Open wide

Finn had his first dentist appointment today...and was a super big boy.

The dentist was impressed with Finn's ability to follow instructions and not "freak" out. Overall, Finn's teeth look good and he doesn't have any cavities. Yay. The facial asymmetry, at least from a dentistry perspective, isn't severe and the asymmetry in his jaw/teeth can most likely be corrected with braces down the road and in a worse case scenario, surgery. The dentist could tell that Finn is a thumb sucker based on how his teeth are growing, but they don't do anything to correct that until he has his permanent teeth. The dentist said it was a case of the chicken and the egg: are Finn's teeth deformed because he sucks his thumb, or does he put his thumb in that spot because it is deformed? He recommended seeing the craniofacial team at Children's (Finn's pediatrician had the same recommendation), but since the dentist thinks things are good for now, I think we might put that off until Finn is older. The dentist wants to see him in 6 months because Finn has deep grooves in his back teeth (just like his momma!) and he wants to make sure cavities don't start developing.

Now that we've gone to the dentist, we should probably start making a bigger effort to brush Finn's teeth every day. Oh, just another thing to add to the schedule! The good thing is that Finn will do it himself and does an okay job, but HATES when mommy or daddy check to make sure. And the hygienist said to start flossing the teeth that are touching each other...yeah right. Does anybody have a straight jacket?!?!

Little tikes

Our fun new purchase:

I've been looking on Craigslist for awhile for a slide that Finn can use by himself (they are ridiculously expensive when they are new). We have a bigger gym/slide from my aunt Karen, but it is too big for Finn right now. I just happened to look yesterday morning and this one had just been entered at a very reasonable price (others were listed for twice as much!). I called her immediately and Jim left five minutes later to pick it up. It was outside in the yard when Finn got up from his nap and he LOVED it. Can't wait for a summer of fun!

I added a new recipe to the recipe page. It is for oatmeal chocolate chip cookies. I've made these several times and everybody always says how good they are. Plus, I can never find the recipe when I need it, so now I know where it is. I like to make these cookies for new moms who plan to breast feed, as several of the ingredients are known to boost lactation. But don't worry, if you aren't lactating, it won't cause you to! Finn and Jim eat them all the time :)

A very Happy Mother's Day wish to my mom! Even though I don't get to see you in person today, please know that I love you and appreciate all you've done for me as my mom. Also, Happy Mother's Day to all the ladies in my life who happen to be moms. Thank you for all the wonderful examples I have to follow (and lean on)!

Duh, swimming!

We had a wonderful, albeit tiring, day in St. Cloud with auntie NaeNae yesterday. I found a dress for me to wear at baptism. It is a little dressier than I was thinking, but I guess you'd rather go on the dressy side than casual side...and I got a great deal on it (gotta love JCPenny's Mother's Day sale!). Now I hope I can find my silver shoes and sweater to wear with it. Finn had a blast on the mechanical cars at the mall...there was a play area right next to them and he didn't even look in that direction.

I don't think he knew that the cars could move, so we didn't even put money in them. Oh, the simple things in life.

After shopping, we had lunch. I planned on us having Subway (healthy!), but there was a Sbarro next door to Subway and I knew that if auntie was getting pizza, Finn would NOT eat a sandwich. So he ate almost as much pizza as she did! Seriously, this kid can eat. Then we went back to auntie's "partmet" as Finn said. Finn napped shortly, but had a hard time falling asleep. Renae colored my hair, cut Finn's and then we FINALLY got to go swimming.

Finn had a ball! I think he would have stayed at the pool until midnight, if I'd let him. Thank you, auntie for going in with him! This post-preggo body was NOT getting into a swimming suit ;) Finn even got to swim with Nick for a bit before we had to leave.

We had such a great time and got a lot done. Still no baptism bib for Korri, but I'm hoping to have time to run out this week and try to find one. Thanks for having us, Ernie! Hope you got to rest and do nothing the rest of the evening. I was exhausted when we got home! And when we did get home, Finn got a super surprise: auntie Becca, uncle Pete and AUSTIN were at our house! How much more can a boy handle in one day?!?! Needless to say, Finn slept really well last night and didn't get up until after 10 this morning!

EIGHT hours!

Special alert: Korri went from 10pm until 6 am last night! And then she only woke up at 6am because I was in pain and NEEDED her to wake up and eat. I know it was only one night, but I'll take it. Now, if she would just figure out a way to scream less in the evenings on a regular basis, we'd be all set and have nothing to write about ;) A nice problem to have.

Korri, Finn and I are headed to St. Cloud today to see Auntie NaeNae! I'm really looking forward to the trip, but we have lots planned and I hope we get to it all. I need my hair colored and Finn needs a cut. Korri is practically bald now, so we won't have to worry about her hair cut for a long time! I would like to find a dress for baptism...it's next weekend, what's the big rush? I have a specific style/image in my mind, so I know it is going to be tough to find it. I need to find a baptism bib for Korri (the Christian store I ordered her bible at didn't carry them any more). AND Finn would revolt if we didn't squeeze in some time for swimming. All in one day? We might have to stay all week!

Sister bragging area: Renae is in school for architecture and her plans/design for next year's spec house were picked among all the other students in the school! This is huge for her, as when she graduates, she'll already have "built" a house and have something for her portfolio. AND it is a "special needs" house so it shows she knows all the rules, regulations and laws around that. I'm so proud of her. I guess when "somebody" suggested you become an architect...they knew what they were talking about!!! Hee, hee. Congrats, baby sis.

Close to the tree

Jim got home really late last night. Finn was super excited to see him this morning until Jim grabbed him and tackled him on our bed. I think Finn is afraid he will have to go back to sleep or something!

A very big huge thank you to my cousin, Dan. He, who happens to be an electrician, came over Tuesday to fix our wonky electrical issues in the upstairs. And now, Korri can have a functioning space heater in her room without shorting out the entire floor! I'm so happy. She was probably fine, but as Becky can attest to, Korri's room can get pretty chilly (it was Becky's room for a while). Now I don't need to obsessively put fleece on her every night (or freeze when I feed her).

As a parent, there are plenty of moments when you want to pull your hair out, lock your kid(s) in a closet or just leave and never come back (or at least for a long time!). No? Maybe it's just me ;) Anyway, today Finn's actions just made me stop, appreciate him and smile. He was watching Super Why (possibly his favorite cartoon) and he told me that his hair was getting long. I'm guessing he heard it from somewhere else?!?! Anyway, I told him that Auntie NaeNae was going to cut it tomorrow and maybe even go swimming with him (she has a pool at her apartment). He reacted exactly how I would have, if I had received really exciting information (FYI: He LOVES swimming). He started over exaggerating his words and was REALLY into Super Why and kept kind of bouncing up and down. I asked him if he was excited and he said, "yeah." I tend to have strong reactions about certain things as well. It was just a moment that I'll cherish. Not that I want him to be exactly like me, but it just proves the apple doesn't fall far from the tree.

This is a picture of me and my babes that my mom took and I wanted to share:

Cute, cute, cute!

They are ready! For your viewing pleasure, Korri's 3 month pictures:

www.jessicahislop.com/clients/Korri
password: 3months

I know it gets repetitive, but, as always, Jessica Hislop is/was amazing. Korri is such a serious baby a lot of the time, that I was concerned we wouldn't get many goods pictures. However, I needn't have worried. Jess did a great job of getting a lot of variety of Korri's expressions. I just love them. Jess, thank you so much. You deserve some type of award :) And I'm pretty sure Korri deserves an award for holding up her head the longest...seriously, she was a rock star!

What's that?

Finn's somewhat new thing is to ask "what's that?" It is really cute and not nearly as annoying as "why?" but I know that phase is coming, too! We were on a walk today and he kept asking what things were. I just love being able to communicate so well with him. His other common question is, "What are you doing?" This one isn't as cute as "What's that?" but it just shows me how aware he is of his surroundings.

