Learning new things!

3 months

Heidi,

You are now three months old! Here's what you're doing now:
-you smile a lot in response to my smiles
-you have started lying on the floor awake for longer periods of time. After you eat, I put you on the floor on your back for a while and you watch your sister play.
-you also spend time on your tummy and can hold your head up very well.
-you've been rolling from your tummy to your back for several weeks now.
-you still HATE the carseat and scream when your buckled in it. Road trips are no fun.
-While we were on vacation, you slept so well. You only woke once to eat (4:30ish) and then went back to sleep until 8:30 or so. Since we've been home you've decided to give that up and are now waking around 1:30 and 4 to eat, but then wake again at 7.
-I'm trying so hard to get you on some sort of sleep schedule, but you're still unpredictable. By Ansley's naptime I'm so worn out and I try to get you to both sleep at the same time, but sometimes it doesn't work that way.
-I try to guess at your personality, and here is what I think so far: you are very sweet and have an infectious smile. You're happiest when someone is holding you and you're getting attention. You know what you want and how to get it. Like your sister and mommy, you seem to be very active. Your arms and legs are always moving and you seem like you want to get up and crawl. I definitely think you'll crawl and walk early.

I love you, sweet Heidi Reese!

And just so I can look back years from now on what life was like with two little ones at home, here is what our day looks like:
-At 7:00 am Ansley comes in the room to wake us by coming to my side of the bed and saying, "Good morning, Mommy!" I change diapers, turn on the news, and feed Heidi. Then I get Ansley's breakfast and eat myself.
-Then I lay Heidi on the floor to play for as long as she'll tolerate and Ansley will play with her toys while I clean the kitchen and the rest of the house. Ansley will find Heidi's paci and put it in her mouth when she starts crying.
-Heidi will nap around 8:30 or 9 in her crib for about an hour and then wake to eat again. After that, we will run errands or play with our friends. Heidi will take another little nap around 11.
-Lunch is around 12 and then Ansley watches Sesame Street. I feed Heidi at 1 and start trying to get her to sleep so I can put Ansley to bed and have a break for myself. Usually by 1:30 or 2 I have both asleep.
-Ansley will wake around 3:30 or 4 and come say to me, "Good morning, Mommy!" again. She gets a snack and then plays with her toys some more. Heidi will wake soon after to eat again.
-Then I start dinner and Jeff gets home around 5 or 5:30. We eat and then play together and talk in the living room. Ansley gets so excited when daddy gets home and as soon as she hears the garage door open, she runs around the corner in the kitchen to greet him. He always picks her up and gives her a kiss and then comes to tell me hi and kisses Heidi and me too.
-Heidi eats again at 7 and then I get both girls bathed and ready for bed. By 8 or 8:30 I have both girls in bed and if Jeff's not working at the station the next day, we will sit up and watch TV or talk until we go to bed. I'll feed Heidi once more and then go to sleep.

These days are just so precious. There is nothing in this world I would give up any of this time for. The Lord has been so faithful to provide everything we need and I'm thankful to be able to stay home with my babies.

Fun on the 4th

We had a fun weekend full of festivities for the 4th of July including the 10th annual skeet shoot, fireworks in Scurry, wonderful food, a great time with friends, a redneck slip n slide, and the Rosser parade. I wish I had gotten more pictures with my camera. Especially of our friend Will's interpretive dance during our game of Quelf. Can't wait to do it all again next year!

We give thanks to God for allowing us to live in a country where all of this was possible. And we give thanks to all the men and women who have fought, died, and continue to fight for our freedoms.

Differences the Second Time Around

Ansley and Grammy around the 4th of July. I know. She was huge!!!


Heidi and Grandpa. There was about a one month difference in age between the girls in these photos.


Ansley on the beach.


Heidi on the beach.

The other day I was reading what I wrote about Ansley on the blog when she was two months old. I could.not.believe the difference in size of my girls. Ansley was 14.5 lbs at her two month appointment! Heidi was 9.5 lbs. What in the world!?! I knew Ansley was big, but whoa. I remember now that I was so afraid to let her go past three hours between feedings, even at night. I would wake her up. Crazy! I'm a lot more laid back with Heidi. I even sometimes let her go over three hours during the day if she's sleeping.

