Life as of Late

Haiven's infamous pouty lip, soooo cute!




Life with two kids continues to get better with each week. I think we have finally found a schedule that works, although there are still several days where it seems I don't get anything done between the wants and needs of two kids. For example, it took me one whole week to balance the checkbook! I think Brannon was about to have a panic attack over it. I on the other hand am much less worried about keeping the house picked up, the checkbook balanced, the dishes washed, and putting laundry away these days--which is probably why Brannon comes home from work, surveys the damage from the day, and asks if I need more help around the house. I have learned that a lot of things can wait and that sometimes just surviving the day is enough. I think Brannon understands this when he gets left at home with the kids for the afternoon on Saturdays when I go grocery shopping:)

Taj continues to make great progress adjusting to baby sister, who he calls, "My baby." He loves to snuggle with her, rub her hair, kiss her, study her hands and feet and eyes, and help her with her binky. He is still not sure what mommy is doing when I nurse Haiven. He'll take off with my nursing pads and put them in his own shirt or try the nipple shield on his belly button. I hid the breast pump, so he hasn't tried that out again! I have a feeling this will be some great blackmail material when he gets older:) He is using more and more words to communicate and I think he is about to take off with speech, which we are really excited and thankful for! Both Brannon and I take special Taj time each day and I would honestly say that this is the best way to help an older sibling adjust to a new sibling for anyone about to experience the same change in their home!

Little Haiven continues to be such a good little baby. She does struggle with colic a little bit, but she is only fussy during the day and pretty much sleeps through the night now. She is so sweet and loves to be snuggled, especially by Taj. She is so alert when he comes around and it is so cute! She also responds well to soft piano or jazz music. It literally puts her to sleep, so it's actually become our cure for colic! I am so thankful for the rest that I am able to get! I do not function well on little sleep, in fact, I'm downright irritable and cantankerous, just ask Brannon!

For example the other night Brannon's old possessed cell phone's alarm went off in our room and woke me up only a half hour after I had put Haiven back to sleep (also in our room). In a sleep-deprived induced haze I clunked around our room looking for the source of the strange noise in a rage because I didn't want it to wake Haiven up. I searched for about five minutes and still couldn't find what was making such an awful noise, so I sat on the bed and put my head in my hands and decided that crying would be the best thing to do. Brannon stumbled in the room seconds later and knew exactly what the noise was: his old cell phone's alarm. He claims that while he was getting the phone out of the cupboards (above our bed), that I was swearing like a sailor at him. I do not remember that part as I was already halfway back asleep when the stupid phone was finally silenced! Want to know what happened two nights later? Yep, the same stupid phone that had been turned off two nights earlier went off again! This time I knew what it was and it took a lot of will power for me to not just throw it out in the road. Brannon later told me he had heard it go off again, but didn't dare come in the room because Medusa was on the loose!

Despite the chaos that is present in our home nearly every day, I am thankful for it all! I would rather have the mess and the noise than silence. I am so grateful for my family!