Kids (AKA remembering things that I never remember to put in a baby book)

 I have not been nearly as good at keeping track of Forest's milestones as I was for Olaf.  Typical of the second child, right?  I was doing really well - every time that little fella did something new, I wrote it in my "notes" on my iPhone and had a nice running list.  Then somehow after Steve got an iPhone and our accounts linked and our notes synched and whatever, that list of notes got deleted into cyberspace never never land.  I cried when I realized they were all gone.  So bear with me as I take a moment, for me, to write these things down so I can look back and remember them farther down the road! 

Olaf.  Big 4 year old boy now!  He just had a checkup and he is 40.5 lbs and 40.5 inches tall.  Which means for those of you without growth charts in front of ya that he is an average height for his age, and slightly over the average weight.  Well, he's not a toothpick!  Which we already knew :)

Olaf can count to 50 by himself, and to 100 with a little prompting.  He's been doing this since he was about 3 1/2.  Crazy and fun!  I credit our superior academic genes (ha ha ha) and his pre-school that he loves with some great teachers.  He also knows all the letters in the alphabet by sight, and can write his own name.  Reading, I suppose, is the natural progression, however I don't think he is super motivated just yet.  He'd rather be read to, and doesn't seem to want to put in the work to sound things out.  I am not pushing it though, he'll read when he reads!

Olaf is still a hilarious conversationalist.  Case in point: our conversation over bratwurst this last Saturday:

Me: "Olaf, did you know that Chira is going to be on the preschool side at Cashmere kids when you go back on Monday?"
Olaf: "What!, seriously, are you kidding me?"
Me: "Yup.  Are you excited?"
Olaf:  "Oh yeah, that is totally wicked."

I died.  And almost fell of my chair laughing.

He got a new bike with pedals for his birthday!  Like rock climbing, he was stoked on it...until it tipped over with him on it.  Now he is being SUPER cautious with it.  He's my reserved one, that Olaf.  Definitely not much of a risk taker if he knows the consequences to the actions might hurt :) At this rate Forest may ride a bike faster than Oly!

Foresty Forester, sweet baby of mine, is a crazy runner/climber, who still likes to take about 4 hours worth of naps a day (sweet blessing!) and doesn't like to eat food unless he is in the mood.  I never know if he'll eat the sandwhich/macaroni/chicken/veggies until it's in front of him.  If all else fails, he will always eat granola bars, chicken nuggets, blueberries and croutons. And yogurt.  Perfectly balanced right?  I had resorted to making him smoothies full of spinach to get his veggies, until I broke not one but two blenders...  so we are back to carrot sticks and cucumber slices since he'll eat those!  Raw foods are supposed to better anyway, right?  All this non eating means he's the opposite of his brother in weight gain.  He's a slight little fella, definitely built more like my sisters and I at that age than his chunko daddy was!

In his 22 months, Forest has shown us he is more of a risk taker.  He'll climb anything.  And then roll off.  Or jump.  He runs full speed wherever he goes, and when he inevitably falls into the asphalt or gravel and scrapes his knees, then just picks himself back up and keeps on running.  Usually trying to keep up with Olaf, of course!  From what I hear, this is typical younger brother behavior :)

Forest is just starting to string two and three words together.  "Mama eat now".  "Abba (Olaf) ah-ba (Granola bar)" (that's my favorite sentence -- Abba ahba.) "Mine water peace"  "Hello mama, bye bye."  "Yay go!"  (let's go).  "Abba wide bike.  Mine bike"  "Big Twuck.  VOOOOOOm!"  "Lellow bus" (for the record, every color is yellow to him).  And I credit Julie's kids with teaching him the offbeat animal sounds too -- cayotes say "YIP! YIP!" and wolves say "AWHOOOO!"


Forest and Olaf are turning into quite personable little fellas.  Which is good, since we have guests in and out all the time, and family and friends to visit with many nights a week.  Life is never dull with these two scallawags!

One

Forest Tucker Saugen
Is one year old today.
Where has time gone?

I can't believe that a year ago we were in the hospital, loving and snuggling our little bundle, sharing his little self with our family and friends. I LOVED spending that day he was born in the hospital. I know that lots of women hate it and would rather be at home or in a birthing center, (which I am sure is awesome too) but I really enjoyed having people take care of me for a day. I never felt poked and prodded and intervened upon. I just felt relaxed and tired and special. How do they do that, those L&D nurses? They see the most incredible aspect of humanity (birthing) nearly EVERY SINGLE time they come to work, yet they still manage to keep their energy up and make each birth just as special as it is! I do realize that may have been my singular experience, but I am very blessed by it and the memories I have of it. Anyway, sidetrack...  I do have lovely memories of that night and day of Forest's birth day.

