Retail Therapy

What's the best way to forget about the longest travel day?  Outlet shopping of course. We woke up in Fairfax after all our kids slept like perfect angels. Leslie made us delicious pancakes with homemade applesauce and we repacked the car and started off towards Hagerstown.  With the DVD players on we had a mostly quiet trip up the road. After unpacking and unloading the van yet again we settled into our home for the next few nights. Cora and Connor in one room. Corben in another. Colin on the couch and I had a glorious room all to myself. Or that's what I thought. (Colin was sleeping on the couch because he got up each morning at 4am to go into DC with his dad for work). 

Sunday was fun and we topped off a visit with Aunt Karen and Uncle Scott browsing at old family photos and Eating yummy Mexican food read: margaritas. Keep them coming. 

Connor started coughing at bed time which in turn woke up Cora. They both settled down and then Cora woke up yelling and then Connor woke up coughing. Perfect. Connor needed his inhaler and I totally forgot to bring it. Mom of the Year!  I moved Connor downstairs to my room and I slept in the room with Cora. Luckily Corben slept. Monday morning I was exhausted and needed an IV of coffee. Instead we went outlet shopping and bought new pjs for the boys (I haven't bought Connor new pjs in over a year so he deserved some and Corben just needs more zippered pjs - since apparently we failed to discover the magic of zippers vs. snaps until Connor was 6 months old). So I bought lots and lots of pjs and a navy blazer for Colin. Apparently in his "haste" to pack he packed a black suit jacket rather than his blazer. I'm not sure how this happened but he sort of needed a new blazer anyway. I mean when you wait until the very last minute not only to pack but also to think about what you are going to pack - how could it go wrong?  Really?  Sometimes planning comes in handy but if he hasn't learned that in 34 3/4 years he probably never will. 

The kids rode a ride after each store (bribery works) and had so much fun until it was time to go go. Then it was straight home for lunch and naps. I heart nap time.

Here is a side by side of the kids in September of 2012 vs. May 2013. Wow!

Ruby Slippers

Dorothy isn't on my list of top ten favorite names. It might not even make my Top 100. But this past week had me wishing for her ruby slippers.  And red is my least favorite color (as a self-respecting Auburn fan).

Before Corben arrived we planned a trip to Maryland for a week. Colin had a work conference to attend and I thought it would be a good time to visit friends and family.  Some ideas are better in theory. 

Saturday morning started off ok but as we coasted down the airport boulevard we noticed the traffic lights were out. Not blinking. Just off. Hmmm.  We parked and unloaded our mountain of "stuff". We packed "light" considering we were going to be gone for a week. 2 large rolling suitcases and one small duffle to check. 2 carry ons (the kids each had a small carry on too but I'm not counting those). Oh and a stroller, stand on attachment for Connor and 3 car seats. But seriously we packed light.  It just took 3 trips from the car to get all our stuff in line to check bags. And speaking of line to check in. It was fairly long - not too long but it also wasn't moving. 

Remember those traffic lights that were out (I had forgotten in the rush to get everything and everyone in line. Well the power went out at the airport and even though it was back up . . . the computers weren't. Manual check-in was making a 15 minute line nearly an hour. The kids were perfect angels. Unfortunately we used up all the patience capital before we got on the plane. 

Ok so we were a little rushed by the time we got to the gate. We didn't get to perform our usual routine of filling up cups and bottles before boarding but otherwise all was good. 

I purchased Early bird check-in to make sure we could all sit together. Ha. There were already 75 people on board before we even lined up so they allowed families to board first (which is not the usual practice) -so I didn't need early bird  check-in.

We couldn't all sit together which I luckily found out a few weeks ago when I called to add Cora and Corben as lap children. I say luckily because had I found out when we were boarding the plane I would have just totally freaked out. There are only 4 oxygen masks in each row of 3 seats and there are 5 of us.  Yep. 

The "plan" was to have Colin and Cora together and I would have Corben (I was loving this plan). Once we found out it was a completely full flight we then decided to have Connor sit with Colin and Cora to give Cora a little more room to move about. We found 2 empty rows. Corben and I sat in front and the other 3 C's directly behind us. 

We sat at the gate for 30 minutes past our scheduled departure time. Kids were so good. I mean sooo good. Connor had a sweet nurse sitting on the other side of him who clearly was sent from heaven just for Colin on this trip. She totally reminded me of Colin's mom, who I'm sure would actively choose to sit with a dad traveling with 2 little kids to help out. Finally we were up in the air and on our way. 