Finn is now allowed to go up and down the stairs by himself (meaning no parent standing behind him). I prefer when he does it on the basement stairs because there is carpet at the bottom of them, but he does a great job (and I don't have a heart attack if I don't watch him). He always asks first whether he can go up or down. I like that so I know to listen for him (not that I wouldn't hear him fall!).

I think I dare say that Korri is only getting up two or three times a night now! I am so grateful. She is still very fussy in the evenings and likes to be held pretty much all day, but I feel like her colic is slowly getting better. She also occasionally lets me put her in the swing or bouncy seat for a few minutes at a time, which NEVER happened before. This is the best because it gives me a few minutes to do things like go to the bathroom and use both of my hands at one time!

Daddy had to go on a last minute work trip tonight and man, did I notice how much I rely on him in the evenings! It isn't that I can't do it by myself, but with Korri crying and only one parent, it makes dinner and bed times kind of tough. Eventually, she just has to cry it out because poor Finn does need my attention (and both hands!) some times! Jim should be back tomorrow, hopefully. Yay!

Froze out

We ended up getting froze out yesterday at the walk. We lasted about forty-five minutes or so and then we had to make the tough decision to leave before the walk even started because it was too cold for Korri. I wanted to tough it out, but Korri was pale and lethargic (despite bundling her up)...so it was time to get her home and warmed up.

Please don't think that our decision not to walk reflects our lack of appreciation of your donations! We all really wanted to walk, but as you know, when you have kids, you need to make tough decisions and put them first. Hopefully next year will be warmer than 22 degree wind chill and snow flurries (seriously, it IS May, right?).

In the time that we were there, Finn got to see Spider Man, the Vikings Cheerleaders and GOLDY! Needless to say, Finn had a good time, even if we weren't there very long.

Walk this way

Today is our March for Babies walk! My, the emotions it evokes. We are really excited and even more excited that it isn't raining (like last year!). We could use warmer temps and calmer winds, but we'll take it. We borrowed a double stroller from Arks (THANK YOU SO MUCH!), so it will be nice to have the kids in one place (we could have brought both of our strollers, but that seemed like a lot of unnecessary work). If Jim likes this stroller, maybe we will be able to finally buy a double stroller! Yay.

A HUGE thank you to my mom for walking with us today. The support really means a lot. And also so much appreciation and thanks to everybody who made a donation to our walk this year. We really are so blessed to have family and friends that care so much about us and of course, Finn's health. Our journey was not easy, but has made us the family we are today. I am so thankful to have a happy, well-adjusted little boy who brings so much joy to so many lives on a daily basis. God blessed us the day he gave us Finnegan and without the support of organizations like March of Dimes, I don't think our journey would have brought us to the wonderful place we are today. We know times are tight and really and truly appreciate each and every donation that was made. THANK YOU!!! Hope we don't freeze ;)

Look who's three!

Three months, that is! Korri "turns" three months old today. I know it gets old hearing it, but so crazy that she is that old already. Here are some development things for a three month old.

Your baby has been able to recognize you since she was just a few days old, but now she may actually be able to show it. About half of babies this age begin to exhibit an obvious recognition of their parents. [I think she recognizes me, but hard to tell at this age.]

Here are some other milestones to look for.

Movement Milestones
Raises head and chest when lying on stomach [for sure!]
Supports upper body with arms when lying on stomach [yes, when arms are propped under her for her]
Stretches legs out and kicks when lying on stomach or back [I think so]
Opens and shuts hands [yes]
Pushes down on legs when feet are placed on a firm surface [yes, this is new for us because Finn didn't so this until, well, forever]
Brings hand to mouth [thankfully, yes!]
Takes swipes at dangling objects with hands [haven't noticed this yet]
Grasps and shakes hand toys [haven't given her toys, but grabs at others' fingers]

Visual and Hearing Milestones
Watches faces intently [yes]
Follows moving objects [yes]
Recognizes familiar objects and people at a distance [not sure, but I think so]
Starts using hands and eyes in coordination [I don't think so]
Smiles at the sound of your voice [yes, my voice anyway]
Begins to babble [yes, she tries so hard and only a little comes out!]
Begins to imitate some sounds [she LOVES this game]
Turns head toward direction of sound [yes]

Social and Emotional Milestones
Begins to develop a social smile [yes]
Enjoys playing with other people and may cry when playing stops [haven't noticed this yet]
Becomes more communicative and expressive with face and body [yes]
Imitates some movements and facial expressions [yes, a little bit]

Daddy day

Jim took Monday off, so we got to have another family day, which is always great. Because he had the day off, daddy got to go with us to Preemie class. When Finn started going to Preemie class, they were in the evenings, so Jim got to go along. Now they are during the day and it had been a long time since he could attend. We were getting ready to go and Finn kept telling daddy good bye! He didn't understand that daddy was coming with to class. Once there, Finn had to show off for daddy and show him all the toys and balls. It was great.

After class, we had Korri's 3 month photo shoot! Crazy that she is almost 3 months old already. Daddy and Finn dropped Korri and me off at Jess's house and they ran an errand while we were there...so Finn wouldn't get bored. Korri is such a serious baby that I wasn't sure if we'd get many different and usable shots. But, of course, I shouldn't have worried as Jess worked her usual magic and even got Miss K to smile a few times. Here is a sneak peek from Facebook (for those of you who aren't on FB!):

Look at that head control...and she did this for most of the shoot! I have to say, this may be my favorite all-time picture that Jess has taken (I almost cried when I saw it for the first time)...and considering how many pictures she has taken of my family, that is really saying something. I feel redundant with always praising Jess and her ability, but it is always well deserved. She is amazing each and every time. Can't wait to see the rest, Jess!!!

In the afternoon, NeNe came over for a visit. As always, Finn was thrilled to see her.

Alleluia! Alleluia!

What a wonderfully low key Easter! We went to church as a family and Finn was a super duper good boy! Daddy didn't even get mad once, which is saying something. I wish Finn would behave that well every time he went to church and he could go with  me every week. Korri slept through mass and didn't even get out of her car seat...so much for her cute Easter outfit!

And to make mass even more perfect, the recessional song was one of my favorites: Alleluia! Alleluia! Let the Holy Anthem Rise. You gotta love Easter church songs...so uplifting and positive.

While Finn was napping, the Easter Bunny came! He set up an Easter egg hunt, which Finn totally loved. I just love making new memories with your kids and seeing the magic of the holidays through their eyes.

He even found one egg that we missed while hunting. What a good eye! The Easter Bunny gave Finn a soccer ball, which Finn loved. He'd been asking for one for weeks, so it was a good "reason" for him to get one. We hope everybody had a wonderful Easter filled with child-like wonder and joy!

Healthy dose of Erica

We were spoiled this weekend. Erica, my "almost a teenager" cousin, came over Thursday night and stayed until last night! Man, I LOVE having her here. She is so easy to be around and is a major help with the kids. Hope we get to have her over a lot this summer! It helps that after he warms up, Finn absolutely LOVES her and wants her to follow him around like a puppy all day long!

Jim took Friday and Monday off, which is a nice surprise. Which means, on Friday, I got to go over to Laura and Matt's all by myself and meet Daphne, who wasn't even a week old yet! I know Korri was a newborn only two months ago, but it is amazing how quickly you forget how little they are! And it made me see how much Korri has progressed from a newborn and is interacting with her environment. Daphne is so cute and already holding her head up and sucking on her fingers! Protegy baby...which wouldn't surprise you if you know her parents!

On Saturday, the five of us went to the Gopher football spring game. It was a fun family outing, but it was too cold for my taste (as far as I could feel, it never got above 50 degrees like they promised). We found Finn's old sweater that Nana made him and it fit Korri perfectly. As you can see, we are definitely a "Gopher family" through and through (Erica even wore one of my Gopher sweatshirts!).

Korri slept the entire time. I think she likes being in the carrier. Jim and Finn walked around for a bit and Finn got to meet the Easter Bunny.

