Baby H: Eight Months of Patrick

He...

[+] weighs 19#10oz as of this morning. He is such a chunk and I can't believe how close the gap between him and Mark is getting. I can't wait to see if they basically end up the same size sooner rather than later.

[+] still only has his bottom two teeth but there are days I swear when I stick my finger in there I'm going to feel a new top one popping through. His gums are all sorts of swollen up there but so far nothing's come out yet.

[+] is still battling the constipation game and we're trying to get a handle on it. After trying more diet related changes with really no improvement we've gone to the "bigger guns" as they say. He gets daily Miralax in either a bottle or mixed into his pureed food and we picked up an infant probiotic with vitamin D. We've switched up the formula he gets (even if it's just one bottle a day we'll try anything). He also gets lower fat yogurt for the probiotic effect but decreased fat content to hopefully not block him up as much. We offer him prune juice daily and are still avoiding the big constipating foods but basically can't just feed him straight prunes all day every day so we've been a bit more lax on his food choices.

[+] absolutely loves food, speaking of eating. Seriously if he cries and you feed him something he's happy as a clam. Lately he's eating purees, baby puffs, teething biscuits, halved blueberries, pieces of bread, noodles, squished avocado, bites of cheddar biscuits, greek yogurt, scrambled eggs, cottage cheese, french fries and basically everything he can get his hands on.

[+] isn't mobile yet but I think he's getting closer. He hates being on his back at all unless he's getting over the top excitement and play from one of us. He sits playing with toys and can successfully get from sitting to laying if he tries to reach for something. He also "crawls" fairly well into our laps and over our legs but I think it's because something is helping him hold his belly up. Ha! He's also much more content standing with us, even next to furniture, so hopefully we're making some gross motor progress soon.

[+] just switched from three naps to two after what seemed like a daily struggle to get him down especially for his first nap of the day. We're actually really pleased with this schedule change because it seems like he's sleeping better and now his afternoon nap overlaps with Mark's which is a huge plus. This also means he eats five instead of six times a day either nursing or bottles.

[+] has learned to blow raspberries and it's the cutest thing ever. Fairly consistently if you blow them at him he returns them back at you. In all honesty we haven't been very good at "teaching him" things like waving hi or sign language etc etc (life with two kids problems!) so it's nice to see him picking up on stuff regardless. He also lifts his little arms up if he's sitting on the floor and you ask him "Uppie Pat?"

[+] nicknames: Pat Pat, little love, buddy, chunky

[+] likes: eating, his big brother, Ollie, momma, his Zutano booties

[+] dislikes: getting into his carseat, putting on his sleep sac, being constipated

I...

[+] am still nursing Pat and the fact that I can say that is extremely rewarding. At this point with Mark he was getting mostly bottles of formula and I had officially thrown in the towel at this point. While I have a sneaking suspicion our time might be dwindling (i.e. decreasing supply) I'm so much more at piece with it. I'm hoping to give it my best effort in the next few weeks to get the supply up a bit but actually found myself thinking the first of the year might be a good time to switch exclusively to bottles and just pump as much as I can without the stress of it. Well see what happens because I still really love nursing him which is entirely different than with Mark but it feels good to be at this place.

[+] have completed all my residency interview travel and I'm both thrilled and scared at the same time. The novelty of traveling wore off relatively quickly and selling yourself on basically the most important "job interview" of your life gets extremely exhausting after a while. Now comes the daunting task of actually figuring out where I want to end up and hoping I match even somewhere (!!!) so keep your fingers crossed for me in the coming months.

[+] get so much joy being this boy's momma! He open mouth kisses me on an hourly basis when we're home playing. He literally throws himself from J's arms toward me or cries and whines until I pick him up when I get home from work. He snuggles into the nape of my neck and sometimes just wants to sit snuggled in my lap staring up at me. He is the mommas-boy I always dreamed of.

