Elliott's Check up/Fun at the mall

Tuesday was Elliott's official 2 month checkup. He is looking good, and is one healthy little boy. His official stats are:

Length: 251/4 inches long (99th percentile)
Weight: 17 lbs 1 oz (off the charts)

So, basically he is huge for his age. But his doctor says he looks very good, and is very well proportioned. He is just probably going to be a very big boy just like his daddy. Elliott also got 3 shots and 1 oral vaccine yesterday. He handled the shots pretty well, he cried when they first poked him, but he got over it pretty quickly. He was fussy later in the day, and needed a dose of Tylenol, but overall he did pretty darn well.

I took Emma along with us to the doctor, since it was her day of the week to be home with me. I switched to only 4 days a week at daycare to save some money, so one day every week I will have both kiddos home with me. Anyway, Emma was very well behaved at the doctors office, and was very interested in what the doctor was doing with Elliott. She even watched him get his shots, and it didn't freak her out or anything. But she was very concerned about Elliott's "owies". It was pretty cute.

After the doctor, we headed to the mall to let Emma burn off some toddler energy in the play area. She absolutely loved it. We were at the mall for 2.5 hours. She just kept running around squealing with joy, going down the slide, and playing with all the other kids there. I had to drag her away by the end of it.

We had such a successful trip that Emma fell asleep on the way home (yes!) and stayed asleep when we got home. She took a good 2 hour nap, which was glorious. Unfortunately, Elliott was super cranky from his shots during this time, so I was struggling with him in the basement during her nap. But overall, it was a fun day, and I handled 2 little children by myself in the mall. I consider that success :)

The weather has been absolutely gorgeous these last few days with highs in the 40s, which is amazing for January. I have been trying to take advantage of the nice weather. Today, Elliott and I went shopping at Costco and then Fareway Foods. It was nice to get out of the house and enjoy the weather. Elliott behaved pretty well, but he doesn't last too long in his car seat without getting cranky because he is getting too big for it already. His car seat maxes out at 22 pounds, so we don't have too far to go before we have to buy a bigger one. Bummer.

I have less than 3 weeks left of my maternity leave. That is so crazy! I am somewhat ready to go back to work and see everyone and have a routine again, but I am going to miss my little baby, and all my evenings and time with Emma. I am going to try and savor every moment that I have left before going back to working weekends/evenings/nights.

Our forecast lately :)

Elliott sleeping after his shots

Emma loving the mall 

Going down the slide of the 100th time :)

She begged to ride the horsey 

Emma with all her stuffed animals 

We kinda destroyed her room- but we had fun!!!

2 Months Old

Elliott turned two months old on Saturday. These last two months have both flown by, and taken a long time. When I think about being in the hospital with him or being pregnant with him, that feels like forever ago. However, it's hard to believe that he has been in our lives for 2 months already.

He is a big boy. We have our two month check up tomorrow, so I will get the official weight then, but we weighed him about a week ago and he was around 16 pounds. So it will be interesting to see just how big he really is.

He currently wears 9 months-sized clothing. He is getting really strong with his neck, and hold his head up for quite a while, before it starts flopping around again. He also can lift up his head and shoulders when doing tummy time, so rolling over is probably not a long ways away. He makes very good eye contact, and he smiles a lot. It is totally adorable. He also eats a lot and is growing like crazy!

Elliott's likes:
-Pacifier (he likes it to fall asleep with, but then usually it falls out and he doesn't care too much about it anymore

-Formula (Unfortunately, breastfeeding didn't work out-and I couldn't keep up. So, he drinks a good 6 oz of formula every 3-4 hours, all day long.)

-Cuddling (This little guy loves to cuddle. He would be in heaven if I held him all day, every day. But usually there are at least a few things I need to get done during the day...)

-Grunting (This is one noisy boy. He's noisy when he eats. He grunts and groans when he is hungry, or pooping, or really any time. He is even noisy when he sleeps. Basically, he likes to make himself known)

-His swing (He really likes watching the animal mobile go around and around. After about 15 minutes he is done and wants out of the swing, but for that 15 minutes he is memorized.)

-Car rides (He likes his carrier-which is has almost outgrown already, and usually car rides put him right to sleep. Which is amazing!)