I guess everybody loved Finn's Goldy hat (it is Jim's from when he was little...that's what I call vintage!). It was Erica's first football game ever, even though it was really a scrimmage and not a real game. I don't think I converted her over to being a football lover, but that doesn't mean I'm going to stop trying!

Cuddle bug

There are many things I love about our life now that Korri is here. She has changed our lives in so many wonderful and unexpected ways. One of the unexpected ways is...Finn will now cuddle with me! Finn has NEVER been a cuddler, much to my sadness. But now it seems that because my lap is full most of the time, he often asks to sit on my lap or wants up when I'm walking around. Well, today, we were getting him ready for nap and he asked to rock in his chair! Um, yes please! I sang Jesus Loves Me and when I was done, without lifting his head, he says, "Minnesota, please?" So, I sang the Rouser! I loved every second of it, even if Korri was screaming downstairs.

We got to go to ECFE this morning! I was so happy for both Finn and my sakes. At class, they always have a craft or coloring project to do, but Finn always wants to play with the trucks and kitchen, so he almost never participates. Well, today they were making bunny ears and he actually wanted to do it. Here is his final product:

The cutest Easter Bunny I have ever seen, if I do say so myself! I got a better pic with my camera, but haven't uploaded it yet.

We are now a two car household again! Couldn't be happier.

A belated congratulations to our friends, Laura and Matt, on the birth of their daughter, Daphne, who was born on Sunday. We were going to stop by today after class, but had to reschedule to tomorrow. Can't wait to meet her!

Parlor tricks

Do I dare mention Korri's sleep schedule? Sure, I'll risk it. It seems that baby girl's body has figured out the difference between night and day. She still sleeps a ton, but now when she falls asleep after 8pm-ish, it is a much deeper sleep than she does during the day. And she usually sleeps straight without waking up for 4 to 5 hours! Yay. Then the rest of the night, she usually goes 3 to 4 hours, but that means I usually only have to get up twice, if I time things right. Hopefully this continues and only improves as she gets bigger.

Her rash seemed to have disappeared. She seems much more comfortable, too, so hopefully that was the problem and it is gone for good.

Korri and I went to auntie Becca's bridal shower in Murdock on Saturday. Auntie Kristine drove, which was much appreciated (especially since I'd gotten 4 hours of sleep the night before thanks to Korri and Jim!). The shower was nice and Becky got lots of great stuff. Korri got passed around the whole time, which was a nice break for me...then she screamed the entire way from Murdock to St. Cloud. Poor Grace (who was in the back seat with her). Jim and Finn hung out at home all day since they were still car-less (Jim said his car SHOULD be fixed by the end of this week...).

Sunday, we went over to Born's for an over due visit and color Easter eggs! Finn is still a little young to "get" coloring eggs, but he did three or four before he was done. I thought that was good. It was hard for him to wait and at one point, he just took the egg out and put it in other colors! Quinn LOVED coloring eggs and by the end, had all the colors mixed into one container, much to her mother's chagrin. We had a great meal and then headed home later than we'd planned. Luckily, both of our kids are pretty flexible when it comes to things like that.

Yesterday, the three of us dropped daddy off at work (it was really hard for Finn not to go in with him!) and went to Preemie class. Finn can draw  horizontal and vertical lines! They had a paint station set up and he figured it out. So I'm not a terrible mother after all ;) He also amazed me with his ability to climb on, through and around their obstacle course/jungle gym. I guess his gross motor skills are improving!! Yay.

After class, lunch and nap, we picked daddy up at work and went to a financial planning meeting (yes, with both kids!). I was pleasantly surprised at how well behaved Finn was considering the meeting lasted over 45 minutes. He got squirrelly at one point and I gave him paper and pen and he drew for a long time. Then he showed off his Minnesota Gopher knowledge to the financial planner. Gotta love parlor tricks :) Once she fell asleep, Korri was fine, too! Ha, ha.

Last night, Ryan and Leah dropped off a rocking chair! Yay...now we have one in each of the kids' rooms. We didn't think we needed one in Finn's room until we didn't have one any more. Ryan's mom was getting rid of one of hers, which happened to be pink-ish color, so it works perfectly in Korri's room. Thanks, guys, for delivering it!

All is not lost

I forgot to mention that Korri actually lost an ounce since her appointment last week (9 days ago). I was thinking she should be about 12 pounds and she was 11 pounds 7 ounces. As I'm sure you can remember with Finn, losing weight is such a sensitive subject with me, but I think I handled it well. I asked the doctor if she was concerned and she said that it was most likely due to her cold and that once she is feeling better, she'll eat better. If I'm still concerned in a week or so, she said to bring her in for a weight check, but hopefully that won't be necessary. Darn plugged nose! Hard to eat when you can't breathe through your nose. AND she has been sleeping through a couple daytime feedings the last few days, which probably isn't helping her weight, but hopefully helping to kick this cold to the curb.

Also, if you noticed, our March of Dimes ticker changed amounts and goal. If you made a donation, it was not lost! I just created personal pages for each of our family members because then we all get t-shirts to wear on the walk. Each personal walker needs to have raised $200, so I had them move the money around a little bit. It doesn't mean we appreciate your donation any less! Quite the opposite...we are grateful that we had enough donations to be able to do this. You can see our "team" total by clicking the link on the right and clicking on "Member of team name: Finn's team." If you haven't donated, you still have time!! Any donations of any size are greatly appreciated.

Happy adjusted!

Both kids are a little under the weather with a spring cold. It continues to amaze me how much snot one nose can produce! However, I had to take Korri to the doctor today. She has had a rash for over a week and it has spread, she had a low grade fever and was having problems sleeping (one night, I was up at least twice very hour!). The doctor said that she is definitely reacting to something, but thinks it is environmental, which is good, I think. Her cold is probably making it worse, which is why we noticed it and it seems to be bothering her. They gave us a steroid cream to put on and also suggested a thick cream all over her body twice a day. Hopefully baby girl feels better soon! It looks so painful.

Today is Finn's adjusted second birthday! I know it doesn't have any real significance, but it is a date that I will forever remember...a goal we didn't reach. But that being said, he is such a miracle. His gross motor skills seem to be improving by the day. His EI PT said to slow him down until they make his plan for next year or she won't have a need to come! Ha, ha.

Go Twins!

First, I forgot to mention that our amazing, wonderful nephew, Austin turned FIVE on Saturday! How is that possible?!?! He was with his dad on Saturday, so we didn't get to wish him a happy birthday in person, but Finn kept telling him "happy birthday, Austin" all day long.

Sunday, we had a great family day. It was uncle John's 30th birthday and Kelsie planned a surprise party in a suite at Target Field for a Twins game! All four of us went and had a great time.

I think Finn was ready to move in...he LOVED it. Korri slept most of the time, which was kind of nice. John was 100% shocked, which if you know John, is amazing he didn't make Kelsie give away the secret (it's happened in the past!). I made a cake for John, but found out Saturday when I was 95% done that you can't bring a cake into the stadium. Boo!

It turned out okay, but not exactly to the standard I was hoping. Lessons learned for next time. Of course, John loved the baseball theme, so that's all that mattered! The family came back to our house afterward for cake (Gram's Boston Cream Pie!) and ice cream. Other than the Twin's losing, it was a super wonderful day!

Jim blew a tire Saturday driving over a pothole, so the kids and I have been home bound and immobile all week. Boo! Hopefully his car is fixed soon! I'm so not used to being a one car family.

Reenactment

This is a reenactment of Korri Saturday night after I put her to bed:

No big deal; just like any other night (except it was dark and she had jammies on!). Yes, she sleeps on her tummy...get over it ;)

Jim's cousins, Dave and Matt, were here and Dave was obsessed with our video monitor. He kept looking at Korri and saying, "She keeps moving her arms around." Still, no big deal. Then he says, "She just rolled over." Now, if you know Dave, he can be somewhat of a joker, so Jim and I both were like, "yeah, whatever." Then Dave turned the monitor so we could see it and this is what we saw:

Sure enough...she was on her back!!! I pretty much freaked out. Once she was on her back, she was either scared or ticked off, so she was screaming and I promptly went to get her. I still can't believe it. Our big girl, rolling over completely unassisted! This is what PT said we should teach her to do since she does sleep on her tummy. I guess she is a quick learner!

