He is “3”!

3 might not sound that old, but to this mama, it is really old. 3 years ago he made me a ‘mom’. He gave me the most important title I will ever have; A title that can’t be taken away…ever.

He is the hardest working 3 year-old you will ever meet. His favorite thing is mowing the lawn with dad. He would rather vacuum than play with his toys. In fact, if I want his toys picked up off the floor, I just tell him that we need to vacuum. It’s amazing how quick those toys are picked up. When he is getting in trouble, I offer to let him help me do some work and he straightens right up. He just loves to work!

He is quite the shy guy some times. Since he was really little, he has clung to me or Brad wherever we go. Lately he is starting to venture out on his own. When we go to the store he says “hello” to almost everyone we pass. He is even brave enough to run down the aisles… sometimes a little too far for my liking.

He is working on being the most polite little guy. He tells everyone ‘thank you’, most of the time without a reminder. We are working on ‘please’ and ‘excuse me’. Although, when he farts he almost always will tell the world (giggle included) before he says ‘excuse me’.

He is still a super picky eater. He loves chocolate milk and hates water.

He still brings Monkey everywhere!!

He is learning his colors and his numbers. Red is his favorite.

He is not the best sharer but he loves his sister. He is constantly giving all of us “lovies”. Last weekend, I was in the rush of trying to get them kids dressed for the day and I hear Corbin laughing and repeating, “Sissy cute”. It was such a good reminder to slow down and enjoy the little moments with them.

He is stubborn… man is he stubborn. He gives this mama a run for her money in that department.

Each night before bed Brad and I each read him a story. No exceptions!

Although, I hate to see him grow up so quickly, I love each new experience with him.

Where are they now

Corbin would be perfectly happy if he had his own Kindle, a constant stream of cartoons on the TV and 100% assurance that Chloe wasn't going to play with any of his toys!

Corbin still loves to work! He uses his play tools to "fix" things around the house and to "repair" his trucks. His favorite thing to do, though, is to detail his trucks. He uses dad's belt as the hose and gets washcloths out of the bathroom to make sure his trucks look amazing. Like father, like son.

Corbin has been fully potty trained for several months now. No diapers, not even at night. We are now working on getting him to go #2 in the big boy potty instead of the training potty, but otherwise I am fully impressed with his progress at only 2 years old.

Every night at bed time we read books with Corbin and are constantly surprised at the things he recognizes in the books. After story time we tuck him and Monkey in and must leave the "door open" about 4 inches.

Corbin can name a majority of his different body parts and identify them when asked. He is a great helper and has learned to say "thank you" when appropriate. He has also learned a few other words that might not be as appropriate (time for mom and dad to be careful with our language).

As his communication tools are improving the temper tantrums and outbursts are decreasing. 

Chloe would be perfectly happy if we let annoy her brother all day long. She knows exactly what annoys him the most, so she does just that. As I write this, she is trying to be sly about sticking her foot on top of the Kindle that Corbin is playing on.

In all seriousness, she is super smart. She can and will repeat any word you throw her way, but is still learning how to use them when she needs to. She can use a few though including: hat, shoes, juice (which is currently pronounced "Jew"), bite, thank you, please ("peas"), night, love you, baby, bye-bye, and remote ("mote").

She is also a charmer. Her relationship with Brad is the epitome of "she has Daddy wrapped around her finger". She flashes one smile at him and gets whatever she wants. I think last week was the first time he has really disciplined her. However, that's only because he was worried about her safety. Climbing on top of the dining room table, repeatedly, is enough to throw Brad's stress level through the roof.

Chloe is an eater. She will eat all day everyday. She is not picky either. She likes anything from veggies to her favorite chocolate cake (with grandpa). However, she believes that eating should be a full-body experiment. She refuses to use utensils (regardless of our encouragement) and instead spreads food from her hair to her legs...at every meal.

Chloe likes to play with her toy dishes (and real dishes)  and anything the Corbin thinks is cool. Although, she would rather spend her time playing with mom and dad.

She is starting to show some interest in the potty business, so we will soon be investing in a training potty for her, because Corbin isn't in to the whole sharing idea. We have no idea why Corbin took to potty training so easily, but we plan to take the same tactic with Chloe. We never pushed him but always supported his curiosity. Maybe Chloe will be just as eager as he was... Maybe.

