OK, so I know I've posted lots of pics since Kolbe was born, but I really haven't "commentaried" much...and I have so much jumping around in my brain...so here goes. Consider yourself warned...this will be long, possibly disjointed, and may bore you to tears. Read at your own risk, my brain may explode if I don't do this and that wouldn't be pretty, so take it or leave it.The transition from one to two has been wonderful. Really nothing like I imagined it, in some ways. I think I'd forgotten how "low-needs" newborns are. Which sounds silly, because they depend upon you for everything. But seriously, they sleep. A lot. Whether you're holding them, carrying them in a sling, driving, have them in a bassinet, whatever. If they're tired, they sleep. They poop. Quite a bit. But, eh, I've been changing dipes for two years now, that one's kind of old hat. And they eat. Sometimes quite often. But nursing is so portable and convenient. I know things will continue to change as he develops more needs and becomes mobile, but we'll roll with it as it comes I have a feeling. AND, I have to say, if I'd known how good having a second child would be for me personally I would have done it long ago. OK, not really, but you know what I mean. I think. If not, let me explain myself (I told you, this is going to be terribly rambly...not for the faint of heart)... Anyways, you could ask my husband about my personality and he could write a book about all he's learned in the past five years when it comes to dealing with me. In a nutshell, I am very analytical, very particular, everything has to be just so, etc. etc. etc. You know, the type who can't go to bed and actually sleep well if there is a dirty dish on the kitchen cabinet. Yep. That's me. I rotate our socks and underwear when I put them away so they get equal wear. The dishes, too. Vacuuming is done on Fridays, bathrooms on Mondays (OK, that one's been a bit off the past several weeks, but typically)...Hmmmm, what else. Beds...must be made. Period. Clutter, can't handle it. Mail must be opened, sorted and taken care of upon leaving the mailbox. You get the picture. Well, I was/am/whatever this way about Gemma, too (and let me tell you, the apple does NOT fall far from the tree, but that is a whole other post)...but having a second kid has been SOOOOO good for that. Naps will happen, but it doesn't have to be at 11:30am sharp every day. She will eat, and probably will eat better if I'm not hovering over her with a spoon. Hands can be washed by herself, even if it takes half an hour. Yeah. Stuff like that. Stuff that I just didn't get until I HAD to get it because I had no choice. And it's been very freeing. OH, there are definitely frustrations and adjustments, but all-in-all it really is great. The biggest thing that's changed with her is her schedule. She's sleeping later and napping later, which are both nice. And I'm not obsessing about the length of time, the time she goes down, gets up, for how long, BLAH! It is what it is. She's also going to bed later, which I've been having a harder time with, but again, it is what it is. The nice thing, it makes our evenings much less rushed and gives her some quality one-on-one time with Aaron and/or me that otherwise she just wouldn't have. And that one-on-one time has definitely been lacking for her, and that makes me sad in a sense because that is a BIG change for her. So I can deal. I mean, that's what we signed up for when we decided we were ready to be parents, right?! So, all-in-all I really have adjusted to this change more eagerly and with less kicking and screaming than I ever dreamed. Ever. Makes the thought of adding a third much less daunting. But we'll just focus on this one for now.Moving on to a completely different area of my brain...would you believe or even understand that a part of me misses being pregnant?! Odd, I know. And it's not that I miss not having Kolbe here, that is not the case at all. I love that babe like I never thought I'd be able to (during my pregnancy with Gemma, I was worried she wouldn't like me. Yeah, weird. With his, I just didn't understand how I could love another child as much as I loved Gemma. But I do. In a completely different yet exactly the same way. It's hard to explain). Anyways, part of me is just very sad to not be pregnant anymore. Not sad in a mopey bummed-out way, just sad in a very reminiscent sort of way if that makes sense. I don't remember feeling that after I had Gemma. Hmmmmm....And Gemma, sweet Gemma. She really is doing magnificent with all this. She has stepped into the big-sis role oh so well, carrying her stepstool through-out the house (we're working on the whole "the stepstool is only allowed in the kitchen when it's invited there" thing), singing to him and holding his hand while I change his diaper, kissing him and saying, "I love you, Kolbe" on a very regular basis. Telling me he needs his "mommy's milks" when he cries. She's a little mother hen, a natural. Yeah, she's had some growing pains. We have a few more meltdowns now, and she has definitely figured out that my hands are a bit more tied up so she can press the envelope a bit farther, but we're working on that. I think a bit of that is to be expected, I mean, hey, she's a smart kid, she's figuring out the ropes and learning to test her boundaries with what is and is not appropriate. I suppose I'd be worried if she WASN'T doing that!! We have started timeouts in her room instead of the baby bed where they used to be, and that works out well if for no other reason it just distracts her and calms her and gets her refocused and back on track, which is about the best you can do with a two-year-old who's comprehension of things is still at a very basic level. We're both learning and growing though, and I am gaining a whole new understanding for what my hubby has to put up with from me 24/7. Like I said, the apple does not fall far from the tree. At least in Gemma's case. Maybe we will get lucky and Kolbe's personality will favor his daddy's a bit more than 'ole mom's. We can only hope!!OKAY, PHEW!!!!!!!!!! That was a lot. As your reward (??) for sticking it out, I will post this sweet picture of Mr. Kolbe-man before we went to Mass last night. Two weeks old already!
