Hilton Head

The forecast was great so we decided to do a quick trip to Hilton Head this weekend. We got a great deal on a hotel room and decided to give it a shot. We always had trouble getting Declan to sleep in strange places so we were a bit nervous but it ended up being the most slept we've had in months! We all went to bed around 10pm each night and Tate woke up only once each night to eat, then right back to bed.

One of my favorite things about living in Atlanta is that there are so many cool places to go for weekend trips. It was a lot of fun and Declan even dipped himself in the ocean a couple times! It was just what we needed, life gets so routine with an infant and it was nice to get out of the house.


Burning energy!

Taking it easy

This could not capture their personalities more clearly..."Mom, let me go, I'm busy" vs "I'm so happy"

On top of the lighthouse in Harbour Town

Misc

We've had a few good weeks and lately are enjoying some gorgeous weather! We had a great weekend a couple weeks ago and took the boys to the zoo and had a picnic. And today it was over 70 and is supposed to be the same all weekend - we're contemplating driving to the beach for one night on Sat. It is all Declan has been asking about for the last month or so.

Tate is doing well, he was 8 weeks yesterday. For the past week he has gone to bed earlier every night and is now going down at 7pm. He can barely stay awake and we basically feed him and he crashes, no crying or fussing. He's been getting up once or twice to eat still, but last night he only got up to eat at 2am and then slept to 7am. So I think we're getting somewhere! He is smiling a lot and is just a happy and easygoing little guy. We had a lot of issues with eating, he'd scream at each feeding but there was no spit-up. The doctor put him on Zantac anyways and that seems to be doing the trick which is a relief.

We went for a walk today, and I caught Declan holding onto Tate.

Can't believe the difference in size between them!

And here is one of the cakes I've been making. The Johnsons gave us a KitchenAid mixer for Christmas and I've been doing lots of baking. This was a lemon cake and I made a flourless chocolate cake the other day. It's been fun and Don's coworkers are enjoying the extra treats.

3

I've been having a lot of conversations with other moms lately - conversations about 3-year-olds and what to do with them! It seems everyone's child has suddenly hit a period where they whine, talk back, throw extreme tantrums and at times simply act like a brat. We all have been saying, where did my child disappear to? It seems for Declan the height of this period was right during the holidays and the arrival of Tate. At first I thought it was simply the sibling issue but as I talk to his friends' moms I realize it's also partly the age. He is realizing he is not the center of the universe and is definitely rebelling! I desperately started reading all sorts of books about discipline, child development and parenting styles. Things have calmed down lately, and Declan seems back to his cheerful self and also seems to have forgotten that there used to be no little brother. But it was a rough couple months - it has been interesting to compare to the challenging parts of the newborn phase. I guess every stage has its delights and it's troubles. :)


That said, Tate's arrival has surfaced a lot of memories about Declan that I had plain forgotten about and I want to capture them here:

*All babies have periods of "active" sleep where they rustle around and Tate is no different. However, Declan's version of active sleep often involved flinging both legs straight up into the air (while in his swaddle) and then slamming them down. It was quite distracting.

*Dirty diapers - Declan had them often and they were LOUD. It sounded like a volcanoe was erupting every time he had a bowel movement. We got a lot of strange looks when it happened out in public.

*Declan used to hate when I wore my hair in a ponytail. When he was a baby he'd cry if I came into his room and my hair was up, I'd take it down and he'd instantly smile. As he got older he'd tell me "no hair mommmy" and make a big fuss until I took it down. I don't know when he got over that but Don reminded me the other day about it and we had a good laugh. God knows why that was such an issue.

One Month

Tate went for his 1 month appt the other day and is 23 and 1/8 inches long and weighed in at 11 lbs, 8 oz. He is a big guy, just like his brother - 90-95th percentile for height and weight! He has started to do some little smiles. This morning he was just staring at Declan and smiling up at him - he is definitely entertained by his big brother.

He does have some mild infant acne and the pediatrician mentioned she was filming a segment for CNN on the topic. So I brought Tate back today and they filmed the two of us briefly. It's for the Health Minute segments on Headline News - I'll let you know if we make the cut for the program!

Massage Time

Yesterday Tate and I went to an infant massage class. It was a small group, just 3 babies and all were under 8 weeks. It was a lot of fun and I had the brilliant idea that it would be a great way to have some family time and include Declan on something with the baby. So while Declan was in the tub I set out a couple blankets and pillows and I massaged Tate and showed Don how to do the same massage with Declan.

Let's just say things did not go according to plan. Declan enjoyed it in his own special way and I think it had the opposite effect we were hoping for. He was so excited about doing something new he could not sit still for more than 10-15 seconds. He'd lay down, then run and grab another pillow, then lay down and then want to massage Tate. By the end of it he was laying on about 7 pillows, then proclaimed that it was "too high".

We got a good laugh out of it, we'll see if it goes a little smoother next time!

And just for fun - we're one day shy of a month old today!

Ice Storm 2011

Johnsons

Don's parents braved the crazy Atlanta ice storm aftermath and came to visit this past weekend. We had about 5 inches of snow last Sunday night which then turned to freezing rain. We then had several days where the temp didn't even reach 32 degrees. In a city with 11 trucks, we found out that this equals 5 DAYS home from school and work, with empty grocery store shelves, horrific roads, etc.

Don's parents' flight was canceled but they got on one that connected in Charlotte. After a long day of travel, Don managed to pick them up at the nearby MARTA station! They were troupers and we managed to celebrate Martha's birthday and have some fun. We spent out days making good meals/drinks, watching movies, trying to play in the ice, taking care of baby and entertaining the 3-year-0ld! It was great to see them and to have extra hands to help with dinner, laundry and soothing a fussy baby.