Cora was a little squirmy when we started the descent but then got fussy when we kept circling BWI and circling. I was trying to check on them by peeking through the cracks in the seats. Connor didn't look good. He was getting whiter and whiter and fast. Colin couldn't really help him because Cora was kicking and trying to get out of his arms (but of course she had to be sitting in Colin's lap for landing). I warned Colin and the nurse that the sea bands on Connor werent in proper position and he didnt look good. Colin managed to get the tiny sick bag open. I had Corben and couldnt strap him in Ergo baby carrier because he cant be "attached" to me for take off or landing. I kept thinking:  If we could just get on the ground. If we could just get on the ground. If we could just . . . Too late. Puke on plane. Not much made it in the bag. But the good part?  Cora got quiet and still. Really quiet. Like she didn't move or make a sound at all until we were off the plane. 

Lessons learned (other than we may never fly again and I really considered driving home) : 

1.  Give Connor Extra Large Ziplock Baggie at beginning of trip. 

2.  Take the time to put sea bands back in place after washing hands (ahem)

3.  Puke shuts Cora up. Ha. 

But see if they would just put 5 oxygen masks in a row or if not in every row - a few rows so that families with puking kids can sit together and spare the poor nurses of the world from the experience of Saturday. 

So Connor felt better (obviously) and once the luggage arrived we got him new clothes and things were getting better. But how could they have gotten worse?  

As a side note, I decided to pack the kids clothes in ziplock bags this trip (wish I had saved one of those bags for the plane ride) but it was helpful to just pull out a bag and send Connor off to change  and have a ziplock for the dirty clothes. 

Ok so back to the trip. It was about 3 when I left Colin and the kids and wheeled the 3 car seats down to catch the rental car bus. I was first in line at Hertz but somehow I still had to wait about 20 minutes before someone could be bothered to assist me. Despite what I was told on the phone when I made the reservation, they would not add Colin as an additional driver without him present. And yes I had his license. And yes I am a Gold Card member (but since I didn't book the reservation under the Gold Card Colin had to actually be there). Logic? I quickly figured out that I wasn't winning this battle and agreed that it was a "reasonable" solution to be allowed to have Colin show up to any Hertz location and add him as a driver (without charge). Ok. So off to get the minivan. Um that isn't a minivan. Sure it is an extra large SUV but I happen to know that the SUV is $100 dollars cheaper than a minivan andplusalso? I reserved and paid for and re-confirmed the day before a minivan!!!  Back inside to find out what was possibly going to go right today. As the manager explained "pre-assigned vehicles" and "low supply" I just lost it. I want a minivan. The agent just sent me outside to get in my "minivan" - her words. What kind of operation is this?  Truthfully the reason I wanted the van was because I know how to install the car seats and my kids know how to get in and out with relative ease. Oh, and because I took the time to call and reserve a van months back and confirm said van the day before. So I want the van. And I want it now before you suck any more of my day away wasting my time. And I don't care why your company pre-assigns cars to people that are different than what was reserved and promised. Not to mention charging me the van price and trying to give me a cheaper car. STOP the madness and give me the van. I got the van. Now back to pick up Colin the kids and the luggage. A few stops to pick up our DVD player at Caitlin's (Colin thought this was wasting time but he was wrong. Kids were so good after this stop and Cora is now an unofficial Neverland pirate) and some pack n plays at Bob and Amy's and we were on our way to NOVA for the night. The kids played and the adults laughed. Colin and I ate our first food (literally other than a granola bar) of the day at 6:30pm. Talk about running on empty. Seriously, thank God for good friends. We had such a fun, relaxing end to a dreadful travel day.

See all smiles!  Little Joshua in the top right of the photo may be Cora's husband - or at least boyfriend. She loves her some "Jossshh". Too bad we forgot to take a bath photo!  I'll blame it on a hectic day. 

And now Corben's first flight is documented and what a day to remember!

As I type this at 5 am waiting for my kids to wake up and Colin already on the road to DC for work I am watching to OK tornado coverage and know that even a challenging day of travel with my babies is still a day with them. My heart is heavy thinking about those poor children and their parents in Oklahoma. 

Postponed

All blog posts (and I have several lined up) including Corben at 3 months and our trip to Baltimore will be postponed until AT&T comes out and repairs the phone and Internet lines that were severed today by an Alabama Power employee (who was allegedly just taking down extra lines no longer in use for our new neighbors). I can post from Blogger on my phone but I can't get the photos I want on here. And let's be honest. All you care about are the photos. Here is a bad photo of the cut lines. 

