Merry Christmas and Happy New Year

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year

In an attempt to save a tree we have decided to do a virtual Christmas card this year. It feels like the year only just began but here we are at the end of it with one more member of our family and an almost THREE year old.

Brandon is still working at Dealer Socket right here in San Clemente, CA but he recently switched to a different department. He is really excited about this move as it will give him a chance to learn some new skills and shake things up a bit without having to completely start over somewhere else.

Emilee loves being a mother and the boys are healthy, happy, and learning. She loves talking to Seth and challenging him in all areas and trying to get John to say "ma-ma" (no success yet).

Seth is talking up a storm these days. His greatest desire right now is to have his own Great White Shark but if he can't have that he would like an alligator. He loves the zoo and his school and is always asking where his friends are. Seth is a goofy kid and always has us laughing. He adores his little brother. Seth loves learning and knows all his letters and their sounds. Currently we are focusing on recognizing his name, rhyming and dressing himself.

Our newest little guy, Johno, is a mystery package at every turn. We love him to bits but he sure does give us a run for our money. He is a mixture of sensitivity, curiosity, and stubbornness but also gives you that feeling like he is an old soul. He needs lots of comfort and reassurance in new social situations but he will explore his own surroundings without fear. He is 6 months old and already pulling himself up and trying to cruise around the furniture. He takes a good 5-10 minutes to recover after falling but will laugh and smile if you look at him or cuddle him. He loves his big brother and really wants to be able to play with him. John is still very sensitive to dairy and sucks his thumb just like Seth.

So there you have it. We hope you all have a wonderful holiday and here is to fun filled 2016.

Halloween

I was very surprised to find out that Seth actually had his own ideas for Halloween. Our lives the past few months have been all about sharks so why should Halloween be any different? He has been so excited to wear his costume and was the cutest great white out there.

We started off the celebration by carving our pumpkin. We showed him many easy smiley faces and almost convinced him to let us do a bat but last minute he said "Mommy, I just really want a shark" Good thing Brandon is good with knives.

John was so great being up late. He didn't cry at all even though you could tell all he wanted was his crib. He was the cutest little giraffe.

We took the boys to a pumpkin patch, Seth LOVED it, John not so much. He is so sensitive and there were too many strangers.

This is how John snuggles, this and sucking his thumb are how he comforts himself.

And today, we took the boys out to get some good pictures of their costumes since we were so busy on the actual halloween day that it got dark before we got our pictures.

I was so proud of Seth for only pretending to bite his brother.

 Of course we had to get a shark on a scooter picture.

Then we went on an evening walk to the beach and Seth wanted to keep his costume on. We got lots of smiles on the trail and one lady even asked to take his picture.

Oh, and our ward trunk or treat was last weekend and I tried something fun for the car.

Three to One: The boys take over!

I was sure John would be early, I had been feeling contractions for weeks and my doctor even told me to stop exercising and take it easy but at 38 weeks I was still pregnant. My doctor had been worried about John because of how small I was so she did an ultrasound and said he was much too small. A week later he still didn't seem to be growing so she scheduled an inducement. On May 13 little John was born but he wasn't so little. At 7 lbs 5oz and 20.5 inches he was the perfect size.

We had talked about a few names but Brandon could never decide. It didn't help that, in his words, "every time I remember to think about it, I can't remember the choices". In the end we decided on John Phillip. My maiden name is Johnson plus my maternal grandfather's name was John and Brandon's great-grandfather was named John. Brandon's dad is named Kent Phillip and it is a name I've always loved. His nicknames are Johno and baby john. Coincidentally, Seth called his brother Jack my entire pregnancy and that's what brandon's great-Grandpa and grandpa were both called. I later found out that my grandpa was also called Jack. So far only one person calls him that though.

Seth was really shy of his brother at first, I think seeing me in a hospital bed with a strange baby was a bit scary but after about 10 minutes to warm up he was enthralled with his baby brother. Since then he has only fallen more and more in love. If John spits up and I don't notice, Seth will run and get a burp rag to clean it up and wipe John's chin. He also gets really upset if we go anywhere and leave John home with dad.

At first John was really struggling to eat. He would fuss and bite and grunt and groan. He had a rash all over his face, head, and neck and his poop was not healthy. It was sad to see him so uncomfortable, hard on our nerves to hear him cry so much, and very painful for me. Finally I tried eliminating certain foods from my diet and after a week the difference was incredible. He wasn't fussing at all and was only grunting and groaning right after eating. He stopped biting and began to get more food, which also means he got more sleep. I've found that if I avoid eating corn, peas, broccoli, onions, peppers, curry, pineapple, tomatoes, citrus in general, dairy and anything spicy he is the happiest and most content baby around. He has recently started sleeping until 4 or 5 am (occasionally all the way to 6am). He naps fairly well but usually fights his evening nap. Most of the time John falls asleep on his own in his bassinet (THANK YOU BABYWISE!!)

All in all I am really loving this two children thing! I love watching the boys interact and knowing they will always have each other. I love feeling busy and I feel a huge sense of accomplishment in teaching my children. On that note, Seth recently learned almost all his letters and their sounds. He is also being re-evaluated in speech therapy because he is doing SO well they think he might be ready to graduate. We are so proud of him.

Here is to our very animated, curious, easily distracted and talkative almost three month old.