Friday, February 26, 2016

Jaxen Sayings

This is a hodgepodge post of things Jaxen says and/or does. 
He is in a really funny stage right now - 
and I don’t want to forget the things he says / or how he says it / or what he does!

Be prepared… Nothing he says is funnier than "toot in my mouth!" 

I tried taking a selfie with Jaxen this morning before school
but he did not want to!

Me: “Mommy has to put her socks and shoes on."
Jaxen: “No. Mommy's tired. Mommy sit down.”


If you have been around Jaxen for very long - you know he likes my ears. It is a comfort thing for him to play with my ears. Has been for a long time. I thought he might be outgrowing it - but it has come back with a vengeance here lately! And when he is really tired he tells me:
Jaxen: "I want mommy ears.”
Which means - come closer  to me - because I can’t reach your ears!


I’ve been letting Jaxen help more and more with chores.
He was helping me mop this week.


Every single day I pick Jaxen up from school the first thing he asks:
Jaxen: "Do you have me drink in car?”
Me: “Yes.”
Jaxen: “Good." 

And on the way home from school today we had this conversation:
Jaxen: “Mommy. Snack?" 
Me: "No it's almost lunch time." 
Jaxen: "No. Snack with lunch?" 
Me: “Sure.”
So when I fixed his lunch I put a “snack” on his lunch plate. All was well!


And his two favorite sayings right now:
Jaxen: “That's right” and "Sounds good." 


Silly boy. 
Showing me his spiderman and his Superhero.

Every now and then instead of calling me mommy, he will call me mom mom. Most often it is when he is saying "no”.
Jaxen: "No mom mom." 


Last week during nap time we had this conversation:
Me: “I love you. Have a good nap.”
Jaxen: “Mommy. You lay down in you bed. Be quiet. No Cookie Monster. Have a good nap.”


Awhile back when we were at the Rummage Sale - Jaxen was playing on a Gazelle (treadmill of sorts). When it didn’t work he proceeded to tell multiple people:
Jaxen: “It's broken. Needs batteries. I batteries at home!”
Apparently all it takes to fix anything is batteries!


This nerf gun has been the highlight of Jaxen-Daddy time together!

When Jaxen tells me he loves me - more than not, he says:
Jaxen: "I love you too mommy.”
Even if he is the one starting :)


And apparently, I very rarely call Nik “Nik”. It’s either “honey” or "sweetie” or something along those lines. And every now and then Jaxen will look at me and say:
Jaxen: "You mommy. I sweetie.”
And then he wants me to call him sweetie. 


Just making some coffee for his daddy!

Jaxen has been pretending a lot lately. It’s pretty sweet to hear him when it is happening. He likes to have two-sided conversations (a lot of the time - pretending to be on the phone, but actually saying both person’s words) or making his action figures, or cars play together. It does make me excited to see him interacting with his brother soon! Ahhh…his brother….that still seems a little unreal! Anyway - another way he has been pretending all week is to be a puppy. And anytime he is a puppy he makes sure we know.
Jaxen: “No. I puppy puppy.”
Which means, we need to call him that anytime we say something to him. If we forget - he reminds us :)


The other day we were having lunch and Jaxen runs to the bathroom to go potty. Well, he was in there longer than I thought he should be:
Me: “Jaxen. What are you doing?”
He walks out of the bathroom (pants and undies around his ankles) and says:
Jaxen: "Ummm... I went pee pee and poo poo.”
Me: “What?!”
I walk in the bathroom with him.
Jaxen: "See mommy?”

Sidenote: We have talked about poo poo in the potty forever, but I don’t really push the issue. I’m over it. Then all of a sudden, he surprises me and poo poo’s in the potty two days in a row - all by himself! He still goes first thing in the morning (in his diaper) when he wakes up - and every now and then at nap time. But I think if he needs to go at other times, he is willing to go in the potty! Yea!


A naked Jaxen, playing cars and houses.
I can barely get this kid to wear pants most days - 
I guess this naked phase is beginning to kick in!

Not everything Jaxen says is sweet. I’ll leave you with one more:
When walking down the stairs one morning (after just waking up):
Jaxen: "Obey mommy today?"
Me: “Yes. That would be really nice for you to obey mommy today.”
Jaxen (screaming): "NO! Don't want to obey mommy!”

