where to start...?

It has been such a long time since I got on this thing and wrote about our lives. In my defense we are pretty busy with everyday life. The kids are doing great! Sean is getting so big so fast and Charlie is smarter and smarter every day. I am amazed at the things he can learn to do at 20 months old and how quickly he is able to learn them. Charlie is still very much the "strong/silent" type. He is more of a performer...you ask and he speaks.. but it is a special occasion when he says something at random or repeats what you say and it is awesome when that happens! He is starting to invite Sean to play with him even though Sean isn't quite ready yet. I can hardly wait for the times when they are playing together and even when they are getting into trouble together. Sean is probably going to be talking before Charlie...he is a much more active and alert baby than Charlie was. He is constantly cooing and jabbering...he wants to be involved in whatever you are doing and is always grabbing for things. He doesn't sleep very well at night...so we have that to work on and I hope we master it soon.
The weather is getting much cooler and I am already dreading the winter. It isn't the snow that i hate or the cold weather...it is the fact that Charlie adores playing outside...kicking balls...throwing rocks and finding pine cones. Our days outside are limited and I am very sad about it. I am on the hunt for some great indoor activities and making an effort to plan more play dates so he can learn to share and socialize. Other than that we have been battling the average runny nose...cough and fever season with the best of them.
I am really looking forward to the Holidays this year and spending some time with our family and starting traditions.

Catching up

I know it has been a long time since I have posted anything...but honestly...sitting down on the computer for any extended period of time is just not a priority. Charlie and Sean take up every moment of the day and in between there...yes I know there is NO in between when every moment is taken up...I try to catch up on dinner, laundry and other general cleaning essentials. I appreciate my husband more and more, because he comes home and entertains Charlie or holds Sean so I can do any number of things I haven't gotten to. He is also an amazing cheerleader for me and is so understanding when I am tired and frustrated and he needs to make himself a sandwich. Before we were married we heard a lot of "make sure and date your mate even when the dating season is over". All that means is set aside time at least once a week to reconnect over dinner, a walk or a dollar movie. In he beginning of our marriage we spent all of our time together when we weren't working. Then Charlie came along and still when he was in bed we had all the time to our selves. Now with two kids it is much more difficult to spend quality time together. We are trying to apply that little piece of advice and use our family members as babysitters so we can get away during the week. It makes a huge difference for our relationship. I guess those other married people know what they are talking about.
I can't believe Sean is already 9 weeks old! With the second one you don't really have time to get on the Internet and see what the next developmental milestone is coming up...so when they come it is such a great surprise. When he started smiling and cooing I almost cried. It was awesome! He is incredibly expressive and I can't wait to see how his personality develops.

Charlie is doing great with his new little brother. He went through a little bit of a rough patch when Sean was about a month old. It started to set in that this little guy wasn't going anywhere and mommy doesn't have quite the same time for me. But after a couple of weeks he settled down and is back to being my little doll baby again! He is getting so tall these days...he can finally make a basket on his Little Tike's hoop by himself. It is crazy how much he loves balls and especially basketball. It will be interesting to see if the interest sticks for the long hall.

I am currently looking for an outlet for myself. Something that takes me out of the house and away from the kids a couple times a week. I am not a scrapbooker and I don't want to spend a lot of money that we don't have. Hopefully I can find something and start doing it. I think it will make me a better mommy and help me to keep my sanity.

Finally here!

That's right...baby 2 has arrived! I couldn't be more thrilled to have him in the outside world. It was pretty fast and furious...I went to an appointment with my doc and he performed a procedure to get labor going...I had been 3 cm's for 2 weeks and was willing to do just about anything to go into labor. I actually started having contractions on the way home but ignored them...I didn't want to get my hopes up. Throughout the afternoon they became steadier and steadier until at about 11:30 at night I decided we should make our way to the hospital. We had already sent Charlie to be with Nana and Papa Moore for the night and our bags had been in the car for 2 weeks! We were ready! Unfortunately when I arrived at the hospital I was told to walk around for an hour and then they would check me again. Uhg! Really?! Anyways...that hour was very productive and they admitted me. YAYAYY! Sooo from 12:30 to 2 I went from 4 to 8 cm's and was ready for the pain meds. My epi kicked in and I was holding my baby an hour later! Phew! It was so amazing yet again. He has some resemblance to Charlie but mostly has his very own look about him. I have been blessed with another son and he is amazingly content. He was a great nurser from moment one and is content to sleep, eat and poop. I couldn't have asked for a better situation. It allows me to put him down and play with Charlie or do something around the house. God is so Good! With family moments from my front door I know that I have nothing to worry about. I find my self a bit tired but mostly excited for what is ahead and treasuring the moments right now.

