Harper's First Dentist Visit

I took the girls to the dentist a couple weeks ago and it was Harper's first time. She was so excited and climbed right up into the chair.  All was going well until the chair started to recline. She ended up sitting in my lap and lying back in the Hygienist's lap.  She cried quite a bit , but let her do everything. She did the same for Dr Wade.  He said that she has excellent teeth. He said that there was no indication of any damage due to her sucking her fingers, but recommended that we put a stop to it by the time she's 2 1/2.  We'll see how that goes.

Cole Carlson: Five Months Old

Little buddy is five months old. I feel like now is the time that things start picking up. He is learning and doing new things each week!  Here's what he's up to:
- he is wearing 3-6 month and 6 month clothes. All of his spring clothes are 6 months so he's a little baggy now, but still super cute. I've been having fun dressing him in his collared shirts!
- he has rolled from tummy to back. He's only done it once. I know he can do it, but he's a lazy boy!
- he's starting to like his jumparoo, walker, and exorsaucer.
- he loves to put everything in his mouth. He still likes his paci.  No finger sucking!
- he has been eating baby oatmeal before bed.  After a week he is just now figuring it out. For a few days he just smiled and pushed it back out of his mouth 
- he is drinking 4oz bottles every 3 hours.  He lives to put his hands on the bottle, but just ends up pushing it out of his mouth.
- he continues to sleep like a champ. He goes to bed between 7-8 and sleeps until 4-6. Then most days he falls back to sleep until 8.
- he still loves his sisters! They always make him smile.
- he is so ticklish.  Everywhere!
- he has the cutest little boy laugh.
- he loves to scream when he's excited or really mad.
- he has the prettiest blue eyes with the longest lashes.

He's our little buddy and we still can't imagine life without him!

Bitty Ball

Riley is playing softball this spring.  We started off a bit rocky, but now she is loving it. She has improved so much since the first day. She is hitting the ball when the coach throws it instead of off the tee and usually paying attention when out in the field. Some things to remember this season:
- Riley crying at pictures. Mom posing beside her to get her to quit.
- Riley throwing out candy in the parade.
- making posters for the parade.
- Riley hitting the ball.
- Riley running completely past home because she couldn't see it through her huge helmet.
- Riley running the bases and stopping on top of home plate.  The next two batters stood on the plate with her until the coach told them to head back to the dugout!

Harper Grace: 1 Year 11 Months

Harper Grace is one month away from her second birthday! Hard to believe, really. Here's what she is up to:
- she is weighing in around 22 pounds. She is wearing size 2t, with a few 18 months that still fit. She's wearing size 5 shoes.
- She is talking up a storm. She is able to communicate pretty much anything. She likes to use words like "real big" "more" and "lots" to explain everything.
- Her hair continues to grow and is able to hold a ponytail and pig tails. She will most always pull them out.
- She has a love for hats. They usually end up backward.
- She will always take her shoes and socks off in the van or the minute she walks in the door.
- she copies everything that her sister does.
- she is a daredevil and loves to "bump" (jump) off of anything.
- She is finally getting some more teeth! I will be sooo happy when they finally come through. Its been a long month.
- She has been throwing huge temper tantrums almost daily. They usually happen when she is tired, doesn't want to get in the van, or wants to do something other than what she is asked to do. She screams to the point of hyperventilation and verges on making herself sick. Thankfully these haven't happened in public!
- she is over her hair pulling and biting stage.
- she loves her siblings. She loves to bring them things, give big hugs, and smother her brother!
- she hardly eats anything for lunch, but eats a good dinner. She prefers to eat fruits, veggies, and grilled meat. She loves to dip her foods in western dressing.
- She's sleeping better each week in her sister's room. She still crawls into Riley's bed if they go to bed at the same time and in the mornings.
- She loves books and will always stop to point something out by saying "minute." After each book she will ask for "just one!"
- she will entertain herself for 30-45 minutes putting her puzzles together.
she is close to bring potty trained. I'm convinced that she would be potty trained if I had a couple of days to stay home and work on it.

