Arlo at 2 months

Mr. two month old has begun wooing our hearts with his grins & sweet sounds all day every day. We are glad he has survived another month with 4 older siblings including two extremely unpredictable ones : ) His cheeks are filling out & he has started to resemble his brothers a bit more. 

TWO MONTH STATS

12 pounds & 13 ounces

23.5 inches long

both 65% percentile

This means he has gained 5 1/2 pounds & grown 3 inches...it's safe to say he's getting plenty!

In the picture above he is snuggled with the softest blanket that Aunt Jenny made & sent from Poland. It made him smile for the camera. We have missed the Polish Valentines so much & it makes me sad they aren't here to meet our newest babe but our FaceTime & messaging have helped keep up with each other. I never mentioned that on the day Arlo was born Aunt Jenny & Uncle Steve sent a voice recording of them singing "Happy Birthday" to Arlo. I had tears rolling down my cheeks. They were the first to sing that song to him which is so special & I look forward to telling him about that someday. 

Back to Numero Cinco....

EATING: He has settled into a more consistent routine of nursing during the daytime hours eating around 7:30 am, 10:30 am, 1:30 pm, 5 pm & 7 pm. He goes down for the night & usually wakes between 2 & 3 am, has a very business like feeding after a couple grins then crashes till 7ish. When he is ready to eat there is no postponing. He is in attack mode & attempts to latch onto noses, chins, shoulders etc. He's all smiles when his tank is full. 

SLEEPING: This is another area in which he is becoming more consistent. Who doesn't love a good night sleep other than Anson right now ; ) After a day & a half of baby boot camp over Thanksgiving week he is falling asleep on his own every time he goes down. I say boot camp but really he didn't cry for more than 5-10 minutes which had already been happening here & there while I tended to another kiddo. He naps between each feeding but I think he may be close to dropping one of those. His afternoon nap is longer than the rest & we aim to keep him up between 5 & 7 pm even though it makes the bath & bedtime routine even more intense. If it is completely crazy we put him in the swing which he doesn't like too much. It calms him just enough but he rarely falls asleep there. 

Night time has been amazing lately. He falls asleep by 7:30 after eating around 7. He then does his long stretch which is somewhere around 6-8 hours. One night he went nine...that was fabulous. After that middle of the night feeding he is asleep at the end of the feeding & doesn't fuss when back in bed. He makes it till morning & our goal is to get everyone out to the kitchen & breakfast on the table so I can feed him while we eat. A major change this month was flipping him to his tummy to sleep. He is our 4th tummy sleeper, Eloise is the only one that preferred her back. His scooting across the bed is what earned him the cradle to pack n play upgrade. His room is cozy, he's in a sleep sack & enjoys the hum of the sound machine. I'm about to order one of those for every bedroom...loving it!

He is loving older siblings for the most part minus the overabundance of attention he receives at some point each day. He does seem very relaxed when he looks around & notices it is only adults....I feel that way too each evening.

Here are a few shots of this cutie at 2 months old....

Anson is extremely gentle with him & loves to make sure he has what he needs if he begins to feel bored. I LOVE how you can see Arlo's eyes haha!

Arlo & Daddy snuggles...and a yawn. Life can be so exhausting sometimes!

Life via Instagram...

And that's that! 

What wedded bliss looks like at 11 years

Just a few short years ago, 11 to be exact we were saying "I do" then heading to Pagosa Springs, Colorado to enjoy a week away as Mr. & Mrs. Valentine. It was a chilly one with a jetted bath tub that after 3 minutes of boiling water switched to water that had to have been piped in from the icy cold springs. Thankfully I married a man who could build a good fire to keep us cozy in our Hummingbird Cottage after recovering from my arctic bath. I am just now thinking that "Hummingbird" was the first step towards a Nest & there is a little heart above it since we are the Valentines ; ) 

Each year has been special in it's own way. Anniversary #10 was celebrated with a weekend away. We had a blast making our ten top ten list for our first 10 years.  This year looked a little different. Yesterday evening I was at the grocery store & remembered our anniversary was today so I bought two 1/2 gallons of Blue Bell. I got home & said "tomorrow is our anniversary!" He said "oh my gosh it is!" Haha, how we were both so surprised I don't know but it made us laugh. We did celebrate last weekend with our first Sushi night since Arlo was born. Robby said it was a gift to him to watch me enjoy raw fish & hot sake since I had missed out on it for the prior 9 months. It was a gift to me to have a moment away from my favorite five people I spend countless hour with everyday. 

