4 Month Check Up

Noah went to the doctor's this morning for his second round of immunizations. He cried much harder & longer this time, it was so sad. It appears that Noah is right on track with development, & is growing steadily as well. He is now 14lbs,7oz (50th percentile),66cm in length (75th percentile) so he is getting quite tall, & he still has an itty bitty head at 40cm (10th percentile). Owen scored two stickers, one for each needle that Noah received. Lucky him. I made sure to give Noah a dose of tempra before hand & he calmed down quickly after his needles & went to sleep.

I spoke to the doctor about Noah's lack of interest in sleep during the night. or multiple, as in 3-5 wake -ups. Basically she hinted that it would likely be better by 6 months (read once he starts solids). She suggests solids between 5-6 months, so that if there are any feeding concerns they can be discussed at his 6 month appointment. So basically he's going to start solids early. I will give him a few more nights to get his act together on his own & then it's rice cereal to the rescue by the weekend! We're rebels like that, no living by the rules in this house! She also mentioned that there is no need to sterilize his bottles anymore (like we were doing that), or boil the water for bottles. I think I may keep doing that because it only takes a minute & I get kind of grossed out by tap water as it is.

After the doctor's we went to get Owen's hair cut. He looks so cute & so much older. The next time he gets his hair cut will be for Uncle Derek & Aunt Kaila's wedding. I was trying to picture him all dressed up in his tux, fresh haircut, looking super cute. It almost made me weepy. When you ask Owen what he's going to do at the wedding he says he's going to "boogie down" I can't wait to see that.

Not much else on the agenda today.

Just to show how big Noah is getting & how incredibly tanned Owen is already :)


Owen's new haircut

My mom & sister came for a visit this morning, we went to the mall & then went out for lunch. By the time we returned home it was far past Owen's nap time. I made the 'brilliant' decision to skip nap time all together, with the hope that Owen would actually be asleep before 9pm tonight. My plan back fired of course. By 4pm I found Owen like this...

He was climbing down from the couch & I guess the effort was just too much. He needed a break. So funny.

Weekend Fun

I love the weekend, Gavin is home & things with the kids are so much easier. I don't feel like I'm two steps behind on the weekends. This weekend we went to splash island at the zoo, it was the first weekend since school has been out & the place was packed with kids. Once Owen got wet he really enjoyed himself, at first he found the water too cold. Gavin spent most of the time with Owen in the water while Noah & I relaxed and watched from the sidelines. Owen only wanted daddy to take him in the water, I guess I am good enough during the week, but weekends is daddy time :) Doesn't he know how freakin' long it took me to find a post pregnancy bathing suit? then to not even get a chance to wear it! anyway, I'm sure it was for the best.
Here are a few pics from the zoo.





When we got home Owen helped daddy move the dirt from the fence posts. Unfortunately he moved the dirt into his water table. I am beyond excited that the fence will be done this weekend & my kids will be caged in :)


On sunday we went to our friends Chris & Liz's house. We met up with other adoptive families & families in waiting, one of my very favourite things to do! I can't believe that we didn't get any photos. There were 4 toddlers three and under, a baby and a few 'older kids' it was crazy busy! It's no wonder we didn't get any photos those kids don't sit still long enough! by the tme we were ready to get a group photo it was time for us to leave & sweet baby B was sleeping. Oh well, next time!

Noah loves his new jumperoo!

Splash Pad Fun

This morning I met up with a friend & her two kids for a play date at a local splash pad. We met early so that we could beat the afternoon heat, it has been incredibly hot here the last few days. We walked along the trail for a couple of kilometers & then decided it was already too hot & turned back towards the splash pad. Owen had fun & he was excited to see his little friend Brennan again, Tracy's kids are almost the same age as Owen & Noah so there is a lot in common. It took Owen some time before he felt comfortable enough getting wet. You could tell his curiosity was getting the best of him & that he wanted to try out the splash pad but he had to warm up to the idea first. Eventually he gained confidence & was running around with the other kids. He made sure to get close enough to get wet by the mist but not get completely soaked.

waiting in line for his turn at the water sprayer. He had to ask the 'big kids' for a turn.

Sweet Brennan - he had no fear at all, he jumped right in!

Finally letting loose!

Anyone that knows Owen knows of his love for things that "speen around" (spin around), he especially loves ceiling fans. I'm not sure how or why this obsession with fans started, but every time we go shopping we have to take him to the lighting department to check out the fans. I could understand him loving the toy department, but lighting? weird.

Last night in the paper there was a store flyer & there was a page of ceiling fans. Owen wanted to read the flyer before bedtime instead of a book! I should have video taped Gavin reading the flyer to Owen, it was hilarious. Owen was so content to sit there & listen to all of the great deals on fans! This kid is so strange sometimes, makes me love him even more!

4 Months Old

Noah is becoming much more interactive & he loves to chatter & babble. It is so cute to have a 'conversation' with him, he tries to respond in his sweet baby talk, he also loves to chat with his toys. He's been loving his exersaucer lately & has basically outgrown his bouncy chair & swing, he would rather be upright so he can see everything around him. Noah has mastered rolling from about 3 and a half months from his front to back, he is still working on rolling from his back to front. He's become very squirmy & when he's on his play mat if you turn your back for a few moments he's totally in a different spot, sometimes not even on the mat! The best thing about this past month is that he has started to laugh, great big belly laughs! they are the best.