[+] am thrilled that I have changed my schedule and officially get two weeks at home with my boys around Christmas. Yesterday was my last day of my rotation and I won't go back until after the new year. Granted the month of January is set to be one of the most demanding I've had since Pat's been born but with how much I love Christmas time and this season of the year I couldn't have asked for anything better. Bring on the festivities and the Christmas music and the cookie baking and the holiday cheer!

Christmas Card 2016

Merriest of Christmas from the Hollands. 

It's been another fantastic year and as the years pass by I'm so thankful to have these cards to look back on of years past. The memories they hold, the significant events of the year, the changes our family has gone through and how much better my life gets with each stage. 

May your holidays be full of cheer and merriment! From our family to ours. 

2015

2014

Previous years

Baby H: Seven Months of Patrick

He...

[+] weighs 18#13oz according to our scale at home. He's so chubby and snuggly!

[+] keeps having issues with constipation relate to his solid foods we think and I'm not quite sure what to do about it. He gets all sort of backed up, grunting and crying when he tries to poo, sometimes getting a little ball of solid stuff out that I can tell is uncomfortable for him. We end up basically switching him to eating entirely prunes for a few days and he let's it all loose but then we end up in the same position again a week or so later. I'm not sure if there's something we're giving him too much of (sweet potatoes? squash? applesauce?) or if we just need to incorporate more of the good-pooping foods on a regular basis but I just feel so bad for him.

[+] Because of the constipation issues we've still only given him fruits and veggies but I'd love to start introducing the other goodies too... eggs, peanut butter, yogurts, etc. He also has no interest in feeding himself off his highchair. So far we've tried zucchini rounds, puffs and the mesh-feeder with pear inside and he just plays and throws it. Maybe we need to try something more enticing?

[+] goes to bed around 7/7:30pm and gets a feed from me around 10/10:30pm before I head to bed. He usually sleeps until around 5am (sometimes earlier/later) where he'll nurse again and is pretty good about making it till the morning then. Every once in a while he fusses earlier than we want to "start our day" and we try to just let him be in his crib but sometimes one of us ends up going into his room with him. He's by far not as good of a sleeper as Mark was at this stage but thankfully it's nothing horrible.

[+] is still nursing from me when I'm home and then getting bottles when I'm gone obviously. We've started giving him one bottle of formula throughout the day to help him get used to it and to extend the breast milk I pump for longer. So far he's doing great with it so we're sticking to this plan.

[+] absolutely loves sitting and either watching everything around him or playing with toys in front of him. He's not too fond of laying but we're trying to push it more and more in hopes we get some mobility soon. He isn't really motivated to crawl for anything in particular so his biggest "attempts" come when he's just really mad. He hasn't coordinated his arms and his legs yet, pulling up his knees while pushing the side of his head across the floor and then separately using his arms to lift his noggin with his legs straight out. I almost wonder if he'll end up a butt-scooter instead of crawling?

[+] nicknames: Pat Pat, Chunky Monkey, Fat Pat, snuggle-bug

[+] likes: dill pickles (just like big brother at this age!), the walker toy, observing everyone

[+] dislikes: pooping, sleeping/laying on his back, learning to crawl

I...

[+] absolutely love being this boys momma. I'm not sure if it's the "second time confidence" or that Patrick's such a different baby but I've always felt more connected to him. Mark was a tough cookie for a long time and has never been a cuddly kid and for whatever reason, I never had the momma-son bond with him I had hoped for. Yes I love him to pieces and cherish our moments together but it's just so different with Pat and I absolutely love it. I love being the one he calms with, love having him snuggle with me, love the bond him and I have always had.

[+] am ready to not be so exhausted all the time. Most nights I get around 7hrs which isn't horrible but goodness gracious I'm still so stinking tired all the time. I typically fall asleep in the evening around 9pm just laying on the couch watching TV and many nights my alarm to feed him at 10:30pm goes off, I silence it and literally have no memory of doing so. I don't know what's wrong with me sometimes.

[+] am officially back to my pre-Patrick weight which on one hand is awesome but on the other hand my body just feels so different still that it seems like I have a long way to go still. I know a huge part of that is that I've had no "toning" routine really since being pregnant with Mark (yes I know how bad that is!). I can bet that some body weight exercises with some ab work would make a big difference for me but really, (see last point above!) that's the last thing on my mind.

