Jansen -- 5 & 6 Months

I am combining Jansen's 5 and 6 months posts because I am that.far.behind...eeeek! He actually turned 7 months yesterday but I'll do that post separately...hopefully this weekend.

Highlights from Jansen's 5th and 6th month:

- He was 19 lbs. and 25 inches at his 6 month visit

-Switched pediatricians and were referred to Cranial Technologies to look at possibly getting a DOC band for his head. (That experience deserves its own post later on)

- Sleep...what is sleep?? My sweet boy seemed to not need any! I got to where I couldn't even count the amount of times he woke up during the night. Holy moly that was a rough couple of months.

-Took every nap in his crib like a champ...night time was a little bit tougher though. 

-Started cereal at 5 months and veggies at 6 months.

-Gnawed on everything in sight...I knew it wouldn't be long before those teeth came in.

-LOVED his jumperoo...that boy could give Tigger a run for his money!

-Wanted to be in the middle of everyone all.the.time. Heaven forbid he be left out of what was going on.

-Rode in the stroller like a big boy...no more car seat on the stroller!

-Spent lots of time hanging out in the bumbo. 

-Became captivated by Super Why which is Sawyer's absolute favorite show. Both of the kids are in love with that show and as a former Kindergarten teacher, I can't help but love it too! 

-Began sleeping on his tummy at 6 months. 

-We moved bed time up to 6:30 and really put a good night time routine in place. This made a HUGE difference in sleep training him. 

- Started his new daycare :) My kiddos are finally at the same daycare...makes momma's day afternoons so much easier!

-Began sitting up on his own at 6 months. Sawyer loved that Bubba could sit up and play with her now. If he decided to lay back down she would say, "Mommy, Bubba sit up" over and over until I sat him back up. That little girl LOVES her brother! 

-Celebrated his 1st Easter and his sister's 2nd birthday. 

-Never stopped smiling...or so it seemed. We thought Sawyer was the happiest baby ever, but JT has got her beat. Everyone always comments on how happy he is and that he is always smiling. What can I say...we make happy babies :)

1st St. Patrick's Day

Easter Egg Hunt at daycare

Playing with Grandma 

Easter 2014

This picture makes my mommy heart burst. The day Sawyer turned 2 and JT turned 6 months.

How can you not fall in love with this face?

She absolutely ADORES her Bubba.

Our Sweet Boy is 4 Months Old

I swore I was going to be better about posting this time around, but I'm still finding it hard to actually make myself sit down and do it! Two little ones under the age of two and teaching keep me pretty darn busy. Not to mention, Jansen still isn't the best sleeper so as soon as he's down for the night, I'm pretty quick to follow!

JT @ 4 Months:

-weighs 16 lbs and is 25 inches long 

-Finally took his first nap in his crib on 2/1

-found his feet and always tries to pull his socks off

-sucks on his hands like there's no tomorrow

-moved up to 5 oz bottles (3 oz formula & 2 oz bm)

-shrieks and screams so loud & high pitched, I swear he's going to break a window

-is a drooling machine

-has gas that stinks worse than a grown man's...it's unbelievable

-is down for the night between 7:30 and 8:00. 

-has slept through the night a couple of times, but majority of the time he still wakes up once or twice to nurse (no real consistency on times) 

-up for the morning @ 5:30 on school days, around 6 on the weekends

-learned how to blow raspberries and does it non.stop. 

-Both kids will be blowing raspberries in the backseat (Sawyer thinks its funny to copy Jansen) so when I go to get them out...SPIT is everywhere!!!

-got to use his jumper for the first time and he LOVES it! He jumping away as I type

-has the cutest giggle and ohhh the belly laughs....swoon!

-the smiling and talking is pretty much constant 

This momma has been blessed with two extremely happy babies...now if only we could make that two awesome sleepers! ;)

Partying with her shades and yes that's her potty...don't worry it was clean!

 making a pizza!

 sweet morning stretches

 lunch break while shopping with Nana

Rocking the boots, bib and no pants...

2nd Set of Tubes and Adenoids

While I was out on maternity leave, Sawyer started getting ear infections again and she had one that we just couldn't seem to get rid of! We made an appointment with a new ENT since we didn't want to keep driving to our old one in Fort Worth. The new ENT, Dr. L. told us that Sawyer would need a new set of tubes (1st set were put in April 2013) and also recommended having her adenoids removed. Now, this poor girl has had more ear infections that I can count...I literally lost count. I used to keep track of them on my calendar and I just lost count between them all, there were that many! And here I thought breastfeeding was supposed to help prevent ear infections...11 months of breastfeeding and I've got the queen of ear infections on my hands! Bless my sweet child's heart!

