Sunday, November 30, 2014
Noah is 4 months old!
Noah turned four months a week ago. He went to the doctor on Tuesday and got his shots - the poor thing gets these huge lumps and bruises where the shots were. They are still there. The first night after his shots, he woke up a lot and had a fever, but after that, they didn't seem to bother him. He is basically huge - he was 50% for height, but weight 17 lbs 11 oz - around 90% for weight. (He is a big boy, wears 6 month clothes, but 9 fit pretty well too and a size 3 diaper). His head circumference was around 50%, too, I think. He is healthy, but the nurse practitioner was concerned about how flat his head was and we are going to see a neurosurgeon (!) to have it evaluated for a helmet. Sad ... sigh - a bit of a bummer. It's not very symmetrical - he definitely prefers to turn to his right. But we did everything we could, so we'll just see what they say about how bad it is.
In other news, Noah still sleeps like a dream. He is so easy to put to sleep, I just can't believe it. If all kids were like this ... it would be so much easier! He sleeps roughly 12 hours at night, sometimes quite a bit more, sometimes less. He usually wakes up once at night to nurse. He takes 3 naps a day usually but they aren't at any specific time. We just play it by ear. He does not like sleeping anywhere besides his crib or his car seat. And he sleeps much better in his crib than his car seat, which frankly he doesn't like to sleep in much.
He nurses well - every 3 hours or so. He does get kind of distracted, but is pretty efficient and it doesn't seem like too much of a big deal or too big a part of the day. He still spits up profusely all the time. It's pretty gross, but oh, well.
He does well with the preschool on Friday mornings. Katsu drops him off at 9 and I pick him up between 11 and 11:30. He takes a bottle there and has a nap and usually talks and plays with the ladies there the rest of the time. They really like him. He always seems a little suspicious of me when I pick him up but he perks up quickly and wants to be held. He has been babysit once for about an hour while I got a hair cute, as well. That is about it.
Noah really loves Katsu. He gets excited when Katsu comes home and wants to be held. He thinks Katsu is so funny. He loves to dance and sing with him and also play peek-a-boo. He will just laugh up a storm - it is really cute. He likes when Katsu touches his nose, lips and chins, and go "Nose, lip, lip, chin". He is also quite ticklish.
He also LOVES his brothers. I can tell that he misses them when they are at school. He looks around wondering where they are - it definitely is more quiet. He loves when they sing and play with him. They all have their little songs and games they play with him - Andrew sings something like YMCA and Seth had cute little songs. Logan will just tell him over and over how much he loves him. Of course, generally, they all want to give him love at the same time. The rest of the time, I am hauling him around with me.
Noah wants to be held pretty much all the time. He will consent to tummy time for awhile before he starts whining which leads into crying. He doesn't like lying on his back anymore and really gets bored. He used to grab things with his hands and such, but now he wants to be picked up and just kind of whines until you do. He was so done with the swing so we switched it out thanks to our friends for an exercauser, more of like a bouncy one. He will play with it a bit ... but again just gets fussier and fussier till you finally take him out. He really likes to be held. He will sit on your lap or on the floor up next to you and is getting much better at sitting. And he will play with a toy for a little bit. He likes to be entertained. Loved, hugged, sung to, etc. He stands up pretty well if you hold his hands.
He can roll from tummy to back and can almost roll from back to tummy.
He likes to watch candles, fires, and Christmas lights.
He slept through our Thanksgiving feast which was nice for us - but it wasn't that exciting of a feast due to the stomach flu and following through of plans. Bit of a bummer of a week, but didn't effect Noah at all.
Fun Things This Month
In other news, Noah still sleeps like a dream. He is so easy to put to sleep, I just can't believe it. If all kids were like this ... it would be so much easier! He sleeps roughly 12 hours at night, sometimes quite a bit more, sometimes less. He usually wakes up once at night to nurse. He takes 3 naps a day usually but they aren't at any specific time. We just play it by ear. He does not like sleeping anywhere besides his crib or his car seat. And he sleeps much better in his crib than his car seat, which frankly he doesn't like to sleep in much.
He nurses well - every 3 hours or so. He does get kind of distracted, but is pretty efficient and it doesn't seem like too much of a big deal or too big a part of the day. He still spits up profusely all the time. It's pretty gross, but oh, well.
He does well with the preschool on Friday mornings. Katsu drops him off at 9 and I pick him up between 11 and 11:30. He takes a bottle there and has a nap and usually talks and plays with the ladies there the rest of the time. They really like him. He always seems a little suspicious of me when I pick him up but he perks up quickly and wants to be held. He has been babysit once for about an hour while I got a hair cute, as well. That is about it.