 08.29.10

Forest, you are my sweet snuggler.  The boy who still LOVES nursing at a year old and you are so excited to do so you squat up and down and screech until it's time.  Mornings are the best after your first nurse, because if I let you we will happily snuggle and sleep together from 5:00am to 6:15 on weekends.  (Which helps keep Daddy's side of the bed warm when he is gone for work.)  Of course this may change as you become more independent, but for now I will relish in your tiny body close to mine.

Early morning snuggling together.

You have the BIGGEST blue eyes I have ever seen.  Even Grandma Betty Newell calls you "blue-eyes" every time she sees you.  And your smile is ear to ear.  Luckily we see a LOT of that smile, especially when your brother is around.  I keep thinking he is beating you up, as he is wrestling you to the ground in a big bear hug... and you just laugh and laugh, and give Olaf that little eye twinkle as you crawl away, like you are saying "come and get me again!"  How special that you get to grow up with a big brother to look up to.

Picnic at Grammy and Bumpa's house.

Sometimes when I haven't seen you for a while, when I pick you up to hold you, you wrap those skinny little arms around my neck and play with my necklace while you press your forehead against my cheek for a few minutes... sigh.  I am trying to lock these memories away they are so sweet!  You also still seem to like being carried on my back in the Ergo.  We walk around the yard, chase Olaf, pick weeds, go for walks, and sometimes cook dinner like this, with you snuggled up on my back.  Aside from the occasional hair-pull to let me know you are totally over it, you sit quietly and just take it all in.  I love it.

Just arrived at Hidden Lake, time to relax.

Of course my dear son, you do have moments of being a holy terror.  Such as when you don't want your diaper changed (which is all the time) or when I take your toothbrush away from you and then close the door to the bathroom so you can't go back in.... oooh you get feisty mad.  But you get over it quickly and for that I am thankful.

Toothbrush time!

So, on your birthday Forest, know that you are loved by me, and your daddy and brother, and all the other people you know.  We were doubly blessed when you arrived, 365 days ago, and I am so looking forward to seeing what your next 365 have in store!  Love you little Foresty.

Look at the size of those craniums!  Like oranges on toothpicks! 

3.

Happy Birthday kiddo!


At our house you get to pick your birthday meal, so Olaf requested "CARS" mac and cheese (of course) and peas and milk.  Gobbled it right up!

Love this guy.  Hopefully this weekend will allow a longer post about how awesome he is, and his little party with his cousin Micah! 

ps.  His birthday was actually Monday the 20th... see how slow I am at this blogging thing!

9mos. & etc.

Well Mr. Forest had his 9 month checkup last week. 9 months. What? It is so hard to grasp all the stages that he has already surpassed - I keep trying to lock little details away so that I don't forget what it was like have little babies in the house! Really I just need to take a bit more video I think since it captures them so well.

Forest is starting to scoot. Well, he actually started scooting backwards (Army style) on his tummy about a month ago, but is finally showing a tiny bit of forward progress. He pivots like clock hands quite well on both his tummy and his bottom. So at least he access to a 30" radius of toys now instead of just what is directly in front of him. Of course all that pivoting and reaching inevitably results in a few goose-eggs on the good ol' Saugen noggin... but once the initial shock he gone he usually forgets all about the little bruises he has on his forehead. That's what we get for having hardwood floors.

According to the good old growth charts, Forest is pushing 19.5 lbs (~30th %) and 28 inches long (~40%)... he is so tiny as compared to my roly poly Oly at that stage! Well at least his huge head is on track still, at 19 inches around (~off the chart), he is definitely pacing Olaf. Hopefully he grows into it someday :)

We are in the midst of party planning 'round here -- Olaf has a shared birthday party with his cousin, Micah, on the 12th. Then my bday on the 15th (#30, whoa!) and a party on the 18th, and then Oly's actual birthday on the 20th. And then throw in Fathers Day on the 19th as well. I plan to be eating a LOT of cake in the next phew weeks. Booyah.