Big brother duties

Apparently when you are a big brother, there are two things you must do.
1. Help feed your sister by giving her medicine:

And doritos (can you see the residue around her mouth?):

Jim obviously didn't let Korri eat one, but it was pretty funny.

2. Teaching your baby sister, who can't even coo much yet, to be polite. Finn got upset after giving Korri her soothie and he said to her, "Thank you, baby Korri." Like, "You should really say thank you, Korri!" I guess we are doing something right if our goal is to have a polite child(ren)!

We had a minor scare last evening with Korri. She got what looked like hives all over her back, neck and some on her face. Jim talked to the nurse line and after eliminating a lot of symptoms, they said to keep a watch on her over night and told us certain things to look for. We were concerned mainly because she'd just had her vaccines and didn't know if she was reacting badly to one of them. Well, in hind site, I think it was heat rash. I'd put her in a fleece sleeper when we went outside to play and didn't take it off when we came in. Those things are super warm. When you combined the redness from being too hot with her patches from dry skin, it looked pretty bad. After a very fussy night, she was much better today!

Anybody watching American Idol? I can't believe Pia got voted off. I didn't think she would have won it all, but I thought top three or four for sure. Thanks aunt Kelsie for the coming over and holding Korri all night ;)

First this, then that

We've been having some struggles with Finn and consequences. When we need him to do something like put his shoes on or eat his food at dinner, he dilly dallies and "drags" his feet for what seems like forever until one of us gets angry and it becomes a huge power struggle. Finn's EI teacher, Deb, said this week that it is absolutely normal for this age to do this, which kind of made me feel a little better. She made a GREAT suggestion on how to fix it: word your requests as "First you need to put your shoes on, then we can go to the park." We started trying to say it this week...and it works! Not all the time, but at least we know he understands because the command is so simple and straightforward. And even if he doesn't comply, he seems to understand and move on to something else (like when we say "veggies first, then more pizza" or something like that). Hey, my fingers are crossed and double crossed that this works!

I think I forgot to mention yesterday that Korri's doctor is putting her on Prevacid, a stronger antiacid than Zantac. She said it is basically all we can do to try to make colicky babies more comfortable. Now, of course, it isn't covered by our insurance, so they have to get a preauth, which can take days. Hope it all works out!

And dare I say, that I finally caught Korri smiling on camera?

A little smile anyway. Of course, as soon as I shut the camera off, she had a full blown, full face smile and coo. Oh, she has started cooing a lot more in the last day or so. Before that, she would "coo" but really she was just gearing up to cry! I love this stage :)

2 month well-child

The four of us went to Korri's 2 month well-child appointment this morning. She is a healthy, growing little baby. They measured her height to be 21 3/4" (but the first time they measured her longer, but couldn't remember the exact measurement...I don't like how they measure height for babies because it isn't very accurate). Anyway, that is the 10th percentile (it is SO nice not to have to include her adjusted age!). She weighed 11 lbs 8 oz, which is just under the 50th percentile (I've NEVER had a baby in the 50th anything...well except head, I think!!). Glad to hear about her weight, just because when you breastfeed, you never know how much they are getting. The doctor said she looks amazing.

Warning: This may paragraph be TMI, so skip if you don't want to hear about baby body functions! We brought up a few things that concerned us, like her incessant crying because we were afraid she might be in pain. And the dr confirmed that based on the symptoms we told her, Korri has colic. Boo! I was hoping it was something else so we could fix it. "Luckily" colic usually subsides by 4 months, so "only" two more months of this. Yay?!?! We also mentioned that Korri only has a bowel movement every 2 or 3 days and when she does, it is completely watery. She said breastfed babies can have watery stools and it isn't a concern and also that it is fine for breastfed babies to go a week without having a bm. However she seems to be extra uncomfortable when it goes more than two days, so, the dr suggested giving her a suppository as needed. I don't want to use them regularly, but it is good to know if it has been a few days. Korri has very dry skin, just like Finn did at this age, so I need to be better about putting on a thicker, more effective lotion on her. And she is developing cradle cap, so I need to work on keeping that at bay by rubbing oil on her head and them carefully scraping the flakes/scabs off. Finn only had it for a couple days, maybe, so I didn't have to really treat it with him.

After one oral and three shot vaccines, we got to go home. Korri was a trooper for the shots...she cried while they were giving them, but once they were done and she got her soothie and could cuddle with momma (melt a mommy's heart!), she was all better. What a big girl. Overall, a very good appointment, even if they always seem to be running late (argh!). If we didn't love our ped so much, we'd think about changing just for a more convenient location and scheduling. Next visit: her 4 month well-child, which will be here before I know it, I'm sure!

Since Finn's adjusted second birthday is next week, I asked if they would measure him, too, which they kindly did. He is 32" tall (again, they didn't measure him standing up which they usually do at this age) and weighed 28 3/4 lbs! Well, at least his height is growing a little...he definitely doesn't have problems putting on the weight! Sheesh! He needs to be seen around 30 months just for a quick check, so hopefully I can schedule him and Korri for the same day/time.

Finn see, Finn do

Finn is very perceptive and pays attention to things that we don't even know he is aware of (hence his well developed understanding and use of the phrase "holy crap"). A perfect example last night would revolve around potty time. We have Finn's potty chair in our main floor bathroom and any time one of us goes "potty" he comes in with us and sits on his potty (fully clothed, mind you). I figure it just gets him used to the idea and we always talk about potty when he does it. Well, yesterday afternoon, the two of us were having our potty time and he stands up and faces his potty chair and arches his back...like he is peeing STANDING UP!!! OMG, I would have given my right arm to have a video camera rolling. I asked him if he was going potty like daddy does and he just looked at me and got a little embarrassed. It was WAY too funny and cute! The funnier thing was that I was just wondering how you eventually teach a boy to pee standing up, since you teach them to sit when they are little. Guess I don't have to worry about that one any more :)

Birth announcement

I have to apologize that my memory stinks. A couple people asked for a printed birth announcement and I forgot who they were. SO...if any of you would like a printed birth announcement, please comment here or send me an email and we would be happy to get one to you. I hope to get them ordered by the weekend so speak now, or forever hold you peace ;) (although, I'm sure I'll order a couple extra in case you don't see this until later!)

Mr. Yuck

Remember Mr. Yuck? Well, apparently we need to get a few of those stickers! For the first time ever, Finn got into the cupboard under the sink last night! To be perfectly honest, we don't have locks on any of our cupboards so it is our own fault, but he has NEVER even tried before (he seemed interested once and we just told him no). When I turned the corner and saw him, I was scared to death. However, fortunately, we keep the cleaning/hazardous materials in the back of the cupboard and the worse thing he'd found was the Pledge (which he hadn't sprayed yet). Hmmm, now I wonder if I scared him enough not to go back in there or if we should get locks. Locks, I know, but they are intimidating.

Just before bed last night, Finn got "stuck" in his Bumbo chair! He kept saying, "I stuck. Help please." Guess it's time to pass that onto Korri. Hope she likes blue!!

Double trouble

Now that our family has expanded by one and the weather is starting to show that spring will eventually arrive, we've come to terms with the fact that we need a double stroller. For now when we go on walks, I just put Korri in the Baby K'tan sling and Finn walks, which works well for now. However, I just can't imagine how we will be able to function on a regular basis without one, especially considering Finn can barely walk around the block (not to mention it takes him FOREVER when he is walking!). Thank you for the recommendations I've already received on what double stroller to get, but unfortunately (as with all things), the good ones are too expensive, even if we buy used. So, any suggestions out there? Do you have a double and do you like it? Any feedback or suggestions are appreciated.

