Morning Snuggles

Koen is a slow-riser. He usually stays in his sleeper (pj's) until 10am or so. He likes just hanging around the house until then or later. I've embraced this now that Tavin is here and I usually don't get a chance to clean up myself until Tavin's first nap and Koen is settled into playing in his room (around 9am or so).

When I got Koen up this morning he looked surprsied that I was already getting him up. He had about 5 books, his water sippy cup and a plastic doon-buggy in bed with him. Such a big boy! He was having a great time.

Anyways, Tavin and I always love our morning wake-up time with Koen. Koen wanted to sit next to Tavin this morning, so I took it as a photo opp. Tavin adores his big brother already. He watches his every move. I can't wait until they can really interact. Koen is such a sweet older brother and I think Tavin will just be his shadow.

Yesterday Recap

It's sunny in the Burgh again! Yesterday was a great day with the boys. Koen was in a great mood all day long. Definitely had our toddler moments, but in general, he was in good spirits and very cooperative.

Highlights of the day included walking to lunch at Elbow Room on Ellsworth in Shadyside to meet friends for lunch. Koen was great about riding in the carriage (with no snacks) on the way there. Tavin slept. We ran into some neighbors and had a nice chat. I love our community! Anyways, we got to the restaurant and Koen was on his best behavior, which was such a blessing since I was handling the two boys on my own and also trying to have an adult conversation and eat! Wow! Koen ate like a champ, played with his cars and used his manners (please, thank you, excuse me). I was very impressed. Tavin was good too. He even ate almost 5 ounces of a bottle from me! We were at lunch for quite awhile, so we had to walk home pretty quickly to get Koen to nap and still didn't make it by 2pm. Everything takes longer than it takes.

So after laying Koen down for his nap in the toddler bed, it dawned on me...how is this going to work? He can roam all over his room if he wants, how is he going to settle down for a nap? I think he thought the same thing because he lay there, then I could hear him get up and rummage through his toy basket, but after about 15 mins. of talking/playing he laid down and slept for over an hour. I was impressed and so thankful! We'll see how today goes.

Last night was busy as we had Aunt Abbie stop by to say hi briefly, then Aunt Jen came over to babysit while Doug and I went on a date and all of that happened within an hour and around dinner time. Lots to coordinate!

Aunt Abbie with Tavin, having some love time...she missed him!

Koen and Tavin did great with Aunt Jen for bedtime. Both went down so well (due to the fact Aunt Jen is a pro!) and Tavin even ate another whole bottle. Yay! Maybe he is getting it???

Doug and I went to the David Gray show at the Benedum downtown with Nate and Megan Troxell. The last show I went to was Ryan Adams at Carnegie Hall in Oakland which was a total bust, so this was a refreshing experience (especially since live concerts are not really my thing). David Gray was so professional and talented and his whole band was very impressive with their musicality. I loved that they all wore suits or at least slacks, dress shirts and vests (unlike the guys that opened for them who looked like they needed a shower and some money for a laundromat). I, of course, was getting anxious for the show to end (since I'm a tired mommy), so I didn't need an encore, but he did 4 songs after Pittsburgh cheered for him for several minutes at the close of the show. He seemed like a really nice guy (way, way better than Ryan Adams in concert!!!).

It was great to get out with Doug and going to shows is a favorite of his, so I was glad we could catch such a top-notch one.

Well, Koen did great in the toddler bed again. Not a peep til 7:30am and he is still up there hanging out by himself. Gotta run and see what he's up to! =)

Success!

So, the toddler bed worked out very well for the first night. Yay! What a relief! Koen went down well, threw teddy once then said, "Don't worry Teddy, I can get you." Then he climbed back in bed and made just a few calming noises for a couple minutes before going to sleep for the night. This morning he didn't wake up until 7:30am and then was happy until 8:30am. I could've let him stay up there longer, but who wants to ruin a good thing. Plus, Tavin and I like to visit him before I put Tavin down for his first nap of the day.

In related news, Doug and I slept terribly. Tavin woke up at 12:30pm and I let him cry it out, but it took longer than usual. Amidst that bother though, there was a lot of noise and car traffic outside including what looked like some fishy goings-on across the street. So, we had to call 911. The 2nd or 3rd time too after around 8pm during our dinner there were a group of teens up to no good across the street too. We need to get the business across the street closed down!

