1/2 way there and my fussy butt eater...

20 weeks pregnant. Yikes. Half way there... well, I'm 21 weeks now so it's even closer. Where has the time gone? January feels so close now that fall is approaching. I had my midwife appointment on Monday and all went well. She said Adisyn is measuring just perfectly from the ultrasound pictures and my belly is measuring on time as well. The only downfall is that I've gained 19lbs so far. That is up 7lbs from how much I gained with Caden this far along. Double yikes! She subtly told me to lay off the carbs. I'm going to do my best.

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I feel like there is so much to update on my lil man. We've continued having our challenging week with falling asleep without crying, but night 7 and 8 were a success! Let's hope we don't have to do this again. He has become a fussy eater these days. He went through this phase not too long ago and he's back at it. I've decided to accept it and give up being frustrated. Toddlers go through this phase and he will grow out of it... somewhat I hope!

Here he is when he LOVED to eat... scraping the bowl for any bites of raspberries he had left.


while his bestest friend took her favorite spot in the house...

If he will eat, he must do it on his own! When did he grow up so quickly?!

Caden brought Mommy some "dishes" to wash after dinner...

This face just melts my heart. I just love him to itty bitty pieces.

Wordless Wednesday

I love this boy

How could I not love this boy?! I can't. He is simply irresistible, and for all these reasons and more:

He loves his "doggy" and cuddles her non stop...

because he tries to be a big boy and sit on the arm of the couch....

because he is silly.....

because he is sweet and innocent...

and so peaceful when he is sleeping..

he loves to be outside and just be a boy...

because he hides behind the table and plays with the blinds (even though he knows he is not allowed)...

and because I find his toys in places they shouldn't be...

because he is beautiful....

I love this little boy of my mine.

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On a "milestone" note - look who is not afraid of the spoon!

He has been taking bites here and there from his cereal, but at grandma's house this weekend he started feeding himself applesauce. We were so proud of him, but what a mess! I guess he has to learn even if that means flinging food all over. Thanks to Mia for being our mop!

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20 weeks.... this marks half way through my pregnancy. I can't believe how fast it is going this time around. Last night Ryan was able to feel Adisyn bouncing around for the first time. She didn't hide from her Daddy like Caden used to.

While I can't wait to meet little Adi, I am not anxious to give birth just yet. I am happily enjoying this pregnancy as this will be our last.

Caden says "hi!"

I believe I caught a "bye" in this video too!

I love my little man.

Sleep and Jibber Jabber

A quick update on Caden's sleeping issue before the fun stuff.

After asking the advice of family and many of my friends I met on my favorite Mommy site we decided to go with crying it out again on Thursday night. I did not have to work on Friday, so I figured if we were up all night Ryan would let me nap when he got home from work. I will start by saying Thursday night was the hardest night with him. It was painful and heartbreaking for me. Without my sister-in-law talking to me on the phone I don't think I could have done it. Caden cried an hour and 45 minutes. I did check on him every so often. He started throwing his blanket, binkies, and lovey over the crib and then beating on the crib railing with his hands. It was awful. Just as I was about to give in he started having breaks in his crying and then it stopped. He slept until 6:15am the next morning. Early, but I'll take it!

Friday night he cried for only five minutes and Saturday night he let out one little whine and that was it! Ryan and I are very happy CIO (crying it out) worked and hope we never have to go through this again. We are now keeping his door open with the bathroom light on (which is right next to his room) and this seems to help. I think my little man is afraid of the dark.

So much for being quick.

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Last week Caden started this jibber jabber baby talk that absolutely melts my heart. He'll point at something (usually the fan or light) and start talking. He looks at you like "did you get that mom? Don't you think?" I really wish I knew what he was actually trying to say.

It took me about two minutes to get him started. He was playing camera shy at first.

The boy who doesn't sleep

Yep, that's him. Isn't he cute, bright eyed and bushy tail after another night of no sleep? The night of my last post Caden did sleep through the night. Apparently, two nights in a row was not in Caden's plans. He woke up at 11:30pm last night after going to bed at 8:30pm. We tried CIO (crying it out), which only lasted 20 minutes before he threw up in his crib. He was so worked up, crying hysterically and sweating profusely. CIO will simply not work for us. He did not fall back asleep until sometime before 3am. I did try sneaking him back into his crib after he fell asleep, but he wanted nothing do with it.

This morning I woke up with a foot resting on my cheek around 7am. I think it was Caden's way of saying "good morning, Mommy! It's time to get up now!", and so we did.

