8 months....where has the time gone?

Brock, my dear sweet Brock....

What an adventure the last 8 months have been, huh?  It has been a whirlwind for me and I don't know where the last 8 months have gone.  

Well, that's not entirely true.....

In the last 8 months, I've:

-fallen deeply, madly in love with you, in a way completely differently than Caden.  I wasn't sure how this was going to work, because Caden had been my one and only, the love of my life, my sweet boy.  But, it works.  I love you both with my entire heart, my entire mind, my entire being.  But, I love you in completely different ways.

-had to let go of the idea that you were going to be my "baby".  You're not.  Not at all.  In fact, in some ways, you're even less my "baby" than Caden was.

-had to let go of the idea that you were going to be calm and mellow and totally not fussy all the time.  You're not calm and mellow AT ALL and you fuss a lot.  

-soaked up every single second of your life - although, I have been horrible at documenting it.

-learned that I have to change who I am to be the mother of 2 young, vibrant, energetic (an understatement), demanding, amazing, silly, sweet little boys.  It's been hard on me to realize that I can't meet all of my expectations of myself while being the best mom that I can be for you and Caden.

-been amazed by you every single day.

In 8 short months, you've:

-started sitting up.

-started crawling, first on your belly, and now up on your hands and knees.

-started eating solid foods - a LOT of solid foods :)  You love them all, seriously.  You turn down nothing.

-started sleeping really great, followed by worse than I thought possible, and now we're back to sleeping pretty good.

-started pulling yourself up to standing on anything you can get your hands on.  And now, you're even trying to walk around whatever you're standing up on.  (To this, I am constantly telling you to stop it.  Stop growing up too fast, it's so hard on me!)

-started loving your mama more than anyone else in the world, kissing me, hugging me, saying, "mama,mama,mama,mama", crying when I walk away from you. (And even though I say that this is so annoying, I actually, deep down, secretly, love every single minute of it!)

Brock, you have my heart in so many ways.  I love your gorgeous blue eyes, your irresistible smile, your contagious laughter, your never ending curiousity, your desire to do everything that Caden does, and the fact that you are, completely and entirely, your own person.  I love you.  I have loved and hated the last 8 months and I can't wait to see what the future holds for us :)

Brock at 3 days...

1 month...

2 months...

3 months...

4 months...

5 months...

6 months...

7 months...

and 8 months :)

Teaching my son to be a boy....

Caden is such a boy in so many ways. He wrestles, he plays cars, he likes heavy metal, he plays with cars and legos and police cars. He jumps off of any and everything. In so many ways, he is such a boy. But, in other ways, he is definitely my son. He's not so sure about bugs, he keeps his room neat and tidy, and he doesn't like to get dirty.

One day, we were sitting eating lunch and I handed Caden some food that I thought he might really like to try. He didn't want to eat it because he was worried about his hands getting dirty. I decided right then and there that I better help him to become a dirty boy :)

I said, "Caden, when we're finished with lunch, you and Daddy are going to go outside and play in the mud!"

Caden said, "No, I don't think that's a really good idea."

Nigel said, "YEAH! We are going to get SO dirty!"

Caden - "I just really don't think it's a good idea."

Nigel and I - "Yes it is, you're going to do it."

So, after lunch, we put Caden and Nigel changed into play clothes and outside we went. Me with Brock and camera in hand. Nigel ready to wrestle. Caden slightly timid over the whole thing.

They found a little mud and here's how it went.....

Caden ended up loving every minute of it. And getting completely filthy :) It was a great day. The only thing he didn't love about it was being cold. I can't blame him there. And at the end of it, I said to him, "Caden, little boys are supposed to get muddy and dirty. It's what God made you to do. You need to enjoy being a little boy."

He said, "Well, I am pretty dirty."

Meanwhile, little Brock played in his jump-a-roo on the driveway, watching the big boys acting crazy! Soon, Brock. Very soon.

A budding relationship....

