Happy Easter!

Maybe I'm crazy.  Maybe I'm a glutton for punishment.  (I did after all have two kids in as many years.)  But, shortly after returning home from the hospital we hosted Easter weekend for our families.  Grandma Deb and Grandpa Tom came in on Thursday, as did Aunt Lizzy.  Melinda joined in on the festivities on Saturday. 

As Beau was out of school on Good Friday, Aunt Lizzy helped babysit.  We took our inagrual trip to the neighborhood park in the luxe double stroller.  Beau LOVED playing on the swingset and slides with Aunt Lizzy.  And Charlie took advantage some indirect sunlight to help with that pesky jaundice.  All in all it was a fun little excursion. 

That night we all headed over to Uncle Marcus and Aunt Robyn's for dinner.  The BBQ shrimp were wonderful.  But it was a long day; both kids were tuckered out; so we called it an early night. 

Saturday Billy fired up the pots and we had a good old crawfish boil with the family.  Keith and Geralyn came and brought the girls.  So Beau had a blast.  Man, does he love playing with the girls.  They played hard and after the crawfish were done they enjoyed a Easter Egg Hunt in the backyard.  Beau did well, except once he got an egg he wanted to open it instead of hunt for more.  Oh well, he's got a whole year to practice for the next hunt. 



Sweet Baby Charlie

Easter Sunday, Billy and I attended mass with Charlie (yes, we left Beau at home with Aunt Lizzy and Maw Maw...he was just too wired.)  The service was lovely.  And when we arrived back home we enjoyed a nice lunch with the family.  Again, Beau had a blast playing hard and enjoying his first piece...er...many pieces...of candy.  He went to bed at 6:00 p.m. that night!    

Words cannot express his joy in this tub o' balls. 

All in all it was a wonderful weekend and thanks to the help of our families, it all went smoothly and with little stress - which I greatly appreciated.  Looking forward to our next family holiday together! 

Our first official family photo...pretty appropriate, I'd say. 

Welcome to the World Charlie!

  

Charles Michael Brian

Well, it's a BOY!  Yes, Billy, Beau and I welcomed into our family Charles "Charlie" Michael Brian on April 14, 2011 at 9:33 a.m.  Our little boy weighed in at eight pounds one ounce and measured nineteen inches.  (Those figures are almost identical to Beau's!) 

And away we go!

He had a great set of lungs on him. 

If you've kept up with this pregnancy you might be thinking, "Wait...I thought April 19th was the big day."  Well, it was.  But Charlie had other plans.  I went in on that Monday for my regular visit and was informed by the OB that he just didn't think I'd make it to the end of the week (I was small; baby was big).  I came in again on Wednesday to go over some insurance papers and when he saw me he asked to check me again.  While in the exam room I told him that this little baby was really hurting me; the baby wasn't punching or kicking me but pushing really hard against my belly and back - and the pushes against my lower back were particularly painful.  My OB laughed; asked if I had ever heard of back labor; and immediately sent me to labor and delivery. 

Once hooked up to the monitors it was confirmed, those "pushes" against my back were contractions...big ones.  Sheesh...I felt like such an idiot.  This had been going on for weeks and I had no idea!  (In my defense, I never got those with Beau.  So it was new to me.) I was admitted for overnight and the staff began prepping me for an 8:30 a.m. section. 

Billy and I were excited to be able to meet our little boy/girl sooner than we expected.  But at the same time, man, I was not ready.  Poor Billy had to pack my hospital bag all by himself.  And after he and Beau came to visit me in the hospital the pair went back home for one last night alone. 

Ok, so we're new at corralling two boys at once..we'll get the hang of it. 

The first meeting.  Notice Beau's cool shirt. 

