Ho ho ho

Kale's 3 month pictures far exceeded anything we had imagined. He was uber smiley - which is the exact opposite of how Nolan usually is at his professional pic appointments! We even managed to get a picture of both of the boys together - although Nolan refused to smile. That's ok - it's a great memory! As I look at the pictures of the 2 of them together I'm reminded of how I was with my sister Gina. Gina was always the super smiley one, and I was never real smiley, but I also didn't cry a lot, either. They always say you'll have a kid who is just like you when you were young. I think I'm going to get that with Nolan! We were going to visit the Santa at EP Center, but found out that an event that had been scheduled in Mound at the senior center for last weekend was rescheduled for yesterday, so we decided to go there instead. Adam and I had very low expectations for our visit with the boys to see Santa Claus. It went well last year, and we figured Nolan would freak out and cry - especially for how pouty he was at the mall for Kale's 3 month pictures! Nolan surprised us and wasn't scared at all. He walked right up to Santa and stared at him - and then gave him a high five. He even sat on his lap with no issues. He is always full of suprises! After visiting Santa we went in to another room where they had a few activities for the kids. Nolan did some coloring while I fed Kale. He also tried to make friends with a few other kids who were there. It's always nice when Nolan steps out of his shell to meet new kids!

Nolan is working really hard on his ABC's and counting. Jane works with the kids every day at daycare, and Nolan is actually retaining some of that info. His favorite thing to do is dance - or as he says, "ancing". His other new favorite phrases include "yummy yummy yummy" when he really likes something he's eating and "where's dada/where's mommy". The other new development is that Nolan has finally learned how to say no. Up until now he has only shook his head no while saying uh uh. We're not sure how we feel about that yet. He's using the word way more often than we like! Nolan also asks Jane quite frequently where Adam is during the day, and Nolan now knows he's "at the office". It's amazing to both of us how quickly he picks up on words now, and how much he remembers!

In the last few weeks Kale has been busy, too. He found his feet, which gives him hours of entertainment - day or night! He is also talking a lot more, and is able to sit in his bumbo. The PT told us last week to work on his neck muscle development side to side, so we practice rolling over from back to tummy quite a bit during the day. I can definitely tell the right side of his neck is still stronger, but we're working at it.

Adam and I are really looking forward to Christmas with the kids, especially Nolan. He loves to open gifts, and says "wow" every time he's excited about something. We didn't get him or Kale a lot of gifts, because we know they'll both be spoiled at our other family events. We're spending Christmas Eve and Day with Adam's family, the day after in Rochester, visiting my grandma next Wednesday and then heading up to my parent's over New Year's weekend. We are all going to be a bit out of sorts, but that's part of the holiday season!

Big boys

I had a busy day with the boys yesterday. Kale had a PT appointment in the afternoon, so I decided to combine that with a stop at the dr. for Nolan, too - we suspected he had an ear infection. Nolan really hadn't been feeling well. He was waking up at night crying, digging in his ear, has a runny nose and super raspy voice, and was clumsier than normal. Because of all that Nolan did not want to walk on his own, so not only was I pushing the stroller with Kale but also carrying Nolan. What a workout! Kale's PT appointment was good. He is getting better range of motion in his neck, but we still have some work to do. Adam met us at the clinic for Nolan's appointment. It felt good to know we weren't going crazy when the dr. confirmed it was in fact an ear infection. What blew us away the most was what our little boys weighed in at on the scale. Nolan is described by anyone who holds him as "solid". Yes he is - at 28 lbs! And Kale is keeping up with Nolan in a rather large way. He already weighs 14 lbs 5 oz! Nolan didn't weigh that until he was 4 months old, and Kale is only 3 months old. No wonder I felt like I was shoving him in his 3 month clothes!

Last weekend I was home with the boys, as Adam made a very dangerous trek to South Dakato. The plan was for he and the brothers-in-law to pheasant hunt, but the weather had other ideas. They drove all the way down there on glare ice roads, never got to hunt due to the blizzard, and ended up almost not making it home on Sunday because interstate I-90 was closed until 2:30 Sunday afternoon. Even when they opened it travel was still trecherous - it took him 5 hours to get home. The boys and I had a good weekend despite the snow. We ended up getting between 15 and 17 inches of the white stuff! Thank goodness for Greg and Ellen. They came over Saturday afternoon with dinner, and Greg snow plowed our driveway. He was even nice enough to come back on Sunday to plow us out again where the city snowplow had piled the snow at the end of the driveway. I wouldn't have made it to the annual cookie bake/exchange if he hadn't come over!

Nolan still likes Kale, but we had our first taste of not sharing this weekend. I gave Kale Nolan's Curious George stuffed animal to play with while I was getting Nolan ready for bed. Nolan did not like that fact Kale was playing with his toy. It's tough to reason with a 20 month old sometimes! Nolan also seems to think the bumbo chair is for him to sit in, and not Kale. I'm shocked he even fits in it for how big he is!

I'm feeling really good about how much we've gotten done to prepare for Christmas. It's only 10 days away! The gifts are bought and wrapped under the tree, the Christmas baking is complete, and the holiday letter and picture was sent last week. The only thing we have left to do is take the boys to see Santa, which is the plan for Saturday morning. We have Kale's 3 month pictures first, and then plan to visit dear old St. Nick. Nolan has seen lots of pictures of Santa and can say "ho ho ho", but I'm not sure how keen he'll be to sit on Santa's lap. We may end up with one of the classic "kid screaming at Santa" pics that a lot of our friends have!

Giggles

Kale giggled for the first time today, and I was able to get a small snippet of it on video. Can't wait for him to do it more!

Gettin' jiggy with it

Grandpa Greg and Grandma Ellen gave Nolan a singing Elvis teddy bear playing the piano for Christmas last year. He LOVES it! We laugh every time he pulls out his jazzy/bluesy dance moves.

The little things

As Tricia and I have both realized during the last two weeks, the amount of time and effort of having not one, but two little guys in the house under the age of 2 years is a little crazy. Tricia's maternity leave is on its last leg (1 month left) and year-end push for audit work is picking up for me as well. So I'm basically seeing Kale from 5:30 until 7:00 (maybe) each night and Nolan is about the same, except for our little half hour stint in the morning while we go through the "wake-up" routine. This morning was too funny, Nolan literally was kicking the wall (his sign to let us know he's up) at 6:40 so I open the door and I hear "DAD!" in his little under-stated way. He crawls out of his bed from in-between the safety bar, his pillow, and the wall where he finally gets is footing while rubbing his little belly. Then of course he has to play with his two little pillows that match the quilt while I pick out his outfit for the day. (A green shirt with a Jeep on it, with matching camo pants of course!) We go through the trying to potty routine, which ended with him leaping off stark naked and running to his bedroom without having "made a deposit." We get ready to go, brush his teeth while he holds onto my Sonicare and then he has to help hold my toothbrush while I do mine-he's such a help…maybe he'll be a dentist? After milling around the house we finally get his shoes on, and he helped pull the Velcro over (which he was super excited about). Then winter coat, matching hat, with a sprint to the bedroom he wakes up a sleeping Tricia to get a kiss goodbye then like a flash we're on the way to daycare…all in 15 minutes-not bad. Tomorrow morning I'm taking both boys…so hold on for that update!

Kale continues to give us lots of smiles as well, unfortunately they tend to be before he goes through the new physical therapy regiment of trying to get his head to turn to the left better. Tricia has been running that little guy back and forth between the chiropractor and now PT a lot lately. Our hope is that the flat spot developing (and actually getting worse) on the back-right portion of his skull will meld back into the position that it should be. Kale's ears have become noticeably different in relation to each other and his left eye has started to slightly change as well-both of which are signs that we're doing the right thing by trying to correct the bone movement in his head. We do have an appointment on the books with a orthodontic prostetic specialist next month about getting him into a helmet to shape his head more if needed-so more to come on that I'm sure. (Too bad the Vikings are sucking it up so bad, cause I doubt Tricia will let him wear a Steelers helmet!) Our niece, Allie, had a helmet on and I think that it's one of those things where if we can help Kale out now any future ramifications from having a flat head could be curtailed, but it's tough when you have to turn his head and he doesn't want to!

