This was my first week home alone with the boys. My mom was here last week and Eric had the week off of work. Eric works 2nd shift, so my day isn't that long with the boys. Jamie sleeps most of the afternoon. But, of course, this week would be different. Eric had to go in on 1st shift Tuesday and Wednesday for some training....man, that is a long day! We are surviving though. Yesterday we went on a nice walk, the longest I've done in a while! It was probably only a mile or a little more, but I'm happy with that. Our little town is celebrating fall this weekend by having PumpkinFest. They even make pumpkin people...which is a little freaky because they look real! Jamie really liked looking at them yesterday. I will have to take pictures this weekend. Speaking of pictures, I will get more on here of Oliver....and Jamie of course! Eric is actually staying on 1st for the rest of this week. It makes for longer days, but I figured that is better than changing the schedule again. Today is Jamie's 2nd birthday! I can't believe he is 2 already. It makes me sad that he is growing up so fast and doing so many things. He was putting puzzles together yesterday....out of the blue! He would actually look for the right pieces and put in them in the correct spots. And, if they were the wrong way, he knew what I meant when I told him to turn them around. We were reading a book the other night and he told me what the next page said before I turned the page! I'm glad he is doing all this stuff, but still, it makes me sad. This morning I took him to a signing class and again, he blew me away! He was doing some of the signs and some of the alphabet! It was nice to spend the morning with him (Oliver went by grandma's house). Every time I picked Jamie up (which I'm sure I shouldn't be doing that often considering he is like 32 pounds or so) he would give me a big hug. We are going to have a little party for him on Saturday to celebrate. Last year we did a big thing, but this year I just want to do something simple and let him have his special time. There is also a parade and I know Jamie will love that. Whenever I mention his party, he says "hot dog." Now, hot dog means Mickey Mouse. I know it is strange. He can say Mickey, but he loves the hot dog song and just associates that with Mickey. Anyway, I'm making him a Micky Mouse cake and he is so excited for that. I'm a little nervous about it though. I made him a monkey cake last year and that was pretty simple. We'll see what happens. Now, on to Oliver. He is doing great! He had his one week check-up the other day. He grew a half an inch in just one week, but isn't back to his birth weight yet. He only gained 2 ounces. His doctor wants to see him again next week because of that. I was worried at first, but after talking to people, I'm calming down. Jamie packed on the weight and I just thought Oliver was also. He eats a lot! Between 3 and 4 ounces at a time :) I figure that since he grew, that is where the weight went! The kid also loves to sleep, especially at night. Last night, he went to bed around 11 or so and got up at 5:30. The other night he ate around 10 and I woke him up at 6:30 to feed him! I'm not complaining! I'm sure if he ate during the night, he would be gaining weight a little faster also, but I really don't like to wake him, unless it has been a while. Ollie is very much like Jamie when he was a baby. He is content, super good, likes to eat and sleep. He has his crabby moments....he cries more than Jamie did, but it doesn't last for long. I still can't believe that I have 2 little boys now. I'm doing pretty well. I still get sore, but the thing that bothers me the most is my tailbone. I think that is why I walk a lot and do stuff around the house because my tailbone feels better when I'm moving compared to when I'm sitting. But, then I get sore....oh well, the soreness will hopefully be over with soon. The tailbone on the other hand, at least 3 to 4 months :( Well, I think I'm going to get some more cleaning done. I don't have a super messy house, I swear! It seems all I do is clean! I usually work on one thing at a time so I have a few more spots to take of, especially since we have people coming over on Saturday. Hope you all are having a good day :)
We have been really busy around here. Jamie's birthday was Sept. 30th and we had a blast with that. I still can't believe that he is 2! My birthday was Oct. 10th. We had a nice relaxing day, it was perfect. It was just the 4 of us all day. We went to Applebees for lunch and then went to a park near our house. Then we came home to feed Oliver and then went on a nice long walk, which included a visit to another park. Eric surprised me with Lady Antebellum tickets for my birthday! That was on the 9th and we had floor seats, it was awesome! I don't have those pictures on my computer yet, but I will for sure post some.
This past weekend was Oliver's baptism. My family came into town from Wisconsin. That meant 5 extra people staying in our house! It was a fun weekend. It went by way too fast though. Jamie is definately all boy and loves being around grandpa and his uncles. He has been asking where they are. He went into the spare bedroom today and was saying grandma and grandpa. I told them they had to go home. Then he said "uncle Nick byebye."....he's so smart....but it breaks my heart. 