And that was pretty much his attitude the entire day! Thanks for the warning, kid! Haha!

Tuesday, February 23, 2016

Pregnancy - Week 32

Baby Zane - 31 Weeks


Baby Zane - 32 Weeks


The countdown has seriously begun now!

Everything was good at my appointment last week, but here are a few other notes from this point in my pregnancy - 

Cravings: Nothing I am really craving this time around. Although I have been eating a lot of cheese, oranges and cereal. Nothing really makes me sick anymore. And even the heartburn I struggled with for a few weeks, has been less. I’m thankful for that!

Weight: Yes, I have gained weight. More than I would like. But that’s okay. I’m trying to watch what I eat - although some days it feels as if I’m hungry all. the. time!

Clothes: This entire pregnancy I have not had an abundance of maternity clothes (no need, really) but now that my belly is bigger - I am starting to run out of things to wear! When I am home (and even in public some days) you will find me in one of two stretchy pants. I try to cycle them in the wash every couple of days. I can still fit in my maternity jeans (for now), but shirts are becoming an issue. I will probably be seen in one of 3-4 outfits for the next 7 weeks while in public. But that’s okay!

Contractions: I am not having them very often, but they do occur. Nothing too bad yet (thankfully). The most uncomfortable is when Baby Zane lays in a certain position (left side) and starts moving - whatever he is doing in there can really take my breath away!

Sleep: I go back and forth on good sleep each night. It was about this time in my last pregnancy that Nik moved to the guest room. He has been there the past week, really because I have been sick…but I think he will move back into our room now that I am feeling better. When I can’t sleep I usually kill time on my iPhone…and then make sure I get a good nap the next day - I never seem to have trouble napping during the day though! Haha.

Swelling: At this point in my last pregnancy I was really swollen…thankfully, not this time around!

Movement: I am at the cool stage of seeing my belly move as Baby Zane moves and I love it! It was a bit hard to focus in church Sunday, because I kept staring at my belly moving!

Nursery: We are keeping the nursery super simple. Using the same furniture Jaxen had (dark brown), leaving the walls the color they already are (beige) and adding a few personal touches. I think I have decided on white being the main color. (curtains, wall hangings and pictures). More on that when I can get a few things purchased (waiting for a day when we can go to Syracuse). 

And I think that’s all for now!

Sunday, February 21, 2016

A Day in the Life

Thursday of last week, I read on another blog A Day in the Life post. I have done one of these before and decided to do it again. I think it will be really fun to look back on and see what it was like and what we did!

I read the post on Thursday, and right then decided to document our Friday. No rhyme or reason - just because it was on my mind :)

So here is our day - Friday, February 19.

6:30am: Alarm goes off. For the last two weeks, I have been setting my alarm at 6:30 everyday. I like the quiet time it gives me before Jaxen wakes up to do some Bible study and praying. It’s not always easy to get up…but once I’m up, I’m so glad I am!

6:40am: Jaxen is awake. So I didn’t get much quiet time this morning! Haha. Jaxen normally wakes up between 7:00-7:15. Every now and then he will wake earlier and I try to get him to stay in bed a few more minutes. Not today. He was wide-eyed and bushy-tailed - eager to get up. So he did.

His favorite spot after waking up - in front of the heater!

We went downstairs and I turned on the TV and gave him some milk so I could continue with my quiet time. I even told him at one point to be quiet because mommy was reading and I would talk to him when I was done. Was that bad? Not sure…but don’t care :) Sometimes I just need my quiet time!

7:25am: I decided it was time for breakfast. Scrambled eggs for me.

7:45am: Jaxen decided it was time for breakfast. An apple for him, and I helped myself to an orange.

Showing me his apples.

8:00am: Preparing for our day ahead. I looked over my calendar, my to-do lists and worked on getting things organized. I also decided to put Jaxen in some clothes and brush his teeth. Then I got myself together for the day.

8:30am: Nik woke up. I try to let him sleep in on Fridays (his day off) and especially this week - since he was up early taking care of the snow most days…and he looked really tired last night. Poor guy. But he got to sleep in a little bit at least!

All ready for the day!

8:45am: Tea in hand, car warmed up and out the door I went. I had a few things to take care of at the church and then went to my 10am appointment for a baby checkup! All was well there. Quick and easy!

Waiting on the doctor to check Baby Zane’s heartbeat.