I think both Tricia and I are recovered from Thanksgiving and our lack of sleep from having two boys in the same room with us, but if anyone has any good ideas as to how to keep a 20-month old from wanting to get out of their sleeping bag and join you every 2/3 minutes I think you'd have an attentive audience! Other than that, the Christmas lights are up outside the house, the tree is lit and ready for gifts to be placed underneath, and the annual Bleck letter is going to get printed tomorrow…all sorts of holiday spirit around our place!

Update from Tricia: Nolan went potty again on Sunday! Adam was giving him a bath and Nolan decided that it was a good time to let some kiddies swim at the pool. Adam quickly grabbed him out of the tub and put him on his potty. While Adam did clean-up Nolan sat there - and when he got up he had gone potty! Adam went from being irritated to really excited in a quick hurry. We know it's going to take a very long time to potty train Nolan, but we're going to keep trying every time we have an opportunity. Nolan is talking a lot now days, and has come home this week with a new saying he picked up at daycare - "I want that". He learned it from the older kids when toy commercials come on during cartoons. Nolan has no idea what he wants, but he likes to say it! Jane called me today to let me know that Nolan loves playing the video game "Just Dance" for the Wii. She said she's impressed with how well he imitates what he sees on the screen. I do have to say he has some killer dance moves!

As Adam said, Kale is requiring quite a few trips around town these days, plus a lot of work at home. The physical therapist did a measurement of his head on Tuesday, and it measured at a 10. Below a 7 means the head is symetrical, so a helmet isn't required. Between a 7-12 rates as moderate, so that's currently where Kale falls. Insurance would cover a helmet at this point, but we can't get him in for the laser measurement of this head until January (he has to be 4 months old). In the meantime he's going to go to physical therapy every other Tuesday from now until February, and I'll continue to take him to the chiropractor for the time being. Adam and I both agree that we're willing to put in the time it takes now in hopes his head will start to correct itself. The PT also told us that his neck muscles might improve if we can get his acid reflux under control. We started him on Prilosec on Monday, and so far the results have been positive. He still spits up a little right after his bottle, but he's no longer spitting up hours after the bottle. Kale is spending as little time on his back as possible, which may help, too. He is keeping himself most busy by trying to get his thumb to stay in his mouth for an extended period of time. He can get it in there, but it falls out soon after. I'm keeping my fingers crossed he'll figure it out before I go back to work!

Tomorrow I'm taking a much needed day for myself while Kale goes to daycare with Nolan. I have a full day planned - Christmas shopping, haircut, massage and pedicure. Here's hoping the weather holds up so the roads aren't terrible! Adam is gone Saturday night at a hockey game in Mankato, so it's just me and the boys. Paulette is coming over to hang out Saturday afternoon, and I have big plans to wrap some Christmas gifts after the boys go to bed. They both go to bed at the same time (between 6:30 and 7), so it does make for a peaceful evening.

Oh - funny story. On the way to my appointments with Kale on Tuesday I saw a turkey and an eagle standing on the ice on Lake Minnetonka. Yes, you read that correctly - a turkey and an eagle. Maybe they were celebrating a late Thanksgiving meal:)

The long week

Last week was a tough week at our house. Adam's Grandma Ellen passed away. She was an amazing woman and she is going to be missed by everyone who knew her. I'm so happy and honored to have gotten to know her over the last 5 1/2 years. She was kind, generous, classy and talented. The last quilt she made was Nolan's baseball quilt, and that's something we'll cherish forever! Adam and I are extremely proud that our boys will carry on the Bleck family name, too.

Adam's back gave out on him last Wednesday, and thankfully super Dave came to the rescue again! Dave took Adam to urgent care and pick up his prescriptions. In addition to the pills, Adam has made a few visits to the chiropractor. He's been laying pretty low and trying not to do any lifting, which is difficult when you have a 20 month old and a 2 month old at home! He's at Greg and Ellen's right now, soaking his sore back in the hot tub.

I feel very fortunate that my dad and Adam's parent's were able to help Adam out this weekend with the boys so I could enjoy a night away with my mom and sisters in St. Cloud. We literally shopped til we dropped! I didn't quite get all our Christmas shopping done, but it's a good start. It felt so good to sneak away for a night and not have any one to think about except me - and to sleep through the night! It sounds selfish, but I really needed it:)

Last week Kale made another big step in the sleeping through the night category. His typical routine in the evening is to go to bed around 6:15 or 6:30. I do an early dream feed around 7, and then another one at 10:30. As long as he hasn't leaked through his jammies he'll sleep until 3:30 or 4. Last Wednesday he slept from 6:30 to 6:30, straight through! I woke up and didn't know what hit me, as it was the first time I had really slept through the night since before he was born! Nolan was also feeling extra kind that same morning, as he didn't wake up until close to 7. Kale also had his 8 week check up last Wednesday, at 8 1/2 weeks old. We had noticed he seemed to be getting bigger, but we weren't expecting that it would be as much as it was! He weighs 11 lbs 15 oz (50%) and is 24.25 inches long
(90%!). He has a wee little head right now, only checking in at 25% (I think it's around 16 or 16 1/2 inches). Kale is an inch and a half longer than Nolan was at this age, and is a little over a pound heavier. I'm afraid to think how big he might be when he gets to Nolan's age! We had our pediatrician check the flat spot on his head, and she said she isn't super concerned yet, but it's something we need to keep an eye on. We also told her about how Kale is really congested sounding after he eats, and how he does this weird thing where he seems to stop breathing for a second or so, and then takes a deep breath and continues on. He happened to do it at his appointment, and it's reflux! We should have picked up on the signs, since Nolan had the same thing. He's been real spitty lately, too. He has a prescription for Zantac. So far we haven't really seen results, but our dr. asked we give it a week and if it's not working to call back and we can try something else. Kale had his first day at daycare on Friday, because we didn't want to take both boys to the funeral. Jane had to get a license variance for Kale because she has too many kids under the age of 2 until March. There's another baby who goes to daycare Tuesday-Thursday, so Jane has room for Kale on Monday's and Friday's if we need it. Come December Kale is going to go to daycare every Friday, to break in both he and Nolan. The first report was good, so we're hoping that will continue.

Nolan is certainly becoming more of a toddler. A report from daycare last week went like this - "he sure is stubborn, but a joy to have in the house". Not sure if that's good or bad! It's become par for the course that Nolan will get a few timeouts during the week, primarily for not listening. On the up side his speech and vocabulary is improving every day. It will sure make our job as parent's a lot easier when he can actually tell us what's wrong, instead of us trying to figure it out with him.

Hard to believe but Thanksgiving is literally right around the corner. We have plans to head up to Gina and Eric's on Thursday morning, but we need to wait and see what the weather is going to do. If it's anything like the skating rink on the roads this past weekend we'll be staying home!

Timber!

The boys and I are home alone again this weekend - Adam is at the farm trying to get another deer. They must know I'm the only one here, because last night Nolan went to bed at 6:25 and Kale went down at 7:10. The best part is Kale didn't wake up to eat until 4:45 this morning! Nolan started talking around 5:30, but he wasn't crying so I ignored it until he finally got up at 7. I felt surprisingly well rested today! Nolan again went down at 6:30 tonight, and Kale at the same time of 7:10. It's nice to be able to have some down time to get things done around the house!

