Noah Obeyed

Ivy is a sponge and I LOVE it! She is soaking in every little detail of every conversation.... so be careful what you say around little ears.... but oh, all the good things she is learning. At church they are talking about Noah and how wonderful the rewards were for him and his family because he obeyed God. She keeps saying he obeyed God and he didn't even think it would really rain! So when we changed her verse this week she was so invested and determined that it must be about God and Noah. Friends, go back and read- Noah and God take up several chapters in Genesis. Problem solved- we read it together and she chose her memory verse. She has been so invested in learning this week!

"Whenever the rainbow appears in the clouds I will see it and remember the promise between God and all of Earth's living things."
Genesis 9:16

Crazy Love

We had a pretty ordinary Valentine's Day in what feels like a crazy life! Not crazy like bad crazy but just busy crazy :) It always seems like we are on the go or preparing the kiddos to be on the go! During the week we don't ever catch up.... cooking, cleaning, washing, schooling, and we are sure to make some time for playing! Amidst our hectic schedule we still took the time to celebrate our crazy love :)

Look at this little Valentine- definitely hyped up with a sugar buzz from the cookies, chocolate, and candy hearts! She was riding her pony like a crazy woman decked out with her Valentine's outfit, sunglasses, and balloon!

Monday evening was pretty normal for Greg and I, but we were lucky enough to celebrate our love on Saturday. Ivy and Tula had a great time playing with Sidney Shea and Rhett while mommy and daddy got some time together. (We can't wait to keep their kiddos for them next month- we are trading children every other month to make sure to sneak in some dates!) Greg and I went to a little local cafe.... Main and Maple.... and LOVED it. It was so yummy and peaceful and we full got to enjoy time together. Before we left, Greg surprised me with such a pretty drawing he did for me and had framed. He is so artistic and I miss that part of him- with our crazy life he doesn't have a lot of time to draw but for this special occasion he did. The picture doesn't really do his work justice but he is really good!

It was a great Valentine's Day with the love of my life.... and our two mini loves!
Hope you had a special V-Day too!

Fickle Pickle

Tula spending some quality time with her penguin paci (a gift from Ivy) and playing in her exersaucer!

Maybe you remember our paci situation upon Tula's arrival!!
It was a small battle.... Mommy didn't want Tula attached to the green hospital paci.... Tula didn't like any other kind.... Mommy gave in.... Tula wins the green paci.... End of Story! Bottom line, Mommy likes babies to have paci's so at the end of the day if Tula was calmed and soothed by the green, hospital paci then that was okay. However, green paci or any paci at all Tula didn't seem to love it the way Ivy loved her paci (here I go with my comparisons). But the paci would soothe her sometimes and that was maybe as good as it was going to get. Then at about 4 months- she no longer wanted the paci. What?!?!?! We would give it to her and she would act like she was gagging or not take it at all letting it roll and bounce across the floor. One day in a desperate attempt, I pulled a Nuk paci out of her dresser drawer and her eyes lit up and she sucked, sucked, and sucked some more. She was in love and soothed!! Tula might be a fickle pickle in choosing the right kind of paci but for quite some time she has been LOVING her little Nuk paci's to death! You will see Tula morning, noon, and night with a paci in her mouth and a twinkle in her eye and you just know she is smiling behind there! And this Mommy and Daddy (and sister, who has a true love for all things babies and paci's) are thankful that our little Pickle has found one that suits her just right!

Valentine's Snow

As if we haven't had enough snow.... but honestly, I was hoping for this snow day. I like to call it our annual Valentine's Snow. Maybe you remember it last year... if gave me time to do too many little lady bug magnets with a two year old? I think it is God's way of giving precious moments of secret time to working moms. With this snow day, I was able to spend time with Ivy getting ready for her little Valentine's party at Kristy's. She already has her outfit picked out for the upcoming event and now each card is labeled so she is ready to go!

We decorated a Valentine's Box, looked through all 24 Olivia valentine's to find the perfect one for each of our friends, and even took time to make a "love fairy" wand with aluminum foil!

Ivy is VERY independent and likes to do it "her way". So it was absolutely unacceptable for me to even help her write her Valentine's.... wonder where she gets the stubbornness from? :) So this Mama had to ask God for patience many times over as she copied names onto cards with her "Valentime's Red" crayon for a whole 60 minutes!

Mommy Revelations

Ivy Camille, 5 months

Tula Belle, 5 months

When I was asking about the personalities of his children, a father of 4 told me.... "You look at all the differences between your first two babies and then your mind begins to wonder.... Will a third baby be like Baby 1 or Baby 2? And then they arrive and are completely different in their very own way. They all are really so uniquely them."

This has really gotten me thinking. I know that I am different so I thought that is maybe what was making Tula and Ivy seem so different but now I am having second thoughts. I have to start now to realize Ivy and Tula are each their own. I can't always be saying Ivy did this and Tula does that, because without a doubt one always seems to be a positive and the other a negative but in all honesty, they are just different.

This week I thought I would give the old Baby Ivy sleep routine a try with Tula since she has started to get restless in the evenings. Newsflash- I realized I never really had to let Ivy "cry it out" I just thought I was prepared for that. She may have whimpered for a total of 3 minutes at the longest, but really she just enjoyed going to bed at night (and staying asleep)! Tula loves taking some killer naps all over creation but at night she really doesn't want to be left alone. I saw what "cry it out" really looks like, for all of 10 minutes, and slammed the door in it's face! I can't do it. I guess I am a weenie since I know many babies who have survived it and slept great but Tula was no where near calming herself down. With every belly pat and visit to her crib side she got angrier. Once I picked her up, she was calmed by my touch and staring me in the face she fell right to sleep and slept for most of the night (7 hours).

This made me realize it's not all about my overall relaxed nature this time around, but more that babies are just different and really can't be compared. They are all comforted in different ways and every stage of every child is going to test us without a doubt. We are the parents trying to tweak this and change that in order to best suit this unique little gift from above- and that is what parenting is all about. There is not a one way formula that works and you have to find that groove that best fits your family. I am eating the same words I fed out to other Mama's when Ivy was little --sorry if you are one of those- :*( -- I would say try this and try that- only to see that it was what worked for Ivy but all babies are different and even my own second born can't function on an Ivy-like routine.

With that said...
Cheers to a second baby who can't be compared to anyone but her!
Cheers to all Mamas going with their mama-instinct and doing what works!

Two HUGE revelations this week!

Love Affair

I have been having a love affair... and I only wish it was with my husband!
Instead, I present to you....

Mr. Milk Man

Oh the lengths, you go to continue nursing your baby when you go back to work. My great lengths include two quick rendezvous with Mr. Milk Man in the utility closet hidden deep in the walls of Wilmore Elementary. I am surrounded by wires, old computers, the occasional creepy crawly, and enough dust bunnies to build Tula Belle a brand new stuffed animal!

But oh, how it is worth it! I am so excited that Tula and I have reached the 5 months of nursing mark this week. Ivy was done as my supply dwindled out at 4 months so I am patting myself on the back and cheering us on to keep going. My goal was to nurse Tula longer than I was able to do with Ivy and that I have accomplished- am I done? Absolutely not! It is going too well. My supply is meeting Tula's needs and she still prefers nursing over the bottle any day. My babysitter and lovely family members who have attempted feeding Tula would say prefers is a light word for the rejection she shows toward the bottle the first 15 minutes of every bottle feeding. (Sorry to you all... happy for me!) She is growing, growing complete with chubby cheeks and rolls up and down her thighs on this liquid gold alone.

I am so thankful for this time with my sweet baby and for her the love affair between the Milk Man and Mama will have to continue!