The Toddler Bed

It's official. We converted Koen's crib to a toddler bed this evening. Relatively simple, but nothing is fast when you have a toddler "helping." Thanks, Mom, for the bed rail to keep him from falling out. It is adjustable and so we were able to use it now as well as later when we convert to the real bed.

We will have to see how Koen does tonight and more importantly, tomorrow morning, but he was definitely excited about it. He wanted to practice with lots off and door closed and everything before we went down for dinner. He also has already figured out how fun it is to bring his books into bed. I bet we find him sleeping on top of books someday after a naptime or something. He is such a reader!

I tried to explain, without encouraging, that if Teddy "falls" out of bed now, he can just easily pick him up and go back to bed. Hopefully he gets it.

We put those safety things on the door on his side so that he can't walk out in the middle of the night or something and I scoured the room for hazards. I'm a little freaked out thinking of him completely on his own and able to get at anything now that the crib is opened up. Will report in the morning on how it all goes tonight!

The End of the Afternoon Nap??? I Sure Hope Not!

So Koen didn't ever sleep. I visited him once to rescue Teddy and settle him down, but it didn't work. He just continued humming, singing, yelling, whatever. I'm so afraid the end of the afternoon nap is nearing us as this has been a trend the past few days. Although, I'm not convinced because about a week or so ago he was having super consistent 2 hour naps. I'm thinking maybe he feels like a caged animal or something since we still have him in his crib. So, therefore, I think we are finally making the move to the toddler bed tonight. It is time for sure. Posts to come on how that goes!

Out With My Boys

Monday is probably my favorite day each week. After a long Sunday with Doug at work all day (although we did get him for lunch yesterday), I love being together as a family and the break that brings to have Doug's help with the boys.

Koen and Doug went to the library to get some much needed fresh books as I've had a hard time getting there the last week or 2.

Then they came back for Tavin and I. I gave Tavin a bath while they were gone and he didn't cry at all! He loved it - smiled at me the whole time. It was a blast!

The boys and I headed to McKnight for some errands. We stopped at Aladdin's for lunch. Yum! Koen enjoyed a big boy glass of milk (we forgot his cup, oops) and the hummus. Doug was so helpful because Tavin was being tough not wanting to take a bottle from me and so Doug stayed calm, cool and collected and got him to take about 3 ounces. Yay!

Unfortunately, on the way home Koen totally melted down. We got a little too close to naptime. It is just so hard to time it right with both of their schedules. I get a little overwhelmed by that as I don't want to mess up either of their days, but I also am dying to get out and get some things accomplished!

Koen is still singing and talking and being silly in his crib, so I'm not sure he is going to settle down for a nap. Tavin is a little mixed up too since he fell asleep on the way home, which isn't normally a naptime for him. I'm hoping he calms down in a minute or 2 and sleeps until the 4pm feeding.

Tavin is definitely laughing now. So precious and adorable. I tried to catch it on video again, but he seems a little camera shy with this new ability. You get a glimpse of it, but it's not as hearty as he really does it. We'll keep working on it. But he is so cute anyways without it, I thought I would include the video anyways.

By the way, just a moment ago Tavin was in the Jungle Gym and he rolled from tummy to back all by himself! He did that when he was really young (like 2 weeks) as infants are apt to do, but he hadn't done it since. So this was the real deal. I was so impressed as we've been practicing! =)

Weird Afternoon

It's cold and rainy here. Ugh. A perfect day for napping though you would think. Unfortunately, for some reason Koen's little body didn't agree. Doug was able to come home with us which was great. A nice treat on a Sunday. We all had lunch, I fed Tavin, Doug put Koen down for a nap. Koen was doing his talking thing, then he got a little crazy, then he started yelling for me to get his teddy bear. Never a good thing. Teddy is his little napping and sleeping buddy, so when he throws him, it is usually super tough for him to settle back down. So, I went up to talk to him, wiped his tears, prayed with him, gave him teddy and told him to sleep. And he did! That was definitely encouraging. Unfortunately, an hour later he woke up scream-crying. I went up and he was so upset he was shaking. So, we are now in front of Bob the Builder on the TV. It's just such a long day when you have a tired toddler who didn't nap long enough, I decided to cut us both a break and let him watch a DVD. Bob is my favorite of the options. It's not very silly and they do teach helpful things as well as they are really polite to one another. Plus, with all the construction vehicles, Koen is totally interested. A special treat for this rainy day. Hopefully the rest of the afternoon flies by. I'm so tired! Gotta go get Tavin up to eat.