Today was an eventful day. We woke up to several inches of very heavy snow that had fallen overnight. It was so heavy that it started taking out our 20 year old maple tree in our front yard, branch by branch! I was in Kale's room with the boys when we heard something crash in to the house. Nolan heard it, said "uh oh" and made a beeline for the kitchen to see what it was. I wasn't too concerned - I thought maybe a gutter had fallen off the house. When I finally went in to the kitchen to look out the window I saw a fairly large branch laying near the house. One by one other branches fell throughout the morning, until only half of the tree was left standing - and it did not appear to be very sturdy. Luckily my brothers-in-law were around this weekend, and they came over to help take care of the tree issue. I was really concerned with the weight of the snow that the largest section of the tree that hadn't fallen yet would tumble down on to the house, right on Nolan and Kale's bedrooms. It took about 4 hours, but the tree is down. Our front yard looks very, very empty. In addition to the help from Dave and Josh, our neighbors Todd, Jim and Kurt were super helpful, too. There is no way I could have shoveled this snow or taken care of this tree, so thanks to all!

Hard to believe, but Kale is 2 months old today! He has changed so much since he was born. He is a very smiley baby, and is quite a talker. He is content most of the time, except in the evening after dinner - that's his crabby time. He's up to 5 oz. of formula at each feeding, and is a pretty amazing sleeper. He recently has taken an interest in watching Nolan. He seems to really enjoy his big brother's antics and entertainment - especially Nolan's mad dancing skills! His neck movement continues to improve, and he's doing really well with tummy time - in fact, he's been rolling over from his tummy to back for a few weeks. His 2 month appointment is on the 22nd. It will be fun to see how much he's grown!


Right after Kale was born I picked up a potty chair to put in the bathroom, so we could start introducing Nolan to it over the next few months. We try and have him go "potty" before bathtime and naps, if he wants to do it. We're not pushing it - just trying to keep it fun and exciting. Last night he made his first big steps in to the world of potty training - he dribbled in the potty! I was so excited for him, although I'm sure he thought I was crazy with the way I was cheering for him! Each time he sits on the potty he gets an M&M. Hopefully that will keep him motivated! Nolan loves playing with his blocks and building towers, and is learning how to count. He has the number 1 down with no problem, and he even knows that's how old he is! He enjoys coloring at his play table, and loves to throw around any ball he can get his hands on - football, baseball, soccer ball, etc. He has quite the arm on him! We're working with him so he can learn how to catch the ball. It's harder than you think. This afternoon after his nap I tried to take him outside to see the snow. He was not a fan of his new snow boots. He's used to his tennis shoes, which sit below his ankle. He did not like how the boots felt on his legs. He refused to walk outside, which is loads of fun for me - especially since he weighs 27 lbs! I just have to remember that it's considered exercise every time I have to carry him around:)


Wednesday morning brought us some very sad news. Adam's grandma had a stroke Tuesday evening sometime, and wasn't found until Wednesday morning. She's in the hospital, and is not expected to make it. She is an amazing woman - still lives in her own house, walks on the treadmill, goes to coffee downtown, and quilts. In fact, she just made Nolan a baseball quilt and gave it to him at Kale's baptism! Pretty darn good for being almost 97 years old! We're sending lots of prayers to her and the family, but any extra are appreciated.

Daylight unsavings time

Up until a few years ago I loved daylight savings time - the falling back part, that is. Who couldn't use an extra hour of sleep? But alas, kids change that, and the falling back part really screws with their sleep. Nolan started talking at 5 AM on Sunday morning - which would have been 6 if not for DST. I brought him in to bed with me in hopes I could get a little more sleep, but at 5:25 neither of us could take it:) Plus, Kale heard Nolan talking and thought he should join in the party, too. The nice thing about Kale is that he fell back asleep! I remember having this issue with sleep last year, too. It took about a week for Nolan to get back on track.

I really enjoyed my time with the boys this weekend. We stuck close to home and kept a normal routine, which was great for all of us. Nolan didn't wake up once either night, and Kale didn't wake up to eat until 4 on Saturday a.m. and 3:30 on Sunday. I really appreciate the fact he goes right back to sleep after that bottle and doesn't get up until after 7! I took a walk with them both days, and even got to spend some time playing with Nolan's outdoor toys, possibly for the last time this year. Even though the boys were great, I was still pretty tired last night. It's just go go go with both of them - no time for resting during the day! Adam also enjoyed his weekend hunting, as he was able to bag a doe on Sunday morning. He's going again next weekend, in hopes of getting the elusive buck.

Nolan's vocabulary is quickly expanding. He can repeat just about everything we say these days! The best is when he gets in trouble and I ask him to repeat back what I said. He totally knows what I'm saying and it actually makes sense when he repeats it back! I love the fact I can ask him to do very specific tasks and he completes them - like getting me things for Kale. It sure helped me out this weekend! He is turning in to such a little boy. On Saturday morning he tooted, which isn't unusual for him. In the past it hasn't phased him, but not anymore. He turned to look at me and started laughing! How do boys know to do that???

Kale is getting so big - 7 weeks old already! I weighed him today and he weighs exactly 9 lbs. What a little chunk! He is doing really well. Last night he went to bed at 7:15 and didn't wake up to eat until 4! I have been blessed with 2 very good sleepers. People always say God gives you what you can handle, so I guess I wouldn't be able to handle kids who don't sleep:) I've been taking Kale to the chiropractor 2 days a week for the last 3 weeks. He's making progress, slowly but surely. He turns his head with no problem when he's laying on his back or when we're holding him. The problem he has is during tummy time. He will only turn his head to the right. I guess I just need to be patient - or at least that's what our chiropractor tells me!

I'm so excited for my big night out tonight. I'm going to Let's Dish to dish up our dinner for the month. I'm trying to find ways to make life less stressful at our house, and I determined that the most stressful time of the day is dinnertime. Everyone is tired and a little cranky, so Adam and I decided that since we already need to spend money on groceries we might as well make is easy and have the meals frozen and in our freezer, ready to be made. Plus, it's all made with fresh ingredients, so it's healthier than a lot of other things we could be making!

Trick or treat?

This Halloween didn't quite go as smoothly as last year. We were in Deerwood for 4 days and 3 nights prior to the big holiday, and Nolan was all out of sorts [SIDEBAR: sleeping in the same room with your kids is probably the worst idea ever. No one sleeps, and everyone is a little on the cranky side!]. He did really well when we went to Erica's house to show he and Kale off (it could have been his first Tootsie pop sucker, too!). After we got home he melted down, so there was no way we were going to take him around the neighborhood. Kale had a bit of a crying spell at the same time, so our house was very loud! We thought that by not turning on the outside house lights the trick or treaters wouldn't stop by, but that wasn't the case. We actually had to turn off all the lights on the main level and hang out downstairs! We're hoping next year will be our year, and that both boys will cooperate. We are slowly catching up on our lack of sleep from last weekend. Kale treated me on Monday night by not waking me up until 5:15 am. A full nights sleep is just what the Great Pumpkin ordered!

Adam was super excited to get to hunt ducks and grouse last Thursday - Saturday. He said Thursday was his best duck hunting ever! Nolan got to see some of the ducks that came home with Adam and Eric. Hopefully he'll be a hunter so Adam can take him in a few years. Adam also killed his first ever grouse. I'm not sure what grouse tastes like, but I'm sure I'll find out soon. My guess is probably like chicken.

This weekend Adam is off to the farm to hunt, so I'm staying at home with the boys. It will be tiring, but fun to hang out with both of them. I'm hoping the weather will cooperate so we can spend some time outside.

So very tired

Saturday found us spending part of the evening at a Halloween party in Chan. Nolan had a bit of a tough day all day, so in hindsight we were pushing our luck to think it would go well. Nolan had 2 costume choices - and the one I liked best he hated (screaming, kicking, etc. while we tried to get it on him). Luckily we managed to get him in the 2nd costume, and he looked pretty snazzy as a mini Payne Stewart. The party started at 5:30, which isn't usually a real good time at our house. Nolan would not let Adam put him down, so he had to carry him everywhere - through the trick or treat line, the haunted room (toned down to be appropriate for little kids), and the game room. The only thing that cheered Nolan up was the sugar cookie and apple cider he got in the treat room! We lasted until about 6:45 and then we had to go before a major meltdown took place. Kale was perfect and slept through the whole thing. Adam and I are trying to figure out why Nolan is so tired lately. Either he's growing and needs the extra sleep, or we need to make sure he gets to bed at his regular time of 6:30.

