our strange kids

The breakfast of champions.

 A little bunny hopped in.

 Typical guy- hands down his (hard) pants. (his elbows are wrapped to lessen the pain from leaning on the carpet all day)

 Falls asleep in her jumper. (Meredith- remind you of Brenley?)

Reagan's here!

My friend Jessica and her baby girl Reagan dropped in for a visit. They are only a month and 10 days apart, Harlow being the oldest. Size wise, pretty much exactly the same, Harlow being the shrimp! And that sweet little hand holding Reagan's, it's Paxton's. He just can't get enough of babies.

Learn to Skate

 We took Hudson skating for the first time. In the hour that we skated, it was astonishing to see how much he improved! When Daddy first laced up his skates, he couldn't even stand. He wobbled to the ice and needed us to hold his entire body weight up. I never thought by the end of the 60 minutes he'd be skating by himself (with the walker)! He's still a little nervous at the thought of playing hockey and says he needs to get better at skating first.

 I love his face here, anticipating the fall.....

 And there it is :)

 Determination.

 He had a few friends there too. Maddox is older and a more experienced skater, with his dad being a hockey player himself. He tried to show Hudsy some moves.

 And Hudsy's "crush" Peyton (who is actually Maddox's twin sister). He knows her through daycare and says he "loves her" and that she's "so cute". He sings songs about her, and most recently asked if she could sleep over. We even have to drive by her house on our way home. Poor girl, doesn't even know we're stalking her. Oh dear!

 Brody, Hudsy, and Peyton.

Packy- 2 week update

Well, it's been 2 weeks....and it feels like it's been forever! Not all bad, just different. Packy is doing AMAZING! I continue to be in awe of him and I know that he's handling this so much better than I ever would in his situation. He would even tell you, "I like my hard pants." But he does have times of frustration, where he just cries to cry, throws his arms around, hits his cast, and we let him because he has every right to. Those moments are few and far between now, but they still happen. Mostly when he's overtired or has just woken up. But most of the time you would find him on the floor, smiling that smile that makes your heart break for him, with the cutest buzz cut I've ever seen! (Yep, he even went to the hair salon and got his hair cut while laying over the chair!). He's become a master at doing anything and everything while laying on his tummy. He plays trucks, reads books, eats, rolls, plays with Sister, even army crawls wherever he wants to go. And does NOT want any help! If you move a toy closer to him, he insists you move it back because HE can get it! Unfortunately, all that is taking a toll on his elbows. They're sore and red. 

He noticed I was wearing socks and wanted them on too, but said he only needed one because his other foot is "beat up".  

I think my baby is already getting skinnier. I don't remember him having quite as much room around his tummy and back :(

Please excuse the slight nudity in the following picture. He was "airing out" and told me, "Look at me Mom, I can sit, watch!"

 

doctor and cereal

Harlow had her 4 month check up with Dr. Franni. Mommy learned that she's already a true girl, being a little more dramatic when getting her shots. The tears lasted just a bit longer than they ever did with her brothers. But I'm fully expecting "less fun" doctor visits with her No one loves the doctor as much as Hudson and Paxton, they're just not normal! And she's a little girl, weighing 12 lbs. 11 oz, only in the 27th%, and is 24 3/4 inches long, in the 68th%. Keep that up Harlow, tall and thin! In comparison- at 4 months Hudson was 14 lbs. 11 oz. and 25 inches, and Paxton was 14 lbs. 8 oz. and 25 1/4 inches.

Harlow also had her first taste of cereal tonight. I think she liked it, didn't love it. She was definitely interested in it, but.......

.......was also interested in whatever was on TV!

four months

Harlow is four months old- September 8, 2012

At four months old......
weight:12.5-13 lbs (according to home scale)
length: 24 inches (give or take)
diaper size: size 1
clothes: mostly 0-3 month and 3 month (although bottoms are still big)
bottles: moved up to 5 oz. every 3 hours in the last couple weeks, finishes most of the time
Little things about Harlow.....
-still loves sleeping at night, we put her down awake (in the little crib in our room), swaddled, turn on the rainforest music/light and she falls right to sleep (9/9:30pm-anywhere from 7-10am)
-when she wakes up, she usually watches the TV for awhile, quietly, rarely cries
-rarely naps long during the day, about 30 minutes at a time and usually just falls asleep wherever she is
-in the last week or so she has learned to hold her head up HIGH when laying on her tummy
-rolls around like CRAZY and can scoot herself all over the floor!
-some days she's very spitty, every day she's very drooly!
-apparently has a senstive bottom and needs Pampers diapers and sensitive wipes
-started liking to swing and will often fall asleep
-most family claims she's spoiled, which might be somewhat true, but I certainly don't try
-when being held, she wants to stand (why family thinks she's spoiled)
-still almost completely bald with a long patch in the back (not very attractive)
-has darker eyebrows so just might have darker hair
-still has 2 "stork bites" on the back of her head and neck
-starting to laugh, but she sounds mad when it comes out
-smiles whenever anyone talks to her
-loves looking at herself in the mirror
-always, always, always has her hands in her mouth, full fists
-she's especially loved by big brother Paxton
-I call her Harlow Barlow but I don't want to and don't like it
-but more often than not, she's referred to as "Sister" in this house
-likes her do-do (pacifier)
-you can tell she wants badly to play with toys but has a hard time grabbing and holding onto them
-makes a gurgling sound alot when she's "talking"
-likes her daddy just a little bit more than she used to

