Twenty minutes

He is so sweet when he is sleeping. The key word is when. I am not sure what to do with my little bear. He really doesn't sleep. He has been sick for over a week and I tried to comfort him by holding him, rocking and letting him sleep in his car seat. Now that he is getting better, I cannot put him down to sleep. Maybe it is a phase, or maybe I have failed him by not teaching him to sleep? I am not sure there is a right answer or that my brain is functioning well enough to figure it out. All I know is that he is not sleep and that is not good for anyone in the house.

I know that babies continue to bond until they are 9-10 months old, and we are almost there. I do not want to mess up now, for his sake. Here are things I have read....(1) Every baby goes through a bonding stage sometime between 9-12 months, the "don't leave me" stage. He does this to anyone (mom, dad, and ani) when they leave the room, even if someone else is still with him. (2) Nursing babies may not sleep as soundly as other babies. (3) There is another theory that says when they learn to be more active (he is trying to crawl and scoot around), they are more restless at night.

We have tried many times over the past few months to let him cry and it seems to make things worse. He wakes more often and cries longer each time. During the day he is much more clingy too and doesn't want to nap. The mom in me wants to go and comfort him when he cries. The sleep-deprived person in me says to let him cry and figure it out. That person loses after 2 hours of dozing off and crying in a 10-15 min cycle.

I am not complaining, but more praying and asking for prayers that we can find peace in sleep and in the day too. The humor in all of this is that I wore my shirt backwards half of the day, and it is unfortunately, not the first time.

New pictures

Cody is now 8 moths old. He is sitting up so well, eating everything in sight, babbling, and rolling wherever he wants to go. Just can't believe time is flying. I am just getting around to getting more professional pictures taken. I think they turned out great and hope you like them. Here are just a few...

Such a handsome man

He loves his big sister

My great kids

More to come soon, but Cody is calling.

Lunch

So many times I did not have time for lunch with friends. They were busy, work got crazy, or someone didn't feel good. Now that I do not have the opportunity for lunch with friends, I really miss it. Cody and I had a nice lunch today at Panera. Fun, but not the same.

My baby is growing up

My mom always said "time goes by so fast." For me as a kid, time seemed to drag so slow. Now that I have children, I just can't seem to grasp the time passing so quickly. Ani is now 6 years old and has started first grade. I am growing, and did not cry this year until Cody and I were safely in the car and pulling away from the the primary school.

It seems like yesterday, I was pregnant and we were discussing names and dreams for her. Now, I am packing her lunch, doing homework, memorizing bible verses and wishing I could really take it all in. I know I am home with them everyday, but I still feel like I am missing it. They will only be little for a short time and she is not so little anymore. She a generous, kind, energetic and curious kid. I often wonder how God deemed me worthy of raising her (and Cody).

This weekend was especially exciting. We finished the long awaited swingset, complete with monkey bars. She has had a blast playing on it. Cody even has a swing too. She played in her first soccer game and scored a goal. Wish I could say it was the winning goal, but we have a few more Saturdays to win. For her, it isn't about winning; at least not yet.


Last, she came downstairs to announce that she has a loose tooth! Yes, it really is loose this time. I do not think that it will be coming out soon, but she is working hard. For those of you that truly know me, you know this creeps me out! I did not intentionally pull a single tooth from my head. I knocked most of them out by falling, running from someone who was trying to pull it out, or by going to the dentist. I am not a "tooth" person but for her I will look every 5 minutes to see how loose it is and watch as it spins a little more than it did this morning. She is my sunshine and I do not tell her enough.

So today, as everyday, I sit and pray for her. I pray that she finds God plan and that I can guide her lovingly down her path not my path. And I try to be ok with chocolate milk, suckers, monkey bars, school bus rides, and a messy room. It will all be gone soon enough and I will miss it. I am sure to give her that hug and kiss before and after school and hang on to the Cody-bear in the middle.

She makes me laugh and makes me cry, and I love her with all of my heart! She is forever my little sweet pea.

At the Beach

To catch you up a bit, we decided to take the kids to the beach for a short family vacation to Virginia Beach. I had planned to spend a day at Williamsburg/Jamestown, the beach, and maybe a day at Busch Gardens. Well, that was too much for one trip. We ended up only spending time at the beach. It was great and Ani loved it. Cody did not. He was not impressed with water or sand, but loved to stroll on the boardwalk in his stroller.

I hope to spend more time at the beach in the future. It was relaxing and not a far drive. If anyone wants to join us, we will meet you. Lots of fun and sun for everyone!

Catching up

I am trying to catch up with my thoughts. We had a wonderful time in Utah with Nana and Papaw. Ani enjoyed school each day while Cody and I kept Papaw busy. We went up on the mountain, saw a "green show" of the Shakespeare Festival, ate ice cream, and went camping. We also celebrated Papaw's birthday a little early. It was the most fun we could pack into our week. I wish we could go more often.

Both kids are amazing travelers. Ani is so helpful and Cody enjoyed the flight (as much as a 6 month old can.) I am so proud to be their mom. I thank God for them. More later...

Home

We are home and safe. It was an awesome trip and I will post details and photos soon. Going to fix breakfast now that everyone is awake. Ani slept in and Cody whined all night. Hope the boy learns to sleep soon.