Nigel will be the first to tell you that he's not a "baby guy". The relationship between him and Brock is slow to come, but it's happening. Brock thinks Nigel is hilarious and gives him a giant smile whenever he sees him. But, it's rare for Brock to fall asleep with Nigel. So, this particular moment is especially precious. And, last night, for the first time, I wasn't home and Nigel put Brock to bed without much argument. I was so thrilled about this. And touched. It melted my heart. They are starting to really fall in love :)

My sweet sweet wife

So this is Nigel again.  So for the record my wife kicks @$$.  I have been put on this crummy grave yard shift at work where I work from 8P -6A.  Not a lot of time at home and not a lot of time with the wife and kids.  Kristen gets up every night with Brock and always has a solution to the problem. Today she was leaving to go to Nanny's house and I was late coming home from work, I got home around 9:20A when I was supposed to be off at 6:00A, and she says "Get some good sleep."  I thought about that for a minute and realized, wow what an amazing wife.  Even though she gets up with Brock and has not got crap for sleep she still wishes me to get good sleep.  She is a special woman.  It takes a real warrior to do what she does every day.  She cooks, cleans, all while keeping Brock and Caden fed and entertained.   I am simply amazed on how she does it, i could not.  She has strengths where I would fail.  So, I want you all to know, behind the mom, the wife, the cook, and the sexiness (hee hee) she is a trooper, a warrior, a get the hell out of my way, my kids are hungry supreme being.  She is my life partner and to be completely honest......I would be lost without her. Take care all and until next time.......watch your speeds out there....I'm watching you.....lol.

Brotherly Love

There's no other love like the love for a brother. There's no other love like the love from a brother.
-- Astrid Alauda

A nice fall day at the park.....

It was a nice (but chilly) day, so we decided to pack a picnic and find a park.  We had so much fun!  

Nigel and Caden, getting crazy!

Huge smiles.  It's their favorite way to smile for me.

Brock and mama....I love his face.

A swinging good time!

Our sweet littlest guy enjoying his first time on the swings :)

Firsts...

We have been experiencing a lot of firsts in our house lately.....

First solids...

First time sitting up.....

First teeth......

(click on the picture to make it huge and you'll see the 2 bottom teeth)

First rootbeer  :)

And, although I don't have a picture, Brock is crawling, too.  Wow.  Too many firsts :)

Sleepy baby...

No matter how tired Brock may be, he doesn't usually just fall asleep. However, on this particular day, that's just what he did. Nigel and Caden were in Caden's room playing and I was sitting on the floor with Brock next to me. He was just playing with his blanket, and next thing I know, he was out. So sweet. I even picked up the big blanket that he's laying on, with him on it and everything, and carried it to his crib so he could get a proper nap :) Aah, these days are the ones I want to remember the most!

A few of Brock's many faces...

Brock makes a different face all the time. I'd literally have to have the camera constantly pointed at him and ready to go to get a picture of all of them. But, I keep trying. So here are a few of the silly faces that I love!

Just a little fun outside with the camera!

One nice, warm, sunny day, Caden, Brock and I decided to head outside and just play around. I took the camera and we were just having fun. Caden was being silly and letting his personality shine through for the camera - which doesn't happen very often. And Brock, well, he's never as happy as he is when he's outside. Not to mention outside wearing only a diaper! Plus, he got his first real look (and feel) of the grass :) Enjoy the pictures, they're some of my favorites!

Caden - showing off his silliness and, of course, his tattoos :) This boy keeps me going, no matter what, he's always got something witty and funny to say!


Brock, although he's very, very difficult, he's also so sweet and so charming :) His smile is enough to make me want to do it all again tomorrow!

A self portrait of me and my boys - not super easy with a 3 1/2 year old and a 5 month old! I'm surprised that they were both looking at the camera!

Thirsty?

Brock always wants to get our cups when we eat dinner. He always sits in the bumbo and watches us eat. So, one day, I decided to give him a sippy cup to play with. He didn't just play with it - he latched on :) There wasn't anything in it, but he was sucking on it like crazy! It was so cute. Since then, we've tried putting a little water in it, he kinda likes it!

Another baby play date!

So my friends and I, who all have babies about the same age, got together for another play date :) It was again, so much fun! However, apparently, I need to teach Brock a little bit about personal space! Poor Wyatt, although, he never really fussed about it! And Brock sure got a kick out of it all!