Finally getting back into it!

Well I've been on a very long blogging break. I don't know why, I just couldn't seem to get back into it until now. Maybe because we really haven't been doing much of anything lately. Its too cold to play outside and I think we all have cabin fever.

Well, the boys are growing up way too fast! Liam celebrated his third birthday on December 30th! He did much better with opening his gifts (not the week long affair it was last year) but "Happy Birthday" is still a no-no! I don't know why but he completely freaks out whenever a bunch of people sing this song. We can all sing other songs, just not this one. He can be such a weirdo sometimes! LOL He's still my little peanut--still wearing mostly size 2T clothes. Once in a while he can get away with a 3T but its rare. He's really such a joy and very creative. He loves pretend play and his new favorite is play-doh!

I did get a new camera for Christmas (2 actually!!!) but my last pair of new lithium batteries were in the camera I gave back to my parents so the batteries died on me pretty quickly. I don't have many recent pics but here's a picture of them from Christmas time:


Lochy is doing well too. He will be 18 months old on Saturday. Where has the time gone? I'm debating whether or not to take him to a well baby check up for his 18 month. He hasn't been since his 12 month and we really don't see the reason for it since we're delaying the vaccs til he's at least 3 and he's perfectly healthy. We'll see what happens I guess. I need to look for a new pediatrician anyway. He's doing great though! Quite the little climber and chatterbox! We recently night weaned so I'm getting much more sleep now. He still gets up once around 1 or 2 to come into bed with us and then nurses about 5am or so. And he still nurses before nap and before bed at night. He will go to sleep on his own in his crib though if he doesn't fall asleep at the boob. I'm hoping we make it til at least 2 years with the breastfeeding but we'll see how long he wants to go for.

It's bittersweet to see them growing and learning so much. I want them to always be my babies but I love to see them explore and learn new things. They really play so nicely together and its so neat to listen to the little "conversations" they have between them. They both still love the Thomas trains and play everyday. They also love having stories read to them.

Here's a few semi-recent pics of them playing together:



As you can see the castle didn't last very long

And from this past weekend at Grammy and Pop's:

12 month appointment

Loclann had his 12 month appointment yesterday. It went very well. He's still nursing 4-5 times a day. He's not so much a day nurser (only before his nap and before bed) but still loves it at night. He loves food although his appetite has been less the past week or two. I couldn't figure out why until the other day when I got him laughing and saw the 4 teeth he's cutting at once on the top! That'll do it! He didn't get any shots--we decided several months ago to hold off for a while. He'll get them eventually, just not now. We feel there's no reason to pump these little babies bodies full of medication like they do. We'll do it on our own schedule. His head circumference is 19 inches (92nd percetile)--he's always had a huge noggin! He's 30 1/2 inches tall (70th percentile). He weighs 20 pounds even (10th percentile). Of course the growth charts are tailored to formula fed babies so it makes my kids look sickly but he's actually very healthy. He has several new words (up to at least 15 now). His favorites are: "jew, jew"--juice, "cacker"--cracker, "go", "no", "shoo"--shoes, "kitty", "doggy", "mama", "daddy" (and several others). He follows simple directions well without needing a gesture and has great problem solving skills. He's a great runner and climber and all around doing great!

Happy Birthday!!!

Happy Birthday Lochlann!!!
My little Lochy-Doodle turned one this past Thursday. I can't believe how fast this past year has gone. He went from my tiny little baby to this walking, talking, climbing, getting into trouble, bundle of love and energy.
(This is his new favorite place to be which is why the train table is in their room now.)

Lochlann has grown up so much and it astounds me every day how much he has learned and accomplished in such a short amount of time. He is definitely my climber and it's really hard to keep him off of anything. He runs around like such a big boy and is saying more words everyday. I can't even keep track of all the new words he's been saying. He loves the cats and runs after them trying to pet them while squealing "kitty!" He's such an inquisitive little mind as well and really likes to problem solve. He's also quite the Thomas the train fan like his brother and loves to make track and drive the trains along it. I think they're going to have a blast when we go to the Strasburg Railroad to see Thomas next month! Another huge favorite of Lochy's is books. He absolutely adores to be read to--over and over and over again. I love reading to him but sometimes I wish he'd branch out a little with the books he wants me to read--the same 5 over and over can get a bit tedious. He pulls the bin of books out and will bring me one after the other all day long. And when he really likes the story he'll tell me "Again!"
I don't know what else to say about my little Doodle. He just continues to amaze me every day. I can't imagine my life without him. He and Liam are our light and our strength. They are the true meaning of constant and unconditional love.
Here he was then:

And now:

We had Lochlann's Christening and first birthday party this Saturday. Hopefully I'll have the time to upload the pictures before we leave for Florida on Thursday!

11 Months!

Well, my little Doodle is 11 months old now. The time is going by way to quickly and he's getting so big too fast.

He is running all over the place and loving every minute of it. He's been itching to keep up with Liam for months and he's so happy he finally can. The two of them just run back and forth together through the house cracking each other up when they pass by.