Noah really loves Katsu. He gets excited when Katsu comes home and wants to be held. He thinks Katsu is so funny. He loves to dance and sing with him and also play peek-a-boo. He will just laugh up a storm - it is really cute. He likes when Katsu touches his nose, lips and chins, and go "Nose, lip, lip, chin". He is also quite ticklish.
He also LOVES his brothers. I can tell that he misses them when they are at school. He looks around wondering where they are - it definitely is more quiet. He loves when they sing and play with him. They all have their little songs and games they play with him - Andrew sings something like YMCA and Seth had cute little songs. Logan will just tell him over and over how much he loves him. Of course, generally, they all want to give him love at the same time. The rest of the time, I am hauling him around with me.
Noah wants to be held pretty much all the time. He will consent to tummy time for awhile before he starts whining which leads into crying. He doesn't like lying on his back anymore and really gets bored. He used to grab things with his hands and such, but now he wants to be picked up and just kind of whines until you do. He was so done with the swing so we switched it out thanks to our friends for an exercauser, more of like a bouncy one. He will play with it a bit ... but again just gets fussier and fussier till you finally take him out. He really likes to be held. He will sit on your lap or on the floor up next to you and is getting much better at sitting. And he will play with a toy for a little bit. He likes to be entertained. Loved, hugged, sung to, etc. He stands up pretty well if you hold his hands.
He can roll from tummy to back and can almost roll from back to tummy.
He likes to watch candles, fires, and Christmas lights.
He slept through our Thanksgiving feast which was nice for us - but it wasn't that exciting of a feast due to the stomach flu and following through of plans. Bit of a bummer of a week, but didn't effect Noah at all.
Fun Things This Month
- Halloween - Noah dressed up as a cow, which he didn't particularly like. He fell asleep in the stroller at the trunk or treat and slept through the whole thing. The fall carnival was a little overwhelming for him and we ended up going outside to kind of calm him down. All the late nights were hard, too. On Halloween, we went to a party down the street and then we were going to go trick or treating, but he was pretty much done, so we sat on the porch and handed out candy. Eventually, I just put him to sleep.
- 100 days - we had rice, fish, and soup. He spit out the rice mostly and was choking on the fish. That was about the end of that.
- He came along in the stroller both days we went and fed the homeless with Brother's Kepper.
- Shichigosan - we took pictures in the morning. We went out to a Japanese restaurant for dinner, but Noah thankfully slept through the whole thing in his car seat.
- Day in Beaufort / Aquarium / beach. Noah was interested in the beach, until he got sand in his mouth and all over his clothes. He seemed to like the waves though, of course, we didn't get in the water - too cold. He liked the aquarium. He enjoyed watching the otters. The dinosaurs were still outside, and he though they were hilarious. Every time they would roar, he would laugh. It was cute. He was pretty fussy at the museum in Beaufort, but cheered up after I nursed him. He was fine on the ride home until we dropped Katsu off in New Bern - then he cried the entire rest of the way home almost. He can not stand being in the car seat at night. He wants to be home sleeping.
- Watching brothers' performances at Barnes and Noble.
- Stake Conference in New Bern.
- Thanksgiving - slept through.
- First Sunday of Advent - likes the candles.
Sunday, November 02, 2014
Seth in October 2014
Another month of kindergarten done. Seth seems to like it, but he doesn't tell me very much. He comes home and is off ... he loves to ride his bike around and go to friend's houses and play. He spends a lot of time playing with the kids at the houses next door and the next door over. But he also likes to ride his bike down the next street and play with kids. A boy a few houses done is in his class (though the kids at that house kind of run wild ... the 2 year old runs around unsupervised and often in the street) and they like to play together. He really likes to play with his friend from preschool last year and also just found out one of his soccer team mates also lives in the same col-de-sac as that friend. But I have to be careful, because I can make an off hand remark and Seth will think that means he can play and he will just leave. Or he will go and wait for his friend to get home ... he really LOVES to play with his friends and nothing at home can compare.
Seth started homework this month. He finds it pretty exciting. I wish they would send home books for him to read, but it's mostly practicing writing. He zips it out in a few minutes and doesn't want to hear my commentary about what he did right or wrong.
Seth is still loving doing the walking school bus. He likes to tell the other kindergarteners how it works and what they are doing wrong.
Seth still insists on matching clothes with Andrew every single day. His fleece from Ridgewood finally came, so now their jackets can match, too. I had to change how I keep their clothes so it's easy for them to find matching clothes. Seth tends to just pull out every single article of clothing until he finds what he wants and then leave them all on the floor. It drives me nuts! He does that with everything ... just leaving everything everywhere and then he can't find anything. He is always leaving his bike helmet everywhere and then we can't find it. One day he left it at a friend's house and his mom found it in the kitchen sink!