Kale is starting to do a whole lot more talking during the day, and by talking I mean cooing and ooing. All of the talking comes with many more smiles, too, so it makes it extra fun! He's started to wake up again around 2:30 every morning, so my job for this week is to try and break him of that habit again!

This week we're heading up to Gina and Eric's house so Adam can do some duck hunting prior to Allie's 3rd birthday party celebration. Hopefully the boys will be nice to me, as they're both with me Thursday and Friday!

Rocks

Yesterday I picked up Nolan a little early from daycare. When I got there he was sitting in a chair. He tried to get up from it, but Jane told him no, as he was in a timeout. He and one of the other little girls were both in a timeout for not listening to Jane when she told them to stop picking up and throwing rocks. These weren't just small rocks, either - they were quite large, and if they fell on their feet they would get hurt. Nolan started crying (drama), and he sat there for about another 30 seconds. When Jane told him he was all done with timeout and reiterated what he needed to do to not be in timeout again, she picked him up and asked him to give her 5 (that's how they end the timeout). He turned his head and refused to even look at her! I took him, and he wouldn't even say goodbye. What a stinker! Timeouts do work with him eventually, but it's always a little drama. I've started using the counting method when he isn't doing something I asked him to do. By "3" he has learned that he needs to listen (most of the time), or he'll get in trouble.

Kale is still sleeping really well at night. Last night I put him to bed in his crib at 7:30, and he slept until 3:30! We've established a bed time routine, and the dream feed helps, too. Hopefully he can keep this up for us. With Nolan going to bed so early I feel I actually have a little time at night to relax! Not only is Kale sleeping really well, he has rolled over twice already while doing tummy time! The first time I thought it was a fluke, but he did it again all on his own. Pretty impressive (in my humble opinion!)

This weekend we're looking forward to taking the boys to a Halloween party with our friends in Chan. Kale is going to be a monkey, and Nolan is either going to be a dragon, bumblebee or golfer. We'll see what he likes best. We had the dragon costume on him last week, and he wasn't a fan of the head of the costume on his head. Hopefully he'll come around!

Kale's video debut

The Digestive System

Yesterday we celebrated Kale’s baptism. The weather was beautiful, and Kale was a really good baby (which he is most of the time). He didn’t cry at all during the service – he slept through the whole thing, just like Nolan did. We hosted both our families for the day after church for lunch, which is always fun, but a bit crowded – 27 people! Nolan took a great nap, probably because before church he tripped on his blanket and fell and hit his head on a door jam. He cried for a long time, and has quite a bump on his melon. He perked up after his nap and had fun playing with his cousins, though. We really didn’t do any clean up last night, as Adam and I were both pretty tired. The house needs to be picked up, but I have all day, right?

After dinner last night Adam and I were eating the last 2 pieces of Kale’s cake. Nolan was eyeing it up, so we gave him a small slice. Earlier in the day he wasn’t at all interested in eating it, so we didn’t think he would be this time, either. The second time around must have been the trick, because once he stuck his finger in the frosting it was all over – he loved it! He asked for more after he finished his small piece, so Adam cut him another little slice. We’re working on table manners with him, so after Adam gave it to him on his plate I asked him “what do you say”, which is his cue to say thank you. Yesterday, however, he ditched his table manners to instead say “yummy!” Adam and I cracked up when he said it, because he was so excited to be eating that cake!

Nolan had a lot of fun “raking” leaves with Adam Saturday morning. Adam actually did all the raking, and Nolan just picked up the leaves and threw them in the air. He was not a fan of actually sitting in a pile of leaves - maybe next year. I’ve been wanting to get some pics of him playing in the leaves, and Adam was able to get a few of them. Next year we’ll hopefully be able to get both boys out there!

Kale is still being a good at home partner, most days. We take a walk almost every day. Last week we met up with Adam at work and took a walk. We were about 1/2 way done and all of a sudden we heard this rustling in the leaves. We turned around and a HUGE buck went sprinting across the path, about 10 feet behind us. Had we been a little further back we probably would have been hit by it. Scary! Kale is really struggling with gassiness, so he had a few tough days last week. We spent Friday evening at Adam’s parent’s house for a fish fry, and let’s just say I was ready to get some help with him by that point! Between Nolan and Kale I feel like Adam and I spend a lot of time discussing the ins and outs of the human digestive system, literally. Nolan just finished an antibiotic for an ear infection, so his poor little bum was looking very similar to that of a baboon at the end of last week. Almost every diaper had a surprise in it, and it wasn’t one we wanted! We’re in the process of switching Kale to a sensitive formula because of his issues. It will be his 4th formula, and hopefully it will do the trick. I almost forgot to mention the most exciting news of all – Kale slept through the night last night for the first time! He went down at 8:30, and didn’t wake up until 4 am (I did a dream feed at 10:30)! He went back down at 4:30 and didn’t wake up until 7:30. Needless to say I feel very well rested now!

Kale and I spend time every day working on tummy time. He does a pretty good job, but despite my best efforts the right side of his head is looking a little flat, and he really prefers to turn his head to the right. Instead of waiting until his 2 month check up we’re going to get ahead of the game and take him to the same chiropractor that we took Nolan to when he was dealing with possible torticollis. It worked with Nolan, so we’re hopeful it will work with Kale, too.

Adam and I are looking forward to a night out this week. We’re going to see Rock of Ages with some friends on Wednesday night. It sure is nice Adam’s mom likes to hang out with the boys. It makes finding a babysitter pretty easy!

Where does the time go?

Adam and I have both now survived a day/evening alone with both boys. The previous blog post talked a little bit about my adventure last Sunday (which ended well, with Nolan going to bed at 6 and Kale around 7:30 - Adam went hunting after the Twin's game). Adam had the boys Thursday so I could meet up with some girlfriend's for dinner. His evening didn't go quite as well - Kale cried off and on for an hour and half (unusual for him), and Nolan for about 1/2 that time. I think we both proved to ourselves that we can do it, though, and that even if one or both of the boys is crying they will eventually stop:)

Nolan has become quite the little helper. He throws away his own diapers, puts his dirty clothes in the hamper, and loves to help get things for Kale - burp rag, nook, blanket, etc. He even likes to help me burp him! Nolan is starting to pay a little bit more attention to Kale, primarly because he's making more noise. He still hasn't really gotten jealous yet, but we're sure that will come in due time. Nolan likes to help get himself dressed and undressed (with help from us), and hit another important milestone - sleeping with a big boy pillow in his bed. He also climbs up the steps to slide and goes down by himself. Yesterday afternoon we were playing outside with Nolan and he was in his playhouse. He got so excited to open the shutters on one of the windows that he actually fell out the window. Luckily he stuck his hands out so he didn't hit his head! It was actually quite funny - he was hanging on the window by his waist, his hands on the ground and his feet off the ground. I was impressed he didn't cry!

Kale is almost a month old already, and just started smiling over the weekend. Where in the world does the time go? He is getting very big, and has certainly filled out, at least in his face! He's still wearing mostly newborn clothes, but we're hopeful he'll fit in to some 0-3 month pants soon! He sleeps a lot, but today he was awake a little more. He doesn't seem to mind tummy time, and just started talking to us quite a bit more. Last night we put him to bed after his bath, around 7. I fed him at 8:30 and 10:30, and he slept until 3, and then off and on until I fed him around 3:50. He fell asleep after that bottle and didn't get up again until 7:30. He's been up pretty much since then, but is relaxing in his bouncy chair. Hopefully he'll nap a few times today. I want to get our daily walk in this morning, and start the planning for Kale's baptism, which is this weekend already!

Adam spent the past weekend at his family's farm, hunting and fishing. I took the boys to my parent's house for the weekend - I wasn't ready to watch them by myself for a whole weekend yet! I'm so thankful for the extra help I got with the boys, Nolan had fun playing with grandma and grandpa, and Kale got all sorts of extra attention. Friday night was tough - I only got about 2 hours of sleep. Nolan didn't feel well and was up about every 2 hours, and I made the mistake of sleeping in the same room as Kale. He is so loud, with his grunting and little whines througout the night. My mom was nice enough (again!) to get up with Kale Saturday night so I could a full nights sleep. And that was on top of the 3 hour nap I got Saturday afternoon when Nolan was down!

