Spring Fever

Well we've been busy busy busy around here! Of course with the beautiful weather outside, I've had the itch to spring clean. At one point before Easter we took three truckloads of stuff to Goodwill. I kept joking, if it wasn't nailed down, I was going to toss it out!

As part of the cleaning process, I've been trying to get some big lingering projects wrapped up like finally painting and hanging the frame I bought off Craigs list over a year ago!

And of course, I've been busy trying finish Jack's nursery since he has almost completely grown out of the bassinet so stay tuned for a post with pics soon!

We had a wonderful Easter that started the weekend before in Victoria at Grammy C and Grandpa Gary's house where little C had his first Easter egg hunt! Easter morning enjoyed a visit from the Easter bunny (spoiler alert :),

followed by an amazing breakfast and worship service at our home church of Kinsmen Lutheran. We've been members at Kinsmen for a little over two years now, and it really has become an amazing part of our lives. We are loving raising the boys among their church family and are eagerly looking forward to Jack's baptism there next month!

Jack has become so much more interactive since hitting the 4 month mark in April. He is laughing and giggling more than ever, and loves to squawk and shriek just to hear his own voice.

He and Carter continue to bond daily and Carter is really starting to be more aware of Jack's feelings. As a mom it is so touching when Jack will be crying to see Carter run over to check on him. Here they are playing one of mommy's least favorite games called 'pick a paci up off the floor and put it in our brother's mouth!' :)

At 4 and a half months, Jack hit the infamous Bumbo milestone, which was just another reminder of how quickly time is flying by since it feels like yesterday I was posting pics of Carter in this same little contraption! Of course with the reappearance of the Bumbo, Carter had to try it out. Amazingly enough, he still fit!
My mom (Grammy R) has been back and forth between her home and Dallas caring for my grandfather who got some bad news last month. He was diagnosed with lung cancer just a few weeks before his 90th birthday. He is not your typical 90 year old, and he is mentally sharp as a tac, so to see him so rapidly decline was alarming to all of his family. Prayers for John Ronayne (Jack's namesake) are greatly appreciated as he is undergoing some pretty intensive radiation at this time to try to shrink the cancer and restore some of his lung function.

Despite her time on the road, mom was able to stop by on Easter Sunday for a quick visit and to drop off Carter and Jack's first MATCHING outfits!! Needless to say, I have become obsessed with dressing them in coordinating outfits. Never in a million years thought I would be 'that' mom, but I just think it is adorable, and Mom indulged me by taking me shopping at Carter's (the store) for a couple more coordinating get-ups. I mean seriously, have your ever seen anything so cute?? :) Then again, they are adorable in just matching diapers :)
We have some big events ahead of us this May. We will be celebrating Carter's second (yes SECOND!) birthday next weekend, and Aunt Bethany's wedding shortly there after with another fun wedding and Mr. C's 30th birthday in-between. Stay tuned for pics and posts about all of our May Madness, as I plan to be better about blogging this summer. Then again, if I'm not, it's because I'm chasing after this little toot! :)

'Wait and See'

As a parent, 'wait and see' is about the most frustrating phrase you can ever hear from a doctor when it comes to the health of your child.

Jack has been having some problems with his right arm. It is weaker and less coordinated than his left arm. We started noticing it about a month and a half ago when Jack began grabbing and reaching out for toys. It is especially noticeable when he is playing on his back on his activity mat. His right arm has a tendency to lay straight out from his side or, more recently, resting on top of his head, while his left arm does the bulk of the exploring. As a result of the uneven activity, the right arm is not growing as quickly as the left. It's a very subtle difference, but as a mom, it's definitely cause for concern.

A trip to the pediatrician did not alleviate my fears. After a brief physical exam, and some questioning regarding his birth, I was told there was a notable difference, but that the doctor could not really identify what was behind the difference in arm movement. He threw out Erb's Palsy as a possible diagnosis, but ultimately shrugged his shoulders and felt we should 'wait and see'.

I was heartbroken. I realized just how badly I had wanted the doctor to tell me I was crazy and that it was all in my head, and that Jack would be fine. After a mini-meltdown, and a lot of googling on Erb's Palsy (Jack most definitely does NOT have Erb's Palsy), I had a long talk with Mr. C and we both decided that we felt very uncomfortable doing absolutely nothing when we still didn't know WHY our son was struggling to develop his right arm's coordination.

So, after some additional encouragement from friends and family to follow my mommy gut, we got a referral from our pediatrician and took him to a neurologist that he recommended for a more in-depth evaluation.

I can not even begin to tell you how discouraged I was by that appointment. The doctor did an even less in-depth physical exam than our pediatrician did! His response was "I am not impressed by the difference, let's just (you guessed it) WAIT AND SEE!"

I know many of you reading this probably feel I should be encouraged by this response, but as a mom when you KNOW something is wrong and you see your child struggling, you have an overwhelming need to identify the problem so you can fix it. Doing nothing goes against every fiber of a parent's being. So one good thing did come out of that appointment, it has inspired me to keep searching until we get some answers!

Jack has another check-up with his pediatrician in two weeks. I WILL be getting a referral to a different neurologist (one that was recommended to us for diagnosing Cerebral Palsy).

I know Cerebral Palsy would be the worst-case scenario, but Jack fits enough of the criteria, including his traumatic birth experience, and a possible seizure when he was a few weeks old (we couldn't be sure at the time), that we recognize it is a possible explanation for what is going on.

So I am forewarning any other doctor that tells me to 'wait and see', you will be promptly dismissed as an arrogant a-hole and you will be lucky if I don't tell you just where you can stick your 'wait and see' recommendation. I am a mom, there IS something wrong with my child, I am not crazy, and YOU are crazy if you think I'm just going to 'wait and see'.

