Just thought this was a cute comparison. We still have the soccer ball!!!

Here Scarlett is at 7 months.














Below is Oliver at 5 months in June of '09.

I forget what a chunker he was!!!

The Trampoline

I was just trying to sweep the leave off the trampoline and I ended up having a BLAST with my son!

This may be TMI: but after 2 kids naturally, I peed myself jumping. Yup, muscles are just not the same!

But hey, how many of you mommas are with me on this one?? :)

At the Park

Sunny days (which are few and far between this year) = fun times with the kids.

I wouldn't want life any other way. :)

Grass eating

I love that round baby head.

BUGS.

Yup, I'm one strong momma.

Rolling down hills!

Weird Sleeping Habits

 What will I ever do with this boy???

Hahaha. The top picture is him sleeping on the changing table. He is so weird and decided a few nights ago that that was comfortable! Now he begs to sleep up there...I'm scared he'll fall off of it and hurt himself, but then again there is not much I can do! 2 nights ago we put him down in his bed but when we checked on him an hour later he was asleep on the changing table!

Oliver has also boycotted underwear??? I don't know why but he likes to be naked, especially at night.

7 Months Old

She just keeps growing!! I can't believe it.

*She's crawling faster each day.

*She's starting to use her sippy cup. Though she enjoys chewing on it more!

*STILL teething but no teeth to show. She gets so uncomfortable at times. Her gums are white where the teeth are almost out!

*She likes to make the 'b' sound.

*She's still the happiest little thing!

*She eats 2 jars of baby food  every day and about 24 ozs of formula.

*She's really into her brother's toys.

*She enjoys having 'conversations' and its so cute to listen to!!

Bathtime!

Seeing Gemma!

I really don't see this little girl as much as I should! For those who forgot, this is the baby I nannied while I was finishing up with school over a year ago. She is almost 2 now!!

We just need Gemma's new baby sister in this pic and its perfect!

My first baby girl hugging my biological baby girl! It was a sweet moment for me. :)

And here is a blast from the past!!!!:

December 2009, my last day nannying before my college graduation! Look how little she was!!

And here these 2 are in March 2010!! Long before siblings (well, I was pregnant) and big kid stuff!

Love This Hat

Gotta love H&M for their baby stuff!

Greenlake on a Sunny Day

And by sunny I mean, kinda sunny with some clouds coming in and out. Haha. What do you expect in Seattle? By the time we made it around most of the lake the clouds were covering the sun. We finally left when we saw the dark, dark, rain clouds. But we had a great time outside in the fresh air!!!

She was not happy. I think the grass was too cold. :(

Oliver found a walking stick that was the perfect size for him!

She wanted to crawl so bad, but the grass was quite the obstacle!

Happy Kids...

...make for a happy momma!

Official Crawler!!

Miss Scarlett Magnolia is crawling!!!!

I'm marking the official day as yesterday, 5/9/2011.

OVER THE LAST 2 weeks she's been loving her tummy time and pushing up on her hands and knees.
ON SUNDAY she managed to move herself one 'step' at a time. She'd move a 'step' forward then fall on her belly, repeat.
THEN YESTERDAY she was managing 3-4 'steps', 'crawls' whatever. She even made it halfway across the living room.
TODAY she was crawling long distances with no problem.

Holy moly!!! She's got some good form too. I think within the next week she will be FAST......

I think within the month she'll be pulling herself up on furniture, and probably within 3 she'll be walking. Her doctor was right...she'll be walking well before her 1st birthday.

I'm calling it now: My 25th birthday present will be Scarlett walking...Countdown to August 12th begins now...

Mother's Day 2011

Mother's Day has been a lot more laid back then last year. At least one of my kids wanted to take pictures with me....

 See: Oliver was none too thrilled!!!!

Some Things About Ollie

I just realized that Oliver is not even 2 and a half. He feels so much older to me, perhaps because he's a big brother? I don't really know. He's still (and always will be) my baby! So here's a few things about my 28 month old!

1. Oliver is speaking in almost complete sentences. The things he says crack me and George up! It's so hard to stay mad at the kid when he says things like, "Kiss my butt, momma!" What? Hahaha. Or when he makes his grumpy face and says "That's not funny momma!"

2. Oliver is very hard headed. When he wants something he REALLY wants it. If he doesn't want something you'll know about it and he will NOT do it. I want to believe it is just part of the terrible twos but I am realizing that this is his personality. He has always been this way and he is not flexible! Hopefully the flexibility will come and his hardheadedness will transcend to a passion of his instead to everything. Haha. For example, if we are only 20 minutes into soccer practice and he wants to go home, it is impossible to change his mind. We have tried with much optimism every time just to see that he will always get his way. We don't just give in because I do feel kids need to experience a little discomfort to grow into well rounded people but there's only so much 'forcing' I can do without going crazy and Oliver ending up in tears. As a parent you have to pick your battles!