We had Austin's birthday party on Sunday. How is it possible that he is/will be FIVE?!?! Has it really been five years since Kristine, Renae and I drove to St. Cloud to pick up Becky, who was in labor, and drive her back to the cities?!?! He changed all of our lives for the better and I think back to how boring life was before he was born. Thank God for the children in my life :)

The kids and I went to the first Preemie class of the spring this morning. We ended up being the only family there, but it was nice because I could talk with the teacher, Karen, one on one and Finn got to play to his heart's content. Karen hadn't seen Finn full on walking (our last class was in December) and she kept saying how tall he was and how smart he was!

Is it sad that the highlight to my day (maybe week?) was running to Costco and Cub WITHOUT THE KIDS? Man, it is so much easier and faster when you are by yourself. Jim took a sick day but was well enough to stay home with the kids (Finn was sleeping and I fed Korri right before I left).

Korri is pretty much smiling on demand now. It is so cute. This morning I was feeding her and she was looking straight into my eyes. So, naturally, I started talking to her and smiling and she stopped eating to smile back! Oops...better keep on task, but it melted my heart. Finn continues to be Finn. I am so thankful that not only do I love him, but I honestly like him and think he is such a good boy. Not all kids are, so I'm thankful for that (and that other people love him so much, too!). I hope he nevers loses his sweet soul or his sense of curiousity and wonder.

Fun, fun, fun

Last night we went to Auntie Kristine's to celebrate Jordan's 16 birthday. Finn didn't nap well because his baby sister woke him up early with her crying, so he was a little crabby. Finn kept telling Jordan, "Happy, Jordan!" for Happy Birthday, Jordan. So cute. Auntie Becca, uncle Pete and Austin invited Finn to go to the circus with them this morning, so Finn got to go home with them after the party, too! Wow, a sleepover and the circus all in one day!

Finn had a BLAST! He keeps commenting on the elephants and motorcycles. He told me the motorcycles were in a balloon (the metal cage). I'm so glad that Finn is an easy enough boy that people don't mind taking him along. Between the zoo on Wednesday and the circus today, he is going to think he can go to fun and exciting places all the time...or that mom is boring because I didn't go to either place! Ha.

Well, we are pretty sure that Korri has developed full blown colic. She either has to be held or screams until she is hoarse, which is just heart breaking. She finally pooped today (going on her third day without) so I think she feels a little better. Poor NeNe was the one holding Korri when she let loose, so they both needed to be cleaned up! Luckily, we have Korri's 2 month well child this week, so hopefully we can talk to her doctor about it. Maybe it is something else and we can do something about it.

Today was a super duper good day for Finn. In addition to going to the circus with auntie Becca, uncle Pete and Austin, NeNe came over to visit and Grandma is staying over night! Sheesh. And Austin's birthday party tomorrow. I will seem boring after all these fun activities!

Auntie to the rescue!

All I can say is, "Thank God for family!" I had a headache last evening that continued to worsen over night. By the morning, it was a migraine, but still tolerable (well, as tolerable as a migraine can be!). So the kids and I went to ECFE where my migraine turned into a full blown doozy (no Imitrex for a nursing mom!). By the time we got home, I was doing everything I could think of to not throw up and do the things that my kids needed me to do. Jim was in a deposition all afternoon, so I knew I couldn't ask him to come home.

SO, in desperation, I checked with Kristine to see what her afternoon was like and if she could work from our house...which she could! She was at our house about half an hour later and I pretty much crashed (Finn was napping and I fed Korri right before she got there). Man, I needed that. I felt better after napping for a couple hours and over the evening, my migraine slowly went away. Saying I appreciate it doesn't even come close to how much it meant to me because I don't think I would have made it without her help. Thank you beyond words, Kristine!

Then after work, Aunt Kelsie came over to see the kids and watch the American Idol results show with us (I totally called the bottom three!). It was nice to have the extra help...which means somebody else to hold Korri all evening. Man, she is a tough cookie in the evenings. She isn't as "bad" as Finn was during his full blown time with colic, but close. Thanks for the company, Kels!

2 already?

Yup, it's official, baby girl is two months old. That is crazy. Here is some typical 2 month development:

She will likely now be on a more predictable schedule and will probably be nursing or drinking 5-6 ounces of formula every 3-4 hours. [she eats every 2 - 3 hours and still sleeps a lot!] At this age you can expect your baby to smile [yes, but no on command yet], laugh [no] and make noises [yes], lift her head and chest up while lying on her stomach [for sure], turn toward sounds and to follow you around with her eyes [yes]. If using a pacifier [yup!], try and restrict its use to when your baby seems to need the self-comforting behavior of sucking. Avoid using it every time your baby cries (it is usually better to pick and hold your baby to comfort her when she is crying). [she would prefer to be held ALL DAY!]

Finn and Korri got dressed up in their party clothes and we went to Lily and Juliette's second birthday party on Sunday. Becky did an amazing job on their cake (Noah's Ark) and the girls got lots of good presents. You know your child has too much stuff when you are at a birthday party and you realize your child has half of the gifts that were opened (the other half were pink, so he didn't have them)! I enjoyed watching Finn interacting with all the other kids, even though he couldn't really keep up with them. He didn't seem to mind, though.

Monday, Becky and Austin came over for dinner before Pete's basketball game. It had been way too long since we'd seen Austin. Finn was in heaven. At one point Austin said, "My, isn't is wonderful now that Finnegan can walk?" Never has there been a truer statement uttered! The next day, Finn labeled everything Austin had played with...Austin's ping pong ball, Austin's hockey stick, Austin's basketball!

Finn's EI team came over yesterday morning. It was a really good visit and I love that they are willing to help me with and give suggestion for Korri. What do "normal" parents do who don't have a team like this?!?! Oh, and while they were here...Korri rolled over!!! I just about died and of course, didn't get the video camera soon enough (I did get the next attempt on video, but it wasn't completely unassisted like the first one was!). Now, keep in mind that the PT was working with her and had her in the optimal position, but she did the work! Crazy. Since she sleeps so much on her tummy, they want her to be able to roll sooner rather.

That night, Jess and Jason came over and brought dinner! So thoughtful and yummy. I love eating together at the same time as Finn...doesn't happen very often. They also gave Korri a super cute sweatsuit from The Gap...I think the cutest thing a kid can wear is a Gap sweatshirt! Thank you so much guys! Glad we could find an evening that worked.

Today my aunt Karen came over with her two kids, Anthony and Rachel. Both kids LOVED Korri and kept wanting to hold her (except when she was crying;). I think that is so cute. Then they invited Finn to go to Como zoo with them, which I thought was very nice. Finn was all about going until he realized that mommy wasn't going...but Karen said he did great and had a fun time. After they dropped him off and he took a nap, he had to tell me about the lions and tigers and tell daddy about the giraffe's and elephants when he got home. I think Finn enjoyed himself! We also stopped by to see our friends Lisa and Samuel just before dinner. Lisa is 30 weeks pregnant and on bedrest, so it was good to see her with my own eyes and see how good she is doing. Finn loved playing with Samuel and all of his toys (they have the same interests...balls and trucks!).

Wow, lots going on, I guess. I'm sure I forgot a ton of stuff, but that's what happens when I don't blog every day. See people, I actually blog every day because I'm lazy and can't remember things ;)

Breakfast of champions?

Finn's usual breakfast:
a couple scoops of lowfat plain yogurt
a spoonful of pureed veggies
a handful of berries (today was blueberries)
a sprinkling of fiber cereal

Oh, did I mention that is all in one bowl mixed together? What?!?! Isn't that what normal two year olds eat for breakfast (or "breckus" as Finn says)?

8 weeks!

While Korri isn't technically 2 months until Wed, today she is eight weeks old! It seems like she has been part of our family forever and I barely remember what life was like before she arrived (or what a full night's sleep was like! ha, ha).

Eight week development: Baby's motor skills and senses are developing like crazy. [she is really close to finding her hands to suck on...they occassionally find their way to her mouth, but she hasn't quite figured out how]  Her hand-eye coordination is improving, she's starting to recognize specific sounds and sights, and is getting pretty darned good at holding up her head. [thankfully, she is pretty much mastered this skill, considering all the problems we had with Finn!] Also this week: It's time for baby's two-month checkup! Your doc will check her overall growth and development and give a round of immunizations. [Her appt is next week, I hope that Jim can come along...it seems he got out of a lot of Finn's immunizations!]