Other differences in my mommy style the second time around:
-I don't jump every second Heidi cries. I at least wait a couple of seconds.
-I don't instantly scoop up fallen pacifiers off the floor and put them in a pot to boil. Now I just quickly wipe them on my shirt and pop back in Heidi's mouth.
-I'm not using special baby detergent to wash her clothes.
-I let Heidi nap on her tummy and have even let her sleep on her tummy some at night in the pack n play next to my bed. I wouldn't let Ansley until she started rolling over and I couldn't control it.
-While I still check to make sure Heidi's breathing if she's been quiet for too long, I don't do it nearly as often as I did with Ansley.

I'm glad I eventually relaxed a little with Ansley. This explains a lot about her personality, huh?

Heidi's Two Months!

Heidi,

You're two months old! You're second month of life was pretty busy and you've just continued to grow and change every day. Here's more about you now:
-You're smiling a lot and I just love to see that precious little dimple on your right cheek that you inherited from your daddy. You also coo and "talk" to me, especially when you're getting your diaper changed and right after your bath.
-You seem to have a love/hate relationship with your pacifier. You love it at night and when you're first falling asleep, but you get so mad when I try to shove it in your mouth when you're crying or upset. It won't hurt my feelings at all if you don't become as attached to it as your sister is to hers.
-You sleep swaddled at night and propped on your Boppy pillow. You're a VERY light sleeper, just like your mommy. I never realized how loud Ansley was until you came around.
-You've been on many trips, including your first trip out of state to Florida.
-At your 2 month checkup (although it was about a week and a half early), the doctor said you were 9 lbs 12 oz and almost 22 inches long. You were in the 25th percentile, which totally surprised me because your sister was so big. The doctor also said you have acid reflux and prescribed medication. It seems to be working because you're not crying like you're in pain anymore.
-You still love the Moby wrap and spend a lot of time snuggled up to Mommy in it. You hate being put down anywhere including the swing, floor, bouncy seat, bed, carseat..
-I can tell you're going to be an active little girl once you're able to move independently. Your legs and arms are constantly going and you just want to move around on your own so badly.
-Something funny about your sister. She sees you spitting up a lot and watches as I fuss over cleaning your face and shirt and making sure you're alright. The other day she was sitting in her carseat behind me and said, "Mommy, I spit up." I turned to see her dangling her spit out of her mouth and sucking it back up. Kinda gross, but I couldn't help but laugh. I guess she was wanting a little attention.
-You've been giving other people that hold or babysit you a hard time. You cry and cry and are usually only comforted by Daddy or Mommy. You may be a little demanding, but I wouldn't have it any other way. The way I see it, you just know what you want.

I love you, Heidi and can't wait to watch how you grow and change in the next few months!

Florida Fun

Each year my family takes a vacation to Seaside, Florida and we always have such a wonderful time. We left last Friday morning and finally made it to Hammond, Louisiana by about 5:00 that evening after being stuck in awful traffic outside of Baton Rouge. Ansley rode with my parents, so we only had Heidi for the trip and she was great. No real crying, slept most of the way. We spent the night in Hammond and got up the next morning and headed to Florida. This may sound silly, but since we've stayed in the same house for five years now I feel like I'm coming home each time we finally turn onto the familiar rode called 30-A that drives through Watercolor, Seaside, and then Seagrove to our house. I love it there. I can't say it enough. It's probably the only place outside of Texas I would ever want to live and I've told Jeff so many times that someday I want to have a home there. It's my favorite place on earth. Really.

Anyway, this year was even more special because we got to celebrate the wedding of my sister and brother-in-law. I was the matron-of-honor (ugh, that sounds so old) and Ansley was the flower girl. It was a beautiful wedding on the beach and I am just so happy for my sweet sister. Ansley did a great job walking down the beach to us, though she never dropped any petals. And she totally stole the show at the reception as she danced almost the entire time. She would have danced all night if we would have let her.




The rest of the week was spent relaxing with our sweet family. My grandma was able to make it this year and it was just such a special week. Some of my favorite things we did: riding bikes to Seaside, playing in the sand with Ansley, laying in the sun and listening to the waves, boogie boarding, playing 42 on the balcony, watching Jeff pull Ansley around the water, eating at Great Southern in Seaside, checking out the little shops, grilling hotdogs on the beach, and the massage and facial my mom and I enjoyed at a spa in Seaside.





After a 12 hour drive yesterday, we finally made it back home last night. We had both girls with us and by about 5:00 they were done riding in the truck. We didn't get home until 8:30... Those last few hours were rough.

I can't wait to go back next year. Have I mentioned that it's my very favorite place? Thanks for such an amazing week, Mom and Dad!

Sweet sisters