Two Months Old!

Zoë Kayte, you are 2 months old! 

-You are starting to have more control of your head. You're trying to look around and see all that's going on. You have longer periods of being alert and content. 

- You are on the verge of growing out of several of your newborn outfits!! I've started putting a few of your 0-3 month clothes on you. We have moved on to size 1 diapers and I'm using cloth part-time. You've received your first purple cloth diaper (hooray!) and another should be arriving any day. 

- You still love being in the solly wrap. Mommy puts you in there many mornings so she can do preschool with the boys and keep you happy/asleep. You spend many afternoons in there too for that matter :)  

- I'd guess you're about 9 lbs by now. You have your 2 month check-up on Monday so we'll see how much you've grown by then. And if you're on the growth chart! 

- We went to the Snowmass Balloon Festival on September 19. You traveled well and did great while we were there.   

- Such a cute sleeper, you won't get to wear it much longer. 

- It seems like you sleep better when there's noise rather than quiet. 

- You like the bouncy seat more than the swing. You don't seem to mind tummy time. 

- You still give little smiles when you're sleeping and sometimes I notice a dimple on your right cheek. 

- This is the outfit we brought you home in. Look how much you've grown!

- Making supper with just one arm. Because how can I put this sweet baby down?

Zoë we love you so much! This has been a fun month seeing you grow and start noticing your family more. Your little eyes track us across the room. You look around for me when you hear my voice. You have stopped crying during your baths and seem to enjoy them! We are so thankful for you!

Fingerpainting Fun!

Biggest Loser: Power Walk, A Review

I really enjoyed this workout video! First of all, the participants are all average sized to overweight. For me, this gives me more confidence as I watch and workout. On other videos it's often very thin, already fit, people working out. I can see the benefit of the "leader" looking this way because you want to see it works, but for the rest it's nice to not feel like you're the only one who is trying to lose weight or get fit. 

My favorite, and the most challenging, miles were #1 and #3 led by Bob Harper. I liked the miles led by the Biggest Loser contestants as well, it made it very relatable, but I preferred the others, so I ended up doing each of those twice in the time I had the video. I did a total of 6 miles plus the cool down video. I could see enjoying this video for a good month. It was perfect for me to get started back into working out again. They have a 3 week suggested workout where you complete a total of 27 miles, just over a marathon. If I had been able to keep the video longer, I might have followed the suggestions and tried to complete it myself. 

On the water front, I still haven't finished a gallon --agh! So today I measured out to the 100 oz. mark on my gallon jug. Since I wanted to try to drink 100-128 oz. these next few months, I thought I'd try the smaller amount first and then work my way up after that becomes easier.

I'll let you know how it goes!

This week we...

Playing outside with big brothers!

I made my own salted caramel coffee creamer. It's delicious! I don't think I'll ever go back. 

Afternoon snooze with hands on knees. 

The boys opening their big brother gifts from Zoë. 

Their first Usborne books. 

Big Book of Big Animals for Levi

Big Book of Big Machines for Zeke 

To life...full of adventures in reading! 

21 Months Old!

Levi, you are 21 months old today! I'll do my best to remember the things you've been and are doing:

- You say milk like "milt." And hungry as "hungy" it's too cute! 

Upset because these shoes for a stuffed animal did not fit

- You love your little sister a lot! You give her lots of kisses, ask to hold her, and often ask, "Where's Roë?" (That's currently how you say Zoë.) We have to keep a close eye on you since you're big and often don't even realize how close you are to rolling or stepping on her. 

- You take one afternoon nap each day. At night you typically sleep from 8:30 pm - 7 am. You always need a blanket, your cup, Scout, and "baby bear" (which is actually a fox) in order to sleep.

I love sleeping pictures!

- You have started to enjoy reading books more. You especially like your Highlights Hello magazine. 

Checking out your new "Big Brother" gift from Zoë

- You are learning when and how to say "sorry" appropriately. 

- You enjoyed the parade in New Castle this past Saturday. Once you realized they were throwing candy at you, you really got into it. At one point you sprinted after the pile they threw and then went back for more because there were some leaves you thought were candy. You keep us laughing a lot, buddy!

- You can count to 12 although most of the time you skip the number 5 on your way there. 

- You're wearing 24 month and 2T clothes, size 8-9 shoes, and size 6 diapers

- If you're awake, you're moving! You've started to sit to watch an episode of Curious George or Octonauts, but 20-30 minutes is about your limit. 