This week I'm going to make an extra effort to stick a little closer to home. I overbooked myself last week, and was gone every day for something. Once or twice a week is fine, but every day was too much. As long as the weather continues to hold up I'll take my daily walk with Kale. Thursday evening Nolan has another ECFE class. I'm not sure which one of us is going to take him, but it should be fun - plate making!

The 18 month picture debacle

Nolan had his 18-month pictures yesterday. They did not go well. He was tired and pretty much cried and whined through the whole event. The photographer tried to make us feel better by telling us that it's normal for a kid his age to act this way, but as a parent it was very frustrating. Nolan wouldn't sit on his own, so Adam and I took turns sitting on the ground and Nolan sat on our legs. Of all the pictures the photographer took, only 2 were okay. We were really hoping to get a picture of Kale and Nolan together, but Nolan wouldn't cooperate with that, either, so Kale had his own personal photo session - and he didn't cry and make a fuss - he just slept! I know Nolan isn't feeling well, but it would have been great if he could have pulled out a smile or 2 for us. Maybe we'll look back on this next week and laugh. Probably not, but maybe.

In addition to Nolan's teething and cold/cough, he's also experiencing the joys of hives on a fairly regular basis - which means another trip to the dr. for him on Monday. I probably should have called nurse line sooner, because the guideline is that if a kid has had them more than 3 days in a row he/she needs to be seen by a dr. Oops! It started last Friday at daycare, and since then he's had them 5 different times. Benedryl seems to take care of the issue very quickly, but we can't keep relying on that to solve the problem. Since we don't know if he'll have them or not when we go to the dr., we've taken some pictures to show her. Adam did quite a bit of research on hives last week, and it could be due to a number of things, including food, pollen, too hot or too cold, or pj's too tight. When I heard that last one I felt a little bad, as one night last week we put Nolan in a pair of pj's that were a bit too snug - but we thought we'd get one more use out of them. Sure enough, he woke up with hives the next morning. The top of his dresser looks like a mini pharmacy - Tylenol, Motrin, Oragel, Benedryl, and Lotrimin for the rash on his leg. He's had sensitive skin since he was born, so we shouldn't be surprised. He probably inherited Adam's allergies, too - poor kid!

Kale is still surprising us with how easy going he is. Over the last week he's gotten in to a routine of only getting up once at night, and the last 2 nights it's been 2 and 2:30. I actually feel quite well rested, especially since he'll get up at 5:30 and then sleep with me until around 9! He's still sleeping quite a bit through the day, too, which is allowing me to get quite a bit of stuff done around the house (as long as he's sleeping in his crib and not on me!). I am going to make more of an effort to keep him awake during the day this week, in hopes in will prolong his night time sleeping.

Yesterday afternoon (after Nolan's 3 hour nap!) we spent a few hours in Chan at a birthday party. It was nice to be able to hang out with our friends and let the kids play at the playground. Granted, our kid (Nolan) needs a little more supervision than the older kids, but it was still fun! Kale slept through the whole thing, which gave both Adam and I time to switch off watching Nolan and enjoy some adult conversation! Before the party we had a little fun taking some pictures of Kale in an outfit Nolan wore when he was 3 weeks old, using the same prop (blue bunny). Can you tell the two of them are brothers?

Adam is at the Twin's game today, so it's just me and the boys at home - my first full day with them. So far, so good - Kale and Nolan are both napping in their rooms. I already cleaned up the kitchen after lunch, so I guess that means I get to enjoy the Sunday paper in peace and quite!

Time outs

The last 2 days when I've picked up Nolan from daycare I've had to hear about him being put in time outs for not listening to Jane. Nolan has become quite interested in climbing on everything, and apparantely he's taken quite a liking to climbing on the table in the playroom. Today he got a warning first, as Jane caught him climbing on it. As soon as he saw her, he got down. Jane told him he can not climb on the table, because if he does he will fall and she'll have to call an ambulance because he'll get hurt. Clearly he didn't understand her, because she caught him doing it for the 2nd time. She put him in a timeout, which he reacted to much differently than when I put him in a timeout (he cries at Jane's house). The timeout didn't work either, because the 3rd time she watched him from around the corner, and he made a beeline for the table and started to climb on it. As soon as he saw her come around the corner he knew he had been caught and he tried to get down as quickly as possible. But, he ended up in another timeout. Jane is confident that he'll learn not to climb on the table in the next few weeks if she keeps using the same technique. I hope she's right, for her sake! I had to put Nolan in 2 timeouts yesterday for standing on the couch. He pouts while in the timeout, but I get no other reaction. Next time I'm going to make him stand in the timeout spot vs. sit and see what happens. The first kid is always a trial and error!

Kale is starting to fill out, primarily in his face (just like Nolan did!). He's still eating really well, and has finally gotten on a regular poo schedule. Last night we had quite the fiasco as Adam changed his diaper. When Adam opened up Kale's diaper, the insides of it seemed to magically appear on everything, including Adam and Kale! To top it off, Kale decided at that moment to pee on us for the first time. Immediately after that both boys got a bath!


Last Sunday Adam and I took the boys to the apple orchard. It was gorgeous outside, and I knew that if we didn't go we might not get another nice weekend day to go. It also gave us a chance to test out the new double stroller that Adam's parent's picked up for us at a garage sale. It's a little big and bulky (all double strollers are), but sure works well for hauling around both boys! Kale slept through most of our visit, which was good. Nolan had a blast looking at the animals, being pushed in the stroller, eating apples with Adam and waving at the hayrides as they drove by. Nolan is definitely getting quicker, because at one point we turned our heads for just a second, and when we looked back Nolan had picked an apple off the ground and was going to take a bite out of it. That's all fine and good, except the apple already had a bite taken out of it! The was another couple watching him do this behind us, and they thought it was pretty funny. The only thing we can hope for is that it will help build his immunity!

Adam and I are doing well, but are lacking a little sleep. I'm also fighting a cough/cold, which is slowing me down a little more than normal. It could be worse - we both remember what Nolan was like as a baby. He didn't start sleeping well until about 8 weeks! Kale is on the right path, but is still getting up every 2 1/2 - 3 hours. He doesn't cry very often, and when he does it usually means he needs a diaper change or is hungry. He's doing fairly good with tummy time, which is also an improvement over how Nolan did at this point.

This weekend we have a few things going on - Nolan's 18 month pictures and a birthday party on Saturday in Chan. We're not sure what we'll do the rest of the weekend. We managed to make it to church last Sunday with both boys, and hopefully will make it again. Kale rocked it out, sleeping through the whole service. Nolan, on the other hand, was his usual self. The kid can't sit still, so Adam and I tag teamed it watching him. I'm not sure what age he needs to be when we start enforcing that he sit through church, but I'm pretty sure he's too young at this point. Maybe when he's 2 . . .

Almost 2 weeks in with 2 kids

Yep, hard to believe, but we're a week and a half in to our new family of four. Kale is settling in quite well, and Nolan is doing as well as can be expected for a kid who is teething horribly and has a very runny nose! Adam went back to work on Monday, so it's been just me and Kale home during the day. Nolan is still going to daycare full-time, which is good for both him and me! Kale is showing signs that he is going to be a very laid back and calm kid. Of the time we've been home so far he's had one day which I would describe as more challenging, and by that I mean he needed to be held most of the day - which equaled me getting caught up on all my DVR shows (but no nap:(). It's definitely an adjustment for me and Adam, as our focus right now is on the boys. Luckily our friends Jared and LeAnna are getting married on Saturday, so we can enjoy a night out!

My parent's were here last weekend, and my mom took the overnight shifts with Kale. Both my parent's were also able to spend some quality time with Nolan. He had a blast showing off his mad skills - running, throwing, and being a very active 18 month old! Adam and I were very well rested, and well fed, by the time they left!