We didn't waste any time and scheduled the surgery for Friday (we met with Dr. L on a Monday). I was a little nervous with how Sawyer would do when they had to take her from me because of the age she's at. You know, the age where they can't stand for Mommy or Daddy to leave...in Sawyer's case this also includes Nana. Thankfully, they gave her some medicine that kind of chilled her out (it's supposed to help with the separation anxiety). Once that medicine kicked in...she was sooo mellow and also a tad bit loopy. I felt bad for laughing at her a couple of times but it was just too funny! I wish I could've captured it on video but she was watching Mickey Mouse on my phone at the time.

She didn't cry at all when they took her back. She wouldn't lay down completely on the bed as they were taking her away...she held onto the rails to hold her shoulders and head up. She looked very uneasy but not upset. Once the surgery was over, Dr. L came out and filled us in. Apparently she had a polyp in one ear because of excessive scar tissue. When I asked what caused this, he said he had seen this before with the type of tubes our previous ENT used and that is why he never uses those specific tubes. He was confident that it wouldn't happen again with the tubes he put in her ears this time. Let's keep our fingers crossed! Everything else went fine with the exception of Sawyer's heck of time coming out of the anesthesia. Oh my word, that was ROUGH! She ended up pulling the IV out of her foot and scratching up my neck. I always knew my girl was strong, but holy moly it took all of my strength to keep her from falling out of my lap as I was holding her in recovery. Side note: like most children, Sawyer absolutely loathes restraint of any kind. That being said, when I was holding her she kept getting upset (totally understandable) and then would do the whole "toddler flailing/thrashing" is what I like to call it. Talk about feeling completely helpless as a mommy....

Bottom line is all is good with the world now! Since having the surgery, Sawyer's talking has really kicked into high gear. She's been talking for quite a while now and her vocabulary has been great. But since having the tubes, her speech has been MUCH clearer and she's putting 2-3 words together. She's quite the Chatty Cathy!

Looking cute in her gown

"Bubba" was there for support

3 Months Old Already!

I still can't believe our happy little guy is already three months old! Dusty and I have been so blessed to have had such happy babies. I remember Sawyer would smile so big, she looked like she just couldn't contain all of her happiness in that chunky little body of hers. She must have been giving her little brother some lesson because I actually think he can smile bigger than she did (totally didn't think that was possible). 

JT at 3 Months: 

rolled over at 11 weeks old (tummy to back)

started daycare on December 30th

got his ear molds removed on New Years Eve...no more rim kinks!

smiles the biggest smile I've ever seen! Just smile at him and he smiles back

sleeps from 8-2ish and then back asleep until I wake him up at 5:30 (on school days)

takes 4 oz bottles every two hours at daycare 

lights up when he sees his big sister--ring around the rosie is their favorite game (Sawyer spins his rock & play in circles as she sings "ashes ashes"

held his bottle on his own at daycare

laughed for the first time while sleeping. Papa can get some good laughs out of him too :)

discovered his hands

drools like CRAZY

tries to sit himself up when he's in his rock & play and while laying down

has made me love being a "boy mom". It's so much fun getting to be a "girl mom" AND  a "boy mom"

is getting all that gassy business under control...I've got a super happy baby on my hands, unless he's got a bubble in there...N.O. B.U.E.N.O! It's been a lot better though lately--YAY!

his hernia is starting to go down--looking more like a belly button now

has chubby cheeks!! Oh how I've missed having a chunky baby with rolls galore. Jansen's not there yet, but he's definitely been filling out. 3 months clothes are getting tight!

still doesn't like his big swing, but he tolerates the travel swing I keep in my bathroom while I get ready.

loves "standing" 

sitting in the bumbo has opened up a whole new world for him

My lumberjack

CHEEKS!

I wanted to cuddle in bed with this guy all day long

Mommy's first day back at work!

Just got the ear molds taken off for good!

His reaction when I asked if he was ready to go to daycare

Jansen Taylor Williams

 Jansen Taylor Williams was born Monday, October 21, 2013 at 7:53 AM. He weighed 7 lbs. 10z and was 20 inches long. I was shocked at his weight! I was so sure that he was going to weigh at least 9 lbs because of how hard it was on my body to carry him those last 6 weeks!! 

I'm going to fast forward to where we are now so I can start doing my monthly updates. Those of you that follow me on Facebook and/or Instagram have seen the countless number of pictures I've posted of him in the past two months! 

2 Months Old

-weighed 11 lbs. 13 oz at 2 month checkup 

-22 1/2 inches long

-nights look like this: 4 hour stretch of sleep, then up every 2 hours. I am praying we'll be getting more sleep by the time I go back to work. 2 weeks left!! :(

-he's a momma's boy and I love it! 

-will only take a bottle if you position him like he is nursing.

-starts daycare on Monday...eeeehhhh. I don't think I'm ready yet!

-smiles the biggest smile I've ever seen a baby smile. You can't help but melt when he smiles and coos at you :)

-my skinny little guy is starting to chunk up! His cheeks are growing by the day and he's filling out all over. I'm still not used to having a baby that doesn't have 3 rolls on each arm. hehe

-his ear molds come off next week. He got them on to smooth out the rim kinks he had...we had no idea that was something that could be done, but apparently it can! He has had them on since he was 2 weeks old. 