Tavin Time

The last 2 nights I've been able to spend some sweet one on one time with Tavin. We've been working on tummy time and rolling over. He is actually getting better on his tummy and not hating it the whole time. And he loves practicing rolling over. I think he is going to get it in the next few weeks. Unfortunately, while enjoying his tummy time tonight he had a huge blowout all up his front. Oh well, that is what I get for prescribing tummy time. =)

Easter Egg Hunt

Well, I shouldn't skip right to the Easter Egg Hunt, when there is exciting news to share...TAVIN SLEPT ALL THE WAY THROUGH THE NIGHT! 7pm to 7am!! I'm sure this is just a lucky treat right now, but still, I'll take it! He's been doing great with only waking up once to eat, so last night when I woke up at 4:45am randomly and he hadn't made a peep, I ran upstairs to just double-check he was OK. He was sound asleep. I had trouble falling back asleep and at about 6am he started to cry. I wasn't going to make him wait until 7am, but he ended up settling himself down really quickly like he wanted to go back to sleep and then would get upset again, so I tried the pacifier. He fell back asleep after about 10 mins. of sucking and slept until 7am! Our normal time that we start our day together. So great!

Koen on the other hand woke up at 6am. I think he does hear Tavin cry and I could tell he was sleeping lightly because he made a lot of talking/sighing noises in the night. Anyways, he was a good boy and talked to himself (like a crazy man at times) until 8am.

We had the Northway Oakland Easter Egg Hunt today. So much fun! Doug had to be to church early for some other stuff going on and setup for the egg hunt, so the boys and I handled the homefront and heading out on our own as usual. Koen is doing much better with listening to me about staying on the porch while I load everything into the car, including Tavin, which is a big improvement over last week. I love urban living, but getting 2 kids out of the house with 10 steps or so to walk down and on-street parking/no garage is not always a cinch. Koen's safety freaks me out! I have to pray about it a lot so that I won't be completely beside myself all the time in these situations. Anyways, today went well.

Koen had a blast with the games (hula hoops, putting golf balls, fishing for candy). The egg hunt was funny. He liked looking for eggs, but I think moreso he liked pulling the eggs apart, not to eat the treat inside, but just the engineering of it. Oh, boys! When he was fishing for candy, he got a piece on the end and asked Doug, "what's that, Daddy?," Doug said, "it's candy," "oh, yuck" replied Koen. That's my boy! No, he actually really does like chocolate, but he's never really tried anything else. All the adults thought he was hilarious at lunch. He eats a lot of food, probably as much as I do at some meals. Today was no exception. But what's funnier is that with a table full of sweet treats and salty snacks, Koen was eating snap peas, carrots and hummus until the veggie platter was empty. I have to say I was proud. I'm sure he'll discover junk food someday, but I'm glad he likes his veggies now!

Koen was super enamored with Miss Megan, she is the Family Ministry person at church. He had to stop and tell her everything he was doing. It was hilarious and so cute! She was a good sport acting totally interested despite his frequent visits and reports.

Koen also enjoyed having his friend, Delia, there. And we enjoyed that the whole family could come over for it. Tavin and Huxley "hung out" for the first time. Car seats side by side for a nap.

So, during the event, a big truck pulls by that says "Pony Rides." The church didn't plan for Pony Rides, so it wasn't for us, of course every kid wanted it to be. Well, it turned out that it was a very small group that had rented the "Pony Rides" (which turned out to actually be Donkey Rides - never seen that before!), so when they were done, they invited our huge group to use the donkeys for the rest of their rented time. Koen got his first donkey ride. And perhaps his last, I'm guessing donkey riding is pretty unique in the Pittsburgh area? I've never ridden one. I was surprised he was bold enough to try it. His first response was, "no, I'm OK." After convincing him and halfway through the ride, he said he wanted to do it all by himself. I wasn't ready to let go though. As you'll notice in the 2nd picture, the donkey was quite obstinate. He actually kicked the guy leading us!

It was a great event. Lots of families there to hang out with. So fun to see how blessed we are with friends in this area and it makes us love the Burgh even more!

