Being An 'All Boy' Mom

Prologue (because I like to pretend I'm a real author): I've decided to start up our blog again. Any of you that have followed the last 5 years, know that I try and do monthly updates of the "current baby" in the house, during our 1st year of survival together ;-) So, being that Brady is 3 already, it's been approximately an eternity since I've written a post. 

Let's rewind life, about 3 months ago, before I officially found out I was going to be the Mom of, yet another, little boy. Prior to the ultrasound, naturally, I did hear many of the same comments from both, those near and dear, and also complete strangers:

"Are you hoping for this one to be a girl?"

"I hope you get your girl this time!"

"Are you going to be SO excited if this one is a girl?"

"I'm praying for pink for you!!"

Now, as a Mom of 2 boys, already, I have read a TON of blogs and articles written by Mom's who only have sons and they have made me laugh, and cry, and feel every emotion in between. Because when it's written by someone who's "been there, done that," you just nod your head and say, "Yes! So true!" Over and over. I will say, the above questions/comments NEVER bother(ed) me. Mostly because I know everyone means their absolute best. People genuinely want to share in the excitement of your news. And just knowing that makes me smile. But I will say, there is one comment that I have heard that does hit a soft spot. And it goes a little something like this:

"You need a girl!"

It's a little bit of a dagger to the heart. So, I'm hear to explain to you, exactly why I don't "need" a girl. 

On June 17th (my scheduled csection date for this little guy), I will go in for my pre-op at 10:30AM. The nurse will come in and start the usual prep for my surgery and will begin a series of questions. One of those questions will be,"What number pregnancy is this for you?" 

And my answer will be, "This is my 6th pregnancy." 

January 6th, 2011

December 28th, 2012

August 22, 2015

The dates above were the approximate due dates of three pregnancies that weren't meant to be for us. I remember those dates, simply because I was their Mom, not because I dwell on them. 

But you see, when it comes to the gender of my children, I will take a perfectly written quote from another incredibly smart blogging Mom ;-) and say this, "I care more about the success of this baby, than the sex of this baby." And by success, I mean, making it to full term with a healthy heartbeat, 10 fingers, 10 toes, ridiculously handsome, a lefty throwing arm...you know, all the necessities. 

So...no. I don't need a girl. I need water and food and oxygen and for my kids to be happy. 

My wants in life have changed. I don't want bows and princess dresses and prom gowns. I want muddy knees and dirty cleats and one day...

A Mother-Son dance with each of my handsome boys. 

#baseballforlife 

Snow Day!

After growing up in Florida and living in San Diego, never did I think I would move somewhere that had actual snow days. When Tuesday rolled around and word got around that we were expecting snow, my first thought was, "yeah right." But sadly, I think a lot of Atlanta and the surrounding areas had the same thought. Turns out...over the course of the day Tuesday, we ended up with over 3 inches of snow. I was telling a couple of friends of mine, as I watched the snow falling down in sheets from inside my warm house, that I was thankful to be home with my kids and not shuffling around a classroom full of 3rd graders on a day like today! There were thousands upon thousands of people stranded on the highways of Atlanta for 10+ hours at a time. I am truly thankful that Brian, who worked all day Tuesday, made it home safely.

The entire neighborhood was home on Wednesday! I have said many times how much fun our neighborhood is with all of the families and kids of all different ages! We decided to bundle up the kids and go to the park, cookie sheet in hand, for some good old fashioned sledding :-)

Here are some pics from our snow day!

 The neighbor's sledding down the road :-)

 And this is what happens when your older brother throws a snowball at your face...

 Thanks, Mandi...for the GREAT picture idea :-)

One thing I have learned from being trapped inside because of snow is that I would probably be okay with doing this maybe one day a year :-) 

"Arrrgh Am One"

I had to laugh at the title I chose for this post. That was the same thing Brady's high chair banner said at his party and I showed it to Mom when I was going thru the decorations and she did. not. get. it. I was like, "Mom...Arrrgh Am One....like Pirate talk for I AM ONE." She was like, "Uh huh...sure."

Besides the lost in translation of pirate talk, the party was a hit! Lots of friends and family here to celebrate our little man's big day! 

