Emotions.

Before having my two little munchkins, I was as emotional as a sheet of steel. I never cried at movies (besides The Notebook....who can watch that and NOT cry?!) or commercials and now I am basically an emotional wreck. I could sit here and blame it on the fact that I just had a baby 5 months ago and my hormones are still changing and I am breastfeeding so there are crazy hormones for that blah, blah, blah. The truth is, I became an emotional wreck when I got pregnant with Brayden and it hasn't changed. 

I cry at commercials, movies, videos of anything exciting (people winning money, finding out they are pregnant or baby boy, girl announcements...basically everything.) 

I cry at the NEWS! Who does that?! 

A house burned down? Tears. A little girl kidnapped? Tears. A boy being bullied? Tears. A college student makes the half-court shot and wins lots of money? Tears.

The thing is, I cry because I can't imagine going through what some of these people are experiencing. Especially the sad stories. I could definitely see myself winning a large sum of money! Anyways, since I had children, my whole world changed and I can't even think about something bad happening to my kids. I am not sure how people live through tragedies with their children. I am pretty sure my heart would literally just stop working.

So what once was a hard, emotionless piece of metal is now a huge, walking ball of tears. Awesome.

The guilty parties that turned me into this mess:

I'll keep 'em... and my crazy emotions!

My Favorite Little Boy!

Brayden is now 2 years 7 months and going on 13! He talks more than any kid I know and uses words like "actually" and "interesting." I mean seriously, it's crazy how big his vocabulary is. I love that I can have full conversations with him and I can reason with him when he is upset or having a rough time with something. And even better than that, the kid cracks me up! He is so funny and I don't know where he gets it. I really need to start writing his sayings down because I instantly forget all of them. I do remember this one though: hubby was taking off Brayden's shoes so they could get on the bed and Brayden says "Daddy, can you do me a favor and take off my socks please?" Yep...a whole dang sentence with manners. I love it!

He actually spelled "zoo" on his own the other day. He continues to amaze me!

Brayden's imagination has been soaring lately. He is always playing games and making up new ways to play with the toys he has. Even while we are driving in the car, he will suddenly burst out that there are monkeys up in the trees eating bananas or there is a monster chasing the car and we must go faster. I love that his imagination is so active and that he can entertain himself so much. It has been really helpful when I am feeding Madison because I don't have to worry about entertaining him. He is able to play with his toys while I feed and then we all get down on the floor together to play when I am done.

He put this on and insisted I call him "Mr. Construction Man" 

He is also so amazing with Madison still. He really loves to get right up in her face and make silly noises in hopes that she will smile or make noises back to him. It is quite possibly the cutest thing I have ever seen. Every time Madison starts to cry, he immediately stops what he is doing to find her and see why she is crying. He really does care about her immensely. His new obsession is making her laugh and he is very good at it!

She loves him so much!

And he loves her right back! Always giving her kisses!

I talked before about how he doesn't really socialize with other kids very often since he isn't in a daycare or preshcool and none of my friends have kids. Well we have been going to a church group every Thursday for the last 4 months or so and he is doing wonderfully. He goes to a room with other 2 year olds and I go to a separate room where I get to eat breakfast, listen to a speaker and talk with other moms. It has been so great for both of us.

Although the "twos" can be challenging at times, I am really enjoying this age with him. He is such an amazing little boy and I am so blessed that I get to be at home with him all day. There are days where I want to pull out my hair and drink some wine but for the most part, we are in a good place!

How can you not smile at this face!?! I actually got to spend some special one-on-one time with him just the other day on a Mommy & Brayden date! It was so much fun. We headed to Yogurtland first and then to a favorite park of his. I have missed spending that special time with him and I forgot how much fun he can be when he is my sole focus. I need to make it a point to take him on little dates more often so he gets that one-on-one time that he needs...and it reminds me of how amazing he is. Love this little boy of mine!

Milestones!

My little girl is starting to hit milestones pretty early (just like her big brother did)! She got her first TEETH!!! Her bottom two teeth poked through just two days ago and she has been playing with them nonstop. She is always moving her tongue around and sucking in her bottom lip.

This is the face I got while trying to take a picture of her teeth. Little stinker!!

I finally got a good shot of her teeth the next day. Such a big girl already!

Luckily she hasn't bit me yet while feeding her although I know that day is coming. Hopefully she doesn't do it too often!

Other than teeth, we hit another major milestone! Madison finally took her first bottle!!!!! WHEW. She has been fighting a bottle her whole little life and she finally took one while the hubby and I were on a date. I am so utterly thankful that we had some success. I can hear the bells of freedom!

This last one isn't a milestone but it's just too cute not to share. As most of you know from the pictures I post on here (as well as Facebook and Instagram), Brayden and Madison absolutely love each other. The other day they had an exceptionally adorable moment and I was so lucky to capture it.

He was dancing for her and she thought it was HILARIOUS!! He was so intent on making her laugh and he was very successful. She was totally giggling at his little dance. Brayden also made sure I was taking video which was equally adorable. Usually he doesn't want to be on film or even take pictures but he was so proud of himself for making her laugh so much that he wanted me to record it!

Maddie wasn't the only one having fun either. He was clearly also enjoying himself. 

Dance video!

It's so amazing to see their relationship blossom and I just hope that they continue to love each other and have fun together.

Madison at 5 Months!