I'm convinced there is truth to the four month sleep regression. Let's just say that Noah's been waking MANY more times a night, & sometimes it takes a couple of hours to settle him back to sleep. I'm too tired to go into any more detail. This all started a few days ago & it has nothing to do with his cold.

Noah will go for his 4 month doctor appointment at the end of the month, I will update the post when I have his current weight & length. Even though he's chubby, I think he's still a little on the smaller side, at least compared to some babies I've seen his age. I'm going to guess he's around 13 pounds.

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Sick Boy

Something told me this morning to get ready for the day early, so we were all dressed & showered by 9am. I noticed Owen wheezing after we walked upstairs, I sat with him & read him a couple of books while listening to his breathing to see if things got better. His breathing was still labored so I threw a bottle for Noah & snack for Owen in the diaper bag, & off we went to the walk in clinic. I LOVE the clinic by my house, there is never a wait & half the time my family doctor is in the walk in clinic anyway.

Owen has viral asthma and is on two puffers, one as needed and the other twice daily. We will have a follow up appointment with our family doctor in the next few days. If his symptoms don't get better (obviously they are or I wouldn't be blogging), then we will be off to emerg. He hates the aerochamber & administering the puffers is proving very difficult. I have to sit on him & hold the mask over his face long enough for him to stop crying and take a couple of breaths. Not fun.

Noah was checked out as well. He is fine - slight runny nose - wait it out.

I have to admit I was more than a little panicked this morning. These kind of situations at work are so much easier to deal with than at home. Hopefully in a couple of days he will be rid of this cold & be feeling better.

Catch up

The past week has really flown by, we've been super busy. Monday I took the kids to the mall because Th*mas the Train was making an appearance. We were early but so was the rest of the city, the place was packed. Seriously it was like Christmas x10. Owen was so excited all morning, he couldn't wait to see Th*mas. This was the first time I'd ever seen him get really excited about anything, he was acting so much like a 'big kid'. I thought we found the perfect spot to see the show, unfortunately when they brought th*mas out they only brought him out about a foot & all we could see was the black rim on the side of train. I couldn't even get pictures that's how awful our spot was. The other characters we could see, but not th*mas! The entire show Owen kept asking about when he would see th*mas, he had no idea he was even there! I felt awful. I almost took him back to the mall to see a second show & get a better view, but he was over his disappointment quickly & we went home for a nap instead.

waiting patiently for th*omas

Later in the week we met up with some friends for a play date at a kids fitness play center, they had a blast running around & Owen was exhausted by the time I took him home. Getting out with two kids is becoming much easier, & I have been trying to take them out at least every other day.

Saturday we went to a children's fair & Owen had a great time dancing to the music & watching the super dogs. There were clowns & a bbq lunch, anytime Owen gets to eat a hot dog he considers it a great day!



Having a busy week and being around so many kids is likely what has gotten us all sick. It is so rare that Owen is sick, seriously I can count on one hand the amount of times he's had a cold & all of his colds were when he was in daycare. However this time we are all feeling awful. Taking care of two sick kids while feeling awful yourself is no fun at all. I am just very thankful that Noah hasn't been too sick & only has a bit of a stuffy nose. He's been sleeping lots (which is nice), & he is quieter than usual. Owen is still his busy self, nothing gets him down. I'm sure in a couple of days we will all be feeling much better & back to our normal busy days.

Owen - crusty face & all

New Sleeping Arrangements

Finally.

Noah is out of the bassinet & into his crib. The first night was rough because we tried to test his reflux issue & have him sleep flat without an incline. It didn't work so well, he was up every two hours or so & obviously uncomfortable. The second night we put the mattress on a slight incline & he was back to his regular sleeping pattern & much happier.


Owen moved into his toddler bed last night. He was really excited about the cars bed, & he slept all night without asking to get in bed with us. I think his sleep was a little more restless, but he didn't wake up. Had he asked to sleep in our bed we would have let him & not pushed the issue. It was so strange to not have Owen in bed to snuggle up to, it was actually harder on us than him, we had trouble falling asleep. Throughout the night I would wake up & have to fight the urge to put him back in bed with us! Anyway, we are happy that he had a good night & napped well today, plus for the first time in a year & a half it was just the two of us in the bed. So much more room to stretch out!


Both boys are still in our bedroom, so our room is still very crowded. We plan on moving them to their own room once Noah starts sleeping through the night regularly. They will likely share a room, we think it will be easier for Owen that way, plus we can use the extra space for as long as possible.

Creative Days

You might think that with the lack of blog posts that we've been keeping busy doing exciting things. Such is not the case, we've had a very low key week. Owen made some oatmeal muffins on tuesday, he has yet to eat one. He is becoming such a picky eater, we have to hide vegetables in his food.


Then today we went to buy some finger paints to make a father's day present. I was feeling brave so i left the double stroller in the car & made Owen promise he would hold my hand & stay right beside me. He did a great job & listened very well. There was another young boy (about 15 months) in the store that came up to Owen & stuck his finger right in Owen's mouth! it was weird, but the look of surprise on Owen's face was priceless!. Owen just stood there & took the abuse from the smaller kid. When we got home we got right to work painting. Here is a photo of Owen creating his masterpiece.


Owen hated getting any paint on himself, every drop of paint he'd ask me to wash off of him before he could continue his artwork. He's likely so use to me telling him not to make a mess that he couldn't relax & get into his work. It didn't take long before cleanliness went out the window & he really got into it. He was all about the green, blue & yellow paint, he only added splashes of red at the very end. It was a well thought out creation.


I'll post a photo of Owen's art after father's day.