Elliott's Dislikes:

-Being hungry (He is not patient at all when waiting for a bottle!)

-Having gas (This is one gassy boy, and he gets very mad when he has a burp stuck. So mad in fact, that he is usually pushing against us and fighting us when we burp him sometimes)

-Being wet/dirty (Emma never minded a wet or a dirty diaper-Elliott wants nothing to do with it. Sometimes he throws an all-out fit, and all he needs is a dry diaper.)

That's really about all for right now. Elliott is still just a baby that mainly eats, sleeps, and poops. But he is starting to develop a personality, and we are starting to learn what he likes and doesn't like. It's amazing how different two kids can be.

Overall, Elliott is a pretty good baby. He is sleeping 6 hours straight most nights, which is amazing. But then it takes forever to get him back to sleep again, and that can get frustrating. He also is a very gassy baby, so we burp him like crazy. But sometimes he can still need to be burped again 20 minutes after we lay him down-so it's hard to know when we get all the air out of him for sure. And he can just be wiggly and fussy sometimes, and it's hard to know what he wants. Sometimes I don't think he ever knows what he wants at times. I can have him completely passed out asleep, and then as soon and I lay him down, he starts wiggling around, grunting, and then eventually crying.

It's still a little bit of a learning process with him. But we are so happy to have him in our lives and his adorable chubby cheeks make everything all better. Emma is even coming around even more as a big sister and likes to show Elliott things and even read him books sometimes. Super cute.

Poor little Elliott is going to get his first vaccines tomorrow, poor guy has no idea what he is in for. Hopefully, he handles them like a champ and doesn't get too crabby or feverish from them.

Happy 2 Months Elliott!!

Blessed.

Not much to say today. Just that I feel very blessed and loved. This is my family. I love them. That is all :)

Winter Days.

This week has been pretty quiet so far. Emma went back to daycare Monday and Tuesday, and had really good days. She is finally starting to get over this nasty cold of hers. She's still snotty, and has a slight cough, but she is definitely feeling better.

Elliott and I still hang out all day every day. I am enjoying my time with him, and it is going fast, but I look forward to getting back to work in a few weeks to be back to a routine, and to get out of the house a little more.

This week, I took on the big project of trying to sell Emma's old clothes. Everything that Once Upon a Child wouldn't take, I am trying to sell. I posted it online, and have had people coming by the house to pick up the clothes. This pretty much took all day Monday-but I should come out with about $100 cash out of the deal. So, it's better than nothing :)

I also have been spending some of this time watching Friends (talk about a trip down memory lane) and House of Cards. I don't know what I would do without Netflix these days!

In the next four weeks, I hope to get caught up on all my scrapbooking, and get the garage cleaned up. These seem like very doable goals. I also have gotten my butt exercising again. It feels really good (and also hurts really bad), and I am hoping I stick with it. I still have some baby weight to get rid of :)

All in all, it's been a good week. Right now both kids are napping, and I am enjoying the quiet :)

Elliott at 8 weeks-loving his swing

Weekend Happenings.

Another weekend has come and gone. My return to work keeps getting closer and closer. Eek! But it was a good weekend. Friday night, John and I took a kiddo break and went to Grand Falls Casino for the Seafood Buffet while his parents watched the kids. The food was delicious, with all you can eat crab legs. It was a nice little evening out.

Saturday was gorgeous outside. It got up to about 37 degrees, and was sunny, so Emma and I took advantage and got out of the house. We went to the Washington Pavillion Kirby Science Center, and Emma had an absolute blast. She spent 3 hours playing there, and I still had to fight her to get her to leave. The rest of the day was spent hanging out at home with the boys.

Sunday was also a beautiful day. Emma and I spent some time playing outside, which was so nice to get out of the house for once. John was voted to be assistant treasurer in our church so he spent most of the morning at a church voter's meeting. We spent the rest of the day watching some football and playing with the kiddos.

It was a nice weekend, and especially nice to get outside for a little while, but it all went by too fast. Here we are back at Monday to start another week again. Emma is also feeling better and acting like herself again, so back to daycare she went this morning!!

Here's to a good week (with maybe a little more sleep attached to it?)