3. Oliver loves to build things. His leggos are a favorite, as are blocks. He is also into puzzles and counting. In the last few weeks he has truly taken the world in around him and made a lot of realizations. Things like construction zones he now knows everything about as opposed to just kind of knowing a dump truck or a digger. It's the full picture he understands. I feel like I can have a better conversation with him because of this. When he builds, he builds concrete things instead of a generic tower. And as he builds he counts the pieces of blocks, leggos, etc. Very cool to watch him sprout intellectually! Even reading to him has become more fun because he comes up with his own conclusions before I read the whole book. He is usually pretty spot on about what he deduces. Super cool for me to be able to interect this way with my son.

5. When Ollie gets hurt or needs protection from Daddy's tickles he always runs to his Mommy! Best feeling in the world. I love knowing the he knows I am his protector no matter what!

6. He loves to help with his sissy. I don't even have to ask and he will get her toys, pick her up, laugh with her. I love the bond these two already have. She loves him so much and smiles and laughs whenever he's around. He always tells me, "Baby laughing at me!" with a huge grin on his face! He is still very much protective of her!

7. He's a genius. The end! (What do you expect? I'm his mom.)

With his remote control car.

My Little Harry Houdini

Can't use the wrap anymore...someone is strong enough to get out all on her own. She has no problem falling asleep without it, I just had to use it as a means to stop Scarlett from scratching her Eczema. Now that we have that under control for the most part, she is a far more peaceful sleeper. Now my excuse to keep her in bed is gone...I've gotten attached and don't want to think about leaving her in the crib all night. :( Boo.

Ice Ceam Tsuck!!!

A few days ago we had a really warm day and Oliver got to get a popsicle from an ice cream truck for the first time. We thought it would be easier to strip him down and have him eat it outside. I think you all would agree. :)))

Brain freeze!

Still somewhat clean at this point!

Starting to pool in his belly button!

"Look, foot dirty Daddy!"

Shameless Self Promotion!!

I enjoy making hair accessories for Scarlett so much that I decided to start creating for others. No need to make any huge profits as I work full time, mother full time, and am most probably going back for my Masters come September!!

I truly just like to create!!

If you have a baby girl, want some for yourself, or are planning for a special occasion (wedding, prom, baptism, birthday, etc) check out my accessories. Remember I literally just started so my selection is limited...so keep checking back!!

I do special orders for a few dollars more, so colors can be played with, etc.

I took the liberty of naming the business after my inspiration: SHADES OF SCARLETT

*****Please check us out at http://www.facebook.com/pages/Seattle-Washington/Shades-of-Scarlett/167230780002047#!/pages/Seattle-Washington/Shades-of-Scarlett/167230780002047 or http://shadesofscarlettboutique.blogspot.com/ ******

I JUST NEED 5 MORE LIKES AND I CAN HAVE A SHORTER LINK!! Hahaha, isn't that enough motivation to LIKE us on Facebook? :)

Loving Big Brother

 This picture below is EXTREMELY significant! Oliver is super possessive about his things, ESPECIALLY any of his blankies, this blue one being his absolute favorite. Usually when he gets mad at Scarlett for touching his thingsm I sit down and explain sharing (its been getting better) and then he'll give her what she wanted.
The night I took this pic Oliver told me "Carlett brrrr, give her Ollie blankie" then he put it around her. Ummmm, proud mommy moment! What a thoughtful gesture. Baby steps people, BABY steps! Haha.



They love playing together now that Scarlett is no longer so fragile!



Finger Foods

 Haha, her faces are priceless. She can pick the melt aways up... getting them in her mouth is another story. She's almost there! Sometimes I help her and she does really good 'eating' them!


WHAT HAPPENED TO MY BABY??? I'm in denial about this growing up thing!

7 Week Anniversary of Potty Training!

I can't believe it has been 7 weeks since I had Oliver in a diaper!

Just an update:

-Oliver has been doing great. I feared a bit of reversion in the last 2 weeks but now I think its overconfidence. He had been doing great at daycare with no wet pants and undies then all of  sudden he started getting wet with each time he would go to the potty. Now this hasn't been 'accidents' where he didn't make it in time or forgot to go, it happened to just be a boy thing!! His little pee pee always manages to spray all over the darn place. In the beginning he was SO careful and over time he has become so busy playing that he no longer was paying attention.
Both Dana and I have made sure to enforce "pee pee down, close legs" with every potty attempt. Now without any prompting he always puts his pee pee down and closes his legs while saying the phrase. It's been better for the last few days!! Less wet pants/undies from all the spray!!
-He hasn't been getting better with the night wetting. It still occurs every other night about. But we're working on it!!
-He has developed a "fear" (I don't really know if that's the right word; "uneasiness" maybe?) to big pottys. He had been doing great in public going on adult toilets, but recently he has just not wanted to do it. He'll tell me he has to go, I'll take him and sit him, he won't go and then we'll leave. Repeat another 3-4 times and then 5 minutes later he'll pee his pants! This even started at Babi and Dzia Dzia's! I've noticed if there is a little potty around he'll do just fine. Hmmm, we have yet to figure this one out. :)

No one says potty training is easy. It's the ride of your life. Perserverence is really at the core of it. But what could I expect from a boy that potty trained in 1 weekend? I'm proud of him nonetheless!