Seth is still a little hysterical at times (like today, he was positively nuts!). Every time it is time to clean up, he starts crying, sometimes hysterical and moaning and groaning and thrashing around on the floor. It is all a little ridiculous. Even if everything is almost clean and there is just a bit to do, it is the same theatrics every time. Also whenever he wants to play video games. Or watch TV. Or look at a screen. Drives me crazy!!!
Also, every night at dinner, he starts the same moaning and groaning about "I hate it". It doesn't matter what it is - he will hate it. Or on the off chance that I make something he likes, he will be upset that he doesn't like the side dishes. He always moans "Why do you always make something I hate" which is always answered with "because you hate almost everything". It usually is met with some more rolling around on the floor and maybe a tantrum, though he usually ends up eating a bit at least. He always eats during the prayer and just can't sit still during dinner.
Lately he has started to be trouble at church ... I don't know if he is just getting the short end of the stick lately, but he seems to always want whatever Logan wants and they are fighting more than usual. At church, he wants whatever Logan is looking at. Then he will try to touch Noah when he isn't supposed to or otherwise cause trouble until he finally gives up and lies on the ground looking bored out of his mind.
Seth had his last soccer game of the season yesterday. He played well as usual, though not quite as fancy footwork since it was so cold. He got 2 goals, about typical for him. I think he probably has some of the best footwork of any of the kids we saw on the league. He just really gets soccer, much better than most of the other kids. He seems to reflexively know where to run and what to do. Even the other parents notice that Seth is a natural - of course, he loves to practice all the time, too. I just hope he never wants to do travel soccer - parks and rec is already exhausting enough for me! He got a little trophy. We just brought it into the house this evening and it already had its head knowcked off within an hour. Ahhh ... life in a house full of boys. Seth is already excited for the next sport - basketball which starts in a few weeks. He wants to do every sport as he is constantly telling me. New sports are always being added ... he says he needs to do gymnastics now! We'll see about that.
Seth really enjoyed hiking the mountain with Katsu. He is not a really great traveler, but I think all-in-all he enjoyed the trip. He is always in such a hurry that he practically ran up the mountain. Hopefully, it will be good memories for the two of them.
Seth went to his first play this month. He went and saw the Little Prince with Katsu and Andrew. I tried to read them it but we only got through a few chapters. It's hard to get in novel reading with a baby around. I did pick up the graphic novelization of it at the library and the boys read/looked through most of it. He really enjoyed it. They went up to shake hands with the characters at the end. Their next play is on Friday.
We also went and helped feed the homeless one Saturday in October. I hope to keep being able to do service days and find service I can do with the kids. Seth was great at handing out water and making friends with the other little boy there helping.
Fun Things This Month:
- lots of soccer games. Seth made lots of goals.
- general conference. We had candy for the key words.
- Trip to Asheville.
- Flu mist
- Greenville fall festival ... kind of a bust since everything cost money and I didn't bring any cash, but they got cotton candy and got to get fire hats and go on a bus.
- making Halloween cookies at home.
- first play - Little Prince.
- help feed the homeless at the park. We are going to start going each month.
- trunk or treat at church
- trick or treating at library
- fall fest
- halloween festivities at school - making cookies, counting and sorting candy ... sounded fun.
- neighborhood halloween party
- Halloween!!!!
Seth started homework this month. He finds it pretty exciting. I wish they would send home books for him to read, but it's mostly practicing writing. He zips it out in a few minutes and doesn't want to hear my commentary about what he did right or wrong.
Seth is still loving doing the walking school bus. He likes to tell the other kindergarteners how it works and what they are doing wrong.
Seth still insists on matching clothes with Andrew every single day. His fleece from Ridgewood finally came, so now their jackets can match, too. I had to change how I keep their clothes so it's easy for them to find matching clothes. Seth tends to just pull out every single article of clothing until he finds what he wants and then leave them all on the floor. It drives me nuts! He does that with everything ... just leaving everything everywhere and then he can't find anything. He is always leaving his bike helmet everywhere and then we can't find it. One day he left it at a friend's house and his mom found it in the kitchen sink!
Seth is still a little hysterical at times (like today, he was positively nuts!). Every time it is time to clean up, he starts crying, sometimes hysterical and moaning and groaning and thrashing around on the floor. It is all a little ridiculous. Even if everything is almost clean and there is just a bit to do, it is the same theatrics every time. Also whenever he wants to play video games. Or watch TV. Or look at a screen. Drives me crazy!!!
