Christmas in... Seattle

We had a wonderful week's visit to Seattle for Christmas. I was totally dreading making that long drive in potentially bad weather with two little ones in tow. Particularly because to date, Josh has been less than a fan of riding in the car seat. 5 minutes out of town, we discovered that a quick rattling of his seat worked wonders to calm the screaming, and 7 1/2 hours later, we rolled into Shoreline with smiles on all our faces. We didn't even have to break out the new portable DVD player until the last hour of the drive.

We got to spend some quality time at both grandparents' houses - extra attention for Owen, extra snuggles for Josh, and extra naps for us. In Shoreline, Owen got to make gingerbread houses with Grandma and Kate and then we took a morning visit to the awesome Children's Museum in Everett. Grandpa even took an afternoon off work to spend some extra time with Owen.
In Bellevue, my parents hosted an open house for friends and family. We were able to connect with my aunt and uncle, cousins, Owen's "other nana" (Stephanie Pahlow), Peg, Laura, and Amy was able to come by with her family. Those bellies from our visit back in September are now two baby boys - Paul is just 2 weeks older than Josh. Plus, Sam and Owen again hit it off beautifully - running, diving, giggling, and forming their own charming 2-year-old hooligan gang.

Christmas Eve included tracking Santa on NORAD, a visit to see the holiday lights a the botanical garden, and some rousing music and games during our "Elves Party."


Scott also tackled the required assembly that lead to a new tricycle under the tree on Christmas morning.


We opened presents in our PJs, with my brother continuing his tradition of donning all clothing gifts simultaneously.

Then, it was off to the Lake house, where the Maxwell family was gathering in mass. The adults were able to munch and chat while the kids napped, and then we dove into the second round of present opening. Owen was still going strong, but Josh (and apparently our camera) didn't fare so well.

After a beautiful prime rib dinner, the lake house was full to the brim for Christmas night - 12 people in all!

We also had our traditional brunch with our "montessori families" and realized that we've gone through a full generation with that group - the Hathaways moved in across the street from us when Colin and I were Owen's age.

Our drive home was equally uneventful - the perfect ending to a full, full, full week. A Merry Christmas for all indeed.

Christmas in... Bend

Before heading to Seattle for Christmas week, we exchanged our family gifts in a Saturday morning celebration. I never want to have Christmas morning without kids around. Such fun!
Though the baby makes for some extra sleepy parents (and therefore AWESOME photos), Owen's excitement over even the smallest things was contagious.

Owen helped open everyone's gifts...Josh was less help, but pretty darn cute...

And after a pancake breakfast, the boys spent some time enjoying their new toys. Just as it should be on Christmas morning.

When the weather is crummy

I have this little book that has become my lifeline when we are having one of THOSE days (due to crummy weather, 2-year-old attitude, or mommy burn out). The Toddler Busy Book is a great resource of quick activities. Some are incredibly simplistic - who doesn't know to bury objects under the sand and have your kid hunt for them - but it reminds me that sometimes simple is best.

Yesterday, we were pushing to get to 4 o'clock, so I could turn on a movie to make it to dinner time, and I randomly ran across the "recipe" for MAGIC MUD:
- Pour a box of cornstarch in a bowl or shallow tray
- Add a bit of water and food coloring
- Mix with your hands and enjoy

I was skeptical, but we gave it a shot....
BEST BAD WEATHER INDOOR ACTIVITY EVER

We started squishing and stirring with our hands. Magic Mud looks solid, but then "melts" through your hands when you try to pick it up.
After 20 minutes of exploration (note that only Sesame Street can hold Owen's attention for 20 minutes), we added some cars and then the farm animals.
An HOUR (yes, an HOUR) later, I was still hearing stories of car crashes and running cows in the kitchen and the scene was like this:
Brilliant! Winner!
I encourage you to try this super easy activity with your own kids.

P.S. We left the magic mud out and Scott was totally enthralled when he got home as well. I was at Safeway this morning buying multiple boxes of cornstarch and Owen had another go at the Magic Mud before lunch today. Brilliant!

For Now...

There is sooo much to catch up on, but for now, the toddler is cashed out on an early nap and the baby is happy wiggling on the floor, so I had to post this mornings' funny. Owen and I are out running errands (Josh is home with a sitter, so Owen can have some Mom-time). As we head to the post office, I ask Owen:
"Will you be my good helper at the Post Office?"
Response: "No mom. I will be Owen Paul Maxwell."

