The Big Brothers

I'll post about Catherine's 2nd month soon. But, I thought I'd do a little update on the boys since they turned 2.5 and 4.5 this month.  Seriously?  I've been a mom that long?  Incredible!  Anyway, here's what the boys are up to these days:

Andrew at four-and-a-half years old:

When Andrew wakes in the morning, we are never quite sure which Andrew we will get.  Half the time, we get Curmudgeon Andrew.  This Andrew cries for a good 20 minutes when we tell him to get dressed before coming down for breakfast.  This Andrew doesn't like what is on the table for breakfast when he arrives.  This Andrew has a dresser full of clothes that are "not perfect."  

The other half of the time, we get Agreeable Andrew.  This Andrew says, "No problem" when asked to get dressed in the morning, followed by "This is the best breakfast ever, Mom.  Thank you."  Needless to say, Andrew can be quite a joy and quite a challenge.  We've tried to figure out how to get Agreeable Andrew to make an appearance more frequently.  We've tried adjusting naps, bedtimes, meals, attention, etc.  Nothing seems to make a difference.  We simply have an emotional little 4-year-old who either feels GREAT or HORRIBLE in the morning.  Being 4 must just be that tough.

Other than the morning surprise, Andrew's been a lot of fun this year.  He's doing great with no discipline issues at school.  He is practicing writing his name and other words (wrote EDEMA and CARDIAC with Dad a few mornings ago) all the time. He is still obsessed with tools and building.  He loves his new little sister and likes to talk to her about colors and shapes while she's doing some floor time.  He has hot and cold days with Matthew.  Some days, he tells me that Matthew is the best assistant ever.  Others, it's impossible for them to work together and Andrew lets me know he needs to put himself in time-out for hitting Matthew again.  Andrew's current favorite shows are Scooby Doo (because Dad watched it when he was little), Octonauts, This Old House, and Myth Busters.  

Matthew at two-and-a-half years old:

Matthew's our wild-card these days.  The kid is smarter than he lets on and gets away with more than he should!  He's not a huge talker--babbling all the time, but pretty difficult for others to understand.  However, he knows his colors, ABC's, tools (that's a basic skill, right?), and shapes.  Strangely, he doesn't understand what COME HERE, DON'T TOUCH THAT, or STOP mean.  Isn't that convenient for him?  He thinks COME HERE means RUN AWAY AS FAST AS YOU CAN!!  He thinks DON'T TOUCH THAT means GET ONE LAST TOUCH OF THAT BEFORE YOU ARE STOPPED.  And, he thinks STOP means HURRY!!  Haha--it's a good things he's so damn cute or we'd really be in trouble.  My favorite thing is when I angrily yell at him about something and he says, "Why Mama? Why?" in this adorable and innocent voice.  Ugh--he's a sneaky one!  Anyway, he's definitely keeping me on my toes and motivates me to change Catherine's diaper as fast as I can so I can catch him before he does anything too destructive.

At two-and-a-half, Matthew is completely obsessed with trains.  He loves putting together his tracks and can often be heard chug chug chugging or choo choo-ing when he is supposed to be napping.  Also, his scraps of bread at meal time often become engines on the table.  He's quite a copycat to Andrew and likes to be Andrew's little echo.  So far, Andrew is amused.  Matthew is starting to want to do things for himself.  He is trying to click himself into his carseat and gets quite frustrated when I help him.  He likes to fill his own cup with water from the fridge and LOVES washing his own hands before and after meals.  We are having a lot of conversations about the potty and he has earned one chocolate treat for a success the other day, but he doesn't seem too interested in the idea yet.  And, with a newborn in the house, I'm definitely in no hurry.  

Ok--and now for the pictures of the big brothers:

Proud Big Brother

TRAIN HAT!

We've had a bit of regression.

 Grandma Yenchek came to visit:

I had no idea the baby gym would entertain all 3 kids!

Trip to Antelope Island in the Great Salt Lake:

Mom and Andrew bonding hike:

Teaching Catherine the benefits of tummy time:

Dyeing Easter Eggs:

The Easter Bunny brought the boys a sandbox!

Catherine's First Month

As we know, time just flies when there's a new baby around.  Somehow, Catherine is 1 month old today!  Unbelievable!

Here's what we know about this little lady so far:
-Catherine loves to sleep most of the time, but is often wide awake from 9pm until 12:30am.  However, the last 2 nights, this hasn't been the case.  I'm hoping that means she has figured out her nights and days, but not banking on it quite yet.

-She's still not much of a cryer.  Her needs are pretty easily met--she squeals when she wants to eat, needs help falling asleep, or is working on dropping a deuce.  That's about it.

-She better get used to being teased by her brothers.  Matthew absolutely LOVES mocking her cry.  It's pretty hilarious.

-So far, she happily takes a bottle.  I am really hoping this continues!

-We are getting some smiles here and there, but I'm pretty sure they aren't intentional.  Hopefully that will change in the next few weeks--I'm a total sucker for those baby smiles!

-She's completely done with being swaddled and now sleeps in a normal blanket sleeper with her arms free.

-While doing tummy time last night, Catherine rolled over.  I assume it's a total fluke, but it was really cute to see her do it.

I have been on my own to manage the kids for 2 weeks now and I think we may be getting used to things (hope I don't jinx myself).  We are still getting meals delivered from friends a few days a week, which has been so helpful.  It's been such a blessing to slowly ease back into things and we are so thankful for all the help we've had.

Ok, and the fun part--pictures!!