About two weeks ago when we moved Arlo into the guest room I spent a night in there. Robby & I both slept so well we decided to do it again the next night. Now it's been two weeks. We have a two year old that forgot how to sleep through the night plus a few others that wander into our room like zombies to go potty in our bathroom (even though theirs is closer) sneak into our bed for an extra cuddle or just plain scream about who knows what. Add a newborn in the mix & we were dragging every morning. So with our new arrangement we are both getting more rest. That said we had a good laugh about how we are like two separate families sleeping under the same roof. A single dad with four kids & two dogs and a single mom with an infant. Even after we talked about how sad it was that at 11 years we don't even sleep in the same room anymore, we kissed goodnight & wished each other good luck for the next 8 hours. I think I might move back in tonight since it is our anniversary. 

This morning I walked into the kitchen, gave him a hug & said happy anniversary as he was lifting the trash bag out of the can. Ha! We sat at the table with our crazy bunch & laughed about how 11 years ago we could not have even imagined what blessings the Lord would bestow upon us through the joy-filled ups & downs. Year 10 has been full of sweetness & our favorite part was growing to a family of seven when Arlo was welcomed into our arms. It has been six weeks since I made this video of his birth & first days at home & figured this would be a great opportunity to share it to help others understand why our anniversary kind of snuck up on us this year. 

Click on link below to view:

 WELCOMING ARLO

Anson at 2 & a half

The Ansonater along with Mighty-O celebrated birthday #2 in March.  He had avoided the stomach bug at that point but by default (with a sick twin) didn't get to have a cupcake. Poor guy, he sure loves a good cupcake! He's a happy go lucky kind of kid and.....he's two, he didn't know the difference when we celebrated a month later.  He is hilarious, snuggly & has the biggest brown eyes I have ever seen.

Looking good in Daddy's boots...  

This little mister had his first real haircut in February. Although he can be cautious he was very comfortable in that seat & tolerated getting his new do well.  

While we are on the subject of hair, this boy loves to fix mine. He will snuggle in my lap & tie my hair in knots while twisting his fingers around & around saying "that feel nice mommy?" Anson's hair grows so fast, goes every which way & happens to be pretty cute even with that pouty face. 

This little guy loves to play outside & took to his lawnmower very well. This makes us laugh because he & Owen are both terrified of the "blow-a & mo-wa"known as the blower & mower when we hear it outside. Sadly (for them) we live in a tree ridden area & there seems to be people mowing & blowing leaves ALL THE TIME! If it's just pretend, he's all smiles. 

When I think of Anson a word that comes to mind is "helper" since he just loves to help me. He has always followed me around the house so I oriented him to some simple tasks & he was hooked! He can clear the table, carry clothes & load the washing machine. Both boys prefer to load up a laundry basket with actual laundry, toys, bags, etc. & push it around. I often come into my bedroom to find dirty laundry dumped ALL over the floor & no basket in sight....sneaky little guys. 

Oh, they can take the trash out too! Never too early! This was really great for me when I was pregnant & super nauseated.

He loves our Bella girl & thinks she likes to be hugged while drinking her water. Sometimes he passes her a piece of food & her alligator snap surprises him. At some point since he turned two, all the kids were eating lunch & asking for a cookie if they finished it all. Everyone minus Anson was done & closing in on the plate of cookies. He threw his plate full of food up in the air & it crashed to the floor feeding Bella a delicious snack. He was yelling "I done! I get cookie!" I was laughing so hard I gave him one anyway. 

Anson took his first trip to the dentist over the summer. He was brave & received an A+ in dental health. We chalked that up to the amount of toothpaste this child has ingested. He & Owen + toothpaste, oh my goodness!  There was an evening that I was enjoying a big mason jar full of the perfect flavored iced tea. I sat it on the counter in the bathroom while I put Owen in the bathtub. I figured I would let them swim around while I kicked my feet up & finished off my beverage. Instead, I turned around to find Anson holding all four toothbrushes head down in my tea swirling them around while smiling at me ever so sweetly. What a picture of life right now haha!