And how about a little comparison shall we.

I present the Holland Boys. Both 7 months old wearing the same onesie.

One things for certain, Pat needs some hair!

Mark Turns Two

Somehow our boy is TWO years old already! 

He... 

[+] weighs 29lbs (59%) and is 34.5in tall (52%). We are thrilled that he's caught up in height since he was such a shorty for so long and now there are days where he seems exceptionally long and lanky. He's really starting to lose his "baby body" and is more and more like a kid every day.

[+] wears all things 2T except for pajamas which he's in 3T for. He's still in size 4 diapers and his current shoes are size 7 but they're quickly getting too small.

[+] has sort of been working on using the potty but we aren't pushing it. We ask him if he wants to go throughout the day and sometimes he says yes and sometimes no. He's really good about peeing when we set him on it and gets two gummy bears when he does. He knows when he's going poop but always says no when we tell him to sit on the potty during that time. Sometimes we'll take his poopy diaper to the toilet and put the poop in so he can see where it's "supposed" to go but I don't really think he's getting it yet. They say boys are harder to potty train, he's just over two and we've got Pat to change still anyways so we're in no hurry.

[+] is going to eat us out of house and home in no time flat! This kid can seriously put some food down. He'll eat... An entire turkey sandwich on regular size bread. A six count nugget meal from Chick Fil A. Two hotdogs and a massive serving of fruit. The whole portion of mac n cheese with yogurt kids meal from Panera. And then there are times where we fight for him to take a single bite which proves toddlers really do rule the world.

[+] has started singing songs both with us and on his own and hearing his little voice just melts my heart every single time. The songs on his list right now include... I Love You (from Barney), Humble & Kind, Ba Ba Black Sheep, You Are My Sunshine, Hi-Ho, Happy Birthday, ABC's.

[+] is still adjusting to his big brother roll but I think this is more a product of his age than his intent. Sometimes he can be so sweet to Pat - trying to make him laugh, telling him "night Pat Pat, goodnight" when he goes upstairs to nap, giving him toys and constantly talking to him. But then other times he still hits with intent, throws or steals toys, tries to knock him over or pull him off of furniture. We've implemented time-out (for these things as well as others) and try to really praise him when he's good. I know that as they get older they'll be the best of friends and we try to remember the moments of sweet instead of the bad.

[+] is just starting to be interested in watching TV/movies which I'm pretty proud of us for delaying it this long. And for now, it's still quite a treat for him when we do say yes. His top shows are Mickey Mouse Clubhouse and Bubble Guppies and his favorite movies are Tarzan and The Lion King. Plus like any self-absorbed toddler, he loves watching videos of himself too.

 [+] got a strider bike for his birthday and we are so impressed with how quick he's learning to ride it. He started off really unsteady basically just walking with it between his legs. Now though he'll easily pick up some speed and "strides" a few steps before slowing himself down. We're happy the weathers been so nice here this fall and hope he can get some more practice before winter sets in.

[+] is giving us a little bit of worry on a medically-related issue after his two year well child check. I'm not quite sure I want to go into details about it, at least not yet, but it's requiring some imaging and visits to a peds specialist. We already know that one way or another our boy is going to be just fine, we're just hoping it's an easy process instead of a more complicated one.

[+] is still sleeping in his crib and I'm not sure when we're going to make any change to that. His sleep is so great right now that we almost don't want to rock the boat if we don't have to. He wears a sleep sac over his jammies and has never once tried to get out so it's not like we're pressed for change because of safety. We recently got him standard size pillow to sleep with and it's adorable to see him sleeping like a big kid on the video monitor. He also sleeps with his blue knit blanket, his lovie minky blanket, a bunny and his ducky.

[+] goes to bed around 8pm and wakes up between 7-7:30am although occasionally he sleeps till closer to 8am but not often. He still naps once around 1pm with his short naps being 1hr 15min and the long ones approaching 2.5hrs.