Decorations!

 This happened...

Outfit #1 :-)

 Outfit #2 complete with some of the contents of the goody bags! Bandanas and eyepatches :-)

 Cousins!

Our One Year Old

Both boys are napping. So the house is peaceful...minus the toy room. That place is and will always be a hot mess. I used to clean it up during every nap time and at night when the boys went to bed. But I find myself, more and more, realizing that there are so many trashy TV shows to watch more important things to get done.

But I've decided to sit at the computer today. And just as I sat down, before I moved the mouse to light up the screen, my eyes brimmed with tears at the thought that Brady has finally reached that ripe 'ol age of ONE. And it's not "boo-hoo" sad tears. Well, maybe it is a little. But it DOES make me realize that if every year passes by as fast as this one did, that both of my boys are going to be moving out and going to college in like a day and a half...and THAT makes me sad.

To my littlest dude,

I wrote your big brother a letter when he turned one, and even though this year was a complete blur, large in part to you (in a very GOOD way), I have tried my Mommy best-est to snap as many pictures, take as many videos, AND keep the same traditions, as I have done with Griffin...regardless of how busy I am with the two of you...or how utterly exhausted I am.

So as I am writing this, I am just wondering...

How did we go from this...

To this...

In less than 5 seconds?

You have been a dream since the day we brought you home. I've told just about anyone who cares to listen how much MORE patience I have had with you than I ever did with your brother. Maybe I am all the wiser since becoming a Mom of two. I know how quickly this time passes...I know that newborns only make the funny "cross-eyed" look for a week or so, so I got plenty of those pictures tucked away for the future. I've been missing picking up your tiny little body and seeing your tushy stick out for almost 10 months already. And even though putting you to bed, wide awake and leaving the room without you crying, is every NEW Mom's goal for their own child, I miss the nights of rocking you to sleep, seeing you totally milk drunk, with your mouth wide open...drooling on my shoulder.

Even though I miss all of those "new baby" things about you, the one year old version of yourself is pretty awesome. I am borderline obsessed with the giant gap in between your two front teeth that makes your smile even more to die for. Scrunchy, smiley faces? Yes, please! Your dance moves...can't wait to see those bad boys when you are standing on your own two feet. The way you blow kisses. The way you nestle in the crook of the neck of whoever is holding you when they ask, "Brady, hug?" The way you say "Ump-pa" for your Grandpa...even though you call me "Baba." Which, by the way, is nowhere near "Mama." You'll get there. I hope. The way you give your Daddy SUCH grief when he leaves every morning for work. As if he is just RUDE for not staying and playing with you all day. The moments stolen away between you and Griffin. Like the two of you already have knapsacks full of secrets between each other that Daddy and I are too old to understand. 

You, my sweet little man, have been the perfect addition to this family. I can't wait to see how much more fun we have together, watching you grow! Happy First Birthday, Brady!

Xoxo,

Mama...aka Baba.

So here they are! The last of the "monthly pictures" :-) 

12 Months Old! Wearing Christmas jammies in late January.

Big Bro has also gone from this...

To this :-)

I have virtually fallen IN LOVE with a blog called "Enjoying The Small Things," written by Kelle Hampton. She is a wonderful writer, takes beautiful pictures, and has 3 adorable kiddos. She posted a picture of her youngest, her one and only boy, on Instagram a few months back with this caption...

"Third child. Go with the flow. Seamlessly blends in with surroundings. Doesn't ask for much which could easily allow for attention to go to other places that demand it. A little dollop of love goes a long way with him--a smile, a kiss, picking him up for a quick hug. It electrifies him. I never want to take advantage of how little he demands of our attention. So lots of kisses to this smooshy boy."

It made me smile. To think of other little boys out there...just stealing their Mama's hearts the way Brady has stolen mine.

Only one month left...

Sigh...I really can't believe how fast this year has flown by. I could probably shed a tear or two knowing that there is just one tie left in the "Buddha Bellies" Etsy package that came from a sweet friend at my baby shower.

But alas, here is Brady at 11 Months Old...All 22 pounds of him!

