Dean {3 Months}

Dear Baby Dean -- You're 3 months old now...well, technically 3 months and a few days, but who's counting?  I'd apologize for being late with this, but part of me thinks that we should both be glad that I'm getting a chance to do this at all, and the other part of me doesn't want to sound like a broken record each month.  Finding time to write this post is not an easy feat, but it's nothing compared to finding the time to take the pictures {a.k.a. a time when you are awake and not hungry and when Jackson is asleep and not destroying the house}.

I went back to work last week, and although I've done this before, it's a lot harder this time.  Thankfully, I'm only working part-time, which means that I'm only away from you two days each week, but I definitely miss you.  When Jackson was this age, he was so fussy.  His acid reflux made him difficult to feed and caused him to cry inconsolably most days, but thankfully you are nothing like that.  During my maternity leave with Jackson, I did nothing but care for a baby for 12 weeks and was ready for a break, but because you are so easy, I was able to do so much more besides just waiting on you hand and foot.  While Jackson played at Mimi's house two days a week, you and I kept each other company and ran errands, got things done around the house, and met up with friends for lunch.  It's only been a couple of weeks, and I already miss our days together!

When I was pregnant with you, I wondered if I could love another little boy as much as I love your brother, and now that you are here, there is no doubt in my mind that I do.  I love you both with every beat of my heart, and despite the fact that this is my second go-round, you boys are already night and day, and I love that.

I love you more and more everyday, and I am so glad that you're mine.

Love, 

Mommy

{3 MONTH STATS}

Measurements:

• Weight: 17 pounds

Sizes:

• Clothes: Moving out of 3-6 and into 6-9 months
• Diapers: Moving out of size 2 and into size 3

Eating:  During the day, you eat every 2 to 3 hours, but the timing still depends on what time you get up in the morning.  I primarily nurse you, and on the days that you go to Mimi's house, you take mostly bottles.  Before I went back to work, we never really knew how much you ate during the day, but on the days that I leave you with Mimi, you go through about 24 ounces of milk at her house and then nurse two more times before going down at night.  All in all, I think you drink about 35 ounces everyday, so it's no wonder that you're such a big boy!

Sleeping:  Good sleeping tends to run in our family, and we are so glad that we passed this trait down to you.  We put you in the bath with Jackson at about 7:30 pm, and then while Daddy puts Jackson to bed, I feed you.  Sometimes this is your last feeding of the day, but on the days that you still want to stay up for a little bit, we let you, and then I feed you one more time before turning on your sound machine, swaddling you, and putting you down for the night.  As much as we loved having you in our room, but about a week ago {when you were 12.5 weeks old to be exact}, we decided to move you into your room, and things have continued to be great.  Your bedtime ranges anywhere from 9 to 11 pm, and you usually wake up anywhere from 6 to 8 am {about a 9-hour stretch}.  As much as I would love to feed you and put you back down like I did when Jackson was your age, a big brother and preschool puts a kink of all of that, so at that point, we are up for the day.  You take about 3 naps during the day, but the timing and length are not very consistent.  You usually get fussy about an hour after waking up, and I do my best to get you to sleep before that happens.  You usually nap in your car seat while on the go {sorry, second born!}, but if we're home, you nap on your belly in the crib or co-sleeper or in your swing.

Likes:

• Eating, eating, eating!
• Taking baths in our big tub with Jackson -- you LOVE this!
• Getting a clean diaper and "talking" to us while on your changing table
• Laying on your activity mat and staring up at the toys
• Being held -- you suddenly have a desire to be held all the time!

Dislikes:

• Doing anything other than eating when you're hungry/starving
• Doing your neck stretches for your torticollis 
• When you have gas
• When we put you in your swing or bouncer and walk away
• Riding in the car -- you have suddenly started crying the entire time, even if you've just been fed

And what's a photo shoot without a few bloopers? 

His onesie says "Who are you calling naughty?"  

Coincidence?  I don't think so.

Why smile when you can attempt to eat the sticker 

{and make plans to take over the world} instead?  

Part-Time Engineer, Full-Time Everything Else

I officially have one week of being a part-time engineer and a full-time mom to two young kids under my belt, and although everyone had a great week, it's going to take a little while to get back into the swing of things.  Don't get me wrong, I like my job.  I just LOVE my baby, and I absolutely HATE pumping, which are both feelings that are very hard to ignore.

Thankfully my boys were in great hands though.  Jackson loved showing Dean all of his toys at Mimi's house, and thankfully Dean did his best to show Mimi what a good baby he is, too.  My mom knew that I'd be missing him/them, so she kept me updated and even sent pictures.