[+] is such a helper sometimes and it's so sweet to see this side of him. If we're playing outside he often finds a broom to help sweep up even if that means grabbing a handful of dirt from the pot to artificially make a mess. He also helps vacuum, dust and "mop" (aka swiffer) inside with Nani. Most days he feeds Ollie both times by getting his bowl out and dumping the scoop of food. Most of the time he'll help us get whatever item we ask for (his shoes, a paci for Pat, a piece of trash, etc). When I'm home in the mornings he also helps me make a cup of coffee in the Keurig. He knows I need one packet of sugar and then he opens the drawer, picks a k-cup, puts it in the holder and shuts it and then presses the correct button to make it brew.

[+] loves all things cars/trucks/buses and plays by driving them around on his road almost daily. He has a number of stuffed animals he loves including Simba, Elmo, Baby Bear, Billy and Clifford and he'll often feed them, put diapers on them and carry one around for a whole day. He's obsessed with his puffs (aka craft store pom poms) and in the most random of places we'll realize he has one clutched in his fist after hours. He sometimes likes to color with crayons and paint with both water colors and washable paints.

Things Mark Says... 
- "Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, TRASH MAN COMING!!!!" - While yelling at the top of his lungs.
- If we talk about him growing - "grow stronger and smarter."
- While sitting at the table for dinner - "Daddy chewing. Mommy chewing. Pat Pat chewing. Marky chewing. EVERYBODY chewing."
- When we ask him what mommy does for work - "Doctor!". What daddy does for work - "Softball!"

- "Daddy loves money. Mommy loves daddy's money" - Yeah, really! 

- He sneezed twice so I told him bless you - "two bless yous momma."
- We made him some chicken nuggets in the microwave - "Jeepers, creepers! That's hot!"
- I was handing him pancakes as we were driving to the doctor's office - "Thank you mommy's hand!"
- When he burps or toots - "Excuse you, Daniel Boon."
- While reaching for one of us to pick him up - "Come here, mommy/daddy/etc, come here."
- He's recently started saying "where it is!!" (aka there) with so much enthusiasm when we're looking for something. 

Baby H: Six Months of Patrick

He...

[+] weighs 18#3.5oz (56%) and is 26.25in long (20%) with a head of 43cm (29%). Apparently we make short babies which is still so strange to us but this guy is for sure much chunkier than his big brother was at this stage and I LOVE it!

[+] is moving towards size 3 diapers and 6-9 month clothes and it makes this momma sad to pack away items that I know will never get used again. I am looking forward to bundling him up as the weather cools down because nothing is sweeter than a snuggly baby dressed in flannel.

[+] officially has two teeth! The first popped through on big brother's birthday after having a tough day that we attributed to being out and about messing with his schedule celebrating Mark. I ended up putting my finger in his mouth and low and behold, there it was! The second came through exactly a week later. 

[+] still isn't sleeping through the night but for different reasons than last month. Sometimes its legitimately that he's hungry as I've been battling some supply issues recently and we can't exactly sleep train him when we know his belly needs some milk. He's also had quite a bit of congestion/cold stuff going on both from big brother passing along his cold as well as from his moving teeth and it's so sad to hear him struggling because of his stuffy nose. We're finally back to the stage of typically only waking once, quickly eating and then going back down easily so here's hoping it doesn't get worse again. 

[+] is seriously the sweetest, most laid-back, easy baby there is. He is content just sitting and watching. He puts up with toys being taken from him, being set in the bouncer while Mark needs something and all the bumps and bangs having a big brother entails. He snuggles on a regular basis, just laying in my arms wide-awake looking at me which is something Mark literally never did. It takes basically nothing to make him smile and he giggles and laughs all day long. He's the type of baby that would make you have another, he's literally that perfect. 

[+] started into the realm of solid foods this month. He's doing great with it and while he definitely has his preferences (bananas, sweet potatoes and squash) and his dislikes (looking at you peas!) overall he's a huge fan of eating. Most of the time we can't feed him fast enough before he's crying for more. He's had a pretty decent rash going on that we think is related to foods with more sugar (applesauce and blueberries) and has been getting a bit constipated sometimes but we're working through it and having lots of fun with it. 