I thought the hat would help keep his little head warm in the COLD temps we've been having, and it just looked so sweet on him. So if you've made it this far, CONGRATS. I promise a bit of a respite now...more cute pics to come for sure. The camera has a fresh battery and you can bet I will be doing my best to use it up. ;-D Thanks for bearing with me.LATER-GATORS!!!!
I was so glad, Aaron took off work a bit early last night and came home and shoveled the drive, and offered to take the little helper out with him. She had a GREAT time!!! He said you could tell she wanted to stay out longer, but was just TOOOO cold!!! She made it about twenty minutes though, and had a blast shoveling everything in sight with her little sandbox shovel!
And Kolbe got to try out one of his new wool soakers on the chilly day. Doesn't he look sweet?!
Haven't updated much since the Baptism, so thought I'd drop in!!! Besides being bathed in the waters of Christ, Kolbe also had his first bath at home on Saturday. Decided to not traumatize the poor little guy too much, and opted for a sponge bath on the kitchen counter. He did surprisingly well, and of course I had my little helper right there beside me through the whole thing. When we were finished she was still asking about giving Kolbe a bath and kept going in the bathroom, and it dawned on me that what we did probably didn't really qualify as her definition of bath. Some day they'll be big enough to bathe together...for now, I'm thinking no. :-D
He has definitely become more a fan of diaper changes over the week, guess he's getting used to them. Plus he has a sweet big-sissy who stands on her stepstool and holds his hand and talks to him and sings to him through-out. And I am LOVING the Green Mountain prefolds. They are just great paired with one of these Bummis covers. I'm anxious to give some of my wool and fleece covers a try once his umbilical cord falls off.
Look how BIG he is getting. Would you believe this little babe has already grown out of his newborn-size sleepers?!! Wha, wha WHAT?!!!?!?!?! Gemma wore hers until well over a month. He's a good eater and happy guy though, so I won't complain. But wow. Just. wow. Where is the time going?! Now I feel silly for buying those ones at Target last week. They hardly fit anymore!
Gemma has definitely had some rough patches over the past week. And I feel for her...she wants me to hold her or do something with her that I just can't do like I used to when I have a newborn to take care of. All in all she has adjusted great, this has been such a huge change and she really has just had some minor issues. I am proud of her. And for all the rough spots, there are equally as many sweet moments for sure. Here she is sharing her beloved blankie with Kolbe. She is holding the corner in the first picture and telling him about how great the corners are. If I hadn't mentioned before, she is very obsessed with the corners on her blanket.
And this one is just funny. Baby is about as big as Kolbe (nope, Drew, still no clothes!!). And has a hard head. Luckily Gemma is fairly conscious most of the time about being gentle around him. She is never malicious, I think that sometimes she just doesn't understand how much bigger and stronger she is than him.
Well that's all for now, folks!! Thanks for checking in.
Little Kolbe James was Baptized last evening. It was a beautiful, memorable event. It is such an amazing experience to bring your child before God for Holy Baptism and birth into His Church. Indescribable really.
More pics to come, my dad has them on his camera.
