Cha Cha Cha Changes!

Lots of changes are going on in our little nest lately!

Sweet Mr. Haddon has added more craziness, cuteness, and fun to our lives.  He is changing all of time.  It seems like he is growing so much faster than miss Amaia did at his age.  He is starting to be more awake, he does not scream through every diaper change anymore (such a tough guy!) and he is starting to sleep a bit longer stretches at night.  It's amazing how an extra hour of sleep can make me feel like a new woman!  He is also starting to smile up at me after feedings, which just makes my heart happy :)

My sweet Amaia though....she is the real changer lately.  This girl is growing up so fast and will be two in less than a month!  I'm already getting sad about the ways that she does not need me anymore.  She is talking up a storm and showing her independent side lately.  I love seeing her grow up and seeing her silliness and personality.  I love that I am starting to be able to have actual conversations with my daughter!  However, this increasing independence is making me a bit stressed about her safety!! 

On Saturday afternoon, I was sitting downstairs feeding Haddon and heard a loud thump from upstairs. Adam ran up the stairs and the next thing I heard was lots and lots of tears.  My baby somehow figured out how to climb out of her crib.  Thankfully, she only had a bit of a blood in her mouth and a fat lip and I am hoping that she learned from that experience.  Pain is a wonderful teacher, right?!  But, I have never wanted a video monitor so badly! Clearly, Amaia is not taking after her very cautious mother :)  Now, I just run to her room the moment I hear that she is awake, remind her over and over again that she should NOT try to climb out of her crib, and pray a lot!  Ready or not it seems that it is big girl bed time.  Wish us luck!

Happy 1 month Haddon!

Our little Haddon is one month old today!  This first month has been crazy and sweet and so very fast! He is a sweet little guy and such a great baby.  He eats well, sleeps well (most of the time) and has taken to a pretty consistent schedule, which mommy very much appreciates.  He has even taken a bottle a couple of times relatively easily from his daddy, allowing me to get out by myself for a bit.  My only complaint (though I know it is just normal baby stuff) would be that he needs to learn that the hours of 9 p.m. to midnight are hours that his big sis and parents enjoy sleeping, but we will get there!

In his first month of life Haddon has enjoyed sleeping, eating, being swaddled, and his pacifier.  His dislikes would include being cold and/or naked, diaper changes, and baths, like pretty much every baby I would imagine :)  I don't know his exact weight/height stats right now, but we have moved up to 3 month clothing as of last week and I can tell that he is growing so fast! He is a long and lean looking little baby just like his sister.  He has also started giving me a few smiles, though I haven't quite been able to capture one on camera yet.

This week it was confirmed by a cardiologist that our little guy has a small hole in his heart (ventricular septal defect).  My heart dropped when I found out and the more I think about it the more thankful I am for him and worried for him.  He had to go through an EKG, x-ray, and an ultrasound and did so great through it all.  He really only protested when they were taking the stickers off of him and most of the time he just sucked away on his binkie and held my hand. All signs seem to indicate that the hole will close on it's own and won't cause any symptoms, but needless to say I am watching him very closely these days!  All we can do is pray and hope and wait for healing for his little heart.  Anyone reading this we would very much covet your prayers for our little guy.

Haddon is very loved by all of his family, but specifically loved by his big sis.  We really haven't experienced any jealousy issues with Amaia.  Although gentleness is a skill she still needs to master, she is a very sweet big sister.  She wants to hold and talk to him often. She always greets him by name when he enters the room.  She is very concerned when he cries and likes to point out his body parts for some reason.  She has taken to taking care of her dolly the way I take care of Haddon.  Dolly now gets lots of diaper changes, loves to play in the play gym and get burped.  I am just waiting for her to start breastfeeding dolly one of these days!

