a mom of ONE for 24 hours

I love Nate. But I also love a break from Nate every once in a while so when my parent's offered to take Nate to the cabin a day early - I said sure.

Wes, Ryan & I are headed to the cabin tomorrow for Memorial Day weekend. But Nate and Grandma and Grandpa left today at about 1:00pm. Nate was soooo excited to go to the cabin. It's been a while but he specifically remembered that he wanted to ride the yellow, red & green cabin cars so he's stoked.

My dad, of course, had his cowboy boots on so I had to dig Nate's out of his suitcase before they hit the road. And then he put his hat on and we played soccer while my parent's loaded the truck.



I loaded Nate in his car seat and he looked around at the jam-packed car and said, "mom, where are you going to sit?" Apparently he didn't totally grasp that I wasn't joining him until that moment. He was a little bummed but snapped right out of it and started reading the Berenstein Bears.



I just got the call that they made it and Nate and Papa are already on their first cabin car (4 wheeler) ride. Apparently Nate was a great little traveler and made it on his first road trip in underwear!

And let me just say that being a temporary mom of one is heavenly. But I'm excited to see Naters tomorrow. He loves the cabin.

Ryan is 3 months old

This little chunk of ours is growing up so fast. Here's a little about Ryan at 3 months:

- he laughs & smiles.
- loves attention.
- started holding on to things and grabbing at toys.
- loves his binky.
- he is strong. we forgot to strap him in his swing once and he scooted his way out on to the tile. we are decent parents, i promise.
- had his first cold & his still congested.
- still loves his bath and gets water everywhere.
- he decided sleeping through the night isn't very fun and now wakes up twice.
- he lost his "really easy baby" status - explanation below.
- he is a big ball of gas. he farts all day long. poor guy!
- kinda like his brother where you get extremely happy or really mad.
- enjoys his sleep. From the beginning he has enjoyed being wrapped up and laid in his bed for a nice snooze.

We still get a lot of the happy Ryan but he decided to show us another side of his cute little self this month. I can't really blame him - he has turned in to such a gassy little dude. He's constantly maneuvering himself in all kinds of positions to try to get the farts out. And sometimes he just screams - day or night - & our only guess is that he's in pain. Even nursing has turned in to a struggle. About half the time I lay him down to eat he arches his back and kicks and screams. Hopefully his medicine will help. I'd love for my happy, easy-going baby to return!

It's been fun seeing his little personality develop this month. He gives a great smile and a great laugh and is constantly kicking his legs and enjoying being able to grab things. He will smile at just about anyone but Nate. He's mesmerized by him but doesn't smile. It's like he's staring at him thinking . . . "what in the world is that kid doing?" It's pretty funny.

We love this kid & it's hard to remember life before he joined us! Here are a few more of Ryan . .

Nate at {2 and 3/4}

Since I missed Nate at two-and-a-half I figured I do Nate at two-and-three-quarters.



I can't believe that Nate is already so old. What a fun little boy he has turned out to be. Here's a little about Nate right now:



he loves: to help around the house, help with Ryan, BOOKS, the library, to clean, do yardwork, cook, watch movies, being outside, playing any sport, his friends & family, to take a shower with his squirt guns, Lightning McQueen bike, Buzz & Woody scooter, to mow the lawn, parks, playing in water, his blanky, his binky (not for long!), his "friends" (george, puppy, piggy iggy, pluto), toys and more.



he loves to eat: salad (it's his favorite), fruit, cucumbers, mac & cheese (roni), turkey sandwiches (preferably from Port of Subs), apple juice, daddy juice (root beer), pickles.



more about nate:

- He can throw quite a tantrum. He's either really happy or he's not. There's rarely an in-between.
- He's always saying "i don't like that guy" when we're out and about. I'm teaching him that we do like people.
- Asks regularly if it's Saturday. He knows daddy is home on Saturdays.
- He's detail oriented and very aware of his surroundings.
- Very picky about his clothes. It's a daily battle. I didn't think I'd have to worry about this with boys!
- Potty trained! He is doing fabulous.
- It doesn't take much for him to be excited. This is one of my favorite things about him. He finds fun and joy in just about anything.

words I'd use to describe Nate: non-stop, energetic, opinionated, quirky, happy, not-so-happy, moody, genuine, loving, excited, sensitive, physical, naughty.



Some things Nate has said lately:

- As we were driving the other day, Nate out of the blue says to me - "mom, my dad's a good guy."

- He is very proud of his pooping. When he flushes the toilet he yells - "bye bye poopies! See you later!"

- Ryan was crying the other day and I asked Nate if he'd get him his binky for me. Nate says . . . "MOM, he doesn't need his binky. He needs YOU!"