10:45am: I was back home. Nik and Jaxen had run to the church to fix something - so I had a few minutes to myself. I fixed a second cup of hot tea and ate a few pieces of cheese. I would have rather had a Reese's egg… but we are all out!

Nik and Jaxen came home and filled the house with laughter and bullets (from nerf guns) while I did a little work on the computer.

My snack: hot tea and cheese!

12:00pm: I fixed lunch for everyone. It was a weird lunch - consisting of cleaning out the fridge. So all in all we ate: leftover Taco Tortellini Soup; meatballs / bananas / cheese; and a baked potato with chili. Classy, huh?!

1:15pm: Kitchen cleaned, dishes done and Jaxen and I were picking up all his toys - scattered all over the house!

I love having a clean kitchen!

1:45pm: Nik was gone to the movies with some teens, the washer was going and Jaxen was down for his nap (playing - but in his room and quiet).

2:30pm: Jaxen finally fell asleep and I got absorbed in an episode of Gilmore Girls before I closed my eyes for a nap as well :)

Nap time!


4:00pm: Everyone was awake and we were just hanging out as a family before we went out for dinner. Normally at this time, I am prepping dinner. But we have a new Mexican Food place in town and were meeting some people there to try it out!

More Nerf Guns!

6:00pm: Dinner at the new Mexican Food Place with friends! It was pretty good, actually. I loved what I got - it was very flavorful. And they had chips and salsa (bonus). I thought their prices were a bit high (but I’m cheap). I would go back again…but probably for lunch (better prices). I’m just excited to have the option of Mexican Food!

7:45pm: We were home and wrapping up our night. And that is when I stopped documenting our day! Haha. I start out super strong - but by nighttime I forget to document times and what we did. Oh well!

Hope you enjoyed a peak into our life :)

Thursday, February 18, 2016

Weekly Shenanigans

Before you see our weekly shenanigans…here is the best mug I have seen in a long time:

Yes
I’m still in my pajamas.
What did I accomplish today?
The kids are alive.
Say thank you.
Now say I’m pretty.

Ever have that kind of day? 
Yeah…I had a few of those days this week!

**********

Sunday night - Nik snapped this picture. 
Actually, I was the one feeling really sick…I think Jaxen was just having sympathy cuddles.
I have been fighting this all week - but am feeling a bit better each day!


Monday we got out and went to the grocery store…and the shenanigans started right away!

That afternoon, Nik met up with us at the open gym time at the YMCA.
Jaxen loved showing off for his daddy…and Nik even got in the foam pit!

Also, Monday reminded me of one of my very favorite days:
February 15.
Why?
Because these precious gems hit the shelves of every store:
And yes, this will be a part of my weekly food budget until every last one is 
clearanced out after Easter!

Tuesday - we had fun plans…but were cancelled due to this weather:

That would be freezing rain after a major snowstorm. Not fun!
We were stuck in the house and Jaxen took it the hardest.
All he wanted was to “go to my friends”.
Reason #32 why to not tell Jaxen what we are doing in advance!

He settled for watching a movie, on mommy’s lap.
I took this picture because I had a moment: 
my first baby laying in my lap,
and my second baby kicking away, in my belly.
Grateful :)

I kept Jaxen entertained for a bit with a bath.
Thankfully, that still works! He loves baths!

Wednesday was more of the same kind of weather - so we cancelled more plans 
and stayed inside. Again, I had an upset boy on my hands!


He woke up saying “No snow! Go to my friends!”
Not that easy, sweetie. Sorry!

I thought I would help him get over that by telling him that Mrs. Pat (speech therapist)
was coming…and then her car would not start and she couldn’t make it.
Seriously?!
Disappointment again. 
Did I learn nothing from the day before?!

Thankfully, he settled on building towers with mommy.

That night, we were able to make it to church - Thank goodness!
We both needed a break I think (from each other)!

As we were leaving, I snapped these pictures.
These trees were completely covered in ice.
But they were so pretty!


Thursday started off with some morning shenanigans with daddy!

Then we were finally able to make it to our friends house for a playdate! 
And we had the best time.
Seriously - Jaxen played with 5 friends while me and the mommas
chatted and ate snack foods for over 4 hours.
Can’t beat that :)

He was exhausted when we got home and took
over a 2 hour nap!


So that’s been our week!