Catching up

Wow, well where to start? We are just about 4 weeks from my due date with baby boy number 2! Due to my physical discomfort I feel ready for this to be over with any day now. Of course I want the baby to be as healthy as possible...if that means sticking it out another 4 weeks then I think I can handle that. I am sitting at the kitchen table right now and I'm watching Charlie chow down on some lunch with great enjoyment. He and I have had so much great bonding time lately and I only hope that we can continue some of our special times after the baby is born. I am sure my anxiety is pretty standard for moms who are about to bring another baby into their home...but it doesn't mean I can rationalize it away. Brian is home from his month long work trip and I am so glad! We missed him so much and now we can settle back into routine before our lives get flipped upside down.
My brother and his wife recently came to stay with us in our new house....it was awesome to be able to have house guests and share that time with them. We love hanging out but don't get to do it very often. I so want Charlie and his brother to have a great relationship with their only uncle and aunt. Brett and Liz are just two of a number of amazing people in my family that I am thrilled to have influence our children.
Honestly...not a whole lot more is going on...I am super "nesty" these days and want everything to be ready for when the baby arrives. I find myself taking great pleasure in sweeping and scrubbing and washing everything and at the end of it all I feel great satisfaction. I feel so blessed to be able to be a stay at home mommy. For a while we didn't know if it would be possible and the Lord is providing for us in an amazing way. We are making less money than we ever have and are finding out little by little our dreams are coming true. We own a home...i am home with Charlie...our family is nearby and help us at every opportunity and we find ourselves so grateful everyday!

The American Dream!

Phew~It feels like we have been on a house hunt for about 4 years, in about 4 different locations around the country. Wouldn't you know we finally accomplished our goal in our home town of South Bend, Indiana. The journey has been fun, exhausting, stretching and for me emotional at times. Yesterday, we signed on the many lines involved in this type of transaction and gave a shocking amount of money to someone we had never met before. It is an interesting and very involved process that leaves you with your head spinning and little money in the bank! I wouldn't trade it for anything at this moment! I am so thrilled with what the Lord has provided for our family. We were able to find a home in our ideal location, with the perfect amount of bedrooms, a fence for the dog and great friends and family to help us get it ready to move in. We could only afford this type of house in this type of economy. It was a bank owned home that needs some elbow grease and we were able to get an amazing interest rate. If we were to buy a home at any other moment in this 4 year journey, i dare say that none of those things would have been possible. I feel so grateful, humble and excited!

A New Chapter!

Wow, it has been a while! We actually have quite a bit going on right now. We have officially made and offer and had it accepted. We are scheduled to close on March 6th! We are so excited to have our very own place to establish our family. We will also be in in enough time for baby 2. That was super important to me. There is just so much that goes on after you have a baby that is very personal and special...i just wanted to know that Brian and I would be sharing those times in our home. It was a foreclosed home...which means it needs some TLC...we don't mind doing the work ourselves, but it can get overwhelming and expensive. We have worked so hard to get debt free and it feels like we are spending like crazy. It is all ok, but it can be scary! The whole house buying process is very involved and you feel as if you are signing your life away...fortunately for us...home prices are way down and so are interest rates. We have a great deal in our choice of school system...we couldn't ask for more. Praise the Lord!

Charlie is getting sooooo BIG~ He started walking around 10 months and is quite the mover and shaker now. He stands and bounces to music and hits his head about 2-3 times a day. We call him Frankinbaby cause he walks with his arms up in the air for balance...well at least in the beginning...he has them down to his sides now but they don't swing with his walk like an adult. They are just stiff to his sides...still very Frankinbabyish! He is so adorable and Brian and I both feel so incredibly blessed to have him for a son. The poor thing has had a series of colds lately that are taxing on everyone in the house, but he manages to stay smiley through them. The nights just get very long and the days run into one another. He is busy busy busy all day from moment one. That also means he takes some great naps during the day! I can't even imagine what it will be like to add an infant to the scenario but sometimes ignorance is bliss!
It is very interesting how my pregnancy affects how I function with Charlie. I have been very exausted up until the last few weeks and with the new pooch in front it is harder to lay down with him and carry him for long periods of time. I suppose it is a good thing he is walking early!

Teeth and Toddling

Well it has been a while since my last entry so I will have to see what I can remember. I am now into my second trimester with baby 2...which we just found out is another boy! I am so excited to see them grow up together and be great friends (In between the fighting of course). We had a few who were holding out for a little girl...but I am sure in a few years we will have another one. I am loving motherhood way too much to let it stop at 2.

Charlie is pretty amazing lately! He is letting go of things and taking steps...he seems fearless...which strikes a bit of fear in me. You can't protect your kids all of the time and I am sure we will have our fair share of doctor trips due to MINOR injury. He is getting a mouth full of teeth..I think we are up to 7 now! He seems like such a little boy and not a baby most days and he is only 10 months. I love those moments where he wants mommy and cuddles...It is good to be needed and I am sure I have a great deal of time to enjoy those moments before he is too cool for me.

Christmas and the new year were great and full of food! I am glad that the holiday eating is over and I can get back to normal portions. When you are early in your pregnancy and go through the holidays...it is easy to put on too many extra lb's.....and then you have to make it through your whole pregnancy trying not to eat too much.

We are making some strides in the house hunting. We plan on hitting it pretty hard now that Christmas is over and making an offer by March. We are excited about making a home for ourselves and raising our family!