Nicknames in this family are not only established from the root name but more often based on the personality of the one being named.  Anson & his cautious way of life was described as being a sparkler in the realm of fireworks compared to his bottle rocket brother. There is great benefit in life maintaining a healthy amount of reservation when trying new things. A few things that make Anson stop & think- a swing that might be pushed too hard by someone new, climbing onto a rock wall to jump off that might be too high....it's nice to have a sister....

Anson & some watermelon that he can devour almost as fast as Bennett...

This child looooooves his blankie which in some ways makes me happy since my mom & I made it but we really need to work on some separation from it....all in due time. Maybe about 6  months ago he rubbed one corner so much that he made a hole in it which he found to be the perfect place to loop his finger through. Over time the hole got bigger & bigger to where toys would disappear into the dark hole & have to be fished out. Finally one quiet Sunday afternoon I whipped out the sewing machine to stitch it back up to it's proper diameter. Anson was extremely concerned for his blankie's safety as evidenced by the photo below...

It took some sewing & ripping out stitching to get it to the exact size he desired & until I got it right he was not too happy with me. He decided he wanted to be able to stick his four fingers in so I fixed it right up for my big brown eyed boy. 

Things about Anson at two:

• He says "I be bot back" when walking out of the room & plans to return
• When I say I am going to do something he doesn't like he says in a grouchy voice with a furrowed brow "no you cannot." He also does not like when I put something in the microwave that he prefers to eat immediately such as oatmeal. He says "hey! Do not cook it" Although since I find him sitting in the pantry eating oatmeal straight from the container as well as chewing on the wrapping trying to get into a granola bar. 
• He along with the rest of the bunch love to play "Chick-A-Lay" where they stand at the Lemonade stand & charge money for chicken, fries & "lemolade." One afternoon I asked him how much my meal cost & he said "one honey dollars."
• For the past 3-4 months Anson will randomly say with great gusto & slight concern "It's 8 o'clock!" Sometimes he glance at the clock & sometimes he just pops up from playing with Legos & says it. We have followed suit & every evening after a drawn out bedtime between the Fab Five we walk back into the kitchen & one of us says it but it is actually the real time. For months I have wondered where he got this from but last week I was reading him his favorite nursery rhyme book & the last page has "Wee Wille Winkie runs through the town, upstairs & downstairs in his nightgown. Rapping at the window, crying at the lock, are the children all in bed for now it's 8 o'clock!" No wonder he says it with concern....it's extremely creepy haha!
• He hates when we stir things with the utensil upside down
• He turns many things he is eating into a lollipop such as a pretzel & a piece of cheese.
• He uses his right hand for everything
• When he jumps in our bed some mornings he lays right on my arm & says in a very irritated tone "SCOOT"
• He experiences great confusion on mealtimes & now has his brother confused too. When they wake up in the morning he says "It's morning time? We eat dinner?" I say that we are going to eat breakfast & he says "NOOOO, we eat dinner!" So that times every meal & snack time we have this conversation. 
• He says "sea force" for sea horse & "monster" for lobster
• He is sensitive to the blower & mower sounds along with any noise or shadow once he is tucked in for the night. One evening we heard him saying "I sared. Whats' that noise Owee?" Owen did a great job calming him down. 
• When I walk to another room of the house & Anson notices I am not with him he starts saying "Mommy, where ah you?" Once he finds me he says "you were lost Mommy, I found you!" 
• When I take my seizure medication in the morning he says "That you medicine mommy? You brain broken?" I say "yes buddy my brain is broken." He & Owen say "Don't worry, you get a new brain in heaven."
• Favorite animal is an ostrich & when you ask him his favorite color or number he says "ostrich"
• When we are out & about around others that leave the room he says "where da maamses?" since ma'am is the word for all ladies. 
• When we are shopping & I say we need to go to the check out he says "but I don't want a check up, they give me a shot? They give me a diaper change?" Makes me snicker every time. 
• He likes to take his "vitamim"
• When the kids are reconciling with one another it usually ends with a hug. Anson always says whether offender or offended "I forgive you/ yes I forgive you, no hugs"
• His favorite snack is yogurt raisins & almonds
• When I forget something & say "Oh my, I forgot!" He says you lost your mind mama?"
• He says "rollercycle" for motorcycle & bicycle, "rollypop" for lollipop
• Apparently I say "oh my gosh & come on man" on a regular basis. I was in the kitchen fixing a meal & goofed on something. He immediately said "oh my gosh man!"
• He is a thankful little boy & often says thank you for the most random things. One day he said "Thank you mommy." I said "for what buddy?" He said "thanks for nothing" with the sweetest grin on his face. 
• When I tell Owen or Arlo they are so handsome Anson interrupts & says "no, I'm handsome." He's right on considering we call him "Handsome Anson."