Jamie just loves being a big brother. He is always giving Oliver hugs, kisses, holding his hand, and helping me. We still have to remind him to be gentle at times, but he is wonderful. We try to do things with Jamie alone, like going to parks and such, but he always asks for Oliver to come with and gets mad when he doesn't! He really isn't acting any different either since Oliver came home. He is 2 and is defintaley in his terrible 2's, but he isn't throwing any new fits. He also isn't showing any signs of being jealous, which I'm hoping will continue. I signed Jamie up for a signing class also so he and I will have our time together for the next 5 weeks. I thought this class would be good for him so he can at least communicate in some way the words he can't say. I can tell that he wants to say more and gets frustrated because he can't say everything he wants. He likes the class and is doing well with the signs. He knows some of the words and says them along with the sign. I also make sure to always say the word I am signing. I don't want him to only do signs and not say anything. 
amie had his 2 year check-up the other week and is growing and doing well. He is just shy of 32 pounds and is 36 inches tall! He is doing so many things now. He can walk down stairs without holding onto anything, he is putting sentences together, putting puzzles together, telling BIG stories, and tries to say new words all the time. He is also sleeping in his big boy bed. He has been climbing out of his crib a lot lately and we were finding him sleeping on the floor. We figured that was his way of telling us he was done with the crib. We started off with naps and then on the third day, he wanted to sleep in there at night. We usually have to sit with him for a bit and he still gets out at times, but he loves the bed. He started sleeping in there last week and he also asked to go on his potty that same week. He went into the bathroom saying "peepee" and pointing to the potty. I put him on there, he didn't produce anything, but this is a good start. I think he already went to the bathroom when he was telling me he wanted to sit on the potty. He also has been telling us more and more when he goes potty, so we will be working on potty training more now.
Oliver is doing well also. I had to take him back to the doc. because he wasn't back to birth weight at his one week check-up. He was 8lbs, 12oz that first appointment and when we went back the next week, he was 9lbs, 10oz! He is definately growing like a weed. Today I had to take him back to see the doctor. He has been having problems with reflux and they weren't getting any better. Jamie was on medication when he was a baby for relfux and so I didn't want to mess around this time. His doctor suggested that we try a different formula that is suppose to help with spitting up. He spits up a lot and sometimes he spits up so hard that it comes out of his nose as well as his mouth. I feel so bad for him when that happens, you can see that it hurts. He also cries real hard. So far, on this new formula he is still spitting up and is still very cranky. I will see how tomorrow goes and will call the office back on Thursday. If things do not get better, then he will be put on medication. Oh, he now weighs 10lbs and 11oz and is 23 3/4 inches tall! 
I love this picture of Eric and Jamie. Jamie had to do what daddy was doing! This was on my birthday. It was such a nice, beautiful day. We couldn't just stay inside. 
He is such a ham! He wanted to wear Oliver's shirt. 
We celebrated his birthday and Eric's parent's house and they had these super cool monkey masks for Jamie and his cousins to wear. He likes to act like a monkey. It is cute because he doesn't say monkey, he calls them "oohh oohh." I think got everything in this post. Well, I need to head to bed. Goodnight all!
Oliver Presley!! Oliver made his entrance last Sunday, Sept. 19th at 8:45am. He is absolutely perfect. I have to say that this delivery was soooo much better than the first. But, lets start from the beginning. Saturday night we went to Chuck E Chesse with my hubby's brother and his family. I really wasn't feeling any different that day. It was a little harder to walk, but I was used to that. We then went to the grocery store to get a few things and saw so many people that we knew. We got home, put Jamie to bed, I folded some laundry and was getting stuff ready for Sunday. We were suppose to go to a baptism for a friend's baby and then a birthday lunch at the in-laws. I went to bed around 1am....I was watching a movie! I was up at 2 to use the bathroom and then again at 3. I laid back down on the air mattress and started getting these cramps. I didn't think much of it at first. I went back to the bathroom and noticed that I was leaking a bit. I tried to fall back asleep, but that wasn't happening. I went upstairs and started to pack a bag. I woke Eric up a little after 3:30 and told him we needed to leave. He called his mom (they live like 2 minutes from us) and she headed over to stay with Jamie until he woke up. We got to hospital (which is also only a couple minutes away) around 4. By this time, I wanted to die! The contractions were horrible! They were already a minute apart by the time we got to the hospital. There was no easing into this birth....Oliver had a different plan! I, or Eric, asked for the epidural right away....haha. Once I got to the bed, I just stayed on my side and grabbed this cart that was next to me....it had open slots on it to push it and that came in handy during the contractions! They had to call in the epidural guy (sorry, can't spell the correct word) and thankfully it didn't take him long to drive in. They gave me some Stadal in the mean time. It doesn't take away the pain, but just helps to relax you a bit. It was enough to hold me over until I got the epidural. I was already dilated to a 7 and completely thinned out when I got to the hospital. I told you, he wasn't messing around! I got the epidural around 4:45. Then my water broke completely and I was dilated to a 10. Can't complain I guess. Well, I could until I got that nice pain medication! It was crazy how fast and hard those contractions were. My hubby knew it was bad when I started to whimper.....yeah, I didn't know what else to do! Anyway, since I was basically ready to have the baby, they waited for him to move down a bit more on his own. Less pushing for me and I wasn't feeling any pain so I didn't care! I could still feel the pressure of the contractions, but that was nothing! My wonderful nurse had me start pushing at 8:15 and after a couple rounds of pushing, she called the doctor in. I pushed a few more rounds with him and then Oliver was here! I was super calm during it all also. I just felt good and knew I could get it done. I was talking and joking. I think I was in shock a bit at how fast everything happened. I mean, I didn't push for very long. Anyway....Oliver was 9 pounds and 21 1/2 inches long! He was bigger than his brother. And he looks just like his brother, except Oliver has darker hair. Oh, Sunday was also our oldest niece's birthday! She was very excited to get a new cousin for her birthday. 