- When Ryan is upset, Nate runs from the other room yelling . . . "it's okay Ryan, I'm coming!"

And best of all, he loves being a big brother.



Nate and his good buddy, Seth. Seth just moved to Utah & we're a little sad about it!


Nate and Hadley at the park.


I'm so glad I get to be this kids mama. He teaches me a lot and is overall a joy to be around. He sure can make me laugh!

dad's home - hip hip hooray!

It's a happy day when Wes returns home from a business trip. Life is just better all around.

Nate was anxiously awaiting for the front door to open tonight. He was finishing up dinner so he could play tennis with his dad the second he got home. He's a huge fan of tennis.

Ryan & I watched them play while laying on a blanket on the grass and then we all went on a walk / scooter ride.

Hooray for fabulous weather & dad coming home. We missed ya babe.

Mimi, Dan, Claire & Sam came to visit

[ALL PHOTOS COURTESY OF MIMI'S CAMERA]

Mimi {my good friend from BYU} and her family came from Phoenix to visit us over the weekend. I always enjoy catching up with Mimi in person!





Mimi has two very fun little girls. Nate & Claire played about as well as you can expect two 2-year-olds to play. They had their moments but overall had fun together. The adults got a lot of practice being a referee teaching them to share or figuring out why one was crying. But there was lots of laughter in there, too!



Nate LOVES babies that are around 6-8 months old. He loves getting them to laugh so he especially loved having Samantha around. He got quite a belly laugh out of her a few times!

We kept it pretty low key with 4 kids two-and-a-half and younger. You know you're in for a wild weekend when Nate's the oldest of the four kids!



- on Friday we went to a park and had a picnic in the shade on the grass while the kids played. Samantha was ready for a snack and Ryan's hand was the closest thing in sight.



- on Friday night, I got a sitter for Nate & Claire while we went to dinner at Famous Daves. Wes took us on a wild goose chase to get there but we made it. It was nice to have adults and babies only!





- on Saturday we went to a park with a splash pad and fun playground and then came back to the house to grill hamburgers for dinner. A little Settlers was played after the kiddos went to bed.








It was a nice weekend with good friends we don't see nearly enough. Thanks for coming, Skeehan family. We'll see ya in Phoenix in May 2011. {we've seen them every May for the last 3 years so we might as well keep the tradition going!}

TODAY.

My Orange Phone Story.

I took Nate to a different library today for story time. I didn't feel like lugging everything in so I threw my phone and my keys in the carseat with Ryan and we walked in to the library.

About 5 minutes in to storytime, I look at the carseat and see that my phone is covered in bright orange p o o p. Yes, I said poop. Ryan hadn't pooped in 3 days and decided that during storytime all over my phone was a good time to let it all out. And boy did he let it all out.

Luckily, Kiley & Hadley were with us and so I left Nate in storytime while I ran to the car to clean up the mess. The poop destroyed my phone (hallelujah for phone insurance - I was handed a new one this afternoon) but at least Ryan seemed less gassy the rest of the day.

And can I mention that I wouldn't survive in public without Kiley? She always seems to be there when I need another set of adult hands.


My "Grandpa of the Day" story.

I rarely ask my parents to watch my kids at night for me to go do something fun. Wes is currently out of town and when I realized my mom was in charge of enrichment tonight, leaving my dad all alone, I asked him if he wanted to babysit Nate. Of course, he said sure.

The occasion? Dinner with some of my favorite ladies. We served in young womens together for about 3 years in my old ward and we get together for dinner quarterly to catch up. I sure do love these dear friends of mine.

My dad was so cute with Nate tonight. He didn't just come over and plop on the couch to watch a movie. He picked him up and took him to dinner at Cafe Rio. Dessert at Nielsens. Play time at the park. And a ride on the Merry-Go-Round.

My dad rocks.

head shaving clarification . . .

No, Nate didn't cut his own hair warranting a head shave. Wes just thought it would be a good idea and a fun surprise for mom to come home to.

Not so much.

But the shaved head doesn't make me want to cry anymore. Still not my favorite - but like I said, it will grow back.

after church today . . .

We're in the kitchen making lunch and Nate turns to me and says:

"Mom, you walked around church all day today with stinky breath."

Thanks bud.

a big, bald melon head.

Yep - you're seeing this correct. My little boy is pretty much BALD.

Ryan & I were grocery shopping on Thursday night and we came home to a bald little boy in the bath tub. I was quite shocked {no, I didn't know that shaving Nate's head was on the agenda EVER, let alone on Thursday} and I have to admit that I cried when I first saw it. Even Nate was sad that his hair was gone but now he thinks it's pretty cool to look like Papa Marz.

