monkey on her back?

our next few weeks have gotten even crazier than we had first intended. my family is arriving this week, followed by a week of fun around new england, then the kiddos and i are going to nd for a week or so. in preparation of our flight together (yes, 1 adult and 2 kiddos---i must be nuts), we bought claire a little monkey leash that she can wear while wandering through the airport. i knew i wouldn't be taking the double stroller and who knows about how she'll feel riding. lately she prefers to walk, getting distracted by passers by, so we went shopping. claire selected the monkey. she loved it, but didn't want me to take her picture. i am convinced that my camera and i are the monkey on her back. she wore it on her front and back, hiding her paci in the little pocket. hopefully the affection for this little friend continues until we return from our trip. it should be interesting.

8 weeks

she was loving when i was saying "mamamamamam" with my lips on her cheek. she'd smile and smile and smile, so i tried to get a picture. ooo, i could eat her up.


mya is 8 weeks old. wow, time is flying by. in only a month or so, i will be returning to work. i definitely have mixed emotions about that. anyway, 8 weeks. mya has been consistently sleeping 6-7 hours per night, which is awesome. can't say it enough---awesome. the issue is that since i am nursing her, i wake with watermelons on my chest. can't say i enjoy that feeling, but i definitely love my sleep. we've had kind of a rough week in terms of contentment. i have been eating something that doesn't sit well with our poor little girl. she's been constipated, yet again, gassy and quite fussy--especially around the hour of 4:00 which just so happens to be when daddy returns. i tell him that it is because of him that she is fussy, but he isn't buying it. otherwise, life is great. she is getting so big, so quickly. she smiles, eats well, loves her big sister and is a bright eyed little girl. she prefers standing and sitting upright so she can take in her surroundings, but isn't quite ready for the bumbo yet. mya loves going on walks and being swaddled. the poor thing sweats like everything in the heavy blanket, but that is the way she likes it. we have her 2 month well baby check this week. i am curious to see her numbers as she seems bigger than claire was at this point. we are loving everyday even though everyday isn't always easy.

sprinkler...

Yesterday was our first day without rain and warm temperatures, so we were able to use our pool. Yahoo. Claire loved swimming last summer, so I was expecting much of the same. Needless to say, the experience was less than desirable. She'd put her feet in and let Chris submerge her legs, but that was about it. I'm sure over time it will get better. The kid loves playing in water, but I think the fact that she couldn't ease into it by herself is what turned her away. Anyway, I thought a sprinkler might be better. Not so much. We found this cute ball sprinkler at Target, and Claire talked a good game up until it was time to get wet. She managed to run through a couple of times staying dry, but the second she was splashed was the second she decided enough was enough. Aren't Cancer babies supposed to LOVE water? I know I did and still do.

7 weeks

7 weeks has brought a couple of changes for sweet baby Mya. She is eating 5+ ounces of milk/feeding. Mya is much more awake now. She typically sleeps for about 4 hours during the day, otherwise is checking out this big bad world. Mya seems to enjoy our daily walks. She looks around and is a pretty content kiddo. Claire tends to her pacis if the need arises. We've introduced her to the activity mat, which she enjoys if she is left alone; however, given the fact that Claire too is fascinated by the mat and Mya, being left alone is a rare occurence. Mya sits in the swing daily, although she isn't a huge fan at this point. We're hoping to change her ways. She is strong, holding her head for minutes at a time and loves standing on her little feet. Mya has begun smiling. She has done this consistently for the past several days, but it is difficult to capture such an event on film as she stops smiling the moment you break eye-contact. This milestone is such a heart melting one. There is nothing like seeing her big smile and that sparkle in her eyes. She has blessed us with two consecutive nights of 6 hour blocks of sleep. Thank you, thank you, thank you. Hopefully this is a permanent change. Chris and I are tired. Mya is still in newborn clothing, but each outfit is becoming a bit tighter and before long, they will be something of the past. I feel I say it every week, but I can't believe she is nearly 2 months...

