Bren and I have been practicing writing activities the past 2 days. Yesterday he held 2 markers together and called it a flag so I asked him if he wanted to draw a flag. We did that and put a star in it. Then I held my hand over his again and we wrote out “FLAG” and his name. He really enjoyed it.
Today, considering his extreme interest in the numbers of his Thomas engines (i.e. “Thomas is the number one blue engine”) and the fact that he recently learned that 1 and 2 beside each other make twelve, we wrote out the numbers from 1 to 15 together. I was curious if he could trace so I drew a yellow zig zag and a curly pattern for him to trace with the red marker. After practicing 2 little versions with me he was able to do them himself. Yay! He needs to practice hand-pen coordination and the zig zags are right up his alley since he has been playing the Starfall zigzag skit in the letter Z over and over. We say “zig” as we draw up and “zag” as we draw down. LOL.
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In baby news… Uggggghhhhhh! Last 2 nights I have gotten up every 2 1/2 hours or less- 5 times and then 4 times last night but would have been 5 if Brendan hadn’t woken up more than 2 hours early. This is the only part about baby care that I hate and I know breastfeeding plays a large role in it. Other than this, Andy is a model baby- very happy and playful. This morning I was staring off into space while he nursed and he gave out this fake cry sound. I looked down at him and he gave me his widest grin and cooed- he wanted my attention so we could play! 🙂
Andy’s day is much like I remember kindergarten to be… all about stations. Under the gym, in the swing, play on the floor, in the bouncer, in the highchair while I cook, under the crib mobile… He moves from place to place interspersed with naps and meals. We always start daytime nursing with little chats. He is so lovable and cute!
Edited to add… here is his 2nd tracing page.

Had fun trick or treating even though Bren only looked at one person handing out candy the whole time- a little girl about 2 years older than him. It’s frustrating to have him bury his head in your neck and demand to be carried. But he liked pushing the doorbell buttons. I hope trick or treating is more fun for Andy. And trick or treating when it is still in the 80s is just not right.
Darrell won his work’s “Scariest Costume” trophy!! This makes his fifth trophy in 10 years. He calls himself “El Diablo”. Here is his costume…

One thing I have always wondered how to make is enchilada sauce. Tonight I made a recipe from Kraft’s website called Beef Pozole. It calls for 3 dried guajillo chiles and 1 dried ancho chile. You lop off the tops, take out the seeds, soak them in hot water and then puree them in the blender. This *has* to be how real enchilada sauce is started. I bet if I took this puree and added some powdered beef bouillon, some tomato paste, a bit of fat like oil or hamburger drippings, garlic powder & cumin, I’d have a decent and authentic enchilada sauce. I’ll have to try it sometime!
Like I said, I made this recipe tonight but I couldn’t bear to cook the meat in italian dressing like it says. It’s just wrong. I used super lean meat cut into smaller cubes than called for and fried them in a bit of hot oil instead. And I omitted the corn. Hominy and corn in the same dish??? LOL. It was quite a good soup. I love soup with melted cheese in it!

10w1d. Andy bats at toys when he is under his gym now- and often hits them too! He really gets into it and squirms around, grunting and talking to the toys. His favorite is a lavender doggie. 😀
Since he likes toys now, this morning we put him in his swing in more of a sitting position and added the toys to the tray. He is so interested in them even though they are a tad far away for him to bat at. He seems to be fine sitting upright in it too!
Looks like the getting up once at night is here to stay! Last night he slept 2 five hour stretches! He was up almost an hour between them though, which is odd for him. I can hardly expect better than him waking once per 10 to 12 hour night while breastfeeding.

It’s in the potty for the first time!!! Way to go Brendan! Putting him in underwear has made a huge difference in PTing- he hates messes.

Andy is 10 weeks today! Instead of him getting a present he gave me one- he slept from midnight to 6:00 and 6:25 to 10:00! HE ONLY WOKE UP ONCE! I was so full I fed him and pumped 4.5 ounces at the same time.

Andy’s 2 month appt was on Wednesday (9w4d). He weighs 13 lb 7 oz and is 24 1/4 inches long! No more thinking my milk supply is low- lol. His head circumference is 16 1/2 inches. Brendan’s head measurements were always top of the charts so it quite surprised me when I looked up Brendan’s 2 month stats and Andy’s head is about a cm bigger! Goodness, I make big noggined kids! Brendan was 13 lb 1 oz and 24 inches at 8w2d so they are about neck to neck.
Andy’s reflux issues seem to be holding- neither worse nor better. The dr had me stop the Reglan to see if he is visibly worse off without it and it looks like he won’t need it any more. Now that I have a 3 month supply of it in my closet. Sigh. The Zantac is what makes the stomach fluids less acidic so he’ll be on that awhile yet, I’m sure.
The doctor was impressed with how Andy looked and said he was very strong for his age and had great head control. That made me happy.
He got his 2 month shots and I got sticker shocked. $635 for that simple appt plus 5 vaccinations. I about died.
Brendan didn’t say a word with the doctor the whole appt but he didn’t spend it with his head buried in a chair either. He held the doctor’s flashlight somewhat hesitantly- but he did it. He is progressing socially, but so slooowly. It’s my main worry with him. Brendan weighs 43.2 pounds. I think he has hit a growth spurt recently because some of his pants are actually looser in the waist now. I am trying to keep him at this weight for a bit so he’ll grow into some of his chubbiness.
Andy’s eyes are playing tricks on me… I’ve seen them in different lights and at different times thought they were turning blue, green AND brown so who knows. LOL. He is *very* happy and pleasant now and we are thrilled. He beams at anyone who talks to him in a high voice and loves to be told he is beautiful. 😀 He is starting to make “heh heh” sounds that are very similar to laughing. It’s so cute!!! He is a real joy. It is so much fun to make him grin while nursing. He just can’t contain the smiles and keep drinking- he has to let them out. Hee hee. 😉 Now if he’ll just start sleeping longer at night….

9w2d.
I hate hate hate it when Andy cries and I am doing something I simply can’t get away from. Today, Brendan pooped in his underwear and I was in the process of cleaning it, him and it’s subsequent mess up when Andy started up. He had been lying happily in his crib watching his mobile. By the time I got to him he had cried himself to sleep. I hate that I didn’t get to him. I think this is why middle children are typically pleasant and patient… they had no choice but to learn to wait.

We had a great time at OLLU’s annual Halloween trick-or-treating through the dorms. Brendan just loves his Superman costume!! 😀 I just wish he would’ve been a little less scared of all the people and walked instead of demanded to be carried. By the time he had adjusted to it it was time to go. He loved the decorations though- each hall was decorated in a different cartoon or Halloween theme. Andy was great the entire time and just took it all in.


After the party we made Jack-o-Kitty here. Bren loves to paint!

Wow, they look alike- same grin!!!