You would think I could manage to squeeze out a few lines every other day around here, but no.

I can't believe it is August already. Which means, my little guy will be 4 in just a few weeks! Can someone please tell me where the time has gone? My baby is growing up much to fast for my taste (both of my babies for that matter). He is just counting down the days till his birthday and then the following month, Pre-school.

I'm having one of those OMG moments.

We've spent this week going to the park to have lunch after I get my 30 mins of cardio (ie: sweat dripping) in. Monkey just cracks me up some days. He will remind me that it's "exer-site time". Who needs an expensive coach? Of course the problem with my little coach is he likes junk food as much as I do.

I don't know if it's the heat or the exercise, but I've lost 4 pounds. I'm so happy with that. I don't know if I'll make my goal any time soon, but every little bit counts.

And in the little world of Rolly Polly, the boy is bound and determined to move. He will just roll every which way he can, and yes, he has discovered that he can get things into his mouth. Monkey hasn't been to happy to see his brother "eating" the toy cars.

We've also found that Rolly Polly loves to "sing". So now with Monkey's dancing, and Rolly Polly's "singing" - I could start my own little boy band duo. I'll get them to learn music later... *lol*

In the very worst way it appears.

How long has it been? Much too long, so I guess to get myself back into the habit of updating this blog/journal/whatever-this-is, time for....

ANOTHER huge update!

*insert cheers*


Okay - so you are rolling your eyes. I can't say I blame you, since there are so many more interesting blogs out there. But hey, this is my little piece of blogdom. Deal with it.
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Monkey is know approaching his 4th birthday. He is bound and determined that he will get a "Transformer" toy, so I'm sure we will have to take care of that wish. He will start pre-school in the fall (which he is very excited about). He still loves to read stories (now he will make up stories to go along with the pages in the books, along with parts of the books that he has memorized already). I'd like to brag and say he's very smart and articulate (as far as 3 year olds go) and has picked up on a number of things already (shapes, colors, numbers, letters, etc).

We had his first dentist appointment this past Tuesday and he did very well (though he has sadly inherited my strong gag reflex) - perfectly healthy teeth and gums! *insert bragging rights for me here* The staff was great and made a big fuss over him. They took some pictures of his teeth and printed out a little "scrapbook-type" page for us, which he proudly put up on the fridge.

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Peanut is now no longer a "peanut". He's officially a chunkster! So his new nickname is "Rolly Polly" for obvious reasons. Yes, that little guy is bound and determined to start moving. He will flip from back to tummy, then "swim" for a few minutes, and then flip back over again, gradually moving himself all over the living room. He has also entered that grabby stage, so nothing is safe if it is in his arms grasp. And oh how he loves his Daddy and brother.

We've also started cereal and some veggies - which he devours with gusto. He's quite happy to have some food with the rest of the family at dinner time.

Oh, and my poor little guy has been dealing with a nasty case of cradle-cap. Did you know that it can spread its way down to the face? Me either. I tried so many different remedies to no avail. I finally broke down and took him into the after-hours care last Saturday. The treatment? Hydrocortisone 1% and Mineral Oil. Yup. And would you believe after two days there was a HUGE improvement! I could have kicked myself for not figuring that out sooner, but I guess that is why we pay doctors the big $.

Thankfully his beautiful baby skin is back on the road to recovery.
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And in other news, I lost all my baby weight, and started working on getting back in shape (since there is that issue of the excess weight prior to getting pregnant). I know I'll never be skinny, but I have a few areas I'd like to tone up and maybe lose some weight in the process.

Wish me luck!

I have to post a huge brag on behalf of Monkey. He has gone 4 days without any bathroom accidents, and even bigger - 3 of those days he (dare I say it?) pooped, BY HIMSELF. Yes that's right, without any suggestions on my part, without any of the past battles, without any screaming/crying/begging (on my part). This is HUGE I tell you.

I know some of you have those brilliant boys that decided to potty train at 18 months (I still say some of you are lying about this...), but my darling Monkey is as stubborn as they come. Not to say he's a bad kid, he's just very opinionated when it comes to doing some things. We (I should say "I") started potty training a bit before he turned 3 years old. As I mentioned, it was a huge battle (and that was just with peeing). We bought "Cars" pull-ups, and "Spiderman" pull-ups, and any other type that I thought he would be interested in. We also bribed him with some die-cast "Cars". The problem was he treated the pull-ups just like diapers. So, I figured he just wasn't ready yet. I kinda-sorta-tried to keep up with it, but then of course I had pregnancy related issues (and the months of bed-rest), so really it all fell by the wayside.