FaMiLy

Harlow and Grandpa

 Grandma and Packy

Daddy and Hudsy

evening walk

A couple nights ago, we went on an evening walk with Grandma Sharon and cousins; Morgan, Bryce, and Kendra. It was beautiful, but just the right temp to bundle Harlow up. I love sweatshirts and hats!

The wagon Grandpa built Packy is really a godsend! He loves it and its such a great, easy way to get him outside! We can't thank you enough Grandpa!

These three knuckle heads ran ahead of us the whole time. If any neighbors were sleeping, they were sure to wake them up!

This is real life....

Please don't judge me for posting the following video. I had planned on taping a memory for Packy, and unfortunately Harlow decided to scream the whole time, and Hudsy decided to show a little bit of his true colors as well. So a little warning for viewers-- The following contains some screaming, crying, tears, fighting over toys, scolding, and a very messy living room! But the very best thing that this video contains is Packy's smile. My absolute favorite kind there is! So here you go, this is our house, this is real, and it happens often! After you watch the video, I'll make you feel better with pictures of siblings getting along. I promise!

Nice, huh!? If you have it in you to watch it again, please note that Harlow cries pretty much the entire 3 and a half minutes- to all of those who say I spoil her! I did NOT go running to her rescue, Sister worked it out herself! Also note, that when Hudson is looking for his animals, you will see Packy shaking the container that they are in, taunting Hudsy just a bit. And lastly, Hudson's complete irrationality- first crying for his toys then suddenly crying for a sucker. Really?? You can't take this kid too seriously. (And he also dressed himself that day!)

But now to make you feel better.....

 Awe, there's the love! We were all sitting on the couch and Hudson asked me, "Do you think Packy feels okay?", and I told him that I think he does feel good now and it doesn't hurt anymore. And Packy answered too, "No, I don't hurt anymore." Then Hudson said (kind of to himself, but loud enough for us to hear), "I should've just waited to jump." Tears came to my eyes, and even moreso when Packy said, "I would've moved." Ugh. Poor things.

Okay, on to more fun stuff....like polished black toe nails!  

 Packy loves to be on his tummy, much easier to play toys and drive trucks. And its right at Harlow's level, so they've become buddies and he likes showing her how to play her toys. 

 He definitely loves his sister.

P.S. Harlow is 4 months old today. I took the pictures, post to come.

school ready

 I just couldn't handle all the cuteness...Hudson dressed for school with his socks and tennies. He's turning into a handsome little boy.

 New kicks!

3 month pictures

Thank you Grandma Marsha!! (Marsha Jones Photography)

Update- Week 1

Packy went to the doctor today for x-rays and a check up. Even with memories of cutting saws and pain, he was still excited to go back! He could hardly wait until 10:00! I carried him all throughout the clinic, with offers of wheelchairs, but he can't sit! X-rays were first. He laid still, moved when they asked him to, asked questions of what everything was, and gave his shy smile. And if there is such a thing as good news....we got it....the cast can come off in 3 weeks! Our next appointment is on September 25th. The doctor is "satisfied" at how the femur bone is healing. When I saw the x-ray, I kind of thought it looked the same....broken....but I'm not a doctor. He said it might be a little shorter than it was before, but nothing noticable. So the countdown begins, 20 more days!!! And Packy, he's still amazing. Still tough. Still sweet. Still humble. It's hard to find positives in this situation, but if there is one, its that I am loving spending every moment with him! And nights, sleeping next to him, are the best! Every night he tells me, "This is fun." And I bet if Packy picked a positive, it'd be peeing on the bush! Because aiming him into a toilet is too dang hard, he's been spraying all our bushes :)
The first x-ray. A spiral fracture. See that femur bone, its supposed to be ONE bone.

Friends and family have signed his cast. The favorite- Uncle Lon's "I hate hard pants!"

The sweet patient at the doctor.

our house....lately

Packy has been getting lots of "get well candy".

Hudsy doesn't often take time out of his day to hold his sister, so this was a kodak moment.

Daddy and Hudsy brought the Easy Bake Oven in to Packy.

Maddi spun Pac around like crazy and he LOVED it!! Loved, loved, loved it!

Pretty girls.

I think Sister thinks they're crazy!

He's gonna become a game whiz!

Sometimes we all go a little nutty!

She's rolling all over the place!

The policeman and firefighter.

 Doing anything to have fun, and they thought this was F-U-N!!

 Evident by Packy's smile!

 The second Grandpa heard about Packy, he envisioned building him this wagon, and tonight, Packy got to take a walk outside. Thanks Grandpa!