James' 1 Month Wellness Check

James passed his wellness check at the pediatrician's office today with flying colors. He now weighs 10 lbs. 5 oz (2 1/2 pounds more than at birth) which is the 75% for his age. He is 24 inches long which means he has grown 2 1/2 inches since birth!!! I would think that would hurt to grow that long. He is in the 100% for height. Although it seems as though he should be a big boy, he really isn't. He is long and thin - just like his Daddy. He isn't filling out his clothing but he is busting out of them for his length. I think I might have to cut the footies off of his sleepers.

In other news, Sophia had Gymboree today and Jim told me that Sophia pushed a big ball up a slide. She's a strong little girl.

Scary Moment

Sophia choked tonight on a piece of banana. It was one that was frozen that I had defrosted so it was all slimy. She was tired to begin with so she was whining and crying. Not to mention moments before she had fallen outside and scraped up her knees (again) so she wasn't in a good mood but she insisted on a banana snack before bedtime. We sometimes give her a banana snack before bedtime anyway so the request was not that unheard of. Anyway, she eating it just fine and she popped the last bite into her mouth and followed it was a drink of milk. That is when it happened. I heard a gurgle from the aspiration. Then Sophia looked at me with wide eyes and an open mouth and her face started to turn red. She wasn't making any sounds but she started to look and act frantic. I quickly picked her up, turned her over, and pounded her back. I was so scared that after it was all done I was afraid I had done it too hard because Sophia coughed up the banana and started to cry - HARD! She was so scared. I don't know if she was scared because of not being able to breath or because she thought her mom was hitting her. Anyway, she cried, no screamed, for the next 30 minutes. Jim was at a meeting but it sure would have been nice to have him here. More for moral support than anything. If he was home there was no time to go find him to ask for help. It all happened so quickly. Luckily she is just fine and is currently laying in her bed hugging her Lambie and Blankie. Scary!!!

In Other News

Sophia learned that her finger fits in her nose today. Lovely.

James' Pictures

We went to Celebrity Kids to have pictures taken when James was 9 days old. I wanted to make sure we got pictures done while he was still really little so we didn't forget how precious (he'll always be precious) and small he was when he was born. We did have pictures taken by a professional photographer in the hospital when he was 18 hours old so we have those too. Anyway, the picture above is just darling to us. We are fortunate enough to witness this moment everyday. Sophia kisses James throughout the day but she always insists on it at night time before she goes to bed. She has become a little "mother hen" around the house lately.




I can imagine this exact moment being replayed in a few years

when they are both toddlers and fighting with each other. At least in this picture she is still being sweet and wasn't trying to hurt him.

This is Jim's favorite picture of James.

Here are the precious parts photos that we got taken. It is soooo much better than the ones we got taken for Sophia (sorry Soph). Anyway, I just love his little hands, feet, ears, etc. He is so sweet.

BIG FOOT

I bought Sophia some water shoes through the mail this week. I ordered a size 6 thinking that she would get plenty of use out of them this summer. They came in today and we tried them on...her toes goes to the end!! My 16 month old daughter (she is 16 months old today by the way) is now a size 7 in shoes. She is also starting to growing out of her summer clothes that I bought her and she is now a 2T!!!! My baby girl is growing up! I think maybe we should start thinking about having another baby before James grows up too fast also.

Guess I'll Go Eat Worms

This morning Jim had a meeting so it was just the kids and me. Well, I decided we needed to go for a walk before it got too hot out today. While I was getting the stroller ready and everything, I noticed Sophia was playing with something. She was crouched down and seemed to be really interested in what she had. As I got closer I saw she was tearing something into pieces. No big deal right? Well then I saw her put the pieces in her mouth. That is when I decided I had better find out what it was she was so interested in. It turned out to be a worm!! Gross! My daughter ate a piece of a worm. Needless to say I shook her hands free of the worm pieces and gave her some milk to wash it down. Nasty!!!

One More Thing

I forgot to mention that the whole reason for going to the park was to try out the new backpack. Well, we spent too much time playing on the playground and ran out of time. Oh well. Jim said that it was okay and that he will just walk around the neighborhood or house with Sophia in the backpack. He is hoping to use it as a training tool for when he goes hiking with the guys this fall. Watch out Len, Don, and Lee!!!

