Bottles and Potty Training

Tony has been working with Josh on holding his own bottle. I think that he is way too young and that it isn't that big of deal, but Tony likes to do it. He got him to hold it once during a feeding with lots of Tony's help, but it sure was cute. Tony was a very proud papa when it happened. He is so funny about stuff like that.

We got to enjoy an extra long weekend with us all at home. It was nice just hanging out with Tony home and doing some light shopping. Tony has an extra busy week this week so that has kind of sucked. He has to work Friday and Saturday too, so I am not too happy about that. But it might only be a couple hours each day, so that isn't that bad. Plus we could really use the extra money right now.

Tyler has been an extra big pill lately. He is really struggling to listen to me when I tell him what to do and he loves to drive me nuts. We tried to potty train him a little on Saturday, but it turned out to be a bust and we saw just how stubborn Tyler can be. I guess I should probably do a little bit more research about potty training and what might work best for us. If anyone has any tips, hint, or suggestions about potty training my ears are wide open for help!

4 month old baby

Time sure does go by fast, Josh is already 4 months old. He had is appointment yesterday and seems to be doing really well. Here are his stats:

Weight: 15 pounds 9 ounces (65%)
Height: 24 3/4 inches (46%)
Head Circumference: 41.2 centimeters (24%)

His doctor says that he looks really good and that I have nothing to worry about. That is always a good thing to hear from a doctor. I really like is doctor. She has a couple young boys too, so I know that the advice that she gives is what her herself would do, so that is nice to know.

While I took Josh to the doctors, I had Tyler go to a neighbors house. She has two boys, 4 and almost 2, and Tyler really liked playing over there. He plays best with kids that are not his exact age. So him and the 4 year old, Gage, played really well. Tyler likes to dominate boys his age and play games that he likes to play, even if they don't want to. So that can be hard sometimes. But since he played so well with Gage, I think that we will have to have more play dates with them. As a bonus, I have a good time chatting with the mom, Bronwin, so that is just a good time for everyone.

Gotta love the 'Sandlot'

Tyler's new love is the movie 'Sandlot.' He loves baseball and kids, so it is a good combination for him. For the most part it is a good show and I don't mind that he likes it so much, until he starts saying "Oh Shi*" which is what they say on the show. Of course Tyler doesn't know what that means and it sounds like he is saying "Oh Ship," but still not the best thing for him to be saying. So I don't like that part. Sometimes he'll say the "L-7 Weenie" part, but that is just funny.
He also likes watching the movie 'Everyone's Hero' which is another baseball movie, but that one is animated and meant for younger kids. It is pretty good. He has been sleeping with either is baseball bat or his mitt, or both. Baseball is definitely his new obsession. The picture above is of Josh and Tyler watching 'Sandlot' and eating popcorn. I thought it was so cute when I went in and saw that Tyler sat right by Josh to eat his popcorn and watch his show. What a good brother.

Family is the best

On Thursday my cousin Brandy and her boys came over for the day and hung out with us while they were in town from Boise. It was fun to be able to sit and talk with her and let all the boys (6 total) play so well with each other - okay Josh didn't do much playing. Tyler loved having the boys over and having friends to play with and I loved having someone fun to chat with for a couple hours. Later that day her husband joined the fun and they brought over dinner and we had some more fun. It is nice to get advice from her because she has four boys, she knows a lot about little boys and stuff like potty training. It is always fun to be with them and can't wait until we can see them again.
On Saturday we went over to Tony's parents house for a birthday party for our nephew Matt. He turned one this past week and we all went over to celebrate. It was really nice to see Tony's brother and his family who live in Logan that we don't get to see very often. I also got to chat with Tony's sister, Suzanne, for a while and that was really nice because she too has a lot of good advice about kids (she has four) and to be able to get to know her a little better. I have been part of their family for a while now, but I don't feel like I really get to have tons of fun conversations like that with his sister, so it was really nice. Her husband is being deployed in the summer, so things are a little unpredictable right now for their family.
Later that day Tony's mom took some of us girls to go and see the movie "Blind Side." It was really good and we had fun just us girls. Then Teagan was in a play so I went and saw that with my family. Tony "sacrificed" for the family and stayed home with the boys. Teagan did a good job and it was fun to hang our with the fam. We even went and got some ice cream after at Leatherby's. It always reminds me of all the fun times we had there in high school. Got to love Leatherby's and families!