Having fun at the water table

Enjoying some time outside finally!!

Siblings :)

Sibling Love

Smiles

Milk Coma. 

Poor Elliott. 

Sesame Street Live

This has been an interesting week. Unfortunately, Emma got sick this week and has a pretty miserable cough. So, since I am home anyway with Elliott, we didn't even try to send her to daycare and she has been home all week with me and Elliott. It is definitely different having both home with me all day long. I have to get pretty creative to keep both happy and entertained.

I am finally getting into a good routine with them, and I have them both napping right now (for 2 hours even!!! yay me!) Emma is still a hot, snotty mess with a nasty cough, but with all the medication we are giving her she is feeling pretty good and still pretty much acting like herself. I am glad she is getting such a good nap, yesterday we didn't have a nap at all, and that was nearly a disaster.

Luckily, Emma was feeling good enough to go to Sesame Street Live on Tuesday evening. Barb and Jim bought us all tickets to go way back in September. It was pretty fun. Emma was a little overwhelmed and even kinda scared once in a while, but eventually she got a little bit more into it and was dancing along with them and enjoying it. She got spoiled and got binoculars and a light up toy, and Elliott got a sesame street ball. He enjoyed looking at the lights, but mostly he slept through the show. Everyone had a really good time at the show.

John let me out of the house yesterday evening to do some grocery shopping, otherwise it has been another week cooped up inside. If Emma was feeling a little better, I would take us out somewhere because it has been pretty nice this week with highs in the mid 30s. Maybe this weekend we can get out and do something. Anything. I am getting pretty sick of my house.

Otherwise not much else new. We are just trying to survive the day to day around here with the limited amount of sleep everyone in this house gets. Someday it will get easier right? But I do love our little munchkins and all the craziness that comes along with it. I just miss sleep.

Here's hoping that Emma gets well soon, and that Elliott doesn't get whatever she has! And to some better nights rest around here :)

  

Elliott's Baptism

It was a fast, busy weekend in the Nelson Household. My family arrived on Saturday and spent the night for Elliott's baptism the next day. Saturday was a pretty fun day. My parents stayed home and watched Emma and Elliott, while John, Ryan, and I went around town and ran some errands. It was nice to do some kid-free shopping for a while.

After errands, we ended up just hanging out at home visiting and playing with the kiddos. We also had fresh Canadian fish and homemade french fries for supper. There was also some playoff football watching and wine/beer drinking involved. It was a great day. And best of all, my mom volunteered to watch Elliott overnight, and I got a goodnight's sleep for once! Hooray!

Sunday was busy, and it was over in a flash. My grandparents also made the trip to Sioux Falls and met us at the house before we left for church. Jim, Barb, and Jeff met us at church for the 10:30 am service and Elliott was baptized during the service. He did very well. He fussed and cried a little while pastor was pouring the water on his head, but otherwise he was good. Emma was really good during the service as well.

After church, we took some pictures. After that, we headed back to our house for some soup and sandwiches and some socializing. It was a fun afternoon having everyone together and celebrating the Baptism of Elliott. It was a very special day!

Emma was sure bummed to see everyone leave and go home. She had so much fun playing with everybody. Elliott also enjoyed all the attention and snuggling with everyone. It was a fun day, but slightly exhausting. I spent the evening getting the house put back together, and getting the kids settled down and ready for bed.

We had a horrific night last night. I got up with Elliott at 1 am and then ended up being up until 5:30 am straight through. It sucked pretty bad. I got Elliott back to sleep in like an hour, but then Emma decided to get up and roll around and be difficult for a good hour, hour and a half. And then by the time she settled down, Eli was awake again. It was such a LONG night. I have kinda been in zombie mode today, and haven't gotten much accomplished. Sometimes parenthood can be so frustrating!!!

But on a brighter note, tonight has to be better right? Only because it can't be much worse. And I have officially gone down to 4 days a week for daycare, so Emma will be staying home with me and Elliott one day a week, God help me. Hopefully it will go okay.

Tomorrow evening will be a fun time. We are going to Sesame Street Live at the Denny Sanford Premier Center.  Emma won't know what to think. It should be a fun time, and it will be nice to get out of the house for a while.

Stay warm everyone, looks like there's some warmer weather on the horizon!!