Also, every night at dinner, he starts the same moaning and groaning about "I hate it". It doesn't matter what it is - he will hate it. Or on the off chance that I make something he likes, he will be upset that he doesn't like the side dishes. He always moans "Why do you always make something I hate" which is always answered with "because you hate almost everything". It usually is met with some more rolling around on the floor and maybe a tantrum, though he usually ends up eating a bit at least. He always eats during the prayer and just can't sit still during dinner.
Lately he has started to be trouble at church ... I don't know if he is just getting the short end of the stick lately, but he seems to always want whatever Logan wants and they are fighting more than usual. At church, he wants whatever Logan is looking at. Then he will try to touch Noah when he isn't supposed to or otherwise cause trouble until he finally gives up and lies on the ground looking bored out of his mind.
Seth had his last soccer game of the season yesterday. He played well as usual, though not quite as fancy footwork since it was so cold. He got 2 goals, about typical for him. I think he probably has some of the best footwork of any of the kids we saw on the league. He just really gets soccer, much better than most of the other kids. He seems to reflexively know where to run and what to do. Even the other parents notice that Seth is a natural - of course, he loves to practice all the time, too. I just hope he never wants to do travel soccer - parks and rec is already exhausting enough for me! He got a little trophy. We just brought it into the house this evening and it already had its head knowcked off within an hour. Ahhh ... life in a house full of boys. Seth is already excited for the next sport - basketball which starts in a few weeks. He wants to do every sport as he is constantly telling me. New sports are always being added ... he says he needs to do gymnastics now! We'll see about that.
Seth really enjoyed hiking the mountain with Katsu. He is not a really great traveler, but I think all-in-all he enjoyed the trip. He is always in such a hurry that he practically ran up the mountain. Hopefully, it will be good memories for the two of them.
Seth went to his first play this month. He went and saw the Little Prince with Katsu and Andrew. I tried to read them it but we only got through a few chapters. It's hard to get in novel reading with a baby around. I did pick up the graphic novelization of it at the library and the boys read/looked through most of it. He really enjoyed it. They went up to shake hands with the characters at the end. Their next play is on Friday.
We also went and helped feed the homeless one Saturday in October. I hope to keep being able to do service days and find service I can do with the kids. Seth was great at handing out water and making friends with the other little boy there helping.
Fun Things This Month:
- lots of soccer games. Seth made lots of goals.
- general conference. We had candy for the key words.
- Trip to Asheville.
- Flu mist
- Greenville fall festival ... kind of a bust since everything cost money and I didn't bring any cash, but they got cotton candy and got to get fire hats and go on a bus.
- making Halloween cookies at home.
- first play - Little Prince.
- help feed the homeless at the park. We are going to start going each month.
- trunk or treat at church
- trick or treating at library
- fall fest
- halloween festivities at school - making cookies, counting and sorting candy ... sounded fun.
- neighborhood halloween party
- Halloween!!!!
Logan is 3 years old!
Today was Logan's birthday. We spent the weekend celebrating. On Saturday, we went to Seth's soccer game, then we came home and got ready for Logan's party. I really am out of energy (especially after all the Halloween festivities), so we wanted it to be really low key. Running around outside and eating some cake. Of course, the weather turned cold and windy and rainy yesterday, so we decided to be inside. And I only wanted to invite a few of his friends (plus, I never got around to inviting the kids from preschool), but then half of them didn't come.
So, the party was ... different, but it was fun. One little girl showed up half an hour early, another about 15 minutes late, and then the last little boy about an hour late or something. And one kid didn't end up coming. And apparently everyone was kind of cranky because of naps and stuff. But it ended up being fun. They played and then we played a few little games (duck, duck, goose; playing musical instruments; bubbles, etc). Then, we had cake. Logan for the last couple months said he wanted a pizza cake. So, I made him a cake that looked like a pizza. He really liked it. He got a toy motorcycle, car, book, and game. It was just the right size.
Today, we had cookies and ice cream after lunch (the rest of the cookies are going to preschool tomorrow) and he found the rest of the presents - we hid them to make it more fun. We got Logan a scooter and my parents got him Zingo. So, while Katsu put together the scooter, we played Zingo. Logan is really starting to get into games and it is fun. He has loved playing memory games and Candy Land lately, which is good. Sometimes, I only have patience to play games or read books to the kids. Playing just takes too much energy sometimes. Seth was freaking out because he didn't have a present to give to Logan, so he gave him the present the boys picked out for Noah when he was born.
