Wanna bite?

Uhhhh, we're still learning about manners. 

As I've mentioned before Beau has at least two pieces of raisin toast to start his morning.  Since Charlie's arrival he likes to eat the toast in our bed while chatting with Charlie.  (Yes, in our bed.  Yes, there are crumbs everywhere.  No, mom is not particularly happy about this practice.  But I digress...) 

Yesterday while in the midst of this morning routine, Beau took his piece of toast in hand, leaned over to Charlie and said, "Wanna bite?"  He won't even consider giving mom or dad a bite of ANY of his food.  But Charlie...well, that's another story apparently. 

Not sure if buttery lips are the best thing for cradle cap.  But at least it's really sweet. 

Guess the new hasn't worn off yet. 

Another Month, Another Doctor's Visit

Shots?  What shots?

Mr. Charlie turned two months on the 14th so off we went to the pediatrician for his well check.  Only this time, there were shots involved.  Blah.  But he took it like a champ. 

His measurements put him in the 50th percentile for weight and the 75th percentile for height.  Just for fun I checked his numbers against Beau's at this same time...almost identical.  I swear I gave birth to a clone. 

The nurse commented about how strong he was.  I had to lay across him to pin him down and keep him still for his shots.  This isn't the norm for an infant? 

Hooray!  I'm perfect!!

The pediatrician also said how impressed she was with his reflexes.  When she went to check his ears he immediately swatted at her hand and turned his head.  How perceptive.  :)

Obviously they ran out of the "cool" bandaids. 

While the shots did leave him pretty cranky he was back to his old self again by that evening. 

Fist pump, mom.  Good job.

Just for fun

Things are have been crazy around here - life with two boys under two has proven to be very interesting, time consuming, and at times, overwhelming.  In the mist of all this adapting I've been delinquent in my blogging duties.  This is a shame since both boys have been highly entertaining these days.  Here are some highlights...

Charlie is now giggling and smiling all the time.  He is super ticklish, much to Beau's delight!  Beau still loves kissing and patting Charlie, but now he can also tickle his little brother and get an honest to goodness giggly, happy response from him. 

While Beau still seems fairly smitten with Charlie, a little bit of jealousy has reared its ugly head.  Last week Beau was out of school sick with a fever and ear infection.  Normally he gets to stay home and have my attention all to himself.  Well, not this time.  The horror!  Seriously, Beau has always been independent, but when he gets sick, all bets are off (it's the ONLY time he refers to me as "Mama" - said in a sad, pitiful voice).  One day as I was nursing Charlie and reading a book to Beau I turned my head to check the clock.  All of the sudden Charlie let out a blood curdling scream and Beau lept off the sofa and ran.  I looked down and found on Charlie's ankle very familiar teeth marks.  Sheesh. 

When he is not nibbling on his brother's ankle, Beau has been very articulate and demanding lately.  He;s become quite the little parrot.  Some of his new words include "please," "red," "blue," "green," "chicken," and "E-I-E-I-O!"  And while he's always been fascinated with phones now he places the phone next to his ear and says, "Holla!"  His new favorite command? "GO!!"  This is usually uttered as we sit idly waiting for the light to change or when Murphy is in his way.  And lately his simple command of, "No" has turned into, "No, no, no, no, no..."  Hey I guess he knows what he wants and isn't afraid to tell you.

Speaking of not being afraid, Beau has learned that there is strength in numbers.  He has joined a gang at school.  I know you just reread that last sentence thinking surely you misread it.  You didn't.  Beau and three other bigger boys in his class were constantly picking on each other.  Well, someone got smart and the four boys apparently formed an alliance and now spend their day striking fear into the hearts of the smaller kids in class.  I should be ashamed of this, but part of me is very proud of his problem solving skills at such a young age.  (Ok, so this last paragraph will likely come back to haunt me one day.) 

Charlie has been growing like a weed...probably something to do with his healthy appetite.  He recently had his two month appointment, but I'll do a separate post on that.  Beau, yep, he's still a healthy eater too.  Seriously, I don't know where he puts the copious amounts of food he eats!  For example, one night last week his dinner consisted of SIX chicken tenders, one cup (8 oz.) of corn, one cup of diced pears, one bowl of goldfish crackers, and one bowl of teddy grahams.  At the end of this he actually had the nerve to ask for, "more?"  The next morning he woke up and ate two pieces of raisin toast and one whole banana...before I dropped him off at school...to eat breakfast with his class.  He is an endless pit. 

Yesterday I had both boys in the bathroom with me as I finished getting ready.  I looked down to find Beau with his finger in Charlie's eye.  Yes, IN Charlie's eye.  I panicked but Charlie didn't seem to mind too much.  (Note to self - don't turn you head for even a second.) 

Turns out that the boys have one more thing in common, they LOVE the umbrella stroller.  Beau has loved the stroller since day one.  We would prop him in it with two or three blankets and take off.  (Yes, I got looks from Nosey Nellies and comments about him being too young for it.  Whatever, he loved it.)  While watching Charlie the other day, in the middle of one of his crying spells, Paw Paw tried the stroller as a last resort.  Immediately Charlie settled and started smiling.  Again, we have to prop him up with blankets, but it's worth it. 

Somebody is Tickilsh!

Just Another Saturday Morning

Saturday morning, 6:15 a.m.  Both boys are early risers.  Sheesh. 

Well That Was Fast...

Such a sweet face

And just like that, Charlie has reached the one month mark.  Actually he is now closer to five weeks.  Sheesh.  I forgot how quickly this whole newborn thing flies by! 

We celebrated his one month birthday by going to the pediatrician for his well check.  I know, not exactly a party but he doesn't know that yet.  :)  His measurements (length, weight, head circumference) were all in the 50th percentile and were almost identical to his big brother's at the same age.  Well, almost.  Charlie weighed almost a whole pound heavier at ten pounds seven ounces. (I KNEW that infant carrier felt heavier!)

Flexing his muscles for the camera.
Oh, and yes, he has an outie belly button.
And yes, I realize he has a wet diaper in this photo.  At the moment I thought getting a cute shot was more important than preventing diaper rash.  You can withdraw my nomination for "Mom of the Year" if you'd like. 

The Brian family is doing pretty well.  But I won't lie, we're still adjusting.  I knew that every child is different.  But man, I didn't realize they could be this different.  About the only thing Charlie and Beau have in common is that they are both great eaters...and big eaters.  Seriously, I get dizzy thinking about what our grocery bill will look like once their both in high school. 

Oh, and one last thing.  We still have NO idea who he looks like. 

Happy Mother's Day!

My two sons...

Mother's Day seemed just a little sweeter this year with Charlie's presence.  How blessed I feel to have not one but two sons (not to mention a wonderful husband for their father)! 

Family photo - Take Two

Our day was very low key.  Miraculously even though they rose at the normal 6:00 a.m. wake up call, both boys decided to quietly and contently entertain themselves until 7:00 a.m.  Oh joy!  Billy appreciated that too. 

We attended mass (where Beau's behavior was a solid C+).  Then we spent the rest of the day watching Toy Story 3 and just enjoying each other's company - it was perfect. 



Isn't that the cutest mugshot - I mean - portrait you've ever seen!? 



Beau not only picked out flowers for me for the occasion but he made a special gift for me at school this week.  He's such a sweetie.

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.