Pictures and stories of Christmas and Owen's first outing on skis to come soon... I promise.

A Visit with the Man in Red

We braved the driving snow earlier this month to visit the "celebrity Santa" at the Old Mill.

When I talked with Owen about what he might wish for he must have still been thinking about our thanksgiving lessons because he said he wished for "my big family." Such a sweet message, but I needed to push the commercialism and get him excited about asking for a tricycle.

Scott also did a great job of prepping Owen by talking about what Santa would look like and giving Owen the option of sitting on Santa's knee or standing by. We had a successful visit without any tears!

Here's the man locating Santa:

and the money shot:

A Christmas Warning

Warning to family - we have a 2 year old who it LOVING the Christmas Season. Consider your presents wrapped with "love." And in this case, love takes the form of crooked edges and lots of extra tape. =)

We also respectfully ask that you don't press Owen to tell you what's in your present. He doesn't get the concept of keeping a secret. Exhibit A:

Owen and I wrap his gift to Scott while Scott is at work on Sunday. I had Owen tuck the gift well behind the tree in hopes that he wouldn't remember it was there and reveal the surprise. No luck. Scott's been in the house 30 seconds when this conversation takes place:
O: Dad, come look, I wrap presents.
S: Oh, you wrapped some presents?
O: Yes, For you!
S: For me?
O: Yes, look, a Football!!

Josh Is...

Josh is 7 1/2 weeks old today. You know you are the second child when you don't get the traditional one week, one month, and two month posts. In our defense, Josh hit one week on Halloween, one month over Thanksgiving, and will be two months at Christmas. Rather than lament that I'm not getting the posts up at the right times, I'm posting some of the Josh highlights right here, right now. So.... at 7 1/2 weeks, Josh is...

...Smiling! Both Scott and I are enjoying the baby smiles we're getting this week. All of a sudden, he seems to know when you are talking to him, and it's heartwarming to watch him respond.
...Fighting Reflux. The zantac we started early seems to be keeping things manageable, but Josh does have a few feedings/day where he is contorted in pain. On the plus side, the spewing is (knock on wood), nowhere near Owen levels. Fingers crossed...

...Tiny but Mighty. We only do doctor check-ups at 2 weeks and two months, so we haven't had a scale reading in a while, but we're guessing Josh is around 8 pounds.
...Strong. I keep getting comments about Josh's strong neck, which I can clearly attribute to: 1. the great muscle to weight ratio that comes when you are only 8ish pounds, and 2. the reflux that makes us hold Josh upright 90% of the time he's awake.

...Often Naked. He loves being out of that diaper! Scott keeps joking that Josh will be potty trained before Owen because he lets us know (loudly) the second he needs a diaper change. He will even hang out by himself on the floor if he can have his clothes off - as you may notice in the previously posted Christmas Tree decorating pictures.

...Sleeping "Better." Josh has finally started sleeping some longer stretches at night - 4+ hours each of the last 4 nights AND he's going down to bed in the room by himself. That give Scott and I some much needed breathing room. Napping is still pretty rough unless someone is lying next to him, but at least some progress is being made.
...Not a fan of the pacifier, swing, car seat, bouncy seat, or any of the other sanity saving pieces of baby gear we have around our house. But, he does seem to be content on his tummy on occasion. Go figure?

...Tolerant. Of all the big brother "love" he gets all day long.

This is How we do it

What does Christmas look like in our house this year? First of all, Owen is REALLY into the Christmas story, so we have been trying to focus on Advent and the countdown to Jesus' birthday. Grandmas gave us this great Advent Calendar:
Owen is building the scene every day and can't wait to put Jesus in the manger. I think we'll have to take the calendar with us on our trip to Seattle.

I created this decoration for our mantle. I love it - it finally feels like the big impact decor I've been hoping to do for the last few years. I had great intentions of us doing an Advent candle lighting/reading/craft each Sunday, but we haven't gotten there. The calendar and our books seem to be doing the trick this year and we'll dive in deeper next year.
We hear that Santa will be bringing Josh his own stocking. Good thing - not much fits in those newborn socks. =)
We also have garland and ribbon on the stairwell and a wreath on our door. This year, the weather thwarted any attempt to hang outdoor lights, but Scott still but the white ones up around the living room. Twinkle, twinkle.