Chloe is one and full of fun

Little Lady, as we like to call her, is learning her way around in our busy house.

Shortly before her first birthday she learned to crawl. Although most babies are crawling long before their first birthday, Chloe had zero interest in being on her tummy. Plus, she is Daddy’s little girl, there was no need for any of that because Dad gets her whatever she needs. :)

Now that she is crawling, she is quickly learning how to pull herself up to her knees and slowly learning how to pull standing.

Her favorite thing is the dog’s water. She is quick, too. Leave that girl in the same room and she will be splish-splashing in the dog water within seconds.

Her personality is really shining through and girl loves to laugh, smile, play, talk, yell, EAT, and…. Pick on Corbin. Oh does she love to pick on Corbin. If he leaves his juice anywhere within her reach she will be there in seconds sucking it down. Don’t let her smile fool you either, because she knows it is his and laughs up a storm when she gets caught.

She is very independent and has no problems playing by herself (much the opposite of Corbin).

Birthday Fun

For Her Birthday the family went camping.

Since her birthday was on a Sunday we came home early. After a nice warm bath (her second favorite thing, behind the dog water) we went to my family’s house for dinner, cake and play time.

We got home late but that didn’t stop the fun. Grandma Lori and Grandpa David were waiting for a FaceTime call. We spent the time opening presents and talking with Grandma and Grandpa.

1 Year Check up

On the 11^th she had her one year check-up. She is officially 29.75 inches and 20lbs 11oz. She is the in the 70^th percentile for height and 59^th percentile for weight. The one year check-up also brought 5 immunizations. That’s 5 pokes, people. Daddy had to hold her for those, because we learned by trial (and error) that I can’t do without crying too. Problem is I think Daddy had a pretty hard time holding down his “baby girl” too.

Not making it any better, I got a call from her doctor as soon as we got home notifying me that they accidentally gave her to Varicella vaccines. Supposedly she should be fine, but I am still concerned and continue to second guess everything “weird” thing that she does.

Corbin turns 2

He is 2 and he is...

...a worker 

...a climber

...a cleaner

...a lover

He is growing up so quick. At 2 years old he is becoming very independent. 

He likes to get his own clothes out of his dresser

He likes to feed himself his meals (always)

He likes to undress himself

He likes to put his own shoes on

Corbin also likes to pet the dog like he is hitting him. He watches us pet him and pat him on the side, so that's what he does. Good thing cooper is a good dog.

He likes to do whatever dad is doing and doesn't have much interest in toys. Well, besides monkey. 

Monkey has to go to bed with him and get out of bed with him. Speaking of bed, he also still goes to bed perfectly fine when we tell him it's time. He is a good sleeper for about 11 hours a night and a 2-3 hour nap.

To celebrate the little man we took him to Toys R Us yesterday. He picked out a rake/shovel combo and a broom, which are perfect for our little guy. After that we went to Old Spaghetti factory. He did amazingly well with his meal. He ate all of the applesauce, half of the macaroni and half of the sherbet... Without spilling! 

They sang him happy birthday and he thought they were weird. 

Before leaving for work today (at 5:30) I woke him up with kisses and happy birthday wishes. Of course he went back to sleep and later dad woke him up by singing Happy Birthday. Brad had a dentist appointment this morning, so he got to spend an hour with Aunt Brandi this morning. This evening we celebrated with cake, presents and FaceTime with Grandma Lori and Grandpa Dave (in Hawaii).

He is a picky eater and his diet pretty much consists of:

-Gogurt (His absolute favorite)

-Chicken nuggets

-Mac N cheese

-Noodles

-Waffles

-Toast

-PB&J

He will eat other things, but those are his favorites.

Things Corbin doesn't like:

-Any water besides the bath

-Vegetables

-Going inside the house

-Dirtiness

-People messing with his sister

-When his sister drinks out of his sippy cups

-People messing with monkey

I can't believe it's been two years

It has been a long while since I updated this blog. It seems to amaze me that I had more time for updating when I was going to school full time. However, school has been replaced by little lady. She is much more fun.