Tavin and Doug and I had some nice time hanging out after I put Koen down for a much needed nap after that eventful, outdoor morning. Tavin is my little buddy. He is smiley with everyone, but all I have to do is say hi to him and he beams and says, "agoo," Doug thinks he is saying "I love you" already. =)

Tavin Learnin to Laugh

A development of late as that Tavin is starting to "ha, ha, ha" laugh. So cute! He only does it briefly and it makes him smile so much! I love the sound of it. What a joyful noise! He started doing it this morning when I was giving him a spongebath and then tickling his tummy a little. I grabbed the camera and caught a little of his happiness, but not so much real laughter. Oh well, it's still cute.

Playing at the House, Again...

Koen, Tavin and I have been homebound again. We are getting a little stir crazy. So, I had a little photo shoot with the boys. Koen is ridiculous with his overdone smile. I tried to tell him how to smile normally, but it definitely did not work. He was all about cuddling up to Tavin for the pictures. The first few trys though he kept hugging him by putting his hands over Tavin's face accidentally. So funny! He has no idea - toddlers crack me up!

Tavin is so, so bald! These pictures and maybe this color he is wearing really accentuate it. I think he looks a little bit like an old man here. But a darling and happy one!

Thankfully my friend Deborah and Koen's friend, Miles (plus baby sister, Claire) came over for lunch and some playtime today. Koen and Miles did really well together as usual. At on point, the mommies were finishing their lunches and the boys were playing in the living room. It got really quiet and so we figured they had wandered up to the playroom. This picture below shows what we found - Koen is looking at a photo album and Miles is drawing on a little drawing board. They stayed there for several minutes content to be hanging out together. A little later Miles came in to tell us that Koen had gone upstairs. Miles was right and Koen came back down and said, "Mommy, I went upstairs to settle Tavin down, I can't find his pacifier." Oh dear! I am totally investing in those doorknob things so he can't help himself anymore! A caring brother for sure, but definitely not old enough to babysit!

Rub-a-Dub-Dub, New Toys in the Tub!

Miss Linda gave Koen new bath toys (little sea creature squirters) and so ever since she left he's been asking if it's bathtime yet. He barely ate any of his dinner because he was so excited! He and Doug have been playing in the bath for almost 30 mins. already. Thanks, Linda! Koen showed off his new toys in these pictures - I love bathtime pictures, he is so cute!

Video of Koen Playing from Yesterday

This is the video I tried to load with last night's post. Hopefully it works today and those interested can see how my "big boy" Koen can entertain himself and order around his "Thomas" and trucks.

Fun for All in the "Jungle Gym"

We've been having another pretty nice at-home day today. We had a great visit with our friend Linda this morning. She brought a present for both Koen and Tavin. I was so embarrased because Koen opened his before she even got all the way in the door! Oops! We'll have to work on that. He did a great job helping open Tavin's though, taking his sweet time pulling off the paper and making sure each piece was given to me to put in the trash. It took several minutes for him to finally get it open!

Koen took to Linda right away which was surprising to me since he usually takes awhile to warm up to people and I don't think Linda has seen him in person since he was less than 1! She gave Koen a piggy ride up the stairs and everything. He showed her his and Tavin's rooms several times wanting to close the doors so I would stay in the playroom and they could just hang out together. Linda was a good sport and I think he enjoyed the attention!

After Linda left, our only scheduled event today, we just hung out in the playroom for awhile. Tavin was loving the jungle gym, so Koen thought he and Teddy would try it out. Well, after a morning of playing with little kids I guess you start acting like one because I thought it would be fun if all 3 of us could fit in there and get a picture. The picture isn't exactly a good one, but it's funny that we are all in the "jungle gym."

After we put Tavin down for his midday nap, Koen and I made cookies for small group tonight. I meant to take a picture of this, but didn't get to it while including a toddler in my baking exercise! When we started, I got him in his apron, got out his step ladder so he could help me at the counter, then I had to run up and lay Tavin down. I came back down and Koen is standing on his stool at the counter, with the egg carton, "I got the eggs out already, Mommy." Must have been quite a feat - opening the heavy fridge door, reaching up to the second to the top shelf and then carefully getting them down from underneath some leftovers and then carrying them up the ladder with him. So hilarious! He was a great help with the project and we finished quickly and had time for lunch and clean-up before Tavin woke up. Not bad!