Twin brothers are so sweet. Anson loves to spend time with Owen. They read books together....

snuggle while watching a show in mirror image fashion...

love their sissies.....

and baby brother....

a little comparison from one to two...

Anson at 2, or rather closer to 3. Love him. 

Owen at 2 & a half

Well it happened, not only did the boys turn two in MARCH but I am just now writing about it! Halfway through being two....it's been an exciting year! As many know, Owen was extremely sick with a stomach bug (as were the rest of us) starting the week before his birthday. His lasted for 10 days & he didn't even get to have a cupcake on his birthday. Knowing that's how the 2nd year started, we figured it could only improve ; ) 

Owen keeps us on our toes being the fastest runner we have had + being the feistiest of them all. He is a sweet boy though that loves to play with his brothers & sisters & always leaves a little time to snuggle with mommy & daddy

He's cute in pretty much everything but Daddy's boots are on the top of the list!. 

Owen got his first real haircut by someone other than me in February. He cried the whole time & was overjoyed when it was over. He could not have been any cuter & celebrated with a lollipop. 

He LOVES books & asks to be read to many times a day. I will tell him to get a couple books & put them by the chair in the playroom. When I return, there is a pile awaiting me. It is a great opportunity to snuggle a busy boy while going on an adventure in a storybook. He is really happy now that he doesn't have to share my lap with a pregnant belly full of Baby Arlo! His favorite books right now: Goodnight Moon, Caps For Sale, "Dog Go Dog Go" which is Go, Dog, Go & can pretty much tell me the whole story while looking at pictures. He also likes Corduroy which he pronounces "Cordo-boy," Berenstain Bears go to the Doctor, Little Blue Truck, & Curious George at the Firehouse.

If Owen goes missing for 30 seconds he is bound to be getting into trouble. Most frequently I find him on the bathroom counter with tubes of toothpaste in his hands squirting it into his mouth. As soon as he sees me he starts saying rather quickly "I just cleaning up, I put it away Mama, I get down" like he is trying to cover up the predicament he got himself into. It makes me laugh.  Another day following a crash onto the concrete I walked out of our bedroom leaving both boys sitting on the floor while Robby was in the shower. Within minutes Robby was yelling for me. I ran in to find an artist who had found a Sharpie marker. Not only was it on his face but in various other noticeable spots including my favorite quilt. My goodness this boy can cause some trouble!   

Owen is a thrill seeker. He is always climbing onto things & jumping off with little to no fear. He likes to swing higher, be spun around faster & thrown up into the air more than someone that looks just like him. We often say that if something dangerous & mischievous is happening Owen did it on purpose & Anson did it by accident ; ) Robby had me laughing one night about some new nicknames. He said that if the boys were firecrackers Owen would be a bottle rocket & Anson would be a sparkler....the sweetest sparkler there ever was. That being said, the bottle rocketed right into the edge of his bed mid flight & the bed won & he was all smiles ....

The same day as the Sharpie incident, we spent a good amount of time in the backyard. Uncle Kyle bought this Tonka Dump Truck for the boys' 2nd birthday. What a fabulous gift for two big machine loving boys. Not only does it carry rocks & sticks but can be ridden like the photo below or can carry a passenger in the "dump" portion full speed across the backyard. 

Owen is obsessed with dinosaurs & especially the great T-Rex. He will fight Anson to the ground to wear the T-Rex shirt. He loves to run through the house with little T-Rex arms growling at us with all his might. We call him "Owee-Rex" & he is fierce! He is also good at mowing the yard. Thankfully we have two lawnmowers & if they were real & we didn't have a backyard full of dirt our grass would stay nice & short being cut twice a day. He likes to pretend like his mower is broken & he fixes it by pouring dirt on it & poking it with a stick. Again, boo-boo on the nose still there!

He likes weapons. He is a pro at turning anything into a sword & making light saber sounds as he hits my legs while I am washing dishes or waits for me to come around the corner. He found that big boy undies make the best holster. 

