Way Back When-esday (July 4th)

This week's Way Back When-esday is brought to you by our country's independence. Here is Brooklyn on her first July 4th holiday in 2005. She was 4 1/2 months old.

And though I have not picked out Jake's outfit yet, I am sure at some point this weekend we will be bringing out the precious Memorial Day outfit once again.

Happy 8 month birthday, Jake! (more than a few days late)

Oh my word...this kid is so precious! Jake Edward Johnson- Jake E- Jakey Jake- Little Pook turned 8 months old on Saturday. He has been 98% pure happiness in his 8 months of life.

(Give him a break, he had to have a few crying spells or he wouldn't be a normal baby. ha ha!)

Jake is currently wearing 12-24 month clothes and size 4 diapers. Current weight is approx. 24-25 pounds. He has a concentration of hair in the middle of the top of his head that, given a few more weeks, will loan itself into a nice mohawk.

Jake is making so many sounds. He does "nananana" "momamomamom" "dadadada" "babababa" and a variation of spits and raspberries. Though he doesn't call any of us by name yet, I think that he saves a special "ah-da" for his daddy. He also has special smiles that he saves for Brooklyn, Chad, and myself- we have our own individual "Jake greeting" when he sees and recognizes each of us. And of course, Jake smiles at any and all people who stop and talk to him. When he gets particularly excited, he pumps his arms and legs up & down and squeals.

He has recently started holding his arms up for us to pick up and hold him. He is also becoming better at waving hello and goodbye- though right now it's still this excited-no-coordination-one-arm flap. But you get the idea that he's trying. No forward mobility yet, unless you count the face plants, but he is getting close. When sitting, Jake starts bouncing up and down and lunges forward, placing his hands on the floor in front of him. He then stops and looks up like "now what?" He'll catch on soon enough. Besides, my house is not baby-proofed yet.

Jake is still sitting at zero count for teeth, but has the most precious toothless grin, so I don't mind. Not to mention, I am still exclusively breastfeeding, so it's nice that teeth are a non-issue here. He eats 5 times a day- three meals with food and two liquid-only. He enjoys all fruits and veggies and cereal, including rice, mixed, and oatmeal. I hope that he is always this versatile with food. We'll start him on finger foods after his 9 month check up with the doctor. Like I said, no hurry to rush him. He's doing great growing on his own.

Jake loves playing in the pack-and-play. The extra cushion also gives him a lot of comfort and confidence to roll back over and keep playing after the aforementioned face plants. Brooklyn continues to shower him with hugs, kisses, head locks, and "teeth-clenched-love-you-so-much" pats on the back. Luckily, Jake is a tough boy.

Sleeping has been going great...11-12 hours at night in his crib. However, on vacation last week, we found that Jake tends to stir around 5am, and if he becomes unswaddled, he tries to stay up for the morning. Luckily, we can usually catch it on time and reswaddle so we get another 2 hours of sleep, but the unswaddling/Houdini act that has been occuring shows us that it's probably time Jake learns to sleep unswaddled. We did it 1/2 of one night and did fine after about 45 minutes of talking, staring, rolling, and crying, but both Chad and I decided that we don't want to make any significant sleep changes until we are home from next month's beach trip (staying with three families in one house = we want a happy, sleeping Jake all week!).

So, that's Jake at 8 months. Pure joy, pure love, pure laughter, pure fun, and pure BOY.

Mommy beach tip

Applying sunscreen should be like using the emergency oxygen mask on an airplane. Take care of yourself first and then your children.

After applying sunscreen on two children and helping one Daddy, I seem to forget where I have applied to myself and thus found some odd burns around my scalp, behind my ears, and on the side of my knees.

A Sneak Peek 8 Month Post

So poor Jake does not get his official 8 month post today because we are just returning from 5 days at the beach. (I bet you thought we were leaving today based on yesterday's post, huh? Sorry, but I would rather all of Facebook and Blogger land NOT know when my house is empty. :-) Just sayin'.)

So, instead, and until I can get myself organized and start remembering all that has happened this month with my baby Jake, here is a peek at what my little boy did all week.

ahhhh, how quickly you forget...

...how something so little and cute requires so much stuff to pack for vacations?

Let me know if I have forgotten anything...

