scream at you if you even think about taking away his food before he is finished).  He fights sleep, and has a serious fear of missing out on something. He has mastered sitting independently, and gets so angry when Nolan finds the sweet spot of being just out of reach.  

I dread the constant running around/tasks of this month, but am looking forward to unplugging, unwinding, and just spending time together as a family during break.

So, if you've made it this far, we hope you have a wonderful holiday season! 

Love,

"Halfway to a number." - Nolan

This little guy is 6 months old. How is that even possible? It's also crazy to think that just 6 months ago, we were packing up all of our belongings, stressed out of our mind, preparing to be parents of two, and moving out of state.  Time is flying.

Isaac is taking on quite the personality. He's reserved and so, so sweet. He loves attention, and he has smiles ready for anyone ready to play with him. He has a low-pitched little voice and, as every passerby mentions to me, the reddest hair and eyebrows. :)

As an update to last blog, we are still not sleeping well, but in the process of sleep training again. I don't think it can get worse, so hopefully we see the light darkness soon!

In other news, we are officially van-drivers. Having room in your car for things and kids is like a whole new experience. Though, I'll miss enjoying my success at puzzle-tetris packing. But, I look forward to having the capabilities to bring along family/friends on little trips in the future.

We are looking forward to Thanksgiving and seeing some family, and we are eagerly awaiting the Christmas season. Plus, next month we'll be prepping to have a 5 year old! How is he already almost 5?!

Sleep Deprivation is Real!

4 months was tough. Isaac has never been a great sleeper, so I went into 4 months trying to mentally prepare for the dreaded 4 month sleep regression that EVERY baby book references. I was ready. We got through the first half okay. He woke up much more often, but would go back to sleep fine. I thought we were through it and then he changed.  Isaac is truly the sweetest little snugglemonster throughout the day. He naps well. He doesn't have your traditional 'witching hour.'

Seriously, look how snuggly he is! 

... Until he goes to sleep. The minute he's on his back, he is up every 5 minutes. And, his cry is not his typical cry. It's blood-curdling and inconsolable. Last week, I had finally had enough. I went to the doctors and, through tears, explained that something was wrong.  We ruled out an ear infection, and started reflux medicine.  We've had a couple of decent nights since starting, so I'm very hopeful.

But, boy, what a week. 

I work from home now and Isaac and I have to sprint out the door to pick up Nolan on time. On Tuesday, we went to do just that. We got in the car, and my hands were too full of all of our essentials to open the garage right inside the door.  We got in the car, buckled in, and I opened up the garage door. I backed up and BOOM! I looked behind me, and my entire windshield was shattered.  I got out of car, frantically checked on Isaac (he was happily cooing away), and I saw that the garage door had fallen back on my car.  For some back story, our garage hand held openers have always been wonky, so they often need pressed 5 times before they work.. and I'm guessing (though cannot remember clearly) that I pushed it once, it wouldn't work, and then I pushed it again... but it had a delay start from the first one so started coming back down. To make matters worse, the garage door wouldn't open and I was stuck inside the garage with a non-drive-able car.  Scott was at work, Nolan had to go to after-school care (and have his evening activities cancelled), and I got to spend the evening checking out reviews of local car shops, working out my insurance, and finding a rental.  Thankfully, and more importantly, we are all okay. And the garage door came out okay.

I can laugh about it now, and looking back, it was just the icing on the cake for a really tired, exhausting week.  I certainly wasn't laughing on Tuesday, and am very confident an additional nap is is written on my to-do list for Sunday. So, pro tip, you really can't function on 3 hours of sleep for a solid week. Though, in retrospect, I don't think sleep would have changed the fact that I really need to ONLY use the garage door opener that is bolted to the wall. Also, in retrospect, I should have taken pictures of my car to showcase here in my digital baby book for Isaac.

In other news, this guy has finally adjusted to the move, starting a new school, and being a big brother.

It wasn't the easiest of transitions for him, but he's back to his fun self. We had parent-teacher conferences last week, and I was happy to hear he was doing great and strong in his people skills and academics. For my former students, I hope I did a decent job highlighting your strengths at parent-teacher conferences. As a parent, one of my favorite things is to hear other people notice the things I love most about my kid. <3 

Happy fall! We've been enjoying the leaves, and this picture makes me giggle.