2 Months down....Infinity to go!

 

It's becoming clearer by the minute that the people who wear the pants in our family are also the ones who wear diapers underneath them...and we are totally fine with that!  Once my life was gauged by the quiet moments at home with Shawn or nights out with Coley.  Now I can't imagine a life that isn't quantified by the sweet smell of baby skin (there's nothing like it!) little grunting noises during the wee hours, oodles of cuddle time, and tiny hands and feet.  I don't know how I survived for so long without those wonders, and I never want to go back!  It's impossible to believe that little Miss Piper Everly is 2 months old already, and its even more unfathomable that, not too long ago, she wasn't yet in our lives. There's so much love in our hearts right now, we can't see straight.  It's downright dizzying! Equally amazing is the discovery that Shawn and I love each other even more, thanks to this pint-sized human and her ever-growing big sis.  Despite the sleep depravity and total chaos, we are finding new ways to appreciate one another on a daily basis.  It's inspiring on so many levels.  I am cherishing every moment of being a mommy- which is, by far, my favorite role to date!
Here are some of the observations I've made during my introduction to being a Mama of TWO baby girls.....
1)  Staring at your own child is addicting.  Even the high drama of The Bachelor takes a back seat to watching Piper do nothing but sleep.  Both Lucy and Piper are so gorgeous, I'm a nervous-wreck for their teenage years.  
2)  Sometimes it takes twice as long to change one of Piper's diapers as it does for it to be soiled again...There's an average Pampers lifespan of five minutes in our house.  It's crazy!
Crazier still?  For some reason, I find this utterly endearing (endearing from Piper.  Lucy needs to be potty-trained ASAP haha!).  
3)  Whoever invented the wetness indicator on the aforementioned diapers is a genius.  It eliminates the mystery, and saves us from a somewhat gruesome show and tell.  
4) Breastfeeding a baby while a toddler uses me as a jungle gym takes some getting used to.  But despite this fact, some of my favorite moments are in the midst of the bonding time that occurs while Piper dines at the "breastaurant" (Sorry, had to! hehe).  
5) People will rain on your parade and insist on informing you that every time your newborn smiles, it's because she has gas.  Whether or not this is technically true, indulge me by letting me think she's happy to be looking at me.  It lights up my day! Luckily she is now old enough that a smile from her is a TRUE indicator that she is feeling happy.  Doctor says so!  
6) Laundry "day" is a thing of the past.  Spit-up, diaper blow-outs, and everything else that comes out of toddlers and infants causes our washing machine to be on a perpetual cleaning cycle...  
7)  Regardless of how much space you have for photos and videos on your computer hard drive, I can assure you it isn't enough.  Though I am aware that I can't document every single moment of my children's lives, it doesn't seem to keep me from trying.  
8)  Taking showers is a luxury. So is eating meals.  And getting out of my pajamas, for that matter.  Sleeping for more than a few consecutive hours feels like I just spent a day relaxing at the spa! 
9)  There just aren't enough variations of the words "I love you" and "you're beautiful" in the dictionary.  I'm beginning to sound like a broken record,  and I'm thinking of inventing my own dialect so I can supplement my vocabulary.  As it stands, Lu and Pipe are likely to know those phrases in every language. 
12)  Sometimes a kiss from Mommy is the magic cure for the baby blues.  
13)  Sometimes it isn't.  When Piper cries, it pains me enough to join her. Especially since hers are real tears from her "officially blue eyes" these days, and also because she doesn't cry very often so when she does, I know she truly is sad....she is the happiest baby in the world.  I AM BLESSED!

In retrospect, there are a few things had forgotten about in my pre-Piper days that I feel are worth a mention as well, so we've now arrived at the advice segment of this blog.  I had already forgotten the demands of a Newborn in the short 19 months between Piper and Lucy! Yikes! But I certainly haven't been alone in the continuing infant education saga.  Shawn has had his share of trials and tribulations as well.  For example, he now knows that you shouldn't remove a diaper too far in advance of giving your child a bath or without a back-up one ready underneath the buns while changing the soiled one.  No diaper + holding a baby = disaster!  

For as many things as Piper learns daily, she teaches us twice as much.  Which is the way I think it should be.  And there are, of course, a plethora of other lessons we have left to learn from BOTH our girls.  

For instance, how in the world does one successfully grocery shop with a newborn AND a toddler? Wandering the aisles of the grocery store has taken a turn for the worse.  Piper, Lucy and I recently had quite the first grocery trip, where I quickly discovered that the only thing that fits safely in the main portion of the shopping cart is Lucy, while Piper's car seat is perched up front....So where do I put the groceries?

And life with kids has certainly taken its toll on my wardrobe.  There is surley drool and spit-up gracing the shoulders of all of my T-shirts.  Luckily, since I stay at home, not many people have to witness the hot mess that I've become ;-)  As you can see, the mommy learning curve is still in full effect and always will be.  Since there are no adequate courses for Baby 101, we are left to forge our own path, with the help and advice from all the women in my life who have done this before me!  It is a  beautiful, magical, hectic, crazy-making, smile-inducing, heartwarming, hands-on adventure....and I look forward to a lifetime of it!  Happy 2 Months Piper and 21 Months Lucy! Until next time....
Mommy of 2, 
Britt


Happy Valentine's Day from my Sweethearts!