My mom and sisters and I did the Susan Komen 5k run for breast cancer research in Seattle yesterday - so much fun! We all actually jogged the whole thing, minus just a few blocks that momma walked. Of course she walks so danged fast it was pretty much my running pace anyway. Favorite part of the run - dance jogging past a little brass band who was playing "The ants go marching one by one" as we ran by. Felt like doing a little jiggety jig :)



This was mom's 4th walk I think, my second, and Kirsten and Kendra's 3rd. It's becoming a tradition for us girls I think. We walk to celebrate my mama, who has been breast cancer free for 13 years now!





Mom hopped on the Harley for a little ride while I chose the sidecar.  The thought of her actually driving that thing was terrifying, as my face shows :)

8 months, whew

8 months have passed since little Foresty Forester popped out.  Can you believe it has been 8 months?  I remember saying this with Olaf too -- each stage just seems to get better and better!  (Maybe its because I get more sleep as time goes on??)  Forest is at the stage where he sits independently and plays with his toys in the living room by himself pretty well.  Of course I am paranoid so I still put a pillow behind him (hardwood floors + big unbalanced baby heads don't mix well).  He can usually occupy himself for 30 minutes at a time or so - bonus for me!  And he'll spend even more time if Olaf is up running around and entertaining him, which happens every now and then (when he's not taking all of Forest's toys away for himself...).

Also recent in the last month is that Forest has started pulling himself up on things!  He is constantly reaching for our hands to help him stand.  And he tries to pull himself up on things like the crib, or chairs/tables/toys... but he's successful about 5% of the time I'd say. I think he's maybe gotten his feet under him correctly twice out of 40 tries :) He'll get it though.

Forest is a PEOPLE PERSON.  He loves smiling at everyone, but especially the girls.  What a little charmer!  (What a Saugen).  He just LOVES going to Miss Julie's three mornings a week when I go to work and Oly goes to Cashmere Kids.  Her kids are his best little buddies and they just dote on him like nothing else.  And Julie dotes on him too.  I think perhaps besides me and Steve, she loves him best.  Seriously.  And how wonderful and comforting it is to me to know that while I am at work, he is being cared for by someone who adores him!  Pretty sure the feeling is mutual.

Unlike his brother at this age, Forest is not a big fan of eating solids.  So far he's only eating avocado, oatmeal, squash and banana.  And of those 4, he only really likes the avocado.  (Nice, he's got gourmet taste on a McD's budget).  I know he doesn't really need the food for nutrition right now since he is still drinking so much breastmilk, but I am hoping he starts liking it more.  Mostly because that makes it easier for me! Ha!  I'd love to move on to finger foods at some point.  We aren't sure, but he might have a small reaction to either rice cereal or sweet potato.  Those were the first two foods he tried, and he ended up with colitis (sp?) which basically is just an irritation of his colon, and he ended up with some mucus and blood in his diapers... ew!  So I took him back down to just breastmilk, and then started with avocado on round two and all seems to be going well. 

Well, I will have more updates in a month or two when he has his next checkup.  I don't remember if it's at 9 or 10 months... will have to check my calendar!

Happy end of April!

6 month updates

Well I know most of y'all don't really care how big Forest was at his 6 month checkup yesterday... but since this is my way of record-keeping and remembering what the boys were up to at certain stages of life, I'm writing it anyhow!  (Plus I know the Grandmas just eat this stuff up).

So without further adeau (ado?):
Length: 27" long.  ~ 60th Percentile
Weight: 17 lbs, 13 oz.  ~ 50th Percentile
Head: 18.5".  ~ Off the chart -- the highest the chart goes is 97% for boys this age.

Just like last time, he is growing just fine, perfectly average.  Perfectly perfect really.  I mean, what mom wouldn't say that about their child?

At this stage in his life, Forest is just about the mellowest kid ever.  I thought Olaf was chill, but man, little Forest has him BEAT!  His daycare provider agrees, as well as all the other folks in Plain that he hangs out with.  He is one mellow kid.  Obviously he has his moments.  Obviously.  Like at 2 or 3am.  But for the most part he is happy to just observe what is going on around him.  Play where we set him, eat when we feed him, sleep when we put him down with his blanky and binky.  I thought I would be one of those mom's who would never let their kid carry around a ratty old blanky... but Olaf sure does, and Forest is well on his way to the same. They just love digging in their little fingers and rubbing the blankys all over their faces for comfort.  We do a lot of blanket washing at this house.