3 months

Corben is 3 months old today. Time for some adventures. Corben had his first plane ride just before 3 months. Connor and Cora both flew right at 3 months so he got a little head start. I forgot how easy babies are on airplanes. Way easier than the big kids. Especially miss Cora. 

Other than 1 night while we were away, Corben has been consistently sleeping through the night for about 12 hours. Ha I jinxed it and haven't even published the post due to the aforementioned mistake by Alabama Power. Corben slept almost entirely in my arms last night. I'm hoping it was a growth spurt and he's not sick like his sister.  

He is smiling a lot. He will smile when you ask him to smile and always if you raise your eyebrows at him. He thinks eyebrows and high-pitched voices are hilarious. He is starting to sleep a little less during the day which I guess is normal if he is sleeping more at night. I carried him in the Ergo Baby the entire trip to Baltimore from after the first and second feedings each day and he slept and cooed perfectly. It worked so well I even tried carrying the big kids.

Ok but back to Corben. Such a sweet little baby. 

This past month we had a follow up ultrasound for him due to a renal dilatation the dr noticed at my 36 week u/s. This was supposed to be an u/s to confirm the u/s he had at 1 day old was correct - no issues. Unfortunately the tech found the same small but still there renal dilatation that appeared at 36 weeks. Because it is such a small size the urologist has recommended waiting and doing an additional u/s at 6 months. I'm praying that this "works itself out" and we don't have to resort to other remedies such as putting him on antibiotics until he is 5! Or surgery. But so far he doesn't seem affected by the problem. Although I googled it (I know I shouldn't have but I went to law school and I am clueless about medical stuff) and the googlers all say that their kids didn't seem affected either but still had to go through one of various treatments. So we will see. 

Next adventure. The beach!  Stay tuned. 

The Graduate

We are the proud parents of a 4K Graduate. See what a difference a year makes? Wow!


Last year
 
5/15/12
 
5/15/13
 
Speaking at Graduation - he remembered all his lines, like a pro
Receiving his Diploma

The Graduates

Connor and his teacher, Mrs. Noblitt

The boys at the park after the reception (throwing rocks)
Elias and Connor

Playing with Sticks and Mud - Mud from the water they should have been drinking but instead used to make mud - boys!

Connor and his cookie cake compliments of Chef JoJo

21 Months and Nearly 9 weeks

Finally a photo of all 3 kids! Little Cora is 21 months old today - ha, she isn't little at all though. She is a tough little girl who loves her brothers. She has yet to really show an interest in the alphabet, (this is killing me) but she does know the letters C, X, and O. Ok, small steps. Cora lives to eat. She is funny about eating too. She ate nearly 1/3 of a Spinach and Feta pizza yesterday - like crust and all - for lunch! For dinner, we had pasta and peas, a family favorite and she ate all but 3 pieces of pasta. Then, Colin got home, filled up his plate, and sat down to eat. Cora was "all done" so she was up roaming around (read: messing up all the toy organizing I had just finished). Oh, wait, Daddy has food now? Yes, the exact same food you just ate. Up in Daddy's lap she has to be. She then proceeds to eat his food, wants his fork (which isn't an option) and eats until she is "all done" (meanwhile poor Colin is just trying to eat something). Wait, he is getting seconds, oh, she wants more. Not, more of the exact.same.pasta that is on her plate - she will scream and cry and pout - not eating those 3 pastas - only daddy's. Sigh. Strong willed child. But so sweet.

She loves lo lo (lotion). She wants to put it on all the time. This is funny to me because I never ever use lotion. She still copies everything Connor does 90% of which is dangerous. She calls herself "Ora" but she can clearly say "Coggie" so we aren't sure why she drops the "c".

Cora is a little mommy. Always strapping her babies in the stroller, swing and bouncy. She loves to play in the kitchen (the play kitchen and the real one). I've noticed both big kids tend to eat even more when they have made it themselves. So we have been cooking in the mornings. This makes dinner time easier and faster. When they want to eat. They want to eat right away.

Cora wears a size 5 diaper and is wearing 24 month clothes. She says "off" when she means off and when she means "on" so it can get confusing. Plus she says it constantly so I basically despise the word "off". "Opie" is still her version of "open" I think it is her second most spoken word. After "off".