Kale had his one week appointment on Monday. He added an ounce to his birth weight, and weighed 7 lbs, 7 oz (35%), and remained the same length of 21 inches (90%). His head grew a half an inch, which puts him at 20%. He's been much easier than Nolan was at this point, and that's because he didn't end up back in the hospital! But what would a baby of ours be if it didn't have a little quirk or 2? Kale seems to have some issues in the poo department. In fact, since we've been home he's only done it twice on his own. Unfortunately, that means we've had to provide some assistance to him to get things moving. We switched to a soy based formula and are using probiotics twice a day to hopefully help his system get regulated. Our next step is to switch to a non-iron formula until he's 4 months old.

Nolan had his 18-month appointment today, and he did really well. It was the most calm Adam and I have seen him in a long time! I thought he would weigh in over 27 lbs, but I was wrong! He weighs 26 lbs, 4 oz (60%), is 32 1/2 inches long (50%), and appears to have a small head, only checking in at 19%. You wouldn't guess that by looking at his round face! He even survived the 2 shots he needed to get - the flu vaccine and the MMR. The MMR is tough, because it goes right in the muscle. He has a bruise and was feeling some pain at daycare today. Hopefully he'll sleep through the night! He had one tough night this week where he needed to be held because his teeth were hurting his so bad. He doesn't ever get up in the middle of the night, so Adam and I knew it was serious!

As far as how I'm doing - I think I'm adjusting well. I definitely have a different attitude about being at home with Kale, and that's to enjoy it. Kale won't stay a baby forever, and I really want to soak it all in! I've also realized that washing bottles isn't so bad (in fact, kind of a nice getaway!), and that not sleeping through the night isn't fun, but it's temporary (hopefully!).

Kale Thomas Bleck

As of 1:46 on Monday morning we are officially one child closer to needing a minivan! After approximately 12 hours of induced labor and 15 minutes of pushing we finally found out our little surprise that's been perculating for the last 41 weeks and 2 days (yep, 9 days over due)...Kale Thomas Bleck. Tricia was positive we were having a boy the entire pregnancy, where as I just assumed we were destined to have a girl. Turns out, Tricia was right! Kale weighed in at 7lbs 6 oz, with a birth height of 21 inches and a head circumference of 13 inches. He was bigger than Nolan by 20 ounces and 1/2 an inch longer! Tricia's grandma can't believe how BIG he was! The labor went really well for Tricia, and she keeps telling me it was easier than when we had Nolan. I'm not sure what it's supposed to be like, so I guess I'll take her report as a good thing! We were discharged on Tuesday evening after waiting for Kale to get snipped, and after a brief stop at Jimmy John's (which is where we stopped after Nolan was born as well) we made it home with our new addition. My parents watched Nolan from Sunday afternoon until Tuesday night, which was a great help, and we waited until Wednesday morning until we made the official meet and greet occur between the two boys. Tricia woke up Nolan and recorded the event. Nolan literally stopped in his tracks when he walked in the nursery and I was holding Kale! He did come around, though, and warmed up to give Kale hugs and kisses. Nolan quickly got sidetracked, though, and we're sure he's a little unsure of how long this little creature will be sticking around! This morning when it was time to get Nolan up and ready for daycare Tricia was holding Kale and Nolan greeted his new brother by hitting him in the head with a plush soccer ball--the fighting has begun!

Things at home have been going really well. Both Tricia and I have commented on how much more relaxed and easy going we are this time around. Nolan doesn't know it yet, but he's really paved the way for his little brother! Kale has been eating 20-30ml every 2 1/2 to 3 hours on the button and burping really well. He usually follows that up with a wet and/or dirty diaper as well. The home health nurse was here today and Kale looks great. He's down to 7 lbs even, so he's lost an ounce since coming home on Tuesday, but the nurse said tomorrow he should start to make some gains in the weight department. Last night was our first bump in the road, when Kale pretty much cried from 9 - midnight. Once he did fall asleep he slept through the night until morning, even with us waking him up to feed him. We're pretty sure that's when he's going to have his fussy time. We keep reminding ourselves it's only temporary!

The bottle-washing has again re-commenced at the Bleck house--we had a nice 6-month break after moving Nolan into the sippy cups! We're also doing a lot more laundry again. We both forgot about the sheer number of little outfits, burp rags, etc. that a baby tears through in one day!

I only have this week off from work, so we're both looking forward to a little more sleep with some help from Tricia's folks this weekend, and it'll be nice to show off Kale to the rest of the family as well.

B-day

No, we haven't had the baby yet. I'm still feeling really good - just a little water retention in my ankles (but at least they still look like ankles!). The ultrasound and non-stress test we had on Friday confirmed that our baby is not stressed, and has not dropped a whole lot. So, that means the new baby's b-day is fast approaching. Tomorrow sometime between the hours of 5:30 and 8:30 am we're going to get a call from Methodist Hospital, telling us what time we need to report to the hospital for our induction. It's a really weird feeling knowing that by tomorrow or Monday our new baby will be here. Last night we met up with Erica at BWW's in Chan in hopes it might jump start things on its own, like it did with Nolan. No such luck! It has to show up sometime, though - we're at due date plus 7 days today!

Adam and I had a great day with Nolan today. Adam spent the morning and early afternoon fishing with his dad on Lake Minnetonka. He would have probably rather been playing in the 9th annual J&A golf tourney, but it's 2 hours away, and at this stage of the game it's just too risky! Nolan and I started our day at Target, and then met up with my girlfriends and their kids at the Target book event at Highland Hills. We didn't spend a whole lot of time at the book event, but rather at Chutes and Ladders, the ginormous playground. Nolan was really well behaved. We left at noon, and he fell asleep about 5 minutes in to the ride home. The best part was we slept until 2:45 in his bed! After he woke up from his nap Adam and I decided to take him downtown Mound to check out the carnival and run a few errands. In a few years when Nolan and the new baby are old enough, the carnival is going to be so much fun!

Nolan has recently become obsessed with planes. As soon as he hears one he stops what he's doing, points in the sky and says plane. He's not always sure where he's supposed to look, but he tries anyway. Oh, and at BWW's last night he came home with a balloon and hat. Who knew that's all it takes to entertain a 17-month old? The video is of him running around at 7:15 this morning with his newest prized possessions! And you might be wondering about the picture. Last year I picked up a Buzz Lightyear and Woody costume for Nolan at Target for $1.97 each. What I didn't do is buy the right size for him to wear them for Halloween this year. We squeezed him in to the Woody costume, just for laughs. As you can see, it's pretty funny. I guess it's back to square one for costume planning!

Another week, another trip to Urgent Care

Yep, poor Nolan. Over the weekend he got bit by quite a few mosquitos, especially on Sunday. Nothing was out of the ordinary until we got him up on Tuesday for daycare. His left hand was twice the size of his right hand - just like his foot was a few weeks ago! We probably could have just given him benedryl, but to be on the safe side we thought we should take him in, especially since he had a lot of other bites that didn't swell up. The good news it's not an infection, which is what he had in his foot. The bad news is apparantly this is common and will keep happening. In the future we can just give him benedryl to help with the swelling. We probably over-reacted by taking him back to Urgent Care, but both of us feel better knowing what to do next time this happens - which hopefully won't be until next year!

Nolan has really come around with the baby doll Adam and I have been carrying around the house. He doesn't pay a lot of attention to it, but does give it kisses and hugs when we tell him to. Tonight, after Nolan threw away his diaper, I told him to say goodnight to the baby - it was sitting in the baby swing. He walked over to say goodnight, and wanted to give the baby a kiss. He couldn't reach it, so he gently took the baby out of the swing, gave it a kiss, and put the baby back in the swing. It was adorable! The other good news is that Nolan is totally fine with the new baby at daycare. Jane told us he doesn't pay a lot of attention to her, but he's very affectionate when he does, for a short period of time. It's giving me a little hope that the transition at home will be easier.