Videopalooza

We recently taught Carter the concept of toasting, and he's a natural :) Cheers!


He's also gotten pretty good at naming his body parts


And he loves dancing! :)


Nothing says 'hilariously adorable' quite like a droopy diaper and the tired sillies!

The Fauxby

I needed a hands-free way to keep Jack securely attached to me while I chased after Carter, and thus we have become BIG fans of the Moby Wrap (stay tuned for a 'review from a mom' post on the Moby).

The Moby is essentially made out of sweat-shirt material, though, so it is pretty warm. Luckily, I found this amazing bamboo wrap (I call it the Fauxby :) made by Loveyduds. It is incredibly light weight, and the organic bamboo material is the perfect alternative to the Moby's jersey knit in warm weather climates!

As you can see, we're big fans! :)

The only complaint I have is it is cut a little long for an average frame. I can easily wrap it around my waist to tie it in the front and I'm STILL constantly tucking in the ends so they don't drag or get caught on something.

Tip with the bamboo wrap: DON'T FOLD wrap when you put it on. Tie it on as tight as you can completely unfolded otherwise the lightweight fabric becomes bunched and twisted because it doesn't have the bulk to keep it laying flat in the folded state (if you use the Moby, you know what I'm saying).

Christen and Jed

I had the incredible honor of being in the wedding of my good friend Christen a few weekends back.

Christen and I met freshman year when we were moving into our off-campus dorm across the hall from one another at UT. I thought she was amazing and was absolutely thrilled when I discovered we pledged the same sorority (DG!! :).

Christen is one of those women that is so unique and wonderful, you just smile when you think about her. I am so so glad she is my friend, and she's not just beautiful, she's smart and talented too!! She's finishing up her residency in Ob-Gyn and it's wonder she found time to be THE most beautiful and laid back bride ever!!

Her wedding weekend was SO much fun. The rehearsal dinner was at the County Line BBQ (yum!). And then her wedding was Friday at Barr Mansion. Friday started off with lunch then hair and makeup (and lots of m&m's and iphone music :) and then champagne and toasting before heading to the amazingly unique ceremony and stunning reception.

Christen and Jed even had an Elvis impersonator sing their first dance song ('I can't help falling in love with you') and 'marry' them Elvis style! I can not WAIT to see the pictures from their beautiful day. In the mean time, here is a shot of the stunning bride and her handsome hubby from the rehearsal dinner.

Congratulations you guys!!!!!!!

5 Star Weekend

We've had a string of 6 travel weekends that actually started back in February with my friend Christen's Bachelorette Party weekend and what a weekend it was! Carter stayed with Grammy and Grandad while Mr. C, baby Jack and I headed to Austin.

We kicked it off with a much needed date night Friday at Flemmings Steak House in the Woodlands (courtesy of a gift certificate and an amazing Grammy that provided childcare!)

Saturday was filled with fun visits from Aunts and Uncles at Grandmommy's and Granddaddy's (who played the French Harp for baby Jack!),

Jack with Grandmommy

With Aunt B and Soon-to-be Uncle Joe :)

While the boys were busy visiting, I was busy supporting the bride-to-be lunching and shopping at the Domain :)

Then we all met back up for a visit to Grandma and Papa

Then it was off to our hotel to check in.

We were able to use some points we had accumulated on an anniversary trip some years prior to score an awesome room at the Hyatt. We didn't just have a good view of downtown Austin, we had THE view (this photo was not doctored, I swear!)

The concierge even brought Jack his own baby toiletries when they brought up the pack-n-play! Talk about the life!

Of course, I dragged myself out of our luxury digs long enough to enjoy a fun dinner and night out with the bride-to-be and the other amazing bridesmaids :)

We wrapped the weekend up with an amazing lunch with my dad's sister and her family where we made the swap back in Houston to retrieve Carter.

Such a fun weekend, and Jack was the perfect travel buddy! Special thanks to Mr. C for watching the little guy while I went out with the lovely ladies.

Falling in Love

Sorry for the blogging absence. Laziness, and nothing more is to blame.

So what have we been up to? Not a whole lot other than completely falling in love with our little family of four. Jack is such an integral part of our family unit now, I really can't imagine life without him. He is THE sweetest baby and I just feel so lucky to be his mommy. Carter is just a phenomenal big brother and I can't wait to see their relationship blossom.

It's amazing how much I love Jack and how all that love doesn't take away even in the slightest bit from my love for Carter. I could never have imagined how my heart would just grow to include Jack, but it has, and what's strange is how much more I love Carter for being Jack's big brother.

As much as God gives you all the room in your heart you could possibly need to love another baby, I have found that He doesn't do the same with the hours in the day. I think the hardest adjustment from one to two kiddos has been splitting my time between them especially with them both being so young and needy. If I could double my days to devote all of myself to both of them, I would gladly do it, but instead, I find myself constantly having to choose who needs my help and attention more. And every time I am with Jack, I find myself missing Carter's cute sense of humor and his budding communication skills. On the other hand, every time I am with Carter, I find myself missing the simplicity of Jack's needs and his cute cuddly easy going baby personality.

My greatest joy comes from those moments when they are effortlessly interacting and I don't feel like I'm having to choose - when Carter is making Jack laugh and laughing in response to his new found audience, or when they are both mesmerized by bubbles. I'm getting better about finding ways to keep one occupied/distracted while I attend to the other, but it is definitely a challenge.

Ok, enough talk, here are a few pictures of my boys! :)