Baby Geez!

Well, it has been a big week for all of us here. We celebrated Ella's 2nd birthday on Monday, Tuesday Ella and Bradley went to the doctor for their well check ups and....Ella has made a new, very special friend.....Baby Geez!

We read to Ella from her little bible every night and she loves stories about baby Jesus! So, on her birthday I asked her what she wanted to play and she pointed up to the Fisher Price Nativity set in the top of her closet. So, we got it down and played with the nativity. Since then, baby Jesus (Ella's pronunciation...."baby Geez") goes with us everywhere. See the above picture for a close up of Baby Geez. He is not very big, so I am always paranoid that we will loose him. This could be bad for three reasons:

1. Ella would have a melt down if we lost "Baby Geez"

2. I would feel like it was a sin if we lost Baby Jesus.

3. What good is a nativity set without Baby Jesus?

Anyway, baby Geez has had an exciting week. He eats breakfast with us, goes for stroller rides, falls out of the stroller and gets run over (thank goodness he is forgiving), rides in the car in the cup holder, jumps in her bounce house, tries on mommies shoes, hides in the food pantry, etc. I mean he is a busy man. I sometimes wonder if this is a visible, constant sign that is now going with us everywhere to remind me of what type of mother I want to be. You know.....Ella tests the limits and I look at her....see baby Jesus in her hands.....and of course from deep inside I find more patience...which 2 minutes ago was just starting to wear thin. Who know! The Lord works in mysterious ways right?

Anyway, Ella is doing great. She has made being a mother of 2 a much easier job than I expected it to be! God Bless her!!!!! I can't believe she is 2. She is growing like a weed. At the doctor yesterday she was in the 95h percentile for height. However, she is so active that her weight seems to plumitt to the other end of the scale. She's a lean mean jumping machine.

Bradley is doing well too. He is very content and still a great sleeper! Hallalujah!!! The doctor said he looks very healthy as well and based on the size of his hands and feet, she expects him to be a big boy. He is 6 weeks old, 23 inches and 10.5 pounds! He is also growing like a weed and is a true blessing!

Scott and I would give you are updates, but they're not very exciting. We ust try to get our work done and get enough sleep to keep up with Ella and Bradley! They make us smile, laugh and feel exhausted by noon!!

Count your blessings...not your battles!!!

Bradley is 3 weeks old today and this is the first day that we are officially on our own without any assistance from grandparents. Things are going as good as we could have hoped for, but it is definitely hard work. I'm not sure that I will ever leave the house again. I have to get up at 6am to get my self dressed, Bradley fed, Ella's breakfast ready, get both the kids dressed, let the dogs out and load the car to be out of the house by 9am. Three hours probably sounds like a lot, but that leaves us extra time for unexpected feedings, tantrums or messy diapers!

In all honesty, Ella is doing great with Bradley. She is a great big sister. She always lets me know when the baby is crying, pooping, sleeping, eating or sneezing. She loves yelling, "Baby sneeze", "Baby pooped", "Baby crying", etc. When she is feeling like she needs a little mommy time she says, "baby nap" to let me know that she would like me to put him down for a nap. Of course she has noticed that crying gets the baby attention and therefore has developed a fake cry for attention, but other than that and the normal emotions you would expect a child to experience when a baby joins a family, she is doing great. She is very gentle with Bradley and likes to put toys and blankets next to him while he sleeps. We are very proud of her.

Ella will be 2 on June 23rd, so we celebrated her birthday when all of the grandparents were here. She had a blast. Her birthday theme was Boz, a Christian bear that teaches kids about manners, being nice and God's love. It's hard to believe she is almost 2. Boy does time fly by!

Bradley is doing great as well. He has been pretty easy so far during both day and night! He is changing and growing so quickly. He seems to look a little different and a little bigger each day.

Scott and I are both pretty tired. We neither one get any free time these days, but it is definitely worth the work. We are still trying to figure out how to handle 2 kids, maintain some order in the house (to be honest i think i lost this when i got married) and keep up with the kids. It takes a lot of energy. If you have not been around Ella since she was about 15 months old, then you do not know that the Lord made his first mistake and accidentally gave Ella springs instead of feet. Honestly, the kids jumps probably 50% or more of everyday. The other 50% of her day is spent dancing, running and singing her ABC's.

Life has definitely changed with the addition of Bradley, but we are all so excited about his arrival. We thank the Lord every day for all that he has blessed us with.......and then we ask him for patience, wisdom and energy to help us get to 8:30 p.m........bedtime for the kids!!!