We had our 40 1/2 week appointment on Wednesday. There's not a whole lot happening, so tomorrow morning we have an ultrasound scheduled at 8 am to make sure things are okay with the baby. At 9 am we have a non-stress test to time the baby's movements, and then I have another exam to see if there's been any change. If I don't go in to labor on my own over the weekend, we have an induction scheduled Monday morning. I would much rather go on my own, but I don't know if I'll have a choice. It really feels like we're close now, as today was my last day at work until the new year. It's a really weird feeling, knowing I'll be gone for 4 months. Luckily I have a fantastic team to help me out!

Baby Update 2010

Our due date (September 4th) has come and gone, which is exactly how Nolan's pregnancy went. I'm okay with it - I think Adam is getting a little antsy. I still believe the longer the baby stays in the belly the better it is, especially for the weight of the baby. I told Adam there is a 100% chance that we will have a baby in the next 7 days or so:) Our next appointment is on Wednesday, and I'm sure we'll talk about inducing, just like we did with Nolan. Luckily he came on his home, and we're hoping this one will, too.

We had a very relaxing Labor Day weekend. We stuck around home, had a bonfire 3 nights in a row, spent a lot of quality time with Nolan, and spent some time with Adam's family. We also got a bunch of stuff done around the house - cleaning, laundry, etc. I'm still feeling really good, so we took a couple of long walks on the trail, too. Nolan is a great companion on a walk, but really enjoys the time he spends with Adam when he takes Nolan on his training runs. Yep, Adam is training for a Turkey Trot 5K in Aitkin, so Nolan has benefited from his training!

On Friday afternoon I spent a few hours at Let's Dish, making meals for when the baby is born. Adam and I found it really helpful when Nolan was born, so we decided to do it again - just this time on my own. I came home with 10 meals, which should take us through the first 3 weeks of new baby being around, with a few other homemade meals mixed in. Anything to make it easier for us is worth it!

Nolan had a bit of a tough day today. He had a great morning, so we assumed it would continue through the afternoon. He went down for his nap at 12:15, and usually doens't wake up until around 2:30. Today he woke up really upset at 1:30, and we could tell he wasn't feeling well. He's in the process of getting 4 teeth, and normally it doesn't bother him - but today it did. We gave him some ibuprofin, hoping it would make him sleepy. It didn't, although it did make him feel a little better. He tried really hard to be good, but he was so overtired it was difficult for him. He took a turn for the worse at dinner time. Adam was making fish, and I was playing with him. He's recently thought it's funny to hit me, which it's totally not. It's not like it hurts, but it's not something we want him to do. The worst part is I know he's doing it to get a reaction out of me. The first few times he hit me today I held his arms down, told him "no, we don't hit. It hurts mommy and mommy's feelings." After he continued to hit me I put him in his very first time out, at the end of the hall upstairs. I don't really know if he understood why he was there, but he sat there for a minute and didn't make a peep. When his time was up I went over there, explained to him again why we don't hit, told him to say "I'm sorry" (which he didn't because I don't think he can yet), and then to give me a kiss and hug, which he did. I thought we had an understanding at this point, but we didn't, because about 10 minutes later he did the same thing to me. He went in to a timeout again, and after that didn't hit me anymore. I really wish I understood why he's doing it, but I know most kids go through this phase, and it's temporary. I just hope that he doesn't hit the new baby when we bring it home from the hospital!

Ye Old Right Leg

Nolan and his right leg/foot have been battling it out over the summer, with the leg winning on a consistent basis. It once again won last week, which resulted in another trip to Urgent Care on Thursday evening. He was fine at daycare all day (other than refusing to eat because he wanted cereal), and when I got him home he was a little cranky and hungry, but nothing out of the ordinary. I fed him first, and then made dinner for myself. Half way through my chicken enchilada I looked a little more closely at his bare feet – and his right foot was swollen and double the size of this left foot! There was a little bite mark of some kind where his foot meets his ankle and it was oozing, so I made the decision to just take him in to urgent care. After the big weigh in (26 lbs 15oz!!!), the nurse and dr. checked him over. The dr. determined it was a bite of some kind that he wasn’t able to identify, and that Nolan had an allergic reaction to it. We are treating him with an antibiotic for the infection, and using a topical solution for his foot. Luckily the swelling went down, and he was finally able to put a shoe on his foot on Saturday. Poor kid. Good thing he won’t remember any of this!

Friday night I was able to sneak away for the evening with a few girlfriends and spend 5 hours at the state fair. I always like to think I’m going to try some new fair food, but I stick with what I know and like – corn dog, gyro, cheese curds, deep fat fried pickles and mini donuts. The fair was crowded, but we managed to make our way through just fine. The highlight was listening to the crowd respond to the group performing at the free stage – Boys to Men! I had no idea there were still so many fans out there, and of so many ages! Saturday morning Adam and I spent some quality time with Nolan, taking a long walk and playing with his new outside toys (you can see how excited he was in the above pics!). We thought he would take a long nap, but he surprised us with a short 2 hour nap. We spent the later afternoon/evening at our friend's house in Eden Prairie for a get together/bean bag tourney. Nolan hung in there like a champ and lasted until about 7:45. He was super tired and fell asleep almost immediately on the way home! Sunday morning we had plans to make it to the 8:30 church service, but Nolan surprised us once again and slept until 8:30! Adam spent the day at a fantasy football draft, and I took Nolan with me to the MN Zoo, where we met up with Christianne, Brian and the girls. We had a fantastic time, and Nolan did really well. He hung out in his stroller most of the time, just chillin with his blanket, some treats and his water.

Today was our 39 week baby appointment, and we were told there is a little progress at this point - which got Adam excited, and led me to explain to him that I could stay that way for another 2 weeks! The baby is active, and I think the longer it stays in there, the better. One thing I have noticed lately is that I think my body is trying to tell me to slow down, but I'm not doing a very good job of listening to it (just ask Adam!). This week I've decided I'm going to tone it down a bit and relax a little more. There's not much time left!

What did he say?

Well, Nolan has yet again surprised Tricia and I with his ever-expanding vocabulary. The other night it was him saying "Elephant" when I turned the page in his book...then he followed it up with the "whewwwww" sound we make when we read it to him! Crazy! He's learning his animals and colors at daycare, so we are consistently surprised with what he talks about. This past week he said strawberry and bunny, too. He is rapidly becoming a little stinker and now enjoys running around the house whenever we ask him to "come here." It’s a great game, let me tell you. He is also realizing the impact of us saying “no” or “naughty” to him. As soon as we say it he starts to cry because he’s not getting his way. Do the terrible 2’s start early at 17 months?

Last week Jane introduced Nolan to the new baby who will be starting at daycare in September. Erica happened to pick up Nolan that day because Tricia and I were at the Twin’s game, and apparently he was not happy with this little baby being the center of attention...Oh boy, will he be in for a shock when his first sibling shows up! Jane recommended we think about buying a baby doll to carry around the house to break him in a little and get used to the idea of a baby being around, so Tricia went out and bought one. So far he hasn’t been too impressed, although he has started giving it kisses when we hold it. It feels a little weird, but we’ll try anything to make the transition a little easier for him! Tricia had her 38 week check-up on Monday, and as of right now there's nothing happening to suggest we'll be needing to bolt to the maternity ward anytime soon. There really haven’t been any contractions since last week, so we’re pretty sure the baby is happy and content being in the belly!