Monday, February 15, 2016

Weekend Wrap Up

A friend posted this on Facebook earlier this winter and it completely cracked me up!
And after the weekend we had of very cold, snowy weather - I think it applies :)


If you can’t read it - it states: Hold your ground my brothers. A day may come when we are forced to admit that we no longer possess the strength to live in Upstate New York in winter, when we forsake our friends, break all bonds of fellowship and move to the south. But it is not THIS day. THIS day we fight!

Haha! It seriously cracks me up!

It all started with a crazy snow storm Thursday night.

Friday morning I got this text from Nik with the following picture: This is about to go down!
And then Nik and Jaxen went and played in the snow!

That night - the below freezing temperatures came…along with many problems that
happen when those cold temperatures arrive. Boo.

Nik spent so much time Friday morning working on our snow blower as well
as trying to fix some issues that arose at the church.

Thankfully, all the issues we encountered were able to be fixed.
That was not the case for many that we know.
Frozen pipes, busted pipes, cars that would not start and furnaces that went out…
were problems encountered all too common this weekend.


We had to run to the store to fix some of our problems - so we bundled up real good and 
headed out! Jaxen was happy because I just loaded him down with snacks for the ride!
I was the driver, Nik was the runner (in and out of places) and Jaxen ate.
Pretty good deal - Haha!


Sunday produced even colder temperatures.
Watertown was the coldest place in the lower 48 states when the temps hit 37 below zero. Yikes!




But we carried on, made it to church, and celebrated Valentine’s Day anyways!

Jaxen and I spent some time together on Saturday getting his Valentines ready to go.
It was super easy and he was happy - because he kept eating candy as we filled the bags!

I printed off these cute printable from here.
And filled baggies with Skittles.
Easy-peasy and cute!


Jaxen had the best time ever handing these out to his friends, opening and eating one himself 
and telling people “Happy Valentine’s Day!”

In Sunday School, Jaxen made me a cute glitter heart to wear, 
except when it came time to give it to me - he refused. He liked it and wanted to wear it!
The teachers had a few extra - so they gave me one and we both wore our glitter hearts.


The rest of the afternoon was spent napping or laying on the couch - 
with cereal on the menu for dinner!

This week is “Winter Break” in the school system and we have
some fun activities planned for our week ahead. 

Hope you do too!


Friday, February 12, 2016

Life This Week

Well…with Nik having lots of meetings at night, Ash Wednesday Church Service and us going on a date night - it has kept me from blogging this week. I tried :)

But guess what? The snow came Tuesday! Haha. It's wasn't bad... Just a little bit of snow. And it was the kind that did not cancel things - which is my favorite. So life goes on...snow and all. Although, we are expected to have some crazy lake effect snow this weekend and super low temps - so we will see how that turns out!


Jaxen seems to be enjoying snow this time around. Even though he won’t wear gloves. Still. The pics below are of him on his way to school Thursday. And when we got home Thursday afternoon, he walked all through our yard, laughing the entire time at the footprints he was making. I finally made him come inside because it was really cold!


Currently, all three of us are dealing with some major allergy issues. There is a ton of sickness going around right now, so I’m trying to be cautious... But so far, it looks like just allergies. I plan on keeping Jaxen medicated, rubbed down with Vicks and our humidifier on all weekend....trying to knock those allergies out! They are taking a toll on him!

Want to know what helped clear mine up (at least for a few hours)? Spicy Crackers. I normally make spicy crackers once a year. But I recently made them and after giving most of them away, I decided to keep one bag for myself. So Thursday morning was spent at Sonic for almost one solid hour - eating spicy crackers, blowing my nose, drinking a coke (because you have to have a coke with spicy crackers) and filling out hospital paperwork. Exciting life, I know. Then that afternoon I burped spicy crackers. Yuck!


The other new thing we did this week was go to the Tumbling Open Gym time that our YMCA offers a few times a week. I have never gone before (totally kicking myself for that) but it was so much fun! There were a ton of kids there - but Jaxen totally just did his thing. And by that - I mean, ran and jumped his little heart out! This kid had no fear of climbing, jumping, and rolling over everything. It was hard to take many pictures because I was trying to keep up with him - but jumping off this trampoline into the pile of foam blocks was his favorite!


And his friend, Clay, was there too! These two have a lot of fun together!



I think this is a place we will return to at least once a week for the foreseeable future :)