-His best naps are taken in his car seat after he's fallen asleep in the car.

-He is boycotting the Ergo now...I'm so not happy about this and am praying it's a short lived phase.

-He is the happiest baby unless he is gassy and unfortunately that happens A LOT! We should probably take out stock on Colic Calm and Tummy Calm. It's our saving grace! 

-His belly button herniated when he was in the NICU for rhinovirus (3 weeks old), but it looks like it's finally starting to go down. 

-He enjoys tummy time much more than Sawyer did. He'll even fall asleep sometimes!

-He reminds us so much of a little old man. He dozes in and out of sleep when he's nice and comfy. He has a receding hairline. And his ear molds look like hearing aids. I can't help but laugh sometimes at my cute little old man! 

-He is beginning to like the swing...he hasn't been a fan of it until recently. 

-Jansen celebrated his 1st Christmas! 

Our 1st Christmas as a family of four!

Happy boy on Christmas morning

Getting ready to go to Great Grandma's on Christmas Eve

Exciting News!!

For those of you who know what the colors black and gold mean to us....you're right! Sawyer is sporting Forney colors to represent her soon-to-be hometown! We are officially moving BACK to Forney!!! Dusty and I couldn't be more excited to be back with our families in our hometown.

The decision came in late October after months of "flirting" with the idea of moving back home. It literally was just one of those decisions where I can honestly say God put it on my heart that it was time to move back home. There was no more "Could we? Would we?" It was just a "This is it, it's time". I can pin point the exact moment when I knew. We were on our way home from Kaufman's Scarecrow Festival and Dusty mentioned that when he and Joey (my brother) were talking at the festival, Joey made a comment about us moving back home. As soon as the words left Dusty's mouth, it just clicked. I asked Dusty if he really wanted to, but I knew the answer was yes because he had been talking about it since Sawyer was born in April. Decision made!

Fast forward to March and our house is on the market, our new house in Forney will start being built any day now...just waiting on the permits from the city. I am currently on the hunt for a teaching job in Forney as well. Needless to say, between now and the end of June is going to be a little crazy! If I sit back and think about how stressful and crazy this all could get, I start to worry. However, Dusty and I are completely confident in leaving all of this in God's hands. We know He'll take care of us and everything will fall into place according to His plan. We've already seen His Hands working wonders this year and we just know it'll all be okay.

With all of that being said, it will be a bittersweet move for me. I am so excited for Sawyer to be able to grow up with her grandparents, aunts and uncles, and cousins right down the road! And I'm excited at the thought of hopefully being able to teach in Forney, which has always been a dream of mine. But on the flip side, it is going to be EXTREMELY hard for me to leave my amazing job. The people at my school have become like a second family to me and that family will be so hard to leave behind...not to mention the kiddos and parents that I've bonded with! I couldn't have asked for a better experience these past three years. I am more than thankful and blessed to have had the opportunity I've had there.

If everything goes according to plan, our Forney home will be ready for move-in mid to late June. I have a feeling they'll finish right around the same time we'll be leaving for our family vacation to Disney World...remember I said things are going to be a little crazy!

So Far Behind!! 9 & 10 Months

I apologize for being SO far behind in blog posts. I've missed Sawyer's 9 month post as well as her 10 month post! Needless to say, Sawyer is an overachiever at doing her job of keeping us busy. She is just so much fun that we can't get enough of her. I'd much rather be playing with her and loving on her than typing away on my computer...which is why my blogging has fallen to the wayside. Anyways, this post will be chock full of 2 months worth of Sawyer fun facts. Enjoy!!

In her 9th and 10th month:

-graduated from army crawling to full out "you can't catch me" crawling

-pulls up on anything and everything

-waves bye-bye
-has started to cruise along the furniture

-might even quietly say bye-bye when you put her in the car seat. This has happened a handful of times but I still have to brag about it ;)

-blows kisses 

-eats ALMOST anything...still not a fan of carrots and sweet potatoes

-green veggies are her absolute FAVORITE...no kidding, this girl will choose asparagus, broccoli, peas and green beans over anything.

-underwent her first VCUG test and renal ultrasound. She has grade 1 reflux on one side and grade 2 on the other. That is a long story in itself. As for now, our prayers were answered and we are on observation until the next UTI.

-she has been deemed the "pacifier thief" at school

-diaper changes were a two-man job there for a brief period of time
-loves having her teeth brushed
- I am surprised if there is any bath water left in the tub at the end of her baths...she loves to splash!
-loves giving kisses...BIG open mouth kisses!
-is all about the dogs and her daddy
-had her first ER trip to Cook's. Double ear infection, upper respiratory infection and bronchiolitis were the culprit...that is why she has horrible circles/bags under her eyes in her 10 month picture
-says momma and dada :)

I'm going to stop there because if I add anymore, I won't have anything for her 11 month post which I'm due to post next week. We'll see if that one is on time ;)