Last weekend was busy for us. On Friday night we watched Chris and Sasha’s little boy Jackson so they could go to the Twin’s game. They dropped off Jackson with Tricia at work and she brought him to our house, and I picked up Nolan. It was pretty funny watching them play together. At one point they were both sitting at the little table, pounding their little hands and laughing! Dinner was also pretty hilarious. We fed them pork chops, green beans and mashed potatoes. The meal was a pretty big hit, because every time one of them took a bite he would say “mmmmm”, and the other one would take a bite and say “mmmmm”. I looked at Tricia at one point and commented that I never thought our Friday nights would be spent like this! By the time we bathed the boys and got them both in bed (which was surprisingly easy - they both went right down!) we were exhausted. How do people with twins have any energy? On Saturday I helped my buddy Jared celebrate his bachelor party, and Tricia spent the afternoon with his better half, LeAnna, celebrating her bachelorette party. It was a little nerve racking being 2 hours away from home this close to the due date, but it all worked out – no baby yet! I got home around noon on Sunday, and noticed pretty quickly that Nolan was ready for a nap. I asked him if he was ready, and instead of answering he walked in to this bedroom, climbed in his bed and grabbed his blanket. Hopefully this will become a routine! This was even after he slept from 7 pm Saturday night to 7:45 Sunday morning! On Sunday afternoon Tricia and I took Nolan to the local beach in hopes of enjoying the heat for awhile. Nolan (and me too) enjoyed digging in the sand and blowing bubbles in the water. Nolan also took a liking to kicking his legs and getting bobbed up and down in the water. I think next summer we'll be spending a lot more time there!

On Monday night we celebrated my sister Erica's birthday out in Waconia at Lola's. Other than having to get food a little before everyone else (as Nolan's teeth seem to be coming in again) we had a nice meal. The highlight was getting to take Nolan and Claire out to the deck on the lake and feed the blue gills pieces of bread and french fries. (I think I got as big of a kick out of it as they both did!)

There will be more to come soon, with Nolan continuing to grow and expand his lungs along with the addition of another member to the family! We've got the names picked out (we think) and bags partially packed. I think the baby will come early, but Tricia is convinced it won’t show up until after September 9th. Anyone else want to place a bet?

37 weeks and camping?

Yes, that's right. Adam, Nolan and I slept in our tent on Saturday night. The weather was awesome, and we all slept great! We were in Albertville on Saturday for a repeat of our 4th of July party - except it was Pool Party 2.0. We had a great day hanging out with family and friends, and enjoying the pool.

Nolan has been pretty funny over the last week. This morning Adam was talking to him and said "right?" at the end of a sentence. Nolan looked at him and said "right". Who knew? He is still struggling a little being left alone in his new bed, but it's getting better - thanks to a little tough love by mom! He's settling in to his new routine weel - he picks out 3 or 4 books to read, scoots himself back in to his little red chair and we read to him while he holds his blanket. After his books we turn on his music and turn off the light, and then say our prayers. After a little cuddling we put him in bed. After a kiss goodnight I spend 2 - 3 minutes in the room with him, and then sneak out. I've been letting him cry it out, and each night it's gotten better - 6 minutes Sunday night, 4 minutes on Monday, and about 5 minutes tonight. Oddly enough, tonight he actually crawled in to his bed and layed down on his own, which we thought was a good sign. But, he still cried - probably because he isn't feeling good (teething and allergies at the same time!).

On Tuesday morning we saw a fawn and 2 does in our front yard. If that wasn't enough, as I was leaving for work Adam stopped me and said "shhhh". I looked up, and just on the other side of our garbage can there was a 6 point buck. A few seconds later a doe and then a fawn joined him in our yard. It was the first time I've ever seen a "family" of deer at the same time! Who says you need to live in the country to see wildlife?

Today we had our 37 week appointment. There is a little progress to report, but not enough to make us think we'll go before our due date. Last night, however, we were questioning it. I had contractions for about an hour and half. I knew they were false, but the really strong ones did make me question it a little! That little episode motivated us to check off a few more things on our baby list. I guess that's not a bad thing!

Nolan had another follow-up visit to the dr. on Tuesday. He is done with the walking cast, and we're just going to monitor his walking, particularly his right foot, to see how he improves. He gets a little stiff legged by the end of the night, and his right foot is angled out a little more than before the break. If it's not better in a month then we'll take him back in. Please, please be better - it's at about the same time as when new baby will arrive!

The bedtime routine is still going well, except the whole "he needs us to be in the room until he falls asleep" thing. I'm much stronger than Adam and can let him cry it out, to a point. The poor kid starts coughing after a while, and he has been known to hold his breath until he starts to turn purple. The longest I've let him cry is about 6 minutes. I'm not sure what we're going to do about this, but we need some resolution soon! Oh, and I took him in for a haircut that same day. He did great - because he had his blanket in his lap and part of a breakfast cereal bar in each hand!

Nolan is talking quite a bit more, and he's actually saying more words we can understand. Tonight Adam asked Nolan if he was ready to put his pj's on, and Nolan looked at him and said "no". So funny to hear that come out of his mouth! Over the last week he's said "I'm stuck" after he shut our bedroom door and couldn't get it open, kitty, blanket, inside (when he was outside with Adam on one of the many hot days we've had recently) and milk. He's really, really good at shaking his head yes and no, and doing it exactly when he's supposed to do it! He's very adament about showing us what he needs, usually by pointing and then getting frusterated (screaming and/or hitting himself usually follow). We can tell he's trying to be more independent, which is good and bad!

Last night I took Nolan to Adam's last regular season softball game. I really don't mind the heat, but the humidity these days is awful (pregnant or not). Poor Nolan sweats more than any kid I've ever seen! His hair was pretty wet from sweat (and quite curly), he had sweat beaded up on his face, and his clothes were even getting wet! We really need to watch him to make sure he's drinking enough water. The game was well past his bedtime, and in a fit of anger (because I wouldn't let him walk by a mud puddle) Nolan hit me, but instead of really hitting me a fingernail on his right hand marked up my chin and neck. I have a very red, and pretty long scratch mark on the front of my neck, and 2 little ones on my chin. Nothing feels better than having to tell people you got "hit" by your 16 month old, to the point where it leaves a visible mark!

Baby planning and prep is going great. The list has been a lifesaver! We finalized the Nolan duty plans yesterday for when we're at the hospital. He'll be in daycare during the day - we don't want to mess up his routine too much. We had our 36 week appointment on Monday. Baby is good, and there is nothing to report as far as progress. I don't get my hopes up - I didn't really have any progress with Nolan, either! I also picked up a girl outfit and boy outfit to take to the hospital with us. Now I just need to wash it!

Last weekend Nolan and I spent Saturday in Mankato, celebrating Lalayna's 4th birthday. He did pretty well, but always seems a little overwhelmed by the older 3 girls. Paulette was kind enough to keep him overnight down there so Adam and I could enjoy his 15 year class reunion. It was awesome to have a night out, and to be able to sleep in until 10 on Sunday morning! This weekend we're headed up to Albertville for Pool Party 2.0 - at the same place we were at over the 4th of July. We are very much looking forward to it, and will be camping out in their backyard Saturday night so we don't have to drive home. It's not supposed to be as hot or humid, so Adam and I are both excited to test out this whole camping thing with Nolan.

Adaptability

I am so proud to share that Nolan has had 2 successful nights in his new bed, and is on his way to a 3rd! I really didn't see this transition going as smoothly as it has gone - what a great surprise! The only adjustment to his bedtime routine we've had to make is that he wants us to sit next to him while he falls asleep, which takes somewhere between 5 and 20 minutes. We're going to roll with that for probably another week, and then start to let him figure it out on his own. He hasn't woken up in the middle of the night since Sunday, and we've had to wake him up the last 2 mornings to get him to daycare! We really are quite proud parent's to have such an adaptable kid.

Today was Nolan's first day at daycare without a cast or walking brace. The highlight of his day was walking outside with Jane this morning, and realizing he was walking over to play in the sandbox. He LOVES the sandbox, and hasn't been able to play in it for 3 weeks. Jane told me that they got about half way there and he started giggling and getting really excited. She said he smiled and played for an hour and half!

The getting ready for new baby plan is in full force. I picked up diapers at Target today. What a strange feeling it was to pick up diapers for Nolan and the teeny little newborn diapers for baby - talk about a reality check! Tonight I'm going to weed through all of Nolan's clothes and pack away what doesn't fit him. His clothes and anything else of his in the nursery are being moved over to his new room this weekend. Slowly but surely we'll get everything accomplished in the next few weeks!