Logan had a lot of fun for Halloween. Surprisingly, he stuck to one outfit the whole time - he dressed as a tiger. We went to the trunk or treat last week. Then, Tuesday we went to the library Trick or treating ... totally not worth it, but the boys' liked it. Then, Thursday they work costumes and went to the school's fall fest - why everything has to be this week, I have no idea! Logan enjoyed playing all the games, but it was sure crowded. And then a neighborhood party and then trick or treating. He sat next to his friend Lucy at the party and then loved going trick or treating. Katsu dropped him off because he was tired and then he sat on the porch and helped pass out candy. He loved doing it. When the other boys came back, Logan wanted to stay and pass out candy more than going trick or treating more. It was a fun evening and Logan loved all the candy!
Logan has really starting tantrumming and being difficult again. I guess it had to strike again sometimes. His tantrums always start with him wanting something "right now" and then it just devolves from there to hysterical crying. After a while ... like 20 minutes to an hour he calms down, but geez ... it is tiring. He also has become very difficult to dress, brush teeth, put on shoes. He just wants to run away. Logan also has like the huge gag reflex - always has - so it is so hard to brush his teeth or wash his face to begin with.
The rest of the time, he is pretty sweet. And he is a pretty helpful kid. The most likely to actually put things away and things like that. He is still loving preschool. He had his preschool party on Friday. He was crying when Katsu dropped him off because he thought I was going to preschool with him right then. But I did show up for the party and they ate their treats and it was pretty cute. He was excited for me to be there. I don't know how much he actually plays with the other kids, but he seems to enjoy it.
Fun Things This Month:
- lots of soccer games to watch. He loves to play soccer with Katsu on the sidelines and can't wait until he can play on a team, too.
- general conference. We had candy for the key words. Logan thought it was pretty fun.
- seeing a fire truck at preschool. Logan liked to look ... but didn't want to go on.
- Trip to Asheville.
- Flu mist
- Greenville fall festival ... kind of a bust since everything cost money and I didn't bring any cash, but they got cotton candy and got to get fire hats and go on a bus.
- make brownies together for our date
- help feed the homeless at the park. We are going to start going each month. Logan enjoyed handing out chips and drinks to the homeless.
- trunk or treat at church
- trick or treating at library
- fall fest
- neighborhood halloween party
- Halloween!!!!
So, the party was ... different, but it was fun. One little girl showed up half an hour early, another about 15 minutes late, and then the last little boy about an hour late or something. And one kid didn't end up coming. And apparently everyone was kind of cranky because of naps and stuff. But it ended up being fun. They played and then we played a few little games (duck, duck, goose; playing musical instruments; bubbles, etc). Then, we had cake. Logan for the last couple months said he wanted a pizza cake. So, I made him a cake that looked like a pizza. He really liked it. He got a toy motorcycle, car, book, and game. It was just the right size.
Today, we had cookies and ice cream after lunch (the rest of the cookies are going to preschool tomorrow) and he found the rest of the presents - we hid them to make it more fun. We got Logan a scooter and my parents got him Zingo. So, while Katsu put together the scooter, we played Zingo. Logan is really starting to get into games and it is fun. He has loved playing memory games and Candy Land lately, which is good. Sometimes, I only have patience to play games or read books to the kids. Playing just takes too much energy sometimes. Seth was freaking out because he didn't have a present to give to Logan, so he gave him the present the boys picked out for Noah when he was born.
Logan had a lot of fun for Halloween. Surprisingly, he stuck to one outfit the whole time - he dressed as a tiger. We went to the trunk or treat last week. Then, Tuesday we went to the library Trick or treating ... totally not worth it, but the boys' liked it. Then, Thursday they work costumes and went to the school's fall fest - why everything has to be this week, I have no idea! Logan enjoyed playing all the games, but it was sure crowded. And then a neighborhood party and then trick or treating. He sat next to his friend Lucy at the party and then loved going trick or treating. Katsu dropped him off because he was tired and then he sat on the porch and helped pass out candy. He loved doing it. When the other boys came back, Logan wanted to stay and pass out candy more than going trick or treating more. It was a fun evening and Logan loved all the candy!
Logan has really starting tantrumming and being difficult again. I guess it had to strike again sometimes. His tantrums always start with him wanting something "right now" and then it just devolves from there to hysterical crying. After a while ... like 20 minutes to an hour he calms down, but geez ... it is tiring. He also has become very difficult to dress, brush teeth, put on shoes. He just wants to run away. Logan also has like the huge gag reflex - always has - so it is so hard to brush his teeth or wash his face to begin with.