[+] sits perfectly on his own playing with toys as content as can be. Only within the last few days has he shown any interest/progress towards crawling and I can't decide if I want him to learn or not. I want time to slow down and for him to stay little longer but also know it's going to be so much fun seeing him chase Mark around and gain his independence. 

[+] nicknames: Pat Pat, Fat Pat, snuggle-bug, buddy

[+] likes: hitting surfaces with his hands, Mark, wiggling in the air

[+] dislikes: peas, being constipated, cleaning his face after he eats

 I...

[+] have been dealing with decreased milk supply the last few weeks and while I always knew there was no way I'd get to a full year, it was still a hard pill to swallow. Between Pat sleeping longer stretches at night and then not getting as many opportunities to pump on my most recent rotations, I was barely keeping up with what he was eating from a bottle and also not giving him enough when he nursed either. There was one day where I weighed all his nursing feeds and he got significantly less than what he should have. I've really been pulling out all the stops to get my supply back up but we also picked up a container of formula to start introducing too. While I know that I've done so much better with Pat than I ever could with Mark, it's still so hard and so sad to be going through this stage again.

[+] am so anxious for the next few weeks because I have 6 interviews scheduled in the span of three weeks! I'll be doing a bunch of traveling with nights away from home and while I absolutely hate the thought of leaving my boys, I'm also looking forward to getting to know these programs and starting to piece together my game plan for Match in the spring. I can't believe we're already to this point!

[+] am also anxious for the holiday season this year as I have an audition rotation (aka the more demanding type of rotation) scheduled from mid-December to mid-January and I have no idea what that means for Christmas. I'm keeping my fingers crossed that it's an extra blessing that Christmas falls on the weekend and that I'll get those days off but also realize that might not actually happen. Not to mention being extra busy the weeks leading up to it will make Santa visits, shopping, cookie backing, etc more complicated and I want to make sure for my boys' sake, that this Christmas is one to remember. I've always known that a career in medicine would mean holidays change I just wasn't anticipating that happening yet.

Thankful v22

Lately I've been thankful...

[+] for babies who look almost exactly like their big brothers

[+] for a blue eyed and a brown eyed boy to help me tell their baby pictures apart

[+] for toddlers who are independent and so smart it's often scary

[+] for hearing "I love you" from the smallest of lips as I head out the door

[+] for a baby who snuggles when his big brother never did 

[+] for messes because they teach me to let go

[+] for new milestones even if I beg time to slow down on a daily basis

[+] for getting to experience the daily joys when I know I won't always be able to

[+] for forecasted warm weather on the horizon and the goodness of vitamin D

[+] for family get-togethers and any reason to celebrate

[+] for change, even if it's just in the form of a haircut

[+] for patience... with myself, from our pup, in all ways 

[+] for bonds that are greater than I could have ever imagined 

Baby H: Five Months of Patrick

He...

[+] weighs 15#11.5oz according to our doctor's appointment this past week. He's such a chunk of a baby that he's definitely earned his Fat Pat nickname.

[+] is still 100% breastmilk fed. Now that I'm back on rotations he gets more bottles obviously but so far we haven't had to supplement with formula at all. He eats every 3 hours during the day and takes 4oz when it's from a bottle.

[+] rolls back-to-front regularly and he's done front-to-back a handful of times too. He plays with his feet, puts everything in his mouth and is getting really good at sitting with minimal support. He also can ride in the stroller without the carseat which makes walks with both boys so much easier.

[+] is no longer sleeping through the night but we anticipated that going away at sometime thanks to the lovely "four month sleep regression". Now that he's no longer swaddled we've learned that he is a belly sleeper just like big brother but the only problem is that he can't get himself off his belly in the middle of the night which usually leads to one if not way more wakings in the night. I'm also not sure if he's waking for hunger too but hopefully we don't have much more time left of the night time shenanigans.