Jamie came to visit before church and was so excited to meet his baby brother. I came in the room saying, "baby Ollie, baby Ollie." He wanted to hold him right away. He got a little too excited a few times, as he still does, and was a little rough with Oliver, but Oliver didn't care. I felt really good, and I looked much better, after this delivery. I really didn't feel like I had a kid. Well, except for my tailbone. That is still killing me and it stinks that there isn't anything you can do about it. Oh well, I will take the tailbone pain over all the stuff that happened with Jamie. I have been moving and doing a lot of stuff since we got home also. Then yesterday my side was hurting. Yep, just did too much and pulled the ligament. As long as I take it easy and don't bend over much, that feels better. I will definately post more pictures later. I still have to upload a bunch. Ok, I need to head off. Jamie has a cold and is possibly getting his 2 year molars. 
First, I can't believe that my little man will be 1 this month!! And that there will be a second baby before that. I thought it would be fun to a post just for Jamie. It would make a nice birthday post, but I'm thinking I might be a little busy and might forget. Jamie is such a precious boy. He may have his moments and is entering his terrible 2's, but he is such a sweet boy. 
He wasn't a planned baby....please don't be offended. We just weren't trying and thought we would wait a little bit yet. I really wanted to finish school. When I found out, I was not very happy. I was just so shocked and couldn't believe it. The first couple of months were hard. When I think about it now, I feel bad for feeling that way, but I don't think I was ready at that moment to be a mom. I then got screwed over at school and wasn't allowed to do my internship for my last year. Of course, they won't admit the reason why, but I know. The pregnancy was also hard on me just because I wasn't expecting it and didn't know what to expect during the whole thing. My current pregnancy is hard also, but I know what to expect, what to do and not to do....you know, things you learn after doing it once! I do want to say that I never hated Jamie while I was pregnant. Once I got further into it, things got better. I just had some internal things to deal with. Jamie was born on September 30, two days after his due date. I went in on Monday for a nonstress test because his activty level was going down. I knew something was up because we were in there longer than we should have been. The doctor came in and said that we needed to induce which is something he doesn't do a lot. He said the baby was ok now, but if we waited til Friday (my next test), he could be in a lot more distress and it could result in a C-Section. I started to cry. I wanted to meet him, but I wasn't planning on hearing that news. I was induced around 11am on Monday and Jamie was born at 7:30am on Tuesday. We didn't know the sex so when they said he was a boy, I didn't even care....I was so wore out. About 15 minutes after he was born and things calmed down a bit, and I had some more energy, I was so excited to see him. He weighed 8lbs. 10 oz. and was 20 1/2 inches. He was such a good baby from the beginning. He didn't cry much and when he did, it was such a big boy cry. He changed our life, definately for the good!
One thing I say all the time, is that I can't believe how fast he has grown! He weighed 18 pounds at only 3 months. After the first few weeks, I didn't feel like I had a baby...haha! Even now, he is wearing 3T and 4T clothes, 31 pounds, and about 36 inches tall (or taller, he is reaching a lot more things now!). He was getting rice cereal in his bottle at one month, eating baby food at four months, and drinking completely from sippy cups at ten months. He is a very independent little boy. He needs to do things on his own. I had to stop cutting his bananas up because he wanted to eat them like a big boy. I like the fact that he is so independent, but it makes me sad at times. He is a jabber mouth! He loves to talk, even though you may not be able to make out everything he says! He likes to sing, dance, listen to grandpa's polkas....yes, my dad has a polka band! He is ALL boy. He loves trucks, tractors, balls, mega blocks, dirt. He has a mechanical mind, like his daddy. He likes to know how things work. He will actually take things apart and put them back together, or watch how things works. He is so smart. I know every parent says that about their kids, but I think he is too smart for his own good right now...haha! Eric and I drink Mountain Dew, but I like Code Red and Jamie knows that. He sees a green can and says "daddy" and then points to the red can and says "momma." Just tonight we were working on colors and said something was blue and then he went and found a few other things that were blue...all on his own! He is also an escape artist. He runs outside or upstairs so quick it is insane. 
This is one of his 6 month pics and I just love it. My brother is a Marine so he is sporting his camo. This child also has little fear....something I'm not a huge fan of all the time. We have a huge black lab (like 100 pounds at least!) and he has never been afraid of him. I really like that though. He does things all the time that about give me a heart attack and he doesn't care that he could get hurt....until he does. I know that he is going to be a great big brother. I know we will have our moments with him, but I'm not too worried about it. My sister asked him the other day where Oliver was and he said "in momma".....are you kidding me?!! We put the other carseat in the car and I told him it was for Ollie and he just loved that. He was so well behaved in that car with the other seat next to him...haha! I can't wait to see how he acts with Oliver. 
This is one of his 1 year pics and it is so Jamie! He makes such crazy faces. Well, I'll stop bragging.....for now! It is getting late and this momma needs some sleep.