The next morning Billy arrived and shortly thereafter, my parents showed too.  The section was delayed a bit because the first section that morning had some complications (i.e., the patient was a nutjob...seriously, we encountered her later in recovery...crazy.as.a.loon.)  But the procedure went well.  This time the spinal didn't make me shake at all.  And before we knew it, we heard a loud cry and the OB was announcing, "Congratulations!  It's a boy!"  Even more special, as this time was not a "snatch and grab" surgery like Beau's, I was able to hold and kiss Charlie before the nurses brought him to the nursery. 

Can we keep him?

So far things are going well.  Beau LOVES Charlie!  In fact, he loves him so much he keeps me and Billy on our toes just making sure he doesn't hug or kiss him a little too tightly.  (Beau, much like his father, doesn't know his own strength!) 

This is Beau's favorite thing to do with his little brother - press his head to Charlie's head...quite sweet actually. 

We're adjusting to being a family of four (ok, five...sorry, Murphy).  But things are going well.  And despite the sleep deprivation that comes with a newborn, we couldn't be happier. 

Odds and Ends

Pants?  Who needs pants anyway?

With Baby No. 2 on the way, I wanted to make sure to get one last post in before his/her arrival.  Just add it to my quickly growing "To Do" list.  We've been pretty busy at the Brian household with Spring in the air.  Beau has been particularly busy learning new things and helping his daddy in the back yard nearly every day.  So, what's new you ask...

Beau has learned to feed himself with a spoon.  No, he has not yet perfected the skill, but he is working hard at it and is just so darn proud of himself when he gets it right.  He has even taken to yelling "Poon" and waiving his spoon in the air. 

Dip.

Scoop.

Into the mouth.

Mmmmm...yogurt. 

I did it!  All by myself!

We had our first watermelon of the year this weekend.  This might not seem like a big deal, but the Brians are big watermelon eaters.  We go through 1-2 a week during the summer.  So it was great when the inaugural melon was super sweet and tasty. 

Beau has been talking up a storm lately.  Among his new favorite words/phrases...

"All gone!" - usually heard when Murphy finishes his food and Beau inspects the bowl for scraps. 

"Thank you."  - said when handing you anything.  The context is not 100% spot on, but it's a big improvement from randomly saying it as he marched around the house. 

"More!"  - this one cracks us up every time.  It starts in a sweet, gentle, high pitched voice.  And it progresses to a quick, repetitive screeching.  "More, more, more, more..." 
"Nana."  - obviously his old obssession with bananas has returned with a vengeance.  This word also starts sweet and ends in the same quick, repetitive screeching like "more!" 
"Up" "Down" "Out" "Off" - little guy is quick to let you know where he wants to be. 
"Go!"  - again, he's not shy to let you know where he wants to be or when he wants to be there. 
"Eat" - no shocker there. 
"Chair" - referring to his high chair...usually heard shortly after "Eat!"
"School"  - this one was new as of this morning.  Guess those school time jitters have been replaced with a mild enthusiam. 
"Outside"  - what can I say?  Little dude likes to be outside. 
"Dude" - this one has actually only been uttered once, but the context was so perfect that I had to share.  We were at a crawfish boil with friends having a great time.  Beau pointed to my sunglasses and said, "Eyes."  So I took them and put them on him.  He turned to the crowd, tilted the sunglasses down, pointed to the crowd and said, "Dude."  And then he walked off like the rock star he is.  PRICELESS. 

Finally, everyone will be happy to know that the baby's nursery has been cleared out with the exception of the guest bed.  And, Billy put together the crib this weekend.  So, just one step closer to being ready...

In His Element

Someone once told me that the definition of a little boy was "a noise with dirt on it."  Well, truer words have never been spoken. 

Beau enjoyed his Friday afternoon "helping" his dad plant some jasmine along the fence line.  He soon realized that actually planting the jasmine was not nearly as much fun as just playing in the freshly tilled dirt. 

I'd narrate the rest of the photos, but they really speak for themselves.  Beau cracks me up...he is such a boys boy.  He is happiest outside and preferably covered in dirt or mud or water.  I love it.