The rest of the time, he is pretty sweet. And he is a pretty helpful kid. The most likely to actually put things away and things like that. He is still loving preschool. He had his preschool party on Friday. He was crying when Katsu dropped him off because he thought I was going to preschool with him right then. But I did show up for the party and they ate their treats and it was pretty cute. He was excited for me to be there. I don't know how much he actually plays with the other kids, but he seems to enjoy it.
Fun Things This Month:
- lots of soccer games to watch. He loves to play soccer with Katsu on the sidelines and can't wait until he can play on a team, too.
- general conference. We had candy for the key words. Logan thought it was pretty fun.
- seeing a fire truck at preschool. Logan liked to look ... but didn't want to go on.
- Trip to Asheville.
- Flu mist
- Greenville fall festival ... kind of a bust since everything cost money and I didn't bring any cash, but they got cotton candy and got to get fire hats and go on a bus.
- make brownies together for our date
- help feed the homeless at the park. We are going to start going each month. Logan enjoyed handing out chips and drinks to the homeless.
- trunk or treat at church
- trick or treating at library
- fall fest
- neighborhood halloween party
- Halloween!!!!
Wednesday, October 22, 2014
Our Trip to the Appalachians - Sunday and Monday
Sunday morning was rainy and foggy, so we thought hiking, esp. high up in the mountains or by the water might be a little dicey with all the boys. So, we decided to drive to Asheville. We were originally thinking of going to see the Biltmore, but it looked so pricey (more than $50 / ticket), we just weren't sure it would be worth it with 4 boys to deal with. So we decided to head to the Nature Center. I vaguely remembered seeing it on the list of places we could go in NC with our aquarium pass. It was definitely worth it. It was about an hour drive to Asheville. We loved the beautiful scenery and listened to more of the Lightning Thief.
The Nature Center was really nicely done. They had a couple indoor exhibits with some smaller animals and then you could walk around the outside. They had bigger animals - black bears, deer, otters, wolves, etc. Animals that are native to the region. And the scenery is beautiful of course. The boys loved running around, seeing the animals, and playing on the playground equipment.
Next, we decided to try to drive by the Biltmore. But you can't really get close without buying a ticket. And the boys were hungry. So, we stopped by McDonalds. I mean, who needs to go to the Biltmore, when you can go to McDonald's next to the Biltmore. We should have brought the camera, but who brings in a camera to McD's. But seriously - the fanciest McD's I have ever seen. They had a grand player piano in one corner, a gilded ceiling, fancy wallpaper, and more. It's pretty neat, actually. So, that fulfilled our Biltmore lust.
The weather seemed like it wasn't going to pour out rain, so we decided to chance it and drive another 1.5 hours to Linville Falls and check out the caverns and then go hiking as time permits. We drove to Linville Falls. Seth spent the entire section whining about how he wanted to go home and watch Nick. Again, gorgeous scenery, but as soon as we got close, the fog was pretty dense. Then, we took some seriously steep roads down the mountain till we got to the caverns. We bought tickets and went on our tour. Noah's first cave! Now, the cave itself is pretty small and not super impressive, but it's the only show cavern in NC and boys always love caves. They had a few pretty formations and some cool stories. Halfway through, Seth decided he had to go to the bathroom and he had to go out and miss half the tour along with Katsu. He even missed seeing a cave salamander. The cave also had some resident fish ... they are stocked by the owners because the otters keep eating them. Noah got a little antsy by the end, so I had to take him out of his carrier and was dealing with 3 boys by myself! Good thing we all got out!
We still seemed to have time, so we decided to drive to the Falls and see how the hiking was. The exit is right off the Blue Ridge Parkway, so back up into the mountains. They said the hike was moderate, but we figured we would give it a try and see how it goes. It was actually a pretty easy hike - the only moderate part is really the last part going up and down the rock stairs to the waterfall viewing areas. A little nerve wracking with Logan. He also tripped a few times on the trip, but over all, they all did well. It was really pretty - pretty foggy - and just a perfect little hike for the family. The boys especially loved playing ninjas among some stumps while I nursed Noah.
Then, we drove home, had dinner, and relaxed in our last evening in the rental.
Monday morning, we picked up, packed up, and drove home. We decided to drive through Asheboro and stop at the zoo. The kids were a little grumpy, but we got out and saw some of the animals and it was a nice pit stop for the long drive home. The boys were sad that the Polar bears were again not on display and Andrew was upset we didn't have time to see everything, but we got to see some animals, have some treats as walked, and then drive back to Greenville. Logan still talks about how fun it was to have another house. We'll have to go on a little trip again soon.