What an emotional day

I have been having a rough day today, really a rough week. I don't know if it is just because Tony is working evenings this week, the lack of sleep that I have been getting, or just because I am a dumb emotional girl.
It is no secret that I hate it when Tony works the evening shift. There is something about being home at nights with just the boys that makes me so lonely. It is kind of weird being with two other little people, but yet still feeling so alone. I really shouldn't complain because it could be so much worse, but yet it is still so hard sometimes.
Then Tyler has been a terrible sleeper lately. He wakes up two or three times a night calling for me. I go in there and calm him down until he goes back to sleep. I almost feel like I did when we were waking up to feed Josh three times a night. Josh is a great sleeper and sleeps through the night, so that is a huge blessing. Now if he can teach Tyler. I think part of the problem is that Tyler likes me to be in with him when he goes to sleep at night, so when he wakes up during the night and doesn't find me, then he calls for me. I might need to do something about him falling asleep with me every night. But what? I don't really want to just lock him in his room and say "go to sleep." I guess I figure that he won't want me with him so much when he is older and so I should enjoy the one-on-one time that I get at nights while he is trying to go to sleep. But, it isn't good if it results in him needed me to fall back to sleep during the nights.
Then to top all this all off I have been concerned about my health and the things that I need to do to be more healthy. I want something that will work as part of my life style, not just a fad diet or anything extreme. I just need to find what is going to motivate me and work for me and my family. Wish me luck.

Happy New Year!

It is now 2010, I can't believe it. We had a pretty low key new years holiday. On New Years Eve we had some friends from our ward over, Jake, Marissa, and their cute baby Bell.  We ate some dinner and then played some games on the Wii. It was lots of fun and we really love hanging out with them. They went home about eight and then we put the boys to bed at about nine and then we went to bed after that. We are party animals.
Then on New Years day we just hung out and went to Walmart (so much fun). Then we have pretty much just been hanging out. We went over to my parents on Saturday so that Tony could try and fix my dad's computer. Then we took the boys home to take naps and me and my cousin Robin went and did some shopping. It was nice to just hang out with Robin and do some shopping without the kids. We had a good time.
Overall, it has been a fun weekend and I am really sad that it is over and now it is back to the work week. Tony works nights this week and I am really bummed about that. I did just find out that my other cousin is coming to town tomorrow, so that should be fun. Maybe that will keep me from going crazy. Lets hope so, I hate going crazy.

Happy Holidays

We had a pretty good Christmas this year. Tyler was excited about Santa and about getting presents, so that was fun to see his excitement. On Christmas Eve we went and saw The Princess and the Frog with my family. Tyler did a pretty good job during the movie. We haven't taken him to a movie for like over a year, so we weren't sure how well he would do, but he did good. He liked sitting in the isle and dancing, but besides that he did good. Josh even did good. He starting out sleeping in his car seat, but then after like 10 minutes he woke up and then was awake for the whole thing. He must have liked seeing all the colors from the show. Maybe we could do that again sometime soon.
After the movie we went to my parents house and had a yummy Christmas dinner. My mom decided that she doesn't like cooking all day on Christmas, so now we eat our dinner on Christmas Eve. It works out pretty nice. After dinner we went over to Tony's parents house for the Kresser Family party. We got to see lots of Tony's extended family and eat some more yummy food. After dinner the kids had a gift exchange. Tyler liked his present so much that he carried it around all night and we opened it as soon as we got home that night. Then we had an adult white elephant game that was way fun. Their was lots of stealing and that made it fun. I got a head pillow and Tony got a table baseball game thing. So pretty good stuff. After the extended family left, Tony's mom gave the kids some pajama's to wear for the night. So we changed both boys and they really liked the pajama's. Then we went home and Tyler played with his new basketball hoop toy and loved it.
Then we put the boys to bed and then Santa came that night. When Tyler woke up in the morning Tony asked him if Santa came, and he got really excited and said, "Santa came." Then he started grabbing presents and we had to stop him so that we could look for names on the gifts. He opened his presents and really seemed to like them all. It was fun to see his cute face opening the gifts. Then we watched Curious George "Monkey Christmas" while Tyler played with his toys. After that was over we got ready to go over to my parents house. My parents had some fun gifts for the boys and for us and then we had some yummy food. Tyler got more tools and just loves them. After we were there for a couple of hours we went over to Tony's parents and spent some time there. They got us a Wii and the boys some Church cloths and toys. We also got some fun cookie making supplies. It was fun hanging out with them and seeing what everyone got. The kids all seemed to like their gifts and were really happy. Grandma did good.
Then we all went over to Tony's grandpa's house to see him and his wife. The boys had fallen asleep in the car, so I stayed in the car so that they could sleep some more. After Tony was there for about 30 minutes he came back and we went home. Tyler was really anxious to go home and play with his new tent and other toys. It was a busy and fun day. We are so grateful for all that we have been given and all that we were able to give. I am so glad that we live close to both of our families and that we can spend time with both of them each holiday. We are so lucky and blessed!