Happy Father's Day

Happy Father's Day to all you fathers and soon-to-be fathers. We had a very nice day. Jim let me sleep in so he could cherish his fatherhood with the kids in the morning. Then we gave Jim his gifts. I got him a backpack that holds Sophia. He loves it. Sophia and James got Daddy some new shirts. Then we decided to go to Fort Harrison Park and do some hiking with the new backpack. The park is really nice. It was my first time going there and I will definitely go back. There are some great paved trails for bike riding with the kids. We walked one of the trails first with our hefty double stroller. Then we stopped at a playground so Sophia could stretch her legs. After that it was lunch time so we set out a blanket and had Subway sandwiches. Sophia was really cute - she decided that she wanted to feed Jim and I. She took our chip bags and fed us one chip at a time. She has become quite the mother hen. After lunch we pushed Sophia on some swings. Then we realized that it was time for nap so we went home and Jim and Sophia had a nice nap. James ended up sleeping the whole morning and early afternoon. What a good little baby. Unfortunately that meant he was awake from 1:50 until 4:30 this morning but at least he didn't cry at night. No gas pains - Yeah!

Anyway, Happy Father's Day!

Latest News

Jim has the week off so this week has been very nice. It is so much easier when there are two adults for two kids. We divide and conquer. Sophia has been trying to conquer as well - with loud screeching and crying when she isn't given something fast enough. I am really good at ignoring this bad behavior but Jim is more of a softy. He's doing pretty good though. I figure his patience for whining is shorter than mine since he has to deal with it at work too.

Monday we spent the day getting adjusted to Daddy being home and helping out. I went to the grocery with Sophia, which was pretty much the big event of the day. James kept us up all night the night before so Monday night we were hoping for the best, but didn't get it. It will get better, I am convinced.

Tuesday we had Christy come over to help out. I took Sophia to Hobby Lobby for 50% off picture frames and then we went to Gymboree (which was a ZOO of running toddlers). Sophia is in Level 4 now so she is with the big kids who are up to 22 months old. The funny thing is that Sophia looks like she is a 2 year old and other then her communication, she acts like one too so she fits right in. Miss Jennifer from Gymboree gave Sophia a 'Big Sister' sticker to wear so everyone at Gymboree was paying extra attention to Sophia. It was cute. Miss Jennifer also gave us a months worth of free Gymboree classes for James which was super nice. While Sophia and I were at Gymboree, Jim went running and then went to eat with Don and Len. They started planning their hiking trip for Sept. I am not for sure if it is set in stone but I think they are going to Crater Lake this time. They are meeting later this month to set things in stone. I am impressed they are going it this early - they usually procrastinate and are in a rush at the end to get things planned. James slept much better on Tuesday night. I am hoping for a light at the end of the tunnel.

Wednesday was the best day. I told Jim to not plan a single thing so we could just hang out at home. Well, he did the best he could - he only schedule to take the Porsche in to have its yearly maintenance done. After taking the Porsche in, we stopped by Panera Bread for a breakfast sandwich. YUM-O! I thought I could have eaten 4 of them they were so good. Sophia has a chocolate chip muffie which she enjoyed as well. Then we got Sophia's water toy out and we all went outside in bathing suits and played in the water and laid out on a blanket. It was very nice. After nap time we did the same thing. What a great relaxing day. That evening Jim spent 3-4 hours working on paperwork to receive privileges at St. Vincents on 86th St. It is due on Friday. Nothing like waiting until the end to do it :) He tells me he only had 10 days notice so he can't be blamed for the procrastination. We've been busy so he does have a point. Anyway, he got it done and came to bed at around 1 in the morning - just as James was waking up to eat. I decided I would feed, diaper, and put James back to sleep on my own since Jim was just going to bed and I had been asleep already for 1 1/2 hours. Bad idea Karen. James kept me awake until 5:30. I think I slept in 10 minute increments from 2:30-4. James was asleep but I think he has reflux. He kept coughing and gagging and grunting all night long. He couldn't have slept very well or been comfortable at all. Poor Little Man! I woke Jim up at 4:30 to see if he could get him back to sleep. Well, I think all he did was change his diaper and set him in the bouncy with the music and vibration on. Well, I think the music kept him awake and every time the vibration goes off you have to go turn it back on because it wakes James up. I am done with the vibration! So I got back up again (James was wide awake!) and rocked him and watch TV until 5:30. James went back to sleep like an angel then. But it didn't last long because at 6:20 he was hungry again and Sophia was awake. So I was back up to feed James and Jim got Sophia. What a night!

Now today the housekeepers are here (thank goodness!!!!) and Jim is out for a run with Sophia. I am trying to stay awake. And James...he's sound asleep in his crib. Must be nice.

Nope - No Sleep

Okay, so I can stick my foot in my mouth. James totally fooled us the other night by sleeping so well. It turns out that I think he still has his days and nights mixed up. He won't sleep at night! Okay, I'm exaggerating - he will sleep from 12-3 AM but then is awake until 7. By then Sophia is awake and there are no more chances to sleep until 1 in the afternoon. Let me tell you, 3 hours of sleep each night is not much fun. Thankfully when the sun is shining I can look at James again and think how absolutely adorable he is and how I can't wait to have another.