The Nature Center was really nicely done. They had a couple indoor exhibits with some smaller animals and then you could walk around the outside. They had bigger animals - black bears, deer, otters, wolves, etc. Animals that are native to the region. And the scenery is beautiful of course. The boys loved running around, seeing the animals, and playing on the playground equipment.
Next, we decided to try to drive by the Biltmore. But you can't really get close without buying a ticket. And the boys were hungry. So, we stopped by McDonalds. I mean, who needs to go to the Biltmore, when you can go to McDonald's next to the Biltmore. We should have brought the camera, but who brings in a camera to McD's. But seriously - the fanciest McD's I have ever seen. They had a grand player piano in one corner, a gilded ceiling, fancy wallpaper, and more. It's pretty neat, actually. So, that fulfilled our Biltmore lust.
The weather seemed like it wasn't going to pour out rain, so we decided to chance it and drive another 1.5 hours to Linville Falls and check out the caverns and then go hiking as time permits. We drove to Linville Falls. Seth spent the entire section whining about how he wanted to go home and watch Nick. Again, gorgeous scenery, but as soon as we got close, the fog was pretty dense. Then, we took some seriously steep roads down the mountain till we got to the caverns. We bought tickets and went on our tour. Noah's first cave! Now, the cave itself is pretty small and not super impressive, but it's the only show cavern in NC and boys always love caves. They had a few pretty formations and some cool stories. Halfway through, Seth decided he had to go to the bathroom and he had to go out and miss half the tour along with Katsu. He even missed seeing a cave salamander. The cave also had some resident fish ... they are stocked by the owners because the otters keep eating them. Noah got a little antsy by the end, so I had to take him out of his carrier and was dealing with 3 boys by myself! Good thing we all got out!
We still seemed to have time, so we decided to drive to the Falls and see how the hiking was. The exit is right off the Blue Ridge Parkway, so back up into the mountains. They said the hike was moderate, but we figured we would give it a try and see how it goes. It was actually a pretty easy hike - the only moderate part is really the last part going up and down the rock stairs to the waterfall viewing areas. A little nerve wracking with Logan. He also tripped a few times on the trip, but over all, they all did well. It was really pretty - pretty foggy - and just a perfect little hike for the family. The boys especially loved playing ninjas among some stumps while I nursed Noah.
Then, we drove home, had dinner, and relaxed in our last evening in the rental.
Monday morning, we picked up, packed up, and drove home. We decided to drive through Asheboro and stop at the zoo. The kids were a little grumpy, but we got out and saw some of the animals and it was a nice pit stop for the long drive home. The boys were sad that the Polar bears were again not on display and Andrew was upset we didn't have time to see everything, but we got to see some animals, have some treats as walked, and then drive back to Greenville. Logan still talks about how fun it was to have another house. We'll have to go on a little trip again soon.
Noah is 3 months old!
Noah just seems like a little baby now - the newborn is all gone. He is a big little baby, though, I guess. I am sure he is still gaining weight well, though not quite as much as he did last month, I think. He is chunky, but seems a little less fat because he holds him head up well and you can almost see his neck some of the time!
Sleep - Noah is still not quite in a routine or schedule, but we are getting there. He is going to bed earlier - between 6:30 and 7:30. He gets fussy and tired in the evenings, but he's easy. You nurse him, swaddle him up, and put him to bed. He does like to do a long nursing right before going to bed, but it's no effort to get him to go to sleep. He is the first child I have had that likes his crib and prefers to sleep in it. And you can swaddle him in a blanket and lay him in his crib awake and as long as he is sleepy, he will go to sleep! I love it! Naps are kind of all over the place. Partially because we are never just at home, except sometimes Tues and Thur. But between church meetings, preschool, walking school bus, and soccer, we just aren't sitting at home for him to take naps. So, he takes two shortish naps in the morning / early afternoon and then he usually does get a longer nap in his crib from 2-5ish for 1.5 - 3 hours depending on the day. He really loves sleeping in his crib. One day, I tried to wake him up because it was 5:30 and I was afraid he wouldn't sleep later. He was so sad and just crying at being woken up.
Eating - not much to say - Noah nurses easily, about every 3 hours. At night, he wakes up usually once around 3 or 4 and then goes right back to sleep. Easy.
Habits - Noah still likes to suck on his fingers and does it quite a bit. Thinking it will probably stick, but we'll have to see. He loves to laugh. He likes to be talked to and talks back and will smile and laugh a lot. He just seems to be a pretty happy baby. He really likes to watch the boys when they are interacting with him. He loves being with Katsu. He likes to be sung to (he really likes Head Shoulders Knees and Toes with me). I swear, today he even made a note on pitch with what I was singing - weird. He likes when you dance with him. He is not a fan of sudden movements or being held up high, but if it's not too high, he will smile. He raises his eyebrows and likes when you do it to him. He learned how to make a raspberry sound today and was trying that out quite a bit.