Speaking of washing - I am kicking ass today, domestically speaking.  Vacumed, 6 loads of laundry done, played cars with Olaf and chased him around and around and around the kitchen, made a broccili noodle casserole freezer meal, and a shepards pie freezer meal, and a loaf of bread, and a pound cake, and prepped a quinoa/pepper salad for dinner.  Yeah, that's right.  I am super mom.  (haha!) For one day anyway I will claim the title and I will revel in my glory while it lasts.

Back to the subject at hand - Forest!  He is now sitting up unassisted.  Though he still falls over now and then, so we are still setting pillows behind him just in case.  Which doesn't help with the forward falls... but he is much better balanced in that direction.  Let's see, what else... He can roll over front to back, though he rarely does it.  Seriously, very rare.  I remember Olaf was the same way - just not into rolling!  Don't know why he doesn't roll, but I am not concerned.  He love LOVES his jumperoo chair.  He will happily jump away for 30 minutes to an hour if we let him.  Building those teeny tiny little thunder thighs!  Maybe he will be a tele skier like Auntie Christie and Uncle Dave.  You sure need lots of quad strength for that.  Or else he can just downhill like his parents.  

Still no teeth.  I see them under the gums, but I think it will be a while yet before they pop up to the surface. Which is fine because I'm sure his little nibbles while drinking will feel a bit more ouchy once his teeth are in!

Olaf is learning to be a good big brother.  He sometimes pushes Forest, pokes him, or bonks him in the head... but overall he's nice to his little bro.  Brings him toys, tries to make him laugh, and runs to him first thing in the morning.  I love having boys.  They melt a momma's heart.

Well, this domestic diva has some bills to pay (bleh) so I am signing off.


Until I find time to blog again,
Jenn

3rd Draft

This is the third post I have started since the new year.  I just can't seem to actually finish a thought, apparently!  They are all fun ones too...  well maybe I will get around to posting them someday :)  Maybe not, who knows.

I finally have time (I think) and a subject for a new post.  I really like to post when I have pictures to share, and alas my camera has not been clicking away lately.  So this will be strictly a text update for y'all.

Yesterday Forest had his 4 month checkup at the doctors office.  So Steve and I took the whole family in for flu shots as well, and running errands.  You know - Costco, Pak-It-Rite, Safeway, the bank(s), Walmart, Jerry's Auto Supply (obviously that was not my errand).  Shots and appointment went well.  Olaf didn't even cry!  Forest did though, poor little guy.  When I say cry, I mean CRY.  Luckily he passed out sleeping when we got back into the car. 

We finally found out how big Forest was!
Weight: 14lbs.  (25th percentile)  He's a little dude!
Height: 25inches (45th percentile)  Pretty average for height.
Head: 18inches (100th percentile) Holy freaking orange on a toothpick, Batman.

Bonus on having a smaller second child - he can wear Olaf's clothes a lot longer!  Yeehaw!  I am all for saving money on children's clothes.  In all actuality, I don't have to spend any money on them, since we get fabulous hand-me-downs from the cousins and friends in Plain.  Between Christie and I we could probably outfit 5 or 6 children Olaf's age.  What a blessing!  Of course because I can't resist a good clearance rack, both kids will still continue to get a new outfit here and there.  And then there's always grandma(s) too.

The kids are just FUN these days.  No, it's not always easy, and yes, sometimes I want to cover my ears and eyes and ignore the noise or tantrum or mess before me...  but it's not that often.  Our family of 4 is adjusting just fine, and enjoying life as we go.

2 months old

2 months.  Wow.  My (most likely) last baby is growing up WAY TOO QUICKLY for me!

Forest.  Already there has been so much change in your tiny little body.  Small chunk rolls are starting to form on your upper arms and thighs.  You can hold your head up for pretty good extended periods and then BAM it goes all wobbly again :)  Then you pick it up again to view the world.  I swear you seem to know exactly what's going on.

I love when you SSTTTRRREEEEEEETTTCCCHHH both your arms above your head and scrunch up your face so that only your huge Saugen lips are showing clearly.

Everyone has an opinion about who you look like - most say Daddy for sure.  Some say Mommy.  And I myself don't really see anyone but Forest in you.  I can't pick out either side of the family dominant in you.  However you do have your daddy's giant lips, and every now and then at a certain angle, I see Auntie Kirsten's baby pictures replicated in your face.