As much trouble as she causes she sure is a sweetheart when she wants to be. I don't know anyone that gives a better hug around the neck than she does!

Random Updates

I thought I'd do a little post with a few things that we've had going on the past couple weeks.

I took Cole in for his four month check. He weighed in at 12 lb 9 oz. He was diagnosed with eczema on his cheeks, ears, legs, and arms. We started giving him over the counter cortisone cream and it is mostly cleared up. Since the cream worked so well on his eczema I decided to try it on his cradle cap that we can't seem to clear up. After three applications it is nearly gone!

Poor little buddy had to get four shots and an oral immunization. He handled it like a champ but was super fussy the rest of the day.

We took Riley to the cardiologist today. A couple weeks ago she complained that her chest hurt and when we felt her heart it was racing. Brett took her in to see doctor Fred right away and it had slowed back down. So today she had a chest x-ray and an EKG, both of which checked out OK. The doctor diagnosed her with SVT based off the history of what happened. SVT is a condition that causes an irregular heart beat.  At this point we just go on as if nothing happened and keep an eye on any more episodes. If she has more than two in one month we will visit again for an eco cardiogram and a monitor for home. It she has an episode that lasts a long time and seems to be struggling to breath or turning really pale then we take her to the ER. Our directions for trying to get out of the SVT: headstands, icepacks on the head to create an "ice cream headache", bearing down like you are carrying something heavy, or coughing really hard.

Harper is finally teething again. It seems as though she is working on her eye teeth and molars.

We had a fun weekend with some great friends. My friends Maria and Sarah came down from Minnesota for the weekend. They were happy to get out of the snow and it was great to catch up. The kids (7) had fun playing at the park, playing at our house, and going to our old church on Sunday. Hopefully we will find another time to vet together soon!

Riley has her first bitty ball game next week. So far they have had one practice and two rained out. Hopefully she has fun. She did great at the practice, but was the one girl crying in her team pictures. I just don't get it.

Cole Carlson: 4 Months

Our little guy is four months old already. Its hard to believe, but time keeps moving along. He had really grown this month and is moving into the fun baby stage. Here's what he's doing at four months old:

• I don't have his height and weight stats, but he is sure filling out. He's still a little guy, but definately bigger than the girls were. 
• He is wearing size 3-6 month and squeezing into some 0-3 month outfits. 
• He is laughing all the time!  He is ticklish under his arms and laughs anytime he's tickled there. 
• He has started to notice when we are eating and watches us intently. He recognizes his bottle and gets excited when he sees it. 
• He is eating 4oz bottles of breast milk every few hours. 
• In the past month he's lost almost all of his hair and has some light brown and blonde hair growing in. 
• He isn't rolling over yet, but he is close. He rolls to his side and stops. 
• He loves his feet and is always grabbing them. 
• He always has his hands in his mouth. 
• He loves to grab for his toys. 
• He is a great sleeper. He is usually ready for bed around 7:15-7:30 and sleeps until 5-6. 
• I still haven't quite figured out his nap schedule during the day. He is in his car seat so much during the morning that he sleeps most of the time. Then he seems to catnap throughout The afternoon. Someday he'll nap in his crib. 

He is just the best little buddy. In a hectic household he sure lightens the mood!

Having A Son

It has been such a blessing having Cole as my son. I have been asked several times if it was different raising a son after two daughters. I've always answered with, "no. A baby is a baby ". But the last couple weeks I've really begun to notice a change in my perspective. I don't know if it is because I'm home more with the kids, or if there really is a difference, but there's something there. There is just something about holding my little boy and knowing that before I know it he's going to grow into a man. The idea of this tiny little Mama's boy (he really is!) growing into a man is such a humbling feeling. Yes, my girls are precious and one day they will grow into beautiful (headstrong and opinionated) women, but there is just something different. My mother-in-law put it best, "a boy will always love their mom."

I just feel so blessed to have the family that I do. I am so thankful that we are a family of five. We are complete.