Finally, the grand finale in pictures:
This is the photo that didn't make the Christmas Card. With our delayed delivery and juggling of the baby and a trip to Seattle for the holiday, you may not get your card until 2010, but this pic will have to hold you over until then.

Thoughts on the Night

Lately, my brain is dominated by sleep and lack of sleep. Some recent observations on that topic:

One big disadvantage of having a baby and a toddler is that the songs running through my head are cartoon theme songs. Generally, it's Clifford, but the night that Thomas the Train or Wonder Pets creep in... ARGH!

Josh has slept for 4 straight hours each of the last two nights. This gives me great optimism, but unfortunately not any more sleep. The first night, he slept from 8:30-12:30, so I was still up for the first half. Last night, his stretch was 10:30-2:30, but my body is so conditioned from the last 7 weeks, that I was wide awake at 1:30 waiting for him to rally.

It's a lot easier to be diligent about sleep issues with the first baby. Last night, Scott spent an hour and a half working really hard to get Josh down to sleep. When it was time for me to take a turn, I caved after 5 minutes and just brought him downstairs to hang out. Oops! Scott called me on it and reminded me that we need to work hard now to reap the benefits later.

This morning, I spent 45 minutes rocking, shushing, reading, singing, swaying, and bouncing. At the end of it all, I was falling asleep in the rocker, but the baby was wide awake. Hmmm...

Owen's daycare is a double-edged sword. I love that getting him there gives me baby one-on-one time 3 days/week and Owen gets much needed socialization and a break from mom. On the other hand, the drop off and pick-up is a big challenge on Josh's eating/sleeping routine right now. Hopefully that will work itself out once Josh starts spacing out the feedings and taking real naps... time will tell.

I promise, more pictures are coming soon!

Conversation with the Universe

Me: Dear Universe, Just because we survived through one colicky/reflux baby does not mean we were hoping for the same thing this time around.

Universe: Hey, I didn't give you the same thing. This baby is a colicky/reflux/doesn't sleep/refuses a pacifier baby.

Me: Right. Thanks. Where's the karma? I thought we already paid our dues last time.

Uni: You sure did. But I wanted you to have a chance to apply what you learned last time.

Me: Okay, so we learned to put the baby on level 1 reflux meds right away instead of waiting until he's 10 weeks old.

Uni: See, good work.

Me: Well, how about some credit for doing things right? It's looking like this baby needs level 2 meds just like Owen did. Thanks a lot.

Uni: But see, you know what to do. And you've also been figuring out what foods to avoid...

Me: Yes. Sweet. No tomatoes. Possibly no spicy foods. Great things to avoid when trying to feed a family.

Uni: You also forgot caffeine. That's on the "no" list as of today.

Me: Thanks for the reminder. As if that doesn't add insult to injury. Sleep deprived and trying to avoid caffeine, so the baby will (in theory) sleep better. Nice.

Uni: I'm just looking out for you. Besides, I clearly remember you saying you would be willing to deal with the reflux this time around.

Me: Boy, that's selective memory. I think that conversation came with Scott saying he was hoping for a baby without reflux and I said, "I'll take the reflux again as long AS LONG AS THE BABY SLEEPS WELL." Remember??

Uni: Hmm. Well, I just heard the first part.

Me: Can we at least make a deal? How about you cut us some slack and not send us the UPS Man, Ringing Phone, or Barking Dog the very instant I finally get the baby to sleep?

Uni: What do I get in return?

Me: I'll get back to you. The baby just woke up.

Training them Early

Living in Oregon, we know we have two challenges in getting Owen and Josh to follow in the Husky tradition that runs deep through both families. First, we need to teach them the beauty of the purple and gold. Second, we need to come up with out-of-state tuition!

For now, we're thrilled to be making good progress on that first challenge. Between the two Husky tailgates in September and all the purple and gold clothing in his closet, Owen is hooked on the Huskies!

(Snacks and Football!)

Some might quibble that this is actually an LSU jersey (Thanks Aunt Tracy), but Owen can't read and he's insistent on wearing this jersey for game days and at least once/week to school.

We've been working with Owen all season to help him understand the football concept. First, he thought every football game on TV was the Huskies. We would put his jersey on game days and he would run down to the TV insisting that "THERE the Huskies" while two SEC teams were playing at 9 AM. (I think he just wanted a reason to watch TV.)

Next, he figured out there are lots of teams and that the Huskies are the ones wearing purple. Which worked great until the Huskies wore white at Notre Dame. And Owen cheered for the Fighting Irish in their Navy. Bugger!