We had a nice, quiet, stay-at-home day yesterday. We don't get many of them. Today we are headed out to the twin's second birthday party! Should be lots of fun and I can't wait to see their Noah's Ark cake that their master baker/decorator mom is making :)

Sheeesh...SIX HOURS!

I don't want to jinx it and I know I said I wasn't going to mention Korri's sleep schedule, or lack there of, until she was actually on some kind of regular routine. However, I am so happy to announce that she slept for SIX HOURS STRAIGHT last night! I couldn't believe it and jumped out of bed when I realized how long it had been! And she still wasn't screaming to eat, only starting to wiggle around. (of course I did get up halfway through the stretch thinking something was wrong...but it wasn't!) And she slept in her crib last night, too! I don't know. I really hope we've figured something out. But if not, at least I had last night!

Jim stayed home with the kids this morning so I could get my stitches out. It feels so much better now that they are gone, but they gave me a salve to put on for the next three or four days. They didn't think it was infected, but it was red with puss (gross, I know!), so they wanted to be cautious. And I got a notice back in the mail from the pathology and it is completely benign! I was figuring it would come back that way, but still good to know for sure.

Stacey came over after my dr appt and brought lunch! Shrimp Pad Thai...yumm-o! Finn even ate some of it, after coming to terms with the texture. As always, we had a great time with her here. Thanks for lunch and the company!

Unplugged and snowed in

As you can tell, it has been nearly a week since my last post, which I don't think has ever happened! It wasn't for lack of want on my end, but I do apologize. We left Friday for a weekend in Oville and Murdock and the kids and I just got back tonight (i.e. no internet access and very limited phone service!).

NeNe stopped by Friday afternoon and took Finn with her to Oville, which was a HUGE blessing. We weren't sure how Korri was going to be in the car, since this was her first big car trip and dealing with two potentially crabby kids was not something we wanted to do if possible. Korri did okay (Finn did, too, but I hear NeNe was quite the entertainment!). We stopped in Murdock so I could feed her and after that, she needed the car to be moving swiftly, none of this "slowing down for towns" business. We got to Oville just before Finn went to bed, so it worked out.

Korri met lots of people this weekend; including her Grandpa Egg (my dad), her great, great grandma Granny (Jim's 102 year old great grandma) and her great grandma and grandpa Smith (my mom's parents)!

Saturday evening we celebrated my Grandma Walsh's 80th birthday with a surprise party at my aunt Vicky's house. It was so much fun! I haven't been able to see my extended family much with my limited travel ability while being pregnant, so I loved catching up with everybody.

On Sunday, my uncle Tony brought Jim back to the Cities so he could leave for his week long trip to Chicago and the kids and I stayed at my mom's until this afternoon (we planned on leaving last night or this morning, but the weather had other ideas). It was beyond amazing to stay at my mom's the last few days. But it was also nice to get home tonight and put Finn in his own bed. Jim gets back late tomorrow night, so at least I didn't go crazy from the lack of a break this week while he was gone. In fact, quite the opposite...my mom did almost everything for the kids and me! You can't beat a little spoiling every now and then!

Oh and we got to show the kids off at mom's work on Monday. Finn had a blast because Grandma had a bouncy ball and recycle bins to shoot them into and everybody wanted to give him candy! On Tuesday, we went over to my old high school, where Lynn works, and showed the kids off there. Finn loved that, too because there were so many kids and he got to be on TV (Lynn teaches over ITV)!

As you can imagine, I have over 200 emails to go through and tons of pictures to upload. I am not used to being so unconnected, especially for this long. In a way, it was kind of refreshing, but I'll stick to my internet and texting, thank you very much ;)

My green kids

Green as in Happy St. Patrick's Day, not green as in environmentally friendly! Here are my babies in their green outfits from this morning:

Korri's doesn't look very green, but it is! And Finn's pants are green and there is a green stripe in his shirt. It was fun finding appropriate clothes for today...since I wouldn't let myself by them matching St. Patty's Day outfits (doesn't fit in the budget...boo!).

The gate at the bottom of the stairs is no more. It never fit quite right, but with Jim's ingenuity, he was able to make it work. However, it's been in the process of breaking for weeks and yesterday, it finally had enough and Jim took it down. While Finn isn't quite an expert on stairs yet, I'm very confident that he won't go up or down the stairs without somebody watching him (he always waits for one of us to come over), but if he does, I feel pretty good that he can make it up or down without falling...as long as he doesn't dink around and play as he is going up or down! It is so nice and open without the darn gate.

I tried something new last night: I didn't swaddle Korri at bedtime. I figured I had to try something and she has this really warm sleeper, so I knew she'd be warm enough. I had the idea because every time I go into her at night when she is crying, she is struggling like crazy to get out of the swaddle. I don't know if it "worked" or not, but she went three hours between two feedings (and we battled between the other one...she, of course, won!). I read an article that said you can't/shouldn't "sleep train" a baby until they are at least three months old. Forty four days and counting...

Big boy potty

Well, I decided to be brave and attempt to play outside today with the kids. It was just too nice to stay inside...and we actually had fun! Here are the two kiddos ready for our adventure:

Finn asked for sunglasses when I put mine on, so I thought, "Why not?" He left them on the whole time and didn't mess with them at all! I was impressed.

Peanut looked super cute in her bunting. She hasn't been able to wear it because it would be too warm for her in the car seat, but it was perfect for a day like today, and I think we'll have plenty more of them!

The three of us walked up and down our street two times and then daddy came home and we walked around the block. I really enjoyed the time with Finn because I realized every time I need him to walk somewhere, we are in a hurry and I'm always dragging and hurrying him along. This time, we had nothing to hurry for and could go whatever speed he wanted/needed to. And he, of course, stomped in every puddle he could find, which I think is great! Maybe I should invest in some galoshes!

Finn has a big boy potty! Becky brought Austin's potty chair over yesterday and Finn loves it.

He kept wanting to sit on it last night (clothed) but today, he told me he had to go poopy (which I'm beginning to realize is actually potty!), so we took his pants/diaper off and he sat on it, but didn't go. It is still a little too big for him (my poor boy with the super short legs!), but it is better than the big toilet. I still think he is too young and not ready, but Jim thinks he is ready. So, we'll see. It sure would be nice to only have one in diapers, but I'm not holding my breath any time soon ;)

Finn has been obsessed with hockey lately. Don't ask me how or why, but he is (much to mommy's chagrin). I've given up saying, "Hockey...boo" in my attempt to brain wash him and think it is probably time to get him a real hockey stick since he already broke one of my "hockey sticks:"

We looked at Target this week and were disappointed that they didn't have any hockey sticks. Hmmm, I'll have to look online or at Toys R Us or something. How can you deny a child something they love so much?!?!

Dinner and a movie?

Jim and I got to go on a DATE last night! It was so great. At one point I told Jim I felt "normal" for the first time in a really long time. NeNe and Les came over to visit and then stayed with the kids for us. I was a little nervous about Korri because this was the first time I was away from her for a feeding (I pumped right before we left), but DeAnn said all went well. Jim and I went to the New Hope Cinema Grill for dinner and to see The Fighter. To be honest, this movie wasn't my first pick, but the showtime worked for us, so we went. However, it was an amazing movie with a really good message. I was surprised by how much I really liked it. Now, the drink I had during the movie might have made me like it more... A super extra huge thank you to DeAnn and Les. Words can't express our gratitude :)

After a fussy night, Korri had another poopsplosion today. She doesn't have a fever and she isn't dehydrated, so I don't think there is anything to be concerned about, but it is getting old. Jim got to clean up this one!

I think we are going to bypass Daylight Savings unscathed. Finn got up around normal time this morning and took his nap at the normal time this afternoon, so hopefully we won't have any backlash tonight or tomrrow AM. And, of course, Korri is too little to be on any type of schedule that a time change would affect her.

