More Random Comments

Since I don't have any structure to this blog anymore, here is my catchup of various stuff since December.

We are now formally pursuing speech therapy for Chase.  We had an appointment with a therapist in mid-December who agreed that it would be good for him.  If you imagine the scale of "normal", it's about 3 inches tall.  Chase is about half an inch below the bottom end of normal.  She said based on that, they wouldn't necessarily recommend therapy, but when I mentioned that he doesn't say two word sentences and he tends to shorten his words, she thought it might be a good idea.  We are now just waiting to get a good consistent appointment time with the therapist.  Her schedule is crazy busy.  The only weekly available appointments were around lunchtime, but that just doesn't work when you have two working parents and when work is 30 minutes from the daycare and a daycare that is about 30 minutes from the clinic!  We are hoping that within the next month or two something opens up to accomodate us.  If not that may be ok as well since Chase had made so much progress over the past 3 months, but I still want to give him every opportunity to do well!

And speaking of Chase's speech, he said his first 2 word "sentence" on Saturday.  Drew was taking him to his room for a nap and Chase was saying bye to me on his way out.  He said "Bye-bye Mama!".  Yay!!!  We were so proud!  I'm hoping that just opens the door for him and he can start putting his other words together as well.  He has also starting showing off his ability to say his grandparents' names.  I've known he could do this for a month or so now, but he would never do it on command before.  He's also pronouncing his words better and saying two syllable words correctly.  His favorite new word is cookie.  Because we love hearing it so much, we also give him cookies when we hear it (which is why it is his favorite word!).  His other favorite words are food related as well.  Milk which also sounds like the word "no" sometimes oddly and "pop-pop" meaning anything sweet on a stick!

Buzz Lightyear has all of a sudden become his favorite toy again (and "security blanket").  He has been obsessed lately and insisting on being with him all day and night.  He's had many epic tantrums lately over us taking it away so he could go to school or go to sleep.  After the battle I had with him Friday morning at school, the new rule in the house is that Buzz must be hidden each night so he can't take Buzz with him in the car in the morning!

With Cooper's arrival soon (which Chase is still blissfully unaware of), we have started to transition Chase to a big boy bed upstairs.  We first started with naps upstairs, but we've only been successful with him staying and sleeping in bed once.  On the weekends, we let him sleep upstairs at night.  The first night we had him upstairs, we both heard a big "plop" upstairs around 11pm.  Drew ran upstairs to find Chase standing beside the bed in the dark looking confused and staring at the light on the baby monitor.  We still aren't sure if he fell out of bed or not (he has a toddler rail on the bed, but I suppose it's still possible to fall out of bed!).  Drew picked him up and put him back in bed and he slept there successfully the rest of the night!  He's slept upstairs another handful of times and done great.  Naptimes though aren't getting any better.  He likes to talk and play during the first hour of naptimes, so his crib is much better for keeping him confined during his playtime.  We don't quite know how to handle his extra freedom upstairs just yet!

I ordered him is big boy bedding over the weekend and now I just need to wait for a coupon code to PBTeen before I order his actual bed and dresser.  I hope to get that ordered in the next month or so.  I'll definitely post a picture of his room once everything gets in order (maybe by April or so!).  We have lots of big expenses in 2012.  I'm still trying to process all of money we've spent lately!!

I haven't used my camera in ages, but Drew has at least taken it upon himself to shoot a picture or two.  Here's one from late week of Chase saying "cheese" while eating dinner.

35 weeks

Last Friday, I was officially 35 weeks pregnant.  Here's a little side by side picture of Chase and Cooper in belly.

I'm now about 35 1/2 weeks pregnant and I believe starting tomorrow have 30 days left til my due date!

That is just unbelievable!

I'm trying to just soak up the present and these last remaining weeks of being a family of 3.  That's a little hard when working busy season hours, but I'm trying my darndest.  Speaking of work, I now have less than 4 weeks left!  Yay!!

I haven't weighed myself in a good week or so.  I think I'm to the point where I'm no longer curious to see my weight because I know it's above a certain amount and I just don't want to see the numbers!  The joys of pregnancy that I've been blessed with lately are incredible heartburn (with Chase I had heartburn the ENTIRE 9 months...with Cooper I've just recently been getting hit pretty hard), swelling feet and ankles (I had to buy cheap Target shoes this weekend a size larger than normal just so my feet would fit in shoes at 7pm), back pain from sitting all day, and random hours of insomnia throughout the week (I catch up on a lot of DVR between 3 and 5am!).

Even with all of that though, I do love being pregnant! But unless we win the lottery in the next 2 years, this will be the last I experience this, so I'm just relishing in all of these random side-effects of growing a baby!

I still have the platelet issue, but my doctor doesn't seem all that concerned because my platelet levels have been stable over the past month.  She is going to check them again at 37 weeks.  If they drop significantly, we will have the option of inducing early so that I can guarantee at least the option of having an epidural (which is a nice option to have). 

