Letters: Month 5 (pictures coming)

[Editor's note: I'm off-site and am too behind to post pictures just yet. They're coming, I promise!!!!]

Lukey, you're already five months old, which officially (in my mind) moves you out of 'infancy' and into the much more exciting and adventurous 'baby' months. Wow! As noted in your previous letters, you are a smiler and happy baby with very few complaints about your place in the world just yet. That still holds, although you've had some strange hiccups this month with your schedule and feeding... we're not sure what happened, but sometime on vacation this past month you went from eating 6-8 ounces a feeding to 3-4, and then starting to wake up in the middle of the night. This was not a happy development for your parents (or for you, we're guessing). And then there was your four-month shots (that you actually got a week ago cause that's just the way we roll around here, big guy) - those didn't sit very well with you. In the day following your shots, you pooped seven times. That's right: SEVEN. Let's just say you seemed pretty...shall we say, uncomfortable?

Holy big-baby, batman! And holy MOHAWK, Luke! Your hair is something else, kiddo. It is something to write home about... We seriously cannot get it to lay flat sometimes, especially now that you have rubbed off all the hair around your head and are just left with the chunk of hair on the top. I freaking LOVE it!

What else? Let's see: in the past month you spent a full ten days up at the Koering cabin, a sheer joy for you, considering all the new faces you got to investigate and all the hair you could grab and all the cousins you could drool on! You love what I've come to term "face time," that is, getting up close and personal with somebody's face and just giggling, grabbing, goobering... you are darn cute, dude.

You and Dad have two days a week just the two of you while I'm at work. Daddy loves getting in some one-on-one time (in-between fending off your sister). You and he have this carrier thing all worked out. You spend a chunk of time each day in the carrier while your dad bakes, gardens, walks around the zoo...he's a regular Mr. Mom, and the two of you seem to have a good vibe together. Of course, when I get in the door I'm scrambling for you to get in as much snuggly time as I can before you head to bed at 7:30. I kiss you a bajillion times in those few hours after work! You have the most adorable little chubby legs right now that I just want to EAT! (What is it with cute little chub that just makes you want to nibble on it?!) Anyway, you're adorable and snuggly, and after your last feeding we just smile at each other. It's my favorite time with you.

At this point in the breastfeeding adventure, you're about 50% mom-fed and 50% formula fed. So, we're not sure if the back-and-forth has you doing this new little thing while I'm feeding you that totally cracks me up: you snuggle in for a bite to eat... and then a few minutes later you pop off, look at me, smile, and then snuggle back in. This is typically my signal that you're no longer hungry, but I keep up the game for a bit cause it's so hilarious.

You're spending more and more time on your tummy, working on rolling over on your own (there have been a few successful attempts), and lifting yourself further and further off your chest. You are totally in love with this "kitty" (as Maren calls it) that hangs from your car seat. You grab his little legs, shove them in your mouth, and bat it around a bit. It's very sweet.

Speaking of shoving into your mouth, your fist is in there quite a bit of the time. Sometimes you remember you love your thumb and manage to get it in there, too. You happily gnaw away at anything you can get your hands on. There was a big hickey on my shoulder from you last week where you gnawed at me for about ten minutes. I have another one on my arm... We think maybe you're teething? We'll have to see!

Next month, your Auntie Kate starts joining the adventure of hanging with you a few times a week when Daddy and I are both back at work. (You are so lucky cause she's super cool!) Daddy and I have been quite privileged to spend so much time with you in these first few months, and to have so much time at home. We love you, little Lukey.

Mommy and Daddy

Chronicles in Cuteness

Well we've had a great, relaxing, and very cute last few weeks:

________

I am home 2 days a week with the kids, so we have made weekly visits to the MN Zoo. A recent discovery and new favorite section is the Family Farm, tucked in one far corner of the zoo. I think it has been there a few years, but we didn't happen upon it until this summer.

They have a large group of pygmy goats that Maren loves to feed.


Luke usually takes the zoo time in the stroller as an excellent opportunity for long naps occasionally waking up for a bottle to gaze at the aquariums.
_______
Sally and Maren get some special time together each week with their friends Megan and Emmie where they learn all kinds of songs. One of Maren's favorites is about a dingle dangle scare crow. I have not been to story time, but apparently the scare crow song requires a special hat, so multiple times a day Maren commandeers the strainer from our lower kitchen drawer and dubs it her "dingle dangle hat."

We wanted to get one of her performances on tape but she was shy at first.


Eventually she graced the camera with a show.