More random pictures of these pretty girls!

It snowed a little on Valentine's Day and Lucy wanted to sled.  So Shawn took her out and when she came back in she REFUSED to take her snow boots off (bottom right).  She is a funny character, that girl!

Cajuns and Mermaids and Elk? Oh my!

**WARNING** This post is a major picture overload! That's what happens when you take too much time off from blogging!  Read if you dare....

We had quite an eventful 11 days recently!  Shawn’s parents came to visit us and meet Piper for the first time!  Of course she had to get sick the week they were here, but we were all really good about washing our hands before we touched her and she was a sweetheart (almost) the whole time.  I’m glad they got to spend so much time with her while they were here.  She is just so precious- I love to share her with everyone!

 I have to start out by immediately saying that Bruce and Mary spoiled us rotten!  I think Lucy is confused why we stayed home for dinner tonight and didn’t have someone waiting on us at the dinner table :) We went to some pretty yummy restaurants that we hadn’t tried before, and some others that we haven’t been to in far too long (Joe's crab shack, anyone!? YUM!)!

Anyway, they were here for Shawn’s birthday and he was thrilled about that.  Shawn and his dad got to go shooting with their new guns that day, so I know that was fun for him!  He even brought his target poster home with him to show me how good he did. Hahahaha!  I can’t complain though, because the girls spent that day shopping :) We all enjoyed Super Bowl Sunday together and they treated us to some real Cajun cookin’! We had an absolutely delicious shrimp boil with authentic Louisiana ingredients during the game.  I’m not lying when I say that was THE best shrimp I have EVER had.  Too bad the 49ers lost, but it was a really fun day, despite that.

During the week, we swam in The Gilley’s hotel pool (Lucy’s favorite thing to do!) , drove up to Estes Park and went to Rocky Mountain National Park, went to the Denver Aquarium, and spent a lot of time relaxing and just enjoying each other’s company.  At the Aquarium we saw REAL mermaids!  It was mesmerizing to Lucy, but also to Mary and I!  I’m not sure the guys cared as much as we did…  But the mermaids were beautiful and waved to the kids looking through the glass and even swam with the sharks! We also fed and “petted” stingrays.  Yikes!  At Estes Park I walked up as close as I could get to the ginormous Elk before I was told I wasn’t allowed to get any closer.  Haha!  Bruce was fascinated with the snow, and even the snow plows ;)  Whenever they visit, I’m always reminded that they live in a place with practically 365 days of Summer- and sometimes I’m jealous!  Especially now, when I’m sick of the cold Winter weather and I’m wanting some hot sunshine.  

 

Lucy received lots of new makeup kits, adorable clothes, and other fun toys :)  Shawn scored some pretty awesome birthday gifts from everyone this year too!  I surprised him with the announcement that we are going to NYC in April to watch Mingo get drafted into the NFL!  My parents helped me with this gift (there is no way I could afford it by myself), and I have kept it a secret since I bought the plane tickets in September!  It’s been killer.  Especially because he BEGGED me to let him go for so long and I kept saying “there’s NO WAY we can afford that Shawn!”  Luckily I’m in charge of our finances and paying the bills so I was able to squirrel away money a little at a time to pay for it all :)  I made him a birthday card announcing the trip and he cried!  He was literally SO excited that he cried and kept asking me if I was serious.  I wish my parents could have seen his reaction as well, but he got chocked up again when he called to thank them later, so I think they know just how much it meant to him.  I can’t wait to go back to Manhatten as well- this gift was just as much for me as it was for him!

 Now we are back to reality and back to trying to get the girls on a regular routine.  I had a nice “break” from being on full-time Mommy/housewife duty, but now it’s back to work and back to life!

Until next time…

This picture captures just how HAPPY my girls were in their matching Sister shirts!

 

P.S. I COMPLETELY forgot to mention that Lucy left us for a few days at the end of January and flew to Boise with Papa!  Papa also met Piper for the first time too! And I was able to spend some (much needed) one-on-one time with Piper, have some time to myself, AND SLEEP-IN!!!!!!!!!!!! which was soooo nice!  My lucky lady flew first class to Boise and, according to my family, was an Angel the whole time she was there!  She was spoiled by her Aunties and Ninny and Papa and had some fun play time with her cousins.  That little girl has been extra spoiled by both sides of our family (Shawn’s and mine) for the past 2 months!  She sure is lucky!  She has a LOT of people who just adore her :)

I was SO happy to have her come home! I missed her SOOO very much!

Her flight to Boise was delayed so she got in VERY late. The next day when she woke up, she walked out to the living room and it was like Christmas morning!  She had SO many toys to play with!  How exciting for her!

My poor, sweet baby got a cold while she was in Boise.  She didn't feel good at all.  But she still looks beautiful!

 

I did this with Lucy at 1 month, so I had to do it again with Piper :)

Some bonding time with sweet Piper