Pica...

..boo!

Growing up

C has done a lot of growing these last months. Some of it is certainly adjusting to being a big sister, but I think a lot of it is just being a fantastic kid :o).

Recent milestones of note:

C now...
*Swings across monkey bars all by her self
*Impresses her teachers with her "remarkable" verbal skills (we just had a parent teach conference and they were quite complimentary)
*Sleeps in underpants and goes to the potty pretty much all by her self
*Helps with m in lots of ways, including being really involved at bath time (helps test the water, washes her back, spreads out her towel, dumps the baby bucket when we're done).

She also got a tattoo this weekend at Alex's company picnic.

An eagle on the forearm, because that's how she rolls.

Morning

There is no place more glamorous than mornings at our house...

QED

2 Months!

So I hinted that she was getting big. I had no idea how big! Stats from her 2 month appointment yesterday:

Your Vitals Were - Last Recorded

	Height	Weight	BMI	HC
	23.5" (90.20%*)	12 lb 11.7 oz (5.775 kg) (82.09%*)	16.2 kg/m2	39 cm (73.14%*)

What's up 90th percentile for height? She is so going to be just like Alex...

The only bad news from the appointment - we need to start working her off the swaddle. Which is a huge bummer since sleep has been going so well!

Oh well. The sooner she's in control of those arms the sooner she can start sleeping with Mr. Lemur.

Fishing - Part 2

So armed with new found fishing pole and skills, Sunday Alex decided that we were ready for the big time and found us a great place to go:
https://www.countyofdane.com/lwrd/parks/jenni.aspx

Took us a couple of wrong turns to find it, but I was amazed when we did. It was a gorgeous spot, and we had the place to ourselves.

First order of business, bait the hook. Surprisingly c wasn't squeamish about using live worms at all.

Ready, FISH!

Dada was proud :o)

Fishing - Part 1

Alex and c went out Saturday afternoon on some errands and upon their return c busted back in the house super excited. Turns out Alex had finally gotten her a fishing pole, after months of practicing with sticks in the back yard. She LOVES to pretend to fish, so she was thrilled to get some lessons with an actual pole.

Though sometime it's hard to wait your turn when the lesson starts to drag...

Speaking of dragging, max also got in the action. This mighty hunter was all over stalking the "fish" attached to the end of the line.

In the end max lost interest and c got to play

which turned out to be a very good thing... (to be continued)

Big girl

Litlle m's not so little any more:

Notice the snaps on that onesie? That are barely keeping things closed? Guess it's about time to put away the new born stuff :o)

Plus side of the chunk - I think it's helping her sleep. This big girl definitely slept through the night last night. I put her down ~9 and she slept until ~7 this morning. IT WAS AWESOME.

Infant care

For your edification, c demonstrates the basics of infant care...

Finding systems

I am all about finding more efficient ways to do things. Let me tell you, bringing m home has only made that drive stronger. The trouble is that since the kids keep changing the rules about when things happen (like waking up), it's been a bit of a challenge getting into a groove.  When Alex was out of town I started getting up before either of the girls in order to pump, get dressed, and have a couple of minutes by myself before morning chaos. It actually worked really well so I tried the same thing yesterday and of course c wakes up and comes on in while I was pumping and Alex was in the shower. Luckily I had a sweatshirt on, but I was still faced with many a question :o) Today I managed not only to get up and pump, but I also "ran" before anyone else was up. Using quotes there since it was more intervals than straight running, but still it felt awesome to get out without a stroller and move at exactly the pace I wanted to go.

The run put the rest of the morning back a bit, so we ended up having some extra time while Alex finished getting ready. We put it to the best use possible - sister bonding :o)

Sleeping beauty

I know I'm biased, but she really is amazing.

The best part of maternity leave...

... Is definitely baby snuggles

Making it work

Alex left yesterday for his first work trip since before m was born, so last night it was one on two for the first time. Things went surprisingly well! It was raining so we played a little down stairs and then c got to watch the iPad for a bit while I nursed. M was happy to hang out in the swing while c and I are dinner. In the interest of earning stickers for the chart I made while she was in school c gladly help with M's bath, then we all hung out on c's room before it was time for her bath. Word of warning to anyone watching c going forward - the girl can not be trusted with a hex wrench. I made sure she was only "fixing" toys, but to my surprise she still managed to take a bead toy totally apart. 

The tricky part came after bath time when c was still too amped up to go to bed but m was hollering to be fed. I decided to go with the flow and let c join us in the nursery with her books.

And it worked like a charm. C read quietly only getting up to go get her blanket. M nursed, I got c back in her room and m swaddled and down, and I was in my room for the night by 9. Now to pull off that miracle two nights in a row...

Happy

So just when I thought yesterday's onesie would be the funniest thing I saw all day, I got an email from Caroline. She made this:

http://www.jibjab.com/view/8IAEznsSGqbAB8xb4uxL

I DARE you to watch it without laughing out loud. I don't think it's possible :o)

Doomed

I'm sorry little one, but you're doomed to be a bit of a geek. You've got way too many family members who think this is funny for it to go any other way :o)

Problem solving

What do you do when you have a baby that clearly needs to be swaddled, but it's 85 degrees outside? Why wrap a cooling towel into a baby do-rag of course! The longer I'm a parent the more I realize it's all about making it up as you go :)

Getting out!

On the first Monday of the month we get the house cleaned. It's fantastic, and generally pretty easy logistically. However, being home on maternity leave does mean that I needed to find something to do for the day, so m and I went exploring. In addition to two coffee shops, a lock smith, and noodles and co for lunch, we also explored parks.

Most of the morning was spent on Lake Mendota. It was a beautiful walk.

And when it was time to nurse we settled down with a view of the terrace and the capital.

During the afternoon I tried to hang out here (Lake Wabesa), but the bug defeated me. 

I miss DEET. 

Anyway, nice to have outdoor options that's for sure!