Mole, gone!

Korri had another poopsplosion just as we were leaving for my doctor appointment yesterday and it was BAD! I probably should have given her a bath, but a wipe/sponge bath had to do. Yikes. I think she has a touch of the virus we all got because it is really runny, even runnier than normal breastfed babies. Hopefully it "runs" its course quickly. Sorry, bad taste, I know ;)

So, I had my follow up appointment to my secondary mole removal (and I also had another spot frozen off). Jim had meetings that he couldn't cancel, which I didn't find out about until late Thursday evening, so I got to bring both kids with me. Fun. I guess that is one down side of being a stay-at-home mom...you have to do things like bring your kids with to the doctor when you have having procedures done. I can't think of a scenario where Jim would ever have to bring a kid with him to an appointment, but oh, well. They had a lady behind the desk come and keep them occupied, so it turned out okay. The spot they removed ended up being a little bigger than I think they were thinking because she said it would be pretty painful once the numbing wore off and to stay on top of the pain with Tylenol. I've done the Tylenol and not too painful yet. The spot they froze off hurt more yesterday, but now I think the skin is dead. Yay! Now hopefully I won't have to worry about skin cancer for a while.

We have finally set the date for baptism! What a fiasco that ended up being. The priest had very limited availability (and by that, I mean almost none!) so we are having the deacon do it (whom we really like anyway!) even though he had limited availability, too. This time of year is tough with all the things going on in the church and personally we have a lot of weekends already spoken for. It is May 15 at 11am. Glad to have that on the calendar. And we are very happy and excited that auntie NaeNae has agreed to be Korrigan's godmother! Thank you, Renae. Korri is a lucky girl and we couldn't think of anybody we'd rather have (well, except Nick...lol!)!

Time for a diaper bag

Korri has started to smile! She has been doing it for about a week, but up until the last couple days, it seemed completely random (still not very consistent). When auntie NaeNae was here this weekend, Korri smiled at her and will do it on and off when she is looking at you. I love it. Of course, I try to grab the camera and then she won't do it any more. Oh, well. I LOVE that she is interacting. I think that is when they stop being a newborn and start being a person. My baby's growing up!

Korri hadn't pooped since yesterday afternoon. I was concerned, so I got online at 5am this morning (exactly what I wanted to be doing at that time!) and the consensus seems to be that breastfed babies, once they are over a month old, can go several days and in some cases up to a week without pooping and it is considered fine. Up until now, she has pooped every time she ate, and  this is a change. So, I thought to myself as we were leaving for class, "Self, maybe you should run upstairs and grab an extra outfit for Korri in case there is a poopsplosion." I answered myself, "No, she hasn't pooped through yet and we are running late." WRONG ANSWER! We weren't at class for more than 20 minutes and she pooped all over everything! I had to take her clothes off and wrap her naked in a blanket! I felt like a terrible mom for not being more prepared, but all ended up being fine. I guess it is time to start bringing a diaper bag! Why does it seem like this blog is turning into a blog about poop? Sheesh. Sorry about that.

Speaking of class, today was the first class of the new spring session. It is the same time, place and teachers for us, but I'm so super excited to have a lot of our "old" friends back in our class! This is the group that we had last spring and have kept in contact with monthly play dates every since. I just love this group of kids and moms. Yay! Should make for a really fun spring. Although, I'm bummed we don't have class next week and the following week is spring break. What am I going to do with Finn for two full weeks?!?!

The other day, Korri was crying and I was in the kitchen. By the time I got to the living room she had stopped crying...because she had her soothie in her mouth! Finn had gotten her pacifier and given it to her! It completely and totally melted my heart. I then told him we have to be careful when giving it to the baby for obvious reasons, but I think it is a testament to his loving nature. My sweet, helpful boy!

Let the fasting begin!

Okay, I'm going to stop commenting on Korri's sleep habits. Every time I mention how good she has been, the next night is terrible! So, just assume going forward that we have good nights and bad nights and when we get on a more reliable schedule, I'll post about it!

Well, Jim is still sick on and off, but I seem to be 95% better! Feeling good, but hard to tell if  the 5% is from being sick or from lack of sleep in general! Ha, maybe I'll always feel 95% until Korri's is sleeping better ;) Jim always has a harder time getting over illnesses than me, so I hope he is better soon, for all our sakes! And Finn had "regular" poop today, so it is sad to say, but I was happy to see it! Oh, the life of a stay-at-home mom, I know!

So today is Ash Wednesday. I haven't decided what I'm going to give up. If I give up something truly and extremely difficult, it would be Facebook, but I don't want to set myself up for failure either. I've done the no snacking before and also no sweets. I've done no alcohol, but as seeing how I'm not drinking a ton these days, I don't think that would be too tough. Hmmm...I'll have to think about it. Since I want to lose the rest of the baby weight, maybe something food related would be good (a double incentive never hurt anybody!). Now, the hard part is remembering not to eat meat on Fridays...it's not like I mind not having meat, I just need to remember!

All better?

Well, I think/hope that Jim and I must have had the 24 hour version of Finn's 6 day bug. We are both feeling better, but not quite 100%. Weird. I think it is easier to stay hydrated when you know you should eat and drink certain things instead of being a stubborn 2 year old and only doing what you want! I keep telling Finn that mommy knows best, but he doesn't seem to believe me yet...ha, ha! I bet he never will until he has his own kids ;)

Korri has been extra fussy and seems to be extra gassy the last few days. Jim keeps saying she is colicky, but if she is, it is nothing like Finn was when he had colic. There is just so little you can do for gas. On the bright side, I took my aunt's advice and turned the audio monitor off at night (Korri's door is right across the hall from ours). Part of me feels really guilty when I wake up and she is crying because I don't know how long she has been crying, but the other part is so happy to be getting between 3 and 4 hour stretches between feedings. Sleep does wonders for mommy's temperament during the day...hmmm, imagine that. And I honestly don't think she is crying that long...I'm a mom after all and don't we all wake up instantly when a baby is crying? I think it is ingrained. Dad's...not so much ;)

Me, too!

Well, I thought it only fair to join in the sick "fun" going on at our house. I wasn't feeling 100% yesterday, and thought/hoped it had passed me by. No such luck. It hit full force at 6:30 this morning when I was feeding Korri! Yuck. It comes and goes, so at least I can still take care of the kids, for the most part. Jim stayed home sick today, so between the two of us, we've somehow managed. The "good" thing about me getting sick is that Korri will get my antibodies, so hopefully she won't catch whatever it is that we all have. Praying for a quick recovery by all.

Here we go again

I think we've turned the corner on Finn's illness. We went through three pairs of pants yesterday but he started to eat a little bit and was drinking a lot more. He woke up this morning having soaked through his diaper, so I guess he is hydrated. He didn't have any dirty diapers today and ate ALL DAY long. Don't they say you can tell when a child is feeling better when they start eating? If that's the case, Finn is better! Ha, I still don't think he is 100%, but I'm hopeful that after 6 days he is well on his way to recovery.

However, now Jim is sick! Sheesh, I just can't catch a break. I guess I have a glimpse into what it would be like having three kids...however at least Jim can clean up after himself ;) Hopefully Jim won't be as sick as long as Finn was. And poor Auntie NaeNae! She came for a visit last night and had to sit here and listen to Jim puke all day today! Yuck. It was great having her here (she held Korri all day so I got a break!). She helped out a ton with Finn, too, in addition to coloring and cutting my hair. Man, she is a busy woman. The only problem was that Finn kept calling her Becky...until he realized who he was talking to and then he corrected himself! He really does know and love you NaeNae!