Playing with Ryan

Family :)

Aunt and uncles 

Reading with Great-Grandpa Kiecker

Eli's cake, Baptism Certificate, Baptismal cloth & bulletin 

Snuggle Days!!

Burr. This week sure has been cold. There have been wind chill advisories and now blizzard warnings. It just has not been very nice weather to start off the new year. Yesterday the wind chill was around -33, and today the wind is just howling outside, blowing the snow around and causing white-out conditions. Unfortunately, it doesn't look like the cold is going to let up anytime soon either. Eli and I have been very happy to stay bundled up inside snuggling.

Not too much else is new in the Nelson Household. Sleep has been hard to come by lately for everyone. Eli is doing much better at night, but he still wakes every 3-4 hours to eat, and sometimes it takes an hour to get him back to sleep. Emma has also gotten into a nasty habit of getting up a couple times a night. This is pretty unusual for her, and we aren't sure if it's the wind that waking her up and then she gets scared, or if she wakes up and then wants some attention. Luckily, last night she slept all night again, so we will see what continues to happen there.

I cannot believe how big Eli is getting. He is a little bit out of control. I weighed him today, and he weighs around 15 pounds already, and he is only 6 weeks old. He is outgrowing so many of his clothes already, it's ridiculous.

Otherwise, we are just preparing for Baptism, which is coming up on Sunday. We are going to have a full house Saturday night, but it should be fun. Hopefully the kids behave and let us have some sleep!!

Stay Warm Everyone :)

Emma and her Minnie Mouse Balloon 

Staying warm in Under Armor

Almost as big as Mickey Mouse
 

2015!

I am sitting here with a Starbuck's coffee, bundled up with a blanket, and watching some playoff football while I blog this. It is damn cold outside. It is a whopping 0 degrees outside, with a windchill of about -20. Brrrr. And unfortunately it is supposed to stay cold for a little while, and we are supposed to get 3-5 inches of snow tomorrow. Fun times. Besides our little adventure to church this morning (which is becoming an adventure with the four of us now) and a quick Hy-Vee stop, we are not going anywhere else in this freezing cold weather!!

Right now, I am enjoying some awesome peace and quiet. I just got Emma down for a nap, and John and Elliott are taking a nap as well. It's been a while since it's been this quiet in the house, and I have to admit I am loving it :)

So, 2015 is here. That's hard to believe. Our New Year's Eve was pretty low-key. Emma was down by 9pm. John, Elliott, and I watched some TV while the adults had some wine. I fell asleep at about 11:30pm. I couldn't quiet make it, especially knowing I would be up with the little guy a few times throughout the night.

New Years Day was also pretty quiet in our house. It was actually pretty nice outside, like in the 30s and sunny. I ran a couple errands during nap time, and then Emma and I took advantage of the nice weather and burned off some energy outside.

On Friday, John was nice enough to book me a massage, so I went and took advantage of that while Jim came and babysat Elliott while I was gone. It was heavenly, and really relaxed me. It was nice out again, so I took advantage and ran a couple more errands and enjoyed some time on the town by myself.

This weekend has been pretty darn cold, so we have spent most of it cooped up inside the house. Thank goodness Emma has new toys from Christmas to keep her busy, so we don't all go crazy. Elliott is starting to become a little less gassy and fussy, so I am hoping it was just a phase and we are getting over it. The nights are slowly starting to get a little bit better as well, so here's hoping for the best, and hoping that I may get to sleep again someday!!

The new year has been pretty good so far. I didn't really even have time to think up any resolutions for the year. Right now, my focus is on losing my baby weight, and just being a healthier person in general. I have gotten my house pretty organized and cleaned while I have been on maternity leave, so that has been a nice accomplishment for 2015. Now, I just need to catch up on my scrapbooking for Emma and Elliott, and I will be in pretty good shape.

On an unrelated note, I got my schedule for when I return to work in February. Wow, that was a shocker. That's going to come a lot sooner than I think it is! Right now, I am loving my time at home with my kiddos, and I really like not having to be anywhere when it is so freezing cold outside!!!

Emma loves her suckers

Frozen dress

Playing in the snow

Proud big sister

Play-Doh fun