[+] typically takes three good naps with one bad one throughout the day lasting anywhere from 40 minutes to 1.5 hours. His last nap for the day is usually the worst, typically from 6:15-7pm and I imagine he'll end up dropping it in the coming weeks/months. He typically goes to bed for the night around 8:30pm and I try not to get him out of his crib until 7am in the morning.

[+] gave us quite the scare just this past week having a completely limp arm when I picked him up from his crib one morning. He was screaming and clearly not using it and this momma freaked. Thankfully after a quick nursing session to calm him somewhat, he started moving it again but we headed to the pedi just in case. They think he had nursemaid's elbow and that he might just be more prone to it but he's completely back to normal and I couldn't be more thankful. It was scary for sure.

[+] is bald as can be which is so funny. The hair he does have is dark just like mine and big brother's but he definitely doesn't have much of it. And he's still got those baby blues that just slay this momma's heart!

[+] nicknames: Pat Pat, Fat Pat, baby boy

[+] likes: Mark (seriously obsessed), the vtech cube, the frog chair

[+] dislikes: not getting enough milk from momma, being on his back in his crib

I... 

[+] am proud that breastfeeding/pumping has gone so much better this time around but that doesn't help the negativity and worry creep in every so often. Patrick goes through his share of nursing strikes and in hindsight I realize this was exactly what happened with Mark too. He'll only nurse for a few minutes and just cry and cry if I try to get him to have more. I like to think I handle it better now but every once in a while I lose my cool and end up with a screaming child in his crib while I take a breather in the other room. Pumping has been going better too and I usually can keep up with what he eats at home. Being in a hospital with the best-grade pumps definitely helps. Not to mention the less stress in general this time around. But boy is it a lot of work overall.

[+] weighed myself for the first time in about 8 or 10 weeks and am up about 10lbs from my pre-Patrick-pregnancy weight. It's so different this time around because I literally don't care in the slightest. Every once in a while I'll think about it because a shirt will fit me differently or my pants will be a little extra tight but then I have an extra cookie or put half and half in my coffee and the thought vanishes. I am so worried about losing my milk supply that cutting calories at this point isn't an option for me and while I'm sure I could fit in quick workouts at home I just don't have the motivation most days. Maybe this will change in the coming months but for now I'm happy with it.

[+] am just about to enter interview season for residency applications and while I'm excited, I'm also nervous too. Obviously nervous for the actual interviews themselves but also nervous about being away/traveling so much. Most programs host an optional welcome dinner the night before meaning I'd stay the night the evening before my actual interview and so far, I have 4 nights schedule away and one flight to a different state. I know it's what I have to do but I'll miss my babies when I'm gone.

Baby H: Four Months of Patrick

He...

[+] I'll update his measurements after his doctors appointment this Friday

[+] is wearing 3-6/6month clothes and size 2 diapers already. He is so much bigger than Mark was at this age it's insane! He's growing like a weed and I'm loving the baby chub.

[+] is seriously the happiest baby there ever was! He smiles at just about everything and everyone. He only ever fusses when he has to burp right after he eats and for the 2 minutes before his nap when the tiredness sets in. He laughs at the silliest things, lights up when he sees his big brother and is just a joy to be around.

[+] could care less about tummy time and he'll just lay there looking around when we put him like that. It's such a difference between Mark who would scream his head off. But it also means that he's far from being motivated to roll yet. A few times he's gotten himself from his back onto his side but that's all so far. He kicks his feet like a wild man sometimes and hasn't found his feet just yet.

[+] eats every three hours starting at 7am which means 7/10/1/4/7. I nurse him when I'm home and otherwise he gets around 4oz of breastmilk in a bottle when I'm not. He typically goes to bed for the night between 8:30/9pm and then gets one last feed between 10/10:30pm when J and I go to bed. Every once in a while he wake up somewhere between 6/7am but more often than not he goes all the way through.