Parties are fun

Yesterday we had our first annual Willis Family Christmas Party. It was lots of fun. We all met at my parents house and had some food and then played a white elephant game. It was an especially fun game this time because lots of people stole presents from others and that always makes it more fun. I was nice to see some cousins and to have my grandpa and his wife in town. I hope that this is something that we can continue to do every year at Christmas time.

On Saturday we had our annual friend Christmas party. It was lots of fun too. Heather hosted the party at her house this year and did a great job. Their were about 16 of us this year and most people left their kids with sitters, so it was nice to be able to chat and not worry about kids running around. We ate some good food and played the white elephant game there too. It wasn't as fun because no one really stole from others. I guess that means that we need to bring better gifts next year. It is always nice to have this party every year so that we can see friends from high school and find out what everyone is doing.

I am going to get my hair cut today and I am very excited about that. It is just too long and it is driving me nuts. Plus my hair is falling out from the pregnancy and it is just annoying finding long hairs everywhere, so I am going to have her cut a couple inches off at least. I am also going to have her put in low lights so that I can start going back to my natural color (whatever that is -- it has been a long time since I have seen it). I hope that I like it and then can stop highlighting my hair and just go natural. I guess we shall see.

The Bumbo is funbo...

We have been wanting to get Josh a Bumbo for a while now because he just loves to sit up. He has been holding his head up pretty good for a while, so have been looking on KSL Classified to see if we could buy a used one. A new one is like $40 and we got a used one for $20. It is in good condition, so we are happy with it...and so is Josh. He looks so big when he is in there. He's is just three months old, so he doesn't stay in it for very long. But it is nice to put him in there so that he can see everyone and be able to get things done.
I gave him one of Tyler's wrenches to hold and he did really good holding it for a while. They grow and learn so quickly. I guess it is time to pull out the baby toys.
Tyler has really been enjoying the Christmas season. He loves the Christmas tree and seeing all the lights. He really loved going with Tony to hand out our neighbor gifts. He told all of them Merry Christmas and then came back and wanted to do more. I was very glad that he liked to give gifts and not just receive them. He is such a sweet and awesome kid - now if he would just listen a little better he would be perfect. It keeps me humble, that is for sure. It will be really fun to see Tyler's face on Christmas morning and see him enjoying his gifts. I think that I will take Tyler to go and pick out a gift for Josh from Tyler so that he continues to learn about giving. A very important message, especially this time of year.

Family fun

We went and got our family pictures taken at Sears the other day. Josh did a really good job and we got this really cute picture. Tyler, however, did not do well and we only got one not so good picture of the family. So we had to take what we had and Tyler just looks like he is misbehaving in the picture, the rest of us look pretty good I think. The really sad part is that we didn't get any pictures with Tyler and Josh or with just Tyler. So that really sucked. Tyler just would not have any of it and just cried. I was not very happy with him, but there was nothing that we could do to get him to take a good picture. Maybe next year he will do better.

It is currently snowing and it is really pretty. I really do love the snow. I totally think that if it is going to be cold, which is has been freezing, then it might as well snow. Tyler really likes the snow too. I can totally see him loving skiing and snowmobiling. Really anything outside, he just loves. I am glad that he is a happy active kid.

We went to my parents ward's Christmas party last night and had a good time. Tyler was really excited to see Santa, but then when it was his turn to sit on his lap, he didn't want anything to do with him. He wouldn't even look at him. Once again Josh did a really good job and sat with Santa nicely. I found out later that Santa was my friend Blaine from high school. Funny thing to think about. It was nice to see old faces and a lot of new ones. I figure I will always be an 11th warder, so we can go and eat their food and enjoy time with the family.

The other night we put Josh in the corner of the couch to sit up and hang out and then I noticed him leaning so I looked a little closer and I found that he had fallen asleep. So cute. He is a pretty good sleeper for the most part. I didn't used to swaddle him and he wasn't the best sleeper, but then I listened to some friends and have found that he really likes to be swaddled, especially at night. He still wakes two times a night to eat, generally about 2:30 am and about 6:00 am. Sometimes he will go to 6:30 or 7:00, so that would be nice if we just had the one feeding. We will have to work on that.