He loves his Daddy. Owen is always asking to be roared at, chased or tickled & with little convincing Rob is completely in his element as a Dad making two little boys very happy. Owen makes sure that he gets his goodbye hug in before Daddy leaves for work in the morning & runs like a maniac through the house when he sees the big truck pull up in the evening. Every time I get the boys ready for bed & Robby takes over it goes from calm to crazy in 2.5 seconds. I always thought it was Robby doing something to rile them up but once I stayed to watch I realized it is his presence alone that makes Owen so excited. Ha!

If he were a girl we could call him "the bag lady" but he is a boy so we will go with "the bag boy." He loves any item he can put smaller items into. This day it was a bag Graeme & Anita brought from Australia. He keeps a set of over sized domino cards in a plastic doctor kit bag & is extremely protective. He also has a major shrill scream if someone takes something away from him....I seem to usually know his whereabouts. He can empty my purse rather quickly & as most toddlers are they go for the electronics. I was standing getting ready in my bathroom with my back to Owen when I heard Siri talking. Owen said "I wah talk to my Grandpa." Siri said "I'm sorry, I did not understand you, could you say it again?" Owen said loudly "I wah talk to my Grandpa!" Siri said "You would like to talk to your Grandpa? What is your Grandpa's name?" Owen pulled the phone back from his ear & said in the most irritated voice "I' doh know!"

Owen got to take his first trip to the dentist at some point this year....can't quite remember when. He did great & we were surprised to find out that he is missing two of his bottom baby teeth! Ha! Who would have thought? Next year they will x-ray to find out how many adult teeth are under the gum line. 

Other things about Owen at age 2

• He has been known to call a belly flop a "belly plop"
• He has a T-Rex shirt that says "Be Mighty" & when we say "are you mighty Owen?" He says "No! God is mighty!"
• He loves Monster Trucks & identifies them with the most growly voice.
• When he asks questions he often turns his head to the side & squints his eyes.
• He just might be a leftie! He mostly uses his left hand when coloring or eating.
• He adds "es" to EVERYTHING! For example he calls a snowman a snowma'am so when you add "es" it says "snowma'amses" looooove it.
• He collects headbands to put around his waist.
• He loves to play pretend Chick-Fil-A at the lemonade stand in the back yard. He gathers leaves, sticks & grass to sell & demands that we pull up outside the window & place our order. He tells us how much it costs & we pay him by slapping his palm. I always buy "lemolade" which he is happy to sell. waking he maintains same position against your body. 
• He always sleeps on his tummy with his knees tucked, bottom in the air & arms straight down under his body. When you pick him up after 
• He yells from the back row of the car saying "Mommy! Listen to me!" when he has something to say amongst the crowd. 
• His favorite animal is a tiger
• He loves to eat oatmeal with chocolate chips
• He can sing the ABC's pretty well
• He finds either an "o" or a circle anywhere & everywhere exclaiming "O! Like me!"
• He can spot a Hummer or a Back Ho from miles away & is extremely excited to let the rest of us know.
• He asks for the Mary Poppins song at bedtime called Stay Awake which is really reverse psychology : ) I try to sing the correct words but he becomes upset & says "No! Mary Poppins" so I make up a song about how Mary Poppins says go to sleep & Mary Poppins says your pillow is nice & deep. Makes me grin everytime
• He carries around play scissors & says :I need fix you" followed by trying to cut your hair off. Here he is "fixing" Bella or as he says "Bella Boo"

He sure loves Anson & says that they are best buddies. This picture was back in the day when we tried to potty train for two months before calling it quits. Those sweet little guys decided to be bed buddies. 

He looks up to his big sisters & is always asking for them to come play. They usually do & lots of laughter & a good amount of screaming come from the next room. Sometimes they hold hands & remain calm for 30 seconds...

He is definitely sweet on his baby brother & can hardly wait to see him every morning. He gets right up in his face & says "Hi Arlo" or more often substitutes "Darlo, Carlo, Harlo or Marlo" for Arlo. He sings to him, kisses & hugs him more than Arlo would prefer but is just showing his affection in an intense manner ; ) 

A little comparison from 1 to 2 years old....he is more than a floating torso over large boots....

 Well there he is at 2 & a half + a couple months.....he's still two though, mission accomplished!