Gymnastics Fun

We've been searching for some fun activities for Claire to participate in--not necessarily organized classes, but fun. I happened to come across a flyer for a gymnastics academy that works with toddlers. It seems most classes begin at age 3, so this was an awesome find. Anyway, during the summer months they offer open gym for three hours once per week. Today was the day. Claire was the youngest kiddo, so she received alot of one to one help from Kathy, the instructor. The session is organized, but it is not so focused on skill building as it is on practice. Claire was introduced to the trampolines, mats, rings, balance beam, bars, and moonwalk. She loved it. Chris accompanied her to most of the activities while I kept an eye on Mya. Her first class went well and we all look forward to her next.

She's a funny one.

Claire lately has been trying to figure out humor. She'll laugh when we laugh and make comments like, "Momma funny." She definitely knows her stuff. Anyway, she has her share of comedy routines. The latest is putting things on--glasses, undies, or dress bottoms. We think she's funny too.

Hanscom Heroes Celebration

After the celebration, a reporter asked to interview me on our experience with his deployment, etc. I declined. She then asked Chris who agreed. He actually made the news with a comment and a couple of appearances. It is viewable online http://necn.com/Boston/New-England/2009/06/26/Hanscom-heroes-honored-for/1246065887.html








Every 6 months Hanscom AFB throws a celebration for troops who have returned from deployment. Friday was Chris' celebration. The kiddos and I packed up in sunny skies, but when we arrived on base, they quickly turned to rain. Again. It was an outdoor celebration. After sitting in the rain for 15 minutes or so, the rain cleared and the sun returned--along with it came the blistering heat. I was sweating profusely by the time the parade and festivities began. It was a lovely celebration after which was a carnival. Claire had a blast. They had a moonwalk, this huge slide and a few toddler type carnival rides. She especially enjoyed driving the race cars. Chris and I were very surprised that our little daredevil, as brave as she may be, actually went up the huge slide by herself and went down. She is such a tiny little thing that she practically flew down the slide, tumbling toward the bottom. No tears, only smiles prevailed. Pretty impressive.

Jillian kicked my butt...

My excitement for the 30 Day Shred has changed to misery now that we've officially begun. I shouldn't really say that as it is awesome, but really quite challenging since my body hasn't seen exercise in nearly 10 months. Ugh. The routine is circuit based, which I love. However, thinking I was capable of so much more, I jumped right into level #2. She doesn't believe in resting, but merely exercise modification when you are beyond your limits. It was tough, but good. I was sweating profusely. I am not thinking I'll do it each and every day, but definitely 5 days per week in addition to my daily routine. Results should be manageable.

Water Fun

Yesterday was finally our first day of no rain in nearly 5 days. Ugh. Needless to say, we were all loving the warm weather and decided to head to a local pond area near our house. Chris has been dying to get Sophie in the water, so this was a perfect opportunity. We were the only ones there, which was fantastic. We let Sophie off her leash and she ran and ran--in and out of the water. Claire loved it too. She went into the water up to her shorts, watching and laughing as Sophie swam, splashed and ran. It was a fun little evening activity.



I think this is my favorite. Claire loved Sophie splashing her. She giggled with glee each and every time. I, on the other hand, was holding my breath, just waiting for Sophie to topple Claire down and toss her into the water.

to do list...done

ahhhh. there is nothing i like better than having nothing on my list to do. let me correct myself, on my need to do soon list. i have my 6 week post delivery appointment today, so claire went to daycare to play with her friends. this little visit is long overdue for her. she misses them dearly and says their names often. i think she says their names so she doesn't forget them. anyway, she was thrilled for her day of excitement and i was equally thrilled for my day of doing whatever i choose. those who know me well, know that i wouldn't be laying around, sleeping or relaxing. instead, i've been cleaning, doing laundry, writing thank you notes, organizing, and fixing a few things that k've been meaning to do for awhile. it feels great. to top off my super great day....i am wearing prepregnancy jeans! yahoo!! i still have weight to lose, but it definitely is rewarding to see some success. hopefully i'll get the okay to resume exercise and normal activity today, so i can get back to the gym. i also have jillian's 30 day shred coming in the mail. i don't think i've ever been so excited to exercise.

