I am blessed by the number 8!

Yes, you read it correctly. Not "lucky" number eight. But I am blessed by the number 8. Carver slept 8 hours!! And so did I! AND I have perfected our night feeding to, last night, 8 minutes!

3:18-I walk out of my room, pop a bottle in the microwave, race to the bathroom (pee), race back to the microwave (water is too hot, dump some out and add cold), mix a bottle, grab Carver (and a clean diaper) from his room, lay him on the couch, hand him a bottle, and change his diaper while he feeds himself. By the time I was done, so was he. Pick him up, take him back to his room, rock standing for a minute or so and put him back in bed. Glance at the clock as I go back into my room...3:26 (RECORD!!)

A combination of ear tubes and soy formula may just be the answer! (Sorry it took me so long to figure out Carver...maybe the next baby will come out of the womb talking...it would make my life easier!)

Bathtime!

Bath time with the brothers is always a good time, now that Carver can sit up. The boys will play in the bath until the water gets to cold to stand it (and then sometimes they'll run new warm water).

Cooper usually sits next to the "controls" and Carver usually does the splashing. It's not unfamiliar to hear "Mom, tell Carver to stop splashing in my eyes!"

Carver's newest trick is standing up. I have sternly instructed Cooper NOT to push/pull him down when he does this, but tell me if I don't see him.

Last night, Cooper didn't want to get in the tub (I gave up that argument awhile ago...he never goes more than a day or two without.). So, I started Carver's bath and Cooper hung over the side playing with him, while the water ran. Cooper shut the water off when brother's feet were covered.

Pretty soon I hear, "Mom, Carver's standing up." So, I peeked my head around the corner and said, "Carver, sit down." Then I heard, "uh, gr, %^&$%&", followed by a slow decent into the water. A minute later I hear, "MOM, Carver's standing up." So, I peeked my head around the corner and said, "CARVER. Sit down." Then I heard, @#$ @#$^ #$%#, followed by a slow decent in the water. A minute or so later I hear, "MOM, CARVER'S STANDING UP!" So, I walk into the bathroom and say, "CARVER, SIT DOWN!" And again hear, "@#$% #$#$% #$%#$%", followed by a SMILE and a slow decent into the water. (Oh, and somewhere in there, I told him to say cheese for the following picture!) This could be interesting...


Cooper eventually got in last night, just as Carver was getting cold and ready to get out. So, I took Carver out, and told Cooper he could let the water out and run himself new warm water. I took Carver to the boys' room to get his pajamas. By the time I got back to the bathroom, Cooper had dumped half of my full bottle of body wash (which was a splurge buy in the first place) into the running water. The bubbles had only just began. I ripped the bottle out of his hands, laughed, and then told him "no more". The following picture really tells the rest of the story...


The bath ended like a shower just to get rid of the bubbles!

A Haircut & Tubes

Carver got his very first buzz cut! He cried, but didn't do too bad. (This was the first haircut for as long as I can remember that Cooper DIDN'T cry! Hopefully he's over it for good now.) Carver looks like such a big boy now!

Before

After

Carver got tubes in his ears last Tuesday. It was an overall good experience. The nurses were great, and the process only took about 3 hours from arrival to discharge. Carver was a trooper through the whole experience. Afterwards, he struggled coming out of the anesthesia little bit, but was feeling great by that afternoon. There haven't been great results yet, but the specialist did check them yesterday and said the tubes are working perfect. BRING ON THE SLEEP!

Where has a month gone?

This past month has flown by. From Cooper's birthday to celebrating the birth of our Christ, I have had limited Internet access and even more limited time to actually blog. A new goal (resolution of sorts) will be to blog at least weekly.

So, here's a recap of our month:

The boys and I had professional pictures taken for the first time ever. (Wasn't as bad as I imagined.) The boys did great, despite the wait and the timing, and I was SO pleased with the pictures. I, of course, spent more money that I had hoped, but we were able to share a lot of pictures with friends and family. Here are a few I didn't get prints of:

Cooper turned 3 on December 17th! He and I made birthday treats for daycare the Wednesday before and he shared them with his friends on Thursday.

He spent the day with his dad at Chucky Cheese and getting spoiled. Friday evening, I held a birthday party for him at our house. Those in attendance were: Grandma Evelyn, Grandma Pauline, Grandpa Tom & Grandma Teresa, Uncle Brandon, Josh and Keeley Hinde & Jill Detweiler, Rob Detweiler, Dan, Jolene, Lisa, & Troy Detweiler, Ronnie & Arlene Weber, Jayden Hanson. We had maidrites, pasta salad, a veggie tray, chips, and cake & ice cream. What a blessing to have friends and family together to celebrate! Cooper's favorite gift was his tow truck from Grandma Evelyn. (And yes, I promise not to quit my day job to start a cake decorating business!)

Christmas came and went with several celebrations. We attended church on Christmas Eve EVE and then the boys got to open one present. SURPRISE! Matching jammies! Christmas Day with spent at Grandpa Tom & Grandma Teresa's with Aunt Joni & Uncle Randy and "the cousins" and Uncle Brandon. We also saw both the Watson's & Popken's extended family.

God was faithful in 2010 and we look forward to His blessings in 2011!