Cute hat and pacifier!  Thank you Chantal and Phil! :)

Crib looks beautiful painted white. Thanks to my amazing husband for the hours of work!

Aww

Aww again.

Proud big brother!

Lots of time is spent doing this.  I'm obsessed with baby snuggles.

Catherine's usually the last one sleeping in the morning.  I usually bring her into bed for her last feeding of the night.

Baby Burrito--before she rejected the swaddle.

Funny face + Mohawk 

I have a thing for yawning pictures.

Good big bro

See? Yawning again.

Beautiful spring weather!

Whattup

Onesie gift from B's coworkers

She's totally oblivious to the view.

Getting chubby cheeks!

Mom & Catherine naptime!

Another gift from B's coworkers.

The whole fam--CHEESE!

Our first 10 days as a family of FIVE!

So far, Catherine is such a sweet baby.  She sleeps most of the time and gives a quick little yelp to let me know when she is ready to eat.  She's continued not being much of a cryer.  At night, she's been pretty dreamy so far.  She does 3 hour stretches most of the time, with a few 3.5-4hr stretches here and there. When she wakes, I feed her, change her, and put her back in her bassinet wide awake and swaddled and she falls back asleep on her own.  I can honestly say that I'm getting more sleep now than I was during the last few weeks of pregnancy.  Have I mentioned how much more I like babies on the outside?  So thrilled to not be pregnant anymore!

Lots of sleep and cuddle time: 

Hands folded in prayer. :)

So tiny!!

A 3rd thumb-sucker!

1 week old!

Sleep Smile

The boys both had a few days of being crazy when my mom first arrived to take care of us.  Andrew started talking baby talk a lot and Matthew decided that spilling flour and dumping the water from his humidifier were good ideas.  But, that's mellowed out now and they both seem used to having a new little person around.  I know the adjustments will continue happening as Catherine demands more attention while she grows, but am happy that the boys have shown nothing but love for her so far.  Andrew wants to hold her all the time and Matthew loves giving her kisses and saying "AWWW" every time he sees her or hears her.  They both love to give her kisses good night at bedtime.

Photo Shoot!

They love her!

Family Tummy Time!

Catherine had her first doctor's appointment this week.  The pediatrician was very impressed because she already passed her birth weight, which he said often doesn't happen until 2-3 weeks old.

We are so in love and cherishing every second of these early days.  They are so precious and fleeting and I can't get enough of the baby snuggles.  So far, I gotta say, life with 3 kids is beautiful.

Catherine joins the Gang

Our first 48 hours with Catherine have been wonderful.  I'm not sure if I'm running on adrenaline or hormones or what, but I'm just giddy as can be and am loving every second of life with our newest little addition.

There's a bunch of little things that happened the last few days that I want to make sure I remember.  So, I thought I'd post a somewhat random list on here:

-When we called home to let Andrew and Matthew know about their new baby sister, Andrew asked what her first name and middle name were.  Then, he asked what her last name was going to be.  When we told him, he said that couldn't be right because our last name is a boy's name.

-During labor, I got a text from one of the moms at Andrew's school.  I guess Andrew ran into his classroom so excited and told everyone that his mom and dad were at the hospital and having a baby!  He told our sitter, Allison, that it was a special day, so it must be a holiday!

-When we got in the car to head to the hospital at 3:45AM, B was busy choosing music on his phone for this occasion.  I'm thinking something tranquil and mellow, but nope--his choice was TECHNO!  Ha!  Also--our conversation on the way included our excitement that for the 3rd time, we'd have a baby born on a prime date!  Yes, we are that dorky and totally meant for each other. :)

-We got asked several times at the hospital if Catherine every cries.  She didn't cry at delivery and we were worried something was wrong.  The team ran in to check her out and the conclusion was, "she's just not a cryer."  Nice.

-The boys are in love with their new baby sister and have funny ways of showing it.  Andrew really wants her to have enough toys and books to keep her entertained.  He keeps setting up play areas for her in different areas of the house and brings me books for her enjoyment while nursing.  Matthew really is concerned about her diet and likes to leave the table during meals to deliver noodles and share his milk with her.  

-While Catherine was a non-cryer at the hospital, she found her voice our first night home.  She apparently has her nights and days mixed up, so when I tried to get her to settle down around 10, she very much let me know she wasn't a fan.  She cried and nursed off and on for the next 2 hours, so then I decide to walk downstairs with her to say hello to B, who was doing work in his office.  And, she turns into this little sleepy angel as soon as we got near him!  Same thing happened in the womb--she'd be kicking like crazy and I'd tell B to feel and as soon as he touched my belly, Catherine would get still as can be!  Guess she's a little Daddy's girl!  She did eventually fall asleep a little after 2AM and gave me a good 4 hours, which I was very happy about.

-B is at work today and I had our sitter come help for a few hours this morning so I could catch up a little on sleep while she managed the boys. After she left, I had the genius idea of letting the boys help/watch me give Catherine a sponge bath.  Well...Catherine decided to poop during our fun and got it all over my pants, sweatshirt, the bathroom rug, and bathroom floor.  Then, while I'm trying to manage and get her cleaned up, my 2 little helpers decide to help me clean the floor with the WHITE guest washcloths.  I was just laughing through the whole thing.  Good first adventure on being home alone with 3 kids.

And, some pictures:

First morning on the outside

So sweet

View from our hospital room

The boys just love her

Matthew's not seeming so little anymore!

First morning at home snuggles

Andrew took this picture!

Lil' Peanut snoozing the day away