 I went to the chiropractor the other day and my right side was an entire inch off from my left side. I have Brady to thank for that. The child who forever wants to be held. He's going to be 13 and I'm still going to be hoisting him up on my hip.

So...it goes without saying that Brady isn't walking yet. He actually doesn't even let go and stand on his own yet. I know it's only been about 2 years since Griffin started walking, but, for the life of me, I can't remember how and when it started, so essentially I feel like a new Mom all over again. But Griffin DOES walk (thank goodness) so I know it'll happen when he's ready!

Side Note: My favorite thing is when people try and be nice and say, "Well, look at his chunky little self!" Like THAT has everything to do with him NOT walking. I wish I could be like, hello?? My kids legs don't have a maximum weight limit of like 16 pounds...they're built to hold all that chunk. All the way up to his chubby little cheeks...have you seen his thighs? They consist of half his body weight.

I am probably EXTRA sensitive about the whole walking thing because he does want to be held all of the time, which makes being a stay at home Mom REALLY un-fun. He's aware he isn't walking, yet he's over the whole crawling thing. Boys...so lazy.

We're about to make the transition to 18 month clothes soon! Since crawling, he's thinned out, but he's getting taller by the day. 

I'm slowly starting to cut out formula to make the big transition to regular milk. He's been taking itty bitty sips of cows milk for a couple of months now because he always manages to get his hands on Griffin's sippy cups (oops!) and he REALLY likes the stuff! So, for now, he gets a small sippy of milk with meals and over the next few weeks I'll start weaning him off of the 4 formula bottles he takes during the day. 

He talks up a storm! His vocabulary is definitely growing. Brian had to work for two days during the holidays and he said that just in the 48-ish hours that he was gone he could tell that Brady was talking more and more. I'm loving that he understands a lot of what we are saying now. I am starting to see the transition from the little baby he used to be!

I can't believe we are nearing the big ONE! Maybe he'll be walking next month??? For my back's sake...let's hope we've made some strides!

Holiday Happenings!

Just like October and November, December has been just as busy prepping for the holidays! We've managed to squeeze in a lot of fun activities and get togethers with friends between decorating and shopping for gifts! With the weather being awful this month, I've definitely utilized online shopping more than I ever have before. Thank you Amazon!

Anyways, we started the month off by putting the tree up!

Belly Alert!

 Bri was happy to have some decent help this year.

 No good job gets done without the head lamp.

 Griffin was pretty confident he could fix the light issue just by sticking his entire head into the tree.

 She's a pretty tree.

 He posed for this all on his own. Sure, I'll take what I can get.

 We have had a pretty bad case of cabin fever this month. The boys were sick half of November and into December. I swear, when one gets sick, the other gets sick and before you know it, an entire month has passed of just germs being worked back and forth between the two of them. Bleh. We had planned on the Newnan Christmas parade and when parade day came, OF COURSE it was raining. But thankfully it stopped about an hour before go time. We were all happy to be out of the house!

 Hangin' with sweet baby Callen!

 The Donovan Fam! Just some of our favorite peeps we have been lucky enough to meet since we've moved to Georgia!!

 Next on the "crazy things you should think twice about doing with your toddler"...baking cookies! This was actually really fun. Even though Griffin would've preferred to be elbows deep in the flour bin, he did pretty well stamping out the cookie shapes!

 We cut the cookies and baked them during the day, but waited for Bri to decorate. They did their decorating thing while I made dinner. I'm pretty sure Brady was hangin' in his high chair snacking on his very own sugar cookie. And yes, those are Fisher Price fake plastic knives from Griffin's grill set.

 "A little icing for the cookie...A little icing for me."

Their finished cookies! I don't think you can EVEN tell which ones are Brian's and which ones are Griffin's.

Sooo...about that cabin fever...turns out, cement pourers are like built-in babysitters! Patio is still in progress. I plan on doing a start-to-finish blog post as soon as the construction is done!

The W Fam is off to Lynchburg, Virginia for Christmas! Instead of packing in to one of our houses, Brian's family decided to rent a cabin big enough for all 12 of us!! Can't wait for all of the fun Christmas will bring for our family! Here's to you and yours having the best Christmas EVER! 

Merry Christmas!