All In A Day

Well, I'm exhausted, but satisfied with life as well. =) Today we just stayed around the house/neighborhood and it went very well. Koen seems to be adapting really well to Gramma being gone (who is his anytime playmate when she's here). He enjoyed quite a bit of by himself playtime today. I actually think it is a little therapeutic for him and keeps him from getting too crazy. He was ordering about "Thomas" and playing with the truck and golf cart on loan from his friend Aiden. He had somewhat of an elaborate traintrack creation on top of the pillow on the couch. I'm having issues loading a video. Hopefully, I will get it up later.

This morning Tavin had the treat of watching Koen and I sweep. Although probably not Tavin's favorite part of the day, I think it may have been Koen's. Seriously he said, "thank you for letting me do this Mommy." Sure, Koen, anytime! It works great to give him the Swiffer because he just pushes it around and that thing clings up the dust floating around on the floor. I got my sweeping, dry Swiffering and dusting done while he "swept." I think we were busy with those things for 30-45 mins. Yes!

We had a nice walk to Giant Eagle. Gorgeous day here. Cool and crisp, but sunny and warm at the same time. Lovely! Koen did well walking with me. The double stroller is working out well, but it is quite a thing to steer when the two boys are in there. We get a lot of looks in the store too, but oh well, they'll get used to seeing us since right now I can only fit a few groceries in while Tavin's car seat is taking up so much of the stroller and blocks the underneath area. We'll be making daily trips when the weather improves consistently. =)

The boys' naptimes are starting to align a little, which is such a blessing. Tavin and Koen usually overlap at least an hour. Today it was an hour and a half. I had a lovely visit with my good friend Veronica. We made hot cups of Ovaltine and sat on the porch in the sun to chat. Such a great way to spend my free time during naptime today. We've been meeting together for a year now and today we were really reflecting on how much God has provided for us in this year and it is so true. We are so blessed and I am so thankful for all He has done for us!

After Koen's nap and Tavin ate, we headed out to the backyard. I was hoping to get a picture of the three of us, as we were enjoying playing together - blowing bubbles and Koen would pop them. Tavin liked watching, plus he was blowing his own spit bubbles the whole time. Doug did get a picture of Tavin and I when he got home. Koen ran away saying, "no, don't do that." Whatever!

We had a nice "family dinner" together before Doug had to head out. I love being a mom of two boys and having Doug. I guess I was just created to hang out with the guys all my life. I'm loving it. Thankfully I have really sweet boys, all 3 of them.

Playing with Koen & Tavin

Lots of posts today as we have been indoors and I've been camera happy. Check out my "ghetto" infant toy creation for Tavin, a mirror board tied to the back of a chair and fitted right up with his bouncer. Kept him happy and entertained for an hour!

A little later this evening, everyone had Tummy Time - Tavin, Koen, and both of Koen's teddys. Check out how well Tavin is holding his head up! Again, I used the backside of the mirror thing to interest Tavin. Who says you have to spend a lot on toys to keep kids entertained! It's the littlest, simplest things sometimes!

Faces of Tavin

So, I've been working on reviewing all of our digital picture archives for Koen over the past 3 years as I am preparing to put together a photo book for Koen. (By the way, if anyone has seen any recent good online deals, let me know). Anyways, I can't believe how many pictures we have! The digital age has really made it easy to capture so much! So far, I am hoping that I'm doing a good job of keeping up with Tavin too. Tonight I had fun make eyes at him, getting him to smile, say "agoo" and blow bubbles at me. Here's the best that I captured on camera...

Weird Nap for Koen

So, Koen took a really weird nap today. He was tired after our fun time out this morning and he went down as usual. I left the room, and just like he often does, he talked to himself for a minute or two. Then he got really silly, then he talked on and on. This went on for about 45 mins.! Finally, after about an hour he started screaming for me. That was alarming (and due to the jumping out of bed incident about a month ago) I ran up to check out what was going on. He must have just been out of it or something because he was fine and in his crib still with teddy. But he started to cry. I prayed with him again and calmed him down and left. Thankfully, he did go to sleep, but then after about an hour and 15 mins. he woke up sobbing and calling for me. I was in the middle of feeding Tavin, so I had to go and get him and plopped him in front of the TV while I finished with Tavin. Koen completely zones out in front of the TV. This is why I'm afraid of too much TV. Look at the zombie he is! Oh well, in the meantime while my hands are full with an infant a half hour here or there won't kill him I know, but wow, silencing a busy almost-three-year-old shows something!