Luckily, his hair grows like a weed so he should have some hair back in the next month or so. A mom can only hope.

it's officially summer at our house.

ryan's room

I was going to keep the nursery the same for Ryan as it was for Nate. But then when we found out we were moving - Sam convinced me to re-do the nursery. I told her she had a teeny-tiny budget and if she could find new bedding for super-cheap - I'd do it.

I think a bumper for $8 that matched my existing sheets and crib sheet counts as super cheap.

And, its got polka dots.

I love polka dots.




With all of the white furniture and white shutters - we went with dark brown walls with a hint of light blue and bright yellow. I'm loving yellow these days. {thanks Wes for painting until 2am to get it done before Ryan's arrival.}

I always keep the nursery pretty simple - it's nice to have one room in our house done!

this one is for grandma g . . .

Grandma G. {who lives far, far away in Georgia} LOVES these little babies. So here's a video update for you, Doreen! This is what we get to enjoy every day from our happy dude.

please ignore my voice!

Can't wait to see you next month.

first thrush. now a clogged milk duct & possibly mastitis.

Can my boobs have a break, please?

If you've never had a clogged milk duct (which I hadn't until the middle of the night last night) - pray that you never get one.

It's PAINFUL.

I'm just trying to feed my kid, for heaven sakes. Can I please return to the pain-free nursing days? I'd really appreciate it. :)

from the mouth of Nate . . .

This kid CRACKS me up. I've been waiting for this stage and it's finally here. The stage where your kids come up with comments that make you laugh and smile all day. Especially in his 2-year-old little voice with 2-year old grammar.

Here's what I heard today . . .

While walking out to the garage . . .
Nate: "Mom, I will hold the door open for you cause you a girl."

While walking back to the church tonight for Kyle's court of honor . . .
Nate: "Mom, your shoes are cute. Can I wear them tomollow?"
{his r's in the middle of a word still sound like an l}.

While pooping on the potty with me sitting next to him . . .
Nate: "Plug your nose, mom. A big stinky one is coming out!"

While eating spaghetti . . .
Nate: "mom, this is amazing dinner!"

And tonight, while I was reading him bedtime stories, he looked up at me and said . . .
Nate: "I love you, mom."

Oh, and last week he started calling me a silly woman. I'm not sure where he came up with that. But now, instead of saying woman, he says herman. So all day long he says . . .
"You silly Herman."

I love this kid.

life: april 2010

{a day late.}

. I'm beginning to wonder if I'll ever have time to do anything again! It's amazing how adding one kid can make it significantly harder to find 10 minutes to yourself that doesn't involve dishes, cleaning, picking up toys, etc. But I know this stage doesn't last long so I'm enjoying it - knowing that hobbies and enjoying time with Wes will return.

. I'm very grateful Wes has a job and remind myself of that often because I find myself wishing he didn't have to travel so much. Unfortunately that's only going to get worse but like I said, very grateful he has a job he enjoys.

. Speaking of Wes' job . . . April is the month of annual meetings. So for the last 3 Sundays, we were able to join his co-workers for YUMMY steak dinners at Joe's Stone Crab at Caesars Palace. It was a nice little date night for us - 3 weeks in a row! Thanks to my parents for watching the boys.

. I'm enjoying watching my boys grow up and become friends and buddies.

. Looking forward to summer. And dreading our desert heat all at the same time.

. We still hunt for scorpions regularly. We have an older couple that lives next door and so Wes now kills them in their yard, too.

. Materity leave. What's that? I never took a break from the company management stuff I do. Only a break from needy clients. But they are now back in my life.

. I cleaned the garage & pantry in the last few weeks. Those were two areas that didn't get put away very well when we moved in but now they are organized and I'm enjoying it.

. I soooo have the decorating bug for our new house. But the downstairs is going to look very sparse for a long time so I guess I'll focus on the bedrooms! Ryan and Nate's rooms are almost done . . . photos coming soon.

. I'm loving cranberry apple crystal light these days.

. Ryan's thrush is back. And it's worse. But luckily it hasn't transferred back to me and he doesn't seem to be too bothered.

. Weight Watchers is a constant struggle. I have 10 more pounds to go to get me back to my pre-Ryan weight and then I need to lose a few more. :)

. However, being the biggest girl in my immediate family has it's perks when your mom/sisters clean out their closet. I'm the only one that can inherit the "too big" pile!

. I could do without the Vegas wind we've been experiencing.

. I can't believe I'm going to have a 3 year old this summer.

. I would give just about anything to have an Ikea close by.

. I am LOVING having a potty-trained 2.5 year old. AND he can pee standing up all by himself without making a mess! I'm so proud of him - he's doing great.

life is GOOD.