________

We spent the week of the 4th of July up at the cabin which was a fantastically relaxing and fun week with all the cousins. We spent lots of time on the beach. Luke enjoyed getting some rays and reading with Dad.
Maren and Amelia caught up in the shallows.

___________

We went to the parade on the 4th, complete with all your classic American favorites: fire trucks, floats, drag queens, marching bands, and of course red necks:


________
Webster, WI also happens to be home the Burnett County Fair, so we made a visit on our last full day up at the cabin. Maren discovered some baby chicks in the chicken barn that we had to visit at least 5 times before we left.


Double cute.
________
Luke is spending more and more time on his feet (with some assistance.)
He's had a rough last couple of weeks as far as the sleeping goes. (Or maybe I should say Mom and Dad have had rough couple weeks.) Not sure if it was the unusual surroundings at the cabin, a growth spurt, his recent vaccinations, or all of the above. Naps are getting a little more regular which makes up for it. (Kind of.)
_____
Maren has had a couple of funny quips recently. Last week I was trying to dress her in a set of sleepers that she insisted were too big. I told her, "Maren, they're not too big, they're juuust right." To which she promptly responded, "No, they're juuuuust big."

After trying to coax her out of a longer than normal bath that Maren was particularly enjoying, Sally finally told her, "OK Maren--TIME'S UP!" Again, without missing a beat, Maren countered, "No, TIME'S DOWN!"

She's getting too smart, too fast. We're doomed.

Failure. On Vacation.

We're up at the cabin. Until yesterday, Andy was up in the BWCA with some friends. So I was up here with some family, taking on the kiddies on my own. A challenge, of course, but a wonderful time overall.

Sometime in the last few days, things began to go awry with Luke. As posted recently, he was eating 6-8 ounces per feeding... sleeping happily...

We got up here, and he's barely eating 4. Strange?!... and then waking up a few times a night?!... WHA?!?!

Then, this morning, Andy says, "Why are you feeding Luke with a slow-flow nipple?"

me: "I'm not."

Andy: "Yes, it's a slow-flow."

me: "Really?"

Andy: "Yep."

me: "Oh my god, the kid's starving!!!"

So, we gave him lots of milk this morning through a medium-flow nipple, and he is very, very, happy. And, my family is finding the whole thing hilarious. Me? Not so much.

by the #'s

The number of times Luke pooped yesterday: 4
The number of days it had been since he last pooped: 5
The number of times Andy had to change his clothes cause Luke leaked onto them: 2
The number of tantrums Maren has displayed in the last 24 hours: 6
The number of continuous hours of sleep Andy and I got last night cause Luke was up, hungry: 2
The number of ounces Luke now eats each sitting, compared with 3-5 just the other day: 8
The number of sippy cups Maren goes through each day, wanting a different one for each different occasion:3

The number of times I've thought of my kids since I got to work this morning: 52.

Random tid-bits

We're a sicky sick household lately. I had a cold. Then I gave it to Maren. Then she gave it to Luke. Then Luke gave it to Andy. So, Luke's been up, congested and coughing, totally breaking my heart. He's too little to have a cold! Oh, and somewhere in there he got pink eye. Sad!

Anyway, to make up for the lack of posting, I wanted to upload some more pics for your entertainment....

First of all, for those readers who are not in MN at present, it's been HOT:
For Mother's Day (which I realized was a while ago), the Koering gang came over and the cousins spent some time in the water...it was HA-larious, and as you can see form the picture above, they got naked and wet. It's gotta be seriously awesome to be a kid in the summer!
Luke's waking up, becoming more and more alert, and is a ton of fun. More in his update later this week... but thought you might enjoy some cute pics of him:

And Maren had her VERY FIRST hair cut, given by Auntie Kate.
It's been a crazy month - lots of family activities... work coming to an end for the year for Andy and just beginning for me. I have about twelve blog entries I haven't done, but hope to. So, stay tuned.

A Big Belated Update: Maren

So, here it is: the gist of what's been going on with Maren this past month.

It's been a busy month with lots of events and family graduations -- and, Maren's birthday. It was a fun party with family, but it was a bit overwhelming for our little one, especially as the gang sang "Happy Birthday" to her...
(But, she sure loved her homemake cake by Auntie Kate!)

Monkey has been promoted from bedtime snuggly to all-star pal and constant companion.
Maren's even working with him on going on the little potty. With a book, of course.
And, well, he too has to learn to only take a few sheets of toilet paper when he wipes...

Ahhhh, we love Monkey!