Well, then Peanut made his debut and I thought now was the time to really go at this, full steam ahead. We bought "Cars" underwear and "Transformer" underwear, and some of those vinyl pants for bedtime (or long trips/church, etc). We've been going sans pull-ups since Peanut's second week home, and somewhere, somehow something has clicked. It's wonderful!

Monkey has consistently gone about his business on his own all this week, even managed to stay accident free on our brief trip to Wal-Mart the other day.

Oh and not only has he taken charge in that department, but he's also decided to start dressing himself. Granted some of the outfits are on backwards, or don't really match - but hey, who am I to stifle creative dressing?

My little baby is growing up... *sniff sniff*

Have I mentioned just how amazed I am that Peanut (okay, so it's not the most creative nickname, but given that he's just so teeny - it fits. Besides I don't think "Ratty" is as cute sounding as "Monkey". But I digress...) is here and in our house?

He's almost 3 weeks old now, and when he's alert, he just has these huge dark eyes that seem to see to take in everything. I can't get over how small he is, and how good he smells. Yes, I admit, I have a habit of smelling my baby, but can you blame me?

Aside from the sleep-deprived fog that I currently reside in, things are going well. Monkey is very fond of his
"Baby brother" and will supply his head with an endless supply of kisses (when we aren't looking of course). He wants to include Peanut in everything that he does (watching videos, playing cars, eating, etc...). Today he shared 3 of his most favorite cars with him, which is saying a lot if you know Monkey's fondness of his cars.

Peanut is really pretty mellow as far as babies go. He does like to eat (though he's not as voracious an eater as his brother was). He also loves to snuggle, which is just fine with me. You forget how nice it is to hold a little baby in the crook of your arms, to watch them drift off to sleep. I think I even enjoy breastfeeding more this time (gnawed nipples aside).

Of course as I mentioned before, there is the sleep deprivation. One can only hope that he'll develop better sleeping habits than his brother (and in the next few months would be nice). I'm still dealing with the recovery of the c-section as well. I know I should just take my time and let my body heal (readjust), but really after being on bed rest for ages, I feel the urge to clean my house, go out, and basically get my life back.

We did sneak out to McDonalds today. I know I'm not supposed to be driving, but honestly - Monkey and I were both going stir crazy, the sun was out today, and it was close to 50 degrees outside(!!!). Those reasons, plus the fact that I wanted Monkey to wear himself out so he would take a nap this afternoon, would warrant escaping down the road a bit. Right?

Anyway - we've got Peanut's hearing recheck and my 2-week post-partum appointment Thursday, and then Peanut's 2-week (ish) checkup with the Pediatrician on Friday.

Okay, I know this post *should* be all about Peanuts's birth-story, but I honestly haven't sat down long enough to compose it, and I want to make sure I get all the nitty gritty details down, so I can write it down in his baby book (which btw, I *did* start when we came home on Friday. Please, please, hold down your applause).

So far, things haven't been a major adjustment (unless you count sleep deprivation a major adjustment) it could be that I'm very lucky I have such an easygoing family (for the most part, because let's face it - we all have our moments). It seems as though Peanut has always been here. Monkey is just so involved with every aspect of his little brother's life. As great as that is, it also has it "oh my gosh - what are you doing?!!" moments.

For instance, last night I was standing in the kitchen talking to my sister on the phone. Hubby was on the computer. Peanut was sleeping in his car seat chair, and Monkey was watching his DVD of endless Goofy videos. I glance into the living room and run as fast as a woman who had her abdomen ripped open can. There was Peanut, teetering on the edge of the couch.

3 guesses as to how he got there.

Talk about your "whew" moment. So, we had to have a talk about not picking up your brother without Mommy or Daddy's help (“But mommy, he was all done with his nap”).

We've also had to have a talk about why his baby brother can't eat French fries or pizza or chocolate cereal, or chocolate milk for that matter. Monkey still protests this one, as nothing can taste as good as chocolate milk in his humble 3-year-old opinion.

Daily routine is not much of anything honestly. I'm trying to get the laundry caught up and keep the kitchen in order. But I can't vacuum or mop the floors - which are in serious need of some cleaning (I'm ashamed I just admitted that).

I must admit I'm going a bit stir crazy in the house, since I was on bed-rest for eternity prior to Peanut's arrival, and now I'm house bound for another 6 (5) weeks. I seriously would love to drive down to Wal-Mart just to walk (shuffle) around for a few moments. Or, maybe a drive over to Sonic for one HUGE Cherry Limeade - that sounds really good right now...