Now, he's really starting to get it. We had the whole family over during Thanksgiving weekend to watch the Apple Cup. My mom taught him about running, throwing, and tackling and how to cheer for one team or the other.

(Hey, hey, the gang's all here)

Now, Owen wants to know the names of every team playing and gives his own little play-by-play. For the Apple Cup, we heard lots of this:
"Huskies Running!"
"Huskies Running Again."
"Huskies go fast."
"Those the Cooters."
"Cooters Fall Down."
"Huskies tackle the Cooters!"
Pretty much sums up the game, I think.

(Josh getting a nap with some subliminal messaging from Papa)

On another note, this was an unfortunate year for us living in Oregon - to watch both Oregon teams playing for the Pac-10 Championship? Urgh. At least Owen has that figured out, too. When I walked downstairs to see the boys watching the game, here was the conversation:
"Who's Playing Owen?"
"Those the Duckies and those the Beavers."
"Who are we cheering for?"
"Beavers....and the Huskies!"

Enough said.

Golden Moments

My theme words for the day were "sore" and "tired" after nursing Josh every two hours last night. Thankfully, God elected to answer my little prayers and sent me an agreeable two year old for the day. In fact, I experienced a number of golden moments with Owen that really kept me going today. This is not to say that I didn't hear my fair share of whining and protesting, but here are a few things that vastly overshadowed the frustrations today...

Owen amazed me with his observations throughout our visit to the High Desert Museum this morning (this month's first Friday field trip) and then joyfully wandered around with Hazel and Julie while I sat down to nurse the baby.

He pulled out a slew of books and snuggled up on the couch to "read" to Josh while I was nursing.

He held a personal (and very entertaining) dance party to Michael Bouble (on Oprah)... so entertaining that I rewound the DVR to let him dance again.

He joyfully headed downstairs to "play independently" after his nap while I caught a 10 minute cat nap and made sure Josh would stay down for a bit longer. Is this the same kid who wouldn't even play alone across the room from me 4 months ago???

He said please and thank you countless times - those really are magic words aren't they?
He read my mind and decided he needed to clean up his Legos BEFORE I even asked.

He ate dinner!!

He had an all around agreeable demeanor and lots of laughter during the post dinner playtime.

As we are working through these challenging newborn weeks, I feel like I am continually developing a deeper love for my first born. If these are the terrible twos, I'll take them in a double dose please. And it gives me joy and hope to know that the baby I'm snuggling will one day be amazing me with his maturity and funny observations. I'm tired, but I'm witnessing daily why it's all worth it.

You know you're short on sleep...

You know you're short on sleep when:

- Cold, day-old coffee looks (and tastes) wonderful
- You take off your jacket and try to put it in... the refrigerator.
- You send the 2-year old downstairs after his nap with full intention of following him, and wake up a half hour later sitting up in bed (I think he might have spent that half hour watching Dr. Oz on TV, but I'll never really know).
- A nap trumps a shower any day.
- Your best ideas occur at 4 AM. This week - how to rearrange furniture to accommodate the Christmas Tree, how to celebrate Advent with a 2 year old, the Holiday party plan, and many Christmas present ideas all came to me in the night.
- You spin around 3 times in the kitchen looking for the clock (that hasn't moved in 5 years).
- Among all the strange things occurring at your house, this is the list you can remember.

On the plus side, Josh really has made a vast improvement in his sleep over the last week. He's not going any longer between night feedings, but is spending the majority of the night in the co-sleeper next to our bed. That means, Scott and I are sleeping (mostly) in the horizontal position. After cutting spicy foods out of my diet last week, Josh seems to be more willing to return to sleep after feedings, so I'm able to handle MOST of the night duty myself (allowing Scott more hours of uninterrupted sleep). Naps are still dicey, but working on trying to get Josh at least one nap a day in the bedroom. In fact, as I type this, he has been up there by himself for the last hour (after an hour of shared nap with me). All in all, I feel like we're making progress, but I'm holding out judgment until we get past the "typical fussy peak" that occurs around 6-8 weeks. Cross your fingers that we make it to Christmas in one piece!

You Know You Married an Engineer

My friend, Cailean, runs an occasional series on her blog where she lovingly documents the ways her Engineer Husband shows his true colors. I, of course, find these snippets hilarious and so close to home. So...with acknowledgments to Cailean and full admission that we have TWO trained engineers in our family, I bring you the Maxwell Family version of

You know you Married and Engineer When...
Someone has calculated (accurately and without a calculator) that, "Owen is me at 1/8 scale and Josh is me at 1/20 scale."