Getting ready to get birth announcements out, have been working on them on and off this weekend. Kudos and thanks to my sis for her photo-shop prowess. If you don't get yours quite yet, fear not, I'm waiting to mail some until I have hospital pics to enclose, too. Should be soon. And speaking of hospital pictures, if you would like to view all of them, you can click here and then type in the password. The password is our last name plus the numbers 6708 all together. Let me know if you have any trouble.
Last night Gemma wanted to read Kolbe a story. She had me help her pick it out, and then proceeded to take it over to him and "read" it. It was just precious. Hopefully he will share her love for books as he gets older. He may not have a choice...
"Smiling"
Sweet baby Kolbe James joined our family on Saturday, January 16 at 3:06 PM. He weighed 8lbs 1oz and was 20 3/4 inches long. He was born at the Birthcare Center, just 45 short minutes after our arrival. Didn't necessarily plan on cutting it that close, but it was wonderful none-the-less. I was able to labor at home for the most part, and once we arrived at the birthing center things (obviously) progressed very quickly. Didn't even have time to fill out the necessary admin paperwork before his big arrival!! It was an amazing experience and I feel so blessed! We are now a happy family of four!
Gemma was QUITE taken with her little brother.
My big guy, snuggled up in his ducky jammies and ready to head home!!
My parents arrived at our house with Gemma soon after we got home. She walked up to the door with my dad, held out her hands and said, "I hold baby Kolbe." I told her it would be a very good idea for her to sit down to hold him... so she marched back to the baby room, climbed up in the rocking chair, held her hands out and started singing "Rock-a-bye Baby". And she didn't want to give him up anytime soon! 
I am already so proud of her, and while I know it will definitely be a transition for all of us (wow, when was the last time I was up at this hour?!) I know it will be wonderful.Thank you for your continued prayers!
We got Gemma's 2yr professional pictures taken the other day. She did really well, I was so glad. It took two tries at 18 months. She took a bit to warm up to the photographer, but once she did, she did GREAT! Aaron and I both went along, so that helped matters too. I didn't buy too many, I figure we'll probably go in again when the baby is around 3 months and do some sibling ones and individuals and what-not...but I did want to be sure I had some done right around two-years for Gemma. These also really show off her pretty new haircut. So without further ado...
And if you normally get a picture of Gemma, and are reading this and haven't gotten your picture, fear not. ;-D I decided the most economical way to go (time-wise and money-wise) was just to mail them with birth announcements here (likely) within the next month or so. So, there you have it!!
Well, we decided that the present was as good a time as any to get Gemma's hair cut for the first time. I really would have liked to wait longer, but she still has this fine, thin "baby" hair (for lack of a better way to describe it), and it was just getting quite high-maintenance. It really bugged her when it was down, falling in her eyes and what-not (plus, it just didn't look all that good), and between the time it takes to put up twice a day (in the AM and after nap), and the fact that I figured those little rubber bands I was using all the time couldn't be terribly healthy for it (and the fact that leaving clips, barrettes or headbands in was an uphill battle at best)...it was just. time. God bless my sister the cosmetologist who took care of this first time haircut on my mom's living room floor!! It was fantastic, and Gemma did SO WELL!!! And, I couldn't be happier with the results. So let the photo montage commence..
Wearing the cape. My super-sis took her time and was so sweet and patient, showing her the little fishies and animals on the cape and getting her excited about it before just trying to put it on.
Hey, this is pretty cool!
The first snip. And yes, I saved the first little locks for a special place in her baby book.
She held soooo still!!
This is pretty fun!
Starting to get concerned about where exactly her fingers went.
So off went the cape. No biggie!! So close to being finished.
Mommy admiring her beautiful big girl!! We were both quite pleased with the results as you can see.
Some close-ups.
And look...she still has her curls!!
I'll post some better pics soon that showcase the hair with a, errr, more clothed-ish little girl. We had professionals done today, and I don't have a CD, but I'll have my dad (HEY DAD, do you mind?) scan in the two photos we purchased and I'll try to put them up here soon. She did a great job with pictures, for which I was very thankful.I am so grateful for so much to be falling into place before the baby comes. God is good.
I thought the hat would help keep his little head warm in the COLD temps we've been having, and it just looked so sweet on him. So if you've made it this far, CONGRATS. I promise a bit of a respite now...more cute pics to come for sure. The camera has a fresh battery and you can bet I will be doing my best to use it up. ;-D Thanks for bearing with me.