Enjoying a little more "pool" time before summer's over - September 

- Your favorite songs to sing before going to bed are "Twinkle Twinkle Little Star" because we've recently put out the turtle who lights up with stars at night. And "Jesus, Name Above All Names." Yes the Bill Gaither song. I'm not sure why, but both you and Zeke really like this one! 

Mommy helping with naptime while on bed rest -- July 4, 2015

The hat you chose for visiting little sis in the hospital

- You are finally enjoying hugs! You give them after you apologize and at bedtime and sometimes just because :) 

You came running into the hospital room, so excited to take Zoë home! 

At Misty's for special time with Mommy and Daddy 

You love holding her! 

- You are enjoying learning with Zeke during preschool here at home. 

I was taking a picture of Zeke for his first day of preschool, and you started smiling, really wanting your picture taken too!

Levi Olin we love you so much! You are our bull-in-the-china-shop boy! You are so much fun to be around with all your energy and laughter! I love seeing your personality develop and can't believe how soon you'll be two!

The Best Time is Right Now

Today is the 6 week mark of giving birth to Zoë. I've taken it easy so far, trying to get rest. When I do get out to walk, I usually go 1 mile. It may not seem like much, but I feel it is a good start. Considering I've been in the hospital, on bed rest, or post-partum for nearly 3 months, I feel slow and easy is best for my body right now. Plus, I've walked and recorded 10 miles on RunKeeper since I've been home. Which I'm reminding myself is better than 0 miles!

Hard to beat this view! -- On one of my recent walks -- Do you see the moon up there? 

Tomorrow is my check up, so I've placed a hold on my first workout video from the library--The Biggest Loser: Power Walk. I'll be happy to give a review once I've used it. I thought it would be a good starter video because from what I read, it's broken down into 1 mile segments, so I've already started doing that at a slow pace, now to see what they add to make it more of a workout. I'm looking forward to trying a new video every week for the next several weeks! I think I've picked out over 20 already so I should stay busy :)  

As I was thinking about how I might encourage myself and others to make small, healthful changes, I thought of 2 things. My 2 tips for this week are:

1) Having and Wearing workout/comfortable clothing.  

I think it's important (and I like) to dress nicely and feel good about yourself and I plan to keep doing so. But sometimes it's equally important to make exercise as easy as possible and that might mean wearing workout clothes for most of (or all) day. For me, sometimes I'll have a chance to workout, but knowing I'll have to take extra time to go change my clothes makes me reconsider my time and what I want to do with it. Maybe for me, right now, that means I'll wear workout clothes 3 days a week so I can achieve my goal of working out 3 times a week for the next 3 months. Another benefit of doing this is that I tend to be willing to play with my kids more when I'm not 'dressed up' because I'm not worried about ruining my clothes; this helps to burn a few more calories as well, rather than taking the sideline approach. Plus, what kids don't like their parents to interact more? 

2) Drinking water-- I admit, I have been struggling to reach my goal of drinking 1 gallon of water per day. In fact, I have not done it yet. I'm usually finishing my gallon in more like 30-36 hours. I don't feel completely defeated, but I really would like to do better. One of the things I'm going to try is adding a drop of essential oils to one of my glasses (in an actual glass, not a plastic cup) each day. Changing up the taste might give me just a little boost to drink more water and get closer to my goal. The oils I like to use are orange and grapefruit. And a great perk of grapefruit is that it helps to boost your metabolism!! Woot!

I'm hopeful that by implementing these couple of things starting this week, I might be more likely to achieve the 2 goals I've set for myself between now and the end of the year. What healthy living goal(s) might you set for yourself for the next 3.5 months? The year is not over. You can achieve your goals at any time, whether they were your New Year resolutions or brand new September goals.

To life... full of setting goals all year, not just in January!  

End of Week Recap

This week:

Monday-- Pop-Pop came to meet Zoë.

Tuesday-- Zeke started preschool here at home.

Wednesday-- Eating watermelon in a tent on the porch. Only 11 days of summer left!

Thursday-- We played outside a lot, but didn't take any pictures :) 

Friday-- Today was Zoë's due date. Here she is at 5 weeks and 5 days.

To life... full of ordinary days which make up the days we will look back on and remember and smile!