Ryan and I have been talking about what could be causing him to wake up like this. Bad dreams? Maybe. I noticed he was really warm last night - not feverish though. Another thought could be too little sleep or too much sleep during the day. This did happen last Tuesday when he only had one nap and I imagine he was up around 11:30am from his morning nap (and back to bed at 7:30pm). Eight hours is a long stretch for him to be awake. On the other hand taking a late afternoon nap might be too much.

Our attempt is to start the transition to one nap a day. Which means he needs to take the morning nap a little bit later. Instead of going down for a nap at 10am, we are going to try and keep him up until 11 or 12pm. This will be hard during the week when he has to get up at 6am to go to the sitters, so I am not sure how well those days will turn out. I'll have to check in with Grandma and Tammy to see how cranky he is and when it starts for them.

It's all trial and error. Parenting that is.

We are still having a good weekend full of smiles and giggles (and meltdowns too!) despite the lack of sleep (and rain).

Sleep Issues

Usually my blog is happy go lucky and about all the wonderful things about Caden and being a mother. This post will be the opposite. It is about one of the challenges and a trying times for Ryan and I.

Sleep makes the world of a difference in your day. For me sleep is essential to my mood, my appearance (free from the baggy eyes!), and keeping my emotions from going out of control. I look back when Caden was an infant and woke up every two hours and wonder how on earth I made it through. I know I had my moments of breaking down and crying, but by the grace of God I did get through it. I know we will get through this phase as well, but right now I am smack dab in the middle of sleepless nights again.

About a month ago and now again this week Caden has been waking up around 12:30am and refuses sleep until some 3 hours later. I have tried CIO, but I can only last approximately 20-25 minutes of his hysterical crying. I go back into his room, lay him back down with his lovey and binkie, tell him I love him and walk back out - only to repeat the same cycle again and again. I finally give in and bring him to bed with me. You would think he would pass out from crying so hard, but he doesn't. He'll toss and turn, pull my hair, poke at my face and shake his lovey (which has a rattle in it) for another hour or more. Finally he starts flipping over to his stomach (his sleeping position) and after another 30 minutes of kicking to get comfortable he falls asleep. The worst part is that I do work and I have to get up at 5am. I called in earlier this week for the first part of the morning, and thankfully I did not have to work today after last night's escapade.

So, I'm tired. I'm exhausted and I don't know what is going on with him. Tuesday night I played it off as a belly ache or possibly he was hungry (I did end up giving him a bottle, and remember we are supposed to be bottle FREE!). He also did not get as second nap on Tuesday. However, Thursday was the complete opposite. He ate, drank his milk from a sippy before bed and he had an hour and a half nap in the afternoon.

The lack of sleep and Caden waking up during the night has me so paranoid of how I will handle two babies during the night. Ryan is a wonderful father, and there is a valid reason why he cannot help during the night. I do not want to come across as I am discrediting him at all. He is my rock and I could not do this without him.

So, what will tonight bring? I seem to never know nowadays. I'm afraid to even stay up after Caden goes to bed to enjoy any me time as I fear what the night will bring. He is lucky he is so stinkin' cute ;)

We will get through this, but I pray we move through this phase quickly and it does NOT return.

and that is my vent for the year!

Happy 16 Months!

Happy 16 months my sweet boy! I always say - where has the time gone? While it has gone by fast I look back with no regrets. I have treasured every moment with you, and so has your Daddy. Even through your tantrums and all. You are so beautiful. You are amazing, silly, daring and fearless. You love to cuddle and give kisses. You have your parents (and grandparents!) wrapped around your little fingers. You love to be outside and explore, and you love swimming with Daddy. You love your dog, Mia and your kitty, Belle. You are so loved.

*****


Most toddlers should be able to . . .
Turn pages of a book when you read - Yes, but we don't get through all the words until he is on to the next page.
Gets attached to stuffed animal or other object - Yes, his lovey. See this post.
Walk well - Yes
Sing and like to sing - sometimes
Get upset when frustrated - Yes!

Some toddlers will probably be able to . . .
Walk backwards - Yes, see this post.
Start to climb and explore - Yes; he climbs the stairs and on the couch
Help around the house - Yes
Say up to 10 or 15 words - No, he is at about 5-6 words

Some toddlers could possibly be able to . . .
Become picky about certain foods - That is an understatement!
Take off an article of clothing without help - No
Separation anxiety lessens - If this means he does not cry hysterically when I drop him off before work, then yes.
Dance to music - Yes
Trot and prance around - No

Finally, here are two favorite pictures from this past weekend. I found him in his bedroom "reading" his books.