Matty: 10 Months!

I used to find it incredibly annoying when parents referred to the ages of their toddler children in months. “She’s 26 months old!” No, no she is not. She is two. Two YEARS old. She is not a baby; she’s a toddler. A tiny human being who runs and jumps and who traded pureed sweet potatoes for Mac & Cheese a long time ago. 

I still find it a bit annoying, but I get it now. I understand the desire to count the months and avoid the years. It is a means, for me at least, to reside in baby land  just a little bit longer. You have to wrap your arms around those months and hold on tight because they slip by oh so quickly.
  

Sweet Matty, I cannot believe it, but here we are. Another four weeks have passed and you’ve reached the 10 month mark. 10 months? How did that even happen? It’s as if we rang in the New Year, took a cat nap and woke up to Halloween. It’s ridiculous, really.

You’re getting around much faster these days and you’re into absolutely everything. The artwork that adorns our refrigerator has gradually moved to higher ground and I find myself running to beat you to the cat dish several times a day. And if I happen to be a second late? I’ll inevitably find you with a tiny fistful of kibble and will be forced to spend the next five minutes fishing pieces from your mouth. I told you, you’ll eat anything. 

You have two little teeth now, both on the bottom. I don’t check for new teeth nearly as often as I once did because the ones you do have are pretty darn sharp. They come in handy for all of the cat people food you are eating these days. You’ll eat most anything; chicken, cheese, lunch meat and veggies. We still give you the occasional container of baby food but somewhere along the line you realized that spewing it all over mom and dad is much more entertaining than actually consuming it. 

You’re sleeping a bit better and spitting up a lot less, both of which make us very happy! What else? We introduced you to cookies, snow and Santa! When meeting the big guy, you didn’t even cry. In fact, you did exactly what we knew you would—gave him a big happy grin and a tug of the beard. While so many things about you have changed, that has not. You still LOVE to pull hair and grab people’s faces. You also still suck your thumb and yank on your ear when you’re sleepy…that one melts my heart. 

When you wake up, you grip the railing of your crib and scream until somebody comes to rescue you. There are rarely tears; you simply know that the louder you scream, the faster we respond. You are sweet to your core and you have the most infectious giggle. And your brother? He is completely smitten with you. Have I mentioned how much you lucked out in that department? Last night, as he wallpapered his bedroom in artwork, you sat on the floor and rifled through his books. I suggested taking you out into the living room and away from his things but he stopped me, saying “no mom, I like having him in here with me.” I realize that might not always be the case, so I’m soaking in that morsel of sweetness while it lasts. 

We are still learning so much about you, sweet Matty, who you are and who you will become. Granted, it's bittersweet, but it has been such a joy to see you grow and watch as your little personality evolves. Sometimes, in the midst of a cheerio tornado, after half a dozen dirty diapers and 4 wardrobe changes, I find myself losing sight of how very fortunate we are. But we are. We are so very blessed. 

Love you to a thousand planets.

-Mama

Chaos

I sat down with the intention of making a little progress on the "photography" section of this blog. You know, add photos, contact information and maybe even a little blurb about my shooting style and how I strive to ensure "Picture Day" isn't awkward and uncomfortable or smack dab in the middle of the Sunday football game.

 It took me approximately 6 seconds to realize that wasn't going to happen.

I'm just going to cut to the chase and say that life lately? It has been complete chaos. Our house looks like its been hit by a tornado. No, not strong winds and minor debris...a legit natural disaster. Dishes in the sink, baskets of unfolded laundry EVERYWHERE and unopened mail piled on the counter. Matty is sick, Tyler is bored {thank you Winter} and Ryan and I? We are so darn exhausted tired. This week has been spent consoling the inconsolable, mopping up baby vomit and screaming "Santa's watching you!" six billion times a day. If you know me at all, you know that when life gets like this, I can NOT cope. 

1. I need clean
2. I need organized 
3. I need structure 

 ...none of which are in the cards.  

So, until Matty stops crying, Tyler stops complaining and the holidays are behind us, the smorgasbord {yes, I said smorgasbord} of shots below will have to do.

Happy Friday! 

Sick Day

While I certainly don't have the paralyzing phobia my husband does, I am not a big fan of germs. Especially when they invade my little guys. On the plus side? I get to spend the day snuggling and firing off work related emails with this peanut.

                                               

{Side note: the Galaxy takes terrible photos.}

Matty: 9 Months!

Sweet Matty, 

9 months?! It is amazing how ridiculously slow the time passed while we were waiting to meet you, yet the days months since you arrived? They've passed at lightning speed.You have fit so seamlessly into our family. A son, a brother, a new little buddy.

You have both grown and changed so much in the past few months that I often times catch myself taking a second look at you and wondering what happened to that tiny black haired baby who once was. Your hair is blonde now and if I didn't witness it five billion multiple times a day, I wouldn't believe that you throw up three quarters of the food you take in. You have graduated beyond baby foods, 12 month jeans and the weight capacity of your car seat. I'm sorry to break it to you buddy but you are a chunk {at about 23 lbs}! 

This month has brought with it continued smiles, belly laughs and a new sense of curiosity. You have officially mastered crawling and can travel from the living room to the kitchen in approximately 6 seconds. I haven't exactly timed you but I'm willing to bet you move even faster when (1) you want to be picked up or (2) your brother left something tiny {and incredibly tempting} on the floor. Needless to say, we've all gotten quite good at remembering to close the gate and I'd say we're making strides in delegating the big kid toys to higher ground. Harley, however, is making zero progress in avoiding your death grip.

One teensy tiny tooth made an appearance a few weeks ago! I've been checking you mouth for a second on a near daily basis because you no longer sleep through the night. The truth is, you wake up 2-3 times and WE ARE EXHAUSTED. With that said, I don't think daddy or I have the heart to let you cry it out. You're just too darn cute, kid. 

Speaking of cute, you've learned to wave enthusiastically when people greet you. You'll even give us the occasional "Hi!" You're taking everything in so quickly and while we are incredibly excited to watch you learn and grow, I'm telling you, it's moving much too fast. I'd give anything to slow this whole thing down a bit and just soak in today. Please?

Love you buddy....to a thousand planets.