All in all, he is just a sweet little guy and I love him!  I can't wait for him to grow and show us his personality.  I can't wait for him to start developing a relationship with his sister and me too of course :)

Haddon at 2 weeks

Our little guy is 2 weeks old already!  Actually 2 weeks and 2 days now.  So far he has proven to be quite the little gentlemen.  He eats well, sleeps well and poops quite well! He nurses so quickly that I was nervous that he wasn't eating enough.  However, we went to his 2 week check-up yesterday and he is gaining weight like a champ, so he must just be a fast eater, which is wonderful!  

He is developing a bit of a fussy period from about 9-12 at night, but I have gathered that there isn't really anything wrong he just has his days and nights a bit confused and wants to party instead of sleep.  His big sister did this same thing for a while and I am confident he will adjust soon.  After he gets to sleep at night he usually sleeps for a couple of 4-5 hour stretches, which again....is wonderful!

He is a handsome little guy and I just really love him! I can't wait to see what his personality will be like as he grows older.  For now, he mostly sleeps and eats, so I don't have too much to report.

Here are his 2 week stats:

Weight: 8 lbs. 13 oz. (57%)

Height: 21 3/4 inches (94%)

Head Circumference: 15 inches (97%)

Awesome Amaia at 22 Months

It has been a while since I have a written an update on my favorite little girl, and she has been up to A LOT over the last few months.  Time is flying by, although she is acting more and more like a two-year old, I can't believe that her second birthday is quickly approaching!  Amaia is an absolute joy.   She captures more and more of my heart the older she gets. I could gush for a LONG time about how great I think she is, but I will just highlight a few areas.

Amaia experienced probably the biggest change of her life thus far this month.  She became a big sister!  For a little 22-month old she has handled it with remarkable maturity.  I have been so impressed with her and I know her big sister skills will continue to grow.  She said Haddon's name perfectly from the moment she met him and the first thing she said was asking to give him a hug.  She plays so well on her own while I am tending to her baby brother, she offers him lots of hugs and always greets him with "baby Haddon" when she sees him.  She seems to have gracefully welcomed Haddon into our family and it really doesn't seem to be affecting her much at all.  We still need to work on the art of gentleness and nice touches with a baby, but overall she is so sweet and affectionate with him and it makes my heart so happy.

Amaia's language skills have really, really taken off over the past few months.  At 18 months she was just saying a few words and now I cannot even count how many words she says.  She says everything it seems like.  She knows ALL of her letters, can count to 10 and knows all the colors in the rainbow.  She says "Go Hawkeyes!" to the pride of her father and so, so many other things.  She is putting 3 words together to form short sentences and I just love that I can talk with my daughter....sort of at least :)

Amaia is starting to become quite the little lady and develop some favorites too.  She likes to carry around a "purse", she is starting to pick our her own outfits and most often wants to wear purple.  She likes to come in the bathroom when I am getting ready and brush her hair along with me.  She also loves Elmo and all of the Sesame Street characters.  She is starting to sing some songs.  She can sing most of the alphabet song, although "L, M, N, O, P" need a little work :)  She looooves the letter "W" for some reason and gets very excited about watching Wheel of Fortune!  Lately she has become very fond of the song "Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star" and is remarkably good at singing it too.

Amaia is expanding her social circle.  She loves mommy and daddy of course, but she also loves her Grandparents (Grandma & Pop Pop to her), her Aunt Ashley, and buddy the dog.  She doesn't get to see her Aunt Jessica and Uncle Steve very often, but still talks about them after seeing them for a short time and tells me that they are fun.  She also loves just about every other little girl that she sees. When we pray at night she often names all of her favorite people as if to give thanks for them or pray for them.  I am not sure what she means, but she always wants to remember them in her prayers and it is pretty sweet :)  If she is playing with a phone and I ask her who she is calling she often says she is calling her friend Oscar.  She is pretty shy around new people or in new situations, but usually warms up after 5-10 minutes and has a very silly side when she is comfortable in her surroundings.

Having Haddon in our lives now gives me perspective for just how big she has become!  I love each stage of her life more than the last, but I am starting to want time to slow down a bit.  I love her so!