Rainy Day Playdate

I'm so glad that we had plans today to go to a friend's house. It is cold, dreary and rainy here in the Burgh. After a week of 60 degree weather, it's tough to go back to spring showers and cool temps!

We went to a friend's house who is a co-worker of mine who also had a baby this winter. Our older sons are within about 4 months of each other in age. And our 2nd's are within a month of each other. Koen, of course, was excited to check out the "trucks and cars" Zach might have there. He was pleased to find so many and a train table too, not to mention a play shopping cart! He was very excited! Zach did a great job sharing all his fun toys and they both did a pretty good job playing around each other as well.

No pictures of Tavin despite the fact I brought my camera on purpose to take a picture of him in his first 3-6 mos. outfit. Before I had a chance, he soaked himself through and I had to change him into a spare sleeper I had in my bag. Oh well, maybe tomorrow.

Thanks to Michele, Zach and Lily for letting us hang out, play and eat lunch. We will definitely have to do it again sometime!

Koen, the Big Brother

Tonight we were Skyping with some friends in Australia. Koen was so adoreable. We were all praying together before we signed off and Koen was sweet and sitting on the couch, snuggling with us and then Tavin started fussing. So, Koen said, "Sorry, mommy, you sit with Teddy." Then he got down and went to Tavin, picked up the burp cloth and wiped Tavin's face a little. Tavin loves seeing his brother and so he did calm down and smiled and looked (in awe) at Koen. Koen is just so gentle and sweet with him. It is precious.

The picture is from tonight at dinner. Koen is enjoying a whole wheat oatmeal chocolate chip cookie. Yum! He was singing a song to us. So hilarious. What a joy it is to have 2 boys! (I'm exhausted, but it is fun).

Tavin Learning to Put His Head Up

Tavin is adoreable. These pictures don't do Tavin justice. He was so concentrated on the lights on the camera that he wouldn't smile despite the fact that he is such a smiley baby!

The video is supposed to show that he is really making progress holding his head up. He has so much to watch with Koen running circles around him. =) Unfortunately, in the video he's a little upset. I think that he had a burp stuck, or at least, that is what Gramma would say! She's obsessed with getting all the burps out!

Alone Time with Tavin

Off and on rainy day in Pittsburgh today, so Koen and Doug went out to get errands done in the North Hills. Tavin and I are enjoying some quiet alone at the house. Koen fills the house with so much energy and joy, but also noise! =) It's nice to just have the hum of the computer and the bustle of the cars going by for a few hours.

I gave Tavin a bath again this morning. First time doing it by myself. I think Tavin missed Gramma holding his arms because he definitely spent half of the bath screaming and the rest of the bath murmur-crying. He definitely needed a bath. He has been spitting up like crazy today. Reminiscent of Koen (he was unbelievable, hard to understand how he grew with how much nutrients he lost coming back up), but thankfully Tavin seems to have a way of knowing how to control where it goes so I have less carpet cleaning to do. =) Anyways, Tavin also has cradle cap. He absolutely hates it when I scrub his head. So that caused most of the crying. Doug calles cradle cap, "crib crap" as he mixed up the words by mistake the first time he said it and now it's a joke.

Tavin didn't last much longer after bathtime. I, of course, did try to make him stay awake and happy through me re-organizing his dresser. He has grown out of a lot of his 0-3 m sleepers and so I needed to change things out. He is such a healthy boy, we are so blessed!

Now it's my turn to get cleaned up. I totally smell like spit up!

Napping Update

For those of you that are interested to know how we are doing on the "tough love" through nap time woes, well, it is a huge success! Naptimes aren't perfect every time, but Tavin is totally learning to put himself to sleep and settle himself down. This morning he took a solid hour and a half nap. Yay! He usually has at least one full long nap like that a day, but sometimes we get more than one like that. I never go in and pick him up before his next feeding now (we do Babywise, so he eats, is awake, then sleeps, then eats again). I do visit him every few minutes if he is struggling to settle himself down, but the most I do is pat him on the tummy and tell him I love him. And I know that the "tough love" is totally OK and good for him because he is so much happier these days. No more bloodshot eyes by the end of the day. Plus, even after struggling through a nap, his waketime is full of smiles.