Likes:
-being entertained, especially by Brayden
-chewing on ANYTHING
-getting baths
-scooting all over the floor
-screaming (for any reason!)
-her brother...she is seriously obsessed with him
-being high up in the air
-the way her daddy makes her laugh
-looking at herself in the mirror
-playing peek-a-boo

Dislikes:
-the car....although she is getting better
-the bouncer
-being down on the ground without someone else to entertain her
-the swing
-the bottle
-the pacifier
-loud noises...she jumps and then may or may not start crying

Milestones:
-wearing mostly 3 month clothing still although she fits in 3-6 month jammies
-gets up on all fours and rocks back and forth...she will be crawling in no time!
-generally only wakes up 2 times during the night
-grabs toys to put in her mouth
-scoots toward the toy she wants
-rolls over both ways consistently (we can't keep her on a blanket!)

This is how she wakes up every day...happy as could be!

She loves playing with this little zebra I got her for Christmas

Mid-yawn!

Madison at 4 Months

This little girl is sure growing fast! Not only is she smiling, cooing, grabbing toys and laughing but she can roll over both ways! She just amazes me. She is truly happy almost all the time...just not in the car. She still hates the car...and pacifiers...and bottles....and the swing...and the stroller. So she is a bit of a challenge still but her naps are getting longer which means I can actually get a few things done during the day. AND...she sleeps amazing at night so I only have to get up 1 time. I consider myself pretty dang lucky!

Madison is in the 50th percentile for everything right now She weighed in at 13 pounds, 4 ounces and is 24.4 inches long. She is doing great! Although she is still wearing 3 month clothing and size 1 diapers, she is growing right on track!

She does like a few things such as being held (obviously), her brother, grabbing toys, attempting to crawl, when I sing her songs and use hand motions, and the Ergo. This girl could spend the whole day in the Ergo.

The holidays were filled with "firsts" for her although she didn't understand any of it so next year will be more exciting. We had a great holiday anyways and I am hoping to get details about it up soon. For now, I will leave you with pictures of my sweet girl and a video of her rolling over!

I Spoke Too Soon...

In my last post (Madison's 3 month update) I mentioned how well Madison has been sleeping at night. Well she must have known I said that because she has completely changed. Last night she was up 3 times starting at 12:30! I am not sure what is causing this change in her sleep pattern but I am not too happy about it. I am hoping that she is just going through a growth spurt and her normal sleep hours will return quickly.

It wouldn't be so bad if Brayden didn't wake up at 5:45 in the freaking morning! The boy is killing me! I used to be able to bring him into my bed and he would fall back asleep for a little bit but that doesn't work anymore. He is ready to go play. The good thing is, I get a lot of one-on-one time with him in the morning since Madison is still sleeping. I am thankful that we get that time together although I am usually very sleepy!

And to make my sleepy mornings even worse, I can't have any caffeine! Madison is sensitive to it so I haven't had any in over a month. I used to have at least a cup of coffee each morning to get me going and I have been cut off. It's so hard to wake up without it but I am finding that drinking a hot, caffeine-free tea helps a little. I mostly just like that it is warm which is wonderful on these chilly mornings.

On a side note, we took away Brayden's pacifiers about a month ago. I am not sure if I already mentioned this but he is doing so great!! He still asks for them from time to time but overall, he doesn't seem to miss them very much. I am so thankful that it was a smooth transition and I am crossing my fingers that potty training goes just as well when the time comes.

The funny thing is, even with the lack of sleep, the tantrums thrown, the crying and no caffeine, I wouldn't have my life any other way. Brayden is constantly making me laugh and I am so blessed that I have two beautiful, healthy children. I cannot ask for anything else! I love being able to spend my days with them and see Madison grow and learn and Brayden be so creative with his imagination. It truly is amazing.

Madison: 3 Months!

I know I said this last month but I can't believe she is only 3 months old. It seriously feels like she has been apart of our lives for SO much longer.

Madison is getting a little better with being on her own in the playmat or bouncer. I can usually get about 10 minutes before she starts getting upset (shorter if she is tired). She still really doesn't like the carseat and cries for most of the time she spends in the car. Total stinker!! She is getting a little better with the stroller and I actually got to go on a run a couple weeks ago. Today she only lasted about 5 minutes so I transferred her to the Ergo and we walked instead.

One thing she always likes is bath time! She will gladly sit in her tub and let the warm water roll over her soft skin. She doesn't even cry when I take her out and put lotion on her. Such a good little girl!





































She is still proving to be pretty high maintenance though. She doesn't take a bottle or a pacifier so I have to be with her at all times. I gave my parents the wonderful job of trying the bottle with Madison for the first time while hubby and I went out for dinner to celebrate our anniversary. I got a text saying the bottle wasn't going over very well and it was time to end our date and head home. So until she takes a bottle, it will be short dates for us!

Although pretty high maintenance, Madison is doing some pretty cute things! She is totally smiling all the time (except for when she is crying of course) and she most definitely holds up her head and pushes up her upper body during tummy time. And.....SHE ROLLS OVER!! Yep, my little tiny baby girl can already roll over from her stomach to her back. She has been doing this for about 2 weeks and she isn't exactly a fan of her new skill. She doesn't really like being on her back (except for when she is on the play mat) so she bursts into screams and cries when she rolls herself over. She is also talking up a storm, especially after she eats. It's so fun to hear all her little noises! And this just in...she giggles! I caught it on video last night....so. dang. cute.

Now I have mentioned the ways she has been more difficult than Brayden was as a baby but there is one crucial way she is much easier!! Sleeping. This little lady sleeps like a champ. She usually goes down for the night around 9:00 and doesn't wake up to eat until 5:00 AM! Then she is right back to sleep until about 8:30 AM. Brayden was definitely waking up at least 2 times during the night at 3 months and I am pretty sure it was more like 3 times.



Another thing she most definitely loves (besides being held) is he brother! She is always watching what he is doing and when she hears his voice, she tries to see where he is. It is amazing to see how attached she is to him. I can't wait to see how their relationship grows!