[+] should be going to bed in his crib but this momma just can't put him down at the end of the day. He is 100% napping in his crib and does great in there through the night but that 8:30pm "bedtime" is more likely than not snuggled with me on the couch. And I have to say it's my absolute favorite time of the day!

[+] is starting to transition out of the swaddle and we haven't quite gotten the hang of it yet. We tried a week in a "modified" set of long-sleeve pajamas to help settle is wild arms but we weren't noticing any progress so we decided to just go cold turkey with it. Right now he's sleeping in a pair of pajamas and a sleep sac for naps working on putting himself to sleep. We haven't stopped swaddling him at night yet and won't until his naps are better but hey, it's progress.

[+] is in the "everything in your mouth" stage which isn't a surprise. Most common items include his fingers/fists, a few random toys and our fingers when he gets ahold of one. He's a slobbery mess from it so I'll be sure to get some more bandana bibs for him soon.

[+] nicknames: Pat Pat, Fat Pat and baby brother (I think we've found his names and they've stuck!)

[+] likes: the bath, his big brother, kaboom on his butt, the frog chair

[+] dislikes: having gas

I...

[+] am thrilled to say that as of right now I have kept up with pumping what he's been taking from a bottle milk-wise. It's awesome. Granted sometimes that means pumping more often than he's actually eating when I'm away and also throwing in a few sessions over the weekends but I'll take it because it really hasn't been that bad. I counted the other day and have about 40 5oz bags in the freezer and so far haven't had to "dip" into the stash.

[+] find myself purposefully having to put the idea that I'll never be pregnant/have a newborn/experience another baby out of my mind because I have a tendency to get sad when I think about it. These boys are absolutely perfect and our family is perfect with them in it but it's such a strange feeling being done with this "stage" of life. (I know, I'm so so dramatic. Thinking done when I only have a 4mo old!) I think some of it has to do with Pat coming as early as he did so I didn't get to cherish those last few weeks being pregnant but it's still just an odd feeling.

[+] am thankfully doing okay being gone more often this month on my current rotation. Technically it's Mon-Fri typical hours but most days were done in the early afternoon and the schedule changes quite often making the weeks fly by. I hated the 45min-1hr drive that first week but I've gotten more used to it as the days go by. Plus I checked out an audio book, The Girl on the Train, and it's actually been refreshing "reading" something for fun.

Baby H: Maternity Photos (times two)

I'm playing a bit of catch up when it comes to our professional photoshoots that have revolved around our little Patrick. Somehow he is already 3 months old and neither his maternity or newborn sessions have made an appearance on the blog!

Regardless, at 36 weeks we scheduled our maternity session just a mere 9 days before this little one decided to make his arrival! April can be such an odd month in Colorado weather wise as it can be as snowy as the winter or warm enough for shorts making planning an outdoor session kind of difficult. For us, the weather was perfectly warm but we were about a week too early for all the pretty spring blooms making location the tricky aspect. With a suggestion from our photog we headed to Downtown Littleton to wander around some empty buildings and up the streets of the cute little town. A more "urban" shoot was something we had never done with her and I'm so glad we did this time.

We brought along Patrick's quilt and wooden "P" just like we did with Mark because it's made for such a cool trend for us to look back on. Mark was such a stud and did so great through the whole session only needing a few M&M bribes. I was only mildly uncomfortable (which if you were around me those last few weeks you understand that was a huge deal) sitting and laying with my big Patrick belly. I truly couldn't love these photos more! They perfectly captured our last few days as a family of three before adding our missing puzzle piece to the family. Enjoy!

Baby H: Newborn Photos (times two)

Photos that capture perfect details, brand-new life, sweet moments in time and lots of love are basically my favorite thing ever. And we were blown away yet again by the images of our sweet Patrick and life as a family of four. 

It is so special to me to not only have these photos to look back on of a moment when our life changed forever but also to have them in the same room where big brother Mark's were taken. The nursery has changed a bit for our newest boy but there are just enough similarities for me to love. Not to mention all the extra moments of love between brothers that Amber so perfectly captured. 

Take a look and you'll understand why I'm so obsessed...