Thanks for all your support and prayers. We are settling into a nice routine. Not perfect, but much more manageable! I'm so grateful! Koen took until 4 months to show progress and didn't do really well with naps until 6 months, so I am rejoicing that between 2 and 3 months Tavin started figuring it out!

As for nighttime, he is pretty consistently waking up just once between 7pm and 7am. I let him cry out prior to 2am for a few nights and it seemed to have helped his tummy adjust to just one feeding in the middle of the night. I'm sure we'll still have some tough nights, but progress is so encouraging! Koen stopped needing to eat in the middle of the night at 4 months, so I'm hoping to get Tavin to that by next month too, but we'll see. I have to say, it all goes so much faster the 2nd time around with knowing what to expect, that I don't mind as much about getting up in the middle of the night.

Weekend Catchup

Now that Tavin's napping is getting better, and I don't have to sit in the room next to him for much of his afternoon nap, I'm having a hard time staying on top of the blog! Anyways, I am trying to keep up though for you and for me. It's fun and I'm loving that my friends and family can know what we are up to!

Yesterday after we took Gramma to the airport, Tavin accompanied me to a bridal shower. He was a perfect gentleman and only took a little attention away from the bride due to his cuteness (thankfully he was so well-behaved nothing else deterred attention away). He did spit up all over the pants I was wearing, but people were looking at him more than my pants!

While we were out, Doug and Koen had a great lunch outing with our neighbors. They tried People's Indian Restaurant on Penn Ave. for the first time. Doug was raving about the buffet. I'm looking forward to taggin along next time. Koen and Delia, one of his best friends, had a great time entertaining one another. Apparently in the picture Doug took here Koen had offered to hold Delia's sunglasses rather than see her have to carry them since she wasn't interested in wearing them. What a little gentleman!

Last night, our neighbors stopped by again to help Doug brainstorm a backyard project we are thinking about (several things have been stolen despite locking the gate, etc. and so we are hoping to raise a privacy fence). The Ammiratis overlapped with their visit too as they were coming over for dinner, so we had a nice little "party" in the backyard. Koen and Delia had a blast playing together outside. In the picture they are being "carpenters." Aunt Jen gave me a break and held Tavin for about 30 mins. Yay!Today was my first time back to nursery duty since being "great with child" in the winter months and then having Tavin. So, that meant it was Tavin's first time in there. He did great. It was nice to have a different swing and playmat to set him in. He did well taking a little nap while we were there too. Koen, on the other hand, is more of a handful when I am there than when I am not. Thankfully, Pastor Daddy had a few minutes to spare in the middle of the service and was able to entertain him in his office and I could focus on the other kids! Oh, Koen! It's gorgeous here today. I'm dying to get outside, but with both my boys napping, the farthest I will get is the front porch if that.

Gramma's Trip Coming to a Close

We will be bidding farewell to Gramma tomorrow as she returns to NH after being with us about 10 days. It has been such a great time. We no longer have a lot of time for Boggle and Scrabble (two of our favorite games) with the two boys to put to bed, etc. But I just love having my Mom and one of my best friends around all the time. Not to mention the wonderful help she is with the boys and around the house. Grampa is missing her and I'm sure she needs a break from the Melder Family bedlum. =) Here's a sweet picture of Gramma and Tavin today. Tavin has really stolen her heart this time. He is super smiley these days, so he melts just about everyone's heart that makes eye contact with him.

Outside, Outside, Outside!

It is amazing weather in the Burgh this week with each day just getting warmer. Koen and I spent most of the morning outside with a nice walk to his friend's house (he had some really fun backyard toys and the boys were so cute about sharing) and then a further walk to the grocery store and then home again.

Tavin and I took a good walk to Shadyside for some shopping and then home again during his afternoon nap. I am just loving being active and in the sunshine again! It is so good for the soul!

Tavin's First Jeans

With Douglas as his Dad, Tavin's first time in jeans is a big deal. I tried to do a mini-photo shoot, but I am a terrible amateur. Oh well, at least you can see his cute "little man" outfit. The jeans are actually already too short. This kid is growing like crazy!