One Month Appointment

Mya had her one month well baby check today. I still can't believe she is already one month old. She is doing very well. She has gained two pounds. Her jaundice has completely cleared, but has been left by a birth mark. Okay, one didn't leave the other. I just happened to notice the birth mark yesterday when I was giving her a bath. I was feeling a bit like a neglectful parent as I hadn't noticed it until now, but her NP said they often appear gradually, and it most definitely wasn't present at her last two exams. Phew--feeling a bit better. Anyway, the birthmark is a "cafe-au-lait," which is hereditary. You are welcome, kiddo. I happen to have a very, very small one and I know at least one of my sisters have one as well. So, unfortunately, she got this from my side. Oh well, one not so pretty thing certainly doesn't outweigh the many lovely qualities :)... We just need to watch it making sure it doesn't increase in size or more do not appear. Other than that, she is strong and healthy. Can't ask for more.
Here are her stats:
weight--10 lbs. 8 oz. (75% ile)
height--22 inches (75% ile)
head--29 cm (90%ile)

We love you, daddy!

Nothing says love like a daddy and his girls. We love you, Chris! You are an amazing daddy and husband.

Life is Good

The second little activity I planned for our day was a festival on Boston Common. Claire LOVES Stevesongs on PBS. He basically just sings and some kids join him to dance along. I discovered that he was performing at this festival (Life is Good) and researched it a bit further. It was a great little find and the best part was that it was FREE. Yes, you heard it...free and on the east coast. Those three words are never synonomis. Mike Lowell (Red Sox) was even there, but we just missed seeing him. We did get a picture of Bert Jacobs who co-founded "Life is Good." Mya chilled in the stroller while Claire had a blast. She got her face painted, got inked, completed an obstacle course, and outsmarted a tossing game (she was supposed to stand and throw the ball into the dish, but she simply walked over to the bowl and tossed the balls in.) The weather was beautiful and the rain held off. On our way out of the park, we stopped at a playground/sprinkler park. Despite our encouragement, Claire had no interest in the sprinklers. Hopefully she'll come around once she discovers what she's missing. It was truly a great day.

strawberry picking

one thing i love about living in new england is the u-pick farms that are everywhere. we go at least once per season to pick whatever is in season. i think i like them so much because they are a little taste of home. we always had a garden and of course, farming is in my blood. today was our day to pick strawberries. yummy. claire enjoyed eating them almost as much as i did; however, she generally picked her delicious berries from the box vs. from the vine. on our adventure today i spotted a baby bunny. claire was rather curious about the little fella. although the patch was a bit damp, it was a great harvest.

what a week!

helping. ummm--yeah. enough said.





Checking out her big sister.


Look at these eyes--taking it all in.

i think she wants me to put down the camera and give her some food...


We only have about 3 pictures from Chris' childhood, so we don't have alot to compare our children to, but this picture screams Chris to me.


Oh what a week we have had. Here are a few key words to clue you in...mastitis, rain, constipation, whining. I think those are some good indicators of what our week has been like. It all began with a little visit from a very painful critter known as mastitis. Let me say how fortunate I feel knowing that this is kiddo number 2 and only my first horrific case. It was awful. Awful to the point that I actually called Chris at work on Monday morning, asking if he could come home. I thought I was going to die---chills, sweats, body aches, aching, aching bubbies. I am pleased to say that a quick phone call to the doctor, some strong meds and I was back in order the next day--not perfect, but back in working order. However, the medication I am taking is taking a toll on poor Mya. She has been constipated for a couple of days. I've been lacing her milk with Karo syrup, but even that is having a tough time pushing through. I will be going out to buy the high powered dark stuff later today. Despite her grunting & pain stricken faces, she is in good spirits. No crying or sleeplessness to speak of. Chris decided to get sick this week as well, but some cold medicine is doing the trick and Claire, well, Claire decided to take up whining. Ahhhh, the days withOUT whining will be sorely missed. After we have our little discussion about simply talking and NOT whining, Claire responds, "Ooookaaaaay" (with a whiney voice.) Parental challenges. We did visit my work for the first time. I received a special invitation from my students to come and listen to them share their autobiographies, so even though I was feeling less than fabulous, we couldn't miss it. It was great to see my work friends and of course, my kids received more lovin than they could handle. My school kids loved them too and were excited to see me. I quickly forgot about my aches and pains in the midst of all the happiness. Our weekend looks bright with all the illness behind us. Hopefully the weather cooperates as we have some fun planned. I'll update later.