A funny after the fact story from last week: Connor has swim lessons on Friday afternoons. Not the best time to be across town but I needed swim lessons and so Friday is the day. Connor gets out of school at 2:30 and swim lessons start at 4:15. Not really worth driving home, disembarking the van (yes it is similar to getting off a cruise ship every time) and getting back in. So I strap Corbie in the ergo baby and sit Cora in the stroller. Corben sleeps. Cora kicks. Connor walks. We walk from school to the park. Swing and slide for 45 min and have a small snack before walking back to the car, loading up and going to swim. I thought Colin was going to meet me and let me take the little kids home while he stayed at swimming. So I leisurely sat in the parking lot while Connor changed clothes and got his towel and goggles and we chatted about his day. I didn't wake up the baby to change his diaper. I was hoping he would sleep until we got home. I didn't put back on Cora's shoes because shoes aren't necessary to ride from there to the house. And since we have a garage and mud room, shoes aren't really essential at all. Well unless Colin wasn't coming. At 5 minutes before Connor is supposed to be in the pool he texts me that he is "leaving now". As small as Birmingham is. It isn't that small. Panic. I texted him to go back to work. No reason to come at that point. Corben rudely awakened. Diaper changed. Bottle mixed. Cora shoes on. Stroller out. Pack up. Hurry inside. Sign in. Connor to the potty (naturally). Hurry down the hall. Made it just 2 minutes late. Now 27 more minutes to feed Corben and keep Cora out of the pool. Totally relaxing. Ha. 4:45 - out of the pool. Change under the towel because I'm not pushing a stroller into the tiny locker room. Go the back way home to avoid "traffic". Call Colin and tell him to stay at work at this point I'm a ragged rock star and have it under control. I tell him we are eating leftovers. Yum. Easy. Done. At home I start the big kids bath. Corben finishes up his bottle in the bouncy and I scrub Connor and Cora. I'm snapping pictures on my phone. All is good. I'm basically watching a tennis match looking at Corben then looking at the tub. I can touch all 3 kids at once that's how small the bathroom is. Baby, big kids, baby , big kids, ba . . Shadow in the water, big kids. Scream poop! Cora out. Connor out. S*#! Literally. Bye bye rock star. Apparently kids do this all the time but it has never happened to us. And Colin almost always does bath. Arrggh. After cleaning and cloroxing and feeding the kids I decided I needed Mexican. My go to stress relieving meal. I would actually eat Mexican everyday. So some tequila queso and veggie quesadilla with spinach and goat cheese capped off a crazy day. For future reference - this is the "I am about to poop in my bath face" Corben is 9 weeks old tomorrow and had his 8 week/ 2 month appointment today. He is 10 lbs 7 oz and 22.5 inches long. 50% for both. He is continuing to learn his new schedule and keeping it as well as a 9 week old baby can. I'll admit that I have been so lazy that to keep him "on schedule/ routine" I will fake him out and pretend that he is getting a bath - but just put him in the water. Really, that is so lazy. He is already in the water - how hard is it to scrub a little soap - too hard for this mama unless I know he is super dirty. For Comparison: even though they aren't exactly the same age at the measurements - which drives a comparison crazy! Connor at 10 weeks: 12 pounds 13 ounces (75th percentile) and 24 1/4 inches (90th percentile) Cora at 6 weeks: Weight: 10 lbs 10 oz. (75%) Height: 23 inches (90%)

2 Months

Corben is 2 months old. Wow! It is almost May. Where has the year gone already? Don't get me wrong, I am soooo ready for Spring to be gone and Summer to arrive. The pollen is absolutely awful. Awful, yellow, awful. But, since it is still Spring for a little longer we planted some seeds Colin's mom sent the kids and enjoyed a beautiful Saturday followed by a rainy Sunday this weekend. Corben is definitely getting bigger. How much bigger, we aren't sure. He has his 8 week appointment a little late - later this week. He is on a great schedule (as I type I am afraid to jinx it but I want to remember so . . . ). He eats 4 times a day, 8 am, 12 pm, 4pm and 8pm. He gets about 7-8 ounces at each feeding. He has slept through the night 3 of the past 4 nights. It may take him awhile to get settled but he has been sleeping great once he is settled so we are very thankful. The book Twelve Hours Sleep by Twelve Weeks Old is just amazing. Words cannot describe how much we love this book. Corben is starting to smile more. I didn't really capture the big smiles in his 2 month photo shoot but he is showing off those dimples more often. We love the dimples. He is in a size 2 diaper. I put him in a rogue size 1 earlier today and he let me know that size 2 is the right size by peeing out of the size 1. Thanks! Size 2 it is. Connor and Cora still love "the baby" and fight over who is going to "hold" the baby first. Cora actually wanted to hold him instead of eating - she loves to eat so she must really love her baby. Baptism coming up next weekend so we will have lots of friends and family in town to celebrate. More pictures to come.