Saturday, I had the honor of making a cake for my friend Laura's baby shower. I was really excited to get back into cake making and took the theme from their jungle nursery. I made a chocolate cake, then I thought it would be fun to make a taller cake, so I made a white cake, too. I then alternately layered them with a raspberry cream filling in between. It was so tall that it just barely fit in my cake taker (luckily it did and next time, I would cut a little extra off to ensure it does fit!). Here is the final result:

The shower was a ton of fun. Laura is my oldest friend (we went to kindergarten together) so it was fun to help celebrate the up coming birth of her first child. She got lots of great stuff, which is always fun to see. Oh, and I brought Korri along because I knew she'd need to eat while I was there and she was the bell of the ball! And she was a prefect little lady the entire time (I told everybody to come over at 2am if they want to see a different baby!).

Stop the runny madness

Where to start? I'm sure you really want to hear about Finn's poop again, but that is what's consuming our life right now. It continues to be pretty bad. He had three "yucky" diapers on Thursday and went through three pairs of pants yesterday (I think he topped out at four or five "yucky" diapers). I don't know how it continues to come out, as output is far more than input. It is sad when he stops playing and says, "uh oh" and points to the floor, where it is starting to pool because it is too runny and too much volume for the diaper to hold (daddy was conveniently busy during that diaper change!). YUCK!!!

He has eaten a few pieces of toast, a container of crunchies, a hotdog and a nurtigrain bar over the last few days. Jim got some Sobe Lifewater for him, so he has been drinking that, but not a ton. So, we continue on and keep watching for signs of dehydration (his lips are starting to chap, so I'm keeping a close eye on it). They said the first few days are the worst, so hopefully we will turn the corner here in a couple days. I have to say, I think I prefer this to puking (although he did puke while Grandma was here, but just a little bit on his Kiki)...puking makes me sick and apparently, I can deal with poop! Here's my sick guy watching Elmo (because that's all that makes him feel better) and eating his crunchies.

I made and decorated my first cake in over two months yesterday. I forgot how everything takes longer than you think it should, but I finished around 9 or 10 last night. I can't post pictures until it has been given to the intended recipient later today. It was so much fun, and I have to say, I think it turned out pretty cute. Now I really want to take the fondant class I missed in January because I think it would open up a lot of decorating options.

I asked Jim why he slept downstairs last night and he said because he'd fallen asleep on the couch and woke himself up from his snoring. Very considerate for somebody who says he doesn't snore...maybe now would be a good time to go to the sleep study?!?!?

Baby Korri likes her tummy (takes after her mommy and brother!):

Skin and poop

I got a phone call yesterday from the dermatologist saying the results of my biopsy had come in. (I had a couple moles removed last week) A phone call isn't what I was hoping for because if all was well, they would have just sent a letter. She said first and foremost that it was NOT skin cancer. She said the cells were abnormal and potentially precancerous, so they want to go in and remove a large section around the mole to make sure they got all of it. It is on the back of my leg, so hopefully it isn't too painful or noticeable when all is said and done. I know this is somewhat fairly common, but a little scary, nonetheless. So, I must say a huge thank you to my loving husband for making me go in (I noticed this mole about a year and a half ago...shame on me for putting it off so long!). I guess he wants to keep me around a few more years, either that or my life insurance policy isn't nearly lucrative enough! I go in next Friday for the procedure and they said I just have to take it easy for a couple days with no heavy lifting (easier said than done with two kids!!).

Poop watch 2011: Finn hasn't pooped since the last bout of diarrhea on Wednesday night. I'm not really concerned about that, since I'm pretty sure he completely cleaned himself out when he last went. I'm just a little concerned that he pretty much refuses to eat anything (I know kids can go a few days without eating much), but also not wanting to drink much, and we aren't able to give him apple juice, which is his favorite. I might try to run out and grab some vitamin water (thanks for the suggestion, NeNe!) that is sugar free to see if he will drink that. The nurse also said pediasure, but I don't know if he will drink it and I think it is pretty expensive. Hopefully the virus runs its course sooner rather than later.

Korri slept from 11:30pm - 3am! I was super happy and excited to see what the rest of the night would bring, hoping it was going to be her new sleep pattern (waking only every 3.5 to 4 hours to eat!). Not so lucky. She was up almost straight from 4:30am until I finally threw in the towel and got up at 8am. I wish somebody would clue her in that dark time is sleep time!

No need to worry

Korri and I went to her doctor appointment today and low and behold...she weighs NINE POUNDS, SIX OUNCES!!!!!!!!!!! So, yes, she is getting enough! The doctor said she is simply perfect and acting like a perfectly normal baby. Yay. She said it is very unusual that mom doesn't have enough milk for her baby, so I should try to stop worrying about that (I know, I know!). She said to keep her on the Zantac for now since it seems to be helping, and that I should try to avoid foods that make me gassy (because they, in turn, would make her gassy). So, it was a great appointment. I'm so glad we went.

A first last night: I got peed on while holding Korrigan! From what I remember, Finn never peed while being held, he just peed on us when he was laying down (which Korri obviously can't do for anatomy reasons!). I undressed her for a bath and stupidly took her diaper off before I washed her face and hair. She peed when I took her diaper off, so I thought I was in the clear. Guess not! Oh, well. If it isn't puke, it's poop or pee, I guess ;) The life of a mom (or parent!).

Finn is having a bout with an intestinal virus. He hasn't been eating very well the last few days and wasn't pooping regularly (he normally is very regular). He woke up from his nap yesterday completely covered in diarrhea (poor grandma got to clean it up since I was feeding Korri!). I just thought it had built up over a couple days and didn't think twice about it. Then around 10pm last night, he started crying, which he NEVER does at night. Again, I was feeding Korri (kind of convenient, don't you think?!?!) so Mom went to check on him and he had the same thing! So I rocked him for a while and put him back to bed. He didn't have a fever, so I wasn't overly concerned, but wasn't sure what to do either. The nurse called me back around 11pm and she said to just keep him hydrated and have him eat lots of carbs (adds volume to the stool) today. She also said it can last between 5 to 14 DAYS! Yuck, but that the first few days are the worst. I was just hoping it was something he ate and would be fine by today. So far today, no diarrhea, but really stinky toots and still a low appetite.

I was getting ready to leave for Korri's doctor appt and Finn was having a hard time. He then decided he wanted to sit in Korri's car seat, so I said fine. This is hilarious to me (and he obviously thought he was pretty funny, too):

He's a little bigger now than he was the first time he sat in it (3/27/09):

Ups and downs

Korri made me cry last night. Okay, that isn't completely fair, but I did break down and cry during the middle of the night. She hadn't been eating very well for a couple feedings throughout the evening and refused to latch on during her 4am feeding. I immediately go to that place where I think all is lost, my milk has dried up and there is no hope (it probably doesn't help when it happens in the middle of the night and I'm beyond tired!) and I should just start bottle feeding. But I cried, changed her diaper and put her back to bed. Then this morning and again around noon, she ate like a champ. Finn's EI teacher, Deb, came for her visit and sat with me and talked me through some of what I'm feeling (so what if she is supposed to be here for Finn! I need her, too!). It helped a lot, but also made me cry even more. I hate that if one thing during a feeding isn't right, I think back to what I went through with Finn. I need to remember that Korri is a different baby with different abilities under different circumstances. I'm glad we have a doctor appt tomorrow, so I can talk to her pediatrician a little bit about this and also get a good read on her weight and how she is doing. If she is gaining weight, she is getting enough. PERIOD! I need to stop over thinking and worrying so much, but it is easier said than done.

On the "ups" side, for the most part, she IS eating really well. She tends to arch back and try to unlatch more than I would like her to because it is hard to get her to relatch once she does that, but sometimes, she just eats and eats with no problems. She is awake more during the day and I love to watch her look around and interact with her surroundings. She has smiled a couple of times, but it seemed random. I can't wait for a "real" smile. For the most part, she has outgrown newborn clothes. I squeeze her into a couple things, but I should probably just put them away. She is growing up! What a big girl.

Finn and I (and probably Korri if she could communicate) LOVE having grandma here. I think she's done 50 loads of laundry and the dishes just happen to get done and things get picked up. Hmmm...I wonder if she is looking for a place to live...we'll have a vacant basement come July ;)