Chloe

Miss Chloe turned 9 months last week. She celebrated by going through a massive teething stage. Yesterday her first tooth popped through. I wanted a picture, but little lady was not having it. The best I could do was feeling her bite me. The second tooth is not too far away, either. I am hoping this accounts for her serious crankiness and attitude lately.

Yesterday was a big day for Chloe as she also finally said “mama”. She has been saying “dada” for what seems like forever now. Yesterday she finally said “mama”. I guess that first tooth was all she needed.

Tomorrow she will have her 9 month appointment to see how big she is, but she is definitely growing. She eats anything and everything that we will allow her too. Her favorite right now are Nutter Butter cookies (without the messy peanut butter). However, I am transitioning her to the Gerber Graduates.

She sits up on her own and crawls backward. However, she is not a fan of tummy time and would rather just be carried wherever she needs to go.  

She still has the most wonderful smile ever!

Corbin

My little boy is going to be two in May. WOW!!!! He is growing so fast and is amazingly smart.

He is basically potty training himself. When we are busy, he gets his training potty out of the bathroom, undresses all the way (cause going potty is his excuse to get naked) and goes potty. When he is done, he empties the potty into the big potty, closes the lid, and flushes. He is not potty trained yet, but he sure thinks it is fun. Brad and I just need to take the time to fully train him.

Mr. Corbin doesn’t really have much interest in toys. In fact, he never really has. Lately he is getting more interested, but he would much rather play with our phones, the computer, Tupperware, cooking utensils, measuring cups, brooms, mops, and his MOST favorite is the vacuum.

His favorite “food” is go-gurt. If we would allow it he would eat a box per day. Instead we have to limit him to about ½ a box per day. He knows how to get in the fridge and get go-gurt, milk, and juice. However, he would rather open the fridge and sit on the ledge while I am cooking.

Getting Big

Our kids are growing up! I have heard it all a million times...

"Enjoy every moment, because they grow up so quick".
"They grow up fast!"
"Before you know it, they will be teenagers."

Well, it's true!!!

Our kiddos are growing up so quick.

Miss Chloe

Miss Chloe is such a talker. Her favorite person to talk to is Brad. Whenever she hears his voice and can't see him, she gets upset. The smile that comes across her face the moment she sees him melts my heart every time.

Chloe Smiling 

She turned three months on the 9th and is finally growing out of her 0-3 month clothes. She doesn't rank real tall in the height category. :)

Chloe is finally adapting to night time. She goes down between 9:30 and 10:30. Then she has between 1 and 3 feedings per night. Our little lady doesn't like her own bed much, though. She prefers to be rocked to sleep by dad (mom will do too). If that's not an option she would like to be laid on mom and dad's down pillows and snuggled close. After she is asleep she is happy to be laid in her bed. This ritual is a nightly thing and Brad has now starting bringing her in our bed in the mornings. This is a bad thing that we are trying to break, but I have a feeling that Brad really likes his snuggle time.

Snuggling with Mom

Little lady holds her head up very well, and has decided she wants to sit up. Girl is going to have a six pack in a week. This means that it was time to remove the newborn piece of her bathtub. Last night she sat in her bathtub as an infant. It makes me sad that in a few short months I will never use that baby bathtub again.

Holding her head up

Mr. Corbin

Mr. Corbin is growing like a weed. On August 18th we measured our little man against the wall. He measured in at 30 inches tall. A week later we measured him again...31 inches. He had grown an INCH. We measured him again yesterday... 32 inches. Two inches in one month.

He is officially in all size 18 months clothes. Although, he would prefer to be naked. Shoes and socks don't stay on. In fact, I don't even bother putting them on him when we leave. I wait until we get where we are going.

He has 6 teeth right now and number 7 is shining pretty white on his gums.

My little man LOVES gogurt. He thinks this is a genious idea. He is very independent and is learning how to use a fork and spoon.

He now climbs on EVERYTHING. His newest jungle jim is the oven. He likes to put his toes on the drawer underneath, grab the handle on the oven door, and pull himself up. Toddler hood has officially begun.

We have been working on potty training, but not forcing it.

Corbin loves Chloe. He has been showing a lot of interest in her lately. He now likes to give her her pacifier, wipe her face, pat her on the head, gives the blankets to her, and wants to hold her. Little lady loves when Corbin is around.