Lochy loves to play with anything where he can use his body. He loves to throw and kick balls. And he can stoop down to pick up a toy and stand back up again without holding on to anything. He loves playing with blocks and stacking them--his record is 4 blocks high! He loves to color too. We let him color with the color wonder markers and coloring books--best invention ever! Ian recently found Liam's old shape sorter and busy box and Lochy has been having the best time with them. He can maneuver the shapes in if you show him where they go and can make some of the animals pop up in the busy box. He also loves the electronic drum Uncle Mike gave Liam for Christmas. The only way he gets to play with it is if Liam's sleeping because Liam loves it too!

He's getting a ton more vocal as well. He "talks" all the time and has full on conversations with you. It would be a lot more interesting if I knew what he was saying! He does have some words--"Dada", "Mama", "Me-na" (Grandma), "woof woof", "kitty", and some more I can't think of right now. He repeats just about anything you tell him. He also immitates any kind of hand gestures and signs and waves bye-bye and hello. He gave up his morning nap a few weeks ago (unless he's unusually tired) and he and Liam sleep at the same time. He'll nap anywhere from 1 1/2 to 3 hours. We're still working on night time sleeping but I'm in no real hurry for that. We are still breastfeeding and still co-sleeping most of the night. He naps in his crib and starts out the night in his crib. We both love the snuggle time together during the night and it makes it easy for him to grab a middle of the night snack.

Lochy loves playing with his big brother (when Liam will let him anyway) too. He really likes the Thomas trains and "drives" them all over the tracks. He especially loves to play peek-a-boo with Liam.

They may fight some but they really love being brothers.


He's just the best little love and I am so blessed to have him in my life. Both boys have just been the best little boys I could ever hope for.

The Lake

Yesterday we took the boys to the lake. It's a state park not too far from us and it was so nice! They of course have the lake and beach but they also have a nice grassy area shaded with trees right off the beach and a couple playgrouds, campgrounds, picnic tables with grills, bathrooms with showers, and concession stand. We all had a lot of fun. Liam loved burying his trains in the sand and swimming in the water with us. He also loves the swings and slide, of course. This was Lochy's first time in the sand and he had a blast. It was a little hard for him to walk in it but he loved sitting there letting it sift through his fingers. He only tried to eat it once. They're both little water babies and love being in the water. Lochy especially loved being at the water's edge where it wasn't too deep and walk around and splash. We were all worn out by the time we came home and all three of my guys took a late nap. Needless to say we all had late bedtimes last night.



He did not want his picture taken

Fun in the water with Daddy

And here's some pics of the boys playing nice this morning:


And Lochy coloring yesterday:

Success!!!

We have potty training success!!! It took us a little over a week but Liam is potty trained! He only needs a diaper for overnight. He keeps his underwear dry all day, during his nap, and when we go out and about. I can't remember the last time he had an accident. He tells us whenever he has to go and is even getting more comfortable with pooping on the potty (he cried the first couple times he did that). I'm so proud of my little man, he is growing up way too fast. He's super proud of himself too!

And Lochy has progressed to full on running now! He's so thrilled to be able to run back and forth through the house with Liam. He's been itching to do that for a while. When did my babies get so big?

I don't have pictures to post since the camera batteries took a crap and I've yet to replace them. Pics to come soon though.

So Proud!

Well, it's been an eventful week. Last Friday was Ian's 31st birthday. We just kind of stayed around the house since it wasn't a nice day. I made him a nice dinner and the boys and I made him a couple birthday cards. We also had ice cream cake for dessert! For his present from his parents he asked for cloth diapers for the boys to help save us money. He's just the best Daddy ever! Can't say I'm a huge fan of cloth but it's saving us a ton and we do what we have to do. Plus, Lochy does look very cute with his "fluffy" butt.


And wearing his "I'm a birth center baby" t-shirt he got when he was born.

Liam turned 2 1/2 on Monday so after his nap we officially started the hard core potty training. He's had his potty since this time last year and he's sat on it and peed in it numerous times but he was so against using it all the time. He loved his diapers and wouldn't give them up. So on Monday afternoon we told him that he is a big boy and big boys don't wear diapers. He wasn't happy about it but we held firm and no diapers (except for sleep times). To my surprise he has done amazing!!! He tells us when he has to pee (he does a little dance and says, "ooh, ooh, ooh"), we sit him on it and within a minute or so he goes! Since Monday we've only had 2 accidents!!!! I'm so proud of my little man! He feels like such a big boy and loves to flush his pee-pee in the big potty when he's done. He also loves his big boy Thomas underwear. You can tell he's really proud of himself! And I'm so proud of him, he's getting so big!

And Lochy is walking everywhere now. He used to just walk from one thing to another but now he's walking across the house to get to things he wants! When did my little boys get so big!?! I miss my babies! Lochy also has a new word--"kitty." He loves the cats around here and says it so clearly. He points to everything and wants me to tell him what things are. He's also pointing to things when I ask where they are. He's such a little sponge and is learning more every day. They are such great little boys. Can you tell I'm just bursting with pride? I couldn't be any luckier!