My little tough guy was even sweet enough to blow bubbles for Baby Dean, but as Mimi put it, Dean got bored.

That evening, we went on a walk/scooter ride over to the elementary school to play on the playground and to check on Tina the turtle.

I love this sweet family of mine -- despite the fact that our good family pictures will probably always be few and far between.

Is that a hug or a chokehold?  A little of both maybe?

The moment that I had been looking forward to all.day.long.

Tuesday was National Night Out, so a bunch of the families on our street made plans to gather at a neighbor's house for hot dogs and some outdoor fun.  We had a great time, and the highlight of the evening was definitely when one of the older boys brought out his drone.  The 2/3-year-old boys had so much fun chasing it around the yard that we joked about buying one just to wear them out every evening.

My three favorite guys in a twin-size bed.  Bedtime snuggles for everyone!

Jackson only went to preschool one day this week since Thursday was reserved for parent-teacher conferences instead.  Ben and I both met with Ms. Kathy that morning, and although I was a little anxious about the whole thing {mainly because we've never received unbiased, outside opinion on our child}, it went pretty well, and thankfully we didn't find anything out at the conference that we didn't already know {in terms of both the good and the bad}.  She agreed that Jackson seems to really enjoy school and said that he likes playing with the blocks, playdough, sensory table, art, sand box, and scooters in particular.  She also mentioned that he occasionally exhibits attention-seeking behavior and reminded us to give plenty of positive attention during appropriate behavior and to do our best to ignore minor behaviors, which is often easier said than done.  My favorite part of the conference was that she used sticky notes to retell some of the cute stories from the past few weeks -- my favorite being the time that he asked "where did the blue go?" when he was finger painting with blue and yellow paint.

After the conference, we headed back home to play outside and so that I could get on a call for work.  I've always considered myself good at multitasking, but participating in a conference call while also simultaneously blowing bubbles and nursing a baby takes that talent to a whole new level.

I'm not sure what I was thinking when I agreed to attach the nozzle to the hose for Jackson.  Needless to say, we all ended up getting soaked {except for Dean who was napping inside and Annie who did her best to stay out of sight}.

Thursday evening, we invited Holly, Nelson, my mom, and John over for dinner and picked up a couple of pizzas just to make it easy.  Ben surprised us with some Tiff's Treats cookies, too, and we were even able to eat out on the back deck since the weather has cooled down a little bit {a.k.a. it's a brisk 90 degrees instead of a sweltering 100}.  Basically a great evening all around!

Now that I'm working, I've decided that Fridays are my favorite.  Because of Jackson's preschool schedule, Fridays are the only day of the week that I will have the boys all to myself, and although it is exhausting, our time together is so precious, too.  I love that we will have a day to take our time in the mornings and not have to rush out the door to keep from being late.  This past Friday, I let Jackson sleep in a little, and then we played around the house until after I had fed Dean his {second} breakfast.  I realize that this picture looks more like an outtake than anything, but I hope I always remember how sweet Jackson is to Dean and how he often comes over while I'm nursing him just to tell him that he loves him and kiss him on the head.

Once Dean was full and happy, we set out to explore a new park.  I had read online that Patterson Park was a fun one with lots of big shade trees, and thankfully, it was all true -- although sometimes I think this boy would be just as happy to play in a small pile of rocks.

Seriously, when did he get this big?

"See, Baby Dean.  It's makes noises."

After nap, Jackson and I treated ourselves to a couple of leftover cookies...

...and then I met Kyle and Steve at the end of our driveway to trade my toddler for these.  Yes, really.  It was a pretty good trade if you ask me!

That evening, we took advantage of being toddler-less and went to dinner with Jason and Cheryl at Pappadeaux.  We definitely don't get to see them as often as we'd like to anymore, so there's always plenty to catch up on when we do.  Thankfully Dean did great, too -- once we were finally able to get his bottle heated up to his liking.

Two words: milk drunk.

Saturday was Caroline's birthday party at The Little Gym.  Jackson had a great time running around that place like a mad man, and there was even pizza and cupcakes, too.  Score!

Nailed it...obviously.

Saturday night, we put Dean to bed in his room for the very first time, and despite the concerned look on his face, he did great, and so did we.  Neither one of us really wanted him to leave our room, but it was time.  He's been sleeping through the night for a while now, and being in separate rooms will help us not to disturb him both in the evenings and early mornings.

Today, we taught Sunday School again, and after naps for the boys and a Nominations Committee meeting up at the church for me, we headed to Kyle and Steve's house for dinner and the usual shenanigans.

I swear, these three are like peas in a pod.

Me and my happy place.

And just because this picture is too cute to not share, check out this bathing beauty.

His full-time job is obviously eating, and he often puts in over-time.