 I LOVE this view of your peaceful self while we are walking... so content

Unless you are in a really good sleep, you make constant noises just in your breathing!  Luckily daddy and I are usually so tired that we are able to fall asleep to the sound of it.  You are still sleeping in our room in the cradle that PopPop Moritz made for me and my sisters when we were little girls.

You LOVE people.  Looking at them, interacting a bit, SMILING (since 6 weeks), being held.  You track me with your eyes and head as I move about and if I stop right in front of you and smile, you will usually smile right back :)  Lucky me!  It's an adorable smile.

When you are sad, all I have to do is pick you up and you stop crying almost immediately.  You do not like to be left alone unless you are very tired or asleep.  If I set you in a room to look around, then leave the room with Olaf for another room you let us know you don't like it!  (Olaf usually says "Mommy - Forest is CRYING!  He wants you to pick him up!")  All I have to do is go back for you, pick you up and move you to the new room to sit, and you are content to watch the happenings.

You seem to adore your big brother.  He loves to come to wherever you are, put his (huge) head against yours and say "Hey little buddy, you're okay!"  I often think he might be squashing you but when he pulls his head back up you just look up at him with admiring eyes.  Oly also loves to sing his ABC's to you when you are sad, however he refuses to sing them unless you are crying.  Apparently the ABC's are only for when you are not already happy.

You definitely have a new cry too - the frustration cry.  It usually comes when we are nursing but are taking a burp break.  You sound SO annoyed with this cry, like I should put you back on the boob immediately.  Like snap to it, Mommy!

You first started smiling at us between 5 & 6 weeks old.  It is so precious!  None of those crazy Saugen dimples, but some uber-cute laugh lines around your mouth.  You features (aside from the ever expanding double chin) are still very delicate, just like when you were born. 

You are finally out of your newborn sized clothes, and are wearing 0-3 months.  We should get a few more months out of them - YAY!  At your checkup yesterday you were riding those 50% lines right up the charts.  Totally average sized, which is great!  After having one chunky baby, I am excited to have one smaller one.  You now weigh 11 lbs 6 oz., are 23 inches tall, and have a 15-inch head. 



Forest, I just love you so much, I could go on for pages.  As you keep growing, I find new things every day that you do which fascinate me and make me so happy.  But I will just save it for a new post.  Keep smiling buddy - it brings so much joy to people around you. 

Love, Mommy

the boys

If I had known how easy it would be to potty train Olaf, I would have done this months ago!  It pretty much took a week for him to figure it out.  (Mostly he just figured out that he doesn't like wet pants - we went straight from diapers to superhero underpants, pullups didn't seem to work all the previous times I tried it)  Of course I am sure there will be accidents for quite a while, but seriously, one diaper a day for overnight is awesome.  No more $40-$50 a month on diapers!!!!  Yay!!!  (I am just switching from buying size 5's to size 1's.)  And there isn't much of anything cuter than a little boy is his superman underpants, and that's the truth.

I pretty much thought I was mom of the year last week because while Olaf was rock-star-ing his potty time, Forest was sleeping through the night.  Yeah, that's right.  WELL HE WAS JUST PLAYING A MEAN TRICK ON ME because he only did it for 3 nights.  Granted, they were a glorious 3 nights, but he definitely hasn't figured out how to sleep through the night.  Because that was over a week ago.  What he has figured out is that I am sucker and hate to hear him cry... especially since he sleeps in our room...  and I will always respond at 2:30 with milk...  so if he doesn't figure it out on his own daddy is going to have to help me in the self restraint category and let him cry it out one of these nights.  But I can wait on that.  At least another 3 weeks till I go back to work anyway.  Then I'm going to want me some sleep!

gummy bear graduation

well, it's official... olaf is no longer my little gummy bear. he has graduated to the new nickname of "white fang" :) yup, olaf's first tooth broke through today! i am quite impressed with my little buddy, because he was sort of fussy the last few days, but honestly he wasn't too bad! still slept well through the night and all... actually i think he went to bed early when fussy! what a kiddo! he must know that mommy gets a bit stressed out when daddy is gone for such a long period, and she (i) couldn't handle not sleeping. i wish i could get a picture of the tooth through those huge saugen lips, but alas, i do not have the photographic talent of annie and kyle. perhaps this weekend when poppa is home!