Beach Items:
o beach sheet
o beach toys
o beach tent
o 3 beach chairs
o cooler

Linens:
o 1 set queen sheets
o 1 set double sheets
o bath towels
o hand towels
o washcloths
o beach towels
o pack and play sheets

Kitchen:
o 4 bottles
o bottle drying rack
o baby spoons
o sanitizer bags
o dishwasher basket
o dishwashing liquid
o hand soap
o paper towels
o Ziploc baggies
o snacks
o breast milk
o baby food
o high chair
o Breast pump
o pump supplies
o milk storage bags
o sharpie
o bottled water
o bibs
o Tide

Kids Misc:
o Pacis
o baby pool
o pack and play
o Boppy
o toys
o activities
o 2 fans
o swim diapers
o diapers
o wipes
o DVD player
o DVD's
o Bed rail

Clothing:
o flip flops
o tennis shoes
o bathing suits
o hats
o clothes
o pajamas
o underwear
o socks
o cover ups

Tolieties:
o sunscreen
o shampoo
o bar of soap
o body wash
o deodorant
o aloe
o bug spray
o Amoxicillin
o Tylenol (adults & kids)
o Zyrtek
o Toilet paper
o Tissues
o blow dryer
o razor
o shave cream

Other:
o computer
o cell phone chargers
o stroller
o camera

Way Back When-esday...Father's Day Edition

In honor of Father's Day last Sunday...this Way Back When-esday is brought to you from my favorite husband (and one of my favorite fathers).

Chad- Thanks for being a wonderful father (x 2!)!

Date: February 2005
Brooklyn's Age: 5 days old
Chad's Age: 27 years old

Date: May 2005

Date: April 2008

Date: (early) October 2009

Date: October 26, 2009

*Jake at a few hours old.

Date: December 2009

Date: April 2010

when mom's away...

...to Gramma's they play!

The band had professional pics done Saturday (oh, I hope I get the proofs tomorrow- we're real excited to see them!). While, we were busy playing models in downtown Greensboro, the kids were at Chad's parents' house. It looks like they had a great time!

Jake looks so cute playing with the big girls.

to multiply or not?

Sorry no cute pics of the kids today. Just some ramblings from their mama.

Chad and I have made it quite clear that we are done having children. I've fluttered from wanting 6 kids (before I got married), 4 (after I got married), 3 (right after Brooklyn) to 2 (after paying for 4 years of Brooklyn's daycare). We decided when I got pregnant again that this would be our last child, whether or not it was a boy or girl. For me, it was a win-win. If #2 was a girl- GREAT- we have all the stuff and clothes, we know what to do with a girl, and Brooklyn will have a little sister to boss around. If #2 was a boy- GREAT- we have some gender neutral stuff, I get to buy NEW clothes, and Brooklyn will have a little brother to boss around.

When we found out we were having a boy...WHAM! Out went all the girly stuff. When I gave birth to Jake....BAM! Out went the maternity clothes. Now, as he grows out of clothes, we can't get rid of them fast enough to all his baby boy friends. And we are beginning to purge all the "newborn" essentials, too. Chad loves when a preggo friend comes over because usually it means a tub of something or a bag of another is leaving the house. Don't get me wrong, I am happy, too. I am not a glowing pregnant woman. I am actually quite miserable for 34 weeks. We're also "pick up and go" people. Life with a baby is more slow, more well-thought-out, and you have sooooo much more stuff to bring along with you (and thus more stuff to forget!). Chad and I pretty much knew our family was complete before Jake even entered this world.

But lately, I have felt guilty.

Guilty?

Why guilty? Well, Chad and I have been soooooo blessed to have gotten pregnant VERY easily with both children. With Brooklyn it was a matter of "what do you think? sure, let's try. Ok. done." and with Jake "now would be a good time. ok. you free tonight? alright. done." I have never ever had to feel the heartache of not being able to get pregnant. But unfortunately, I am hearing more and more of couples- friends- who are having trouble or who have learned they are unable to get pregnant.

So, this is where the guilt lies. Why, when God has obviously chosen us to easily conceive and carry children, would we choose to just stop "nature's course" and end our multiplication? Are we being selfish? Are we being ungrateful?

Obviously, I only have these conversations with myself....and you all. And I probably wouldn't even be thinking this way if it wasn't for this sweet, albeit unconventional, family on television.

The Duggars have 19 kids (and counting). They have chosen to just continue to have children as God continues to bless them. Though their last baby was born quite early and is facing months of challenges, the prognosis is good...and so they have succesfully given birth to 19 pretty much healthy children.

Are they really crazy? Extreme- yes. Crazy? Hmmmmm. I have watched their show the past year as it has become quite a fascination with Brooklyn. Thank goodness for them so that I could stop watching horrid re-runs of this family. They truly are pretty normal parents and have raised pretty normal kids.

But, can you see my struggle here?

Why stop having healthy children? Just so I can pick up and fly to Vegas when I want? So I won't pay for daycare for 20 years? So I can afford a new car for myself in 5 years? Obviously, Chad and I are not fulfilled by having money (we wouldn't have picked education and non-profit for careers if we were). We don't care about having the newest of everything, the best and biggest of it all, etc. But we do care about giving our children 100% of ourselves. We do lead a busy life, and we enjoy taking family vacations. We are a great team, and we have chosen to devote ourselves to raising TWO strong, healthy, Christian children. We love these babies with all our heart and find great joy in watching their every moves, listening to every sound, and feeling every hug and kiss.