some claireisms

yes, i am a speech pathologist. yes, i am fully aware these productions are developmental and normal. yes, i still think they are soooo adorable.

mail man--manmail
sandwich--samips
lay down--may now
holy crap--holy cwap--even used in appropriate context (steam coming out of pot while cooking..."holy cwap, daddy--fiuh" (i'm convinced she gets this from chris--he'd beg to differ)
sophie--soapie
ambulance--ambance
love you--wubyu
ice cream--i keam

when we take a bath, i sing to the tune of the Backstreet Boys' "Everybody," "wash your body." claire nows responds to her directions of taking a bath as "time to was you body."

her biggest desires in life are "read a sory," "go fo wide," or "go fo walk." when we ask her where she wants to go, claire either responds "tahget" or "i keam." that's my girl!

whenever my phone rings or i am talking to someone on the phone, she immediately thinks it is grammy. i have a coat similar to the one my mom (grammy) wore when she was here and she seems to think i have stolen grammy's coat. she also thinks our spare bed is "gwammy's bed." ahhh...grammy won my baby's heart.

potty training....mya?

Ok, so i was all set to potty train claire earlier this spring, but honestly, it or i kind of lost my sense of urgency. i sort of came to terms with the fact that she isn't even two years old and also the fact that she will do it when she is ready. so...i've laid off. well, chris has picked up the desire to get this kid trained. we decided to make a strong attempt today. we had everything-candy, shopping bribes, a party, etc. nothing seemed to work. in fact, claire got to the point where she didn't even want to sit on the potty. poor thing. anyway, after several attempts, i finally broke down and told claire that mya was going to use the potty. i stripped off her diaper and held her on the potty as we all sat and stared. i should include a brief side story before i continue--when claire was an infant, my sister lisa called to tell me about some granola type mommas in boston who were listening to their infants and potty training them. we laughed about it as she asked if i was going to take claire's lead and potty train her as a baby. anyway, back to the story...mya's hanging over the toilet and about at her breaking point. she starts to fuss a bit when all of a sudden, the little bugger pees in the potty! i was laughing, chris just stared and claire watched in shock. it was hilarious. we celebrated to inspire claire and chris took her to the bathroom to show her what happens with the potty when you finally do go. i thought the role model would help the process, but no go. nothing. notta. claire has no desire to satisfy us or pacify us, whichever. oh well. i probably would have better luck training mya at this point. maybe i will be a granola momma afterall.

Mt. Major

Last Saturday we ventured up to Mount Major for some hiking. Chris and I hiked this mountain a couple of years ago and thought the view from the peak was gorgeous. Time helped us forget how difficult the hike actually was--not to mention the first time around neither of us had extra weight in the form of an infant or toddler. It was quite a challenge, but well worth the blood, sweat and tears. Three weeks post surgery, I don't think this is exactly what my doctors had in mind when they told me "no strenuous activity."

Make video montages at www.OneTrueMedia.com

Four weeks

Mya turns four weeks tomorrow. I really can't believe how quickly time has passed. I think I say that in every post, but it truly is amazing. It seems to slip by more quickly than it even did with Claire. Mya is doing great. She is getting bigger and stronger every day. She can hold her head up pretty well all by herself. She is awake for longer periods at a time and loves to look around and take in her surroundings. I find so much of her personality to be similiar to Claire's as a baby. It definitely is sweet to experience it all again. I am not sure what I ate the past day or so, but something has not been so kind to precious little Mya. She has had an upset tummy and has let us know it. As a result, her sleeping segments have been shorter than normal--3 hours or so. Hopefully, we get back on track soon--Chris and I are tired. I took pictures to give you a taste of the face we've been seeing more often lately. The other picture is her laid back, analytical look. She is such a little honey. I just can't stop lovin on my little girls. They mean everything.

Claire the dog trainer...

Claire sat through all of Sophie's puppy training classes and evidently she picked up a skill or two. A couple of days ago, she was digging through the cabinet where we keep all of our dog supplies. In her search, she came across the clicker used during the classes. She slipped it around her wrist and began commanding Sophie like nobody's business. Tonight was a repeat performance, so I got a couple of pictures. I really have to get it on video as it is pretty fun. Sophie was a good little student, following the requests of her trainer. I think I would too if you had heard Claire's tone. She definitely meant business.