Noah really is a chill little baby. He likes to be attended to quickly. He is not a huge fan of driving - especially stopping or really long car rides, but he did well on our trip. Although now I think he is a little more antsy in the car. He likes to be outside and watching the boys. He will sit in his swing and watch the mobile or look at his reflection, but doesn't particularly like swinging. He likes to hit the squeaky toy on his play mat and likes to try to hit things with his arms. He enjoys being held while I read stories to the boys (or sometimes we remember to pull out board books for him) ... as long as it doesn't take too long.
I still think he looks like me.
He started going to the preschool on Friday mornings from 9-11:30ish while I am teaching my lab and having office hours. He takes a bottle that I pump and is a chill happy guy. He usually takes a nap when he is there, too. The ladies in the baby room LOVE him. They think he is super cute and sweet and said I should bring him more days a week - not going to do that, but I'm glad that they like him and he seems to be fine with it. I am hoping this will help reduce separation anxiety in the future which was so limiting with the other kids.
He took his first trip to the Appalachians this month and did really well. The car ride home was a little difficult. But he slept well on the trip in the pack and play which was amazing to me. I have a feeling he will be hard to travel with, though, just because he much prefers sleeping in his crib to in a carrier or stroller or car seat or one my shoulder. We'll see though ...
Sleep - Noah is still not quite in a routine or schedule, but we are getting there. He is going to bed earlier - between 6:30 and 7:30. He gets fussy and tired in the evenings, but he's easy. You nurse him, swaddle him up, and put him to bed. He does like to do a long nursing right before going to bed, but it's no effort to get him to go to sleep. He is the first child I have had that likes his crib and prefers to sleep in it. And you can swaddle him in a blanket and lay him in his crib awake and as long as he is sleepy, he will go to sleep! I love it! Naps are kind of all over the place. Partially because we are never just at home, except sometimes Tues and Thur. But between church meetings, preschool, walking school bus, and soccer, we just aren't sitting at home for him to take naps. So, he takes two shortish naps in the morning / early afternoon and then he usually does get a longer nap in his crib from 2-5ish for 1.5 - 3 hours depending on the day. He really loves sleeping in his crib. One day, I tried to wake him up because it was 5:30 and I was afraid he wouldn't sleep later. He was so sad and just crying at being woken up.
Eating - not much to say - Noah nurses easily, about every 3 hours. At night, he wakes up usually once around 3 or 4 and then goes right back to sleep. Easy.
Habits - Noah still likes to suck on his fingers and does it quite a bit. Thinking it will probably stick, but we'll have to see. He loves to laugh. He likes to be talked to and talks back and will smile and laugh a lot. He just seems to be a pretty happy baby. He really likes to watch the boys when they are interacting with him. He loves being with Katsu. He likes to be sung to (he really likes Head Shoulders Knees and Toes with me). I swear, today he even made a note on pitch with what I was singing - weird. He likes when you dance with him. He is not a fan of sudden movements or being held up high, but if it's not too high, he will smile. He raises his eyebrows and likes when you do it to him. He learned how to make a raspberry sound today and was trying that out quite a bit.
Noah really is a chill little baby. He likes to be attended to quickly. He is not a huge fan of driving - especially stopping or really long car rides, but he did well on our trip. Although now I think he is a little more antsy in the car. He likes to be outside and watching the boys. He will sit in his swing and watch the mobile or look at his reflection, but doesn't particularly like swinging. He likes to hit the squeaky toy on his play mat and likes to try to hit things with his arms. He enjoys being held while I read stories to the boys (or sometimes we remember to pull out board books for him) ... as long as it doesn't take too long.
I still think he looks like me.
He started going to the preschool on Friday mornings from 9-11:30ish while I am teaching my lab and having office hours. He takes a bottle that I pump and is a chill happy guy. He usually takes a nap when he is there, too. The ladies in the baby room LOVE him. They think he is super cute and sweet and said I should bring him more days a week - not going to do that, but I'm glad that they like him and he seems to be fine with it. I am hoping this will help reduce separation anxiety in the future which was so limiting with the other kids.
He took his first trip to the Appalachians this month and did really well. The car ride home was a little difficult. But he slept well on the trip in the pack and play which was amazing to me. I have a feeling he will be hard to travel with, though, just because he much prefers sleeping in his crib to in a carrier or stroller or car seat or one my shoulder. We'll see though ...
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