Multi-tasking

I picked up an awesome Bebe Au Lait nursing cover the other day. I'm excited for the beautiful pattern and the ease in which I will be able to feed Josh among family and friends this holiday season. Owen is excited for the chance to play Superman...

Thanksgiving Trees

Over the weekend, Owen and I made "Thanksgiving Trees" inspired by a photo I saw on Phyllis' blog. It was the first time we really tried to talk about the concept of "being thankful," and I wasn't quite sure if Owen would get the idea. It took some prompting, but Owen came up with some insightful leaves for his tree.
Owen's tree includes:
Mom & Josh
Dad
Baking
Cousin Calla (Uncle Ryan, Auntie Sara)
Baby Doll
My Cones
Big Family (which is how we refer to all the grandparents, etc)
Snow is White
Friends bring us dinner
Baby bear, Elmo, Big Bird, Zoe
Everybody
...and my favorite...
Piper to feel better
(We missed a play date with Piper on Friday because she wasn't feeling well. When we saw her at a bitrhday party the next day, Owen walked right up to her and asked, "Piper? You feel better?" They're both 2!)

Of note: My thankful list included the usual suspects along with...
Bloom School
Sesame Street
Dinners from friends
...seems pretty clear we are dealing with a new baby and an active toddler!

Where we are Today

Wowee. I've just reread that last post and realized that my brain is a BIT scattered these days and I don't think this post is going to be any better. Can you blame me? On the plus side, Josh and Owen took simultaneous naps for over an hour in their own beds this afternoon. I managed to box up my maternity clothes and clean one bathroom in that hour. For those keeping score, that totals 2 hours of the day in which I was not holding Josh (the other being while he napped in the carseat), 2 naps in his own crib this week, 3 loads of laundry needing to be done, and one bathroom cleaned. The whole family is coming into town for Thanksgiving next week. Looks like the theme is going to be, "If you want a clean plate, shirt, or bathroom, you'll have to wash it yourself."

But that's how these weeks are supposed to be, right? Josh will never be this small again, never sleep so easily in our arms, and never be so oblivious to the chaos around him as he's crashed out in the Moby wrap. As much as I am appalled by my lack of productivity, I am truly enjoying having those 7 pounds of sweetness around me all day. I have decided that Josh has the most kissable head ever.
A few people have asked how Josh's tummy is faring. Josh started exhibiting some classic reflux signs last week (screaming after eating, arched back, angry on his back, and gurgly/choking sounds at random while resting), so we started him on Baby Zantac this week. Hopefully, taking action early will help us avoid the series of reflux related posts that dominated this blog 2 years ago. Fingers crossed.

Owen continues to be mesmorized by his baby brother. We're working on "giving Josh some space," but the brother love makes the challenging times more worth it. I set Josh down on the floor on Sunday and Owen quickly gathered a whole pile of his toys to entertain him... and THEN proceeded to sit down and read Josh a book. Seriously?

Owen has also asked to feed Josh from his own tummy and likes to drag over a stool to watch me changing the baby's diaper. Unfortunately, he also gets pretty mad when the other kids at daycare want to [GASP!] look at the baby, but that protective big brother roll is pretty cute for a 2 year old.
In this midst of our transition into a family of 4, Owen is taking full advantage of our worn our state, and managing to get a lot of "extras" that wouldn't normally come his way. I found myself stocking up on stickers and other easy craft supplies this week to help keep him occupied and I'm about ready to make a massive donation to PBS - Praise God for Sesame Street! He's also fully embraced the concept of DESSERT and is mysteriously unable to eat any of his dinner unless the cookie ultimatum ("no cookies unless you finish your meat") has been issued. Is bribery the answer? No. Is my toddler that hasn't gained a pound in 6 months finally consuming some calories. Yes. Enough said.

I am endlessly thankful for my amazing mommy friends right now. We have wonderful meals arriving at our house 2-3 times/week and I guess that is scheduled to continue well into December. Many of those meal deliveries also come with a short play date for Owen and adult conversation for me during the dreaded 4 PM witching hour. Glorious!

The latest Owen funny:
Mom: Owen, are you feeling a bit crabby?
Owen: No. Lobster.