We are getting a little more prepared for Cooper's arrival weekend by weekend.  I finally packed Cooper's stuff in a hospital bag, but our bag is still void of my and Drew's stuff.  Chase doesn't have a overnight bag started either.  We put up the pack n' play in our room over the weekend, but the infant car seat is still sitting in a corner of the garage.  I have Cooper's newborn clothes washed, but they are back in a Rubbermaid bin waiting for Chase to be officially moved upstairs.  I think it's just harder to get ready for #2 because you are just much busier with life and taking care of #1!

Christmas 2011

I figure it's about time that I post our (few) Christmas pictures!  I love my new computer, but it has taken a while to get my programs and settings all switched over.  Plus, my new computer desk is on backorder for another week, so I'm not all organized yet like I would hope to be (our dining room is my new makeshift computer room!).

So Christmas was wonderful!  I feel as if it passed by as quickly as it came.  Unlike previous years, our stress level about trying to be everywhere at the same time was much, much lower this year.  The only frustration came from Chase not napping on either the 24th or 25th, so that made for some very long (and cranky) afternoons.

We had a very relaxing day at home on the 24th and our only scheduled activity that day was Christmas Eve service at church.  Well, Drew might say that this was the most stressful part of the entire holiday season!  Unlike in previous years, there was no childcare during the church service.  Had we known in advance, Chase would not have come with us because he was a big ol' ball of overtired energy!  We were dropping candles, crayons, pencils, and papers all over the floor of the church.  Chase would say "uh-oh" each time and then try to crawl underneath the pews to retrieve everything.  Poor Drew was sweating the entire time and was worn out the entire rest of the evening!

By the time we made it home, Chase was done for the evening and was immediately put to bed.  So the cookies we bought for Santa were never put out.  Drew and I ate them the following day though.  They were the big soft sugar cookies from Target that have frosting and sprinkles on them.  Drew has a co-worker that calls them Crack Cookies.  They certainly are!! :) Sorry Santa!

Drew and I woke up at 6 the next morning and showered and got fully dressed by 7am!  I had never felt more like an adult than actually getting dressed that early on Christmas morning.  We saw all the stuff that Santa had brought and we were so excited for Chase to see it that we actually had to wake him up at 7:30!  He was a tad bit grumpy at being woken up, but he quickly forgot about all of that once he walked into the living room!

Chase must have been very good this year!  Santa brought him a big slide, some dinosaurs, a latch puzzle, and a Blues Clues stuffed animal.  Also in his stocking Santa left him some Pocoyo bath squirters, goldfish crackers, and Oreos!

Chase was overwhelmed with all of the new stuff, but to stay on schedule for the day, we needed to quickly open all of the presents that we had bought him!  We gave Chase an alphabet puzzle, some more play food, and the entire Toy Story movie series.

This alphabet puzzle kind of trumped all the other presents for a good while.  He LOVES puzzles!!  Also, I must brag that Drew thought I was crazy for picking out this puzzle, but Chase mastered it by the next day.  My mom gave Chase a USA puzzle (and thought I was crazy for suggesting it) but Chase has almost mastered that one too!!  My two year old knows where North Dakota and Indiana are (but still can't speak in two word sentences...go figure!).

We saved the Toy Story movies for the "grand finale".  He was SO excited.  He loves these movies.  He calls Woody "Hat".  I would write here what he calls Buzz, but it's just a noise that sounds like Buzz flying, but I have no clue how I would spell it!  Today in the car when we were watching it, he was narrarating the movie Chase-style.  That involves saying "Yay!!! Ooh!! Hat!!  Choo-choo!!  Uh-oh!! Dog!!! Choo-choo!! Hat!!  Uh-oh!!! (insert sound for Buzz)!!"

His shopping cart is now officially full of food!  I think I can lay off buying him more food now.

When you get Oreos in your stocking, you must immediately eat the Oreos.  Same rule goes for goldfish crackers (not pictured)!

Here is where pictures pretty much stop (like last year!).  After opening presents we went to Nini and Papa's house and ate breakfast and opened presents.  Chase got a ton of good stuff there as well.  An art/magnetic easel and all sorts of magnets that help Chase practice his words (and he's picked up lots of new words since then because of the magnets!), a big Mr. Potato Head, a Blues Clues book, and a Hot Wheels track.  Chase has loved all of these new toys.  He could literally play with these toys all day long if we would let him!

Also at Nini's...cake pops!  Chase loves anything on a stick and these are no exception.  The cake pop got all over his face though!  Also, he now calls suckers "Pop-pops".

After Nini and Papa's we headed to my sister's house for lunch and to open presents.  From Gigi and Pawpaw, Chase got a huge beanbag chair with his name on it (it's not pictured here because Chase actually got it the night before!).  He also got a talking fire engine, a magnadoodle, some stuffed animals, and an Auburn racecar for his Hot Wheels track.

At Sherrie's house, Chase absolutely loves playing in the cousins' playroom and going through all of their toys.  He can sit and go through a basket of random cars and action figures for just hours and hours at a time!

The only pictures I took here were trying to get all of the kids together for one picture.  Not entirely successful, but they are all in the same frame, although not all in focus nor smiling!

And not to be forgotten, Cooper got some Christmas gifts as well. He got some fresh onesies and gowns so he won't have to entirely rely on big brother's hand-me-downs and a baby book!  He also got some Auburn gear to wear!