Grandma and Grandpa came for a visit and were lucky enough to get all of their grand babies in one picture.

Updates Galore

Its been a long time since I posted an update. So much has happened!

May:

Corbin turned 1 on May 6th. We celebrated his special day at Papa's Pizza with lots of family and friends. 

Corbin still hasn't quite got the hang of opening gifts and what that means. 

Although, he sure does love all the toys he got for his birthday. Brad and I got him his first quad:

At first he wasn't so sure of the quad. Now he is a crazy rider. He rides it while standing on the seat, he rides it with both feet on one side, he rides it while standing up, and any other way he can figure out. Now we just need to teach him how to steer it.

A couple days after his birthday he had his 12 month check up. He is completely average on everything, but we took a few pictures while waiting for the doctor.

As seen from the pictures above Corbin was also in need of a haircut. So it goes that our big one year old also got his first haircut in May:

June:

June brought lots of change for our family. On the 8th, I completed my last day of work before being off until August 20th. I purposely took a few days off before Chloe's due date (the 13th) in order to give myself some time to get things ready. Chloe had other plans. 

The morning of the 9th I woke up at 6:00. I immediately headed for the shower, as I had class that day. Before I could get in the shower, I felt weird. I woke Brad up and told him that I would need him to drive me to school, just in case. By the time I got out of the shower, I was having contractions. By 6:30 I woke Brad up, again, and told him that we would not be going to school and that we would be going to the hospital instead. 

I called the doctors office at 7:00 and told them my contractions were 5 minutes apart and 15-20 seconds long. I was told to wait until they were a minute long. As Brad was stressing out trying to get everything ready to go, we decided it would be better to head to my moms house. He house was 15 minutes from the hospital as opposed to our 40 minutes drive to the hospital. 

By 10:00 my mom and I decided that we didn't want to wait anymore, so we headed in. As I was being admitted my water ruptured, I was in the worst pain of my friggin life, and I was dilated to 7 centimeters. Within 20 minutes I had my epidural and I was a happy lady. 3:00 came around and the doctor told me I was dilated to 10 and that it was time to push. Although, I was pretty numb and not sure I would be able to push, the doctors started getting ready. As the midwife put on her gown she told me that I could push if I wanted. I let her know that I was waiting for her to be ready. She told me that she could get her gloves on fast so not to worry. So push is what I did and just as quickly as I started the midwife told me she wasn't that quick and that I needed to stop pushing. 

Two pushes later and Chloe arrived at 3:27pm on June 9th. She was 7 pounds 2 ounces and 19.75 inches long. 

While we were in the hospital Corbin spent the day with aunt Jenn, Uncle Wayne and his cousins

Corbin wasn't real sure what to think of Chloe at first. We still go through spurts of love and jealousy, but for the most part he is adjusting well.

June 19th was another excited day for us. Brad got the first of his two tattoos done on the 19th:

(Chloe's will be on the other side, once Bard forgets what the needle on his ribs felt like)

Oddly enough the same day Brad got his tattoo (of footprints) done, Corbin started walking. 

He is a walking pro now, but this was one of the first times walking so we were recording it for Grandma and Grandpa in Hawaii (don't judge my attire and hair do, I had a baby 12 days before this):

Edit - My husband just reminded me that I forgot to add in that I graduated in June, also. I was able to attend graduation but we did get the chance to have dinner with all of my cohort compadres:

July:

July has just begun but I have been capturing our memories despite my tired state of mind:

 

Learning updates:

Corbin - Along with walking, Corbin can also say a few new words. He of course says mom and dad. He can also make Monkey noises and say "Love you". He refuses to eat baby food anymore and now loves to eat applesauce, steak, and pretty much anything with red sauce (pizza, spaghetti, etc...). He gives kisses all the time. We are now working on converting from bottles to sippy cups. This isn't going so well, especially since he will not drink milk unless it's hot.

Chloe - At her 2 week checkup Chloe measured in average for everything (just as her brother always has). She is a great eater and already eats 4 ounces for each meal. She is not too fond of a pacifier, but I have been trying. She never sleeps for more than 4 hours, but I certainly enjoy a good 4 hour stretch of sleep at night. 

I think that's it for now. I promise I will update more often once I go back to work!