So, I guess what I am saying is...maybe it's OK for us to choose to end our family at 4. Just like some couples choose not to have any children, and some couples choose to have them by the dozen. It's a personal choice, and we are not ones to judge.

However, if God would choose to "surprise" us one of these days with another, we would be OK with that...but friends, I will need my stuff back. :-)

water fun #2

Jake graduated to the big kid tub this month....he has been loving the "open waters", and I love the little bath seat that holds him somewhat upright. Unfortunately, the seat has gone through about 5 kids and the suction cups are shot. That means I have to keep a sharp eye on him so he doesn't reach to the side to touch the water and topple over.

Oh, I just love how squishable this baby boy is!

water fun #1

We have enjoyed such beautiful weekend weather lately, and I have forgotten to post these pictures from about 2 weeks ago on one such weekend. We had a visit from a monarch butterfly, and Brooklyn saw it up close and personal.

We also had some fun water play in the backyard. Jake LOVED the pools.

But was quite surprised when he squeezed water in his mouth. :-)

My precious water babies

mommy savings tip #3653

Don't waste your money on a wipes warmer...just leave your diaper bag in the car in 95 degree heat. Voila! Warm wipes!

new directions

Ok...so maybe this title came to me because I am obsessed with Glee (shocker, I know).

But it also came to me because I feel that God has placed something on my heart in regards to this blog. I started the "Oh, Baby" list for two reasons: (1) to keep track of the multitudes of babies coming into the lives of my dear friends and (2) to remind me to pray for these pregnant mamas and newborn babies. This list has been great, and I have loved updating it with new pregnancies and new births. And, selfishly, it thrills me to no end when someone randomly makes reference to it, because that means they have come here to read the blog.

Lately, I have wanted to do a separate list for any and all prayer requests. I look at my blog no less than 2 times a day. Whenever I get some free moments before work or in the evenings, I like to just click around and randomly check in on friends.

I wish I was more diligent in my prayer life.

I find that when I pray before bed...or in my car...or in the shower, I always "forget" everything I want to pray for (I know, I know. God knows what's on my heart, but I like to actually verbalize it sometimes.) So, I am going to start a new list of prayer requests and praises.

This list should be up and running sometime in the next day or so. I would love it if you would join me in praying for these requests (and sharing in praises!) as you pop in and check the blog. Thanks to my linkage with Facebook, traffic has picked up here on the old blog, so I ask any of you who stop by to also let me know if you have any prayer requests or praises. I would love to add you to the list.

And yes, please continue to let me know about your precious babies! That's one list I LOVE to see get longer and longer! :-)

ear infection 1, teeth 0

So, while I had hoped that we were starting teething this week, I knew in my heart and hearts that Jake was on his way to his 2nd ear infection. The ear tugging, quiet wimpers in the middle of the night, etc. were just all too familiar. Brooklyn was about 2 infections away from tubes, so we kind of consider ourselves the never-went-to-medical-school-but-know-our-children-pretty-well experts. But, as with Brooklyn, you could never tell by looking at Jake that he wasn't feeling well. He's just 100% cutie 100% of the time.

And BTW...he's 24 pounds 4 ounces.

Pre-Breakfast Giggles

Jake just thinks Brooklyn is hilarious...but his patience is short once you put him in the high chair. Once he's in "eating position," you better have that food coming quick! :-)

Oh Baby Graham!

See this face right here? This is a very happy "aunt" as one of my dearest friends, Jennifer, welcomed her first baby, Graham, into the world on Wednesday.


I hope Jay doesn't mind me stealing his pictures for this post, but how could you not want to see such a beautiful family...
...And such a perfect sweet 6 pound, 7 ounce baby boy?

Welcome to the world, Graham Weaver! You are so loved already...and you have such a cool mom and dad, too!

Way Back When-esday!

Date: June 2005
Brooklyn's Age: 4 months
*This was Brooklyn's very first taste of rice cereal!

Date: March 2010
Jake's Age: 4.5 months
*Jake's first taste of rice cereal.

Hop on over to Cheryl's blog and play along with Way Back When-esday!

A "Labor of Love"

In 3 short months, over Labor Day weekend, I will get my first sister! I am so happy for Drew and Molly! Can't wait for the wedding, guys!

Love these two! :-)

And they're proud to be Americans...

These two looked precious on Memorial Day...had to include a few pics.

Way Back When-esday!

What a special Way Back When-esday! Since Brooklyn is now officially a preschool "graduate," today I am looking back to Brooklyn's earlier days at school.

Date: April 2007
Brooklyn's age: 2 years, 2 months

Date: February 2008

Brooklyn's Age: (almost) 3 years

Date: May 2010

Brooklyn's Age: 5 years, 3 months

And two pictures of Brooklyn and her oldest pre-school friend, Kate. They have been best buds from the beginning!

Year: May 2007

Girls Age: 2 years

Date: May 2010
Girls Age: 5 years